The pre-Gaslamp, premultiplex downtown of 1979 exists today only in the fond memories of cinemaniacs old enough to recall a time when Jaws made you afraid of the water, Friday the 13th made you afraid …
History
History
Confessions of a 70s/80s San Diego grindhouse theater projectionist
New owners, new life for Palms, Windsor, and Friendship Hotels
The Palms Hotel at 12th and Island downtown (originally known as the Bay View and reportedly San Diego's oldest continuously operated lodging) and Hillcrest's similarly rundown Friendship Hotel are being purchased by the same Newport-based …
July 1, 2022
Lyon, France: a city of sights, not just food
If Paris has its Seine dividing the city into Left and Right Banks, Lyon, France’s third largest city, is wedged in by two great rivers – the Rhône and Saône. From Paris, it’s a short …
June 26, 2022
Os Almendres: Portugal's Stonehenge
In Portugal’s southern Alentejo province, near the town of Evora, in the incongruous midst of a vast cork plantation, stands Portugal’s Stonehenge. It is called Os Almendres. Around 6,000 years ago, for no obvious reason, …
March 20, 2022
Ancient and alluring Athens
Athens, Greece, is the antidote for the bland. I was inspired by it all – the cultural sites, museums, cuisine, and congenial residents. Athenians are guardians of a rich heritage. Over two thousand years of …
August 8, 2021
Chicago is that wonderful town
What a great place! Not long ago my husband and I were in the Windy City (more about that later). It was early October, unusually warm; in fact, temperatures were in the high 70s with …
September 12, 2020
The road to Cádiz, Spain
Sometimes an adventure shifts your perspective and uproots your priorities. For me, that adventure was a road trip through Portugal and Spain in September. The story begins in Lisbon, Portugal: My friends picked up me …
February 2, 2020
Ghost hunting at the Tombstone Motel
A little while back my mother and I decided to go on a ghost-hunting expedition to Tombstone, Arizona. Being the “professionals” that we are, we packed our equipment (flashlight, electromagnetic field detector, digital audio recorder …
Discovery and serenity in Cambria, CA
When I think of Cambria, I often think of my Grandpa Bristol – outfitted in a pair of brown waders – prying large red abalones from tidepool rocks. The Bristol home was close to the …
June 2, 2019
Ancient Wroclaw, Poland
I visited Wroclaw, Poland, during an interesting time in history: it was the 100th anniversary of Poland’s independence, the 100th anniversary of the Armistice and the 80th anniversary of Kristallnacht. As for Wroclaw itself, it …
May 11, 2019
Fascinating Kinmen, Taiwan
A convenient weekend break from the noise and bustle of Taipei is a one-hour flight to the island of Kinmen. Although Kinmen is controlled by Taiwan, it lies only eight kilometers from the Chinese mainland …
October 14, 2018