What to Eat Wednesday: Houston

Good grief, I've been meaning to write this post for some time now. I went to Houston at the end of January and start of February. My sister was getting married and it was a wonderful time. I didn't go out to eat too much as we made food together as a family a couple of times and of course, the wedding. 

I did write about one place I went when I was there and I had wanted to go for a long time: The Johnson Space Center. 

So here are a few food places in Houston and around Houston (my sister got married on Galveston Bay) where you can get some good vegan food, donuts and coffee. 

I always have a tough time finding good vegan mochas. Especially in the south. Somehow I got lucky this time and there was an adorable place a few blocks from the hotel called The Art of Coffee. It was filled with local art on the Kemah Boardwalk. An adorable neighborhood filled with candy colored homes.

We found a veg place that had really great reviews by the name of Field of Greens. I thought my tofu sandwich was simple, grilled, flavorful and of course, seasoned fries as I was on vacation. I also had a smoothie that I thought was not too bad. Not the best but still good.

My favorite, FAVORITE thing about visiting Texas is the Mexican and Tex-Mex food. This amazing place where they made fresh guacamole was one of the best I've been to in the last few years. Mamacita's was excellent. The margaritas were on the rocks and tangy. The food was fresh and they had no issue accommodating dietary requests. I loved my food here.

My new favorite naughty food adventure to take when on a trip is to find vegan donuts. This is a new tradition and Houston didn't disappoint. The place that was open when I had time to go (there are other options) was Hugs and Donuts. They had several vegan cake donuts for the taking and the blueberry one was divine. We got there near closing time in the early afternoon and they gave what was left to the kids outside so as not to waste them which I thought was even better.

Happy Eating!

What to Eat Wednesday: Vegan Las Vegas 2016

I went to Las Vegas again this year. It happens when tickets are cheap, the room is free and you need a break from reality. I am not a gambler so it's sort of funny that I've been here so many times. However, I love shows especially Cirque Du Soleil. I've seen 14 of their shows. I saw "O" this year and wow, it blew me away. There is also great vegan food in Las Vegas these days. I wrote about it here last year and now I'll share some old favorites and new ones. 

I went back to Slice of Vegas because the food is so good and of course they have an entire vegan menu. I am quite glad however that I walk tons and tons in Vegas.

This year our server at Slice of Vegas suggested we visit their other restaurant Hussong's. 

The food was pretty good. I enjoyed my tacos quite a bit. They have an entire vegan menu as well.

We try to go to one nice place each time we're there in between the causal dining. We love the Wynn for this. 

Last year we ate at Wing Lei which is the amazing Chinese restaurant there. This year we ate at Costa di Mare. An Italian, Mediterranean place. The food is out of this world. Rich, aromatic, with excellent cocktails to match. The service at the Wynn is always above and beyond. We get absolutely no attitude about our dietary restrictions. We also eat at the buffet at the Wynn when we are in town as it's one of the best. 

The atmosphere is gorgeous and romantic.

Off the strip we visited the not so fancy but magically delicious Ronald's Donuts. They have nearly 2 cases of vegan donuts. And the prices are so good. Most of the time you pay up to $6 for a single donut. Not here. $1.5-2.50. Lovely owners as well. I read the most stellar reviews of the donuts and they did not disappoint.

Breakfast was had at Violette's Vegan. I've had dinner here before and breakfast was quite good. 

Simple, hearty vegan fare.

I randomly was looking for lunch one day and wandered by a bar in the hotel I was staying at and found Holstein's.

It's not super vegan friendly, but they had a really great veggie burger with fries but what was truly the most YUMMY drink I had all week there was the Vegan Raspberry Coconut Milkshake. I actually went back and had one again at night the next day. It does have alcohol in it but I am sure they will make it without if you prefer. My pics are not great but wow, the food was a delightful surprise.

I tend to have a hard time finding a decent mocha in the mornings in Vegas. I always end up at Starbucks because they at least have soy milk. Hopefully, next time around I'll have better luck.

Happy Travels!

