Storybook citadels, bold mountains, gorgeous beaches and a light that seduced even Matisse: Corsica is nothing less than a revelation.

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Let’s just add it to the long list of daunting challenges we are facing these days…

clipped from www.nytimes.com “These jellyfish near shore are a message the sea is sending us saying, ‘Look how badly you are treating me,’” said Dr. Josep-Mara Gili, a leading jellyfish expert, who has studied them at the Institute of Marine Sciences of the Spanish National Research Council in Barcelona for more than 20 years. The explosion of jellyfish populations, scientists say, reflects a combination of severe overfishing of natural predators, like tuna, sharks and swordfish; rising sea temperatures caused in part by global warming; and pollution that has depleted oxygen levels in coastal shallows.

New laptop bags approved by the Transportation Security Administration make it possible to go through X-ray inspection without having to take the laptop out.

This sounds like a promising development. I understood such bags were planned, but this article makes it clear that we should be able to purchase them by the end of this year.

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I was amazed how well drafting really works. It’s one thing to see professional bike racers do it, and I understood the physics behind it, but when you actually get it working for yourself — especially when you are desperately tired and really need a break — it’s almost miraculous.

Then there was the hike up to see numerous waterfalls. There’s a really nice reward waiting at each waterfall, and I don’t mean the photo opportunities: air conditioning. When you get close to the falls, the temperature drops considerably, and for a tired hiker the change is most welcomed.

The last leg of our journey was whitewater rafting… except the river was so low that there wasn’t much water that was white. That’s okay, as we had a very pleasant float interspersed with a handful of rapids. Not wanting to be denied my fun, I provided my own sound effects as we went through them, to heighten the experience. For some reason, this amused my fellow paddlers.

Brian, CJ, Captain Mickey and I manned one raft. We stayed right with our trip leader, and while the other rafts engaged in splash wars with buckets, we stayed dry, avoided getting stuck on rocks, and led the way through all the rapids for the first portion of the trip. Yes, as Brian put it, we were the brown-nose raft.

Unfortunately, when the other rafts had all soaked each other and saw we were still dry,  three of them conspired to gang up on us and thoroughly douse us with buckets of water. Led by the machine-like Bucket Bomber, Steve, they drowned us in a tidal wave of water. It turned out that our skill in maneuvering our raft was far greater than our ability to launch bucketfuls of water. We really sucked at that. Luckily, it was a very hot day, and the water felt really good. But after that we never really regained our prominence, and Mickey’s dream of finishing first was thwarted. Poor Mickey.

In addition to leading us on this full day of adventures, our outfitter also fed us breakfast, lunch and dinner. By the end of the day, we were sated. With muscles tired, stomachs full, and somewhat toasted skin, more than half of us retired to our campsite to relax around a blazing fire. A really blazing hot fire, thanks to Dave and Mickey’s respective pyromaniac tendencies.

I do think a highlight of our camping experience (as opposed to the Official Big Day Out activities), was the loudmouthed fellow in the next campsite.  He must have been hard of hearing, or thought everyone else was. We heard everything he said, and he opined that “Debbie Does Dallas” was one of his favorite movies. In fact, he offered this opinion on both nights that we camped. Quite the cultured fellow!

We really loafed on the camping part, for once. We didn’t cook at all, except for Mickey and Dave making eggs and bacon on Sunday morning. But I think Steve, Jennifer, Jenn and I got the best of the bargain, though, as we went into town and had wonderful premium coffee, omelets and homemade bread at a little cafe. We also had the distinct pleasure of a full twenty minute seranade of church bells. We decided the church-goers in Jim Thorpe must need lots of encouragement to attend.

The really strange thing about the trip was how little we saw of Maureen. You know, I hardly even noticed her all weekend so I’ve nicknamed her “The Phantom.”

Steve put together the whole trip and it was a great time. Once again, Get Out Philadelphia Adventurers hit a homerun. I’m proud to be part of that group, and look forward to our next adventure.

From rafting in Oregon to biking in the White Mountains, a listing of great summer vacations that don’t require the terrifying conversion of dollars into euros.

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If you been dreaming of picking up roots, living on the edge, or literally going out on a limb in terms of eco-lifestyle possibilities, then Finca Bellavista: A Sustainable Rainforest Community might be just the thing for you.

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Tucked in the highlands near the Barú volcano, Boquete is emerging as one of Central America’s latest eco-tourism destinations.

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If Philly Beer Week proves anything, it’s that artisan brews can now be found virtually everywhere. Here, though, is a list of some of my favorite area destinations to hoist a pint or goblet.

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Truly our trip to Costa Rica would not have been the same and surely would not have been as much fun without the light-hearted and adventure-loving Kimsan. His blog reflects those same qualities and I recommend it to you!

I recommend you check Mike’s photos out, as he’s got a good photographer’s eye and captured some spots/action that aren’t well represented in some of the other photo galleries. And his last picture is quite mysterious . . .