Spendthrift Shoestring

Good Travel Media Roundup: hidden europe, NYT, Monocle

My very favorite publication under the enormous umbrella of European travel is hidden europe, a mesmerizing chronicle of the continent's forgotten corners and terrains. The magazine's September issue includes a fascinating piece by Karlos Zurutuza on the psuedostate of Transdniestr. Read an excerpt here. And then order a copy or two of the magazine.

My sister's very good friend Sophia Kishkovsky had a bang-up piece in the New York Times yesterday on Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan. Kishkovsky looks at the presence of Muslim and Russian Orthodox monuments in the city and provides a context for the city's emergent status as a tourist destination.

In the October issue of Monocle, I liked the Lisbon recommendations, which include a mention of A Vida Portuguesa, a shop selling a range of traditional Portuguese products. The "Inventory" section is also good. (Choice item: the beautifully packaged Laitilan sodas.) Also exciting is the overview of Montserrat, a lovely neighborhood in Buenos Aires.

Monocle's Exciting May Issue

The May issue of Monocle is a thrill a minute. As far as I can tell, the magazine's broad focus on business, politics, fashion, and brands is without parallel in the English-language media sphere. No other magazine makes me itchy to get out of my chair and onto a plane the way that Monocle does, and I think this is due to the fact that it's not a magazine about travel. It's a magazine about objects and places and phenomena and money.

There's a feature on the effort to rebrand the Faroe Islands as a more modern, more forward-thinking spot. There's an interesting pairing of Nicosia and Beirut, which notes efforts toward Greek-Turkish reconciliation in the former and laments continued volatility in the latter. There's a piece on Finnish healthy fast-food chain Sis. Deli+Café, which made me recognize for the millionth time that I'm a complete sucker for tight, crisp café interiors. There's a business report on the southern Brazilian city of Florianópolis. And then, in the final of my favorite pieces, there is a profile of property, shops, restaurants, and hotels in Phnom Penh.

So exciting, all the way through.