My First WorldCon

I have been reading science fiction and fantasy books for as long as I can remember. I am sure there are a lot of us who can say that because it turns out there are a lot of us geeks. You know who we are: not popular, not good at sports, not very social. Books were our life and that never stopped being the case.

 

As I have gotten older I have branched out to many types of books, but science fiction and fantasy in all its forms has always been my mainstay. In fact, I grew so enamored of it that I started attending conventions, working at conventions, have a room dedicated to geek fandom as well as my office being filled with geek toys. You know how it is, you love it, you love it all the way.

 

My new step this year was to become a voting member for the Hugo Awards. I am thrilled to have finally been a part of it. And what’s more, the convention itself was not far from my own home, so attending was also in the cards this year. WorldCon74 was held in KC, MO.

 

(BTW KC is great but that’s a separate post.)

 

Attending the world’s oldest science fiction convention has its pluses and minuses like anything does. I didn’t know anyone there and geeky people are not known for being easy to friend. Despite my efforts I didn’t do so well making new friends. But that’s okay. The panels were amazing and filled with great advice and world class writers. The Dealer’s Room took a lot of my money for books and gifts for friends. I checked out parties, the art show, a Paul and Storm performance (and I got to meet them!), a John Scalzi reading (which was remarkably fun), and of course I attended the Hugo Awards ceremony.

 

I knew going into it that there had been drama around the awards for the last couple of years. It was more than a little unnerving that  there was strife in the community. That it was aimed particularly at women and people of color, different religions and countries is frustrating since to me Science Fiction is the place where all walks of life, no matter how different, are accepted by each and every one of us (HELLO STAR TREK).

 

A lot of the female writers especially have been enduring an endless amount of harassment. As someone who is seeking to become a full time writer and has dealt with plenty of sexism and harassment at other jobs, I was more than a bit wary. 

 

However, women won big this year and that was truly inspiring. The community on the whole stood behind them and their amazing talent, myself included. The night of the Awards I was quite proud, plus Pat Cadigan was a funny, funny host. There is plenty of fallout from certain overly privileged people whom I refuse to acknowledge, but the winners are holding their own against them and it doesn’t change that they did amazing work and got the recognition they deserve.

 

The decriers rather baffle me as it’s not like there haven’t always been women writers or gay people or people of other races (besides white). They’ve ALWAYS BEEN A PART OF OUR WORLD. And them being here and also writing and getting recognition doesn’t detract from other good writers. The idea that it does is quite puzzling. Truly it does not even serve their best interest because people get bored reading the same old stuff all the time and if you turn people off to books, you turn them off to ALL books. Which means NO ONE IS BUYING ANYBODY’S BOOKS, which totally sucks.

 

Anyway, they don’t matter. The complainers are a group of hate-spreading opportunists growing ever smaller, most of whom just rile up who they can to get money out of them. There will likely always be a few of them, but hopefully they will join the rest of us here in the real world full of good books and many engaging voices. 

 

A few snaps from my trip:

Time Travel Thursday: Talamanca Reserve, Costa Rica

Going back through my travel posts as I've gotten completely off track with them: I realized that I never even posted my favorite place that I stayed in Costa Rica at the end of January this year. I had some genuine adventures in the jungles and on the wild beaches but when we headed into the mountains to Cerro Chirripó, I was so in love. This is Costa Rica's highest mountain range and it is covered in what is called cloud forest. Meaning the elevation is so high that the land is often veiled in clouds. It is so beautiful and so ethereal it is like being in another dimension. The place is teeming with birds and butterflies all in the brightest, most magical of colors. Flowers grow in abundance and the hiking gives you glimpses of breathtaking sights. And when you are all worn out at the end of the day you can stay at Talamanca Reserve. A gorgeous, comfortable haven nestled into the mountains with luxurious accommodations that included hot water showers(solar powered), gourmet food and a great bar. They accommodated my vegan diet with a variety of delicious and healthy dishes. The cabin was near a river that as you walked you passed dozens of plants and species of butterflies. In one short walk I must've caught a look at over 30 kinds of moths and butterflies. I cannot recommend this place enough. The staff was phenomenal to us and took care of everything as well as answering our millions of questions. I had a hard time picking through my pictures to share. So here is some and the next thing will be Cloudbridge Reserve which you can hike to from Talamanca.

