chicagotribune.com - Travel: Actor loves New Zealand, Cook Islands

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Actor loves New Zealand, Cook Islands 21 Jun 2011, 8:47 pm Christopher Gorham has a good theory about stardom: "When people ask me, 'Are you famous?' I'm like, 'Well, I guess, no." The 36-year-old California-based actor is shooting the second season of the spy series "Covert Affairs," which airs on the USA Network. He portrays a former CIA operative named Auggie, who was blinded during a mission. To many viewers, he'll be recognizable as America Ferrera's accountant boyfriend, Henry, on "Ugly Betty." Gorham and his wife, actress Anel Lopez Gorham, have three children. Q: Which film locations stand out in your mind? A: I shot "The Other Side of Heaven" in Rarotonga in the Cook Islands. It was a Disney film with Anne Hathaway, and the location was just gorgeous. Rarotonga is overlooked, but it's incredible to visit, not overrun with tourists — like I imagine Hawaii used to be. I filmed my upcoming movie "The Ledge" in Baton Rouge. That was my first time to Louisiana, and I loved it. I was able to get into New Orleans for a day and eat some delicious turtle soup. I also shot a film called "Answer This!" in Ann Arbor and am completely in love with Michigan. Q: What is your favorite vacation destination? A: I love New Zealand. I was only on the North Island, but there's so much to see in Auckland. I shot "The Other Side of Heaven" shortly after getting married, so my wife and I didn't really get a honeymoon. So in a way, that trip (to New Zealand and the Cook Islands) was our honeymoon. It was really neat. We ended up frequenting this little place called The Cafe (cicoffeecompany.wordpress.com/the-cafe) on Rarotonga. This couple — Neil Dearlove and his wife, Janet — had moved from New Zealand and built it there. They couldn't have been any nicer, and we still stay in touch with them and their daughter. Q: When was your first big trip? A: In the fifth grade. My grandparents took me to San Antonio. It was my first ride in a limo, which was pretty impressive to me back then. In school, we did these trips to Washington, D.C., and New York. I've always really liked traveling. After college, my brother and I took one of those bus trips around Europe where you only get to see each site for 30 seconds. Q: What U.S. city do you recommend? A: People should visit Ann Arbor. It's really a great city. There's this amazing coffeehouse there called Comet Coffee. There's a place called Zingerman's Deli (zingermansdeli.com) that has the most incredible Reuben sandwich and my favorite chocolate cake in the world. It's actually the best chocolate cake I ever ate. There's a tiny place there called the Jefferson Market and Cakery (jeffersonmarketandcakery.com). They do really yummy small-scale cafe food, but they also have these bonbons that are maybe the most perfect dessert. Q: Does traveling for work get old? A: My jobs often end up being our family vacations, and so far it has been great. One of the nice things is that "Covert Affairs" shoots in Toronto during the summer, so the kids are out of school and my wife and kids can join me. Q: Where would you like to go that you have never been? A: I was in Paris briefly on that bus tour I was telling you about, but I need to take Anel to Paris. That's something that we need to do when our youngest gets a little older. I'd also love to go to Greece. I think the kids would really enjoy a trip like that. South Africa is on my list of places to see. For more from the reporter, visit jaehakim.com You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Port sleep and park options

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Port sleep and park options 21 Jun 2011, 8:00 am If you use an airport or cruise port that is a long drive from your home and you plan to leave your car there while you're gone, staying at an airport or cruise port hotel can remove some of the usual travel stress: -- If you have an early-morning departure, staying the previous night means you won't have to worry about car problems on the way or getting up before the crack of dawn. -- If you have a late-afternoon or evening arrival, crashing for the night before you hit the road can offset fatigue and jetlag before you start the fight traffic. Moreover, a hotel-plus-parking package can cut your costs significantly. Hundreds of airport- and cruise port-area hotels combine accommodations for a night or two with up to 21 days of parking at the hotel at a rate that is less than you'd pay for a comparable hotel and port parking separately. At most places, the qualifying night(s) you buy can be at either the beginning or end of your trip. I know of three online agencies that arrange these parking packages at airport and cruise port hotels: -- Stay 123 (www.stay123.com) seems to cover the most ground these days. It lists about 100 locations in the United States, five in Canada, 20 in the UK, and a few scattered elsewhere around the world. -- Park Sleep Fly (www.parksleepfly.com), which led the field for many years, currently lists options at 80 large and medium-size airports in the United States plus five in Canada, six in Europe, and a few others. -- BuyReservations (www.buyreservations.com) lists accommodation/parking packages near 72 U.S. ports. In addition, many airport- and port-area hotels and motels independently offer similar packages, but if they don't list on one of the big nationwide sites, they're not easy to find. AIRPORT PACKAGES. The typical hotel-park package includes one night (double or single, up to quad), parking for seven to 21 nights, depending on location, plus shuttle transfer to/from the airport for both departure and arrival flights. The one-night package rate is almost always higher than the hotel's lowest available rate, but the difference is usually much less than the cost of parking for a week or two at an airport-area parking lot. Most of the time, I've found that the price difference works out to much less than $5 a day -- and almost always less than the airport charges. Most participating hotels allow you to take the hotel night(s) at either the beginning or end of your trip, or one at each end -- options you might find useful depending on your specific itinerary. For the first time this year, I noticed that many hotels now assess a varying charge depending on the number of days they park your car. At most of the places I checked, the daily increment was just $1 or $2, which is much less than the daily charges at most airport parking lots. As part of that trend, more hotels now offer parking up to 21 days rather than the 14 days that used to be about the top. CRUISEPORT PACKAGES. In recent years, the hotel-parking packaging sites have moved into cruise parking in a big way. Current programs now cover most of the major cruise ports in the United States. But cruise port packages are typically a bit different -- and not quite as convenient as airport packages: -- Some participating hotels are downtown or in other central areas adjacent to cruise ports, but many others are more distant. In fact, many hotels that tout their cruise packages are actually the same airport-area hotels that feature airport packages. -- Partly for location reasons, many cruise promotions do not include no-charge two-way transfers to/from the port. In spot checks, I found quite a few deals with no-charge one-way transfers, but none that covered both-ways shuttles. There may be some, however. MAKING THE DEAL. As with just about any travel service you buy, always check prices and never accept a claim of "discount" or "less expensive" without comparing the alternatives. You can check on airport onsite parking rates directly -- all airport and most cruise port websites show their own parking rates. Send e-mail to Ed Perkins at eperkins@mind.net. Perkins' new book for small business and independent professionals, "Business Travel When It's Your Money," is now available through www.mybusinesstravel.com or www.amazon.com. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Top Pride Parade destinations

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Top Pride Parade destinations 24 Jun 2011, 5:47 pm ( Jack Guez/AFP/Getty Images ) Israel is ahead of the curve when it comes to adoption, marriage and military equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender-identified people. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Another kind of guide

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Another kind of guide 21 Jun 2011, 9:12 pm The way to approach Texas is from space — you see the United States, the land mass south of everything looms up at the bottom of the country, Oklahoma rushes past, the sky gets dusty, boom, you're in a used-car lot outside Dallas, humid. Texas is so daunting, I always think of Texas as a used-car lot and always imagine it from space. Which, you gather from "Trillin on Texas" (University of Texas Press, $22), is how Calvin Trillin, the longtime New Yorker writer, sees Texas — as a vast tan pancake only understood by homing close, pulling back, then diving back, then leaving. If you have never been to Texas, "Trillin on Texas" will not give you directions to Houston or point you to a Mexican breakfast. But it will, as only an outsider can do, reveal its character. "On weekends, Robert Donnell likes to take the country roads," Trillin writes in "Knowing Johnny Jenkins," a New Yorker piece from 1989. "When he travels between Beaumont and Austin, where his children live with his ex-wife, he often finds himself on Farm-to-Market 969, which