NEW CANAAN, Conn. — Emily is running. Somewhere. I believe she’s running — even if her running shoes are lonely and empty, lying on the altar of St. Aloysius Church, and she doesn’t need them any more. Alongside the shoes are her medals, earned as a state championship runner for alma mater, New Canaan High, and a huge yellow duck, about the size and … [Read more...] about EMILY IS RUNNING………
Archives for 2001
AN INSPIRED RIDE THROUGH CHABLIS
CHABLIS, France – This town tastes good. Sounds good, too, rolling along the tongue like its namesake product, the golden elixir: shah-BLEE. Or, as my friend, Stefano “Frugal” Furgal, pronounces it, “shaaahhh-blee. Because, “That’s the feeling this wine gives me – an extended, ‘Ah!’ ” He is saying, “Ah!” a lot today since the hospitable folks at Domaine Laroche are having … [Read more...] about AN INSPIRED RIDE THROUGH CHABLIS
A GALAXY UNTO ITSELF, L’ETOILE CONFOUNDS US
PARIS, FRANCE – Fasten your seat belts and unfasten the cap on the Valium bottle because we’re going to be starstruck, enclosed, embroiled, trapped in l’Etoile. It sounds like a swell place, l’Etoile (the Star), but beware. It’s a nice place to visit – in a tank or armored car – but you wouldn’t want to drive there. The guidebook says: “For motorists it is the ultimate … [Read more...] about A GALAXY UNTO ITSELF, L’ETOILE CONFOUNDS US
VISITING BENEDICT’S BASEMENT; A FASCINATING MONASTERY ON A RUGGED ITALIAN MOUNTAINSIDE
SUBIACO, Italy – If the guy had stayed underground, well . . .. “Well,” says Brother John with a chuckle, “if he had, I wonder where . . . where, indeed, would we be now?” Tall and good-humored, a gray-haired man in a long black robe, Brother John O’Shannassy, a Benedictine monk from Australia, has lived in this monastery called Santuario Sacro Speco (Sanctuary … [Read more...] about VISITING BENEDICT’S BASEMENT; A FASCINATING MONASTERY ON A RUGGED ITALIAN MOUNTAINSIDE
BHUTAN 2001
THIMPU, Bhutan — They look like springer spaniels on steroids, but with imposing horns: husky black-and-white yaks crowd the so-called road, abruptly eyeball-to-eyeball with the driver, Tshering, and our leader, Dr. John Constable, in the front seat as the van rounds a rock-walled curve. The van is not labeled with a bumper sticker such as “This vehicle brakes for yaks!” … [Read more...] about BHUTAN 2001