At first glance, the Timanfaya National Park in the interior of Lanzarote, the Eastern-most of Spain’s Canary Islands, seems little more than a desolate landscape of lava fields with volcanos rising over them. It is only once you look closer that you can see the austere beauty of the many lava tubes, calderas, and craggy peaks, the lava sea, all wind-worn over the centuries. The arid, rocky plains and the smooth, naturally wind-swept fields of volcanic ash hold an austere beauty all their own. Euphorbia plants and lichens, as well as lizards and insects, call this untouched, protected area home.

Magellan's story is one instance where the old adage "the victor gets to write history" rings true. The PBS History website and Spanish movies like "1898: Our Last Men in the Philippines" depict the Filipinos as uncivilized thankless primitives. From Western perspectives, the Spaniards were the cultured benefactors who came to save the Filipinos from their ignorance. From the Filipino's viewpoint, the Spaniards were the oppressors. The Spanish monks sworn to celibacy were notorious to have families on the side.

Well, I’m still basking in the memories of my cruise experience aboard Holland America’s ms Veendam. At the end of each day’s illuminating tours of the ports of call – Lucca and Pisa, Malaga, Barcelona, Monaco and Gibraltar – I would excitedly rush back to the vessel to my favorite lounge, the Crow’s Nest, where I’d compile my notes over a crisp, full flavored Budweiser Budvar (circa 1245).

The latest T-Boy Society of Film & Music poll is devoted to our members' favorite international destination. That is, the first international destination we'd visit when the roadways, skyways and waterways are deemed safe to travel. You'll find members' selections to be illuminating, telling us much about their own personal preferences.

The clouds of Asturias roll in over the rocky shore from the Cantabrian Sea like fog, filling the valleys and cascading over the low hills to butt against the spikey ridgelines of the Pico de Europa mountains in the interior, causing them to look like islands in an inland cotton sea. We drove to this view early one morning on a winding mountain road, the only traffic a herd of cows coming down from their summer pasture, nonplussed by our presence, yet they skitter by, their cowbells echoing the change of seasons through the valleys long after they pass.

Do YOU believe – really believe – in witches? I mean on October 31st all kinds of craziness comes to the fore, with people – mostly kids – dressing up in all kinds of weird looking clothes, and outlandish outfits to celebrate Halloween. But the truth is Halloween night is one of the biggest nights of the year for witches. How do YOU imagine a witch actually looks?

PORT LLIGAT, Girona, Spain - What's old in Girona, in Catalonia, Spain, but as tomorrow as a trip to Mars? Not the ancient ruins at Empuries, nor the coast-hugging Roman road, the Via Augusta, now paved and numbered. Nor is it Girona's ancient vineyards or the Costa Brava's sandy shores and emerald coves.

An extraordinary chain of events came together for a most amazing journey to Barcelona, Paris and London. The 60th Anniversary of an art organization that has been my sponsor for over 30 years determined that Barcelona would be the site for our celebration. We would mark the occasion by inviting our niece who had recently graduated from nursing school to join us in Spain and travel afterwards to Paris and London for her first time ever abroad.

Just because we can’t travel during the Covid-19 pandemic, doesn’t mean we can’t still explore the culinary traditions of various countries from the comfort of our own kitchens.