An Aussie friend, David Bentley, recently completed a coast-to-coast journey solo from northeastern Australia to the far southwest in his faithful Troopy (78 Series Toyota Land Cruiser). This article is edited from his daily reports. — Randy Keck

Day 9 (May 15, 2018) — Having departed Kalgoorlie, I'm currently about halfway down the Holland Track, which runs from Coolgardie to Hyden in the southwest of Western Australia. It's another iconic 4WD track which has been...

When it comes to basking in the beauty of Italy's Riviera, the Cinque Terre is tops for me. But there's much more to this region on the Mediterranean coast than those famous five villages.

A handful of charming towns lie within an hour of the Cinque Terre, with posh ports set against rugged mountain backdrops that have drawn poets, authors and romantics over the years from Lord Byron to Elizabeth Taylor.

To the north of the Cinque Terre is a trio of beach...

The French countryside is littered with medieval monasteries -- stony, quiet and atmospheric. Some are in a state of ruin; others are still home to peaceful monks or sisters going about their religious work. Still others are intact but now open only as museums. A little history can help visitors breathe life into these serenely remote monuments.

Monasteries arose in Europe as refuges from the dark chaos that followed the collapse of the Roman Empire. In many ways,...