I think I always make a big deal out of my birthdays. I mostly play humble but maybe I genuinely want to have attention showered on me all the time, so birthdays are an acceptable way to literally have my cake and eat it too.

My new cat friend Hobbs.

Release of one of my fave book series.

Free food at the Brooklyn Flea

Gigantic margaritas in San Diego

Both trips that I’m planning for the rest of the year are to cities well-known for being sun-filled meccas: San Diego and Orlando.

I’m not really complaining. I could’ve been sent to LA, for cripes’ sake.

Room 1242 at the Boston Marriott Copley Place. Late afternoon.

We moved into various hotel rooms during this trip, but these are my favorite views from Hotel Porte Doree.

From Room 43

From Room 42

From the 25th floor of the Monte Carlo, looking out to the soon-to-open Citycenter

I walked across this bridge, in the rain, all by myself. I’m not particularly scared of heights, but to be honest, I was nervous for a few seconds there.

From the seventh floor of the Toronto Renaissance Hotel, facing south.

Whenever I travel, it seems that I always end up at -a- bookstore, either by accident or by design.

I was looking through my old receipts from the business trips that I took this year, and as expected, I saw receipts from two independent b-stores when I went to Lincoln and SF.

A Novel Idea
118 N 14th St
Lincoln, NE 68508

Stacey’s Bookstore
581 Market St
San Francisco CA 94105

It sounds a bit silly to be going to bookstores when books are so readily available nowadays either through the web or through the chains…but for me, there’s still something reassuring about physically going into a store and flipping through a title, breathing in that beautiful paper smell.

Address: Hackenstrasse 2, Munchen, Germany
Type: Asian/Italian Fusion
Website: http://www.prinzmyshkin.com/
Price: $$$

It was my last night in Munich and I wanted a change from the heavy pork and sausage dinners that I’ve been consuming for the past week. Frommer’s listed this place as a haven for vegetarians, so while not a diehard veggie-only eater, I’ve come to appreciate the appeal of a meatless menu, and that’s why this place was a must try.

Okay, first rule of travel dining: if a place is crowded and has a queue, it must be pretty darn good. Prinz Myshkin had a line of people waiting for a table when I walked in around 7:30 p, so yes, definitely a good sign. Since I was eating by myself, I really only waited 15 mins tops, which really wasn’t too much of a hassle considering the place was packed.

They had an English menu (luckily) but it still took me a while to make out my choice. Just ’cause the place is vegetarian didn’t mean that it was low-fat. There were soups, pizzas, Indian appetizers, Thai entrees, and pastas. If I ever go back here, I’m so trying the tofu stroganoff. In the end, I picked the Beetroot Coconut Ginger soup and the Tagliatelle Amanda (tagliatelle in a light tomato cream sauce with oyster mushrooms, hazelnuts, red wine, and fresh tarragon), with a Weiss beer. Everything was incredibly yummy — never would’ve thought it was vegetarian. Plus, my server was really cute and kind too.

Absolutely recommended if you’re ever in the area.

I was ’stuck’ in Munich when they had a storm this past week. But don’t feel too bad for me; strong winds and a little rain aren’t enough to deter me from sightseeing — and drinking lots of good beer.