Once upon a time, some wag described the camel as a horse designed by committee. Having now been up close and personal with these animals in Morocco, however, I’d have to say that the joke does them a great disservice.
The Village That Isn’t
North Wales isn’t just naturally beautiful. It also contains a world-famous village that its creator called an “outrageous experiment”. It’s a mosaic of extraordinary houses in a range of architectural styles. But some don’t even have interiors and none of them are occupied.
The Sweet History of Mangungu
Not many New Zealanders have ever heard of Mangungu, let alone know of its importance in the history of the country. But amazingly, in addition to being just as important as Waitangi in the founding of modern New Zealand, it has another sweet secret to reveal as well.
Puffin Paparazzi
Everyone knows what a puffin looks like – an almost clown-like creature with a beak so enormous and round it seems to be an extension of its entire head. But very few people would have seen one in its natural habitat.
The Triumph of Fountains
The palace and formal gardens are the glorious hors d’oeuvre. What follows down the hill are a series of forest squares surrounded by clipped beech hedges that conceal a whole host of magical wonders. Because more than anything else, Versailles is the triumph of fountains.
Rainbow Cataract of Dreams
South Americans dream of one day visiting Iguazu Falls, and for good reason. It’s one of the most magically beautiful settings anywhere in nature, and a non-stop generator of rainbows galore.
A Tuscan Serendipity
The sky was vividly blue and cloudless, the air smelled of autumn oak leaves and freshly pressed grapes, and the little piazza echoed with Gina’s voice as she sang out “buon-GIOR-no”. It was all so perfect, it hardly seemed real…
In Praise of the Jésuite
Nothing quite says France like the boulangerie, a great tradition that continues because of the peculiarities of the indispensable daily baguette. And as sweet tooths with attest, every boulangerie also contains its own array of what the French call viennoiserie, including if you’re very lucky the always elusive Jésuite.
To the Satisfaction of His Family
Amherst, Nova Scotia, may be a town of former glory, in a province that has seen better days. But for me it also happens to be the most important town in the country. Because this is where my first truly Canadian ancestor made his home, almost a hundred years before it became the sovereign nation we now know as Canada.
The Silence of Travel & the Prodigious House
Believe it or not, I really enjoy visiting places where English isn’t used. It gives me a serenity that I almost never have back home, where even the most casual conservation can’t help but catch the ear. We say we tune out that sort of thing out, but for me it’s only when I’m in a foreign-language country that it truly disappears. The feeling is sublime, and is one of the reasons I love travel so much.