Growing up in Southern California, I spent some time in Los Angeles, but never actually lived there. So, that makes me a total tourist whenever I come to town, and I love it.
It’s sun-kissed, starry-eyed and there’s literally everything you could ever want. There’s beaches, top education, sports, movie stars, museums, shopping, innovative food and technology. There’s perfect weather and beautiful bodies, it’s the epitome of the glamorous life.
I love LA. (we love it).
One of the first items I ever put on my bucket list when I was a kid was Mount Rushmore. Growing up, it was ultimate symbol of our country, even more so than the individual monuments in Washington DC. Even now to me as an adult, after seeing it in person, it still very stirring, very American, a grand memorial to our stalwart forefathers. It’s certainly worth seeing once in your life, it’s beautiful country out there, with wide open spaces and plains as far as one can see.
Omaha is not just something Peyton Manning yelled a lot while he quarterbacked for the Broncos. It’s also a lovely metropolitan area in the corniest state the Midwest–literally, not figuratively. It is comfortable, young, hip, and up and coming. So up and coming that Facebook is going to open some sort of offshoot HQ there in the next few years.
I had briefly traveled to the Cornhusker state for a weekend years ago, but one of my favorite friend couples lives there, so I visited Nebraska’s most populous city again to hang out with their family. It’s a very family friendly place, and you can see why it’s becoming more and more popular amongst young couples. The pace of life is decent, there’s a lot of industry and tech moving into the area, and proud Nebraskans are opening up cool restaurants and shops all over the city.
Omaha, Omaha set hut!
In honor of the CMA’s happening tonight, there is even more travel in and out of BNA than usual. Nashville International Airport has got to be one of the most rapidly growing airports in the world. It is packed every time I come here, and they’re adding routes one after the other. They will surely have to undertake a large scale addition, which is in the works for the next few years–especially since British Airways is adding flights to London in 2018 via Dreamliner.
It’s about 10 miles from Downtown and traffic usually isn’t too bad. As it is right now, there’s one main terminal with 47 gates split amongst four concourses (although the fourth is inactive). A is United and Air Canada, B is Alaska, Frontier, JetBlue, Delta and WestJet. C is Southwest and American.
This is a pretty fun airport in terms of layovers. There’s not the best food, but there’s live music/entertainment, which makes the time fly, as it were. There’s an actual branch of Tootsie’s, the famous Honky Tonk from Lower Broad. There’s large, clean bathrooms, and it’s pretty easy to navigate.
Security can be heavy at times, and a little slow, so plan accordingly. There’s also always a high chance you’ll see someone famous walking through the crowd, so keep your eyes peeled (flights to NY and LA are most fruitful).
Remember: ✈️ = achy, breaky, heart to ✈️✈️✈️✈️✈️ = like it, love it, want some more of it
Convenience to the city: ✈️✈️ (~20 minute drive)
Ease of navigating through terminals: ✈️✈️✈️ (it’s not very big, but can be a hike to the end of the terminal)
Convenience of check in/security lines: ✈️✈️ (sometimes it can take a very long time to get through this line)
Dining: ✈️✈️✈️ (Burger King, O’Charley’s, Starbucks, Familia, Tootsie’s, Whitt’s BBQ)
Bathrooms: ✈️✈️ (could have more, but they’re pretty big)
Charging stations/wifi: ✈️✈️ (free wifi available, decent amount of charging)
Amenities: ✈️✈️✈️ (live music that is better than most popular bands, minimal shops, pretty good people watching)
Rental car facility ✈️✈️✈️ (connected to the terminal, hours can be weird)
Arguably some of the most beautiful spots in California, the coastal towns of Monterey and Carmel-by-the-sea near Big Sur have long been upscale havens for the jet set. It’s definitely high end, with its ocean view cottages, European ivy wrapped cafes and the famed Pebble Beach Golf Club. Clint Eastwood is the former mayor of Carmel for pete’s sake! With its million dollar (baby) homes overlooking the picturesque Central Californian coast, you can see why this area is the background for many novels (notably those of native son John Steinbeck), movies and television shows, most recently Big Little Lies.
It does seem like a place to where a person with secrets would escape (just picture yourself out on a balcony, wrapped in a cashmere shawl, wind whipping through your hair, gazing wistfully over the turbulent surf–channel your inner Nicole Kidman for this). You can see it, can’t you?
you CAN see it (photo credit: hbo)
I made my escape there for a weekend wedding, making a mini-road trip of it, Joad family style. It is definitely doable in a weekend, but obviously the more time, the better to experience the serenity and calm of this seaside retreat.
San Francisco is one of the world’s great cities. Sitting up high on the tip of a Northern California peninsula, it’s natural beauty and cooler climate is as unique as the citizens that inhabit it. For being such a small area in terms of acreage, SF packs so many things to see and do in every square mile. There’s no way you can see everything, or afford everything, as it is one of the most expensive places in the world. But, there’s also many free or affordable things to do as well, which we’re all about.
One visit, one dozen visits are not enough to experience the entirety of “the city,” but this what I like to do on a weekend visiting the city by the Bay.
save me, san francisco
I am a fan of national parks. I love them. They are our national treasures, and I think they are the best thing about this country, by far. American National Parks feature various ecosystems, geological formations, showcasing the topographic wonders of this country while always continuously championing conservation efforts.
