For The Sake of Clarity - The Digital Tavern » Travel

On Speaking and Speakers

allan — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 18:52:15 +0000

Last month I had an opportunity to attend the annual National Speakers Assocation (NSA) annual convention. This year the event was held at the World Center Marriott in Orlando, Florida in the shadows of the “house of the mouse.”

I decided to attend just days before and new to this business of speaking, I had no idea what to expect. [...]

Riding That Train, Italian Wine & Late Night Jazz: The Streets of LA

allan — Sun, 02 May 2010 19:02:56 +0000

Living in Southern California certainly has its benefits. The weather is perhaps the best in the country, there’s great live music, entertainment and most of the airports, even the smaller regional hubs are well served by the airlines. So when one needs to flee southern California, there are always many options.

Another benefit of Southern California is both its extensive [...]

The Old Trick Bag. The Plastic Version.

allan — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 04:25:55 +0000

I’ve been on a personal mission for quite a while. Actually, I’ve probably been on a number of personal missions, and probably for my whole life. The thing that strikes me today is my disgust of plastic shopping bags and my mission to avoid them at all cost.

And it’s cost that I think is important here. These [...]

Treating Wanderlust With Live Music

allan — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 06:43:25 +0000

Seems that the only traveling I find myself doing these days is either up and down the California coast. While my return to trip to Israel in December was an exception, I discovered this week that low mileage traveling combined with stellar live music can be quite satisfying to this nomadic wanderer. I got lucky. Lucky in several ways. First, [...]

Catching Up With The iPad, Al Stewart and Oregon Pinot Noir.

allan — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 18:56:30 +0000

Time for a quick update on the Digital Tavern. Pardon the diversion, but this post will focus on some personal and business items that I hope you’ll find interesting or at least somewhat amused.

First, it’s all the hype and there’s no doubt you’ve seen it on the news, heard strangers talking about it in line at Starbucks or the [...]

Baja California. History. Water. Endangered. And Great Photography.

allan — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 02:53:12 +0000

Imagine California more than 150 years ago. Until Spain recognized Mexico’s sovereignty in 1821, California was a Spanish colony. This colony was separted by two missionary factions. In the North, Alta California was governed by the Franciscan missions and to the south Baja California was under Frandiscon mission rule. But the young sovereign Mexico soon had its hands full when [...]

Things Classic. Heritage. And What’s New Anyway?

allan — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 00:17:16 +0000

I guess I’ve been out of it. Well, at least out of this country. For three years. Wandering the byways of distant locales in search of some truth I already believed but needed to prove to myself, dodging erudite donkeys while avoiding potholes and pitfalls of solo adventure travel, lots has changed around here – in California – [...]

Back to Sudan? Almost. The Almighty Temple of Abu Simbel

allan — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 07:35:38 +0000

Egypt is the land of Pharaohs. Home to some of the oldest and most well preserved archaeological sites in the world. And it’s no wonder. Wit the massive Sahara desert to the west and the Red Sea to the east, Mediterranean to the north, it was very in accessible in ancient times. So while the shifting sands of the [...]

The Donkey Did It.

allan — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 17:26:41 +0000

Southern plains of Ethiopia. Below a new traditional home under construction.

As I moved to make time to get to Awasa I noticed groups of women carrying large round ceramic containers colored brown and with a narrow top and ringlet handles tied to their backs. The rounded belly shape seemed [...]

Ripped Off in Kenya & The Amazing Return

allan — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 17:27:50 +0000

What was supposed to be an early start for the Ethiopian border crossing now was looking to be a mid-afternoon departure. First things first. I had to get the bike unloaded from the lorry. My preference was to unload it somewhere away from the hustle and bustle of this Kenya border town. Getting both the bike and I suited for [...]

Indian Food & Genocide, An Unlikely Mix.

allan — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 17:29:14 +0000

He was very formal, personal and service oriented if not a slightly meek. When he brought me a bottle of the local beer in a 330ml bottle, I admitted my surprise. Most beer in Africa is served in 500- 1.0L bottles. Rarely does one find what we are accustomed to in the US: the equivalent to a 12oz can or [...]

Rio.

allan — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 18:54:16 +0000

The beaches. The music. The fahvelas. The food. The friendly people. The shoeshine boys on the beach walks. The bikinis. The spirit.

Rio is gearing up for the Pan American Games. And Al Gore’s concert for awareness of global warming. I settle in to experience some of the usual sites, the architecture and culture, the food and the sunshine. With [...]

Rome: History. Mussolini & Vatican Censors.

allan — Sat, 11 Oct 2003 17:05:02 +0000

Rome is all history. Ok. So some may go for the food, others for shopping, but most go to take in the history. Ancient Rome, Old Rome and latter day Rome. Arguably, perhaps the two most visited areas are Ancient Rome including Ceaser’s Forum and The Coliseum as well as Vatican City in all its glory of St. Peter’s Basilica, [...]