Author: thesun

  • Palapas Ventana: Another Superlative Stay

    Palapas Ventana: Another Superlative Stay

    Of the many random encounters I’ve had on my many voyages, few were as good fortune as running into the proprietor of Palapas Ventana during one of my visits to La Paz, the largest city in southern Baja. He was going out some place that I was going in, and…

  • Reasons to Buy, not Barter

    Reasons to Buy, not Barter

    Tourists often worry that they will be ripped off the moment they arrive somewhere. Scammed. Taken for a ride. For the sole reason that they’re terrified of being a “gullible” tourist. They proceed to haggle at any and all opportunities, regardless of whether the store or vendor has set prices,…

  • The Value of Being Friendly

    The Value of Being Friendly

    It doesn’t take a lot to be nice to the people around you, yet somehow many of us find it easier to be otherwise. Here’s a story of how my friendliness actually saved me from a pretty scary situation, and I think it’s a great lesson for travelers: Treat those…

  • Whale Watching on Cape Cod: What Everyone Should Know

    Whale Watching on Cape Cod: What Everyone Should Know

    I’ve been whale watching more than 50 times. Watching these gentle giants is one of the world’s best kept secrets, something many people young and old dream about adding to their bucket list. Keep reading for some of the most important things anyone interested in whale watching should know. 1.…

  • Delicious Dining at 28 Atlantic

    Delicious Dining at 28 Atlantic

    28 Atlantic, the premier restaurant at Wequasset Resort & Golf Club, is not a place you’d want to dine every day, because the food is just too special. As is the elegance. As is the view. Come here when you’re ready to celebrate something truly special: An anniversary, a birthday,…

  • Do You Know When to Eat Oysters?

    Do You Know When to Eat Oysters?

    In truth, there’s never a bad time to eat oysters, and by “oysters” I’m not talking fried, poached, or broiled. I’m talking those salty, delectable morsels served up on the half shell, plain or with lemon or with cocktail sauce. Few treats are as delectable. Legend says they’re not just…

  • Refined Cape Cod Luxury at the Wequassett Resort

    Refined Cape Cod Luxury at the Wequassett Resort

    Shingles, seagulls, salt, and sand: these are the things that define a visit to the Cape and somehow the Wequassett Resort & Golf Club manages to encompass all of these while adding a refinement and luxury that sets it apart from the competition. The gorgeous views of the sandbars and…

  • The wait is over: Celadon, my second novel, hits bookstores today!

    The wait is over: Celadon, my second novel, hits bookstores today!

    I can’t believe it took this long to get here, but those of you clamoring for a sequel to Sunsets of Tulum can breathe easy now. Celadon is here. It’s not a sequel per se, but if my debut novel explored what happens when someone always on the sidelines of…

  • Orangutans in Borneo (Kalimantan)

    Orangutans in Borneo (Kalimantan)

    Camp Leakey and the Rimba Lodge Everyone remembers where they were when Covid hit. In my case, I was in the forests of Borneo, the Indonesian section, known as Kalimantan. I’d wanted to go there since college, when I read Eric Hansen’s fascinating account, Stranger in the Forest: On Foot…

  • Kawah Ijen: Indonesia’s Crater of Blue Fire

    Kawah Ijen: Indonesia’s Crater of Blue Fire

    last year, when as (bad) luck would have it, the day I landed in Surabaya, Kawah Ijen crater erupted, spewing toxic fumes so intense they killed the entire riparian ecosystem in and around the crater. Officials closed it to all human entry (not even the sulfur miners were allowed to…