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Waiting for Cherry Blossoms
Thwarted! Our excellent Sunday plan was to wake up early and greet the sunrise at the Tidal Basin, followed by a “walk in the clouds,” an early-bird stroll among DC’s famous Yoshino cherry trees, all...
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The Cherry Blossoms in DC
Life is short like the three-day glory of the cherry blossom These are the glory days. There are over 3,700 cherry trees around DC’s Tidal Basin. Most of them are Yoshino cherries (Prunus x...
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Farewell, Cherry Blossoms
They budded, they bloomed, they floated to the ground. Here’s what the Tidal Basin looks like covered in a snowfall of petals, a charming farewell. My two favorite benches, near the Franklin Delano...
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Flying over Lava: Our No-Doors Helicopter Ride over the Big Island
Our vacation on Hawaii’s Big Island was a kaleidoscope of impressions. Where to begin? I think I’ll start with our helicopter ride. We took off in Hilo, a town on the island’s rainy side. The...
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Travel Theme: Deep
I have been gone for far too long from this little page of mine. Ailsa’s weekly challenge is here to the rescue: This week’s theme is Deep. Deep like the tunnels of San Cristóbal in Puerto Rico....
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Fishtrap and Turtles of Kaloko-Honokōhau
We stumbled on it accidentally on our way to Mauna Kea and its dramatic sunset. A highway sign off Route 19 announced the Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park. It didn’t look promising — the Kona...
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Gettysburg 150th National Civil War Battle Reenactment
Costumed demonstrations at El Morro and Mount Vernon aside, I’ve never been to a large-scale reenactment. With Civil War sesquicentennial upon us, we thought we’d go big and head to Gettysburg, where...
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Discovering Great Falls
President Theodor Roosevelt called it “the most beautiful place around here.” Great Falls, shared by Virginia (today the Great Falls National Park) and Maryland (part of the C&O Canal National...
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Travel Theme: Below (Hiking over Harpers Ferry)
This week’s travel theme, “Below,” made me think of the serenity I felt while looking down on Harpers Ferry, where the Potomac and the Shenandoah rivers meet. It was a fine autumn day, and we decided...
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Hawaii’s Place of Refuge
If you find yourself on the Big Island’s dry Kona side, don’t miss the Pu’uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park, the Place of Refuge, where all sins and crimes were once forgiven. It is a magnetic...
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Niagara Falls, by Land, Air, and Boat
When as a child I imagined America, the mighty Niagara Falls, along with Times Square, the Grand Canyon, and the Golden Gate Bridge, were my frequent backdrops. So when work brought me to Toronto, it...
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Death Valley’s Wonders
Los Angeles behind us, we headed to Las Vegas and its neon. But, first, a detour: a brief eyeful of Death Valley National Park. One spring, I mean to return and better explore its 3.4 million...
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Travel Theme: Waves
I love this week’s travel challenge by Ailsa: Waves. So many memories come to mind, but here are five favorites. Smooth waves of petrified sand at Antelope Canyon, with its neighbors Owl and...
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In Pele’s Realm: Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park
As you explore the Big Island, several names keep coming up. Kamehameha the Great, the king who united the Hawaiian archipelago, and Ka’ahumanu, his formidable queen, are the island’s most dominant...
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Travel Theme: Routine
My January is half melancholy, half relief. I slip back into well-worn patterns, and find comfort in the familiar. There is beauty there, and surprises too. Ailsa’s Travel Theme, Routine, made me think...
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