Sports, Living & Travel

The History of Chocolate in Mesomerican Cultures

The history of chocolate is much longer and more involved than most people are familiar with. Most people tend to go to a store and purchase a candy bar without thinking of the rich history of the rich treat. It’s a history covering widely separated continents and times

Going into a grocery store and plunking a chocolate bar on the counter one would never know that what we find to be a cheap, rich chocolaty experience, started thousands of years ago as a dark bitter drink, laced with chili peppers, that at least in Aztec culture was reserved for the most honored members of society.

It wasn’t exactly restricted to royalty, but only royalty, priests and such personages as decorated soldiers and honored merchants had access to it.

Chocolate is created based on the cacao seed and was once used as a form of Aztec currency. Defeated enemies were many times forced to pay their ransom in cacao seeds.

The Maya were the first known people to have discovered the cacao tree in the rain forests of South America. They gathered the seeds from the tree and cultivated them in their own cities and villages during the Classical Maya Period (250-900 A.D.).

However, taking chocolate from the cacao seed to a sweet had a long history, especially since sugar as a commodity crop wasn’t available to the Mesoamerican people. After harvesting, the seeds were fermented, roasted and ground up into a paste. The paste was then mixed with water and various ingredients such as cornmeal and chili peppers into a spicy, frothy drink.

Let’s face it, this was not the stuff of Hershey and Lindt bars, Leonidas, Dove or Ghirardelli chocolates. There were no truffles, sampler boxes or chocolate covered strawberries, blueberries or chocolate covered cherries.

This was a very raw product that, like middle-ages wine, had to have a LOT of help to get swallowed. It was nothing to go into an intense ecstacy of chocolate about.

From the Maya, cacao migrated to the Aztec both as a trade commodity and through conquest. Like ransom, tributes from conquered people were required to be paid in cacao seeds.

Here ends step one of the History of Chocolate! Be sure to visit Chocolate Ecstacy to take the next step!

Be sure to go to Chocolate Ecstacy and check out our Chocolate Ecstacy Links Page to find purveyor’s of other fine products that we highly recommend!

If you are traveling to New York on a budget, you have to carefully choose the place to stay. After all, airfares and hotels usually swallow the biggest part of your traveling budget. New York City tourism office estimated that 46 million people visited New York City in 2007. Therefore, on the contrary to many other cities, New York City hotels don’t have low or high season. People come to New York all year round. One solution is to find a hotel somewhere close but outside of Manhattan. New York City boroughs are well connected by public transportation. So, if you stay in a hotel in Queens or Brooklyn, it would take only 30-40 minutes to get to New York by subway. But, if you want to stay in Manhattan, it requires some time and research to find a budget hotel.

Full article at New York City On A Budget

You can ring in the New Year with spectacular New Years Eve fireworks over the Statue of Liberty and New York Harbor. View fireworks from Battery Park promenade or if you prefer more warm and romantic atmosphere, take one of New Years Eve Fireworks Cruises. These cruises provide luxurious views of the city’s fireworks from the water, champagne and open bar, as well as, New Years Eve dinners and great entertainment.

Full article at New Years Eve In New York City

Are you planning a holiday in the low country of South Carolina anytime soon? If you are, make plans to spend a few days in the quaint town of Bluffton.

Go here for >>> A Brief List of What to Do In Bluffton South Carolina

The main ingredient in Boston’s diet is undoubtedly seafood. Fish caught in the morning is on plates by sundown. And here in many places you can try the most famous delicacy of New England – Maine lobster. Order lobster boiled or steamed, you will also get a plastic bib, drawn butter for dipping, a nutcracker for the claws and a pick for the legs. Restaurants price lobsters by pound, around $20 for a small 1- 1 ¼ lb lobster. In many places lobster goes in a package with New England clam chowder, which also has to be tried when in Boston. From my point of view, just to eat seafood in Boston, a reason enough to come to Boston!

Full article at 10 Fun Things To Do In Boston MA

Slovakia
Slovakia just has entered euro zone and become the first member of Europe’s monetary union from Central Europe. Even though the euro is still strong (decline about 15% since a year ago), Slovakia is a cheap travel destination among its European pears. Five and four star hotels in Bratislava will cost you around 150 EUR a night. And for just 80 EUR a night you can stay in one of many castle-hotels, which are occupied real castles built in 14-18th centuries. And Slovakia has the highest number of castles and chateaux per capita in the world. Numerous medieval gothic and baroque towns, national parks and caves, lively capital city Bratislava with extremely fun nightlife and good restaurants with four-course meal for just 30 EUR – Slovakia is a great destination in Europe for a budget traveler.

