In England’s Lake District, nature rules and humanity keeps a wide-eyed but low profile. At just about 30 miles long and 30 miles wide, the region is a lush, green playground for hikers and poets alike. William Wordsworth’s poems still shiver in its trees and ripple on its ponds. There’s a walking-stick charm about the way nature and culture mix here. Walking along a windblown ridge or climbing over a rock fence to look into the eyes of a ragamuffin sheep, even tenderfeet...

Leaving Mostar, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, I drive south to yet another nation that emerged newly independent from the ashes of Yugoslavia: Montenegro. During my travels through this region, my punch-drunk passport has been stamped, stamped, and stamped again. While the unification of Europe has made most border crossings feel archaic, here the breakup of Yugoslavia has kept them in vogue. Every time the country splintered, another border was drawn. The poorer the country, it seems, the more...

In October 2021 I booked a trip to Belize. Why Belize, you may ask? An internet search showed that Belize was proactive in protecting people from COVID. Not only did visitors have to show a COVID-free test on arrival, they had to stay in COVID-compliant hotels. Face masks, social distancing and curfews were mandatory.

From the list of approved hotels (www.travelbelize.org/health-safety), I chose The Placencia (Mile 13 Placencia Rd., Placencia, Belize; 877/417-9179, theplacencia.com),...