I'm heading off to Italy to spend a week in the Veneto. I will do my best to post a bit from the road, but if I don't, it's because I'm too busy cooking, eating, drinking, walking, or napping. I've also got one night in Venice. Any/all suggestions welcome. Ciao!!
Category: Travel
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Mangia!
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Even *More* Tales from Tales
I know — enough already. I promise this'll be the end of it, unless I decide to write an essay on the magnificent fried chicken at Willie Mae's. When Down South: The Sippin' 5 Places to Drink Well in New Orleans — some of my favorite bars/drinks of the week and A Sampling of Bashes from Tales of the Cocktail — a taste of some of the parties I attended.
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Tales of Tales
I made it back from NOLA in one piece, and actually feeling pretty good. I had such a wonderful time, and got to spend quality time with some of my favorite people from all across the country, most notably @rockdoggydog, @allanvkatz & @m_quinn. I even got to spend quality time with people I don’t see nearly enough of in NYC, including @jordanarothman, @chriselford, @vinbar44, @livethelushlife, @creativedrunk & @stevierosenyc.
I had a much better time at Tales this time around. I’d say that part of it was that I knew what to expect, part of it was that I had fewer obligations, and part of it was that I skipped a lot of things on my tentative schedule, focused on the things I wanted to do and the people I wanted to see, and generally just rolled with it. This mentality started when my direct flight out of NYC got cancelled and I ended up taking a three-leg trip just to make sure I escaped the vicious weather that was predicted for much of the East Coast. That bit of ridiculousness paid off, and I made it to NOLA well before my luggage did — it was on the flight on which I was originally rescheduled. I landed and went straight to Coop’s, where festivities were already in progress.
Highlights of the trip included a visit to Willie Mae’s Scotch House, dinner at Arnaud’s, Cochon & Maurepas Foods, drinks at Cure, Belloq, and SoBou, Pig & Punch, and shenanigans with friends near and far.
Points of note:
– I ignored my own advice and went out one steamy night without my trusty water bottle. That night, I was dying for water, and it was hard to come by. Until I found some, I made do with a glass of ice-cold champagne.
– Sometimes, a frozen Irish coffee from Erin Rose totally hits the spot.
– Always keep an open mind at Tales — take advantage of a last-minute invite, taste something new, and be welcoming to strangers. You’ll have a much better time that way.
– Chicken tastes even better when it’s hand-fed to you by the farmer who raised it.
– If there is a zombie apocalypse and/or a drought, you want @rockdoggydog to be your roommate; he’ll make sure all the supplies are covered.
– I didn’t hang out much at the Old Absinthe House this year, and I didn’t really miss it. I also went to bed pretty early my last night after a lovely dinner and a few drinks, which made for a much more pleasant re-entry to NYC.
See y’all next year!
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Gearing Up
Given the size of the bag I'm packing for Tales of the Cocktail, I'm starting to wonder which requires more gear (and more stamina): Tales or the NYC Triathlon? I am going to give the carry-on-only thing one last try (with a spare bag for carrying home swag), but odds are slim. I'm usually very careful about never checking bags; the last time I had used my enormous suitcase was — you guessed it — my last trip to Tales. This picture is from the trip home. Maybe I'll ship some stuff . . .
Already planning/plotting out my NOLA eats, and I can't wait to see so many good friends down there!!
The next question is, of course: which requires the longer recovery time?
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Bon Voyages!
In a few hours I'll be flying off to France to meet my Dad, stepmother, brother, sister and brother-in-law for a walking trip in the Dordogne. I've been in this region before and am looking forward to the gorgeous countryside, amazing wine, and foie gras galore (sorry, California, try not to be jealous). Will try to post updates along the way. Au revoir!
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Pro Bono Fest!
Off to DC this morning for 2 1/2 days of the Pro Bono Institute Annual Conference, where I get to spend time and share knowledge with some of the best people I know. See you there, pro bono peeps! And never fear — making time for food and drink too. Just have to figure out when I can sleep and go to the gym . . .
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The Regal Beast
It makes my heart hurt to leave my Moxie for the weekend, even though I'll be in sunny, warm Mexico and she'll be in @jeneanchapman's capable and loving care at my place. Reach out to her if you want to give the Mox some extra love while I'm gone!
I already miss her terribly.
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Thailand: The Photos
I was going to wait to post my Thailand photos until they were all neatly labeled and tagged. Then I realized this was not going to happen for several months, if ever. So, ladies and gents, here are all of my Thailand pictures, only moderately edited and barely tagged, for your enjoyment. The Buddha pictured above is "my" birthday Buddha — I was born on a Saturday — from Doi Suthep in Chiang Mai.
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Thailand Photo Teaser
I've posted my photos, but haven't yet labeled anything and am still editing. I promise to share when I'm done. Some of my favorite pics (not surprisingly) are from the market in Chiang Mai. I swear I could have stayed there all day, snapping photos and tasting the wares.
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R & R in Phang Nga Bay
We spent the last portion of our Thailand adventure on Naka Island, a five minute boat ride off of Phuket. After a flurry of activity in Bangkok and Chiang Mai, our primary goal switched to relaxation. This was fairly easy to accomplish, as we were staying in a lovely resort with our own villa and a private plunge pool (note to self: you should do this more often, wallet-permitting). Although the resort was our home base, we took a boat to the other side of the island for a tasty dinner at Tenta Nakara — the spiciest meal we encountered the whole trip. I think our whiteness generally led many Thai restaurateurs to tone down our food, sadly.
The one day trip we planned was a sea canoeing excursion in and around Phang Nga Bay, where we got to explore hongs, or sea caves, only accessible during low tide. The word I keep returning to when describing this trip is magical. First of all, the boat ride to our first anchor spot was incredibly scenic — so beautiful that I could hardly believe it was real. The green sea was dotted with steep rock uninhabited islands. As we got closer, we anchored and set out in three-person sea canoes, and explored the interiors of these natural wonders. During the course of the day and evening we explored several caves and hongs, saw swooping brown-winged birds, an egret, crabs, fish that walked on land (mudskippers), fish that skimmed above the water, majestic stalagtites and stalagmites, and glittery phosphorescent tiny sea critters. We swam in the balmy waters at sunset with the moon rising above us, and were fed a simple but lovely banquet prepared entirely on our boat. All in all, a magnificent day.
After that, it was back to R & R, although I did squeeze in a little Muay Thai class before heading off to the spa for a body scrub. After sunset cocktails, we capped off our day with a gorgeous beachside dinner, complete with tiki torches, flowers and champagne.
The trip home was long, but I was able to sneak in a bowl of miso ramen at the Tokyo airport this time through. I promise pictures of the trip will be up shortly.