NEW YORK — There are 8 million stories in the Naked City; on this night, one of them is mine. The producers of The Moth Radio Hour have invited me to come to New York from Kentucky to tell a story at one of their Mainstage events at a Manhattan club, and I am feeling pretty naked myself. The emcee is about to call my name, and then I'll be standing onstage before an audience filled with people who look as if they just came from the party scene … [Read more...]
Can food broker peace? Mamnoon Restaurant, Seattle
Celebrating Syria: “We couldn’t go back, so we started mamnoon instead.” -Richard Bangs “For us, there is only the trying. The rest is not our business.” -T.S. Elliot There are so many delicious facets to this story. I first met Wassef Haroun in Zambia, at the Kafue River Camp, owned by a mutual friend who had invited us for a week-long private safari. Towards the end of the week Wassef excused himself from the Rhodesian teak table … [Read more...]
River Gods: Confessions of a Grand Canyon Guide
It all began, for me, at a meeting of the Canoe Cruisers Association, the Washington, D.C. chapter. In the midst of the button-down capital there is an underground of cutoffs and t-shirts that each weekend assembles by the banks of some Shenandoah or Appalachia river to rake the whitewater with paddles. A recent high school graduate searching for life’s passion, I joined up at the urging of my old Scout leader, and was immediately hooked. My … [Read more...]
Grand dame hotels are two New England favorites
Elegant, old, stately and welcoming, they are perched high on bluffs overlooking the sea, two New England grand dame hotels with unique identities and charms all their own, especially cozy in the wintry off season when it’s far less crowded. Wentworth by the Sea in New Castle, N.H., and Harbor View Hotel in Edgartown, Martha’s Vineyard, off the coast of Massachusetts, the latter an icon on the Vineyard since 1891, the former since 1874, each … [Read more...]
Biscuits, Booze, and Bodies – 36 Hours in the Florida Keys
Normally, I'm not big on cocktails before 10am. But when we blearily wandered in at 8am to the Blue Heaven, one of Key West’s signature restaurants, that’s what our server suggested. Sitting in the crazy-quilt courtyard, with its rustic artwork and scurrying chickens, looking up at the former bordello on the second-floor, and knocking back some booze seemed in keeping with all things Keys. I opted for the pancakes, which I found just as … [Read more...]
Martha’s Vineyard, on the cheap
Martha’s Vineyard, noted for its rich residents and famous for presidential vacations, is not a cheap place to visit, especially in high-priced summer. But there are places to see and things to do year-round that won’t break your bank. By far, my favorite was the Martha’s Vineyard Boys and Girls Club’s thrift shop in the heart of Edgartown, on North Summer Street. The long-time nonprofit club that has been serving island children since 1937 … [Read more...]
10 Free Things to Do in New York City
New York is one of the most costly cities in the United States, but taking your holiday here doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. Slash the cost of your New York City holiday when you enjoy some of these fun and free attractions. BAMcafe at the Brooklyn Academy of Music On Friday and Saturday nights from September through to June, you can enjoy free live music at BAMcafe Live, a program hosted by the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Since … [Read more...]
A Foodie Walking Tour: Oakland
I've never been on a foodie walking tour so when I found out about Localite Tours in Oakland, I jumped at the chance to be a part of their tour on a gorgeous Sunday in November. The tour was starting at 2pm so I decided to start my day off with brunch near the Mariott where I was staying for the weekend, as part of my press visit to Oakland. My husband was the one who actually suggested we try nearby Cock-a-Doodle cafe on Washington st. in … [Read more...]
Bradenton Area: Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing
Oh, the places they stole. Four times this year I’ve been to the canals of Venice, without ever setting foot in Italy. In Vegas, Macau, Qatar and where I live, Venice, California, there are facsimiles of the famous waterways, only cleaner, shinier, and without the creases of deep history. Theme parks, made-made-islands, cruise ships, old quarter facades, entire cities fashioned to appear as someplace else. It’s hard, these days, to … [Read more...]
Travel Locally – It’s amazing what you can find nearby
I have travelled some in my life, flown to Europe, Central and South America and have driven across the country a few times. Just the formulation of a trip, pinning a picaresque photo on Pinterest even, can make me giddy. So it was with great surprise that I stumbled on a nearby destination, just as fulfilling and foreign as many of my more exotic jaunts: Big Bear Lake, a scant 100 miles from home. When you grow up in a big city, like Los … [Read more...]
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