Travel Stories, Cruise Reviews, and Cultural Adventures

Dublin's famous Temple Bar was a pub stop on a memorable tour of Ireland with Cookie's late mother, Ellen, who played piano there and...

A young fireman, James Brian Ganner, rings the bell and gives thumbs up for a delightful family-oriented tour. A beautiful vintage fire...

Watching beautiful bears scamper, play and eat is a pleasure offered by West Yellowstone's Discovery Center. The animals within this...

A gathering --  family, friends, doggies -- in Bozeman, for coffee enroute to Yellowstone National Park. From left, Bruce Keller, Rick...

Well fed bison roam near Norris Junction in Yellowstone National Park, with geysers spouting behind them. The Roosevelt Arch, approaching...

Cookie is at her happiest playing piano.  Here, she entertains at a housewarming party. Cookie serenades at friend Corby Skinner's on the...

Snow covered apples are a pretty sight, amidst the season's first snow as the melt begins. LIFE IS GOOD, PLEASURES ARE SIMPLE DURING...

Wading, not quite walking, on the water, sisters Cookie, left, and Olivia, make their way to the wedding on Beverly Beach. Behind them,...

Editor's Note:   Three weeks ago, we described our journey up the transplant list at Scripps Center for Organ and Cell Transplantation, a...

Energy, enthusiasm, strong voices and high-stepping choreography make "The Music Man" a delight at Welk Resort Theatre.  CLASSIC MUSICAL...

The entrance to Clifton's, a Los Angeles tradition, is a preview to the lights, glitz, old-fashioned fare and displays inside. While you...

Keller and Cookie both love Rome, but had never been there together. Now they've visited Italy together a half-dozen times and Rome is a...

Lawrence Welk Resort, north of San Diego, California, offers housing options, restaurants, theater, golf and a charming little museum...

End of summer blue -- not blues -- as we embrace the autumn, and cherished friends and family around the globe.  Fishing time was minimal...

Good-bye Marlee: We will miss your sweet smile, music and precocious wit. SATURDAY MEMORIAL CELEBRATES BRIEF, LOVING LIFE OF MARLEE CLUFF...

Cookie and Keller pause against the sparkling skyline, enroute back to their digs at the stylish Langham Hong Kong.                      ...

GLITTER, GLAMOUR, ART, THEATER AND A FANTASTIC ORGAN CONCERT TO BOOT The historic Catalina Casino was built in record time and opened in...

TOUCHING PLAY WITH FINE ACTING, A COMIC EDGE AND A TOE-TAPPING TRIO TO SET THE MOOD Manny Fernandes and Carla Harting square off and eventually admit their attraction in a winning play at San Diego Rep. From left, Richard Tibbets, Jim Mooney and Alicia Previn set the tone for "Outside Mullingar," a lyrical tale of family, loyalty, pride and love.  The pastoral pull of Ireland's countryside comes inside with "Outside Mullingar," San Diego Rep's first-rate production.  STORY By

These jellyfish -- as graceful as ballerinas -- attract viewers from all over the world, and of all ages at Aquarium of the Bay. A...

TOAST THE HOLIDAYS WITH A PLAY! "A Christmas Carol" at Cygnet means new music and an "reimagined"telling of the holiday classic, adapted...