Happy Adventures!

"Houston, we have a problem."

The news has been filled with amazing space things lately. From Scott Kelly returning from a year on the ISS to Space X landing a rocket successfully, it’s a renewed and exciting time to keep your eyes turned upwards. 

I love visiting NASA facilities, any space related exhibits, museums, etc..I love to learn about the great adventurers of our time. I have to say I do often feel a sense of sad wistfulness that I will never go to space. My most recent visit at the end of January was to Johnson Space Center in Houston. It was glorious. This was somewhere I had wanted to go as a kid and many of my friends went. We never had money for vacations and as such rarely went out of town. Traveling is a pretty big deal to me no matter where it may be. When it happens to be somewhere that is the site of monumental human achievement: all the better! 

To add to this I recently watched American Spacemen and followed it up with the movie The Right Stuff. I don’t often use fictional retellings as a point of reference but according to those involved in this movie the story is pretty close to reality. It shows the parallels of the American Space program and Chuck Yaegar breaking the sound barrier. 

American Spacemen also tells the story of a Minneapolis company that helped break altitude records and was pioneered strongly by a woman(I feel a vested interest in this, being a female and all). There is a great article about it here: High Altitude Balloon Innovation 

 

My visit to the Space Center was epic. It included a tour of not only mission control, you know: “Houston, we have a problem” but also the Vehicle Mock-up Building where all the astronauts come to learn how to use space equipment and the warehouse that stores the last Saturn V rocket that never got to launch because Nixon cut the budget. There is also a stray photo of the deer that live on the grounds. There were more animals as NASA does all that it can to preserve it’s surrounding environment. In fact, in Florida, all the grounds that belong to NASA are an animal sanctuary and protected space. 

As Neil Degrasse Tyson would say: Never stop looking up. (I also listened to his Great Course Lecture Series…wonderful. You can find it here: My Favorite Universe.)

A Bit of Geeky Madison

I have been to Madison, Wisconsin many times at this point in my life. It's on the way to Chicago which tends to be a place Minnesotans go a lot for trips and shows and the like. Madison is a great little town. The Austin, Texas of the Midwest: oddball, artist friendly, liberal and full of kind people. 

Just walking around it is a nice experience it's self. There's plenty of shops to stop in and old buildings to admire. There's good coffee and great food. 

I've stayed at various places on different visits but I think the place I stayed this time was my favorite. The Mendota Lake House B & B was a quaint place owned by two men who live in town. They went through the trouble to make fresh, vegan blueberry scones in the morning and they were quite good. There was also hot tea service every night. It's on the water so the view is top notch from the house. Have a look:

More of Madison: 

Next Time I'll do vegan food suggestions! Happy Day!

GeekCraft Expo

For the first time this weekend I am hauling a bunch of things I've made and written to sell at the GeekCraft Expo in Madison, Wisconsin. 

I have never done a show other than an Open House in my own home. This will be a whole new experience. I have a booth and business cards and the whole deal, like a grown up crafter. 

If you find yourself in Madison this weekend head over to the Masonic Center from 11am-7pm on Saturday and Sunday to check it out.

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Corcovado National Park, OSA Peninsula, Costa Rica

There was nothing that could prepare me for the wild beauty of Corcovado National Park. Only accessible by boat from Drake Bay by way of the Pacific Ocean. Certainly it falls under The Adventure of a Lifetime category. Spotting creatures here and there and everywhere. Mushrooms growing in the hazy humidity on the jungle floor. Dozens of Blue Morpho Butterflies flitting about my head as I watched lizards run across water. The entire place makes you feel as if you are in a Jules Verne novel.

