Travel
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Feria de Sevilla (Seville April Fair)
A Most Spectacular Festival You've Never Heard Of
By: - May 07th, 2023When booking our trip, we didn't know of Feria, a one-week celebration of community and Seville's history with livestock markets and flamenco that began in 1846. But when our new friend Carlos invited us to join him in going to the fair, we jumped on it. Feria takes place one week in April each year on 25 urban blocks that lie mostly barren except for preparation and celebration of Feria. Imagine the value of the property designated for this one event!
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Ethiopia: Part One
Addis Ababa, Aksum, Lalibela
By: - May 01st, 2020Ethiopia is a wondrous land of majestic mountains, ancient cultures, beautiful people and architectural treasures. Addis Ababa, the modern capital city; Aksum, the one time capital of the ancient Aksumite Empire, and the holy city of Lalibela, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with eleven rock-hewn churches, leave one with indelible memories.
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An Irish Spring
From Dublin to Derry
By: - Mar 06th, 2016Dublin is a modestly scaled, cozy, walkable city with a thousand pubs to hoist a pint of Guiness. You will want to explore the lush Irish landscape and rugged coast.
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Dak'Art African Contemporary Art Biennale
Dakar, Senegal from May 3 - June 2
By: - Mar 16th, 2016Dak’Art 2016 is inspired by the theme “The City in the Blue (La Cité dans le jour bleu)” and will be curated by Simon Njami who was also named as the fair’s new artistic director. As inspiration from the theme, Njami selected the extract of Léopold Sédar Senghor’s poem: “Your voice cries out for the Republic - let us raise up that city in a blue daylight: Of equality for brotherly peoples. So we sing in our hearts. “We are here, Guélowar!”
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Lexington Kentucky
Bluegrass Country
By: - Mar 30th, 2016Lexington is in the heart of the Bluegrass Region , the second largest city in Kentucky and Horse Capital of the World. It is famous for horses, bourbon, tobacco and Southern Hospitality. The Bluegrass region is renowned as the world’s largest equine “nursery”. Hundreds of horse farms surround Lexington , giving this modern city a park-like setting.
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Gragnano in the Campania Region of Italy
Home of the World's Best Dried Pasta
By: - Mar 31st, 2016Gragnano's wide street was laid out to catch the sea breeze from the Adriatic to dry pasta. Exploring the incredible food of Italy.
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Strega, Campania's Most Famous Digestive
Combines Over Seventy Herbs and Spices
By: - Mar 31st, 2016With a 150 year old recipe, the Alberti family tradition of distilling Strega is in full gear in 2016. Over 70 herbs and spices are used to make this digestive beverage.
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Route of the Maya: Part One
El Salvador
By: - Apr 09th, 2016The Route of the Maya itinerary through Central America is an opportunity to see the archeological, cultural, and natural wonders of El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Belize, and Nicaragua. El Salvador is home to an attractive Pacific coastline, imposing volcanoes, picturesque small towns, and the vast Cihuatan Archaeological Park.
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Journey to Hamburg, Germany - Part One
A Family Affair and Much More - English/German
By: - Apr 17th, 2016We set off on a 10 day trip to Hamburg, Germany, from two airports: Albany and Washington, D.C. and arrived per schedules - what a relief. Our hosts came with two cars to transport us all to Ahrensburg, in southern Schleswig-Holstein, just outside of Hamburg, my home town. Nearly 40 family members met on Easter-Monday in Hamburg for a family reunion, which we orchestrated from North Adams, MA. What a wonderful experience! We ventured into Hamburg a few times per U-Bahn, subway transportation. The city always shows its best side to visitors, even sometimes in the rain. On our first trip into the city we were enthralled to see the 'Miniatur Wunderland,' the biggest railway system exhibition there is. Here an account of our adventures in English and German.
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Route of the Maya: Part Two
El Salvador to Honduras
By: - Apr 19th, 2016Joya de Ceren in El Salvador is a village preserved intact under layers of volcanic ash. Evacuated during eruption, what has been left behind reveal Mayan life from AD 600. Copan in Honduras is the most elaborate of all Mayan cities, as it was home to kings representing God on earth. Temple sculptures and portraits of kings carved in stone amidst a natural setting with birds and trees make the visit a wondrous experience.
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Journey to Hamburg, Germany: Part Two
Not Just a Family Affair – in English and German
By: - Apr 26th, 2016The second article begins with our Family Reunion on Easter Monday, which nearly 40 people from 11 families attended. What a festive affair and the three hour brunch just flew by. The meeting ended with a new official family photo. ~ For the remainder of our week we explored the city again, downtown Hamburg, where we kids grew up. Even then, the city was a wonderful playground.
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Route of the Maya: Part Three
Guatemala City, Lake Atitlan and Its Mayan Towns
By: - May 04th, 2016Guatemala is a wonderland of spectacular natural beauty and local color. Spread on a broad plain surrounded by hills, the capital Guatemala City is a bustling metropolis adorned by both colonial decor and modernity. Lake Atitlan ringed with towering volcanoes and quaint villages is the heart of the Mayan world with unique customs, folklore, and traditions of many color.
