10.02.07
Posted in Store News, In-Store Events at 10:32 pm by Administrator
October 2nd Tuesday 7 PM
The Palace of the Snow Queen: Winter Travels in Lapland with author Barbara Sjoholm
A frequent traveler to Northern Europe, author Barbara Sjoholm decided one winter to explore a region that had long intrigued her. The result of this journey is The Palace of the Snow Queen: Winter Travels in Lapland, an eloquently written narrative of her travels through Sweden, Finland, and beyond. Along the way she experiences the increasing darkness and cold of the area, as well as traditional activities; reindeer racing and dog sledding. Beyond her own adventures she unearths the region’s rich history, including the culture of the indigenous Sami, she considers the power of ice and snow to shape our imaginations and create a vision that increasingly draws visitors to Lapland.
October 9th Tuesday 7 PM
Australian Nature with Jake Haupert, Explorers 3
Founder of Explorers 3 Adventures in Seattle, Jake Haupert takes us tonight to the land down-under, Australia. With his visuals and words we will witness amazing wildlife on the mainland and Tasmania, encounter the biodiversity of the rainforest in the Northern Territory, experience Aboriginal culture, and dive the Great Barrier Reef. His extensive Australian travels and his training as an Aussie Specialist Program run by Tourism Australia, his advice on multi-sport, natural and cultural adventures, is offered with enthusiasm and expertise.
October 16th Tuesday 7 PM
New Zealand Bound with Shilo Urban of Adventure Travel Company
Life is short! Seize the day in the Land of the Long White Cloud: New Zealand. Travel junkie Shilo Urban will explore the amazing diversity of one of the world’s top scenic destinations and THE ideal romping ground for independent travelers. Learn where you can climb a volcano in the middle of a big city, taste up-and-coming regional wines, dig a natural hot tub on the beach, commune with seal pups in the wild, and of course, hurtle yourself through the air over mind-blowing mountains. New Zealand may be on the bottom of the world but it is at the top the list for hikers, bird-watchers and wildlife seekers, adventure sports enthusiasts, wine lovers, and anyone who enjoys discovering a unique culture and incredible natural beauty. Bring your questions and leave with a head full of amazing images, heaps of practical travel information and a new resolve to experience New Zealand.
October 20th Saturday 9 AM
Solo Travelers
Join us for an informal gathering of travelers as they meet and learn from each other’s travel experiences and share wisdom learned on the road. Whether you’re preparing for your first solo journey or your hundredth, you’ll enjoy sharing your adventures with your fellow sojourners. Bring your coffee and your questions!
October 23rd Tuesday 7 PM
Volunteer Travel Around the World with Joyce Major
Are you ready to learn about a culture as you volunteer on a project? You can feed bottles to lion cubs, walk pumas or work with dolphins, elephants or chimps. Learn about archeology in Italy, conservation in New Zealand or teach English in China. Want to be a reporter in Ireland? There are assorted different projects all over the world that accept volunteers for two weeks to a year allowing you to learn about the culture while contributing as a volunteer. Learn what to expect when you get there from Joyce Major, who completed a solo year-long trip around the world volunteering in 10 countries and is the author of the soon-to-be published book Smiling at the World.
October 27th Saturday Anniversary Celebration!
One day, all day, 25% OFF ALL IN-STOCK ITEMS plus cake!
Serving Seattle area travelers for 31 years, our thanks to you our customers, is this great sale and carrot cake. The fine print: limited to stock on hand, NOT to be combined with buyer’s bonus plan or other offers, in-store sales only.
October 30th Tuesday 7 PM
Richard Bangs’ Adventures with a Purpose with author Richard Bang
Follow the respected adventurer from Bosnia to Libya, Panama to Rwanda, Thailand to the American West, all in a quest to make sense of disappearing cultures and rivers, and to save them by bringing them to life. “Over the decades, I have witnessed many special places preserved and lost, and the critical vector in their survival or demise was more often than not the number of visitors who trekked the landscape or floated the river and were touched deeply by their unique beauty and spirit. When such a space became threatened, there was a constituency for whom the place was personal, a collective force ready to lend energy, monies, and time to preservation.” Richard’s message and visual presentation, part of a PBS tie-in, is sure to give you food for thought.
