Been a long time

Remember when I said that I had often failed at blogs? Yeah, it happened again. I was sitting in LAX on March 31st editing a video and prepping to write this. But then it happened. I got on a plane. I feverishly searched for work. I caught up with the ones I love. I confirmed that a few people should not be within a few hundred kilometers of my life. the year of no fear roared like a lion backed into a corner by things much bigger and badder.

I was living in the world's most livable and friendliest city yet my first job was working for someone unfriendly and highly unscrupulous. A friend swooped in and got me a job. I ran to that interview like Ethan Hunt runs down buildings. I showed up soaking wet and heavily bearded and I got the job. The job was new, exciting, and safe?!?!?!? What? I had a 9-5 job with a desk and an email and I got to sit with one of my best friends. I got cheap gym that looked over the city and I could afford to eat, watch movies, and be with the lovely people of Australia. I lived in a very strange place at first. It was full of vagabonds, degenerates, and asians who spoke no English. The kitchen was controlled by cockroaches and the couch were always sat on by drunk Scots. It was a lovely place.

I got food poisoning and couldn't work. It was painful and terrible but there was a lady, a lady who looked after me. She gave me a place to stay, a place to write, a place to cook. What a lady (if you are interested gentlemen, let me know she is a catch and then some). I got strong, I wrote, i figured things out. All the pain from earlier this year went away. I got to go to a classical theatre with my best friend and watch masterpieces. I took a trip and saw some lovely people in some lovely places. I got film developed.

Leaving Melbourne was hard. leaving the nights out, the cooking nights in, the bridge hotel and the MCG was brutal and it still is. Everyone who lived there gave me so much. So much encouragement, so much laughter and so much love permeated through this place. It also flows through this place like a river into the ocean. How many people can work hard and be visited and adored by so many others? How can I adore so many people?

New South Wales poses an interesting challenge, avenue and direction. I got a lot of thoughts, ideas, and feelings. Genius is putting them together, making them get along and executing.

What have I done?

Saved money? Nope.
Worked hard? Yes.
Written any screenplays? 1 full one, writing 3 others.
Written any shorts? I've written 5, 1 filmed and set. 4 on the way.
Seen friends? Every day.
Traveled? Yes.
Paid my debts: slowly, very slowly
How's the book going? Hahhaha slowly, very slowly
Stuck in Paradise? Might have been stuck in a british surf camp. Coming soon that one :)

The take away from my 4 months in Melbourne and now 3 weeks in NSW is this: I was scared of a lot of things. I said get stuffed to many of them. I've come to terms with the fact that I have to make another movie and I am not ashamed of it. I've realized when it looks like I am thinking, I am really directing and making things up. I cannot believe it took 26 years to figure that out. I am afraid to declare things I love that involve me for risk of failure, fuck it. I'm making another movie. I'm making short movies to get me there. I'm having a ball and I'm being myself. It's been a good 5 months. It's only getting better.

You Must Go To: Alcatraz

If you're going to San Francisco there are a few things on the beaten path you should do: Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman's Wharf, ride a street car. Make sure when you go Alcatraz is your #1. In history and popular culture there are few prisons as famous as Alcatraz. It is the unescapable fortress that hosted some of America's worst criminals and now for a very nice price ($30, not a life sentence) you can walk through the corridors of The Rock. If you like history, architecture, photography, culture, crime, or oxygen you must go here.

There are a lot of amazing things about the island prison and it starts on land. When walking along the piers, it is  not that far at all. If you have a moderate zoom lens on your camera you can actually get a spectacular shot of the place.

When you get to your departure pier, the people around you are going to be buzzing. I felt the excitement of everyone around me and it made me even more ecstatic. When you depart on your ferry you begin to realize just how hard it would be to swim to land. San Francisco has a very moderate climate that stays pretty constant throughout the year but it's water and the wind coming off of it never warm up. So as you approach the island and get a view of the Golden Gate Bridge, Salsalito, and the Bay Bridge you realize how hard it must have been to actually escape from Alcatraz.

When you get there you are orientated as to where to go, there are restrooms, a gift shop, a movie hall, and maps of the prison. Besides being the most famous incarceration station in America it was a civil war fort and home to a Native American protest that lasted months. There are guided tours with Park Rangers (always recommended) and an audio tour you take as you walk through the cells and halls of the prison. Whether you have a phone, point and shoot, or DSLR camera you will get some amazing shots.

Once you go outside you get an amazing view of the city skyline and the exterior of the prison. This is a place that I will put on my top 50 places to visit in the U.S. It is historically and culturally relevant in the best ways and it is a very unique place. It is not the biggest prison or the most infamous but how many times can you walk through a place that held Al Capone? What other prisons give such a beautiful view of a city that is just out of reach? Where else can you go in a cell Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage were in? It's is a great way to start or end any San Francisco adventure and if you do go, the daytime is great, but the night tour is even better so plan ahead and definitely keep Alcatraz on your list of things to do.

