I didn’t head to Ecuador to be at one with the birds. I’ve never been especially drawn to the things. I didn’t appreciate the claws on the parrots at Parrot Jungle. My grandmother’s caged parakeets—still singing despite their incarceration—annoyed me. I see sea gulls on the Jersey shore as scavengers for French fries. Walking through…
Author: BashfulAdventurer
The First Thanksgiving Was in Florida
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, everyone killing Indians, and slavery all make up Florida’s violent past. I was drawn to…
Survived the Apocalypse? Head to Disney
The Brawny Sherpa and I were more than grateful to head out of town after weathering Hurricane Sandy incredibly well—lost power for a few days, had only very minor damage to the purple bungalow, and temporarily hosted some of our neighbor’s roof shingles in our yard. It was a strange experience, driving to JFK at…
Have a Limited Travel Budget? Try an Amazon Jungle Walk
Everything I needed to know about traveling, I could have learned from Ed Stafford’s Walking the Amazon: 860 Days. One Step at a Time. He’s the first man to have walked the Amazon, a little journey that took him just over two years. I’ve spent the last several days reading the book. I’m sure Ed…
What’s to Fear in Guayaquil?
I was hesitant to fly in to Guayaquil for an overnight stay before departing for the Galapagos Islands, mostly because some Ecuadorians I volunteered with at a kitchen supplying lunches for the elderly kept telling me I would be mugged there. “Don’t go to Guayaquil.” “You won’t like Guayaquil.” The U.S. State Department’s cautions about…
Venetian Calm and Venetian Crowds
A trip to Venice introduces some Venetian calm and Venetian crowds to visitors.
Venice: What I Learned from My Gondola Ride
Can Venice and a pricey gondola ride possibly live up to the hype? The Bashful Adventurer finds out.
Tony Horwitz, A Voyage Long and Strange, Columbus Day, Pocahontas, Etc.
Encountering Christopher Columbus in her travels, the Bashful Adventurer picks up a copy of A Voyage Long and Strange to learn more about the New World.
East and West Together: Happy Unity Day, Germany!
In this time of global tumult, it’s easy to forget that democratic movements generated a little anxiety at points before. Hard to believe it’s been 23 years since the Berlin Wall came down in November 1989. East and West Germany were reunited officially in 1990, and the occasion is now observed on October 3. I’m…
Cold Spring, N.Y.: Geo. Washington Drank Here
The Bashful Adventurer gets away to Cold Spring, NY and learns some history about the first president of the United States