cuts through rich pastureland along the Colorado River east of Austin." The story, one of Trillin's best, and a showstopper in a compilation of shrewdly picked tales, meanders like that a bit, touching on the Colorado, the Humpback Bridge, a boat ramp — it's as pleasantly rambling as a Texas drive, only to stop short at an abandoned Mercedes and a book dealer found nearby, shot in the head, a twist as unexpected as any in this large, complicated place. Trillin, a New Yorker by way of Kansas City, explains in the introduction that his Texas roots are surprisingly deep: His grandparents skipped Ellis Island and got out at Galveston. It's a thin excuse for a book; a great deal of the pieces deal with the Bushes and feel only tangentially related to the state, kind of like the family itself. But any excuse to compile Trillin is a fine one, and there is a randomness to Texas that rewards the curious. He eulogizes Molly Ivins, saluting the Texas wisecrack ("It was Molly who wrote that if a certain congressman's IQ dropped any further he'd have to be watered twice a day"), and has a great, meandery time with the story of two teenagers joyriding in a new blue Thunderbird, sitting on half a million dollars, who tell the cops they're "Mafia runners from Chicago heading for a marijuana pickup in Mexico." A number of pieces come from the early '70s, when Trillin was roving the country, filing for The New Yorker every three weeks from a new town, visiting Texas frequently, but the subjects haven't dated much: Texas' harsh jail sentences, immigration law, petty acts of racism. The outline of a state forms, and if you still need a tour guide, might I show you to the first story, about barbecue? Stop at Snow's, about 50 miles outside Austin, where lunch is defined as that "large meal of meat that you finish just before 9 a.m." cborrelli@tribune.com You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Skirting tourist trouble in Nicaragua

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Skirting tourist trouble in Nicaragua 21 Jun 2011, 8:41 pm "As I took a photo, a mom came over and suggested I stow the camera . . . I suddenly realized I was in a bad neighborhood." Europe is my passion and the focus of my work, but Central America long has held a fascination for me. I took my first trip to the region in 1988 and have returned several times, as recently as last Christmas. In my column, I'll periodically share impressions I bring back from Latin America. Fear and violence haunt the streets of Managua, Nicaragua's capital, rife with extreme poverty and inevitable crime. Rather than whole, safe neighborhoods, there are mostly small islands of safety clustered around malls and fancy hotels. A wealthy tourist (nearly all tourists here are relatively rich) happily pays triple the local rate for a taxi that works with the hotels to ensure a safe arrival. The trip generally is a hop from one safe zone to another. In the evening, taxis are even more important because it's unwise to walk after dark, especially with a camera. You're unlikely to be hurt, but there is a risk that groups of young thugs might rob you at knifepoint. In Nicaragua, there are more armed guards than military and police forces combined. Every major hotel and nearly every business has an armed guard. Nicaraguan security guards make about $1 an hour and consider the work a blessing. I chatted with one guard while watching a kid in the street juggling small flaming torches for tips. I couldn't help but think, "I'll spend what the guard makes in a day on a taxi back to my hotel, and I'll spend what that juggler hopes to make in a day for a poolside rum and Coke." Whenever my cabbie stopped at an intersection, a battery of children begging, washing the taxi's windows and trying to sell us little trinkets confronted us. These school-age children weren't in school. I marveled at how a society suffers when it makes ends meet by cutting education. I wandered through one Managua barrio, keeping an eye on the street for Nicaragua's notorious open manholes (desperation drives people to steal the lids and sell them as scrap metal). The neighborhood felt desolate. There was almost no business metabolism. A few shops sold odds and ends through barred windows, and rustic cantinas served beer to a rough-looking male crowd. I came upon a small yard where the neighborhood children were jumping giddily up and down while one kid blindly swung a stick at a mischievously darting pinata. I enjoyed the scene, but I winced every time the stick viciously cut through the air among all those excited little heads. As I took a photo, a mom came over and suggested I stow the camera for safety. I suddenly realized I was in a bad neighborhood. With her baby in her arms and her elderly mother at her side, the mother escorted me