The Sotted, Sentimental Swagger of Shane MacGowan and the Pogues
The list of cultural seats for the Irish-American diaspora usually starts and ends with New York or Boston. Chicago maybe. But Tulsa? Not...
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Old Friends and Rising Stars at Florida's 30A Songwriter's Fest
I generally think of music festivals as minimally clad young people writhing in blazing heat taking duck-lip selfies amid a greater...
Rail Trails: From Once-Mighty Train Lines to Wonderfully Gentle Bike Paths
(Note: This article was originally published in the Chicago Tribune on April 19, 2023.) I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised by the...
Turning 60 (Finally) Pays Off: My Unlikely Run at the World Series of Poker
I counted out a sizable bet and slid it across the green felt toward the three aces face-up in the middle of the table. Then I rested my...
There's Good Food, Interesting Wine, Craft Beer, and Local Music in Out-of-the-way Lubbock
We rolled up onto a bridge curving high over the interstate and I looked out at flatness as far as the eye could see, stretched taught...
Killing the Covid Blues in Clarksdale, Mississippi
I might as well have driven down to Mississippi a hundred years ago. But it was March of 2020. Peering back through the lockdown haze, I...
Sharing a magical Indian wedding with old friends and new
I was 8,600 miles from home and the bridal party was taking advantage of the afternoon sun for group pictures, so I used the delay to...
Chaos and harmony coexist in Mumbai
It took me 59 years to visit Asia for the first time and I still wasn’t ready for Mumbai, a city of jarring contrasts that overwhelms the...
A Parsi tea tutorial in bustling Mumbai
When an affable, interesting, infectiously enthusiastic Mumbai travel guide invites you to his apartment to sample homemade Parsi tea and...
Eastward to Istanbul, where Europe ends and Asia begins
A hectic day of travel and a long, stressful night retrieving a lost suitcase had me in a fitful sleep. My mind raced from one thought to...
Florence begs a question: What has our generation done for the world?
Two days in Florence, birthplace of the so-called Renaissance, and an extra day in Rome visiting St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, led...
Cooking in Rome with a new friend
“You attend to the pancetta,” Fulvia said, as she walked through the open kitchen door into her sun-drenched yard. “I am going to the...
Rome: History and beauty in plain sight
Outside on the busy sidewalk, groups of loud teenagers wandered past. Italian business people strode from one appointment to the next, or...
A rugged coast and a laid back vibe: The Algarve
If Florida had secret beaches guarded by limestone cliffs, vineyards sliding down to 900-year-old stone walls, lovely, zig-zagging...
A happy return to a lovely old friend: Dublin
Good luck if you are the city after Paris on a European trip. The deck is stacked. We are now in Dublin, where the answer to the Eiffel...
Stop the presses! Paris is beautiful!
I didn’t notice until I’d passed her three or four times, looming over the small square near our temporary home base like a guardian...
Hemingway punched me in the mouth
One of the hallmarks of the good vacation is finding a hole-in-the-wall restaurant that turns out to be delightful, then walking out with...
Paris to Istanbul to Mumbai - Our first big quest
We'll cross Europe slowly on our way to a Thanksgiving wedding in India.
Tulsa's Bob Dylan Center Celebrates the Creative Process
The Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa is an inspiring tribute to the creative process of this musical and lyrical genius.
Wandering and Tasting on (Middle) Tennessee Time
I’ve always turned to wandering driving trips in times of slumping stress. Few things clear my head better than a winding country road...
Green Bay Scores for Refreshing Weekend Getaway
There are places that come to mind before Green Bay, Wisconsin when I think of a rejuvenating getaway. But that’s just what I got when I...
Ireland’s Wild Side: Exploring the Northwest Coast
By John Carpenter (Note: This story was originally published in the Chicago Tribune on March 2, 2020. It has also been published in...
For a guys weekend, it’s hard to beat March Madness: An 8-city guide
By JOHN CARPENTER When it comes to excuses for a guys weekend, the NCAA men’s basketball tournament is as good as it gets. We can safely...
Finding inspiration in Lisbon
By Mary Carpenter Escuche. Preparar. Esperanza. These were among the handful of Portuguese words I could make out during the sermon at...
Bonding over baseball, breakfast on father-son college road trip
By JOHN CARPENTER When my teenage son showed me a list of potential colleges that included Duke and Vanderbilt, my first thought should...
Slipping into the ‘Ocean State’ of mind in southern Rhode Island
By JOHN CARPENTER SOUTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. I tasted the ocean in the air as I sat on the outdoor deck at Matunuck Oyster Bar, the ebbing...
Lake Michigan ferry turns humdrum travel into unforgettable experience
By JOHN CARPENTER (This article first appeared in the Chicago Tribune April 14, 2017) My first trip on a Lake Michigan ferry was 25 years...
Michigan golf courses worth the drive, especially with fall colors in play
By JOHN CARPENTER (This article first appeared in the Chicago Tribune Aug. 7, 2017) Few golfing moments are more rewarding than standing...
Coasting into a College Trip
By JOHN CARPENTER (This story was originally published in the Chicago Tribune on July 24, 2019) When my daughter put two California...
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