Snow Skiing in the Desert of Arabia (Mall of the Emirates)

Everybody knows that fantastic snow skiing can be found in places such as the Swiss Alps, Utah, and  the Colorado Rockies. Many of you though might be surprised to hear that great skiing can also be found in North Carolina, as well as a few other places in the Southern United States. But would you believe it if I told you that snow skiing could also be found in a Middle Eastern desert? It’s no Breckenridge, but if you ever find yourself in the United Arab Emirates, in the city of Dubai, look no further than the Mall of the Emirates for snowy fun on the slopes!

ski dubai 1

Donning their winter garb and eager to hit the slopes, varied crowds of people form up inside the Mall of the Emirates’ Ski Dubai. Forget the Alps or the Rockies, everybody knows that the world’s best snow skiing in the world can only be found inside Middle-eastern shopping malls. Seriously though, this indoor snow skiing complex is really one-of-a-kind. I guess that’s all just par for the course though when you’re talking about all of the wonderous innovations found within the vertical city of Dubai. (more…)


Posted in Adventurous Places, Asia and tagged , .

Fort Monroe, Virginia is an amazing place!

Not that long ago, Rebecca, Noah, and I visited the historical Fort Monroe outside of Hampton, Va. Having never been to the fort before we didn’t quite know what to expect. We were all pleasantly surprised with the entire experience and would definitely recommend this place to those that love American military/ Civil War history.

F/A-22 Raptor flies over Fort Monroe, Virginia. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Ben Bloker) (more…)


Posted in Adventurous Places, Historical Journeys, North America and tagged , , , .

Hungry as a Hog inside Jamestown Colony

     Yesterday we drove along the Colonial Parkway in Virginia. The fall foliage is so beautiful this time of year and the colorful drive really carried with it a certain spirit of the seasons. We had originally planned to visit all three points of interest: Yorktown,  Jamestown Colony, and Colonial Williamsburg. After getting off to a late start, and then getting lost, we had to curtail our schedule a bit and ended up making it to two out of three places. This is my unfortunate tale of being hungry as a hog inside Jamestown colony.

Jamestown Colony, America’s First English Settlement in the New World

This was a return trip for me ; although it had been several years since my first visit. Upon our arrival, we first visited the reenacted settlement before going to see the original one. I must have been a lot hungrier this particular visit since the first time going there; because once I got inside the park all I could think about was food! When one of the park actors in colonial garb began talking about the amount of settlers that died of starvation the very first year in the colony; well I started to get even hungrier… you might even say that I was scared hungry!
As luck would have it, I came upon a deerskin hat lying on the ground outside the makeshift Indian village. I just knew that a Powhatan had lost it and now they were going to have to do some real bartering to get it back. (more…)


Posted in Adventurous Places, North America, Tall Tales and Big Fish Stories and tagged , , , , .

Angels in the Rice Paddies of South Korea

Not everybody has encountered real-life angels, but I know I have. It happened in the early summer of 1994. At the time, I was a twenty-year-old Private First Class and stuck on a secluded mountaintop in South Korea. As a member of the US Army’s Second Infantry Division, this mountain (Hill 754) had been my home away from home for the better part of the year. During my tour there, the North Korea leader, Kim Il-sung, had died and the North was suffering from a devastating famine.

Hill 754, South Korea – My home away from home.

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Posted in Adventurous Places, Asia and tagged , , .

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