Singapore is a fascinating place, with a tremendously interesting history that is only eclipsed by the energy of the present moment.  It’s absolutely at the forefront of contemporary culture, setting trends as much as it does mark them, and the population is receptive, engaged, and discerning.  The capacity for kitsch here has been written about at length by Singapore culture critics, and in terms of a modern sensibility that embraces ironic quotations of a past that never was, it’s one of the places where this is thoroughly investigated in the living culture.  This makes it a lively and exciting place to visit, and travelers here will find a host of lovely things to see and do.  Guests wanting to see the city state from a perspective that is pure luxury will find five star Singapore hotels to be very pleasing.

These accommodations offer a beautiful splendor that is good for all the senses, and waking up to gorgeousness is always a preferred way to begin any day.  There are many splendid amenities here, as well as world-class exercise facilities, master chefs, and a lovely spirit of hospitality.  After a little rejuvenation, it’s the perfect time to see what’s happening in Singapore right now.  To fully enjoy the present in Singapore, at least as far as popular culture goes, it’s helpful to know a bit about the past.  The current sensibility toward nostalgia for the early 60s comes from some imaginary ideas of a time that’s passed, but also has some referents, which themselves are enormously interesting, and rather catchy, too.

This is the case with the pop music band The Quests.  They were the first local band to record their own LP, and have had an interesting career even after their rise to fame in the 1960s in this part of the world.  The group was known for its exceptional vocals, and Raymond Leong and Jap Chong were instrumental toward pushing the members to make harmonies that were on par with the Everly Brothers.  The late 80s saw a reunion of the Quests, and the music was as good as ever.  It reminds people of a more carefree time, and it’s interesting to note that the music, when it was first heard, also reminded people of a carefree time.  Nostalgia is a fascinating thing, and when it begins with a thirst for itself, it can be intoxicating, especially when it works its way into art and culture.

Read more of Singapore’s Quests for Nostalgia…

Thailand is an amazing country, and it’s impossible to get a sense of the whole, even in repeated visits.  But it’s easy to get a sense of the place, almost immediately, and it continues to get more fascinating the more you look into it.  There is a spectacularly interesting history here, and the cultural traditions are rich and various, and speak of an ongoing dialogue with many of the cultures of the world.  There is a great art scene in some of the larger cities, and Bangkok in particular is dense with extremely creative people making new projects all the time.  It’s difficult, almost, to visit this city after years of being away, because so much changes in the course of a short amount of time, and it’s always a sign of the transitory nature of all things.

There are many different ways to see Thailand.  Luxury hotels offer a very particular view, for a very particular taste.  Offering the highest of elegance, and in Thailand this is splendid indeed, you’ll have the opportunity to be extremely pampered while spending time in one of the most lush places in the world.  The sense of splendor is found not only in the decor in the lobby and the spacious rooms, but in the food, and certainly in the hospitality.  It is very hard to imagine anyone being bored in Thailand, except, of course, you happen to be B.O.R.E.D..

This is an acronym for Band of Radical Experimental Design, and it all started in 2002.  The young artists who make up this collective were, at the time, working on graphic design projects for different clients, and all agreed that they were, indeed, bored, and could probably do better by working for themselves.  They began this spectacular organization, and have been doing their own work for a few years now.  They’ve also been on a very hot winning streak, earning some of the most prestigious awards in the world for design, video effects, adobe, as well as a host of other awards from organizations that are considered to be high water marks in the industry.  They are well on their way, indeed, proving that it can pay to be bored.  As long as you’re enormously creative, talented, and resourceful at the same time.

Read more of Bored in Thailand…

Located close to the Key Highway and Hughes Street in the city of Baltimore sits an historic location, which is becoming one of the popular neighborhoods in the city.  Captain John Smith first discovered Federal Hill during his first exploration trip of the Chesapeake Bay in 1608.  The name was not given to this area however until 1788.  This is when thousands of residents of the city celebrated the ratification of the United States Constitution by marched to the hill from Fells Point.  The parade was reenacted in honor of the bicentennial anniversary just over twenty years ago.  This has become the location for many civic celebrations over the years.

