Our hectic pace of life takes its toll on our physical and emotional health, so when it’s vacation time, why not consider a trip that’s part of the Slow Cities movement.  The movement, started by the Italians in the 1990’s, is a way of protecting traditions and traditional ways of living.  You remember those – before gadgets and communications systems demanded that we be available 24/7?
Slow Travel gives you an opportunity to connect to a place and its people, rather than racing through a bunch of cities.  It’s about experiencing culture and heritage, not just about finding the nearest fast …read more

This summer was my second trip to Italy, and while some of the familiar things from last year were incorporated in to the journey, it was important to me to add on some new experiences as well.  I knew our intrepid group would be flying into Milan, and then three of us would have a few days that weren’t otherwise booked, before heading to Tuscany to pick up our fourth traveling companion.  We were up for anything, but the planning was going to fall to me.
I started mapping out what was do-able from Milan, and would still allow us to …read more

For most of my life I spent Thanksgiving with one family member or another (or all of them), eating a huge turkey dinner, listening to football-related yelling, and navigating the delicate balance between family arguments and peaceful co-existence.  If that sounds familiar, and the thought of spending another holiday like that is truly painful, consider taking a Thanksgiving vacation this year.
And I’m not talking about a vacation to go visit family – I’m talking about a real vacation – for everyone!
I first tried the holiday vacation plan nearly 10 years ago, and while I don’t do it every year, it’s …read more

If you had asked me to list my must-see vacation spots, Bosnia-Herzegovina wouldn’t have been in the top 10.  Truth told, it probably wouldn’t have made the top 50. 
Bosnia-Herzegovina was formerly part of Yugoslavia, and became an independent country in the breakup of the latter country.  While the country is predominantly a mountainous one, it has a very small spot of land that is along the coast of the Adriatic Sea.  It was that small bit of coastline where I found myself about a week ago.

This wasn’t my final destination, I was merely passing through these few miles …read more

I’m traveling in Europe for a bit, and spent an enjoyable few days at Lake Maggiore.  While I’ll have more in depth posts after I return home and have a chance to marshal my thoughts, I’ll be posting a few photos and quick thoughts from the road.
Lake Maggiore isn’t the largest of the Italian Lakes, but it is the longest, stretching about 40 miles from Sesto Calende at the Italian end to Magadino at the Swiss end.  The east side of the lake is in the Lombardy region and the west in Piedmonte.  The lake area is considered pre-Alp, and …read more

A few weeks ago, I twittered about an upcoming trip to Croatia.  I’ve never been, and I was just putting the word out, hoping that one of my travel blogging friends, or soon to be friend, might have some information that would help me make some travel decisions.
I very quickly had a bunch of responses.  Some from people that I knew and some from strangers.  All were passing along information or a referral, and all were most helpful.
Eventually I connected with Peter Czinkan, from On the Globe.  Peter is a tour organizer, guide and event planner, whose geographic areas of …read more