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Darrin DuFord began traveling frequently after he co-founded the New York City band Motor Betty, performing on the Jenny Jones Show and across venues on both American coasts. When the band retired, he began channeling his international wanderlust into travel articles for such publications as Transitions Abroad, GoNOMAD, Perceptive Travel, Travel Channel's World Hum, and McSweeney's. His debut book Is There a Hole in the Boat? Tales of Travel in Panama without a Car won the silver medal in the 2007 Lowell Thomas Journalism Competition and was chosen by ForeWord Magazine as a finalist for their 2006 Book of the Year Awards. DuFord and his wife, Melanie Aure, a chef, recently co-founded Mel's Melting Pot, a small-batch sauce and condiment company whose products integrate flavors and spices they have encountered during their travels. He lives in Queens, New York, the nation's most diverse county.