Crypto News: How to travel back in time

Hello! I'm Zijia Song, a new reporter on the Bloomberg Pursuits team. I joined recently here in New York and help out on all the style and luxury coverage—while browsing Reddit watch forums and eating my way across town in my free time.

Before I dove into the world of the uber-rich, I spent two weeks traveling in Ottawa and Montreal. I wanted to understand more about the country's culture, a desire that partially stemmed from my previous reporting about how Quebec's strategic maple syrup reserve has been replenished this year due to the region's cool spring weather. Apparently the sap inside trees flows better when daytime temperatures alternate between freezing and thawing.

Inside Ynyshir, named the best restaurant in Wales. Photographer: Chris Fyne/Ynyshir

I was fascinated by anything maple-related, whether it was syrup or flavored butter or recipes or leaf-shaped jewelry. I toured the Parliament in Ottawa, climbed Mount Royal in Montreal, and visited the Notre-Dame Basilica there. I tried poutine, an iconic dish of gravy-covered French fries and cheese curds, topped with chorizo and Portuguese grilled chicken, at Ma Poule Mouillée, a local counter-serve diner in Montreal. I ordered a smoked meat sandwich and cole slaw at Schwartz's Deli, part-owned by singer Celine Dion.

Those kinds of trips where you can taste (sometimes literally) the local culture, history, stories, and legends are my favorite. It feels like you are going back in time.

They remind me of the trips my parents took me on across China. I remember standing on the peak of Mount Huangshan in the Anhui province, surrounded by thin clouds floating within arm's reach on the 5,000-foot mountain top. I read stone-carved poetry and prose that dated back to 219 BCE on Mount Tai in my home province, Shandong, in the northeast. I drank Kumis, fermented mare's milk, in a yurt with locals and rode horses on the Hulunbuir prairie in Inner Mongolia. From a young age, traveling has baked a sense of curiosity for the wonders of nature and culture into me.

Duck egg at Annwn in Pembrokeshire, Wales. Photographed by Emli Bendixen for Bloomberg Pursuits

I thought about these trips while I read the latest dispatch from our contributor Brandon Presser, who went on a road trip through Wales and wrote about it in the new issue of Bloomberg Businessweek.

The country has had a recent surge of interest in its heritage, language, and food. I didn't know it served as the training ground for Sir Edmund Hillary before he climbed Mount Everest. There's also a town that has the longest place name in Europe. (I have no idea how to pronounce it.) Plus, there's castle-filled national parks, hand-crafted cheese, Corgi wool knitwear, Michelin-starred restaurants, and single malt whisky.

Check it out for yourself here. Even if you don't think you'll ever make it to Wales, maybe it'll bring back memories some of your own favorite trips like it did with me.

Speaking of international travel, it's still a headache: Mishandled luggage claims are up 60% over last year! There are roughly 20,000 delayed or canceled flights a day! What to do? Our resident travel genius Nikki Ekstein details seven ways to avoid airport chaos when usual logic doesn't apply, including why maybe it's time to invest in a personal airport greeter.
And if you're flying in Europe, here are the best 10 airports for on-time departures. But what you really want is the list for the 10 worst.

The Q4 e-Tron Sportback costs slightly more than its more square sibling but offers more storage space and better aesthetics, thanks to the sloping roofline and 20-inch V-spoke wheels.

Our car critic Hannah Elliott tried out Audi's 2023 Q4 e-Tron Sportback—and she loved it. She says it's as if all the moms and dads had written a list of the things they wanted in an electric SUV, and then someone went out and made it.
Oh, and she also investigated what's behind all those supercars with Montana license plates. Find out why other car collectors are comparing people who have them to "people who put the fake handicap badges in their car" and call them "scum." Okay then!
Attention comic fans: The newest hero in the Marvel Universe is a chef who owns a food truck. Is that cool or nah? Anna Ameyama is introduced into the superhero team when Iron Man crashes into her food truck and she offers him a pork katsu torta.

This Gorgosaurus skeleton measures 22 feet long and 10 feet tall.

