Dubai – November, 2010

Empty photo placeholder icon on a plain gray background.

When someone mentions Dubai, what comes to mind?  Before our visit my images involved tall buildings, sand, dry heat,Arabs with beards, and oil wells.  Reality altered these pictures quite a bit.  The reason for our visit was two-fold.  Brother Tim and his wife, Connie, have lived there for almost six years.  Tim teaches Landscape Architecture…

Read More

A Night on Goree Island   January 5, 2004

A scenic view of a coastal town framed by a curved tree branch.

Meet Florence, a.k.a. Salimata (all Peace Corps Volunteers are given a Senegalese name by their host family during Pre-Service Training), a.k.a. Mama Africa (the name by which she’s mostly known on Goree).  She’s a 67 year old African American Peace Corps Volunteer.  She’s lived on Goree Island for three years.  She’s become a legend. Florence…

Read More

Northern Tunisia May 2004

Two people sitting on a decorative bench with floral decorations.

Anzie and I spent two weeks in Tunisia in May. Why Tunisia? It was a nostalgia trip. Anzie spent two years as a Peace Corps Volunteer there 30 years ago, 1972-74. She wanted to show me her Tunisia. We saw that plus a lot more, too much to give you all at once. One of…

Read More

Living Underground and the Island of the Lotus Eaters May 2024

Whitewashed buildings and ruins on a rocky hill under a clear sky.

Southern Tunisia: Living Underground and the Island of the Lotus Eaters Our third bite will be about how people live underground in Tunisia. Yes, we lived underground, too. But first, you need to get acclimated geographically. Tunisia lies on the coast of North Africa between Algeria and Libya. The northern two-thirds of the country is…

Read More

Mexico City   January 2011

A panoramic view of Mexico City's historic Zócalo plaza with the Mexican flag flying.

We are infatuated with Mexican history. I told my English class the other night: “You have so much to be proud of here in Mexico, especially your history. In the U.S. our history goes back 400 years. Yours dates back 5000 years, and you have the evidence to prove it!”  Mexico is huge. My Daddy…

Read More

San Miquel de Allende, Mexico   March 2010

A vibrant city square with a historic church and lush greenery at sunset.

We really, really like Costa Rica. It’s a paradise. So many places to go, so many places to see. The only thing the country lacks is cultural activities for English speaking visitors. We enjoyed visiting rain forests, beaches, volcanoes and such, but we really had to come up with our own activities. So, we read…

Read More

Trip Home from Mexico up the East Coast  May 2015

Sunset view of a historic cathedral with spires and a garden in front.

This month-long trip was highlighted by visits with family, old, old friends and memorable experiences that we’d like to share with you. . Some of the highlights: Rowan in NOLA, The Redneck Riviera, oysters in Apalachicola, the Worm Grunting Festival, Golfing with Gators, black American Beach, jazz at the synagogue, talking with the Marquis de…

Read More

Oaxaca, Mexico January 2012

Four tourists posing in front of a historic cathedral with blue sky.

After we checked into our Bed & Breakfast, Las Mariposas, we decided to explore downtown Oaxaca by foot to get the circulation going after a 8 ½ hour car ride from San Miguel de Allende. Immediately we noted a nice feature compared to SMA. In SMA the sidewalks are narrow and the streets are paved…

Read More