Want to visit fun places but you are not sure what to
see there? How about taking a tour that is like having a
friend along who knows that city well to guide you. You
can do that for under $5 now. Here's some fun and
informative tours at Tours4Mobile.
Read more
Kathleen Walls
There are some places in Jacksonville a visitor should
not miss. One of them is Jacksonville Zoo and Botanical
Gardens. It's on the north side of Jacksonville and not
in the main path of visitors headed into Jax's busy
downtown. It
began back in 1914 and has grown ever since. Read
More.
Renée S. Gordon
Jacques Cartier reached the island at the confluence of
the Ottawa and St. Lawrence Rivers in October 1535 and
became the first European to explore the area. A
fortified indigenous village, Hochelaga, preexisted on
the island and was described as having about 1,500
residents and 50 longhouses. The natives accompanied
Cartier the crest of a small mountain on the island he
named Mont Royal and from which Montréal gets its name. Read
more.
Kathleen Walls
Want to live like Royalty? That's easy. Visit The King
and Prince Resort on St. Simons Island in Georgia. First
off it's regally positioned right on the beach. It's
more than just a hotel. The dining is both indoors and
out depending on your mood. If you have had a hard day
ruling your kingdom, let their luxurious spa massage
your cares away. Read
more.
Kathleen Walls
Are you having a Fourth of July travel fantasy? Planning
a trip offers lots of options. This year you might want
to do something different, like glamping. For the
uninitiated, glamping is a new way to travel. Glamping
has turned camping from a rustic guy's-escape to an
experience that combines the best of staying at a luxury
hotel with getting back to nature. Read
more.
Renée S. Gordon
New Mexico’s current state flag was adopted in 1925 as
the result of a contest won by an archeologist. His
design interprets the state’s history, culture, artistic
traditions and the currents of spirituality that
permeate the state. A design, pictured in the flag’s
center, was found on a clay pot crafted by a woman from
Zia Pueblo, New Mexico and represents the sacred Sun. Read
more.
Kathleen Walls
We all recognize Corinth as a history center. Its
Corinth Civil War Interpretive Center detailing the
Battle of Corinth and its importance in the Civil War is
the first thing most of us think when we hear Corinth
mentioned. I do love visiting those spots but here is
another side of Corinth that makes it a fun place to
visit. Read
more.
Kathleen Walls
Did you know there are hidden treasures in Middle
Tennessee? I discovered a few in Perry County recently.
If you're driving across Tennessee from Memphis to
Nashville, Perry County is
a gem. Stop over and explore. Read
more.
Renée S. Gordon
Royal Caribbean International Cruise Line’s first
passenger ship, The Song of Norway, set sail in 1970
heralding the launch of the line. Over the ensuing years
Royal Caribbean has consistently been on the cutting
edge in all phases of the industry, technology, design,
art, architecture, personalized service, entertainment,
amenities and environmental responsibility. Read
more.
Kathleen Walls
"In the end, it's not the years in your life that count.
It's the life in those years." Kathy and Michael Dumont
live up to that slogan posted in the café of their
Commodore Hotel in Linden, Tennessee. Many people in
retirement just take it easy and go with the flow. Not
the Dumonts. In fact, they bucked the flow when they
"retired" to the small town of Linden, in Perry County
Tennessee named for Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry. Read
more.
Renée S. Gordon
A postal clerk once told me that I needed to pay
international postage to mail a letter to New Mexico.
She was surprised, as many people are, to learn that it
gained statehood in 1912, has a documented history that
spans thousands of years and is literally a microcosm of
southwestern history. It benefits from the unique
characteristic of featuring tangible sites and offering
immersive activities that bring the history, arts and
events to life in fresh and exciting ways. Read
more.
Renée S. Gordon
Long Beach, CA, situated approximately 30-minutes south
of LA, is a coastal gem with more than its share of
lures for the traveler. The city, deemed one of the most
ethnically diverse big cities in the country, has an
average high of 82˚ and low of 64˚ with negligible
rainfall. It was named Long Beach in 1888 because the
beach winds 22-miles bordering the Pacific Ocean along
San Pedro Bay. Today it offers a 3.5-mile bike trail,
11.5-miles of inland waterways and bays and greater than
30 water view restaurants. Read
more.
