Some of the best advice I’ve ever been given about how to benefit from visiting sacred places came from Dr. Jean Shinoda Bolen. The author of Crossing to Avalon and Goddesses in Everywoman told me, “When you go to a sacred place with an open, receptive attitude, the energy of the place can activate … [Read More...]
Virginia City Nevada Was Once the Richest Place in the World
It was a disappointingly ordinary looking bedroom, considering its rich history. Some of the most famous men in the world had slept there. I was in Virginia City, Nevada at the Mackay Mansion, built in 1860 by George Hearst, father of newspaper baron William Randolph Hearst. In the 1870s it was … [Read More...]
Kosrae, Pacific Island of Mystery
"The Mysterious Paradise Island" said the sign above the airport terminal door. I had just landed on Kosrae, one of the … [Read More...]
Holy Wells and Healing Water
To the modern, rational mind, the idea of miraculous cures from holy wells sounds, at best, illogical. But with so many … [Read More...]
Why I Believe in Fairies
Maybe it’s Shakespeare’s fault, or perhaps the brothers Grimm are to blame, but fairies – like witches – have an image … [Read More...]
British Columbia First Nations Attractions Entertain and Inspire
I watched in fascination as the two men carved away slivers of wood from the pole. Stylized figures of animals and … [Read More...]
Exploring Brisbane Australia
My trip to Queensland began with a Qantas flight from Los Angeles to Brisbane. The trip took nearly twelve hours, and I … [Read More...]
Transformed by a Maya Medicine Woman in Belize
The Maya medicine woman smeared a handful of green, aromatic mud onto my forehead, binding it with a strip of cloth, as … [Read More...]
Haunted Hopi Pottery in Arizona
It’s an awesome feeling to spot a piece of broken pottery among the weeds, pick it up and realize it was made nearly … [Read More...]
Green Luxury in a Belize Rainforest
Was an enormous lion howling outside my thatched cottage? It sounded more like a T-Rex. I might have been worried if I … [Read More...]
Blessed by a Sacred Elephant
The Meenakshi Sundareswarar temple in Madurai is one of the largest in South India I had to stretch my neck to look up … [Read More...]
Barkerville Celebrates its Chinese Heritage
The glow from hundreds of candle-lit paper lanterns provided the only light as we paraded up the dirt street into … [Read More...]
Walking With Ghosts In Vancouver’s Haunted Gastown
I'd walked past the place hundreds of times without knowing that so many people had been killed there. A block south of … [Read More...]
Whale Boat Sails From Downtown Vancouver to Victoria
I gasped in amazement as three killer whales surfaced alongside our boat. Holding out my digital camera, I clicked the … [Read More...]