Category Archives: Travel

Winter Doldrums

03 Thursday Mar 2016

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After some unseasonably warm days here in the city, today’s colder temps really dragged me down. I’m reminiscing about our quick trip to Palm Springs at the end of January that combined a little bit of work (for me) followed by a few days of fun for both of us. I’m ready to go back any day now. After a few days in the California desert, I can easily see what draws people out west. It has a mystical and otherworldly vibe that I totally dig.

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This vacation hit that magical sweet spot of just enough relaxation combined with the right amount of activities. And while it wasn’t quite hot enough for me to jump in our Airbnb’s pool, I did manage to polish off a good portion of that 500-page tome I was reading before we headed to Joshua Tree National Park for some hiking.

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After leaving Joshua Tree, we made a pit stop at the Noah Purifoy exhibit to soak in some desert culture. It’s a truly funky place!

I was really hoping for a beer and burger at the famous Pappy & Harriet’s in nearby Pioneer Town but we picked the one day of the week they were closed. So we heaved a collective sigh and ate a burger from In-N-Out instead, sans beer.

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I’ll be dreaming of these blue skies for the next few weeks as the east coast begins its final creep towards spring.

 

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Autumnal Remnants

13 Wednesday Nov 2013

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The last of the leaves are dropping from the trees and the days are getting progressively shorter. Yesterday the first flakes of snow fell and though they were fleeting and melted instantly, it has me wishing that autumn could hang on for just a few moments longer. I didn’t get my fill of foliage yet. And I haven’t had a single sip of cider yet.

On a lighter note, I have come to the conclusion that vineyards are infinitely more enjoyable during the autumnal months than during the dead of summer. I’m vividly recalling a particular trip that Charlie and I took over the summer to a certain vineyard overlooking a bluff on Long Island’s North Fork. The view was incredible and the wine was pretty good, too, but it was preceded by the longest, sweatiest bicycle ride during the summer’s most unbearable heat wave. By the time our wine was poured, I was ready for a dip in the ocean. Our intentions were good, but it was not the most enjoyable way to spend a summer afternoon.

But in the fall, the air is crisp and cool. You can enjoy a glass of white and not be preoccupied with mopping sweat from your brow. A few weeks ago, we took a trip north to Rhinebeck, NY and then detoured out to Millbrook Winery to spend the afternoon with friends. I’d recommend you take similar course of action if you still have a few lingering, sunny days of fall left wherever you are.

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Don’t mind the criss-crossing power lines. Modern technology can screw up even the most scenic vistas.

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Tempting bunches of grapes still ripe for the picking.

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I could duck out of Brooklyn for that dusty drive any weekend.DSC_0480

Sun and Sand

03 Monday Sep 2012

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I know what you are all probably thinking. “Did it really take her almost two weeks to get over this whole bike theft thing?” I promise I’m not THAT upset. But efforts to catch the perpetrator, which included scouring Craigs List and peering into empty lots around Brooklyn, were unsuccessful.

It’s just been really busy around here. Maybe because summer is wrapping up and we’ve been trying to cross all those remaining summery things off our list. Or maybe because piles of work just keep creeping up at all hours of the day. Regardless, I looked at the calendar today and realized the first day of September has already come and gone. And I wasn’t even watching!

Since I’m torn between feelings of summer sadness and autumn excitement, I’ll post a few photos from our trip to Cape Cod to help ease the transition. Summer was a great season, filled with lots of travels, city excursions, and foods, but I have no doubt it’ll be back again next year. Same time, same city.

And hopefully, next year will bring more weekends like these. Because the Cape is a pretty great place to while away a few days, if you ask me.

We were lucky enough to have this little beach just within walking distance.

And most times, we had the whole sandy spot to ourselves. A little slice of the ocean reserved just for us.

The only thing missing is a picture of our annual lobster feast. But once the table was set, my eyes glazed over and I consumed that lobster with a speed and precision that only those who frequent the Cape will understand.

Food Frenzy

24 Tuesday Jul 2012

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Okay, one last post about Los Angeles and I promise I will move on to a new topic. Can you tell that lengthy vacations are few and far between for me?