Kathleen Walls
If you just have a one-nighter in Columbus Georgia, here
is the perfect way to enjoy your day; go whitewater
rafting on the river, eat at SaltCellar, and stay at the
Columbus Marriott.Read
more.
by Tom Straka
First off, not all readers will know the legend of Paul
Bunyan. For those who don’t, one of the links at the end
of this article is the Walt Disney version of the
American folklore tale of Paul Bunyan. Paul is an
American folk legend, along with the likes of (using
Walt Disney’s series of folk legends as a guide) John
Henry, Johnny Appleseed, Casey Jones, Pecos Bill, and
Casey at the Bat. Paul Bunyan was a giant lumberjack
that helped clear the northern United States, making way
for progress and farmland. Legend has it that the reason
there are no trees in the Dakotas is that Paul cleared
them all away.Read
more.
Kathleen Walls
Franklin, Tennessee has a lot of stories to tell. Alma
McLemore sat with me on the porch swing of McLemore
House and told me some of that story. Alma's Porch Talks
are famous around Franklin for telling about the town's
African American history. Read
more
Eleanor Hendricks McDaniel
Gwinnett County is the most diverse county in Georgia.
So much so that it voted for Stacy Abrams for governor.
Only 30 miles from downtown Atlanta, it brings its own
eclectic mix of international culture and cuisine, arts,
music and more. Read
more.
Kathleen Walls
It's fun when something old gets refurbished to live
again. But when that something gets a second rebirth it
is really something unusual. This is happening now with
Historic Westville. You say you've never heard of
Westville? You will soon. It's quite a story. Read
more.
Kathleen Walls
I love to visit new places and watch them grow over the
years. OWA in Foley, Alabama is just such a place. The
name means big water in the Muscogee Creek language;
appropriate since the destination was created and owned
by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. It's an amusement
park; it's a shopping and dining location; it's an
entertainment center. It's like a mini Branson. Read
more
Kathleen Walls
Cassadage Spiritualist Camp is one of the most unique
places in Florida. It is possibly the most misunderstood
as well. So many people view mediums as charlatans at
carnivals. Here you learn a completely different
version. Read
more
Renee S. Gordon
Oxford, Mississippi, located in northern MS and the
heart of the South, has a long and storied history that
begins with the three great tribes, the Choctaw,
Chickasaw and Natchez, that inhabited the region prior
to European arrival in 1541. The land
was meagerly populated until the end of the French and
Indian War in 1763 and in 1798 Congress delineated the
Mississippi Territory. The Chickasaw Indian Cession
Treaty relocated the tribes in 1836 adding
6,283,804-acres to the territory, including what is now
Oxford. Read
more
Kathleen Walls
New Orleans is not the only place in Louisiana that you
find mouth-watering dishes. While
you visit Antebellum plantations in the
River Parishes, you can find a few places in the small
city of LaPlace that can show some big-name chefs a
thing or two.Read
More
Kathleen Walls
There’s a reason why USA
Today counted
St. Augustine among the top 10 travel destination in
America last year and it was one of only three Florida
cities included in TripAdvisor’s Top U.S. 25
Destinations in 2015. If you haven’t visited in a decade
and remember a sleepy little town, you won’t recognize
this new Oldest City. Read
more
Kathleen Walls
Seafood lovers, have you ever eaten rock shrimp? If not,
head to Dixie Crossroads in Titusville, Florida as soon
as you can. These little critters are delicious and
there are not too many places you can find them. They
are a cross between shrimp and lobster leaning heavily
to the lobster side but having the shrimp size. The
story of how Dixie Crossroads began serving them is
almost as good as the tasty crustacean itself. Read
more
Kathleen Walls
There has been a lot of interest in RVing. People who
have never done any RVing are saying "That sounds like
fun." It is but there are some things that make it
different from traveling in a car that you need to know.
So here's a little more about our GoRVing Minnie Winnie
and what it takes for a successful RV trip. Read
more
Renée S. Gordon
Portugal is the primary destination for international
visitors wishing to explore Europe. The country offers
something for all ages from history, shopping and
culinary adventures to beaches, hiking and panoramic
views from castle walls. Portugal is a great value for
the money, is the 4th safest
country in the world and English is widely spoken, all
things that make it ideal for families. Read
more
By Kathleen Walls
Our GoRVing trip around Florida went full bore. Not
always smoothly because we had some strange technical
bumps in the road. Since we nicknamed out Minnie Winnie
“Ma Barker,” we can blame our problems on the ghost of
Fred Barker who must have become attached to Ma Barker.
