At the foot of Mount Parnassus, the old quarter of Harmena in Amfissa still smells faintly of leather and oak. Water runs through stone channels once vital to a thriving trade, and though the hammers have fallen silent in most workshops, one still echoes with the rhythm of human hands. A Family that Endures As I ate lunch at an outdoor restaurant in Harmena, I looked forward to meeting Spyros Merinopoulos , who, together with his father, runs the town’s sole remaining tannery

The Acropolis view — the skyline no law dares to block. A Civilization That Never Really Fell A large component of my journey through Greece was visiting the ruins of ancient civilization. Spanning from the early Aegean period (around 3000–1000 BCE) through the Hellenistic Period (323–30 BCE), Greek culture gradually spread across the Mediterranean and Near East. Its peak came during the Classical Period—the 5th and 4th centuries BCE—before political control passed to Rome. Y

Our van driver carefully wended his way through the narrow back alleys of Amfissa, Greece. We were searching for the workshop of Christos P. Papadimos, known as the last traditional bell maker in Greece. I expected to meet a wizened old man with white hair and a mild stoop. Instead, we were greeted by a lively man in his thirties, surrounded by his three young daughters. Christos shows us a cow bell It was hard to believe when Christos told us he’d been making bells for twent

During my recent voyage to the Scottish Isles, I was amazed by the sheer variety of wildflowers in bloom. Although the iconic heather...

The gatehouse. The Glenapp Castle estate spans around 110 acres, nearly 40 of which are dedicated to formal gardens and woodland. From...

A typical traveler’s itinerary for Rome includes its most famous landmarks: the Colosseum, Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica, Trevi Fountain, Roman Forum, Pantheon, Spanish Steps, and Galleria Borghese. Few, however, seek out the locations immortalized in Ottorino Respighi’s tone poems. Respighi composed three pieces that capture the essence of Rome through music: Feste Romane  ( Roman Festivals ), Fontane di Roma  ( Fountains of Rome ), and Pini di Roma  

Whenever I zip around London on the subway, I marvel at the engineering behind it. On a recent visit, I leaped at the chance to take a...

Circumnavigating Iceland by ship guarantees seeing a lot of seabirds. The one I wanted to see most was the puffin. Iceland is home to the...

June is springtime in Iceland. Fields are full of lupines, a much larger variety than I've seen in California. Dandelions are embraced as...

Icelanders embrace the colors of the rainbow. All over the country saw streets, benches, and steps painted with the colors of the...

Budapest is rich with music and music history. While there recently, I was treated to several intimate concerts and visits to Bartok...

Anyone who is unfamiliar with the name Alphonse Mucha is likely familiar with the art of this Art Noveau artist. Sarah Bernhardt was so...

Tauck promised a trip full of music on its Musial Magic along the Blue Danube River Cruise, and it delivered. All the of the programs...

The day began ended with palace visits, starting with the excessive Schönbrunn Palace and ending with the more humble Palais Kinsky. The...

After an over night sailing from Budapest, I woke up in Bratislava, Slovakia. Our resident soprano Brittany gave a lecture on vocal...

Béla Bartók needed a quiet environment to compose. From April 1932 to October 1940 he found solace in a house that used to be in the...

Today was a treat for both eyes and ears. We toured two spectacular music facilities—the Budapest Opera House and the Liszt Ferenc...

My very first glimpse of Budapest was a dark one. The plane from London landed at 12:30 AM. By the time we checked into the hotel, it was...

I am sitting in the Kempinski Hotel Coravinus waiting for a bus to take me to the MS Joy, the river boat upon which I'll be staying for a...

After getting an okay sleep on the plane from San Jose to Heathrow, I awoke to a flight attendant offering me coffee and a breakfast...