Inspirational quotes are my go-to when I need a bit of motivation to get my butt off the couch and to start planning. The toughest part of traveling is getting started by making those plans early on amid hectic days of grinding work and demands on your personal life. While there are tons of inspirational quotes, the ones that resonate most are those that inspire me to travel and open my mind to discovering and learning new things….
Back then, before we knew what the word COVID meant and the disruption that it caused the world, I had taken a 12-day road trip through La Costa del Sol (Coast of the Sun or Sun Coast) a region in the south of Spain comprising of coastal towns and communities along the coastline. We visited eight cities….loving its people, its culture, and its history. I plan to go back to Spain and travel to the northern side of this awe-inspiring country in the near future. If you are interested in traveling to Spain, here are my favorite places with tips and photos to hopefully inspire you to GO soon….
Surprised to learn that The New York Times after 17 years is no longer the sponsor of this iconic travel show that is so much a part of the industry. A sign of how the global pandemic has impacted the travel industry faced with back-to-back years of a downturn economy trying to recover. No surprise that the show has plenty of sponsors who want to carry on with what attracts over 30,000 attendees every year. This year’s show was scheduled in March instead of January when folks generally are planning their travels. Needless to say, COVID has broken many routines in our lives that we are adjusting to with more to come. …
It’s going on four years since we all heard the devastating news of Anthony Bourdain’s suicide. So many of us who watched Anthony’s show inspired by his unique talents and love of travel would have never guessed that he was that unhappy and in that much pain. Director Morgan Neville helps us understand the uniqueness of this amazing storyteller and how things began to spiral out of control. How fame, money and freedom for some folks can be unmanageable, overly consuming and a path toward darkness.
Now that Omicron it’s on its way out, countries are loosening their travel restrictions as they gradually recover from the pandemic. For some countries, tourism represents over 30% of their gross domestic product. Commercial ads are working overtime to incite you to book something soon. How about Greece? In 2018, I went island-hopping to four of Greece’s majestic islands. Frankly, I yearn to go back and visit the ones I missed. Are you itching to travel this spring and summer? If so, here are my picks with tips and photos to hopefully inspire you to GO (this year or any year).
January is practically gone and COVID is still dominating the news and affecting our plans to resume a normal life. Omicron, while slightly peaking in some states and countries, has limited all forms of travel both domestically and internationally with new confusing restrictions. We are all itching to jump on a plane to leave behind our homes and away from freezing weather. In the northeast, we have been consistently experiencing below 20-degree temperatures. The month of February can be just as tough, causing cabin fever among many of us who yearn for a warm, breezy sunset on a beach…
Last leg of a 10-day road trip through California coastline arriving at the state’s most quintessential city.
Next and final stop is the quintessential city of San Francisco. A city where the contrast between the rich and the poor is exacerbated by the growing housing crisis and, more recently, the pandemic. Yet it is a romantically alluring city with so many distinctive iconic landmarks to revel in. There is so much to see when visiting this city, beginning with the Golden Gate Bridge to the popular Alcatraz Island. The architecture of the city is just truly exquisite, stylish and diverse. It represents a combination of Victorian homes of every type from gorgeous Queen Anne styles to Gothic and Tudor Rival structures, including some very cool contemporary modern architecture.
Third leg of a 10-day road trip through the California coastline exploring this country’s most beautiful wine scenery from Mendocino to Sonoma to Napa Valley, known worldwide as US premier wine-growing region. Leaving Fort Bragg away from the coastline, going south, the landscape drastically changes from that of just miles of astonishing redwoods to thousands of acres of vineyards on rolling hills. These vineyards are nicely organized in rows spread out over the mountainous terrain. Once you leave Mendocino County and enter Sonoma County, the landscape intensifies with miles of farms and vineyards adorned with beautiful Spanish and Mediterranean architecture designed for outdoor living and farm-to-table eating.
The Holidays are here and it’s time again for gift giving to family, friends, and colleagues whose love and friendship are part of a special bond. Gift giving is a wonderful way to celebrate life, love, and friendship by demonstrating your appreciation of each other. However,
shopping for gifts may not always be as pleasurable when dealing with the craziness of retail malls, online shipping, and indecision. We curated the following list of gifts under $50 to help reduce the stress that comes with shopping. There is something here for just about every interest, whether they love books, clothes, wine, travel, or much-needed gadgets to get through the day…
The second leg of a 10-day road trip in Northern California through Mendocino County but not before experiencing the ruggedness of Northern California mountains and volcanic geography. We became slightly confused as we drove through roads less traveled, surrounded by thick woods and soaring mountains with very few homes or humans to see……