Category: Travelogues
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Photo du Jour: Looking for La Vie en Rose
In Europe, one can already feel summer’s upcoming departure from the stage. Indeed, autumn is not so patiently waiting in the wings… To savor one of the last weekends of summer, Shawn and I have decided to go in search of ‘la vie en rose’ this long weekend. A return visit to Paris is on our…
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The Beauty and Tragedy of Sevilla, Part II
We arrived at Plaza de Toros de la Real Maestranza de Caballeria de Sevilla in the evening hours. The summer sun was still blazing down, the stadium grand with elegant trimmings. It is Spain’s oldest bullring; its construction began in 1749. There was anticipation in the air as merchants peddled striped seat cushions, cigars, frozen…
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The Beauty and Tragedy of Sevilla, Part I
Sevilla. The name evokes a variety of passionate images: Flamenco-dancing women clad in vibrant, polka dot-studded dresses, their feet striking a floor with thunderous blows… A matador de toros poised to enter a ring facing possible goring or death… Spirited bodega-goers clinking glasses overflowing with jewel-toned sangria and amber cerveza… On a balmy long weekend earlier this summer, Shawn…
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Candy Apples, Saloons, and a Sagebrush Cemetery: A Day Trip to Virginia City, Nevada
For a scribe who’s been in Germany for the past ten years, there isn’t much of a better way to reconnect with her American roots than to visit the wild, wild west. That’s just what Shawn and I did exactly one year ago when we spent the day playing in Virginia City, Nevada… Once a…
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Our Peterhof Gardens Promenade
Often referred to as Russia’s Versailles, the Peterhof Palace gardens (Петерго́ф) offered us a picturesque — albeit congested and hectic — spot to stroll during a visit to St. Petersburg earlier this month. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Peterhof was commissioned by Peter the Great in the 18th century.
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Golden Moments in Burgundy, France
It is no wonder why one of the counties in France’s Burgundy region is known as the Côte d’Or. During our July sojourn in France’s ‘Golden Hills,’ the fields were ablaze with vibrant tournesols (sunflowers), freshly-groomed wheat, and vineyards — where still-maturing grapes glistened with dew. In the villages of Burgundy, sand-colored stone homes were accented with shutters painted…
