Archives for posts with tag: travel

Subjects to write about when traveling

December 29, 2025 //

When we depart in nine days now I want to write a bit, but not too much, and I want to do it every day. What I intend to do is be particular about what I put down on paper. Every day I’ll put a pen to paper briefly about:

Logistics and reality
Remaining active and fit on vacation
Food and entertainment, but only if it’s interesting
Opportunities for rest and relaxation, in the literal sense
What experiences in the moment inspired the strongest emotions

Logistics. This is actually the least most important subject. You can learn this anywhere, but it is essential to having time to have fun and remaining stress-free. What are the logistics of being where you are? Was the ride smooth or bumpy? Was it warm or cold or wet? Were the seas rough?

How to remain active. Particularly true on package tours and / or cruises. How do you remain healthy? How do you stay young? How do you keep up your fitness program rather than gaining weight?

Then, the opposite – food and entertainment. Did you see a band play? Did you see a show? Write about it if it’s interesting. Don’t right about it, except in passing, if it is just background music. If you decided to follow them on social media write about it. Same with the food. Once you’ve established the same dull habit of a bowl of fruit and yogurt in the room for breakfast every day no matter how much joy it brings you, don’t write a photo, but if you went to Morimoto’s latest or you found the freshest oysters in whatever strange country you’re visiting, go ahead share a photo and write.

The next is where I am going to get controversial. I want to keep track of how I stayed well-rested. If you’re going to go on extended travels, you need to track your energy levels. Otherwise, you’re going to get sick. Fortunately, we have modern technology on our side.

Finally, this is what matters most. What did you see or experience that inspired you today? What was that one moment? Was it a flash of light across the sky? Or the sound your footsteps made in an alley on cobblestones? What will you remember the most about being there, away from home?

What will make you come back?

Tags writing, travel, Foodie, cruising, adventure, vacation, experience, exploration

Categories Travel Logistics

Why we go on cruises

December 15, 2025 //

This post is entitled why we go on cruises. It’s about the obvious. I’m the type of person – we’re the type of people – who actually enjoy doing things when we travel. We’re active. We run. We run in port. We walk across the Brooklyn Bridge to Kings County Distillery in the Navy Yard. We go on an architecture boat tour in Chicago. When we visit a city, we stay somewhere comfortable and wander around and try to be like locals. Well, we try. We walked to the top of Cadillac Mountain instead of driving. But we go on cruises. Why?

We go on cruises so we don’t drive each other nuts. We like to do certain things in the morning and we also appreciate a fair amount of downtime. Sometimes one relaxes while the other goes to the casino. We don’t like to haul our luggage back and forth constantly; instead, we want to pretend we’re home. We don’t want to sit in a place for a week or two or three weeks, at least not most of the time. We want to experience a place but also relax.

So let me start out by telling you how I started cruising.

In 2016, I took my daughters on a cruise. I drove to the cruise port with them and we sailed south for a week. Planned ports included Port Canaveral in Florida (a success, we visited Disney for the first time ever), Nassau in the Bahamas, and Freeport (fail, due to planned hurricane). Did I mention the hurricane? My worst experience at sea was my first one, the one where the ship was listing sideways as we skirted a Cat 1 hurricane off Cape Hatteras.

In 2017, I took them on a cruise with my mother. Or rather, we went on a transatlantic passage on Queen Mary 2. Again, the main reason I did this is because it allowed a degree of relaxation while also entertaining my family. It was to some degree tiring though – travel with family is often not about relaxation. We did go to Scotland though.

I went on one solo cruise on a ship called the Royal Clipper, and then I went on two more – one, another Transatlantic, on Celebrity Silhouette as a “first vacation since COVID,” and one on Queen Victoria at the edge of winter to Spain and Portugal. That last one was in many ways the best – we, meaning we and not my daughters, visited a number of different interesting ports and towns in Spain and Portugal. This is really where we established our cruising habits and learned some lessons.

