Destinations

Lisbon — often compared to San Francisco for its siting on various hills with a bridge reminiscent of our Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco — is a lively, humane and fascinating town full of history, monuments, lively smaller neighborhoods in process of change and modernization. The Santos district lying not far from the harbor area, has in the last few years become home to trendy small restaurants, small boutique shops and even a pharmacy from the 19th century with its own musician playing his own compositions at lunchtime. Pull up a chair in front of his white piano after purchasing your necessities and enjoy 15 minutes of marvelous sounds before moving on to other endeavors.

What more wonderful than seas with 1.5 foot swells, clear skies and a broad open decks to relax on between ports-of-call? Nothing!! I just returned from a marvelous six day ‘repositioning’ cruise aboard the SPLENDOUR OF THE SEAS, one of the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line’s mid-sized ships. Sailing from Lisbon, Portugal via Gibraltar, Sardinia, Dubrovnik and finishing in Venice, Italy, we got to experience a range of wonderful places to visit. We even had time to relax at sea on two of the days. All guests on board seemed to delight in this extra open time to mingle, laugh, chat and also have a bit of quiet time. It made an excellent balance between sightseeing new places and enjoyment of the ship’s proffered offerings.

On board, there were so many options for all age groups — rock wall climbing, spa treatments, mini-golf, shuffleboard and table tennis, jogging track, dance lessons, as well as special programs for the youngsters aboard with specialized on board counselors provided by the cruise line. Teens had their separate spaces and younger ones a playroom with age appropriate activities.

Throughout the day there was light musical entertainment which all of us enjoyed by the pool. If music wasn’t wished, there were ample other deck areas for quieter activities including snoozing. At night the quality and range of entertainment was excellent — full-fledged dance shows, atrium area duets and quartets, and light entertainment in several smaller club Rooms.

The ship had over 47 different nationalities aboard this sailing which gave many groups opportunities to share life experiences and cultures. The ship is designed to give everyone the option to be super busy to totally relaxed and the choices on the daily activities ‘menu’ left by the cabin stewards were endless and easy to make. All in all — a good time and all too short.

What so great about summer other than the weather? Festivals! Summer is the best time for going to see new and exciting things happening in your town and the world. If you’re looking for something to do while your out and about these are only some of the events that will tickle your fancy.

The Capital Fringe Festival, Washington D.C. July 10-27: The Capital Fringe Festival features more than 500 performing arts shows at several venues around the Penn Quarter of D.C. It is an annual festival that was established to exhibit new, risk-taking art, and non-traditional performances from theater to dance to music and more.

The Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Washington D.C. June 25-29 and July 2-6: Sponsored by the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage it is an annual event that focuses on celebrating cultural traditions from around the world. There is everything from music and dance, to cooking and crafts, to storytelling and discussions of cultural issues. This year the program will be featuring issues concerning Bhutan, NASA, and Texas.

Essence Festival Back Home In New Orleans: The Essence Festival celebrated its return in 2007 and is continuing the traditional this year. It will have more than 200,000 of the nations best African-American musical talent. In addition one can listen to some of the finest speakers in empowerment seminars. Usually held over the Forth of July weekend.

Taste of Chicago 2008, June 27 through July 6: Chicago’s biggest event started in 1980 as a small food festival, Taste of Chicago has become the world’s largest outdoor food festival. It is an extravaganza of more than 3 million people tasting the cuisine of over 70 of Chicago’s favorite restaurants.

Notting Hill Carnival, London: Since 1964 the Notting Hill Carnival has celebrated the cultural traditions of immigrant population from the Caribbean. In the 1950’s and 60’s the immigrant population faced harsh racism and after the race riots this small party was design to bring people together to remember their cultural roots. The party now has more the two million revelers and is held in August on Bank Holiday synonymous with the Caribbean Carnival.