Karenism » travel http://karenism.com/blog Deliciously geeky Sun, 11 Sep 2011 03:15:56 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 Food adventures http://karenism.com/blog/2010/07/19/food-adventures/ http://karenism.com/blog/2010/07/19/food-adventures/#comments Mon, 19 Jul 2010 04:40:20 +0000 Karen http://karenism.com/blog/?p=962 [...]]]> One of my favorite aspects of travel is experiencing the culture through food. When I was younger I refused to eat “weird” things (although when I was tiny I ate whatever my parents gave me, including Baulet). This restaurant next to the Molino Stucky Hilton presented us with this mixed appetizer dish.

antipasti

Here’s a video of us trying that little baby squid.

It didn’t taste bad – it was not too chewy and fishy with some parsley flavor. The brains we polenta-textured. I have trouble eating organs, so I ate a few more legs and gave it to Tod.

Lindsey wouldn’t eat the crayfish because it reminded her of her pet crayfish as a kid. It was a little sweet and pretty much tasted like raw shrimp from a sushi place.

Tod, who is not in the video, ate everything without batting an eye. I hope to get there some day.

]]> http://karenism.com/blog/2010/07/19/food-adventures/feed/ 2 Bloop bloop http://karenism.com/blog/2010/07/15/bloop-bloop/ http://karenism.com/blog/2010/07/15/bloop-bloop/#comments Thu, 15 Jul 2010 13:57:38 +0000 Karen http://karenism.com/blog/?p=956 [...]]]> Lido

I’m currently in Venice, Italy. My Italian has come back to me, although I’ve been mixing masculine/feminine nouns and using the wrong endings. I studied Italian for 2 years and lived here for 8 months so it’s frustrating to hear myself mess up. I had almost forgotten how beautiful the language sounds. It’s very musical.

The mid-afternoons are unbearably hot and crowded so I’ve been hiding in my room during the siesta. I saw a woman faint on the water bus today. It’s definitely important to stay hydrated and eat salty snacks.

antipasti

I finally uploaded a video from February when I went to Tahoe for Ed’s birthday. I wish I could roll around in that snow for 5 minutes.

]]> http://karenism.com/blog/2010/07/15/bloop-bloop/feed/ 0 A summary of CES http://karenism.com/blog/2010/01/12/a-summary-of-ces/ http://karenism.com/blog/2010/01/12/a-summary-of-ces/#comments Tue, 12 Jan 2010 17:13:18 +0000 Karen http://karenism.com/blog/?p=911 [...]]]>
A trip through CES on Youtube

This is a little bit of everything we did at CES. I was shooting with a Canon 960is which I borrowed from a friend. I have since purchased and received it just in time for Mexico. (Yep, I’m currently in Mexico.) The touch screen at the Intel booth was absolutely beautiful and a lot of fun. It was running the Intel Core 7 chip. Fancy!

The 3d tvs were amazing. I put on a pair of glasses, and then realized that hundreds of people have been putting them on their faces. Eww! I blame my giant face pimple on those glasses. I saw a lot of devices that made it easier to mirror content from your computer to your tv. Watch out, cable tv. The now is watching streaming content from the computer.

Justine participated in the Build your own pc race. It was so much fun. Next year we are totally going to try to win. We also rode The Big Shot in the Stratosphere. It was a freefall ride at the tippy top of the Stratosphere. I’ve never done this kind of ride before and I seriously regretted it as I was getting strapped in. Turns out, the anticipation is the worst, and it was a lot of fun.

We also stopped by the It won’t stay in Vegas party where I saw Brent Spiner and LeVar Burton. Eeep! They were completely surrounded by a massive crowd of fans and I was afraid I was going to get trampled.

Justine made a ton of videos from CES, so check them out here. The pc race one is great.

I saw some amazing new tech and had a fantastic time. I’m already looking at going next year.

]]> http://karenism.com/blog/2010/01/12/a-summary-of-ces/feed/ 3 Virgin America to Orange County http://karenism.com/blog/2009/05/04/virgin-america-to-orange-county/ http://karenism.com/blog/2009/05/04/virgin-america-to-orange-county/#comments Mon, 04 May 2009 01:27:33 +0000 Karen http://karenism.com/blog/?p=859 [...]]]>

Last Wednesday I was lucky enough to join Virgin America on their inaugural flight from San Francisco to Orange County. Check out this video for some highlights including spray tanning, makeovers, and Branson’s little kissy for Justine.

