I discovered Arthur Frommer via his “Europe on $5 a Day” while trying to find a room in Paris in 1972. He has been my travel muse ever since. I would rather leave my underwear home than my Frommer guides. Recently I got to meet the man who ignited my Read more…
Freighthouse Restaurant
La Crosse, WI
Winter in Wisconsin would not top the list for most travelers, but that is where I find myself in November. Weather varies from evenings of snow flurries and 27degrees or less to sunny days of 46 degrees. I prefer the sunny days. I left home in California temps of 80. Snow is nice to behold but that’s about it.
Playing “name that road kill” (more…)
It’s a wonderful time of the year in Cambria. Even though our temperatures are record highs this month, it is still ideal weather for coastal inhabitants. The foggy weather of summer has abated and given way to blue skies, cool nights, and best of all, our annual Scarecrow Festival. During Read more…
Clock Tower of Piazza dei Signori
9 June – Padova
For about the price of a glass of wine, I ride the punctual high-speed train with aria condizionata, electrical plug and WiFi to Padova. Entering what has been earthquake country since 20 May with a 6.0 and a 5.8 on the 29th. Centuries-old buildings are beautiful to behold, but shake them with a major quake and see them fold. I hope my hotel has been retrofitted. (more…)
Author James Joyce, past resident of Trieste
8 June – Trieste (aka Trst)
Arrived into the lovely port city of Trieste, just across the neck of the Istria Peninsula. What a difference a few miles make! The architecture is Hapsburg, the port is prosperous, sea breeze is cool, and streets are filled with activity. I walk about enjoying beautiful facades in the piazzas, climb the steep steps to the Castello di San Giusto, and then trudge back to one of many restaurants along the Canal Grande for a pasta dinner. (more…)
Fiume or Rijeka – once a cruise destination
6 June – Rijeka Croatia AKA Fiume to the Italians
I start my day on “my bench” along Lake Bled. Mama duck and her 12 fuzz balls rest along the shore while two lusty swans create waves. They hiss at little helpless ducks yet squeak at each other. The crews are out practicing their rowing. I refrain from more photos of my gorgeous surroundings. Bled is idyllic and I hate to leave but Rijeka beckons – site of the first torpedo factory in the world. (more…)
Lake Bled
4 June – Lake Bled, Slovenia
Sunny and warm for my one hour bus ride north to scenic Lake Bled, known for its emerald green mountain lake with Bled Castle perched high above, all amidst the Julian Alps.
Bled was first mentioned in 1004, when it was awarded by Emperor Henry II to Bishop Albuin I of Brixen. (If you couldn’t be an Emperor it paid to be a Bishop.) Bled Castle followed by 1011. In 1274, Bled fell under the Habsburgs, lasting until 1919, except for a stint between 1809 and 1816 as one of the Napoleonic Illyrian Provinces. After the dissolution of Austria-Hungary in 1918, Bled came under the rule of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and became a summer domicile of the ruling House of Karađorđević, a tradition that President Josip Broz Tito continued when he built his residence here in 1947. Tito knew a good view when he saw one. (more…)