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about concrete and kitsch

My name’s Nick.  I’m a bunch of acronyms – OCD, ADD, LGBT, MBA, BFD.

concrete and kitsch is my curated space for information on travel to and stories about the offbeat places I love around the world.

Here I am sitting down for lunch in the Greek Quarter of Istanbul, Turkey. (December, 2014)
Lunch in the Greek Quarter of Istanbul, Turkey. (December, 2014)

I’ve been captivated by other cultures and offbeat destinations for about as long as I can remember.   Growing up, my parents installed a map of the world as wallpaper in my bedroom – to which I can attribute my knowledge about second and third tier cities of the developing world.   In college, my friends would try to find countries whose capitals I couldn’t identify – spoiler alert: they never could.

I’ve been traveling independently since I was about 16, when I spent a summer in Japan going to high school in a small town about 90 minutes south of Osaka.  I studied Japanese and Chinese in college, but my interest in Korea took me there for my first job after graduation.

Ulleung-do, Korea at dusk. Squid boat in foreground.
Ulleung-do, Korea at dusk. Squid boat in foreground.

I eventually moved home and got an MBA from the University of Washington.  While building this blog and my travel resume, I was married to a wonderful man, David, with whom I am still great friends.  I also divorced my MBA job in 2019 to start an art and travel business, Atlas and Oasis, the former becoming my main source of income during the height of the COVID pandemic.

Collecting wheat for fertility rites in the vast Mongolian steppe; near Amarbayasgalant Monastery.
Collecting wheat for fertility rites in the vast Mongolian steppe; near Amarbayasgalant Monastery.

I’m thrilled, however, to have just returned from a fabulous trip through the South Caucasus with a brief stopover in Romania (March-April 2022).  I am looking forward to reconnecting with old readers as well as new!

You can contact me at Nick(at)concreteandkitsch(dot)com.

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4 comments

  1. Sounds like you need to visit Turkmenistan! If you’re into former soviet architecture clashing with modern monoliths, you’ll love it!

  2. I would absolutely love to go to Turkmenistan! The State Circus in Ashgabat has been a building I’ve long lusted over! 🙂

    Too bad about their expensive visa policy, though. Here’s hoping it gets a bit more relaxed in the future – though I’m not holding my breath!

    Thanks for stopping by 🙂

  3. Nick, have you been to Vilnius or Minsk? Any information you can share?

  4. Hey Jaime – been to Vilnius, here’s a link to my Lithuania content:

    https://www.concreteandkitsch.com/category/destinations/europe/baltics/lithuania/

    Haven’t been to Minsk, but can whole heartedly recommend Megan Starr and Kathmandu and Beyond’s writing on it:
    https://www.meganstarr.com/tag/minsk/
    http://www.kathmanduandbeyond.com/belarus/

    Happy travels!!