Travel and Leisure

Apache Trail: Natural Beauty, Rich History, and Hiking Passion

Located in Arizona, just outside of Phoenix, is the engaging and deceptively prolific beauty of the Apache Trail Scenic Drive. It’s complex natural sights, rich history, and hiking friendliness make for a wonderfully diverse travel experience. The Apache Trail's Natural Beauty Th Read More

Manuel Antonio National Park

Located on the Costa Rican coast, Manuel Antonio National Park is arguably one of the most beautiful national parks in the world. Pictures of its breathtaking landscape and stories of the magnificent beaches and sights quickly justify its rating in 2011 as one of the top twelve most beautiful nation Read More

The Ancient Yosemite Glaciers: How the Valley Was Formed

All California has been glaciated, the low plains and valleys as well as the mountains. Traces of an ice-sheet, thousands of feet in thickness, beneath whose heavy folds the present landscapes have been molded, may be found everywhere, though glaciers now exist only among the peaks of the High Sierr Read More

Thimphu, Bhutan: Where the Happiness of Shangri-La Resides

It was a cold morning in February recently when I boarded my flight to Paro to reach the capital of Bhutan, Thimpu, for a four-day visit. While I was booking my trip, I realized that there were not too many flight options available to Paro. Instead, the list of possibilities was restricted to j Read More

Bangkok, Thailand: Facts, Travel, and Points of Interest

Bangkok is the capital city of Thailand as known by foreigners; however, Thailand natives refer to it as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon. This is the shortened version of the longer name. The more extended version has a remarkable 169 characters and is used as a tongue twister. The complete title is Krungthe Read More

Batalha and the Monastery of the Battle (Moisteiro da Batalha)

Life in Batalha revolves around a single structure of epic proportions, a truly monolithic sight: the Batalha Monastery (Moisteiro da Batalha), or Monastery of the Battle. With intricate stone latticework decorating the exterior, ornately carved stone ceiling that soars overhead, and high Gothic sty Read More