A Slice of...Walla Walla, WA!

Welcome to Walla Walla--the town so nice they named it twice!

My husband and I first visited Walla Walla, Washington in 2005 while we were on a 3-day pass during our service in the Army.  We wanted to get away from the confines of the Army and the bustling pace of life in Tacoma.  The little town of Walla Walla was as far as we could get on the Army’s 250 mile radius restriction!  We came specifically to see the town's Balloon Stampede, mainly because we've been a hot air balloon fanatics since our very special balloon flight on our honeymoon over the beautiful Lake Tahoe.  Fast forward a few years, we were blessed to get job transfers and have made Walla Walla our home since 2008.

The area was originally settled by the Native American tribes of the Cayuse and Walla Walla.  The name Walla Walla means "place of many waters" and the area sits in the valley of the beautiful Blue Mountains.  While visiting Walla Walla to address Whitman College in 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt officially announced his 1904 candidacy and even said that Walla Walla left "the pleasantest impression upon my mind of any city I visited while in the Northwest."

Getting to Walla Walla, from just about any direction really, kind of takes you a bit off the map!  The last 55 miles into town is on a two lane highway passing through the little towns of Lowden and Touchet.  Since the valley is a big agricultural area--supplying 70% of the nation's wheat and as well as our famous sweet onions--often times you can get stuck behind a large farm equipment on the highway.  It makes for a very slow ride into town but I think it prepares you nicely for the country pace of Walla Walla...

Walla Walla is known for being a very friendly town—we’re actually leading in the “Friendliest Small Town” category in Randy McNally’s 2011 Best of the Road contest!   We get all four seasons here and our summers can be long, dry and pretty hot!  We have a nice little farmers market every weekend from May to October.  You can get locally grown asparagus, cherries, peaches, and of course Washington apples and our famous sweet onions!  We even have several local artisans peddling their wares—everything from homemade jewelry and repurposed barn wood creations to my personal favorite—handmade vegan, super luxurious soaps from Moxie Organix!

I recently discovered several farms in the valley that are “u-pick”.  My personal favorites so far are the Lowden Lavender Farm and the blueberry patch at Lampson Farms!  You can pick fruit all day, and last year blueberries were only $1.30 a pound.

The first weekend in May, the Walla Walla Valley has its annual Spring Release—which is the first release of wines for the season.  The valley achieved American Viticulture Area status in 1984 and the wine has been flowing steadily since the mid 90’s.  Right now, we have over 100 wineries!  Some say that we are quickly becoming the Napa of Washington state.  Several wineries have even been featured in Sunset Magazine!  The Valley is known for bold, juicy syrah and smooth smoky cabernet sauvignon grapes.  So if you are a wine drinker-- this is the place for you.  Some of my personal favorite valley wineries are Watermill, Tertulia Cellars, and Robison Ranch Cellars.

The second weekend in May is our annual Balloon Stampede.   This year marked the 37th annual stampede.  Unfortunately the weather didn’t hold out this year, but normally on Saturday and Sunday there are early morning mass ascensions of about 40 balloons and on Saturday evening there is the night glow.  It’s pure magic, if you ask me!
 

In June, Walla Wallans turn out to Borleske Stadium to watch the Walla Walla Sweets play on the baseball diamond.  The Sweets are part of the West Coast League, an all wooden bat league to keep collegiate men slugging in what would normally be their off season.  Game days are exciting because the town is really supportive of the team, price of admission is only $4, you can still get a hot dog for $2, cold locally brewed beers for $4 and the score board is manually updated by a Score Boy!  Hearing the crack of the wooden bat really brings you back!  Plus our mascot—a snarly eyed sweet onion—is a real kick!

At the end of July, we celebrate the sweet onion with a festival right during their peak harvest season.  You can find all kinds of onion-infused foods from mustards and dressings to onion-filled sausages.  There’s also a host of onion-inspired events like onion-sack races, onion eating contests, onion bowling and even the Food Network’s Glutton for Punishment filmed a segment here last year—an Onion Peeling Contest with Bob Blumer.

