goldeneagle – The Rookery

A Weekend in Reno

I always tell people that Reno is a sleeper. At first glance, it doesn’t seem like much. Folks visiting Tahoe are grateful for its small, easy-access airport, and that’s about the end of it. It’s not laid out the way you expect a nice small city or cute big town to be laid out: theContinue reading “A Weekend in Reno”

ESC #39 and #40 plus bonus ESC: Beach Edition

Yep. Been passing this sign outside Sebastopol for years and finally couldn’t resist pulling over and taking a picture given its current, shall we say, mood. Plus Bill’s is a really great organic market I didn’t know about with a great little coffee shop. So, win/win. Playing catch-up here after a couple of busy workContinue reading “ESC #39 and #40 plus bonus ESC: Beach Edition”

Narrowboat Life

There is this amazing network of canals left over from England’s industrial era, and some folks putter around them on super-skinny houseboats called “narrowboats”: I don’t know the exact width, but I’d guess something like 8 feet? Skinny enough to fit through all of the canals at any rate. This charming couple, Kris and Andrew,Continue reading “Narrowboat Life”

Japan Through the Kitchen Window

This is a great series that NHK (Japan’s official government broadcaster, kind of like PBS in the States) puts on for foreign viewers. This episode is a lovely one about Teshima Island locals’ 40-year campaign to rid their island of industrial waste, with the help of an art festival and home-stays: youtube.com/watch

Savannah and Pin Point

I just finished a weekend in Savannah and surrounds, and while I don’t feel I know enough to make a definitive “Weekend in…” post on the city, I can make a few suggestions. Savannah is the Boston of the South, very colonial and conservative, owing in no small part to Sherman delivering the city asContinue reading “Savannah and Pin Point”

Rapa Nui

I just got back from a week on Rapa Nui (Easter Island), and here’s the upshot: if you *ever* find yourself with the time and the means to get out there, you should. You’ll be supporting tourism on the island, which is the only industry there and thus the main anchor that keeps Rapa NuiContinue reading “Rapa Nui”

A Weekend on the Sonoma Coast

Friday: I camp at Wright’s Beach b/c they have beachfront sites and are dog-friendly, but Bodega Dunes is nearby with its painterly 2-mile-long beach, which is usually empty (no dogs allowed, though they can be in your campsite). If camping’s not your jam, there are also some lovely coastal resorts in the area, like DrakesContinue reading “A Weekend on the Sonoma Coast”

Nakasendo Trail: Post-game show

Two words: SUMO and CAPYBARAS. But not yet. We woke up to a hot, hazy morning in Tōkyō. Just a couple of blocks strolling around Asakusa made it very clear we were going to have to make a plan that involved air conditioning. So, we set off for the Tōkyō National Museum and enjoyed aContinue reading “Nakasendo Trail: Post-game show”

Nakasendo Trail: Day 6 (Oku-Hida and Takayama)

Really, I have no one to blame but myself. I’m the one who insisted on (me at least) catching the 10 am bus to Takayama so I could maximize my time in the traditional lacquerware town before we caught our train back to Tōkyō. True, Cheryl is the one who then suggested we get upContinue reading “Nakasendo Trail: Day 6 (Oku-Hida and Takayama)”

Nakasendo Trail: Day 5 (Kamikochi and Fukuji Onsen)

One word for today: MONKEYS!! But not yet. We decided to take one more dip in the onsen at Higashi Ishikawa and delay our departure for Kamikochi in the morning a bit in order to give the rain a chance to pass over, and our strategy appeared to work—we never suffered more than a sprinklingContinue reading “Nakasendo Trail: Day 5 (Kamikochi and Fukuji Onsen)”