Cruising the Danube River
This essay was originally posted in December, 2010, following a Danube River cruise from Budapest, Hungary, to Passau, Germany.
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Dallas Smith's Blog
Darjeeling: Drinking great tea in the Himalayan foothills
March, 2016
There has been an interesting progression on this month-long trip. First, we visited purely Buddhist and sparsely populated Bhutan. Next, we visited partially Buddhist and more densely populated Sikkim...
Decadence: Wine Tasting in Las Vegas
Throughout most of my adult life, I've lived relatively frugally. I don't indulge very often in expensive habits…Skiing is one. So it is pure decadent indulgence to fly down to Las Vegas for the Wine Spectator magazine's annual gourmet wine tasting. Indeed, this was a new life experience for me. I have my good friend Jeff to thank for the invitation and encouraging me to accompany him.
Detroit and the Watson Caring Science Institute Conference Report
Sometimes life is so packed with activities that it's difficult to adequately report in my occasional blogs. That is my feeling about this past week in Detroit.
Detroit: The Beautiful and the Ugly
This essay was written in March 2008, with reflections on visiting Detroit and living in Reno, Nevada. Some images are included.
Dinner With Pakistanis
For the past few years, Susan and I have been hosting foreign visitors who tour the US sponsored by the State Department and the Northern Nevada International Center. We have hosted Chinese, Russians, Turks, various Africans, Asians, and Latin Americans. We even provided accommodations to a mayor from a village in Tajikistan for ten days.
Discovering Dubai
March, 2016
This week marks my second visit to Dubai following an initial visit two years ago. Susan is traveling with me this time. We are being hosted in Dubai by my dear friend, Dubai resident Lajo Gupta, who is originally from India, and is the daughter of the great Indian music master, Ali Akbar Khan. . .
Edvard Munch
June, 2023
Following our two weeks in Germany and Sweden, we flew into Oslo, Norway, one day early before the flight to join our Hurtigruten cruise around the Svalbard island chain. Upon the recommendation of my old friend Per (who is Norwegian but lives in Germany), we . . .
Elegy to Ali Akbar Khan
This essay was written and posted in July of 2009. Today, April 13, 2012, is the 90th anniversary of Ali Akbar Khan's birth. It is fitting to post these words in memory of this great musician.
Eminent Recognition + $50,000
September, 2017
With all the upsetting news of the day, I'm happy to report some great news: the awarding of the Eminent Artist recognition by the Kresge Foundation, accompanied by a fifty-thousand dollar cash award, to our dear friend, Detroit harpist and educator Pat Terry-Ross. The awarding organization is the Kresge Foundation, which has awarded four and a half million dollars to various artists during the last seven years. Susan and I were pleased to be able to fly in to Detroit for the award ceremony. The award ceremony was held in an ornate theater in downtown Detroit, attended by a couple of hundred of Pat's friends and fans. Pat's ninety-five-year-old mother was present, as proud as one would expect her to be. . .