Galleries

Dallas Smith's Blog

Welcome to Virtual Reality

April, 2019

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In my long life, I’ve witnessed several major technological revolutions.   In my early music years of the early 1960’s, all musical instruments were acoustic.  Then in the late sixties, Jimi Hendrix led the way to an electric guitar revolution, and music was changed forever.  The Hammond B3 . . .

The Glory of Istanbul

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My Second Trip to Turkey. Istanbul has modernized beyond recognition in the forty-one years since my first visit. . .

Malaga, Spain Blog

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Malaga, Spain, has been called “the Florida of Spain.”  It is an ancient city (second in age only to Cadiz) founded by the Phoenicians almost three thousand years ago.

A Quick Glimpse of Rome

December, 2019

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We spent two tourist days in Rome prior to boarding the Viking cruise ship.  Our hotel was located in the Trastevere section of Rome, an older residential area across the Tiber River from the central city, home to Rome’s most famous architectural landmarks.  

My travel blogs are intended to provide my readers with the vicarious pleasure of my sharing my travel experiences. 

Final World Cruise

May, 2022

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In this blog I will share photos from several ports that did not receive blogs dedicated to them.  After the photos, I summarize my thoughts and lasting impressions of the world cruise.

Sikkim--India's Buddhist State

March, 2016

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A Brief History of Contemporary Sikkim The history of Sikkim parallels that of Bhutan in many aspects. Like Bhutan, Sikkim was a geographically isolated Buddhist kingdom that was never colonized by the British or any other country. Bhutan has remained an independent country, though it...

Saigon, aka Ho Chi Minh City

Vietnam's Largest City

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Our third (and final) Vietnamese port of call was Saigon, the former capital of South Vietnam, which was renamed Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) after the victory of North Vietnam at the end of the Vietnam War.  HCMC is a large prosperous city.  We were lucky to be met on two consecutive days by our old friend Bob, who is married to a Vietnamese lady and has retired to live in Vietnam following his long career in Reno as a counselor and professional musician.  I played many gigs with Bob in Reno over the years.