Even a Nature Girl Needs a Wine Bar

Yes, I've confessed to deliberately removing myself from a grand city like Boston to live year-round in the wilderness of the Adirondacks, but even a nature girl needs New York City now and again.

Problem is, as every Virtual Traveler knows only too well, I wouldn't be a VT if I had the money to go to New York City. I suppose if I were twenty-five again, I could go for the day--think 9+ hours roundtrip travel time from my beautiful view of the mountains. Don't think so.

So until my paycheck and my paltry investments perk up a bit, here's a shot of what I'm looking for this evening. A great NYC wine bar to get dizzy in, a spot to relax and have a pleasant conversation that, yes, will likely go nowhere, but lovely nevertheless.

Okay, all you Virtual Travelers, pour yourself a glass of your best and click on Ayza Wine and Chocolate Bar in Manhattan. Take some time. Get rid of that Jazz Webpage that comes up first. And then! Look around. Beautiful. Immerse yourself in its magic. Drink deeply, softly, and look around. Who do you want to talk to?

The other sensational wine bar in Manhattan is on the Upper West Side, near Broadway and 80th St. Cava Wine Bar. No website, but one rave review after another. I'm going when I scrape some money together!

I'm sorry to say that the other wine bars with websites just don't make the grade for inclusion here. On to wine bars in another city, perhaps?

Seattle Bites the Dust, On to New York City!

New York City is, without a doubt, my favorite city, and the web content alone makes it perfect for a Virtual Traveler Hotspot. Will my next guide in the Virtual Traveler Series be New York City? To be honest, I can't leave Cornwall yet, because I still have a few more adventures to add to my Virtual Traveler's Weekend in Cornwall. The content for web surfers in Cornwall has been incredible, far beyond my expectations, and I wonder if I'll ever find a better travel site for Virtual Travelers--the people who travel with their computers, tv sets, and their hometown libaries. But New York City, unlike Seattle, is full of web content. Let's go!

I've visited New York City several times solo, and that's the way to do it, because you can indulge your pet passions without having to placate your companion's interests or worry that he or she is getting bored.


I guess I can be accused of having written that Seattle is a literary mecca. For the West Coast only, mind you. No city on earth can beat New York City in the literary department. Yes, when I visit The City, as it's called here in the Adirondacks, I scour The Village Voice for literary events and author readings, I visit the New York Public Library, and of course the Barnes and Noble on the West Side, not to mention all the used book stores I encounter. The author lectures alone keep me on the subway, hopping from one bookstore to the next. C'est incroyable!

I frequent wine bars, my after 5pm spot, where I can explore several unusual glasses of the vine while jotting down my impressions of the day in my notebook. What could be better? Stay tuned next time for a tour of New York City Wine Bars.

A Side Trip to Seattle

As you know, my forthcoming Virtual Traveler's guide is The Virtual Traveler's Weekend in Cornwall. The project is progressing well, and I'm still anticipating publication on the Amazon Kindle late this summer. I'm also hoping to publish the guide and offer it at a low cost. This booklet will give you everything you need to fully experience the magic of Cornwall, England, using all five senses without leaving your home. Well, you may wish to visit your library, the grocery store, and the post office to pick up a borrowed DVD or two, but that's about it. Don't forget to take some friends with you!

During a long hike with a friend today, I explained that as a result of doing this project and virtually experiencing every adventure my readers will virtually experience (sailing, scuba diving, surfing, walking the Southwest Coastal Path, visiting Daphne DuMaurier country in the Fowey area, examining the ruins at Tintagel), I no longer feel a desperate need to travel to Cornwall. Traveling virtually has somehow satisfied my longing to return to that beautiful place.

I told my friend that I'm afraid to travel virtually to Seattle, a city I've long yearned to visit, because I may no longer wish to travel there. "What's wrong with that?" she said. "That would free you up to travel somewhere else." Of course. So today and perhaps for the next post or two, I'll take you with me to Seattle.

Gee! Having problems summoning up some good content for wannabe Seattle travellers today.


The Elliott Bay Book Company is supposed to be one of the best bookstores in the city, and Seattle, by the way, is a literary mecca. But I could not rouse this highly recommended bookstore via their website today. Makes me wonder. Economic times are so bad, and many Seattle bookstores have gone under. Has Elliott Bay Book Company bitten the dust? I hope not.

So my other Seattle favorite place to visit is the Seattle Art Museum. Better luck here, with some terrific exhibitions this summer. Take a look. Not the best museum website I've encountered. New York's Metropolitan Museum and Museum of Modern Art set the standard, as does the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, but still, it's half decent. Visit the New York and Boston museum websites for a sense of what is possible.
Hey! See the blanks in the text? Point your cursor over them and the text (and the all-important link) appears.

I hope to find better Seattle web content tomorrow (makes me appreciate Cornwall, England's out-of-this-world websites, but after several hours of searching, I'm not impressed that Seattle is a good destination for my Virtual Traveler series. Not at all. Stay tuned.

Cornwall's Most Famous Castle

Visit Tintagel Virtually: What could be more scenic than the stone ruins of a medieval castle perched high above a beautiful seascape?

I've toured Tintagel in reality on two occasions and both times had to be pulled away by my traveling companions. When I visit, I don't just see a ruined castle, I feel it. A sense of past lives and their stories emanate from the stone fortress that was Tintagel.

I've been researching Tintagel, the legendary castle of King Arthur. Even though I've been using online academic databases, I've found very few articles that give detailed information about the Tintagel archaeology dig of 1990.

Of course, most historians and archaeologists dispute the King Arthur connection, though they acknowledge that Celtic-aged relics and ruins have been found in the area, though not in the immediate vicinity of Tintagel.