Tag: adventure

“Stay Classy, San Diego”: Trip to SoCal for Delicious Food, Breweries & Half Marathon

“Stay Classy, San Diego”: Trip to SoCal for Delicious Food, Breweries & Half Marathon

by The Wicked Traveled Historian ♥ 6 Comments

“Veronica Corningstone: For the entire Channel 4 news team, I’m Veronica Corningstone.
Ron Burgundy: And I’m Ron Burgundy. Go f**k yourself, San Diego.”

– Will Ferrell (Ron) & Christina Applegate (Veronica) from Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy

When thinking of cities in the United States, few places have impressed me more than San Diego, California. The beer, food, and entertainment make it one of my favorite cities. I wrote about my time there before, but that post took a cursory look at my experience. Therefore, today, I am heading back to 2017 and my trip to San Diego. In so doing, I will survey what I did, all in support of a Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon, but this time I wasn’t running with my brother Jeff, nor was I running alone. While my wife Corinne did not, nor would she ever, participate in the 13.1 miles of scenic fun, her sister, Kaitlyn, did. The three of us took a nearly week-long trip to SoCal, and the rest is history.

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“E Hoomau Maua Kealoha”: Hawaiʻi Cruise for Two

“E Hoomau Maua Kealoha”: Hawaiʻi Cruise for Two

by The Wicked Traveled Historian ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

“I have crossed the horizon to find you. / I know your name. / They have stolen the heart from inside you. / But this does not define you. / This is not who you are. / You know who you are… who you truly are.”

– Auli’i Cravalho (Moana) from Moana

It isn’t easy to answer when people inquire about where my wife Corinne and I vacationed for our honeymoon. You see, we married in Hyannis, Massachusetts, on Cape Cod, yet lived in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. Therefore, we left Hawaiʻi to wed, only to return several weeks later, continuing our everyday academic lives. Usually, it’s the opposite, right? As Jason Segel, as Peter Bretter, screams, with ironic anger, in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, “Oh, wedding in Hawaiʻi! Real original!” Yes, we skedaddled from Hawaiʻi to get married. How does someone plan a honeymoon when they live in a tropical paradise? Thus, came into fruition an NCL Hawaiian Islands cruise that served as our honeymoon getaway. Sure, it took two years to go on it, but our first cruise was memorable and filled with love, adventure, and Kona coffee!

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“Welcome, Foolish Mortals”: Walt Disney World Memories & My First Half Marathon

“Welcome, Foolish Mortals”: Walt Disney World Memories & My First Half Marathon

by The Wicked Traveled Historian ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

“Disneyland will never be completed. It will continue to grow as long as there is imagination left in the world.”

– Walt Disney

For me, Walt Disney World is the epitome of youthful entertainment. While I do not consider myself a Disney enthusiast, I have great memories of traveling to Florida as a child and experiencing the magic with an imaginative spirit. As an adult, I visited with a far less carefree tenor, possibly a wistful smirk, but no less respectful of the powerful hold Disney has on those whose minds are full of wishes. Ninety-eight years after founding the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio in Hollywood, the company represents a greater visual authenticity than ever before. Yet, 2021 observes the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney World in Florida. Today, I celebrate the anniversary of Walt Disney World in the one way I know how; exploring nostalgic Disney memories. I had a wonderful experience visiting Walt Disney World in my youth. I went to Disney on several occasions, all very different but no less memorable. Of course, visiting as a child is magical, and I will discuss Walt Disney World of today and my childhood, but I will include my trip to run the 2014 Wine & Dine Half Marathon.

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Father & Son Trip to San Francisco

Father & Son Trip to San Francisco

by The Wicked Traveled Historian ♥ 8 Comments

“When the lights go down in the city
And the sun shines on the bay
I want to be there in my city”

– “Lights” – Vocals by Journey and Music & Lyrics by Stephen Ray Perry & Neal Joseph Schon

In 2020, my planned trip to Pittsburgh with my dad was scrapped. We had airplane boarding passes, hotel reservations, and baseball tickets to see the New York Yankees vs. Pittsburgh Pirates. The loss of this trip is insignificant in light of the tragedy many have suffered during the ongoing pandemic. Yet, the cancellation of our journey led me to reflect on our father/son baseball connection, which I discussed in previous posts. Furthermore, it made me think of our trip to California in July of 2012, nearly ten years ago. It was a memorable trip, filled with historical sightseeing and live baseball. There is no better way to heal my empty “travel” heart than by recalling this father/son trip to San Francisco in today’s post.