Permalink
Posted in Store News at 10:23 pm by Administrator
What book lover doesn’t welcome the coming of autumn? The shorter days and cooler temperatures are perfect for curling up with a good book and the publishers are gearing up for holiday sales by releasing streams of wonderful new hardbacks. It was a difficult job trying to pick just a few Front Table books to write about from this bounteous harvest.
My first pick would have to be The Street of a Thousand Blossoms by Gail Tsukiyama. I’m a huge fan of her literary historical fiction and I was happy that she returned to the Japanese setting of Samurai’s Garden in this new novel although this one covers a longer time frame. The book tells the story of Hiroshi and Kenji, orphaned brothers being raised by their grandparents in pre-war Tokyo, who both choose to pursue careers rooted in Japanese tradition: one as a sumo wrestler and the other as a mask maker for Noh dramas. We follow them through the sweeping changes wrought by the World War II into the drastically different world of post war life. California author Tsukiyama is so skilled at rendering the delicate details that make this setting come alive and it is enlightening to hear about a period of Japanese history that has been little reported in the West. ($24.95)
Let’s move to Italy with End Games, which, sadly, will be the last adventure of detective Commisario Aurelio Zen. His creator, Michael Dibdin passed away here in Seattle in the spring. Each installment of the Zen mysteries has taken us to a different part of Italy and this one sends us to Calabria, the rocky and poor province in the toe of Italy’s boot, where the Venice born and bred Zen feels decidedly out of his element. When an American lawyer with ties to the film industry is found dead, apparently the victim of a kidnapping gone wrong, our hero—or anti-hero—must sort out the truth of the matter. Dibdin’s quirky observations about life in Italy and the darkly humorous nature of his main character always take these genre tales to the next level. He and Aurelio will definitely be missed. ($23.95)
Noah Charney’s first novel, The Art Thief, takes us into the esoteric world of stolen art. A Caravaggio altar piece from Rome, a supremacist painting in Paris and a London museum’s latest acquisition are all stolen in apparently separate incidents. Renowned art historian, Gabriel Coffin, is called in to investigate and detects a pattern but twists, forgeries and double crosses complicate the case. Although there’s plenty going on in the plot line, the real interest in this novel lies in the wealth of information Charney provides about the inside story of art theft investigation. This young author and art historian is forging a career as an innovator in the field—he’s starting a new think tank in Rome on the subject—while writing and developing television projects on the side. If you’re interested in art this is a great opportunity to get the inside scoop. ($25.00)
It wouldn’t be a Fall publishing season without a new book from bestselling author Alexander McCall Smith and this month he treats us to a fourth installment in his Isabel Dalhousie series, The Careful Use of Compliments. He opens this one with a couple of twists, Isabel has a new baby by her much younger lover and she abruptly gets fired as the editor of “The Review of Applied Ethics”. Naturally these complications give our heroine plenty of opportunity to exercise her patented methods of gentle insight and influence to save the situation. A subplot about the death of a famous Scottish painter moves the story along but the interaction between the main characters and the vividly drawn scenes of Scotland are what really keep us coming back for more McCall Smith. ($21.95)
Another prolific author has a new book out this season. Although best known in our store as the author of travel essays, Paul Theroux’s The Elephanta Suite is his thirtieth book of fiction. This set of three loosely connected novellas set in India all center on the misconceptions harbored by the American travelers who star in each story and their rather brutal encounters with the real India. As always, Theroux’s writing is polished and enticing, and also as always, his focus on some of the more unpleasant aspects of human nature can be eye opening, even shocking. Both the American and the Indian characters are portrayed with all their flaws in full view but it seems to me that it’s Theroux’s ability to tell the truth about his observations that we really value in his writing. More conservative readers should be aware that there’s a lot of sexual content in this book. ($25.00)
And finally, I chose one book of non-fiction off the Front Table, The Year of Eating Dangerously by Tom Parker Bowles. If that name seems familiar, it should. He is Camilla’s son and a well-known food writer in England. Having two friends with odd food phobias sparked his curiosity about weird and dangerous edibles and sent him on a year-long journey through Asia, Europe and the Americas. Whether it’s something truly dangerous like fugu, the poisonous blowfish considered a delicacy in Japan, or something just gross like Laotian water beetles, Parker Bowles is always up for the next meal and happy to describe it in witty, very British prose. Fortunately for those of us who love travel as much as food, he also gives us hilarious portraits of the people and places who supply him with his bizarre menu items. Nothing weighty here (unless you eat everything along with him), just a pleasant romp. ($24.95)
Those are my picks for the month but there’re plenty more where these came from. Stop by the Front Table and choose your own basketful.