Have you visited "Sue" the T-Rex at the Field Museum in Chicago? It was a Sotheby's watershed auction sale in 1997. This week, a full-size skeleton of Gorgosaurus, a relative of T-Rex, went up for auction and its 79 bones sold for $6,069,500—or $76,829 per bone.

New Yorkers can now take a train to the Berkshires for the first time in 50 years. It's part of Amtrak's plan to bring more routes to over 160 cities and towns across the country. This is a god-send for someone like me who doesn't own a car.
The latest skincare dupe that's taken TikTok and YouTube by storm? Trader Joe's $9 clear-gel sunscreen. Shoppers are going crazy for it, and it sold out almost immediately. Because why pay $36 for Supergoop when you can get the job done just as well with a quarter of the price? That's real luxury.
International brands have a love-hate relationship with China's consumer market. The large middle-income group offers an appealing opportunity, yet brands have to tread a fine line in scrutinizing for political messages and cultural insensitivity. Lately, Dior was accused by Chinese social media users for appropriating Chinese culture. The item in question? A $3,800 skirt that resembles a traditional Chinese garment.

Since I'm new to the team, I'm relying on my knowledgeable colleagues, Chris Rovzar and Kate Krader, for these answers.

Is it true that the west coast in the US has better sushi than the east coast?

Definitely not true, says our food editor Kate. NYC has become the epicenter of top-of-the-line (and expensive) sushi, specifically at places like 69 Leonard, Yoshino, and Noz. The playing field is more level than it's ever been. But she says the absolute best sushi in the US is arguably even further west than the west coast: Sushi Sho in Honolulu.

For $1,000, you can bring two friends to Shuko in Greenwich Village. Photographer: Evan Sung

What are the best "new" wine regions in the Old World?

The Canary Islands in Spain have been gaining traction for a couple years, according to Kate. Douro Valley in Portugal has been growing in popularity also, but the main fear for both new and old wine regions is climate change—extreme heat and fires are the new normal in Europe.

And good wine is more widely available in the US than ever, now that a new wave of European vintners are seeking toeholds in the US. Meanwhile, the US lifted tariffs on European bottles last year and California's seminal wine country, Napa Valley, is back with pent-up demand and a flood of visitors.

A few recommended bottles for a summer cookout. Source: Vendors

Here's an idea: Instead of looking at regions, our wine critic Elin McCoy suggests that the setting is really a more important consideration: If you're going to a summer cookout, for instance, here are 9 bottles to bring—and some good advice about what not to. (Hint: no white wine!)

Is the market for luxury watches softening?

This question is perfectly timed, says Chris. Our awesome beat reporter who covers the Swiss watch industry just came out with a story that explains what's going on. For the past couple of months, prices on the watches at the very top of the secondary market have been softening from their heights last year—think Rolex Daytonas and Patek Philippe Nautiluses.

These so-called "grail" watches were coveted by the cryptocurrency crowd, and trading in that community drove up prices and tightened supply. But with the crumbling of crypto lately, some are putting those watches back on the market. According to Chrono24, one of the largest marketplaces for secondhand watches, this has caused prices to soften as supply eases.

A Rolex Daytona is still one of the most coveted timepieces among collectors, even though prices have softened a bit. Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon

That's not to say that it's any easier to walk into a store and buy a new watch from the top brands. Supply of timepieces at retail is still incredibly thin due to supply chain issues and demand. I walked into a Rolex boutique recently in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan, and more than half of the cases were empty. And watch brands like Vacheron Constantin and Zenith, which were formerly easy places to buy a watch immediately, have joined Rolex and Patek in having months-long waitlists for new pieces.

But if you're really chasing a grail watch, hopefully this news makes it a little bit more within reach.

That's it from me! And don't forget, you can join us virtually or in-person in Singapore on Aug. 4 at the Bloomberg Asia Wealth Summit as we gather leading investors, economists, and money managers to cut through the jargon and bring actionable intelligence to private investors and family offices. The definition of wealth has changed over generations, so register here to hear from international investor and author Jim Rogers, leaders from Nomura, Pictet and more.