Status: Single
City: New Haven
State: Connecticut
Country: US
Signup Date: 10/24/2007
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Thursday, November 12, 2009
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Current mood:  adventurous
Many of you know that one of my
biggest goals in which I hope to achieve within the next two years is
to visit all 50 states and get my picture next to each state sign. I
currently have been to over 40, but a certain place seemed to have
slipped my mind entirely while in the midst of achieving this goal.
Sure, we have 50 states in this country with 50 capitals, BUT what
about the capital of the nation itself? It is a place in this country,
and it is separate from the 50 states, so it SHOULD count as one of the
places I need to see and it SHOULD be treated as just as much of a
notch on the road to 50 states as the actual states themselves are,
correct? I think so, which is why I decided to take a weekend getaway
to the District of Colombia with my good friend Steve.
 Washington DC is a city about the size of a football field
(exaggerating just a little bit of course), but it manages to rival
such heavyweights as New York City, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Boston.
In fact, certain sections of DC reminded me of all 4 of those cities to
an extent. I have driven “by” DC probably 100 times in my life, since
it is only 6 hours from my home, but I have only actually been to DC
once, when I was 11 years old, so I was truly excited to have the
opportunity to spend 3 days here, since it was pretty much my first
time in the city when I could actually appreciate it and see everything
for what it is. DC has always sparked interest in me, since it is run
as a virtual colony of Congress, and the residents of the city have
merely a single representative, who isn’t allowed to vote. The citizens
themselves couldn’t even vote in presidential elections until 1961,
when the 23rd Amendment was passed. Ok…enough history….let’s move on to the fun times that were had in this amazing city, shall we?
 We arrived into DC on Friday night and immediately headed to the
Adams Morgan section of town, which is the place to go for nightlife
and the all-too-fun bar crawl. This particular section is very diverse
culturally, and this is clearly evident in the many quirky shops and
funky, offbeat clubs and bars that line the streets. This area is
particularly popular with younger, more hip crowds, and is full of
ethnic restaurants, including a fantastic Ethiopian joint named
Meskerem Restaurant, where we ate chicken and lamb for dinner.
Ethiopian food has always been a favorite of mine, because of the
tradition and style of how everyone at the table  shares
the same food together from the same plate, which is something that I
greatly enjoy. We then made our way to a couple bars and jazz clubs for
quick drinks and to watch some musicians perform, and then headed over
to a very famous bar and blues club named Madam’s Organ, which is 4
stories high and is considered a landmark in the city. Upon entering,
the bouncer made me take my baseball cap off (which is something I
actually appreciate about a club, enforcing somewhat of a dress code),
and once I walked in, I realized why this place is so famous. The club
actually has a very strong Memphis type feel to it, and at times I had
to remind myself I was in the Mid Atlantic and not on Beale Street. We
sipped down a few bottles of Yuengling while listening to a rockabilly
band play on stage, and equally exclaimed our newly discovered love of
this city to each other even though the best had yet to be seen. The
night was ended by walking around the central Mall, and sitting on the
steps of the Lincoln Memorial while gazing out at the Washington
Monument and the Capital Building, which was truly a beautiful sight
and a beautiful way to end a beautiful first night in this beautiful
city. The next day we woke up early and headed back to the monuments for
picture taking opportunities while the sun was out. We wanted to go up
to the top of the Washington 
Monument, but tickets were already sold out for the day, so we walked
over the Lincoln Memorial again, then to the Capital Building and
Jefferson Memorial. On our way walking over to the White House, the
most fascinating thing happened. Suddenly dozens of cop cars blocked
all of the side roads so no traffic could pass on Pennsylvania Avenue.
Then all of a sudden, as a helicopter was circling overhead, a parade
of about 50 black cars surrounded by more police cars came speeding
down the road, and out of one of the large black cars in the middle of
the pack, President Barack Obama was smiling and waving to the crowd.
This was truly an unexpected experience, but I guess I should have
figured that this probably happens often here, every time he is leaving
or entering the White House. Nonetheless, it was still very cool to be
able to see our nation’s president while in town. We then made our way
over to the Chinatown district, and got some amazing Chinese food at a
place called Chinatown Express, which is supposed to be the best Chin  ese
food in the city. There is a big glass window outside the front of this
tiny restaurant and passerby’s can watch the “noodle guy” prepare the
noodles as they continue walking on the sidewalk. After finishing our
very enjoyable meals there, we walked on over to the Smithsonian to go
to the Air and Space Museum. One of the great things about DC is that
admission to pretty much most major attractions are free. We walked
around the museum for about an hour while learning about the history of
aviation and breakthroughs with space discovery.  The next section of town we decided to explore was arguably the most
beautiful part of the entire city. Georgetown is a very trendy,
fashionable area, yet it is Washington’s oldest neighborhood, and
walking the residential streets of this area draws parallels to
Boston’s Beacon Hill area or parts of Philadelphia as well. The
tree-lined streets and handsome brick houses brought a smile to face
while scuffling my feet through the freshly fallen yellow leaves on the
cobblestone sidewalks. We took a leisurely stroll on the Chesapeake and
Ohio Canal, or C and O canal for short, and window-sh  opped
at some of the retail stores on the congested M street before heading
out in search for dinner. We grabbed a bite to eat at the famous Ben’s
Chili Bowl on U Street, where I had the most delicious hot dog of my
life, which of course was topped with their famous chili. Besides the
chili dog, I also had a half smoke, even though I had no idea what a
half smoke was until I ordered it. Apparently Obama asked the same
exact question when he came here to eat once he was elected, so I am in
good company at least. While we were eating, a man who worked at the
restaurant showed us some brief TV news highlights of Ben’s throughout
the years, and gave a very impressive and informative speech both about
the history of Ben’s in the past 50 years, as well as the area of the
city throughout that time. U Street used to be a predominantly black
neighborhood, and the man 
told the story of how Ben’s Chili Bowl brought people of all
backgrounds and races together to celebrate the joy of eating out as a
family, and to enjoy great food, even through the toughest times of
oppression and turmoil. We finished what might have been one of the
best meals of my life, thanked the man for his very descriptive speech,
and headed out to Dupont Circle in search for a bar to get some brews
for dessert. This section of town is widely known as the gay
neighborhood of the city, yet it is equally popular with heterosexuals
simply on the prowl for some good nightlife, restaurants, shops, clubs,
bars, and most importantly, people watching. We ended up at a very neat
bar named The Brickskeller, which claims to have the widest selection
of beers in the world. In fact, their menu does have over 1000 beers on
it from all around the world, broken down by country of origin, which I
found extremely impressive. I wish this place was closer to my house so
I could come here every night to sample a taste from every country, yet
since we were only there for the night, I decided to stay true to my
nationality and roots and tried Russian Baltika beer for the first time
in my life, which was, for lack of a better word, delicious.  Early on Sunday morning, we left our hotel in Arlington, Virginia
and visited the Iwo Jima memorial right nearby. We then took a 10
minute drive to Alexandria, Virginia, where the history stretches back
to 1699, which was way before DC even existed as our capital. We walked
around Old Town Alexandria on the cobbled streets along the waterfront,
which possesses countless vintage 18th century buildings,
including churches, taverns, houses, and stores. We got ice cream at
Pop’s and then got back in the car to head to DC for a final time. We
ended up at Busboys and Poets for lunch, which is a restaurant,
bookstore, fair trade market and gathering place where people come to
converse and chat about issues of social justice and peace. This place
allows a great number of artistic and literary communities to interact
with one another over some food and drink in a relaxing atmosphere.
After sipping down some tasty chi and devouring a delicious turkey
sandwich, we said farewell to our nation’s capital and promised to come
back soon.
 Before coming back home for good, we decided to make a pit stop in
Annapolis, Maryland. This was honestly a town that I never knew much
about other than the Navy Academy being there, but I’ve heard only good
things about it so I decided  now
was the time to check it out while I was in the area. Once arriving
into town my jaw almost dropped in amazement for how beautiful and
genuinely historic the town looked. The entire downtown area steps you
back in time 300 years and truly makes you feel like you are a colonial
parading the streets rather than a modern day visitor. We went to one
of the neatest Starbucks I’ve ever seen, which was in the basement of a
historical hotel, and once inside, we felt like we were in a cave
rather than a coffee shop. We then walked along the harbor, the main
shopping and dining streets, and some of the residential side streets
to take in all of the history and beauty that surrounded us. We grabbed
some grub for dinner at the 18 th century landmark Middleton Tavern before sadly heading back home later at night.  Washington DC is an area that gets a lot of bad rep for some unfair
reason, sure it has it’s bad parts, just as any city does, but it also
have tons of beautiful and fun areas to check out. I have never been to
a place that is able to successfully cram so much history, business,
politics, nightlife, leisure, natural beauty, educational learning, and
attractions in such a tiny perimeter. This area here felt like home to
me, areas like this are the reason why I love New England and the
northeast so much, because of these old historic places that make you
feel like you’re back in time 300 years just by taking a simple stroll
on some side streets. Granted, Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia
are not New England, and perhaps not even truly the northeast, but true
beautiful places like these only exist in these parts of the country,
which is something I am very grateful for. It took me 11 long years to
return to the DC area after my first visit as a kid, but I can assure
everyone, and especially myself, that I will be returning here again in
the very, very near future, because this is one of my new most favorite
places in the entire country.
