Traveling with Bob & Wilma

Alaska

Despite the fact that the Northern Lights often dip down into the Lower 48 and that we lived in northern Germany, we had never seen the Aurora Borealis. This is supposed to be a good year for them so we booked a tour with Alaska Northern Lights...Continue reading...

Algiers, Algeria

Algiers is the capital of Algeria. Its almost perfect natural harbor was in attraction fought over by the powers of the Mediterranean Sea through out its history. The French being the most recent until Algeria won their independence in 1962... Continue reading...

Axum, Ethiopia

Axum, Ethiopia is in the far north of the country. Axum has 3000 years of history and was the capital of the country ruled by the Queen of Sheba of Biblical fame. The ruins of her palace and bath are said to be here, though scientifically these ruins do not appear to be old enough. The bath was quite possibly a...Continue reading...

Ayuthaya, Thialand

Ayuthaya was the second capital of Thailand between 1350 to 1767. It was more of a city for defense rather than an administrative or religious center though there were many temples... Continue reading...

Baku, Azerbaijan

Baku is the capital of the oil rich nation of Azerbaijan. The crude oil is so close to the surface that it actually seeps to the surface and is often ignited and will burn for decades like the FIRE MOUNTAIN... Continue reading...

Bali, Indonesia

Bali, the beautiful "island of the gods," is part of the country of Indonesia, but so unlike the rest of the country. It is a spiritual place filled with joy, ceremony and tradition. Every house has at least one shrine or small house temple, then there are...Continue reading...

Bay of Kotor, Montenegro

The Bay of Kotor is one of Montenegro's best and loveliest assets. This bay comprises one-third of Montenegro's coast line and is now and historically always has been, a wonderful safe shelter for ship during storms... Continue reading...

Beijing, China

Beijing is the capital of China and has been for hundreds of years. In the heart of the city is the Forbidden City, the imperial palaces of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Surrounding this...Continue reading...

Belize

Belize is the second smallest country in Central America. It is located on the east coast, the Caribbean coast, and shares borders with Mexico and Guatemala. These three countries share...Continue reading...

Bhaktapur, Nepal

Bhaktapur is a true jewel in the exotic Himalayan country of Nepal. Formerly an important part of the trade route between India and Tibet, Bhaktapur dates from the 12th or 13th century and is presently an UNSCO World Heritage Site...Continue reading...

Bucharest, Romania

Bucharest is the capital of Romania and had been under the infamous dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. An earthquake in 1977 triggered Ceausescu's massive redevelopment of the city. The grand Palace of the Parliament ('House of the People') is the grandest result of...Continue reading...

Budapest, Hungary

The town of Buda and the town of Pest were joined together to become Budapest and the seat of the Hungarian government, which meet in the very large and beautiful parliament building...Continue reading...

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Buenos Aires is the capital of the South American country of Argentina. Argentina, along with Chile, occupies most of the lower half of the continent and is south of the Tropic of Capricorn. Buenos Aires is a large Atlantic seaport which was settled by the Spanish and like most Spanish cities... Continue reading...

Bukhara, Uzbekistan

Bukhara is ancient place of habitation, a place that attracts the religious to it. It was a place of habitation for the Zoroastrian fire worshipers two centuries before...Continue reading...

Burhara, Uzbekistan

Burhara, just because of it's location on trade routes, was a strategic site. It already was a town with a fortress in the sixth century BC and was captured in 329 BC by Alexander the Great... Continue reading...

Cape Peninsula, South Africa

There are seven Floral Kingdoms throughout the whole world and Cape Town possesses one, the tiniest one. It is a World Heritage Site and made up mostly of fynbos which grow in the poor soil from...Continue reading...

Cape Town, South Africa

Cape Town has a reputation as the 'Mother City' of South Africa. It is indeed old, but very beautiful and easy to enjoy and love. The 3530 ft. high Table Mountain stands above it and a trip up it is a must...Continue reading...

Cappadocia, Turkey

Cappadocia is a unique area in central Turkey with tall sand stone formations called 'fairy chimneys', many with capstones on their top. They were formed by the erosion of the thick layers of volcanic ash which was laid down by...Continue reading...

