By Gary Walther Day 5: Friday, March 29, Hamilton Island One of the great pleasures of cruising is pulling back the curtain each morning to discover how the world has changed overnight. This morning I am greeted by a long line of low-slung islands, most thickly rain-forested. They are like

By Everett Potter If you’ve ever considered a bike trip to Italy, chances are that you’ve come across a company called Ciclismo Classico. Celebrating its 30thanniversary this year, they offer rides like Cinque Terre & Tuscany, A Feast in Umbria and Majestic Dolomites. Italy-obsessed biking enthusiasts know they’ll get a

By Everett Potter If you’re heading to Acadia National Park on Mount Desert Island in Maine this summer, it’s likely that you’re staying in lively Bar Harbor, with its many hotels, motels, ice cream parlors, and restaurants. It’s the major gateway for Acadia, with easy access from downtown. Acadia, of

By Gary Walther Day 1: Monday, March 25, Sydney It’s been overcast and intermittently rainy, perfect weather for holing up on the Europa 2 and recovering from the very long flight: New York-Munich-Doha-Sydney. At one point I had to look at my watch to know what day it was. My

By Brian E. Clark The  360-degree view from Mount Soledad, which rises to a height of 822 feet above La Jolla and is home to a veterans’ memorial, is stunning in its expanse:  One a clear day, you can see Orange County to the north. To the south, downtown San Diego and beyond

By Anita Stewart It was a glorious autumn day when we pulled into the Farm on the campus of the University of British Columbia. The kale was almost fully harvested; the beehives were a buzzing flurry of activity and the hens were busily foraging in their movable open-pasture enclosure. UBC

  By Everett Potter A case can be made that Monhegan Island is the most romantic spot on the rocky coast of Maine. Shaped like a whale, this tidy little island of granite and evergreens lies 12 miles off the coast. It has stony beaches and dramatic 160-foot cliffs, where

By Julie Snyder In Portland, taking time to smell the roses isn’t just a figure of speech—it’s a favorite pastime for both visitors and locals. There’s petal power aplenty behind the long-held monikers of “City of Roses” and “Rose City.” Portland evidently owes it rosy reputation to an 1837 wedding