Upon reflection, some things I learned in Alaska was this is a land where residents still come out to wave to the train, people remind you to watch for the Northern Lights tonight, and less that one million people living in an area 1/5th the size of the lower 48 sounds pretty good sometimes!!

It's a natural phenomenon that happens every year in Alaska (and elsewhere that have salmon but we're talking Alaska right now). Young salmon make the trip down the river to get to the ocean. When they're about two years old, mature salmon leap themselves up the creeks of salmon country to spawn and die. Then it begins all over again. It's a perilous time for a salmon egg. The sea gulls know and they come up to where the eggs are and try to get some of them. Only a fraction of the eggs that are laid ever make it to become baby salmon and make the trip down the river to the sea. It's a cycle of life for these fish. The spawning part takes place from about mid-July to mid-September, so we're right at the end of the season.  So, Linda and I are on a fabulous trip to Alaska that began with an overland trek to the interior of Alaska. You may have seen some of our posts. If not, you should look at them. You'll catch some glimpses of life past and present in ...

The gold rush around Fairbanks started in 1896, and even with crude implements, hundreds of  thousands of dollars worth of the mineral was taken out. Then, in 1927, technology caught up and these dredges were deployed. That's when the gold really started to flow – for 15 years. Yonda, our guide, and her family have been mining this area 40 years. We toured the Goldstream 8 Dredge near Fairbanks. It operated until 1959, and in its active years produced 7.5 million ounces of gold. It's now on the National Register of HIstoric Places. We learned that panning for gold is much more difficult that it looks in the movies. Most people panning with us ended up with a few flakes. We each got about $25 worth.

Linda and I cruised Alaska in 2015. This time. with Princess Cruise Lines, we put together a tour that starts with five nights in the interior. Day 4 and it is an amazing experience. Come along with us and feel the magic of our 49th state! That's Denali in the photo at the top. At more than 20,000 feet above sea level, it's the highest peak in North America. Denali had been the traditional name for generations but in the Alaska Gold Rush days in 1896, a prospector is said to have named it Mount McKinley, to show his support for William McKinley, then a candidate for president. McKinley won and the name stuck, at least until 1975, when a state board tasked with naming places decided the old name, Denali, was better, and made it official. The Federal government kept on calling it Mount McKinley right on up until 2015, when the name was changed to match what Alaskans had been calling it all along. We're told some folks in Ohio weren't too happy about that name chang...

You have seen pictures of El Arco many times, I bet!! When you see it up close and personal it is an amazing experience. It's like "Gosh this place really does exist, and I'm here!!" Our Princess cruise for my birthday took us there. I dove just outside the harbor at Pelican Rock. The waves were very high and rough but, as in most cases, once you are below it's calm and peaceful.  There are very few swimmable beaches here. The water is ccccold and there is an abundance of poisonous jellyfish. Be sure to check with a knowledgeable travel advisor (hint hint) about hotels that feature safe swimming!! Sailing north from Cabo you pass huge expanses of wild uninhabited beach areas. But travel there soon: many hotels are planned for the area!!

For me, one of the joys of traveling is learning about the cuisine and, of course, the wine produced in different parts of the world. I know it is for Linda and Dave, too. A couple of years ago, they were planning an outstanding trip to Chile, Argentina, and Patagonia. One of the great wines being produced in Chile today is from the Carménère grape that was well known in France and thought to have been wiped out by disease in the late 1800s. Turns out it was discovered to be thriving in Chile under an assumed name. In anticipation of Linda and Dave's trip, we had to open a bottle. It is a rich, full-bodied and flavorful wine. I love Cabernet Sauvignon so I was delighted the first time I tasted Carménère. My philosophy is that almost any occasion is an opportunity to open a bottle of wine and enjoy it, which we did as a prelude to Linda and Dave's trip, which I didn't get to go on. (Just sayin'.) ;-D Anyway, I wanted to share this occasion with you since we've ...

We have not traveled to India (yet) but had the privilege this June to attend our good friend Nathaly's wedding weekend. This event was the first of three and included food, dancing, henna tattoos for the ladies and a mingling of two cultures. These dancers are USF students who work very hard to keep their traditions vibrant!

Since Linda's granddaughter starts at Trinity this week we thought it would be nice to feature some pictures we took there during our tour in 2015. Allan mentioned that he is a bibliophile. It would be nearly impossible to get him out of here. Founded in 1692, it is the largest library in Ireland with over 6 million printed manuscripts, journals, maps and music. Our tour guide was a graduate student who roomed with Jack Gleeson, aka Joffrey Baratheon, Game of Thrones!!

Of course, Havana is sooo much more than the Hotel Nacional but an afternoon spent on the lawn here is worth the trip. From the gun emplacements, circa missile crisis, (not called the CUBAN missile crisis here!!) overlooking the Caribbean to the bar where so many notable ghosts from the city's heyday probably roam to the lobby that looks very 40s-ish. U.S. citizens may not stay here overnight but we can stop and enjoy a drink while pondering the vagaries of history.

So, I'm curious about something. Do you keep your travel pictures on your phone? If so, how long? This is a selfie of Dave and I at a brief stop at a North Shore beach on Oahu in March. We were on a private tour conducted by now dear friends to give us some local insights. Often travel photos are put in an archive somewhere on the computer (with appropriate cloud backup, of course). They're accessible but several steps are required to get to them. I retrieved this particular shot quickly because it was on my phone, as are probably all of the shots from our Hawaii trip. Oh, they're backed up on Google photos, too, but I've left them on my phone just because I've had so much fun sharing various ones with friends and family in the euphoria after our trip. I emailed it to myself because that seemed quicker than attaching the phone to the computer and downloading. So, back to the original question: Do you keep your travel pictures on your phone? If so, how long? I...

Sicily is a land unlike any other region of Italy and the residents love to make that point!! Of course there were many opportunities to sample great food and this pastry shop on the main piazza in Catania drew our group in two times in three days!! Oh, those cannolis!!

This is an excerpt from a live-streaming series we used to do on Facebook. This particular episode is about a delicious dessert Linda discovered in Patagonia called Dulce de Leche. I always thought this episode got less attention than it deserved so here it is on the blog for you to enjoy. It's clear to me that Linda had a delightful time finding out about the wonders of Dulce de Leche. I hope you'll try some of that amazing concoction. Enjoy!

I've become fascinated (some would say obsessed) with patterns lately. So, it was no surprise to anyone in our party that I was taking pictures of the carpeting in the miles and miles of passageways aboard the Pride of America on our Hawaiian cruise. There were colorful fish streaming all over the ship in interesting shades of green and blue. They seemed swimming in a murky bed of kelp, unaware of the tramp of passengers above. Then I noticed this red fellow. The Sesame Street song my kids used to sing came to mind: One of these fishies is not like the other ... I was curious about the wayward little fellow and I found out why he's swimming upstream, as it were. Turns out all his cousins are headed to the bow and he's headed to the stern. Norwegian does that on all its ships to help passengers to orient themselves in passageways that all look similar. In a feeble attempt at humor I nicknamed him Sammy (for salmon?) (groan).