Nomadic Texan

I am very fond of pedicures and having my feet massaged. When given the Spa menu at the Banjaran Hotsprings Retreat I opted for a pedicure, as opposed to a massage. Over the prior week I had received two wonderful Thai massages. One massage was in Bangkok and the other one in Phuket, so I decided […]

***This is post was contributed by Cruise Deals. Some places impress from an aerial approach: Barra beach runway in Scotland, the dramatic mountainscapes of Queenstown, New Zealand, and the sea-circled coastline of the south of France, to name a few. Others are more impressive if you arrive on the deck of a cruise ship, ferry, […]

***This is post was contributed by Dial a Flight.   From the fresh seafood of New England to the iconic BBQ of the Lone Star state, or the lavish hotel buffets of Las Vegas, to the sidewalk hot dogs of NYC, or even in the city that has it all and people booking flights to Orlando, the […]

I know most US citizens will think this is outright sacrilege. For a long period of my life I have been mystified by the inability of most people, who “follow” the game of baseball, watch the game and attend a “boring” sport that moves way too slow for the majority of the population. What really […]

When I was in Thailand this last November one of the tours we ventured out on, as guests of the Tourism Authority of Thailand and Thai Airways, was the James Bond Island tour. We wound up back at the Koy Panyee Sea Gypsy Village in Phang Nga Bay for lunch. After a wonderful meal of […]

Believe me or not, but I don’t know anyone who traveled to Thailand and didn’t like Thai food. It simply does not happen. Everyone seems to love the local dishes here as they are refreshing, full of flavours, fresh and perfectly spiced. Thai cuisine is a perfect combination of old Eastern and Western flavours combined with […]

The Driskill Hotel in Austin was completed in 1886 and is named after a cattleman named Jesse Driskill. Each side of this Historic Hotel is impressive and has a similar stucco exterior with appropriate limestone trim. This view below faces 6th street and is a block off of Congress Avenue, in the middle of the […]

***This is post was contributed by Holiday Hypermarket.   Christopher Columbus pronounced that Cuba was the “most beautiful land that human eyes had ever seen” when discovering the island in 1492. Some 500 years later and the sun-drenched Caribbean island with sparkling waters attracts almost three million visitors per year. The largest island in the Caribbean, […]

As we approached the Cheong Fatt Tze mansion commonly known as The Blue House, in the old Georgetown section of Penang Malaysia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, I immediately gravitated to the plethora of Rick-Shaws lined up on the front porch. I have no idea why I am attracted to these antique modes of transportation […]

One sees the Indigenous women all over Cuenca Ecuador and never thinks twice about the attire or manner of dress. Each various tribe dresses in a distinguished manner and has it’s own colors of shawls, skirts, hats, etc that signifies their heritage and what part of the Andes they are from. The apparel ranges from […]

I worked in the convenience store industry for thirty long years and loved every minute of it, especially when I was in the stores talking with employees, customers and vendors. No two days were the same and I had the luxury of meeting people that have become life long friends.  It was always an adventure […]

We had our kickoff meeting for the Austin chapter of Travel Massive recently. One of our feature speakers, Erin Portman of HomeAway, was a vivacious young lady with more energy in her, than Carter had in it’s Little Liver pills. I was amazed how how deftly she set up her box for her give away. […]

As I stumbled down to the coffee shop in the lobby of The Oro Verde Hotel, I told myself the trip to Ecuador was just beginning and I needed to just have coffee and something healthy, in a manner of speaking. I had no idea I would encounter such a plethora of sweet items that […]

After three legs and around 30 hours of airport and flight time, I was worn out the first night we arrived in Bangkok. I knew the first day was full of things to do on our agenda and knew I would be tired at the end of the initial day. Then I found out that […]

As we boarded the Chatrium Hotel Riverside Bangkok shuttle on the Chao Phraya river, my curiosity intensified. We were on our way to see the Temple of Dawn, Wat Arun. It was our first day and we had a full schedule. Tour Wat Arun. Tour a portion of the backwater khlongs. Have lunch. Tour Bangkok Chinatown. […]

In June of 2013 I attended my first #TBEX (Travel Blogger Exchange) conference in Toronto Canada. It was my first conference and my first time in Canada. Ahead of time we were able to make appointments with travel companies, countries and points of interest around the world. Additionally, clothing manufacturers like Tilley Endurables were available […]

In March of 2012 I visited the Incan ruins at Ingapirca, outside of Cuenca Ecuador. One can take the normal tour and if game, walk the extended tour up and beyond the ruins. It passed by the Emperor’s bath carved out of stone and through a local village. The route was at a higher altitude […]

As I sit here this morning writing this post, I feel pensive and have a deep concern for my friends in Thailand. It appears that the Thai Army, unknown to the Thai Government, has declared Martial Law and is imposing curfews and roadblocks around the perimeter of Bangkok. I love Thailand, its culture, its fabulous […]

My recent  excursion to Thailand and Malaysia was a trip of a lifetime and I owe a great deal of gratitude to the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Thai Airways  and Tourism Malaysia USA. The trip was full of 5-Star hotels, restaurants and some of the most fabulous tours I have ever been on, but staying at […]

I am not sure how many of my followers use readers or glasses, but my wife has two or three pair and can never find them. I lay my glasses down all the time and can never remember where I left them. I think it is a common issue, maybe more so among the mature […]