Posts

Showing posts from 2012

A New Year And A New Cycle

Image
The year of 2012 brought lots of  unexpected situations and dramatic events but as I learned from traditional Mayan teachings in Chichen Itza, that cycle has ended and a new cycle of more peaceful energy is arriving. I look back on my 2012 travel adventures with gratitude and anticipation for even more excitement and new explorations in 2013 and I wish the same for all of you.

Feasting On Fried Pickles

Image
 For me, one of the joys of travel is uncovering local delicacies. Discovering new and unusual dishes supplies just as much fun as exploring new destinations. So when I visited Greenville, South Carolina for the Euphoria food and music fest, I didn't expect much food discovery since I'm very familiar with Carolina cuisine. From shrimp -n- grits, to Hoppin John and Benne wafers, I thought I'd tried it all.  Then I heard something about fried pickles. They fry everything in the South and I've heard of fried pickles but I never actually tasted one. I was immediately directed to Carolina Ale House to sample this local specialty. I'm not a huge pickle fan and don't eat a lot of fried food but I couldn't pass up the chance to taste something new. I envisioned whole dill pickles battered like hush puppies but that's not what I was served. I was presented with a plate of delicate dill pickle chips, fried into crunchy goodness. I planned to try  just

Passports With A Purpose Taste Harlem

Image
I'm excited to be participating in the Passports With A Purpose  fundraiser again.  This year, the travel bloggers fundraiser is raising $100,000 to build two wells in Haiti with Water.org. The raffle prizes will earn  money for two rural communities to enjoy the basic benefit of clean water. My prize is again a generous donation from Taste Harlem for two tickets for a two hour food tour.  The $110 value will supply heaping portions of soul food classics like chicken and waffles, shown above. Short ribs, collard greens, mac n cheese and candied yams will also be on the menu. If you win the tickets, go on an empty stomach and be prepared to stuff yourself silly. The tour also features interesting tidbits about Harlem music, history and culture. You'll pass historic murals, churches and museum, learning about the vibrant neighborhood's storied legacy. Even though I've experienced the tour many times, it never gets old. The food is always great and Harlem

St. George Oyster Harvesting

Image
Along the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Florida, St. George Island unfurls with long stretches of pearly sand and serene landscapes. I visited this hidden, 22-mile barrier island expecting the unspoiled beauty but I also discovered a very distinctive, old school lifestyle that includes oyster harvesting.  Oysters can only be harvested manually in St. George so the surrounding Apalachicola Bay is dotted with small boats like the one above. These oyster boats haven't changed much since they were developed 100 years ago.  The wooden structure measures 20-23 feet and are equipped with  a small cubicle to protect against the sun, a culling board to separate the oysters and long, 12-feet tongs used to rake the shellfish from the oyster beds onto the boats. Oyster harvesting is often a family business, I spotted many husband and wife teams out on the water, patiently culling oysters, piling them into 60 pound sacks that go for approximately $25 each.  Oysters from the

A Sip of Cuba

Image
I long to visit Cuba and experience the vibrant culture I love so much. My plans haven't arrived just yet so the next best thing after regularly bathing in Cuban rhythms, is dipping into Cuban cuisine. I visited Chicago's newest Cuban restaurant, The Lazy Parrot  and discovered a few Cuban delicacies that I had never tried, namely Ironbeer. The name doesn't sound very appealing but when the owner and his cute daughter assured me that it was "the national beverage," I was intrigued.  Apparently, the soda was developed in Cuba in 1917 and contains a secret blend of fruit, herbs and spices that no one can ever put their finger on. The soda's story of  a mule-driven wagon carrying the soda to popular Havana cafeterias is quaintly written on the back of the can. Only now, the soda is manufactured in Miami, where the original family was exiled. The muscleman logo doesn't hoist the 500 pound weights in the original logo but the flavor is said to be the sa

The World's Smallest Police Station

Image
I've seen a lot of strange sights during my travels and the phone booth/police station that I visited on my recent trip to St. George Island, Florida, counts as one of them. Clearly, the little town of Carrabelle right outside of St. George, which consists of a few streets and this police station, does not experience much crime. Before the phone booth, the police phone was a simple call box bolted to a building. That call box served as the police headquarters until they were plagued by tourists making unauthorized long distance calls. So in 1963, they erected a phone booth under a chinaberry tree. This booth and bench currently provides the local police with all they need to regulate crime. I am not making this up. The phone booth has been featured in Ripley's Believe It Or Not and the Today Show. I squeezed into the booth and it is a tight fit. I don't think Carabelle police eat many doughnuts or other stereotypically fatty foods popular with the police. Sta

