NIKKO, JAPAN
THERE’S A saying, “Never say ‘kekko’ [Japanese for ‘I am satisfied’] until you’ve seen Nikko.” Having visited this city and its environs, I can appreciate the sentiment. The region, in … Continue reading
BOURTON-ON-THE-WATER
AN ENGLISH village can have a fairytale appearance, and one of my favorites is Bourton-on-the-Water. This Cotswolds town of about 3300 residents is 85 miles northwest of London, in Gloucestershire. … Continue reading
THE ART OF KABUKI
KABUKI THEATER is to Japan as Shakespeare is to our culture—and more. Originating around 1600, coinciding with the Elizabethan theater of Marlowe, Jonson and Shakespeare, Kabuki continued to add repertoire … Continue reading
CHRISTMAS IN AUSTRIA
INNSBRUCK, AUSTRIA, is a beautiful city, and it’s particularly charming during Christmastime with its Christkindlmärkte Altstadt. Here’s a photographic essay from my Christmas 2009 visit. What about a White Christmas? … Continue reading
MALAMALA GAME RESERVE
MALAMALA GAME Reserve is in northeastern South Africa, its 33,000 acres sharing an unfenced border with this country’s Kruger National Park. Visiting there in 2002, I learned that MalaMala is … Continue reading
TRAVELERS’ CODE
IN THE early days of telegraph communication, sending a “cable” was priced by word count—and it cost a pretty penny. A ten-word message from New York City to Chicago in … Continue reading
JAPAN’S LITTLE WORLD
I HAD my most moving religious experience in Japan’s Little World. Though it calls itself a theme park, I’d term it an indoor-outdoor cultural museum. Little World is about an … Continue reading
PRINCE ROY, R.I.P.
PADDY ROY Bates passed away at the age of 91 earlier this month. You may not have known him by this name, but how about Prince Roy of Sealand? Roy … Continue reading
BROWN PALACE HOTEL
“AND THEY’LL all want lifts to Brown’s Hotel, ’cause lots o’ them been travelin’ for quite a spell.” Just as Judy Garland sang “On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa … Continue reading
BAEDEKER’S HANDBOOKS FOR TRAVELERS
I LOVE Baedeker’s handbooks, especially those published during their glory years of 1900 to the onset of World War I. Pocket sized—provided one’s coat has generous pockets—these little red guidebooks with … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 