She was his mother after all. Well, maybe! Or maybe
strange vibes affected the electronics on the road. I'll
give you a quick rundown of our trip but there will be
many more stories coming down the line about all the
fascinating places. Read
more
Renee S. Gordon
Travel + Leisure magazine, for the 6th year in a row,
designated Charleston, SC the number one city in the US
as well as the 10th best city worldwide. The city is a
traveler’s dream with a complete range of dining
experiences, entertainment venues, superior
architecture, historic sites and blended cultures. The
city was thriving years prior to the founding of the
country and as one of the 13 original colonies the area
has participated in every one of the nation’s pivotal
historic events. Read
more
By Renee S. Gordon
The majority of South Carolina’s 16 barrier Islands were
formed during the Ice Age along with nearly 200-miles of
Atlantic Ocean shoreline. The Hammock Coast (HC), ...Read
more
Kathleen Walls
Jacksonville is fast making a mark on the tourism
market. People come to see the art museums, like Cummer
and Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA). They visit TIAA
Bank Field to see the Jaguars play football. Read
More
Renee S. Gordon
Beaufort, established in 1711, is the second oldest city
in South Carolina and predates the founding of the US by
sixty-five years. It is situated in the Lowcountry on
Port Royal Island along the Atlantic shore. Read
more
By Tom Straka
By 1778 the American Revolutionary War had
stalemated, with the French joining the war to aid the
Americans. With the northern campaign at an impasse, the
British had decided on a southern strategy of focusing
their efforts on the colonies of Georgia, South
Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. Read
more
Kathleen Walls
Nemacolin Woodlands Resort located on 200,000 scenic
acres in the Laurel Highlands of Southwestern
Pennsylvania can fulfill all of your dreams. We
stayed there last year for a Mid-Atlantic Travel Public
Relations Alliance (MATPRA) Convention. This is far
beyond its five-star rating. It's more than a hotel.
It's a resort in the broadest sense of the word. Read
more
by Kathleen Walls
National Butterfly Center in Mission, Texas, a
small town near the southern border, is a modern day
Garden of Eden. It is a favorite spot not only for
butterflies but birds and other wildlife species. This
100-acre preserve is the largest native plant botanical
garden in the country. Read
more.
Renée S. Gordon
Lisbon is so filled with activities, fine cuisine and
wines that it is difficult for visitors to tear
themselves away from the city but I assure you there are
wonders throughout the country. Some of Portugal’s most
historic sites and monuments, as well as unique
experiences, are to be found within a day’s drive of
Lisbon and the small cities and quaint villages provide
glimpses into the heart of the country. You can opt to
rent a vehicle or book a Gray Line tour to one or more
of these destinations. Read
more
Anne Jenkins
Travel with a purpose makes it more exciting, fun
and interesting, whether you're on an antique junket,
looking for art or exploring local food. If you ask a
group of New Mexicans where to find the best green chile
cheese burger, you better have time for a long
discussion. Read
more
Renée S. Gordon
Portugal is the westernmost country in Europe and, along
with Spain, makes up the Iberian Peninsula. It is
bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the south and west,
with 500-miles of ocean coastline and is the approximate
size of Maine. The country’s geography shaped its more
than 800-year history and culture and continues to
affect tourism.
Read more
by Kathleen Walls
Becker Farms in Gasport, New York, just a short drive
from Niagara Falls is the kind of place every community
needs. Imagine farm fresh and U-pick produce coupled
with locally produced beer and wine. Add to that rental
cabin for a romantic weekend and all kinds of events and
you have a perfect agri tourism spot. Read
more
Renee S. Gordon
President George Washington surveyed and chose a
location on the Potomac River to become the permanent
site of the nation's capital and the 1790 Residence Act
made his dream a reality. He commissioned Pierre
L'Enfant to design the city. L'Enfant tired for
one-year then he abandoned the project taking his plans
with him. Benjamin Banneker, a free African American,
recreated those plans from memory so that the work could
continue. Read
more
Renee S. Gordon
The thing about Icons is that we somehow expect them to
be arrested in time and evoke our feelings In the same
way forever. They do not disappoint and they certainly
do not succumb to the lure of changing times. This can
prove daunting for artists, structures and, most of all,
cities. Asbury Park, New Jersey has managed to strike
the perfect balance between memory and modernization,
retro and revitalization and is a wonderful destination
for families, group or solo getaways, beach lovers and
music aficionados.Read
more
KathleenWalls
Jacksonville's skyline is changed forever. The old city
hall imploded this morning. No, it wasn't terrorists. It
was done to make way for new improvements coming to
Jacksonville. Story has a link to the actual implosion
from one of our local stations.
