January: Founding of the Aigen Ukulele Players Association. Membership: 2. February:A trip to Venice at the start of Carnival blows my mind. Thank you, Sabine. March: Huh, that’s weird. I have a job in Salzburg. April: Total strangers invite us to Passover in Graz. It is a perfection for which I am still grateful. Thank …
Authenticity. It’s the buzzword of the enlightened traveler. We seek the genuine experience, something unspoiled by commercialism or prior visitors; we seek the perfect interaction with the culture we’re visiting. Maybe our fantasy is to be adopted by a tribe, to receive some kind of acknowledgment that we’re not just another camera toting white shoe …
I have been enjoying the fish counter guy at Madison Market. He’s not exactly cheerful, but he’s helpful and informative and he’s yet to steer me wrong. But after a Christmas Eve mention of Mutual Fish, a rather well known local institution for, um, fish, I decided it was time to get out of the …
Every winter, my mother in law sets herself to baking vast quantities of Christmas cookies. There are Linzer Augen and Schneehaubenkekse and Nutella Brownies and Butter Cookies and Lebkuchen and Meringues and and and….there is a broad variety and they keep coming. There are a few family favorites, the Schneehaubenkekse and the Vanillekipferl are certainly …
Travel light. Face it, it’s just easier. Be nice. Please and thank you go a long way in any language. Ask locals. They live there. They know where the best pizza is and the friendliest clubs. And when you’re in those places, ask the people who work there where they go. Think positive. Everyone is …
If you’re coming from the Tercel message boards, well howdy! You should know that we’ve since sold our old friend Theodore Tercel. He’s still running, though, and I saw him the other day in my old neighborhood, happy as ever, with a dog sitting in the front seat. Theo always wanted a dog, I’m glad …