An Attempt to See the World with New Eyes
We take the morning train from Rome to Pompeii, switching trains in Naples. Carl has warned me about the Naples train station, which seemed like overkill to me. I’ve spent hundreds of mornings commuting on New York’s subway cars and Philadelphia’s SEPTA buses. None of the things I’ve seen or smelled on those days prepared … Continue reading The City Beneath the Volcano
Whenever I hear people speak of Venice, it’s to say one of three things: “That’s number one on my bucket list” “The most romantic place in the world” “It smells like garbage. Too Crowded” The first speaker tends to have eyes glistening, gazing somewhere in the distance as they imagine Carnival and endless canals. The … Continue reading The Floating City
When I think of Italy there are two Italy’s that come to mind: One is the whirlwind of Rome and Milan where posh women in tight skirts while zip by on Vespas — Making it look easy as pie. Where curly haired men smoke cigarettes in front of shops and bars, wearing suits a shade … Continue reading A Tale of Two Duomos
When the buffalo came to camp I texted my mother — It was one of those “just in case” reactions where I figured that if a trampling happened, it would be better for the family to know sooner rather than later. It was early evening when they arrived. Dozens of buffalo, or bison, whichever you … Continue reading South Dakota Isn’t Boring
One winter morning in Greenwich Village I sat in an oatmeal cafe (because of course that’s a thing) eating a warm bowl of oatmeal topped with peaches and swirled with cream and brown sugar, watching New Yorkers try to make their way to the W-4th St. subway station. I say “try” because it had snowed … Continue reading An Illustrated Style Guide to NYC
Let’s get something straight before we dive into this — my “ranking” of parks stems from my being somewhere at a specific time and under specific circumstances. This does not mean you will not enjoy or find infinite value in the “last place” park. This should go without saying, but I once saw a popular … Continue reading Utah’s National Parks Ranked (Somewhat Arbitrarily)
At 5:00pm we pass a parrot bar. The door is made of the heaviest wood but it’s wide open. Revealed within sits a woman, early sixties with the whitest hair woven tightly into a bun. She’s drowned by the pearls wrapped round and round her neck, nearly weighted down by them as they clash against … Continue reading The Colors of San Juan
Rothenburg is the town the live action Beauty & the Beast set is inspired by (they made a replica of the fountain and everything!) but the history of the town is more interesting than fairytale. Hitler considered Rothenburg to be the ideal town; to him, it was the quintessential German “home town” and was featured … Continue reading Hanging in a Bavarian Fairytale: Rothenburg ob der Tauber
I know Beauty and the Beast takes place in France, but I couldn’t get the soundtrack out of my head when travelling through Bavaria. Whenever in an open field I’d throw my arms about me and belt “I want adventure in the great wide, somewhere” and standing in front of quaint shop fronts I’d hum … Continue reading Hanging in a Bavarian Fairytale: Bamberg
There is a place so flat and so barren that land speed records are shattered on its grounds; where you can go 600 mph in a turbojet propelled vehicle. Where no vegetation grows and the horizon line is the curve of the earth. At the Bonneville Salt Flats there’s nothing to “do” but it’s worth … Continue reading The Earth is Flat! Bonneville Salt Flats and the Land of Pure Horizon
