My NYC journal...

Posted by julie on April 1, 2012 FOOD!, Travel Tips
Apr 012012

The view from our room at 70 Park Ave Hotel

I fell in love with New York City when I spent 6 weeks there training to be a stock broker in the late 80′s. For many years, David and I would go for my birthday in December, but work has kept us away for the last few years. So, when the opportunity arose to return this year, I was more than ready!

My favorite museum in NYC

 

My perfect day in NYC: Start with a late morning brunch at a European style bistro (must have excellent coffee). Window shopping, and scoring some cute shoes on sale. Either wine and crostini at a cozy Enoteca, or hit an Indian buffet. More coffee, (or chai). Late afternoon spent in awe of our planet’s many miracles, at the AMNH – “Beyond Planet Earth” for David, followed by an amazing butterfly exhibit and the Asian cultures wing for me. And, back out on the streets to find another latte, or maybe a happy hour…

I want this dish NOW! Boqueria tapas...yum!

Dinner…so many choices…

We try to enjoy as many different types of cuisine as we can in 5 days!

After dinner, and coffee, wander the streets in search of live music. This is one of my favorite things about the Big Apple – all of the small clubs, where you can just happen upon great jazz or blues any night of the week. Finally, walk, or taxi if we must, back to our hotel by 3:00am to get some sleep! And that explains why our day always starts with a late morning brunch, and good coffee!

Thank God Manhattan is so well suited for walking, it enables us to eat our way from uptown to downtown without gaining weight! Strolling the various neighborhoods, scouting for our next meal, and just soaking up that unique NYC energy, is the best way to appreciate the city.

Cafe Lalo & classic upper West side neighborhood

 

Below is a list of places we enjoyed on this trip. All are worth a visit, but I encourage you to wander the city without a plan and make your own discoveries!

 

Campbell Apartment at Grand Central, no tourists here on a Wed nite! Martinis in a historic room filled with locals and commuters. Check out the ceiling!

The Modern – Loved this French-American with an Alsatian twist. Great service, stark, contemporary decor, extensive (but expensive) wine list. Dine in the happenin’ bar, or on the other side of the room with lovely views onto the MOMA sculpture garden.

Barcibo Enoteca – upper West side, near Lincoln Center, hence a tad pricey, but loved the menu – grilled squid with spinach – and nice selection of wines and crostinis, for late afternoon break.

Vin et Fleurs – Quaint, tiny SOHO bistro. Have some sparkling with lunch and be transported to France.

Takashi – Beef, beef nothing but the beef. Japanese Korean BBQ where all parts of the cow are gloriously celebrated and consumed. (Chef buys only the highest quality beef)

Cafe Lalo – Get buzzed on coffee and atmosphere at this Upper West side cafe. Great menu using high quality, locally sourced, or organic ingredients.

Boqueria – Great selection of authentic Spanish tapas, including Jamon!

Picking cow parts from teeth. (beef stomach is tasty, but chewy)

Buvette – West Village. Tiny, ultra cute, stop in any time of day for a lite meal, with great coffee & and wine by the glass. Also high quality, locally sourced, or organic ingredients.

Jazz & Blues…

Smalls, Greenwich Village

La Lanterna di Vittorio and The Bar Next Door

Terra Blues, Groove, Cafe Wha?, Arthurs Tavern, Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola at Lincoln Center

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My latest addiction...

Posted by julie on March 31, 2012 FOOD!
Mar 312012

Tapas bar in northern Spain.

On our trip to northern Spain last year, our local friend taught us all about Iberian ham. It was love at first bite.  As soon as I got home, I began my research on Jamon Iberico, a.k.a. pata negra, cerdo negro, or black pig. I was planning to buy a whole, cured, leg, like they have on display in tapas bars all over Spain, but, much to my dismay, discovered it has only been available in the U.S. for a few years, and is very expensive (like $1300. DOLLARS for a leg!)

The most delicious, and healthy, of the Spanish ham is the “jamon Iberico de bellota”, which comes from free ranging, black pigs, that eat mainly acorns. I read that because of the pigs diet, this ham has more “good” fat than olive oil, helps increase HDL, and lowers LDL, not to mention the taste is out of this world. Ditch the statin drugs America! Sign me UP for the Jamon diet!

