There’s not a soul to be seen as the green hills on either side of the Mekong River steadily cycle past and we make our way downstream on a riverboat bound for Luang Prabang, Laos. The only audible sounds are the water hugging our boat, the occasional clanging of a bell from the neck of a cow grazing along the shore, and the distant yelps of village children swimming along…
It is a curious practice we have of kissing a 330 million-year-old dirty limestone. Legend has it that those who kiss the Blarney Stone are given the “gift of gab.” What is gab, anyway? And more importantly, why do we want it? Being a “talker” isn’t usually the most desirable trait — am I wrong? Shockingly, kissing the Blarney Stone was not on my shortlist of priorities during my month-long…
My favorite season to enjoy the North Park Dryden Historic District, which boasts several blocks of California bungalows and Spanish colonial revival homes, is Halloween.
What I found in Treviso was an afternoon of nothing but pleasure. The relaxed historic center is mostly closed to traffic, inviting me to slow down and wander under shaded porticos, past medieval buildings touched with frescos. I sipped prosecco by a canal, tasted the best tiramisu of my life, and lost track of time simply watching families—and their dogs—stroll by. Treviso’s greatest attraction isn’t a single monument or museum; it’s the city itself, cared for and lived in, offering travelers the chance to be quiet guests in a beautiful, everyday world.
The Hidden Stories Behind Famous Landmarks What if Gustave Eiffel’s controversial design for the Eiffel Tower had never survived? Or New York’s merchants and landowners had never proposed their idea for Central Park to the city of New York? Going on vacation typically means relaxing, so we often don’t think too hard about the “why” and “if” behind the treasures we visit. But without knowing the specific history of our…
A few weeks ago I was on a commuter train headed to Venice on a cold, quiet Saturday evening in Italy. Despite the rain and my exhaustion from a long week of teaching English and a late night the night before in Bologna, I decided to follow through with my plan to catch the last day of the Venice Biennale exhibition that weekend. My English student appeared on the train…
I just spent two weeks in Ben Wheeler, TX. Population unknown because, well, there are no city lines. But according to Wikipedia, the knower of everything — even the unknown — the population is 425. An evening at the Fish Fry. Photo by Peggy Ryan Where Is Ben Wheeler, Anyway? When my mom first saw Ben Wheeler on my summer itinerary she asked me why I hadn’t told her I…
We are thrilled to introduce our first of a series of videos about our travels around Europe and afar! Please check our YouTube channel! Our adventures aren’t the same without you guys to share all of our stories with. Bologna is not the most famous city in Italy. It has no world-famous monuments or museums. There are no destination resorts or breathtaking seaside. But Bologna is our home. And we…
Join me on a summer road trip through New England — from the Berkshires to Acadia National Park — with photos, stories, and hidden gems.
From Mexicali to Calexico, Tijuana to San Diego, this project witnesses how the border wall reshapes daily life, families, and landscapes—an act of testimony to both human resilience and systemic inequality.
I came to Assisi as a solo traveler after several weeks of intense work in Rome, to celebrate my birthday. It was a fitting way to celebrate a day for me, as part of my identity relates to Saint Francis, who was born in Assisi and founded the Franciscan religious order here in 1208. Many years ago, before I gave up my home to travel, I was a foster mom…
My mother gave me perhaps the best photography advice I’ve ever received: “When you see everyone taking a photo in one direction, turn around and shoot in the opposite direction.” She gave me that advice for a wedding I was about to photograph. But my mother had become my photography teacher long before when we first started wandering the streets of Mexicali, Mexico together in the 1980s. We had fairly…
A typical vacation in Italy is usually dominated by stops in Rome and Florence, and possibly Venice and the Amalfi Coast. But Rick Steves offered some wise advice that inspired me to write this for you: if you only visit a country’s major (and popular) cities, you’ll miss a glimpse of what the culture of that country is truly like. If I can convince you to amend your Italy travel…
Today, on the first day of spring, Florence got its snow. Tuscany is not a region of Italy where snow falls very often, so the flurry of white flakes has brought a bit of uncertainty and a lot of joy to all of us. Without much means for cleaning up after the snow, roads and sidewalks were slippery, and subsequently, schools and some public offices were closed. Walking through the…
Join travel blogger Peggy on her journey through Ireland as she discovers the Ireland’s rich connection to music and the many stories it tells.