The Palin Bus Tour: Why

Sarah Palin is spending her summer vacation just like you, on a simple family trip funded by hundreds of thousands of dollars in political donations. Mrs. Palin, along with her parents, sullen pre-teen daughter Piper, and husband Todd (Alaska’s former First Thug), is motoring between historic East Coast sites in a chartered luxury coach with her name painted on it.

Is the trip a vacation or presidental campaign tour? Mrs. Palin won’t say, to the consternation of the media. The bus is being tailed by reporters and news crews as it meanders along its secret itinerary. Far from keeping the trip private, the “magical mystery tour” aspect merely spurs the media frenzy. Where will she be next?

Rolling Plunder: Palin in DC

Sarah Palin successfully stole the thunder from the annual Rolling Thunder event honoring America’s war dead. In leathers and heels, she rode pillion on a Harley and crossed Memorial Bridge from Arlington to the National Mall.

Top Chef Tour at Eastern Market

Cable TV’s Top Chef tour is parked at Capitol Hill’s Eastern Market this weekend, pitting Carla Hall, Ariane Duarte, and Spike Mendelsohn against each other. The real action is in the bus (above) where six prep chefs and three runners do the real work. On Saturday, two hundred people watched this spectacle, half of them standing in the hot sun. Amazing.