by Lisa McCallum Pete and I are sharing my first pizza since I left America. We’re at a restaurant near the beach outside Nadi, Fiji. I’m biding my time near Nadi until my plane leaves for Auckland. “I knew when I met you on the beach that you would be an interesting person,” Pete says…
by Janet Bein, Young at Heart Diva When Guatemalans mention the gringos who have come to live in their country, they usually point to American expats who have mansions, servants and fancy cars. Deet Lewis, who has lived in Guatemala for almost 16 years, is a completely different type of gringo. A psychological counselor, massage…
by Rick Steves Travel can make you a poet. Travel can be spiritual. You meet people on the road you’d never meet otherwise. Traveling rearranges your cultural furniture, challenging truths you assumed were self-evident and God-given. By traveling, you learn not only about the people and places you visit — you learn about yourself. But…
by Jennifer Anthony In the days that led up to Thanksgiving, I used every tactic I knew of to bring up the topic of the four-day weekend. I was excited to spend time with my family and extended family in Yosemite National Park, but my real excuse for broaching the subject was the excuse to…
by Jennifer Anthony Four men blast propane gas into the mouth of the hot air balloon. Belly expanding, the balloon gulps in the flame and waits for the next burst. Its rainbow of colors pop against the neutral blue sky. It is seven a.m., and neither the sky nor the future passengers watching the balloon…
by Jane Straus Normally, I hate the word “should” because it makes me feel pressured; however, in this case, I’m hoping that you take it as I intend it: All of us women over fifty have a right to travel. And if making the decision to travel solo requires arguing against our fears and limiting…
by Heather Huntington I’m afraid of heights. Not, like, paralyzing, freak-out-if-I-drive-over-a-bridge fear of heights, but what I would like to consider a reasonable fear. For example, if I’m up at the edge of a building where I would die if I say, fell, then perhaps I might go, ‘Yuck’ and back up a few steps…