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Visiting Incredible Skyscrapers, Gardens & Parks in Shanghai, China

Visiting Incredible Skyscrapers, Gardens & Parks in Shanghai, China

by The Wicked Traveled Historian ♥ 8 Comments

“Shanghai is split by the Huanpu River, a tributary of Yangtze…The one thing I know for sure about China is; I will never know China. It’s too big, too old, too diverse, too deep. There’s simply not enough time. That’s for me the joy of China, facing a learning curve that impossibly steep.”

– Anthony Bourdain, “Shanghai” on Parts Unknown

I have discussed my one-month stay in China in June of 2018 twice on this blog. Once, I discussed the trip in the context of the brewery scene in Shanghai. More recently, I detailed my weekend excursion to Beijing and visit to the Great Wall of China. Even so, I failed to cover, purposely, some of the significant locations I visited and experiences I had during my time in Shanghai. Therefore, I thought it appropriate to venture back to Shanghai and explore some of those incredible moments that I think about fondly. With the ability to travel still at a standstill, the best I can do is travel into my memories. In those recollections, I discover that I am a pretty capable traveler.

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The Big Island of Hawaiʻi: Waterfalls, Volcanoes & Aloha Spirit

The Big Island of Hawaiʻi: Waterfalls, Volcanoes & Aloha Spirit

by The Wicked Traveled Historian ♥ 7 Comments

“Wait a minute. You look at your window here, you look at those hills, those mountains, all that green, that blue sky and gem-clear sea. It sure looks like paradise to me.”

– Anthony Bourdain in “Hawaiʻi” from Parts Unknown

There are moments in life often reflected upon with eagerness. As I wrote in A Brief Hawaii Moment, my time living in Hawaiʻi was one of the most significant experiences of my life. I got married, earned a Ph.D., lived according to Aloha, and met incredible people. In that post, I explored my life in Hawaiʻi, but I purposely left out some travel narratives that deserve closer attention. One such trip was a sojourn to the Big Island of Hawaiʻi. This trip included snorkeling, a luxury resort, volcanoes, and an encounter with sleeping sea turtles. I most remember the time spent with my wife Corinne and two of our closest friends, who accompanied us on this journey. Someone said, “A good friend knows all your stories. A best friend helped you create them.” Colleen and Don are two best friends who helped us forge memories through travel. Join me as I explore a friendship born with Aloha, board a plane from Oahu, the gathering place, to the Big Island, and observe its beauty, coast to coast.

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AutoCamp Cape Cod: Airstream Vacation & Rewinding 1988’s “The Great Outdoors”

AutoCamp Cape Cod: Airstream Vacation & Rewinding 1988’s “The Great Outdoors”

by The Wicked Traveled Historian ♥ 4 Comments

“Some national parks have long waiting lists for camping reservations. When you have to wait a year to sleep next to a tree, something is wrong.”

– George Carlin

The time finally arrived; my wife and I took a trip away from home for the first time in over a year. We took a two-night venture to Falmouth, Massachusetts, and stayed in an Airstream at AutoCamp Cape Cod. I am not much of a camper. Even so, staying in an Airstream seemed a perfect way to spend a couple of nights but still enjoying all the luxuries of travel. We would be outside, away from others, and could bring our dog, Mr. Tuttles. It seemed a wonderful way to reacclimate to the outside world. If I have learned anything recently, it is that in a pandemic experienced world, anything is possible.

But was it a trip I would do again? Did sleeping in an Airstream help me see the outdoors as a viable alternative to resort amenities? Keep reading to see, but here is a hint; this anti-camper not only recalled memories of childhood but could also not stop quoting a ‘88 John Candy film. Sure, while I do not consider myself “obnoxious,” I am slightly more the Roman character played by Dan Aykroyd in The Great Outdoors than Chet played by Candy. A classic comedy from 1988 written by John Hughes, the outdoors always makes me think of this film. So, buckle up, get the fire pit ready, and dust off the VHS player. We are talking camping, travel, and a classic cinematic comedy.

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