Guy's Travel Blog

2009-07-03T07:46:00.000-07:00

The sun beats down upon you. The salt air whips around, filling you with the unmistakable aroma of the sea. You sway with the sometimes gentle, sometimes not, rocking of the boat. You enter a deep relaxing state becoming one with the god of the sea. Until, the tip of your rod bends forcing this haze to clear. You’re up on your feet effortlessly staying balanced and working your way to the rod holder. You grab your pole, pull back, and feel the lively tug of a fish on the other end. After an intense battle, you manage to get the fish in the boat with the help of your mate and a net. Not only is it the fish you were targeting but it’s a monster, way over the size limit no need even to check. This is saltwater fishing this is summer.

Ok, so that’s not really how it goes. It’s more like you’re cranky because it’s so hot out and you haven’t caught a single thing all day. The rocking of the boat is making your stomach turn, but you can’t say anything because you don’t want to seem like you’re not a true fisherman. As you contemplate chumming your guts over the side of the boat you actually see your rod tip bend. At first, you think it’s a mirage brought on by the heat, but then you see it again. You jump to your feet and trip over your tackle box, step in the container of bait, and almost fall over board before you steady your self and grab the pole. You pull the rod back and . . . and . . . you’re not sure if you feel anything? Probably just seaweed you think or a crab. After a few seconds delay of thinking should I reel it up anyway, you do only to find your bait gone. Dang it was a fish. I might enjoy the sport of fishing but I never said I was great at it.

Therefore, if you’re like me you can use all the help you can get and that’s when Berkley Saltwater Gulp! comes in. Not only does this bait stay longer than natural bait (especially in the daunting summer heat), it will out fish all other baits (real or soft plastic). I’ll use the 4" Pogy in pearl white, pink, and white glow; the 4" Swimming Mullet in pink, pearl white, and chartreuse; and the 4" Shrimp in penny. I find all three will work for Fluke (summer flounder) and Weakfish; I’ve even caught bluefish on a pearl white Pogy. They come in packs of four or in buckets under Gulp Alive! (Which are filled with their special ‘sauce’ and I will be trying out this summer) Berkeley Saltwater Gulp! has become my go to bait and I don’t think I will switch back anytime soon.

2009-07-02T17:06:00.000-07:00

Have you ever noticed that the week before a vacation seems to drag on forever? With just six days left until our next trip, I’m feeling that itch to get away big time! What better place to satisfy this craving than the great city of New Orleans, especially in the midst of the major event The Tales of the Cocktail.

I’ll let you in on a little secret. No matter what, Girl after a few days back from our travels will always come up with something she feels we missed. (Oddly, I find her sulking around the house extremely adorable.) That bit of travel regret (along with 1002 Things Before I Kick The Bucket) led her to create a list of things she wants to accomplish this trip.

So, keeping in that style, here is my own list:

Meet Mr. & Mrs. Cocktail (I’m beginning to think they might be Guy and Girl’s altered personality)
Have dinner and drinks at Muriel’s
Go on a cocktail walking tour again (This tour was so fun)
Try various brands of Absinthe
Have a Po’ Boy
Learn the Secrets of Successful Cocktail Photography
Get up early and walk down the river before the rest of the world wakes up
Listen to the Street performers
Go to a Blues Club
Find the restaurant Girl and I ate at the first day of our first trip
Walk around Jackson Square
Peruse the local Artists and artisans
Meet a ghost
Absorb as much as I can from New Orleans to use as inspiration in my own art

2009-05-29T16:58:00.000-07:00

Paris . . . Rome … London … Prague … and Disney movies? Yep, that’s right, Girl gets our travel ideas from Disney movies. Or, at least that’s what I tease her about. To which she very playfully denies (Just one of the things I find incredibly cute and love her for).

Yet, this got me thinking. I really enjoy seeing the art and architecture of the places we travel (Yes, I am a bore. I can spend a whole day in a museum and historical landmarks fascinate me). So, why not come up with a list of all the places I would like to travel to based on works of art. Easy, right? Right??

First, I jotted down works that came to mind. Then I spent some time flipping through my favorite art history book, and by the time I reached the end, the list was painfully long. I might be able to visit all these places someday, but I could never torment readers with such a list. So, below is a much-condensed version featuring paintings and one photograph. – Guy

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio
The Calling of Saint Matthew
San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome, Italy

Georges de la Tour
Penitent Magdalen
Musée du Louvre, Paris, France

Johannes Vermeer
Woman Holding a Balance
National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.

Rembrandt van Rijn
Self-Portrait
The Frick Collection, NYC, New York

Francisco de Goya
Saturn Devouring One of his Sons
Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain

Leonardo da Vinci
St. Anne, Virgin and Child
National Gallery, London, England

Caspar David Friedrich
Seashore in Fog (Nebel)
Neue Pinakothek, Munich, Germany

Gustave Le Gray
Un effet de soleil
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, Ohio

Vincent van Gogh
Wheatfield with Crows
Rijksmuseum Vincent van Gogh, Amsterdam

Henri Fuseli
The Nightmare
Detroit Institute of Arts
Detroit, Michigan