#the village opposite ours is known for great restaurants

[harshal1346545]

13 Romantic Date Ideas in Mumbai to Woo Your Partner

Organizing a perfect date can be a very huge task to undertake. Thankfully, this city that is the economic capital of India is rich in date ideas, which can rekindle the flame. Be it the traditional walk at Marine Drive or the adventurous night painting under the Neons, here are some of the best date places to score some brownie points with the significant others in Mumbai. 

Go for a Romantic Tire Along The Boulevarde 

Marine Drive is a lovely three-kilometer road for a romantic walk with beautiful views. Some of the food vendors selling fast foods include various stalls for Bhel Puris, Pav Bhajis and other related recipes. At the end of the day, it is recommended to choose a free territory and enjoy the seascapes of the Arabian Sea. The best part? It's completely free! 

Location: Such as Marine Drive located in Mumbai city 400020. 

Choosing a Movie for the Classic Cinema’s Night 

A movie date at a traditional cinema hall after a sumptuous dinner is one of the traditional and romantic dates to do in Mumbai. One must go to an Art Deco theater located in Colaba Causeway for this purpose. Once playing products such as “The Devil’s Brother”, this cinema is currently rented with the newest films and the most sought after Bollywood films. 

 Location: Near Colaba Causeway, opposite CSMT or Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya museum, Mumbai. 

Have Cocktails while you watch the Rooftop. 

If you would like the evening to be as light as a bubble, go for cocktails in a roof-top bar located on the 34th floor of a 5-star hotel with the view of clouds as a theme, or an eight floor bar that offers the view of the sea. Celebrate your future under the stars with a view to the illuminated city below. 

Experience a Candlelight Concert 

When it comes to something as loving and cherished as classical music in the light of candles there is truly nothing more beautiful. Go and watch a concert in the big hotels like Grand Hyatt or Four Seasons or any other big hotel where artists like Cold play and Beetle will be performing famous melodies in a tranquil magical environment.

How About a Day at the Seaside

Deciding on a romantic getaway the selected beaches such as Juhu and Aksa are best suited for the activity. Whether it is the fresh wind blowing on our face, the touching of the waters, the nice feeling we get while sun setting, a day at the beach is a great way of spending time together. You can just take a walk on the beach; talk or even swim in the ocean.

Locations:

Juhu beach is located off Juhu Tara Road at Juhu Mumbai.

Specific Location the Aksa Beach at Aksa Village Malad West Mumbai

Explore Art Galleries Together

Experience culture by going through the art gallery centers in the city of Mumbai. CSMVS has more than 50,000 artifacts and paintings; on the other hand, various exhibitions can be found in Jehangir Art Gallery. For contemporary art lovers it is recommended to visit Gallery Maskara.

Tour Mumbai’s Street Art

Mumbai’s street art is another fun location for a date and Chapel Road in Bandra West should not be missed. This place has numerous murals and artistic installations by street artists from different countries hence a great place for a walk.

Location: Chapel Road, Bandra West, Mumbai, Maharashtra- 400 050

When Alone Get Creative at The House of Neon

Another interesting, fun and new idea for a date is visiting the first neon paint studio in India. Paint each other with bright colors, draw something together, feel free shifting and listen to the best music. This paint date is one that everyone is guaranteed to enjoy.

Boat rides and restaurants which are built on water or just by the water area of a river, lake or sea are known as jetty restaurants.

Dine at a maritime style restaurant at Mandwa Jetty by taking a ferry ride that is romantic for two. Savor some good food on the outskirts of the noisy city, with choices of bar food, sushi, dim sum, curries, pizzas and more. For a more luxurious feel, you can go for the Speed ride which takes 20 minutes.

Location: Mandwa Jetty Road Makadambav Mandve Taluka Ratnagiri District Maharashtra

Visit Madh Island

Thus, Madh Island could be reached by ferry, bus, and taxi. The island boasts of good seafood, fishing villages, and remnants of old Portuguese ruins. Convert it to a weekend trip and get to experience churches, forts, beaches, art classes, parties and what have you.

Location: 4QXQ+9MV, Christian Wada, Madh, Mumbai

Sing Karaoke 

Go to a karaoke bar and sing out your heart to release your stress and have some great time. As for a pre-show tipple, the city’s third Wise Monkeys branch, in Khar, is a perfect venue on a Monday because the Happy Hour is 24 hours long! Sharing favorite songs is a sure way of creating bond as it will be seen when the pair start to sing. 

Location: Hotel Evergreen, Railway Station, Third Road, Khar, Mumbai, India; 3 Wise Monkeys 

Games can be played at the Game Palacio 

Bring out the kid in both of you by trying in The Game Palacio, one of the most popular gaming arcade in Mumbai. Boutique bowling alley, arcade games and VR – you will never run out of fun on your date. Later, go to their restaurant to order good food and drinks because they cannot afford the luxury of attracts a mediocre clientele. 

Location: G0001/B, Flat No:206, Krystal Building, Below Hakkasan, Waterfield Road, Bandra West, Mumbai- 400 050, Maharashtra, INDIA 

Romantic Hotels in Mumbai 

For those likely to continue their date into a hotel, then here is a list of hotels in Mumbai for couples. Here are a few options, although specific hotel names are omitted to maintain neutrality:Here are a few options, although specific hotel names are omitted to maintain neutrality: 

 Luxury Seafront Hotel 

 Marine drive with sea view facilities are situated here. 

 Has large rooms, a restaurant on the roof, and a wellness area. 

 Boutique Hotel in Bandra 

 Located in ahipster area, just a few blocks from coffee shops and liquor stores. 

 Determines comfortable rooms and individual approaches to the clients. 

 Historic Hotel in Colaba 

 Adjacent to the famously known Gateway of India. 

 Merges the colonial style of architecture with the contemporary facilities. 

 Modern Hotel in Juhu 

 And all of about 60 meters and walking distance from the famous Juhu Beach. 

 This feature entails lavish rooms, a swimming pool that is located on the roof of the hotel, and meals which you can enjoy by the sea. 

 Madh Island is now home to Tranquil Retreat business. 

 Ideal to spend the weekend in. 

 Serves a peaceful atmosphere, openness to the beach, and cutest interior design. 

Whether it is picking the right date idea or the right hotel to spend the night in, Mumbai gives you all the opportunity to ensure you create and share the best moments of your life with your partner.

[frenchpsychiatrymuderedmycnut]

by unofficial

postcard

somewhere in Ste-Foy with Antoni

this is a view of the village across the river from our village…the village opposite ours is known for great restaurants… our village sucks for good restaurants….we have tons of haute kebab…

[new-sandrafilter]

Photograph by Ruven Afanador for TIME |  INTERVIEW BY SAM LANSKY

Timothée Chalamet and I are on the run, chasing down Sixth Avenue on a bright September day in search of a place to talk. The restaurant in Greenwich Village where we had planned to meet ended up getting swarmed by NYU students while I was waiting for him, chattering excitedly to one another—“Timothée Chalamet is here!” “Shut up!” “Yeah, he’s right outside!”—so, trying to avoid a deluge of selfie seekers, I bolt from the table, tapping Chalamet on the shoulder where he stands under the awning, on the phone, and we make our escape. Face covered with a mask and hoodie pulled up over his curly hair, he’s mostly incognito but still cuts a distinct enough figure that we’d better find a new location fast, and standing at a crosswalk with him, I feel briefly protective, like I should be prepared to body-block an onslaught of fans at any moment.

Luckily, we go undetected as we make our way to another diner a few blocks down—a true New York greasy spoon, less crowded and doggedly uncool—and slide into a back booth. He orders black coffee and matzo-ball soup, which he says he has been craving. It’s not an easy thing to come by in London, where he’s been in rehearsals for Wonka, an original movie musical that will serve as a prequel of sorts to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, following the titular chocolatier as a young man. He just spent a weekend recording music for the film at Abbey Road. “I felt out of my league,” he says of working in that legendary space. “Like I was desecrating history!” But working on this project has been good for him. “It’s not mining the darker emotions in life,” he says. “It’s a celebration of being off-center and of being O.K. with the weirder parts of you that don’t quite fit in.”

If Chalamet—whom most people call, affectionately, Timmy—sees himself as off-center, so far it’s working. He’s back in New York for the Met Gala, which he’s co-chairing alongside Billie Eilish, Naomi Osaka and Amanda Gorman. (He walked the red carpet in a Haider Ackermann satin tuxedo jacket and sweatpants.) On Oct. 22, he’ll appear in two films released on the same day. There’s Wes Anderson’s ensemble The French Dispatch, which earned raves out of Cannes, in which Chalamet appears opposite Frances McDormand as a revolutionary spearheading a student liberation movement. He also stars as royal Paul Atreides in Denis Villeneuve’s towering sci-fi epic Dune, an adaptation of Frank Herbert’s beloved 1965 novel, budgeted at a reported $165 million and slated for a massive worldwide release.

This makes it a big moment for Chalamet, who is not just an actor who works often, although he does, and not just a celebrity, although he is one, but a movie star in the old-fashioned sense of the word. (More on this later.) He’s now the rare performer who, at 25, studios are betting can help launch a blockbuster franchise and a festival hit on the same day, with a pandemic still rumbling out of view. With great power, of course, comes great responsibility—including a spotlight on everything from his personal life (he’s been linked to actor Lily-Rose Depp) to his activism (he’s outspoken on climate change) to what he wears, whether on a red carpet or dashing to the bodega. The latter runs the gamut from embroidered joggers to tie-dye overalls to space-age suiting—or, say, a Louis Vuitton hoodie spangled with 3,000 Swarovski crystals. (All this has led GQ to crown him one of the best-dressed men in the world.)

“I feel like I’m here to show that to wear your heart on your sleeve is O.K."

Chalamet belongs to a generation that’s known for oversharing, particularly on social media, but his Instagram is frequently enigmatic; he holds more back than many of his contemporaries. He cites as role models Michael B. Jordan, Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence—the latter two of whom he’ll appear opposite in Adam McKay’s star-studded Don’t Look Up on Netflix in December—actors who are more likely to talk about craft than to post selfies doing sponsored content. If fame is surreal to him, he also doesn’t make a show of resisting it. “I’m figuring it out,” Chalamet says. “On my worst days, I feel a tension in figuring it out. But on my best days, I feel like I’m growing right on time.”

As we sit and talk, a procession of fans stop by the table to ask for photos—mostly young women, but there’s one sheepish-looking guy, too, who looks to be in his 40s. Chalamet indulges them all gamely, making conversation. “Oh, you go to Columbia?” he says to one girl. “That’s cool! I did too.” He stops himself. “Well, I dropped out.”

If the challenge is staying level amid all this attention, he has a game plan. “One of my heroes—I can’t say who or he’d kick my ass—he put his arm around me the first night we met and gave me some advice,” he says. What was it, I ask?

“No hard drugs,” Chalamet says, “and no superhero movies.”

Chalamet grew up in midtown Manhattan, where his mom was a Broadway performer and his father worked as an editor for UNICEF. He went to the arts high school La Guardia, where he performed onstage. Not long after graduating, he booked a role as Matthew McConaughey’s son in Christopher Nolan’s 2014 space drama Interstellar, which he, along with everyone he knew, expected would catalyze his career. “I remember seeing it and weeping,” he says, “60% because I was so moved by it, and 40% because I’d thought I was in the movie so much more than I am.”

He briefly attended Columbia, then NYU, but didn’t finish college, which he says seems “insane in retrospect.” He remembers the insecurity of those years, which he describes as “the soul-crushing anxiety of feeling like I had a lot to give without any platform.” But he waited for the kinds of jobs he wanted, trying to avoid getting locked into a commitment that might stifle his growth, like a years-long TV contract. “Not that those opportunities were coming at me plenty,” he says, “because they weren’t. But I had a marathon mentality, which is hard when everything is instant gratification.”

That paid off in 2017 with the release of Luca Guadagnino’s gay love story Call Me by Your Name, which earned him an Oscar nomination and catapulted him to fame. (He demurs when asked about co-star Armie Hammer, who has denied a widely publicized accusation of rape. “I totally get why you’re asking that,” he says, “but it’s a question worthy of a larger conversation, and I don’t want to give you a partial response.”) That same year, he featured in Greta Gerwig’s Oscar-nominated Lady Bird. He followed up with the addiction drama Beautiful Boy, then Gerwig’s adaptation of Little Women, both of which earned him still more critical praise.

If his filmography has made him an art-house darling, Dune feels like the perfect big movie for an actor like Chalamet: despite the booming score and dazzling visual effects, there’s a gravity to it—and an unusual prescience. “Dune was written 60 years ago, but its themes hold up today,” Chalamet says. “A warning against the exploitation of the environment, a warning against colonialism, a warning against technology.”

Dune is also the kind of cinematic event that demands to be seen in theaters, which spelled controversy when Warner Bros. announced that, due to the pandemic, all of their 2021 films would premiere on the streaming service HBO Max concurrent with their theatrical release dates. Chalamet shrugs about it. “It’s so above my pay grade,” he says. “Maybe I’m naive, but I trust the powers that be. I’m just grateful it’s coming out at all.”

A day later, we meet at a bar in Tribeca. As he arrives, he’s wrapping up a call. “Love you too, Grandma,” he says gently into the phone as he’s hanging up.

Male movie stars have long been defined by an old model of masculinity. Chalamet, who rose to fame playing a queer character and whose style is frequently described as androgynous, evinces a kind of masculinity that’s a little different: more sensitive, more emotional, in keeping with his generation’s permissive attitudes about self-expression. “Timothée is a thoughtful, poetic spirit,” says Villeneuve. “I am always impressed by his beautiful vulnerability.” Chalamet doesn’t always reveal much, but what he does is intentional. Ask him what he stands for, and he considers it seriously. “I feel like I’m here to show that to wear your heart on your sleeve is O.K.,” he says.

Yet Chalamet knows better than to obsess about how he’s perceived by the public. “To keep the ball rolling creatively takes a certain ignorance to the way you’re consumed,” he says. He calls it a “mirror vacuum”: the black hole you disappear into studying your own reflection. He wants to use his platform thoughtfully, to spread the right kinds of messages through the world—whether that’s about mental-health awareness, a subject which he wants to see become “less of an Instagram slide share and something more intrinsic,” or climate. “I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the same generation that inherits the overheated planet is the generation saying, ‘Hey, there’s a level of complacency here,’” he says.

All that said, Chalamet doesn’t take himself too seriously. The idea that he’s seen as a movie star—let alone his generation’s most promising—seems to make him squirrelly. “I don’t want to say some vapid, self-effacing thing,” he says. “It’s a combination of luck and getting good advice early in my career not to pigeonhole myself.” The term movie star, to him, is “like death.” All it does is make him think about ’90s-nostalgia Instagram feeds.

“You’re just an actor,” Chalamet says, like a mantra. “You’re just an actor!” Then he looks to me, as if checking to see if he’s convinced me it’s true.

[xtruss]

Poland’s Muslim Community is Thriving With a Vibrant Cultural History Covering 600 Years of Tatar Life

— JOANNA JASIŃSKA | OCTOBER 09, 2018

The mosque and mizar in Kruszyniany are listed as historical monuments with the highest category of objects of cultural heritage, a title given only by the President. Kalbar /TFN

It all started when Dżenneta and Mirosław Bogdanowicz decided to open their home and invite tourists and travellers to stay there, while they were passing through the village of Kruszyniany in the east of Poland, just a few kilometres from the Belarusian border.

Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, who now runs Tatarska Jurta (Tatar yurt), a homestay and restaurant remembers the beginnings: “It wasn’t like this 17 years ago, the village wasn’t a tourist attraction and visitors came to stay here. It was the opposite, with rundown houses and dilapidated roofs, the village was poor and depopulated”.

The image that welcomes visitors to the Tatar village of Kruszyniany today is quite different. Perfectly trimmed gardens, well-kept homes and plenty of rooms for tourists to rent, not mentioning the main attractions: a mosque, mizar (muslim cemetary), Tatar culture centre and museum, as well as an orthodox church.

Prince Charles’s visit in 2010 provided the impulse for regional authorities to fund the construction of the cultural centre. Having the British royal waddling through mud from the mosque to Tatarska Jurta was an effective argument. Now it has a space where the community can celebrate azan (name giving ceremony), weddings and funerals. Kalbar/TFN

Dżenneta continues: “We were the first Tatar family to open our home. We had the need to firstly remind the world, that Tatars are not just history, that we exist and live here. Secondly, we wanted to show that we are Poles like everyone else, only a little bit different. We wanted to demonstrate the multicultural Poland, the minority Poland, beautiful and rich in us, and not only us, since there were Lithuanians, Belarusians, Jews living here too.”

