Hairy Coo Fiona, Scottish Highland Cow

Three Days in Edinburgh – Scottish Castles, a Hairy Coo and Lush Landscapes

For my Memorial Day trip this year, I decided a quick three days in Edinburgh would be a perfect diversion from my normal London visit.  I would still go to London for two nights before flying home to see friend. With such a short visit to Edinburgh, you’d think I […]

Love Statue Philly

A New Tradition – The Memorial Day Trip to Europe

When my father passed suddenly a few years ago, his service was the day after Memorial Day.  What was a lovely holiday to start the summer, a holiday to remember those who served in the U.S. Armed forces, was now a holiday full of sadness, deep sadness that I wasn’t […]

V&A Museuem large paintings

Art Surprises Abound at The V&A Museum London

In all of my visits to London over the past twenty plus years, I’ve only ventured into two museums – the British Museum on a rainy day and the Tate Modern along South Bank at the end of the Millennium Bridge. I’ve been woefully ignorant of the many wonderful museum […]

White Tower of London tour Context Travel

Tower of London Tour with Context Travel – A Deep Dive Into History & Royalty

The Crown Jewels, the White Tower, the Beefeaters (Yeoman Warders) and the Ravens were all part of our Tower of London tour.  Each has a fascinating story to tell about the history of royalty, tradition and London and no first visit to London is complete without visiting the Tower of […]

Stonehenge cloudy skies photo

Visit Stonehenge Through the Moody Photos of Mom’s First Visit

Of course on my first visit to London the itinerary included a visit to the mysterious Stonehenge.  Long a World Heritage site, the theories of the stones have abounded for the ages.  Religious, Spiritual, Astrological, Mystical, etc. From “This is Spinal Tap” to a variety of documentaries many have wondered […]

5 Tips to Consider Before You Volunteer to Give Up Your Airplane Seat

Last week I was out at sea when the United incident occurred. When I reached port the next day, it was all over the news and I was surprised by all the mis-steps taken by the airline and local airport security.  I’ve always known that the airlines oversold the seats […]

Westin Milan lobby bar

Westin Milan – A Beautiful Room to Relax in Italian Luxury

My stay at the Westin Milan was to be the luxury celebration to a month in Italy so I redeemed points for the weekend stay at the posh hotel.  After a month of mixed lodging from boutique hotels in Naples, a B&B in Sorrento and Venice to my amazing canal […]

One ticket to Hamilton orchestra view of stage

Solo Broadway: Review of My One Ticket to Hamilton, an American Musical

To be honest, I didn’t know much about Hamilton on Broadway other than “it’s the hottest (and hardest) ticket to get” and something about the revolving list of actors playing the King.  I didn’t listen to the soundtrack, didn’t have the t-shirt or lament on Facebook about never winning the […]