Yellowstone was the first National Park in the United States and one might say it’s the granddaddy of them all. It was signed into law by Ulysses S. Grant in 1872 and covers a vast land area over Montana, Idaho and Wyoming. Yogi Bear also lives here.
Just kidding, I know he lives in Jellystone.
Let’s go get us a pic-a-nic basket…
Steel City is good old fashioned blue collar town, and it’s a good time. The people are genuine, there’s innovation in food and industry and healthcare. Sports culture can’t be beat there. I’ve been to the ‘burgh a few times, for assorted work related trips and a wedding, and I’ve had memorable visits each time.
won’t you be my neighbor?
MSP and I have a long history together, back to the days when it was a Northwest Airlines hub. Now it’s transferred into Delta’s hands, it’s a popular layover site for bicoastal travel through that airline. And it’s a really nice airport.
Located 10 miles from the city, there’s a very convenient light rail Blue line train that will get you there quickly. The Blue line also goes beyond the airport to the Mall of America too, making it easy to get to the airport from either destination.
You can probably skip the MoA because the middle area is like its own mall, with decent shopping. There’s a lot of food options, especially the cool “food truck” area with different cuisines and styles of food. They have really good bakeries here, too.
There are ~115 gates split into two terminals named after famous son: Lindbergh and Humphrey. Lindbergh Terminal 1 is further divided into 7 concourses A-G–most airlines. Humphrey Terminal 2 is made up of concourse H and serves regional and Southwest.
Remember: ✈️ = when doves cry to ✈️✈️✈️✈️✈️ = party like it’s 1999
Convenience to the city: ✈️✈️✈️✈️ (quick train ride from the city)
Ease of navigating through terminals: ✈️✈️✈️ (it’s a large airport, and getting from one end to another takes a hike)
Convenience of check in/security lines: ✈️✈️✈️✈️ (apparently they have the best k-9 unit in the country, extra points for the dogs)
Dining: ✈️✈️✈️✈️ (The food truck area is awesome and is something I haven’t seen in many other places. Decent choices, running the gamut from Chick Fil-A to Mill City Tavern. Actually there’s an abundance of brewery/pub restaurants and fast casual)
Bathrooms: ✈️✈️✈️ ✈️(seems like there is always someone cleaning them, has art)
Charging stations/wifi: ✈️✈️✈️ (free wifi available)
Amenities: ✈️✈️✈️✈️✈️ (Delta, United Lounges. Decent shopping, live music, chiropractor, Snoopy. There’s an actual 1/4 mile walking path for exercise–there’s a reason why MN is the country’s healthiest state and it starts here in the airport)
When I lived in the Midwest, I used to drive all over the place. It’s so easy to get from point A to point B in the US. The freeways are well kept and well demarcated, and it’s really low stress driving along the open highway.
Des Moines is an underrated, sleeper city. A capital city, it’s the most populated in the Hawkeye state. What you might be surprised to find is that there’s a ton of arts and culture in this city.
The gold domed State Capitol building is one of the more ornate state capitols. Along Locust, Grand and Walnut streets are local boutiques focusing on home decor, clothing and gifts. Des Moines is nice in that way, that there is a real focus on small business owners. The most amazing shop, Eden, is located on 6th street and is a very carefully curated perfumery and cosmetic shop. They have products by Tokyo Milk, Malin+Goetz, Voltivo. There’s Diptyque and Tocca candles and pretty things and it’s adorable, perfect for gifting. There’s a vespa in the showroom, it’s like a store version of Zooey Deschanel.
Next door is a Gong Fu Tea, which is a nice space to sit and contemplate the intricacies of life. Another place to do that is down the road at the Pappajohn Sculpture Park. This is probably one of the best sculpture parks around and it’s located smack dab in the middle of Des Moines. It’s stuck with me for all these years, and for good reason. It features works from heavy hitters such as Louise Bourgeois (whose Spiders also sit in front of the Kemper Art museum in Kansas City),
Keith Haring’s Untitled and my personal favorite sculptor, Jaume Plensa’s Nomade.
Here you can see Juno by Deborah Butterfield (driftwood horses), and Thinker on a Rock by Barry Flanagan.
As an adult, I still don’t quite understand what venture capitalism is, but it seems that Mr. Pappajohn was very, very good at it, to be able to donate all these works to the Des Moines Art Center.
For an artsy, or at least eclectic choice for lunch, go straight to Zombie Burger where they serve artfully crafted burgers with a horror show theme. I had a Raygun, which was a medium patty piled high with bacon, guac, fried jalapenos, monterey jack, and caramelized onions. They have burgers with gouda, proscuitto, peanut butter, mac & cheese, croquettes, fried pickles, you name it. If that won’t kill you, the scary decor will. They also have neon-hued milkshakes with cereal, twinkies, cake mix, the works.
On your way out of town, you should be a total weirdo like me and seek out a covered Bridge in Madison County, as made famous by the book and movie. The movie with Clint Eastwood and Meryl Streep was filmed on location in this area. They are not the easiest to get to, off the beaten track, but the one closest to my route was the Cedar covered bridge, and it was an adorable landmark to cap off a quick road trip.
Happy weekending!
Traveling docs 