Train parking & phantom kids

  I'm always respectful of parents with children. Even when their children are imaginary. Our adventure began when my friends Marque, Clint and I arrived in Murphy, NC, late Saturday afternoon after the 3 hr drive from Alpharetta. It was a great drive, the temperature dropped once we crossed the border into North Carolina and it felt like fall! We set up camp at a familiar spot, just outside of the Nantahala Outdoor Center's main outpost. It's a gorgeous site despite the fact that your 'neighbors' are so very close to you. The rays of sunshine could be seen through the trees and the surroundings were filled with color. ... [Read More]

Religion in Turkey

A couple of years ago Joan Firstenberg wrote an intriguing article suggesting that “Americans are fickle consumers of religion”, noting that about half of Americans change their religion at some point in their life. It might rightly be said that the entire nation of Turkey is a fickle consumer of religion, having changed the state-approved deity more than a few times in its turbulent history 1700 years ago the city we now know as Istanbul was called Byzantium. At the time the locals worshiped a handful of pagan gods, but Christianity was growing in popularity, so one day during a battle General Constantine (Flavius Valerius Aurelius Constantinus ... [Read More]

Riding the Iron Horse

In the 1860's it was called the "Iron Horse"; in the 1930's it's latest rave was the Pullman sleeper cars, and nowadays, it's a dying breed.  Nevertheless, passenger rail still remains a viable mode of transportation for many, and is always an adventure in itself.  In fact, traveling by train can be quite fun, and my latest trip was well worth the ride. My husband, Rick, is a Confederate re-enactor and signed up for the 150th Anniversary of the Battle of Manassas/Bull Run on the third weekend in July.  We opted to take Amtrak. We were departing from Brookwood Station in Atlanta, late Wednesday afternoon, July 20th, ... [Read More]

Cumberland: The Island That Time Forgot

The first sign that we were traveling someplace unusual came when we spotted the 40-foot Lucy R. Ferguson. Docked at the marina of Fernandina Beach on the northern tip of Amelia Island, Fla., the ferry looked like a cross between a shrimp boat and one of those vessels they use to transport you around Disney World. It was neither, but it was quite effective. Its open-air seats gave us a spectacular view of the Intracoastal Waterway as my wife Mary and I made the 40-minute trip to Cumberland Island. Passing by unspoiled salt marshes and driftwood-covered beaches, we landed on a remote dock that signaled our arrival at ... [Read More]

Swimming with whale sharks

  When I told Brian and Jim that we planned to swim with sharks while in Cancun the blood drained from their faces as they stammered and stuttered unkind things about my sanity, huffily but firmly refusing to get anywhere near water teeming with sharks. I might have failed to note the sharks in question were whale sharks, docile beasts who feed only on plankton, microscopic plants and fish eggs. Might have forgotten to mention that part. My bad. Turns out that an area of ocean about 20 miles off the Cancun coast is known for occasionally having the largest congregation of whale sharks ever witnessed on earth. Schools ... [Read More]

Tequila is my friend

Mexico and tequila and are two things that just naturally go together, sorta like West Virginia and incest. My friend Jeremy remarked that my little group consumed more tequila in our five days in Cancun than he'd managed since moving here eight years ago. I don't think he was kidding. There's a lot to love about Cancun, and the local tequila surely makes the list. When the hotel waiter on the beach asks you if you want the "good stuff," however, say no, emphatically, unless $25 shots are in your budget. These connoisseur tequilas aren't in my budget, though this failed to occur to me until after we'd downed ... [Read More]

Ringing in the new year Bahamian style

Adam and I  figured the Caribbean would be a grand place to celebrate our first New Years together and ring in 2011. So we left frigid Atlanta with two of Adam’s closest friends, Brian and Jim, in favor of the welcoming warmth of The Bahamas. In my head I envisioned sunbathing in the hot Caribbean sun, sipping pina coladas, and lazily watching the foamy blue waves of the ocean lapping the beach. Or perhaps romantic twilight strolls, hand-in-hand with my soon-to-be husband, along the pristine sandy shores, listening to the peaceful sounds of the sea. Perhaps I should have checked the weather forecast before fantasizing so gloriously about the trip. The Bahamas in ... [Read More]