Travel Stories, Cruise Reviews, and Cultural Adventures

In the title role of Marjorie is Dee Maaske, whom we've followed in two decades at Oregon Shakespeare Festival. The versatile Maaske...

Discover why the Welk Theater in Escondido delivers one of the most charming and intimate live performance experiences in Southern California, blending nostalgia, talent, and comfort.

Horton Grand Theatre is a perfect venue for the delightfully rendered radio play version of "Miracle on 34th Street." Jennifer Grimm,...

Nick and Nora love huckelberry ice cream, a roadie treat in Julian, California which they visit twice a year. "Charley is a mind-reading...

Christene "Cookie" Meyers and Bruce Keller take to San Diego Bay and a Flagship dinner cruise, with spectacular views. TAKE YOUR PICK OF...

Singapore's sound and light show attracts visitors from all over the world. Highlights are these magical "lit-up trees." The Grand Palace in Bangkok is best visited through a tour. Our Viator cut through the throngs. If you're with a tour, there's power in numbers. IF YOU DON'T MIND GROUPS, A GOOD TOUR'S THE TICKET TO MAKING THE MOST OF TIME, MONEY STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER IN OUR COMBINED decades of global travel, we have always taken tours, chiefly a

The "Painted Ladies" near Alamo Square, San Francisco, California, represent an architecture used for Victorian and Edwardian houses and buildings painted in distinctive pastel hues. The term is over a century old. HEAD TO THE CITY BY THE BAY FOR VARIETY, FUN, WITH A FEAST FOR THE EYES AT EVERY TURN STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER "One day if I go to heaven ... I'll look around and say, 'It ain't bad, but it ain't San Francisco.'" Herb Caen, noted San Fr

Kick hell out of your bucket list in 2016. Have you always wanted to see Egypt? Don't let fear of travel stop you. Here, Cookie and...

Hershey Felder channels the great Irving Berlin at La Jolla Playhouse, in a spirited, fast-paced and engaging program. It's set in...

Wild turkeys cavort and forage at our Montana place, High Chaparral, in Stillwater County on the river. STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS PHOTOS...

A beautifully acted comedy drama at North Coast Repertory Theatre features Anabella Price and Mark Bramhall as Dubliners Betty and Dan....

Action-packed CityPASS maximizes precious time, gives options that show off a dozen of the world's most lively cities

Comings and goings at High Chaparral in the Northern Rockies: another fabulous family reunion features talent galore. Some had to leave the night before, but these cousins and close family said farewell until next time on the last morning. RAINY DAY GIVES FORUM TO GARAGE BAND, WITH FAMILY TALENT SHOW OFF THE CHARTS Great nephew James, above, practices his whistle, and great-niece Elliana, in green hat with Nora, previews her costume while cuddling our Yorkie. STORY By C

"Food, glorious food," as the lyric from "Oliver!" goes. The appetizers are being devoured as the main course is prepared. FOOD GLORIOUS FOOD AS CLEVER KITCHEN CAPERS PROMOTE QUALITY FAMILY TIME STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS The family gathers to nosh and talk and play -- here niece Aurora with her daughter, Elliana, and at right, James, chasing Yorkie Nora. PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER WHEN ONE MENTIONS food and music, our family "comes big." That's the expression my grandfather us

LANGHAM HOTEL DOWN UNDER PERSONIFIES EXCELLENCE, UNDERSTATEMENT, LOCATION View at dusk from our Langham bedroom yields the splendid Yarra River, train station, cathedral and Federation Square. Stately St. Paul's Cathedral and lively Federation Square make a fascinating, well integrated pair in Melbourne. STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER YOU MIGHT not remember that you asked your waiter for a cup of mint tea, to point you calmly toward dream land before you h

Expressive hands of a Maori elder welcome visitors and enhance a story in a village on a Waimaramamaori.com tour. Our guide, Denise, ponders a question in a pensive and reflective moment before a musical show. TRAVELERS LEARN OF ANCIENT CULTURE, ENJOY MUSIC, GAMES, TATTOOS, ART, TALES STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER THE MAORI people are a proud and noble race, descending from warriors, farmers, healers, astronomers and explorers. The people go back as f

DANISH ARCHITECT UTZON'S VISIONARY BUILDING IS A TRUE MASTERPIECE Tourists from around the globe tour Sydney Opera House, enjoy tastings and see plays, dance and concerts in many venues. After the tour, enjoy dumplings, oysters, shrimp; Below, the "sails" from under them. STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER IT RANKS with the architectural wonders of the world. The Sydney Opera House is like no other building. Famous for its gorgeous shells -- resembling the sh

La Casa Del Zorro (home of the fox) encourages a peaceful and magical stay from registration until reluctant departure. The fox logo, giving Zorro its name. LA CASA DEL ZORRO: CHECK YOURSELF IN FOR AN EXCLUSIVE HIDE-AWAY DEEP IN THE DESERT NEAR BORREGO SPRINGS STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER "The Carpe Diem Kids" Five-star accommodations are enhanced by a fine restaurant with terrific service. YOU KNOW you're at a class-act resort as you bask in understate

THE APPLE CAPITAL of the world has a nice rhyming nickname. It also offers a get-away both soothing and exciting. Julian, California, a small, quaint mountain town in southern California, offers history, fun hotels, shopping, scenery and perhaps the best fruit pies in the state.