Permalink
09.04.07
Posted in Store News, Reviews, Books at 3:27 pm by Terrell
Hi guys! I thought I’d check in from my outpost in Texas with a pseudo-staff pick (that would be a pick by a pseudo-staff member). My new lifestyle taking care of mom gives me a little more time to read 
these days so I’ve been catching up on a few things. When Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie won the Orange Prize back in June, I decided to read her first book, Purple Hibiscus. The author is a Nigerian woman, which I think is cool all by itself, and the writing is first rate. It’s a coming of age novel about Kambili, a fifteen year old girl living in the restrictive world of her wealthy, strict, Catholic father. A trip to stay with her aunt opens a world of laughter and love for Kambili and her brother. While I didn’t think it was a perfect novel (the end left me a little flat), the characters are compelling and the easy way she incorporates details of setting and culture into the story gives a fascinating picture of Nigeria. If you’re interested in Africa, in women’s writing or in just good literature, give this one a try. By the way, don’t you think that it’s interesting how much good writing by women comes out of former colonies of the United Kingdom?
Permalink
09.03.07
Posted in Store News at 10:43 pm by Misch
Yes, it’s true!
We have our own shiny new MySpace page, and we’re looking for friends. If you’re a fellow MySpacer, look us up at http://www.myspace.com/travelstore and send us an invite. Thanks for the add!
Permalink
Posted in Store News, In-Store Events at 10:39 pm by Misch
September 4th Tuesday 7 PM
Northwest Heritage Resources Washington Road Tours with Jill Linzee
Northwest Heritage Resources’ tour guides highlight the unique scenic character and rich cultural expressions of Washington’s Heritage Corridors. These guides are books with maps, CDs, photographs and points of interest; they bring to light aspects of the “invisible landscape” through the traditional music, songs, stories and reminiscences of the people of Washington. Hear cowboy poets, Native American storytellers, Mexican-American mariachi bands, gospel choirs and much more as you learn about the cultures and history of our region. You’ll come away from tonight’s audio/visual presentation, and your trip, with an increased understanding and appreciation of the rich and diverse cultural heritage of Washington.
September 11th Tuesday 7 PM
Disturbance-Loving Species with author Peter Chilson
Peter Chilson will read from his new book, Disturbance-Loving Species: A Novella and Stories, and discuss the task of doing field research in Africa for a work of fiction. The stories in Peter’s book explore the experiences of Americans efforts to cope with life in Africa, and of Africans acclimating to life in the United States. The characters struggle with war and grief, as well as the unexpected pleasures and challenges that arise when cultures meet. The reading and lecture will be accompanied by a slide show of photographs the author took while in the field.
September 15th Saturday 9AM
Gutsy Women
Join us as we host an informal gathering for women to meet and learn from each other’s travel experiences and share wisdom learned from the road. Bring your coffee and your questions!
September 18th Tuesday 7 PM
Barranca del Cobre - Copper Canyon with Sandy Braun, Adventure Associates
The Sierra Madre’s Barranca del Cobre is the most spectacular, extensive and remote canyon system in North America. Known to many of us as the Copper Canyon, it is deeper and broader than the Grand Canyon, home to the Tarahumaran indigenous people and rich in colorful Spanish frontier history. Tonight, traveling on the world famous Chihuahua al “Chepe” train, we’ll descend the canyon and its history with Adventure Associates founder Sandy Braun for a spectacular journey into the Barrancas.
September 25th Tuesday 7 PM
Biking Puget Sound: 50 Rides from Olympia to the San Juans with author Bill Thorness
Learn the best road biking routes in the Puget Sound with Bill Thorness, author of Biking Puget Sound: 50 Rides from Olympia to the San Juans, recently published by Mountaineers Books. The book covers road cycling in Seattle, Tacoma, Olympia and more than 50 other Puget Sound communities with ride selections that include urban neighborhoods to wide-open farmland. Using slides and maps, Bill’s presentation will reveal some of the great off-street paved trails and safest road routes in the region, provide tips on biking in the San Juan Islands, and offer ideas for rides with out-of-town guests. Freelance writer and editor Bill Thorness also writes about travel, health care, gardening and photography. An avid cyclist, he resides in Seattle and is a member of the Cascade Bicycle Club.