Read More
Kathleen Walls
When fickle sixteen year old Agnes Scuffs jilted her
fiancee on the eve of their wedding, she set in motion a
series of events that would lead to the construction of
a monument comparable to Stonehenge. She informed Ed
Leedskalnin that he was too old and too poor for her.
Broken hearted, Ed left his native Latvia and settled
near Florida City. He began carving a memorial to his
lost love who he always referred to as "Sweet Sixteen".
Read more.
by Kathleen Walls
You know a city has come of age when they repurpose a
classic piece of their history. Detroit has done just
that with the new Foundation Hotel. It opened the
100-room boutique hotel in May 2017 in what was once in
the Detroit Fire Department headquarters. The building
that is now the hotel was built in 1929, but this
location housed fire equipment from 1840 until the
Detroit Fire Department abandoned it in 2013. The end
result is a blend of museum, art gallery, upscale dining
and lodging with a touch of a local hangout. Read
more
by Kathleen Walls
A road trip down Georgia’s I-75 from Tennessee to
Florida offers lots of fun stops along the way.
Navigating I-75 through Georgia can be a nightmare. Or
it can be fun. The difference is in finding good food
and interesting attractions with convenient stops
en-route. Read
more
by Anne Jenkins
Early in October you're standing among hundreds on a
historic Main Street watching two long lines of
enthusiatic citizens, in groups of three. Each group is
holding up a ski with three attached shot glasses topped
up with whisky, all trying to drink it at the same time.
Pinch yourself, you're in Utah. Park City, to be exact,
and they're engaged in a friendly rivalry with
Breckenridge, Colorado to see who can get in to the
Guiness Book of Records in 2018 for the “Shotski
Challenge”. Park City won. Breckenridge swears to rise
to the challenge in 2019. Everyone has a grand time and
lots of money is raised for local charities. Read
more
By Renee S. Gordon
Louisiana is internationally famous for its Cajun and
Creole cuisine and generally Chef Paul Prudhomme is
credited for its introduction and popularization into
the American mainstream. You can literally find great
food everywhere in the state but ground zero for fresh,
locally sourced, regional dishes is the Lake Charles
area in Southwest Louisiana (SWLA). Here visitors can
craft a special experience and soak up the history that
led to this unique culture as well as dive into the
adventure, music, art, festival, beverage and dining
scenes. Read
more
by Tom Straka Photographs by Pat Straka
Back in the Fall 2014 we visited Cave-in-Rock, Illinois,
on the edge of the Ohio River where a free ferry crosses
over to Kentucky. It is a favorite route of ours and an
especially fun alternative that avoids the interstate,
facilitating a cross-state route (the long way) on
mainly U.S. highways. We’ve covered the history and
geology of the location in the past issue, but missed a
key aspect that makes the stop even more attractive. So
attractive, we’ve revisited it. Read
more
by Kathleen Walls
It's so nice when a historic building gets refurbished
for a new use. Such is the case in Pittsburgh. The Drury
Plaza Hotel was once the Federal Reserve Bank of
Pittsburgh. The Georgia marble faced Art Deco building
began life in 1931 and was bought by the hotel in 2013
and began renovations in 2014. The Drury has kept many
of the historic features. Read
more
Story by Tom Straka
Photos by Pat Straka
My spell checker tells me I have two suspicious words in
the title. It has not heard of turpentining or a
catface. Many of the readers can probably figure out
what the former means, but I bet they don’t know what
the latter is. There are lots of festivals across the
country which provide a travel adventure immersed in
local history and folk culture. The CatfaceTurpentine
Festival held annually in early October in Portal,
Georgia is one of those. Read
more
by Renee S. Gordon
Musical symphonies are composed of individual movements,
distinct sections, written to be played by a large
orchestra. Haydn and Mozart are credited with creating
the classical symphonic arrangement and later composers
have layered the form with creativity and innovations.
Royal Caribbean’s newest cruise ship, the aptly named
Symphony of the Seas, has deftly blended all aspects of
the perfect cruise into one awesome experience much like
an orchestral arrangement. Read
more
Chuckwagon Roundup
by Kathleen Walls 11-29-2018
Food is an intricate part of Cajun culture.
Café Vermillionville,
(circa 1835) was built as an inn for salesmen in
Lafayette then named Vermillionville. During a Union
occupation during the Civil war supposedly a Cajun shot
a Union soldier for making advances at the man's wife.
