The idea came to me,
as most good ideas do, over a robusto and a rum. Go west! And smoke a cigar a day along the way. I had decided to retire. I wanted to live somewhere I could play tennis outdoors most, if not all, of the year. So, I've loaded up the humidors and am taking off. California. Swimming pools, movie stars. And no place to smoke cigars, I feared, just having read about the move by Calabasas officials to prohibit puffing in most places, even outdoors. That's the town just southeast of where I'm headed.
The biggest decision, after the one to give up a relatively easy life, big house and pool table, was which route to take. (I'd done the cross-country thing twice, taking the northern route once -- New York to San Francisco on Interstate 80 -- and the southern route -- Interstate 10 straight across). To figure out which route to take this time, I consulted with my editor over a cigar and a Gosling's Black Seal. We decided to take the middle route, at least starting out. So, in the next few days you'll be reading not so much about my travels, but about the places along the way at which you can enjoy yourself and a cigar. With impunity. Click on the cities listed in bold on my notepad as a I visit them each day.
The trip begins in New York City, and continues in Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Kansas City, Oklahoma City, Albuquerque, Phoenix and Westlake Village, California, my new home. Follow my trek for the next eight days here on Cigar Aficionado Online. To share favorite cigar-friendly restaurants and bars in your neighborhood, go to our online forums. I'd love to hear from you.
|
Cigar Aficionado RSS Feed