P.S.

If you want to get a feel for the prison, I highly recommend the film The Rock. It is a classic and going to Alcatraz and seeing how they used the prison in the film made my inner child the happiest in the world.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClOQJAB0uD0

P.P.S.

I forgot how awesome 90's previews were. Don't let the voiceover or Nicolas Cage deter you, its a great film.

Books got me drunk/Eating in San Francisco

Books got me really, really drunk. Somehow my travel/inspiration blog has turned into me getting really drunk in amazing cities. Should I just change the name of the blog to Drunk in Amazing Cities? We will see what happens when I do DC-NYC-PHX-LV-LA-AUS, but hopefully I can pull things together. On the positive side my journey to San Francisco down to L.A. and back home was amazing. It was full of ups and downs but in the end it was an incredible journey that gave me what any good journey always should: answers.

Now onto good food in San Francisco and how leather and paper bound books alike got me hammered.


San Francisco might be the food heaven of the west coast. I'm not knocking San Diego which is steeped in lovely mexican inspired dishes amongst many other treats, and L.A. which honestly I don't like so ok, I'm going to knock L.A. but San Francisco has a lot and it would take a lifetime to get through. There is this amazing mixture of latin, asian, organic, and seafood that makes every street an option.

Before I dig into where I went though there is an area I highly recommend and that is Valencia street. This is a short metro ride away from the CBD and once you emerge from the depths of the tunnels you see a vibrant, lively, and colorful area that oozes San Francisco. You walk through beautiful graffiti, little shops, and those classic San Francisco houses you see in movies and T.V. Then when you hit Valencia street, there are tons of places to eat, drink and indulge. I was lucky enough to indulge at a place called Dandelion Chocolate (http://www.yelp.it/biz/dandelion-chocolate-san-francisco) it has amazing chocolates, coffees, and other treats that are perfect for a saturday afternoon. Valencia street is a great place to go because you get an authentic experience, great food, and it's not too far from anywhere else in the city that you might want to check out.

Onto my recommendations:

I. Breakfast

Farm:Table (http://www.yelp.com/biz/farm-table-san-francisco#query:farmtable)

This cute little hole in the wall is the best breakfast I had in San Francisco. When you walk there you will see two tiny tables outside and one table inside. The menu is written in chalk on the walls and people in the kitchen work away brewing coffee and making breakie. It does not cost a lot, tastes great, and is the perfect way to start your day so definitely check it out. Be warned, it is closed on Mondays.

II. Dinner

Pisco/Destino (http://www.yelp.com/biz/destino-san-francisco)

This place absolutely knocked it out of the park. The restaurant portion, Destino, is elegantly designed and has a great laid back atmosphere. They have a really good menu of tapas sized plates and my friend and I were filled up after some scallops and a plate of pork belly and steak. What really sets the place apart is it's really good drink menu. I do not like drinking or alcohol but the drinks are mixed so well that I could not even tell they were alcoholic. Their desserts are also very nice and I recommend the mousse. If you are going to go I say dress nice and have a lot of time to spare because it is a restaurant you could spend hours in with someone lovely. A+

P.S.

To finish my meal at this lovely establishment I had a Fernet Branca. If you have seen The Dark Knight Rises you will remember a scene where Alfred recounts drinking this on the Arno river in Florence, Italy. I tried it and it was absolutely terrible. I don't know what Alfred was thinking, maybe he is just a bolder man than I.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwxuWbx_jCA




Honorable Mention:

Upcider

This is a nice hidden gem in the Tenderloin part of the CBD. It has really good plates to share amongst which I shared calamari, salmon sliders, lamb flatbread, and some really good zucchini plus if you want a nice selection of ciders this is the place to go.


III. Dessert

Ok so this is a tie but depending on where you are that could determine where you go. If you travel to the previously mentioned Valencia street, then no doubt you have to try Dandelion Chocolate. Why?

A Samoan smore? A cookie with Nutella baked into it? And much, much more.  This place is really good.

But if you are downtown and went to upcider or pisco, you can walk or cab to ENO.

ENO

This place caught my eye as my companion and I walked together through the chilly SF air. It had a fire place, cheese, chocolate, and wine. We decided after going to upcider to check it out and it was great. The service is really good (we did not have bad service at all in 4 days), it is a little pricey but the chocolates, cheeses, and wines are all really great in taste and quality plus the atmosphere is wonderful.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/eno-wine-bar-san-francisco


IV. Drinks

Here we go. Books + I = @^#%$!

Pisco, Upcider, and Eno are all great places to get different kinds of drinks. But putting my detective skills to use I found another speakeasy. This was in the heart of the CBD on the corner of O'Farrell and Jones. Above the place is a sign that reads "Anti-Saloon League" referring to the movement that brought prohibition into play in the 20's. There is a plain door and a button. You press it and out pops a dapper flapper girl straight from the Great Gatsby. She asks "Password?"

