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ICELAND: Land of Fire and Ice, but What Lurks Underneath?
Iceland reminds me of a truth I understood long ago: Never underestimate what lurks behind a calm, quiet face. That smiling person in the corner? She may be the angriest person in the room. That grumpy gruff person over there? Might be the kindest. And that woman in the corner, who seems distracted? Or so it seems. She may propose the winning solution, or destroy everything in an instant. You just never know with people, islands, or icebergs, based on the visible. Iceland’s like that. On its surface, Iceland’s soaking warm sulphur pools and jagged rifts of stiff black lava stone look calm, a land of dramatic beauty and eye-popping…
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Ireland Road Journeys and a Marriage, the Second Time Around
We were at a crossroads. A literal crossroads, halted on a bramble-hedged rural lane, Gaelic signposts pointed in five bewildering directions. We’d learned the hard way that sometimes a wrong choice might send us veering off down red-dirt cowpaths, into private farmyards, or to the edge of towering cliffs. Which way do I go? he asked, and I raised my finger from the map to point: “Go that way!” My new groom had been white-knuckling the Irish driving for the last two weeks. We first met at the facility where my grandparents lived and where, as chaplain, he befriended my cantankerous granddad, Charlie, famous for his daring nursing home escapes.…
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Russia by Cruise Ship: Tours, Kitsch, and Safety Questions
After a once-in-a-lifetime visit to St. Petersburg last year, I was surprised that so many Americans asked me if I felt safe there. Sure I did, except in their subway, where I kept my eye on a clever Russian supposedly reading a book, who was also slyly eying Padre’s pocket. Thievery is rampant in the St. Petersburg subway, our guide warned us. But did I feel safe in Russia everywhere else? Absolutely. St. Petersburg’s travel industry adores tourists, especially our cash. I guarantee that your tour bus will stop at least once at an elaborate souvenir store filled with glowing shelves of tourist kitsch, all just for you, and you’ll…
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Cruise Critic Guide: The Godfather, the Roll Call, and Us
It all started with Bill’s Valentine’s gift. Bill adores reruns of old Godfather films for some reason. Me, not so much. Bleeding dying bodies riddled with bullets give me nightmares. Bill’s my guy, though, so in the spirit of love I presented him with a homemade gift certificate for a cruise shore excursion. When our cruise ship docked in the port city of Catania, Sicily, we’d visit the iconic Godfather filming sites in person. Great gift, right? Only one problem: I didn’t actually book the tour in February: Lots of time before our September cruise, I thought. When I tried to book the tour in July, oops: Booked solid. Uh…