August is a great month in the valley.  The vines are starting to fruit and the wineries are preparing for harvest.  I got to know the vintners at one winery and they invited me to help pick the fruit and bottle the wine.  It was such a great experience, kind of makes a cubicle-rat like me re-evaluate my career goals!

Year round there areopportunities to soak up the Valley, if you are willing to get out there and look!  Sometimes during an early morning coffee run, you can admire an impromptu balloon launch.

Or even biking thru the vineyards in autumn and finding a nice place to smooch.

Or driving thru the rolling hills of wheat to oogle at the big gigantic wind farms.

But most days, especially like the nice sunny one’s we’ve had recently, you can find me on the back deck, hanging in my hammock enjoying a nice glass of local syrah while country life just floats on by!

Care to hear more about the wonderful world of Walla Walla?  Stop by my blog Storm-in-My-Teacup where I ramble about enjoying a sweet life in Walla Walla, the animal antics of a rescued retired greyhound and two cute tuxedo kitties.  When I am not working at overcoming infertility, my husband's and I are travelling the country in our vintage VW bus.  CHEERS!  : ) elaine

A Slice of...Humboldt County, California!

Oh hello, Sometimes Sweet friends!! We are Michelle and Chad (and Dharma and Bodhi, too!), and we’re pretty sure we live in the most magical place on earth (Disney World ain’t got nothin on us!)…and that’s why we want to share it with you! If you live in the US (or not!), you should most definitely make our home your next vacation destination!

Greetings from Humboldt County, California!

At first, we thought maybe it was just us and the excitement of being somewhere new and completely different from the dry, hot, crowded desert that we were used to, but we soon learned that we are not the only ones who feel a sudden wave of tranquility the moment we pass the Humboldt County sign on Highway 101, like a breath of fresh air…real clean air! Its funny how many people don’t even know of this place, but I think we secretly kind of like it that way. We live right on the coast in Northern California, when you think “Nor Cal” you probably think San Francisco and that’s about it…but there is a whole enchanted world beyond the bay that you must explore! From San Francisco, take the 101 North and in about 4 hours you will be in awe of your surroundings…thick forest and rolling hills as far as the eye can see, not to mention the majestic ancient redwoods old and wise and grander than anything you have seen before(unless you’ve seen a dinosaur, then you win). And that’s not all, there are a handful of fun little tourist traps along the way…you know you need a redwood burl of a bear, or a Bigfoot, or…Shrek.

 

The drive takes you through The Avenue of the Giants, the One Log Home, and Confusion Hill (where the water runs backwards in the stream!). You’ll pass through a few small towns with one main row (along the 101) of independently owned shops, restaurants, cafés, and natural foods stores. You’ll feel like you’re in a hippie mecca, and you totally are…hippies love Humboldt, fact. ;)

 

We actually live in Eureka, which is a small coastal town (we can see the bay from our back porch!) and like all the other towns along the way, the 101 runs right through it. It’s actually our main road through town and not at all like the highways and freeways of a big city. We are actually a big logging town (more heavily in the early days) and there is an insane amount of history here. Our neighborhoods are filled with beautiful Victorian homes painted in some of the wildest color combinations we’ve ever seen (its fun to say you live next door to the teal, lime, orange, yellow house or the pink and gray house with the gargoyles)! And there is the coolest house in old town Eureka called the Carson Mansion, it’s was used as a model for the Haunted Mansion at Disney Land (see…told you it was magical here! We inspired Disney Land. Holler!).

