Scrappy Travels

For some a relaxing Labor Day weekend is time spent at the beach. For others, it's a BBQ with friends. For me, there's nothing better than wandering around a city I love. The problem with the city I love is that it requires a Megabus ride to get there. Though, for all their ridiculousness, the best thing they have going for them is that they're cheap. So off to New York City I went - completely on my own.  It may sound sad or slightly pathetic, but (while I love going with friends and family) there's no better way to see the city than completely alone. Of course, you're never really alone in New York. There are always tons of people hustling and bustling. I feel completely at home in the chaos. I'm free to collect my thoughts and see everything I want to see, even if those things are things I've seen dozens of times.  For the past few years or so, I've made it a point to go at least once completely alone. It's a recharge for me. I love wh...

Recently, I've found myself craving Ramen pretty much all the time. Not the stuff that comes in a styrofoam cup and is full of all sorts of preservatives that assures it'll still be good in the year 2172. Nope, I've actually never even tasted that stuff. I want the good stuff. The soup that chefs perfect over many, many years of practice and recipe-tweaking. A really good bowl of Ramen is deceptively difficult to make. It looks fairly simple - noodles, broth, protein and some veggies. However, the broth - like most broths - is most important. If you don't have good broth, then the Ramen will be just as bad. And a good broth can have dozens of ingredients simmered and boiled to perfection. It's no wonder that few chefs go into the Ramen shop business. However, a few cooks out there have perfected the technique and choose to serve this unbelievably delicious food to the masses. One such shop is Ivan Ramen in the East Village of Manhattan. I first had this pa...

The Tony-winning and hilarious Christian Borle is making his debut, directing the madcap action/adventure/love/comedic story  Popcorn Falls . In the play, 2 men inhabit 20 different roles while telling the story of the struggling town of Popcorn Falls, where the famous waterfall has all dried up. Knowing Borle's humor, the piece sounds tailor made for him, and if he weren't directing it, I'm sure he'd be in it. Popcorn Falls opened its first preview last evening, at the Davenport Theatre; a tiny off-Broadway theatre holding about 120 seats. Unfortunately, most of those seats were empty today. But I'm assuming they will soon be full because judging what I saw the show is practically perfect. I'm owning up the empty seats to the fact the show isn't out of previews yet. We only saw it so early in its run because we were hoping to see Christian in the audience prepping last minute notes. Alas, he was not to be seen sadly. The show however, was wonderful...

One of my very favorite things to do in New York City, is to wander. According to many of my friends I don't often choose to do this wandering at the correct time. It turns out they don't prefer walking miles and miles in 900 degree weather. It's just not their thing.    I, on the other hand, can walk for hours in whatever weather. You see, the best parts of the city aren't the tourist traps. It's the little details around each and every corner. Buildings are more intricate. The street art is more vibrant. And I'm always able to find something new.    Every once in a while, the friends that hate this weather, do indulge me and that's often when we find the coolest things. That was the case last month. Even though August is the hottest month ever. Even though the sun was blazing. Even though the bestie had a bum toe. We still managed to see all sorts of new and wonderful sites in the Lower East Side.    If you're headed to New Yor...

When we were in London last year, we took a Secret Food Tour , that was in fact the best tour I'd ever been on. Between the market vendors, the delicious snacks, the historical fun facts and our awesome guide Mat, I couldn't have imagined a better way to spend a rainy day in London. After that memorable experience, we were adamant about doing another tour with the same company.    Luckily for us, the company operates world wide and they just happen to run a Secret Food Tour in another of my favorite cities - Manhattan. While we could have probably chosen a better day for our tour - 97 degrees and sunny isn't exactly great schlepping around the city weather - Bridgette, our guide this time around was nothing short of fabulous. She made the entire tour fun and full of cool facts about Greenwich Village. In her previous life, she was an elementary school teacher, and I'd bet she was fantastic in front of a classroom based on how excited she was about our tour and...

Miscast 2018 Cast - MCC Theatre Attending MCC's Miscast concert has been a bucket list item for a while now. I'm not ashamed to say that I've watched Aaron Tveit and Gavin Creel sing "Take me for what I am" an inordinate number of times over the last few years. The idea behind the concert is super fun, and the talent the evening attracts is not to be missed.  After years of missing it, I decided to finally attend this year. That and the fact that Raul Esparza was in the lineup. After seeing him at the Kennedy Center in Chess , it was hard to resist another chance to see him perform. Seeing as I randomly discovered he'd be there one night scrolling through Facebook, and that tickets were still reasonably priced a month out, I decided to go for it. Also, it would require an evening in New York alone, which sounds sad when I say it like that, but I actually quite enjoy it. I can do nerdy things like wander the city looking for street art or walk 10 blocks ...

I've been fascinated by the very idea of Dim Sum since I first learned what it meant. The ability to try lots of different types of dumplings and small plates at one time? It sounded like a dream come true. And when I first had Dim Sum in a small place on 46th street in New York, it was pretty perfect. That particular place gives you a menu (not really what I had in mind, but quite helpful) with descriptions of each type of dumpling. You choose a few, gobble those up and then re-start the process.  However, when I went to Chinatown a few weeks ago and we found a classic Dim Sum restaurant, I found it wasn't as easy as it was at my standby on 46th. There's a lot to deal with, and I'm not so great at dealing with it. The classic Dim Sum is served on carts by servers wandering around. I knew that would be the case, but I had imagined it would be easier to determine what was on each cart. In our defense, we chose a pretty popular with locals spot - Jing Fong. Jing Fo...

I have this weird fascination with Street Art. I think it may have started in Austin, TX which has murals all over the city. I became so excited each time I'd find a new one, I'd feel the need to yell "Street Art!" It wasn't so bad when I was walking with someone, but when you're alone it's a bit embarrassing. This love affair with the medium continues today, especially in big cities like New York or Washington, DC.  It's now one of my favorite past times when I'm traveling; trying to find new and exciting forms of street art. Luckily others have this same fascination, because I've learned to use Pinterest to help fuel my love affair. The problem with seeking them out using Pinterest is that the address is not often posted - so I feel the need to randomly wander around cities just searching for specific murals. The positive in this way of travel is that I more times than most, find other pieces of art along the way. However, the neg...