After almost missing my flight due to the standing in a security line that rivaled the length of the Great Wall of China, I’ve come to the conclusion that the answer is to take more road trips and a two-daycation makes a perfect R & R break. (A two-daycation is one overnight, starting and ending…
Oops… I almost forgot one of the best things I found at the Havana Social Club. While I was there, I saw that upstairs in the cozy VIP Nook, there was a private party going on — which I immediately crashed. People were sipping drinks and sampling a variety of snack mixes made by Sahale,…
If you’re the sort of traveler that likes to blend in with the locals and dislikes the formality of hotels, then Casa Howard in Florence is perfect for you. Situated on Via Della Scala, Casa Howard is a guest house in a typical Italian apartment block. The small gold plaque looks more like a house…
My favorite artisan chocolate maker in the whole wide world, Vosges Haut-Chocolate, has just created something that you have to taste to believe how delish it can be… Crisp, buttery, compulsively irresistible Applewood Smoked bacon mixed with a sprinkling of Alder Salt and Deep Milk Chocolate. The owner and founder, Katrina, started playing with this…
Shanghai is about ready to take on another Western import – this one for the third time. The Shanghai Daily recently reported that Shanghai (again) would be the home of “Asia’s first Ice Bar.â€? The new incarnation will be backed by Absolut giving it the name, The Absolut Icebar. Previous attempts at Asia’s first subfreezing…
Not to be a snob, but I really didn’t expect to find one of the best “gin joints in all the towns in all the world” in Seattle, Washington, but I really LOVED the ambiance (and the drinks) at the new Havana Social Club. Their description even reads cool, “Envision the bustling lobby of an…
Earth and Ocean, the trendy four-star restaurant located is Seattle’s W Hotel uses all the right buzz words: “Serving New American cuisine with a focus on organic, farm-direct produce and seafood from the Pacific Northwest.” The ever-changing menu has something for everyone with separate pages devoted to: Starters, Entrees, House-made Charcuterie, Artisan Cheese, Desserts, and…
Not even the brightest, greenest, limiest colored exterior paint can deprive foodies from enjoying the authentic Puerto Rican cuisine at Sol Food in downtown San Rafael, about 15 miles north of San Francisco. l’ve squeezed into their first locale two blocks north that features a bustle of activity amid a few indoor and outdoor tables,…
There’s a company I found that creates gemstones from carbon captured during the cremation of human remains. “LifeGem” captures the carbon released during cremation as a dark powder, and then heats it further to produce graphite. The graphite is sent to a lab where it is synthesized into fancy diamonds. What a cool and fantastically…
Too bad it wasn’t when I went to the Pike Place Market Cheese Festival — which was still a mob scene, rain and all! It was so crowded that I left after trying the two cheeses that I was mainly interested in–and both were worth the fight. 1. Estrella Family Creamery I can’t decide if…
:: blavish – Nespresso Sparkle Pink Essenza Espresso Machine with Swarovski Crystals :: BornRich – Pop-Up TV-Liquor Cabinet :: Shiny Shiny – Invisible Home Theatre from Sony: micro DAV-IS10 :: Luxury Reviewer – Kharma Enigma $1 Million Speakers :: News.com.au – Status symbol trips
Now that’s what I call “Big News!” “How big is it?” Well, Saks Fifth Avenue says its new shoe department, opening this August in its New York City Fifth Avenue Flagship Store, IS SO BIG that it will even have it’s own ZIP CODE: 10002-SHOE It’s the first time in history that the U.S. Postal…