It all started with a fairly innocuous question. “Hey Dad, what do you want to do for your birthday this year?” His answer – “go to Japan” – led to an 11 day, four city adventure in late March last year, which coincided perfectly with Sakura, the cherry blossom season. Those of you who know us, aren’t going to be surprised by this. It’s how we roll. Nor will you be surprised by the fact that the trip had to be timed around spring break because after 60 years in university lecture halls, and what amounted to about 3 hours of “retirement” in 1999, Dad is still imbuing his passion for Microbiology among upperclass college students. Fortunately it worked out – spring break, birthday, Sakura- check, check, check. My first and only visit to Japan was a short-lived one, nearly 17 years ago. I needed to attend a breakfast meeting…
Hello Red Clog Readers, I’ve been thinking an awful lot about you – you who share in my adventures both around the world and in my home kitchen. …
After four visits to Berlin, three over the past seven years and one when the city was famously divided into East and West, I’m still no expert on…
I have a list of favorite German words. Some, like “Sauerstoff,” “Pfifferling”, “Aschenbecher,” “Schmetterling,” and “Schornsteinfeger”…well, I just like the sound of them. (They mean oxygen, a type of chanterelle, ashtray, butterfly and chimney sweep.) “Punschkrapferl” is a winner too. (Try saying that several times without giggling, especially after an extended night at a Heurige, an Austrian wine tavern.) Aside from the outstanding name, Punschkrapferl just happen to be the most divine, rum-doused Viennese pastry cloaked in pink fondant icing. Other words make the list because they have the perfect meaning. Handschuh? Shoes for the hands. Aka gloves. Stachelschwein? A pig with spikes, e.g., a porcupine. Be careful if you go swimming in Africa, you might encounter a massive River Horse or Fluss (river) Pferd (horse) – hippopotamus. The German language excels in lopping together a bunch of existing words to form new ones. I think about this every day.…
I know, I know. You assumed that the next time you heard from the Red Clogger, she would regale you with interesting tidbits about the month and a…
“Isn’t this EXXX-CITING?” exclaims the sophisticated British woman standing behind me in the queue. We are about to embark onto Her Majesty Queen Mary 2 to traverse 3632…
Let’s say you want to plan a trip. (this is a constant state of being for me.) You decide on your criteria. You want to go somewhere with waterfalls and boat rides, caves, a wild animal refuge, shopping into the wee hours of the night, homemade whisky, skilled artisans, excellent coffee and croissants, opportunities to meditate in spiritual surroundings, great prices, and friendly locals. Where might you go? How many of you said Laos? Exactly. Despite a relatively short visit to Luang Prabang, the ceremonial capital of Laos, I was able to experience all the above. Here’s how it went: I lost track of how many hours (days!) it took to fly from LA to Taipei to Bangkok to Luang Prabang. But eventually, our travelling group of 3 friends arrived, bleary-eyed, at the tranquil and gorgeous Villa Maly, our home away from home for the next several days. The villa…
Happy Valentine’s Day! Yes, I know. It’s been awhile since the red clogs have clacked their way into a new post. You may have been wondering -what’s the…
You’d miss it at first glance. But if you were to look very closely at my sneakers, you’d see it there – the stubborn streak of rich brown…
Today, we are going on a train ride together. Not just any train ride. I believe it’s the most magical ride you can take — without a flying carpet. In my prior post celebrating the Swiss Bundestag holiday, I introduced you to my Happy Place, the Engadine Valley in the spacious southeast canton of Graubunden. I’m fortunate to have been visiting this special and still fairly undiscovered part of the Alps since I was a child. Arrivals are usually by train through two main approaches — southeast from Zurich, crossing the Albula pass or northeast from Italy, changing at the border town of Tirano and mounting the breathtaking Bernina pass. Zurich Hauptbahnhof On this day, I’m traveling from Zurich and would like to invite you to join me on our train journey of a mere 90 miles, but an incline of over 4500 feet – to the alpine village of…