 

We have 5 local farmer’s markets each week (there are actually more but we go to just 5 of them…that’s plenty), and everything is amazing and delicious and fresh! They are vended by the farmer’s themselves and everything is local, and it’s far less expensive than shopping at the grocery store. We have a huge local food scene, and because we aren’t exactly located in the most convenient location for delivery (you should see our gas prices…insane!), we have the most sustainable community we’ve ever lived in…not perfectly so, but far far better than anywhere we’ve been yet. In addition to local produce we also have local coffee, a local tofu shop (this means nearly every restaurant in town has local vegetarian options, seriously awesome!), all kinds of local cheeses, dairy, and eggs, local Humboldt free range grass fed beef (you can visit the farms for yourself!), and also incredible local products like jams, sauces, vegan cookies and cakes, vegan jerky, vegan chocolates, and honey. We have an amazing natural foods store and our co-op has the best bulk section we’ve ever seen (we sometimes take our guests there like it’s a tourist attraction)! We aren’t really big drinkers ourselves, but we also have 3 local breweries and a handful of great wineries too, all award winners! We also have some really fantastic restaurants, almost all catering to vegetarians with vegan options too. And we love knowing that even when we eat out our food is fresh and local, we don’t have many chain restaurants at all (we do have a sizzler, of all things) and our towns actually have ordinances against big business, only allowing a certain number of corporations in (we are proud to say we do NOT have a WalMart!!). We even have one fully vegan restaurant called Wildflower, in Arcata…vegan mac and cheese, vegan french toast, vegan rueben?...delicious!!

 

We also just to happen to have a really great arts community and we have a few local art nights each month. But not only are there painters, sculptors, crafters, graffiti writers, photographers, film makers, dancers, singers, any-instrument-under-the-sun players, bakers and candlestick makers…we have inventors too! Check out the Kinetic Grand Championship! We have a lot of concerts and little festivals year round, and our community of people is overall very artsy, loving, open, and peaceful…it is not rare to get free hugs here in Humboldt. One of our favorite spots in town is called the “Devil’s Playground” (we have no idea why it’s called that, there is nothing particularly devilish about it), it is an abandoned truck docking station behind the mall (the “mall”), that has been taken over by artists. It is such a rad place!

Art gives life to the things people have forgotten.

 

We live in the trees, man (imagine our best Tommy Chong impression here)!

It’s seriously so amazing! When else will you EVER be in the Ewok Village? Let’s be real. If you ever get the chance to visit the Redwood Forest, we highly recommend it we have had some incredible experiences among the ancient trees of Humboldt. There is something deeply humbling about little tiny you in a thick forest of giants. We have a lot of great places for woodland adventures here! Right in town we have the Arcata Redwood Park, which is located right next to Humboldt State University and Sequoia Park in Eureka, but there are forests all around us so we could pretty much head in any direction and be in the trees (unless we head towards the ocean, but we’ll get to that later). Our forests have a feeling all their own, and no matter what time of year it is, the colors are so impressive! It is like a vivid green empire of ferns, moss, leaves and foresty things. And mushrooms! We have so many fungi! And if you pass the giant Paul Bunyan and Babe the Ox, be sure to pull over for a photo! And check out the Trees of Mystery!

Flippin magical dudes, we’re tellin ya!

Fern Canyon is a rad spot located off the highway down this long bumpy dirt road, into the mystical land of Jurassic Park! Well okay, there aren’t any dinosaurs…but they did film here! Even without the dinosaurs, Fern Canyon is an epic place for an afternoon adventure. (Run around like screeching like velociraptors if you want, we don’t judge.)

 

Chad proposed to me by the river in Avenue of the Giants…so romantical.

 

The trees are seriously huge…just in case you didn’t believe us.

 

We also live right by the ocean…yes, THE ocean! Not the kind of beaches you go to for swimming or laying out with a book, it’s too cold for that (although we do have rivers, which are awesome for swimming in the summer!). We have the kind of beaches that make you have to pick your jaw up off the sand, like completely breath taking. If you are a photographer you should come here to take your next prize winner, and if you’re not…your pictures will look awesome anyway. ;)

We don’t go in the water because it’s freezing (also I am not interested in leaving this world as a snack), but Dharma does! Oh, and surfers, surfing is pretty big up here. There’s Loleta Beach, Samoa Beach and dunes, Clam Beach, Moonstone Beach, Lufenholtz, College Cove, Trinidad, Patrick’s Point State Park, which has the agate beach…and those are just the ones we go to! Our beaches are dope! It is the only place we’ve ever been where the forest floor turns to sand and opens up to the ocean, all in one 20 minute hike. One side of you is trees and the other is ocean. It’s…magical! (have we mentioned?)

