Author: Janice Nieder

Janice Nieder could be the love child of Indiana Jones and Julia Child. She was a specialty food consultant for 12 years in New York, with a client list that included Tavern on the Green, Dean & Deluca and Sign of the Dove. After being bitten by the travel bug, her culinary adventures took her to over 65 countries, where she shared a smoked monkey dinner with a generous Shuar Indian family deep in the Amazon Jungle; helped Ethiopian tribal woman bake injera bread on hot stones in 108 degree heat; and crashed a wedding feast in Pakistan, where she was wined and dined by over 200 men - and no women. Last year, she mistakenly bought camouflage clothes to participate in a week-long truffle hunting safari in Marche, Italy, never tiring of the decadently delicious fungi feasts. To keep things in balance, Janice also enjoys writing about spas, fitness, local crafts and culture. Her articles have appeared in International Travel News, Runner's World, San Francisco Journal for Physicians, Slow Food USA, San Francisco Professional Food Society News, Business Women's Journal, Norway Post, Airline magazines and numerous websites. But her real passion is working with underdeveloped countries to protect their cultural identity by preserving their traditional foods and cooking methods. To this end, Janice has written numerous articles about her culinary discoveries, assisted local producers with bringing their products to market, and consulted with tourism and business leaders on developing and promoting local farmers markets, cooking classes, and culinary tours. Janice has received San Francisco's Community Leadership Award of Excellence for her on-going work as the Volunteer Coordinator for C.H.E.F.S. ( Conquering Homelessness Through Employment in Food Service) a program she helped develop that provides culinary and job skill training for the homeless. She is also a leading member of the San Francisco Professional Food Society, Bay Area Travel Writers, and Slow Food.

  • Czech Out These Spas

    ByJanice Nieder

    Czech Out These Spas! Part I: Prague   Last December I discovered another earth-shakingly incredible group of spas. I was invited to Prague to cover their famous Christmas Market. This runs for the month of December and the market was filled with European tourists, stocking up like it was Costco. It was freezing cold, so…

  • Czech Out-Part II

    ByJanice Nieder

    Czech Out These Spas! Part II: Karlovy Vary Note: This is the third of a multi-part series on Czech Spas. My first town during last December’s spa tour wasKarlovy Vary (a.k.a. Carlsbad), the Grand Dame of Czech Spas Towns. It’s about a two-hour scenic ride from Prague. K.V. is loaded with hot springs (12 to…

  • Czech Out -Part III

    ByJanice Nieder

    Czech Out These Spas: Part III: Zámecké LáznÄ›   No matter where you stay in the spa-centric town of Karlovy Vary, you must schedule a visit for a day of treatments/swimming at Zámecké LáznÄ› (Castle Spa). It’s like a Vegas nightclub, complete with light show, and I had my best massage here. Wearing one of…

  • Czech Out- Part IV

    ByJanice Nieder

    Czech Out These Spas! Part IV: Marianske Lazne   Marianske Lazne (Marienbad) is located some 45 minutes further west from Karlovy Vary, about three hours from Prague. I loved the picturesque park-like town dotted with fountains, colonnades and elaborate spa houses –– no wonder Goethe and Chopin often hung out there in the old days….