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Friday, October 23, 2009
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Current mood: adventurous
I just did an almost identical trip to the Midwest a little over one
month ago, however, my travel bug cannot be tamed, ergo; I was back on
the road to one of my favorite parts of the country again this fall.
Last time I was in the Midwest in August, I only got to spend about a
week there, which is not a long enough amount of time for me, so I
decided to go back to some old places that I love, as well as for my
eyes to see some new places for the first time. This trip, I decided to
stay on the road for a total of 2 weeks, and I am glad I got to travel
the Midwest in a slower, more leisurely pace on my own terms.
 My good friend Steve (not my cousin Steve from the last Midwest
trip) joined me for the first handful of days of this trip. I picked
him up in Hartford, Connecticut on Wednesday afternoon and then by
early evening we entered Philadelphia, which is one of my new favorite
cities. We briefly stopped at the Darkhorse bar (how fitting, I know),
and then headed to Kennet Square, Pennsylvania for dinner, which was
just over a half hour away. I wanted to check out a place I saw on the
Travel Channel there called the Half Mo  on
Restaurant, which is famous for serving many types of wild game meat.
Since I am a very adventurous eater, I decided to sample some ostrich,
pheasant, and wild boar there, which were all delicious, and then
washed it down with some Yuengling, one of my favorite beers which are
not sold in my home state. After dinner, we headed to the University of
Delaware in Newark, DE which was only about 20 minutes away, and walked
around the campus at night to check out the college scene before
getting back in the car to head to Baltimore. One of my good friends
Poet of Pain lives in Baltimore, and plans were to meet up with him
briefly to say hello while we were in the area, but he had work so we
drove around downtown Baltimore, checking out some good and not so good
sections of the city. By now, it was after midnight, and we dabbled
with the idea of walking around Washington DC at night but we decided
to save DC for another time, and drove an hour west to Harpers Ferry,
West Virginia, which is located right on the Maryland and Virginia
state borders. We arrived there around 2 AM and almost hit four deer
crossing the road at one point, but finally fell asleep in my car in a
parking lot for a few hours while a very loud train would pass by every
45 minutes and the cold weather certainly did not help. We awoke at
sunrise very cranky and sore from napping in the car, but we went to a
diner to rejuvenate and then walked around the town of Harpers Ferry
and the National Park there. The Appalachian Trail goes right through
the town, so we took a moment to take a short walk on that, even though
I eventually would like to hike the entire trail from Ma  ine
to Georgia later in my life, and marveled at the charm of the quaint,
beautiful little town before heading off for our long drive through the
West Virginia mountains. We both took turns napping while the other
drove, and while we were awake, we would marvel at the beautiful
natural scenery surrounding us. West Virginia is a state that doesn’t
get much attention or discussion, but this was my 3 rd time
here this year for a reason, the beauty of this state awes me every
time I pass its state line. By noon we arrived to the capital
Charleston, got a quick bite to eat and took a minute to check out the
city, and then got back in the car en route to Kentucky, which was our
destination for the evening. In the late afternoon we took a minute to get off the highway to
check out Lexington, Kentucky, where the University of Kentucky is. The
city itself was fairly nice, but I wasn’t too impressed with the
campus, so we got back in the car and drove an hour to Louisville, one
of my favorite cities in the country. I had a show right across the
river in Jeffersonville, Indiana that night, which went well, then
after the show, Steve and I went back to Louisville for dinner and
drinks in an area called 4 th Steet Live, which is an amazing
part of town closed off to traffic and has amazing night life, full of
bars, clubs, restaurants, and venues. This area is something you would
expect to see in Las Vegas or NYC, certainly not Kentucky.  We ended our night one street over at my favorite hole in the wall bar in the state, 3 rd
street dive, and played a few games of darts before going to my friend
Ian’s house 10 minutes away in New Albany, Indiana for the night. His
hospitality has always been appreciated during my many travels to
Indiana, and it was good to be able to see him again. The next day we
were off to Bloomington, Indiana, which many of you know is one of my
most favorite towns in the entire country, and I always get extremely
excited when I get to come there, because I know good times are always
to be had. When we arrived into town, we walked around the Indiana
University campus, which is truly a beautiful place, and I had a show
at Rachael’s café right outside campus. After the show, a group of my
friends from Bloomington joined us for dinner and drinks at a
restaurant nearby, and then we walked over to my favorite bar in the
country,  which
is called the Video Bar and Saloon by outsiders, but is simply known as
“The Vid” to locals and myself. This bar is so great that there is not
even a sign for it outside, they do not promote the place at all nor
advertise it, but the locals know how amazing it is so it is packed
every night. It is on the 2 nd floor of a building, above
another bar, so we walked up the stairs and showed the bouncer our ID,
and I was surprised that he remembered me from being there two months
ago. The reason why I love this bar so much is because everything is
cheap and it is a very laid back fun place full of friendly college
students and young adults. You can get a beer on draft for $1.50, play
darts for free, and billiards for only 50 cents a game. So it’s safe to
say that a very fun night can be had at “The Vid” for fewer than 10
bucks. We spent several cherished hours there and then retired for the
night at my friend Hiromi’s dorm, whose hospitality is also always
appreciated every time I’m in Indiana. The next morning we got brunch
at the Runcible Spoon before saying goodbye to Hiromi, and then headed
an hour up north to Indianapolis for the weekend. I have been to Indianapolis once before, but only briefly for a few
hours, so I was happy to be able to explore the city some more this
time to be able to truly appreciate it. Our first night in Indy, we met
up with my friend Lindsay and we all went out for dinner and to a
comedy club called Crackers in the broadripple section of town, which I
enj  oyed
very much. The comedy club was a lot of fun and we saw comedian Robert
Hawkins perform, who was voted as one of the top 25 comedians in the
country in a 2001 poll. Needless to say, he was hysterical, and I was
glad we spontaneously decided to go there. We then went to a hookah
bar, which was a first for me, and it was definitely a fun, relaxing
experience, but I don’t quite understand all the hype about it, because
quite frankly, if I’m going to smoke something, I want it to be
something that gets me high, not something that tastes like
watermelons. Unfortunately on the way back to the hotel that night, we
were in a car accident, but luckily it wasn’t too serious and nobody
was hurt. The next day we woke up and met up with Lindsay again (who is
a Colts fan) and headed over to Lucas Oil Stadium to watch the
Indianapolis Colts play my favorite team, the Seattle Seahawks. We had
amazing seats on the street level and I was amazed by how beautiful the
Colt’s new stadium is. Of course the Seahawks lost 34-17, because the
Colts are too good, but it was still fun to go to. Later that night we
went to an area downtown called Mass Ave which has some 
cool bars, restaurants, and shops. We ate dinner at Old Point Tavern,
then went to a really cool little Jazz Club called Chatterbox and
watched an amazing saxophonist by the name of Jared Thompson perform.
After leaving there, a car-related misfortunate happened for the 2 nd
night in a row; we ran over a really big pot hole on the way back to
the hotel and the front axle on my car snapped, so we had to call a tow
truck to take my car to a mechanic. At this point I was pretty worried
and upset, because it was late at night, I didn’t know the city well
enough to know where mechanics were, and I was supposed to leave early
the next day for Michigan. However, the series of events which happened
after proved why I love Indiana and the people of the Midwest so much.
The tow truck guy was extremely helpful and dropped us back off at our
hotel for free, and then the next day, my friend Steve went to the
airport to go back home to CT as planned, but the La Quinta hotel in
Indy we were staying at let me stay in  my
room for an extra few hours for free because of my situation, and then
a mechanic from the shop came and picked me up at the hotel for free,
which was a 15 minute drive each way. My car was the first one fixed
that day since they knew I was from out of state and had to leave that
day. The entire experience went smoothly and I was truly impressed with
how kind and helpful people out there are to complete strangers,
because I feel in the back of my mind that people would not be as kind
in that same situation back home in the northeast. After thanking them
for all their help, I left the shop with my fixed car and drove up to
Michigan, where I would be spending the next few days. Michigan is one of those states that I never thought I would be
spending a lot of time in a few years back, but turns out, this is now
my 3 rd time there this year, and I know as a fact I will be back again soon. Do I love the state of Michigan? Not really…I even someti  mes
like to joke around and call it the New Jersey of the Midwest, but I do
like certain parts of the state, and wanted to take the time to explore
the entire state to see some of the nicer parts of it. After spending
the night in Grand Rapids (a not so amazing city), I picked up my
friend Jamie from the Grand Rapids area and started driving up north to
see some of the more quaint little towns along the coast of Lake
Michigan. We briefly stopped by at beaches in Muskegon and Grand Haven,
which I had been to this past July. When I was there over the summer,
they were very lively and fun, happening places, but now in the cold
Autumn weather, the beaches and towns were almost completely deserted,
with the exception of a couple older fishermen and joggers. It seemed
like I was at a completely different beach than before, but I kind of
liked the serenity in a way, and sat out on the dock near the
lighthouse while thinking about where I  wanted
to travel next from here. I decided to drive up the entire coast of
Lake Michigan up to Traverse City, which was a small, charming town I
was quite impressed with, and then made my way to Petoskey for the
night. Pretty much every single town I went to in Michigan I was really
impressed with, and all had a small town charm to them which is not
something you see much more of nowadays, with all sorts of modernized
commercial buildings and chain stores and restaurants popping up
everywhere. However, none of this existed in northern Michigan; there
were no Best Buys or Wal-Marts, no Barnes and Nobles or Applebee’s.
