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📚 Destination Bookshelf: What I Read Before Our Trip to Japan, Seoul & Shanghai
Before we take a trip, I always try to do some reading that connects with our upcoming destination(s). I gravitate toward my favorite genre – historical fiction. For me, historical fiction helps make history more accessible and relatable. Ken is more of a non-fiction guy, but I don’t have the patience to get through A Concise…
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Balkan Wine: The Jan Brady of the Wine World
If I’m thinking about wine, the Balkans isn’t the first region that comes to mind. Heck, it’s not even the 33rd. And yet – Balkan winemaking has roots stretching back more than 6,000 years. Older than Bordeaux. Older than Burgundy. Older than most of the national borders we recognize today. And still, Balkan wine remains…
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🌍 River Cruise Wrap-up, Part II: The Challenges and Rewards of Traveling in Eastern Europe
Last year we traveled through nine Eastern European countries – Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania in the spring, followed by Hungary, Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Romania on our recent Danube River cruise. And the one thing that unites all of them is a chapter that Western Europe simply doesn’t have: the Soviet Occupation Chapter. But…
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🚢 River Cruise Wrap-Up: The Pros and Cons of River Cruising
I learned a new acronym yesterday: BLUF. It stands for Bottom Line Up Front. I like it. So, BLUF: Would I go on another river cruise? No. Not unless I bring my own squad. Then, I would consider it. I’ll explain. Now that I have a grand total of three cruises under my belt –…
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🇺🇸 Some Good Trouble: A Quick Trip to Nashville
Made a quick trip to Nashville last week to meet our good friends – and get in good trouble. The first thing I put in my suitcase was my cowboy boots. I loooooove cowboy boots. But after a few hours on my feet, I quickly remembered why I don’t wear my cowboy boots for any…
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🇷🇴 Bucharest: A Herd Free Last Day
I booked an extra day in Bucharest, so we’ve broken free of the herd – on our own today! Switching Hotels We’re switching hotels this morning. Not sure when/if I’ll be in Bucharest again, and I wanted to stay at the famous spy hotel, the Intercontinental Athénée. During much of WWII, Romania remained unoccupied and diplomatically…
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🇷🇴 Disembarkation Day: Bucharest and the Ghosts of Ceaușescu
Good morning from Romania! Disembarkation day. Everyone off the ship, and onto the herd buses by 0745 for the 1-1/2 hour drive to Bucharest. Beautiful sunrise as we left the ship. The Herd Tour d’Jour Our herd tour today was 8-1/2 hours. This was 6-1/2 hours past my herd tour patience limit. Saw a lot…
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🇧🇬 Ruse: The Little Vienna (?) of Bulgaria
Good morning from Ruse, Bulgaria – about 75 kilometers south of Bucharest, Romania. Viking had the herd buses lined up and ready this morning. One was going to a monastery made out of rocks. Maybe interesting, but also a 2 hour bus ride. Pass. The other bus was a shuttle into town. Kind of a…
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🇧🇬 Vidin, Bulgaria: Tracksuits, Roses, and an Underground Communist Toilet
Good morning from Vidin, in the extreme northwestern part of Bulgaria, on the border with Romania. What to say about Vidin? If someone were to design a travel brochure for Bulgaria, Vidin isn’t going to make the cover. Hell, I’m not sure Vidin would make page six. Vidin is one of Bulgaria’s oldest cities –…
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🇷🇸 Golubac, Serbia: A Demanding Hike & Scenic Sailing. PLUS: A Poll
We’ve got white caps on the Danube today. Everyone is seasick. Kidding. Well, I overheard one lady say she was seasick. Not sure how. Being on a river boat is like sailing on glass. I think she might be confusing seasickness with some sketchy goulash. Viking’s Demanding Hike Early this morning, Ken went on what…
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🇷🇸 Belgrade: Three Weddings and a lot of Gray
We are docked in Belgrade, Serbia today. And we can walk into town from the port – no herd bus. Huzzah! If nothing else, I’ve learned a lot more about Eastern European / Balkan geography on this trip. Belgrade is located at the meeting point of the Danube and Sava Rivers. The Danube connects Belgrade…
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📸 🇭🇷 Photo Essay: Croatia
My Croatia photos are almost exclusively from our Danube River cruse visit to Osijek and Vukovar. I do have a few shots of Dubrovnik from a visit in 2022, but most of my photos from our day in Dubrovnik are not of the town, but of my daughter and her friend (we were there on…