Have a look for yourself:

Back to Costa Rica! Poorman's Paradise

Picking up where we left off takes us to the Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica. We went to stay at Poorman's Paradise Resort. This is a place only accessible by boat. We took a bus out to a tiny town that led us to Sierpe River where we climbed aboard a boat to the mouth of the Pacific Ocean. This was quite the adventure basically crash landing on the beach to get to the resort. I seriously felt like I was in a movie climbing into the water off the boat and taking my first look at the terrain. You could have thought you arrived in Jurassic Park. I might add this was a great time (the boat ride on the ocean) that Matt, our guide demonstrated his skill in keeping people from stressing. In particular, me. I am not a swimmer by any means. I'm not afraid of water and have been in the ocean plenty of times. However, I had never quite experienced something like this ride. We were on wild, open ocean (I have been whale watching but that was much calmer) and it could've been nerve wrecking but Matt kept me talking, splashing in the water and beholden by the beautiful scenery. I really appreciated it. 

The people who work at Poorman's Paradise are clearly very invested in their place. The cabins were adorable with lovely homemade touches, they made an effort with the meals despite the fact that they didn't really know much about a vegan diet upon my arrival(they had great coffee) and the drinks at the bar were amazing. The cabin I stayed in near the water was equipped with a simple shower and nice bed. The screens were always open (common practice in this warm country) so waking to the surf everyday was to be expected. We were here near full moon so at night the sound of the ocean was quite unbelievable. Also, there were monkeys all around and beautiful dogs. Someone took care of them as none of them looked unhealthy in anyway. This is also how we had a base for getting into what is called "One of the last wild places left on Earth," more of that next time! 

(Oh, and we went zip lining and I have a fear of heights but managed 13 zip lines over the jungle canopy-GO ME!) The canopy tour company is on TripAdvisor with a perfect rating. Corcovado Canopy Tour is who you want to go see about some amaze balls scenery.

More adventures soon!

~Monkeys are Made of Chocolate. Hacienda Baru~

The first part of the tour started at a restored part of Costa Rica. 815 acres that used to be cattle grazing land as the government tried to figure out how to feed it's population. Eventually they realized that what they had was beyond important and let the jungle start to come back to life. (Turns out cows don't do so great in the jungle anyway) There was hiking and breathtaking views and critters everywhere. Most of the time you're not fast enough to capture photos of the animals but we got a few. There was a night spent sleeping in the jungle and I woke up to something sniffing my head. And bats. SO MANY HUGE BATS. The name of the reserve I stayed at is Hacienda Baru and the people that worked there were very passionate about the land. They took great care leading us through the jungle and were so knowledgeable about the area. I was blown away by the love put into the land. The first pictures are of a few stops on the way out to Hacienda Baru.

A note about the tour I took: We used Wilderness Inquiry. A not-for-profit organization that leads eco-tours. I will go into this more in later posts but they are absolutely worth looking up. They have big, medium and little adventures and provide accessibility for everyone. Amazing. 

Our guide, Matt was great: organized, knowledgeable and well-prepared with skills necessary for first aid emergencies(there were a few in the group) (not me, thankfully). He also is possessed of a few rare leadership skills in keeping people calm and giving information in a timely, matter-of-fact manner. I really adored him. I would tell anyone to go on a trip with him. 

See you soon!

Museo del Jade

Another great place to visit in San Jose is the Jade Museum. I did not get as much time here as I would've liked but I am glad that I got some time to look around. I had no idea that Pre-Columbian artifacts included South American Jade carving. There is a pretty extensive collection of beautiful artifacts that are displayed in bilingual arrangements. Some of the displays are quite creative lending a great deal to the atmosphere with lighting and backdrops including a map of Central America you can walk on to explore the routes of jade trade and mining. There is a HUGE collection of every shape and size of ocarina you can think of and a really cool Shamanism exhibit. I would suggest having at least 2-3 hours here if you like to read all the information. The building is so well-kept and adds a modern line to the older city. There is a charming little cafe inside as well. You can take photos too. (I always appreciate that!) Fair warning, some of the art has nudity. Actually, I found it both interesting and funny.