Full article at Affordable Travel Due To A Recession

Join hundreds of thousands of people at Times Square to witness the famous ball drop. For more than hundred years, New York City’s Times Square has been the center of the universe on New Years Eve. Millions people all over the world hold their breath watching Times Square on New Years Eve and waiting to see Waterford Crystal New Year’s Eve Ball descending from the flagpole atop One Times Square building. If you want to be at Times Square for the lowering of the Ball ceremony, wear warm clothes and arrive earlier – people start gathering on the Square at 3 pm on New Years Eve. If you want to witness the ceremony in a more comfortable atmosphere, there are several hotels at Times Square with a great view of the Square. The festivities continue after midnight with remarkable fireworks around the city. For more romantic New Years Eve celebration, New York City offers superb dining, special parties and New Years Eve cruises.

Full article at 10 Best Cities For New Years Eve Celebration

Of course, some of my favorite Italian food is not properly Italian at all. Although there is such a thing as Italian pizza, it is very different from what we get in this country. America, it is safe to say, has taken pizza in new and interesting directions. There is deep dish pizza, thin crust pizza, and other styles too numerous to mention. Basically, any food topping can be stuck on top of the pizza nowadays to create a unique and delicious flavor. Although pizza started as Italian food, it has become a quintessentially American dish.
Some Italian food dishes are easy to cook, but they are definitely not the ones that you expect.

London Eye, being the tallest observation wheel in the world, offers the most fantastic view of London. Rising high above London’s skyline at 135 meters, this unique structure has 32 passenger’s glass capsules that turn around and provide 360-degree panorama. The London Eye capsules represent the 32 boroughs of London, and it looks like you can see all of them from the top. On a sunny day, for sure you can see up to 40 kilometers of London in all directions. During 30 minutes journey you will enjoy breathtaking views of the River Thames and the bridges, St. Paul’s Cathedral, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and other London famous landmarks. You even can have a romantic trip in your own Private Champagne Capsule, where you can enjoy splendid views of London with a glass or two of chilled Laurent-Perrier champagne.

Full article at Best Views of London

The next time you are vacationing at Myrtle Beach, South Carollina, take time to visit Broadway at the Beach. This exquisite travel destination has over one hundred specialty shops along with great entertainment and delicious food.

 

Enjoy !!! Shopping at Broadway at the Beach

New York City is well-known as the city that never sleeps. However, it is not easy to find a good place to have a dinner after midnight. Of course, you always can find snack in a regular deli (New York City delis sell food 24 hours), but what about a great meal, say, at midnight or later? Majority of New York restaurant kitchens stop serving meals after 11 p.m. Any concert or Broadway show usually ends around 10 p.m., where are you going to have dinner in New York City after that?

Full article at Dining In New York City After Midnight

New York City is a city of beautiful landscapes and spectacular views. What can be better than enjoying the view of the Big Apple and sipping apple martini at the same time? There are several places in New York City where it is actually very much possible.

Full article at New York City Skyline With Apple Martini

Restaurant.com offers you a $25 gift certificate to local restaurants for only $10. If you use this certificate at least once a week, you’ll save $60 per month. Unfortunately these certificates are not available for all restaurants in New York City, but you can check quite extended listing and find several worth-a-visit restaurants. Diningfever.com offers to take 15 -20% of your entire dinner check for dozens of New York City restaurants, check it out – some of their deals are great.

Full article at How To Save Money Eating Out At New York City Restaurants

The city where Sex and the City is not only a name of a popular TV show, it is a promise! And it is true. New York is full of single people therefore it looks like the city was designed for singles. New York City neighborhoods such as TriBeCa, East Village and Low East Side have plenty of hangout spots for all ages and interests, from young professionals to hedge fund managers to just beautiful stylish girls and guys. Gay singles will feel comfortable in cozy cafes and bars of West Village and Chelsea. And if you get lucky and meet someone special, New York has so many things to do to offer for a first date!

Full article at Best Cities For Singles Travel

In Amsterdam there are a variety of street vendors who serve tasty food and Dutch favorites, such as smoked herring, deep fried meatballs (Bitterballen) and waffles (Stroopwafels). Hundreds restaurants and cafes serve traditional Dutch dishes, which are relatively inexpensive and must be tried when in Amsterdam – Stamppot (mashing pot made from boiled potatoes with cabbage mashed up with fried bacon and served with smoked sausage) and Erwtensoep (thick pea soup with chunks of smoked sausage). Amsterdam has a lot of Indonesian restaurants, and Indonesian cuisine is even considered a part of the national cuisine, the Rijsttafel is a great example (literally ‘rice table’, a set up offering 20 or more Indonesian dishes) – perfect inexpensive fantastic dinner.

