American Nomad Blog
About this blog
American Nomad covers the best of U.S. travel—from vacation deals to festivals, weekend getaways, travel tips, and more. A seasoned traveler and Moon author, Laura is the perfect guide to help discover new gems when traveling domestically.
Recent Posts
- Exploring the Lower Keys with Strike Zone Charters
- A Lesson on Regional Dialect: Michigan
- A Lesson on Regional Dialect: New Orleans
- A Lesson on Regional Dialect: The Everglades
- A Lesson on Regional Dialect: The Florida Keys
- Waterfront Dining at Coconuts Restaurant in Key Largo
- Firearms to Be Allowed in National Parks
- Celebrating Mardi Gras in New Orleans and Elsewhere
- Finding Romance at Key Largo's Rock Reef Resort
- Top Ten Most Romantic U.S. Cities #2
- Top Ten Most Romantic U.S. Cities #1
- Exploring Florida's Everglades Via Airboat
- Winter Getaway #3: The Florida Keys
- Winter Getaway #2: South Padre Island, Texas
- Winter Getaway #1: Quartzsite, Arizona
Exploring the Lower Keys with Strike Zone Charters
Photo courtesy of Daniel Martone
While preparing last week's post about terminology unique to the Florida Keys, words like “chum,” “grouper,” “patch reef,” and “skunked” brought back memories of my most recent trip to the Lower Keys. While down there, gathering research for my latest travel guide, Moon Florida Keys, my husband, Dan, and I decided to take an island excursion ($55, reservation requested) with Strike Zone Charters (29675 Overseas Hwy., Big Pine Key, 305/872-9863 or 800/654-9560), an outfitter and tour operator based near mile marker 29.5 on the bay side of U.S. 1. more >>
A Lesson on Regional Dialect: Michigan
In the first three parts of this four-part series, I shared some of the terms and abbreviations that you might encounter while exploring the Florida Keys, the Everglades, and New Orleans. For this last post, I've compiled a list of expressions about the diverse state of Michigan, as found in my Moon Michigan guidebook. Here's just a sample of what you'll see and hear in the Great Lakes State:
Big Mac: a nickname for the Mackinac Bridge, the link between Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas; also called simply The Bridge more >>
A Lesson on Regional Dialect: New Orleans
In my last two posts, I shared several terms relating to the Florida Keys and the Everglades. For this third part of the series, I've compiled a list of expressions that you often hear in New Orleans – a city that seems to have its own language, with a prevalent accent that's closer to a harsh New York tone than a southern drawl. So, whether you call it N'Awlins, the Big Easy, or the Crescent City, here are just a few of the things that make this town unique:
andouille: a spicy pork sausage used in dishes like gumbo and jambalaya
ax: the way that some New Orleanians pronounce “ask”
bayou: a slow-moving body of water within a marsh, prevalent throughout New Orleans more >>
A Lesson on Regional Dialect: The Everglades
Photo courtesy of Daniel Martone
In my last post, I shared several of the terms and abbreviations that I encountered during a recent research trip to the Florida Keys. To continue this fun – and, hopefully, helpful – series about regional dialects in America, I've compiled a list of terms and features that I discovered while traveling through the Everglades, which will also be explored in the upcoming Moon Florida Keys guidebook. Here's just a sample of what you'll see and hear in the Florida Everglades:
airboat: a small, open boat driven by a caged, rear-mounted airplane propeller and capable of traveling at relatively high speeds through marshes and shallow water; also called a swamp boat more >>
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