Rumors claim the old building is still haunted by the
soldier as well a young female ghost. Read
more
War Roads
by Kathleen Walls 11-29-2018
Long before United States was born, there was a world
war. It started in the American colonies and spread
across Europe. There it was called the Seven Years' War.Read
more
Renee's Road
by Renee S. Gordon 11-29-2018
While academic programming may be considered the most
important factor in selecting a college, also essential
to success are both the campus and local culture.
College tours are an excellent way to experience a
slice...Read
more
by Kathleen Walls 11-29-2018
Saxonburg, Pennsylvania is
a beautiful example of what one immigrant can do for
this country. John Roebling and his brother, Carl, came
here in 1832 to escape totalitarian conditions in
Germany.
.read
more
Civil Rights Trail
by Kathleen Walls 11-29-2018
Pittsburgh has so much history related to the
Underground Railroad. Senator John Heinz History Center
has an exhibit, From Slavery to Freedom, that tells the
story...read
more
Fork in the Road
by Kathleen Walls 11-29-2018
Say “sandwich” in Pittsburgh and it conjures up a
different image than anywhere else in the world. In
Pittsburgh, a sandwich is often a Primanti created by
Joe Primanti during the depression. ... read
more
Renee's Road
By Renee S. Gordon 11-29-2018
At the end of August in 1619 the White
Lionlanded at Old Point Comfort, in what is now
Hampton, Virginia, and exchanged “20 and odd negroes”
for food and supplies. These Angolan ... Read
more
Innroads
By Kathleen Walls 11-29-2018
First Colony Inn is the perfect place to immerse
yourself in Outer Banks history while enjoying all the
modern conveniences. Lost Colony Inn is not luxurious
but it is comfortable and so welcoming. ... Read
more
Renee's Road
By Renee S. Gordon 11-29-2018
The Buffalo-Niagara Corridor in Western New York has the
distinction of having always been both a permanent
sanctuary and a reliable embarkation point. Geography,
accessibility to the Falls and ... Read
more
Happy Trails
By Thomas Straka
9-1-2018
One of the best attractions along Interstate 81 is
the Natural Bridge of Virginia. Early in the
nation’s history, Hudson River School artists
painted the landscapes of America’s most iconic
natural scenes. These are the large landscapes that
hang in the U.S. and state capitols. The Natural
Bridge, Virginia,
painted by Frederic Edwin Church, is one of them.
That landscape is little-changed from 1852 when he
painted it... Read
more
Historical Trails
By
Kathleen Walls
9-1-2018
American's oldest mystery has never been solved.The
story began with the settlement of Roanoke in the
Outer Banks of North Carolina. The prelude was the
earlier all-male expeditions. The first led by
Arthur Barlowe and Philip Amadas, in 1584 was more
of an exploratory one. One thing they did had a
profound on the final settlement; they brought two
young natives, Manteo and Wanchese, back to England. Read
more
Off the Beaten Path
By
Renee S. Gordon and Kathleen Walls
9-1-2018
Cattaraugus County New York is known as the
Enchanted Mountains for good reason. It may be a
lesser known destination but there is so much to see
and do among those picturesque mountains you will be
enchanted.Read
More
By Kathleen Walls
9-1-2018
It's always exciting to watch a new state park
develop. North Carolina's newest is Carvers Creek
State Park. It was authorized in 2005 and opened the
first stage in September 2013. Park Superintend Jane
Connolly, told us about the park's background. In
the mid 1700s Scottish immigrants began moving into
the area. Read
more
by Renee S. Gordon
9-1-2018
No experience has so impacted the United
States as profoundly and lastingly as the years of
black enslavement from 1619 to the end of the Civil
War. “The peculiar institution” remains a defining
characteristic of who we were, are and will become
as a nation. How do we align the events of the past
with the view of ourselves that we are a country
founded on the principles of liberty for all and
malice toward none? Read
more
by Renee S. Gordon
9-1-2018
In 1793 when Revolutionary War veteran Colonel John
Hardenbergh, the first documented white settler in
the Finger Lakes area, arrived in the Auburn, NY
region it was home of the Haudenosaunee and was
called “Ahskuby.” Read
more
by
Kathleen Walls
9-1-2018
There is nothing more beautiful than Mother
Nature's most powerful places. Niagara Falls is one
of those special places. I just returned from a
visit there and was literally blown away. At the top
of Cave of the Winds as I stood on Hurricane Deck I
felt as if I was experiencing the most powerful
storm ever.Read
more
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