👋 Howdy from Milwaukee, Something you might not know about me: before I started my website, I was once a food tour guide in Honolulu! I got to spend each tour guiding hungry visitors around Honolulu, sharing the history of family-run businesses and snacks from my childhood. My official job title with Hawaii Food Tours was "Malasada Maven" We would eat our way around Chinatown while weaving in stories about local culture, history, and ingredients, ending up on a sweet note with malasadas at...
9 days ago • 4 min read
👋 A few musings from Milwaukee… People worried about my safety when I lived in Turkiye, considering it was led by an autocratic president, with hostile policies towards women’s rights, LGBTQ+, immigration, and the economy. Political opponents have been jailed and protests suppressed. The government controls the news so it's possible for a large portion of the population to be unaware of the severity… It's easy to see how quickly civil liberties can be eroded. But it’s also increasingly...
17 days ago • 4 min read
👋 Hello from Milwaukee! Only two people guessed the location correctly in my Instagram stories when I posted last week from the beautiful Milwaukee Art Museum. I was so inspired by the gorgeous movable architecture of the building itself. If you’ve seen the Oculus in Downtown NYC, you may have recognized the same designer, Santiago Calatrava. The beautiful “wings” of the museum span 217 feet (66 meters) and mobilize to open and close fully at various points in the day! It's so beautiful to...
30 days ago • 4 min read
👋 Hello from the Midwest, After the past few weeks traveling up and down the East Coast, I decided to head west to Chicago. In the past, I've taken Amtrak's Capitol Limited in the eastbound direction to get to DC, so for this trip I opted to try a new-to-me route, the Cardinal, which passes through the mountains of West Virginia along the way to Chicago. Highlights for me included sitting next to a retired FBI evidence technician (!) for most of the trip, spotting a sign saying "Makawao...
about 1 month ago • 4 min read
👋 Hi friends, It’s been a rough week for news headlines hasn’t it? As the world becomes smaller and smaller and information travels more quickly, it's easier to feel connected to disasters unfolding in the news. What I've been trying to do when I am overwhelmed by the headlines, is to look for small pockets of joy to stay grounded, and also small ways that I can help from afar. Missing my favorite spot to find peace: riding the ferries on the Bosphorus One way to help ❤🩹 World Central Kitchen...
2 months ago • 4 min read
👋 Hello from Washington, DC! After a few days to reset and catch up at a friend's place in New Jersey, it was time for my next train, southbound once more. I could have departed from Moynihan Train Hall in NYC again, but instead I opted for Newark Penn Station to try something new. I loved looking up at the Art Deco details in the high ceilings, the floors and the information kiosk in the middle of the waiting room. Three globe chandeliers are suspended overhead, with the animals of the...
2 months ago • 4 min read
👋 Well, that was quite the journey! After nearly two months back in North America, I took my last planned train ride (for now!) to get from Buffalo back to New York City via Amtrak's Empire Service route which runs through most of the state. I was curious about the total mileage so I decided to add it up! In total over the past 2 months I've spent close to 68 hours on trains. The 10 segments totaled more than 3100 miles (5000 km) and took me through 2 countries, 11 US States + DC. I won't...
3 months ago • 4 min read
👋 Bonjour from Montreal! I've spent the past few days exploring the city at a leisurely pace and have barely scratched the surface. The city is buzzing with the Canadian Grand Prix taking place here this weekend, so I'll be leaving just in time. ;) Yesterday I finally got to visit the wonderful Jean Talon Marche with journalist Ivy Lerner-Frank, who introduced me to some of her regular market vendors and favorite stops to shop and eat. (I'm working on eating my weight in fromage!) I was so...
3 months ago • 4 min read
👋 Greetings from my next train adventure, a 13-hour day aboard the Amtrak Northeast Regional train from Richmond, Virginia to Boston, Massachusetts! I've been rediscovering how much I love watching the scenery change out the window of a long-distance train and how much I love the people watching (and eavesdropping!) I can do from inside my roomy seat. I also love a historic old train station, like the Main Street Station (above) in Richmond, VA I’ll be spending the weekend in Boston and then...
3 months ago • 4 min read