On our recent trip to NYC, I was on a quest to find my new drug of choice, eat as much as possible, and bring some home, hoping it might be more readily available and less expensive in New York, as they are closer to Europe than our home in California. (European wines are always a better buy than California wines in NYC) Mission Accomplished! We scored a 1/4 pound of the deep red, fat streaked, delicacy at Murrays for about $30.

Tonite, while winter rages outside (finally), we broke out a bottle of Tempranillo (from Rioja, via Trader Joes) and I made Pan Tomaca (a.k.a. pan con tomate, pan tumaca, or pan amb tomaquet). It’s similar to Italian Bruschetta (Brus-Ketta, not Bru SHetta!), but the tomatoes are not chopped.

There are many ways to make it, but this is how I was taught in Spain:

Carefully unwrap the delicate sliced ham, which should be separated by wax paper, and rolled, as they did for us at the deli in NYC.

Position a flat cheese grater over a bowl to collect the juice and pulp, rub tomato over the grater until all you have left in your hand is skin, discard skin.

Add a little (Spanish) olive oil and salt to the pulp/juice in bowl.

Toast or grill some good bread until crunchy.

Rub raw garlic over the bread, or not, if you prefer a cleaner, more pure tomato taste.

Add a slice of Jamon Iberico, or Jamon Serrano if you don’t want to splurge on Iberico de Bellota.

Pour a glass of wine, bite into crunchy, salty, dripping toast, enter heaven of the taste buds!

My new retirement plan now includes living in Spain, or raising my own cerdo negro on a farm somewhere!

 

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2012...the end of the world as we know it?

Posted by julie on January 1, 2012 Random Ramblings
Jan 012012

Looking forward to more travel in 2012!

I ended 2011 celebrating with friends and my beloved (“husband” is just an inadequate word!), and began the new year with a 9:00am yoga class – perfect preparation for contemplating resolutions.

We’ve all heard the scary “end of the world” predictions for 12/12. I choose to interpret this as a positive thing.  If you believe, as Teilhard de Chardin, a French philosopher once said,  “we are not human beings seeking a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings immersed in a human experience”, then maybe the “end of the world” is a metaphor for mankind waking up to that “reality”?

I am looking at 2012 as a year of rebirth for myself, for our society, and for world leaders. A time to throw off the shackles of F.E.A.R. – (“false evidence appearing real”, thank Tony Robbins for that one), and embrace compassion instead as our driving force.

“The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself” (F.D.R.),  and making fear-based decisions can easily become a habit. The media bombards us with messages designed to play on our fears – of losing, of missing out, of someone taking from us, of not having “enough”.  I’d like to suggest we all share one collective New Year’s resolution – to tune out all fear-based messages, whether they come from within or outside sources.

The sunrise of a new era!

“Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself, and that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of it’s dream”. Paulo Coelho, one of my favorite authors.

My dream is for a world that lives up to it’s full potential, and I don’t think we have even scratched the surface yet!

Live Small, travel BIG, give BIG, fear not, and never let anyone, or anything, take your JOY away, it is only yours to give!

Julie

 

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"Sunshine always makes me high"...

Posted by julie on December 18, 2011 Random Ramblings
Dec 182011

When you live in a resort town, everything revolves around the weather. In December, much energy is devoted to rituals encouraging mother nature to provide snow in time for a white (and ‘green’!) Christmas . When she doesn’t respond to our snow dances, well, people get anxious, and cranky. But, what are you gonna do? The weather is still something we cannot control. (Or, wait… do we control anything??)

As I took my lunch break today, I flipped on PBS and they had one of those pledge specials airing, you know, the ones we all love to hate, and would be loathe to admit ever watching… old John Denver concert footage. As I listened to “Sunshine on my Shoulder”, I looked outside at a glorious sunny day, and knew I needed to get outside.

Soaked up some vitamin D here for awhile

Off I went for a little attitude-adjustment hike around the neighborhood. I walked down to the lake and strolled the beach, end to end, stopping to try out every inviting spot to perch myself and enjoy the warm sun.

Nice of them to leave this chair out for me!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Merry Christmas from Lake Tahoe!

 

So, even though we have very little snow, and it doesn’t really feel like Christmas, I can’t complain. I have plenty to celebrate this holiday season.  And yes, John was a wise man, “sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy”!

