Finding Providence

Last Fall I took my son to visit Brown for a night. I knew I wanted to return to explore the rebirth of New England's second biggest city. Providence RI is a fasinating place, a mix of old, new, rich, poor and blue blood, immigrant. Italian food is a specialty on Federal Hill and College Hill is an ivy covered oasis of learning.

My room at the Hotel Providence is a suite complete with jacuzzi and sitting room. This gem of downtown has been open for just one year and is a member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World

Fare Price for Air Tickets

I am always asked about airfares, “do you think it’s a good fare”? I am not Houdini not even close. I have frequently bought a ticket and a few days later found a much better price, the stock market is easier to track. Possibly no more due to a website called Farecast.com. If the Beta test works life will be easier!

Put in the dates and airports and prices come up, also a prediction about the possibility of fares going up or down. I now have an answer to people that ask at parties whether or not they got a good deal. Thanks to Professor Oren Etzioni from the University of Washington and Farecast.com!

The story of Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce

It often takes time for the full impact of a place to fully set in. I picked up a book today called Chief Joseph & the Flight of the Nez Perce by Kent Nerburn. Pamphlets rarely delve deep into subjects and I remember thinking that I wished I had more info as I walked around Big Hole, Montana last Fall. The cold air filled with falling flakes kept most visitors at bay, leaving plenty of space to quietly listen to the past. The tepee poles stood where they did on the morning of what I call a massacre. This book’s first chapter took me back to that day that I wandered through the past. GoNOMAD Montana Article

Wild Rio De Janeiro, Adventure Travel

Men’s Journal recently came out with the top wildest cities in the world. Wild means something different to everyone, so my take was a little different than theirs. They based their picks on adventure options with a sprinkle of party. I think adventure is a state of mind, think of your first cachaca cocktail in Rio. Rio in fact tops the list, as it should.

Here my take on #1 Rio De Janeiro:

While I did hang glide from Pedra Bonita Mountain to the beach, I didn’t run up Corcovado my first morning there. I did however walk from my hotel to Posto 9 on Ipanema Beach, and dared to strip down to my bathing suit at this bastion for the city’s beautiful people. That itself was a tough thing to do in a city known for, “corpos athleticos and bundas boas. (Athletic bodies and great assess) Just keeping up with the Cariocas in their zest for life could qualify you for a quick climb up the Himalayans.

Eating and drinking in Rio is itself is a marathon worthy of becoming an Olympic sport. I personally think I could represent the US in the massive meat-eating feast that would take place at a churrascaria. Yahoo now has links to GoNOMAD articles in their expert advice sections. I am hoping that alone qualifies me for the team. Here is my full take on the World's wildest city. GoNOMAD

The Garden Grows

Cut the first flowers from the garden, I love seeing something I planted grow. All summer long I will be able to have vases of color throughout the house. 

Drink Your Coffee with Locals

I do not have the GoNOMAD Cafe nearby but I do have the New York Store in High Falls. Besides great local food products they serve fantastic coffees. It has become a daily afteernoon stop for me and I am now a regular, much like the people that stop at the GN Cafe. Noted Chef, John Novi is one of the people behind the store.

Travel Gadgets

I am a gadget junkie, big monkey on my back, gorilla size. When Max and I are at a show for GoNOMAD we like to set up the office. I can tell by his little smile that Max knows I am going to pull out my new toy, only to be unable to figure out how to use it. Still I love the thought that someday I will be the Inspector Gadget of the travel-writing world. Fact is I am still trying to use the video/MP3/camera/recorder I bought at the Adventure Travel Show in NYC last January.

