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Memoirs of a Harajuku Girl, Part Two: Adventures in Navigating Please and Thank You Society
Tokyo can best be described in four words: frightenly efficient and brazenly polite. There is no better place to go for the directionally challenged and those weary of today’s ill-mannered public. Got a business meeting? Look at the detailed map in English and Japanese drawn up by your colleague. Feeling far afield in the massive…
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Memoirs of a Harjuku Girl, Part One: Tokyo, The Feast
Gallivanting abroad these days isn’t the quixotic breathtakingly unique adventure it used to be. Let’s be honest, you’re more likely to experience the unfamiliar watching the Animal Channel than you are hopping a 747 off the Uncle Sam mainland into the continents beyond. KFCs and Ikeas are ubiquitous. There are however exceptions to the rule…
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Crossing the Rubicon
One of my favorite columns is Oprah Winfrey’s monthly musings aptly called “What I Know For Sure.” She’s always got a kernellete or two of wisdom to impart to the attentive masses. I find it fasciating that as people advance in years, they seemingly are sure of more because I, for one, am resolute about…
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All Politics is Local…Or How I Learned to Be Humble
I now know the contact high Olympian athletes experience after donning their shiny patria-gear and rubbing shoulders with their compatriots ’round the globe in the ceremonial opening parade. I’ve seen a practical pou-pou’s platter full of health ministry folks here on my Tromso sojourn, which includes not only members of the G-20 but representatives of…
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Eternal Sunshine of the Tromso Mind
Hey! Hey! And a Huda from the snow-capped mountain oasis of Tromso, Norde known affectionately to the locals as Polaria. When I perused the pages of my Lonely Planet Scandanavia and discovered I was traveling from politicoland to 300 km NORTH of the Arctic Circle, I prepared my distinguishing tastebuds for reindeer tartar and packed…
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Mein Eyes Have Seen
Guten Morgen! For the purpose of full disclosure and to incite just an ample amount of righteous jealousy amongst my family, friends and fans, I relay that I am tickling my Toshiba Portege ivories from a new perch; the cappuccino joint in the Munich airport which is quite inappropriately named the Piazzo Monaco. We are…
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Branson Boot(y) Camp
Just got back from a surprise get-away to the nation’s second largest entertainment escape, Branson, Missouri. So much to discuss my precious ones, so little time. How can I begin to describe Branson’s essence? If you’ve been looking for round-the-clock all-you-can eat Asian buffets and a shopping palace dedicated solely to knifes AND dolls, this…
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London Calling
Classic literature sings the boho rapture of the City of Light’s left bank, but for me the real gem of the Continent is London’s jolly ol’ South Bank. Brimming with the newness of Prius car seats, this hip little slice of heaven has it all! An unparelled 360 degree riverside view of buildings both ancient…
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Surviving by A Hare
Murder, madness, mayhem and frequent decapitation…this is Edinburgh, City of the Dead. For me, it represents Amityville Horror on steroids. Picturesque though it is, when darkness falls there’s a ghost story or haunted catacomb to be had around EVERY corner. Believe me, I know, because my luv and I have been on every cruel and…
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Guardee Loo and Number Two
Always one for hip lingo on the cusp of becoming, I’ve kept a very close ear to the ground for the catchphrases of the 21st century Scotsman. After all, lexicon has to be tres evolved and of-the-moment in a land where men don camo kilts with detachable pockets in lieu of pants. Turns out though,…