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Gloria and Mark
Sep 6, 20172 min read
Sea and sand Sardinian style
We have arrived at one of our favorite Sardinian beach towns, Santa Maria Navarrese. The laid back village has a state-of-the-art yacht...
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Gloria and Mark
Sep 3, 20172 min read
Machu Picchu on the Mediterranean
We are in Sardinia where we've spent the day exploring the largest stone ruins we've seen outside of Peru. Su Nuraxi di Barumini is one...
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Gloria and Mark
Jun 15, 20172 min read
Starting your travel 'dream catcher'
Sea lions relaxing on the beach If you read our last post about being able to afford an off the beaten path dream trip to the Galapagos,...
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Gloria and Mark
Jun 2, 20172 min read
Yes, you can afford the Galapagos!
We were inspired to revisit our trip to the Galapagos Islands of Ecuador after seeing a new fare on LAN airlines for round trip travel...
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Gloria and Mark
May 1, 20172 min read
Waking up to a perfect cup of coffee
This was our view every morning waking up at my brother Bill's 50-acre coffee farm in the outskirts of Popayan, Colombia. The farm, El...
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Gloria and Mark
Apr 24, 20172 min read
Medieval pageantry in Colombia - part two off the beaten path
The Holy Week processions in Popayan are certainly unique enough to merit another mention. They are, in fact, on the Unesco list of...
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Gloria and Mark
Apr 17, 20172 min read
Holy Week - flashback to the 1500s
The Holy Week processions in Popayan, Colombia are steeped in mysticism, history and deep religious devotion. We wanted to experience the...
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Gloria and Mark
Apr 13, 20171 min read
Popayan - a colonial gem in coffee heaven
When the Spanish conquistadores founded Popayan in 1537, they could hardly believe their good fortune. The area was blessed with perfect...
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Gloria and Mark
Apr 8, 20172 min read
Colombia - romancing the coffee
The name Colombia usually evokes images of the spectacular Andes mountains, the Caribbean beaches of Cartagena and endless coffee...
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Gloria and Mark
Apr 4, 20172 min read
Springtime in Venice
Our one-week ski vacation in the idyllic Dolomite Mountains ended on a very high note with a weekend visit to Venice. We were picked up...
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Gloria and Mark
Mar 30, 20172 min read
Tackling the sunny ski slopes in Italy
The first day of a ski vacation can be daunting - even for experienced skiers at a new mountain. Conquering skiing in a foreign country...
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Mark and Gloria
Mar 21, 20172 min read
Skiing in the Italian Alps off the beaten path
We had been intrigued by the Dolomite Mountains ever since we first saw the craggy snow-covered peaks from an airplane window shortly...
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Gloria and Mark
Mar 17, 20172 min read
Swimming with the sharks in Bora Bora
Bora Bora - a name that is as much a fantasy as the imaginary lost city of Shangri-La. Our last stop on the Aranui freighter was that...
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Gloria and Mark
Mar 8, 20172 min read
Tattoos, totems and taboos off the beaten path
Many of the crew members on the Aranui freighter were covered with tattoos - some even had their faces tattooed like the man pictured...
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Gloria and Mark
Feb 27, 20172 min read
Jumping ship off the beaten path like Herman Melville
Moby Dick's author, Herman Melville, jumped ship at Nuku Hiva, and we could understand why when we saw the spectacular scenery. He wrote...
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Gloria and Mark
Feb 15, 20172 min read
Fantasy Island - snorkeling with the giant clams
On the way to the Marquesas, the Aranui stopped at Takapoto, a pristine atoll of white sand and clear turquoise blue water. This was...
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Gloria and Mark
Feb 11, 20172 min read
Setting sail into the unknown on our freighter
When we reached the dock in Papeete to board the Aranui, we realized right away that this would not be a typical cruise. Other passengers...
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Gloria and Mark
Feb 8, 20172 min read
Freighter travel off the beaten path to Polynesian paradise
From the first moment we stepped aboard the Air Tahiti flight at Los Angeles, we could sense that we were beginning a fantasy vacation....
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Gloria and Mark
Feb 4, 20172 min read
Stay in the heart of Venice's Carnival
To travel off the beaten path comfortably and really live the Carnival experience, you can't go wrong with a stay at the Locanda Orseolo,...
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Gloria and Mark
Jan 30, 20172 min read
Dressing for Venice Carnival without breaking the bank
As soon as we booked our trip to Carnival in Venice we started to daydream about who we would be for a week. We wanted to keep our costs...
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