Traveller

Photo: Sharon Castellanos

In a couple of months of my sister will be leaving the country for the first time. I'm excited for her and nervous for everyone else she comes in contact with. Don't get me wrong, I love my sister but she can say and do things that make me squirm. My sister is a funny one. She loves to travel but won't go hardly anywhere without a companion. She will drive hundreds of miles to visit our mother or go to Hot August Nights vintage car shows in Nevada, but would never consider getting on a plane by herself even for a weekend in Vancouver, BC. Since her divorce I think she would be perfect for solo travel clubs and excursions for lone female travelers. She could be the next Travel Betty ! She is funny and personable, people love her down-home style. Our nieces laugh at her jokes. My thinking is that her inability to pack or have the right travel gear is keeping her stuck on the ground. Something us regular travelers take for granted, a good basic suitcase and a simple pack...

Photo: Sharon Castellanos

Okay so it is a little early for talking about Father's Day but since I was just speaking about my mother, it is only fair to consider the flip side. My father. My father lives on the Monterey Peninsula in California, a scenic gorgeous area on the coast. This photo of the wharf area was taken on one of our early morning (note: more like crack of dawn) walks together. He is a wonderful man who took his blue collar roots and added a flair that I admire. He has had the travel bug since I can remember and probably passed it on to me. He certainly passed on to me his love of traveling in style. He has more photos of him wearing his white dinner jacket, with hand-tied bow tie, sitting at the captain's table than anyone else I know. He proudly showed me his traveling min-bar once. It is a beautiful leather carryall that holds a shaker, a jigger, all the necessary bar utensils and two glasses. He savors traveling in comfort and seeing new places and meeting new people. I know he...

This is how I see my mom at San Francisco International terminal soon. She will be using her passport for the first time and flying with my brother to Normandy, Paris, London and Edinburgh. Given her advanced years, late 70s, I am both excited for her and worried. I like to see my mother as this statue is, arms strongly raised and in a posture of leaping into the unknown without fear. However since she has never traveled internationally and maybe because I want her first time to be memorable, I am a little worried. My mother is very down to earth and practical. However she has a tendency to follow rules so closely that her experience of something new can be very narrow. She is not spontaneous and her sense of humor is often missing, especially in times of stress. Traveling with my brother, sister, and two sister in laws and father in law could turn into a tough time for her. This group of six all have very different personalities. Also, only my mother and my sister have never tr...

Yesterday was the second of two gorgeous sunny days here in San Francisco. Today is a different story. However let's focus on yesterday since it clearly is more beautiful and a wonderful reminder of why San Francisco is a destination city. I was out taking my dog for a walk up and down our hills when I found this landscape. Isn't it out of this world? How does someone make an urban sidewalk feel like I'm in the middle of Avatar ? This is 3-D with only sunglasses! What makes this special too is that anyone is free to enjoy it. Just walk to Castro and Liberty Streets. These plants look indigenous to the Bay Area but I don't know for sure. However some looked like I had seen them at the florist shop or in a large vase in the lobby of an office building. I'm just so impressed and appreciative that we have San Francisco residents who decide to landscape around their home in a way that brings beauty to the public sidewalk, not just their own backyard. And you want t...

My second visit to Paris was better than my first. You want to know why? My second visit included my future husband, though we were keeping that a secret at the time. But the secret ingredient to this trip being better was his presence. He adds color to everything. It was his first visit to Paris which made me the instant "expert". I immediately felt smarter than the last time. Also though my high school French wasn't any more polished, my vocabulary was still better than his which added to my good feelings. Five years before, on my first visit, I was too intimidated to walk into a cafe alone. This trip, he walked into all sorts of shops and cafes without a second thought. I loved it and happily followed. Eiffel Tower Photo by Eustaquio Last time, I stayed with acquaintances of my father which were at best, awkward. This time we booked a room at a small hotel on the Rue Cler, near the Eiffel Tower. This street is famous, made more so by Rick Steves and his guidebooks. ...

Firefighters at Boston State House by Sharon Castellanos

The Boston State House by Sharon Castellanos Boston "Bah-stan" More Than Chow-dah: I just came back from a cold and snowy week in Boston. There were wonderful highlights and surprises but we also had some disappointments. If I was to give advice to anyone who wants to visit Boston during the winter, it would be these five tips: Walk through Beacon Hill Ice Skate on Frog Pond Skip going into Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market Grab a drink at Top of the Hub Take a camera on the 2.5 mile trek along the Freedom Trail Boston is the sister city to San Francisco which makes me happy but it suffers from similar issues. Faneuil Hall (pronounced "Fan-yule") and Quincy Market on paper are important in history, however today they are full of tourist trinkets made in China and poor food choices. You are better off either ignoring them or just taking a photo of the exterior buildings. Treat yourself with an extra photo next to the giant statue of Revolutionary Patriot Sam Adams, ...