Maria Gotay

With Manhattan waving farewell to CMJ festival last year, the city once again lovingly embraced Northside Festival in Brooklyn this past weekend. A whirlwind five days of concerts, panels, and workshops, a virtual reality playground, block party, and even a 5k, the festival and conference packed a big punch. Be it podcast nerd, world music aficionado, tech entrepreneur, or freelance journalist, there was something for everyone. It seems Northside ain’t goin nowhere, and only gets better with age

The beginning of a new chapter in my life. An exclamation mark now replacing the question mark long lingering in my psyche about this fabled family. The end of my doubt that these relatives really existed and that they really cared about me. No matter how little blood we had in common, they considered me their family.

During the Q&A the owners of DBA say that everything was worth it if they've inspired someone in the world to create a DIY space of their own. And while it's easier to start up something new in cities with cheaper rents and more space to spread, DBA proved that there is no community more motivated and passionate than New York. While the old model of DIY rarely went hand-in-hand with the law, a few new venues are paving the way for the community to thrive sustainably. Venues like Alphaville and

“Stay weird!” Portland exclaims, encouraging its residents and visitors to indulge in its evident individuality. Indeed, Portland continues to stand out as one of the environmentally friendly, progressive and quirky cities in America. The Pacific Northwest provides a lush backdrop for a burgeoning city full of artists and musicians, foodies and an innovative tech scene.

We, as visitors, are drawn to its wave breaks and tide pools, monkeys in the jungles, the clouds in the trees. And we’re here to experience “pura vida,” the country’s national motto and touted lifestyle: the embodiment of a simple life. But when examined, Pura Vida paints a much more detailed and illusive portrait than the one paired with the catchphrase on tourist billboards.

You’re still receiving messages from friends for whom it took a while to get the news. Over the past weeks, you’ve absorbed almost everyone’s kind words, their Facebook messages are laden with heart emojis and phone numbers and offers to help in any way possible. But there are still those unopened laments that you can’t bring yourself to fully read just yet, like the one from your brother’s teenage crush, a girl writes she will never forget the first time she s

Brooklyn is undeniably one of the best places to eat in the US. Whether it’s Michelin-starred pastas or innovative sushi bombs, some of NY‘s finest dining experiences can be found in its largest borough. Take the L-train a few stops out of Manhattan to the edgy ‘hood of Bushwick’ next time you’re looking for a unique and delectable dining experience. But where to start?

...The event fits perfectly into Arcosanti’s concentric circles, sweeping curves, and rust-colored landscape; the two main stages occupy concrete amphitheaters and the late night sets take place about a mile’s walk down a dirt path in the basin of a nearby Canyon.

They say 10 years here makes you a New Yorker but I knew from the very start I was home. An NYC resident I became, and a city girl I’ll always be, but a New Yorker no longer. New York, I love you. You’re not bringing me down. You’re enigmatic, you’re breathtaking, you’re the most incredible place in the world. But I’m ready for a new muse. You’re no longer my town.

The Wonder Ballroom, one of the city’s best mid-sized venues, took a night off from its pop bookings to experiment with Jaar’s wall of sound. The floor was flooded in fog, bathed in white light, and packed with backpack-toting goth girls shoulder-to-shoulder with PDX’s unique brand of nature hipsters. It drizzled on the street, but inside, it was dripping with sound.

We fell in line with the ambitious travelers around us, hopping from land to sea and back again, journey powered by ferries and long-tailed boats, motorbike and tuck tuck. Our mission: to soak in the rich ocean views everywhere we went. Coinciding mission: do it in a respectful and authentic way, try not to let the sun-soaked spiral of the tourist tornado define our experience. And we succeeded—sort of.

I arrived at Burning Man with a suitcase of costumes and a backpack stuffed with my whole life. I had just left New York for good, and for the next 8 days, the desert was my new home. I was on the mend and I was on my own for the first time. I was here to reclaim my life on my terms. I just happened to be doing it one of the world’s most legendary gatherings. I had a lot to learn.