Aviation Security – time to get real and stop the smoke and mirrors

Is aviation security mostly for show?By Bruce Schneier, Special to CNN December 29, 2009 7:38 a.m. EST STORY HIGHLIGHTS Incident on Detroit-bound plane led to tightening of airport security Bruce Schneier says politicians react to incidents by imposing “security theater” Trying to predict what terrorists will do next is futile, Schneier says He says it’s […]

Plan now for your trip of a lifetime

Premium slots are going fast – with May, June and the second half of September, 2010 already taken by other adventurers. If you’re still on the sidelines in late January, you might be “out of luck” to travel in style with European Focus in 2010. We’re seeing a great deal of pent-up demand following the […]

Return to Hoechst im Odenwald – 59 years later

One of the many highlights of this current journey with Bob and Betty Whittemore was our visit to the small town of Hoechst im Odenwald on Sunday, October 4. Bob spent four weeks in Hoechst in August, 1950 as a young volunteer with the World Council of Churches. Back then, he was 22 years old […]

From the Hotel Baeren in Meersburg

Guests Bob and Betty wave to the passersby below their room at the Hotel Baeren in Meersburg, on the Bodensee in southern Germany. The Baeren was built in 1605 on foundations dating back to the 1250s. Room 23 is the best, and of course, that’s where Bob and Betty spent two nights in late September.

Kudos to the Schmales Haus in Ulm, Germany

We stayed at the Schmales Haus (Small House) in the Fischerviertel (Fishermen’s Quarter) of Ulm, Germany the other night. It was the second time at this tiny B&B in Ulm’s most picturesque, enjoyable quarter. Host Michael Heide gave up his job selling insurance more than a decade ago to take care of his young children. […]