Carnac

One of the most spectacular places along the way was the little French village of Carnac. Carnac comes from the word CAIRN or pile of stones. It was the home or sacred place of a Neolithic people who left row upon row of huge standing... Continue reading...

Cartagena, Colombia

Cartagena is a major port on Colombia's north coast and the Caribbean. It was founded in 1533 by Spain though the area had been inhabited for 6000 years before that...Continue reading...

Chernovtsy, Ukraine

Chernovtsy is a beautiful and very cultured city with a very long history. It is located in the southwest corner of the Ukraine just about 25 miles over the Romanian border. It has been part of a number of countries and empires and though Ukrainian it is considered to be one of Romania's most cultural and educational centers. Chernovtsy is known for it's... Continue reading...

Chiang Mai, Thailand

Chiang Mai is the second largest city in Thailand, has a unique culture and is just a delightful place. It is located in the north of Thailand and attracts not only tourists but also many of the natives from the hill tribes around it... Continue reading...

Chicago, Illinois

Chicago is Chicago!! It's wonderful and exciting, located in the middle north of the USA. The winters are pretty terrible BUT there are wonderful warm places to enjoy and experience indoors such as the Art Institute, the Shedd Aquarium and a plethora of other museums... Continue reading...

Chichicastenango, Guatemala

Chichicastenango is a small Mayan village in the mountains of west central Guatemala. One of the largest indigenous markets in Guatemala is held on Chichi's plaza every Thursday and Sunday with the one on Sunday being...Continue reading...

Cimarron, New Mexico

Cimarron, NM is now a quiet village in northern New Mexico BUT in the late 1800's it was a "hell raiser" on the Santa Fe Trail. Even its very name, Cimarron, means WILD or UNTAMED in Spanish. It was the home of Lucien Maxwell... Continue reading...

Constantine, Algeria

Constantine is Algeria's third largest city. The river carved out a deep gorge around a rock out crop forming a natural fortress which Constantine sits on top of. Constantine is a beautiful city and... Continue reading...

Cozumel, Mexico

Cozumel (land of the swallows) is the largest of the Mexican islands and lies 12 miles off the NE coast of Mexico. Extremely important in Mayan mythology as the eastern most Mayan site, it is the sanctuary to the rising sun...Continue reading...

Cradle of Human Kind, South Africa

The Cradle of Humankind is a series of dolomitic caves in South Africa, where 1000's of hominid fossils have been found. It is considered the richest...Continue reading...

Cueva de La Olla

One of the most exciting parts of adventure travel is hearing about and then finding small, unique, little-known sights. The Cueva de La Olla in Chihuahua, Mexico, just about 300 miles from... Continue reading...

Ecan-Jelin, China

In Sept. 2001, Bob and I did an Earthwatch water research project in the Gobi Desert. The Gobi has the highest sand dunes in the world and within those dunes are small desert lakes... Continue reading...

El Camino Real

One of the most exciting experiences that most people can have is to go somewhere that most people do not get to go. I thrive on these experiences and these ideas. This does not necessarily mean a trip to the far corners of the earth. We have such a place within a few miles of us...Continue reading...

El Tajin, Mexico

In the lush green jungles of the east coast of Mexico, are the pre-Hispanic ruins of El Tajin. It is a major archaeological site dating to before the Mayan civilization... Continue reading...

Ephesus, Turkey

Ephesus is now only ruins, the ruins of a magnificent ancient Greek city. It was a port city on the Aegean Sea but even when St. Paul visited it, the harbor was silting up and now it sets 23 miles from the sea. Ephesus was a very beautiful and highly developed city... Continue reading...

Estonia

We recently had a wonderful experience visiting the Baltics. These are three little countries that I knew so very little about because most of my life they had been ensconced in the USSR after being battered by the Nazis in World War II... Continue reading...

Everglades, Florida

The Everglades are a very unique place in the world!! It is NOT a swamp NOR is it just a sea of grass BUT a 50 mile (80K) wide very shallow river... Continue reading...

