So the Sea Lions Have "VANISHED"?!

Last month, San Francisco's Pier 39 was filled with more than 1,300 (?) sea lions who took up residence at the coveted waterfront real estate for the last two decades.

These days, the celebrated sea lions have moved on--or "disappeared" as newspaper headlines have screamed this week. The story was top billing on the sites of The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times. The Huffington Post screamed its headline: "San Francisco's Famous Sea Lions Have VANISHED." (It was the same headline that the Washington Post used.)

Why the big headlines? I'm only somewhat sure. Tourists have flocked to the waterfront for years to get a glimpse at those adorable beach bums, arguably San Francisco's favorite mascots. Of course, the sea lions have basked in the attention, belching, scraching their faces and shoving one another off the platforms.

Friends and family members had told me to skip Pier 39 during my visit, arguing that it was too "touristy." I went anyway--less than two weeks ago--to see sea lions. I'm from the East Coast by way of the midwestern U.S.; it's not like I can see them everyday.

Maybe there weren't 1,000 or 1,300 or 1,500 or 2,000 sea lions there (the number varies based on the news source), but there were some. (I have bad unedited video and pictures to prove it.) And I saw others swimming around piers where there were no tourists.

Anyhow,I'm glad I went since we don't really know if they'll be back. Right?! :-)

Here's what I do know. Those sea lions didn't quite "vanish" in November. I saw them in December. December 2009. And on the day that I was out at the Pier, it was snowing--a rarity in the Bay. At that point, I wanted to leave San Francisco. OK, it was a dusting, but it was definitely cold. Don't sea lions migrate due to weather and food accessibility in the Bay? I know I would.

My guidebook had already told me that the sea lions "haul out onto to the decks January through July" so I was prepared not to see them.

Officials at the Marine Mammal Center don't seem as alarmed as media folks. They think that maybe the critters are off chasing food. Sounds plausible to me. Let's give them a chance, shall we?

Who knows if they're "gone" forever? I hope not. Other tourists should be treated to the same pleasure I had in seeing them up close.

Best Independent Bookstores [IMHO]

"When I get a little money, I buy books. If any is left over, I buy food and clothes."--Erasmus



I've been in more bookstores than I can count. One of the first things I do when I get to a city is new scope out the nearest independent bookstore, even if I'm toting a backpack full of books. Maybe that's why I have yet to invest in a Kindle, but that's a topic for another post.

When I'm on the road, there's nothing like a good book--and a good bookstore--to keep me company.

Last week, I added another store to my "favorites." It's listed below with my other favorites in the U.S. They're all great places to stop when you're on the road--or about to hit the road. (This, of course, is limited by my travels.)


5. City Lights Books, San Francisco
Founded and run by Beat poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, 90 years young, City Lights is San Francisco's most famous bookstore. Mr. Ferlinghtetti, who's still keeping shop, started City Lights as the first all-paperback store in the country but hardcovers are now mixed in.

The publishing arm of the business cranks out a few of its own titles each year. Perhaps unsurprising, the poetry selection at the store is particularly impressive as is the collection of books produced by small presses.

Flip through some of the books you've accumulated at a Italian restaurants in San Francisco's North Beach or pop into Caffe Greco where the friendly folks there serve up a mean cannoli and cappuccino.

4. Powell's Books, Portland, Ore.
Powell's claims to be the world's largest independent new & used bookstore and it's easy to believe them. Its City of Books location downtown--the bookseller has six stores--takes up an entire city block. Pick up a map as soon as you walk in to help you navigate the color-coded rooms. Wear comfy shoes; this is 65,000 square feet of book bliss. If you need sustenance, load up on cookies and sandwiches in their World Cup Coffee and Tea House.


3. The Elliott Bay Book Co.,Seattle
The wood floors squeak a bit and the air is a little musty but that's part of the charm. You could get lost in the charm; there are 150,000 titles in a series of inviting rooms with exposed-brick walls. Head to the travel loft and plot your next
trip, then grab a homemade dessert in the cafe below. The bookstore is surrounded by art galleries, eateries, clubs and cool retail shops in historic Pioneer Square District. Get there fast because the store will be moving to a new location on Capitol Hill next spring.

2. Harvard Book Store, Cambridge, Mass.
Founded in 1932, this bookstore is a classic in Cambridge, a town that is about as literary as you can get. Harvard Square is rated tops in the U.S. for density of bookstores per square miles. Maybe the store is a little "academic" but I've never gone in and couldn't find what I've wanted. Folks who shop here are intellectuals--and so are the staff members--but non-academics shop here, too. People in the know head to the basement for remainders and the impressive collection of used books.

When you're done here, savor a cup of fresh brewed tea around the corner at Tealuxe.

1. Kramerbooks, Washington, D.C.
Things get cooking at 7:30 a.m. with breakfast and the morning newspaper delivery and stay hopping til 1 in the morning at Kramerbooks, a bookstore-restaurant-coffeehouse-bar in DC.'s Dupont Circle. (They're open 24 hours Friday and Saturday!) Linger for a while and watch the mood swing. Long known as a hangout for singles, you go here as much to pick up a date as you do to pick up books. The food at Afterwords isn't quite what I'd classify as cafe fare: shrimp and grits, Moroccan lamb tagine, lobster with crabmeat. Books, food and drink--how can you go wrong?