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Toutes Caves Ouvertes Festival
Wine from 21 Producers in Montpeyroux, Languedoc, France
By: - May 09th, 2016Languedoc is a large wine producing region in southern France. Each year, in the village of Montpeyroux, a wine festival takes place. Jugglers, musicians and locals flood the street for this daylong celebration.
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Jordi Domenech: Priorat's Busiest Winemaker
Wears Coat of Many Colors
By: - May 23rd, 2016Jordi Domenech lives in the Priorat region of Spain, close to Barcelona. He is a winemaker, a vermouth salesman, a restaurant owner and a father. He is a very busy man. This is his present day story.
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Route of the Maya: Part Five
Belize
By: - May 31st, 2016Boasting a rich ethnic mix on the Caribbean coast, Belize attracts visitors to sun and sea. Lamanai, a 26-mile scenic ride away on the New River, is an ancient city within a subtropical forest, where the Maya lived for over 3000 years.
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Wine Salvadore Dali Drank at His Wedding
Rexach Baques Is Made By the same process as Champagne.
By: - Jun 04th, 2016Great Champagne and Great Cava are made in the same process. The only difference are the grapes and the lower Cava price points. Most wine critics agree that sparklers made with the methode champenoise style are the ultimate sparkling wines and have no rivals.
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Dublin'sTeeling Irish Whiskey
Only Irish Whiskey Producer in Dublin
By: - Jun 16th, 201660,000 visitors to Dublin visited Teeling Irish Whiskey's plant. Since opening the facility to tourists, business has grown immensely.
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China's Yunnan Province: Part One
Kunming, The Capital City
By: - Sep 07th, 2016Burma and Tibet as neighbors, Yunnan is a culturally, ethnically, and geographically diverse, fascinating region of China. Sixteen of China's fifty six ethnic populations live in Kunming, the capital city. Kunming is a vibrant modern city with urban attractions, yet retaining old-fashioned charm and folkloric color.
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Boston’s The Verb Hotel
Displays Bieber Collection of Rock Memorabelia
By: - Sep 10th, 2016After graduation from the BU School of Journalism David Bieber found that the only way to research and promote rock music was to collect the material. Soon his apartment was cluttered with thousands of albums and related detritus. It is the foremost archive of a formative era when Boston emerged as a major matrix for contemporary music. Now highlights of the Bieber Collection have been installed at Boston's The Verb Hotel.
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China's Yunnan Province: Part Two
Dali and Lijiang
By: - Sep 11th, 2016Dali is an autonomous Bai prefecture on the shores of Lake Erhai, which sits in a high-altitude valley of 6500 feet. Mild climate, beautiful mountain scenery, and unique minority populations make the region an attractive destination. Lijian, nestled in the high mountain plains at 7500 feet, is home to Naxi people, who have a unique culture and religion based on nature worship. Their living quarters is a well-preserved Old Town well worth a visit.
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Mongolia Part One
Ulaanbaatar and Gorkhi-Terelj National Park
By: - Oct 01st, 2016An independent country since 1990, Mongolia is a vast land situated between China and Russia. It has retained its centuries old nomadic life style and culture, despite 80 years under socialism. Ulaanbaatar , the capital city, is a vibrant metropolis with temples and museums, and is quickly establishing itself in the world community. Gorkhi-Terelj National Park boasts a landscape of forests, granite hills, rivers and meadows. It is home to 550 nomadic families and a favorite vacation spot for city dwellers.
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Winemaking at Chateau De La Dauphine
Great Wines At Reasonable Prices
By: - Nov 18th, 2016Chateau de La Dauphine in Bordeaux offers wine tourism possibilities for all visitors, year round. Marion Merker heads the operation of this beautiful estate.
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Mongolia Part Two
Khovsgol Lake and Gobi Desert
By: - Dec 01st, 2016The vast Khovsgol Lake region in northern Mongolia is home to numerous nomadic herders. As their grazing horses, yaks, and reindeer grace the shores, picturesque gers for locals and visitors add to the pastoral charm. Gobi Desert in the south fascinates with its valleys, sand dunes, ochre-colored cliffs, and the unique two-humped Bactrian camels.
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Southern Siberia
Along Lake Baikal on the Trans-Siberian Railway
By: - Jan 03rd, 2017Lake Baikal is the largest and oldest body of fresh water on earth. Traveling along its southern shore by vintage steam train is a unique journey on a coastal precipice with lush mountains on one side and the lake on the other. Listvyanka, an old port town on the lake, is also close to a network of hiking paths. Irkutsk, the capital of Eastern Siberia, reflects a rich and varied cultural heritage as home to 120 nationalities, well worth the distance to get there.
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Letters from Taipei
A Spotless Crime Free City
By: - Jan 09th, 2017Currently Mark St. Germain is finishing a screenplay of his widely produced "Freud's Last Sessions." Recenty, he spent the holidays with his daughter Kate. This is the first of three letters from Taipei that he sent to friends. For those who know Mark and have enjoyed his plays at Barrington Stage and other theatres you will enjoy and recognize his familiar wit and insight.
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