It’s tough to walk a mile in the shoes of someone who’s been shot. But it’s worth the walk anyway, to learn about how people gone bad can find their way to good. In the Central American country of Panama, Panama City’s Casco Viejo neighborhood is a great place to do it. I’m walking with former bad boy Samuel Palacio through Casco Viejo, a historic district in Panama City that has long been riddled with crime, much of it gang related. Samuel … [Read more...]
About Paul Kandarian
I'm a full-time freelance writer and photographer from the Boston area, specializing in travel writing. I contribute regularly to a variety of places, including the Boston Globe, GoCaribbean at about.com, Dave's Travel Corner, Upscale Living Magazine and many others.
A Grand Venue for Country Tunes
Even if you’re not a fan of the style, there’s something about live country music in the actual country that makes it vastly entertaining. I’m not into country music, but last summer, atop a nearly 10,000-foot mountain under a Colorado sky bluer than any I’d ever seen before, with snow-dotted southern Rocky Mountains on the horizon and nothing but fresh air and great tunes all around, I converted in a hurry. At least for that day. The … [Read more...]
Living large at Sandals LaSource on Grenada
Who wants to be a millionaire? Well, most of us. But most of us aren’t. You can, however, vacation like one at the new Sandals LaSource all-inclusive resort in Grenada. Or so it says in the resort booklet. That’s not a stretch. The resort opened in April 2014 to rave reviews, a beauty of an all-inclusive resort, luxurious, well-appointed and ideally located close to Maurice Bishop International Airport on the island’s southwestern corner. I … [Read more...]
Moon Dance Cliffs a well-kept secret in Jamaica
Jamaica’s one of those places that gets a mixed response when you tell people you’re going. It’s either, “Man, I love Jamaica, it’s gorgeous” or “No way I’d go to Jamaica, it’s too dangerous.” Funny how that is. I’ve run into tons of gorgeous in Jamaica and never any danger. Granted, you can find danger wherever you are, or it finds you, but by and large, be careful, don’t be stupid and put yourself in known places of danger, you’ll be … [Read more...]
Get dirty, get partying at Antigua resorts
Never have I gone to a party at the house of someone who owns an all-inclusive Caribbean resort. Nor have I rooted in slimy muck of a saltwater lagoon at another all inclusive with its chef, foraging for food to cook and eat. But I did both, in gloriously fun fashion, at Curtain Bluff and Hermitage Bay, two resorts on Antigua in the Leeward Islands of the West Indies, where the rich and famous have homes, such as Georgio Armani, Richard … [Read more...]
How I Got My Glow On in St. Thomas
Three if by land, two if by sea. Sorry, Paul Revere, but you got lit up your way, I’ll do it mine. I was at Frenchman’s Reef and Morning Star Marriott Beach Resort on St. Thomas recently, a glorious iconic resort perched high on a bluff and overlooking the capital city of Charlotte Amalie, which a few years ago did a $48-million renovation, jazzing up the spacious rooms (which start around $220 a night), and adding a fitness center, two pools, … [Read more...]
Gladys’ Café a St. Thomas hot spot
If you’ve ever tripped along Main Street in Charlotte Amalie, the bustling capital city of St. Thomas in the Caribbean, you know how crowded it can be in season, especially when cruise ships berth, spilling thousands of tourists into the narrow streets seeking deals. At times like that it’s best to cut down some side streets and find places like the Royal Dane Mall, off jewelry store-centric Main, a sun-starved warren of ancient brick … [Read more...]
Finding a man crush on St. Thomas
It's not often I get a man crush, something usually reserved for sports figures. But Omar and Romulo, two burly boys weighing a combined 1,000 pounds, had me at the first kiss. Omar and Romulo, along with Remo and Franco, are four massive sea lions that you can get up close and personal with – including getting bussed on the cheeks – at Coral World Ocean Park in St. Thomas, where you can also swim with sharks and sea turtles, do snuba diving … [Read more...]
Grand dame hotels are two New England favorites
Elegant, old, stately and welcoming, they are perched high on bluffs overlooking the sea, two New England grand dame hotels with unique identities and charms all their own, especially cozy in the wintry off season when it’s far less crowded. Wentworth by the Sea in New Castle, N.H., and Harbor View Hotel in Edgartown, Martha’s Vineyard, off the coast of Massachusetts, the latter an icon on the Vineyard since 1891, the former since 1874, each … [Read more...]
Martha’s Vineyard, on the cheap
Martha’s Vineyard, noted for its rich residents and famous for presidential vacations, is not a cheap place to visit, especially in high-priced summer. But there are places to see and things to do year-round that won’t break your bank. By far, my favorite was the Martha’s Vineyard Boys and Girls Club’s thrift shop in the heart of Edgartown, on North Summer Street. The long-time nonprofit club that has been serving island children since 1937 … [Read more...]