Before the war, Kruszyniany’s population was a mix of muslim, orthodox, catholic and Jew.

“Our guests would come and seat with us in the orchard, drinking coffee. We would talk for so long, the guests would get hungry, so I would offer a meal. The eastern hospitality is very distinctive here, the guest cannot leave hungry. We didn’t plan to feed people, we just wanted to present our Tatar community through our family, our home and us,” she adds.

Tatars had their own cavalry unit in the interwar period, with all the Polish insignia on their uniforms, but also the crescent moon and star of Islam. Kalbar/TFN

With the growing number of visitors wanting to visit the mosque, taste Tatar dishes and learn about their culture, the community focused on preserving their traditions, memorabilia and past. This renaissance of Tatar culture in Poland may be recent, but their presence in this area most certainly is not.

First Tatars, known as Lipka Tatars settled in the then Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which later became part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 14th century. A contingent of Tatars fought on the Polish side in the great Battle of Grunwald in 1410. Tatars settled in the areas of what is now Belarus and Lithuania. Many of the families, already distinguished or even boasting the mirza title, were ennobled by the Polish kings for their military prowess and achievements.

Bronisław Talkowski, the head of the Muslim Religious Community in Kruszyniany is a direct descendant of Colonel Samuel Mirza Krzeczowski, the hero who saved King Jan III Sobieski’s life. Kalbar/TFN

In 1683, during King Jan III Sobieski’s Vienna Campaign a Tatar light cavalry company took part in breaking the siege of Vienna. A few weeks after the victory, the king almost lost his life during the disastrous Battle of Parkany, if it wasn’t for the Tatar Colonel Samuel Mirza Krzeczowski. As a reward, the Tatars were given land in the villages of Kruszyniany, Nietupa, Łużany and others.

Since then, Tatars have participated in all the wars the Polish state has been involved in, fighting for their homeland.

Pierekaczewnik, a pastry with meat resembling a snail prepared by Ms. Bogdanowicz and her daughters. It is registered with the UE as a TSG - traditional speciality guaranteed. Kalbar/TFN

Bogdanowicz said: “Now we live in times when, because we are Muslim, we have to explain ourselves. We have to speak about the achievements of our ancestors, to prove that we are Poles with the same rights, we have always been so. We fought for Poland, lost life and land for participating in the January and November Uprisings [of 1863 and 1830], Tatars were executed in Katyń, my own grandfather followed the whole road with General Anders and fought for England”.

Bronisław Talkowski, the head of the Muslim Community in Kruszyniany adds: “The Tatar culture is an indispensable part of Polish culture, we are Poles, who are aware of our roots. In my case, I have 600 years of my ancestry documented, since 1397.”

Mizar, one of the three Muslim cemeteries in Poland. Dżemil Gembicki said: Sometimes when a Tatar dies in the west of Poland he will be brought to one of those cemeteries, next to his family. Oldest tombstone uncovered at the cemetery is from 1699, 20 years after the Tatars were settled in Kruszyniany. Kalbar/TFN

Talkowski is leading the Muslim Community in the village. There are about 10 similar organizations in Poland, where in 2011 around 2000 people declared to be Tatar. He is responsible for the newly built Tatar Cultural Centre, which houses a museum, a special room dedicated to religious acts such as weddings, funerals and azans (naming ceremony).

Talkowski mentioned: “Now we have a very active foundation, the Tatar Cultural Association, which creates a very good atmosphere for the whole community. They educate, have a dancing and singing group and work on developing all aspects – research, culture and religion”.

Dżemil Gembicki calls Kruszyniany and Bohoniki the Mecca and Medina of Polish Tatars, as both villages can boast a historic mosque and mizar. Kalbar/TFN

The religious life in Kruszyniany is centred around the mosque, the current one having been built in 1795. Dżemil Gembicki, a local Tatar, is the mosque’s guardian and guide. Outside of the season he answers every call, to show around the visitors and retell the story of Polish Tatars and their customs, even if this means leaving his catholic wife waiting with dinner.

Gembicki said: “The mosque is unique, because from the outside it resembles a Christian temple. A Tatar was a soldier, so he didn’t know how to build. He asked the locals to do the job and they, as the chronicles say, ‘did the work as heaven and Polish tradition dictate’. “ The mosque is warm and welcoming, unlike some temples - wooden and cosy, with the floor covered snug with carpets. The prayers aren’t held every Friday, only when the Imam comes from Białystok.

Having survived the fire that burnt her family home, Dżenneta Bogdanowicz, here with one of her three daughters, is convinced that in the end family is most important. She said: We Tatars are strong, it’s in our genes. We can adapt to any situation and move forward. Kalbar/TFN

“Our Imams were educated in different places, some in Saudi Arabia, some in Sudan, ours was educated in France. But I have to say, that usually an imam is the person in the community, who has the most extensive knowledge of Koran.

“During the communist times, to be honest, there was no possibility to attend proper schools. So in the generation of our grandparents, the imams were sort of home-grown, with father teaching the son how to practice religion and celebrate holidays”, explains Gembicki.

Thanks to the appreciation of the Tatar culture the village is thriving. The Tatar traditions have caught on with the younger members, who are eager to be part of the cultural activities and attend religious courses.

A run-down depopulated village 17 years ago, Kruszyniany is now thriving thanks to tourism and Tatar hospitality. Kalbar/TFN

To promote the Tatar traditions, a festival called Sabantuy is celebrated at the beginning of August. A Tatar holiday imported recently from Tatarstan, it is an occasion to integrate the community not just from Poland, but Lithuania, Belrus and other countries as well. It is also a great way to show the Tatars’ uniqueness to guests and tourists. The programme includes music, dancing, singing, horse riding, culinary contests and enormous amounts of food. A new addition is the reenactment of King Jan III Sobieski giving Tatars the right to settle in Kruszyniany.

In May this year, tragedy struck. Just when Tatarska Jurta was about to start its season during the first long weekend, the wooden house of the Bogdanowicz family was completely burnt down. Their life’s work, a place where the Bogdanowicz family received their land from King Jan II Sobieski and the place which became a second home to so many visitors was gone.

Dżemil Gembicki, the guide and guardian of the Kruszyniany mosque told TFN: The mosque is unique because outside it resembles Christian Temple. A Tatar was a soldier so he didn’t know how to build so he asked the locals instead. Kalbar/TFN

The reaction of the community and not just the Muslim one was instantaneous. Help came from every side, including the guests of the Yurt, who saw the value of the open warm Tatar home Bogdanowicz family created. Now, Dżenneta with her daughters are running a restaurant in the space provided by the Muslim Community Centre, working hard to rebuild their lives.

“When I was crying after the fire, we were left with nothing, since we earn only in the summer during the season, I asked what will we do now? And my children answered: ‘we will cook mum, we will cook’“.

— TheFirstNews.Com | "I must have been inspired" Joseph Conrad

[excindrela]

12 Days of Demon Ayno- Day 2

Supernatural AU

Pairing: demon! Ayno (Noh YoonHo) VAV x Female Reader

Genre: F L U F F

Warnings: Stuff on TV looks easier. Don’t disable your smoke detector. Don’t leave your demon unattended. Indian food can be very spicy. 

Word Count: 1342

AN: Welcome to Day 2 of the 12 Days of Demon Ayno! It’s another FLUFF day! (stay tuned- we’ll be getting smutty tomorrow!) This is another short installment. I love feedback- so if there’s something you like, or something you want to see- tell me!! If you’re new to demon! Ayno, he showed up here first in Summoned, and then at Thanksgiving! 

12 Days: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7 | Day 8 | Day 9

On the 2nd Day of Christmas: Ayno Discovers They Make it Look Easy on TV

As you stepped off the elevator you realized that the horrible smell that had permeated the entire apartment building seemed to be coming from your apartment. You hurried to open the door and found it freezing cold inside with a lingering haze of smoke.

“Ayno?! Ayno?!” You felt a small surge of relief when you saw the demon’s head stick out of the kitchen looking rather dismayed.

“What happened??” You asked looking around at the counters of the kitchen which were littered with cremated slabs of…something.

“I was trying to make a gingerbread house. Things did not go as planned.”

“A gingerbread house?” you asked.

“Yes- the Cooking Channel had a show on today called the Great American Gingerbread Challenge: people constructed very elaborate houses made out of gingerbread. Then they decorated them. They were beautiful and very detailed- I thought it looked like fun. So, I tried to make one, but I never got to the decoration because I burned the house.” He explained sadly.

“’The’ house? It looks like you burned an entire city block. And it stinks.”

He hung his head. “I am sorry. I did not think it would be so difficult. Also, we are out of flour and cinnamon now.”

“What is that?”, you asked pointing to a pile of broken plastic shards and wires on the floor.

“I do not know, but it began making a shrieking sound that hurt my ears. It would not stop so I was forced to destroy it.”

You inspected it closer. “Uh, that would be the smoke detector Ayno. It’s supposed to make that sound: if there’s smoke in the apartment there might be a fire it would shriek to tell us, and we could escape instead of burning to death.”

“Oh. Then we are out of smoke detectors too.”

You had to laugh. Poor Ayno looked so defeated.

“Come on”, you told him “let’s throw all this away and then we can go out to dinner.”

Before long, you were bundled up again and happily walking through the snowy streets of downtown holding your boyfriend’s hand. You headed straight to Mantra, the Indian restaurant, because it was Ayno’s favorite- and he needed some cheering up.

A whole tandoori chicken with basmati rice, some paneer pakora, and several plates of samosas later he was in a much better mood. When you went to pay the check, you were delighted to see Chavvi who owned the establishment with her husband. “Ah! I should’ve known it was you when I saw the third plate of samosas go out!” she said winking at Ayno. You both laughed. “Your timing is excellent!”, she said “You will be right on time for the lighting of the Square!” “Oh is that tonight?” you asked. “Yes, yes!” she said “If you hurry you can still get a good spot in the middle. You are only a couple of blocks away. Enjoy the beautiful lights children!” she said as she shooed you out the door.

You had lived here for years and honestly never gone to see the lighting of The Square. You had driven past it many times all lit up thinking how beautiful it was. Now as you walked hand-in-hand with Ayno looking at all the buildings so beautifully decorated with lights and garland, passing shops with holiday window displays, seeing people’s dressed up trees peeking from windows above, hearing the crunch of the snow under your feet…you realized how truly romantic it was.

The Square was formed by City Hall, the police station, the courthouse and the local museum. You found a spot to stand in the crowd near the center. A few moments later city dignitaries got up and gave speeches welcoming the holiday season and talking about the pride of the city and their hopes for the New Year. One of the local high school choirs sang Christmas carols, and then this year’s guest of honor, Eunice Bixby, the head librarian who was so old you thought she might’ve actually been around when the library was built; got up and gingerly threw the switch causing all the buildings to spring to life in thousands of twinkling lights. Ayno let out a giant “Awww” of wonder and stood eyes wide, smiling and clapping with everyone else looking at the magical sight.

“So pretty!” he exclaimed to you. You laughed, “Yes it is, isn’t it?” Then he wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you in close as he pressed his forehead and nose to yours and whispered “So pretty”, before he brought his lips to fit perfectly with yours…and you suddenly understood why every couple you knew came to this event at least once. 

You were on your way home after having walked around and admired the lights when you suddenly got an idea. “Ayno? Do you mind if we deviate and go a few blocks out of our way?” He shook his head and allowed you to pull him in the opposite direction of home for a few streets, until you arrived at your destination: the craft store. You went inside and were relieved to immediately see the display of pre-made gingerbread houses- just waiting to be assembled and decorated.

Thirty minutes later you had one happy demon and were laden with bags that you thought contained at least two of every style of house they had, and half of the cake decorating section.

When you arrived home, the apartment was blissfully smoke-free but freezing from the open windows, and still had a lingering smell. You decided to take a shower to get warm and go to bed. Ayno came and laid next to you, cuddling and warming you until you fell asleep blissfully in his arms.

*           *           *

The blaring of the alarm reminded you that it was not yet the weekend, but at least you smelled fresh coffee wafting in from the kitchen now instead of burned gingerbread. You discovered, however, that along with coffee there was a lot of gingerbread in the kitchen.

That Ayno had been up all night was not shocking- he didn’t actually need sleep- but you were a little surprised not so much at what he had done as how he had done it. You expected to find a village of decorated houses, but instead, he had used all the pieces from all the kits to build one massive building- the entire dining table was covered in a giant Seuss-ish gingerbread house. Making use of the awkwardness of the building’s shape, he had meticulously decorated it in an extra whimsical style. He’d clearly had a good time, because there was frosting all over him- and the floor, along with broken bits of cookie and candy. His blonde hair sparkled with colored cookie sugar, and the color of his tongue suggested that he had been licking all the dripped icing.

“What do you think? Is it good?” he asked hopefully.

“Oh!! Oh …wow…it’s huge!” you exclaimed. “It looks like a mansion from Whoville! …how did you do that without it falling apart??”

“What is Whoville?” he asked.

“I’ll show you later” you promised as you pulled a glob of frosting from his hair. “This is amazing Ayno. Let’s take some pictures.”

*           *           *

Riding downstairs in the elevator on your way to work, you were on your phone, scrolling through all the pictures you had just taken of the gingerbread house and Ayno standing proudly next to it. You paused when you reached the end and got to the selfie Ayno had taken of the two of you in the Square. Both of you with bright smiles and flushed cheeks, beautiful holiday lights in the background. You couldn’t tear your eyes from the screen, a stupid grin plastered on your face, butterflies in your belly and a warm feeling in your heart as you looked at Ayno’s face. It was in this moment you realized that no matter how much you wanted to deny it, you had totally- completely- 100% fallen for him.

[travellerconcept]

Pearls of Uzbekistan

Tour "Pearl of Uzbekistan" - begins and ends in Tashkent. Allow us to visit the ancient cities of the Great Silk Road, such as Khiva, Bukhara, Shakhrisabz and Samarkand. We plunge into the atmosphere of the ancient streets of ancient cities, get acquainted with the masters and artists, see the unforgettable atmosphere of the cities, and try the local Uzbek traditional cuisine. We will drive through the Kyzyl Kum desert and visit the city where Amir Timur was born.

Cities:

Tashkent - Khiva - Bukhara - Shakhrisabz - Samarkand – Tashkent

Length:

8 days / 7 nights.

Day 1: Arrival in Tashkent

Upon arrival to Tashkent, we meet you at the airport. After all the necessary formalities transfer to the hotel. Rest after the flight.

Lunch.

Sightseeing tour in Tashkent. We will visit the old part of the city, the place where is located the largest and most ancient bazaar Chorsu in Tashkent. Next we will head to Hazrat Imam Square. The old Barakkhan madrassa hides a centuries-old history, when young students learned the secrets of Islam here, today the madrassa is the center of craftsmen of Tashkent, wood carvers, metal embossing, national embroidery and much more. After we visit Hazrat Imam Square, we will go to Mustakillik Square (Independence Square). Stroll through the local Broadway to the monument to Amir Timur. Go down to one of the most beautiful metro in the world and explore it. We are already hungry by this time and have dinner at a local Tashkent restaurant. After dinner, return to the hotel.

Overnight in the hotel

Day 2: Tashkent - Urgench - Khiva (30 km)

This early morning we will fly to the city of Urgench, which is located 35 kilometers from the city of Khiva. Upon arrival to Urgench, we will drive to Khiva by car. Upon arrival to Khiva, check-in at the hotel.

Sightseeing tour in Khiva. A local guide, a connoisseur of antiquity and history of Khiva, will share its secrets with us. Tell the story and show the most interesting places in the city. Khiva consists of two parts: Ichan Kala - the Inner City and Dishan Kala - the External City. The most interesting place is Ichan Kala, because it is located inside the fortress, where all the ancient monuments are concentrated. Here we will begin our tour. We will also visit Kunya Ark, Rahimkhan Madrasa, Juma 10th century mosque, Tash Hawley Palace and much more. We will have lunch at the local teahouse.

Then we continue the tour. Before dinner, we’ll go back to the hotel, get some rest and go to a concert of local Khorezm music. After the concert, dinner at the local tea house.

