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A large crowd at a music festival

Blood, Flood, and Spilled Beers: Surviving the First Manchester Music Fest in Manchester, Kentucky

2019-08-11
On: 08/11/2019
In: American Travel, Appalachia, Music

The Manchester Music Fest 2018 celebrated bluegrass, outlaw country, and southern rock in a tiny Appalachian town. And things almost went off without a hitch.

Summary graphic: Two hikers stand before an aqueduct arch, surrounded by green – trees, grass, moss – on all surfaces besides the rocks below them, parts of the arch, and the water below.

The Devil’s Pool: A Jasal Bawi on the Wissahickon

2019-05-05
On: 05/05/2019
In: Mid-Atlantic

Just north of Philadelphia, and within Wissahickon Valley Park, lies the “Devil’s Pool.” Don’t let the name scare you though – it’s worth hiking to.

A tale is told under a star-filled Utahn sky.

The Storytellers: A Madcap Story Set in the World of Texas Barbecue

2019-01-17
On: 01/17/2019
In: Texas BBQ, The West

We may have been in Springdale, UT, but when we mentioned Giddings, TX to our hosts, they began telling us an improbable story that, while set in Texas, was full of Utahn industriousness.

Summary graphic: Gilets Jaunes protesters gather in a public square in Nice, France

Gilets Jaunes in Nice: What a City’s Protests Can Reveal About its Identity

2018-12-12
On: 12/12/2018
In: Europe

The violent protests by the gilets jaunes, or “yellow vests,” happening in Paris are not happening in Nice, France’s fifth largest city. This begged a question: How much can you infer about a city based on the protests that occur within it?

pork and a stainless bowl over glowing coals

Manic Kentucky Barbecue Adventures: Monroe County Shoulder at The Smokey Pig in Bowling Green

2018-08-05
On: 08/05/2018
In: Kentucky BBQ

There are plenty of regional variations in American barbecue. But there might not be a stranger style — or one that’s more difficult to make — than Monroe County Pork Shoulder from Monroe County, Kentucky.

Summary graphic: A steak tip sub sandwich held in front of the small beach along South Boston, MA.

Steak Tips Vignette: Sal’s Ristorante & Pizzeria in Southie

2018-07-23
On: 07/23/2018
In: Boston

Steak tips, in a sub, and eaten on the beach? What sort of clash of cultures was this, and why had it taken us this long to find it?

Summary graphic: With the top rope blocking the view of his eyes, Walker Hayes steps into the ring wearing a shirt showing his name in heavy metal font and a wolf surrounded by bloody bones.

Rec Room Wrestling: We Put Our Bodies Through Hell For The Crowd

2018-04-29
On: 04/29/2018
In: Memphis

Memphis’s Broad Avenue Brawl involved chairs, poles, buckets, and plenty of flying bodies. This bar-room wrestling match provided the sort of unregulated fun you could never get at a WWE arena event.

Summary graphic: A camping trailer used as a mobile food truck, hitched to a pickup truck which is stopped at a gas station along Lamar Avenue south of 240. The trailer is emblazoned with graffiti-style lettering reading “Kailynn's Lunch Box.”

New Photos, New Map: Returning to Memphis, April 2018

2018-04-16
On: 04/16/2018
In: American Travel, Memphis, Photo Essays

It’s time to go back to Memphis, a city that continues to hold our attention. Even as it grows and changes, it remains a city with a true sense of self.

What Leonard’s Pork Volcano Taught Us About Being “Memphis Famous”

2017-12-29
On: 12/29/2017
In: Memphis, Memphis BBQ

Leonard’s Pit Barbecue is one of the oldest and “top” spots in one of America’s barbecue capitals, but it has very little national hype. We went to find out why.

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