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Destination: Uncategorized

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Paris Is an Ever-Entertaining Parade of Images

When I’m in Paris, my camera gets a workout capturing the people and places that bring to light this cultural capital’s joie de vivre.

Sitting at an hors d’oeuvres bar, I watched people wait with eager anticipation as their crêpes were swirled and cooked — which added a delightful dimension to my meal.

All along Paris’ Seine River embankment, couples enjoy romantic picnics with an ambience no restaurant can beat. And every few minutes, a tour boat motors by with its searchlights blazing.
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Europe: Fast and Funded

If you’ve never traveled beyond the USA, I think you’d have a hard time imagining a society not built around automobiles. Steadily investing in a long-term goal, Europe is now networked by high-speed trains. It’s not right or wrong. It’s just a vision for European society that its people embrace. When American politicians threaten that if we pursue this or that government-funded policy, we’ll “descend to a European level of socialistic misery,” they just show how little they know. And when those messages resonate with the electorate in a positive way, it demonstrates — sadly — how narrow-minded and fearful their political base really is.

America is not Europe. We do things differently. And the USA does not need to take care of its working people, or invest in its infrastructure, or respect diversity like Europe does. (Doing so would decimate the wealth of our billionaire population.) But using Europe as an example of failure is wrong. Yes, countries like Greece and Spain are struggling. But other European nations, who embrace these same ideals with more prudence — such as Germany or the Scandinavian states — enjoy a financial prosperity that any nation on earth would envy.

With this short clip, you can take a little train ride with me in France. Then…tell me what you think.

If you can’t see the video below, watch it on YouTube.

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Cutting Hay in Gimmelwald

Climbing through steep fields of freshly cut hay on a sunny late afternoon, and getting to know a local farmer who climbs up and down all day without breathing heavily, gave a new dimension to a Swiss alpine village I’ve been visiting for over 30 years.

Farmer Peter piles hay onto a tarp tacked to the steep hillside by two pitchforks. The village of Gimmelwald was never developed like neighboring towns because its residents made sure it got rated “avalanche zone,” so developers couldn’t get building permits. Consequently, the town’s buildings are generally inhabited by locals all year long, while buildings in nearby towns (like Wengen and Grindelwald) are owned mostly by wealthy big-city folks who come by just a couple of weeks a year. The consequence: There's no real community in the resort towns, while Gimmelwald feels lived-in.

Farmer Peter and his boatload of hay bound down the steep slopes to an awaiting barn — its doors open wide in anticipation.

While I learn my lines, producer Simon Griffith sits in as my “body double” so cameraman Peter Rummel can frame and set up a good shot. Olle, our good friend from the village, stands by — helping as he always does when we come to town. Moments later, I took Simon’s spot and kicked off the third part of our three-part Travel Skills Special with one of my favorite on-camera show openers ever. It was fun because, rather than looking up at dramatic peaks cutting into blue alpine skies, this time we filmed down into a vast and fertile Swiss valley.

Thirty years ago, as a young tour organizer and guide, I kept my groups in the humble Gimmelwald youth hostel. One day I got a note from Walter Mittler, who invited me to the top of his village to tour his pension and to consider bringing my tour groups there. He convinced me, we moved “uptown,” and Walter’s Hotel Mittaghorn became a highlight of our tour groups’ alpine experience for over two decades. I visit Walter, who was born in 1924 and still runs his little hotel, whenever I’m in town. This time when I called him and asked how he’s doing, he said, “Everything still works.”
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Hay, Gimmelwald!

Shooting our new, three-part Travel Skills Special was a particular joy for me because I got to revisit many of my favorite and original Back Doors. (We’re building 90 minutes of skills lessons around our “Best of Europe” tour route.) Here, high in the Swiss Alps in the village of Gimmelwald, I got to smell the hay in a whole new way, as we illustrated how traditional lifestyles and livelihoods survive throughout Europe.

If you can’t see the video below, watch it on YouTube.

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Monterosso’s Midnight Fair

A particularly happy moment for me was taking a late-night walk through Monterosso, down streets and through parks that were once filled with eight feet of mud from the deadly flood of nine months ago. On hot August days, all across the Mediterranean, sweltering piazzas come to life as families come out late at night. At this particular scene, with images of the flood still vivid in my mind, I capped my day with a thankful smile.

If you can’t see the video below, watch it on YouTube.