My very first trip to Rio back in 1999 was unusually short for a first visit. I wanted to surprise my mother on her 50th birthday with a trip to a city she’d only heard about in books and on records, but seemed to love as if she were a native Carioca. Due to limited funds… Read more
It’s Batizado Week!! For those of you who do not know the Brazilian marital art of Capoeira, batizado week is an event full of workshops, music, international visitors and parties which ends with a festival and graduation ceremony. If you’re not a capoeirista you may wonder what this has to do with my blog or why… Read more
One of the best things about traveling in Europe during the summer is the extended daylight hours. I like the slight disorientation of thinking that it is 6:30 pm only to look at a clock and see that it is 9:00 pm. Then in the morning, the sun peaking through my window shade makes me want… Read more
Istanbul is one of those cities that just feels alive. A constant shuffling stream of locals, tourists, animals, products, produce, boats, cars, and trams. I know New York is thought of as the city that never sleeps, but after staying in a hostel in the restaurant and club packed Taksim Square neighborhood, I sincerely believe Istanbul… Read more