Waiting on Standby, Together
A few reminders before we jump in: 1) Hit reply with your own personal favs from your Space and 2) forward the email to friends to join in!
But first a joke…
How do you throw a space party?
That’s right. You planet 😉🌏🕺🏻
🗞 THE NEWSSTAND
(Hint: go Incognito to fight dem paywalls)
Yesterday we learned that the Department of Justice is dropping its case against former Trump adviser Michael Flynn who previously testified guilty to criminal charges during the Mueller FBI probe. This has raised even further skepticism of the loyalty of the president by US Attorney General William Barr. On the opposite side of the political divide, we received further uncertainty around the sexual accusation against former VP Joe Biden after this Vox article released by a journalist who first interviewed Tara Reade in April 2019.
For an unbiased and more balanced look at the deeply divided political world I invite you to sign up for The Flip Side featuring a newsletter that presents the news from the Left, Right, and Libertarian point of view.
Sadly, we learned this week about the killing of 25-year old Ahmad Arbery, who was innocently jogging in a Georgia neighborhood two months ago before being gunned down by a father and son. The two are being charged with murder after video evidence was anonymously released this week.
Relations between China and the US continue to deteriorate as the Trump administration looks to Beijing for a scapegoat in this global pandemic, and vice versa. As the EU predicts a recession of ‘historic proportions,’ we begin to see more permanents layoffs across the globe.
This week the 104th Pulitzer Prize Winners announced including Fiction winner The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead and Commentary winner 1619 Project featured in the New York Times by Nikole Hannah-Jones.
And for some other good news this week, check out John Krasinki’s positive news from around the world, featuring guests such as Jon Stewart, Oprah Winfrey, and Ryan Reynolds.
As states in the US begin to open and other places around the globe like France begin to relax their restrictions and stay-at-home orders, we begin to dream up summertime trips. Remember those?
Special Happy Mother’s Day wishes to all of you moms out there!
🎧 WEEKLY MIXTAPE
Jazz artist Kamashi Washington will be releasing his score for Netflix’s Becoming documentary on May 15. Also, forward-thinking, jazz artist from Oakland, Ambrose Akinmusire releases his latest single “Mr. Roscoe.”
Hip hop artist Markel Scott, also known as Bishop Nehru, releases his newest album today Nehruvia: My Disregarded Thoughts.
While, Justin Bieber and Ariane Grande team up yet again on their latest single “Stuck With You” for a much-needed quarantine love song.
Grammy-nominated producer and artist, Blake Mills, releases his new album Mutable today. Also, Clams Casino, known for pioneering “cloud-rap” and his hip-hop collabs with artists like Lil B and A$AP Rocky brings us new music on his Instrumental Relics.
Another Grammy-nominated artist Kehlani releases her latest album featuring artists such as James Blake and Jhené Aiko on It was Good Until It Wasn’t.
As we dream of travel at this time of year, here are a few Wrightstuff x playlists covering all types of travel experiences:
📺 THE STREAM
This weekend watch The Eddy (Netflix), a story about an owner of a Paris jazz club from New York as he struggles with the everyday life of running his business while keeping his band and family close by.
Also, the much-anticipated Becoming (Netflix) is out, which tells the story of former First Lady Michelle Obama and her story of finding her voice as a mother and the most powerful woman in the world.
For some entertainment watch Into the Night (Netflix) six-part series about a plane full of passengers who try to avoid a global disaster occurring below them as they are aboard a hijacked plane.
For enjoying a good trip from your couch this weekend take a look at Have a Good Trip (Netflix) coming out on May 11.
Check out these 13 Movies set in Paris you can stream right now to dream about that trip to Paris you may have had planned this summer.
And here are some travel shows to stream right now on Hulu and Netflix:
Basic Versus Baller: Travel at Any Cost (Hulu)
Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations (Hulu) RIP
Cuba and the Cameraman (Netflix)
🍽 THE KITCHEN
Homemade Hummus with Paprika
Ingredients
1 can garbanzo beans
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon hot smoked paprika
chopped parsley for topping
Directions
Drain and pour garbanzo beans into a food processor or blender (keep liquid on the side). Combine lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, cumin, salt, and paprika.
Slowly pour the leftover garbanzo bean liquid into the mixture as it blends until desired consistency is achieved.
Spoon hummus into a shallow bowl, making a well in the center, and drizzle liberally with oil. Top as desired.
🥃 THE CABINET
Classic Bloody Mary
In honor of Mother’s Day and also the perfect in-flight cocktail on those redeye flights you once cursed but now dream of, we are mixing up the classic Bloody Mary this weekend.
As Cornell study shows Bloody Mary’s in fact taste better on a plane so I threw in a bonus in-flight recipe as well for when you do get to book that next trip.
Ingredients
1 oz vodka
2 oz tomato juice
1 dash lemon juice
2 dashes salt
2 dashes black pepper
2 dashes cayenne pepper (or Tabasco)
3 dashes of Worcestershire sauce
Directions
Add dashes of Worcestershire Sauce, Tabasco, salt, and pepper into a highball glass.
Pour in remaining ingredients. Stir. Taste and adjust, as needed.
Garnish with a lemon wedge and celery stalk. Enjoy.
And for next time you’re in-flight purchase a mini-bottle of vodka and a can of tomato juice. In a glass over ice, stir together the vodka and tomato juice. Add a squeeze of lemon. Try swapping the vodka for a beer and enjoy a Michelada.
🎙FIRESIDE CHAT
In honor of National Travel & Tourism Week, I would like to invite you to take a moment to sit back and imagine what the future of travel might look like. No matter how different things may look let’s aim to keep the #SpirtofTravel alive. We also recognize the hundreds of millions of travel and hospitality workers around the globe who support our travel bugs and enable those moments that forever inspire us.
