Travel and Adventure from Creators Syndicate

Pearl Harbor: Home of the Brave for 11/23/2008

Sun, 23 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

The second time the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor it was during a raging tropical storm in March 1942. It was the best of battles: nothing was damaged, no one was injured or killed, and everyone went home to tell the tale another day. In this case, it was decades before the public learned there had even been a second bombing.

About 2 a.m. that stormy night, radar detected two approaching ...

Updated: Sun Nov 23, 2008

Exploring St. Fagans National History Museum: A Walk Through Wales for 11/24/2008

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

CARDIFF, WALES — "This is how it used to be!" I overheard a teacher tell her young charges as they took turns entering a circa 1800 furnished farmhouse, excitedly clamoring to get the best view.

Children on field trips — wearing brightly colored raincoats and boots, with their ever-present backpacks—mingled with tourists like me strolling around St. Fagans Nat ...

Updated: Mon Nov 24, 2008

The Story of Britain's Canals for 11/29/2008

Sat, 29 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

ELLESMERE PORT, England — If you haven't been to Britain's National Waterways Museum, you've missed the boat.

On a seven-acre site south of Liverpool, the story of Britain's extensive network of canals unfolds along the shore of the River Mersey. Before railways took over, canal boats provided the means to ship goods to market across much of England, and even through Wales and Sco ...

Updated: Sat Nov 29, 2008

From Liverpool to the U.S., Celebrating 45 Years of Beatlemania for 11/30/2008

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0800

LIVERPOOL, England — On a recent visit to The Beatles Story here on the Albert Dock, I perused a fascinating touring exhibit entitled: The Beatles! Backstage and Behind the Scenes. It showcased large, candid black-and-white photos from the CBS Photo Archive and shots by noted LIFE photographer Bill Eppridge documenting their first visit to the U.S. from Feb. 7-17, 1964. Of course it inclu ...

Updated: Sun Nov 30, 2008

Amelia Island: A Town Time Forgot -- Thank Goodness for 12/01/2008

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

It's a town time forget — or maybe it just refused to move forward. Serene and unpretentious, Amelia Island remains in the 1900s — reveling in its long, colorful history, quite aware it no longer has to prove anything to the rest of the world.

Therein lies the charm of this tiny stretch of land, 13 miles long and two miles wide, just off the northeastern tip of Florida. Abund ...

Updated: Mon Dec 01, 2008

Shopping for Crafts in Michoacan for 12/06/2008

Sat, 06 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Imagine this Christmas season that instead of going to the mall for gifts, instead you visit the lakeside Mexican colonial town of Patzcuaro, situated 6,706 feet above sea level.

Yes, there is the expense of a trip to the Mexican state of Michoacan to consider. But there are comparative bargains to be had, plus the benefit of purchasing your gifts from the hands that made them.

I ...

Updated: Sat Dec 06, 2008

Prince George and the Ancient Forest for 12/07/2008

Sun, 07 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

If you travel northeast from Vancouver and for about 500 miles you will arrive in the community of Prince George. While that seems like an absurdly long distance to travel to reach a neighboring city, that's only halfway through the province of British Columbia. If you drive north another 500 miles, there's nothing much else except crazy, beautiful wilderness and a collection of small towns and ...

Updated: Sun Dec 07, 2008

Battling Monster Sturgeon on Canada's Fraser River for 12/08/2008

Mon, 08 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Vishal and Daryl loved their Jameson over rocks. As a result I loved it too. The two South Africans and I sipped quantities of the whiskey, excitedly exchanging fishing tales, in particular our battles with the African gamer, the tiger fish. They talked of reeling in some monsters from the Zambezi River; I recalled my experience grappling with the nasty little Hydrocynus vittatus in a reedy mar ...

Updated: Mon Dec 08, 2008

Going for the Green in San Francisco for 12/13/2008

Sat, 13 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

A compact city on 42 wooded hills, surrounded by the Pacific Ocean and a vast bay, San Francisco is small enough to walk across or sail around in a couple of hours, which is what locals do just for the exercise.

Visitors, on the other hand, are here to take their time taking in those world-famous views and that salty air. And in what has been called one of the "Top Ten Green Cities& ...

Updated: Sat Dec 13, 2008

Shakespeare Serves and the Appetizer in Delicious Ashland! for 12/14/2008

Sun, 14 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

For my 22nd birthday, my father gave me Julia Child's "Joy of Cooking," and I embarked on a culinary journey to create the perfect roast chicken. Juggling my new baby in one arm and a roasting pan in the other, I chopped the bouquet de garni, wrapped the herbs in cheesecloth, stirred in the brandy, and with the final flourish - voila — dribbled in the cream and presented my perf ...