There were instead plenty of independently run businesses, which was a
breath of fresh air. This might be the very reason why the economy is
exceptionally bad in Michigan, but it was really nice to see stores
such as Billy’s Shoes and opposed to Payless, and The Fresh Scoop
instead of Dairy Queen. Out here, there was a store just for shoes,
just for televisions, just for vacuums, and not kidding…just for bingo
supplies. We stopped briefly in other small towns along the way, such
as Harbor Springs, and they were all mirror’s reflections of the towns
before them; all very small, all very independent and close knit, and
all very quaint, cute, and picturesque.  Once arriving in Mackinaw City, the northern most town in the
southern peninsula of the state, I noticed the charm to start
disappearing and instead was replaced by the traditional tacky souvenir
shops that tourists gobble up, just as you would see at Niagara Falls
or Mt. Rushmore or Gatlinburg, Tennessee. This didn’t bother me too
much though, because the scenery was quite amazing, having Lake
Michigan to my left and Lake Huron to my right, with the impressive
Mackinac Bridge right in front of me, which I could confidently call
the Golden Gate Bridge of the Midwest. This bridge is the only
connection by road from the lower and upper peninsulas of the state,
and I gladly paid the 3 dollar toll to cross it, because I was eager to
see the upper part of Michigan which locals call the “UP”. Once I
crossed the bridge, I noticed almost immediately that this seemed like
a different state altogether. This was not the Michigan I was just in
several moments ago; this was very rugged, very desolate, and very
empty. I literally drove for two hours along a very beautiful coastline
without seeing another human being or vehicle. The main reason why I
wanted to come this far up north was to go to Pictured Rocks National
Lakeshore, which is a beautiful area along the coast of Lake Superior
that I have seen many impressive pictures of and was eager to see with
my own eyes. When we finally did arrive there, it was definitely worth
the drive, for this is one of the most beautiful areas I have ever been
to. The beaches, the rugged coastline, the forest, and the cliffs are
all breathtaking, and this is truly a hidden gem that more people need
to visit in their lifetime. After spending a couple hours marveling at
the true beauty of this area, we retired for the night in the nearby
town of Marquette, and woke up early the next day excited to head down
to Wisconsin.
 Wisconsin is a state that is mainly known for two things: Cheese and
Beer, so I planned on enjoying both of these while spending a couple
days in this state. As soon as we crossed the border we went to this
really sketchy shack on the side of the road which had the name “Our
Place” written on the front. I assumed this was a sort of roadside
attraction, but when we opened the front door and entered, I truly felt
like I was going to die in this place. An old man was sitting in a room
as we walked in that looked like it was half bar and half living room,
and he was just as surprised to see us as we were to see him. His
confused face quickly turned into a smile and he opened up a door in
the back that led into a whole maze of other rooms, full of tacky
little knickknacks and very old, awful smelling items. We spent a good
half hour in there exploring the dozen or so rooms, and one entire room
was dedicated to just salt and pepper shakers. After checking out the
world’s largest collection of salt and pepper shakers, we decided to
quickly escape this awk  ward
place while we still had the chance, and sprinted out of the shack into
my car and sped away without looking back. We then made our way to
Green Bay, which was a little town that I had high hopes for, since I
figured it must be nice if an NFL franchise could prosper there.
However, I was thoroughly disappointed with the town and quite frankly,
it was one of the ugliest, most depressing places I had ever been to.
All you can see from the highway is several smokestacks, and once you
get into town, there is nothing much at all there to see or do. There
is nothing around town that even hints that the Packers exist or play
there, except for Lambeau Field about 5 minutes from downtown. I really
feel like this town has a lot of potential, but there were no signs of
improvement anytime soon. Maybe one day I will be mayor and turn things
around, but with confidence I could say that I would rather hang out in
Bridgeport, Connecticut or Harlem than Green Bay again. Later that evening we arrived in Madison, the state’s capital, and
that happened to be a much better experience, and quite frankly, one of
the nicer little cities I had ever been to. I was truly impressed with
how much there was to do t  here,
and I wish I could have stayed longer. The entire area near the
University of Wisconsin campus is full of great restaurants, stores,
bars, and the city itself is nestled right between two very scenic
lakes. The next day for lunch we headed down to a small town in
southern Wisconsin named Monroe, which has a pretty famous “cheese
store and tavern” there named Baumgartner’s that I had to check out in
order to satisfy my beer and cheese cravings (even though I’m lactose
intolerant). At this place, I got to enjoy the very two things
Wisconsin is famous for: Cheese and Beer, at the same time. I don’t
remember the name of the beers I had there, all I know is that t  hey
were locally brewed and very delicious. I sampled 3 different cheese
sandwiches: Swiss, Cheddar, and Limburger, all complete with wheat
bread and onions. All were very yummy, but the Limburger was extremely
smelly, had a weird texture, and was very unsettling in my stomach.
After enjoying my time there, I learned one thing about Wisconsin: even
though cheese and beer are their specialties, you should enjoy just one
at a time, because they do not mix well together at all. We ended the
day by driving over to Milwaukee to watch the sunset on the other side
of Lake Michigan, and we wandered around the river walk area at night,
which is a nice area full of upscale stores and restaurants. Looking
back on Wisconsin, I must say that I was very, very impressed with this
state overall, it definitely exceeded my expectations (with the
exception of Green Bay), and I can honestly say that this is one of my
new most favorite states, that I can’t wait to explore more of next
year.  Around 9 PM we arrived an hour south in Chicago, Illinois, which if
you recall from my last blog about the Midwest, I had a very “sloppy”
and embarrassing day here in August, so the city still leaves a bad
taste in my mouth, but I hoped to find some good tastes for my mouth
here this time at t  he
famous Gino’s East Pizza. We shared a deep dish tomato pie which was
very delicious and then I traditionally carved my name into the wall
just like everyone else does there, before leaving and attempting to
find a hotel for the night. We decided to look for one outside of
Chicago because it would be cheaper, so we decided to venture back to
Indiana about 20 minutes away and stopped in Hammond, which is right
over the border. We found a hotel named the Jefferson Hotel, and this
was quite possibly the worst place I had ever slept at in my life.
First off, this place charges by the hour, so you  can
get an idea of what kind of place this is right off the bat, and the
entire place had a 1920’s feel to it, but not in a good way, more so of
the stock market crash kind of way. I decided to rent the room for 12
hours so I can catch up on some lost sleep, but if I knew the condition
of the rooms beforehand, I wouldn’t had stayed for more than 12
minutes. What surprised me the most was when I opened the door to my
room, there was no bathroom in it; the entire floor shared one
bathroom, similar to a college dorm style. The bedroom pretty much just
had a bed, a tiny television, a closet, and a sink in the corner. This
was clearly a place where people came to do just one thing, and it
definitely wasn’t to sleep. However, I was too tired to really care too
much at that point, after a long day on the road, and many miles still
to go on the journey ahead, so I shut my eyes and dreamed of a better
place. The next morning we briefly checked out Indiana Dunes National
Lakeshore (yes, Indiana does have a coastline to those of you who suck
at geography), and enjoyed being able to relax on a beach and see the
Chicago skyline in the distance. After leaving there, we decided to see some more of Michigan again
since we were in the area. We drove along the entire southern part of
the 
state until we decided to make a pit stop in the cute little town of
Chelsea, which is near Ann Arbor. From there, we headed about 15
minutes north to the tiny little town of Hell, which I had heard of
before on the Travel Channel, obviously because of its name. The entire
town consisted of only 3 little gift shops and a restaurant, and was
clearly a minuscule and diminutive tourist trap nestled in the woods.