As I may have mentioned a few times before, Charlie and I have a tendency to eat and drink our way through most excursions. On our drive, I spent most of my time in the passenger’s seat squinting at the iPad, searching for ways to avoid fast food joints and arrive at some greasy, roadside haunt that would presumably be filled with locals. Typically, these establishments were no better than your average McDonald’s, but somehow the hunt seemed to justify the calorie count.

But I was really excited to reach LA, birthplace of the food truck. We’ve discovered some great carts and trucks in New York (quesadillas from Calexico are a weekly indulgence) and were excited to find a few new names to add to our list of favorites.  Well, it turns out that on the first Friday of every month, LA’s food trucks make their way over to Abbot Kinney Boulevard in Venice for a monthly food festival of sorts. The trucks stake out their spots in the early afternoon and keep serving food well into the night. And if you thought that you had seen every possible incarnation of food on wheels, think again. I’m pretty sure a new truck is born every minute. Here are a few of the trucks that caught our eyes.

In addition to good food, I love a good play on words.

I have to admit, the weather in California was much cooler than I had expected. I thought everyone ran around this state in cut-offs and midriff baring tank tops?? I ended up wearing a sweater more often than I’d like to admit. But enough of the weather. It was pretty hard work being a tourist and snapping all these photos, so we took a well-deserved break to try ice cream on a stick. Ice cream is always good, no matter the temperature outside.

What is this new style of potato, you ask? Well, it is a spud cut in a spiral shape, stretched out like a slinky, and impaled on a stick. Oh, and fried to a nice, golden hue.

And this last truck takes the cake, in my book.

Sometimes, I think owning a food truck would be grand. But the potential impact on my waistline is enough to steer me off that career path.

A Roadster’s Paradise

18 Wednesday Jul 2012

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It might sound a little strange, considering I just mentioned that I drove 3,000 miles from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, but I actually don’t really like driving. People usually screw up their faces when I tell them this and say: “Really?!” Because, I know, it is the American dream to get their first car and feel the freedom that a long, empty stretch of highway brings on a sunny afternoon. Windows down, hair blowing, music blaring. Amber waves of grain rustling as the car passes by.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved our road trip. I’ve never had so much fun on a road trip and, in fact, didn’t know it was possible to enjoy 12 hours of sedentary driving for 5 days straight. But it is the routine of daily driving that I absolutely loathe. To me, autonomy is not behind the wheel, speeding across pavement every day just to go to work. Or the grocery store. Or the bookstore. And I really hate when my hair is blowing all around me.

This is why I live in a city like New York. I get the pleasure of riding a smelly, dirty, crowded subway every day. And I love it. The subway also indulges my need to multi-task, something that never works well when driving. Instead of staring at the line of cars moving slowly ahead of me, I get to stare at my book. All the countless subway rides I have taken the past few years have allowed me to finish many books and even a few issues of The New Yorker while I’m at it. For that reason alone, I consider the monthly subway pass worth every dollar they charge me. One hundred and four of those dollars, to be exact.

And it is because of this driving that I have a fond appreciation of Los Angeles, yet could never see myself living there. There is a highway to connect every corner of that sprawling city and Charlie and I spent a lot of time on it. But we had a great time exploring all the neighborhoods, especially Los Feliz, where we had an amazing brunch, and Santa Monica, where we shopped and walked along the beach. It was the perfect reward after our long drive and it felt so nice to savor the last few days of our vacation at a much slower pace.

Here are a few snaps from our adventures in LA.

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Most days – make that most every day! – I’ll go for a plain cup of jo. Just milk, please. But a vacation in LA felt like the appropriate time to sip a leisurely latte in a coffee shop.

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The sign in that last photo was a little disconcerting…

I love how different this city is from the one that I call home and I’m so happy that I finally got to explore it myself. (It seems to me that it is one of the few cities that New Yorkers feel they can make lofty generalizations about. Either LA is the NYC of the west or it is the most deplorable spot in the country. There never seems to be a middle ground!)

But, I will leave you to make you own judgements and with one more snapshot.

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This was taken in the gardens at the Getty Museum. Do you see all that SMOG hovering over the city in the distance? Unbelievable. It leaves a little lump in the back of my throat when I think about all the miles of gas we burned just to get here. It’s going to take a couple of mass transit rides to get rid of that guilt.