goatee
highlanders
°2024.08.26.Mon | The lost rock of Lake Michigan
While visiting Michigan for a family wedding, we came across the Lost Rock of Douglas Beach, Lake Michigan.
°2023.07.27.Thu | Pittsburgh visit
Given we are thinking about the next stage of our lives, we visited Pittsburgh as a place we might move to. We enjoyed the city. There was plenty to do and see, we got around easily on bus and POGOH shared bikes, and we were taken with some of the neighborhoods. Our favorite were:
- Lawrenceville
- Friendship
- Point Breeze North (near East End Food Co-Op)
- Mexican War Streets in Central Northside
- (Bloomfield and Garfield are also okay)
°2022.08.30.Tue | Sunday River, Maine
Visiting a ski resort in the summer makes for beautiful views. We took chair lifts up the mountain and hiked along a trail.
°2022.03.14.Mon | Caladesi via Clearwater
In 1985, Hurricane Elena filled in the Dunedin Pass, separating Clearwater Beach from Caladesi Island, though it is a bit of a (lovely) hike.
You know you’re near the boundary, when you see the shell trees.
And you know you should hurry back, when the tide starts coming in.
°2022.03.13.Sun | Gulf Coast Sunset
Something that tickles me, as a New Englander, is an aquatic sunset.
°2021.09.07.Tue | North Shore, South Shore
This labor day weekend, we got a car and explored the coast around Boston.
On Saturday, we explored the North Shore and happened across Gerry Island, for which there is a path when the tide is out.
Monday, we explored the South Shore, and enjoyed the rocky beach of Webb Memorial Park.
°2020.12.21.Mon | What counts as meat?
Rebecca Schuman’s Schadenfreude, A Love Story reminds me of my favorite zines from the naughts, and I’m enjoying her stories of high-school angst and collegiate travel from that era.
Last night I laughed with recognition when she learned, as a vegetarian in Germany, that the little cubes of ham on her broccoli and cheese was not meat but ham (“Das ist doch kein Fleisch – das ist Schinken.”)
I’ve had similar experiences traveling the world as a vegetarian:
- In Europe and Asia, ham, chicken, and fish are not necessarily “meat.”
- In Asia, a “vegetarian” dumpling can have fish sauce.
- In Asia, asking for “vegetarian” food can also mean no onion or garlic because the diet is closely associated with Buddhist monastics who swear off pungent vegetables.
°2019.07.18.Thu | Goose Pond Lake
We had a lovely long weekend in New Hampshire.
Casper isn’t keen on swimming, as he was when younger, but he still loves the water. Kayak or canoe, he rests his chin on the gunwale and watches the water go by.
We tried paddle boards on this trip, and he contentedly climbed on and lounged as his tail dragged in the water. Once, when back from a trip across the lake, he climbed back aboard as if to say, “okay, let’s go back out.”
°2018.05.31.Thu | Vegan in Prague
We haven’t been to Prague for seventeen years and much has changed in that time. Notably, there are now dozens of veg* restaurants. Every neighborhood has a few.
Nora and I use the “Vegan Guide to Prague” as our basis and collected a few notes along the way. These are roughly ordered in ascending preference.
- Loving Hut: they are okay in a pinch, but I quickly tired of Asian-style buffets.
- Maitrya: Buddhist themed, lackluster food. We asked for tap water and got expensive “vitalized water.”
- Pure Bistro: a tiny bistro and store near our place, for which I was grateful.
- Mlsná kavka: had an excellent veggie burger.
- Herbivore: upscale bistro and store on the river with a buffet of good food – though the bread was stale.
- Happy Bean: a bistro at which I got a great quesadilla with vegan cheese. The proprietor is very charming. Sidewalk seating is available.
- The Donut Shop: next door to the Happy Bean, this shop offers three vegan donuts options, including one of the best donuts I’ve ever had. (Things aren’t so sweet in Prague, so you don’t end up feeling queasy when finishing a donut.)
- Incruenti: I think our risotto and soup was the best food we had during our trip. Its menu and hours are limited though. Nice patio seating in the back.