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European Walking Tours

There’s nothing I enjoy more than ditching a diet prior to leaving on vacation. And what better way to gorge on regional delicacies and not have to deal with the guilt (or extra calories) that comes with doing so than by taking part in a walking tour. One of the leaders in the walking tour industry, Breakaway Adventures, offers more than 200 cycling and walking tours each year in 30 countries. The tour company keeps groups small and personal (there’s rarely more than eight people per group) so you can move at your own pace. The guided tours include pick … Continue reading →

More European Walking Tours

In a previous blog I shared my desire to tour Europe and offered some suggestions regarding where to tour if you were planning a trip to France. I also told you that I have been collecting information on tours of Switzerland and Austria (the other European locations I have a desire to visit). The following are two walking/biking tours that caught my eye. Each is a 8-day/7-night tour that includes pick up and drop off at airport/train stations, breakfast and dinner each day, and fully researched walking and cycling route notes and maps. The other amenity I liked about these … Continue reading →

Affordable Travel Options in New York and Massachusetts

Would you believe me if I told you that you could stay at a hotel in Manhattan for less than $100? No, it doesn’t require sharing space with rats or a dozen other strangers. In fact, you’d be lucky to fit more than yourself and a couple of duffel bags in the room. The Jane, New York’s newest budget hotel, has 200 rooms to offer cash-strapped visitors to the Big Apple, but spacious they’re not. The word tight might not even do them justice. Most of the rooms are as compact as old-time railroad compartments and the shared bathroom is … Continue reading →

Only Love (1998)

Have I ever told you that I have a secret desire to be a film editor? Well, I do. I pick apart movies I watch, thinking how I would have done it, had it been up to me. Occasionally I’ll just enjoy a movie on its own merits, and occasionally a movie will really bother me and cause me to hiss and spit. “Only Love” was one of the latter. Now, don’t get me wrong – the movie had a lot of good points, and that’s why I’m even bothering to review it. It’s just that it was poorly constructed … Continue reading →

Touring Ireland

When I was a young girl I dreamed of honeymooning in Ireland. Since my dad is part Irish I thought it would be interesting to learn more about my heritage and from what I know about the Emerald Isle its beauty is unparalleled. So I figured why not explore the gorgeous countryside with the man that I was destined to spend the rest of my life with. Those were the musing of a young child and needless to say I didn’t honeymoon in Ireland, but I haven’t given up on the dream. Some day I plan to travel to the … Continue reading →

Exploring Exotic Locations On Two Wheels and Two Feet

How would you like to explore lemon groves in southern Spain or cycle through the back roads of Madeira (a Portuguese autonomous archipelago in the north Atlantic Ocean also known as “The Floating Garden of the Atlantic”) and enjoy the intoxicating smell of jasmine, begonias and camellias while the rest of your neighbors are digging out from a foot of snow? Not a bad way to spend the winter is it? If the idea intrigues you now is the best time to book a cycling or walking tour of some exotic locations. Right now, Breakaway Adventures, a U.S. based tour … Continue reading →

London: Good News/Bad News

Attention travelers bound for London, England: I have news you can use. Let’s start with the good news. Thanks to a new line of budget hotels, you will have a much easier time taking a nap at London’s Gatwick Airport. (The airport is notorious for delays, which means at some point you will inevitably be scrounging the terminals for a place to crash.) Yotels, located within the airport’s terminal, features budget-priced pint-sized cabins with beds, showers, flat-screen TVs and free Internet. Cabins range in size from about 22 to 32 square feet and cost $50-$80 per four-hour minimum. Additional hours … Continue reading →

London, Paris, and Normandy

My oldest son and I recently returned from a trip to London, Paris, and the Normandy region of France. People keep asking me, was it a worthwhile trip? I don’t hesitate as I tell them “Yes”. We got such a sense of history. To be immersed at once in so many cultures and time periods was amazing. Seeing places like Omaha Beach and Pointe de Hoc, bomb scars on buildings, craters left by mortars, and the American cemetery made World War II a humbling reality for us both. Being readers we spotted a ton of places from literature like Baker … Continue reading →