From Istanbul Breakfasts to DC Adventures


πŸ‘‹ Greetings from somewhere south of DC!
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Continuing along my East Coast USA train journey, I spent the past week in Washington, DC with Adrienne (@TheHaphazardTraveler). I hadn't been in DC since 2016 and as you can imagine, a LOT has changed since then!

One important stop was to visit the National Museum of African American History and Culture. It had just opened when I was there last and the entry tickets were impossible to come by. It was a sobering reminder of dark times in our history (and patterns that sometimes repeat in the present) and I was happy that I was finally able to visit.

I also made use of the DC Metro system, walked along the Georgetown waterfront, rode the longest escalator in the Western Hemisphere and caught up with friends over Vietnamese, Salvadorean and Japanese restaurants.

Then we ended the week with the excitement (!!) of a rare tornado warning in Maryland, but luckily it doesn't appear that any touched down.

Next stop, Virginia!

(As always, if you want to follow along, the highlights will be over on Instagram.)

Do you know any dishes, restaurants or food-related festivals near Amtrak, VIA Rail or Brightline stops that are worth traveling for?
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Have a favorite train route in North America (or elsewhere)? πŸ‘‰ Hit reply and let me know!

πŸ“£ New on Shoyu Sugar

The Best Spots for Turkish Breakfast in Istanbul

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Before I left Istanbul, I went out for one last Turkish breakfast (serpme kahvalti) with Andrea of The Quirky Cork. To my surprise, it ended up being one of my all-time favorites!

Find out where + all my other favorites on the blog.

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Destination Inspiration ✈

  • ​Maui county Ag Fest is this Saturday 5/31 from 9-4:30pm at War Memorial Stadium. AgFest is presented for all of Maui to attend to learn more about agriculture, to meet farmers and ranchers and to enjoy Maui’s agriculture history and culture.
  • Did you know that certain Amtrak trains feature volunteers from the National Park Service to point out highlights along the route?
  • My friend Cepee of She Hit Refresh has another feature about how she helps women over 30 to move abroad, which may be of interest to some of you!

Language Lovers πŸ€“

Making a difference

My friend Sarah Hamdan's first novel came out this week, she's described it as "a layered story of love, hope and humor centered on Palestinian Americans.

In one of her posts on Instagram, Sarah says "I've had to balance my joy with heartbreak over the daily images coming out of Palestine this week - at it's core, my novel is about a displaced Palestinian family in the 1940s and the emotional aftermath that spills over decades later in NY... As I said in my NPR interview, literature has a quiet but powerful role to play in nurturing our shared sense of humanity, these days more than ever πŸ™"
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If you're able to, please consider a donation to charities doing work in Gaza, like World Central Kitchen, Doctors Without Borders or Anera.

Feeling LuckyπŸ€

  • InDepartures.com is giving away a Β£40 Trip.com certificate, check out the details and enter here by 5/31.
  • Win a family trip to Orlando including flight, 4 nights hotel, rental car and admission to Sea World. Enter here by 7/9.
  • GAdventures is giving away 8 weeks of bucket list trips in their Love the World giveway. Enter here by 5/31.

Have a great weekend!

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Curious about using an eSIM to stay connected while traveling abroad? My go-to for most destinations is Airalo. Get $3 to start with code MALIA2345.

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Hi, I'm Malia Yoshioka!

I'm a freelance food and travel writer from Hawaii, slowly eating my way around the world and sharing the flavors with you in these weekly updates and on ShoyuSugar.com. Nice to meet you!

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I hope you enjoy the behind the scenes look at my work as well as specially curated food, travel and language news from around the world.
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Shoyu Sugar

Malia Yoshioka is a freelance Food & Travel Writer and ESL Tutor from Hawaii. She's slowly eating her way around the world, 43 countries and counting so far! Get behind the scenes news, travel tips and the best food stories from around the web in her weekly Savor the Journey newsletter.

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