Hole In The Donut Travels

Like everyone, I appreciate a good restaurant. But perhaps because I used to be severely overweight, food is not overwhelmingly important to me when I travel. I generally eat only one meal a day, and most of the time I am happy enough with something from street vendors, who usually offer selections more appropriate for [...]

The young Latina vacantly watched the tourists stream past. Her four-inch stilettos, strapless bustier, and leather hotpants suggested the oldest profession on earth, yet she stood in the doorway of a family-owned bodega where Ybor City’s residents gather each day to sip strong espresso, share gossip, and slam dominoes. Unlike Miami Beach, where I was [...]

After a few weeks on the road, I returned to Sarasota for a few days of R&R before heading out again. As usual, on my first day back I stopped by my favorite coffee shop, Pastry Art On Main, for a cup of java. Instead, on this particular day the owners of the shop, Forrest [...]

Most people who travel a lot – especially budget travelers – have at one time or another invested in a guide book. Lonely Planet and Rough Guides are well known names in the genre; less well known are the Moon guide books. In fact, I had never before read a Moon guide until a copy [...]

I’ve never attended a County Fair before, but when my girlfriend, Marlene, told me there would be pig races at the Sarasota County Fair – well, that’s something I just had to see. On opening day last Friday we arrived in time to see the very first race.

Remember the movie Funny Girl? The one starring Barbra Streisand as Fanny Brice? Remember the scene where Nicky Arnstein takes her to Maine and introduces her to lobster? And she eats herself stupid?
Since arriving in Maine I’ve had lobster in just about every way it can possibly be prepared. I’ve had lobster bisque, lobster [...]

While it might seem simple to find food while driving down the Interstate, in my case the options are few, since I am vegetarian. At the moment I am traveling down I-20 in western South Carolina, examining the restaurant options at each exit, hoping beyond hope for something other than a diner, a buffet, or [...]

Having had my fill of art and culture, I headed for the district of Liguria, located in Italy’s northwestern corner where it borders France. Liguria forms an arc, with one side facing the Tyrrhenian Sea and the other backing up against the Apennine Mountains. Better known as the Italian Riviera, it is a continuous line [...]

The Eternal City is a pigsty! Litter is everywhere. Dirt coats every surface and lies an inch think in the corners of the steps of every stairway. At the National Museum, right in the center of the city, trash had collected so deep in the wells surrounding the trees that the ground could no longer [...]

My immediate impression of Chiang Mai during the drive from the airport to the hotel is that I am going to LOVE his place! It must be obvious to all my readers that I have fallen in love with Thailand. This is my third visit and I am sure there will be many [...]