Cyrus Farivar

I’ve just arrived here in Tallinn, fresh off the boat from Helsinki. I’m sitting here at one of Veljo’s favorite bars in downtown Tallinn, Molly Malone’s, in the Raekoja Plats (Town Square). I’ve been pleasantly greeted to an American car show and outdoor concert: I kid you not, an Estonian band, Casakama, is singing “Johnny B. Goode” right now. They also hit favs like “Jailhouse Rock” and “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door.” It’s a much smaller version of what I saw…

I’m here until May 1 to report for PRI’s The World. I’m staying at the Stadion Hostel, where there’s free WiFi. So far, I met a friendly Greek student who’s studying abroad here on the bus back from the airport, and an Iranian engineer who works for Nokia and lives in Mashad, but is here to visit Nokia HQ. Small world. Off to find dinner and explore a little bit!

Friends: As my gift to you before I head out on my two-week reporting trip on The World’s dime to Finland/Estonia, I am proud to announce that I’m going to be on The World and Morning Edition on Monday, April 28. My piece on NPR is on online food maps, while my piece on PRI’s The World is about the internal dispute within the One Laptop Per Child community. NPR’s Morning Edition airs on any of these stations (and their…

I was on two podcasts that went out over the series of tubes today. (Yes, it’s 2 am on April 26, but in my head it’s still April 25.) I was on The World’s Tech Podcast Episode #192, talking about my upcoming trip to the Baltics. And I was on the latest episode of Chuck Joiner’s new podcast, The Mac Jury. Enjoy!

With origins in Mexico, a dash of Americanizations and a kitchen on wheels, taco trucks are the perfect metaphor for California. They represent cheap and quality street food that has spread from Calexico to Yreka and beyond. Anyone who loves an honest horchata, a good burrito and solid torta knows where to find these roving brigades of deliciousness. California Taco Trucks was started as a way for five Californians to explore this intersection and confluence of geography, culture, photography and,…

These banners are hung in two windows of the same house, less than a block north of my own. I think it pretty much sums up the entire election.

Music: Blue Scholars – Fire for the People 12:08 am Pacific Time March 30 2008 I’ve heard that you can take the temperature of Iranian social freedoms by a quick glance at how young women (teenagers, mid-20s) wear their hejab. In the early days of the Islamic Republic, the chador (large black cloak) was enforced. Nearly 30 years later, it’s migrated to a simple hejab (headscarf). Very religious women will have it tightly wrapped around their heads and will usually…

Dear Friends, I’ve been informed that my radio piece on a new digital ballpoint pen will air on Morning Edition today (April 21)! It will be available on any of these stations (and their Internet streams). New York – 5 am to 9 am Eastern – WNYC – 820 AM – www.wnyc.org Washington, DC – 5 am to 10 am Eastern – WAMU – 88.5 FM – www.wamu.org Los Angeles – 2 am to 9 am Pacific – KPCC –…

Mila Rainof, one of the smartest, ambitious and most interesting people that I knew in middle school and high school has suddenly passed away in a tragic car accident in New Haven, where she was attending medical school at Yale. While I lost contact with her over the years, I feel a renewed sense of connection, knowing that she would have come to Oakland this fall to start her residency. The world is indeed worse-off without her. We’ll miss you,…