I say "Books,"

She says go around the corner, which we did and after being identified we got to go into a dimly lit library. A few hours later after some expertly made and fairly priced concoctions it was time to go home.

Now, if you would like drinks before this place opens, right down the street there is another bar called Tradition. We had to wait here before we could get into the speakeasy and it was great. Everything was top notch and I would definitely say go here before the speakeasy.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/tradition-san-francisco#query:Bourbon%20%26%20Branch

If you are ever in San Francisco definitely give these places a try.

Chapter 2 of this journey will be things to do in San Fran, Santa Monica, and L.A.

Enjoy and Cheers!

Overnight Drunk In Manhattan

It was only supposed to be for a night. This sunday I had booked a ticket to find my brother and his girlfriend in New York. One of my mates was also in town so we all decided to meet up. 24 hours later I'm drunk and unable to fall asleep in a very interesting hostel in Brooklyn with a job interview only hours away, uh oh.

Getting to New York was already going to be interesting. The weekend kicked off with my friends and I finding fedoras. After the purchasing of the fedoras we sang Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Ray Charles poorly in a parking lot. After a lovely birthday dinner and an epic late night conversation in a parking lot it was bed time at 4am.

Saturday was lovely. I saw my adorable Grandma and then got all dressed up for a 20's themed party at my good friend Adams. I made Sangria, danced when necessary and again went to bed at 4am. But at least my mates and I looked good.

Though I cannot say the same for 6am when I went to the bus terminal.

Regardless I spent the next 4 hours on the bus asleep and unresponsive, much like the Russian National Hockey team in the Olympics.

I got to NYC and it was good to be back. I met my brother and his girlfriend at STIX Mediterranean grill in the flatiron district (112 E. 23rd st). If you want a really good lunch that is cheap and tasty this is a great place to go. It also sports a really good coffee menu and their barista always does a great job. Afterwards we went to Lomography (if you are into old school photography check it out! 41 W8th St, off of 5 ave.) and SOHO.

That night we went to Eataly (200 5th Avenue, off of 23rd st), also in the flatiron district. If you are going to go here beware, you might have to wait an hour to eat. My lovely friend Steph from Australia met us there and we had to wait. Luckily after hunting like sharks for an open table in the Antipasto section we found one! After a bottle of wine, antipasti, and the girl next to us talking AS LOUD AS POSSIBLE we got to eat. My favorite section in Eataly is the Verdure (vegetables) section. The veggies are cooked so well and like any good Italian dish it leaves you full and feeling good. We got some gelato, espresso, and panna cotta for dessert (all of their desserts are great by the way) and went to my favorite hangout in all of Manhattan, 230 5th. 230 5th is an inconspicuous apartment building next to a 7-11 on 5th avenue between 27th and 28th street. You walk in through revolving doors and a man asks for your id. You follow a path of velvet rope and there is a golden elevator with a pinkish light emanating from it. Press floor 20 and voila! You are in a really hip lounge with my favorite photo booth in America and an amazing view of Manhattan, but that is not the best part. There is a set of stairs that you walk up and once you pass through the glass doors in front of you is something pretty amazing. 

The Empire State Building. It's an amazing sight whatever season it may be, but lucky for us there was still snow on the roof top to make the setting even more beautiful. Downstairs we got drinks and chatted and this is where it got out of hand.

Steph: Mike, want to hang out in NYC tomorrow?

Mike: (without even hesitating) Sure we can get real Pizza, go to the 9/11 memorial

Steph: We can go to a speak easy too!

Mike: Holy $@*$@($@$

Once Steph and I realized that Ray and his girlfriend were still there we stopped our ridiculous plotting and behaved like normal humans again. 

Kind of. 

Our next stop was a swanky jazz bar down the street called Jazz Standard (116 E 27th St). Unlike 230 5th it lacks a breathtaking view, but it's servers are amazing. In the middle of this beautiful wood finished bar that has so many types of drinks it has ladder to reach all of the pretty glass bottles, there is a stage with a big red backdrop and a shiny microphone. While we did miss the jazz session, the atmosphere, drinks, and service were top notch. This is a great place to relax and have a nice drink. 

The next morning I had to get down to Brooklyn. Steph said she had found a very cheap hostel and we agreed to meet there before our pizza odyssey. After getting off of the train and watching multiple people stack it on the icy sidewalks I made it to the hostel and I must say, it had a lot of personality. This hostel was just a house run by a couple of guys. if you aren't into germs, guys who wont get out of bed, or two adorable rabbits just doing there thing it's not the place for you but if you are on a budget and need a bed definitely check out NYC Hostel (140 15th st, brooklyn). 

