Arts and Entertainment

The small island of Aruba in the southern Caribbean Sea has sandy beaches, cooling trade winds, and friendly people so the island is dubbed “One Happy Island.” Aruba is considered one of the safest Caribbean destinations where even the water is drinkable.

The end of 2014 brings to a close two years of celebrating the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812. The war is called “The Second War for Independence” because after the American Revolution the British did not respect our independence. It is also called “The Forgotten War” mainly because it only lasted two years and was fought mainly on the water.

We all have people who are very difficult to find the perfect gift for be it a grandchild or an adult. There are those people who seem to have everything. Gifting travel creates unforgettable memories.
At first thought it may seem like travel is an expensive gift but it doesn’t have to be. There are inexpensive gifts of travel and the more expensive ones can be affordable if people/family make it a group gift.

I enjoy visiting places where history comes alive. I especially like watching the visitors, young and old, get excited about historical events while learning more about history and it is even better when they get to participate in the event. Such is the case at the Boston Tea Party Museum. Most of us know the basic facts of the Tea Party. On the night of December 16, 1773, colonists dressed as Indians boarded three ships in Boston Harbor and threw crates of tea overboard as a protest to the Tea Tax but for many that is the limit of their knowledge and some of the facts get skewed with the retelling.

Tora! Tora! was the Japanese code word made famous when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 propelling the United States into World War II. The term means “tiger” but, in this case, it was an acronym meaning “lightning attack.” On December 11, 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt declared war on Japan; in return, on the same day Germany and Italy, Japanese allies, declared war on the United States.

Visiting Pearl Harbor on the Hawaiian island of Oahu is a profound experience and visitors should plan to spend the better part of the day there because there is a lot to see and do.

One of the places I check when I am researching a destination is Global Greeter Network,www.globalgreeternetwork.info Greeters are volunteers who love their city so much they volunteer to give free two-hour tours. They take visitors to parks, shopping, or lesser known neighborhoods. On our recent trip to China, we signed up for a Greeter tour in Chongqing. We wanted to learn about hot pot which originated in Mongolia one thousand years ago and is a signature dish of the Sichuan Province.