September 26th Wednesday 7PM
Chile Moon Handbook author Wayne Bernhardson
Chile expert and travel writer extraordinaire Wayne Berhardson stops by on a Wednesday to let us know the latest travel information and to share his vast knowledge of a country he has been visiting since 1979. Along with breath-taking slides, Wayne’s enthusiasm for Chile is sure to make you dream of travels to this geological extravaganza and culturally diverse country.
Permalink
Posted in Store News, Trip Planning, Budget at 10:38 pm by Misch
Travelers are keenly aware of the fluctuating dollar. Here at Wide World we’ve compiled some suggestions that may stretch your hard-earned money a little farther. It’s a pick and choose list, not all are valuable on every trip but we believe that there’s a tip in here for every trip. Have a look:
Preemptive savings: A few weeks or months before you go on your trip tighten your belt. Go out even a little less than usual and put that money towards your trip. Chances are you’ll enjoy that money a lot more on your trip than you will at home.
Multiple-day passes are available for most cities, including Seattle, and may include museums, other sites, local transportation. These can save you lots of money (as well as get you in ahead of the people standing in line for tickets), as long as you plan to go to enough of the places on the passes. An added bonus is you may take in something completely different because it’s included – another way to explore a new place.
Free days are often listed at the local tourist office, along with free concerts in local churches.
Stay longer where you are. It can get expensive to move around a lot when traveling plus spending a week in one place really gives you a chance to get to know it. You can become a regular at a favorite breakfast spot or learn where the locals really hangout.
Reduce your hotel/guesthouse rate by staying 3 or more nights. It’s often possible to get a reduction on the room charge when staying longer, especially if you pay with cash.
Don’t be afraid of hostels: Hostels are always the budget alternative and they are not just for backpackers or college students. Besides the “dorm” style rooms that have made hostels famous, many hostels offer private double rooms (with shared bathrooms) for much less than a hotel. Hostels are also beginning to offer pensions or apartments, again much more affordable than standard hotels. Another benefit to hostels is that they are often centrally located right in the heart of the city. Hostel memberships are for sale at WWB, $28.00 adult, $18.00 senior.
Flexibility and risk offer their own rewards. Last minute bookings through sites like hotels.com or your own phone call can bring big savings over published prices. Not recommended at the height of tourist season or if reading this made you nervous.
Have a picnic whenever possible. Besides getting you out to the nearby parks or hills or seashore, you can have great fun at a local market where you buy your bread, fruit, vegetables, olives, wine, cheese, desserts, all the things that you want for dining out. You can really expand your interactions with the sellers by learning numbers then banter and barter and enjoy your shopping experience. Be sure to look for any specialty food items to the area, especially desserts.
Local transportation is a very cost-effective way to see the land, meet a variety of people, and leave the driving to those who know the way.
Plastic Instead of exchanging money and paying pricy commissions, use your ATM card. Your bank may charges a nominal fee, and the exchange rate from your bank is one of the best you will get. Be sure to check with your bank regarding international fees; different accounts can have different fees.
Parking the rental car in major cities is a cost to consider when deciding when or if to rent a car. If possible, pick it up on your way out of town, drop it off when you arrive in the next major city.
Students make sure you have your current student ID with you.
Trip jar coins can add up faster than you think. When that change jar is full, add that money to your travel fund, perhaps along with your tax refund.
If traveling to remote areas or places only reachable by private vehicle, log on to websites like Thorn Tree or Independent Traveler to see if others are doing the same thing around the same time.
Travelers insurance can save you thousands of dollars. Check that emergency medical evacuation is included on your policy.
Some in-store resources that offer travel and money tips include The Practical Nomad by Edward Hasbrouck, The Traveler’s Web by Randolph Hock, Make Your Travel Dollars Worth a Fortune by Tim Leffel and The Traveler’s Handbook edited by Lorie, Sohanpaul, and Williams.
