Dorothy of Wizard of Oz fame tells us there is no place like home.  Dorothy has many wise words, but on this one, I’ll have to respectfully disagree.

During my travels over the years, I’ve stayed at wonderful hotels, not so wonderful hotels, encountered a mosaic of interesting individuals and captured stories that will remain with me forever. But very few places have felt like “home” – the place where you can kick off your shoes, hang out with a few books and chill.

I arrived for the second time at Hacienda San Agustin de Callo on Thursday (I came for a day visit in July during my first trip to Ecuador).  Inside the hacienda’s majestic historic walls, there’s a special room – what’s known among the visitors and staff as ‘the living room’ – where numerous new and old books, plush sofas, an ever-roaring fire and pictures of the hacienda’s past bring the room alive. Give it character.

The room is just one of many of the unique aspects of Hacienda San Agustin – but likely my favorite.

Last night, like every night there, the guests gathered in the living room for pre-dinner cocktails. We were quite the mixed and matched crowd – a few visitors from Italy on a long holiday trip, one couple stopping by just for dinner and some friends of the owner, Mignon Plaza.  We all spoke different languages, but translated for each other along the way, managing to cover a range of topics – from the health care situation in the U.S. and to Ecuadorian President Correa’s political view to raising children and favorite artists.

Each night at the hacienda features different faces and conversations. For me, bands of energetic people and animated chats easily remind me of home – with four siblings, we grew up with friends coming in and out, music always playing and food always at the reads. My parents kept the door open for everyone – something my sister, brothers, close friends and I  remember fondly to this day.

Perhaps that’s my personal connection – the familiarity of the way of life – even if in design, the hacienda is geographically away from where I live.

But, despite Dorothy’s popular mantra, perhaps we are meant to have more than just one place that feels like home.

Are there places – near or far – that are your home away from home? Share in the comments and be sure to tell us where and why.

*The picture above is my own and is a snapshot of the hacienda living room coffee table books. Right next to the fireplace. Awesome.

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I’d love to say that The American Wife was recommended or on my ‘to read’ list. Honestly, though, I was at O’Hare on my way to Grand Cayman last year and realized I left my books home. So, I picked it up at the airport bookstore since it was recommended to me by many avid readers.

No better time to read a book about the American presidency than near the start of a new presidential era. American Wife is a story of the other side; the woman behind the man, living a life into which she was not elected.

Curtis Sittenfeld’s work develops a simple character: a young, single woman (Alice) with a great family and friends, but who has a hidden secret (don’t we all). Through a fairy-tale, whirlwind romance, she marries her seeming soul mate, a man with a prominent family history, yet he is always searching for ways to make his name.

Comfortable in her own skin, Alice is unsure of the new life into which she’s entered. They have a marriage similar to many; they experience their share of happiness and marital strife. Yet they have opposing politics and different views on what it means to live a fulfilling life.

But here’s the cool part: even as the wife of the President of the United States, Alice ultimately maintains her security, personal politics and life focus. Not unlike Jackie.

How many of us, whether in relationships, spurred by family dynamics or motivated by lofty ambitions, become chameleons and forget ourselves? I sure have. It’s human nature. But Alice handles all of the change and chaos that surrounds her with poise and grace.

But Is It That Easy?
That’s where my only critique comes in: is it that easy to not be extremely affected by our circumstances? To not adjust our core beliefs – even slightly – to fit in? To hold our graceful pose not matter what comes our way? Alice is a well-developed character, but I’m not convinced it’s that easy to stay 100% true to ourselves no matter what life throws our way.

I also believe that the book’s themes could just as easily be applied to women in various non U.S. cultures as well as women who are single. Finding one’s identity amidst circumstances, patriarchal norms and familial dynamics is not only for the married woman. History – and Herstory- is all the evidence we need.

That aside, I genuinely enjoyed this book so much that I left in the Caymans at the resort where I stayed, a result of my own core belief that good books should be shared. The resort also keeps a large library of books that visitors have left behind for others to read.

It’s a good thinking book. Less of a chick lit read than one might assume. Even for you men out there – if you’re  a voracious reader or a man committed to understanding the secret minds of women (c’mon, you know you are), you’ll enjoy this one.

Which leads me to the question I have for all of you: Is it our circumstances that shape us or do we shape our circumstances? Does who we become (or who we are) depend on how much money we have, what country we live in, our gender or other factors? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

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If I had only found this book in high school – and had been fluent in German at 15 – I would have been a lot smarter in history class, particularly when I was forced to stay studying at home as a result of the infamous “Hot Dog Incident” of 1990.

When I was 15, I was trotting along main street in my hometown of Ridgefield, Connecticut to get a hot dog, as one does on a suburban Saturday. My high school class mates will fondly remember ‘Chez Lenard,’ the god of the town gourmet hot dog stand. When we “went into town,” which was the only thing to do in Ridgefield, a visit to the stand was the adventurous highlight.

On this particular day, I never got the hot dog because I was hit by a car.

I didn’t look both ways when crossing the street, as often happens to those hit by cars. Ultimately, I was fine, but my poor mother watched from the car and had a Mom Freakout, as anyone with a child (or five) would do.

[Fear not: this is not a tangent, we'll get to the book.]

I was home for awhile, recovering from some bruises, but had to keep up with my schoolwork. While generally a good student, I loathed ancient history class. It was likely the only class in which I ever received less than a B.

I would rather stick a fork in my eye than read my ancient history text book.

But there I was, stuck at home, with pages and pages of essays to write about what I read in Chapters 2-10. I remember it vividly since it was associated with the hot dog car incident, which is one of those incidents that are hard to forget.

Fast forward 18 years. When I first started reading Gombrich’s A Little History of the World, I thought, “Here we go again.” Snore. But it was recommended to me as different, easy to understand, fun to read. Even with that assurance, I was skeptical that ancient history and fun were related.

I was wrong.

From the start, Gombrich enlists the reader on a journey, taking her or him on a pilgrimage from ‘before there were any people’ up to the end of World War II. That’s a long time to cover in 280 pages.

But he does it masterfully, in a style written for young readers – and yay! – we adult readers like it. Simple sentences, easy explanations and wit. Chapter titles like “An Unlucky King and Lucky King,” and “Heroes and Their Weapons,” wrap it all up in digestible morsels with factual information.

What’s even better is that it covers more than American and British history, which is most of what we were taught in the U.S., China, Turkey, Africa are all included equally.

And yes, while Gombrich illustrates that history *does* repeat itself, he doesn’t write the same bland comatose-invoking text over and over. It’s fresh in each chapter.

Thankfully, I received it as a gift two years ago; since then, I’ve given it as a gift to 5 people, who’ve all attested to resulting increased intelligence. You will be smarter after reading this book, I promise. Like “Jeopardy” smarter. If you aren’t, I guarantee your money back on the purchase.

P.S.: I’m fine since the car accident, just have a bit of sciatica, which I mostly attribute to aging. I don’t eat hot dogs anymore.

How did you learn about history when you were growing up? Any favorite historical topics that keep you coming back for more?

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