The trampoline on a cat makes for a mighty relaxing perch!

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New episodes arrive on PBS in 2012!

Posted by julie on November 14, 2011 FAQ, Making Passport to Adventure TV
Nov 142011

I am not an “early adopter”, actually more of a luddite, truth be told, but I may have to break down (much to my husband’s delight) and get an HD tv to watch the new season of Passport to Adventure. Once again, our “weather angels” cooperated, and I think we have succeeded in capturing the essence of our new destinations, in all of their stunning glory!

Worth the wait, coming to PBS, and international markets, in 2012…

Wavy, mosaic pavement, left by the Portuguese

 

MACAU, sans casinos!

An exciting fusion of Chinese and Portuguese cultures merges Buddhist temples with casinos, cod fish with coconut milk, old world architecture with tai chi in the park.  For more on Macau

 

 

Become one with the palms, ahhhhhh

 

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS!

With Mark at the helm, exploring the cays, bays and bars of the BVI, is sure to be an adventure! ;-)    For more on the BVI , and here.

 

 

 

Another adventure in Aysen!

AYSEN, PATAGONIA squared (2 episodes)

This is what I love to do most – discover up and coming destinations, and share them with y’all! If you love raw nature, biking, kayaking, rafting, hiking, fishing, and interesting, earthy folks, add Aysen to your list pronto!

More on Aysen.

 

 

 

Elizabeth in her element, Columbia Icefield

ALBERTA, Canada, x 2

I had never been to her iconic rocky mountain parks, which fully lived up to their reputation. We also ventured off the primary tourist path, and discovered aboriginal sites, a very cool dinosaur museum, and in addition to finding my sister of a different mother (another story), I have an unusual new bff named Tara. See more Alberta images on our FB page.

 

 

My new bff, Tara.

 

Oh, and who woulda thought…there is a thriving “farm to table” foodie culture in Alberta! (Tara is not on the menu, but her cousin may be)

I never thought I’d be adding a restaurant in Calgary to my all time favorites list!

 

Full synopsis of Season Four episodes.

 

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Time to head East?

Posted by julie on November 9, 2011 Random Ramblings
Nov 092011

Ah yes, it’s that time of year again – “the holidays”.  I know some, (most?) of you are probably getting excited for the season, and may call me a curmudgeon, but the whole thing makes me cringe and want to leave the country. Oh, I am not immune to warm, fuzzy feelings when I hear certain Christmas songs, and I love a good party as much as anyone, but…

First, there is the unfortunate confluence of holiday “sale” ads with the election season barrage (a great reason to watch nothing but PBS for the next two months!) I mean REALLY, can anyone explain to me what value campaign ads offer society? What do we “learn” about candidates from thirty nauseating seconds of mud slinging? In my humble opinion, our country would be much better off if campaigning via attack ads was not allowed. (I believe there are other countries where that is the case?)

Second, I’ve never been able to figure out how launching the entire country into a two-month-long shopping frenzy honors the birth of Christ, a man who preached compassion and caring for the poor. Wouldn’t it make more sense if the season was all about feeding the hungry? Helping at a local shelter? Or taking a trip to a third world country and volunteering in an orphanage? Just think what a great family bonding experience that would be!

Velvet dress made by mama, with Rex. Aren't knee socks back in style?

I’m not sure how I came to be so annoyed by all of this. My childhood memories are good – I was an only child, and any relatives were across the country or in Europe, but my tiny family of three celebrated Christmas with a meaningful combination of European and American traditions. Mama & I baked German cookies, Papa strung colored lights on the house, I collected toys & food for poor families, friends stopped by for music, a chat and cocktails – it was all very relaxed. When I was 19, my father died of a heart attack while skiing, and Christmas became painful. I moved to Tahoe, and was happy to work the holidays.

As I got older, and watched my friends stressing out over shopping lists, and later my husband running himself ragged in the malls on Christmas Eve, I started wondering what is the point of this craziness? I am still wondering.

So, each year, as the holiday season sets in, I have an overwhelming desire to get on a plane heading East, far east, as in Asia, where Christmas is a foreign affair.

Unfortunately, or fortunately I guess, both David and I are way too busy to escape this year, so I’ll be here, with my fingers in my ears, chanting “la, la, la, la, la, I can’t heeear you” to all of the commercial noise. (I may also be caught singing along to my favorite carol, Adeste Fideles)

What do you think, has the commercialism and frenzy gotten worse over the last 20 years, or am I just a Scrooge?

Bah humbug, next year, we are off to parts unknown! ;-)

Juls

 

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The Scoop...

Posted by julie on October 15, 2011 FAQ, Making Passport to Adventure TV
Oct 152011

I figured I may as well make this a blog post, and update everyone at once!

A lovely, bumpy road in Patagonia, Chile

So, here’s where things stand with Passport to Adventure…

The economic downturn caused us a few difficulties, but we are muddling through. Mark has retired, to sort out his own life challenges, and I have taken responsibility for fulfilling our obligations to clients and PBS viewers. Elizabeth and Aaron remain my dedicated crew. We have all made sacrifices to keep the “show on the road”, (bumpy road that it is!) but we are a passionate team determined to fulfill our mission – to inspire our fans to get out there and see the world – dirt roads and all!

We have six, new, HD programs that will go on the air on PBS in early 2012 – Macau, British Virgin Islands, Chilean Patagonia (2) and Alberta, Canada (2).  I promise they are all spectacular!

Anchored off Anagada, BVI

We know our viewers and PBS stations are anxious to see new episodes from us, and we apologize for making you wait so long!  (Be sure to let your local PBS station know you are looking for Passport to Adventure in their schedule, your feedback is always helpful to keep us on their “radar”!)  The TV industry is really not glamorous, it is brutal, and the PBS funding model is not easy to navigate, that said, we feel very privileged to air on a great network, and to have such loyal fans, so hang in there, the new shows will be worth the wait!

Thanks to all of our fans and PBS programmers for your continued support!!

Julie

links: If you are interested in more on the trials and tribulations of producing Travel TV in a recession, click on “bumpy Road” above.

And, if you want to know more about how we fund Passport to Adventure, click here!

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Damn, no trust fund!

Posted by julie on October 14, 2011 FAQ, Making Passport to Adventure TV
Oct 142011

How much does PBS pay you for each episode? This question is always near the top of the FAQ list. People assume that if you have a show on PBS, they are paying you for it. Not exactly…

Here’s a crash course on how funding Passport to Adventure, on public television works.

I am an independent producer, meaning I raise the money and pull together the team to create the program. The bad news is raising money is TOUGH, the good news – I retain all control and rights to the program. (I also host, write, plan the shoots, oversee the editing, and handle all of the distribution and marketing of the series – good thing I love what I do!)

To cover costs and pay myself, I have to interest a few companies in underwriting the series on PBS. As an underwriter, companies get a “credit” at the beginning and end of each episode, in all airings on PBS. When it says, “this program is made possible by XYZ Company”, we mean it! Without these sponsors, programs like Passport to Adventure would not be on the air. The most difficult aspect of this funding model is, that it requires producers to compete in the advertising sales arena, with a huge handicap – FCC regulations severely limit what a credit spot can say on non-commercial TV. These restrictions, and the PBS independent station structure, make it challenging to convince a company to spend their dollars with us instead of on a commercial TV advertising package. One of our biggest selling points is that you, the PBS viewers, value a company’s support of quality, non-commercial TV programming, and therefore will buy their products!

So, the reality is, Passport to Adventure is truly a labor of love, an outpouring of passion for something we believe in. We all make a living, but we could make a lot more doing something else.

To make this endeavor financially viable, there are three avenues – get sponsors, creatively piece together small revenue sources – website/blog monetization, international sales, retail products, etc, OR,  have large trust fund. Unfortunately, there’s no trust fund in my past, or future, so I rely on creativity and perseverance!

julie

Live small, Travel BIG!

 

 

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Can't find us on your PBS channel? Thank AT&T...

Posted by julie on October 13, 2011 FAQ, Making Passport to Adventure TV
Oct 132011

The saga… why PBS viewers will not be able to travel with us for a few months…

Passport to Adventure was doing pretty well going into this recession. We had some operating capital from past work, some great shows in the can, and more in the queue. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to me, my co-host, Mark, was digging himself into personal financial disaster, and had spent money that should have been earmarked for Passport to Adventure. Long story short, I assumed control, and responsibility for editing and distributing our new season of programs.

I love this illustration, spot on!

Probably the most infuriating element of the whole mess, was a simple cost-cutting measure that went very wrong. Mark had disconnected the Passport to Adventure toll free number, which seemed like no big deal, as most viewers contact us via email. Until I was notified that our distributor was going to pull the Passport series off the air, due to the non-working # shown in the credit role, unless I could get it reconnected.

I called AT&T and found that the # was still available, and proceeded to get it hooked back up. Easy, right? NOT! Nothing is easy with AT&T, by far the most incompetent company I have ever dealt with. (I guess they’ll never be a sponsor of Passport to Adventure, oh well) After two months, all I had to show for my hours spent, was a folder an inch thick documenting conversations with various departments at AT&T (all said no problem, they’d get it taken care of) and bills I paid for service I was not receiving. I finally had to give up. The whole ordeal was so incredibly frustrating, I was ready to kill someone (metaphorically speaking of course).  It’s absolutely amazing that AT&T stays in business. I have since switched all of my phone, internet and TV to Charter Cable, and so far, I am very happy with their service and price. Now I just have to pray that AT&T quits sending me bills for service they keep assuring me has been disconnected, and that AT&T doesn’t buy Charter!!!

The result of all of this is that Passport to Adventure will be not be airing for a few months, until we release our new programs, and re-feed the archived episodes with updated contact info. So don’t be alarmed when your local station tells you “the rights for Passport to Adventure have expired” and they are unable to air the program.

Stay tuned, we’ll be back soon, better than ever!

Julie

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9-11 epiphanies revisited...

Posted by julie on September 13, 2011 Making Passport to Adventure TV, Random Ramblings, Thoughts on Travel
Sep 132011

9-11 left me questioning my life. I looked at my beliefs about people, the way I spent my time, the things I really cared about, and wondered “am I really making a difference?”. I always thought I was, but now, in a flash everything I was doing seemed trivial, exhausting, meaningless.

Nature always gives clarity

Mainly, I looked at my career – work I had so much passion for suddenly felt small, silly, even arrogant. What right did I have to be on TV? Who was I to tell people they should travel more? Why should anyone care what I think? And why beat my head against the wall?  Ever since we started Passport to Adventure, TV industry execs and “ratings data” had been telling us the American TV audience isn’t interested in travel. And now, just as our small band of world-wanderers was beginning to prove the powers-that-be wrong, this happens. (The 1990′s saw increases in the number of Americans traveling to “adventurous”, previously feared, destinations – it was an encouraging trend for us)

In the weeks that followed, like the rest of the world, I tried to get my head around what it all meant. What was true? How do we move forward? What can I do to help? Producing Passport to Adventure no longer felt right. I even wondered if I should pull it off the air – was it offensive to promote travel when our country was suffering?

Then, one morning, I had an “ah ha moment”. I realized that what I did was now more important than ever. Someone had to combat the images and fears bombarding us. A terrible thing had been done, by terrible people, but from my travels I knew that the world is not full of these people.

Travel taught me that the people in every corner of the world are far more like us than not – they are primarily kind & generous, they welcome travelers, and they want to be able to provide for their family, just like us.

Is she really so different from you?

I began thinking… the only way to stop the madness is for the people of the world to know each other, to see other religions and cultures as made up of fellow human beings, not as “with us or against us”. Even for those that don’t travel themselves, maybe a program like Passport to Adventure can help people understand each other? I know, it’s a big task, for a little show, but if we can affect one person, isn’t that worth not giving up?

 

I remembered a package I had received a few years before from an elementary school teacher in Brooklyn, New York. They had shown our China program in the classroom, then had the students answer some essay questions. When asked what they had learned from the program, one student wrote:

“I learned that Chinese people are not mean”.

And there were other similar comments. It was fascinating to see how early xenophobia can take hold. (Our new slogan? “Passport to Adventure – prying open one mind at a time”)

Ten years later, the same conviction still drives me, as Passport struggles through this tough economy, the shake-up of the  TV industry, and I look for the way forward. Once again I find myself taking inventory of what I value, what is important in life, and where we go from here. One thing I know for sure – I will continue my quest to know the people of the world.

Live small, travel BIG!

Julie

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