Crossing the Equator in Ecuador On the list of things I am excited about when contemplating my trip to the Galapagos Islands, crossing the equator is not an entry. What is there really to trill about when passing over an imaginary line? So even though I am in a country called Ecuador and enjoying immensely…
Category: Bashful on Boats
Is a Cape Cod Whale Watch Worthwhile?
The first time I sign up for whale watching, on a trip to San Diego, I somehow manage to book myself on a pretty small boat on what I consider to be a pretty choppy ocean, or maybe it only seems that way because I am in the early weeks of pregnancy. So with those…
Mississippi Queen in Hamburg
Add to the list of things I do not expect to see floating on the Elbe River in Hamburg, Germany: a steamboat named Mississippi Queen. U.S. culture is found in the most unlikely places. —Lori Tripoli Seeking other unusual sites in Hamburg? Consider these: Reason to Visit Hamburg: WWII Bunker Transformed to Green Energy Plant…
Chug-Chugging on the African Queen in Key Largo
On the second leg of our Florida Keys fling, the Brawny Sherpa and I head from Key Biscayne over to Key Largo, where we stay in a one-bedroom duplex at the oddly named Key West Inn at Key Largo where we inevitably wonder whether there is a Key Largo Inn at Key West. Our plans…
Cruise Ships: Where Smaller Is Better
Cruising always promised glamour and excitement for me. My grandmother, tired of being married and with an empty nest, ran away, not to join the circus, but to sign on with a cruise line. I have yellowed postcards from her from points around the world. Even that old ’70s TV show The Love Boat promised…
A Long Ride on a Slow Boat to Moscow
I had been in Russia less than 24 hours when I realized that the overused maxim—“It’s not the destination, it’s the journey”—would be particularly applicable to this trip. I was told the first day’s jaunt to the Hermitage was delayed for an hour or more because of the added chaos in St. Petersburg traffic caused…