They were serving Veev açaí spirit for almost 12 hours, from the gateway at the airport, on the plane, at the tarmac in OC, and at the party. That’s a lotta booze! I really liked the Eau de Veev, which included 2 ounces VeeV Açaí Spirit, 1 lemon slice, 1 lime slice, 1 orange slice & 3 ounces tonic, shaken together.

The party was at Laguna Beach which was beautiful at night. It was such a smooth launch and I had a fantastic time. Check out Justine’s photos & post for more.

I love Virgin America.

]]> http://karenism.com/blog/2009/05/04/virgin-america-to-orange-county/feed/ 3 Suprise naked baby http://karenism.com/blog/2009/01/28/suprise-naked-baby/ http://karenism.com/blog/2009/01/28/suprise-naked-baby/#comments Wed, 28 Jan 2009 18:03:22 +0000 Karen http://karenism.com/blog/?p=661 [...]]]> After many years of living in San Francisco, I finally had the chance to explore Japantown. One of the bookstores had a display of mystery toys. Each box contained 1 of a series of toys. The naked baby series was just too creepy to pass up.

Naked baby on youtube

I love Japanese tchotchke. Lately I’ve been collecting Re-ment food, but now I’m into the naked babies. I currently have 3. I guess that makes me creepy too.

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rss feed <~~~~ feed me, om nom nom

]]> http://karenism.com/blog/2009/01/28/suprise-naked-baby/feed/ 2 There’s more than just Chevy’s http://karenism.com/blog/2009/01/06/theres-more-than-just-chevys/ http://karenism.com/blog/2009/01/06/theres-more-than-just-chevys/#comments Tue, 06 Jan 2009 17:31:34 +0000 Karen http://karenism.com/blog/?p=494 [...]]]> I was chatting with a djsteen last night, who had the misfortune of eating at Chevy’s for dinner. There’s nothing wrong with Chevys and it’s easy to make the mistake since it is right next to Moscone South and they have commercials on TV. However, there are a lot of yum yum places to eat around that are not chains.

Be sure to check out Dining About Town. The deal is 3-course lunch for $21.95 or dinner for $34.95 and some of the best restaurants participate. Last year I created a detailed map, but I’m too lazy this time.

If you’re at Macworld in San Francisco right now, here’s a list of tasty places to eat. They are listed in order of ease to get to from Moscone.

Walking Distance

Green tea
Green tee fro Samovar

Working Girls Cafe – 100 Spear St – delicious sandwiches
Thirsty Bear 661 Howard – tapas and home brewed beer. It’s right next to Moscone and can accommodate large crowds
Samovar 730 Howard (inside Yerba Buena Gardens above the waterfall) very peaceful, great view, slow service. They serve a wide selection of teas from all over the world and sandwiches/salads.
B Bar- next to Samovar. mmm delicious oysters, and sandwiches. Both Samovar & B are slightly pricey lunch experiences.
Bloomingdale’s food court-underneath Bloomies. Even though it’s a mall food court, there’s no Panda Express here. My favorite places are the Korean BBQ, Thai Corriander, the gelato place and Asqew.
Harvest & Rowe – 55 2nd Street good salads and cupcakes
Whole Foods – 399 4th St. a variety of hot foods, soup, and a salad bar all for $8 per pound
Belden Place – Belden. a cute little street filled with decent restaurants, no car access, and lots of outdoor seating

Easy bart access

Sundried tomato pasta
Sundried tomato pasta at Mavericks

Hog Island Oyster Company – inside Ferry building. fresh delicious seafood, view of the water
Miette – Ferry Building. exquisite desserts
Maverick’s – 3316 17th Stquality ingredients turned into great classic American food, like friend chicken & pulled pork sandwiches
Pancho Villa – 3071 16th St best tacos in San Francisco
Little Star Pizza – 400 Valencia fantastic pizza, generally a long wait. I dream about little star.
La Traviata – 2854 Mission Street. really good italian, great ambiance

The mission has many, many good places to eat and drink.

Worth traveling
These places require cab use (busses are unreliable)
Absinthe – 398 Hayes St. simply delicious. I love this place
Millennium – 580 Geary St. fine vegetarian dining. Absolutely amazing. You won’t miss the meat.
Nopa – 560 Divisadero StI’ve never been but many friends loooove this place
Golden Era -572 O’Farrell St. delicious vegetarian Chinese food, moderately priced.

Other suggestions? Comment below!