Fiji Island

Fiji is one of the beautiful, sun kissed island countries in the South Pacific, having been so since it's independence from Britain in 1970. It consists of 333 islands scattered over... Continue reading...

Georgia's Military Highway, Georgia

It's the country of Georgia in the Caucasus Mountains of the Middle East just south of Russia. This highway runs about 130 miles from Tbilisi, Georgia to Vladiksukaz, Russia half of which is in Georgia and the only section we traveled. It is a very old, rugged route in or edging a narrow canyon... Continue reading...

Gondar, Ethiopia

Gondar, a UNECO Heritage site, is a beautiful city in the very historic country of Ethiopia. By definition, it is a small city but with all the amenities of a city...Continue reading...

Gombe Stream National Park, Tanzania

Gombe is a small park, in fact the smallest national park in Tanzania. It is famous as the research center for our closest primate cousins, the chimpanzees. The young British researcher, Jane Goodall... Continue reading...

Gori, Georgia

The infamous Gori, Georgia is the birthplace of the NEMESIS of the Free World, the birthplace of Josif Visarionovich Jugashvili aka Josef Stalin (Man of Steel)... Continue reading...

Hembrillo Battlefield, New Mexico

The Hembrillo Battlefield is an important but little known battlefield located on a closed military facility in south central New Mexico. The battle was fought in April 1880 between...Continue reading...

Helsinki, Finland

Helsinki, Finland is the capital and only metropolis of one of the most northern countries of the world. The country of Finland has the world's highest standard of living which can be seen in the city. The city, itself, is built on 150 + inlets and islands all connected by bridges... Continue reading...

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Fifty years ago, Vietnam was the last place in the world one would want to or be able to vacation BUT today it is a fascinating, affordable and very beautiful vacation spot. Continue reading...

Hong Kong

Hong Kong or is it Vanity Fair. Some travel agencies have tours just for shopping in Hong Kong and there is anything in the world that one might want there, BUT there is more to Hong Kong than just stuff! Under all the lights, rush and stuff Hong Kong is a delightful place and very unique...Continue reading...

Ifaty, Madagascar

Madagascar is an island on the east side of Africa in the Indian Ocean and in the Southern Hemisphere. So where is Ifaty?? Ifaty is on the west side of the Island about 180 miles from its most southern tip. Ifaty is a very, very small village BUT it is a resort for diving... Continue reading...

IOP in Tanzania

The United Methodists have a shine spot in the heart of darkest Africa, near Iringa in the middle of Tanzania. Ilula Orphan Project (IOP) is that spot. IOP was founded in 1998 by Brite Skaare because of the AIDs epidemic and the loss of a whole generation...Continue reading...

Inner Mongolia

Adventure is an important part of our travel. So, when we learned about an Earthwatch project that would take us to Inner Mongolia, it sounded like a wonderful adventure. We got the documentations and were off the first part of Sept. 2001. Yep!! We were in Yinchuan, China on 9/11 and...Continue reading...

Iringa, Tanzania

Lying on the main and only highway between the capital, Dar es Salaam, and the country of Zambia, is the town of Iringa. It is a pleasant town setting at about 5250 feet elevation overlooking the Ruaha River. It was built around 1900 by... Continue reading...

Istrian Peninsula, Croatia

The Isterian  Peninsula on Croatia's west coast is probably best known for its truffles which are beginning to rival those of France. The truffles here are hunted by dogs rather than like hogs as  they are in France... Continue reading...

Jerome, Arizona

Nearer to our own world is the very delightful little town of Jerome, AZ. It at one time, as a copper mining town, had a population of 20,000 which then dropped to 200 as the mine petered out. Now it is an artist colony with a population of about 400... Continue reading...

Johannesburg, South Africa

Johannesburg is the financial and commercial center for South Africa. It energizes the entrepreneurial spirit. It, like it's other names, means "place of gold" and is where many gold mines are found but Johannesburg is a depressing city... Continue reading...

Kathmandu, Nepal

The exotic city of Kathmandu is both the capital and largest city of the mountainous, land locked country of Nepal. Nepal is located in the Hemalaya Mountains of Asia, has 10 of the highest... Continue reading...

