Don't be offended. There is a Hell, Michigan. It's an unlikely place for a vacation destination, it's not a 'wow' destination. If you get a chance to pass through the three building town–post office, restaurant, and gift shop. You can pick up a souvenir and get bragging rights to tell everyone that you've been through Hell. Maybe, even te...

Smoke fills the air. Not the smoke of a volcanic eruption, but the cookfires of hundreds of family huts.​ It was 1986, and I visited Tonga on an Earthwatch expedition. Our task was to map the growing fields identifying the types of vegetation–taro, plantains, papaya, and coconut made up some of the target crops. Our direct observation used ground-t...

Paul and Baya (a Navajo native) Meehan are betting that you will. Owners of Shash Dine' Eco Retreat have created a place where you trade creature comforts for more rustic surroundings. In exchange, you connect on a more spiritual level with the land. The land you are on is Navajo. The experience is one of renewal and learning about the Navajo ...

There is a single poisonous tree on the island of St. John USVI. ​ The tree is one of the deadliest plants known. It is protected by a small fence and may not be destroyed. The manchineel tree is protected by law. Although the last one on the island, the tree is prevalent throughout the Caribbean. There were two manchineel trees on St. John be...

The talk that night was about coming back to the island after leaving for hurricane season It is a seasonal ritual. The shops close, the bars close, the restaurants close, and the tourists stay away. Each year from August to October, the island ceases to exist. Those in the know lay in wait until the tropical storms deplete their fury over the...

There's something about a carousel that brings the kid out in me I'm not sure whether it is the sight of the colorful and whimsical animals, the sound of the old calliope, or the smell of the ever-present caramel popcorn and cotton candy. Whatever it is, the spirit is alive in the Seaport Village of San Diego. This historic icon is set on the San D...