Normally I hate a long layover. It doesn’t matter what airport it’s in, there are few things more tedious than wiling away hours on uncomfortable seats, eating terrible food, and wishing more than anything to be tucked into a nice warm bed or taking a hot shower.



For my recent trip to Australia, I didn’t discover until after I had purchased my steal-of-a-deal ticket that I had two long layovers at the Nadi, Fiji airport: one for 15.5 hours, the other for 17.5 hours.



Now I…

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It was a cold, blustery day in Amsterdam last fall as my friend Amy and I bundled up and happily wandered the streets and canals. We had a map, but rarely used it, a sketchy plan, and didn’t follow it. We’d already explored an old canal house, discovered a fabulous flea market full of all sorts of odd and marvelous treasures, and as we crossed a bustling intersection filled with people, bicycles, cars, and trams, we found the Bloemenmarkt – the world’s only floating flower market.…



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Brrr!! It’s been cold, rainy and oh-so-blustery today. I’m huddled under three quilts with a heating pad in my lap to keep me nice and toasty as the storm rages.



On such a night it pleases me no end to go back through my photo albums, looking at pictures of warm, sunny places with dear friends. So today I’m going to do just that, and drag you along on a stroll through the back streets of Cozumel, Mexico.



As much as I love stunning monuments and historical buildings like the… Continue

The Villa Trotta in southern Italy is a place of beauty, respite and peace. When my friends and I stayed there last spring, one of my favorite things about it was how quickly it felt like home. A good 15-30 minute drive from the nearest town, it became our own private world.



We did our washing and hung it out to dry like proper Italians.

We washed dishes looking out of this window.…

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