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July, 2009:

Interviewed by NileGuide

Jul 28th, 2009
by mike barish.
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madmen_iconThe good folks over at NileGuide have launched a new interview series with bloggers and “noteworthy travelers.”  They saw fit to conduct their inaugural interview with me.  I’m flattered that they asked me and was happy to oblige.  So, what does that have to do with a cartoony avatar version of myself?  Nothing.  But I’ll be damned if that isn’t a handsome interpretation of my head.

But I digress.  You can read the NileGuide interview here, and I really hope you do.  While you’re there, navigate around the site a bit.  They have tons of information and advice, not to mention a very friendly team.

Biking Up Manhattan

Jul 21st, 2009
by mike barish.
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On July 15, I rode from the Brooklyn Bridge to the Cloisters with David Farley (@davidfarley) and Robert Reid (@reidontravel).  Armed with nothing more than our bikes, cameras and free time, we meandered our way uptown.  We stopped to see some quirky sights, many of which you can see in my flickr gallery.  But for the ultimate vicarious experience, watch the headache-inducing video above that was shot from my handlebars.  And for a detailed account of the trip, check out Robert’s blog post.

Now go create your own adventure!

26 Japanese Beverages

Jul 14th, 2009
by mike barish.
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IMG_2900I found an album in iPhoto this morning that I realized I never posted on Flickr.  It contains 26 photos of beverages that I purchased exclusively from vending machines in Japan during a ten-day trip in May 2008.  I had intended to make a giant poster featuring every photo.  Then I realized that a poster of cans and bottles is not terribly exciting.  Also, I’m too old to hang posters in my apartment.  But I’m not averse to posting the photos online for the public good.  Some of my most vivid memories of Japan are the tastes and textures of those beverages.  I don’t miss the giant gelatinous cubes in this thing, though.

Check out the whole gallery here.

SkyMall Monday: Electronic Feng Shui Compass

Jul 13th, 2009
by mike barish.
2 comments

fengshuimb1Did you know that I write a weekly feature on Gadling called SkyMall Monday? Well, I do. Every week, I select a different asinine SkyMall product (redundancy alert) and review it.  Shockingly, I’ve yet to have a hard time finding something on SkyMall to ridicule.  But here’s the kicker: the catalog is amazing. It’s entertaining, laugh-inducing and successful.  It’s a win-win-win.  More on SkyMall in another post.  For now, check out this week’s SkyMall Monday.

SkyMall Monday

An Interview w/ David Farley

Jul 13th, 2009
by mike barish.
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IrreverentDo you enjoy travel books?  Do you enjoy dry humor?  Do you enjoy tales of foreskin lore?  Then I have a recommendation for you.  David Farley’s new book, An Irreverent Curiosity, is a first-person account of the author’s investigation into the lost foreskin of Jesus.  Yes, that Jesus.

Farley spent more than a year in Calcata, Italy (with trips spent in Rome, Vatican City and Turin) trying to track down the dismembered tip of Jesus’ member.  Along the way, he met a woman who talks to birds, fascist alcoholics and hippies who talked way too much about the village’s energy.  And he also introduced himself to a gaggle of priests as Gary Coleman.

I sat down with Farley (who, full disclosure, is a friend of mine) to talk about the book, his adventure and just how good a sense of humor the Vatican has.  You can read it on Gadling.

And so it begins…

Jul 13th, 2009
by mike barish.
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LasersMB2There’s simply no cool way to way to welcome someone to a website.  I refuse to call this “my little corner of the internet.”  The internet, of course, has no corners.

So, what the hell is the point of this site?  Well, I’ll be writing about travel, sharing interesting news and, above all, attempting to make you laugh.  If just one of you does a spit-take and/or snorts each day thanks to me, then I’ve done my job.  Should no one spit their overpriced make-you-own salad on their computer monitor as a direct result of something I wrote, then I have failed you.  Having previously worked in Human Resources, I am prepared to discipline myself should this occur.

So, now what?  If you’ve never read any of my work before, please click the Writings link above and get caught up.  If you’re internet savvy, follow me on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and Vimeo.  And, obviously, you should bookmark this page, subscribe to the RSS feed and check back often.

That’s all for now.  Please resume your normal internetting and be sure to add me to your routine.  It sure beats doing whatever you’re supposed to be doing right now.