Christmastime in the City

NEW YORK, New York--Beginning with the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade, it's the most beautiful and most festive city in the world.I'm so glad I was in New York in time for Christmas.


From Rockefeller Center to Lincoln Center, the city is a winter wonderland. The tree at Rockefeller is the obvious star of the Christmas show. But others deserve awards for their supporting roles.


There are the ice-skating rinks at Rockefeller, Bryant Park and Central Park; the Radio City Christmas Spectacular; lights at Lincoln Center, Grand Central Terminal and all up and down Fifth Avenue.



Speaking of Fifth, most retailers chose white lights this year, perhaps to not clash with their window displays. It's best to print out a map if you want to take a tour of the window displays. (Don't forget Macy's and Bloomingdale's.) Even restaurants and museums are transformed.









I couldn't help but snap tons of photos. It's Christmastime in the City.




Happy Holidays!

"Up in the Air"--Movie Review

Hollywood's buzzing about "Up in the Air," Jason Reitman's new work, as this year's "best film."

Based on the comic novel by Walter Kirn, the film stars the always-likable, always-hunky George Clooney as the ultimate modern-day road warrior. Clooney's character, Ryan Bingham, is a gun-for-hire who specializes in firing folks when corporate bosses can't do it themselves. He's so good at his job that he's on the move as a corporate downsizer: At last count, he's away from home 322 days per year.

But Bingham isn't so "successful" when it comes to relationships. In his moonlighting job as a motivational speaker, he preaches the "empty backpack" philosophy, which ascribes to the notion that the only way to live is to keep moving. Which is what Bingham does--until he meets his frequent-flyer match in Alex (Vera Farmiga). He makes a connection with her by disclosing that he's closing in on the 10-million-frequent-flyer-mile mark.

For once, we get a movie with a vibrant and enjoyable onscreen couple. The movie also excels with its storyline. Truth be told, I saw myself in Ryan Bingham. Not in the Bingham who coldly laid off workers but in the guy who likes to keep it moving. I don't live out of a suitcase, although my dad always jokingly suggests that I should.

The film made me laugh but it also raises questions about the value of family, connections, career and the cost of success. If you're a frequent traveler, you may also see the film as a window to your lifestyle. When Bingham realizes what he's missing by living an isolated life, it's the most intimate and honest performance of Clooney's career.

Sure, many of us would like to travel relentlessly, ever exploring the world. But life really is about making connections and giving attention to what really matters.

The resounding message I received from this film? Make sure there's balance in your life.

A View From the Bridge

The Golden Gate Bridge, one of the world's most beautiful spans, is one of the most recognizable symbols of the U.S. and arguably, the symbol of California.

I'd seen it in films, in print and on television, but I couldn't wait to see it up close.

I figured the best way was to cross it on foot, the way I had done with the Brooklyn Bridge, taking time to enjoy its beauty and its size. At midpoint on the 1.7-mile walk, you're 220 feet above the water's surface, where passing watercraft and their passengers look like toys.




It's the perfect vantage point for spectacular views of San Francisco, Alcatraz, Angel Island, the Marin Highlands, the Pacific Ocean and the East Bay.


Even if you choose to bike the bridge, this art-deco 1937 engineering marvel will make a scene.

Its signature shade of "international orange" blends in perfectly with the natural environment of the Bay, and helps it peek through the frequent fog. About 25 painters use 1,000 gallons of paint every week to touch up the structure.


Unfortunately, the bridge is the most popular place in the United States for suicides. Brando, a friend I met through CouchSurfing, organizes Bridgewatch, a suicide-prevention walk/watch to prevent people from taking their lives on the bridge.


If you're ever in San Francisco, walk across the Golden Gate Bridge. It's worth the trip.

In San Francisco, the Squirrels Are Nuts

GOLDEN GATE PARK, San Francisco--At one point in my visit to the lovely Golden Gate Park, I realized I was being followed by a squirrel. Yes, a squirrel.

I walked, he walked. I stopped, he stopped.

Finally, I decided to keep still and figure out who was the crazy one. It was him--or her. The critter came right up to me and reached out for my right shoelace. Okaaaaaay.


It wasn't me, I swear. Meantime, skwerl must have called out to his friends: "Hey, I got a live one" because two others appeared. One cozied up to my left shoelace while another looked me dead in my face and barked at me from a nearby tree.

What the #$%&(*?

Within a few minutes, a crowd gathered. "You lose a pet?" one smarty pants piped up.

Where I'm from, squirrels run from people.Clearly, Golden Gate visitors are feeding the four-legged critters well. With their constant begging, these pesky pests put the guys on San Francisco's buses to shame.

I didn't have any food in hand and didn't realize until after I left the park that there were two apples in my backpack.

Slightly nervous, I didn't move while the Skwerls pulled at the shoelaces, afraid and curious of what they would do next.

