For most of my four decades as a traveler, I have been a cultural quester more than a wildlife wanderer. I’ve lived in Paris, Athens, Tokyo, and San Francisco, places where you’re much more likely to encounter a legion of latte-sippers than a leap of leopards. And when I’ve ventured farther afield, I’ve tended toward […]

Temperatures in Chicago and Minneapolis plunged to -27° F during the brutal Polar Vortex of 2019. Across the Midwest and East, schools closed, flights were grounded, and mail delivery was suspended. People were warned to stay indoors to avoid near-immediate frostbite. Stay indoors? Oh please, not that. Even for those of us lucky enough not […]

We stepped through the door of the stone Glenfarclas warehouse into a gust of whisky-scented air. They call it the angel’s share—the portion of whisky that evaporates from its cask into the atmosphere. I filled my enraptured nose and listened for a rustling of wings in the rafters. Later, around the distillery’s tasting table with […]