Updated: Sun Dec 14, 2008

Richmond, Canada: Dim Sum and Then Some for 12/15/2008

Mon, 15 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Do you know the difference between a bun and a dumpling or how many ways to stuff a dim sum? Visit Richmond, British Columbia, home to Canada's largest enclave of oriental restaurants and shops, and you'll leave with a bellyful of knowledge.

Never heard of Richmond? The Gateway to British Columbia, Richmond is surrounded by the Frazer River on three sides and situated mostly on Lulu and ...

Updated: Mon Dec 15, 2008

Past and Present Come Together in Sophisticated Lexington for 12/20/2008

Sat, 20 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

With its many miles of classic white fencing corralling thoroughbreds on the rolling hills of green Bluegrass, Lexington rightly calls itself Horse Capital of the World. Indeed, in September 2010, this Kentucky city will be the first North American venue ever to host the FEI World Equestrian Games.

But dig a little deeper and discover there's a lot more in this lovely city that deserves ...

Updated: Sat Dec 20, 2008

Guam: The Other U.S. Pacific Paradise for 12/21/2008

Sun, 21 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

"About 5,000 years ago, our ancestors arrived here, probably from Southeast Asia, on canoes made from breadfruit trees which were lashed together with coconut fiber," Rob Limtiaco, one of the last experts on Chomorro canoe building, explained to us.

My husband, photographer John Montgomery, and I recently visited the island territory of Guam. Even though Guam is known as the mo ...

Updated: Sun Dec 21, 2008

Kosrae: Home of the Breadfruit Goddess and Sleeping Lady Mountain for 12/22/2008

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

A baby gecko watched me as I awoke in my mosquito net-draped bed. Island breezes played their morning symphony through the palms, ka, breadfruit, and pandanus trees surrounding our open-walled, thatched cottage. It was high tide and the sea once again splashed over the island's surrounding coral reefs and lapped at the shore about 15 feet from our bed. I sniffed the sweet smelling rain-forest a ...

Updated: Mon Dec 22, 2008

A Winter Hike on the International Appalachian Trail for 12/27/2008

Sat, 27 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

The previous time my wife and I hiked in western Newfoundland, we had moose problems. It was spring 2007 and we were in Gros Morne National Park. Moose were everywhere, clogging the roads and hogging the hiking trails. All very dangerous — to the cars and to us.

This time we were back in December on the cusp of winter and the only danger was the weather: snow then rain then freeze ...

Updated: Sat Dec 27, 2008

Excitement is a Zip in Newfoundland for 12/28/2008

Sun, 28 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

There are zip lines and there are zip lines, but you'll be hard-pressed to find one as dramatic as Marble Zip Tours just outside of the small city of Corner Brook, on the western edge of Newfoundland.

What gives Marble Zip Tours its zip is the location, with the cables strung over the top of Steady Brook Falls and then the gorge itself. When I was there just before the first days of wint ...

Updated: Sun Dec 28, 2008

Legends Of Ghosts, Miners and Gunfights for 12/29/2008

Mon, 29 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0800

The ghost stories started in Tombstone before I had even reached my destination of Bisbee, Ariz. Traveling with my sister, we had stopped off in this famous Western town to see a re-enactment of the gunfight at the O.K. Corral where, 127 years ago, Wyatt, his brothers Morgan and Virgil Earp, along with Doc Holliday, shot it out with Billy and Ike Clanton, and Tom and Frank McLaury. The date was ...

Updated: Mon Dec 29, 2008

Hudson at 400: Tiptoe Through the Tulips for 01/03/2009

Sat, 03 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0800

Tulips, windmills, and stepped roofs — all images that bring Holland to mind. However, for me, these images recall my childhood in Albany, N.Y., where I was the pink tulip next to a cardboard windmill in the grade-school play. I wondered if I'd find familiar traces of Dutch heritage on a recent return visit.

While some iconic buildings have been demolished in the name of urban rene ...

Updated: Sat Jan 03, 2009

Southern India: A Land of Color, Contrast, and Compassion for 01/04/2009

Sun, 04 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0800

It was like being in a dream state, part floating through space with images, figures, and bold colors magically appearing and then fading in the distance. As our small wooden boat weaved through the narrow latticework of canals in the backwaters of Kerala, I imagined that I had traveled back thousands of years.

Our boat inched timelessly along, pushed by a long pole, through waters refle ...

Updated: Sun Jan 04, 2009

Take Part in the Biggest 'Rabbie' Burns Party Ever for 01/05/2009

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0800

Grab your kilt, stuff some Scottish bank notes in your sporran, tune up your bagpipes, and brush up on your Celtic. Anyone with a wee bit of Scotch blood will be crossing the pond to join The Gathering at Homecoming 2009, one of the largest clan meet-ups in history. Multitudes of ex-pats are expected to don national dress July 26 to parade up the Royal Mile to Edinburgh Castle esplanade for a ...

Updated: Mon Jan 05, 2009