We grabbed a bite to eat at the restaurant in “town” and then headed to
Detroit for the night. Detroit was a city that I had never wished to
visit, because of my previous stereotypes of it, but I decided to give
it a chance since I was in the area. We walked around a sketchy section
called “greektown” at night, which I guess was the cities attempt at a
hip, nightlife area, but it proved to be more of a place for homeless
men to hassle passerby’s than a fun hangout spot. I then decided to
find a hotel for a  night
and give Detroit a second chance tomorrow while the sun was out and it
was safer. We woke up the next morning and first visited the suburb of
Dearborn, which is the town with the highest population of
Middle-Easterners in the entire country. Driving around town makes you
feel like you’re in Lebanon instead of Michigan, and we ate lunch at a
very amazing restaurant called Al Ameers, which was featured on Anthony
Bourdain’s No Reservations, one of my favorite shows on the Travel
Channel. The food there was some of the best I had had in my entire
life, which consisted of some sort of a Middle-Eastern chicken wrap,
and a fruit smoothie filled with chunks of fruit still inside it. I
really wish this place was closer to my house, because I would
seriously eat there every single day. I then went back to Detroit,
hoping it would look nicer during the day, and it proved to look even
worse during the day because you could see more that the dark was
hiding last night. We went to Belle Isle Park which overlooks Canada on
the other side of the river, and I was really sad that I didn’t bring
my passport so I could explore Ontario instead of the Hellhole I was in
now. Briefly seeing Detroit made me realize that stereotypes exist for
a reason, and that Michigan, especially the Detroit area, is hurting
badly from the poor economy. It is quite a sad area indeed, and
hopefully it can be improved somewhat in the near future. We then drove on for the rest of the day before retiring in
Pennsylvania for the night. The next day we checked out State College,
PA, where Penn State University is, and it was a college town I was ver  y
impressed with. We got lunch at a diner in town and then strolled along
the streets checking out all the stores and restaurants near the
college, before heading back in the car and driving through all of
Pennsylvania before making it to New York City at night. We went
through the Lincoln Tunnel in New Jersey which shot us right into the
hustle and bustle of mid-town Manhattan. We walked around Washington
Square Park and Greenwich Village before getting dinner and delicious
cannolis for dessert in Little Italy. We then drove around Times Square
to marvel at all of the lights before heading back to Connecticut to
conclude my two week trip of the Midwest. I then showed her around
Connecticut and Boston for a few days before bringing her to Logan
Airport so she could get back home, and thanked her for accompanying me
on my trip since everyone else was too busy to join me with their real
world obligations tying them down from living their lives. What I noticed the most about the Great Lakes during my time there
is that I prefer them much more than the ocean, mainly because the
fresh water doesn’t taste or smell as bad as salt water, yet the coasts
are equally as beautiful, and you could never tell the difference
between an ocean and one of the great lakes. While in Michigan looking
out across the water, you can just as easily imagine that Spain or
England are awaiting you on the other side rather than Wisconsin,
because you can’t see a thing on the horizon besides water. And what I
noticed the most about the Midwest in general is that it is a much
better way of life out there than what I am used to, people are so much
nicer, friendlier, more helpful, and carefree. Things are cheaper, yet
better at the same time, and the majority of the Midwest has not been
tarnished by commercialized corporations yet. It is definitely a good
place to go in order to escape the stress of the northeast, to
appreciate the true beauty of our country, and to value the true nature
of kindhearted human beings. These are the reasons why I keep going to
the Midwest so often, and why I will continue to keep on coming back
again in the near future.
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Monday, August 31, 2009
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Current mood: adventurous
Category: Blogging
After
just taking a 6 week long trip around the entire country, doing an 8
day trip with my cousin Steve to the Midwest feels merely like a ten
minute drive to the mall to me. However, this is the first time my
cousin and I have done a trip like this together before, so I was more
excited about sharing the experiences of the next week with him more
than I was excited to see several new places along the way. Our first
stop was to a city I have been to a handful of times but never truly
had a great experience at or really appreciated at all: Philadelphia.
The city of brotherly love has always left an impression on me quite
the opposite of its nickname, and I visit it frequently since my
brother lives only an hour away near Reading, Pennsylvania. Almost all
of the major cities in the northeast (with the exception of Boston),
seem to usually have a negative tone and aura to me, but I am always
willing to give things another chance, so I was happy to see Philly
with more optimistic eyes on this trip. On the drive there, we sadly
had to drive through New Jersey, but as soon as we crossed the Delaware
River into PA, we arrived into a town called New Hope, which proved to
be a symbolic name for the town since we were introduced to massive
amounts of “new hope” after happily leaving the “garden” state (one of
the biggest misnomers I’ve ever heard). Anyways…back to topic…New Hope
was a very impressive town with a “true” main street (something you
don’t see too often in many towns anymore), and I definitely want to
come back sometime in the near future to explore the shops,
restaurants, parks, and people of this wonderful little town.
We
arrived into Philly around 7 PM, and from the highway we saw some of
the worst projects and ghettos our eyes have ever laid upon. A
smokestack in one neighborhood had “nice town” or “nice ville” written
on it, and for about 20 seconds I thought that was the most
preposterous thing I’ve ever heard, but then I saw the surrounding neig hborhoods
nearby, which made the awful looking “nice town” look like Beverly
Hills. We then got off the highway and instantly were brought back
about 300 years in time. Directly in front of us were the Liberty Bell
and Independence Hall. Seeing these two landmarks right next to each
other definitely makes you appreciate the heritage and history that the
former capitol of our country possesses. Just a week before this trip,
I was in Philly with my nephew and took him to the Chapel Hill area of
Philly, which is very pretty, as well as the famous Mutter Museum,
which has a lot of anomalous things, such as skeletons with
abnormalities, and so on, which was one of the most amazing museums I
have ever been to. Philly is famous for its che ese
steaks, so we went to the two most famous places in the city to get
them: Geno's and Pats. The two are completely opposite in appearance;
Geno's looks like someth ing
that belongs on the Vegas strip or in Times Square, and Pats looks like
someone’s house, but they both serve generally the same thing and are
both right across the street from each other, constantly staring at
each other face to face. After tasting both of them, Geno's won the
taste test even though the place was too gaudy for my taste and the
people who work there were pretty ignorant and rude (they have signs
that say “speak English or leave” right on their window). We then
washed down our food with some brews at the Darkhorse Bar (that’s
right, I have a bar named after me in Philly!), and took a stroll down
South Street before retiring for the night. Going to Philadelphia for
the night definitely made me realize that I have a love / hate
relationship with the city, it’s a place I don’t particularly enjoy
that much, but something about it…maybe the history…maybe the
cobblestone streets…or maybe the asshole-ish “I don’t give a shit
attitude the people there possess…keeps bringing me back there time and
time again. The next day we stopped in Gettysburg, PA, which was a place I have never been to but have always wanted to check out. Now that
I have checked it out, I never have a need to go back there again. It’s
basically just a bunch of fields with cannons and statues, something
that is probably important to see once in your life to pay your dues
there, but no one should ever go there more than once in a lifetime. We
then drove through western Maryland and made our way to Morgantown,
West Virginia, where UWV is. It was truly a beautiful college town and
university, and we went to a couple bars there and walked around the
campus. I was truly impressed with the area, because even though I have
been to West Virginia before, it was mainly just to drive through it
and I never really stopped there to do anything, so I am glad that I
finally did now and can’t wait to explore more of the state again soon. After leaving there, we briefly went through Wheeling, West Virginia, which was a nice little town righ t
on the Ohio border and we finally ended up in Columbus, Ohio at night
time. Columbus is a little known city that I’ve been eager to explore
for a long time, so I wasted no time and went right out on the town. We
first checked out an area called Short North, which is a street lined
with restaurants and bars. After barhopping there for an hour or so, we
went to the Brewery District to barhop some more, and then stumbled on
over to the German Village, which was a very nice, older part of town,
with brick streets and beautiful older homes. Early the next morning,
we walked around the campus of THE Ohio State University, which is the
biggest college in the country. I was truly impressed with this area
near the campus, as well as the entire city as a whole, and I’m glad we
decided to make this city a pit stop on our trip. After
leaving Ohio, we were on our way to Chicago, the one big city in
America that I have yet to investigate. My first impressions of the
Windy City were very good; the night we got there, we walked around the
Navy Pier, which is an area right on Lake Michigan that is very similar
to Coney Island or Santa Monica, California. Usually I avoid tourist
traps as much as possible when I go places, but since this was my first
time in Chicago, I wanted to do and see the th ings
here you’re “supposed” to see and do, just as a first timer in NYC
would have to see the Empire State Building, Statue of Liberty, and
Times Square. So, we decided to go the original Pizzeria Uno’s for some
famous deep dish pizza for lunch, which was amazing, and then we went
to Wrigley Field to catch a Cubs game, because I’ve always wanted to
see their stadium. It is truly a beautiful and historic stadium and I
was in awe to see it in person, and was shocked that it is practically
in a neighborhood surrounded by apartments and bar s.