to a nearby street. As I reached a bank with an armed guard, she said, "Now you are safe." Mexico City was the next stop on my visit. I wanted to greet the new year in one of the world's biggest cities. Celebrating the holiday with throngs in the streets, all I noticed was how the city seems occupied by military police (as opposed to Nicaragua, where private security dominated and there was almost no military presence). Contrary to what I was led to expect, everything seemed mellow and in control. Subway stations with security cameras and more guards are labeled as "safe stations." While much of Central America has petty crime and gang violence, Mexico has that and more: a violent drug war, fought mainly in the north. People in Mexico City and the vast majority of Mexico only read about the violence in the news, but the border regions are seeing lots of bloodshed. Juarez is considered to be as dangerous as Baghdad. My take: I'd fly over the border towns and enjoy the wonderful energy of Mexico City. The lessons I take home from my trips to Central America and Mexico? A progressive observer might blame pro-business policies for contributing to the brutal gap between rich and poor, particularly in Nicaragua. A conservative might blame socialist policies or a lack of law and order. After my experience in Nicaragua and Mexico, it seems that both sides can agree on one thing: Fear and street violence are bad for the economy and a failure for every stratum in that society. While fear, poverty and drug wars employ security guards and sell razor wire, they also ruin any chance for a healthy tourist industry and cause beautiful people who want to rebuild their country to dream of escaping to the United States instead. Rick Steves (ricksteves.com) writes European travel guidebooks and hosts travel shows on public television and public radio. Email him at rick@ricksteves.com and follow his blog on Facebook. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Gearbox: Hold the phone tightly

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Gearbox: Hold the phone tightly 21 Jun 2011, 8:44 pm Clingo Universal hands-free mount Terry Gardner, Special to Tribune Newspapers 2:44 p.m. CDT, June 21, 2011 Name: Clingo Universal Hands-Free Mount What it is: This gadget is like having a third hand to hold your smartphone while you're driving, securing any phone or mobile device to a car's dashboard or windshield. Clingo's sticky green gel surface grips your device without leaving residue when you peel it off and exit your car. (Note: Allsop, Clingo's manufacturer, says that some extremely textured, leather or silicone-based cases may not stick well.) The good: I love the way the Clingo mount pivots so I can spot a new email at a long stoplight (pull over to read it, please) or easily make a hands-free call. When the "stick to it" green pad gets dirty, I pop it off the mount, wash it with soap and water, air dry it (recommended) or use a chamois-like towel, then pop it back on the mount. Once clean, it's as sticky as it was new. Don't dry it with a paper towel, however. Paper sticks like glue to Clingo's sticky surface, and I had to run water over the green pad to clean the paper off. The bad: On a really hot day after my car had been sitting in the sun, my iPhone kept sliding off the Clingo mount as I drove home. Once the air conditioning cooled off the car's interior, Clingo again gripped my phone securely. Cost: $29.99 ($24.99 online from either RadioShack or Fry's) Available from: clingo.com, radioshack.com and frys.com. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Travel postcard: 48 hours in Geneva

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Travel postcard: 48 hours in Geneva 24 Jun 2011, 11:05 am GENEVA (Reuters Life!) - A setting on western Europe's largest lake with Mont Blanc, western Europe's highest peak, as a backdrop, explains why Geneva has a wealth of healthy looking citizens who arrived for months and have stayed for years. If you only have a weekend, here are some tips from Reuters correspondents with local knowledge to help you on your way. Saturday Take the train (just over three hours from Paris) or the airport has fast connections to the city. It's also very close to the U.N. European headquarters, central to Geneva's status as an international city, where you could begin your tour, but drop off your bags first as they might be a security problem. Morning tours start at 10:30 a.m. and you can book them on the U.N. European website. Visitors, armed with their passports, must enter at the Pregny gate, just up the hill from the Place des Nations, where campaigners for a vast array of causes gather between the fountain, the flags and a giant chair with part of one leg blown off. The sculpture's aim is to support the prohibition and