September 2011
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Nessie of the North
Alaska has its own version of the Loch Ness monster, and there was an alleged sighting during my stay. Similar to previous sightings, Alaska’s Nessie is grey and grainy, and is only able to emerge from the murky deep during extended periods of black-and-whitedness.
According to scientist Paul Leblond, “It must be a mammal or a reptile, since it oscillates up and down in a vertical...
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Salmon: Nature's Speedy Spawners
Post-photo shoot, we continued our hike around the Mendenhall, stopping to pay our respects to the spawning (and, judging by the sign below, occasionally toothsome) salmon.
Salmon aficionados claim that you can taste the difference between spawning and non-spawning salmon. Alas, I did not achieve my Alaska goal of catching and consuming a salmon in a bear-like fashion (those suckers are fast!),...
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Been There, Done That
The more I travel, the more I think about becoming blasé about new sights and experiences. I know, I know – this is a prime example of a first world problem (Haitian woman: “How do I feed my illiterate children while not dying of cholera?” Tourist: “I hope I don’t choke on the fragile bones of this tiny, nearly-extinct bird for which I have paid a great deal of money and traveled many days to eat...
August 2011
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June 2011
3 posts
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May 2011
4 posts
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Jazz Fest Day 1: New Orleans Makes Me Hungry
Jazz Fest: Day One
May 7, 2011
The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival been on my life list for a while, right between “learn to drive a stick” and “vist Machu Picchu.” Since I wasn’t planning on driving a manual transmission up the Inca Trail anytime soon, Jazz Fest it was.
My friend Michelle and I arrived on Saturday afternoon, dropped off our stuff at our Garden District hotel, and hopped...
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Say What?
Heard via the public address system at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, LA, USA:
“This is the final boarding call for passenger Paul Smith booked on flight UA372 to Kansas City. Run, Paul.”
If there was ever a place for deadpan delivery….
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I am Sitting on a Bus Next to a Bag of Creampuffs
After an extended absence from the blogosphere, I am back. The reason for my absence is that my travels lately have been very short, mainly between Chicago and my parents’ house. By bus, by train, and by car, my weekends have largely been comprised of birthdays and baptisms and babies – lots of squishy-cheeked cherubs who melt my heart and make me excited about building with legos and drinking...
March 2011
2 posts
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Japan
I never realized the extent of the life I had built in Japan until I was visiting my parents one summer. My Mom and I were discussing something, and I responded I would take care of it “when I get home.” Our conversation stopped dead for two lingering seconds. Mom winced, and I felt a hiccup of surprise as we both realized that my parents’ home was no longer mine.
Needless to say, news of last...
February 2011
3 posts
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Just Eat It
As I see it, there are four types of foodies, people who differentiate between the “meh” and the amazing for a variety of different reasons. For some, it is an emotional attachment. For others, it is a sense of zeal and exploration. For most people, it’s probably a little bit of both. For your consideration, I present the following categories:
1) People with strong ethnic backgrounds. Like many...
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Procrastination: How to Do Nothing Without Really...
With a work assignment nipping at my heels like a rabid pup, I headed to my favorite coffee shop, Metropolis, to write a workplace violence policy that would change the lives of dentists and the people who want to shoot them.
But first, I had some tasks which required my undivided attention. I present to you, in chronological order, my Saturday Morning Procrastination Timeline:
Hard boiled egg....
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SNOW DAY!
Snowpocolypse. Snotorious B.I.G. Snoprah. SnoMG. Snomageddon. Whatever you call it, it wreaked its havoc right outside my window. So what better time to think about all the other places I could be than as I stare at buried cars and piles of snow? (With special thanks to Love Always, Lindsay for the inspiration.)
1) The Seychelles. Clear water, cold beer, and a refreshing dip in the Indian...
January 2011
1 post
“Advice? I don’t have advice. Stop aspiring and start writing. If you’re writing,...”
– Alan Watts | via maribean (via texturism)
December 2010
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That Week I Went to Bucharest
I was on the fence about visiting Bucharest. So, as with all my major life decisions, I turned to the Simpsons for guidance. That evening’s particular episode featured Lisa Simpson attending Springfield’s Romanian Film Festival.
