Adventure
Africa Day Four: Rwanda : A Scenic, And Informative, Drive To Volcano National park.
After our emotional and thought provoking visit to the Kigali Genocide Memorial. we drove a short distance to the famous Hotel des Mille Collines, also know as Hotel Rwanda. This is the hotel on which the famous movie was based. I didn’t see the movie but learned about the role it played in the…
Read MoreAfrica Day Five: Volcano National Park Rwanda: A Memorable Close Encounter With Mountain Gorillas.
On the day of our gorilla trek, we had to be up early for our adventure but I got some much needed sleep in the cozy, but chilly, cabin. I awoke excited with the hope of encountering some of our endangered cousins, the mountain gorillas found only in these forested mountain areas…
Read MoreAfrica Day Six: Birds, Travel, Horrors And A Short Stay In Johannesburg .
I woke up early again the day after our memorable encounter with the mountain gorilla, and again found the air cool but the skies mostly clear. We were lucky on our visit, since these mountains get a lot of rain this time of year. A few of our group had arranged for an early birding…
Read MoreAfrica Day Seven: Zimbabwe ; Mosi-oa-tunya or Victoria Falls And A Cruise On The Zambezi River
It was a short stay in Johannesburg, South Africa. No time for sightseeing. We had an early flight, so a nice breakfast, a quick ride to the airport, a smooth clearance through security and boarding, and we were off to Zimbabwe. We landed at the Victoria Falls airport and soon were on our way to…
Read MoreAfrica Day Eight: Across, And Under, The Bridge To Zambia, Voracious Vultures And An Elephant Ride.
Even though we had another long, but adventure filled day ahead of us, I was still up early hoping to capture an African sunrise from the grounds of the Victoria Falls Safari Lodge. It took a while to find a good observation spot but I finally did.It’s always nice to see a sunrise but even…
Read MoreAfrica Day Nine: Botswana: A Cruise On The Chobe River And Lots And Lots Of Elephants
Well if you like elephants, you should enjoy this post. We again had an early start, and I had a few moments to catch the setting moon from the observation deck while I had a quick cup of coffee before breakfast was served. After a nice breakfast, I loved the freshly made pancakes, we were…
Read MoreAfrica Day Nine: Botswana: More Wildlife In Chobe National Park
After returning from our cruise on the Chobe River, we had a nice lunch at the Chobe Safari Lodge and I had a few minutes to relax a bit. We were soon off to the Chobe National Park for a safari through another area known for it’s high concentration of wildlife. And it didn’t take…
Read MoreAfrica Day Ten. Farewell To Zimbabwe, A Quick Tour Of Livingston, Zambia, And Off To Capetown, South Africa
I awoke early on my last day at the Victoria Falls Safari Lodge, hoping to catch another African sunrise and to explore the grounds of the lodge. I ran into a couple who were also looking for the sunrise and we asked a groundskeeper we met who showed us a clear view of the rising…
Read MoreAfrica Day Eleven: A Morning Walk In Capetown And A Ride Along The Coast To The Cape Of Good Hope.
I awoke the next day early for the second time in South Africa. This time, however, I had time to head outside and do some sightseeing before we began our tours. . I left the charming Underberg House in the morning twilight. Not having a map, I decided to head in the direction where we had…
Read MoreA First Time Hike From Green Ridge To Community Park.
The forecast this morning here in Northeastern Pennsylvania called for freezing rain. I didn’t want to drive far in case the roads got icy so I thought about hiking in nearby Community Park. As I was getting dressed I recalled how my friends and I often wanted to walk out to the park when I…
Read MoreIn Search Of Bald Eagles: A Scenic Ride Along The Delaware River.
I was excited when my brother Mike suggested we take a road trip to look for bald eagles along the Delaware River this weekend. I always get excited whenever I get the opportunity explore new places and what better way to spend a Saturday than looking for eagles. So my brother, his son Mikey and…
Read MorePoland Day Seven- Friday April 14: Krakow To Czestochowa. A Very Emotional Visit to the Black Madonna, Queen Of Poland.
I finally had some time to post some thoughts and photographs from my trip here in Poland. I can’t believe it is almost a week now. A week of pure joy and wonder , visiting the homeland of my paternal grandparents. And it was a very special day for me today , some of…
Read MorePoland Day Eight: Saturday April 15 : A Morning Walk Through Not So Boring Czestochowa.
I awoke refreshed this morning , having had another good night sleep. It took me a few days too adjust to the time change but looks like I have done it. It was overcast and cool when I left my hotel next to the Monastery for a hike to again explore the maligned city of…
Read MorePoland: The Journey Begins. A Return To The Land Of My Father’s Parents.
Anyone who follows my blog will know it is obvious I love to travel. Whether it is to the ocean, the mountains, a foreign country on a far off continent or a small neighboring town I love to look for anything, flora, fauna, scenery or history, I can find on my adventures. Well this…
Read MorePoland: The Journey Begins. A Return To The Land Of My Father's Parents.
Poland: Day Two : Getting Acquainted With Beautiful And Historic Krakow.
