Buenos Aires is largely regarded as the best entrée city to South America for Americans, especially those of European descent. There’s a familiarity here for that group that would be more difficult to find in, say, Lima or La Paz. As an American first-timer to the country, I had to agree. Walking around the city and its distinctive neighborhoods—heavily influenced by European immigrants—is not entirely foreign, and utterly delightful (except for all those narrow and broken sidewalks). All around me, glorious structures from the city’s belle époque—its churches and theaters and municipal buildings—still stand proudly (and, in some cases, in need of a little TLC). Read about the top five buildings in Buenos Aires, Argentina >
Category Archives: Art & Architecture
Historic Delights in Dover, Delaware
I had chosen Dover for a weeklong vacation to Delaware for its central location in the state, allowing short rides north, south, and east to see much of the rest of the state. While I wasn’t on the road, I was strolling around this historic city, taking in a great art museum, lovely parks, some noteworthy restaurants, and an abundance of beautiful buildings, especially in the genteel Victorian Dover Historic District. Read about the top five buildings in Dover >
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The Blood of Christ—in Belgium
For Christians around the world, certain places simply hold more significance than others: Rome, Jerusalem, Vatican City, Fatima. To that list, another should be added. Bruges, Belgium, may not automatically register as a destination of importance or as a pilgrimage site, but if the story is true, it should be. The Basilica of the Holy Blood in the heart of Bruges, impressive in its own right, also contains a vial with drops of Jesus’ blood. Naturally, I had to see it. Read about it >
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Wisconsin’s Winning Architecture
If you’re in Wisconsin during the winter, you may find it a bit chilly, and rightly so. That, however, provides a wonderful opportunity to step instead some of the state’s most beautiful buildings to warm up for a while and to admire craftsmanship you’re unlikely to ever see again. Wisconsin’s architectural marvels span a wide range of styles, from evocative Victorian homes to impressive college campus buildings to nearly a dozen of Frank Lloyd Wright’s innovations. Read about the top five buildings in Wisconsin >
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Lovely Louisville
Louisville, Kentucky, was proving to be a delightful city. The friendliness of the people was quite shocking (where else would a gift shop tell you to take a tee shirt for free because they didn’t have the correct change for your cash purchase?), and I was loving the fried green tomatoes at nearly an addictive level. One of my biggest surprises was the astounding architecture, especially in downtown and in Old Louisville, one of the most beautiful historic districts in the United States. Read about the top five buildings in Louisville, Kentucky >
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Richmond’s Religious Riches
Richmond, Virginia, is one of the most historic cities in the United States I’ve ever visited. The past is ever-present, no matter where I looked. A large part of that is the city’s religious institutions. With 1,414 religious organizations and churches in the greater Richmond metropolitan area, there’s one group for every 163 persons in the city. And that means there’s tremendous diversity when you’re visiting and want to see a great range. Read about the top five churches in Richmond >
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A Fantastical Palace for a Portuguese Artist-King
Due to massive crowds, said every source I checked, avoid the city of Sintra, Portugal, on the weekends. Avoid the city on Mondays, they advised, when, again, it’s swamped with tourists, now because the museums in nearby Lisbon are closed. So, I went on a Thursday. Result? It didn’t matter. The National Palace of Pena—former summer home of Portuguese royalty, starting with King Ferdinand II—was jam-packed with people. But who can blame them? It’s the number-one tourist sight in Portugal, and deservedly so. Read about it >
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Arkansas at Its Best
I was spending an autumn vacation in Arkansas, tucked into a hotel in the heart of the historic center Hot Springs, which borders and runs through Hot Springs National Park. My focus was on outdoor activities, to take advantage of cool weather and fine fall foliage, but I wisely included urban attractions, too, in a quest to experience the state’s best. Read about the top five things to see and do in Arkansas >
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Bank on It
On a daily basis, there’s little need to go into a bank anymore. You can do practically everything online, and, when you need cash, you just stop at an ATM. There’s even less of a need when you’re on vacation. However, some of the most beautiful buildings I’ve been to are banks, and they deserve some special attention. If you want to be impressed by architectural beauty, visiting them is simply money in the bank. Read about the top five bank buildings >
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Montreal’s Manmade Marvels
Founded as a Roman Catholic colony by France in 1642, Montreal has been growing fairly steadily for nearly four centuries. The largest city in Quebec, Montreal has expanded to all points of the large island it occupies in the St. Lawrence River. Nicknamed “la ville aux cent clochers” (the city of a hundred bell towers), Montreal teems with beautiful houses of worship of various denominations, but there are plenty of other types of buildings that caught my eye while exploring the second-largest city in Canada. Read about the top five buildings in Montreal >
Stephen Travels 