Thursday, August 28, 2008

Awesome New Guidebook to the Big Island of Hawaii

If you’ve ever had even a passing conversation with me, I probably mentioned Hawaii … or was very likely wearing one of my many vintage made-in-Hawaii aloha shirts. I absolutely love Hawaii, wish I could spend more time there (like, at least half the year) and am borderline obsessive about virtually every aspect of Hawaiian and Polynesian life, culture, history and food.

Much of my love of the islands is the result of hanging out with my friend, Elizabeth Blish Hughes, a writer/editor who used to live in Hawaii. For years, Beth’s been an encyclopedic source of knowledge for any and all questions I’ve had about Hawaii. Her advice and understanding have helped me to make the most of my trips to Hawaii and to seek out and enjoy aspects of island living that I otherwise wouldn’t have known about. In particular, her tips really paid off when Emiana and I visited the Big Island of Hawaii for our honeymoon.

So I was really stoked when Beth informed me that her new guidebook, Hawaii's Big Island: Great Destinations: A Complete Guide (Great Destinations), is now available for pre-order on Amazon. Emi and I have reserved our copy and I’m really hoping we’ll be able to fully use the book soon! Beth’s a fantastic writer, with local – off-the-beaten-path – knowledge of and deep love for Hawaii, its people and its many wonders. Mahalo Beth for sharing your expertise with the world!

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

You Know You're in New Jersey When ...

... there's a preset pizza button on the phone at your hotel!

Weekend on the Jersey Shore

Weekend on the Jersey Shore

More photos from the Jersey Shore at the tikichris photostream on Flickr.

Sunday, August 03, 2008

Le Eurostar weekend (Qype does London)

Le Eurostar weekend
by Chris Osburn
Qype does London
August 3rd 2008










I’m sure the Eurostar has its share of imperfections (one time about a year ago, my Paris-London train was delayed for what seemed an excruciatingly long couple of hours), but for the most part I’ve had pleasant experiences zipping through the Chunnel. Taking the Eurostar to/from any of its destinations is certainly more civilized and a lot more logistically sensible than getting to/from any airports these days!


Read the complete Eurostar weekend post.

Beijing Olympics Site Arcitechture Videos

Here are a few short clips from early June of the Beijing Olympics site. The architecture is phenomenal. To say the least, it will be interesting to see how the Opening Ceremonies go.








Saturday, August 02, 2008

Beijing Photos on Flickr

Okay, here's a link to some Beijing photos I uploaded to Flickr. If all goes as planned, I should have some more pics from my visit to China on Flickr soon.


Photography by
Chris Osburn © 2008