Taos, New Mexico, known for its historic Pueblo, towering mountains and plunging Rio Grande Gorge, lures art lovers too. At the Millicent Rogers Museum and the Harwood Museum as well as in adobe walled galleries admire historic and contemporary southwestern art.

Attend a Native American powwow and you learn about the dancing, drumming, sharing and sense of community that is so important in Native American culture. Across the US, many powwows welcome non-tribal members.

In Ecuador’s Andes, we met locals, learned about traditions at native markets, hiked snow-capped volcanoes and stayed at centuries-old haciendas. For us the formidable mountains and their scenic valleys exuded a special magic.

we came to explore Ecuador’s Andes. Instead of the Galapagos' frigate birds, tortoises and blue-footed boobies, we discoverd a different, but equally alluring landscape of mountains, towering volcanoes and glassy lakes.

Eco-adventures abound in Mexico’s Riviera Maya. At Hidden Worlds, not far from Tulum, we snorkel underground rivers, pedal a SkyCycle at tree-top height, and fly along a zipline. What we especially like about Hidden Worlds are the choices and the small group experience.

More and more dude ranches these days go beyond just horse rides and hard mattress bunks to offer resort-like accommodations and options. The saddle-sore as well as non-riders can soak in hot tubs, play tennis, fly-fish, hike, learn yoga and even work on their inner lives with a spiritualist.

Dollywood surprised us. Instead of the tame rides and tacky décor we expected, the 125-acre Tennessee theme park delivered gut-wrenching thrills, engaging attractions for young kids as well as good music, all in a prettily landscape setting of dogwoods, rhododendrons and greenery.

Dogs add excitement to winter adventures in Maine. The Telemark Inn offers sled dog outings, mushing packages, snowshoe excursions and skijoring. The country lodge, located in Western Maine on the edge of the White Mountain National Forest, serves as the base for New England Dog Sledding.

Dog Sled, Winter Adventures, frozen lakes, snowy woods, Minnesota, North Woods, cold weather adventure

Kazimierz, Krakow's Jewish Quarter, had been home to Jews for 500 years before World War II. In Kazimierz, we stumbled into the streets of our forefathers.