 

 

 

Yay! We hope we didn’t bore you with all of this awesomeness. ;)
And we hope you come visit Humboldt on your next road trip!
Living here has completely changed our lives, and we feel it has helped us grow into the people we are now.
If you can spend some time here or even just pass through and pull over at one of the view points, you’ll know just what we mean.
Much Love homies.

May the force be with you…nanu nanu.
M+C

 

A Slice of...Richmond, Virginia!

Hey bloggers! Kara here from Once There Was a Tree. I'm a twenty-something social worker who enjoys long weekends at the river, camping, and going on random adventures. This summer marks my 3 year wedding anniversary to my wonderful husband and high school sweetheart (we've been a couple for 10 years total!), and hopefully we will be celebrating in our very first house this year (fingers crossed!). We have two dogs, Pete & Samson, who we treat like our very own children. My blog is mostly about everyday life and exploring who I am, what I believe, and where I am going. Come say hello! =)

So without further ado...

I live in Richmond, Virginia. A little city known by many names - River City... Cap City... Fist City...  this has been my home for my entire life and there is no other place like it! This little city is slam packed with history, art, shopping and music. We're also named the Tattoo Capital of the East Coast, and Richmond ranks #3 in top tattooed cities in the nation.

History:

Richmond is full of history, which makes sense considering we were once the Capitol of the Confederacy during the Civil War. Also, St. John's Church is right down the street from my loft - you know, the one where Patrick Henry gave his ''Give me Liberty or give me Death'' speech.

[found via google.com]

Sometimes, my husband and I take a day off work and visit some of the local (and cheap or FREE) museums in Richmond. Our favorites include...

1. The Edgar Allan Poe Museum

2. The Virginia Holocaust Museum which, I might add... is every bit as moving as the larger one in D.C.... also, the Director was a Holocaust survivor and throughout the tour there are pictures of him and his family along the walls. There's also a life size model of his families hide-out, extremely emotional to experience.

3. The Virginia Science Museum aka one of the coolest places in Richmond -- this used to be an old train station and they hold free events such as ''Live Sky'' in their planetarium every month.

4. I've never really been in this one, but the Museum of the Confederacy is on my jogging route (for those of you out there interested in the war).

5. And finally, the Black History and Cultural Museum. There is a small fee for this one, but it's totally worth it!

Art:

I am lucky enough to live in the Art District of Richmond City. We actually live across the street from Art Works which is a small art gallery that features local artists - our wedding reception was held here, so it will always hold a very special place in our hearts. Everywhere you turn, there are galleries, sidewalk art shows, and murals. I absolutely love living amongst so much creativity!

We have a very strong graffiti culture here, and while some are annoyed by it... I happen to think it adds a little character to some of our abandoned warehouses and boxcars.

As I said earlier, we're a pretty tattooed city. I can literally count on my fingers the number of people in my life without tattoos... small shout out to my tattoo artist, Josh at Heroes & Ghosts!

Here is a picture of the quarter sleeve he just finished. Josh did it all by hand, and I can't wait to see him again for my next one!

Shopping:

 [found via google.com]

Anyone who knows anything about Richmond has probably heard of Cary Town. People of all ages flock to this strip for good food, street vendors, and really good stores. Some of my favorite places to shop in Cary Town include:

1. American Apparel, because who doesn't enjoy clothing that is made in America without the use of sweat shops? Plus... they make the softest tee-shirts. Ever.

2. For the Love of Chocolate -- seriously, every candy you could ever think of is located in this tiny shop! I can never manage to leave without spending at least $20 on goodies...

3. Bygones Vintage Clothing is my all time favorite place to shop for anything vintage! They have everything from vintage post cards to hats, cigarette cases, sunglasses, shoes, handbags, and dresses. It's seriously like stepping back in time -- my brother even saw Drew Barrymore shopping there last summer!

