Waikiki Beach at Sunset
LOVE TO TRAVEL
Traveling around the United States and other countries has been one of my greatest joys. I love nothing more than visiting new places, whether a new town or a new country. I've been fortunate in where I've been able to go. Below are some of my favorite places!
Florence, Italy
I've viewed/gawked at David twice in person at the Academia Gallery in Florence. He is a spectacular example of Renaissance sculpture. Michelangelo created David between 1501 and 1504. Guess what? He's 17 feet tall, made of marble, and photos are NOT allowed. Obviously, I didn't pay attention and heard the guards shouting "No photo" more than once. To date, I have not thought of a mystery plot involving David other than a statue of a naked man being stolen by, uh, an art thief with a really big truck … and that's so easy. I will keep thinking.
This is David.
Rome, Italy -The Colleseum
Oh my goodness, Rome is da bomb. It's the most incredible mixture of centuries old architecture and history coupled with a modern flair. Central Rome is easily walkable in a day and just……wonderful, fantastic, mind-blowing. Can you tell Rome is my favorite place in Italy? I've been fortunate enough to visit the city twice. It a city where I would feel comfortable roaming around by myself. I now know the sections of central Rome and even a hotel or two. This is a picture of the Colosseum, and its one major wall that is still standing. Completed in 80 AD, it is an elliptical amphitheater, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire. It is considered one of the greatest works of Roman architecture and Roman engineering. Unfortunately, damage from earthquakes and stonerobbers has reduced the structure, yet it is still considered an iconic symbol of Imperial Rome. Capable of seating 50,000 spectators, it was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on Classical mythology.
England
Ah, Stonehenge, I've had a hankering to view this pile of rocks for decades. The site is in the English County of Wiltshire, near Amesbury and Salisbury. I remember it as 1.5 to 2 hours from London by motor coach.
The monument dates back to 3100 BC and was built with an estimated 30 million hours of human labor.…wow, that's a bunch of overtime. It was completed 3500 years ago.
The site was used for burials, as a place of healing, and for worship. As a tourist, you look at it from afar yet it is still magnificent.
I do have an idea for a mystery plot involving the question of why was it built and by whom. This idea is on my "to write later" list.
A girl can dream about that fabulous jackpot! Right?
LAS VEGAS!
This is the story for my gambling luck for all my many visits to the city of sin, er, uh, non-stop partying, er, blue haired ladies pushing bills into a slot machine. If you have the right attitude, it’s a whole bunch of fun. I like it because it’s so different from my everyday life…noisy, action packed with lots of flashing lights. Maybe I was a disco queen in another life.
Fun facts about Las Vegas:
• Las Vegas means “The Meadows” in Spanish
• Vegas Vic, the huge neon cowboy that towers over Fremont Street, is the world’s largest mechanical neon sign
• Howard Hughes stayed at the Desert Inn for so long that he was asked to leave so he bought the hotel
• Seventeen of the 20 largest hotels in the United States are in Las Vegas.
My favorite website for checking on the action: click here