Pico Iyer in Conversation

On Sept. 10 I had the great privilege of hosting an on-stage conversation at the Herbst Theatre in San Francisco with the inimitable Pico Iyer.  We began by talking about Pico’s wonderful new book on His Holiness the Dalai Lama, “The Open Road.” If you haven’t had a chance to read this brilliant and illuminating [...]

Old School Eating

Last week I did something I haven’t done in a looooong time: ordered a cheeseburger, fries and a chocolate milk shake at Johnny Rockets, on Chestnut St. in San Francisco. What a wonderful Old School place, with vintage posters on the walls and jukeboxes at each table. The burger was beautiful, with Johnny’s “special sauce” [...]

And Finally, Vegas!

After glorying in the natural beauties and graces of Kings Canyon, Sequoia, Yosemite and Death Valley parks, where should my Japanese tour group end its exploration of nature’s grandeur? In Las Vegas, of course! Talk about yin and yang. Leaving Death Valley, we sped through the dusk and into desert blackness; after a few hours, the [...]

Death Valley Daze

After my Japanese tour group had visited Kings Canyon, Sequoia and Yosemite parks, we moved on to Death Valley. I’ve lived and traveled in California for almost 30 years, but somehow I’d never been to Death Valley. Driving from Yosemite, we went over the Tioga Pass — spectacular scenery along that road, also a first [...]

California Dreaming

One of this past week’s highlights was my quick jaunt through three of California’s premier parks with a Japanese tour group. This was a wonderful journey on many levels. It was a terrific opportunity to appreciate California through visitors’ eyes — and it gave me a chance to re-appreciate the wonders of our sequoia trees. [...]