Topics

Jun

Travel Inspiration: Beauty in the Details

by Meredith Mullins on June 8, 2020

The Île Saint-Louis: So many treasures lie within
© Meredith Mullins

Circumnavigating the Île Saint-Louis

How did a tiny island in the middle of the Seine river in Paris meet the challenges of pandemic wanderlust?

Defying Einstein, the less-than-one-square-kilometer area of the Île Saint-Louis seemed to expand during “confinement” to become an undiscovered universe.

My daily wanderings became a profound adventure during this time of sheltering, with a newfound appreciation of beauty in the details. Read more...

Meredith Mullins 8 Comments

Art of Travel/France (Paris)/Travels to the Past

May

Cultural Sayings or Quarantine Quotes?

by Joyce McGreevy on May 26, 2020

A gate in Istanbul evokes the Turkish proverb, "Kind words can unlock an iron door,” a reminder that in the context of the pandemic, cultural sayings have take on a new relevance as quarantine quotes. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

“Kind words can unlock an iron door.”—Turkish proverb
By doing our best for one another, we’ll get through this.
© Joyce McGreevy

Old Proverbs Help Us Cope with the Pandemic

Anonymous, that endless font of wisdom, once said, “There cannot be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full.” This contemporary proverb appears in busy workplaces and hectic households, wherever humans gamely endeavor to keep life on track—even in crisis.

Anyone experienced a crisis lately? A calamity that’s disrupted your schedule for months? Raise your hand. Oh my, 7.8 billion of you? I thought it was just me. Read more...

Joyce McGreevy 2 Comments

Cultural Diversity/Proverbs & Sayings/Secrets to Life/Worldwide Sites

May

A Celebration of Spring

by Meredith Mullins on May 18, 2020

Flowers Around the World—the Scary, the Exotic, and the Reassuring

Spring came . . . just as promised through the ages. Not even a global pandemic could stop the natural rhythms of the earth. (This story begins like an ancient myth, doesn’t it?)

The clenched tree buds exploded into gentle leaves of green almost overnight. Flowers bloomed everywhere around the world making the words “riot of color” less of a cliché because the description was so true.

Meredith Mullins 6 Comments

Art of Travel/Nature Discovery/Worldwide Sites

World Views: