Off-The-Beaten-Track Greece is Open for Travel
Greece has a nostalgic appeal for Lisa and me since we went there on our honeymoon a lifetime ago. We had no reservations and took ferries from island to island, quickly learning that there were many gems in the Mediterranean that no one except wise Scandinavians knew about. We purchased a book called “Undiscovered Islands of the Mediterranean” and off we went. Our first stop, Folegandros, was arguably our favorite island on the entire trip. With a handful of travelers, we scrambled into a mini-bus and were dropped off at an incredibly authentic main square, where people dined on wooden tables under a string of electric light bulbs. Men with mustaches out of an 1880s barbershop photo grilled souvlaki on an open grill. Olden men drank coffee at a small café. All was framed by whitewashed buildings and churches. You knew instantly that this was no Disneyesque version of a Greek Isle overrun with drunken American and European backpackers, but the real thing. We would take long walks on paths through olive groves and hire fishermen to drop us off and pick us up at deserted beaches. Tilos is another island where the locals, still unaccustomed to tourists, greet you as if you lived there your whole life. A place where one picks fresh figs off the tree and finds deserted medieval castles that request no admission fee. If you want to find an authentic Greek isle away from the masses, ActiveTravels will point you in the right direction!
It’s been called the finest forest drive in the world, a 32-mile stretch of road that winds through 17,000 acres of old-growth redwood forest. 
There are two types of travelers to Iceland, ones like me who spend the bulk of their time in Reykjavik taking day trips to see the countryside and others who simply stay in small guesthouses in the more remote areas of the island. Obviously, if you can do the latter, you’ll be treated to a far more authentic experience with majestic vistas of glaciers, volcanoes, and the coastline around every bend. I needed to be in Reykjavik for a travel writers’ conference, but even I had the chance to check out three incredible sites thanks to the daylong 
The parking lot at the Blithewold estate in Bristol is overflowing on this chilly day in late April. I walk around the pink blooms of the Japanese star-magnolia tree and under the signature Japanese cedar that stands guard in front of the massive stone mansion. That’s when I get my first glimpse of the soft yellow hues glowing from a vast garden, stemming from row after row of daffodils. Young girls dressed as fairies run down the aisles, butterfly wings attached to their backs and colorful ribbons in their hair flowing in the wind. I follow their cue and enter a pasture coated with morning dew to find countless families happily ensconced within the centuries-old stone walls. A harpist plays as kids create papier-mâché flowers, blow bubbles, and dance around a Maypole. I half-expect to see nymphs lounging in a nearby pond of water lilies.
From the shores of Lake Geneva, or Lac Léman as the Swiss call it, to the forest and duck pond of Lac de Sauvabelin, the city of Lausanne climbs an impressive 800 feet. You climb uphill or downhill on an Escher-like maze of stairwells, narrow cobblestone streets, bridges, even elevators and escalators. Last night, I took an elevator close to my hotel, the 
I wrote earlier this year about the exciting