Thanks for joining me on the journey.
I’m an American travel writer dividing my time between Seville, Spain and California. I travel the world seeking intriguing curiosities and outrageously delicious comfort food so I can have the fun of writing about them here. — Karen McCann
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The Art of Breakfast in Seville
I have to admit, it felt strange — surreal, even — the first time I ate breakfast in the same bar I’d been drinking in the night before. But this isn’t uncommon in Seville, where the line between coffee house and tavern is a blurry one. Then there was the morning I found myself sipping…
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Hot News! Olive Oil Doesn’t Make You Fat
And other reasons to love the stuff ancient Romans called “liquid gold” Before I moved to Seville, I regarded all fat as the enemy. When I used olive oil at all, I tended to pour a scant half teaspoon on my salad or into a non-stick pan to sauté my homegrown vegetables. So I was…
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Connect with Seville’s Vibrant Art Community & Bring Home Memories & Mementos You’ll Treasure
Who could resist a talisman capable of warding off the evil eye, especially one priced at less than $5 ? This nazar seemed like a lot of good karma for the money — until I got home from Athens and the lapel-pin promptly snapped off the back of the amulet so I couldn’t fix it…
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Dive Bars of the Mediterranean
“You’ve heard of Diego Armando Maradona, of course,” said Alessandro, our guide on the Naples Street Food Tour . I had to confess that my knowledge of European football ranks somewhere below my expertise in quantum physics, progressive jazz, and the history of duct tape. Alessandro, a street-smart Neapolitan whose “day job” is…
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The Mystery of the Vanishing Greek Taverna
“It has to be right here!” I exclaimed for the tenth time. Yet again, Rich and I walked up and down the sidewalk, around the corner and back, on an obscure street in downtown Athens. The helpful little GPS map on the phone showed a blue dot (us) right next to the red pointer (the…
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Our Surprise Day Trip to Albania
“Do you realize we’re just 30 minutes from Albania?” I said. “We could take a boat over tomorrow.” Albania — like Naples — is often viewed as one of the least desirable destinations in Europe, so naturally Rich and I have been longing to go. We’ve set out for it twice, only to have our…
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Naples, Italy: Embrace the Chaos
Our fellow passengers on the early-morning flight to Naples “I’m not panicking,” I growled at Rich. “I’m just saying all the coffee sellers appear to be on strike.” I’m rarely at my best for early morning flights; I sleep fitfully, sure that I’ll miss the alarm and worried I’ll forget to pack something vital in…
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Packing Extra Light for Our Most Unplanned, Disorganized Trip Ever
Living in a city that’s rated the number one travel destination on the planet, I often see tourists dragging around enormous suitcases — the kind that, in a certain sort of movie, would likely contain a dead body and/or ancient artifacts stolen from the museum. Incredibly, however, most travelers aren’t forced to buy these behemoths…
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Our Most Unplanned, Disorganized Trip Ever
“When I plan a vacation, the first thing I look for is a hospital,” a friend told me last night at dinner. Yikes, I thought! That’s not even in my top ten criteria. But her remark got me thinking about the different ways we all structure our journeys — a topic much on my mind…
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Will Legal Pot Bring Reefer Madness to My Small CA Town?
“Pot promoters eye town as bud hub” read the headline in my local newspaper. And there, leading the charge to bring newly legal recreational marijuana to the sleepy town of San Anselmo, CA, was Patrick Fasano, our family optician. “How’s this going to work?” Rich asked me over morning coffee. “First Patrick makes sure…
TRAVEL with CURIOSITY
These days I’m cultivating curiosity, which science says will keeps my brain agile. I figure spending more time on the road and indulging my natural nosiness about the world will be good therapy and a cheerful counterpoint to today’s headlines. And I will never run out of quirky stuff to write about.
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