DORÉ

I’m writing this while sitting on the floor of the airport in Santiago as I travel back from our Art of Self Discovery retreat. I’m waiting for a four hour flight to take me to Sao Paulo, where I will wait for a nine hour flight to take me home, to New York City.

Thirty minutes ago I ordered crab cakes at an airport restaurant called La Pausa. I know, ordering crab cakes at an airport restaurant ranks low on the list of smart decisions, but after nine days of Chilean food, I was drawn to the crab cakes when I saw them on the menu. They reminded me of my other home, my childhood home, Los Angeles.

Ladies who lunch in Los Angeles order crab cakes. They are both decadent and light at the same time, with chunks of crab meat mixed with a bit of indulgent mayo, and even more indulgent bits of bread. And they’re always on a bed of lettuce, so you could practically call it a Crab Salad.

Well, I just learned Chilean crab cakes are the definition of indulgence. Instead of my expected two little crab cakes on a bed of lettuce, I was given a skillet (yes a skillet) whose entire surface was covered in melted cheese and topped with crispy onions.

If the waiter hadn’t said “crab cakes” when he put down said skillet I would have launched into that awkward “I-didn’t-order-this” dance.

I should have known something was up when I was given a spoon in advance of my meal instead of the expected fork and knife. I picked up said spoon in search of the crab. Underneath an inch of melted cheese was a thick crab and shrimp stew.

It was fucking delicious.

But not my definition of a crab cake.

People talk about the benefits of travel often. Expanding one’s perspective, experiencing different cultures, pushing your own boundaries — the list goes on and typically reads like a self help book in the clearance aisle at Target.

But, you know what people don’t often highlight when discussing travel? Coming home.

That delicious feeling of warmth and reassurance when you see the skyline of the city you know so well. Where you can let your guard down, know exactly where to get a great meal at 2am, and where the faces of your loved ones are.

This month on the site, in honor of the holiday season that is somehow already upon us, we’re going to be talking all about the concept of home and what it means to us–from our families, our holiday traditions, our childhoods, missing home, and creating our own homes, to a few interior spaces we love, and even highlighting a few women who are changing the home design industry! We can’t wait for you to join us and share your own thoughts on home in the comments!

Tomorrow morning, after a 90 minute drive, a two hour flight, a five hour layover, then a four hour flight, followed by a mad dash to catch a final nine hour flight, I’ll arrive home to my dog and my partner and immediately feel the sense of relief one can only fully feel when they arrive home.