A Brief Visit to Avignon
The center of Avignon with the Rhône and l'Île Piot in the distance. The purpose of my stop in Avignon was a pause in a pleasant small city, between arriving in France and the week I planned to spend in Uzes.
History
Palm Springs Air Museum, California (Where Gumbo was #104)
Gumbo was visiting the Palm Springs Air Museum in the California desert, and specifically had the privilege of sitting in the cockpit of a B-17 Flying Fortress bomber (like the one in the above photo). Congratulations to the many who...
Nashville, Tennessee.....the Elvis tour continues!
Until I attended my first medical meeting in Nashville, I'd never thought much about visiting this mid-sized city, an oversight on my part. Nashville's a fun destination in many ways, especially if you're a fan of Country music. I...
'New Machu Picchu'...but who will benefit?
Peru is making plans for a cable car link to Kuelap, high in the Andes. Kuelap, centuries older than Machu Picchu, predates the Incas. It's the largest pre-Columbian stone-built city in South America, with over 400 round houses and a 1.5 km stone wall...
Hagia Sophia: Incredible in Every Way (Where Gumbo Was, #103)
Hagia Sophia is surely one of the most widely-recognized buildings on Earth, which is amazing considering that the world is so populated with other buildings modeled on it or even directly copied from it.
Gold Country, California: Auburn
Auburn is a town at a crossroads. Interstate 80 passes through from the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the desert of the Great Basin and the nation eastward, and west to San Francisco. It was the main route migrants traveled coming west,...
A Day in Caguas
Caguas is a late-comer by some standards; San Juan, 30 miles away, was already 250 years old when Caguas was settled by Spain—and yet it proudly calls itself “La Ciudad Criolla” and “El Corazon de Borinquen,” the Creole...
Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Mar. 1, 2014: Details, Charleston P.O.
I hadn't even gotten in the door of Charleston, SC's historic post office and Federal courthouse when I was caught by this doorknob. And that was only the beginning of the gorgeous details, as you can see. Sometimes, I find...
Memphis, Tennessee 3) The rest of the city
There’s a lot more to Memphis than Graceland, although Graceland is by far the city’s most popular attraction (which I’ve previously discussed here ). A city of about 650,000, Memphis has a...
France to open new 36,000-year-old "museum"
Puzzling headline? Fascinating story. In the Ardeche region of southern France, 20 years ago, the Pont d'Arc cave was discovered and found to contain over a thousand examples of the best-preserved pre-historic art.
Capella Palatina, Palermo, Sicily (Where Gumbo Was, #102)
I've visited dozens of wonderful churches in my life, some vaste and grand like St. Paul's in Rome or Westminister Abbey in London, others smaller and with a more intimate feel. As a rule, I'm partially to smaller chapels and...
Visiting Santiago de Cuba
I really had no idea what to expect of Santiago de Cuba , afterall the next biggest city in Cuba is always overshadowed by Havana. So Santiago was going to surprise us - it could only leave a good or a bad impression right? We showed...
Gumbo's Pic of the Day, February 25, 2015. St. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine is celebrating its 450 th birthday in 2015 and everyone’s invited! It was in 1565 that Pedro Menendez of Aviles proclaimed the land for Spain. The first Catholic mass was held at what is now the Mission de Nombre de Dios by...
Gumbo's Pic of the Day, February 24, 2015: Where is Apache Trail??
Located at the northeastern edge of greater Phoenix area, the Apache Trail was recommended by our friend as Arizona’s oldest and most scenic driving trail. The winding 40 mile road takes you through the magnificent scenery of sometime steep...
Fort Barrancas Has it All: Cannons, Gun Turrets,Tunnels and Great Views
Fort Barrancas is located within the Naval Air Station in Pensacola. You have to show your drivers license, or other ID, to enter the base. It sits on the barranca ,or bluff, overlooking the entrance to Pensacola Bay. This National Historic Landmark...