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Explore With Cassie

Lifestyle & travel blog finding the unusual out of the ordinary.

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  • Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage

    Derby Day Watch Party Was on Track at Rosalie Restaurant in Wayne, PA

    May 20, 2024 /

    Saddle, equestrian helmet, award ribbons and flowers comprise a representative Kentucky Derby display. His body is a paradox of mass and lightness, crafted to slip through air with the ease of an arrow. His mind is impressed with a single command: run. He pursues speed with superlative courage, pushing beyond defeat, beyond exhaustion, sometimes beyond the structural limits of bone and sinew. In flight, he is nature’s ultimate wedding of form and purpose. — Laura Hillenbrand Story, photos by Sharon Kozden While I would never consider myself an equestrian—not by a long shot (pun!)—I have spent time horseback riding throughout the years. Not too often but off and on since…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    Art Car World Bringing Burning Man Vibes to Douglas, Arizona

    December 5, 2021

    Philadelphia’s 2018 Flower Show Just Adds Water

    August 16, 2018

    Explore Luxury Tributary Hotel & Fine Dining at ōkta Restaurant in McMinnville, Oregon

    May 2, 2024
  • Day Trips,  Destinations,  Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News

    Four-Diamond Loews Philadelphia Hotel Welcomes Guests Like Family

    September 24, 2023 /

    Whoa, Loews! You had me at HELLO … and that Charcuterie Board. Family, indeed. “Whether anybody was home meant everything to a house. It was more than a major fact: it was the only fact … The family was the house’s soul.” — Jonathan Franzen Story, photos by Sharon Kozden It didn’t take me long to discover that The Loews Family at Loews Philadelphia Hotel meant what they said when they said I’d be welcomed like family. In July 2020, the luxury hospitality company introduced “a fresh brand position which defines Loews as more than simply a collection of hotels, but a brand deeply rooted in welcoming and caring for…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    Explore Chacchoben Ruins and Blue Lagoon in Costa Maya, Mexico

    April 4, 2023

    Explore 5 Hidden Treasures Just Outside of London, England

    October 28, 2024

    Universal Horror Unleashed Haunts Las Vegas at Area 15 Entertainment District

    October 20, 2025
  • Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage

    Fahoo Forays, Dahoo Dorays: Welcome U-ville, a Seussian Whoville at Philadelphia’s Uptown Beer Garden

    December 31, 2022 /

    Bright Lights, Big City:  Uptown Beer Garden presented its seasonal U-Ville in homage to the Seussian Whoville. Between the radiant white of a clear conscience and the coal black of a conscience sullied by sin lie many shades of gray – where most of us live our lives. Not perfect but not beyond redemption. ~~ Leslie Pinckney Hill “People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone.” ~~ Audrey Hepburn Story, photos by Sharon Kozden On the evening of November 16th, I Ubered into the City to celebrate the unveiling of Uptown Beer Garden’s holiday creation, U-ville … a name whose…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    EXCLUSIVE: Vanderpump Rules stars Jax Taylor and Tom Sandoval talk Lisa Vanderpump, Scheana’s Wedding Dress and the up coming “Brutal” Reunion

    February 24, 2015

    Philadelphia’s Christmas Pop-up Bar Tinsel Amps Up Watts, Tech and Decor

    December 31, 2022

    First Tonino Lamborghini Store in the United States Opens in Las Vegas, Nevada

    May 7, 2020
  • Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News

    Uptown Beer Garden Mutates Upside Down for Spooky Season with ‘Stranger Things’ Theme

    October 23, 2022 /

    “People don’t spend their lives trying to get a look at what’s behind the curtain. They like the curtain. It provides them stability, comfort, definition.” ~~~ Murray Bauman, Stranger Things   Story, photos by Sharon Kozden Actually, Murray, I beg to differ with your above-referenced statements about “the curtain.” I liked getting a look at what’s behind it … at least I did on the evening of September 28th … when Aversa PR and Craft Concepts Group welcomed media to a preview party like none other at Uptown Beer Garden‘s Stranger Things-themed pop-up bar. Greetings from Hawkins, Indiana. Wish you were here! Perhaps if I had watched Netflix TV’s Stranger…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    Piazza Pod Park Opens in Philly’s Northern Liberties, BEBOT Towers Over Fun-for-All Hot Spot

    June 19, 2019

    Enjoy a Desert Oasis and Waterfall at Revamped Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson, Arizona

    December 9, 2024

    Hopping into Spring with Fishtown Hops at Sugarhouse Casino in Philadelphia, PA

    May 9, 2019
  • Day Trips,  Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Lifestyle

    Horses ‘Rein’ at Annual Carriage Procession in Chester County, PA

    May 21, 2021 /

    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…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    Explore the Center of the World in Felicity, California

    April 13, 2026

    Enjoy Desert Zen at Rancho de Los Caballeros Ranch Spa in Wickenburg, Arizona

    November 18, 2024
    Travel like a local

    Really Get to Know Your Destination Like a Local

    September 14, 2023
  • Destinations,  Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News,  Lifestyle

