Farsighted Fly Girl

Kaua'i is an island that boasts several taste highlights that are a must for any visitor. You must try Hanalei poi, you must nibble a Pukka Dog and you must sample shave ice.  Now JoJo's is the place that will usually top shave ice lists or maybe Halo Halo but I didn't get a chance to go to either. Instead, I was advised to visit  Uncle's Shave Ice, a new treat shop in Koloa.  Shave ice might look like typical sno cone fodder but it's not. Good shave ice is literally shaved into a fluffy, snow like texture, it shouldn't be crunchy.  I tried an ice that was covered with my favorite lillikoi (passion fruit) fl as well as guava syrups. It literally melted on my tongue. The popular Hawaiian style is to fill the bottom of the ice cup with rich, macadamia nut ice cream but I nixed that. I figured I'd be overwhelmed by all the strong flavors. As it was, it took me hours to finish the heady fruity flavors of my shave ice. Yes, it melted but it was still tasty...

Kaua'i is a topographically diverse island filled with gorgeous canyons, lovely beaches and sweeping mountains. You have to experience all of these aspects to really get the complete picture of Kaua'i and one of the most adventurous options is to go mountain tubing. I love mountains and I love being in the water so mountain tubing sounded like a fun, if slightly scary excursion to try. I glimpsed the mountains looming over every place I visited on the island and I figured mountain tubing would be a much easier way to see them up close than hiking them. Kauai Backcountry features the only mountain tubing experience  on the gorgeous grounds of the former Lihue Plantation.  I not only gained upfront views of Kaua'i's  majestic mountains, I witnessed the expertise of the complex irrigation system of tunnels and flumes hand dug over a century ago. That's what I call an adventure. The tour starts with the tour guide outfitting passengers in headlamps, gloves...

In Kaua'i hula, like all aspects of traditional Hawaiian culture, is taken very seriously.  It's not about pretty costumes and elegant moves but about the meaning and purpose behind them. The colors, patterns and style of a dancer's adornments all reflect an aspect of their background and training. For instance, if a dancer is honoring Kane  who is symbolized by fresh water, they may wear colors and patterns that imitate water. During the Prince Kuhio Celebration, I was honored to learn how to make kupe'e, which are traditional wrist and ankle adornments that draw attention to graceful hand and feet movements. The process begins with asking permission from the god of hula before picking the plants. Depending on the hula, there are proper plants that should accompany the song. An array of plants were spread out on a table during the kupe'e workshop. Some plants offer wonderful aromas and some supply sounds. I selected the ones that were easiest to weave into ...

Being fly translates into any language. It doesn't matter if you rock an edgy salwar kameez  in Mumbai or a hot samba skirt in Sao Paulo, fly is fly.  And right now I'm fly in Korean because my current fave t-shirt showcases a cool chick with a Korean phrase, above. Besides the vivid cornflower blue hue and the beautifully hand drawn illustration, what really sold me on this tee was the meaning of that phrase. It says, "everyone's entitled to my opinion"! I had to have it.  But Chicago designer Anna Hovet  creates a tempting slew of culturally clever, signature tees that had me dizzy with the possibilities. I  seriously considered snatching up all of these $30 t-shirts. This innocent-looking tee above, says "looking for trouble" in Haitian Kreyol.  I contemplated this one but since I really don't like attracting trouble, I decided against it. This one called out to me first. The attitude and the fact that it's in Italian was enough  for me...

It's that time again. No matter that the sun is still shining in Chicago and the temps haven't dipped to their customarily frigid levels, it's the season to travel to one of my favorite islands. There are very few places that can match Jamaica's stunning beauty but what I love most of all is the island's unparalleled culture. Music and food are the hallmark's of genuine Jamaica culture and I like to envelop myself in both at Chicago's Ja Grill. No, there's no palm trees and there's no lyrical patois floating everywhere but there is ackee and saltfish.  The national dish of Jamaica is a savory blend of salted cod and mild ackee fruit, traditionally served for breakfast. The ackee is a  delicate, pale yellow,West African fruit that is poisonous until it's fully ripe, which is why I leave it to the experts to cook up one of my favorite dishes in the world. So I grabbed my friends and flew over to Jamaica via JA Grill and spent three hours at their ...

Last week, the world lost a wonderfully illuminating spirit and the last living link to the Delta blues. David "Honeyboy" Edwards was a legendary musician and beloved Chicago blues icon. There was such wisdom and skill that flowed through his sharply dressed, 96-year-old frame that I felt like he was divinely guided. He is mourned as the last Delta bluesman and the last connection to Robert Johnson, Honeyboy witnessed the "King of the Delta Blues" sip his last drop of poisoned whiskey but he represents so much more than that. I'm still struggling to articulate this devastating loss and what it means to blues in particular and American music in general. As the blues community battles for our heritage and birthright, I believe that Honeyboy will be assisting us.  Here is my favorite Honeyboy quote: " Blues ain’t never going anywhere. It can get slow, but it ain’t going nowhere. You play a low-down dirty shame slow and lonesome, my mama dead, my papa across...

The first time I glimpsed the dots bubbling underneath the ocean on the left, I thought I was hallucinating. I had sailed a jerky, sun-scorching hour to get to the whale shark reserve of Isla Contoy on the Yucatan Peninsula and needless to say, I wasn't in the best mental state.  The dreaded sea-seasickness had kicked in and I wasn't sure if I was seeing things.  When we set off at the crack of dawn for EcoColors Whale Shark Adventure,  I didn't know what to expect. I certainly didn't expect this Mayan warrior above, jumping and waving his talisman on the dock. I think he was wishing us vaya con Dios Americanos estupidos.  It did not feel comforting but what did I know? I was still smiling when I hopped on the boat, excited about this once-in-a lifetime experience. There are only two places you can see whale sharks in the world:Australia and Mexico. And I wasn't going to just see them, I was going to splash down right next to them and snorkel. By...