Day 3: Khiva - Bukhara (450 km 7-8 hours)

This morning we will start a journey to the once-capital of the Bukhara Emirate, the beautiful Bukhara, the drive will take about 7-8 hours, but it will not be boring. We will drive through the Kyzyl Kum desert (Red Sand), but the name is quite strange but interesting.

We will stop for lunch at a local tea house, a kind of desert oasis.

Upon arrival to Bukhara, accommodation at the hotel. Discover the sights of Bukhara.

Dinner at a local tea house.

Overnight in the hotel

Day 4: Bukhara

Today we will spend the whole day in beautiful Bukhara and enjoy its wonder. The Ark fortress, the Samanid mausoleum, the old Lyabi Hauz will open their doors of history to us and allow us to look into the old days. We will go through the old streets of the city, talk to the local people. We will have lunch in the house of the famous embroidery master Rakhmon Toshev, after lunch Nasiba, the daughter of the master, will tell us about the secrets of the national embroidery Suzane. After lunch, we will continue our tour of the city Bukhara. Trade domes, like sails filled with the wind of the past, are located at the crossroads of old roads. Even today, these architectural complexes play a large role in the life process of the old city, up today, just like a hundred years ago, merchants placed their goods on display in the cozy little cells of shops for passing by buyers, truly a beautiful sight!

Dinner at a local restaurant.

Overnight in the hotel

Day 5: Bukhara - Shakhrisabz - Samarkand (400 km)

This morning we will drive to the city of Samarkand, on the way we will visit the Shakhrisabz town. About 5 hours will take the drive to the homeland of Tamerlane, the great commander of Central Asia. Upon arrival to Shakhrisabz, we will have lunch at the local tea house, and after lunch we will visit the ruins of one of the most magnificent creations of the Temurid era, the ruins of the Ak Saray palace. The palace was almost completely destroyed, only the pylons of the entrance portal of the building remained alive. But they are no less interesting, since the height of the pylons today is about 38 meters. Next, we will continue our tour and visit Dorut Tilovat and Dorut Saodat, the place where the mausoleum of Jahongir Tamerlan’s son and his mentor Sheikh Shamsuddin Kulal is located. After the tour we will go to Samarkand. A city with a long history, beautiful monuments of architecture, bazaars and, of course, the people of Samarkand living together in their favorite city.

Upon arrival, check-in at the hotel.

Dinner at a local restaurant.

Overnight in the hotel.

Day 6: Samarkand

Our day we begin with a visit to the beautiful Registan Square. Three magnificent madrassas were once special educational institutions in which young people received sacred knowledge. At the beginning of the 15th century, the wise ruler of Samarkand, the grandson of the great Amir Timur, the great astronomer, philosopher and mathematician Mirzo Ulugbek, who dreamed of turning Samarkand into the center of science of the Muslim world, conceived the construction of the first madrassa, and brought his desire to life.

In 200 years at the beginning of the 17th century, Yalantgush Bakhodur builds his first madrassa opposite the madrassa of Mirzo Ulugbek. In 20 years, according to his own order, Tillo Kori madrassa was built, as a final part of the architectural complex. From Registan Square we will go along the shopping street to the Bibi Khanum Mosque, built in the 15th century, by order of Amir Timur. At the Siab Bazaar which is located next to the mosque, we can find everything your heart desires, vegetables and fruits, souvenirs and shawls, as well as well-known Samarkand flatbreads.

After lunch at a local restaurant, we will continue our tour of Samarkand and visit  the memorial complex of Shahi Zinda. After that we will go to the mausoleum of the great Amir Timur.

Dinner at the national house. Today, a local family invites us to the dinner: Ilkhom Guest house. Ilkhom will not only reveal the secrets of traditional cuisine, but also give us the opportunity to participate in the preparation of a national dish, and then taste it. Ilkhom is always very happy to guests and happy tells his interesting stories.

Overnight in the hotel.

Day 7: Samarkand - Tashkent

Today we will continue sightseeing of Samarkand. And after lunch, in the late afternoon we take a high-speed train Afrosiab to Tashkent.

In the suburbs of Samarkand is a small village of Koni Gil. It is very interesting place. Once it was known as a center of manufacture of Samarkand silk paper. And today, in our days, manufacture of antique silk paper has been set up here.

After visiting the silk paper paper workshop, we will enjoy the remains  of the Observatory built by Mirzo Ulugbek in the 15th century. After the observatory, we will make a pilgrimage to the Daniel’s Mausoleum and the archeological Museum Afrosiab.

After lunch, at the local tea house, we will go to the local railway station and take a high-speed Afrosiab train to Tashkent.

Arrival in Tashkent. Dinner at a local restaurant.

Overnight in the hotel.

Day 8: Transfer to the airport.

End of the Tour

https://travellerconcept.com/en/

info@travellerconcept.com

[bites-kms]

Off the Beaten Path: Paros

I was looking for ferries to Ios but then I realized that given the start of low season, this wouldn’t happen any time soon. Hence, I booked one to Paros. Although this ferry never happened either for the same reason, which I happily found out while in Santorini, it all worked out perfectly. This wonderful and noble guy created a connection for me on the system and I sailed towards what, according to him, was the best (and only) option.  I managed to have lunch in Naxos, another island in between Mykonos and Paros, enjoyed some sun to later and finally make it to Paros. On my way, I met Linda and Dawn, two wonderful and strong ladies from the US who with I ended up sharing a beach lunch during my last day. 

I didn’t know what to expect from Paros. Booking this trip meant to actually hearing this island’s name for the first time. It actually happens to be one of the biggest Cyclades islands. Paros at first sight is wonderful. It’s friendly, it’s organized.  Although it counts with all the services and its daily life changed abruptly since tourism became a thing, once again, going offseason was not only worth it but also the best choice. 

Paros feels like being stuck in time. Probably due to the off season days, this beautiful  island is perfect for chillax after your island hopping, full of non-stop adventure, in Greece. Empty narrow streets, delicious seafood, exquisite sunsets, infinite crystal clear shores and friendly locals are there to make your stayed in Paros, an unforgettable one. 

If the previous cities were ruled by cats, in Paros they are the freaking mayor. But they have a major competitor for the throne: ducks. Ducks and cats stroll freely by Paros’ shores and it’s hilarious seeing them interact. I’m not talking about cute little ducks, those too. I’m talking about enormous, swan-like birds, cuaking their way through people and aground ships.

Time doesn’t pass as in the rest of the planet. It runs on a smoother, more relaxed way. People, probably tourists on an Airbnb Experience, were sketching different houses, fishermen (and women!) were preparing the fresh octopus they just  caught in between chairs, letting it dry to the fresh, sea breeze. An old men, probably a sailor, with tons of life lived on his tanned, wrinkled face, was wearing a yellow t-shirt, chilling with a cat, sat down by his house entrance, without realizing he was in color-coding matching uniform with his yellow and white House. It was gorgeous.

Walking around its narrow streets, it was wonderful to see all the stuck-in-time constructions, its colorful houses and shy sun rays coming through the pink bougainvillea flowers, that highly and beautifully contrasted with the clear, sky-blue sky. One man approached me, probably a little bit tipsy on Mastika or Racomelo, wearing this olives branches on his head, greeting me with a cheerful Kalimera, which of course I replied back. He started to engage in what could barely be defined as a conversation, with his very scarce and broken English vocabulary, but he managed to ask me where I was from, complemented Uruguayan football and told me something else in Greek which will be a mystery.  

There are two main town in Paros: Naoussa and Parikia. Parikia is where the main port is, and Naoussa the most developed fishing village up north. I stayed in Naoussa’s main street, right by the water and next to some of the most renown Paros’ restaurants. 

Staying in Naoussa was a great choice. I managed to walk to some of the great beaches around, yet being on a beautiful little town. Everything was walking distance from my place. I was staying at the Ragoussis Bakery and Hotel, or as they call themselves, “Ragoussis Sweet Rooms”. It’s a wonderful bakery that smartly enough decided to expand its business and adding some rooms on top of the bakery for the morning pleasure of their guest, who would delight themselves with the warmly, fresh baked scent as a wake up call. Complementary cookies and a very homy and family oriented service is provided. Delicious pastries and breakfast is served, and the kitchen is open until late so it’s great for night owl travelers (definitely not my case).

I didn’t realize how much I was craving for a comfy, mushy mushy bed with a baby-butt soft cover. Man, I slept good! With a sea and port theme, it’s minimal decor was wonderful and blends right in with the vibe and feeling of Naoussa. 

Checking out Naoussa’s port, its church and downtown will take you less than a day and it’s a must. Paros is also commonly known by its strong winds, which they have a proper name and everything for it: the Meltemi. According to locals, heavy winds haven’t arrived yet, but I almost got flown away several times. The first one, I managed to hide myself from it, seeking for shelter in a cosy restaurant by the port, and had a deconstructed eggplant lasagna which was very good. That dinner was all I needed: I was ready to hit the sack and prepare next day’s adventure. 

There are ferry services to the main island beaches, but after waiting for a few minutes, I thought that maybe being offseason the ferries won’t part. So, I took my morning quite slowly, enjoyed my breakfast, rested in bed and read my book, before embarking on an hour and fifteen minute walk towards Kolympetheres Beach. The walk was worth every step: beautiful hidden houses, breathtaking views, outstanding cliffs. I was enjoying the sun, the breeze and my music, laughing out-loud thinking about the amazing experience I was living right there, right now.

I had some delicious lamb on what it was one of the most secluded yet beautiful restaurants I’ve found in all Greece: Kolympetheres Taverna. Family owned, they offered me the BEST grapes I’ve had in a while: seriously, they were juicy, tender, no pit, not too sweet, an absolute delicacy. I know, they were just grapes, but oh my god those grapes. 

I went back and explored Piperi Beach, Anargyroi Beach, Xifara Beach until Stephano plage, 4 kms towards the opposite side of Kolympetheres. It was a unique beach strip that connected a little island with Paros, having sea on both sides. It was a beautiful place to watch the sunset and call my mom. It’s always important to call you mom. Love your parents, and tell them so often. While we are busy traveling, we tend to forget they are growing old. Before mobile phones, data plans and emails, I had the chance to travel with my parents a couple of times (yes, I’m that old) and clearly remember making long distance calls, dialing millions of numbers featured on a lame, bendy paper card on public phones just to talk less than 2 minutes with my grandparents. It was technology at its best! So now, it’s crazy the possibility to randomly call family and friends just to share a live sunset or sent multiple videos and photos at the same time, feeling as if they were sharing the same experience, right next to you, beating all time zones and distances. I keep it classy and vintage though, sending postcards of every single country I go. You should try it, there’s a unique feeling of receiving one handwritten memory of someone who thought about you across the world. 

For my last dinner in Naoussa, I decided to go for king crab orzo pasta by the bay. There was an empty restaurant with extremely friendly waiters, that opened the rooftop part, firstly just for me, later for an Asian family to join, and we all were witness of an incredible sunset. It was a yummy dish and later on, the waiter insisted on having a shot with me ( I tend to be perceived as extremely friendly so waiters and service people from all over the place like me a lot) so we had what I thought it was initially Mastika, but ended up being this delicious honey grappa drink: Racomelo. 

The following morning, I made sure to taste a delicious cappuccino and some sweet treats downstairs before heading to the bus stop where I randomly met Dawn again. We both wanted to check out Parikia, so there we went. We first explored solo the wonders of the port city, as one of the oldest Byzantine  churches in Europe, from the IV century,  its beautiful narrow streets, the iconic and touristy Market St. and the Dionysus hill with a current Windmill on top of it.  

We met for a lovely lunch. Everyone recommended us Koralli Restaurant, but since it was closed due to the low season, we ended up on what it was the greatest way to say good to a strong and delightful island hopping vacation: Livadia Restaurant and Hotel. Double dose of house wine, red and white, homemade moussaka, grilled and panfried fetta with honey and sesame seeds as well as spinach fritters (which were da bomb!) was the selected menu for this occasion, that matched to perfection our conversation about lost and found love stories, women’s choices in today’s world and exciting and promising plans for our near future. Cheers, Dawn! May your knee heal promptly and keep taking you places where to nurture your soul. I’ll see you around, no doubts about it. 

Once back in downtown Parikia, there were two beautiful cafes which I wanted to visit, but were already closed in the afternoon:  Cafe Symposium Paros and Martin Denisse Cafe & Snack Bar. Both beautifully located, one in the middle of a square, the other one under a tree on a hidden alley intersection, they seem to have delicious house wine waiting for the thirsty throats and warm coffees for the cold visitor who needs an energy boost. 

I ended up at Kakao Cafe & Bar, a very nice, delicate and cosy cafe rooftop that faced the sea and it was the perfect spot to have one last frapuccinno, those sugar rush of exquisite Greek delight before departing for Athens. Paros, you were wonderful. Ευχαριστώ! 

[cannockweb-blog]

Rent Cannock Hotels

Cannock is the largest city in the Cannock Chase District within the county of Staffordshire. The town is positioned 32 km north of Birmingham. Cannock was identified for coal mining, Click here for Blog so the ambiance was conducive to the expansion of a number of industries. Also, as a result of its proximity to the Black Country, the city turned more dynamic and prosperous.

Cannock hosts a collection of cultural events for the mass. Cannock occasions are a part of individuals's lives. The town has an enormous city heart with renowned road names. The long array of public leisure services comparable to nightclubs, pubs, bars, and swimming swimming pools reveal the vitality and enthusiasm of the people in Cannock. Probably the most famend nightclubs are Silks and Stones. Other common nightclubs in Cannock include Forge, Piques, Academy, Bar 77, Ubar and Bar Spot. Maymies, Cannock's largest nightclub, was shut down in November 2005.

Apart from these clubs, Cannock also has obtained loads of entertainment facilities unfold across the town. They embrace swimming pools and an ice rink, generally known as Silverblades. Town additionally has out of doors and indoor markets and an enormous purchasing heart. Buying can be energetic in areas like Longford Island Industrial Estate and the Orbital Industrial Property, which are away from the town. A multiplex cinema hall is because of be constructed. The venture has gained approval from native planning authorities. Cannock affords you a wholesome meal as effectively. The town hosts various restaurants, which also embrace indian eating places.

Cannock events gain extra recognition during summer season holidays. These occasions give a aid to oldsters and kids from the weariness of summer time and provide them a cool break before they start their new session. A number of these activities Wikipedia here are particularly designed for youngsters. An example is the Bugsy Malone - Summer Workshop at Prince of Wales. Important upcoming music concerts embody Stars in your Eyes at the Ramada, Saturday Evening Fever Night time, and 80's Night.

Cannock is connected to close by cities with an extensive network of native buses offering service to and from Cannock town heart. Arriva Midlands is the primary bus operator in Cannock. Cannock railway station, which was closed in 1965 as a part of the Beeching Axe, was reopened in 1989. It is now part of the Rugeley - Cannock - Walsall - Birmingham line operated by London Midland and runs two trains per hour from Cannock station to Rugeley, Walsall and Birmingham.

There are many motels in Stafford which means that guests can stay for a few days and discover what the realm has to supply. There is something for everybody in Stafford from shops and theatres to castles and gardens. Situated within the West Midlands region of England, Stafford is effectively served by the M6 and is inside a short distance of Wolverhampton and Stoke-on-Trent. The Trentham Estate and Gardens make a perfect time out for the family with procuring, eating places, a monkey forest and a excessive ropes adventure course and Shugborough Estate permits families to step again in time and enjoy the history brought to life by costumed characters. There are plenty of outdoor pursuits in Staffordshire that visitors can take advantage of including strolling and cycling and for extreme there is snow sports activities and driving experiences. Inns in Stafford also put their company within herniate sights resembling Stafford Fort and Historical High House.

These staying in lodges in Stafford can enjoy the award-profitable Trentham Property and Gardens. The Trentham Property is one of the nation's best garden estates and prime visitor locations boasting a variety of issues to see and do. For individuals who love the outside, the Gardens are a should see as they are absolutely gorgeous, even Alan Titchmarsh described them as 'one of the UK's must see gardens!' The Buying Village offers a mix of style, art, outside, health and homeware shops and likewise provides a variety of cafes and eating places. Children www/cannockweb.co.uk/ will fall in love with the Trentham Monkey Forest, set in 60 acres of gorgeous Staffordshire woodland and meadows. There are one hundred forty monkeys and visitors can enjoy hourly feeding talks and guides all through the forest. Also on the grounds is Aerial Extreme, a high ropes adventure course. Set throughout the Estate, Aerial Extreme is a superb household day out and no expertise is needed in any respect! There are numerous exciting events held inside the Trentham grounds throughout the year together with Halloween, Fireworks and Christmas events.