It was a hot day outside, so my cousin and I pounded down 6 beers a
piece at the game, which probably cost over 100 bucks, and then went to
a bar after the game to celebrate the Cubs 4-2 victory over the
Pirates. At the bar, a random couple started talking to us and bought
us drinks and shots, which of course we accepted, and when we told them
we were from Connecticut, the girl had no idea where our home state even
was, which was funny yet sad at the same time. After talking to them
for about an hour, we all stumbled out of the bar and said goodbye to
our new friends. At this moment, my cousin and I both got extremely
sick and puked out our approximately 200 dollars worth of alcohol we
had consumed in the past few hours. I passed out under someone’s
staircase to the front of their apartment on a street, and my cousin
passed out in an alley way nearby. We blacked out for about 3 hours
before picking ourselves up off  the g round
and finding a random sketchy motel to randomly pass out in for the
night. I was extremely thankful that the citizens of Wrigleyville just
let us rest there in our own regret in peace, and we weren’t taken away
in an ambulance or cop car instead. Of course, there was only one bed
that we had to share at the motel, but it was still one of the most
comfortable night’s sleeps I’ve ever had since I was so happy to be in
a bed after a sloppy, embarrassing moment such as that. The next day we
tried to get rid of our massive hangovers by walking along a couple
beaches and Millennium Park and getting some fresh air. We capped off
our time in Chicago by going to the Sky Deck of the Sears Tower (which
is now called the Willis Tower), which is the tallest building in the
country. The view from the top of the tower was breathtaking, and we
watched the sunset 103 stories up from the ground, as well as walked on
the glass floor where you can look straight down to the city streets,
which was a great ending to a very interesting time in the city.  After
leaving Chicago, we went to Indiana for 2 days, which is one of my
favorite states in the entire country. We first went to West Lafayette
to check out Purdue University, and then went to Indianapolis and
walked around for a couple hours, which was a city I have never been to
and was really impressed with. Lastly, we went to Bloomington, which is
a town I fell in love with last year on my summer tour in 2008. I
performed a show there the first night in town, at the same place I
performed last year, and then we went to a couple of my favorite bars
in town for an after party with some of my friends from the town,
because apparently we hadn’t learned our lesson about booze in Chicago
just a couple days earlier. The next day we walked around the campus of
Indiana University, which is a place I might consider going to for my
masters in Creative Writing / Poetry in the future, because I love the
town and campus so much. We then spent the night with more friends at
the local bars and restaurants that I wish I had the opportunity to go
to every week instead of just once a year. Sadly the next morning, we
left Bloomington and headed up to South Bend to check out the
University of Notre Dame, which was a very beautiful campus that
reminded me of an Ivy League school somewhat, and then spent the night
in Grand Rapids, Michigan to visit a long time friend. Unfortunately,
it rained out while we were there, so we couldn’t go check out my
favorite beaches along the lake, but I did have time to visit the
Meijer Sculpture Gardens in Grand Rapids, which is pretty much an
outdoor art museum in a park, and it was very beautiful. We made our
way to Cleveland, Ohio at night to watch an Indians game versus my
favorite team, the Angels, which was fun since my cousin is a Tribe
fan. We had great seats right behind the Halo’s dugout and I caught a
foul ball, but sadly the Angels lost 11-3. Not to worry though, because
my team is still in first place and his is in last place, so I didn’t
mind that he got to enjoy a rare Indians win. That game concluded our
trip, because we decided to just drive the 9 hours straight home
instead of getting a hotel for the night, so we arrived back in
Connecticut around 8 AM.
Even
though this trip was really short compared to my previous one, we still
managed to do and see a lot in a short period of time. I saw a lot of
new places that I enjoyed and want to explore again soon, and if
nothing else, it was a great bonding experience with someone who is
both a family member and one of my best friends. Even though we
literally managed to be both in the clouds and hit rock bottom within a
24 hour span in Chicago, they are experiences we will be able to look
back on, laugh about, cherish, and tell our kids someday. With the
conclusion of this trip though, comes the realization that my summer
tour has also come to an end now, and my travel bug will have to be
tamed for awhile until the open road calls my name again.
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Sunday, July 26, 2009
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Current mood:  sleepy
Category: Blogging
I have a disease. That disease is called the travel bug. It’s been
affecting me my entire life, but now it is controlling me full force.
And the best part is, there are no signs of a cure anytime soon, and
even if there was, I would want nothing to do with the remedy. 
I
finally arrived back to Connecticut after traveling around the country
for 6 weeks, and before I even had time to do my laundry or check my
mail, I was preparing to go back on the road again. However, this time,
I was going to stay in my home area of New England, to see more of the
area I grew up in, and attempt to gain a higher appreciation of my
roots. The night of my first full day back in CT, a handful of my close
friends and I met up in New Haven for a “welcome back home” gathering
to go barhopping and people watching, two of our most favorite things
to do. Before going on my trip to the west coast, I used to pride
myself on being from the New Haven area, and was always excited to
inform people of the true beauty, diversity, cleanliness, and nightlife
of the city. However, after coming back “home”, it simply did not feel
like home anymore…something was different to me…New Haven felt just
like another city and not like a place I still belonged in; it’s
special charm that used to light my eyes with excitement…now gone.
Perhaps that bulb had burnt out because I have just recently discovered
 better,
perhaps I have overstayed my welcome; perhaps this was a calling for me
to pack my bags and find a new home. I have spent so much time in New
Haven that I could close my eyes and name every restaurant, store, bar,
and club on every street and probably even know a person or two in each
place without seeing them. This is not the type of place I wish to
still live in; I yearn for a bigger city where I can get lost and then
try to find my way back home, while discovering new things and places
along the way. So although New Haven did not feel the same to me after
seeing the entire country, I was still happy to see familiar places
with familiar fa ces
for the time being. Before meeting up with my friends, my cousin Steve
and I walked around the Yale campus and admired the beauty of the
buildings, which never fail to amaze me no matter how many times I see
them. We then grabbed some hamburgers at the world famous Louis Lunch,
where the hamburger was claimed to be invented. The night was perfectly
finished by washing our dinner down with some half yards of Molson at
Richter’s Bar near the city’s green while sharing stories of my travels
amongst my comrades, and then parading over to an Irish pub called The
Playwright to have some more brews for dessert. Early
the next morning I was back in the car again and off to Maine. Believe
it or not, I have not been to Maine in about 11 years or so, even
though it is only roughly 4 hours from my home, ergo, I was excited to
finally be able to go back to “vacationland” to see it through adult
eyes for the first time. Luckily, on my huge tri p
out west, I only saw rain for one night in a 6 week span, but on this
mini trip around New England, Mother Nature was not so kind to me. I
briefly walked around Old Orchard beach, which I can vaguely remember
going to as a kid, and then arrived in Portland, where I had a show
that night at the North Star Café. Before going to my show, I walked
around the town in the pouring rain and had some clam chowder for
dinner to warm me up, which New England, and especially Maine, is known
for having the best of in the country. With soaked shoes, shirt, and
all, I arrived at the venue for my show, and it actually turned out to
be one of the best of my entire tour thus far; the crowd was pretty big
and supportive, and I met some very interesting and kind p eople
there, including a fellow poet all the way from Nicaragua. The next day
I had really amazing Lobster Rolls (or Lobsta as we say it up in the
northeast) at the famous Red’s Eats in Wicasset. I actually heard about
this place originally because it is one of Andrew Zimmern’s most
favorite places to eat in Maine, and of course I had to go there since
I’m one of his biggest fans. I’m usually not a huge fan of lobster, but
I guess that’s because I’ve never had lobster in Maine until now….wow
was it amazing! The highlight of my time in Maine was stil l
to come though, with the arrival to Bar Harbor to visit Acadia National
Park. I have been to about a half dozen national parks this summer
around the country, including Grand Canyon, the Badlands, Mount
Rushmore, Carlsbad Caverns, and Petrified Forrest, and although Acadia
may not have matched up to some of those other parks in the “awe and
admiration” factor, it did possess some other attributes and
characteristics that the other parks may have lacked a bit; a scenic
drive along a beautiful ocean for one, beaches, and an breathtaking
view on top of one of the highest points on the entire east coast. It
is actually said that if you are on top of Cadillac Mountain in Acadia
National Park during the sunrise, you will be one of the first people
in the entire country to see the sun’s first rays in the morning…now
isn’t that something neat? Unfortunately, I
couldn’t be one of those lucky people since it was raining out again
the next morning, but I was able to enjoy some sunlight both the
evening before while on top of Cadillac Mountain, and later on the next
day while driving along the coastline, going to the beach, and hiking
on some of the trails in the park. After being in Maine for only 3
days, I cannot understand why it took me over a decade to come back
here after my initial visit, but I can assure one thing…It will
definitely be much sooner than that until I come back here again.
.. .. Subsequently,
I made my way over to New Hampshire, where I had lunch in the scenic
seaport town of Portsmouth, and then drove up to Mount Washington. I
was really looking forward to being able to see the spectacular views
from ato p
the summit, but once again, Mother Nature decided to punish me. I still
decided to make the drive up since I came all the way there, and I’m
glad I chose to do so. Even though I could not see more than 50 feet in
front of me at any given time, the 8 mile drive up the mountain was
still something very exciting to do. When I finally reached the summit
over 6,000 feet from the Earth’s surface, I truly felt one with the
clouds and gained a greater appreciation for the natural elements
surrounding me. The cold rain beating down on my face and the angry
wind pushing me back in my tracks was refreshing to me after almost
melting alive in the deserts of southern Arizona just a couple weeks
earlier. As I stood next to the “Mount Washington summit” sign and a
red fox crossed my path only several feet away from me, I realized why
New England is home sweet home to me, and how I love the fact that I
can still be able to wear a jacket and freeze my balls off in July.
Even though my reasons may sound crazy to some, I guess it’s one of
those things that only Natives of the area would appreciate and enjoy.