I booked my ticket that night.
I was also swayed by the fact the my lovely friend Hannah is living in Bucharest as an English teacher. While Hannah was busy...
November 2010
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Mexico City, You've Kidnapped My Heart
Before I left for Mexico City, I was warned by several people about “express” kidnappings. An express kidnapping usually happens when you hail a cab on the street. The driver, in cahoots with his criminal cadre, holds you hostage, taking you to several ATMs in a row where you are forced to make cash withdrawals. These kidnappings tend to occur shortly before midnight so the victim can max out...
October 2010
5 posts
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Florida Fun
My recent trip to Orlando, a collection of congested highways, chain restaurants, outlet malls and Disney hustlers trying to make a buck, was less than magical, with the characters outside the Magic Kingdom far more interesting than the ones within.
My company put me up in a Disney Resort, which would be fine except for the fact that it had no gym, no room service, no business center, no...
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On the Road
My family did not take vacations. Ever. From ages 3 through 12, my peak Disney years, we lived a mere six hour drive from the Magic Kingdom. Yet every summer I found myself crammed with my two brothers in the back seat of our maroon Ford LTD, driving north to Grandma’s in Minnesota instead of south to Mickey’s in Florida.
It was 24 hours of family togetherness, which my father would...
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So Long, Salvador
Where I Stayed
Prestana Bahia Hotel Rua Fonte do Boi, 216 Rio Vermelho Salvador, Bahia
This is a business hotel through and through. The property lacks character, and the service is iffy on a good day and nonexistent on a bad one. If you stay at the Prestana, you can be comforted by the excellent breakfast, which is included in the room rate. The neighborhood, Rio Vermelho, is a little isolated,...
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The Not-So-Fine Line Between Flattering and Creepy
The ride from the airport back into Salvador for a final night was a true taxi cab confession, with my driver lamenting about the recent demise of a long term relationship. “I will never date a woman with a child again!” he railed as I nodded sympathetically from the back seat.
He swiveled around from the front seat, looking back at me and asking, “Do you have children?”
“Não,” I answered,...
September 2010
11 posts
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Ain't That a Kick in the Head
While my relationship with the ocean had been contentious, I never thought it would come to blows. After days of narrow misses and sheer luck, I got knocked in the noggin. It was gusty and grey, and the wind kicked up my board as I stood knee deep in the water. It wasn’t even a cool surf story - cool surf stories do not usually begin with “So there I was, standing ten inches deep in...
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Just Another Day at the Beach
Thursday’s weather was perfect - – blue skies, warm water, and plenty of swirling, foamy waves. But today’s obstacle would not be weather; it would be pedagogy.
Previously, I was lucky enough to have had a teacher who pretty much coddled me. He would help me drag the board against the tide, wading into deeper water, turn it around and even give me a nice little push when I was supposed to be...
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The Long and Short of It
The toughest thing about learning to surf is not actually getting on the board, but getting to the waves. Beginner surfers don’t begin by paddling out in the ocean; we begin by walking out to the waves until we are chest-deep, struggling to keep our huge boards parallel beside us. Then we wait for a good wave, turn the board around in the water so the nose faces the shore, hop on, paddle and...
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Baby, It's Cold Outside
It is springtime in Brazil. The weather is warm but unpredictable, changing by the minute from grey stormy skies to cloudless blue bliss. However, every Brazilian will insist that it is cold, even when talking to people whose climates regularly dip below freezing.
They will hug themselves for warmth, shivering and asking “Don’t you think it’s cold today?” as the thermometer hovers around around a...
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K is for Kate Who Sucks Salt from the Sea
I have a Brazilian alterego. Her name is Kate. Kate was born out of my Brazilian surf instructor’s pronunciation of “Kathy.” “Th” in Portuguese is pronounced “ch” so I became “Kay-chee” shortened to Kate. The other students in my class (three Brazilians and a Swede who all speak flawless English) soon followed his lead.
After two days, I stopped correcting people. By day three, I knew Kate was...
