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make sure you see bubble gum alley, which, as the name implies, is an alley covered with gum (and other stuff like photos and other ephemerata.) It is on Higuera St, just North of Broad St.

And of course there is so much else to do in San Luis Obispo. Hiking, biking, etc., Bubble Gum Alley is just the icing on the chewy chewy cake.

I’ve been hearing about Vancouver for ages. And now I have a friend who is living there and am hoping to make a trip up that way to see her this summer or fall.

Totally worth it – amazing amazing city.

Sure, see the Fench Quarter, but then get the hell out of Disney and see the real New Orleans. It’s out there, you just have to look.

But you also have to be careful. It can be dangerous. Nola was already pretty impoverished before Katrina. But the city is magic, anything can happen and freqently does.

an amazing blend of old world and third world that doesn’t exist anywhere else in the U.S.

it’s a toss up between here and the Seychelles…

i want to go snorkeling here someday!

wow – i’m just trying to think about who would visit NYC and then check the “Not Worth Visiting” option. Not me anyway. A city among cities, i love this place. I can’t imagine get sick of visiting here.

the one word entry would be “variety”. i love showing up and seeing the diversity of people here. and of course the art and culture and music and photography and museums and of course of course the food.

i usually stay with friends in Brroklyn or in Manhattan and always have a great time, even if it is just walking around and staring at things like a rube.

totally worth the visit for Barton Springs alone. Plus there is a pretty good music scene there, lots of outdoor stuff (biking – hiking) great tex-mex eats and plenty of friendly folks. Austin is the state capitol, and much more liberal that much of the rest of the state.

Austin is sometimes referred to by locals as “the velvet rut” or “the velvet coffin”. meaning, it is a town where it is very easy to stay there forever, because even though you may be getting absolutely nothing done, it feels real comfortable doing it.

years ago a few friends both got me into lots of brazillian music -which is amazing – and that has led me to want to go to Sao Paulo and Rio and check out the life there.

and before my musical interest, i was intrigued by Brasilia – the new capital carved out of the amazon. just the whole concept of “oh – lets start from scratch and make this new city in the middle of nowhere.”

I love it here – for a few years each fall i would visit friends in Brattleboro for the fall foliage season. Amazing colors that will make your eyes fall out! (so be careful) and there is an almost indescribable feeling in the air – that seasonal change we feel in our bones – the temperature and the leaves are dropping – the trees in the woods are rustling in the wind. one of my favorite places in the world in the fall.

L.A. is great. One of those cities that everyone across the U.S. seems to dislike. I was one of them. Swore I’d never live here. Too fake. Too flashy. Too trafficy.

Then I came out to visit for a wedding and was hooked. Really interesting mixture of architecture. Great neighborhoods. Wide variety of food choices in Thai Town, Little Tokyo, Korea Town, Little Armenia, Chinatowns (there are two chinatowns!) Little Ethiopia. And lots of friendly interesting people.

Yeah – the glitzy fake part exists too, but it’s pretty much in your face only if you seek it out. I know some people come and visit L.A. and only see Hollywood and Beverly Hills and the west-side and leave thinking that they have seen L.A. But there is so much more to it. East of Hollywood, Silver Lake is a great neighborhood, as is Echo Park. Lots of young people, as well as people who have lived here for ages.

And of course the ocean is here. and the weather. The water is cold, but you can’t beat swimming in the Pacific in November.

And L.A. has such an amazing history, in good ways and bad. How did we get all this water in the desert? Why are all these movie people out here? Who killed Roger Rabbit?

Everyday i see something i’ve never seen before…