Explorer Barb

Where are we?

It was a Christmas gift. We were given a date to reserve and told to select two or three items from a list of nearby attractions. The arrangements would be handled from there. The first stop was the castle you see on the featured image. Wow, you may be saying, a trip to Europe? Who…

The Journey You Don’t Get to Pick

This post is very different from my usual writing on travel, food or wine. Those are decisions we make. This is about a path none of us would select but must travel anyway. It is a personal journey and I share mine as it walks a parallel path to that of a dear friend. I…

Dinner by a James Beard Nominee

We don’t eat out a lot, not the two of us anyway. With friends, that’s different. Want to go to burger night, happy hour (which seems to be the fancy way to say “early bird special”), try some new place, just get together? We’re there. But even before the pandemic it wasn’t a frequent thing,…

Recipe for a Winning Wine Tasting Party

I have always wanted to do a blind wine tasting. Clearly, I’m not the only one based on the enthusiastic response from everyone I invited, whether they could come or not. Blind is how they taste for the wine publications, labels covered, no idea what the wine is, who made it, or what it costs….

Celebrating the Celts

Whether or not your body contains an ounce of Irish blood you have no doubt noticed that today is St. Patrick’s Day; the only time of year it is acceptable to pour chemicals into our waterways and our beverages (not very green, wink wink) in the annual celebration of all things Irish. Over time March…

A Tale of Two Virginia Country Inns

On our recent visit to Virginia, we stayed at two out of the way “country” inns that have well regarded dining experiences. They could not be more different. The Inn at Little Washington is lovely- velvets and fringe, whimsically muraled, fabric draped, high ceilinged glory. You might think you have wandered onto a stage set,…