Once upon a time, cocktail hour was an occasion. A sacred space. When the work day ended, you visited your favourite bar to put a little distance between the office and home. This was not excess; it was ritual. A quiet moment of reflection. I love classic cocktails, and I make a habit of seeking out historic bars and pubs whenever I travel. The only thing that comes close to sipping an ice cold...
I’ve been in Berlin for the past few weeks, soaking up some art and inspiration in my favourite city. And no visit is complete without soaking up a few of the local spirits, too. I had a chance to stop by one of my favourite cocktail bars last week. And it just happens to be in the very same neighbourhood as our current short term flat. It’s called Beckett’s Kopf. There’s no sign to mark...
Me and Tomoko were shopping in Prenzlauer Berg early one evening this past Fall. And when the time was right, we walked down a quiet street until I found the blank steel door that I’d been searching for. There was no sign. Just a photo of the Irish playwright Samuel Beckett in a dark window. I reached out and rang the bell. A crack of light appeared moments later, and a head poked out. I gave my...
One of the most interesting things about living in the Mediterranean is the culture of the aperitif and digestif. Every country seems to have its own version. And exploring them is part of the fun of the region’s “slow food” culture. The traveler side of me loves the stories behind these drinks, and their unique pedigree. The fitness enthusiast side is curious about one simple question: do they...
Once upon a time, cocktail hour was an occasion. A sacred space. When the work day ended, you visited your favourite bar to put a little distance between the office and home. This was not excess; it was ritual. A quiet moment of reflection. In the words of Sinclair Lewis, a “canonical rite”. We lost this practice somewhere along the way. I think because we live in a society that has...
I received a lot of emails about my previous blog installment on the Pan American Clipper and the golden age of air travel. Many of you would have liked a taste of that bygone age — so I’m going to give you one. A little bit of history, right here in your glass… A lot of drinking goes on in the air these days, but it’s become nothing more than a way to knock yourself out...
Author of Vagabond Dreams: Road Wisdom from Central America. Editor-at-Large (Europe) for Canada's Outpost magazine. Columnist at The Shift. Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.