Khiva, Uzbekistan

Khiva is like stepping back into the past to a world long gone. To a time when camel caravans came to unload and rest for the night. To a time when the Silk Road was the main through fare for trade goods between... Continue reading...

Krakow, Poland

Krakow, Poland is one of the most beautiful cities in the Europe and definitely the most beautiful original historic city in Poland having escaped destruction during WWII. As a market town, it has been important for over 1,000 years and may even have held the very first Christmas market... Continue reading...

Lalibela, Ethiopia

Legend has it that Lalibela was built by King Lalibela, as a New Jerusalem. In a failed assignation attempt, the soul of King Lalibela was carried to heaven where God directed him to dig special churches, rather than build them, thus we have what some consider the 8th wonder of the world...Continue reading...

Las Vegas, NM

It is a historic town. Until this century, this millennium, it was two towns with just one name. It is a small town but has a university AND one of the 15 United World Colleges that are found on five continents. It has over 900 structures on various historic registers which includes two very lovely hotels, one renovated and one in the process of it...Continue reading...

Latvia

Riga is the capital of one of those three little countries that was swallowed up by the USSR at the end of World War II as was Estonia and Lithuania. This delightful city is the pinnacle of joy for lovers of art-nouveau architecture as no other city in Europe has more... Continue reading...

Lhasa, Tibet

Lhasa is the capital of Tibet, a small Himalayan country that has been occupied by China since the early 1950s. It is a spiritual country with many Buddhist temples and the Potala, former home of the Dali Lama. Continue reading...

Lincoln, New Mexico

The American Old West Is DEAD!! but if you diligently search in the remote valleys of distant mountains, you may find artifacts of those by-gone days. The village of Lincoln in Lincoln County New Mexico is one of those artifacts... Continue reading...

Lithuania

Lithuania is the last of the Baltic countries that we visited. After we crossed into Lithuania, noted by the old USSR border crossing, there were fields of flowers, forests and some farming. As we entered Vilnius...Continue reading...

Malta

Malta is a small, lovely island in the Mediterranean Sea with a wonderful Mediterranean climate. Malta is too small to support a hunting and gathering society thus it's history dates to...Continue reading...

Manaus, Brazil

In the jungle in the northern part of Brazil, lies the city of Manaus. It is situated at the confluence of the Solimoes River and the Negro River which is part of the great Amazon River system, the largest river system in the world. The river is so...Continue reading...

Mata Ortiz

This last month a group of friends booked a wonderful three day tour to the pottery village of Mata Ortiz, Mexico, about 150 miles into Mexico. The pottery is world class and based on the ancient pottery of Paquime'. It was the relentless effort and experimenting of Juan Quezada that has brought back this thousand year...Continue reading...

Mekong Delta, Vietnam

The Mekong River begins in the Himalay Mountains of Tibet. It forms the border between Thailand and Laos, and it flows through Cambodia and drains into the South China Sea in Vietnam. It is the third longest river in Asia. Continue reading...

Oak Park, Illinois

The village of Oak Park, IL is just outside Chicago's inner city. It was first settled in 1835 but not until 1902 was it incorporated. With a population of about 53,000, it is the 29th most populous town in Illinois... Continue reading...

OFI Center, Borneo, South East Asia

The Orangutan Foundation International Care and Quarantine Center is just what it says, a center for the care of orphaned, rescued and/or confiscated orangutans. Here they are 'schooled' and prepared to be returned to the wild. Continue reading...

Page, Arizona

Page, AZ is a small town (population 7,531) on the Arizona/Utah border. It was established in 1957 as a construction base for the workers of the Glen Canyon Dam and their families. Continue reading...

Pamukkale, Turkey

Pamukkale is a unique geological feature in the southwest corner of the country of Turkey. It's name means COTTON CASTLE and it's white scar can be seen for miles. Continue reading...

Panglan Bun, Borneo, Indonesia - OFI

In March of 2009, Dr. Birute Galdikas, the world's foremost authority on orangutans, came to NMSU and spoke. We were fortunate enough to hear her and I off handily asked her if OFI had a volunteer program, which they did. We interviewed for it in May and were in Borneo at the Orangutan Care Center in July... Continue reading...

