While we are in Sedona and Scottsdale, I visited the Gila River War Relocation Center. Most of my Dad's family (west of Highway 99) were incarcerated in Jerome, Arkansas shortly after Pearl Harbor. My Mom's family from Sanger (east of Highway 99) was sent to Gila River, Arizona, just outside of Phoenix. My Dad stayed behind to make arrangements for the family farm. He met up with some bachelor friends in Fresno, and was shipped out to Gila shortly. My Mom and Dad met there, and were married during their year in the desert. They received a weekend pass to elope to Phoenix. But how much do you know about the "Relocation Camp" in the Arizona desert? The Gila River War Relocation Center was built on the Gila River Indian Reservation, over their objections. Gila River ... read more

Spanning nearly 4,345 miles—roughly the distance from New York to Paris—the Amazon River is an awesome natural wonder, home to fascinating creatures like pink dolphins, piranhas, Amazonian manatees, and crocodile-like black caimans. It snakes through a total of eight South American countries, including Colombia, Ecuador and Peru (to name a few), though its largest portion can be found in Brazil. On our trip to Amazonia, we probably saw less than 100 miles of this great river. When they say everything’s bigger in Texas, they ain’t kidding. At a length of 255 feet—just 15 yards shy of an entire football field—the massive car wash at the Buc-ee’s convenience store of Katy, Texas, is truly the leader of lathering and the sorcer... read more

Who is in the air at any one time? The exact numbers, according to flight-tracking service FlightAware, are on average, 9,728 planes with a total of 1,270,406 people. That would make the skies the 156th most populous country in the world, right between Estonia and East Timor. The US alone has 61,000 people in the air at one time. A few years back, url=https://nam01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Ffilm%2F2011%2Faug%2F18%2Fvirgin-atlantic-films-warning&data=02%7C01%7C%7C72d1b79cfe97490fdfd208d56e3f987f%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C636536141775494242&sdata=OATanr6crl1n%2Bh3UXdVFqxLNFyD763hFtUo3Wvuc3zQ%3D&reserved=0Virgin America conducted a highly scientific study on its Facebook page, in which 41% of men admitted to crying at in-flight movies, and 55% of people said they felt more emotional while f... read more

Rarely do I agree with the travel "experts" and their suggestions to stay away from specific and troubled destinations. I fell victim to this, as recently as last October, when I was told to stay away from my visit to Istanbul. Both the State Department and many of my well-traveled friends said to stay away. Well, enough said, I should have gone. I was within an hour of Istanbul by air when I was in Budapest! Here are a few more of their "suggestions" that I find curious and dubious at best. Myanmar has become a fascinating place, mostly for their limited contact with the rest of the world. Mike and I were there three years ago. It is a surprisingly rich and vibrant culture, somewhat different than the rest of SE Asia. We found the ... read more

Most of us do not enjoy mid air turbulence on our flights. Many times, it is predictable, like flying over mountain ranges (Denver) or hot deserts (like Vegas). But most troubling are the unexpected episodes where the seat belt light goes on, AND the flight attendants are told to take their seats! So, short of taking a fast acting tranquilizer, and chugging another shot of bourbon, what can you do? First, did you know that over 20 million people suffer from aviophobia or fear of flying? Add to that, take off, landing, noise, and bumps take their toll on many others, me included. Severe turbulence often sends people to the hospital. I have been nauseated from the turbulence twice in my life, returning from Washington, DC in a storm, and flying to Rio from Miami. Experts ... read more