Reading Up on El Salvador’s Saint You don’t have to be Catholic to be curious about who Oscar Romero was and the impact he had—especially if you happen to be embarking on a journey to El Salvador. For those looking…
Spiritual Sanctuary on West 14 Street, Manhattan The bluish-greenish gates of a church on West 14 capture the attention of the Brawny Sherpa and me as we are heading vaguely back uptown after a visit to the High Line in…
Of Gold, Guinea Pigs, Last Suppers, and a Somewhat Swarthy Jesus So many visitors are in Cusco, Peru either on their way to or from the nearby main attraction, Machu Picchu. My own stay in Cusco is little more than…
You Don’t Have to Be Catholic to Go In At a moment when the universe seems especially volatile, what with climate fluctuations, terrorist strikes, and police v. civilian discord, even adventuresome travelers can be tempted to stay indoors for a…
I’ll confess to having a stack of Parisian histories (and a number on my Kindle as well) that have been leafed through but not exactly read. I mean to, I want to, I just haven’t. I am not sure where…
The frustration of any trip—especially one taken during peak tourism times—is waiting on line. If only all major world attractions had a FastPass, where I could return at a designated hour and cut right to the front of the line.…
Sitting on the patio of the golf clubhouse at the Rosen Shingle Creek Hotel in Orlando and watching the pastel-clad golfers, their carts, and the sand traps, Florida’s dark history seems remote, a dream. Brutal Spanish explorers, Protestants killing Catholics,…