Norway, Luxembourg, Greece, Liechtenstein, Scotland, India, England, Massachusetts, and the Netherlands. Ten ALL NEW (and improved?) photo-stories rescued from our klutzy photo-management system…
Favorite 71: Oslofjord, Norway - Overnight København Ferry
The sun plays strange tricks on the eye as it rises over the fjord leading north into Oslo. Just as you start to wonder if you’re retreating even farther from civilization, your ship rounds a final island in the archipelago, and the city rises in front of you. One could say the Norwegians pride themselves on their modesty. This approach gives you a distinct foretaste.
Favorite 72: Mondorf-les-Bains, Luxembourg - Camp Ashcan
The palace the Americans designated as Camp Ashcan is gone, along with the leading Nazis they stored here after World War II while awaiting trial in Nurnberg. But natural spa waters this magnificent can’t be wasted, so the locals replaced the palace with an ultra-modern, ultra-comfortable spa/medical facility and hotel. This is the view from our favorite room.
Favorite 73: Crete, Greece - Moni Arkadi - Selfie-Girl
In the Cretan Revolt of 1866, 964 men, women, and children took refuge at the monastery here to fight off the troops of the Ottoman Empire. After days of non-stop attacks, the Cretans gathered in the gunpowder rooms and blew themselves up rather than surrendering. 846 died and turned the Moni Arkadi into one of the sacred symbols of Cretan and Greek independence. We wondered if this pretty Selfie-Girl knew or cared about any of that.
Favorite 74: Rhodes, Greece - Coming into Harbor
When you find Greece on a map, it might surprise you how much of the country—how many of its islands—lie just off the coast of Turkey. Rhodes is one of history’s peculiar eddies, being ceded during the Crusades to the Order of the Knights of St. John. Later on, those same Medieval Knights retreated across the Mediterranean to Malta, taking their cats with them. As a result, the feline crowds that dominate both islands, 2,000 miles apart, share a common DNA.
Favorite 75: Liechtenstein - Schloss Vaduz
For centuries, the Princes of Liechtenstein benefited from owning this tiny country, before they roused themselves out of their Viennese palaces to actually visit. They bought the castle in 1712, but didn’t get around to even technically moving in until 1938. Essentially, this tiny country is a narrow river valley (the Rhein) and the mountainside where we stayed. At night, there isn’t much to do, but we did once catch the local premiere of The French Connection.
Favorite 76: Culloden Moor, Scotland - Battlefield - April 16, 1746
In the last gasp of Catholic Stuart Britain, a Scottish insurgent army gathered here outside Inverness to await the arrival of the British, led by King George II’s second son, Prince William Augustus, the Duke of Cumberland. According to the story we heard, the British arrived with barrels of whisky, which they freely shared with their Scottish cousins in a night-long party. The next morning, they awoke and massacred them. Either way, the bumbling Bonny Prince Charlie fled into exile, while “Butcher” Cumberland dismantled the clan system that had ruled Scotland since forever and given the British so much trouble.
Favorite 77: Elephant Island, Mumbai, India - Friends Waving Goodbye
Sometimes, beauty and blond hair can be major assets. We’ve never been so besieged by selfie-takers as we were on the afternoon boat to Elephant Island—Glinda being the lone foreign woman and the star of the show. When she later turned to wave goodbye, the eccentric cave temple blossomed with beautiful colors and smiles. Oh, and Ben was there too, although you never would have known it.
Favorite 78: Blackpool, England - Winter Gardens
Blackpool has long been the worldwide Mecca of ballroom dancing and, since 1896, the Empress Ballroom at the Winter Gardens complex has served as the activity’s spiritual HQ. Among the many other political and entertainment events hosted here, the 1964 Rolling Stones concert stands out. When Kieth Richards fell into an altercation with an audience member, a riot erupted that got the five youths banned from the city until 2008.
Favorite 79: Gloucester, MA - Fisherman’s Memorial
As dramatized by Sebastian Junger in his Gloucester-based history, The Perfect Storm, deep sea fishing is one of the most dangerous professions in the world. At the center of this memorial in Gloucester Harbor, local hero Captain Clayton Morrissey was immortalized in 1925 on the rolling deck of his Grand Banks trawler. The caption on the monument reads, "They That Go Down To The Sea In Ships", a paraphrase of Psalm 107:23.
Favorite 80: Coyoacán, Mexico City - Windowless Windows
The residential architecture of Mexico City is some of the most colorful in the world, and the southern district of Coyoacán is a riot of bold hues overrun by lush trees and vividly red and purple bougainvillea. Frida Kahlo lived most of her life here at la Casa Azul, where she was born and where she hosted Leon Trotsky during his exile. Given the violent political and social history of Mexico City, it’s no surprise that many of the houses in this wealthy district are walled off from the street, their windows long blocked. The walls and the riot of colors give the peace and quiet of Coyoacán an eerie feel that makes you want to whisper as you wander through.