Booking motels in Stafford means that company have the chance to participate in quite a few outside actions in Staffordshire. Peak Pursuits in North Staffordshire offers an important time out for everybody with fun challenges and journey in a ravishing setting. Climbing, raft constructing, abseiling,Cannock Web canoeing, cycling and archery are simply among the actions you may take part in right here. Nearby in Cannock Chase lies Go Ape, a tree high journey for all the household. Positioned in forests everywhere in the UK, the distinctive adventure experience permits guests to deal with tree-prime excessive wires, crossings, ladders, bridges and ropes and at the similar time, enjoy the breath-taking surroundings. Snowdome in Tamworth provides the final word snow, ice and leisure experience from tubing and ice skating to tobogganing and sledging. Accommodations in Stafford will put visitors within simple attain of a memorable day at Snowdome stuffed with enjoyable and laughter.

It's a must to make a little bit of an effort to get to this very enticing little village on the Grand Union Canal. Moor by bridge 32, (Furnace Lane Bridge) take the track by the bridge, (opposite the wharf) and take the road into the village. It's a nice stroll, past a stables and enticing houses. The village is centered on the green a few basic shops/newsagents, a butcher and hairdresser. The pub, the Forrester Arms, overlooks the green. For those who walk previous the Forrester Arms, and take the subsequent turn left, you'll come throughout the very nice Rising Solar. Here's a delightful thatched a typical outdated England feel inside. Properly well worth the effort.

On the Shropshire Union, Brewood took us a bit unexpectedly. Beautiful winding streets, pleasant, very helpful locals, The Admiral Rodney Lodge, (one of many high pubs we've been in) and the friendliest hairdresser for miles. There Social Profile Here are a terrific range of shops, grocer, publish workplace, baker, and newsagent overlooking the outdated sq.. Gracious properly stored buildings make Brewood as good a spot as you'll find on the system. Idyllic moorins as properly!

The canal city of Braunston, on the oxford and Grand Union Canal junction has much to offer the canal traveler. Its delightful essential street, the Old Plough, the mariner, and lots of good mooring spots. The very best spot we cannock hotel apartments reckon is tucked in between bridge 2 and the mariner entrance. From right here one can watch the comings and goings on the mariner, wander right down to the Mill House pub by bride 91, or cross the Bridge and stroll into town.

One other traditional canal town. The moorings at Great Heywood have been assisted by the opening of the mariner close by. The spot we like is overlooking Shugbborough Hall, just below lock thirteen. A really pretty outlook, and near the village of Nice Heywood, and the walks round Cannock Chase. Leighton Buzzard We simply needed to go to here to see what a town with such a name seems like! It is an important place, plenty of good moorings, plenty of shops, and a Tesco's right on the canal. Some good pubs, including Roebucks, off Market Sq..

You most likely will not find Milton Keynes within the "Should See" listing of many canal travelers. I suppose we might by no means have ventured there had our boat not been moored at Blisworth for a couple of years. But enterprise to Milton Keynes we did, and we have been pleasantly shocked. It's a gorgeous cruise into the realm, by means of Nice Linford, Campbell Park, etc. and there are nice mooring spots alongside the way in which. Milton Keynes itself is a wholesome however never boring walk from the canal, and has every thing anticipated in a contemporary procuring space. The camera shop there helped us out twice; there are department shops, meals retailers and banks galore. But one of the best half is the area's to stroll round. Great Linford park, the lovely Nags head pub saved us amused for a couple of days.

[auskultu]

All Yippies NOT Hippies

Eugene Schoenfeld, Berkeley Barb, 21 June 1968

Early this year, when the proposed Yippie Convention in Chicago had the support of most of the leading musical groups, artists and other leaders of the current cultural renaissance and seemed to have a real potential for drawing hundreds of thousands of young hippies to Chicago, I wrote to Jerry Rubin in New York telling him my feelings that, with so many people involved, provision should be made for emergency services at Grant Park. Jerry’s reply to me was written the day Martin Luther King was shot (in fact, he interrupted his letter to mention this news).

When Lyndon Johnson announced his decision not to run for another presidential term, I thought a major objective of the Yippies had been realized. The assassination of Martin Luther King and the wave of demonstrations and riots which followed made me further doubt the wisdom of a Yippie gathering in Chicago at the time of the Democratic National Convention. My doubts continued to increase when Dick Gregory announced that he no longer supported a demonstration at the Democratic Convention site, fearing for the safety of the black people in the neighborhood.

“Yippie” stands for Youth International Party. To call it loosely organized would be an exaggeration. The FBI probably has the only membership list. A recent meeting had to be moved to Manhattan’s Union Square because Jerry’s girlfriend had gone to Long Island for the weekend, taking the key to the hall where the meeting was scheduled.

Last April, in a Chinese restaurant on Second Avenue in the East Village, a neighborhood where I often visited my Tante Rose (past the Yiddish vaudeville theatres, one of which has become the Fillmore East), I met several of the Yippies, including Jerry Rubin, Paul Krassner, Abbie Hoffman and John Gerassi. I had associated Yippies with Hippies so was startled to hear one of the group defend the physical attack on the editorial staff of the San Francisco State newspaper by some students at the college. Later that evening, some of us went to Jerry’s apartment. I stated my concern that serious physical harm was a possibility if any of the Yippies gathered in Grant Park were to go on to the Democratic Convention site (an entire regular Army division has been training for the past eight months specifically for disorders which might arise at the Democratic National Convention). I told them my feeling that the best way to achieve lasting change was by example. I believe people more readily change their values and style of life when they feel they have something pleasurable to gain, rather than when force is applied and change occurs as the result of fear.

Some Yippies would welcome a bloody confrontation in Chicago this summer. They believe that, while a few people might be hurt or killed, in the long run it would do good for people in this country and over the world. Let me emphasize that most Yippies do not want violence. But those who expect and welcome violence may use their skills of oratory to urge crowds in Chicago to provoke the authorities. They can easily be provoked. All the latent and overt prejudices against minority groups (including hippies) lay very close to the surface in that capital of America’s torment.

I had been intending to write to Jerry shortly to tell him my feelings about the proposed Yip-in, but the recent killing of Robert Kennedy prompts me to do this publicly. Whatever one may have thought of his political career, his murder was an outrage. And the “climate of violence” blamed by some for his death may be used as an excuse to further curtail civil liberties.

Last October, I participated in the Friday demonstration at the Oakland Induction Center. At the end of the day, when automobiles were being pushed into the middle of the streets and their tires deflated while street benches and trees were strewn about as additional barricades, I felt a sense of excitement on being involved in the most direct protest of any that I had witnessed. At the same time I recognized that simply because this kind of protest was effective, it would be followed by more violent protests and met with increasing violence by the opposition. These fears have been realized.

There is no doubt that black people have suffered more persecution in this country than any other minority group. Claims have been made recently that there is a plot to exterminate the black man in the United States. I don’t believe there is such a plot but I do feel there is a possibility of this occurring—a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy. The assassination of Martin Luther King has led to a vacuum in black leadership, rapidly being filled by black militants, some of whom espouse violence as a means to obtaining their ends.

The Yippies who planned the loot-in at Macy's in New York City on June 8th had no specific complaint about Macy’s but chose the store because it is probably the best known department store in the United States. The Yippie looters think this kind of chaotic action may lead to some changes. But we need only look at Nazi Germany to notice many striking parallels.

When Germany was affected by the world wide depression, paper money there became virtually worthless. I recall seeing old motion picture films of people carrying money in wheelbarrows to buy groceries. During the same years in the United States we had an opposite problem—the scarcity of money. However, it was far worse for a money-oriented society like Germany to find its currency worth nothing than to have it worth a great' deal and unavailable. Because of the “safeguards” on our money, banks would not fail in the event of a depression as they did in the 1930’s, at least not right away. What would happen is that the currency would just become pieces of paper.

A relatively small and powerless portion of our population consider themselves workers and identify with a “working class”. Our unions concern themselves not with political issues, but only with questions of increased pay and benefits for their members. Union members, for the most part, are among the most conservative groups in the United States and truly feel they have a stake in the status-quo. In a vacuum created by anarchy, violence and economic catastrophe, “status quo” people look to a strong man or a leader to help them. German communists thought they could use Hitler and later take his power from him. They were among his first victims. Some of the Yippies feel that creating anarchy and chaos will indeed lead to a rightist reaction but then a turn to the left. German communists believed the same until they were eliminated.

Violence leads to more violence. If the Chicago Yip-in ends in violence it could do no more harm to the cause of peace and black progress in this country than if it were directly supportive of the radical right.

The Free University of Berkeley this summer is offering a course in the use of small arms.

I see no difference between middle-class housewives in Detroit training with guns or blacks training with guns at the Free University. Fascism is fascism and it doesn’t matter whether it is a black fascist, a blue haired fascist or a long haired fascist.

There are ways of achieving social change without destroying the entire society. Some members of the underground and overground press believe that the present events in history will occur whatever is said, that they move with inevitable force. But I cannot remain silent, I will not contribute to a situation which potentially could lead to another Nazi Germany, or a situation which might result in thousands or millions of deaths. I think the Yippies had an important role in forcing President Johnson to decide to step down at the end of his current presidential term. But all Yippies are not Hippies. One should distinguish pacifistic hippie from militant New Left groups. I think it is time for everyone to seriously decide whether the situation in this country is so odious and so unamenable to change to warrant riots, rebellions, the possibility of thousands killed or imprisoned and the eventual take over by the right. We have only to look to the example of Russia to know that intellectual tyranny can continue 50 years after the end of a revolution. We must ask whether the economic and social inequities in the United States are so severe that they warrant the risk of a destruction of a society and a race of people.

I say things are not yet that bad. I say the non-violent course followed by Gandhi and Martin Luther King is an ideal toward which we must strive. The alternative may be an unprecedented period of barbarism.

I’m not going to Chicago this August.

[thebrierpatch]

Beyond the end of the tunnel Loureiro, the shoemaker who loved books and wines, and I were looking for a restaurant that sill served lunch late in the afternoon. It had poured during the day. Since it had just stopped raining, off we went, sailing the narrow and winding streets of the small and charming village at the foot of the mountain that houses the monastery. Heavy clouds left the sky dark, so lamps were lit earlier than usual. We were talking cheerfully and idly, as two friends who are happy just to be together, while we diverted from the puddles formed between century-old cobblestones. When we arrived at the restaurant, we found Carlo, a friend of ours, there. We were baffled. Not by a long shot was he that self-reliant, well-kept, handsome man we knew. We had met him less than a month ago, and he had seemed to be fine. On that day, he was just the opposite of the man we knew. He was downcast, hunched over, sullen; he seemed a specter of himself. He greeted us as joyfully as his heart was capable of at that time. Invited us to sit at his table and have a glass of wine with him. I asked if he would have lunch with us, but he said no. He had no appetite, and that had been going on for days, now. He added that his life had been turned upside down at a moment’s notice. Carlo had a good job; he worked for a multinational company, at its headquarters, located in a big city not too far, only about a 1-hour train ride. A week ago, when he arrived at work, he was told by a director that the company was redefining the job structure. Some positions had been eliminated, amongst which, his. He couldn’t even return to his office; his personal belongings had already been put in a box, which was given to him at that moment. His severance pay would be deposited into his bank account the following day. After a few days, his wife of 10 years told him the marriage was over. She had fallen in love with someone else, packed her belongings and left. He said he had reached rock bottom. Life was dark and, worse, there was no indication of any light that would be lit. I immediately tried to cheer him with a well-known speech for overcoming hardships, “it’s time to bounce back to surface”. He said he did not have the strength to overcome the problems he had and rebuild his life. This is when Loureiro surprised us by saying: “For now, it is best for you to remain at rock bottom. It is not time to bounce back.” I looked at the shoemaker with censoring eyes, as if asking for mercy for my friend. Carlo was surprised, and he even thought that it was a joke, clearly untimely. Loureiro started to develop his reasoning: “The world only falls apart when the soul is unbalanced.” “If he reached the bottom and bounces back now, he will return to the same stage he was at, or worse, nourished by sorrows and desire for revenge to transfer to others the reason of his fall.” I interrupted the cobbler to argue that not doing anything at this moment could encourage the same gloomy feelings or trigger a process of sadness and depression. The shoemaker shook his head and explained: “Rock bottom can be seen as sordid by many people; however, if you take time to pay careful attention, you will see it can be embraced as a place of silence and quietness, suitable for reflection and meditation. The perfect chance for one to understand the wrong choices that took him there.” I interrupted him once again to say it was ludicrous to believe one would reach rock bottom willingly. Carlo looked at the as if I had spoken for him. The shoemaker did not lose composure and was educational: “This is why it is dangerous for Carlo to return to the surface now. He would like to return like he was before, with the misperception that others had pushed him into the pit he is in. The storms exist to correct the course of sailors who do not know how to navigate.” “Before the tempest, the sea becomes rough, the wind foretells a change in the weather and the sky, from afar, signals with heavy clouds. It is up to each one, captain of their own ship, to keep the course or change it. Wrecks happen to those who do not know how to read the signs. However, experiences with wrecks shape the best sailors; life is a school that shapes great masters.” He made a pause and added: “As long as one is willing to learn from it.” “To go rock bottom is always a choice of those who fell”. “To accept this reality is the first step to remove resentments and the feeling of victimization, both of which delay evolution. While the person believes that the person responsible for their suffering is somebody else, they will not start the process of transformation, healing and freedom from the jail they had placed themselves in.” “Everyone has the same conditions of reaching plenitude, which is translated by achieving happiness, peace, freedom, dignity. Understanding the fall is learning what movements were wrong, and, from then on, to do differently and better. It is allowing the flourishing of virtues that are still seedlike in the core of the self.” He looked at Carlo with sincere compassion and said: “You can interpret rock bottom as evil from others, or an infamous conspiracy of the universe and yearn to bounce back with the aura of a super-hero. In fact, this is the most common and childish wish, moved by pride and vanity, and dreams of vile revenge and transient, inconsistent power.” He waited for the server to open the bottle and fill the cups. Sipped a little wine and continued: “However, at rock bottom, one can start building a tunnel. Not to escape reality, but in search of new, previously unimaginable possibilities. To come back to the surface at the same spot, to rebuild life on the same pillars, with the same old pattern of being and living, is to perpetuate stagnation through a different outfit. One must know the possibilities that lie beyond the end of the tunnel for an effective, true transformation. Otherwise, we will live the curse of Sisyphus, from Greek mythology. His curse was having to roll a huge stone up a hill only to have it roll down again as soon as he had brought it to the summit. An action constantly repeated and doomed to failure. Rock bottom must be the beginning of the tunnel that will lead to an unknown light, in a way different from before, with true inner evolvement.” “It is time for humility and determination, two valuable virtues. Rock bottom, because of its silence and quietness, is the ideal place for one to face oneself in a perfect mirror, without the distortion caused by the masks we create for social acceptance, far from the characters we have invented to support the shadows of pride and vanity, without escaping the responsibility for their own happiness, without the shallow distractions whose only purpose is to postpone the important task of knowing who we really are and triggering major transformations.” “The person who knows who they really are brings to themselves the power of life, are capable of overcoming the harshest difficulties. On the other hand, a person who does not know themselves will always be frail, vulnerable to the smallest disappointments, and will require the gimmicks of illusion. Self-knowledge allows them to understand their abilities and the virtues they already possess and make good use of them. They also acknowledge the imperfections that still exist and the virtues that are yet to blossom, instruments essential to evolution. Humility and determination are the winds that propel the crossing in search of the hidden treasure, waiting to be revealed, for the sake of the person and the world. If we know how to read properly the map of life, we will realize that rock bottom is the loving permission for one to start a journey to a wonderful and unknown world, so far and yet so close, the heart itself, the essence of self and the sacred seed of the universe.” I complained, annoyed and unbelieving, with Loureiro for being harsh with our friend. Carlo agreed with me, said he did not deserve to be treated like that, stood up and left. The cobbler kept his countenance serene and, in face of my inquisitive gaze, shrugged his shoulders and said: “I know I was harsh with him, but I did what I thought was best. Without transformation there is no evolvement. Truth can be a whip that causes wounds and hurts or a balm that heals and liberates. It all depends of the feeling of he who says it. I did it out of love.” Months passed by with no news of Carlo. One day, we were having lunch in that same restaurant when we were surprised by his arrival. He was very different than in the two prior moments of his life. He was not the well-groomed corporate executive or the stooped man who had reached rock bottom. He had an informal elegance and was more handsome than ever. He was wearing a well-trimmed beard, jeans and a nice shirt, tennis shoes and, most importantly, an indescribable smile on his face. He opened his arms when he saw us and asked to sit at our table. I mentioned the fortunate coincidence of us meeting at the same restaurant. He said it was no coincidence. The owner was an old friend of his who, upon his request, told him we were there. It was important for him that we meet at the same place, because the previous meeting had been a cornerstone in his life. He had to thank the shoemaker for his firm words. With teary eyes, he said that at that same time other people also spoke to him, all of them with good intentions, but their words were too sugar-coated, but barren. He acknowledged that the discourse he had of being a victim made him frail, sad, and led to stagnation. The firm rhetoric of the cobbler had awakened him from the slumber of apathy and lack of responsibility. If that was his life, it was up to him to write his own story, according to the possibilities of overcoming hardships with his own efforts. With no guilt, because he acted according to the level of awareness he had at the time, but with the commitment to do differently and better from then on. Only by doing so could he take the lead of his life. To become an adult is not only to get a job and get married but to reach maturity. He said that at first it was very difficult, but later he realized that the abandonment he felt was, in fact, the fantastic chance he had to take control of his own life, which was always delayed because he blamed others for his failures and disappointments. He accepted it was time to be sincere with himself or he would not leave the childhood of existence. He added that it may be comforting to feel victimized, but that makes the person a coward and prevents their growth. Maturity is accepting responsibilities for the choices one makes, learning from them and moving on, day-by-day, with a different, better way of being. Next, he said that because he had been working at that corporation for many years, he had set mechanisms through which much of what he had to do was distributed to other people, and therefore he was made redundant. In fact, subconsciously, he was responsible for his being fired by showing that the position he had was not necessary. The opposite would likely happen if he had gone further and made himself essential. He also said he had become too laid back about his marriage. At some point he gave up the effort of keeping alive the flame of affection that had bound him to his wife; therefore, it was natural that she became uninterested in maintaining their relationship and a gap was created that had to be filled. Truth be told, both cases were cycles he should have ended in a more honest way whether to himself or to others. Deep inside, the pain he felt was because of the wound to his pride, for being rejected by his wife and fired by his company. Once he became willing to work that in himself, he understood that what he felt was rock bottom was, in fact, the beginning of the tunnel that had led him to a search he had never thought of before. Instead of bouncing back, as he originally had thought, he found a new place where there was much more light. He said that in this process, the more he came to know himself the more he, and everything around him, would transform. Interests, wishes, choices became different. What was previously essential did not make sense anymore. He said that he had always been into motorcycles, so he decided to open a small shop in the garage of his home. There, he met a young woman who also loved bikes, and they started dating. The relationship and the business were still crawling, money was still short and limited, but the bike rides they took on weekends were long and pleasant. He said he had never felt so free and light. He lived more and more according to his essence, and that made him happy. Differently from before, every day now he woke up excited with life. Even if all went wrong, he had learned the unlimited possibilities of survival, he has understood the immeasurable power he had within, and now he knew that he could start over as many times as necessary. Reaching rock bottom had, in fact, been a blessing. Carlo called the waiter and asked for the menu, he would have lunch with us. He was hungry. Hungry for life, he added. We laughed. He took the opportunity to thank the cobbler for the previous conversation. He said he felt the arguments the shoemaker used were somehow surrounding him. He only had to open the curtains to see them more clearly and let them in. Loureiro agreed: “Yes, it is like they were dormant within you, and our talk woke them up. Otherwise, it would still take time for them to mature in the subconscious mind and only then would you become aware of them. This is how we expand our level of perception and change our life.”. Carlo said that all that seemed a sorry ending has revealed to be the beginning of a beautiful journey. Loureiro smiled and concluded: “Even though it is not a rule, at times, depending on the behavior of he who hit rock bottom, a tunnel is open that allows one to go beyond. Beyond oneself. This is when the first portal of the Path opens. The indigent turns into a walker. Everything changes. For good.” Kindly translated by Carlos André Oighenstein Other texts by the author at www.yoskhaz.com/en