San Jose! Wandering and Vegan Food!

San Jose is a busy place. The weekends especially have the streets and parks filled with people. When I wasn't in museums (I'll post about the Jade museum tomorrow) I was wandering around looking at buildings and trying food. I managed to find churros to eat and plenty of fresh fruit smoothies. A lot of passionfruit things everywhere which is my favorite so I was pretty happy about that. I had lunch at a great little vegetarian place Vishnu Restaurante. There was a woman eating there who helped us pick out food and then treated us to pineapple chocolates. I seriously cannot say enough how kind people are in Costa Rica. A lot of meals consisted of a "typical" Costa Rican meal of cascados. Which is usually black beans, rice, grilled plantains and some grouping of other veggies. I had a grilled hearts of palm in the city with this meal and it was delicious. The food was healthy and usually cooked in palm oil as it is grown and harvested in the country. I especially liked french fries cooked in it. AND I can't even get started on the coffee. IT IS AMAZING. I brought home a decent amount of it. It smells divine.

Hotel Grano de Oro

There are two places out of the 6 places I stayed that stood out on the luxury end of my visit in Costa Rica. The first place was in San Jose by the name of Hotel Grano de Oro. This was a gorgeous place not unlike a hotel you would see in a movie where a well-dressed star sits elegantly waiting for some clandestine meeting. I found the staff to be helpful and kind. Not in a faux way. The bartender was quite good and answered all our questions about the drinks he was making and about what alcohol was produced in the country. I didn't take pictures of the rooftop jacuzzi(s)but I spent some time up there as well beneath the night sky drinking cocktails and relaxing after not sleeping for 38 hours. The room was well-kept with drinkable water (there are places in Costa Rica where you can't drink the water but those places are on the wilderness end of the traveling) and a hair dryer, mini-bar, laundry service-perfectly comfortable.

The room was situated off a courtyard in the beautiful restored building and I loved having the window open up to the glorious plants and birds. Having come from the freezing Midwest this was a nice break to say the least. I would most certainly recommend this hotel for a stay in the city. San Jose is a big, busy place and this hotel gave you a touch of an oasis away after a long day exploring. The only thing I cannot comment on is the food as I did not eat in the restaurant as I was not sure they could accommodate my vegan diet. They greeted us with a fresh juice drink upon arrival and gave us a map to navigate which can be a touch tricky in the city. I would most certainly stay here if I find myself in San Jose again.

The Search for El Dorado

People often have asked me the last few years especially, where I get my creative inspiration from. They frequently assume it's from television and movies. To be fair, I am sure I am influenced by both of those mediums but there really is nothing that sparks my imagination like a trip to a museum with a bit of history and a bit of science not to mention endless amounts of art. I recently spent 11 days in Costa Rica and will write about my experiences all through this week. It was an adventure to say the least. I should began with saying I did not spend the 11 days on the beaches like most people do. I was actually told multiple times that I visited places in Costa Rica most people, not even people who live there go to visit. Fair enough. Some of them were not particularly easy to get to and I may have even at times been in a little over my head. But I made it back with world-view widening experiences which is pretty much what I want most of all these days- and stories to tell with pictures, preferably. I did get to spend a little time on beaches as well as in the city of San Jose which is where this week's posts will start. 

The first place I visited was part of the inspiration for my second novel Armand El Dorado. If you can guess from the title the myth of the city of El Dorado plays a part in the story. Now this myth did not originate in Costa Rica but it's influence reaches across the lands of Central America. The Pre-Columbian tribes traded in this region to gain the gold that they had. One of the more ironic things I think I learned was that the legend of the Golden City was not even based on gold from the region. In fact, at the time many of the things were made, there was almost no mining happening in Costa Rica or Colombia. All the gold came from other parts of the world. And not in particularly large quantities. El Dorado was a constructed fantasy created to mislead those explorers looking to take advantage of the people. The golden king was a tribes leader who would lead a ceremony that included tossing small golden artifacts into a lake in Colombia. Lake Guatavita to be precise. 