From there it was off to one of the best places to get pizza in NYC: L & B Spumoni Gardens. 

If you want real pizza, go here. Take the N Train downtown and get off at the Avenue U stop. From there it is just an 8 minute walk to L & B Spumoni Gardens on 86th street. It's old school, off the beaten path, and damn tasty which is one of the best things to have. 

From there we went to a place that has always eluded me, the 9/11 memorial. If you have time, give it a visit. 

After this, you are going to need a pick me up. It is a very emotional place for anyone, so Steph and I decided to go to the speakeasy. I forget how she had heard of it but it sounded cool, it was a bar hidden in a hot dog stand. That sentence sounds dirty, but it's true. We had a great walk down 8th street which turned into St. Mark street and along the way there were some great restaurants. 

The hot dog stand is like something you would see out of a movie. There are arcade machines that dont work. There was a sad sack guy chatting to a very uninterested hot dog vendor. Inside there is a phone booth. Inside the phone booth are some rules regarding appearance and etiquette and obviously a phone. You spin the dial once and...

A nicely dressed lady comes out and tells you that you are early and they don't open until 6pm. So one hot dog later we get in and it's awesome. You know how I know? There is a bear with a cap. Also, it's another immaculate set up, very intimate, and the menu is intense. As you may or may not know I'm bad at alcohol. So when the amazing bartender asks if I have any questions I say no and read the indecipherable menu confused as to what is what. Steph gets the Manhattan because hey, we are in Manhattan. I decide on the Severine, named after the Bond Woman in Skyfall. The bartender crafts the drinks like Beyonce drops albums and our drinks appear before us perfectly made. These drinks by the way, are the strongest damn drinks on the planet and both Steph and I have the tolerance of an 8 year old. This place is a great getaway, if you seek adventure and drinks that will hit you so hard you think your name is Sven and you are from Finland find Crif Dogs, dial the phone and enjoy. We walked down the street as cool as possible.

As cool as possible for two lightweights. We stumbled into an amazing Mexican place, La Palapa on 77 St. Marks place. Again, it's another place with an amazing atmosphere, good service and great food. We shared a chorizo quesadilla, calamari, and taquitos de papa (potatoes) and they were great. We also shared a pitcher of Margarita. Our last stop was a place called Maria's Crisis located near Gay street. I'm not kidding, we passed a drag queen on the corner of Gay street. I heard about this bar in Sydney from a lovely older couple. They said a lot of broadway hopefuls work or frequent the place and that show tunes are sung constantly. I liked the place, but did not love it. While the piano player was magical and the setting was cool enough the prices were outrageous. 7 dollars for a beer? Steph was not pleased. On the flip side wine was only 5 dollars and the singing was cool. 

The way back to the hostel was fun and the place itself was chill. There was an eclectic cast staying there but it was cheap and easy. The next morning I got to see Manhattan get covered in a gentle snow and I was off to DC to get work in the same clothes I had been wearing for over to days and the best part is, I got the job.

In 36 hours we managed to enjoy:

The Flatiron District

Washington Square Park

SOHO

MSG

An up close view of the Empire State Building

A Jazz bar with no Jazz

Real Pizza

The World Trade Center

A Speakeasy

Broadway singing in a bar

Who knew seeing my brother could turn into such an amazing adventure! A big shout out to the lovely Steph Bryant, Ray, Joanna. See you next time when I go to the place I've always wanted to go:

San Francisco

Until next time

Alright, Alright

My name is Michael Colin Glasner and I am really good at living life. I'm not rich, I do not own a car, and I need a haircut but otherwise I am doing quite well. This year, and this blog, are dedicated to my year of no fear and to my love, travel. Blogging terrifies me. I don't really like the thought of jaded internet people tearing apart what I write or think but at the same time they do not matter. What really terrifies me is my friends and peers tearing apart what I write or think but in the end, it's all good.

I was in Perth, Western Australia when I had this idea. Last year I overcame my fear of being a leader. It sounds silly but I was always happier being the second fiddle . Now, I like being a leader and it turns out I'm not bad at it either. But this year there are a few things I have to knock out. I love photography and have been told I am good at it. But again the whole people judging me thing is off putting. Well, it does not matter because by the end of this year I will put on a photography show. I left my really amazing job because I knew there was nothing in it for me anymore. I could have gone on autopilot and made money but instead I said goodbye and am entering a whole new realm. I will now go to Australia for the year to do jobs I have never considered before. I will finish my novel. I will finish my screenplay. I will complete my short films, and yes that is plural. This is absolutely daunting and terrifying but it must be done. I aim to inspire and there is nothing better than just going for it, win or lose. I'm also terrified of scuba diving so I will do that too. 

Regardless of what happens this year, it will be a good one. Life is an adventure and one worth taking. Do the same and you'll be amazed at what happens next. Make this your year of no fear.