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A Grimm obsession, especially for fairytales’ 200th year

My new book, “Eat Smart in Germany,” is about how to cook genuine German dishes at home and eat authentically when traveling to that country. A chapter about culinary history acknowledges the importance of two unlikely sources, brothers Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm.

We know of their literature as popular fairytales for children: Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Snow White and others assume leading roles. We also debate the themes of violence and abuse in these bedtime stories, and Hollywood refuels that dark discussion with the recent release of “Jack the Giant Slayer,” a weakly received PG-13 spinoff of the Grimm brothers’ “Jack and the Beanstalk.”

Between 2012 and 2014, filmmakers will release about 20 fairytale adaptations for adults. The Boston Globe refers to this as a “Grimm obsession,” but in Germany these tales are a proud source of heritage and reason to travel, especially this year because the first edition of the brothers’ 86-story book is 200 years old.

Fort Myers on a budget: bumps, beaches, bargains

Getting bumped from a flight to New York City gained me $400 in travel vouchers last year, but I procrastinated almost until they expired.

Where to go in January? Someplace warm, of course, and a search for cheap flights on United Airlines steered me to Fort Myers Beach, Fla. Net cost on a nonstop, roundtrip for two: About $40, from O’Hare in Chicago.

Leaving from my home base of Madison would have added another $100, per person. It was cheaper to hop a bus (coachusa.com, 877-324-7767, or golamers.com, 800-236-1240) to reach the airport.

The area’s temps were in the low 80s, a sugary sand beach stretched for miles, friends were near, strangers were hospitable and we chose to not rent a car because this stay was a mere four days.

The bright lights of Broadway, but far from Manhattan.

I am not a country music fan, but the recent death of Earl Scruggs got my attention. It happened mere hours after my arrival in Nashville, where the 88-year-old banjo boy had long lived.

The next day, a bouquet of white flowers and guest book for condolences sat next to the musician’s plaque at the Country Music Hall of Fame, a simple room that enshrines 118 key people in the business. Earl and bluegrass partner Lester Flatt were added in 1985.

At the Grand Ole Opry, days later, musicians still were respectfully dedicating performances to Earl and his cunning, three-finger pickin’ style. That included Sam Bush, whose Newgrass style of mandolin music is a reincarnation of the elder musician’s work.

The Dead Sea, as seen from Masada in Israel.

We have a little extra time, and tour guide Yaniv Bar knows exactly how he wants to spend it. Our vehicle follows a paved, curvy road to a stark hilltop where the view feels both plain and profound.

This is it? This is it! Through the morning haze, I am introduced to the largest freshwater lake in Israel.

“What we see from here holds two-thirds of the events in the New Testament,” Yaniv begins.

Below us is the pear-shaped Sea of Galilee, fed by the Jordan River, ordinary in appearance and overwhelming in reputation. Think about walking on water, or feeding 5,000 with two fish and five loaves of bread.

In and near this lake’s 64 square miles is the land of miracles, a part of the bedrock that explains and upholds the tenets and tales of Christianity. It’s treated as hallowed ground, even among skeptics and disbelievers.

Signs of faith and hope fill the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem.

I expected the global mix of languages, skin tones and attire. I was stirred by the universal expressions of hope and faith: scarf-covered heads, humble bows, hushed to fervent prayers.

Resurrection can mean a rejuvenation of spirit as well as the revival of life, and that process is ongoing among the countless people of faith who find their way to Jerusalem, Israel’s most sacred city.

What I didn’t expect was the thick assortment of vendors who sold wood-carved camels and tightly woven carpets, just-baked pita bread and crosses of silver and pewter as I followed the 14-station, 650-yard Via Dolorosa (“Way of Grief”).

I resist the temptation to buy a tidy four-pack of holy water, soil, olive oil and incense. I gave in to a thick and sweet slosh of warm almond milk with dried fruit and cinnamon.

Inside Abu Simbel, Egypt

O'Hare International Airport, Chicago, Illinois, USA

The Karen Hill Tribe, Padaung, Thailand

Wild Horses of Corolla, North Carolina, USA

Torres del Paine National Park, Patagonia, Chile

Swamp Gator, near Lafayette, Louisiana, USA

World Naked Bike Ride, Zaragoza, Spain

National World War I Museum, Kansas City, Missouri, USA

A Grimm obsession, especially for fairytales’ 200th year

Fort Myers on a budget: bumps, beaches, bargains

Nashville: Sentiments expressed, not exploited

Israel’s biblical hit parade: Dead Sea to Sea of Galilee

Jerusalem’s Old City: a magnet for many faiths

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