Ever stumbled upon the perfect café, sequestered deep in the quietest corner of a buzzing city, and just had to share the secret? Ever wanted to be part of that secret? Travelistas Lynn Lau and Abby Bender combine their journalism and travel experiences to bring readers Notes From A Café: Travel stories from the deep end, a refreshing cure to the usual stodgy travel resources. Notes From A Café revolves around the love of travel, with articles covering countries from Belgium to Norway to Malaysia, along with tips and resources to fellow travelers interested in the non-touristy side of exploring the world.
Celebrating the joie de vivre of traipsing the globe, Lynn and Abby feature their stories and secrets under headings such as "Voyage Vignettes" (focusing on the thick and thin of personal travel accounts), "Foreign Foibles" (cultural gaffes and taboos), "Travel Tips" (a grab-bag of information and suggestions for travelers), and "Roaming Reviews" (frank guides on true must-see's and definite stay-away-from's).
A random selection of our articles:
With a major road trip coming up, I know I’m going to need plenty of liquids to keep me going. Something hot and toasty in the morning would especially do the trick. But considering my schedule — a four-day drive all the way across the country — it’s neither feasible for my time nor my wallet to have to stop at multiple coffee shops along the way. Not to mention I don’t even drink coffee, so it can be hit-or-miss finding a coffee shop that provides good tea!
Regular beverage cups only hold so much liquid, and I’ve found they don’t retain their heat that long either. I decided to invest in a thermos bottle, and what better one than the original Thermos? I got myself the Thermos Nissan stainless steel vacuum insulated bottle, and was delighted (and am still enamored) to find out that the raves and reviews are indeed true. Your favorite hot beverage, poured in during the morning, remains boiling hot even through the evening. Or, conversely, your ice-cold drinks remain crisp all along your hot summer journeys. Wonderful!
One might argue that a beverage cup allows you to sip while you’re behind the wheel, but really, when you’re on a road trip, you don’t want to break your budget on little things such as this. Having an effective, easy-to-clean bottle means I just have to fill it up once; I don’t have to spend money on overpriced drinks every few hours, especially when they go lukewarm quick as a snap. Plus, its being stainless steel means it’s environmentally friendly and safe to reuse without risk of leaching!
I would much rather take breaks on the road, unwinding with a hot cuppa before a lovely view, than duck into a rest-stop coffee shop all the time. And, well, who wouldn’t?
Tip: For regular water containers, chose reusable bottles that have “PE” marked in the bottom, such as The Planet Bottle. “PE” stands for “polythylene,” which is the safe non-leaching kind of plastic (certainly safer than Nalgene’s polycarbonate). Another way you can tell if it’s a PE bottle is if it’s slightly soft when you squeeze it. It should give in a little; polycarbonate bottles are rock hard.
Happy hydration!
Photo by Seow Yin
The next time you go on a trip, hold off on booking that hotel. Instead, give a bed & breakfast a try. You might find yourself becoming a fan and opting for B&Bs at every opportunity.
Hearing the term “bed & breakfast” brings to mind quaint, old-fashioned images: lush, ivyed houses abounding with leaf awnings and candy-cane wallpaper, owned by a stay-at-home host. And every morning, a group of traveling strangers gather in the dining room to break bread and converse over coffee and orange juice.
Well, that’s certainly a 1950s TV moment. Images change with time and needs, and so has the B&B.
» Read the rest of No Sleeping In: Ins and Outs of A Bed & Breakfast ...
This week, we feature an article by guest writer Sabrina Gaylor, who traveled to Iceland this past summer. Here she shares the mesmerizing sights of her visit.
Lupine by Akureyri |
As amazing as Iceland is, it’s just one of those countries that gets overlooked or bypassed for more traditional vacation spots. I had the good luck of getting a chance to tour the country this summer, which I jumped at because the global warming crisis means that Iceland may not be the same in the future. My tour guide told the group as we passed Vatnajökull, the majestic largest glacier in Europe, that it was receding at a steady rate and soon would be gone.
Even if Iceland is just the white-outlined dot on the map next to Greenland, it turned out to be a much more diverse country than I’d thought. Reykjavik itself was very hip and urban, but close enough to the water and to national parks that it was possible to get away. The rest of the country was filled with bleak, endless, rocky plains and fields of moss-covered lava, volcanoes, eerily blue lakes, small villages nestled in between the mountains, and hillsides covered in waterfalls and lambs. At some points, we drove over unbridged rivers.
But there are perils of traveling through very rural areas.
» Read the rest of A Whirring Tour of Iceland, by Sabrina Gaylor ...
Centre Belge de la Bande Dessinée Rue des Sables 20 1000 Bruxelles +32 (0)2 / 219.19.80 http://www.cbbd.be |
It’s always seemed to me that European comics have a more tangible “feel” to them, in comparison with American comics. Not that it’s any surprise—after all, here comics are called the Ninth Art, lauded and studied in its own right. In Brussels, comic shops abound with gorgeous graphics and visceral images, not as something for “nerds” but as something to be marveled at for its artistry.
Well, I have to admit I’m a little biased, myself. . . .
Nevertheless, it goes without saying that the Centre Belge de la Bande Dessinée—Brussels’s very own Comic Strip Art Museum—was a definite must-see for Tonje and I when we invaded the city last week. Stepping in, we were greeted by a red-and-white rocket from Hergé’s Tintin: Destination Moon, while a five-foot-tall Asterix model beamed from inside a glass case.
» Read the rest of Centre Belge de la Bande Dessinée ...
A year ago, I ran through some basic methods of surviving Comic-Con. If you’re heading down to San Diego for Comic-Con this July, Tom Spurgeon’s super-comprehensive list of things to do, places to see, and what to do about money is a definite must-read. The tips are wise, the links are handy, and the sense of humor in his list is wonderfully apropros:
“It’s a gathering of tribes. Strange, nerdy tribes.” (from “Five Things to Tell People On the Airplane”
Knowing that somewhere on the floor is a company that’s lost an intern over the weekend. Just lost them somewhere. (from “Six Small Joys to be Had Late in the Weekend”)
Don’t be shy about asking people who are dressed up in costumes to pose for pictures; the attention is frequently what they’re there for. Plus you may get the honor of addressing a grown man as “Lord Vader.” (from “Four Random Tips On Going To The Show”)