What are your tips for cost effective travel? We’d love to hear them. Email us and we’ll post your suggestions on our blog!
Permalink
Posted in Store News, Trip Planning, Budget at 10:35 pm by Misch
Rising oil prices, declining dollar values, more passengers on smaller planes, mileage reward restrictions that require a masters in logic to figure out…what’s a budget air traveler to do? Will we let these things stop us from enjoying a fabulous vacation? Absolutely not! There are plenty of ways to find a deal and get flying.
First consider how much time you want to devote to this project. Many money saving tactics require a fairly serious investment in sweat equity. If your time is more profitably spent being, for instance, a brain surgeon or keeping the triplets from burning down the house, consider using an ingenious labor saving device: a travel agent. A good travel agent (yes, some are better than others) can get you a good deal, save you time, alert you to trip ideas you may not have considered or last minute specials. Make sure you and your agent are on the same page about budget, flexibility, travel priorities and schedule and then let them do the heavy lifting.
If you, like myself, have plenty of time and enjoy doing the research, let’s take a look at two basic strategies you can employ to save some cash.
Planning ahead If you need to take your vacation at a certain time of the year, if you want to use airline miles, or if you just like to have things settled well in advance, planning way ahead can save you a lot of money. My sister-in-law Trish just used miles earned on her credit card to book airfare to Italy for two in April of 2008 and saved $2200. Try doing that two weeks out! First, she set a firm travel schedule with the friends from Sweden they are meeting in Italy. Then, because American—the airline where she had her miles— lets you book reward travel 329 days in advance, she started working in July to reserve the flights they were most interested in. Even that early she had trouble getting the flight she wanted so she called the airline’s rewards desk where the agent helped her arrange travel on partner airlines (you can’t do that yourself but the agent can). With the extra help, they got a good flight over but on the return they had a choice of a long, multi-connection flight back or paying $600. They decided to save the money and go for the horrible connections.
Even if you’re not using miles, booking well in advance can save you money. Comparison shop by using a search engine like Kayak.com or Sidestep.com. Don’t assume Expedia, Travelocity and Orbitz all have the same deals. You can find and exploit differences, but make sure you’re looking at total fares including taxes and fees at each site. Do check airline sites individually. You may find a sale fare that the airline is not offering elsewhere. Consider traveling in the off-season or shoulder season. Play with your dates. Sometimes you can get a better fare traveling midweek or on a Saturday. Traveler forums like Frommers.com’s air travel discussion board recommend that you look for fare sales on weekends, particularly Saturday. These specials are often only available for a few hours. Be sure you have a workable travel plan in mind so that you’re ready to grab that great deal when you find it.
Don’t just research a specific itinerary. Read about deals in general to get a sense of what’s being offered and where you’ll have to go to find it. If you’re interested in a particular part of the world, explore travel articles about that region from newspapers locally and on the internet. You may run across something really useful. I’ve been looking into how much it would cost me to get to South America and in the process I’ve twice run across recommendations for a website called IntraTours that specializes in consolidator fares to Latin America. I found an American Airlines flight to Buenos Aires there that was $200 under American’s own price.
One last tip on buying ahead. Some airlines will refund you the difference if a fare goes down after you purchase. Keep an eye on what they’re charging and be sure to request the refund. It doesn’t always work but it doesn’t hurt to ask.
Flexible Travel If you’re fortunate enough to have a flexible schedule that allows you to fly off at a moment’s notice, you get to take advantage of a different money-saving strategy—last minute specials. Many airlines will announce a sudden deal allowing you to fly to Hawaii or London for hundreds less as long as you’re willing to go this weekend. The trick is hearing about the deal in time. The easiest way to keep up with these opportunities is to subscribe to a few newsletters or keep an eye on a site like airfarewatchdog.com. I personally have subscriptions to American and British Air’s newsletters because they fly to the places I go most often. Also watch these newsletters for other specials that can help stretch your travel budget like air/hotel combo deals. BA recently had an offer of a free London Pass (it gets you entrance to lots of London attractions) tacked on to a Seattle to London fare. That’s a $79 savings if you’re planning on doing the tourist thing.
A lot of budget fares, especially those cheap little airlines in Europe, take you to a secondary airport or make you fly early in the morning or late at night when public transportation may be scarce. Remember to factor in all the costs of getting to your final destination when comparing fares.
