Fans of the Dead come alive in Las Vegas
Midway through their residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas during a record-breaking heat wave, Dead &Company played its jam band specials over the Fourth of July weekend for an eclectic crowd. The band’s audience — some die-hard fans, others just curious — came from all over the country (and the world) to pledge their own form of allegiance.
Let’s Talk Food: American influences in South Korea
Ihave written about how the Portuguese traders had such an influence in Japan, introducing bread and frying which then created manju or anpan, (“pan” comes from the Portuguese word for bread), breaded katsu and tempura. All these adopted foods became very important in Japanese cuisine. Last week I wrote about how the Chinese, Indians, Arabs and the Dutch influenced the foods of Indonesia.
To deter day-trippers, Venice tested a 5 euro entrance fee. Did visitors stay away?
When Venice introduced a 5 euro entrance fee in April, officials said the aim was to dissuade day-trippers from visiting at peak times, in a bid to ease the pressure on beleaguered residents forced to share the fragile Italian city’s limited space and public resources.
Steves: Sampling Athens’ spicier sectors
Iused to think of Athens as a big ugly city with obligatory ancient sights, fine museums, the Plaka (the extremely touristy old center), and not much else. “The joy of Greece is outside of Athens,” I wrote. “See Athens’ museums and scram.”
Is she the oldest person in the Amazon?
JAVARI VALLEY INDIGENOUS TERRITORY, Brazil — After more than 100 years in the rainforest, Varî Vãti Marubo walks with a stick and, as she always has, barefoot.
Tropical Gardening: East meets West in Hawaii gardens
In Hawaii, China and Japan, rock and water are used to add interest to the garden. The stone water basins that usually stand outside the teahouses are an example of rock and water used on a small scale. Participants in the tea ceremony first wash their hands and at the same time, symbolically wash away the stain of the noisy and confused outside world. In almost any garden and for whatever reason, the gentle sound and sight of water dripping over cool stones is refreshing.
When even an assassination attempt becomes a concert tee
Of all the images that have flooded the national conversation since the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, one in particular was destined to become part of history, the record of this particular national trauma. Taken by Evan Vucci of The Associated Press, it shows Trump with blood streaks on his face, fist raised in the air. Surrounded by a crouching phalanx of Secret Service agents, he seems to be rising up. Behind him, against a bright blue sky, flies an American flag.
How do you tell immigrant stories? Dinaw Mengestu has an answer
Novelist Dinaw Mengestu thinks deeply about how stories are told, especially migrant tales. His earlier books — “The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears,” “How to Read the Air” and “All Our Names” — explored the psychic tolls on Ethiopian immigrants of being adrift in an alien American landscape.
Let’s Talk Food: Foods of Indonesia
The foods of Indonesia are very interesting and rich in history.
Volcano Watch: More shaking on Kilauea’s south flank. Did you feel it?
Island of Hawaii residents are used to feeling the ground shake beneath them. From subtle shakes that feel like wind, to abrupt jolting that knocks dishes off the counter, living on this volcanically active island means accepting that the ground beneath our feet will not always keep still.
Ljubljana: An underrated gem in Europe
Located where the Germanic, Mediterranean, and Slavic worlds come together, Slovenia enjoys a happy hodgepodge of cultures while also presenting plenty of its own unique character. And much like the country as a whole, its capital city of Ljubljana is a delight to explore, yet remains relatively undiscovered.
Rick Steves: Glimpsing Northeast England’s ancient past
While southern England gets most of the glory — and the tourists — the country’s far northeastern corner harbors some of England’s best historical sights. Hadrian’s Wall serves as a reminder that this was once an important Roman colony, while nearby Holy Island is where Christianity gained its first toehold in Britain. And both can be reached from the town of Durham, home to England’s greatest Norman church.
Tropical Gardening: Interest in native plants follows Polynesian culture celebration
The recent confluence of Polynesian, Micronesian, Melanesian and other Pacific Ocean cultures has inspired a new interest in landscaping with native and endemic plants of this vast region. What they have in common is that they all relate to the rebirth, renaissance and the evolution of life and culture.
On small islands off Canada’s coast, a big shift in power
HAIDA GWAII, British Columbia — The Raven, the story goes, alighted on the beach and heard sounds coming from a giant clamshell. He found creatures cowering inside, but, ever the trickster, he cajoled them out into the world. Liberated, they became the first people of the islands of Haida Gwaii.
Things to bring to college that you can’t buy at Target
Extra-long sheets. Shower shoes. The wall hooks and putty that hold things up but don’t leave marks.
Let’s Talk Food: A foodie in Honolulu
I took my two grandchildren to Honolulu to meet son Reid, who was working in Oahu. They were both so excited to go on this trip that Artemis had her bag ready a week before.
Theme brunches in Las Vegas you need to try
LAS VEGAS — A good brunch is a magical thing.
Steves: A quick trip to Tallinn
Stepping off the boat in Tallinn, Estonia — a short ferry ride from Helsinki (and an overnight sailing from Stockholm, or an easy flight from anywhere in Europe) — you’ll likely feel as if you’ve nevertheless traveled a great cultural distance from Scandinavia. Located about halfway between Stockholm and St. Petersburg, Tallinn is both Nordic- and Russian-influenced, and a visit here is a fun peek into a proudly unique and resilient nation.
Will Lewis says he helped hacking investigation. Scotland Yard had doubts.
LONDON — Will Lewis, now the publisher of The Washington Post, was in full crisis mode in 2011. Then an executive at a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, he was an intermediary to the police detectives investigating a British phone-hacking scandal that had placed the company’s journalists and top leaders in legal peril.
Steves: Morphing into a beer aficionado
When I’m far from home, I become a cultural chameleon. I eat and drink regional specialties with gusto, feasting on steak and red wine in Tuscany and stuffing down tapas at midnight in Spain. So when I travel to countries that are known for their beer, I morph into the best beer aficionado I can be.
