A blog about traveling and adventure and such.

About Dave Ford Does Earth: A few year's back I made a list of life goals--quite a few of them ended up being travel related--that led to a truly life changing 18 month journey. Along the way I made lifelong friends, experienced things I had never dreamed of, and put a serious dent in that original bucket list. I learned so much out there-- including the fact that I have the ability to grow a pretty significant and amazing afro.

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The WorldNew York City
February 1, 2011

The “Freedom Riders of 1961″ and Chez Lola

The other night I was walking around Clinton Hill, trying to figure out where to eat, and randomly decided to drop into Chez Lola–a french influenced restaurant on Myrtle Avenue located next to the mecca of all gas stations.  Once inside, you forget about its external surroundings in an instant. The restaurant is progressive and arty in every way imaginable–from the menu to the decor. I soon found out why when I met the owner, Charlotta Janssen. Charlotta is of German heritage, an extremely talented painter, and lives in the neighborhood to boot. She and her business partner also own Chez Oskar in Fort Greene—a staple of the community that I have not been able to check out quite yet (it’s on my list). Chez Oskar has been around for 12 years or so, while Chez Lola for 4 years.  Charlotta and company have clearly figured out how to make the Fort Greene-Clinton Hill community happy on multiple levels. The food was fantastic–I recommend the Lobster Ravioli or any of the soups.

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Popularity: 7% [?]

Clinton Hill, New York City (2008-Present), NYC Places to check out Comments( 2 )
January 31, 2011

Dear Clinton Hill, I like you, the Pillow Cafe and even the G Train


—————————I have spent the last month subletting a cozy little place in Clinton Hill (Fort Greene’s sister neighborhood) in Brooklyn and have found myself falling in love with the energy around these parts. The restaurants are super funky and eclectic, the people are earthy and artsy, and I feel like I have only just begun to dig into what the neighborhood has to offer. It has snowed like Siberia in January–so having a cozy little place to stay warm has gone a long way in that regard as well. After talking to Gisela (my overly talented artist/sculptor landlord with a great book collection) today, we worked it out so that I am going to live in Clinton Hill for another month.  I am really excited about building on what I already know about the neighborhood–and expanding my horizons.

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Popularity: 12% [?]

Clinton Hill, New York City (2008-Present) Comments ( 0 )
January 30, 2011

Learning about whats happening in Egypt through a day in Soho


I have been thinking for a while about how I need to get a day of shopping in, to upgrade the wardrobe a bit. So, I decided to make a day of it and henceforth enlisted my extremely fashionable friend Camilla for a one day quest around the Lower East Side and Soho. Camilla and I met over a year ago at an emerging media conference,  a few months after she moved to New York from Australia. Fast forward a year, she is a player at one of NYC’s top social media firms, and we have become really good friends along the way. We know a lot of the same people and we hang at a lot of the same industry events. After our day in NYC’s shopping districts,  she now understands just how unbelievably long my arms are (I can not buy shirts off the rack anywhere).

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Popularity: 8% [?]

Clinton Hill, New York City (2008-Present), Soho Comments ( 1 )
January 24, 2011

The search for my new home in NYC and “Lost Pictures of the New York Blizzard” Found in Prospect Park

So….. Here’s the thing, I am not really sure where in town I want to live. I love both Brooklyn and Manhattan–but in three years of living here, I have not even scratched the surface of what New York City has to offer. I have never lived north of 16th street in Manhattan and have actually only been to Queens once. After living in Brooklyn again for the last month or so, I am completely falling in love with the neighborhoods, the culture, and the lifestyle (which is very distinct from Manhattan). So, after thinking a lot about it, I have decided to frame this challenge as a journey, and have some fun with the search for my new place and my new neighborhood. In the coming months, I am going to try out different neighborhoods in New York City. I am not putting any rules or restrictions in place and I am not sure how long it is going to take, but I am going to jump around until something clicks (thank you Craigslist, for making this possible). I cannot think of a better way to explore, learn, and expand my understanding of Gotham. And what really excites me, is that through this, I am creating the opportunity to meet all kinds of new people with different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives.

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Popularity: 6% [?]

Clinton Hill, New York City (2008-Present), Prospect Park Comments ( 0 )
January 18, 2011

Clinton Hill, A Taxi Cab Driver from Darfur and Subway Break Dancers

I am currently sipping on a Six Point Stoudt at Maggie Brown’s, a rocking little bar in Clinton Hill. Clinton Hill happens to be a rocking little neighborhood that I had never heard of as of a month ago. Its located about halfway between Park Slope and Williamsburg. I am beginning a search for my next neighborhood to live in New York. So far in my three years here I have lived in South Slope (Brooklyn) and the East Village (Manhattan). It feels good to experience the Brooklyn energy again first hand– it is so much different from that of Manhattan. There is so much more space over here. Things are a bit grittier, the energy is raw, and I am riding my bike again. Overall, I dig it.

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Popularity: 10% [?]

Clinton Hill, New York City (2008-Present), Street Performers Comments ( 0 )
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