The city erected an observatory on the site so that the ships coming into to the harbor could be seen in advance by the merchants of Baltimore.  The hill was also an important player during the Civil War when Federal troops set up cannons aimed at the city when loyalties were in question.  In 1875, the city turned this area into a public park, an a few years later the observatory was closed.  There are caves located on the hill that are what remains of a sand mining industry used for the production of glass.

The Federal Hill of today, began to form in the early 1960’s.  The neighborhood at the time had become somewhat run down, but a few people began to buy the inexpensive houses and the renovation began in this historic district of Baltimore.  Plumbing, electrical and structural improvements were necessary and soon this spread to the areas of the Inner Harbor and Fells Point.  Now all of the areas are thriving, putting residents of Federal Hill in the perfect position of living in wonderful houses on charming streets, located close to all of the entertainment and business districts of downtown.

Most of the brick houses have been rehabbed, but for those looking for a home fixer-upper, there are still many waiting to be renovated.  This is a community with a strong work ethic who has been protecting their identity and their individuality for hundreds of years.  When looking for a home to buy in Baltimore this is perhaps the first neighborhood that should be investigated, chances are, you just will not want to leave.

Read more of Life in Federal Hill, Baltimore, Maryland…

A thousand years ago, the Tequesta Native Americans lived in Biscayne Bay country; today, we call its major city Miami, and it’s now the largest city in Florida.  If you come to stay in one of the miami luxury hotels, you’ll quickly recognize this metropolis is a cosmopolitan 21st century city, known as an international center for a variety of businesses: from the arts to global trade to entertainment and finance, etcetera.  In the last eight years, buildings have literally skyrocketed with the construction of over fifty skyscrapers rising higher than four hundred feet.  But what’s the story behind one of the United State’s largest cities?  Who founded it?  The answer might surprise you: Miami is the only major city in the U.S. to be founded by a woman, Julia Tuttle.

Julia DeForest Tuttle lived from 1849 to 1898; in her short 50 years she was a business woman and a citrus farmer who owned the land on which Miami was founded.  In 1867, Tuttle married at the age of eighteen and had two children with Frederick Tuttle, an owner of an iron foundry.  She visited Southern Florida when she was twenty-six (1875) to see an orange grove that her father bought.  Her husband died when when she was just thirty-seven, and she decided to sell the iron foundry and move to Biscayne Bay.  She used the money from sale to purchase 640 acres on the spot where Miami now stands.  She decided to make a city to attract a railroad to her area.  She wrote many letters to the railroad, but it wasn’t until a freeze destroyed most of the orange crop of Florida in the Central and Northern areas and her crops were spared, that her letters were remembered.  The Florida East Coast Railroad was extended to Biscayne Bay, originating Miami in the year 1896.  At this time, the Mother of Miami was 49 years old.

Tuttle died the following year at the age of fifty, but not before bestowing upon Florida the legacy of its largest city, a town that grew in one hundred years from a population of one thousand to a metropolitan pop. of over five million.  All by writing a letter to the owner of a railroad.  The man she wrote to, Henry Flagler, became known as the Father of Miami…  but that’s another story.

Read more of The Mother of Miami…

We packed up the house once again at the end of March and left around noon. We decided to drop our dog, Cha, off at the kennels yesterday, so we wouldn’t have to worry about her today. We headed into Queanbeyan where most of the volunteers were setting up camp for the night. We said our hello’s to everyone and set off to find one of the Canberra Australia hotels so we could spend one night in luxury, before we also would set up camp.

The next morning, we celebrated my eldest sons birthday in the privacy of our hotel room. Then went off to find the Exhibition Park in Canberra and register for the volunteer training session. EPIC was starting to come alive as the festival site with all the marquees and bunting hung up all over the park. We saw a large group of volunteers taking the customary ‘familiarisation’ walk around all the relevant sections of the ground. We joined up with them right when the free BBQ lunch was being provided.