This pandemic has been devastating to an industry that employs 1 in 11 people around the world. Businesses and travelers are suffering as the $7.2 trillion global travel industry has been grounded these past few months. Close to 91% of the world’s population are living in places with travel restrictions. And if you don’t think it’s as bad as it sounds, put it this way, billionaire Warren Buffet made $188 million in a single day after selling off all of his airline stocks this past week.
These seismic shifts in the industry have caused many to speculate over the future of travel, what it will look, and if it will ever be the same.
On an earnings call this week, CEO of Booking Holdings which runs goliath travel websites like Booking.com, Priceline, and Kayak, pointed to several trends he predicts the industry will experience in the coming years. The first being a general sentiment toward domestic versus international trips, as seen during previous industry crises like 9/11 and SARS. Additionally, he predicts a trend toward alternative accommodation versus traditional hotel-stays, which would come as great news to companies like Airbnb which sadly laid off 25% of its workforce this past week. While he optimistically noted the industry will recover, he predicted it will take a few years…
This comes as tough news to many of us who dream and live to travel. I know myself for one was looking forward to weekend weddings in Northern California, extended “bleisure” trips around Belgium and Switzerland this summer, and most of all staying in a charming townhome with my fiancé, her mother, and her sister in Paris this Thanksgiving.
While most Americans have delayed their travel plans... two-thirds of Americans say they "can't wait to get out and travel again." And most of us are beginning to ask ourselves “will I be able to travel this summer.” After all, summer vacation is our long-awaited reprieve from the harshness of a long winter and rainy days of spring—a chance to enjoy our partners, families, and friends as we explore new places together.
Yes, many of us are saddened by the disruptions to our travel and vacation plans, and those moments to rejuvenate, explore our inner selves, and to reunite with friends on a weekend getaway.
Some of these changes that we can predict to experience in the coming year or so will be an adjustment, but others will open the doors for new passions and ways to explore the world around us.
Let’s start with airports. If I was a betting man I would take the odds that the first element of travel to look drastically different will be the way we take to the sky (or don’t).
JetBlue’s ‘Even More Space’ upgrade program will become more or less a requirement than an upgrade when it comes to air travel. From security lines to seats, passengers can expect to be more spaced out than before to allow for social distancing. Already most airlines have begun to take steps to keep middle seats empty.
Arriving at the airport will be an entirely new, and hopefully improved, process. Some airports with limited pre-boarding areas will look to repurpose parking garages into screening areas and check-in stations. Others will employ appointments for flight check-ins as seen at Montreal’s Trudeau International Airport. As seen following the events of 9/11 there will be an increase in new technologies used to screen passengers at security lines, including thermal detectors looking for passengers with 100+ F temperatures, disinfectant stations, touchless check-ins using facial and hand recognition software, and immunity passports for international travel. Also, expect to see signs stating “Passengers Only” at the entrance to airports to limit congestion.
All of these changes will likely make traveling by air a bit daunting at first and might even discourage many travelers from wanting to take that trip to London or Rome this summer (even with Xpress Spa offering Xpress Test at each gate). The 2.7 million people who fly in and out of the United States every single day will look for other places to spend their holidays. Destinations closer to home.
Thus, we will see an increase this summer and into next year of domestic travel to nearby parks, cities, and other vacation spots within our own country and regions. States like South Dakota have begun to ramp up their tourism board spending to invite families to vacation closer to home this summer. CEO of Airbnb, Brian Chesky, said that “travel will be less urban” noting that the fastest-growing segment on the home-sharing platform is travel less than 50 miles from home. Additionally, he predicts we will begin seeing more multi-month stays as people look to spend less time in transit and more time experiencing new surroundings, as they "WFH.”
So with all of this, I predict many more summer road trips! That’s right, the classic American-family road trip of the 1960s and 70s is making comeback in the 2020s. The impetus back then was the end of the World War II-era and we will likely see a similar desire to vacation in our own backyard. The freedom of the road, the kids in the back seat constantly asking “are we there yet?” Oh, the joy of road tripping. This form of travel will not just be a matter of convenience but a considered effort to support our state and local tourism and hospitality community.
”Nothing behind me, everything ahead of me, as is ever so on the road.” — Jack Kerouac
So, get your kicks this summer on Route 66 and head West, or East, or to the Coast! Either way, begin planning out how you can still enjoy adventures this year filled with new memories of places you may have overlooked in the past, like Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah or a trip down the coast to Charleston, South Carolina. You can even start planning ahead of time while you wait for things to open up using this Virtual Road Trip. Also, be sure to pack your car or RV with the essentials to prevent your group from spending too much time at rest stops and gas stations.
In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed The National Park Service Organic Act establishing the great American National Parks in an effort to provide a “public park and pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people." Today we have 61 national parks in the United States and they are the perfect destination for seeing the great outdoors and enjoying some nature after being cooped up these past few months.
And when looking for accommodation you can expect cleanliness to the new amenity of choice by travelers this summer. “Rated 5 stars" for cleanliness” will be one of the most important things to look for when booking a hotel or Airbnb.
While you might see less of the smaller amenities that made traveling such a hospitable and exciting experience, like tiny soap bars and liquor and snack-filled minibars, the opportunities to escape your hotel room or campsite to see your surroundings will be more exciting than ever.
“Something about this crisis truly reminds you what is important.” — Brian Chesky
So, this next week take a moment to begin planning your next adventure. I’d love for you to share your top destinations and trips with me by replying to this newsletter.
For now, we all wait patiently, on stand by, together.
Here are a few of mine top destination this year:
And for some reading to inspire you as you lead up to that next road trip take a look at the Rambler’s Guide to American books.
We're in this together
#StayAtHome #HabituateInSpace