So although I was not able to see the views from atop the pinnacle, I
was able to enjoy and appreciate the mountain in other aspects, and
will definitely return to it again sometime during Autumn to see the
views I missed this time. Lastly, I drove
down to Cape Cod, which, believe it or not, was one place I have never
been to. On the way there, I quickly passed through Boston, which
brought a smile to my face, because I plan on moving there in September
for roughly 8 months or so, and it was the first time I have seen my
future home since March. On the way down the cape, it was pouring
again, but I guess my prayers to the rain Gods were finally answered,
because the sun finally started to peek out from behind the stratus
clouds once I arrived in Provincetown. I was very excited to finally be
able to visit P-Town, because as I stated earlier, I love people
watching, and what better place to do it than one of the largest
homosexual communities in the country? I j ust got back from San Francisco, so I figured this would be a similar scene except in a smaller
scale, but I must say, to my surprise, the people of Provincetown are a
lot more open even than the people of San Fran. Both cities have the
gay pride flags swinging off of every lamppost and street sign in the
city, but I saw things in abundance in Cape Cod that was almost
unapparent in the Bay Area, such as drag queens walking the streets and
advertising shows they were putting on later that night, over
flamboyant individuals eager to spark spontaneous conversations with
unexpected (and possibly homophobic) tourists, and hundreds of couples
holding hands and making out with no regards for PDA. Coming to places
like this always makes me happy and gives me some faith in the world,
because it’s great to see that cities such as Provincetown exist where
people of any orientation or background can come and be accepted with
no discrimination. It’s a shame more places like this couldn’t
exist…but hey…when extreme right wing conservative jerks run and reside
in the majority of the country, what else do you expect? So after my
observations, Cape Cod was more enjoyable for people watching than San
Francisco, because of the fact that P-Town is more condensed and "in
your face" since it's a much smaller area, even though San Fran by far
is my top choice for favorite city, because the beaches and scenery and
personalities and lifestyles of the people of the west coast are on a
completely different plateau than on the east coast…sorry New England,
the truth hurts sometimes : ) .. .. When
deciding to take a trip around New England after just being around the
rest of the country, I honestly had no idea what to expect, and now
after arriving back to Connecticut, I’m still not quite sure how to
process what I just saw. Did I just drive around my home area, or was
it just another place on the map? Sure…New England allows me to relive
the years of my youth and appreciate the area I grew up in…but at 22,
do I really want to be rekindling the old flames of my past…or starting
the new fires of my future? At this point in my life, I obviously have
more questions than answers, and I think that many of these will never
find a true answer until my final moments on this planet, but in a way,
that’s the beauty of life, and these very questions are what keep me on
the open road, searching for new places, for new homes, and for new
pieces of myself. In just a couple weeks, I will be off to the Midwest
to explore Chicago for the first time, as well as go back to Ohio,
Indiana, and Kentucky, but until then (even though I’m not quite sure
in the validity of my next statement), I will attempt my best
impression of Dorothy from the “Wizard of Oz” and whisper to myself
that “there is no place like home”. 
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Thursday, July 16, 2009
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Current mood:  exhausted
Category: Blogging
California was the most amazing place I have ever been to, and it felt
like home to me, but sadly, I had to leave there and return back to my
home (for now) in Connecticut. A  fter
wiping the tears from my eyes from the thought of leaving the great
Golden State, I started to slowly make my way back to the east coast.
This started with a 7 day stop in Albuquerque New Mexico. My aunt and
uncle live right in the city, so it was great to spend quality time
with them du  ring the 4 th
of July holiday and have them show me around the area. I also got to
meet my two adorable little cousins Sierra and Sidney for the first
time, and we all watched the fireworks together on July 4 th,
which was a great family experience. I also sampled a lot of
traditional New Mexican food, including green chili, and some not so
traditional items to the area, such as whole baby octopuses and amazing
sashimi. I was quite surprised with the beautiful scenery of the area
also, and every morning I would wake up to the breathtaking views of
the mountains behind their back yard, and at night, downtown
Albuquerque sparkled like a huge open treasure chest box full of
diamonds and gemstones. I can’t wait to go back there in the near
future to see the city and my relatives again. 
After
leaving New Mexico, I spent one night in Denver, Colorado, because I
had a featured performance there. I was truly impressed with the beauty
and cleanliness of the mile high city, but I personally didn’t fee l
like I was a mile above sea level, and even though I have asthma, I had
no problems breathing there and felt no lack of oxygen. I left early
the next morning and drove through Wyoming, where I stopped in Cheyenne
for lunch. This was another city that I was impressed with, although it
was a lot smaller and more desolate than Denver. I then made my way
through western Nebraska, and truly felt in the middle of nowhere
there, but the scenery there was also breathtaking, and I loved the
feeling of driving on the open road with no one around. The mountains
in Nebraska were also very beautiful and unique looking, which I
definitely wasn't expecting to see while driving through the state. I
finally made my way to South Dakota later that night, wher e
I stopped at Mt. Rushmore to watch the lighting of the monument, which
was a very nice presentation. I went to Mt. Rushmore again early the
next day to explore it some more and hike on some of the nearby trails.
I am usually not a fan of man made monuments and parks, and usually
prefer the natural better, but there was something about Mt. Rushmore
that was so breathtaking in its beauty, and the elements of the natural
and man made are so perfectly intertwined in that area, plus you can’t
help but feel extremely patriotic while those four amazing presidents
are staring back at you. After leaving there and driving throu gh
the Black Hills region, I made my way to Badlands National Park, which
was a truly amazing area and reminded me a lot of the petrified forest
national park in northern Arizona. I drove through the various
mountains and hills there for about an hour while mountains goats and
rams were right alongside my car, and then I made my way about 4 hours
east to the town of Mitchell, where a very famous Americana attraction
is, known as the corn palace. Basically, I don’t understand the point
at all about this place, but I’ve seen it on the travel channel before
so I figured I would check it out. It’s basically just a large building
partially made out of corn and inside the building is a gift shop with
tacky souvenirs. After leaving there, I spent the night in Sioux Falls,
South Dakota, where I watched a very interesting laser light show on
the river which had a narration about the town’s history.
The
next day was a long day in the car, driving through states such as
Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan. I spent
the weekend in western Michigan with a long time friend, and we went to
a few of the beach towns right along the Lake Michigan shore. I
honestly was very impressed with that area of the state, and it truly
felt like you were at an ocean and not just a lake. The scenery was
very pretty and the shore towns reminded me of ones I would frequently
see back home or in other New England states. The next day I briefly
stopped at Kent State University in Ohio to see the memorial of the 4
students who were killed there during the famous shootings and
protests, and then I spent the night in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The
following day, unfortunately, I saw the “welcome to Connecticut” sign
for the first time in over 5 weeks, and even though I made it back to
my home for now, I am really hoping and planning that this will not be
my home for much longer, because as you can probably guess, I am a true
vagabond and don’t enjoy spending too much time in the same place,
ergo, 22 years in the same town in the same state is long enough for
me. Where will I move next…Boston? San Francisco? Another country? Who
knows….but until then, my travels will soon continue with a small tour
up to Maine, New Hampshire, and Cape Cod next week. Good night…and
travel well my friends. 
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Tuesday, June 30, 2009
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Current mood:  peaceful
Category: Blogging
What makes a place good enough to be labeled “perfect”; is it the
scenery, the people, the cities, the nightlife, the location, all of
the above? Well, there is no such thing as “perfect”, but the closest
thing to it is California. I have only dreamed of going to California
since I was a kid, and finally at 22 years old, my dreams became true.
I briefly spent two days in Las Vegas, Nevada before arriving to the
Golden State, but I am not even going to talk much about my time in the
Sin City, because I found it very over rated and, for lack of a better
word, tacky. I live an hour from Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods so I felt no
need to gamble in Vegas, and frankly, I like the Connecticut casinos
better than the ones in Nevada. The only bright spots of my time there
was seeing the comedian Carrot Top perform, and he was hilarious,
eating lunch at the 5 star restaurant at the top of the stratosphere
tower with its amazing view, and meeting up with a long time friend
there one night, who later joined me to go to some beaches in the Los
Angeles area later on in the week. 
Ok,
now back to my amazing time in California. My first four days were
spent in San Francisco and the Bay area. The night I arrived there, I
had a featured performance at a coffeehouse on the famous Haight
Street, which was the hippie Mecca in the 60s and 70s. I was happy to
finally be able to perform in California, because I have a huge fan
base out there, plus it was always a dream of mine to perform my famous
poem “California Clone” in the state it was written about. The show was
a huge success, and the people I met there were some of the most down
to Earth individuals that I have ever encountered (not to mention most
of them were smoking weed right in the coffee shop!). Also during my
time there, I explored the beaches and parks near the Golden Gate
Bridge, met up with some long time friends in Berkley, visited
Alcatraz, and enjoyed driving on some of the windiest and steepest
roads in the world. I also went to Golden Gate Park (which is San
Fran’s version of Central Park, except better), and saw Gavin Rossdale
(the leader singer of Bush) perform for free, and during that concert,
I noticed how chill and carefree all the residents of that area were,
and how well I fit in around them. The second I stepped foot in SF I
fell in love with it; the feeling I get in that city cannot be
explained with words, but it felt like home there to me, and I am
seriously planning on moving there in the near future. 
I
then drove along the Pacific Coast all the way down to Los Angeles, and
the scenery of the coast along the way was unbelievable, in such towns
as Big Sur and San Luis Obispo. I have never
seen beaches and coasts with such amazing cliffs and rocks and sand
dunes before, and it was truly breathtaking. When I finally arrived in
LA, I explored most of the SoCal beaches, including Newport, Laguna,
Hermosa, Venice, Malibu, Santa Monica, and Long Beach. Venice beach was
amazing for people watching and I have never been to a place with both
such eclectic people, yet beautiful scenery together as one.
