Some Texans consider it the next best thing to paradise, returning year after year to enjoy its comfortable climate and affordable prices.
Located near the midpoint of Mexico's west coast, Puerto Vallarta sprawls around tranquil Banderas Bay at the feet of the jungle-clad Sierra Madre mountains. It records 345 sunny days per year, with average high temperatures of 28 C (86 F) from January to April and 31 C (92 F) from May to December.

“Wanna stop an’ have a look?” asked my hostess in her soft Tennessee twang. Did I ever!
We had been driving through the rural countryside northwest of Knoxville on our way to Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, when we came upon an assortment of Victorian buildings dotting the fields and woods on either side of the road.
“This is the historic town of Rugby,” she said, as she parked the car in front of what appeared to be a general store and led me back down the road.
Rugby was founded in 1880 by British author and social reformer Thomas Hughes as a Utopian community, where colonists could work in an agricultural cooperative, while maintaining a cultured Christian lifestyle free of the rigid class structure that prevailed in Britain.

Strolling the streets of Old San Juan truly is like stepping into the past. The second-oldest European settlement in the New World, this enclave from which the modern capital of Puerto Rico grew includes some of the best preserved examples of Spanish Colonial architecture anywhere.
Stucco buildings in a rainbow of pastel shades, trimmed with white shutters and archways, line narrow cobbled streets. Balconies, laden with potfuls of tropical plants, extend like hanging gardens over skimpy sidewalks.
Some facades conceal grand houses of the past; others, dimly lit bars and cool courtyard cafes. Still others have been converted to shops selling the kinds of items for which the Caribbean has become known: imported glassware, leather goods, designer clothes and glittering jewelry.

Once reserved for nobility, today Seoul is home to about one-quarter of South Korea's 46.9 million citizens, making it the fifth largest city in the world. The country's capital, it is the diplomatic, political, commercial, financial and cultural heart of the nation.
At the center of Seoul is a mountain called Namsan, with a tower on top that provides a view of almost the entire city on a clear day. From here, it is apparent that the modernity of Seoul’s high-rise office towers and neatly aligned apartment blocks masks its antiquity.
Namdaemun, or South Gate, is one of the most imposing of nine city gates that punctuated the 17-kilometer wall which once encircled the city. The 14th century structure now is the center of a traffic circle surrounded by 20th century skyscrapers.

Drivers and pedestrians stop to stare as a convoy of several dozen trishaws, each with a blue and white umbrella shielding its occupants from the tropical sun, snakes its way through the congested streets of Georgetown.  Although such a large group of the little three-wheeled man-powered vehicles might be unusual, trishaws are a common means of touring this historic city's compact labyrinth of narrow lanes and alleys.

           &nbs p;    Orlando is a city that attracts visitors to Florida again and again. First-timers might come for the theme parks, since Orlando is home to Disney World, SeaWorld, Universal Studios and others. But repeaters likely return for the climate and the desire to find what lies beneath the tourist trappings. Those with an interest in the arts won’t be disappointed.

           &nb sp;    The Orlando area has a population of more than 1.8 million people, many of whom are occupied in tourism related businesses. Like residents in other cities of a similar size, they have a need to take a break from their work and relax with traditional forms of entertainment. As a result, Orlando has developed a thriving cultural base that visitors also may enjoy.

By: Larry West

 

Intergenerational Travel is a Growing Trend Among Seniors Throughout most of human history, grandparents lived and worked alongside their children and grandchildren, serving as mentors, teachers and role models. Today, families are more mobile, and grandparents live more active and independent lives than any generation of seniors before them.

The gate silently swung open as our vehicle approached. We had been granted rare permission to drive through the Carter Compound in Plains, Georgia. We knew former President Jimmy Carter and no one else from his family was there that day, but we welcomed the opportunity to glimpse the ordinary brick ranch house that they have called home for more than 40 years. We saw not a soul, but we knew the Secret Service was watching our every move, as mounted cameras turned to follow our progress. We had been asked to drive at a certain speed, not to stop, and not to make any sudden moves. As we neared the far end of the drive, another gate opened, sending us back into the real world.

The colors of the canyon wall (sienna, ochre and mauve) softly glow in the day's first light. The aromas of a mesquite wood campfire and freshly brewed coffee scent the air. Fluffy scrambled eggs and flaky sourdough biscuits are set on the picnic table by a Stetson-hatted cook whose kitchen is a chuck wagon.
It’s our first morning in Amarillo, and we’ve risen at the crack of dawn to travel by horse-drawn wagon to the rim of Palo Duro Canyon, the second-largest canyon in the United States, for a Cowboy Morning breakfast at the Figure 3 Ranch.

Palm trees along Lugano’s lakeside promenade can be glimpsed from the Piazza della Riforma. People chat amiably in Italian as they browse the market stalls or sip cappuccino at the outdoor cafes. The sights and sounds might be those of the Italian Riviera, but this is Switzerland.            &nbs p;    Lugano’s Italianate environment surprises visitors who more often associate Switzerland with nations to the north and west, Germany and France. Yet, it is evidence that the history, traditions and climate as well as the language of Switzerland’s southerly neighbor also contribute to the country’s multi-faceted personality.

In 1594, the French ambassador to Turkey sent some flower bulbs to a friend who was the director of the botanical garden at the Rijks University in Leiden, Holland.  Today, direct descendants of those first tulips still grow in the university's garden, while in the Bloembollenstreek region, stretching north from Leiden to Haarlem, a multitude of more impressive varieties, developed by the Dutch from those original plants, form the basis of two important industries, bulb cultivation and tourism.

           &nbs p;    If you want to relax in a clean and comfortable environment while enjoying spectacular scenery, try The Coast Starlight by Amtrak.

           &nb sp;    On its two-day journey between Seattle and Los Angeles, the train hugs Puget Sound, skirts the Cascade Mountains, sweeps through the California countryside, and traces more than 100 miles of Pacific coastline, passing top wine producing regions in Washington, Oregon and California

It was 8:30 a.m. in Tikal National Park, the ancient Maya ceremonial center at the heart of the vast rainforest that covers virtually all of northern Guatemala.

           &nbs p;    Already I had scaled the Temple of the Masks to watch the sun rise over the Temple of the Great Jaguar, hiked through dense jungle of ceiba, mahogany and sapodilla trees, and climbed a labyrinth of wooden ladders to the crown of the Temple of the Two-Headed Serpent, the highest structure at Tikal. All this without breakfast.