Arts and Entertainment

If you haven’t been to Albany recently, put it on your travel calendar. The city hosts many festivals, concerts, and special events throughout the year but the most popular is the Tulip Festival held each year in May, but anytime is a good time to visit. Albany’s history spans four centuries. Commissioned by the Dutch East India Company in 1609 to report on the new world, Henry Hudson sailed the Half Moon to the upper reaches of the Hudson River. He told of the magnificent river and the bountiful area.

Ho Chi Minh City has been the official name since the fall of Saigon in 1975. But, both are in use. We stayed at the InterContinental Asiana Residence Saigon where we used our once-a-year free night that came as a perk for using the IGH credit card. We had lunch at their Market 39 Restaurant where they had a Vietnamese pancake station. We asked Chef Josh, the executive chef, if he would share the recipe and explain how they were made. He was happy to do so.

I have always wanted to visit Old Nevada, a replica of an 1880s mining town. The property was the homeland of the Paiute Indians and in 1843 became a stopover for wagon trains traveling the Spanish Trail. The walk through what an old town in the West must have been like was fun.

Several years ago, John and I visited Cebu and loved the mangos which were sweet and had the consistency of cling peaches. When we were there we stayed one night at Plantation Bay Resort and never forgot the massive pools so we decided to return this year to see if it was as wonderful as we remembered. It was.

The much-loved Thai king, Bhumibol Adulyadej, also known as Rama IX, has reigned since 1946 making him the longest serving current head of state and the longest-reigning Thai monarch. When the king and the royal family want to enjoy a beach getaway, they head three hours south of Bangkok to the Cha’am/Hua Hin area. International tourists, especially North Americans, usually head south, too; but to Phuket, Phi Phi Island, Ko Samui, and other places that are reached by plane.