4. The Byrd Theatre is known across the nation and was built in 1928 -- you can feel the history the moment you step through the doors. Today it is a historic state and national landmark, and you can see movies here for $1.99... seriously a steal!

[found via google.com]

 
5. Plan 9 Music is one of my favorite places to hang out, because 9 times out of 10 there is a local band playing a show right in the store, and the record section down stairs is to die for. My husband and I like to see who can get the most records for the cheapest amount - it's easy to find them for $1-$2 a piece!

Music:

Richmond loves to promote local music and it's not uncommon to find people performing in the streets or in restaurants (especially in Cary Town). I saw my first show at Alley Katz. Some other great music venues include: The Canal Club, The Hat Factory, and The National.

Because we live right on the canal, one of my favorite things to do is to walk along the James River and hang out at Friday Night Cheers in the summer. It's located on Brown's Island and they host a number of both local and national acts. Nothing beats a cold beer and good music!

I will leave you with a few links connecting you to my favorite restaurants in Richmond: Cafe Gutenberg, City Dogs, and Sine Irish Pub. These are 3 places that I could seriously eat at every single day and never tire of!

 [found via google.com]

 
So that's my city in a nutshell! I hope you enjoyed reading and were possibly inspired to come explore Richmond for yourself!

A Slice of...Munich, Germany

Hi there! My name is Lilly, and on my blog Panic & Punkrock mainly about my life and stuff that I like, such as style, decorating, food, crafting, parties and the little pretty things in life. I am a twenty something girl, working in a design shop, studying, and trying to make the best out of my free time.
I've been moving to Munich 5 years ago, enjoying the mix of small-town-life and the perks of a city with my friends and boyfriend, and I'd love to show you my favorite places and activities!

Even if you know little about Munich, you probably have heard about the famous Oktoberfest. This is the annual beer fest which attracts so many guests from all over the world!

No matter where you're from, every Autumn in these two weeks, you dress in traditional Bavarian costume and drink huge amounts of beer in a beer tent. There is a huge amusement park and various food stands put up, but let's be honest, it's all about the beer.

 

One thing I really love about Munich, is that it is relatively small and you can reach every important point by bike within half an hour. Needless to say I love bike rides in summer and spend every free minute exploring secret places of the city.

There are some small lakes and out popular river, the Isar near, where we like to spend hot days and free evenings bathing, and having picknicks and barbecues.

 

English Garden in winter

Westpark

Another famous thing about Bavaria in the summer are the get-togethers in beer gardens. Here you can eat "Obazdn," a great cheese speciality, that is eaten with pretzels and, very likely, a mug of beer. If you are not a vegetarian, you should definitely try a "Weißwurst," which is a sausage.

A famous beer garden is located in the English Garden in the city center. This is a very huge park, where you can even do some surfing and horse riding, or simply relax and have some ice cream.

This is Obazda! A typical Bavarian Speciality we like to eat in beer gardens.

Since I am a lover of all kinds of sweets, one of my favourite places is the little cafe "Mäser & Luksch." Here I often buy the cutest of all little desserts or cakes, which are always decorated with gold foil, fresh fruit and the best chocolate on earth. You should really try to choose your favourite dessert, but let me tell you, this will take some time.

Munich has another attraction, the Tollwood Festival, that takes place twice a year. The atmosphere is pretty magical and there are so many impressions like concerts in a wood, a bazaar with handmade things and art, or food stands from all over the world – and everything is organic here!

Whenever we have a sunny day off, we take our time to drive to the wildlife park Poing near Munich. I think deer and other animals are really fascinating and I love watching and feeding them in their natural environment. My very favourites are the donkeys, by the way!

When it comes to partying, we have some nice clubs around here in Munich. My personal favourite party is the monthly Starmelt Club at the Muffatcafé, another one I like is 59to1 and of course, I have to mention the Atomic Café where there are great clubnights and small concerts of unknown bands, just like the Babyshambles...you know, back then.

Now I hope you have an impression of my city, and feel like spending some time here! Of course I have a lot of more tips, that I present on my blog or to each one personally!

Thank you so much for reading!