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Spectacular Stay at the Adler Spa Resort DOLOMITI
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When one spends as many nights in hotels as I do, it’s rare to stay in a place that has every last detail done right, even better when that stay is in a UNESCO-listed area where breathtaking views are visible from every window (even from the plane!). The Adler Spa…
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Mystical Miyajima’s Torii: Tips for Visiting The Floating Shrine Gate
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Few sights are as iconic of Japan as the famous “Floating” shrine gate (known as torii) of Miyajima (Itsukushima Shrine, 厳島神社). There’s just something unimaginably perfect about the color, the water, the serenity, and the symbolism. For many visitors to Japan it’s a must-see, but keep these following tips in…
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Happy Halloween: How to Visit Yucatán’s Incredible Bat Tornado (Volcano).
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It’s Halloween, Day of the Dead, and (tomorrow) Día de los Muertos. All over Mexico (and even many other parts of the world), Catrinas (those delightful white skull faces, often elaborately colored and bejeweled) appear, the candy baskets are filled, costumes are worn. In so many ways Halloween is my…
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The Magic of Masa: Corn Tortilla Recipe and More
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Anyone who has been to Mexico comes back in love with the food, and few things are more Mexican than a fresh corn tortilla, hot off the griddle, ideally hecho a mano (made by hand). Fresh, they’re delicious just on their own, but their versatility — like pastas of Italy…
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Chasing Aurora Borealis: Experiencing Ethereal Beauty of the Northern Lights
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My entire life I’ve longed (who hasn’t?) to see the Aurora Borealis. I even named a character in a novel “Aurora” initially, until other fictional needs required the imagery to change to something else. Growing up on Cape Cod I always thought of them as a treat reserved only for…
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Chichen Itza: 5 Tips for (not?) Visiting
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The moment people start thinking of a trip to Cancún, Yucatán, or even Mexico, friends and family start asking if you’ll be visiting Chichen Itza, arguably the most famous Maya ruin in the world. (Read to the end for my most important tip!) Rediscovered in 1841 by famed explorers Stephens…
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Unbelievable, Otherworldly: Photographing a Total Eclipse of the Sun
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I’ve been lucky enough to see several partial solar eclipses in my lifetime, and lunar eclipses as well. But nothing prepared me for how otherworldly the total eclipse of April 8th was, and in some ways, I’m still processing it. It took a lot of planning to get there, and…
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Incredible Iguazú: What Everyone Should Know in 2024.
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Of all the places I’ve been, those with waterfalls impress me the most. I think one day, science will prove that there’s verifiable therapy when water rushes down through space to splash on rocks. Air ionization or something. Whether its a lone ribbon of spray cascading down a jungle cliff…
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Nyepi: Bali’s “Silent Day”
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It almost sounds like a stand-up comedian’s joke, but it isn’t. Balinese are very serious about doing nothing during the Nyepi holiday, or “Silent Day.” They take it so seriously that people have been known to be arrested — even deported — for walking outside or camping during this sacred…
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The Natura Villa, in Ubud, Bali
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One of the many delights of traveling is the chance to experience customs and cultures that are very different from your own. I’ve been to many parts of Indonesia, but this visit to Ubud, Bali, had some delightful, fascinating surprises. I’ll talk about the wild festival of Nyepi and the…
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Tikal’s Sunrise Tour: Is it Worth It? Know Before You Go.
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Tikal, the incredible Maya city buried deep in central Guatemala is almost as shrouded in mystery today as it was when it was first rediscovered after being reclaimed by the jungle centuries after it was abandoned by the enigmatic culture who lived there: the Maya. Why they left, why their…
