Author: mattathomeintheworld

I was born and raised in New England, but spent almost 40 years living in southern California and San Francisco. I'm a retired psychology professor with a strong interest in natural disasters, media influences, and travel. I used to teach a specialty course on the Psychology of Travel and created my own travel website at www.mattathomeintheworld.com I recently published my first book: At Home in the World: Reflections of a Travel Addict. Please come check out my site!

At Home in the World is Now Out in the World!

September 10, 2023October 3, 2023 by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Uncategorized

As of today, my book At Home in the World: Reflections of a Travel Addict is available on Amazon as either a paperback or a Kindle/e-book. This is a project I’ve thought about for years, and that it finally came to fruition is really pretty surreal. If you’ve enjoyed reading my blogs here, I think you’ll find the book to your liking. I put a lot of myself into it and I am really pleased with the results and hope you will be too!

I’ve prepared a little trailer to hopefully pique your interest in the book.

Let’s Go!

The Reviews Are In!

September 2, 2023 by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Uncategorized

Hello everyone! My book is finally completed and should be available on Amazon within the next week or so. But the “reviews” are already coming in from around the world:

“Maybe if his book does well, he will return and finally buy a carpet!” – a Turkish rug salesman.

“He may be a good writer, but he made the most pathetic mochi balls that we have ever seen at our festival!” – a resident of Shimabara, Japan.

“I remember him as the dinner that got away…” – an Australian salt-water crocodile.

“This book could be bigger than Ben Hur!” – an anonymous New Zealand grad student.

“He tried to add cheese to his spaghetti with clams! We were horrified!” – an Italian restauranteur.

“He still owes me $25 for the beautiful photos I took of him when he rode my camel!” – an Egyptian vendor.

See what all the buzz is about… the paperback and an ebook version will be available soon. Stay tuned for further updates! – Matt

Aloha, Lahaina

August 19, 2023October 3, 2023 by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Uncategorized

As the story of the horrific wildfire that swept through the Hawaiian town of Lahaina, Maui earlier this month continues to unfold, it’s impossible not to feel a sense of disbelief. While fires in California, throughout the western United States and most recently in Canada have been in the headlines for the past several summers now, the speed with which the Maui fire struck and the total devastation it has wrought brings to mind a comparison to the famous destruction of Pompeii in the 79AD eruption of Italy’s Mt. Vesuvius. One day Pompeii was a thriving city; the next day it was gone, snuffed out by the volcano in approximately 24 hours. Lahaina, the historic, cultural, and tourist heart of Maui has met a similar fate, though ironically not from an eruption in these volcanically active Hawaiian Islands, but by a combination of other natural forces: drought, fire, and hurricane-force winds.

Continue reading →

Merry Christmas and Happy Hannukah to All!

December 24, 2022December 24, 2022 by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Uncategorized

I just wanted to take a quick moment to say Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah to all my loyal readers and followers. I’ve been saying that I feel as if someone removed about 10 days of December from the calendar, as I blinked and here we are at the end of the month already. I felt like I barely had time to get into the spirit of the season, despite the fact that this has always been my favorite time of year.

Continue reading →

Farewell to Another Musical Legend: Christine McVie

December 2, 2022December 2, 2022 by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Music

Just a few months ago the world lost singer and actress Olivia Newton-John, and I took the loss very personally. Her music was an integral part of my teenage years and got me through some difficult times, and I was saddened by the fact that she had lost her decades-long battle with breast cancer. Her loss also made me more aware of my own mortality, since she was only 10 years older than me. Little did I know that I’d soon be saying farewell to another beloved entertainer whose music is so much a part of my identity that when news of her death made headlines this week, I received several messages from friends who were wondering how I was coping with the loss. Yes, this week we lost Christine McVie, keyboardist, vocalist and songwriter for Fleetwood Mac. She was 79 years old, and her death seemed to be sudden and unexpected, reports saying she had passed away after a brief illness.

Continue reading →

A Long-Awaited Return to Iceland

November 30, 2022December 1, 2022 by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Blogs, Europe, Iceland

My first trip to Iceland was in June of 2008, and it was among my most favorite travel destinations. The scenery was other-worldly, the peace and quiet appealed to me, and the food, though expensive, was top-notch. Unfortunately, my travels over the years never seemed to bring me back to Iceland, but as I began to plan a European getaway for this fall, the new Icelandic airline called Play offered fares so low that it made my trip entire trip feasible. Since all of Play’s flights pass through Reykjavik, I decided it was the perfect opportunity to revisit Iceland for a few days after visiting Italy and London.

Continue reading →

Taking the Voyage with ABBA

November 25, 2022December 17, 2024 by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Blogs, Music

I just returned from my first trip to Europe in several years. My primary destination was Italy, but given how easy it is to “hop” around Europe fairly cheaply once you’re across the Atlantic, I decided that while I was in “the neighborhood”, I simply had to go to London to see ABBA’s innovative concert/show/spectacle, and so I planned a two night stop-over in London for that purpose.

Continue reading →

A Beautiful Reunion with an Old Friend: Italy

November 25, 2022March 1, 2023 by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Blogs, Europe, Italy

Thanks to the gigantic monkey wrench that COVID threw into all of our lives, I haven’t traveled abroad since the summer of 2019. To some, this may not seem like such a big deal, but for me, who was once described by Diletta, my former Italian teacher, as someone who “goes to Europe the way some people go to the grocery store,” this hiatus from international travel was a huge change in my life. Ambiguous and ever-changing COVID restrictions that varied from country to country, uncertainty about the economy and my own finances, and the threat of a larger war developing in Europe all made me wonder whether I would ever get back to Europe, and especially to my beloved Italy again.

Continue reading →

Making All the Right Choices: Antica Trattoria al Sole, Italy

November 24, 2022November 25, 2022 by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Europe, Italy, Travel Recommendations

On my most recent trip to Italy I experienced a big disappointment when a friend of mine from Vicenza and I were supposed to get together and the plans fell through. Actually, it would have been a sad meeting because he owns a pizzeria and gelateria but is being forced to close his business for the foreseeable future due to skyrocketing energy costs. I’d been invited to come by for his final night in business and looked forward to seeing him again, as well as sampling his fine organic pizza and gelato one more time. But on the appointed night, I drove to his shop in Vicenza only to find it closed and dark. I sent a few text messages that went unanswered and was stymied by what might have happened. Confused and sad that I‘d apparently missed him, I then had to attend to the immediate situation: I was very hungry and it was after 8PM on a Sunday night, so I knew I might not have many options for dinner. Relying on good old Google, I searched, “best restaurants near Vicenza” and up came the name Antica Trattoria al Sole, which roughly translates into: Ancient or Old Restaurant in the Sun. It was located a few kilometers outside Vicenza in the small village of Castegnero, so off I went into the unknown.

Continue reading →

Ain’t No Mountain High Enough: Climbing New Hampshire’s Middle Sugarloaf Peak

October 18, 2022October 18, 2022 by mattathomeintheworld, posted in Blogs, U.S.A.

Autumn. It’s that time of year again when New England achieves its highest level of “New Englandness.” The days begin to shorten, the air has a slight, but noticeable chill in the early mornings, the leaves start turning to a palette of all of my favorite shades of red, orange and yellow, and the smell of cider donuts and “pumpkin spice everything” assails the nostrils. I’ve always loved fall, and in my humble, native New Englander opinion, there is no better place to be in late September and early October.

Continue reading →