[wineschool-blog]

The Top BYOB Restaurants in Philly

https://j.mp/3sCpXZf BYO culture in Philly is unique among American cities. It came about due to the influence of the  PLCB and high rent in Center City’s restaurant district.  For most chefs, the choice is to either focus on their debt or focus on the food.  Many opt for the latter and open a small BYOB in an outlying neighborhood. Philly’s dining culture is headed with them. At this point, the grand ole restaurants (Le Bec Fin, Susanna Foo, Striped Bass)  on the 1500 block of Walnut Street have been gone a long, long time.  It’s places like Queen Village, NoLibs, Passyunk Ave, Chinatown, East Falls, Northern Liberties, and the Gayborhood that have taken over as must-visit destinations for foodies. Here is our current list of the top BYOB in Philly. Enjoy! Table of contentsTop Wine-Friendly BYOB1. June BYOB2. Pumpkin3. Bibou4. Jaxon5. Little Fish6. Entree BYOB7. Fiorino8. Umai Umai9. Isot Mediterranean CuisineTop Beer-Friendly BYOB1. Perla2. Vientiane Bistro3. Jong Ka Jib4. Parada Maimon5. El Limon6. Apricot Stone7. Saté Kampar9. China Gourmet10. Terakawa RamenThe Start of the BYO Movement Top Wine-Friendly BYOB 1. June BYOB 690 Haddon Ave, Collingswood, NJ 08108 Our top spot for French food in the Philadelphia region.  This lovely BYO is run by the husband and wife team Richard and Christina Cusack. Rich earned his stripes at Danielle NYC and Le Bec Fin.  Christina is a Level 3 Somm and currently working on her Advanced Sommelier degree via the National Wine School. Expertly executed, this is Classical french food—a perfect accompaniment for your top bottles of wine.  June BYOB 2. Pumpkin 1713 South St, Philadelphia, PA 19146 Pumpkin is one of the patriarchs on this list, and still going strong; both Jaxon and Will owe their existence to this little Graduate Hospital BYO. Their Sunday Prix fixe menu is a longstanding tradition, and of the best dining values in the city. Their ala carte menu changes daily, and dinner is always a pleasure. Chef-Owner Ian Moroney (who got his start at the original Little Fish, back when his father was the chef-owner) has kept the quality very high for a remarkable amount of time. Pumpkin 3. Bibou 1009 S 8th St, Philadelphia, PA 19147 BIBOU HAS TRANSITIONED TO BE A BOUTIQUE GROCERY Chef Pierre Calmels has been at the top of Philly’s BYO scene for over a decade. This ever-evolving tasting menu is a rare jewel. Pierre is truly one of the greatest French chefs working in America today. Also, he baked me a birthday cake when they first opened, which was the coolest thing ever.  Bibou 4. Jaxon 701 N 3rd St, Philadelphia, PA 19123 One of the best new BYO restaurants Philly has seen in years. Chef Matthew Gansert has learned a thing or two from his stint at Will. Well-executed dishes with subtle flavors and precise culinary techniques.  Unlike Will, portion sizes are on the larger size, and a tade more traditional. Philly’s Top BYOBs: Jaxon 5. Little Fish 746 S 6th St, Philadelphia, PA 19147 This little joint has had more locations and owners and chefs than a tiny BYO should.  The idea of this restaurant has captured the imagination of nearly two decades of chefs, owners, and diners. Despite the changes, it has remained a magical little joint in Bella Vista. The perfect place to pop open your favorite whites and roses. Little Fish 6. Entree BYOB  1608 South St Philadelphia, PA 19146 This is the type of BYOB that put Philly on the national food scene. A timeless menu makes this a go-to local joint. Entree BYOB 7. Fiorino 3572 Indian Queen Ln, Philadelphia, PA 19129 For old-school Italian food, we usually point our Uber towards South Philly. However, for Philly’s top Italian BYO, we now roll in the opposite direction.  This East Falls focuses on Emilia-Romagna cuisine and consistently outshines its peers in a city deep in gravy. While nothing on the menu would surprise the diner — veal marsala, spaghetti and clams, and Gorgonzola gnocchi are all represented —  the execution and attention to detail are extraordinary. Bring your best bottle of Nebbiolo or a ripasso and have a great night. Fiorino 8. Umai Umai  533 N 22nd St, Philadelphia, PA 19130 Long-standing BYO with an inventive menu.  One of the only restaurants still remaining from the last wave of chef-run restaurants.  Back in the day, this was the go-to Sushi restaurant when the Wine School of Philadelphia was located in Fairmount.  The sashimi is good, but the main attraction is the hand-rolls  Umai Umai 9. Isot Mediterranean Cuisine 622 S 6th St Philadelphia, PA 19147 Eastern Mediterranean food is becoming a core element of the Philly restaurant scene. From the Israeli powerhouse Zahav to the Middle Eastern Spice Finch to the (deeply disappointing and over-hyped) Lebanese food of Suraya.  This Turkish BYOB is a welcome addition to the Meze explosion we are currently seeing in Philly.  Isot Mediterranean Cuisine Top Beer-Friendly BYOB 1. Perla  1535 S 11th St, Philadelphia, PA 19147  Beautiful Filipino food from a classically trained chef. The weekly eat-with-your-hands Kamayan feasts are out of this world.   Perla 2. Vientiane Bistro  2537 Kensington Ave  Philadelphia, PA 19125 Classical Laotian food, with the spice and contrast of flavors that have not been watered-down. Lao cuisine is very similar to Isan (Northeastern) Thai food.  Vientiane Bistro 3. Jong Ka Jib 6600 N 5th St, Philadelphia, PA 19126 When done well, Soondubu will turn the most ardent meat-eater into a blubbering tofu-lover. This Korean dish is comprised of two main components: a bowl of rice and another bowl of stew. Each is served in a lava-hot bowl.  Whisk the supplied raw egg into the stew, pop open a few pilsners, and you are ready to begin your journey into a whole new way of eating. And the place you need to do this is Jong Ka Jib in Oak Lane. Jong Ka Jib 4. Parada Maimon 345 N 12th St, Philadelphia, PA 19107  The spot for Caribbean food in Philly, in particular Dominican cuisine.  The highlight here is the excellent mofongo. Parada Maimon 5. El Limon 103 Spring Mill Ave, Conshohocken, PA 19428 This is the penultimate family-run restaurant. Just stepping over the threshold feels like entering your Abuela’s kitchen.  There are several locations now, but this is still the best (although Ardmore is dangerously close to the Tired Hands brewery). The main attraction here is the shrimp burritos, and the tacos are legit. El Limon 6. Apricot Stone 1040 N American St, Ste 601, Philadelphia, PA 19123 There is more to the Mediterranean than Italy, France, and Spain. The eastern shores are better known as the Middle East, and some of the oldest cuisines in the world. This NoLibs BYO offers up stellar Syrian food. Similar to Israeli and Middleeaster food cuisine in general,   you will see falafel, kebabs, and hummus on the menu. However, the execution at this BYO is exceptional. Apricot Stone 7. Saté Kampar  1837 E Passyunk Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19148 Authentic Malaysian food on Passyunk Ave. It’s all about the meat skewers. : Saté Kampar 8. Los Gallos 951 Wolf St, Philadelphia, PA 19148  The Mexican joint all South Philly taquerias are judged by.  Tacos and salsas to live by. Just don’t expect to find street parking nearby. Los Gallos 9. China Gourmet  2842 St Vincent Street Philadelphia, PA 19149 The Dim-Sum Mecca of Philadelphia. The Northeast has become the center for Cantonese food in the region. China Gourmet 10. Terakawa Ramen 204 N 9th St, Philadelphia, PA 19107 You can’t go wrong with a bowl of handmade wavy noodles and pork bone soup that’s been simmering for 48 hours.  Umami-rich flavors that can be cranked up with a hit of chili, or toned down with ground sesame.  A few standouts are the Tan Tan Ramen and the Kyushu Danji. Terakawa Ramen Here’s a short and sweet promo for our classes: learn to cook, how to pair, and generally be the best amateur sommelier and/or chef you can be. Check them out and see if anything catches your fancy. Hope to see you soon! The Start of the BYO Movement We had a few questions regarding why & how the BYO movement began in Philly. Rent for restaurants in Center City can be as high as $34K a month, while the average rent in outlining neighborhoods can be as low as $2k a month. Add to that the high cost of liquor licenses, which can cost upwards of a quarter-million dollars, and the fact that restaurants cannot buy wine at wholesale (the PLCB only gives restaurants a 7% discount rather than the 30-50% discount in most other states). Some of this is changing. For updates on the current wine laws (PLCB or otherwise), check here: Wine Law in Pennsylvania.  ———————- FORMER Best BYO Winners These BYOB restaurants have been pulled from the Best Restaurant list for one of two reasons: they are no longer in business, or the quality of their offerings has fallen off.  Will BYOB For sheer brilliance, there isn’t a place better than Will. Chris Kearse is one of the most innovative chefs working in Philly today. Small portions, perfect execution, and compelling preparations make this a go-to restaurant for everyone in the know. Cadence CADENCE HAS CLOSED FOR GOOD, DUE TO COVID. One of the most brilliant and innovative meals to be had in Philadelphia can be had at this BYOB. Compelling and unexpected flavors are layered into local and seasonal ingredients. Menu works very well with Spanish and natural wines. Helm Back in the oughts, the BYO scene in Philly was happening like nothing else on the East Coast. The level of creativity and passion and endless chefs wanting to make a name for themselves was staggering.  There was a system in place for chefs to earn their stripes. Most worked their way up through the ranks of the Vetri or Perrier culinary empires. Opened a BYO, and launched their career. That isn’t happening as much anymore. The economy sucks, commercial rents are rising in many neighborhoods. There are fewer talented cooks willing to toil for the low wages that come with salaried restaurant work. It seems that Olde Kensington is the place where the BYO scene can still exist in it’s former glory. Helm is a ridiculously good restaurant. Creative and intuitive menus that offer elements of farm-to-table without it seeming coy or reductive. Flavors are well thought through and exciting.  Highly recommended. L’Oceano Collingswood has a well-deserved reputation of fostering a Philly-like BYO scene. L’Oceano is the best of the bunch. The ala carte menu is eclectic, and a bit out of step with modern trends. For instance, the current menu offers lobster mac and cheese, grilled caesar salad, pork shank, and maple glazed salmon: all dishes more commonly offered a decade ago. Khmer Kitchen Nothing wrong with a little bit of retro cuisine. After all, who can say no to a lobster corndog? Plus, they do a great Crab Gravy Dinner on Sundays. Doma There is a lot of sushi in Philly. Sadly, there isn’t much good sushi in Philly. Like most  Sushi joints in Philly, this one isn’t Japanese, but Korean. The style is more robust and a greater focus on signature rolls and sauces. However, Doma takes the gold because of it’s traditional sashimi, which relies on freshness and execution. Nine Ting Skip the bbq and head straight to the classic hotpot. The all-you-can-eat element may seem a bit Middle America, but it’s a custom in China and Korea. This is the Korean-style hotpot, aka Shabu Shabu. Ordering the Benz pot which allows you to try three of the soups for the same price. The pig bone, tomato, and spicy soups are the way to go, and make sure to hit the condiment station, too. Tre Scalini This is one of the few restaurants in Philly that cooks from an authentically Italian place.  This is quintessential Southern Italian food, Molise in particular. Off the list due to customer service issues Laurel Let’s get this out of the way, yes, Nick Elmi won Top Chef. Yes, it’s now almost impossible to get a reservation. Yes, there are only a dozen seats in this restaurant. That said, go anyways. Plead, threaten, or pitch a fit. Just get a reservation. Nick has a delicate and elegant touch with ingredients that is as rare as it is refreshing. His dishes are often subtle and winsome. Is he the Robert Frost of chefs? No longer a BYOB Nomad Pizza Company This is simply the best pizza in Philly. Let’s be clear: this isn’t Philly-style pizza (aka Greek pizza or Tomato Pie). This is traditional Neapolitan pizza. The crust is better than most drugs, so be warned.  Bring your bottles of  Fiano di Avellino and Greco di Tufo. The most awesome Art Etchells pointed out that Nomad in Philly now has a liquor license.  The original in Hopewell, NJ  is still a BYO. Ulivo Joseph Scarpone may be a local boy, but he spent years cooking in Napa Valley. He returned to Philly to open the critically acclaimed Sovalo in NoLibs in 2008.  He brings a lot of his cal-ital finesse to Ulivio, but  the stress is now firmly on the Ital, not the Cal. Sadly, Ulivo closed.  Mr. Scarpone, you will be missed. The Farm and Fisherman One of the failings of most BYO is service and ambiance. A tiny chef-run restaurant will put out amazing food, but there is often no budget for a General Manager, who would be able to run the front of the house. That can mean the occasional misstep or quirky experience.  That is not the case here. Along with a  well-designed dining room, the waitstaff is excellent. The food is extraordinary, to boot. The Farm and Fisherman Closed By Keith Wallace https://j.mp/3sCpXZf

[pandemicperipatetics]

Weekend in Grand Canyon

The Verdict: It’s (obviously) totally awesome, one of the most stunning places we’ve ever been, etc etc. Rather than restating the obvious, we’ll share our top 3 tips:

Hike the South Kaibab Trail. It is one of the coolest hikes we’ve ever done. And really great bang for your buck in terms of strenuousness vs. views.

