“I’m not leaving the Acropolis until we get a photo with those Blues Brothers!” I declared to my companions from our Greece Teacher Tour.
We were standing next to the 2,500-year-old Parthenon (the “Most Perfect Building Ever Created”) under the radiant sun in Athens… but I couldn’t take my eyes off of the five men dressed in spiffy black suits who were milling around like typical tourists.
“Why do you think they’re wearing [...Read More!]
Traditional Greek dance consists of men in fluffy white skirts spinning and jumping. And it’s great!
On our last day in beautiful Nafplio, Greece, our Greece teacher travel tour nestled into a golden-lit family restaurant for a traditional dance performance. Hoo boy!
While the two female Greek dancers maintained a stately dignity throughout, the male dancer duo went wild. Did the fluffy white skirts bring out their inner male dancing beasts???
UP went the arms of the [...Read More!]
The ancient Greek gods did a lot of eating of their children.
Zeus ate Athena’s pregnant mother, only to have his daughter spring out of his head once Hephaestus split it open with an axe.
Cronus ate his first five children until his wife tricked him by switching a tasty rock for baby Zeus.
Inspired by the ravenous appetites of the Greek gods, on this teacher tour of Greece, we have been eating like monsters.
Only, instead [...Read More!]
I never realized the sheer amount of nudity in the ancient Olympic Games until our teacher tour of Olympia, Greece this week.
“The ancient Greek Olympic Games took place from 776 B.C.E. to 394 C.E.,” our guide, Mara, explained. “The athletes were all men, and they were all… NAKED. They were also covered in oil.”
“Whoa!” gasped one teacher traveler, aghast. “Were the spectators nude, too?”
“Well,” Mara laughed, “Funny story. The only people [...Read More!]
If you’re totally baffled by the title of this article, just read on.
Research suggests that in marriage, men need a room of their own to do Man Things. This sanctuary is often referred to by the term: “Man-Cave.” A Man-Cave is the sanctuary in a shared home in which a man can be a MAN, and the lady of the house stays out.
In our house, my fiancé has a Man-Cave, and [...Read More!]
Article #10 in the Student Travel Stories Series from our tour of Beijing, China. By Terry, Age 17, 12th Grade in Boston. Born in the U.S. to parents from Vietnam and China.
Q: Terry, tell the readers about the crazy 798 Art Zone in Beijing!
A: The 798 Art Zone we visited was the coolest place I’ve ever been in China, and we saw a lot of places!
It used to be a giant factory complex, and [...Read More!]
Article #4 in the Student Travel Stories Series from our tour of Beijing, China. By Toan, Age 18, 11th Grade in Boston. Born in the U.S. to parents from Vietnam.
Q: During our free hour in Beijing’s Night Market, word is that you sampled some INSANE foods. What exactly happened?
A: Well, first I went around trying to look for the scorpion. That was the first food I wanted to eat.
All the exotic foods in the market were [...Read More!]
“Oooh, Miss M.!” squealed my students the day after I got engaged. “Your diamond engagement ring is HUGE!”
Well, folks, it’s time to come clean. I do not have a diamond engagement ring.
What I really have is… a $25 crystal ring. Hah!!!!!
Colin and I bought the fake ring together, laughing uproariously the whole time, from the back of a sketchy store in Boston’s Downtown Crossing. ”The funniest part about this,” I squeaked amid gales of [...Read More!]
One of the most dramatic tourist attractions in New England is totally free: the 3.5-mile Cliff Walk in historic Newport, Rhode Island!
Just make sure, as this sign pictured to the left politely points out, not to hurtle off the “cliff” aspect of the whole “Cliff Walk” thing.
Here’s what makes the Cliff Walk so amazing: it’s a marriage of nature’s glory with the most opulent human-made mansions imaginable.
On one side, you have [...Read More!]
In the previous article, we discussed the most shocking bathroom situation of my world travels.
But what is the most luxurious toilet of China?
Easy. Just go to Shanghai and travel about 1,000 feet… straight UP!
The Cloud 9 Bar and Grill is on the 87th floor of the Grand Hyatt Hotel of Shanghai, and is one of the highest-up and most beautiful bars on Earth.
It also has one of the best bathrooms in [...Read More!]