Pashkar, India

Camels are my totem! For some reason, unknown to me, camels keep turning up in my life, from camel rides in Egypt and Tunisia to camel expeditions in China and wild camel herds in Morocco. So it's not surprising for us to be attracted to a trip to the big camel market in Pashkar, India...Continue reading...

Potala, Lhasa, Tibet

The former home of the Dali Lama, the Potala, perched on the top of 'red mountain,' overlooks the city and can be seen from almost every part of it. The Potala is an architectural gem!! It is built of earth, wood and stone and in some places...Continue reading...

Prague, Czech Republic

Prague is an old and beautiful city dating from the 1300s. Some of its historic wall and gates are still here and can be seen and enjoyed. Continue reading...

Pula, Croatia

Pula is a small, industrial, port town on the Adriatic Sea whose heart and monuments date back to the Romans. It is an exciting town and was very much so the day we...Continue reading...

Qinghai-Tibet Railway

The train to the "top of the world," the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, over the Tibetan Plateau was completed in 2006 at a cost of $3.68 billion. It was a feat that the rest of the world thought was impossible to accomplish but China did it in just five years...Continue reading...

Qinghai-Tibet Train Experience

Experiencing the Qinghai-Tibet train is an incredible experience. For us, it started on Oct. 21, 2014 at about 7:00 in the evening, when we gathered in front of our hotel and transferred by bus to the train station. To get into the train station we needed...Continue reading...

Quebec City, Canada

Quebec City is an old and very unique city. It is one that should be on everyone's BUCKET LIST. One that can be visited enjoyably any time of the year - we visited in December for the Christmas Market... Continue reading...

Quito, Ecuador

While looking for an interesting, short yet parsimonious trip out of the country, we stumbled onto flights to Quito, Ecuador. Ecuador is a small country high in the Andes Mountains of South America and sitting right on the equator...Continue reading...

Rongbuk Monastery, Tibet

Rongbuk Monastery is the highest monastery in the world. It sits on the north side of Mount Everest (Mt. Qomolangma) in Tibet in Qomolangma National Park. It was built in 1902 in an area used for meditation for over 400 years by nuns and hermits; until... Continue reading...

Sahara Desert of Algeria (North Africa)

We had the incredible opportunity to go to Algeria to see the rock art of the Sahara Desert. The US has a travel warning of traveling to and in Algeria but through...Continue reading...

Salalah, Oman

Salalah was formally the capital of the Arab country of Oman located on the Arabian peninsula. The Arabian peninsula is a desert now BUT at one time was the bottom of the sea and oddly enough sea shell fossils... Continue reading...

Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Samarkand was an important crossroads on the ancient Silk Road with much trade goods and many bazaars probably much like the ones there today... Continue reading...

San Miguel de Allende, Mexico

San Miguel de Allende, MX is a delightful small town in the center of Mexico. It is a historic colonial town so well preserved it has been designated by the Mexican government a national historic monument. Many North Americans have... Continue reading...

Shamakhi, Azerbaijan

Shamakhi is an old historic city dating back to the 5th century B.C. During the 9th to the 16th centuries, it was the capital of the Shirven Empire and one of the most beautiful cities in Asia. Between invaders and earthquakes though, it was nearly destroyed and now only has a population of around 32,000... Continue reading...

Skopje, Macedonia

Since the time of Aleksandar III (Alexander the Great) of Macedonia, the name Macedonia has been claimed by the Greeks. This caused a lot of uncomfortable situations both between the two nations and internationally with the EU and NATO. Finally in the fall of 2018... Continue reading...

Silk Road, Central Asia

The Silk Road is an ancient trade ROUTE that consists of many roads through many countries extending from China to the Mediterranean Sea... Continue reading...

Singapore

Singapore is a delightful little corner of the world. It is an island nation, a sovereign city-state off of Malaysia, having declared it's independence from England in 1963. Singapore was founded by Sir Stamford Raffles as a trading post in 1819 and was important...Continue reading...

