I am astonished to be able to say that I’ve been to Rome half a dozen times. With only one exception, however, I’ve never spent the night there. Living in Naples, we are only an hour away by high-speed train and so we’ve made several day trips to the Eternal City, enough that I’m ratherContinue reading “Only in Rome is it Possible to Understand Rome.”
Category Archives: Travelog
So. Much. Art.
After mom and dad arrived with Keyran, we checked them into their hotel on base and let them rest. We introduced them to Neapolitan pizza from our favorite local restaurant their first night in Italy, but there was little time to adjust before we began the first leg of our Italian Summer Vacation. Our firstContinue reading “So. Much. Art.”
A Great Oddity, a City for Beavers*
When we were preparing for their arrival, Nora and I kept asking my parents what they wanted to do or see while in Europe. We entertained ideas of short trips to other countries—Mom wanted to go to Corfu in Greece—but we all settled on staying within Italy. Less time in transit, more time exploring. WhatContinue reading “A Great Oddity, a City for Beavers*”
Family Vacation
Many of my most cherished childhood memories come from our family vacations. Most every year, for a couple weeks, Mom and Dad would load all four of us into the station wagon with our Coleman pop-up camper in tow and take us on an adventure. Well, for us they were all adventures. Sometimes the tripContinue reading “Family Vacation”
It Revs My Engine
As any boy who grow up in the Midwest, I had friends and family who owned and worked on cars. My uncle Bob owned a garage on the same rural lot as his home, where I spent many of my childhood days in Ohio, and a cousin drove a racing striped Chevy Nova that announcedContinue reading “It Revs My Engine”
Alpine Adventure
When we were stationed overseas for the first time, in Okinawa, Nora and I started a new family tradition. We used the money we might otherwise spend on gifts and used it to take the family on a nice vacation trip. The day after the Feast of the Nativity of our Lord, God, and SaviorContinue reading “Alpine Adventure”
Between the Lines
In America, we have devised a system for controlling the flow of traffic on the highways and byways across the continent. Our system principally utilizes colored lights, signs (both passive and active), barrier rails, and painted lines. I have found that other countries use these same means for traffic control, and for the same orContinue reading “Between the Lines”
More than just a trim.
I used to love going to the barbershop. Okay, I admit that I didn’t like it at first, and when I was a teenager I once asked my father to take me someplace else (a salon of some kind) to get my hair cut. He reluctantly agreed, warning me that “they treat you like aContinue reading “More than just a trim.”
That Ain’t Right
Living overseas is an educational experience. Of course, one learns a little of the local language and customs, visits the historical and cultural sites, but it’s in the smaller, more mundane aspects of life where the education can be most surprising. Take auto repair and service, for example. In the states I could easily findContinue reading “That Ain’t Right”
An Orthodox Priest Abroad 