Late March is  an awesome time to go - outdoors feels like about 20 degrees warmer than what the Weather app says, which is great for hiking. And we hear it’s less crowded than a little later in the year. Just take crampons if you’ll be hiking - it’s icy and you can’t really hike without them!

It is really convenient to stay inside the park if you can. When we drove out on Sunday around 11:30 a.m., the line to enter at the South Rim Entrance Station was legit over a mile long. By staying inside the park, you’ll get a head start on hikes and avoid the crowds.

WHAT TO DO

There are different ways to see pretty things in Grand Canyon. You can drive, walk, or hike to the views. We prioritized seeing the South Rim, the most popular area to visit. We were also able to drive to see sights along the East Rim. The North Rim was closed for winter, and the West Rim was a bit out of the way for us.

Hiking (i.e., walking down into the canyon)

There are (long, multi-day) hikes where you can walk from one rim to another. We opted to do shorter out-and-back hikes on our own to get a more leisurely glimpse into the canyon.

South Kaibab Trail - This trail is AWESOME! We can’t say enough good things about the views; it’s no surprise it’s the most popular hike in the park. It’s a stunning downhill trail into the canyon with markers at 0.9 miles (”Ooh Aah Point”), 1.5 miles (”Cedar Ridge”), 3 miles (”Skeleton Key”), and beyond -- we didn’t look into going further, though we’d love to next time.

The first 5-10 minutes of downhill are STEEP and ICY - we could not have done this without crampons. We saw plenty of people give up on the hike because they didn’t have appropriate footwear, others sliding down on their butts, and also saw someone fall. We didn’t think we would really need crampons, so we ordered them on Amazon and didn’t open them until we got to the trail and saw that they were absolutely necessary. After those first several minutes, we didn’t encounter any ice - just lots of mud and some mule poo!

After those first several minutes, the downhill gets less steep until Cedar Ridge. Post Cedar Ridge, it’s again quite steep (important to keep in mind for the return ascent). We started around 7a.m. and are glad we got an early start: the hike gets HOT lower down in the canyon, even on a day with a low of 25 degrees and a high of 61.

The views got prettier and prettier as we went further down. To be safe, we stopped about halfway between Cedar Ridge and Skeleton Key. In retrospect, we would have gone all the way to Skeleton Key - the ascent wasn’t that difficult after Cedar Ridge; going further seemed totally doable.

Logistical Pro Tip:

We read that we needed to park at the Visitor Center and take the Orange Line shuttle for the ~10 minute drive to the trailhead. But we later realized there is a better option - you can drive to Pipe Creek Vista and park on the road there - parking is scarce but probably fine if you go early, and by mid-day we saw loads of people park outside of actual parking spots on the opposite side of the road. From Pipe Creek Vista, it’s just a 15 minute walk to the trailhead, all on the gorgeous Rim Trail. It really beats waiting 10-20 minutes for the shuttle to pick you up, then cramming in with a bunch of other tourists, especially during the pandemic! If you do park at the Visitor Center, you can take the shuttle back after your hike or walk ~2 miles along the Rim Trail. We really enjoyed doing the latter.

Bright Angel Trail - This trail is good, but in our opinion the views (at least up to 1.5 miles down, which is how far we went) aren’t that much better than from the park’s many scenic viewpoints. Like South Kaibab, this is a long downhill trail with markers at 1.5 miles in, 3 miles in, and further on.

We did the ~10 minute scenic walk from our hotel, El Tovar, along the Rim Trail to get to the trailhead around 8 a.m., and we walked down about 1.6 miles before turning back. The weather app reported it was in the high 20s - due to the sun it felt more like 40s - and the hike down was icy and slippery the entire time. Crampons were 100% necessary for us.

It took us about 1.5 hours to descend and about 1 hour to ascend - a bit surprising since we had read the ascent takes 2-3 times longer, but we were also extra-careful going down due to the ice and trying to avoid any more ankle sprains. It felt closer to moderate than strenuous, compared to other strenuous hikes we’ve done recently. If you have extra time after doing South Kaibab, we’d still recommend this hike. If you’re at a moderate fitness level, the 3 mile out-and-back hike (6 mile total) should be completely fine.

Walking

It’s a very popular option to walk the Rim Trail. As the name suggests, it’s a walk right along the rim of the canyon. It’s pretty flag and continuously scenic. We walked parts of it and thought it was beautiful!

Driving

Desert View Drive - This is a popular 23-mile (one-way) drive between the South Entrance and East Entrance of the park, with views of the East Rim. The East Entrance was closed due to winter conditions, so we started and ended the drive at the South Entrance, which is close to many lodges & food inside the park. There are many stops along the way with lovely views. Our favorite was Moran Point - a great place to eat a picnic lunch sitting on a rock (we didn’t see any tables). We were a bit underwhelmed by Desert View Point (right by the East Entrance). There also seem to be some short hikes or walks along the way. We tried the Shoshone Point Trail but it was way too muddy and slippery! We walked around there for about a minute and then spent probably 15 minutes cleaning off our hiking shoes. Note: The well-known Yaki Point is also along this drive, but it seems like you either need to take the park shuttle to get to it, or park near Pipe Creek and walk even further than the South Kaibab Trailhead. We did not see it.

Hermit’s Rest Road: You have to take the shuttle or a bike to travel along this road. It’s right near the major park lodging, and we looked for parking near the road to see if we could walk along it, but could not find a spot. It’s a 7-mile road that is well-known for Hermit’s Rest Viewpoint at the end - so probably best not to try walking there anyways. We didn’t see it, but it sounds nice.

Mather Point: You can walk the 0.3 miles here from the Grand Canyon Visitor Center, which is just a few minutes’ drive from the park lodges. It is a pretty large area with lots of space to look into the canyon. Still, it was fairly crowded. We found a rock to enjoy our picnic lunch with a view. If you’re eating there, just watch out for the aggressive squirrels that may come and beg you for food and/or try to swipe it away from you! We also saw a park sign claiming that upwards of 30 visitors a day seek treatment for finger bites from the squirrels...

There seem to be tons of other viewpoints in the park - some that cropped up a lot in our research included Yavapai Point and Hopi Point (along Hermit’s Rest Road). There are plenty of places within the park to get a look at the stunning canyon!

WHAT TO EAT - VEGGIE VERSION

The veggie options inside and near the park seemed a bit mediocre. We tried Park food for lunch and peanut butter sandwiches & snacks in our room for dinner, because 1) we were too lazy to leave and 2) we honestly felt our homemade sandwiches would be more satisfying than the available vegetarian dinner options.

Bright Angel Bicycles & Cafe at Mather Point (currently open 8am-5pm) - Park your vehicle at the visitor center and walk over (it’s right next door). There are pre-made sandwiches, wraps, salads and a little bakery area with bagels, muffins, croissants. We got a Mediterranean wrap with hummus (tasted like food at a corporate lunch), a frozen egg-and-potato breakfast burrito (not too bad), and a blueberry bagel with cream cheese (tasted like dessert!). There is a self-serve microwave (i.e., for frozen burrito) and toaster (i.e., for bagel). While the food was decent - and decently priced - the cafe is quite small and there was not social distancing going on at all. We honestly felt like it was the riskiest place we’d been to during the pandemic. Thankfully, there was a large container of hand sanitizer available at the condiments station.

El Tovar Dining Room - This is apparently a thing to do during a visit to Grand Canyon. Since we stayed in El Tovar, we walked by the dining room a few times and witnessed the line to get in. The dining room is indoors. There is a global pandemic. We did not try the food. (If you’re a guest at the hotel, you can order the same food through room service, but the vegetarian options seemed overpriced and not terrifically tantalizing).

Canyon Village Market - We didn’t try it, but the menu & prices looked decent - black bean burgers, a veggie breakfast sandwich, etc.

Sophie’s Mexican Kitchen - This is a restaurant in Tusayan, the closest town to the south end of the park. We didn’t try it, but among limited vegetarian options in Tusayan, this looked like it might be okay. We read online that there are vegan/vegetarian options here - it looked like standard stuff like tacos, burritos, quesadillas, etc.

WHERE TO STAY

We stayed at El Tovar, a lodge inside the park run by Xanterra Resorts, a Park-approved vendor. We’d recommend it solely for the location: it’s right on the South Rim and convenient to all of the main sites in the park.

The room itself felt like a freshman dorm room without a desk - sparsely furnished, cedar wood furniture, paper-thin walls so you can hear everything in the hallway. The customer service was poor: the doorman (whose job seemed to be to keep out the tourists trying to get into the famed El Tovar Dining Room) was pretty rude every time we tried to get in to go to our room, and the person who checked us in clearly didn’t know what she was doing (she emphasized multiple times that cigarette smoking is not allowed). Note there is no elevator; we chose the 3rd floor, which is the highest, because the receptionist told us it would avoid hearing people stomping around upstairs. We also had difficulty finding parking because tourists use the lot to park to see the canyon views right outside the hotel. The rooms at El Tovar also tend to be extremely expensive - don’t let that fool you into thinking it’s a luxury hotel.

On the plus side, only El Tovar residents can order room service off the El Tovar dining menu (not that we did), and the piano playing on the second floor wafted up to our non-soundproof room in a lovely way.

Sunset outside El Tovar

[alia15]

THE day. Part 2.

Peacocks.

My wedding venue is swarming with them. 

Well, those, and chickens and turkeys. And roosters.

The Milleridge Cottage is on a larger property on Long Island that’s been around for many, MANY years and also has a restaurant, an adorable little village (shops, a bakery, a florist) and yes: a farm. 

When our limo bus pulled up to the cottage on Friday, November 15, my bridal party was greeted by all the wildlife which I’ll admit is an interesting and hilarious scene on your wedding day. Also, not mentioned in Part 1? The weather. Bright, sunny, and warm for mid-November. I refused to check the weather the entire week of the wedding (you can’t control it so why bother looking?) and it ended up being an absolutely perfect fall day. I greeted the turkeys, walked into the venue and the scene immediately took my breath away: I loved The Milleridge the second we stepped foot inside to look at it as a potential option for our big day, and loved it even more each time I visited after that. Now? Seeing it all set up for my wedding day? It was everything I envisioned and more. I made my way up the beautiful staircase and waited in the bridal suite for my groom and his groomsmen to arrive. 

There were those butterflies again.

There was so much commotion downstairs that I wasn’t able to be a part of as I was in hiding (#FOMO), but the time finally came for me to head down those stairs and meet my soon-to-be-husband at the bottom. Remember the crazy thoughts in my head from Part 1 of this post? They came back as I imagined myself tumbling down those stairs after tripping over my very long, large dress. 

I walked REALLY carefully. And slowly.

Leo was at the bottom of the staircase and in front of him stood a crowd of our family and best friends; standing there like paparazzi with their iPhones up and the biggest smiles plastered on their faces. Our photographers and videographer captured my every move. What a scene. I eventually made my way down (without falling! win!) and tapped Leo on the shoulder to, ya know, say what’s up before the biggest moment of our lives. 

We both joked that while we loved this moment, it certainly wasn’t a private one. This was some of our audience (plus about 30 more people, lol):

The next few hours (yes, plural) were spent taking all our photos and thankfully, we were able to do so outside. If you know me or follow me on social media, you know how much I love a good sunset, and the universe did me a solid and gave us an amazing one that night. 

It was crazy to think at this point -- after SEVERAL hours -- that the main event hadn’t even started yet. After wrapping up pictures with everyone, we headed inside. 

I went back up to the bridal suite to hide for the second time that day. 

The venue got louder and louder as it filled up with guests, and all I heard were the sounds of a large CROWD. My heart raced. I fixed my hair and re-applied my lip gloss 37 times. I stood up. I paced. I sat back down. I didn’t want to look at my phone because I knew it would overwhelm me, so it was just me up there with my restless thoughts. The day had been so perfect already; I just wanted it to continue. A few things swirling in my mind:

Would the reverend show up? (He did)

The venue was confusing to find; were people going to know to go to the cottage and not the restaurant? (They did) (And whoever didn’t, eventually figured it out)

Did anyone in my life get incredibly sick that day and have to miss the wedding? (No)

Were our young nieces and nephews going to have meltdowns and not walk down the aisle? (quite the opposite; they were amazing)

Was there any drama? ANYONE WHO CRASHED OUR WEDDING? Is everything OK down there? WHAT’S HAPPENING??! (shut up, crazy)

Eventually, it was time. All of our guests were situated for the ceremony and our bridal party was lined up downstairs. And things could not have gone smoother: no one tripped, no one objected to our nuptials (lol), the kiddos were perfectly behaved and cooperative, and our reverend was a HUGE hit (shout out to the hilarious and charismatic Rev. Sica!). It was a beautiful ceremony complete with an amazing string quartet, and I swore I felt the love in the room before I even entered it.

We were officially husband and wife. And it felt fantastic.

After our relatively brief ceremony, I felt like I was floating on a cloud. We headed back up to the bridal suite to get a quick breather before cocktail hour began; something my bridal attendant had recommended we do and I am SO glad we listened. Normally if I’m anxious I lose my appetite, but Leo and I enjoyed our own private cocktail hour and ate the INCREDIBLE spread they provided for us. Every few seconds it would hit us.

Holy crap, we’re married! 

My bridal attendant bustled my dress, and it was time to join the party. I could NOT wait to see everyone.

The magic continued as we greeted everyone at our cocktail hour and took in the whole scene. It was surreal and a total out-of-body experience. You spend SO much time and energy planning a wedding and you focus on all the details -- large and small -- and then you’re there just seeing it all come together and come to life. I can honestly say without a shadow of a doubt that EVERYTHING looked and felt the way I wanted it to that day. I was overjoyed and overwhelmed, in a good way. So many people had given me the advice to “take it all in” and “enjoy every moment” and I’m really happy to say I did exactly that.

The good times intensified as we did our official entrance to our reception (”Let’s Dance” by David Bowie....come onnnnn now!) followed by *THE* most epic dance party of all time. One of my best friends, Carl, was our MC and he and our DJ, Eddie, brought the house down the entire night with an amazing mix of songs old and new. I did not leave that dance floor except the one time I changed dresses -- you know I had to do a costume change on ‘em! 

I could go on and on with the details but instead I’ll just share some incredible highlights from our reception:

Our first dance: Leo was nervous about it (it’s nerve-racking to have all eyes on you and he doesn’t exactly love to dance) but in the moment, nothing else mattered and no one else was even in the room. (Song: Precious Love by James Morrison) 

After that, I danced with my Grandmother; a really special moment that I will cherish forever. It was really emotional and beautiful; especially as the whole family (and Leo!) joined us at the end. 

The speeches! My brother Mike was my “man of honor” and Leo’s sister Rina was our “best woman” and both of them gave GREAT and hilarious toasts (with cameos from all my brother-in-laws). My dad gave an amazing one, too: let’s just say he made a joke about getting to second base that got a huge laugh (Leo’s a baseball coach. lol). 

Birthday celebrations! It was my brother’s 40th birthday that day and my mother-in-law’s was the following day, so we were able to sing to them and give them their own special cupcakes and candles to blow out. 

The father/daughter & mother/son dances.

Our live painter! He set up shop in the corner of the room and painted our first dance and added our families to the portrait (I’ll include the photo at the bottom of the post!). I waited until the end of the night to go look at it and was genuinely stunned.