elimination of anti-personnel mines. A U.N. tour will include the council chamber -- setting for debates drawn out over hours, months, even years -- and a history of how the United Nations evolved from the League of Nations, set up in 1919. The pioneers decided the body needed a home to suit the league's yearning for a more stable world after the devastation of World War I and they held an international competition. As a precursor of many U.N. outcomes, the judges could not decide on one winner -- so a team of five architects from four nations was chosen. The Palais de Nations is the harmonious result, built between 1929 and 1938. Since then, there have been two extensions, creating a huge complex set in 45 hectares of parkland with a view over Lake Geneva to the French Alps. Adding to its charms, peacock cries echo through the grounds, a legacy of the art collector and keen traveler Gustave Revilliod who left the land to the city on condition peacocks would always roam there. Before you leave the U.N., you could send a postcard home with a special U.N. stamp from the U.N. post office. 12:30 p.m. Trams from Place des Nations will take you down to the main station Cornavin. From there, it's a short walk across to the left bank and lunch in one of the cafes or restaurants of the quaint old town. 2:30 p.m. The old town is the home to the Cathedrale Saint Pierre (St Peter's Cathedral), which dates back to the 12th century. In the 16th-century, the religious reformer John Calvin fled his native France and made Geneva his home. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Enjoying California's volcanic legacy

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Enjoying California's volcanic legacy 25 Jun 2011, 5:15 am Reporting from Mt. Shasta, Calif. —— The Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway yawns languidly for 500 miles from the southern reaches of California's Cascade Range to lower Oregon. The landscape is at once harsh and ridiculously beautiful, crafted by the alchemy of volcanic eruptions and the splendor of arboreal wilderness. But that's not why my family and I chose to vacation here. Rather, we wanted to get off the grid, connect with nature and prove to our preschooler that there is life beyond "Dinosaur Train," traffic and Thai food delivery. What we didn't expect was how easily we would embrace the intoxicating slowness of California's far north. This least populated part of California quickly erases most stereotypes of the Golden State. Here people hunt, fish and prefer to speak face to face instead of electronically. Waitresses ask about your day and really want to know the answer; lumberjacks and hunters wave as they pass you in their pickups; and bears outnumber humans (at last count, 80,000 bears to 40,000 people). To firmly plant our feet in nature, we began our journey in Lassen Volcanic National Park, at the southern end of the byway, just 40 miles east of Redding, but worlds away from civilization. The park houses one of the world's largest plug dome volcanoes, not to mention the last mountain to blow its top in California (though that was in 1915), so it was surprising to find so few people in this dynamic landscape. Unlike California's other national parks, Lassen features gurgling mudpots and boiling pools of aquamarine and white water, hugged by hissing steam vents. After a short stroll through the park's most famous attraction, Bumpass Hell (aptly named for explorer Kendall Bumpass, who lost his leg after falling into a boiling mud pot), we returned to the parking area and found a stunning panorama. Snow-capped mountains, covered in whitebark pine and mountain hemlock, stretched in all directions. "This is beautiful," my son said, before yawning and asking, "Are we there yet?" Heading north on California 89, we next stopped at Subway Caves, where we traveled underground a third of a mile on a spooky route carved in the earth by a lava tube. Native Americans believed that this lava tunnel housed an evil man-beast; today tourists don their warmest jackets regardless of the season and carry bright torches deep into the wet cave along a path of pumice. We bypassed the one-street town of Burney and, thanks to the advice of some locals, stumbled on McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park. This park was crafted by volcanic activity, which showed evidence of its power in the steep crags and the 129-foot waterfall with its unchanging flow of water, no matter the season. Standing in the mist as the water pounded a thunderous roar, we found it impossible not to consider the smallness of our day-to-day lives and, like all good travelers, wondered why we didn't enchant ourselves this way more often. When we finally tore ourselves from the waterfall, the kayaking at nearby Lake Britton and the