INNside New England It was summer in the city, New York that is, and the livin’ wasn’t easy. My friend Danielle and I were stressed out. What to do? Two words: ROAD TRIP!! Between us we have three daughters who were frolicking at summer camps in New England so … Read more
Little Italy – Still Hanging Tight to Its Immigrant Roots Photo Credit: Meryl Pearlstein Despite some rumors to the contrary, Manhattan’s Little Italy isn’t dead. Some famous Mafia and movie figures have breathed their last living or liberated moments in this well-known part of Manhattan, but the neighborhood lives on … Read more
Sweet Intoxication in Central California When we stepped out of the “Wine Wrangler” tour bus, Coy Barnes (the company owner and wrangler himself) assured us we were in for a rare experience at the Steinbeck Vineyards & Winery in Paso Robles, California. While shedding layers of clothing in the blazing … Read more
PROVIDENCE – less is more! A Round-Up of the City’s Best Your mom always said that first impressions count. When I hailed a taxi at Amtrak’s Providence, R.I. station the striking neoclassical dome of the State House beckoned in the night sky. Would the smallest state’s “creative capital” (as … Read more
Maine is such an idyllic spot that visitors seem to get nostalgic for it even if they haven’t visited it yet. Indeed, as you cross the Piscataqua River marking the border between New Hampshire and Maine, you’ll pass a sign alongside the highway that reads “Welcome to Maine: The Way … Read more
A Place for All Seasons “Montana,” so the popular slogan says, “is the last best place.” Call me biased, but if that’s true, then Montana’s Gallatin and Park Counties are truly the last last best places. Small slivers in the shape of states, the counties huddle against one another in … Read more
TO SEE OR NOT TO SEE – Celebrities on Broadway The famous towers of Midtown Manhattan. Photo: Ben Dwork I recently saw Dr. Frasier Crane on Broadway. Well, actually Kelsey Grammer is on Broadway, but it’s hard to tell him apart from the zany psychiatrist he made famous during 20 … Read more
LA Local: A Tale of Six Neighborhoods Sunset Boulevard, Rodeo Drive, the Hollywood Hills—it’s all quite glamorous. It’s also your typical LA story. As a new resident of Southern California, I owed it to myself to dig a bit deeper. What I discovered is that the real stars of … Read more
When most people think about New York, they think of Manhattan, or maybe even Brooklyn. But there is another borough that is worth checking out: Staten Island. Staten Island may share the “718” area code with Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx, but it distinguishes itself with its own unique … Read more
Bigger is Better Kodiak Island, Alaska, is where the American frontier ran out of land and went to sea. For a tourist it is the unheralded gem of the state, a wild, primeval combination of big mountains and big ocean. Its history is rich, too, first settled 7,500 years ago … Read more
LA Local: A Tale of Six Neighborhoods Sunset Boulevard, Rodeo Drive, the Hollywood Hills—it’s all quite glamorous. It’s also your typical LA story. As a new resident of Southern California, I owed it to myself to dig a bit deeper. What I discovered is that the real stars of Los … Read more
Rhett Butler was not exactly being cynical when he made up his mind in Gone With the Wind to leave Atlanta. “I’m going back to Charleston, back where I belong,” he said. “I want peace. I want to see if somewhere there isn’t something left in life of charm … Read more
As surprising as it may sound, Gladys Knight, Ray Charles, Ludacris, and The Charlie Daniel’s band all have something in common. They all wrote songs about the Empire State of The South, The Peach State, Hot ‘Lanta, or as it is most commonly known to outsiders, Georgia. With a population … Read more
What’s Going On A Mile Above The Rest As a former resident of Denver, it was easy to take for granted the beauty and simplicity of the city where I lived. But as a New Yorker going back to visit Denver, it’s easy to see why Denver has been … Read more
When Detroit, the Motor City, morphed into Motown, the automotive capital of the world became Hitsville, U.S.A., as the phenomenon of the pop-soul sound was unleashed on the world. Today Detroit is on the cusp of a 21st-century transformation, as urban agriculture puts down roots in this post-industrial landscape, a … Read more