After leaving the airport, and being a little tired from the long flight, I decided to take a taxi to my hotel, rather than lug my luggage to the train station. My driver spoke no English but, after a few mispronunciations by me, he finally understood the name of my hotel, the Hotel Grodek in…
Read MorePoland Day Three: A Beautiful Morning Walk , And A Then A Visit To Some Of Krakow Unpleasant Past
As is often the case, I did not sleep well my first night in Poland. Jet lag is real and it takes a few days to adjust to the new time change. This, however, didn’t stop me from waking up at dawn to begin discovering more of the history and beauty of Krakow. It was…
Read MorePoland Day Three: The Exploration Of Krakow Continues. So Many Beautiful Churches.
After spending some time reflecting outside the Schindler factory I decided to walk back to my hotel. The mid April sun was shining in the clear blue skies and the temperatures now warmed up into the uppers 60’s making for perfect walking weather. It seemed a lot of the folks in Krakow agreed. There were…
Read MorePoland Day Four: The Hotel Gorski Kalatowki: A Hiker's, And Skier's Paradise In The Tatra National Park.
Poland Day Four: The Hotel Gorski Kalatowki: A Hiker’s, And Skier’s Paradise In The Tatra National Park.
After a jarring five minute ride up the cobblestone road I found myself at the Hotel Gorski Kalatowki. I was attracted to this hotel by it’s isolation, located within the boundaries of the Tatra National Park. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect at the hotel, but I was impressed with the beauty of…
Read MorePoland Day Five. Hiking In The Beautiful Tatra National Park
I awoke early the next day, and, looking out my window to check the weather I saw that there were a number of deer in the fields outside of the hotel. I watched them graze on the newly sprouting grass and noticed they were also feeding on the many wild crocuses that were scattered, wilted…
Read MorePoland Day Six: A Final Walk In The Tatra Mountains And A Bus Ride Back To Krakow
My hopes to see some sunshine on my last morning in the Tatra Mountains were disappointed when I awoke to another cool and cloudy day. It looked like rain, or snow, but I only had a few hours until my bus left for Krakow so I was left the hotel at dawn for one last…
Read MorePoland Day Six: Walking In The Footsteps Of A Great Man: Karol Józef Wojtyał
After arriving at the Hotel Grodek in Krakow, I set up my electronics in my room and soon was in the lobby meeting my guide for the afternoon, a friendly and knowledgeable fellow by the name of , Adam. I arranged for him to drive me to Wadowice, the birthplace of my favorite Pope, Pope…
Read MorePoland Day Eight: Czestohowa: The Splendor Of Jasna Gora , Home Of The The Black Maddona, And A Hike To A Lake
After my long morning hike I returned to the hotel for breakfast, consumed a lot of coffee, and spent some time editing the many photographs I had taken this past week in Poland. Around noon, looking out my hotel window, I noticed a lot of folks carrying Easter baskets as they walked toward the monastery. …
Read MorePoland Day Eleven: Krakow. Chopin And Pierogi, Some Relaxation After A Long And Reflective Day
It was late afternoon when we returned to out hotel after our long walking tour of Krakow and emotional visit to the Schindler Factory museum. The rain and cold weather had taken a toll on us and we were tired but we had little time to rest. We had early dinner reservations at the famous…
Read MorePoland Day Twelve: An Evening In The Wieliczka Salt Mine
We did not have much time to rest after returning from our tour of Auschwitz and Birkenau. We had arranged an evening tour of the famous 700 year old Wilelczka salt mine about a half hour bus ride from Krakow, another UNESCO World Heritage Site. The mines have been operated continuously for 700 years…
Read MorePoland Day Thirteen: Krakow To Warsaw: Snow, Castles, Czestochowa And A Change Of Plans
The horrors of Auschwitz were still troubling my mind when I awoke on another cold and rainy morning in Krakow. Fortunately, we had another busy day ahead of us, and I knew the best thing to honor the victims was to live and enjoy life, but always remembering the events that lead up to this…
Read MorePoland Day Fourteen: Warsaw. A Meandering Morning Walk To The Vistula River.
It was a cool and sunny morning when I awoke my first day in Warsaw. After a cup of coffee, I was off exploring the streets of the city. I wasn’t exactly sure where I was going, like I often do on my travels, I just wanted to get acquainted with the city. I had…
Read MoreA Mink, A Muskrat And A Lot Of Mosquitoes: A Hike In The PPL Wetlands.
It was Saturday, so, of course, we started the day off with a heavy rainfall. it seems it has been raining every Saturday this Spring here in Northeastern Pennsylvania. But like last Saturday the rain ended early, and by mid-morning the sun was shining at the PPl Wetlands, were I again decided to hike. The…
Read MorePoland Day Fourteen: A Walk through The Heart Of The City, The New And Old Town Warsaw
After breakfast at my hotel in Warsaw we met our tour guides for the next three days. A young Polish couple, Karol and his girlfriend Kasha. They are relatives of my niece Cassidy’s best friend and they offered to show us some of Warsaw and northern Poland. After our introductions, we began our tour of…
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