Flying in Comfort One of the problems with budget airfares is that they often don’t allow you to upgrade to a more comfortable section. To ensure the best possible seating in economy check seatguru.com to avoid seats that don’t recline or rows too close to the lavatory. Some airlines are now using smaller 757s on overseas routes which can make for a tight squeeze. Keep an eye on the plane type when you’re booking that cheap fare and check your reservation periodically to make sure they haven’t changed planes on you. If you’re flying domestically, don’t forget that you’ll need to provide your own pillow or blanket these days as well as something to eat so you don’t have to pay for the “onboard snack” (shudder).
A Few Items to Enhance Life on Board
-
-
-
Flight Spray: Super dry airplane air causes problems. Stay hydrated with
Flight Spray.
-
No Jet Lag:
No Jet Lag is easy to use and it works.
-
Antiseptic Wipes: Wipe down that tray table and arm rests and don’t forget to take them to the lavatory with you.
-
-
Airborne: Be proactive about staying healthy with a couple of doses of
Airborne.
-
Dreamland Silk Comfort Set: This includes a silk blanket, airplane pillowcase, and adjustable silk eyeshades.
Have a good flight!
Permalink
07.02.07
Posted in Store News, Terrell at 9:44 pm by Administrator
It’s been almost exactly a month since I left Seattle and, believe me, there are plenty of things I miss about the Emerald City (Oh, for a Bartell’s nearby!). It occurred to me that a list of some of the things I miss most might be helpful to some of you still living there. We all know that every Seattleite is required to host several out of town guests each summer, and this list might help you think of things for them to see once you’re finished with the Pike Place Market. Or maybe it will just you remind why you like living there so much.
I miss being able to look down the street and see a mountain or water. My current home, along with much of the rest of America, is flat. Really flat. 
No mountains, no hills, no views. I really miss all those great viewpoints scattered around Seattle. Take your guests to see Kerry Park, the Magnolia Bluff Loop, the Space Needle, Alki Point, and all the other wonderful spots where you can see for miles. My favorite little-known viewpoint is the Lenora Street Pedestrian Elevator just north of the Pike Place Market. From Western Avenue head west on Lenora across the bridge to nowhere—it once led to the upper level of a now-dismantled warehouse—and you’ll find yourself on a viewing platform that has a spectacular vista of Elliott Bay, the Bell Street Pier, the public boat dock, and the guest rooms of the waterfront Marriott. I like to pick up lunch at the Market (Turkish Delight is my favorite take-out spot) and then spend a sunny summer hour eating and watching the container ships heading south to Tacoma. Take the glass elevator down to the waterfront for more touristy fun when you’re done.
I miss old buildings. Thankfully, Seattle has managed to escape our national compulsion to tear down every building that is more than thirty years old. Out-of-towners may be amazed to see the terracotta facades of Seattle’s downtown (the chiefs on the Cobb Building, the walruses of the Arctic Building), the Art Deco decoration of the Egyptian Theater on Capitol Hill and all the great buildings in Pioneer Square. It may be hokey, but the Underground Tour still gets raves from all the tourists I know. While you’re in the Pioneer Square neighborhood, be sure to wow them with Seattle’s impressive array of galleries like Foster/White 
and Northwest Fine Woodworking. Get takeout lunch from Mario Batali’s dad at Salumi and eat it in the Waterfall Garden, the site of UPS’s original location. And I would end the visit by walking up the waterfront to Ye Olde Curiosity Shop for a little vintage weirdness. If the steam organ is functioning, be sure to feed it a couple of quarters for me but watch out for the blast of sound.
I miss parks with no sidewalks. I’m currently living in a place where people rarely walk and when they do, they only walk on concrete. Take your house guests to some of Seattle’s great parks where you can walk on muddy trails, sandy paths, and grassy fields. Getting semi-lost in Discovery Park’s woods, climbing the hill to the top of the waterfall in Kubota Gardens or wandering under the giant rhododendrons in the Arboretum is something I truly miss. The Arboretum even connects with one of Seattle’s great treasures, the elaborate ring of parks planned by the Olmsteds that include Volunteer and Seward Parks. Find your way over to Lake Washington and enjoy the beautiful stretch along the lake with stone balustrades and steps enhancing the views across the water. And all for free!
