Features

September 2008 issue

Discovering much to see and do on a 5-week stay in Brussels

by Marilyn Lutzker, New York, NY

A well-preserved medieval center, dozens of world-class museums, a wealth of Art Nouveau architecture, affordable antique and flea markets and more than 1,500 restaurants are enough to belie Brussels’ reputation for being boring. Visitors will find Brussels a joy for looking, learning, walking and eating.

Where to stay

Brussels is divided between Lower Town and Upper Town. On our first visit in 2002, my friend and I stayed in the Avenue Louise area of Upper Town. This is a comfortable, upper-middle-class area of residences and hotels...

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April 2007 issue

Where do Germans go on vacation in Germany? Regensburg!

by Carol H. Probst, Bethel Park, PA

“Und ver did you hear about Regensburg? Ve vish to keep that city to ourselves!” This comment, from a German woman in Heidelberg after she learned we had visited Regensburg, was cause for reflection. In June ’06 my husband and I, as part of our 3-country European trip, spent an entire weekend in Regensburg. Suddenly, we understood why the only other language we had heard there was German.

The city seems to be a popular destination for Germans but appears far less renowned among foreign visitors. What a shame, for it boasts numerous...

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December 2008 issue

Palau — A snorkeler's dream destination

Larry Taylor, Fullerton, CA. Photos by Gail Taylor

Palau: my wife, Gail, and I had been there before and jumped at the chance to return. We were booked on a cruise from Papua New Guinea that ended in Palau, and we decided to stay over for three days, in May ’08.

Not a lot of American travelers know about this unspoiled travel destination, but just ask avid divers or snorkelers. If they haven’t already been there, they probably will tell you Palau is at the top of their list of must-go spots.

About Palau

Considered a part of the region of Micronesia (not the...

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August 2007 issue

England's beautiful southern coast plus the Isle of Wight

by June Griffin, Lewiston, ME

England’s southern coast along the channel, especially East and West Sussex, is a beautiful place to visit. In May ’06 I had a wonderful stay there in beautiful weather. The temperature was in the 70s, and from London south people were enjoying sunshine and no rain. While the newspapers reported a heat wave when upper 70s were recorded, a real heat wave did develop later in the summer in England and all over Europe.

I knew this area of England from previous visits, so I was able to plan a “customized visit” for my travel companion, Sally Maguire...

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November 2007 issue

Umbria, unlocked and overlooked, offers backroads surprises

by Arlene Wills, Lynnfield, MA

Of the 20 regions of Italy, Umbria, which lies very near the center of the peninsula, is the only region without a sea coast. Relatively small in area (only about 1,500 square miles) and with less than one million inhabitants, it’s often overlooked by travelers in favor of Tuscany, its better-known neighbor to the west.

Where Tuscany’s cities, villages, villas and fields show more obvious signs of prosperity, in Umbria aspects of the working man’s life are more apparent. There are fewer destination cities, and the hill towns are mainly empty of...

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February 2008 issue

From Vladivostok to Sakhalin Island — rediscovering the Russian Far East

by Bill Altaffer, Mammoth Lakes, CA

After an overnight in Seoul, South Korea, one of the most populated cities in the world today, our MIR Corp. tour group flew to Vladivostok, our entry and exit city for the Russian Far East.

First stop, Vladivostok

Between the end of World War II and the collapse of the Soviet Union at the end of 1991, Vladivostok was off-limits to foreigners and most Russians. Today it is a sister city to San Diego and is a lucrative base for international commerce due to its deep harbor, averaging 295 ice-free days a year.

Our base in...

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June 2008 issue

France — touring Alsace and Burgundy by car

by Richard Berner, San Diego, CA

After a wonderful week in Paris staying in a rental apartment in the 11th arrondissement, we picked up our Europcar rental at Charles de Gaulle Airport on May 2, 2007. From the airport, we headed for Reims in the Champagne region of northeastern France.

To begin, Champagne

Our destination was the Grand Hotel Continental (93 place Drouet d’Erlon; phone +33 [0] 3 26 40 39 35, www.grandhotelcontinental.com). The hotel was comfortable and well located on the pedestrian square in the center of town, with easy underground parking nearby (€...

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January 2007 issue

A walk through history in Berlin

History never leaves you in Berlin. It is palpable in the city’s buildings, institutions, neighborhoods and memorials. Devastation and division, restoration and renewal, give the city a special look.

Mitte, the pre-World War II center of the city, is in the area which became East Berlin following the war. Unter den Linden, the Brandenburg Gate, the Staatsoper and Museum Island, a UNESCO World Heritage Site containing five historic museum buildings, are located here.

West Berlin countered the loss of its major cultural sites by building new ones. Hence, the Kultur...

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