April 2010
43 posts
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10 Creepy, Beautiful Modern Ruins →
(via californiagirl)
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Favorite Places | Chillon
On the coast of Lake Geneva in Switzerland, a short walk from Montreux, sits Chateau de Chillon, a remarkably well-preserved medieval castle built some time in the 12th Century. The grounds are exquisite, beautifully and carefully restored, particularly the underground where, according to Lord Byron, Bonivard suffered as “The Prisoner of Chillon.”
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How to Take Better Travel Photographs At Night |... →
Some day I’m going to learn how to actually operate a camera. You know, get real working knowledge of F-Stops, Aperture Values, and ISOs. First, of course, I need a much better camera than what I have now. In the meantime, here’s a useful link from Fodor’s on how to take better shots at night using a point-and-shoot.
March 2010
33 posts
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“I am two fools, I know,
For loving, and for saying so
In whining poetry.”
– John Donne | Died March 31, 1631 (via thingsdeadpeoplesaid)
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Art of the Steal: On the Trail of World’s Most... →
The plane slowed and leveled out about a mile aboveground. Up ahead, the Viennese castle glowed like a fairy tale palace. When the pilot gave the thumbs-up, Gerald Blanchard looked down, checked his parachute straps, and jumped into the darkness. He plummeted for a second, then pulled his cord, slowing to a nice descent toward the tiled roof. It was early June 1998, and the evening wind was...
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Amazing Race for the Rest of Us | The New York... →
If you’re like me, every fall you wish you were embarking on the “Amazing Race” (while sitting dumbfounded that so few of the lucky contestants know how to drive stick). Competitours decided to capitalize on our inherent love of travel and competition. According to The New York Times, the Cleveland-based travel outfit “is organizing a series of European competitions that...
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I learned recently of the passing of a friend. He died in the night of an epileptic seizure. He was 37 years-old.
Cameron and I were good friends, though hardly close, during our time together at the University of Colorado. I always enjoyed his company, considered him a kind and thoughtful gentleman, tall in stature and full of life. Over the years we’d kept in contact, exchanging emails,...
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“How is your novel coming? I hope you’re working hard on it. Don’t...”
– J.D. Salinger | In a letter to Ernest Hemingway
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On Health Care
Over the last several years, the political discourse on the health care system in the United States has been loud and with good reason. It’s one of the few areas where both Democrats and Republicans generally agree; the system is fundamentally broken and needs to be fixed. Where they part of course is in how to fix it. It is in this sphere of argument where the rhetoric is needlessly...
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WatchPhish 3D | In theaters April 30th
This past Halloween weekend, Phish treated close to 100,000 fortunate guests at the Empire Polo Grounds in Indio, California to Festival 8, a three-day jam featuring their long-standing tradition of covering an entire album by another artist during the second set on Halloween night. I was fortunate to be one of them.
The cover album choice last year was pitch...
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“On this road there are no godspoke men. They are gone and I am left and they...”
– Cormac McCarthy | The Road
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World's Best Treehouse Hotels | Travel + Leisure →
Because who doesn’t want to spend $500 a night to sleep in a treehouse?
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Inherent Vice by Thomas Pynchon
There was a time when I entertained the idea that I possessed an elite mind capable of engaging in abstract thought and understanding the infinite complexities of the world. This absurd notion was laid to rest 10 or so years ago when I read - or rather attempted to read - Thomas Pynchon’s 700 page opus Gravity’s Rainbow. I read about thirty pages before coming to the sudden realization...
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On second chances
In my experience you don’t get many of them.
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25 Secret European Villages | Travel + Leisure →
Travel + Leisure recommends twenty-five “undiscovered towns across Europe that deliver authentic charm without the crowds.”
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Query: Where do you go when you can’t go on but you can’t go home?
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The Most Unusual Hotels in America | Forbes →
Forbes highlights a few choices from the Unusual & Unique Hotels of the World website. Personally I’m trying to choose between the lighthouse and the doghouse.
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Favorite Places | Vigeland Sculpture Park
To inaugurate my new “Favorite Places” series I’ve chosen to highlight one of my favorite places in one of my favorite countries in the world. The Vigeland Sculpture Park is located in the heart of Frogner Park, itself in the heart of Oslo, Norway.
The sculpture garden features the work of Gustav Vigeland—and a lot of it. The biggest attraction is the spiraling...
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This is not an Oscar prediction
I guess since I’m going to document the Academy Awards live I should probably note which movie I’m rooting for to take home the top prize.
Allow me to address this with a caveat: I don’t care which film wins the Academy Award for Best Picture—not in the slightest. Rarely does the honored film align with what I consider to be the “best” film of the year. Some times...
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Speaking of the Oscars...
I just recently moved to Los Angeles. The Academy Awards are, needless to say, kind of a big deal round these parts. I know of many parties being held in their name. It’s like the Super Bowl for gossip freaks. I can think of few things more intolerable. No, I’d much rather sit at home, planted in front of my big screen television, free to narrate the action with as many off-color,...
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The World's Most Scenic Train Rides | Travel +... →
I like trains.
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The Wandering Chicken's First Rule of Packing (For...
If the first thing you do is throw two pairs of jeans into your bag, you’ve already overpacked.
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9 Great Festivals to See in 2010 | Fodor's →
Why not ten?
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Five Literary Places to Stay | The Guardian →
Want to get in touch with the literary inspiration of some renowned authors? The Guardian recommends these hotels the likes of Shakespeare and Hemmingway called home (at least for a little while).
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Best Vintage Movie Theaters | Travel + Leisure →
Since the Academy Awards are nearly upon us, here’s a look at some of the best places to view movies the way they were intended to be watched.
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America's Best Hikes | Concierge.com →
Spring is just around the corner. Concierge.com offers its choices for the best hikes to take to enjoy it.