After lunch, we then went to find our own camping site, one that would be away from the performers area. We usually camp in that area, but this year we didn’t want to deal with all the noise and all the people tramping through our site like last year. Since we plan to stay the whole nine days, we put up the annexe roof and made ourselves comfortable. We pegged out a small tarp that adjoined our spot with one of our friends tent, which we staked out for his tent when he arrives from Melbourne tomorrow.

Starting tomorrow, we have our first volunteer duties in stores. I’ve made plans to tour all my favorite shops. We’ve been participating in the Folk Festival for almost a decade now. The only difference this time around is that we are the volunteers instead of the performers.

Read more of Canberra Folk Festival…

Cindy’s father John has always been interested in studying their family genealogy and it has been his hobby for the past ten years. Every once in a while he would discover something interesting and it would be a major event. Perhaps it was a little longer than ten years that he’s been working on their family tree as he began his efforts before so much data and resources were available online. Needless to say that when he discovered the family name traced back to colonial Jamestown he was greatly excited and the rest of the family was interested.

This discovery caused an immediate plan to be made to visit Jamestown and some of the other historical settlement areas and attractions found in the state of Virginia. As it turned out, only John, Cindy and her brother Walter were able to make the trip and stay in one of the best Virginia hotels but that was okay as they were also the most interested in it. Cindy was more interested in settlement history while both her father and brother were primarily interested in its significance to their family. This did not create any conflict or disturbance to their plans, it just meant some of their focuses would go in opposite directions along the way.

They arrived in Virginia and immediately went to Jamestown Island. They were all incredibly impressed with and interested in exploring the Jamestown Settlement Colony once they were there. The reproduction of some of the early settlement aspects was extremely lifelike and while John and Walter began looking for evidence of their family name, Cindy explored the Powhatan Village. She also walked along the waterway and enjoyed the replication of the ship Susan Constant. She had a great time wondering through all of the historic attractions, such as the statue of John Smith in Historic Jamestowne while her brother and father were off somewhere else. Ultimately, they all achieved what they were seeking through the trip. John found the evidence of his family’s name which captivated Walter and Cindy had an great time exploring the colonial settlement’s history.

Read more of Colonial Jamestowne in Virginia…

Ibiza is the Spanish island that is filled with visitors more and more every year. The island is the place for mainly Europeans to take their Holiday. It is mostly a party and sport place. I am not sure how that mixes together. Party and Sport but in Ibiza they make it happen. With so many people visiting this island, I suppose it only takes an extra long stay for someone to finally wake up and ask what else is there to know about Ibiza. Ibiza does have some interesting history.

Archaeologists have recently figured out that the first settlements on Ibiza and Formentera go as far back as over 3000 years ago. On Formentera, a grave was found which they believe dates back to 1600 B.C. In the area they found cave paintings that are dated to 800 years BC. Near San Juan and San Agustin they found bronze axes and discs that date back to 700 BC. All providing proof that these early settlements id exist.

Ibiza was one of the first towns in Europe. Ibiza Town was founded by the Carthaginians around 654 B.C.. It’s first name was Ibossim which is similar to the present day name. The visiting Greeks called Ibiza and Formentera, the Pitiusus, which translates into the pine covered island. The Carthagians turned Ibiza into a rather important trading center. That was the specialty of these people. The harbor was active with many ships and the city had strong walls to protect it. Back then, the walls protected the kings and the people while they traded their white gold which was salt. Now the newer walls ( at least relatively speaking ) protect the best Ibiza night club and all the DJ’s, dancers, dinners, beach loungers and sailors of this holiday town.

Read more of A Piece of Ibiza History…

Dayton, Ohio has a lot of attractive features and city icons and landmarks that entice numerous tourists every year. And while they are busy enjoying the accommodations of the hotels Dayton and the sights and sounds of this city, they may also be interested in knowing that some famous personalities have sprung from there. Martin Sheen is one of these and was born in Dayton in August of 1940. At his birth he was officially named Ramon Estevez and was born to parents of Irish and Spanish descent.