hiking, we motored farther north on the byway to the historic town of McCloud, a proud mill and lumber town huddled in the shadows of Mt. Shasta. Graced with a working tourist railroad and historic buildings, picturesque McCloud doesn't have to roll out the red carpet to invite travelers to slow down and stay awhile. When we stopped for an ice cream at the 1930s White Mountain Fountain, strolled through the classic McCloud River Mercantile Hotel (a lovely old property renovated with plenty of TLC and well worth the cash to stay overnight) or explored the McCloud River Mercantile Co. shop, the town showed us kindness unequaled elsewhere in the state. Because we had reservations at the Mount Shasta Resort, we finally broke free of McCloud's charm and continued on to Mount Shasta, a town that has its share of crystal-wearing, tarot card-reading hippies. Native Americans believed that the nearby Mt. Shasta peak, a volcano, was so sacred that visitors had to be purified before ascending above its tree line. Today, folks of all persuasions gather to revere the mountain's power. In town, you'll find quaint houses inhabited by galleries, cafés and those famed crystal shops. Worn out, our son didn't even ask to watch TV after dinner. We all passed out on the bed, listening to the charming sounds of nothing that suddenly seemed louder than city living. travel@latimes.com You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: California's Surfing Madonna mosaic removed from wall

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com California's Surfing Madonna mosaic removed from wall 23 Jun 2011, 5:00 pm By Associated Press 11:00 a.m. CDT, June 23, 2011 ENCINITAS, Calif. (AP) — Crews have removed the popular but illegal Surfing Madonna mosaic from the wall of a railroad bridge underpass near San Diego. The San Diego Union-Tribune reports the removal began at 9 p.m. Wednesday and was completed about two hours later. Artist Mark Patterson agreed to pay for the removal of the 10-foot-by-10-foot stained glass work that mysteriously appeared days before Easter in the beach town of Encinitas. Patterson says the piece was not damaged when it was taken down. The colorful piece depicts the Virgin of Guadalupe surfing a wave along with the words "Save the Ocean." The mosaic was considered graffiti under the municipal code and city officials said it must come down. Patterson says he will now focus on finding a permanent home for the Madonna. ___ Information from: The San Diego Union-Tribune, http://www.signonsandiego.com You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: No tent camping in 3 campgrounds near Yellowstone

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com No tent camping in 3 campgrounds near Yellowstone 23 Jun 2011, 4:48 pm By Associated Press 10:48 a.m. CDT, June 23, 2011 BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) — Gallatin National Forest managers, on recommendations of grizzly bear experts, have banned tent camping at three campgrounds near Yellowstone National Park, including one where a Michigan man was mauled to death last July. The requirement for hard-sided recreational vehicles only is in effect for the Soda Butte, Colter and Chief Joseph campgrounds just east of Cooke City because bears frequent those areas, forest officials said Wednesday. Following the mauling death of Kevin Kammer, 48, of Grand Rapids, Mich., and an attack on two others at the Soda Butte campground last July 28, forest supervisors for the six national forests in the Yellowstone region asked grizzly bear experts to recommend how to manage campgrounds in the area. The requirement for hard-sided recreational vehicle camping at the three campgrounds is in effect this summer while managers consider a long-range strategy, forest spokeswoman Marna Daley said. The experts also will review and make recommendations for other campgrounds in the area. The forest is allowing hard-sided vehicles made of metal or strong composite plastic to be used at the three campgrounds. Truck-box campers that have a 4-foot high hard side, in addition to a raised upper section, are permissible, but tents and pop-up campers are excluded, as is camping without a shelter. Soft-sided and tent camping opportunities will continue in other areas around Cooke City because of a lesser concentration of people and bears in those areas. The grizzly bear involved in last summer's mauling was captured and euthanized. Her three cubs were taken to a zoo in Billings, but ZooMontana recent lost its accreditation. The bears have been taken to a facility in Buffalo, N.Y., for up to four months while an enclosure can be built for them at Salt Lake City's Hogle Zoo. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Woman sure she was hit by real bullet at mock Old West shootout in S.D.

