SWEDISH ROADS AS RUNWAYS—U.S. AND U.K. TOO?
THE TOP SECRET part of the photo shoot was Saab’s EV-1 concept car—not the Viggen jet fighter. And this was why we were on the runway of a Swedish Air … Continue reading
WILL THE REAL BAYREUTH PLEASE STAND OUT
THE WORD “BAYREUTH” conjures up composer Richard Wagner, Der Ring des Nibelungen and the Richard-Wagner-Festspielhaus, his opera house built in 1876. Or so I thought until I came upon the … Continue reading
PACIFIC COAST TOURING
“AUTOMOBILE TOURING on the Pacific Coast is altogether a different matter from that of tooling about the East.” This claim comes from Charles Fuller Gates, a travel, bicycle and motoring … Continue reading
PRISON FOOD
WELL, DOES the Casa di Reclusione Milano Bollate sound like a setting for an Italian restaurant? Then again, it is Milan’s Bollate Prison, a medium-security slammer. No matter, because InGalera, … Continue reading
TOURING EUROPE
MANY OF YOU might be planning motoring excursions in Europe. Indeed, I realize that some of you already live there and don’t really need the following advice. However, maybe even … Continue reading
THE TALE (AND SCENES) OF GENJI
THE TALE OF GENJI is noteworthy for several reasons: This 11th-century work of Japanese literature has been called the world’s first novel. It was more than just a tale; its … Continue reading
THE BUDDHA’S TOOTH—WHO WOULD HAVE GUESSED?
IT MAY SEEM unlikely that I’m learning world geography, history and religion from old Sam Spade radio mysteries, but, in fact, this is how I first heard of Sri Dalada … Continue reading
A NEW HAMPSHIRE VISIT, C. 1905 1/2
WHAT WITH the New Hampshire Primary being less than two weeks away, I believe a tidbit here on the Granite State is timely. I have several excellent sources here, the … Continue reading
RHINE ADVENTURES
THE RHINE RIVER is the aquatic north/south interstate of western Europe, just as the Danube/Donau is the east/west interstate through Europe’s eastern portion. Keeping my geography honest, I note that … Continue reading