It is so quiet you could hear my fork drop on the plate ever so lightly, that is, if I ever put it down. My waiter makes certain to place my Erdäpfel-Vogerlsalat, a vinegary potato salad with lamb’s lettuce, down in such a manner that I wouldn’t ever have to give my fork a rest. My dining companion tells me this is customary in Germany and Austria to place your fork in your left hand and your knife in your right at all times. Almost like dinner gloves, you wear these tools until the plate is clean. My plate tonight is a golden dream, a Viennese specialty, Wiener Schnitzel. The traditional Continue Reading
Trim, Ireland Wishes You Were Here
When I reach the last few days of a trip, I tend to look at these remaining destinations with finality. On my way to the Dublin Airport, I decided to spend that finality in Trim, a place where many spent their own end. The small town just west of Ireland’s capital used to be a major player in the middle ages. Elizabeth I even considered placing Trinity College here. Home to the county jail, ironically Trim was where you could say the herds were also trimmed and thinned. I check into my hotel just across from the Trim Castle, obviously the showpiece to this now snoozing town. The Castle Continue Reading
Vicksburg, Mississippi Wishes You Were Here
In the late afternoon light of Mississippi, an eerie silence takes hold of a tragic and yet beautiful piece of land. Set up in the northeastern portion of Vicksburg is the Vicksburg National Military Park, where in large part the north won the south during the Civil War. The 16-mile driving tour of the park follows Union and Confederate siege lines. The Siege of Vicksburg ended on July 4, 1863, after well over 40 days of battle. Those battles would later lend the Union forces control of the Mississippi River south to New Orleans, cutting the Confederacy in two. No wonder President Abraham Continue Reading
Goodland, Kansas Wishes You Were Here
I saw the sun rise over the plains of Colorado on my way to completing a secret goal. This past June, I drove from Denver to the California Coast. In September, I drove from Fayetteville, Arkansas out to the Carolina Coast. The only missing piece to this great American road trip, truly going from coast to coast in a year, was the lonely, often forgotten stretch from Denver down to Arkansas. And so when the opportunity presents itself, I joined an impromptu ride from Denver to Fayetteville and saw the sunrise, something I hadn’t seen in years. While I could say this completion of driving Continue Reading
Connemara, Ireland Wishes You Were Here
I turn the handle on a squeaky blue painted door in Clifden, hoping for a simple meal. That simple meal quickly turns into a complex conversation with the owner about the state of Ireland. As she laments the country’s recession, she says with a hope, “But it will get better.” Her words are simple, and yet so complex. Most worries are only temporary and believing in their passing is the best we can do. Post dinner and discussion, she bids me good luck on my travels and I enter the colorful streets of Connemara’s capital. Clifden decorates in brightly painted shops and restaurants, generally Continue Reading
My Favorite Places of 2011 Wish You Were Here
Favorite places are not easy to come by and not easy to pare down. Sometimes we have too many and at times we don’t have enough. My favorite places of 2011 are highly subjective, as are all articles of this nature. I have been reading many “Where to go in 2012” articles and I can’t help but wonder about the author. These are their favorite places most likely of 2011. Every Friday, I feature a favorite place, a moment with a destination that moved me. The idea is to lend a weekly postcard, one I hope you feel is purely addressed to you. These places wish you were here, even if you can’t be. Continue Reading
Sweet December Travel
He stirs the mixture of hot sugar, just one point in the process to create a simple candy cane. A father lifts his son on his arms to see the silver saint as an entire island elbows in between. And a lighthouse watches over a Christmas tree composed solely of lobster traps. I don’t often travel in December, mostly due to family filled schedules and of course the chaotic airport scene. After boarding a flight on Monday, a boarding process that took far longer than it ever should, I watched as people jammed their holiday gifts and jackets in the overhead bins, ignoring all announcements to leave Continue Reading