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Something Red by Jennifer Gilmore With all the news about Russian spies this week, it seems so a propos that I just finished Something Red by Jennifer Gilmore (Scribner, 2010). I certainly love a good Cold War story. The colder, the better. Set during the end of the Carter administration, Gilmore’s story chronicles the personal crises of [...] click to enlarge I just love old colonial hotels. A few months ago I wrote a blog post about some old favorites in Asia and Cuba. Last week I came across a couple of these do-not-disturb sign my grandparents took as souvenirs from the Stanley Hotel in Nairobi after staying there 30+ years ago. One of my [...] click to enlarge I found this photo of Nathan Road from a 1972 Hong Kong guidebook. It didn’t take me long to recognize familiar landmarks from the photos I’ve posted of 1962 and 1966 Kowloon. The “EL” in the upper right corner looked familiar, like the same font used in the Sun Ya Hotel where my [...] Well, I’ve jumped on the bandwagon and have joined Twitter. What’s more, I’ve already tweeted about travel, Asia, and books. I hope you’ll follow me at Susan_BK. click to enlarge My mom has been in Japan now for 10 days and frequently sends e-mails about her stay in Tokyo and side trips to hot springs outside the capital and to Kyoto. She remembers a little of the Japanese she used to speak well enough to buy things in stores, take the train, and [...] click to enlarge I found this ad in a tourist book from 1972, one of the years my grandparents traveled to Hong Kong. The ad wasn’t on a two-page spread. This was it. …from China! In 1972 travelers couldn’t enter China easily. For some, it was closed off. For others, the country was so ill-equipped for tourists that [...] click to enlarge I’ve enjoyed Grace Lin’s colorful picture books for quite a few years. Dim Sum for Everyone is one of my favorites–and my kids love it, too. My oldest son has enjoyed Lin’s middle grades books (Year of the Dog and Year of the Rat). For Hannukah last year, I gave him [...] click to enlarge My grandma gave me this luggage label from one of her stays in Bora Bora 40 years ago. My grandparents loved Bora Bora, an island in French Polynesia. And I love luggage labels. What a fun souvenir. My friends at Gwulo.com posted a great article yesterday about the history of luggage labels. If [...] click to enlarge In honor of the World Cup, I’m posting this luggage tag my grandparents received in the early 1970s when they flew from Chicago to Johannesburg. Back in the day, hotels and airlines gave out stickers like this one. Flying to South Africa during apartheid wasn’t easy. My grandparents flew from Chicago to Amsterdam, [...] click to enlarge My parents got married in early March 1969. Less than 6 weeks before their wedding, my mom’s brother traveled through the Soviet Union. He sent this postcard from Leningrad in late January 1969 (although the picture is of the Black Sea in the Crimea). In the postcard, he wrote to his parents and [...] |
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Copyright © 2010 Susan Blumberg-Kason - All Rights Reserved |
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