Being a junkie however keeps me searching for the next cool travel toy. On my wish list is a transporter like the one Spock and Kirk use to zip around, mend the airport blues. Perhaps an automatic thought machine that would instantly put all my observations in concise clear words would be cool. Maybe just one device that makes all the others work easily would top my list. If these things ever come to be I will find them on http://www.travelizmo.com/

Travel Write

For the second time in a week my home zone has gotten national coverage as a place to go, Ulster County NY. Budget Travel has scooped out places such as New Paltz and Saugerties as great places to visit. Stay in a lighthouse was one piece of advice, another, tubing down the Esopus is one I have enjoyed over the years. I am often asked about press trips and foreign destinations. Remember that where you live is to some a place to visit. Start writing about what you know and the rest will come. Catskills Article

Know the Publishers

I had lunch with Mike Marnell the publisher of the Lincoln Eagle today on the riverfront in Kingston. We met to chat about the Eagle and response to the paper. It has been phenomenal and that was great news. We talked about how many writers are now requesting a chance to strut their stuff. I admire people like Mike and Max from GoNOMAD, they have energy and a vision, better yet they both are interesting to talk with, ideas flow like water. Its funny but my reprint of GN piece about Macau in the Lincoln had the picture of me jumping from the Macau Tower. I was voted most likely to do crazy things in high school; I haven’t let the folks from the Hudson Valley down! Next up is a trip on the canals in the south of France.

Cape Air, Cape Cod's Best Connection

I love flying and strangely enough the smaller the plane the better. As the Cessna 402 lifted from Nantucket’s Airport I reveled at the view from the co-pilot seat of the Cape Air flight. Worry, not at all Cape Air is the largest independent regional carrier in the US, last year they flew 560,000 passengers. I have to wonder who will sit in the CP seat on the flight back to ACK airport. Love it when the pilot personally welcomes you on board and into the seat next to him.

Whaling Away the Day in Nantucket

As you can see from the picture Nantucket still has a strong link to the fishing way of life. No longer do the whaler's head out for up to three years risking life and limb, its more dealing with tourist hooking themselves. Yet the Island still has such vibes of those past times when the world looked to Nantucket for fuel made from whale blubber. After I visit a place and before I write , I like to read something that gives me a feel of its past. I picked up a copy of, In the Heart Of the Sea: the Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex by Nathaniel Philbrick. The book offered fasinating glimpses not just into the story that inspired Moby Dick but also into past life on the Island. Research is really my favorite part of writing.

My Favorite Sin, Gluttony

I truly am guilty of one of the seven deadly sins, gluttony. It wasn’t hard to detect, a perfectly grilled softball size piece of filet is a sure tip off. However my side dish of half a 2-pound lobster was a closer. Its not that the huge platter of shellfish with 3 sauces wasn’t enough or that it perfectly matched the harbor view. It is just that the White Elephant’s restaurant the Brant Point Grill is made for sinning. I will repent tomorrow; I still got a full day in Nantucket. Thou shall not say no!

Non- Conformist on Squam Road

 

Topper's Tops on Nantucket

I knew when I saw the chef picking fresh herbs outside of Topper’s Restaurant that I was in for a special meal. David Daniels certainly has created an island oasis for culinary delights! Daniels has long lit up Boston’s food scene at such places as XV Beacon and the Federalist and now is cooking at the Wauwinet’s restaurant, Topper’s. Conde Nast Traveler’s named Topper's # 3 for food among US Hotels. Pair that with Wine Spectator’s Grand Award and you know the difference between good and great!

Nantucket Kayaking

The Wauwinet has two separate beach areas, one on the bay and a second on the ocean. It was very tempting to see this sea kayak sitting within reach of waves. A few tugs and I could have paddled to sea--tempting indeed. A better idea is to contact Strong Winds and rent.

Nantucket Boat Ride

Alberto's presence is stirring through and the wind is picking up. Big drops started falling on my early morning walk and the weathered shingles of the Wauwinet look very inviting from afar. This old beaten boat was the treasure I found along the bay beach. Most think of sunshine when visiting Nantucket. A rainy morning walk also has its pleasures. 

Nantucket's Best Inn

This is home for the next two nights and it is just great! The Wauwinet Inn is on Nantucket, 30 miles out in the Atlantic. It has been 20 years since I have was last here. I knew I would get back some day, just didn't realize it would be at this amazing Relais & Chateaux Inn.