Full article at How To Travel To Amsterdam On a Budget

Planning for a workforce’s event, particularly Around London, might well be a tough and decision consuming procedure if the company are not organised, and don’t have the correct resources close at hand. From employing bar workers, to ensuring cleaners are set to tidy up the trash, organising cabaret singers, wine, it could all remarkably rapidly become a mess.

And it’s all about your company’s workers. Don’t forget that for a single minute. While using a pleasant water fall of expensive champagne gushing from your busines’s party entrance door could be your company’s thought of workforce. event bliss, if you have not say provided to vegetarians then you are presumably gonna be Within a dilemma! Please take care to make certain that all your attendees are joyful, that their particular desires are under control, and your business could be well on the way to managing an awesome work shindig. Please make clear in your mind the business plan, arrange and plan again. Hardens have a guide which can help you plan Corporate events.

Arranging is essential to the smooth running of the business’s corporate party and you cannot possibly do too much here. It is best to make sure transport is taken care of so that when the choice does come to leave the gathering, your lovely guests are not wondering all over the place attempting to get coaches to get home. Corporate celebrations can often be a challenge if your work are co-ordinating a bash for loads of personnel, so for that reason it will be an idea to gain a bit of support from skilled experts if the company are not used to doing this type of corporate event thing!

Decide on a party venue wisely. Should most of your business’s workforce live in south west of the city of London, finding a corporate venue Around Wembley might not be the smartest proposal, even if it is the most tremendous Workforce Event Venues venue Within the whole world. Please don’t always make things difficult for your team when they just do not have to be. Your workforce can pick up lots of party planners and contractors with Hardens Work events.

In the city of London, Harden’s have an index of London caterers, cabaret entertainers, costume hire, cakes, you name it, you will be able to see virtually every type of Employee party facility, allowing your firm’s corporate event go with a big bang people will fondly remember for years.

The department of Kansas City Missouri tourism has been attempting to calculate how much money the pro sports teams bring to the area. It is easy to calculate the money spent at the stadium but these people wanted to look at the entire Kansas City area spending by fans. It was determined that approximately forty seven percent of the fans spent at least one night in a motel and that fifty six percent of those people spent two nights. Of the people not spending the night, seventy eight percent of them ate at least one meal in a local area restaurant and the average cost per meal we fifty nine dollars including beer and liquor. The overnighters had an average of three restaurant meals at an average of thirty seven dollars and the two nighters had an average of seven meals at a cost of thirty five dollars. The bar bills of the overnighters was figured separately as these people typically had a night out other than the game and spent more money at the local bar. The people who stayed two nights were generally the biggest of the spenders as they not only spent money at the game and at the restaurant they also typically went on shopping trips averaging two hundred dollars in spending.

I was recently married and was looking for a honeymoon. When you think about romantic Illinois vacations you rarely think of a camping trip. Open your horizens. Hiking down a remote trail hand in hand with your sweetheart can lead to all kinds of romance. Spending a warm afternoon at the beach lead to a lot of romance.  (There was a small lake at this campground with a swimming area.) We weren’t far from civilization so there was some fine dining just ten minutes away. Of course my campground cooking was not half bad and hers was even better. We were camping in a tent and the campground itself was rather crowded so the romance was somewhat limited at the home base, but in the woods, by the lake, on the trail, you can find all sorts of places to be alone and undisturbed for as long as you would like. Give it a try. Romance doesn’t have to be an elegant meal at an expensive restaurant with fancy waiters and an expensive bottle of wine followed by the theater. If you ask me that is boring. Give me a little isolation somewhere out in nature. A can of beer is just as good as a bottle of wine for losing the inhabitations.

If you are planning a bachelorette party for a more reserved friend, or a girl who doesn’t drink, how do you still make sure she has a fun event?

Maybe you can have a chocolate party with chocolate fountains and goodies, and gift bags for all the guests that are a rich, brown color, filled with chocolate gifts.

Another key to an at-home party is making sure there are no men allowed! Send your boyfriend or husband out for the night to make sure you have the house to yourself.

Read full blog post here – at home bachelorette parties.

Saying I have a list of the top 10 healthiest foods may seem like I am telling you there are magic foods. There really are foods whose nutritional content is so powerful and the benefits of eating them so amazing, that they are often referred to as “super foods”.

These are foods that have been proven to contain vitamins, minerals and other nutrients that help to prevent disease: everything from cancer and heart disease to arthritis, eye diseases and many more.

Find recipes for all of our super foods at CookingNook.com.