As I chat with Mistress Murray, I soak up her keen observations on life in Colonial Williamsburg, navigating my way through her brogue; I learn very quickly that she is an especially hard worker, who puts in long hours, crafting wigs for the wealthy and status-seekers of the period.

Elsewhere I wrote about a more formal Monterosola red wine tasting but their whites simply lent themselves to an informal late summer brunch . . .

A speedboat departs the Iquitos slums, which hover over the water on stilts and rafts to accommodate mercurial high-water marks that vary 15 meters with the Andes snowmelt. Devouring Peru's Amazon for several hours, the boat slows as it enters the tributary Yanayacu that snakes through the jungle like an anaconda.

Now more than ever people need activities to relax their minds, improve their moods and forget about everything. Everyone has a different way to keep themselves smiling. Here are a few ideas that are sure to please.

You’re going to a WHAT?” asked my friend apprehensively. Yup. An hotel. Three of them actually for a total of six days as part of an Empire State Road Trip in upstate New York in early September, sponsored by the Harbor Hotels Collection.

A few years ago, four intrepid explorers from Ontario Canada joined eleven others for a 500+ K cycle along the Camino de Santiago pilgrim trail in Northern Spain. Here are some of our experiences and impressions from this glorious trip.

Capri is a lovely little island that floats in the turquoise waters of the Gulf of Naples and where the air is scented with bougainvillea that tumbles in wild abandon over the garden walls of white-washed villas.

The T-Boy Society of Film & Music’s latest poll is dedicated to Sky’s The Limit, where members select trips and destination/s in which they’d only dream of. Like last month’s World’s Friendliest Destinations we’ve decided to continue with another uplifting theme.

Editor’s note: This article first appeared in Traveling Boy’s Thanksgiving issue in November 2013 issue. Our site was in its salad years when esteemed travel, food and wine journalist John Blanchette joined our staff, dramatically taking our site to the next level. This article serves as a testament to John’s graciousness and remarkable talent. May he continue to rest in …

Ok, if my big brother, travel editor Ed Boitano, can do, then so can I. Though, I must confess this pilgrimage piece is also inspired by John Lennon. His passage in In My Life goes something like this...

Padre Pro’s last request was to be allowed to kneel and pray. When the firing squad’s shots failed to kill him, a soldier shot him at point-blank range. Pro had been falsely accused in the bombing attempt of former Mexican President Álvaro Obregón, and had become a wanted man. Betrayed to the authorities, he was sentenced to death without the benefit of any legal process.

Living with the harsh reality that the United States Supreme Court is the most conservative since the 1930’s, we are faced with the possibility of reversal of protections – from healthcare to environmental. In that regard, Alan Ball’s compelling Uncle Frank couldn’t be timelier.

The Horror Film Franchise started out scary and clever but devolved into cheap thrills trash. John Carpenter dominated horror films for years, yet like most genres it has exploded with sub-genres of films that can still interrupt a good sleep. Holly Dracula, there are too many good ones out there!

Large resort hotels. 3-4 cruise ships a day. Beach bars galore. Extensive nightlife. Chain restaurants. High end jewelry and clothing stores. Casino Gambling. Those are just a few of the things you WON'T find on the Caribbean island of Nevis. And all the more reason to go there. And now you can again.

(A guest post by Elliott Negin, with Intro by Skip Kaltenheuser) You might already know Elliott Negin, whose writings I worked into with Dance with the One that Brought You — BERNIE! on NPR’s red-baiting of Bernie, and Scott Pruitt’s Doublespeak Clarifies Him, on yet another disastrous industrial strength Trump appointee hellbent on ransacking the environment. If not, it’s never too late.

“Savoring the Camino de Santiago: It’s the Pilgrimage, Not the Hike” by Julie Gianelloni Connor, is the latest of the many books about the Spanish pilgrimage popularized for the American audience by the Martin Sheen movie “The Way.”

Apparently the “go to guy” for art-related films seems to be the talented Danish actor Claes Bang. He starred in the The Square, The Burnt Orange Heresy and currently co-stars in The Last Vermeer, written by James McGee, Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby, based on the book “The Man Who Made Vermeers” by Jonathan Lopez.

The T-Boy Society of Film & Music’s latest poll is dedicated to our Favorite Island Destinations.  Like last month's Friendliest Destination we've decided to continue with another uplifting theme to counteract the horrendous news of today.

It was 42 steps across the grass from my suite at San Diego Mission Bay Resort to the sandy beach where ducks were playing in the water. I know because I took this memorable stroll dozens of times during my two nights at the luxurious, waterfront hotel.

John Grisham, meister of legal thrillers, must look at the Dark Money flying about Supreme Court nominees and think, “You stinking thieves, give me my book plots back!”

Beginning in 2013, Palawan, Philippines, has been voted as the best island in the world by readers of Travel+Leisure a number of times in its yearly polls and in the top 3 rankings by Condé Nast Traveler. With huge limestone cliffs rising from palm-fringed white sand beaches, gorgeous seascapes, old-growth rainforests, subterranean rivers and impressive aquatic and terrestrial biodiversity, the island has been dubbed as the country’s “Last Ecological Frontier.”

All these activities are simply amazing and will help foster your kids fine motor skills, sense of balance, imagination and will certainly keep them entertained and smiling.