Sheen spent many of his early developmental years in Ohio and attended the Chaminade High School. Interestingly, his mother who had immigrated from Ireland actually fought in the Irish War for Independence, due primarily to her family’s strong connections to the Irish Republican Army. However, in the United States the Estevez family lived in the South Park neighborhood of Dayton on Brown Street.

Sheen has had an extremely successful career as an actor and has appeared in numerous films. He gained high critical recognition for his work in Apocalypse Now and has played a diverse assortment of characters since then. He has also worked in television and starred in the series West Wing. In it he played the fictional Democratic President Josiah Bartlet. The award winning series also starred Rob Lowe, Jimmy Smits, Alan Alda and Stockard Channing. Sheen has stated that one of his strongest acting influences came from James Dean, who was well known for his method acting. He has also starred in the films Wall Street, JFK, The Believers and Love Happens among a great many others. Sheen is also known for his political activism and has campaigned for both Howard Dean and John Kerry. It was reported by the New York Times that Sheen was asked to run for the Senate and represent the state of Ohio. Sheen, however, declined the suggestion.

Read more of Martin Sheen From Dayton…

Coming to India can be one of the most pivotal moments in a lifetime, and everyone who gets to see this magnificent country remembers their first visit.  Subsequent visits can be no less dramatic, revealing deeper and deeper sides to this complex puzzle.  The puzzle is unsolvable, too, because it keeps moving and evolving at a rate that’s impossible to predict.  Baffling in its complexity, and always stunning in its quiet beauty and its louder moments, India is a place to see at least once in a lifetime.  There are so many diverse regions here, and diverse cultures that pass through and inhabit its cities, that there are way too many choices in anything in India.  5-star hotels are plentiful, and visitors looking to stay in the best that luxury can provide will find themselves well cared for here.

Brilliant food is all around you, in any of the cities, and in the hotels, you can certainly expect the finest of the local regional fare, or a host of international choices prepared by chefs who know some of the most delicious techniques in the world.  Indian food on its own lends itself to enormous variation, not just in terms of local methods of spices, and regional differences, but accommodations to the constantly shifting population in the country.  In Mumbai, for example, there is a large Jewish population, and when you start looking around, you’ll find a lot of kosher Indian cooking.

This speaks not only to the diversity in the country itself, but illustrates the long history of India with the rest of the world.  Because of many stereotypes that come from film and 19th century travel literature, India is often seen as an isolated place, where the people all grow up without any contact with the rest of the world.  Of course, there are places where people still live according to tribal customs, but like anywhere, there’s a lot more contact that suspected, and it’s been like that for awhile.  So when you come across something like Bombay Potatoes, and you notice that they’re kosher, it’s a good time to reflect on culture and dialogue, and think about some good questions that you’d like to ask.

Read more of Kosher Indian Food…

Kolkata didn’t start like many other big cities in India. It didn’t have much going on in the early years of great Empires. It developed with the colonial growth in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The European trading boom is what made this now rather large city grow. This is a city filled with descendants of fortune seekers arriving here to get there piece of what ever prosperity the could. Kolkata was originally called Calcutta from the colonial influence. With the rise of the Bengali the official new name is Kolkata which has not been accepted universally.

The city as greatly tested over the years and most recently, with the Indian Independence massive migration of refugees. The infrastructure has been deeply strained. When Mother Teresa brought attention to the helpless victims of the area it created a reputation of great poverty which the local residence say is not accurate. They say that the poverty problem is not near as bad as those of Mumbai or other big cities in the world. They feel it has been distorted in the media and entertainment industry such as the film City of Joy.

The local people known as Bengalis like to see themselves as the intelligent people of India. They see themselves as the trend setters of the country. They also strive to excellence in the field of art, music and writing. Visitors can find the Writers Building which is the site of the Black Hole of Calcutta to see that this city was first a colonial city. You can see so many architectural buildings in Victorian style all around Kolkata. In honor of the local culture everyone should visit the Indian Museum.

The best time to visit Kolkata is between November and February. It is a short period of time when the temperatures are perfect and the markets are full of fresh vegetables and flowers. You may want to check out of one of the many five star Kolkata hotels you stayed in before the monsoons come in June.

Read more of Modern Kolkata…