Ground Cherries & Chocolates in Montergerie

Image
I love discovering exotic fruits on my travels. It brings a whole other aspect of exploration to the experience. I didn't expect to find any unusual fruits in Monteregie but once I stepped into the bucolic beauty of Au Domaine des Petis Fruits,  I realized that this small region holds many surprises. The first was the heart shaped pond that decorates the estate, shown above. Flower beds landscaped into hearts was another unexpected treat. Fields of blueberries and cherries for picking were lush and fragrant but I was puzzled when our host asked if we liked ground cherries. Ground cherries? Um, cherries that grow underground? Never heard of them. I learned that the golden cherries have to be picked underground and are covered with a thin, paper-like skin. They tasted sweet with a slight tart undercurrent. Visitors come from all over Quebec to pick the delicate fruits. They have to be instructed on how to pick them without disturbing the plant.  I was excited to discover

Vineyard Beauty

Image
I spent a lot of times in vineyards this summer. I never planned it, that's just where my travels led me.  In Monteregie, I strolled  through about six different vineyards, each with a different atmosphere. I realized that just like my favorite beaches, vineyards offer tranquil meditation. They are very peaceful, with just a few birds to join you.  Have you discovered an unexpected relaxation spot during your travels?

Butterfly Dreams

Image
The province of Monteregie is nicknamed the "Garden of Quebec" for a very obvious reason.  The area is filled with lovely pastoral landscapes of vineyards, orchards and artisan farms. But an unexpected bit of bucolic wonder was the butterfly aviary tucked inside of Ferme Guyon farm and horticulture center. A hundred species of butterflies float around in the specially created ecosystem and I tried to spot as many as I could. It was tricky, they fly away quickly and their wings blend in with plant leaves. After a few tries, I discovered that it's best to sit still and let them fly near you. Before I knew it, a toffee-colored butterfly was relaxing on my purse. And then another came to rest on my bright blue pants leg. As visitors bustled around  furiously snapping pix, I grabbed the best images of all just by being still. I think there's a lesson in that somewhere...

Expanding Experiences With The Passport Party Project

Image
Volunteering and giving back has always been an important part of my life. I've participated in several travel blogger charity events but I don't think I've experienced so much glee to give back as I did at The Passport Party Project .  The event is a global awareness initiative that gifts 10 passports to undeserved girls in 10 cities across the U.S. Travel blogger Tracey Friley of One Brown Girl gathers travel bloggers in every city to volunteer and guide girls into the expansive world of traveling.  So it was a given that when the event landed in my city of Chicago, I was totally there. The party kicks off in the morning and we lined a table with supplies to create personal travel vision boards. Of course, no party is complete in my book unless there is quality sugar involved.  These cupcakes represent a range of flavors and nations. We provided encouragement for the girls with tales of our travels, a show & tell session and lots of silly  travel pho

Monteregie Culture In A Bottle

Image
Canada is famous for its sweet and smooth ice wine but in Monteregie, I discovered that there is also ice cider. And not the kind that is basically apple juice. Rolling up into La Face Cachee de la Pomme (The hidden side of the apple) cidrerie, I was greeted by apple orchards covered with rosy apples. Some varieties, like Fuji and Gala, stay on the trees until January, so that the cold and wind whip the insides into a concentrated taste. The frozen apples are picked when it's about 15 degrees below zero and the insides have been dehydrated and all that's left is nectar. Aged ice cider is stored in these barrels, La Face Cachee is a pioneer in ice cider and produces 10 different varieties. The founding president of La Face Cachee, Francois Pouliot, ditched his film video career where he worked with musicians like Celine Dion, to develop ground-breaking ice ciders. The ciders or apple ice wines as they are sometimes called, range from 8% -18% alcohol levels and must

A Quebecois Taste of Spain & England

Image
Noted for its free-spirited blend of cultures, Canada is a country that I always enjoy visiting for that very reason. But I have to admit my surprise when I rolled into the village of Hemingford in the rural region of Monteregie, Quebec, to discover that a British pub was the most popular dining spot. Quebec is so very French that I didn't expect such an Anglophile outpost. Equipped with stocks of ale (listed in French of course) and legendary fish and chips, I thought Witsend  Resto Pub was a quaint anomaly in a haven of French culture. Then I spotted this sign, above. I'm a big fan of sangria but never in all of my travels, have I ever heard of green sangria. The waitress shot me an incredulous look. Apparently, green sangria is the thing in Quebec and I was missing out. What makes the sangria so quintessentially Quebecois is the little fact that it's made from apple ice wince harvested at an orchard just a few miles away. The taste was smooth and fruity with