Now that the summer glow has faded and you’re deep in your routine, how about dreaming about your next getaway? For the wanderlust in all of us, these magazines can help.
Time for Condé Nast Traveler’s Reader’s Choice Awards, for the world’s best places to stay. Frankly we find these listicles snoozeworthy because they’re practically the same every year. For the third year running, Traveler names Charleston, SC, as the top US city. (?!*#) Humor is not Traveler’s typical trademark but “Holy Mole” by Mark Schatzker was as hot as a poblano chile. The author tours taco stands of the Mexican countryside trying to reduce the essence of their culinary brilliance. His conclusion is that it’s the result of competitive abuelas (grannies.) This edition is worth it for the smart advice from Wendy Perrin on what to do if you get caught in travel hell as a result of bad weather. It boils down to this: Figure out a solution yourself and get on the phone fast.
The November issue of Travel + Leisure is full of mundane travel tips. We are not going to base our travel destinations on which airport has the best on-time record, so why waste precious publishing real estate on it? Despite such annoyances, the issue is saved by novelist Gary Shteyngart’s essay on Bombay, aka Mumbai, which is more like a diary of his recent trip there. Shteyngart’s travel writing is not as funny as his novels, but he manages to capture the city’s mood, from street smells to the haute hotels in which he stayed. He has the ability to make you feel like you’re there — and we can’t ask for much more.
Reading the Islands November issue feels like going on vacation. Plenty of beautiful pictures covering a decent variety of locations and ideas. There are all-inclusive and secluded spots; the expected Caribbean and more adventurous Falkland Islands. There is even a nice column written by a cash-challenged youth who backpacked across Ireland. Best of all, this feels like the editors are using their judgments and this is not ad-driven copy. A Best for 2014 list includes editors and readers picks. Editors choose St. Lucia’s Sugar Beach as best beach resort; readers the all-inclusive Bolongo Bay in St. Thomas.
What’s the point in a glossy dubbed Passport when the bulk of your features center on domestic travel? At least that seems to be the theme in the October issue, which sticks closer to home with essays on Chicago; Key West, Fla., and San Diego. Unfortunately, the magazine’s domestic bent isn’t its only shortcoming. The magazine, which caters to a gay and lesbian audience, may strike some as downright unsophisticated. The photos appear overexposed or overly air-brushed to the point where models look computer generated. The drab, laborious prose yields little in the way of insightful travel commentary. Here’s one excerpt about Chicago: “Great eats abound here, and luckily it’s not limited to hot dogs and pizza [although complaints in that department].”
The New Yorker is suddenly liberal again. A few weeks after its valedictory piece on Mike Bloomberg, in which the lame-duck mayor held forth unfettered on the benefits of billionaires to the Big Apple, it publishes a lengthy story on “The City’s Hidden Shame,” bemoaning the fact that its homeless population is at its highest since the Great Depression. “No one is sure exactly why things got so bad so fast,” the magazine reports, apparently not interested enough to dig into the mystery. Why can’t these supposed left-wingers break down and admit they’re just as fascinated by billionaires as the unwashed masses who don’t read the New Yorker?
Mike Tyson has always been fond of excuses for his savage behavior outside the boxing ring. His piece in New York this week, excerpted from a forthcoming book, is no different, but it still makes for a good read. “We used to watch these guys shooting it out with one another,” Tyson says of his childhood in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn. “It was like something out of an old Edward G. Robinson movie. We would watch and say, ‘Wow, this is happening in real life.’” Also, check out the nice cover story on ripoff cancer drugs — $75,000 to extend a life 42 days. And a profile of Columbia film prof James Schamus explains why Netflix is squeezing indie flicks.
Time has a cover story on why Texas is the future of America. Answer: See why real estate is booming in Bushwick. That’s right, it’s cheaper to live there, even if your chances of scoring a cattle ranch don’t look as likely these days. Oh, and there’s the question of lax regulation and low taxes. It’s ludicrous, the article notes, that barbers and beauticians should be forced into course work to obtain state licenses. Lifting that burden alone could open the floodgates for a thriving industry. “Everyone is just so friendly, and they look you in the eye,” says Tara Connolly, a graphic designer who left Cobble Hill for Austin. Hmmm. Not quite sure whether we could adjust to that .…