  
Anyone
that knows me knows that I am a huge baseball fan, and that I HATE WITH
A PASSION the east coast teams that play near where I live. I have been
a diehard Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim fan for the past 10 years, and
I have always dreamed of going to a home game. Well, that dream became
true this week also. I was literally in tears when I walked into Angel
Stadium for the first time, because firstly, I was i n
awe of finally being there in person, but also because of the memorial
to their pitcher Nick Adenhart in the front of the stadium who died in
a car accident in April after being hit by a drunk driver. The memorial
was a very touching sight to see, filled with Angel’s caps, rally
monkeys, RIP signs, pictures of him, and other items. I paused there
for a moment of silence before entering the stadium and going to my
seats, which were right on the field directly behind the Angel’s
dugout. I sat next to a really awesome guy from California who shared
stories with me the entire time, and it was so surreal cheering on with
a stadium of fans routing for the same team, because I am definitely
not used to that when I go to Angels games in New York and Boston! When
Vladimir Guerrero and Bobby Abreu hit home runs, the fireworks went off
behind the center field wall as I was slapping high fives with everyone
around me, truly an amazing experience I will never forget. The Angels
beat the Rockies 11-3 that night, and I was happy to see my team get a
win.
.. .. Sadly,
while I was in LA, Michael Jackson had passed away, and the news was
all over the place since I was right in the area. Now, regardless of
what you think of his personal life, you cannot de ny
the fact that he was the king of pop and is one of the most amazing
singers and performers of all time. He is truly an inspiration to many
musicians and performers, including myself, and will be greatly missed.
I stood in line for an hour to visit his star on the walk of fame in
Hollywood to pay my respects, and then briefly visited the street his
house is on in Beverly Hills, but the cops had it blocked off. I was
truly impressed with how utopia like Beverly Hills seemed, everything
about it was picture perfect, and I ended my time in Hollywood by
taking my picture in front of the Hollywood sign in the hills. My final
stop in California was San Diego, which I was also impressed with,
while dining outside in the Gaslamp district and walking along the
beach with the Mexico border in my sight.
.. .. Being
a performer and traveling the country definitely has it perks, because
I get to see the world while doing what I truly love, but it also has
it cons too, because when you finally find a place that you could call
home and could spend your entire life in, it is time to leave and go on
to the next city and state. With that being said, I am extremely sad to
leave the best state I have ever been to, but I will be back soon, and
hopefully next time I am back, it will be to move here instead of just
visiting. A very interesting thing happened to me while I was coming
into California from Nevada; the state sign was missing so there was no
official “Welcome to California” sign when I arrived! Obviously, this
made me upset at first because my goal is to get my picture next to all
50 state signs, but California would have to wait till the day I
actually left the state. But then I thought of the symbolism behind
this; I will be seeing “welcome to California” the moment I am actually
leaving the state, which to me shows that even though I am leaving for
now, I am truly welcome back there whenever I wish, and that I never
have to really say “goodbye” to the Golden State, because California
will soon be my proud new home. .. .. The beaches, the mountains, the forest, the hills, the big cities, the little towns, the
food, the climate, the location…all these things make California
amazing…but especially the people, their personalities and laid back
attitudes, is what truly makes this state as close to perfect as one
will ever find. I’ve been an East coast resident my entire life, and
even though I have been on the west coast for only a little over a
week, the Atlantic has nothing on the Pacific; the west coast is where
it’s truly at, and it’s going to be hard to come back home and have it
truly feel like home there anymore. California, I will be back soon, but until
then, I’ll miss you and you’ll be in my dreams until I can make you
become a reality again.
 | Currently listening:
Guero
By Beck
Release date: 2005-03-29 |
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Sunday, June 21, 2009
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Current mood: peaceful
Category: Blogging
Days 10 through 14- The National Parks of New Mexico and Arizona
Dry…Hot…Silence…Serenity…Unworldly…Perfection. What I have experienced
in the past few days in the deserts and mountains of the southwestern
parts of the United States are beyond words, yet here I am writing a
blog about it. Whatever is written in this blog will do my experiences
no justice, because even a published poet and writer such as myself
cannot describe the beautiful mix of tranquility and madness, the
perfect blend of calm and chaos, the equilibrium of ugly and utopia,
that I encountered in New Mexico and Arizona. In a nutshell, one must
experience what I have for themselves in order to fully appreciate it,
but I can only hope that these words and pictures will offer enough
evidence to prove to you that some of the most amazing natural places
in the entire world can be found in these two states.  After
leaving my 3 night stay in Texas, I arrived into Carlsbad, New Mexico,
where I spent several hours exploring the Carlsbad Caverns, which are
the biggest caverns in the entire country. I opted to take the natural
entrance into the cave rather than take the eleva  tor
down, so my journey began with a 45 minute walk through a zigzag maze
all down a very steep 80 story decent to the bottom of the cave, which
was very hard on the knees, but thankfully I’m doing this trip at 22
years old instead of 62. I have been to several caves throughout the
eastern part of the US before, but the Carlsbad Caverns are unlike any
other. Taking the natural entrance into the cave allows you to truly
appreciate and comprehend the massive size of the cave, and the natural
beauty of the various stalactites and stalagmites left me speechless.
Spending several hours down there makes you forget what planet you are
even on, because I have never seen anything else on planet Earth so
surreal, yet magnificent at the same time that looks like the things I
saw in the cave.  After
leaving New Mexico, I was off to Arizona. First I briefly went to
Montezuma’s Castle, where you can gaze through the windows of the past
into one of the best preserved cliff dwellings in North America. This
20 room high-rise apartment, nestled into a towering limestone cliff,
tells a 1,000 year-old story of ingenuity and survival in an
unforgiving desert landscape. Marveling at this enduring legacy of the
Sinagua culture reveals a people surprisingly similar to ourselves.  I
then visited Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona. With one of the
world's largest and most colorful concentrations of petrified wood,
multi-hued badlands of the Paint  ed
Desert, historic structures, archeological sites, and displays of over
200-million-year-old fossils, this is a surprising land of scenic
wonders and fascinating science. This place is called “the painted
desert” for a reason; the hills look like someone took a paintbrush and
went over them with various shades of reds, oranges, blues, and grays.
I said to myself that this was the most beautiful place I have ever
been to, and that was true until I drove a little up north to the Grand
Canyon.   When
I walked to the cliff’s edge and saw the canyon spread out before my
eyes for the first time, my jaw literally drop and I shook my head in
disbelief as a tear of joy fell from my eye, because nothing this
beautiful should even exist on this planet, it’s simply just not fair.
Honestly, the Grand Canyon is probably just as big as or maybe even
bigger than my entire home state of Connecticut, so I wish I had more
than just a couple hours to see more of the canyon. But what I did see
of it was the most beautiful thing my eyes have ever laid upon, and I
will definitely be coming back in the near future to explore more of it
for several days, including hiking down to the base of the canyon and
whitewater rafting on the Colorado River. But for my first time there,
I was quite content with just sitting on the cliff’s edge and taking it
all in.  I
was amazed and how drastically different the climate, scenery, and
landscape alters in Arizona by just driving a little over an hour up
north. In southern and central Arizona, there are many cactuses and
sand covered mountains, yet up north, in Flagstaff and above, I felt
like I was right back at home in New England or upstate New York,
because of all the pine trees, greenery, snow covered mountains (yes,
in June), and quaint little mountain towns. The beauty and diversity of
Arizona impressed me a lot and I can definitely see why many people
come here to live after they retire. Hell, I may have to retire extra
early and move down here soon myself, because I fell in love with the
state and didn’t want to leave.  Like
I said before, there’s not much else I can say about my experiences at
these 4 national parks, because words would not suffice the
experiences. I can only try and let the pictures do some of the
talking, but my only advice is to get out and explore these places for
yourself, because you will then feel the way I feel and be enlightened,
inspired, and awakened like I have to the true beauty and tranquility
of the desert and mountains of the southwest. Out here, I was able to
clear my head, but it was only filled with more questions about the
origins of the planet, because I do not think that things this
beautiful were made my accident over time; I think that some sort of
God out there must be an amazing artist, and He used the southwest as
His canvas. 
 | Currently listening:
Stadium Arcadium
By Red Hot Chili Peppers
Release date: 2006-05-09 |
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Sunday, June 14, 2009
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Current mood:  productive
Category: Blogging
There is a state where everything is BIG, and where personalities are
larger than life. This state is known as Texas to some, and as cowboy
country to myself and many other people from the north. I honestly had
no idea what to expect prior to my arrival in the Lone Star state; a
part of me assumed I would see just cowboys on horses sharing the
highways with huge Ford trucks, attempting to run my little Toyota
Camry I’m traveling in with a Connecticut license plate off the road.