]]> http://karenism.com/blog/2009/01/06/theres-more-than-just-chevys/feed/ 0 Gettin’ around http://karenism.com/blog/2008/12/31/gettin-around/ http://karenism.com/blog/2008/12/31/gettin-around/#comments Wed, 31 Dec 2008 05:54:41 +0000 Karen http://karenism.com/blog/?p=454 [...]]]> New York, Febuary on FlickrDallas, MarchLA, MarchHalf Moon Bay, AprilMonterey, MayNew York, MayBoston, MayBoston, JuneNew York AugustMaine AugustNew Brunswick, AugustAnchorage, AugustAustin, SeptemberChicago, October

Inspired by edrabbit I decided to compose a list of cities I’ve been to in the past year. Photos above link to past trips. Pics or it didn’t happen, right? :)

* for staying at least 1 night
+ for going more than once

New York*+, NY
Easton*, ME
New Brunswick, Canada
Boston*/Cambridge*+, MA (soooo sad about misplacing all my pics from this trip, especially the Amanda Palmer footage)
Anchorage*, AK
Austin*, TX
Chicago*, IL
Pacifica*, CA
Dallas/Richardson*, TX
Los Angeles*+, CA
Half Moon Bay*, CA (missing photos of the actual wedding. boooo)
Monterey*, CA (missing photos of the aquarium. I see a pattern here…)

What’s your list? What’s your favorite place to visit? Where do you want to go next? I <3 replies.

Hope everyone has a safe and happy new year.

]]> http://karenism.com/blog/2008/12/31/gettin-around/feed/ 8 Lost in America – Austin http://karenism.com/blog/2008/11/19/lost-in-america-austin/ http://karenism.com/blog/2008/11/19/lost-in-america-austin/#comments Wed, 19 Nov 2008 20:10:53 +0000 Karen http://karenism.com/blog/?p=382 [...]]]> Austin… what can I say? It was really weird. The story for Austin is full of silliness and definitely worth checking out. Watch episode 1 to get a taste of the absurdity:


Lost in America-Austin:cookies! (ep1) from Karen on Vimeo.

The other episodes are on my vimeo channel and a behind the scenes post about Austin here. Photos and more photos in case you’re not sick of us yet.

]]> http://karenism.com/blog/2008/11/19/lost-in-america-austin/feed/ 1 Get lost in Anchorage http://karenism.com/blog/2008/11/06/get-lost-in-anchorage/ http://karenism.com/blog/2008/11/06/get-lost-in-anchorage/#comments Thu, 06 Nov 2008 20:43:42 +0000 Karen http://karenism.com/blog/?p=363 [...]]]> For the last few months Justine and I have been running around together shooting videos for At&t. The videos for our Anchorage trip are finally up.

I’ve posted episode 2 below.

Lost in America – Hot Dog/Cold dog (ep2) from Karen on Vimeo.

Gotta say, I love video quality preservation on Vimeo. You can watch all the episodes here. Photos of the Anchorage trip here and here.

I always have a ton of fun working with Justine and this project was especially interesting. The Studio 8 guys wrote, shot and edited. I absolutely love those guys. They make a lot of videos and the videos are uncomfortably hilarious. Professional, organized, and adorable.<3

Although, Brock might be the unibomber...

]]> http://karenism.com/blog/2008/11/06/get-lost-in-anchorage/feed/ 8 A little river tour of Chicago http://karenism.com/blog/2008/10/20/a-little-river-tour-of-chicago/ http://karenism.com/blog/2008/10/20/a-little-river-tour-of-chicago/#comments Mon, 20 Oct 2008 16:46:13 +0000 Karen http://karenism.com/blog/?p=324 [...]]]> I’m currently in Chicago filming our last installment of the At&t series. I absolutely love Chicago and I’m really glad to be back here. One of the first things we did was to take an architecture boat tour. It was fantastic. Check out this video I made while we were on the boat:

I am fascinated with architecture, so this was especially a treat. I learned a lot from the tour. The guide said Art Deco, Post Modern, and Chicago school quite a bit.

The curve of this building mimicks the curve of the river. It is divided in two and the other side is angular, to mimick the city blocks. That style is called contextualism. Yes I learned this on the tour.
This is soooo contextual

This building is so big, it has it’s own zip code! It’s called the Merchandise Mart and is over 4 million square feet.
This building

More photos of the tour and our trip here. One of the buildings has a freeway going right through it, and the building was built before the road. Crazy.

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