In the shadow of Eldorado Resort Casino – a 400-room hotel-gaming complex – is Shreveport Aquarium looking small and blue; like a tiny lake at the foot of a mountain. But what’s inside this welcoming haven for nature lovers and children of all ages is anything but small. Although it is blue. On this unseasonably hot October day I welcome
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Jackson County, NC; a Gem in the Mountains
It’s quiet. Well, there are birds singing and the occasional crunch of gravel as a car slowly passes by, but pretty much it seems like I am a million miles away from anyone or any care in the world. I am staying in a rustic cabin with all the amenities anyone could wish for at Balsam Mountain Preserve. The entire
“Eating Europe” now offering tours in Lisbon
My own experience with Eating Europe was in beautiful Florence, Italy. The “Sunset Food Tour” took me through the neighborhood of Santo Spirito surrounding the piazza and the Church of Santo Spirito. We made six stops over the course of three and a half hours walking along cobblestone streets and meeting several locals along the way. Now Eating Europe is
South Carolina’s Rare Plant and Animal Species
South Carolina is an amazing place to discover the great outdoors. Many plants, insects and animals adapted to unusual environments and conditions here and thrived. Dolphins For example, near the mouth of the Kiawah River, where it runs into the Atlantic Ocean by Captain Sam’s Spit on Kiawah Island, visitors can watch a fascinating behavior as pods of dolphins work together
Kasbah Ait Benhaddou – Another chapter in Moroccan History
What do Game of Thrones, Gladiator, and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade have in common? They were filmed, in part, in the foothills of Morocco’s High Atlas Mountains’ southern slopes. Kasbah Ait Benhaddou, dating to the 17th century, is the setting for many of these television and movie productions. Every day the Kasbah is also host to a steady
Cruise Offers Insight Into Russian Culture
By Marilyn Jones I am often asked what I liked best about a trip when I return home. Invariably I say the people. Most of the world’s population has the same priorities as I do: taking care of their families, cultivating friendships and their faith. Human differences are usually superfluous, proving to me we are all more alike than different,
Texas “dinosaur museum” is a big hit with children
My four-year-old granddaughter Ainsley loves fish, sea turtles, sharks and dinosaurs. Although when she started to talk she stumbled over certain words, she quickly learned the names of many dinosaurs – Triceratops, Tyrannosaurus Rex and Brachiosaurus. Naranjo Museum of Natural History in Lufkin, Texas is an excellent place to visit for a little girl interested in all things prehistoric. This
January Brings Big New Year Savings for Adventurous Travelers
The gifts of the holidays continue at G Adventures this month, with savings on more than 300 of its guided, multi-day trips around the world during a January “Must Go Sale” designed to spark 2019 travel planning. Running now through January 31, discounts will offer travelers savings of up to 25 percent. I first experienced G Adventures when I visited
Louisiana fort opens the door on history
I am in luck. Well, sort of. It’s raining and not just a little. It’s pouring and there is no way I can tour Fort St. Jean Baptiste State Historic Site in the drenching rain especially without waterproof boots. I love history and the Natchitoches, Louisiana attraction is one I really want to explore. I look at the exhibits in
Two Days in Venice
By Marilyn Jones I sat with my friend, Cacinda, at a sidewalk café enjoying a Margherita pizza. The pizza was good, but my surroundings were divine. Before me stood ancient buildings, including a church and apartment buildings, and a gondolier in a red-and-white striped shirt talked on his cell phone waiting for his next passenger. I am in Venice.