From the Editor

You may have noticed a somewhat green tint to this issue, in that many of our regular sections and departments this month explore topics related to the environment. The green theme developed organically, as it were, when we began discussing story ideas for our new “Greener Good” column. We introduced that column in January of this year with the intent of covering people, companies, and topics focused on protecting the planet. Not surprisingly, in today’s green-sensitive world, we found there were many more topics than our single column each issue would allow — thus this month’s green-themed issue, which coincides, of course, with Earth Day, the annual celebration of the Earth and our environment that began, believe it or not, 38 years ago. This year it’s celebrated on April 22.

I remember going to an Earth Day concert about 15 years ago. The very idea of it was a bit of a novelty, and the appeal, at least for me, was more hearing the music than supporting the environment. Today, environmentally themed events are firmly entrenched in the mainstream — in both the corporate and personal communities. There’s still a long way to go, but the very fact that a magazine as mainstream as this one is dedicating a regular column and the better part of an issue to the topic of going green is an encouraging sign.

Happy travels and good (green) reading.

Michael Buller, Editor

From Our Readers

I enjoyed your interesting and informative article “Be There in Spirit” (February 2008) but disagree with your choice of Bacardi as a representative of Puerto Rican rum. Bacardi was actually founded in Cuba and relocated to Puerto Rico after the 1959 revolution.

A better choice would have been Serralles, the company founded by Juan Serralles that produces the Don Q line of rums. First produced in 1865 on his family sugar plantation in Ponce, Puerto Rico, Don Q rum immediately became an island favorite, which it still is to this day. In 1903, the Serralles family installed the first continuous rum still in Puerto Rico. In the 1930s, Juan’s son, Juan Iugenio Serralles, built an enormous castle known as the Serralles Castle on their estate. The castle, which overlooks the city of Ponce, is now a museum open to the public and run by the city. It is well worth a visit, especially for its wonderful views. By the way, the Bacardi rum distillery, while “touristy,” is also a fun place to visit.

Jeff Robinson
Rahway, N.J.