Always dine in port, because the food in port is one of the strongest identifiers of a culture.

Always give yourself downtime. Don’t attempt to try every event on the ship. Remember, if you’re on a ship for more than a week, just as you do with work at home you also need a day off to sleep in, rest, and relax. Also, don’t drink heavily before a day where the captain is telling you that you will have rough seas.

And move into your cabin. Act as if you own it. Find that one spot on the ship you find relaxing and keep coming back to it. Watch the sunset, watch the waves change day after day. Look for whales and dolphins. And enjoy yourself.

Tags cruise experiences, cruising, family vacation, port city, relaxation travel, travel, urban exploration

Categories Travel Logistics

Practice Packing

December 8, 2025 //

As a run-up to our January expedition I have been trying to track if anything is missing from my needed inventory for packing. End result, I have been asking myself questions such as “I don’t know if I have enough pairs of long johns” or “Do I have enough outer layers that are presentable for lunch in the main dining room on a day where I am layering so as to rush outside to look for penguins and whales?” Anyway, it ended up being laundry day, so as part of the process I spread my long cruise suitcase out on the bed and as I folded clothing I stacked what I needed carefully or not so carefully in my suitcase and did an assessment. Do I have everything? Will everything fit?

The short answer is I do have everything. The longer answer is maybe I do not or should not pack everything. I put too many heavy shirts in there, too many pairs of jeans, the right amount of khakis, a suit, probably the proper amount of underwear, more than enough running shirts and yoga shirts, and an extra swimsuit. As I have unlimited laundry even though I am packing for three climates I don’t need as much.

It wouldn’t close. It would close when I zipped out the expanders, but even in business class that puts me in penalty zone. It’s still within weight limit (69 pounds, not over 70 pounds) but my winter coat isn’t in there yet. It’s beyond size limit (62 inches total length plus width plus depth including wheels) but not beyond extra size limit (65 inches). It’s clear what I need to do.

Standing suitcase, 69 pounds, three inches too wide

I need to remove a quarter of what I packed and I need to add a duffel for extras on the return trip.

Anyway. I am not a fan of packing early, nor am I a fan of practice packing, but this time was helpful. New strategy – plan to go over if necessary, but try not to on the trip outbound. Old strategy – pack a duffel bag.

About my suitcase – $79 at Macy’s Backstage, bought for a thirteen day cruise two years ago (you can see if you zoom in on the label on the side). It may only last a few cruises, but that’s fine. Eventually I’ll get something better.

Tags clothing, inventory, laundry, luggage, packing, packing-list, suitcase, travel, travel-blog

Categories Travel Logistics

From Country Roads to City Streets: A Tale of Three Drives

December 5, 2025 //

I learned to drive on my dad’s old Chevy truck—a hulking relic of steel and grit. It had a three-on-the-tree transmission, no power steering, and no power brakes. Every turn felt like arm-wrestling a giant, every stop a test of leg strength. But once you mastered its stubborn charm, it was magic. Perfect for long, lazy drives down winding country roads, where the horizon stretched wide and the world slowed down. Even in town, once you knew its rhythm, it danced through traffic with surprising grace.

Fast forward to today, and I’m behind the wheel of a Range Rover Sport. Funny thing—it’s about the same size as that old Chevy, and sometimes it feels just as commanding. I sit high above the fray, surveying traffic like a hawk. Parking still gives me that familiar “am I going to scrape the wall?” moment, though I never do. The turning circle? Huge. Sharp corners mean spinning the wheel twice, just like old times. But that’s where nostalgia ends. This Rover is a rocket. The supercharged V8 growls like an old Buick, but without the sway in corners. It glides over pavement like silk, stops on a dime, and those red brake calipers? They whisper speed even when standing still.

Then there’s my other ride: a ten-year-old Mini Cooper, base model, wearing its city scars—dents and scrapes like badges of honor. Driving it is pure play, like hopping into a go-kart. Quick, nimble, and perfect for darting through tight streets. My kids adore it. Most adults? Not so much—unless they’re car enthusiasts. And honestly, in DC traffic, it feels a little too fragile. Still, for errands and coffee runs, nothing beats its cheeky charm.

