From other Blogs...

Golden Palace in Kyoto, Japan
Photo by Pi productions at Flickr

TRAVEL DESTINATIONS:
Read about the Top Things to do in Kyoto, Japan on Viator Travel Blog.

Jack at Eyeflare recommends visiting Kauai, Hawaii for the outdoors.

The Guardian lists 10 of the best readers' tips for visiting Barcelona, Spain.

Oddity Central's post on Taking a Swim in the Devil's Pool in Africa is a huge hit on StumbleUpon. Vagabondish also mentions Swimming at the edge of Victoria Falls and shares a video of the experience.

TRAVEL TIPS:
Amanda at Vagabondish shares tips on how to experience the local scene on rainy days.

JUST FOR FUN:
David at Authorblog is doing a series of interviews with bloggers from around the world and Rambling Traveler was the featured blog this week. Thank you, David!

For more travel articles, check out the section marked From other Blogs in my sidebar.

From other Travel Blogs...

Malahide Castle, Ireland

TRAVEL TIPS
Get good advice on Travel Hacker with their 40+ Safety Tips for Solo Travelers.

Getting burned out on travel? Amanda at Vagabondish has some ideas for people who are All Traveled Out.

A new budget travel blog on my RSS reader is Less Than A Shoestring. One of my favorite tips: The Three-Day Rule.

TRAVEL DESTINATIONS
Madison, Wisconsin is a fun place to visit (and according to cousins, it's a nice place to live, too). Ben at Vagabondish recommends things to do in 36 Hours in Madison, Wisconsin. Doug and I might have to road trip out there and test Ben's ideas.

Travel Hacker provides another great resource with the Top 50 Biking Vacations, all over the world.

Will you be in Rome before March 20th? Intelligent Travel recommends the exhibit of frescoes from Pompeii at the National Museum of Rome.

Ben from Euros Ate My Dollars describes Traveling in Barcelona and gives some tips based on his experiences. The stories from Ben and Brittany are always entertaining, and this one doesn't disappoint.

Need some destination ideas? Check out Jack's article on Eyeflare about 3 Islands in the Mediterranean.

TRAVEL FOOD
Greg from Vagabonding begins! shares pictures of food that he has tried during his travels. The dumpling soup and sushi look delicious, but I'll pass on the deep fried snake and catfish head.

For more travel articles, check out the section marked From other Blogs in my sidebar.

Books I've Been Reading

The Dream Maker by Monica Hannan is an incredible story about one man's determination and dedication to helping poor children around the world, especially in Guatemala. The book shares the stories of children whose lives have been changed by Patrick Atkinson, the founder of God's Child Project. Several of the stories are about orphans from the civil war. At turns joyful and heartbreaking, reading this book made me so thankful for people like Patrick, and made me question the best way I can help them.

Spanish Lessons: Beginning a New Life in Spain by Derek Lambert is an entertaining story about the author moving to Spain with his wife and son. It is filled with vivid and humorous descriptions of the people they meet and the adventures they share as they restore a house and learn about the "real" Spain, the country they've decided to call home. I smiled through most of the book, and I was sorry to see it end.

Living in a Foreign Language by Michael Tucker shares the experiences of the author and his wife Jill Eikenberry as they purchase and renovate a 350 year old cottage in Umbria. Like Derek Lambert, Michael Tucker has a talent for describing the people he meets in Italy. I still smile when I think of the butchers, or Giancarlo, the proprietor of a restaurant in Spoleto. My favorite parts of the book are the descriptions of the meals they prepare at home or eat elsewhere. This book made me laugh, and made me hungry (for food and for Italy). I couldn't put it down.

All three books are great stories that I highly recommend.