Legal at Logan Airport

It has been a long time since I landed in Logan, Boston’s airport. It was great to sit at a Legal Seafood restaurant and scarf down a bowl of NE chowder. Sure wish more airports had quality eats. While eating I looked through Boston Magazine and to my surprise my home area was covered as a place to go. Ulster County doesn’t really get a lot of coverage. The piece was very complimentary especially the parts about New Paltz. It was funny because we just put up a piece on GoNOMAD about the town.

Gourmet Magazine Facts

Once a foodie always a foodie, I eat better than cook. Every once and awhile I look through Gourmet magazine and drool, wishing I could pick up a phone and order the dishes dished. For food fun though, the Good Living page had some stats that made me quake.

8.2 Billion hamburgers were served in American restaurants in 2004.
About 85% of the tea served in the US is iced.
The average American receives 14% of their caloric intake from soft drinks.
Approximately 70% of all processed foods in US grocery stores contain bioengineered ingredients.


Yak, its what’s for dinner, the other red meat!

Robin & Kristen

Two Miller girls in Cottekill. 

Thanks Lee

True friends are the people you haven’t seen in five years yet when you hook up it is as if you saw them yesterday. We had an unexpected visit from some Team Miller family members. Robin and her daughter Kristen came for an overnight visit and it was so great to catch up. Lee couldn’t make it but sent two great bottles of fine wine; they have been collecting great ones for years. We opened the Chateau St. Michelle Meritage 1996 last night. It has been a while since I savored a smooth full wine properly stored for years. Thanks for some great memories, Millers!

Sleeping on Planes, the Plain Facts

Often I look to the Brits to get top travel info and recently came across a great site after reading about it in The Sunday Travel Times. How many times have you tossed and turned in the narrow confines of an air chair? John Stallcup author of How to Sleep On Planes has some great answers on www.sleeptravel.com

Often I still use a prescription but always looking for alternative methods. Some even can be used when your feet are firmly on the ground. Make the friendly skies friendlier and check out the site.

Thanks Jordan

I recently stayed in the Grand Hyatt in Amman, a hotel that al-Zarqawi had bombed killing innocent Jordanians. The fact that al-Zarqawi was from Jordan himself infuriated most Jordanians I spoke with. I was told several times that the Kingdom of Jordan was doing much to fight terrorism, far more than the West knows. It now speculated by the media that it was Jordanian sources inside Iraq that pinpointed his fatal last meeting. If true I am very grateful to the Jordanian Government

The Xanax Skies

I came across this little story recently about a flight attendant named Daniel Cunningham working for Northwest Airline. It seems that a mother of a 19-month-old child noticed a white powdery substance floating on the child’s juice. It turned out to be Xanax provided unknown to the child by Cunningham. He was sentenced to four months home confinement. Daniel wins the travel stupidity award, hands down!

Wauwinet, Why Not!

Confirmation has just arrived and I will be heading to the world famous Wauwinet Inn on Nantucket next week. I love checking out a place before I get there, it builds anticipation, so I spent some time on their site today. The site had me going but it was after all the Hotel’s own site. So I pulled out the Frommer’s Portable Guidebook to Nantucket and read their take.

The place is ultra –deluxe and is the only Relais & Chateaux property on the Island. There are 100 staff people to 80 guests, and it is situated at the tip of a wildlife sanctuary between the Atlantic and Nantucket Bay. The restaurant, Toppers is also highly rated and I have a dinner and lunch scheduled. I almost feel as if I am going on a congressional junket, or hanging out with Johnny Jet. The Lincoln Eagle readers will love hearing about this place.

School of Country Wisdom

I have always thought that experience was the best teacher but here is one school that I would love to check out, School of Country Wisdom. No basket weaving 101 here, it’s straight to Adirondack Pack Basket making at this school. Some of the other courses offered are Bee Keeping, Making Gourmet Sausage and Natures Way.

The school is run in conjunction with Schoharie County, SUNY Cobleskill and Storey Publishing in North Adams Mass. I just may be a drop in at some point but for now I am busy watching the tomato plants grow.

North Shore Mass

 

Rockport Harbor

My first ocean visit of the summer was just great and Rockport Mass a great first choice. 

Lobster Flower

Flowers and lobster pot markers are a perfect match