The past few months have meant countless miles—commuting for my kid’s treatment. In those long drives, I’ve found comfort in the Rover’s quiet strength and joy in the Mini’s spirited zip. But now, life is shifting. The urgency is gone, and for the first time in a while, I can leave both cars resting in the garage. Sometimes, the sweetest drive is the one you don’t have to take.

NOTES on writing this Post – I experimented using Microsoft Copilot to write this. Usually I take about twenty minutes to write these posts. As I have upcoming travel coming I want to practice jotting down and summarizing thoughts quickly and then simply adding photos. To write this, I instructed Copilot to write me a blog entry, provided three subject areas and summarized six or eight bullet points I wanted to cover for each. It’s the same method I may have used to write it myself but saved half the time and, let’s face it, Copilot’s writing is a little zippier. Honestly, I may have written more and droned on with pointlessness, but as it came out it was fine.

Tags car, Chevrolet, driving, driving experience, family, Mini Cooper, nostalgia, Range Rover, road trip, travel

Categories Automobiles, nostalgia, Uncategorized

Boqueria

November 25, 2025 //

It’s time to start writing about things I do.

Tonight I had piano lesson. I’m on about eight years of this madness but my 17 year old daughter is on nine years. She learns better and plays better than I do, although with some songs I catch a certain nuance. But anyway, piano is still a time commitment and for now the commitment is on Monday evenings for a lesson. Tomorrow the kids come over and hang here for nine days straight so that meant last night was the night to go out to dinner. Usually this is a once a week event along with maybe a brunch. This week’s choice was Boqueria thanks to an Amex credit; more on that on another blog. But first, the restaurant.

I know I’ve been to Boqueria a few times but the last time was definitely in 2017 or 2018 so it has been seven years at least. The first time was in 2013 with my friend Brian and that’s the only time I ate outside there. In 2018 there were fewer Spanish options around and none in my neighborhood. Now there is one in my neighborhood and more Barcelona outposts.

Usually on an outing like this if the restaurant is agreeable it becomes something to add to the rotation. Boqueria was good, but I would not say it did it for me. Why? $260 plus taxes for four small plates, cheese, dessert, and drinks.

Wait, five small plates.

First, the cheeses. Valdeon, aged manchego, cabra de cabrales cheese with a dab of fig spread and bread. The cheeses were good and served right. We enjoyed them through the meal and didn’t feel as if they were too hard or heavy.

We had a plate of anchovies that arrived first. This was a classic Iberian preparation of canned anchovies along with some house made potato chips. This was followed by char grilled peppers and patatas bravas, and then a tuna crudo followed by pulpo a la plancha served over a bed of mashed potatoes with capers.

Thoughts on these – the tuna was too thick for what I would call a crudo. I was expecting something more delicate. This was more as if they took strips of tuna from nigiri and placed them over avocado paste. The octopus is good but I’m afraid I’m over-octopus. I think in January when I head to South America I will restrict my octopus consumption to ceviche and salads. The anchovies though were great – delightfully salty and served with orange. I’ll try to do this at home.

Boqueria also did a good job with crema Catalana and had a nice list of sherries for me – I had an oloroso sherry.

So, for me, Sabores in my neighborhood can give me a similar experience for about $100 less. Boqueria’s patatas are bigger and crispier but they don’t need to be. Sabores has tapas that are a little more delicate. I think if I were going for a true Spanish seafood experience I’d spring for Del Mar on the wharf, or one of the Barcelona locations.

Del Mar is even pricier, but it’s a better experience (not that Boqueria is bad).

I have no idea where this is from but it looks really good

Or one could always head back to Spain.

Have a pleasant evening, all.

Tags anchovies, cooking, culinary, dinner, food, Foodie, Iberian, restaurant, seafood, travel

Categories Foodie