Another part of me was a little apprehensive of performing a show in
this state (or even talking to many natives here outside of the cities)
because of my previous notion of their conservative, over religious,
and right wing beliefs, and how much that clashes with my own lifestyle
and viewpoints. However, this is one state I’ve been wanting to explore
for a real long time, so I did not hesitate for one second to cherish
my time here.  About
an hour after arriving into my hotel in Dallas, it started to downpour,
so I sat in front of my hotel window all night and watched the most
beautiful thunderstorm and lightning I’ve ever seen. The sky was
orange, purple, blue, and black all at once, and lightning would
stretch in the sky for miles before crashing to the ground. It was
truly something magical and very inspiring to witness right before my
very own eyes. The next day I woke up early to begin exploring the
city, and had lunch at a fabulous place called Tillman  ’s
roadhouse, which was voted for having the “best fries” in the city. The
restaurant was not only beautiful inside, but it also had some really
amazing food, and some pretty unique French fries. I then went downtown
to visit the JFK memorial, and I was not impressed with it at all. It
basically looks like a big white Lego block, and I felt like something
nicer should have been showcased for such a great president who lost
his life in that city. Then I thought to myself, if one of the George
Bush’s got shot or killed, Texas would make a whole shrine or name a
town after them, yet since JFK was a democrat, all he gets is a Lego
block! I then went to a very nice area called
Pioneer Park, which is a nice place to relax from the hustle and bustle
of the city. I also treated myself to a new Dallas Mavericks shirt at
the fan store in their arena since the Mavs are my favorite NBA team.
Then a couple hours later I had my show, and I must say, that night was
one of the best nights of my life. I’ve had much bigger audiences than
the turnout that night, but the people that were there were really
supportive and the whole group of us went out after for drinks at an
English Pub (yes, an English Pub in the heart of cowboy country).
There, I sucked down some bottles of Dos Equis and we all shared
stories of our travels, of our love for poetry and spoken word, and how
Yankee boys and Texans are all not that different from one another
after all. That night will be one that I will never forget, and I was
honored to be treated to such nice southern hospitality and Texas charm. In the midst of all the smiles, laughs, and stories being shared, one woman constantly turned to me and kept shouting in a joyful manner, "Welcome to Texas"....well, with the help of her and my other new friends, I definitely felt very welcome and almost at home.
  The
next morning I left Dallas to head to San Antonio. On the way there, I
stopped through Austin to check out the University of Texas campus
(which I was really impressed with) and an area in town called 6th
street (which is a big nightlife, bar, restaurant, and entertainment
area). When I arrived to San Antonio, I explored the world famous River
Walk for awhile, sampled some Tex-Mex food, and just took in the
beautiful scenery. I then walked over to the Alamo, which also had to
be one of the most beautiful landmarks I have ever seen. Early the next
morning, I briefly visited Mission Concepcion, then took a boat ride on
the River Walk; the perfect, picturesque ending to a perfect time in a
perfect state.
Overall,
Texas surprised me in many ways. First off, I knew it was one of the
biggest states in the country, but you don’t really have an
appreciation or understanding of that until you drive through it. At
some points I would be driving for 8 hours straight while looking at
the very same sight (desert and mountains and oil pumps) with no signs
of civilization at all, and even though this was extremely beautiful
and serene, it also tended to be redundant at the same time. Moreso
than the landscape, the people here surprised me more than anything.
The negative stereotypes of the citizens here (from my experiences at
least) are hardly true at all. The people of Texas are just simple folk
who enjoy the good things in life, and the majority of the people I met
here were not narrow minded or shoving Bibles in my face or extremely
right wing at all. And even the people I met that I may not share the
same views with, we embraced the things we had in common rather than
dispute and debate over topics we disagree on, and as an outsider
looking in, that’s more than I can ever ask for while coming to a new
part of the country for the first time. In a nutshell, Texas was
definitely one of the most diverse, interesting, fun, and just plain
awesome states I’ve ever been to. I never thought I would say this in a
million years, but I love Texas and I would actually consider moving
down here at some point. Can’t wait to come back to the Lone Star state
again, but until then, I continue my travels out west to New Mexico and
beyond, and I will not rest until I can dig my toes in the sands of the
California Coast. Adios and Gracias, Texas! 
 | Currently listening:
Electric Rodeo
By Shooter Jennings
Release date: 2006-04-04 |
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Wednesday, June 10, 2009
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Current mood: excited
Category: Blogging
  Very
few people had such an impact in the world like Martin Luther King Jr.
did. When I hear the word “hero”, his face is one of the first to
always pop in my mind. Before leaving Memphis Monday morning, I stopped
by the Lorraine Motel, where he was shot outside of his room on the
balcony of room #306. The motel is obviously closed now for renting
rooms out, and it is now part of the Civil Rights Museum. Walking up to
the motel was one of the most eerie moments of my life. The motel
itself feels like it’s haunted and it obviously has had no upkeep in
over 40 years, but I think the look and condition of the motel at
present day is the epitome of the tragedy that happened there in 1968.
There is a very silent and depressing vibe outside of the motel also,
and one can’t help but to shed of tear while staring at that balcony
where a reef of flowers hangs in his honor.  After
leaving there, I was on my way to Clarksdale, Mississippi, right at the
crossroads of routes 49 and 61, which is often named the birthplace of
Blues. I stayed at a place called The Shack Up Inn, which has to be one
of the best kept secrets in the entire country. The entire inn is
composed of about 10 different run down, vintage shacks, each of which
used to be slave homes over 100 years ago. The only differences between
the shacks from then and now are that electricity and running water
were installed, as well as some more modern bedding; other than that,
it’s about as “hick” of an experience as you can ever have. I stayed
and had a photo shoot here last year also on my way to New Orleans, and
it was one of the most interesting experiences of my life, so I decided
to stop by again. I think the term “Southern Hospitality” was invented
right here in Clarksdale, because of how nice the employees are at this
inn, and I definitely found true inner peace and tranquility while
relaxing on the front porch of my shack while listening to some Blues
music, watching the Mississippi sunset, and sipping down a few beers.
This is how life should be, and it’s a shame most people will never get
to experience this beautiful way of simple and carefree living.  My
next stop was Tulsa, Oklahoma, but on the way there, I stopped through
Little Rock, Arkansas for lunch. I pride myself on knowing a lot about
geography and various places, but I’ll be honest, Arkansas is a state I
often overlooked and never really thought about visiting, just because
I never really hear much about it. However, I quickly realized this
state was a hidden gem, because the state has so many unique things to
offer, from the natural hot springs to the Ozark Mountains to city and
night life as well. I ate lunch at this great German restaurant in
Little Rock and I wished I could have stayed longer, but I’ll
definitely be back again in the near future to explore the state some
more. I had my first show of the tour Tuesday night in Tulsa, OK, and
it was a huge success. I was the co-featured performer at an open mic
with Babs Martin, who is also an amazing musician and poet who I am a
fan of, and the venue was packed and I got a lot of positive feedback,
so I’ll definitely make plans to perform there again next year.  Now
as I write this blog, I am staring out of my hotel window at the
beautiful and impressive Dallas, Texas skyline. I just got here about
an hour ago and I can’t wait to explore the city and perform at my show
tomorrow night, so my next post will be coming this weekend and will
talk all about my adventures in Dallas and San Antonio, Texas, as well
as Oklahoma City. Stay tuned!
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Monday, June 08, 2009
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Current mood:  thankful
Many people, including myself, have always wondered what a Heaven on
Earth would look like. Well, I think I just found it in the Appalachian
Mountains of western North Carolina. Driving through the blueridge
parkway is an experience unlike any other. Everywhere you turn is a
picture perfect postcard scene. All you can see is mountain ranges
stretching on to the horizon, and the only sound besides an occasional
passing car is the chirping of birds. I have never experienced true
bliss and beauty like this before. The road is so high up in the
mountains that you can literally touch the clouds. This is heaven on
earth.  I started the day on Saturday by going to Grandfather Mountain state park, which offers the best vie  ws
of the mountains and the area. There is a swinging walking bridge that
is exactly 1 mile above the ground level, and the lookout cliff on the
top of the mountain is almost 6,000 feet high! The view from the top is
absolutely breathtaking and I could have easily spent the entire day
there.
The woods
are lovely, dark, and deep, but I have promises to keep, and miles to
go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep.
After
leaving the mountain, I began my 2 hour drive in the Appalachian
Mountains to Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville is a very awesome,
free spirited, liberal, artsy town in the middle of nowhere, nestled
deep in the mountains. I briefly stopped here to people watch, grab a
bite to eat, and bar hop. I can’t wait until I have the chance to come
back here, because it definitely felt like home to me and I can see
myself living there one day. On
Sunday, I first drove to Nashville, Tennessee for lunch. I stopped by
for a quick beer at the world famous Tootsie's Lounge, where many
famous country musicians and other celebrities are often spotted. The
purple building definitely stands out among the rest on the street.
My
main destination for Sunday was Memphis. I have been to both Nashville
and Memphis last year on my 2008 tour, so I knew exactly what I wanted
to see and where I wanted to go this year when coming here. I got to
Memphis and went straight to Beale Street to enjoy what makes Memphis
one of the most amazing and fun cities I’ve ever been to. Beale Street
is basically the little brother of Bourbon Street in New Orleans, but
it still has a lot to offer. The entire street is flooded with neon
lights and live blues and country music is pouring out of every bar as
you walk by. And best of all, you can drink outside on the street!
 As
I write this blog, I’m staring out of my hotel window and looking at
the beautiful Mississippi river and the bridge going over it that
crosses into Arkansas. That very bridge will take me to my next
destination an allow me to continue my journey out west. My trip has
barely begun, but I can already feel that I am at a place very far from
home, and the memories from these past few days will be cherished for
the rest of my life.
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