I tried to snap a couple of photos of them but they were definitely camera shy.

I didn't have to wait long for their next move. Skwerl #1 and Swerl #2 started crawling right up my legs. When I screamed like crazy, they slowwwwwly climbed down and looked at me as if I was nuts.

My roommate from the hostel went to the park the next day--food in hand--to see what the hubbub was all about. The squirrels sat on her lap (ACK!) and took food and nuts straight from her hand.

She's a better woman than me.

After the jump, some photos from the park, sans skwerls:





Get your Zen on at the Japanese tea gardenHave tea and Japanese cookies in the teahouseLook Ma, no tourists in the off-season

Be sure to climb the humpback bridge

Hot Spot: Amoeba Music, San Francisco

It's a music lover's paradise, a cavernous warehouse with endless rows of new and used CDs. Amoeba Music is the world's largest independent music store. We're talking a 24,000-square-foot former bowling alley with every type of music imaginable.

It's the kinda place where you could easily lose a couple of hours and serious amout of coin, snatching up CDs and vinyl when you know you don't really buy them anymore.

Forget about digital downloads for a minute. This San Francisco spot will take you back to the days when you tape-recorded music off the radio. They even sell turntables.

There are branches of the store in Berkeley and L.A.,too, but head to the heart of Haight-Ashbury, the birthplace of America's counterculture. There the tradition of making melodies on the street is alive and well. In fact, if you're lucky, you may catch a live gig at the store.

Diggin' in the crates, I found $1 and $1.99 CDs from Elton John, Arrested Development, Lenny Kravitz, the Eurythmics, the Police, Prince, Ella AND Sade.

After your trip down memory lane, you might be inspired to do a little sightseeing in The Haight. Head west on Haight Street to 731 Buena Vista, formerly the home of Bobby McFerrin and (several owners earlier) Graham Nash. Also nearby: the homes of Janis Joplin (112 Lyon), Grateful Dead (710 Ashbury St.) and Jefferson Airplane (130 Delmar St.).

Amoeba, 1855 Haight St., 415-831-2000

National Geographic Adventure, 1999-2009

National Geographic has decided to shutter the print edition of its Adventure magazine, a victim of the dismal print-advertising slump.

This is bad news, not only for the 17 people who will lose their jobs, but for adventure travelers like me who loved to read the tales of mountain climbing, glacier hiking and white-water rafting.

R.I.P.

Doctors Without Borders--the Documentary

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), or Doctors Without Borders, is one of my favorite charities. The humanitarian-aid NGO is best known for its medical projects in war-torn regions and developing countries facing disease.

On Dec. 14, audiences will get a glimpse inside the work of this Nobel Prize-winning organization at theaters across the United States.

In New York, ABC anchor Elizabeth Vargas will host a 7:30 p.m. showing of the documentary "Living in Emergency: Stories of Doctors Without Borders--Live with Elizabeth Vargas," and will moderate a live panel discussion afterward. The event will be broadcast via satellite from NYU's Skirball Center to about 450 theaters nationwide.

Set in war-torn Congo and post-conflict Liberia, the documentary shows the challenges four MSF doctors face in the field and the toll their work can take on them both professionally and personally.

The documentary on the NGO has been shortlisted for a 2010 Academy Award.

San Francisco, Open Your Golden Gate

Bohemian haunts, Victorian splendor.
Chic clubs in converted warehouses.
An obsession with good food (only Paris boasts more restaurants per capita).
A wild streak about a mile wide (Golden Gate Park).
Passion and protest.

San Francisco, a global epicenter of food, technology, street art, documentaries and poetry.

What's not to like?


Travel Song of the Day
Title: San Francisco
Artist: Judy Garland
Why: I'm headed there. Besides, check out the lyrics:


San Francisco, open your Golden Gate
You'll let nobody wait outside your door...
San Francisco, let me beat my feet
Up and down Market Street
I'm gonna climb Nob Hill, just to watch it get dark
From The Top of the Mark

There's Brooklyn Bridge, London Bridge,
And the Bridge of San Louis Rey
But the only bridge, that's a real gone bridge,
Is the bridge across the bay

Street Scenes: Mexico City's Metro

Taking the Metro is my favorite--and often the fastest--way to travel around any major city with a subway system.

It's the perfect way to get around Mexico City, one of the most congested and polluted metropolises in the world.

MC's Metro is the second largest system in North America after the New York City subway, but New York can take some lessons from the city to the south.

Despite the jammed-packed cars on the Metro, Mexico City riders give up their seats to the elderly and disabled, who ride for free. Not that it's pricey. The city's is the cheapest I've ridden; I paid about 20 cents to ride four of 11 lines. And there are women-only cars.

Miss a Metro? Trains run every two to three minutes during rush hour and every 10 minutes outside of that. Ten minutes isn't long when there's no eau de urine to distract you.



I'm also a fan of the station's minimalist logos at each station, designed to reflect the name of the station or its surrounding area. (Apparently they were designed at the time of the first line's opening in 1969, when the illiteracy rate was high.) I'm not a big fan of the orange, but the trains are so old they're (almost) cool again.