    Paris, je t’aime! An American Reminisces on Her Love Affair with France

    March 15, 2021 /

    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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    Jill Beckel

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    Relax and Enjoy Slow, Southern Style in Clarksville, Tennessee

    September 26, 2018

    Hurricane Irma Displaces Single Dad, Daughter to New Jersey

    September 25, 2017

    The Power of Beauty and the Art of Conversation with Curator Archie Broady

    May 15, 2024
  • Education,  Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Latest News,  Lifestyle

    Oscar Nominee Rian Johnson Cuts a Sharp Figure at Philadelphia Film Festival’s Knives Out Screening

    February 19, 2020 /

    Lights, Camera, Action … with a heavy on the lights! Story, photos by Sharon Kozden “We must look a little closer. And when we do, we see that the doughnut hole has a hole in its center. It is not a doughnut hole, but a smaller doughnut with its own hole, and our doughnut is not holed at all!” – Benoit Blanc (Knives Out) The 2019 Philadelphia Film Festival (PFF) wrapped with yet another successful year (its 28th!) in the can. Running 11-days through October, the festival showcased 110 films at the Philadelphia Film Center. I had the distinct honor of attending the red-carpet premiere of the critically acclaimed Knives Out…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    JDRF Celebrates Hope with One Promise Gala at Loews Philadelphia

    August 1, 2018

    Escape to a Fairytale Fever Dreamscape at Il Falconiere in Cortona, Tuscany Italy

    June 1, 2026

    Explore Maui, Hawaii from Aston Maui Hill Resort in Kihei on a Budget

    May 26, 2025
  • Destinations,  Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News,  Lifestyle

    Cheerio! Exploring London, England a Second Time Around

    January 14, 2020 /

    Story, photos by Jill Beckel  London, England… a city known for its gray skies, beautiful architecture, culture, art, rich history, the River Thames, the British monarchy, pubs and tea. I was fortunate enough to have been able to study abroad in my college days for a term my sophomore year of college back in 2006. Since then, I’ve been yearning to go back and explore the city even more. I recently got the chance to make the trip back with my husband this time and it couldn’t have been better. All that I would have wished for was to have been able to stay longer! I knew that I wanted…

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    Jill Beckel

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    How to Plan a Visit to Cinque Terre, the Italian Riviera’s Hidden Gem

    July 28, 2025

    Like an Adventure? 7 Hidden Secrets of Bangkok, Thailand

    August 24, 2023

    What To Do in Saint Martin Island in the Caribbean Sea

    February 10, 2025
  • Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News,  Lifestyle

    Cider Sparkles at Fairmount Park’s 3rd Annual CiderFest in Philadelphia, PA

    December 4, 2019 /

    Event signage hangs from fence posts at Cedar Grove. Photos, story by Sharon Kozden “It was a beautiful bright autumn day, with air like cider and a sky so blue you could drown in it.” – Diana Gabaldon It really was a day such as described in the above quote … uncannily so if you happened to be attending the third annual CiderFest at the Historic Houses of Fairmount Park. Having written about and photographed the inaugural event in 2017, I had missed 2018’s iteration but was glad to be back spending my Saturday afternoon between the hours of noon and 5 p.m. surrounded by folks ranging in interest level…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    Helpusadopt.org Celebrates 10th Anniversary of Making Family Miracles

    May 10, 2018

    Spend 24 Hours in the Mountain Town of Norcia, Umbria in Italy

    May 25, 2026

    Eddie Money Talks Golden Nugget Show, Trump, Hillary, Paradise and Jersey Food

    May 19, 2016
  • Day Trips,  Entertainment,  Explore with Cassie,  Food & Beverage,  Latest News

    Making Weekend Waves at Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey

    November 20, 2019 /

    Heads up for one imposing casino resort. You’ll find an entire playground in that “Ocean.” “Seize the moment. Remember all those women on the ‘Titanic’ who waved off the dessert cart.” – Erma Bombeck Story, photos by Sharon Kozden Happy first anniversary to Atlantic City’s Ocean Casino Resort! You’ve done good. Matter of fact, better than good. You are, in this writer’s opinion (and as reviewed by many others), a smashing success. I know my casinos, empirically speaking, that is. Back in the day and thanks to an accumulated bounty of comps from her favorite Atlantic City casino, my mom and me would hop a Bieber bus from Coopersburg to…

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    Sharon Kozden

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    CiderFest Brought Hardcore Fun to Woodford Mansion in Philly’s Fairmount Park

    December 30, 2023

    Drop Down South to the Wine World of Willcox, Arizona

    October 11, 2021

    PNC’s ‘LumiNature’ Winter Light Show Illuminates Philadelphia Zoo

    November 27, 2023
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Recent Posts

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  • Go Truffle Hunting, Foraging for Flowers & Shopping in Force with Italy Charme
  • Live like a Queen in an 1,000 Year Old Castle, Castel di Luco in Italy
  • Escape to a Fairytale Fever Dreamscape at Il Falconiere in Cortona, Tuscany Italy
  • Spend 24 Hours in the Mountain Town of Norcia, Umbria in Italy

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