{"product_id":"bigswa","title":"Big Sky, Windy City, Around the Planet, by Wendy Altschuler","description":"\u003cp align=\"justify\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003ePoetry, chapbook, 24 pages, from\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan style=\"color: #2b00ff;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" data-mce-style=\"color: #2b00ff;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/bottlecap.press\/collections\/bottlecap-features\" style=\"color: #2b00ff;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/bottlecap.press\/collections\/bottlecap-features\" data-mce-style=\"color: #2b00ff;\"\u003eBottlecap Features\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp align=\"justify\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eIt takes a bit of chutzpah to put a toothbrush in your mouth after you’ve seen a cockroach twitching about on its bristles, as was the scene early one morning when waking up in Sri Lanka, that beautifully rugged tear-shaped island south of India that was once called Ceylon. \u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eIn the wee hours of dawn on an adventuresome trip to Costa Rica, following a long week of hiking, ziplining, river tubing, and learning how to surf, my rubbery gams barely held my frame up as I bolted out of bed at the sound of too-close howler monkeys. After listening for a while trying to discern their shapes in the dense fog, fully alert with the fuzz on the back of my neck standing at attention, I snapped back to my bedside to grab my glasses, which felt a bit heavier than normal. A scorpion was curled around the frame—also at attention. \u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eInky black skies and a nippiness to the air made a shiver trickle down my spine as I unzipped my canvas tent to head out for a hot air balloon ride well before daybreak in Kenya. Standing there unexpectedly, holding a 9 foot stick, was a slender yet mighty Maasai warrior ready to protect me from any possible lion or hyena attacks. \u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe cockcrow hours almost always whisper a promise of adventure and rejuvenation, demanding that we enter with caution and, dare I say, excitement, or at the very least, proof that life writhes, entangles, hunts, and exists while most are sleeping.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp align=\"justify\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWendy Altschuler is a seasoned travel and adventure writer with work published in major publications on destinations across the globe. She has been a travel expert on Chicago’s trusted radio and news stations, WLS and WGN. Wendy is the author of the just-published book, \u003cem\u003ePerfect Day Chicago: Grab-and-Go Itineraries for Everyone\u003c\/em\u003e. When she’s not traversing the globe, she’s hanging out with her three wild boys, even-wilder husband, and two hound dogs.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Wendy Altschuler","offers":[{"title":"Chapbook","offer_id":44842330882363,"sku":"BIGSWA","price":10.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Digital Download (PDF)","offer_id":44842330915131,"sku":"BIGSWAe","price":7.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0062\/4420\/4614\/products\/aroundfront.png?v=1697489982","url":"https:\/\/bottlecap.press\/products\/bigswa","provider":"Bottlecap Press","version":"1.0","type":"link"}