Sofia, Bulgaria

Sofia is the capital of Bulgaria. It is named after St. Sofia whose statue overlooks the heart of Sofia. The area had been settled for eight centuries before Christ but the city as we know it today was founded by...Continue reading...

Split, Croatia

Croatia's second largest city is the coastal city of Split. It has several characteristic layers -- 1) it has the ugly industrial layer of ship building, 2) it has the lively Old Town and 3) it has the retirement palace of the Roman Emperor Diocletian. Continue reading...

Suceava, Romania

Suceava is a small town in northern Romania, not far from the Ukraine border. For almost 200 years, it was the capital of the Principality of Moldavia and important because it was on the Lviv-Istanbul trade route. Suceava is now unique to Europe and throughout the world for being...Continue reading...

Swaziland

Swaziland is surrounded on three sides by South Africa and on one side by Mozambique. It is still governed by an absolute monarch, the only one left in Africa...Continue reading...

Taipei, Taiwan

Taipei is the capital of the island nation of Taiwan. It has been a nation since the Chinese National government under Chang Kai-sheik fled the Chinese Communist government in 1949...Continue reading...

Taormina, Italy

Taormina, Italy is in the northeast area of Italy in the shadow of the active volcano of Mt. Etna. Though Mt. Etna appears as one mountain, it has many cones plus vent holes where steam escapes... Continue reading...

Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Tashkent , a 2000 year old city, is now the capital of Uzbekistan, a former satellite republic of the USSR. It was an important town and resting place on the historic Silk Road between China and the Roman empire... Continue reading...

Tbilisi, Georgia

Tbilisi, Georgia, though having in the last 1500 years been devastated 30 times, continues and, since the fall of the USSR, prospers. It is the capital of the country of Georgia and is also recognized as the primary city of the Caucasus... Continue reading...

Timisoara, Romania

Timisoara, Romania is the largest city in western Romania and the 3rd largest in the country. It is and always has been the economic center of western Romania thus it was influenced by many cultures. This being the case, it has also become the...Continue reading...

Tirana, Albania

I identify Germany with castles, France with prehistoric caves, Italy with churches, Greece with ruins and Albania with communism. My first passport in the 1960s was not valid for travel in the communist countries of North Korea, Cuba and Albania. The communist dictator, Enver Hoxha, literally... Continue reading...

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Ulaanbaatar means RED HERO and was the third palace of Genghis Khan. It is now the capital and largest city of Mongolia, located in north central Mongolia at an elevation of 4,300 ft. It is the coldest capital in the world though it has 250 sunny days a year... Continue reading...

Uluru (Ayers Rock), Australia

Uluru is the sacred rock of the Aboriginal people of Australia, the spiritual heart of Australia. It is also located in the heart of Australia, in the Red Center of Australia. It, like most of Australia, is an arid zone, a desert. Uluru is a monolith 1,142 feet high and 5.8 miles in circumference. Continue reading...

UMCOR - Sager Brown Depot

UMCOR is the United Methodist Committee on Relief. The Sager Brown Depot is where hundreds of thousand of kits of various kinds are verified, assembled and stored till needed in some disaster either in this country or overseas... Continue reading...

Yerevan, Armenia

Yerevan is the ancient capital of the ancient country of Armenia. It is and has been a Christian country through out its history though surrounded and often invaded by the neighboring Moslem countries... Continue reading...

Xi'an, China

Xi'an, China once rivaled Rome and Constantinople as the greatest city on earth. It was the beginning of the SILK ROAD which span two continents, providing Rome with many expensive...Continue reading...

Xilitla, Mexico

Xilitla (pronounced Ha-lit-la) is a lovely little mountain town in the Mexico state of San Luis Potosi. It is built on a mountain side so everything is either up or down and most of the buildings are half situated on stilts. Xilitla is one of Mexico's "magical" villages... Continue reading...

Zagreb, Croatia

Zagreb is the capital of one of the newest countries in Europe. It is possibly the least touristy capital BUT one of the more interesting in respect to museums and parks and it does encourage the arts... Continue reading...