I watch Little Rock from a streetcar window as the trolley chugs through the streets of downtown, a place that lives up to its title. Arkansas’ capital does not boast a dramatic skyline or even a size that overwhelms. It is truly little, but its heart is certainly large. The River Rail Electric Streetcars in Little Rock are easy to spot. They stun the eyes in their bright yellow coloring. The clickety-click of the tracks make for a rhythmic sound one could fall asleep to while cruising the streets of the downtown. For $1, I ride the Blue Line, a 3.4 mile loop with 15 stops in downtown and Continue Reading
Clinton’s Little Rock: A Tour of Arkansas’ Capital Through Presidential Eyes
I pull up a slightly worn seat at a simple table adorned with a red-checkered tablecloth. I can see the kitchen from my perch and probably the big wigs of Arkansas politics. A few patrons wear those goofy bow ties as only some can do. Doe’s Eat Place is the sort of space where people in suits sit on shabby chairs and feast on T-Bone, Porterhouse and Sirloin steaks dressed in fries. Doe’s Eat Place is a Little Rock landmark. The idea was carried over from the first Doe’s in Greenville, Mississippi. Doe’s of Little Rock maintained the no frills tradition for good steaks and hot tamales. Over Continue Reading
St. Louis, Missouri Wishes You Were Here
I can be bribed to travel for any rhyme or reason especially if you toss in a world’s largest attraction as one of the stops along the way. I found myself meeting St. Louis on a short weekend, beginning with its grand introduction not of the Gateway Arch but rather the World Largest Rocking Chair. Built in 2008, the chair stands over 42 feet tall and 20 feet wide. Just before you reach St. Louis, Missouri, you can stumble upon this rocker in the town of Fanning. I forced a carload full of people to stop here, some willing and others not so willing, just for a moment to appreciate this taste of Continue Reading
Surviving the Brooklyn Bridge
“One, two, three, four,” I utter as I count the number of people hitting me on the Brooklyn Bridge. Before you get too scared, I am on the pedestrian walkway, high above the roaring traffic below. These little brushes with my fellow walkers aren’t so damaging to me physically but perhaps emotionally. I often hear the words “wonderful” and “pleasant” used to describe the journey across the Brooklyn Bridge. And as I met a teen face to face on the Brooklyn Bridge, one of those who at a crowded mall at the holidays lets oncoming pedestrian traffic move for them, we collided somewhere over the East Continue Reading
The Empire State Building Wishes You Were Here
Creating something out of nothing never ceases to amaze me. It is a romantic notion that based on someone’s idea, this is what should come out of nothing. On top of the world, you get that sense and on top of the world could very well be where I stand on the 86th floor of the Empire State Building. I’m not even at this colossal office building’s highest height. I stand at a mere 1,050 feet. The building also boasts a 102nd floor observatory at 1,250 feet. If I could scale the broadcast tower on top like the famous monster, I would be 1,453 feet above New York. With its 103 floors and Continue Reading
Alone in Ireland in Photos
They joked about their ex-wives as I stepped up to the ring. I was about to let two crusty old men dangle me from a 15th century castle, all to kiss a stone whose surface probably belongs in a petri dish rather than a top tourist attraction. As I let the strange man hoist me upside down, I could see the glowing green earth below from an angle unknown to me. I was alone in Ireland, doing things I would have never considered solo activities before, including putting my faith in strangers to bring me back up from my big smooch with the Blarney Stone. It would be an utter shame to miss out on Continue Reading
Catedral de Mallorca Wishes You Were Here
The day was long and my feet throbbed with every step forward. Putting one foot in the front of the other was a struggle on my last day in Mallorca’s capital city of Palma de Mallorca. I saw its major architectural landmark only in passing and under the cover of night. It glowed in a way churches in Europe always seem to at night with an inextricable gleam of magic. Anyone gazing upon them must believe in something. By the daylight, I was less than enthused to enter yet another church in Europe, but this was Palma’s big cheese, the Catedral de Mallorca. Perched in the old town of the city, Continue Reading