The Pre-Columbian Gold Museum is a well-laid out time line of the history of the region. Using not only golden artifacts to walk you through Costa Rica's rich history but also quite a bit of musical instruments. I actually rather regret not buying a replica of an ocarina which plays such a role in the world of the indigenous people. It is the most comprehensive collection of gold artifacts outside of Colombia. 

Here are some pictures from my trip to the museum. I would suggest having at least 2-3 hours for a visit. Plus, the area outside the museum is lovely to walk around.

Thank you for visiting. I look forward to sharing more of my experiences.

Flashback Friday, NASA Vehicle Assembly Building

One of the best things I've ever had the privilege of doing is getting to tour the NASA Vehicle Assembly Building. It's no longer open to the public as it closed to prepare for work on getting to Mars. When I was there (About 3 years ago) it had not been open since the 70's and we were apart of the second group to get to go in. I was besides myself with glee. What's more is the Endeavor shuttle was inside waiting to be prepared for her final stop at the Smithsonian. I got to stand about 10 yards from a real space shuttle. Yes. Geek Girl Ultimate.

What to Eat Wednesday but on Thursday, The Chicago Diner

This is one of my favorite places to eat when I get to Chicago. I just love it, love it, love it. The food is so yummy. There was only one location of The Chicago Diner the last time I was there two years ago but now there is a second one. We drove straight to the new Logan Square location as soon as we got into town. It's a fancier location so it would make for a decent dress up dinner. The food was still so perfect. I love the diner building in the Halsted neighborhood but, boy does it get crowded. Of course, seeing so many people willing to eat veggie makes me pretty happy. I cannot recommend the breakfast food enough and if you're feeling decandent- definitely get a shake. The Vegan Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Shake was to die for...and I had a vegan poutine which I've never had before...wow! Certainly this wonderful eatery is only safe for me as vacation food. As I would probably eat far too many of these things otherwise. Best keep the 400+ miles between me and this magical place.

Lake Michigan

It is gloomy here this election day. So I was looking at pictures from my visit to Lake Michigan in Chicago about 6 weeks ago. It was a nice, warm fall day. I really love visiting the Great Lakes. I've been to Chicago many times at this point in my life. It's a place I like a whole lot. I have old favorite places to visit but I also always find something new each time I go. You can never be disappointed by Lake Michigan and this particular day was no exception. Have a great day!

Padre National Seashore

I always try to get to an ocean if I am 3-4 hours from one. This does not happen too often but I was pretty excited to get to the Gulf Coast this year. I had always wanted to go to South Padre Island as a child and it never worked out for me to go. Isn't it funny all those things you hold onto from growing up that you become determined to experience regardless of how old you are? I certainly have been fufilling these missed opportunities as a kidult. A stop at a spectacularly crazy shop for trinkets was also in order. Hence the giant mermaid. Go off on Adventure!

Better Late then Never, What To Eat-Guero's Taco Bar

I'm a day or two off on my food posts but I do like putting them up since they seem to help people find vegan food. I get messages in my accounts about the pictures and I'm always happy to help. I love food and travel. I like finding new places and surprises. This is a place from my trip to Austin a couple of months ago. Austin is very vegan friendly. Guero's Taco Bar is no exception and I might add is a HUGE place. It does not look very big from the outside but it goes on forever and as such we were seated right away despite the big crowd. They have a seperate vegan menu. The margaritas were quite good but honestly, I think my favorite thing I ate was the baked beans. They were delicious. Not too salty or mushy. It's hard to find vegan baked beans as they tend to be cooked in animal stock but these were great. This is a popular, cheerful place and right on Congress Ave, you can't miss it.

Zilker Botanical Gardens

Back at the start of August I was in Texas for a week. We try very hard to not only visit big tourist sites but things a little more off the beaten path. One of the great things we found to visit in Austin, Texas was Zilker Botanical Garden. It was in the middle of the city near a very big park. It was a warm day and as such there were a lot of butterflies flitting about which made me very happy.