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From Desert Oasis to Multifaceted City: Palm Springs
In the mid-1800s, people traveling through a desert landscape in present-day California stopped at an oasis to rest and refill their canteens. Soon afterward, a way station along a stagecoach route was built there.
Fast-forward to 1915. The producer of a silent motion picture chose the place to film "Peer Gynt," a fantasy adapted from a drama ...Read more

A Breathtaking Ride on Palm Springs' Aerial Tramway
You want me to go where on what? That was my first reaction to seeing Mount San Jacinto in Palm Springs, California, and the tramway I was supposed to ride to its top. It was a somewhat precarious option for someone not all that happy about heights.
However, once safely enclosed in the tram, which slowly ascended to the apex, I was able to ...Read more

An Annual Adventure on Lake Superior's North Shore
Half the adventure of our annual getaway to Grand Marais, Minnesota, is the journey. My mom, sister and I go every spring for a long, peaceful weekend. We follow Highway 61 from Duluth up the north shore of Lake Superior. Along the way, we marvel at the sights, whether the sky is gloomy with gray clouds or bright blue, mirroring the water. In ...Read more

Take the Kids Horseback Riding at Salamander Middleburg
How can a 62-pound 8-year-old and a 45-pound 6-year-old command a 1,000-pound Quarter Horse to follow them around an arena, trot and stop without uttering a word? The equine communication session was just one of the magical horsemanship lessons that James and Charlotte, my grandchildren, experienced at Salamander Middleburg Resort, Virginia, 40 ...Read more