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The Day the Ocean Kicked My Ass
I have been ducked, swirled, pinned and spun beneath the salty waves of the Atlantic. I have surfed.
On Wednesday, September 8th, day two of surf school began at 10:30, when I joined the more experienced class at the beach. Day one had been strictly introductory, paddling around a waveless section of ocean, learning to control the board. The instructor and I laid on the beach, repeatedly...
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Lar, Doce Lar (Home, Sweet Home)
On Monday, September 6th, I made the trek to Itacaré where I will be until Saturday studying the fine arts of beach lounging and surfing. Itacaré is a beach community of about 25,000 people in the northeastern part of Brazil, about 250 miles south of Salvador.
Long a well-kept secret among the surf community, it has developed substantially since 1998 when the government completed a highway...
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I Adore Salvador
I haven’t had much chance to explore Salvador due to my pesky job responsibilities. However, I have culled my knowledge from various sources, including taxi drivers, office gossip, and a Brazilian colleague who is neither a taxi driver nor an office gossip, but a wonderful and reliable source on matters brasileiros. Without further adieu, I present all you ever wanted to know about Salvador da...
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August 2010
6 posts
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Ruggedly Handsome Gary: An Open Letter
Dear Ruggedly Handsome Gary,
Ahoy! It’s me – you know. Kathy. Kathy from Chicago. I just wanted to say thanks for being my naturalist on my delightful whale watching tour. You sure do know a lot about whales.
I will admit, when we first met and you told me the tour would last anywhere from three to seven hours, I was a wee bit skeptical. I didn’t realize that you enjoyed my company so much that...
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BC: Day 2
I woke up not as hungover as anticipated, so Ashley and I decided to go capture our own piece of Olympic glory. Our hostess Charlotte, co-proprietor of the 4-star C&D Resort, dropped us off at the Sky Train and we were off to sightsee* around the city.
I can only imagine how the city looked when it was flooded with people from all over the world, including athletes walking down the street,...
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KP and AC Do BC
What do you do when two of your favorite British Columbians decide to tie the knot? You grab a friend and head for the wilds of Vancouver!
While the bride and groom were taking care of last minute details, my oh-so-amenable travelling companion Ashley and I explored the city. Vancouver is honestly one of my favorite places in the world. The sea is salty and the mountains are high, characteristics...
April 2010
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26th Annual Chicago Latino Film Festival →
As an advocate of armchair travel, I encourage anyone in Chicago from April 16th to April 29th to check out the Chicago Latino Film Festival.
I will be volunteering, so stop by to say hi. If you’re extra nice or ply me with Latin American liquor, I may even share my film passes.
March 2010
22 posts
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Postal Pain
In case you were unaware, Chicago has one of the worst postal systems in the United States. In fact, they have been fined multiple times for failure to deliver mail. You read correctly. The post office, whose main purpose is to deliver mail, has been fined for doing just the opposite. I guess that statement might be a little misleading. They do deliver the mail, but instead of to...
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Bye Bye, Dubai
Unfortunately, my purpose in Dubai was not only to buy jewelry, but to work. I was an exhibitor at the largest dental trade show in the Middle East, shilling products and finding international distributors. But I felt this removed me from the tourist track and resulted in some of the most telling moments of my time in Dubai.
There were dentists from Iraq, a man who railed at me for the US...
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Gold Fever!
Diamonds may be a girl’s best friend, but gold is a girl’s best investment. Or at least that’s what I kept telling myself as I stood in front of the jewelry counter at a shop in Dubai’s magnificent Gold Souk.
In Arabic, a souk refers to a traditional market, though most of them do not sparkle as brightly as this one. The Gold Souk consists of 300 hundred stores, and it is estimated that 10 tons...
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Let's Go to the Mall!
Sometimes I think Dubai was conceived by a 13-year-old girl. There are lots of sparkly things – buildings, jewelry, pink lip-gloss. Boys and girls mostly hang out separately, but communicate via shy glances and text messages. And then there are the malls.
These are no ordinary malls. These malls house ice rinks and aquariums and ski slopes and water parks and dancing fountains and even a...
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