Ending the night with two perfect songs: (I’ve Had) the Time of My Life -- from one of my favorite movies of all time, obvi -- and then my friend Pat requested the grand finale/encore: “Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays” by ‘NSYNC. (This is his trademark and is known to play this song when we’re out even in the summer)

Speaking of the end of the night, we had a McDonald’s cart rolled in around 11:15 and the guests went crazy for it. Nothing like stuffing your face at a wedding and then ending the night with a greasy cheeseburger and fries. Leo had it for breakfast the next morning.

Aside from the hotel’s fire alarm going off around 4am (yes, really) it was a perfect day from start to finish. Now, almost six months later, I find my mind wandering to the memories of November 15 when I’m feeling especially low or down in the dumps. I look at the pictures often and the various videos make me instantly happy. People told me during/after the wedding how insanely happy I looked, and it was genuine. I was. I am.

It’s not hyperbole: my wedding day was the best day of my life. I got to marry my perfect match while surrounded by every single human in my life that I love endlessly. I got to have a great dance party, eat incredible food, all while surrounded by a beautiful venue with all the personal touches we had worked on for the nine months prior. 

The pandemic might have prevented us from going on our Italian honeymoon, but that’s okay. We’ll get there someday. I’m just eternally grateful and relieved that we were able to have all our other big wedding moments (engagement, shower, bachelor/ette parties, rehearsal dinner, wedding!) all in the same year -- making 2019 really hard to top. 

Thanks for letting me share the story of our big day with you all! 

[curryhealthcenter]

7 IDEAS FOR A SPRING BREAK CLOSE TO HOME

Health Nut writer: Denae Duren

Health Nut photo: Denae Duren

If you don’t know by now, let me enlighten you: You can leave Missoula in literally any direction, and come upon multiple hidden gems within just two hours. If you don’t have big travel plans for spring break that’s okay, because I’ve compiled day trip itineraries for you! Read on to learn how you can discover some of Montana’s greatest sights.

Itinerary #1:

Destination - Flathead Lake; Polson → Bigfork → Lakeside, 4hr loop

Polson is only an hour away from Missoula with great views the entire way including the Mission Mountain Range and the rest of Lake County. You’ll want to get an early start on this one because you can pack a lot into one day!

On the Way:

1. The Garden of One Thousand Buddhas in Arlee. It is meant to represent the 1000 Buddhas believed to be born in our religious age and is expected to become a major place of worship for people of many faiths. It is truly peaceful and a beautiful place to visit in the spring. 

2. Ravalli hill towards St. Ignatius, The Mission Mountain range, and the National Bison Range. A stop at the Montana State Department of Transportation Rest Area: Ravalli Hill will give you one of the best 360 views of Lake County, and arguably one of the best views in Montana. 

3. The Miracle of America Museum has displays of a tiny bird-point arrowhead, 65 foot Paul Bunyan, a logging towboat listed in the National Register, cars, cycles, toys, dolls, guns, homesteaders, clothing, wagons, buggies, sleighs, snowmobiles, military, tools, and tractors, a pioneer village, general store, school, fire house, and shops for a blacksmith, barber, tailor, carpenter and saddle maker. Admission is $10.

4. Next, you’ll start making your way to Bigfork. Stop at Finley Point campground for a (cold) shoreline experience of the lake. 

5. Town of Bigfork: A walk down Electric Avenue will provide you with various gift shops, bars, restaurants, and cafes. This would be a great place to snag brunch; I suggest the Pocketstone Cafe! 

6. Next stop is Lakeside. Volunteer Park is right in town and will give you another shoreline experience of Flathead, but on the opposite side! I promise you’ll love seeing this lake from all sides and angles. If you’re hungry again, the Homestead Cafe has tons of menu options and they’re all 10/10!

Itinerary #2:

Destination - Seeley, MT, 1hr

Seeley is a sweet little town nestled in between the Swan and Mission Mountain ranges.

On the way:

1. Coloma ghost town: Not much is left of this town, but there was a lot of mining activity from 1896 to about 1916.

2. Garnet ghost town: This is a well-maintained ghost town. This town was established in the 1890’s, is at 6,000 feet elevation, and still has 25 buildings standing! Some of the buildings still contain a lot of artifacts from the miners and their families that lived here. Each building is provided with a description of its history and usage.

Once in Seeley:

1. Day hike to Morrell Falls: located 25 minutes past Seeley Lake. 5.4 mile out-and-back trail that provides lake views, and leads to Morrell Falls. Be aware the road may be muddy this time of year, so be sure to drive slowly, safely, and stay within your means!

2. Have lunch at the Filling Station.

3. Check out Grizzly Claw Trading: This is a pretty cute place that is a coffee shop, library, and gift shop all in one!

Itinerary #3:

Destination - Philipsburg, 1hr

Philipsburg is most commonly known for their sapphire mining and candy shop! On top of these things, there are a ton of awesome restaurants, coffee shops, a couple of museums, antique shops, and gift shops. For a small town, they have a lot to offer. Somewhere in the day, you’ll want to take a small detour up to Granite (not to be confused with Garnet) ghost town. This one is in the mountain above Philipsburg and isn’t maintained, so what’s there is there! This is cool because it gives you the real “ghost” town feel. On Friday and Saturday nights, Philipsburg Brewing Company has live music! This can be a full day of many different activities.

  Itinerary #4, 5, 6: Hot Springs

Destinations - Jerry Johnson + Weir Creek, Lolo Hot Springs, Quinn’s Hot Springs resort

One of the coolest things about this neck of the woods is the unlimited access to TONS of different hot springs, natural and man-made. There are 3 different hot springs you can visit that are each only an hour and a half away:

Jerry Johnson + Weir Creek, 1.5hr

These are my favorite of all the options, because they’re within 10 miles of each other, so you can start early and visit both in one day! First stop is Jerry Johnson which is a little over a mile to hike to, and consists of 3 pools. There are slight temperature variations from each, which is nice for when you get way too hot or cold. Soak for a couple hours here, then hop back into the car and head up to Weir Creek. This is a short mile hike into 2 pools; the largest, which resembles an infinity pool, overlooks Weir Creek, and the smaller which is nestled up top under the trees is just big enough for two people. You can spend a couple hours here and head home before it gets dark.

Lolo Hot Springs resort

This is a man made springs and resort with a bar/restaurant onsite. The hot spring is located indoors, and there’s a heated pool outside. If you have the time and money, you can rent a bungalow and stay the night for $55 which sleeps 3 adults, and includes breakfast! Admission to the pools is $10.

Quinn’s Hot Springs resort

Another man-made springs in the opposite direction. I personally like Quinn’s better than Lolo because there are 4 different pools all at different temps, ranging from 89 degrees to 106, plus an ice pool. Quinn’s has a restaurant, tavern, and lodging onsite. The only downside is the cabins here are much more expensive with the cheapest rate being $169/night. Admission is $13.

Itinerary #7:

Destination - Lolo Peak Brewery (by bicycle), 1 - 1.5hr

This is a fun activity for spring and summer, with amazing views the entire way! The Bitterroot Trail runs right alongside - you guessed it - the Bitterroot River! This provides a chance to see marmots, beavers, bald eagles, chipmunks, birds, bison, and lots of other wildlife! The ride is about 10 miles which can be taken leisurely and shouldn’t take more than an hour to an hour and a half. Once you get to Lolo Peak Brewery you can indulge in a beverage, an appetizer, or a whole meal! Either way, everything they serve is delicious and crafted primarily with local ingredients.

As you can see, there are a lot of options for spring break that keep you close to home, and aren’t expensive. If you have to work sporadically, or just don’t want to travel too far, I suggest you try out one (or more) of these trips; I don’t think you’ll be disappointed!

Stay adventurous, UM. 

[charllieeldridge]

The Town of Keri Zakynthos in Greece: A Travel Guide

If you’re searching for things to do in Zakynthos Island in Greece, you’ll likely find that the village of Keri Zakynthos and the Keri Cliffs are on pretty much every travel itinerary… and for good reason.

The town of Keri Zakynthos is a charming little place set up high on the cliffs overlooking the Ionian Sea. There are a few restaurants and accommodation options here, there are some nearby beaches and there are plenty of things to do in Keri Zakynthos.

There are actually two towns of Keri in Zakynthos, one of them is a beach town on the southeast coast of the island known as Keri Beach, while the other one, the one we’ll mostly be focusing on in this post, is on the Cliffs of Keri overlooking the southwest part of the island.

In this post, I’m going to break down all of the things to do, places to eat, where to stay and more to make sure that you make the most of your trip to Keri Zakynthos. Whether you’re stopping by as part of a road trip or tour around the island, or if you’re planning to stay in Keri Zakynthos for a few nights, we’ve got you covered.

Read More: The Ultimate Guide To Travelling Greece

About Keri Zakynthos

The town of Keri Zakynthos (Greek: Κερί) is a Greek community on the southern edge of Zakynthos island in Greece (one of the best places to visit in Greece). The town is situated on steep cliffs that look out over the Ionian Sea. As of a census done in 2011, the population of this tiny town was just 469, with 788 soles counted for the entire community, which also includes the nearby towns of Limni Kerious, Marathias, and Apelati.

The village of Keri Zakynthos was struck massively by the 1953 Ionian earthquake which measured a 6.8 and caused widespread damage throughout the area, including mainly the islands of Kefalonia and Zakynthos. Between 400 – 800 people were killed by the earthquake and many older buildings were damaged or destroyed during the tremors.

Today obviously the town and the island as a whole has completely recovered from the disaster and is now a popular tourist destination. While not a lot of people actually choose to stay in Keri and instead opt for some of the other places to stay in Zakynthos (like the more equipped Laganas Beach area and Insilivi), the town is still a popular stop-off on road trip and tour itineraries around the island.

Where is Keri Zakynthos?

The town of Keri is located on the island of Zakynthos. Zakynthos is a small, popular tourist island in the Ionian Sea of western Greece. It’s around 20 kilometres west of the westernmost part of the Greek mainland, and about 249 kilometres west of the city of Athens, Greece.

Keri Zakynthos is a town that’s located on the southernmost point of the island known as Cape Marathia. Keri Zakynthos is 6 kilometres south of the town of Lithakia and about 15 kilometres southwest (about 26 minutes by car) from the capital of Zante Town.

Read More: The Best Time To Visit Greece & The Greek Islands

Things To Do In Keri Zakynthos

Even though this is a small little town, there are actually quite a few things to do in Keri Zakynthos. The town itself has enough going on to keep a visitor busy for a few days and it makes for a decent base for exploring the rest of the island.

The Keri Lighthouse

Keri Lighthouse is the most famous landmark in the city. It’s a 30-meter high lighthouse about 1 kilometre (15-minute walk) from town. There’s a rich history surrounding this lighthouse and it has fantastic views of the Ionian Sea. More about the Keri Lighthouse later in this post.

The Cliffs of Keri

Rising a staggering 300 meters (984 feet) from the Ionian Sea are the breathtaking Cliffs of Keri Zakynthos. You can easily walk to the viewing area of the cliffs from the town of Keri, or you can drive here as there is a parking lot close to the edge. Like Navagio Beach, be careful when walking around these cliffs because there have been some deaths in the past when people get too close to the edge.

Virgin Keriotissa Church

This church is the best place to come for views over the town of Keri Zakynthos. Most of what you see nowadays is the result of renovations in the year 1745. The church was again renovated in 1953 after being heavily damaged by the earthquake. At the church, you’ll find a gold-plated baroque-style temple that was added in 1750 by Ioannis Gropas and Nikolaos Logothetis.

The Biggest Greece Flag in The World

That’s right, Keri is home to the largest Greece Flag in the world according to The Guinness Book of World Records. You can see the enormous flag blowing in the wind from pretty much anywhere in town. The flag was originally erected by a nearby restaurant to try to get attention to the tiny village of Keri and it worked.

Watch Sunset

One of the best things to do in Greece is to get a glass of wine and watch sunset. The cliffs of Keri are probably the best place to watch the sunset in all of Zakynthos and there are plenty of taverns around the lighthouse and around town where you can buy drinks and watch the sun hit the Ionian. If you don’t want to pay for restaurant priced drinks, consider heading to a safe place on the cliff with your own bottle of wine and a couple of glasses.

About The Keri Lighthouse

One of the most popular places at Keri is only 1 km from the village: The lighthouse of Keri offers a great view to the eternal blue of the Ionian sea, on top of a 300-m high cliff. This lighthouse has guided ships for more than a century. The view from there is really breath-taking! The rocky landscape and the steep cliff match perfectly with one of the most spectacular sunset views!

The lighthouse is 9 meters (30 feet) tall and was built in 1925. This is one of the most photographed landmarks in the area and it’s a great spot to go for a stroll or just take some photos of the Ionian.

About The Keri Zakynthos Cliffs

If you’re coming to Keri Cliffs in Zakynthos, then I recommend coming for sunset. This is a spectacular lookout point and because it points west, you can see the sun dip into the Ionian Sea from here at the end of the day.

The cliffs themselves are 300 meters (984 feet) high and in the sea, you’ll see two large cliffs jaggedly pointing out of the sea below you. There is a viewing and photo platform at a nearby tavern, but you have to buy food or drink to make use of the platform. 

Beaches Near Keri Zakynthos

Because the coast near Keri is guarded by the enormous 300 meter high cliffs, you have no beach access from Keri Zakynthos town. If you want to go to a beach then you’ll have to hop in your car and drive to one of the nearby beaches.

Zakynthos actually has some of the best beaches in Greece and while the most famous one is Navagio Beach in the north of the island, there are some lovely ones down south near Keri as well.

Here are a few of the best beaches in Zakynthos that are on the southern coast and therefore, not too far to drive to.

Keri Beach (Limni Keriou)

Keri Beach, Limni Keriou 290 92, Greece

Although on the opposite side (east) of the island, this narrow stretch of sand and pebbles is one of the closest beaches to Keri Zakynthos town. It’s a decent place for families as the water is relatively shallow and calm here. There are some facilities on the beach including a shower and a change room.

Laganas Beach

Laganas Beach, Laganas 291 00, Greece

About a 19-minute drive from the town of Keri and you’ll arrive on one of the best beaches in Zakynthos, Laganas Beach. This is one of the most popular areas on the island and while it’s a little bit too built up, there still is some charm here. When you hit the sand, walk left for about 10 minutes to get away from the crowds. The sand here is fine and golden and perfect for walking on.

Turtle Island Beach (Marathonisi Island)

Turtle Island, Zakynthos Greece

The best way to go to Turtle Island Beach is by doing a day trip to see the beach and the Loggerhead Turtles who nest here. Most tours will hang out on the sand for a few hours and give you an opportunity to swim and enjoy the water, as well as the beautiful sea turtles that swim and nest here. Check out our post about how to ethically spot turtles in Zakynthos.

Agios Sostis Beach

Ag. Sostis Beach, Αγ. Σώστης, Greece

This is a beautiful, quiet and sandy beach that is much less crowded than Laganas Beach and about 2 minutes closer to the town of Keri Zakynthos. The beach is safe for swimming and it’s a good spot for snorkelling (some people have seen turtles here).

Best Restaurants in Keri Zakynthos

There are plenty of restaurants in Keri Zakynthos and, perhaps not surprisingly, many of them have spectacular views over the Cliffs of Keri and out to the Ionian Sea. Here are a few top-rated places in Keri Zakynthos.

Keri Lighthouse Restaurant

Φάρος κεριού, Κεριον 290 92, Greece

Located right next to the lighthouse, this place is 1 kilometre away from the center of Keri and is one of the most popular places to eat in town thanks to it’s an amazing view and tasty Greek food. While this is probably the single best place to go for sunset on Zakynthos Island, the staff here can be a bit rude. It’s too bad because this is an otherwise fantastic restaurant.

Taverna Argonaftes

Keri, Apelati 290 92, Greece

This is another great place in Keri with outdoor seating and beautiful views over the cliffs. They serve up great cocktails and the staff is friendly and welcoming. The only negative thing that one might say about Taverna Argonaftes is that most of the food on the menu is deep-fried.

Sunset Taverna

κερι, Keri 291 00, Greece

This is another beautiful place on the other side of town but still with great views for sunset. The prices here are a little bit cheaper than the above two restaurants and they do a great beef stiffado and the pork pancetta.  Also don’t miss the zucchini balls for an appetizer.

