……commentary from the road
The State of Florida does a fantastic job managing and maintaining its state parks. I’ve camped at several, and compared to similar locations throughout the US, they consistently provide an outstanding experience, and value, and have become a credit to Florida. Silver Springs State Park is my first choice if you want to see... Continue Reading →
Recently I took my son Frank on an 8-day Caribbean cruise with stops in the Dominican Republic, Virgin Islands, and Bahamas. While I’m not faulting our host, Norwegian Cruise Lines, the truth is regardless of the level of service, you're not going to have a pleasant experience sharing a packed ship with over 4,000 other... Continue Reading →
Looking for an excuse to break in the new Road Glide, Katia and I headed north on the Harley to enjoy some crisp October weather in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The leaves were turning, and the Florida heat remained insufferable. I’d ridden through Gatlinburg, Tennessee the year before and remembered wanting to spend... Continue Reading →
While I loved my Road King, after 5 years and 40,000 miles, it was getting a little long in the tooth. She had the color, and lines, and the K&N breather combined with the S&S Grand Nationals gave her plenty of “giddy-up.” She’d safely taken me over most of the continent without a real problem.... Continue Reading →
...The Weight of the Past ... ...Krakow Central Square.... Poland, or “Polska” as locally known, is the highlight of our 2024 European Campaign. While rich in culture and tradition, Poland’s lengthy history of war and occupation weighed on my travel experience. My Poland was 3 weeks spent in Kraków and Wroclaw, two southern cities that played... Continue Reading →
(Photo above: Albanian Flag)..... It won't be long before most of these countries in the western Balkans are as overrun by tourists as Western Europe. While certainly not as polished as the West, crowds are smaller, the food is better, and the locals still get excited meeting Americans. Europe started in this part of the... Continue Reading →
(Photo above; First-time Cruisers)... Another retirement first was booking a transatlantic cruise last January from Miami to England. Katia and I had never been on a cruise, were honestly a bit condescending towards the idea, and really had no interest until some friends talked up their own cruise experience during a recent visit. Not for... Continue Reading →
That “someday” finally came. Throughout my working career, the dream of touring the United States on a Harley was always a someday fantasy. Unfortunately, living abroad with time-constrained “home leaves” kept touring America a dream, or maybe just provided me with a convenient excuse. Then retirement came along, and suddenly, time, resources, and the awareness... Continue Reading →
(Photo above; On the Stage at Ramsey Solutions)... While stopping over in Nashville on a recent Harley trip, I was looking over my map and noticed Franklin, Tennessee, was just 12 miles south of me. Well, hell, that’s the studio home of Dave Ramsey and Ramsey Solutions. Dave is always mentioning coming by for the... Continue Reading →
(Photo above; Arequipa, Peru)... I’m 62, and it's been almost two years since I retired. From my experience, the bottom line is that you’ll likely want to budget between 105% to 115% of what you spend annually before you retire to be comfortable. I’d describe myself as meticulous with my finances and know or track... Continue Reading →
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