In Paris, the Streets Are Made for Biking

  (Washington Post) Some tourists walk Paris, some sit at Continue reading →

In Paris, the Streets Are Made for Biking

(Washington Post) Some tourists walk Paris, some sit at cafes, others zip around the metro to Eifell-esque destinations. But I dreamed  of seeing Paris from a bicycle. . . . Continue reading →

Currents of Memory

(Albany Times-Union) Sometimes, family vacations are more than getaways; they’re inheritances. In this case, I offered the inheritance to Sophia, my 13-year-old daughter. What I wanted to pass on was an adventure as old-school as a canteen: the pleasures of a canoe trip. FULL TEXT> Currents of Memory Continue reading →

Widen Main St.? Community Had Other Ideas, and Thrived

(NY Times) How did this Rust Belt village of 10,000 people resurrect itself from a 30-year slide? It started with a road. Continue reading →

Catskill Cultural Center Saved, and Renewed, Thanks to a Fiddler’s Tune

(New York Times) OLIVEBRIDGE, N.Y. — On a spring Sunday in the Catskill Mountains, Jay Ungar, a fiddler wearing a black vest and hiking boots, and his wife, Molly Mason, playing guitar, stood on a stage in a barnlike performance hall that did not exist a year ago. “Can you stand to hear this tune … Continue reading →

More Musings on “Ashokan Farewell”

The Places “Ashokan Farewell” Has Taken Jay Ungar — I had to leave this story out of the New York Times piece I wrote about Jay Ungar’s bittersweet song, “Ashokan Farewell,” but I love it: In the spring of 2006, Ungar and his wife, the musician Molly Mason, joined renowned flutist Sir James Galway in … Continue reading →

A rustling in the brush calls for silent paddling along the Peace River

(Travel section, Boston Globe) At first glance, the river looks as if it belongs in New England… However, two clues suggest that my friend Jack and I aren’t canoeing in New England. Palm trees are the first. Far more persuasive are the alligators… Continue reading →