Category Archives: travel

A way to mark past memories

Posted on November 2, 2015 by stillalife

I probably have three thousand travel photos, maybe more. I look at them once a year. Maybe twice. Don’t get me wrong.  I love my photos and the memories they conjure.  But I rarely devote any time to them, not … Continue reading →

Posted in personal reflections, travel | 1 Comment

Ceramic painting for dummies

Posted on September 26, 2015 by stillalife

For many years, a group of friends and I visited arts and craft shows together and came up with a simple mantra — “We can do that”– which we intoned after each show. After years of completing, collectively, dozens of … Continue reading →

Posted in arts and crafts, travel | 4 Comments

Pack light, gripe less

Posted on September 16, 2015 by stillalife

We recently returned from two weeks spent touring Portugal. The Rick Steves’ tour we were on involved white wine; a cork farm; cathedrals and medieval monasteries; ancient Roman cities; red wine; beautiful landscapes; Gothic, Renaissance, Romanesque, and Rococo architecture; walled … Continue reading →

Posted in personal reflections, travel | 2 Comments

Is tourism ruining the planet?

Posted on March 24, 2015 by stillalife

Is tourism ruining the planet? After a week of vacationing in Honolulu, that is the question that niggles. What comes to mind when you think of Oahu?  An ocean warm enough to swim in? Tropical vegetation and flowers blooming year … Continue reading →

Posted in travel | 4 Comments

Restraining the inner shopper

Posted on December 17, 2014 by stillalife

December is the time of year when we expand our collections of stuff. The problem is that by a certain age, most of us have accumulated enough stuff.  I’m doing my best to keep new stuff out of the house, … Continue reading →

Posted in humor, personal reflections, travel | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Picture the unusual

Posted on November 3, 2014 by stillalife

When you’re traveling you might ask yourself, “How many photos of the Eiffel Tower do I really need? Of Amsterdam canals? Of bakery windows filled with thousand calorie treats?  That’s when it’s time to think about taking a picture of … Continue reading →

Posted in travel | Tagged | 2 Comments

Lost and found in Paris

Posted on October 21, 2014 by stillalife

Hand me a map of Paris and I will often guide you to your exact destination, and only occasionally turn you in the wrong direction and send you miles away. Don’t hand me a map and the following happens. My … Continue reading →

Posted in travel | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

European travels 3: losing my cell phone in Haarlem

Posted on October 7, 2014 by stillalife

This is a story about losing my cell phone in the Netherlands last week. Why stay any longer in Haarlem, Netherlands, we asked? Everything we want to see is closed on Mondays. On our walk back to the railway station, … Continue reading →

Posted in personal reflections, travel | Tagged , , , , | 8 Comments

Europe Part 2: Normandy Beaches

Posted on October 5, 2014 by stillalife

We were the heartiest two in our group of eight to make the three-hundred-mile road trip from Paris to the Normandy Beaches and back. That’s probably why the guide started us out in the last row of his van and … Continue reading →

Posted in travel | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

European travel: part 1

Posted on October 1, 2014 by stillalife

After waking up at four a.m. this morning, wandering around in a jet-lag stupor while checking the clock every few minutes to see if it was lunchtime yet, I decided the only thing I was capable of doing was writing … Continue reading →

Posted in travel | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments