Author: admin

  • Dublin | The Little Museum

    Dublin | The Little Museum

    There’s a Georgian townhouse on St. Stephen’s Green in which the history of twentieth century Dublin fills the rooms. It is called The Little Museum of Dublin. It’s like being in the home of an elderly aunt that can’t get rid of anything – except that, in this case, each and every one of the…

  • Weird but Wonderful | Cone Head

    Weird but Wonderful | Cone Head

    In front of the Glasgow Museum of Modern Art stands a statue of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, sculpted by Italian artist Carlo Marochetti in 1844.  For as long as anyone can remember, there has been a traffic cone on his head. For the past thirty or so years, the traffic cone has been…

  • Style Moment | Glasgow Launderette

    Style Moment | Glasgow Launderette

    “Travel does what good novelists also do to the life of everyday, placing it like a picture in a frame or a gem in its setting, so that the intrinsic qualities are made more clear.  Travel does this with the very stuff that everyday life is made of, giving to it the sharp contour and…

  • Glasgow | Breakfast, Lunch, Tea, and Dinner

    Glasgow | Breakfast, Lunch, Tea, and Dinner

    Starting in the trendy West End of Glasgow, Scotland, here are my recommendations for breakfast, lunch, tea, and dinner – and a little tour of the city as a bonus. Sandy Welch (above) is a well-known Scottish actor, who also makes the best croque-monsieurs in Scotland, if not the world.  His shop, Felix and Oscar,…

  • Glasgow | Citizen M Hotel

    Glasgow | Citizen M Hotel

    A last minute hotel booking in Glasgow introduced me to a groovy new breed of hotel called Citizen M. With a splashy contemporary design and a dose of humor, Citizen M was developed to provide affordable luxury accommodation to the “mobile citizens of the world.” From their website: “Mobile citizens include the the suits, weekenders, explorers,…

  • Dublin | The Fumbally

    Dublin | The Fumbally

    On the corner of New South Street and Fumbally Lane in Dublin is a large, modern apartment building.  Follow your nose into the door at its corner, and step into the cavernous, cozy, warm, welcoming café that is The Fumbally. Here’s the exterior: And here’s what you encounter when you step through the door: The…

  • County Galway, Ireland | The Quay House

    County Galway, Ireland | The Quay House

    A fortuitous change of plans led my sister and I to a memorable stay at The Quay House, the remarkable, welcoming country home of Julia and Paddy Foyle. The Quay House sits at the edge of the windswept moors of Connemara, below the cliffs towering over the Atlantic, overlooking the harbor, just down the road…

  • Eye on Design | County Galway | Tales of an Irish Country House

    Eye on Design | County Galway | Tales of an Irish Country House

    [Fond memories of Ireland, brought back by my “pub crawl” post, have inspired me to repost some of my past stories from this wonderful country. This Georgian house was uniquely frozen in time.  Check it out.] There’s no sign and it’s not on any map or in any GPS.  After driving in circles and, finally,…

  • Dublin | Pub Crawl

    Dublin | Pub Crawl

    [A repeat post for St. Patrick’s Day] It was my first day in Dublin, and I had covered a lot of ground – but when I wandered into the Temple Bar neighborhood, and heard the music coming out of each and every pub, I really felt like I was in Ireland.

  • Style Moment | Basilica of the Holy Blood, Bruges

    Style Moment | Basilica of the Holy Blood, Bruges

    “Not only do we travel to different places, but most of all, we travel to different states of our soul.” Werner Bergengruen (1892 – 1964) German novelist