Baseball. Dallas pretends to have a major league baseball team but if you check the standings, you’ll see it isn’t true. Your sports-minded guests who live in smaller cities will really enjoy Safeco Field and a chance to go to “the show.”
Food. Of course the out-of-towners have food where they come from. It may even be great food. But there are few places that can boast the confluence of natural resources, diverse ethnic traditions and culinary talent that one finds in the Pacific Northwest. From steamed pork hombows at Mee Sum’s in the Market to one of Tom Douglas’ restaurants, from a loaf of limpa bread from Ballard’s Scandinavian Bakery to The Herbfarm’s over-the-top nine-course meals, Seattle has it all. If I could transport myself back to Seattle for the weekend, my fantasy food itinerary would include dim sum at The House of Hong, a stop at Uwajimaya’s flagship store, tapas at The Harvest Vine in Madison Park, brunch at Macrina’s in Belltown, and a dinner of wild boar at Volterra. And that wouldn’t even be scratching the surface. Especially if your guests are paying.
Live Music. If there’s one thing that beats the food in Seattle, it’s the music. Every weekend, in fact every evening, there’s an incredible selection of musical genres and styles available for your listening pleasure. Benaroya Hall has a few events in the summer and the opera is performing The Flying Dutchman in August. Catch an incredible lineup of jazz at Dimitriou’s Jazz Alley. Roots music has a home at the Tractor Tavern and the under-thirty crowd will not want to miss the shows at the Crocodile Cafe.
Boats. Did you know that there’s not a single natural lake in all of Texas? Did you know that many people who live in the United States have to drive for days to get to a coast? 
Take your guests out on the water, they’ll love it. Even if you don’t own a boat, there are plenty of easy ways to do it. Rent a canoe from the Waterfront Activities Center at the University of Washington, take out a sailboat from the Center for Wooden Boats , or just hop the ferry to Bainbridge Island. Believe me, us landlocked types think it’s a real treat. If they’re afraid of the water, they can just watch at the Hiram Chittenden Locks or go for a stroll through Fishermen’s Terminal.
Is this a complete list of the things I miss about Seattle? Of course not. I haven’t even mentioned watching the kids play in the International Fountain at Seattle Center or the fact that I didn’t get a chance to see the renovated Seattle Art Museum or anything about Seafair’s summer schedule. And don’t get me started on bookstores. Or travel stores. Sigh.
Don’t have time to play with the visitors? Hand them the new Seattle Insight City Guide ($16.95) due out this month, a copy of Eat.Shop.Seattle ($14.95), Nature in the City: Seattle ($15.95), GM Johnson’s Seattle Mapbook ($11.95) and, of course, a printout of this article and send them off on their own. They’ll still thank you!
(images courtesy of the businesses to which they link)
Permalink
Posted in Store News at 9:36 pm by Administrator
Summer is here. I know it may be hard to believe since the first few days of official summer saw Seattle temperatures almost ten degrees below normal, but all you have to do is take the Front Table’s temperature to know it’s true. The Table is chock full of hot summer reads ready to spirit you away from your workaday world to exotic literary vacation destinations. So fill up your glass with ice-cold lemonade and stretch out in a sunny hammock with one of these new beach reads. OK, maybe you should bring a sweater, too.
