I’ve spent plenty of time over the years on or around Bangkok’s Chao Phraya River, its banks lined with historic buildings, hotels, temples, and restaurants, and its waters a thoroughfare for commuting ferries and barge traffic—so much to explore and ideal for a sundowner at a bar. But I’d never been to its final destination,…
From Lawyer to Island Hopper: A Writer in Paradise
I know what you’re thinking. How did a seventh-generation attorney from Athens, Georgia, wind up writing fiction while kicking around the Caribbean on a boat? Like most things with me, it’s a long story, and there are twists and turns. Let’s just say I set out looking for a perfect coral reef, and along the…
Boondocks and Backroads: Costa Rica Off the Beaten Track
Emerging from the cocoon of a global pandemic, it would stand to reason that as fear dissipates, we may wonder what to do with “our one wild and precious life.” Like learning to walk again, it will take time to kick off the restraints that have held us steadfast to news on blast. But to…
Hidden Istanbul: How to Leave the Tourist Trail and Get Lost in this Vast City
The fare was only a couple of coins, but they carried me to a whole other continent. Behind me, just a memory, were the famous spires and domes of Topkapi Palace and Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, packed to the gunnels with tourists. But here on the Asian side—called Anatolia, by locals—was a little…
St. Louis Surprises
St. Louis has seen better days, but as I learned during a recent visit, the first American city west of the Mississippi River punches well above its weight with world-class attractions. My visit started in Forest Park at the St. Louis Art Museum. The museum’s main building, designed by architect Cass Gilbert in the then-fashionable…
Days of Wine and Oysters in Paso Robles
By current count, there are more than 300 wineries in and around Paso Robles, California. Some, like Austin Hope, can trace their roots back to the 1970s winemaking renaissance in Napa and Sonoma. But others, like McPrice “Mac” Myers and Susan A. Mahler, are shaking things up and taking their industry in exciting new directions….
Fun in the Water and on Land at Great Wolf Lodge
“You want me to get on that and go down to where?” I wailed from high atop the Alberta Falls waterslide, looking down to an alleged pool that was well out of visual range. My 11-year-old granddaughter nodded with a look of both consternation and resignation that I tried very hard to take in stride….
Kids Join the Fun at Family-Friendly Wineries
Wine-tasting has traditionally been for adults only; however, with the demand for outdoor activities currently much higher, a few California wineries are now opening their doors to families, with some even allowing pets. One of the world’s most beautiful wine regions is expanding its range of experiences from being a traditional grown-up pastime to one…
Monteverde Cloud Forest Is the Star of a Costa Rican Tour
The last 18 miles of the road leading to the Monteverde Cloud Forest in Costa Rica, full of ruts and potholes by design, takes more than an hour and a half to navigate, and the locals like it that way. They choose not to fix it because it would be too easy for tourists to…
Desert Beauty: A Weekend in Palm Springs
“You’re not afraid of snakes, are you?” asked Mike, our guide with Desert Adventures Eco-Tours. “We just might see some today.” I shook my head no, but kept my eyes peeled on the scene ahead. We were in a red Jeep, bumping along a dusty dirt road on Metate Ranch, an 800-acre private preserve in…
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