(Excerpt from my book OUR SUMMER IN CARMEL: AMAZON.COM) Mother Nature’s gifts to Carmel and Monterey Bay are not limited to its trees. The sand in places on Carmel Beach is strikingly white. This is attributed to a prehistoric upwards thrust of the coast that exposed the light-colored granite, which, over the ages, has been ground down to a fine, white-powder-sand beach. Also, there is Carmel’s signature critter, the sea otter. These playful animals are the darlings of the Monterey Aquarium, but barely survived to this day because of their valuable pelts; more sought after at [View Full Entry]

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From my book OUR SUMMER IN SLOVENIA, AMAZON.COM.) On our last evening in Vienna we took a decidedly different approach to dinner. On this night we actually dressed up (that means I put on a jacket) and went to the Rauchfangkeher, loosely translated into the “chimney sweep who fell in love with a woman married to a baker and who always dusted her roof with white flour after cleaning up the chimney which it seems was cleaned much more frequently than needed.” That’s a long and loose translation, but then, this is the German language. This restaurant is billed as having [View Full Entry]

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(From my book OUR SUMMER IN ESTONIA, AMAZON.COM) It’s ironic that my second historical interest on Muhu spans those 800 years, with the battle of 1227, representing the beginning of Estonian subjugation, and a deserted Soviet air defense missile site representing the final shaking off of Estonia’s foreign occupation. Muhu was off limits to all but the island’s residents, for the almost fifty years of Soviet Union occupation following WWII. In addition to Soviet paranoia that someone might escape their loving embrace by sea to Sweden, Muhu was a restricted site becau [View Full Entry]

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(Excerpted from my book, OUR SUMMER IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND, AMAZON.COM) We finally made it to Perth! Crossed Australia from Sydney in a week. Now to upgrade and revel in the delights of this big city of 1.3 million. Ah,the Hyatt Regency, Club Floor for three nights. We arrived at 7pm and were being served complimentary cocktails fifteen minutes later, with enough canapés that dining out wasn’t even an option. “Winfield,draw our bath please.” Saturday morning in Perth, Western Australia. Beautiful winter day,clear skies and mid-day temperature about 19c, or 67f, w [View Full Entry]

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Excerpted from my book OUR SUMMER IN CARMEL; Amazon.com Carmel's unusual climatic conditions contribute to several other natural phenomena. One example is the Monterey Pine. This is the tree that Cabrillo discovered in 1542 after which he named Cabo de Pinos. This species of pine grows large, tall and straight, a shipwright’s dream-tree in the sailing days of the 16-17th centuries. It is the world’s fastest growing pine; some are known to grow ten feet in a year! Although this tree is found in many places in the world today, it is indigenous to only a few places in California, [View Full Entry]

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Excerpted from my book: OUR SUMMER IN SLOVENIA- AMAZON.COM Vienna is no exception to most large world capital cities in having many dining options. From serving grand multi-waitered, multi-course meals in opulent surroundings, to more typical Viennese restaurants specializing in meals akin to but not quite the same as found in Germany, and lastly a class of restaurants called Heurigen, which roughly translates into wine taverns. In 1784 Emperor Joseph II granted wine producers the right to sell their own product directly to the public from their own premises. This is common to the United [View Full Entry]

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EXCERPTED FROM MY BOOK, OUR SUMMER IN ESTONIA: AMAZON.COM In addition to staying at an authentic manor house, I had other historical interests for visiting Muhu. This island was the last mainstay and defender of ancient pagan Estonian freedom, a freedom that finally succumbed on this island to the forces of crusading Christianity represented by the German knights and the Danish king. There had been many confrontations between the two cultures, during the ever expanding German and Danish influence in the first two decades of the 13th century. From Riga the German knights expanded by l [View Full Entry]

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Excerpted from my book OUR SUMMER IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND, AMAZON.COM From Point Leeuwin we picked up the pace to the Margaret River region, visiting a newly opened winery looking very similar the new large “industrial” wineries built recently in California. It was there I confirmed my long held notion that the ubiquitous Australian wine Shiraz was actually Syrah, “flowing,” under different colors. I had to convince the winery guide, who was not accepting my assertion. In Australia, as in the United States and most other countries (except France,) wines are [View Full Entry]

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Excerpted from my book OUR SUMMER IN CARMEL at Amazon.com The highlight of the afternoon festivities was an appearance by the Comets of Bill Haley and “Rock Around The Clock” fame. Haley passed away some years ago, but the other original five members of the group had reunited and were enjoying international recognition. For their years, could they still rock! Wow! Their average age was 76, with the oldest band member being 84. Well beyond Viagra, and expected to be in a retirement home? Not so for these guys! They presented a brilliant show, displayed astonishing passion for th [View Full Entry]

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Excerpted from my book OUR SUMMER IN CARMEL, Amazon.com The Monterey Peninsula is comprised of several small towns woven seamlessly together all hugging the cool waters of Monterey Bay, witheach community having its own distinct character. In Carmel there was a gathering at Devendorf Park, the social center of the village, with live music. Pacific Grove, a small former Victorian village separated from Carmel by Carmel Hill, was having its own parade. Seaside, a very patriotic community that borders Ft. Ord with many retired military personnel in residence, had already rolled out their annua [View Full Entry]

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