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Venice, Summer 2021 ~ Read
It started, as always, with a book read ahead of travel. It ended with a fascinating experience, involving a real Cinderella’s glass slipper and a glimpse into the life of one of Venice’s and the world’s most celebrated glass artists of the 20th century. John Berendt’s City of Falling Angels is a non-fiction account of the author’s investigation of the infamous 1996 fire of La Fenice, Venice’s storied opera house. Berendt happened to be on the ground, or, rather, on the water, in Venice in the immediate aftermath of the fire, and his book is an amazing portrait of the city, its politics, inhabitants, benefactors and detractors. The book reads…
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Venice, Summer 2021 ~ Travel
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Venice, Summer 2021 ~ Create
If you look closely at online photos of dining in Venice, you’ll see it in almost every shot. Once your eye is trained, spotting the unmistakable deep orange color becomes a game of “I spy with my thirsty eye”. Aperol Spritz aka Venezia Spritz, nice to meet you! 1 part Aperol 2 parts Prosecco (did you know it comes from Veneto, an Italian region with Venice as its center?) Club soda A slice of orange Ice Fill a wine glass with ice, add Aperol and Prosecco, top with club soda and garnish with a half slice of orange. Serve with a straw and act Venetian!
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Galveston, Summer 2021 ~ Travel
Galveston Island truly does have lots to offer, whether one just wants to hang by the beach, explore the beautiful historic downtown, take in the bayou living, enjoy colorful southern architecture, or simply load up on delicious seafood for the rest of times. We did all of it, in less than 3 days! One of Galveston’s most important roles in America’s history was being the site of Juneteenth, or June 19th, the day in 1865, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation by President Lincoln, when Union Army general Gordon Granger announced General Order No. 3, proclaiming and enforcing freedom of enslaved people of Texas. You see, enforcing is the key…
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Galveston, Summer 2021 ~ Read
Galveston’s name immediately evokes memories of several news-making Gulf Coast hurricanes and tropical storms, most recently Hurricane Harvey that dumped over 50 inches of rain on the Houston area in 2017, flooding over 300,000 structures, turning highways into rivers and causing over $120 billion worth of damage. What is it like to be on the front line of the coastal community, facing the landfall of the storm? How does it shape your everyday life, both in terms of physical attributes and mental attitude, especially when you know that these weather onslaughts have been a part of your reality since the beginning of times, and will continue and increase due to…
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SE Utah, Spring 2021 ~ Read
Edward Abbey’s non-fiction book describes his thoughts and experiences while serving as a park ranger at Arches National Park for two summers in the early 60s. Abbey’s book was viewed as both a revolutionary, angry, mocking account of car-bound civilization and industry, and a loving, poetic, personal record of a man’s conversation with the desert. I read the book while traveling through Moab, Arches, Monument Valley and Canyonlands. Some of the book’s chapters matched quite well with our itinerary, which brought Abbey’s work even closer to my heart and mind. I got a better understanding and appreciation of this land’s geology and uniqueness, and reflected quite a bit on human…
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SE Utah, Spring 2021 ~ Travel
We broke free! This was our first major family trip after over a year of pandemic isolation, and we were quite thrilled. Of course we picked a camper trailer trip for a reason, still trying to stay fairly isolated from hotels and crowds, avoid air travel and spend time outdoors. We had done a fairly extensive canyon trip 7 or 8 years prior, visiting Zion, Bryce, Antelope and Grand Canyon parks in a great loop that started and ended in Las Vegas, with a rented RV. This time we returned to the red rock country by driving over 18 hours through eastern Oregon and Idaho, by way of Salt Lake…
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SE Utah, Spring 2021 ~ Create
For most anyone who has ever tried it, fry bread quickly becomes an addiction. Though deep fried, it is surprisingly light, airy and delicious. We tried Fry Bread Tacos both on Navajo Land, and in Moab, and they didn’t disappoint either time. I am always on the lookout for Native American recipes and foods, because it allows us to engage another sense in experiencing the places we visit throughout the Americas. And, in my mind, this is the truest, most authentic way to understand any new place we discover. Sadly, many recipes and ingredients are lost to Native American displacement, genocide (we’ll call it what it is) and commercial agriculture,…
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About me
Hello. My name is Katya Miltimore, and I am a Russian expat living in the Pacific Northwest, Olympia, WA with my husband Michael and two daughters, Lena, 21 and Dasha, 16. I love and live to travel, and I am looking forward to sharing the places I have visited and even deeper experiences I have gained by reading about my destinations ahead of time, and bringing back flavors and crafts to extend my enjoyment of countries and towns near and far. In this blog you will find many photos of our travels, short reviews of books I’ve read, recipes of flavors I enjoyed bringing back to friends and family, and…
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Tucson, Spring 2020 ~ Read
Against the backdrop of national politics, the realization that the US-Mexico border is so close never escapes you when traveling to Tucson. The work part of my tript included a visit to Fort Huachuca, where locals talked about border proximity, and various enhancements, weaponry and mechanisms of border protection. A quick border patrol inspection stop on the highway back to Tucson provided a real life example of the ever present vigilance. In Tucson, a less militaristic contrast emerged, with lawn signs and graffiti appealing to the humanitarian disaster the dangerous illegal border crossings create in this region, with water jugs being the most prominent symbol of lifeline and hope. The…
