Cool Bowling Lanes in Big Cities

by Adrienne Wilson on

With the opening of a new upmarket
bowling alley in London there comes good news and bad. The good news according to Wallpaper* who provided the scoop in their latest online
edition is the place is already packed with West London "trendies." The bad news is the diner-style food is
not so bueno. Unless it affects your ability to do so, they recommend you stick to the cocktails when attempting to
bowl a strike at All Star Lanes.

Personally, I love these
stylish and contemporary alley interiors despite cruddy food. If I want more appetizing I’ll usually sign my name on
the enormous wait list and head over to the nearest restaurant to kill time while noshing on better fare. Reading their
short write-up prompts me to list a few similar trendy spots in big cities to get your bowl on:

  • Lucky Strike – Located smack dab in the middle of Hollywood you’re
    bound to catch site of a celeb on a lucky night.
  • Kings Back Bay –
    Big Boston bowling spot with mixed reviews, but head in to decide for yourself.
  • Splitsville – Still relatively new in Tampa, FL and always packed on the
    weekends. Arrive early or anticipate waiting.
  • 10pin Bowling
    Lounge     – Chicago’s upscale lounge and alley with a twist.
  • Pin-Up
    Bowl     – Mid-West best in good old St. Louis, MO – nabbed a spot the Conde Nast Hot Nights list in 04′.

Tripoli International Fair

by Adrienne Wilson on

When I think about the
word ‘fair’ images of pig racing competitions, hay stacks, funnel cakes, shaky half-constructed Ferris wheels,
baby strollers and big hair all seem to flood my mind. Every year I’ve ever been to a fair be it here in Florida or out
west in California there’s always big hair, but then again I don’t stick around too long. I go in, get my days worth of
the most greasiest and most sugar coated eats and get out. Enough about the less than fab fairs I’ve been to here in the
states, I’d like to now direct your attention to the Tripoli
International Fair in Libya.

Why? Well for the few lucky ones anywhere near or around Tripoli April 6-12, 2006 I’m certain you’ll want to check the
event out. The fair is an international, industrial, agricultural and commercial event with about 30 countries in
attendance. Of cultural interest there are many festivals tucked within the one huge event, many which include Libyan
folklore bands and bands from all over for world music lovers. I haven’t a clue about the entire line-up of shows, but
if you really find yourself in the country during this time be sure to check out Luna Angel (a highly talented reggae artist out of Oakland).

And a fair wouldn’t be a fair without a lil’ something for the kiddies so if you’re traveling with children count on
the ‘funfair’ to keep them entertained. (I know funfair sounds rather vague, but that’s all they’re giving me
on this site.) Overall Libya and ‘fair’ just seem too incredibly
cool for any traveler to miss.

Red Corner: Czech Restaurant Scene Improving

by Neil Woodburn on

Czech cuisine is practically an oxymoron. Two years of living in Prague taught me that the Czechs care more for the liquid portion of their meals than the solid part. In fact, the reality that something as basic as fried cheese proved to be my favorite Czech dish after two years really says a lot about food preparation in this country.

Times change, however. Over the course of the last decade a handful of restaurants have emerged on the Czech scene that are starting to give the local food a good name. This month’s Budget Travel reviews some of the better ones that are also nicely affordable.

I was amused to see a vegetarian restaurant listed amongst those spotlighted. In the mid-90s the only place serving fresh vegetarian food was a Hari Krishna restaurant which I found myself frequenting quite often. The Czechs, on the other hand, are a carnivorous lot and stayed mostly away.

Today, Budget Travel recommends a couple of French restaurants, some Asian food, a handful of Czech establishments, a burger place, and a beer pub. There is no mention of fried cheese anywhere in the article.

Museum of Food Anomalies

by Neil Woodburn on

Encountering strange food is an integral part of travel.  We’ve all found ourselves sitting in
restaurants in some godforsaken corner of the world staring inquisitively at the food that lies on our plate. 
Sometimes, it stares back.

The Museum of Food Anomalies is an online
presentation of mutant foods and freakish shapes that our favorite morsels occasionally assume.  Many of the
exhibits are ghoulish in nature, with frightening human-like faces that silently scream their pain and agony at having
found themselves on the wrong end of a fork or spoon.  Others seem to have been plucked from the soils of
Chernobyl, all twisted and deformed and seemingly pleading for grinding mandibles and the warm embrace of
euthanasia. 

Those who don’t eat meat because of the harm it causes animals may want to steer clear of this site. 
Very clear. 

Word for the Travel Wise (03/27/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

Last time I ventured out to give
instruction in the Korean language my lesson began with mention of my craving for bibim bap with no real explanation of the food. In
fact, bibim bap could have very well been our word for that particular day, but I decided to keep things moving at an
accelerated pace hoping you’d be curious or hungry enough to seek some of the dishes out on your own turf. Perhaps some
of you did. Many of you probably didn’t. (tsk, tsk, tsk) To continue in our Korean language study I’m tossing another
word out for all the foodies.

Today’s word is a Korean word used in Korea:

sollongtang – bone and internals soup



Believe me when I say you’ll want to know this word. For those who enjoy the taste of
various ox bones, brisket shank and beef tongue you’ll probably take the soup down with no problems or questions asked.
The rest of you will kindly disoblige. For more vocab words found on the menu check out Korea infogate. Several more words in the Korean
alphabet with excellent pronunciation guides can be found at Mr. Oh’s
Learn Korean website. It’s a fun place to start to learn the basics. KBS World Radio has a three part, 30 chapter online
learning guide all for free. I can’t get the hangul text to show up, but they’ve got sound clips of all the sample
conversations available. Learn Korean dot net has most of the aforementioned
along with a forum to meet other speakers both fluent natives and beginners. For a list of Korean language programs in
the country click here.

Past Korean words: shik-sah