Ad Hoc by Thomas Keller has long been one of my favorite Napa Valley haunts. The casual eatery was originally designed as a temporary pop-up while Keller prepared a new casual concept but proved to be so popular that it has become a Yountville mainstay serving rotating family-style dinners five nights a week. In the…
I recently stumbled across an infographic from Bon Appetit magazine that chronicled the millennial food obsession. While I’d love to think this was a mere page filler poking fun at the generation under me, it definitely strikes a nerve when it comes to the changing times with food. While I’m sure the “spending 14 times…
The world is flat. Okay, I know its not flat. But it’s small enough for me that the edges corral my own universe into a tidy package. It is a small world for me too. Never mind 24 time zones, 7 continents, or different languages. I often feel like the other side of the globe…
Can you believe we are already a quarter of the way through 2016? It seems like we just started the year and yet its already time to be assessing status qualification and planning for the rest of the year. I laid out several goals for my 2016 travel – both for quality of life and…
If R.E.M. had recorded what is arguably their most famous song “It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)” not in 1987 but in 2016, frequent flyer mile would no doubt have made the list of things Michael Stipe was ranting about. If I were to believe the frenzied…
Today I’m going to talk about the concept of a personal blind spot as well as give an omnibus update on what’s going on in my world (and also my plan to eventually get over my hump and start catching up on my travel talk again). For the last month I’ve been working through Baron…
As a foodie, culinary experiences are a huge part of my travel experiences. I often book food tours when I travel and enjoy seeking out different food adventures. I naturally got excited when a friend forwarded this foodie bucket list to me. A quick scan of the list informed me that I’ve already experienced most…
I’m wrapping up a quick solo birthday trip to Paris, the continuation of my annual tradition of traveling to celebrate my birthday. While this was once a trip I tried to recruit others to join, I have more recently embraced the idea of traveling along to celebrate the milestone. When I mention to many who I…
The more things change, the more they stay the same. That’s the mantra I’m repeating this morning. Repetition isn’t a bad thing. In many ways, its healthy. Or rather, its the basis from which healthy habits are formed. I woke up this morning to an interesting Fast Company article in my inbox this morning that suggested…
If you are a regular reader of mileage-oriented blogs and frequent flyer websites, sooner or later you pick up all manners of advice about how to maximize your travel experience. Some of these tips pertain to what to go see at your destination, where to eat, or how to maximize your visit. Others are more about the…
Earlier this week I completed my download of my travels for 2015. Now it is time to turn to 2016 and plan out my travel strategies. Before diving into program specific goals, I first wanted to understand my own personal goals for the year – these in turn drive my travel strategies as I work…
The calendar has rolled over to 2016 and another crazy travel year is in the bag which means its time for a retrospective travel year in review. As some of my regular readers may know, 2015 was a bit of a crazy year for me. I had my first “first day of work” at a…