Best Restaurants Near Keri Beach Zakynthos

The town of Keri that’s on the cliffs of Keri near the lighthouse isn’t on any beach because on the southwestern part of Zakynthos, the entire coastline is rimmed by dramatic cliffs. But one of the closest beaches to the village is Keri Beach, a separate town and area about 15 minutes drive from Keri town.

If you’re heading to Keri Beach area, then here are some of the best restaurants nearby.

Taverna Keri

Keri 290 92, Greece

This place has 4.5 stars out of 490+ reviews on Google and is known for having great pizza, tasty Greek food and of course, spectacular views out over the Ionian. The staff here is friendly and they have some great and affordable seafood options on the menu as well.

Mykonos Bar Keri

EO Zakinthou Keriou, Laganas 290 92, Greece

This place is one of the most popular restaurants in Keri Zakynthos and for good reason. They do good cocktails, have decent Greek food, but the best part is the view. Come here for sunset and enjoy a sundowner with an Ionian Vista.

Remezzo Restaurant

Keri 290 92, Greece

This is another great place to eat in Keri Zakynthos. They have a rotating special that changes each day and some excellent seafood dishes (try the squid or the octopus). The beer here is ice cold and the staff is friendly and welcoming. 

Where To Stay Near Cliffs of Keri Zakynthos

Because the village of Keri Zakynthos is so tiny, there aren’t too many places right in the center of town, but there are some spectacular hotels and apartments lining the cliffs with beautiful views all around Keri. Here are some of the top choices for hotels near Keri Town in Zakynthos.

Keri Village & Spa

Cost: From $117/nt Location: 3.1 Kilometres from Keri ☆ 8.5/10

With incredible reviews on Trip Advisor and Booking.com, this is easily one of the best hotels to stay in near Keri Zakynthos. This adults-only 4-star resort is set on a stunning grass-covered hill overlooking the sea and close to the village of Keri. There’s a huge pool, an outdoor hot tub, two funky bars and a nice restaurant on site. The place has 8.5/10 reviews on Booking.com and prices start at around $117 per night. 

See Prices on Booking.com

Revera Stone Villas

Cost: From $45/nt Location: 350 meters from Keri ☆ 9.1/10

The Revera Villas complex is set on a lush garden of pine and olive trees just west of the Keri village. There’s a pool, a restaurant and an outdoor bar. Each of the large studios has stone walls (hence the name), wood beam ceilings and traditional greek living areas. They also have a balcony/patio.

See Prices on Booking.com

Villa Nina

Cost: From $45/nt Location: 800 meters from Keri ☆ 9.9/10

This beautiful 254-meter² (2734 feet²)  villa is nearly a kilometre outside of town, but it’s worth it for the amazing views and private residence here. The villa has a large private pool, garden, barbecue, WiFi and private parking.  It has 6 bedrooms so is perfect for a large event or family.

See Prices on Booking.com

In Closing

Keri Village is more than just a lighthouse and the cliffs, there are some great places to stay here and good restaurants as well. Even though most people just stop here for an hour or two to snap a photo of the view, there is enough here to keep a traveller for a day or two.

If you want a chilled-out experience in Zakynthos away from the crowds (particularly after sunset when most day-trippers leave the city), then Keri Village might be a good choice for you.

Either way, make sure to visit the town to at least check out the lighthouse and have sunset drinks over the cliffs of Keri.

The post The Town of Keri Zakynthos in Greece: A Travel Guide appeared first on Goats On The Road.

The Town of Keri Zakynthos in Greece: A Travel Guide published first on https://travelaspire.weebly.com/

[wineschool-blog]

The Top BYOB Restaurants in Philly

https://j.mp/3sCpXZf BYO culture in Philly is unique among American cities. It came about due to the influence of the  PLCB and high rent in Center City’s restaurant district.  For most chefs, the choice is to either focus on their debt or focus on the food.  Many opt for the latter and open a small BYOB in an outlying neighborhood. Philly’s dining culture is headed with them. At this point, the grand ole restaurants (Le Bec Fin, Susanna Foo, Striped Bass)  on the 1500 block of Walnut Street have been gone a long, long time.  It’s places like Queen Village, NoLibs, Passyunk Ave, Chinatown, East Falls, Northern Liberties, and the Gayborhood that have taken over as must-visit destinations for foodies. Here is our current list of the top BYOB in Philly. Enjoy! Table of contentsTop Wine-Friendly BYOB1. June BYOB2. Pumpkin3. Bibou4. Jaxon5. Little Fish6. Entree BYOB7. Fiorino8. Umai Umai9. Isot Mediterranean CuisineTop Beer-Friendly BYOB1. Perla2. Vientiane Bistro3. Jong Ka Jib4. Parada Maimon5. El Limon6. Apricot Stone7. Saté Kampar9. China Gourmet10. Terakawa RamenThe Start of the BYO Movement Top Wine-Friendly BYOB 1. June BYOB 690 Haddon Ave, Collingswood, NJ 08108 Our top spot for French food in the Philadelphia region.  This lovely BYO is run by the husband and wife team Richard and Christina Cusack. Rich earned his stripes at Danielle NYC and Le Bec Fin.  Christina is a Level 3 Somm and currently working on her Advanced Sommelier degree via the National Wine School. Expertly executed, this is Classical french food—a perfect accompaniment for your top bottles of wine.  June BYOB 2. Pumpkin 1713 South St, Philadelphia, PA 19146 Pumpkin is one of the patriarchs on this list, and still going strong; both Jaxon and Will owe their existence to this little Graduate Hospital BYO. Their Sunday Prix fixe menu is a longstanding tradition, and of the best dining values in the city. Their ala carte menu changes daily, and dinner is always a pleasure. Chef-Owner Ian Moroney (who got his start at the original Little Fish, back when his father was the chef-owner) has kept the quality very high for a remarkable amount of time. Pumpkin 3. Bibou 1009 S 8th St, Philadelphia, PA 19147 BIBOU HAS TRANSITIONED TO BE A BOUTIQUE GROCERY Chef Pierre Calmels has been at the top of Philly’s BYO scene for over a decade. This ever-evolving tasting menu is a rare jewel. Pierre is truly one of the greatest French chefs working in America today. Also, he baked me a birthday cake when they first opened, which was the coolest thing ever.  Bibou 4. Jaxon 701 N 3rd St, Philadelphia, PA 19123 One of the best new BYO restaurants Philly has seen in years. Chef Matthew Gansert has learned a thing or two from his stint at Will. Well-executed dishes with subtle flavors and precise culinary techniques.  Unlike Will, portion sizes are on the larger size, and a tade more traditional. Philly’s Top BYOBs: Jaxon 5. Little Fish 746 S 6th St, Philadelphia, PA 19147 This little joint has had more locations and owners and chefs than a tiny BYO should.  The idea of this restaurant has captured the imagination of nearly two decades of chefs, owners, and diners. Despite the changes, it has remained a magical little joint in Bella Vista. The perfect place to pop open your favorite whites and roses. Little Fish 6. Entree BYOB  1608 South St Philadelphia, PA 19146 This is the type of BYOB that put Philly on the national food scene. A timeless menu makes this a go-to local joint. Entree BYOB 7. Fiorino 3572 Indian Queen Ln, Philadelphia, PA 19129 For old-school Italian food, we usually point our Uber towards South Philly. However, for Philly’s top Italian BYO, we now roll in the opposite direction.  This East Falls focuses on Emilia-Romagna cuisine and consistently outshines its peers in a city deep in gravy. While nothing on the menu would surprise the diner — veal marsala, spaghetti and clams, and Gorgonzola gnocchi are all represented —  the execution and attention to detail are extraordinary. Bring your best bottle of Nebbiolo or a ripasso and have a great night. Fiorino 8. Umai Umai  533 N 22nd St, Philadelphia, PA 19130 Long-standing BYO with an inventive menu.  One of the only restaurants still remaining from the last wave of chef-run restaurants.  Back in the day, this was the go-to Sushi restaurant when the Wine School of Philadelphia was located in Fairmount.  The sashimi is good, but the main attraction is the hand-rolls  Umai Umai 9. Isot Mediterranean Cuisine 622 S 6th St Philadelphia, PA 19147 Eastern Mediterranean food is becoming a core element of the Philly restaurant scene. From the Israeli powerhouse Zahav to the Middle Eastern Spice Finch to the (deeply disappointing and over-hyped) Lebanese food of Suraya.  This Turkish BYOB is a welcome addition to the Meze explosion we are currently seeing in Philly.  Isot Mediterranean Cuisine Top Beer-Friendly BYOB 1. Perla  1535 S 11th St, Philadelphia, PA 19147  Beautiful Filipino food from a classically trained chef. The weekly eat-with-your-hands Kamayan feasts are out of this world.   Perla 2. Vientiane Bistro  2537 Kensington Ave  Philadelphia, PA 19125 Classical Laotian food, with the spice and contrast of flavors that have not been watered-down. Lao cuisine is very similar to Isan (Northeastern) Thai food.  Vientiane Bistro 3. Jong Ka Jib 6600 N 5th St, Philadelphia, PA 19126 When done well, Soondubu will turn the most ardent meat-eater into a blubbering tofu-lover. This Korean dish is comprised of two main components: a bowl of rice and another bowl of stew. Each is served in a lava-hot bowl.  Whisk the supplied raw egg into the stew, pop open a few pilsners, and you are ready to begin your journey into a whole new way of eating. And the place you need to do this is Jong Ka Jib in Oak Lane. Jong Ka Jib 4. Parada Maimon 345 N 12th St, Philadelphia, PA 19107  The spot for Caribbean food in Philly, in particular Dominican cuisine.  The highlight here is the excellent mofongo. Parada Maimon 5. El Limon 103 Spring Mill Ave, Conshohocken, PA 19428 This is the penultimate family-run restaurant. Just stepping over the threshold feels like entering your Abuela’s kitchen.  There are several locations now, but this is still the best (although Ardmore is dangerously close to the Tired Hands brewery). The main attraction here is the shrimp burritos, and the tacos are legit. El Limon 6. Apricot Stone 1040 N American St, Ste 601, Philadelphia, PA 19123 There is more to the Mediterranean than Italy, France, and Spain. The eastern shores are better known as the Middle East, and some of the oldest cuisines in the world. This NoLibs BYO offers up stellar Syrian food. Similar to Israeli and Middleeaster food cuisine in general,   you will see falafel, kebabs, and hummus on the menu. However, the execution at this BYO is exceptional. Apricot Stone 7. Saté Kampar  1837 E Passyunk Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19148 Authentic Malaysian food on Passyunk Ave. It’s all about the meat skewers. : Saté Kampar 8. Los Gallos 951 Wolf St, Philadelphia, PA 19148  The Mexican joint all South Philly taquerias are judged by.  Tacos and salsas to live by. Just don’t expect to find street parking nearby. Los Gallos 9. China Gourmet  2842 St Vincent Street Philadelphia, PA 19149 The Dim-Sum Mecca of Philadelphia. The Northeast has become the center for Cantonese food in the region. China Gourmet 10. Terakawa Ramen 204 N 9th St, Philadelphia, PA 19107 You can’t go wrong with a bowl of handmade wavy noodles and pork bone soup that’s been simmering for 48 hours.  Umami-rich flavors that can be cranked up with a hit of chili, or toned down with ground sesame.  A few standouts are the Tan Tan Ramen and the Kyushu Danji. Terakawa Ramen Here’s a short and sweet promo for our classes: learn to cook, how to pair, and generally be the best amateur sommelier and/or chef you can be. Check them out and see if anything catches your fancy. Hope to see you soon! The Start of the BYO Movement We had a few questions regarding why & how the BYO movement began in Philly. Rent for restaurants in Center City can be as high as $34K a month, while the average rent in outlining neighborhoods can be as low as $2k a month. Add to that the high cost of liquor licenses, which can cost upwards of a quarter-million dollars, and the fact that restaurants cannot buy wine at wholesale (the PLCB only gives restaurants a 7% discount rather than the 30-50% discount in most other states). Some of this is changing. For updates on the current wine laws (PLCB or otherwise), check here: Wine Law in Pennsylvania.  ———————- FORMER Best BYO Winners These BYOB restaurants have been pulled from the Best Restaurant list for one of two reasons: they are no longer in business, or the quality of their offerings has fallen off.  Will BYOB For sheer brilliance, there isn’t a place better than Will. Chris Kearse is one of the most innovative chefs working in Philly today. Small portions, perfect execution, and compelling preparations make this a go-to restaurant for everyone in the know. Cadence CADENCE HAS CLOSED FOR GOOD, DUE TO COVID. One of the most brilliant and innovative meals to be had in Philadelphia can be had at this BYOB. Compelling and unexpected flavors are layered into local and seasonal ingredients. Menu works very well with Spanish and natural wines. Helm Back in the oughts, the BYO scene in Philly was happening like nothing else on the East Coast. The level of creativity and passion and endless chefs wanting to make a name for themselves was staggering.  There was a system in place for chefs to earn their stripes. Most worked their way up through the ranks of the Vetri or Perrier culinary empires. Opened a BYO, and launched their career. That isn’t happening as much anymore. The economy sucks, commercial rents are rising in many neighborhoods. There are fewer talented cooks willing to toil for the low wages that come with salaried restaurant work. It seems that Olde Kensington is the place where the BYO scene can still exist in it’s former glory. Helm is a ridiculously good restaurant. Creative and intuitive menus that offer elements of farm-to-table without it seeming coy or reductive. Flavors are well thought through and exciting.  Highly recommended. L’Oceano Collingswood has a well-deserved reputation of fostering a Philly-like BYO scene. L’Oceano is the best of the bunch. The ala carte menu is eclectic, and a bit out of step with modern trends. For instance, the current menu offers lobster mac and cheese, grilled caesar salad, pork shank, and maple glazed salmon: all dishes more commonly offered a decade ago. Khmer Kitchen Nothing wrong with a little bit of retro cuisine. After all, who can say no to a lobster corndog? Plus, they do a great Crab Gravy Dinner on Sundays. Doma There is a lot of sushi in Philly. Sadly, there isn’t much good sushi in Philly. Like most  Sushi joints in Philly, this one isn’t Japanese, but Korean. The style is more robust and a greater focus on signature rolls and sauces. However, Doma takes the gold because of it’s traditional sashimi, which relies on freshness and execution. Nine Ting Skip the bbq and head straight to the classic hotpot. The all-you-can-eat element may seem a bit Middle America, but it’s a custom in China and Korea. This is the Korean-style hotpot, aka Shabu Shabu. Ordering the Benz pot which allows you to try three of the soups for the same price. The pig bone, tomato, and spicy soups are the way to go, and make sure to hit the condiment station, too. Tre Scalini This is one of the few restaurants in Philly that cooks from an authentically Italian place.  This is quintessential Southern Italian food, Molise in particular. Off the list due to customer service issues Laurel Let’s get this out of the way, yes, Nick Elmi won Top Chef. Yes, it’s now almost impossible to get a reservation. Yes, there are only a dozen seats in this restaurant. That said, go anyways. Plead, threaten, or pitch a fit. Just get a reservation. Nick has a delicate and elegant touch with ingredients that is as rare as it is refreshing. His dishes are often subtle and winsome. Is he the Robert Frost of chefs? No longer a BYOB Nomad Pizza Company This is simply the best pizza in Philly. Let’s be clear: this isn’t Philly-style pizza (aka Greek pizza or Tomato Pie). This is traditional Neapolitan pizza. The crust is better than most drugs, so be warned.  Bring your bottles of  Fiano di Avellino and Greco di Tufo. The most awesome Art Etchells pointed out that Nomad in Philly now has a liquor license.  The original in Hopewell, NJ  is still a BYO. Ulivo Joseph Scarpone may be a local boy, but he spent years cooking in Napa Valley. He returned to Philly to open the critically acclaimed Sovalo in NoLibs in 2008.  He brings a lot of his cal-ital finesse to Ulivio, but  the stress is now firmly on the Ital, not the Cal. Sadly, Ulivo closed.  Mr. Scarpone, you will be missed. The Farm and Fisherman One of the failings of most BYO is service and ambiance. A tiny chef-run restaurant will put out amazing food, but there is often no budget for a General Manager, who would be able to run the front of the house. That can mean the occasional misstep or quirky experience.  That is not the case here. Along with a  well-designed dining room, the waitstaff is excellent. The food is extraordinary, to boot. The Farm and Fisherman Closed By Keith Wallace https://j.mp/3sCpXZf