Nothing says beach like a frothy, romantic fantasy especially if it invokes the patron saint of literary romance, Jane Austen. If you’ve ever dreamed of a country house lifestyle or wished you could step into the pages of Sense and Sensibility, take a vacation with Austenland by Shannon Hale. Hale’s main character, Jane Hayes, is a thirty-something New Yorker with a secret obsession with Mr. Darcy. When her aunt leaves her the bequest of a stay at Pembrook Park, a British resort where the guests dress, speak and act as if they were living in one of Austen’s novels, Jane has a chance to confront her obsession and decide where true romance lies. The writing is good, the cast members charming, and the escapism inescapable so let yourself be swept into the ballroom for a quadrille or two. ($19.95)
If you prefer your summer fantasy to have more meat than froth (or if you’re a guy), consider Irish author Tim Willocks’ latest, The Religion. This is a sweeping, swashbuckling, historical novel set amidst the religious wars of the 16th century when the Ottoman Empire fought the Christian knights at Malta. It features the adventures of Matthias Tannhauser, a soldier of fortune with a cynical soul and a checkered past, who is convinced to assist a beautiful French countess seeking the illegitimate son she was forced to surrender at birth. Packed with historical detail as well as rampant violence, passionate romance, and spiritual redemption, this is exactly the right kind of book to read on those long summer weekends. The Religion is the first of three Tannhauser books and with great reviews from all the big guys, it’s sure to be a summer blockbuster. ($26.00)
Sometimes there’s nothing so good for a hot weather read as a starkly cold murder mystery, especially if it’s set in a faraway place. I opened the gray and black, fairly nondescript cover of The Broken Shore by Peter Temple without great expectations but the plot description on the fly-leaf immediately drew me in. A Melbourne cop recovering from his injuries in his small coastal hometown in Victoria—the one in Australia of course—is drawn into the beating death of an elderly millionaire that’s being blamed on three aboriginal boys. I flipped to the first page and then had a hard time stopping the page flipping. Temple’s writing is dialog-driven with numerous Aussie-isms that really make you feel like you’re vacationing Down Under and he includes plenty of shocking plot twists. He’s already won five Ned Kelly Awards (the Australian crime writing prize) and they seem to be well deserved. ($25.00)
Let’s move from Australia to Thailand for the latest installment of John Burdett’s seamy Bangkok-based murder mysteries featuring his devout Buddhist detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep of the Royal Thai police. Bangkok Haunts begins shockingly with Jitlpeecheep watching a snuff film featuring his former lover. He calls in FBI agent Kimberly Jones to help him trace the source of the video through the underbelly of the Thai sex trade which leads them to some unexpected places. Burdett’s novels are definitely R-rated with plenty of salty language and “mature situations” so they’re not for everyone, but his spare writing style and taut plotting as well as the exotic setting have made all his Bangkok series bestsellers. There’s a local tie-in, too, with the complete text of an article Seattle author Tim Egan wrote for the New York Times on the big business of pornography included as an appendix. ($24.95)
If murder mysteries are a little dark to suit your summer reading tastes, let me suggest Dario Castagno’s A Day in Tuscany, a follow-up to his amusing memoir of life as an Italian tour guide, Too Much Tuscan Sun. Born in England to Italian parents, Dario moved to Tuscany when he was ten and fell in love with Italy’s romance and history. This new book starts with his return to Italy after the American tour for his first book. Organized around the happenings of his first day home, these events spur memories of all the special things that make him happy to call Tuscany, and especially Siena, home. I was particularly interested in his insider stories of the Siena contradas that sponsor the famous Palio horse races each summer. The book is sweet and funny and full of all those little details that make you feel like you’re coming home to one of your favorite places. ($18.95)
I have to say that the Front Table book I have really been waiting for, Travels with Herodotus, although small, is a little more challenging than your typical summer beach read. When the author, Ryszard Kapuscinski, was a young reporter in the impoverished Poland of the 50s, he dreamed of traveling abroad—to neighboring Czechoslovakia. When his editor called him in to give him an assignment in India he was both thrilled and terrified. The same editor gave him a copy of the Histories of Herodotus, which became his companion and guide during a career as a foreign correspondent that spanned more than four decades and witnessed twenty-seven revolutions and coups. The author of such celebrated books as The Emperor about Halie Selassie and The Soccer War, Kapuscinski, who died in January, had a career that was certainly not without controversy, but it is fascinating to read what he, himself, thought of his emergence from behind the Iron Curtain into such an interesting life. ($25.00)
Welcome to summer. Be careful getting into that hammock.
Permalink
06.08.07
Posted in Store News at 10:18 pm by Misch
The new Rick Steves updates are here, and we’re clearing out the last of the previous models. We’re offering the old models, while supplies last, at 10% off–combinable with our Buyer’s Bonus plan, for you local folks who are enrolled. What a deal!
As of today, we have two black 24″ Roll-Abouts and several colors of 21″ Roll-Aboards; Avanti Flight Bags; a couple of Veloce and Civita Shoulder Bags; 7″ and 9″ Toiletry Kits; and Rick’s Guidebook Organizers.
Come on in or give us a call!
Permalink
« Previous entries ·
