Nature
- Architecture, Arizona, Art, California, Culture, Day Trips, Dessert, Drink, Education, Entertainment, Events, Explore with Cassie, Latest News, Nature, Style, Travel, West Coast
Art Car World Bringing Burning Man Vibes to Douglas, Arizona
Story, photos by Cassie Hepler Zooming straight away from my bed and breakfast in Bisbee to Douglas, Arizona is a short half hour ride out of the mountains and relatively easy to find at the newish location of Art Car World at 450 E. 8th St. Street, Douglas, AZ 85607. I met up with Harrod Blank, the brains and brand behind the mission outside and he was excited to share his master plans with me. Harrod has that kind of personality that you immediately take to, or maybe I did because we both have that one parent was all business and the other a hippy background. Regardless, we were fast…
- Architecture, Arizona, Art, Culture, Day Trips, Dessert, Education, Entertainment, Explore with Cassie, Food, Latest News, Nature, Restaurants, Travel
Bisbee, Arizona Staying Spooky, Strange and Surprisingly Hip
Story, photos by Cassie Hepler Fresh from a couple overnights in the small city of Willcox, Arizona, I hiked that morning and drove the 1.5 hours down to Bisbee, Arizona ready to tear into some food! Located in the Mule Mountains of southeast Arizona, the city has a solid copper-mining past and only a little over 5,000 residents making it more of a small town feel. With a thriving arts, music and hospitality scene, it is a place for all the free spirits to join – including ones that are not alive. The energy is heavy and historical here. For someone who is sensitive to ghosts and the supernatural, I…
- Arizona, Culture, Day Trips, Dessert, Drink, Education, Entertainment, Events, Explore with Cassie, Food, Health, Latest News, Nature, Restaurants, Suburbs, Travel
Drop Down South to the Wine World of Willcox, Arizona
Photos, story by Cassie Hepler With more than 20 wineries in the Willcox, Arizona area, there are seemingly endless wine tastings and other area activities to chew on. Located in Cochise County near the border of Mexico, this small city is surrounded by picturesque mountain ranges, such as the Pinaleño, Dragoon and Chiricahua mountains. Surprising to most out of state visitors, the desert climate offers an ideal climate for winemaking including monsoons in the summer that gives that precious moisture to the earth to make the flavorful magic happen. But wine is not the only thing this small town but actually a city has to offer! We connected with the Cochise…
- California, Culture, Day Trips, Dessert, Drink, Education, Entertainment, Events, Explore with Cassie, Fashion, Food, Latest News, Music, Nature, Restaurants, Style, Suburbs, Travel
Small Businesses Reopen in Funky, Artsy Town of Claremont, CA
Story, photos by Cassie Hepler Finally California small businesses can breathe a sigh of relief – although still trough face masks as Los Angeles county mandates everyone unvaccinated or vaccinated wear a face mask in public places. And it’s not a bad call considering the Delta variant seems to be sneaking through even the best jabs available so far. So masked up and ready to explore, my journey began a little clunky with my TPMS tire light turning on about halfway to Claremont from Chula Vista, CA. My first thought was go to the tire store and second was it just needs some air… always go with the first intuition.…
- Animals, Arizona, Casino, Culture, Day Trips, Drink, Education, Entertainment, Explore with Cassie, Fitness, Food, Health, Latest News, Nature, Restaurants, Sports, Style, Travel
Four Diamond We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort Offers Stay and Play Adventures
Story, photos and video by Cassie Hepler Because everyone seems confused, let’s address the We-Ko-Pa namesake first! The name We-Ko-Pa means four peaks which is the popular mountain that borders the eastern skyline of Phoenix. The fabulous new 166,341-square-foot We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort replaces the original Fort McDowell Casino that many remember from 1984 as a bingo hall. Eight years later, the proud Yavapai Nation peacefully held off the attempts of federal agents to seize their slot machines, protecting their right to operate a casino on their reservation and provide livelihoods for their tribal members. That sentence alone infuriates me… freaking ‘Merica, but that’s a whole other story. Let’s focus instead…
- Animals, Culture, Day Trips, Dessert, Drink, Entertainment, Events, Explore with Cassie, Fashion, Food, Nature, Style, Suburbs
Horses ‘Rein’ at Annual Carriage Procession in Chester County, PA
Carriage-hitched horse and riders pass the Lincoln Building, home to the annual Yellow Springs Art Show. “At its finest, rider and horse are joined not by tack, but by trust. Each is totally reliant upon the other. Each is the selfless guardian of the other’s very well-being.” – Author unknown Story, photos by Sharon Kozden My first encounter with a horse occurred during the summer of my 12th year, when a school chum allowed a bunch of us to ride her mare. The young equestrian sat in the saddle as we took our respective turns while scrunched in front of her. Both horse and owner actually resembled one another as…
- Animals, Architecture, Arizona, Day Trips, Education, Explore with Cassie, Latest News, Nature, Travel
Don’t Steal from the Petrified Forest in Arizona
Story, photos and video by Cassie Hepler It was my first time visiting Taylor, Arizona and I had a pretty good idea of what to expect up North about three hours from Phoenix. We booked an outstanding AirBnB cabin to spend Christmas up north and fell in love with the place almost instantly. There were chickens in a coup for fresh eggs and a little greenhouse on the grounds for fresh tomatoes. Homemade jam and honey were in the fridge for our use. The owner who lived in the main house was a retired teacher who taught Native American children and his decor reflected the many beautiful hand-woven and intricate…
- Architecture, Art, Beauty, Culture, Dessert, Drink, Entertainment, Events, Explore with Cassie, Fashion, Food, Latest News, Music, Nature, Restaurants, Style, Travel
Paris, je t’aime! An American Reminisces on Her Love Affair with France
Story, photos by Jill Beckel Bonjour! It is hard to say where my obsession with Paris started, but I am honestly not sure. I know that I dreamed about going to Paris as child and something about it always fascinated me. I took French throughout middle school and three years of high school. However, I am by no means fluent. I can pick up phrases and written words here and there, but definitely could not hold my own in a full-on on conversation in French (I did try to brush up with the Duolingo app before this trip). Once I was in college, I knew that I wanted to travel…
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Philadelphia Flower Show Blooms Outdoors for 2021 Season
The Pennsylvania Convention Center has been home base for PHS Philadelphia Flower Show exhibits since 1996. “Who can say that a buttercup shining in the sun like yellow enamel is not as enchanting as a white butterfly tumbling out of a tree trunk in a Brazilian jungle? That the delicate beauty of a white wild anemone excels the orderly perfection of the petals in a white camellia? “When I took time to look into the heart of a flower, it opened up a whole new world; a world where every walk would be an adventure, where every garden would become an enchanted garden.” – Princess Grace of Monaco Story, photos…
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Online Gift Guide for Covid Quarantine Creatures
Story by Cassie Hepler, submitted photos Let’s face it, this year sucks. While there might have been a few highlights along the way (like TikTok reaching out and bringing me aboard for their new educational fund including Bill Nye the Science Guy), it has been physically, emotionally and mentally draining AF for people of all ages. Kids and parents will probably have some sort of Covid PTSD from home schooling while working from home. Couples are struggling to not kill each other by being around each other 24/7 (turns out being in the office may be a blessing as absence makes the heart grow fonder) and singles ponder if they…
