Category: United States

Travel

The Gigantic Trees of Muir Woods

Author ByRyan Lee

Muir Woods National Monument is a great and wonderful walk for families, seniors, and even advanced hikers.

We were supposed to go to Yosemite. But after realizing that most of the water from the waterfalls has dried up there, and that the Glacier Point Road was closed in 2022, meaning we won’t have driving access to other viewing points such as Glacier Point, Sentinel Dome, and Taft Point, we decided that it wasn’t as worthwhile to go there and we planned something different.

Just a little north of San Francisco, Muir Woods is one of the last remaining preserved redwood forests in the Bay Area. Some of the redwood trees are 1,000 years old and reach more than 250 feet tall.

Muir Woods National MonumentFrom the tree rings you can estimate how old a tree is. Continue reading The Gigantic Trees of Muir Woods

Travel

Ex NYC and LA Trip

Author ByRyan Lee

Just a quick itinerary that I followed a few years back when I went to NYC and LA:

 

New York

  • Supreme
  • nouveauyork.com
  • Brooklyn Brewery
  • Central Park
  • Hipster towns in Brooklyn Williamsburg
  • Musical – The Book of Mormon
  • Soho
  • Chelsea Market
  • Sleep No More
  • Grand Central Oyster Bar
  • residentadvisor.net
  • MoMa
  • Littleneck ($1 oysters)
  • Upstairs 145 E. 50th Street
  • Strand Book Store, BookCourt, the powerhouse Arena
  • RedEgg, Blind Barber, La Esquina, Spotted Pig
  • Nightclubs: Pacha, Lavo, Casa Mono

Continue reading Ex NYC and LA Trip

Travel

In New York, Concrete Jungle Where Dreams Are Made Of

Author ByRyan Lee

Yo yo yo!  New York is the place to be!

After my recent trip to New York City, I’ve decided that, excluding Hong Kong, New York is the place I would most want to live in… at least for a year.  It’s got everything I want – fantastic restaurants, astounding number of things to do, a diverse array of people, everywhere is walkable and through public transportation, and I adore a competitive and driven city – laid back cities are not for me at the moment.

I’ve been to New York many times, each time trying to accomplish something touristy and never really experiencing ‘living there’.  This time, I did feel like as if I was ‘living there’, as if I was a resident in this city.  Super fun.  Every time I come back, New York grows more and more for me.  As I’ve mentioned to other people, NYC is the place to be if you’re 25-30 years old. Continue reading In New York, Concrete Jungle Where Dreams Are Made Of

Travel

A Lancaster Wedding

Author ByRyan Lee

You’re probably wondering why I was at Lancaster… what is this place and what is there to do?  I asked myself the same questions and purposely booked more time at New York, a city that I’m sure everyone is familiar with, and booked 2 days at Lancaster, Pennsylvania only.

Lancaster

In retrospect, if I had more time, I would have actually liked to have stayed there for one more day, at least one full day without any interruptions.  You see, being located in Pennsylvania, I was expecting that this town would be too quiet for my tastes.  In general, I’m someone who likes to go to places with lots of things to do and things to eat.  The last time I was in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, I only remembered horses and amazingly delicious Philly cheese steaks (which I couldn’t find this time unfortunately). Continue reading A Lancaster Wedding

Travel

Portland, the Quirky City of Roses

Author ByRyan Lee

Tattoos, nose rings, murals, trees, food carts.  These are all characteristics that make Portland so quirky and fun at the same time.

I knew nothing about Portland before arriving here, except the fact that this was where Nike was born.  From my blog post in Athens, we learn that the name Nike belongs to the Greek goddess, the goddess of Victory.

Prior to travelling here, I researched more about this city – about what to do, what to eat, where things are located, and more.  One key interesting fact is that Portland is one of the more ‘active’ cities in United States – currently for those who commute, the current percentage of people who bicycle to work is 7%.  The state’s target is to aim as high as 21%, and that means making infrastructure so that it becomes more cyclists’ friendly.  A second fact is that it tends to rain a lot… lucky for me though, I experienced only an afternoon of light rain and that was it. Continue reading Portland, the Quirky City of Roses

Travel

Sunrise at Grand Canyon

Author ByRyan Lee

I may be one of the luckiest persons on earth.

Last year in the summer of 2016, I was in Nice during the Bastille Attack.  This year, I was in Las Vegas during the Route 91 Festival Shooting.  Both times, I/we almost decided to have dinner or participate in night activities near both of these shocking events.  And both times, my fatigue decided to not pursue such activities.  Laziness does help you sometimes.  By the way, my heart goes out to all those affected.

That said, I was attending a wedding in Vegas but not on the strip, but on Henderson at a beautiful location.  The day after the Route 91 Festival Shooting, I did end up having to go to the Strip, specifically Flamingo Hotel, because that was where I rented my car to go to Grand Canyon (and for the next few days in Los Angeles).  While ubering to Flamingo, I managed to get a glimpse of the Mandalay Bay… not the two windows that were both exposed, but definitely seeing the cops barricading the whole area around it.

I am also one of the luckiest persons on earth because I get to witness the magnificence of breathtaking Grand Canyon.  During my uber ride, my amazing driver did tell me that pictures cannot define Grand Canyon, and I simply cannot agree more.  Grand Canyon is quite astonishing, and its massive size and grandness just isn’t something that can be captured even by the most professional Leica camera. Continue reading Sunrise at Grand Canyon

Travel

I Didn’t Leave My Heart in San Francisco

Author ByRyan Lee

Tony Bennett’s song, “I Left My Heart in San Francisco”, isn’t a good impression of San Francisco.  He makes the song so silky, smooth, deep, vibrant and charming, but my impression of San Francisco didn’t give me that.

After my PCH trip, I started driving up to San Francisco and of course, I had to be greeted by the severe traffic that doubled the time for me to get to downtown San Francisco.

San FranciscoFrom my car window, you can see a pile of cars waiting behind me.

San FranciscoWhile driving there, you get to see some cool train tracks.  Not the best weather that day btw. Continue reading I Didn’t Leave My Heart in San Francisco

Travel

Missed My Bus at Napa Valley and Sonoma County

Author ByRyan Lee

As a day trip on my stay in San Francisco, I decided that I had to visit Napa Valley.  So, I signed up via Viator for a Napa and Sonoma Wine Country Tour that picked you up at your designated hotel before 9am and ended the journey at 5pm (well it ended up being around 6:30pm since we also stopped by Golden Gate Bridge to take pictures).  You will be joining the tour operator Gray Line actually.

The drivers / guides were funny, informative and professional and in general I had a good time.  During lunch time, I even missed the bus (more on that later) but another driver from the same tour operator was able to drive me back to catch up with my old tour group. Continue reading Missed My Bus at Napa Valley and Sonoma County

Travel

Pacific Coast Highway, Not Really

Author ByRyan Lee

I got the idea of driving along the Pacific Coast Highway from one of my Bucket List links illustrating some of the top 10 drives in America.  Since I had to be in the west coast, and I wanted to minimize my time in Los Angeles due to the lack of things to do as a tourist visitor, I thought to myself… why not drive PCH?

I was extremely excited by the prospect of driving along the sea coast; I was imagining all the magnificent views I would be getting. Continue reading Pacific Coast Highway, Not Really