SOELDEN, Austria ― We arrived in Soelden after heavy snows had fallen and the sky had grown as blue and clear as an Alpine lake. (“We” being a family of three: husband, wife and a toddler named Ryan.)Soelden is in the Oetztal region of Tyrol, in the Austrian Alps. It is very popular with Europeans but comparatively unknown to North American ski and snowboard enthusiasts, even to those who, like us, frequent the Alps. That was part of the appeal: After so many ski trips together, my wife and I cr

BUCHAREST, Romania ― On Sunday morning in Bucharest, I knew just what I wanted to do: I wanted to go to church. I also wanted to go down to the Old City, visit a few museums and buy a warm pretzel from a sidewalk stand. But mostly I wanted to go to church.Bucharest is studded with nearly 300 exquisite churches, some dating to the 1500s. During Communist times, Nicolae Ceausescu tore some of them down, and he hid others inside mammoth apartment blocks, but Romania has always been a religious coun

   Cold winter brings ice climbing seasonWinter is at its peak in Korea, and many find it difficult to stay outside. But that’s not the case for a handful of hardcore climbers who scale frozen waterfalls and ice floes.Most of us wouldn’t want to pull ourselves up slippery ice, but these people try to climb a vertical wall of it in frigid weather and unstable conditions.“It’s just fun to get out there. Sometimes you have to push yourself to get up to the top, but it’s a lot of fun,” said Peter Je

Jordan offers magical and spiritual experience for visitorsAMMAN ― No matter how many times you travel abroad, there is something about Jordan that makes it difficult for the memory to fizzle out.With unforgettable natural landscapes and historic sites including the footsteps of history’s heroes, Jordan is an awe-inspiring land.Your journey to biblical relics spotted across Jordan may be also rewarded by a spiritual experience that stirs the soul.PetraJordan’s magical experience starts at night