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Woman sure she was hit by real bullet at mock Old West shootout in S.D. 23 Jun 2011, 10:36 pm PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — Carrol Knutson says a hospital opinion and the hole in her leg are all the proof she needs to determine how she was injured last week while watching a mock Old West gunfight in South Dakota that was supposed to use blanks. "There's no doubt it was a bullet," said Knutson, a 65-year-old Birchwood, Minn., resident who was one of more than 100 people who attended the free public event. "It's just where did the bullet come from? Who shot, and how did such a thing happen?" Knutson said hospital staff wrote a diagnosis that concluded a bullet shattered her fibula, a bone in the lower leg. Lead residue was found in the wound, she said. Knutson was one of three tourists hurt Friday evening during a mock gun battle staged by the Dakota Wild Bunch re-enactors, who use blanks when they perform several times a week on a street in Hill City, a tourist town in the Black Hills. John Ellis, 48, an optometrist from South Connellsville, Penn., was hit in the arm. Jose Pruneda, 52, of Alliance, Neb., suffered a minor wound. Police aren't sure what happened. The lead investigator in the case, Lt. Marty Graves of the Pennington County Sheriff's Department, said Thursday the victims were hit by some kind of "projectile," but law officers have not concluded how that happened. The investigation might still take weeks, he said. "I think we're slowly but surely narrowing things down, but haven't concluded anything at this point," Graves said. "We'll figure that out. I'm confident we'll figure that out." The sheriff's department hopes to send physical evidence on Friday to the state crime lab in Pierre, but testing could take at least two weeks, Graves said. Evidence includes guns and ammunition used in the show and clothing worn by the victims. Graves refused to speculate on whether a live cartridge was somehow placed in a gun or something else happened. Rumors and speculation just interfere with the investigation, he said. "I'm not ruling anything out. I'm leaving it open for any possibilities," Graves said. Investigators have asked members of the re-enactor group not to comment until the investigation is completed, Graves said. On their Facebook page, the Dakota Wild Bunch Reinactors said they are not allowed to bring live rounds to their performances, which raise money for a charity. "This is what I can say about Friday night, all of our guns were using blanks," the message on the site said. The simulated gun battles have been suspended at least until the sheriff's department investigation ends, said Brett McMacken, city administrator for Hill City. He said the city and the local Chamber of Commerce have an agreement to stage the show on a city street for tourists, and it's uncertain whether the show will ever be resumed. The mock shootouts between lawmen and outlaws have been held in Hill City for at least a couple of decades, and the Dakota Wild Bunch has been doing the show for about four years, McMacken said. McMacken said it's too early to tell whether publicity about the injuries has affected tourist traffic in Hill City. He said he just hopes the victims recover quickly. Ellis was still traveling back to Pennsylvania this week, but he said earlier that doctors had said the injury to his forearm and elbow was consistent with a regular gunshot wound. Knutson said she attended the show with her husband, Don, and her 13-year-old grandson. She said she was hit at the end of the show when the bad guys tried to shoot the sheriff and many shots were fired. "I was just turning to leave because it was very loud and I wasn't enjoying it very much," she said. "I felt a very sharp pain in my leg and looked down and there was blood squirting out. I called for help. Initially, people I think thought it was a joke or something, and then finally somebody started responding and paying attention." Knutson said her injury forced the family to cancel the rest of its vacation, which was to include whitewater rafting in Wyoming and a trip to Yellowstone National Park. "We're looking at a lost summer. All of our travel plans and activities have been put on hold because I can't walk. I can't do anything right now. Knutson said. However, she said a local campground sent her flowers, made sure the family had a place to stay and refused to let them pay. Knutson said she hopes the Hill City shootout is cancelled for good. "We're extremely grateful my grandson wasn't hurt. There were many children in that audience sitting on curbs that could be dead right now. It was a pretty horrific thing," she said. She said her grandson will get over his disappointment on the early end to the vacation, but it might take him a while to recover from the emotional shock of seeing his grandmother hurt. Meanwhile, Knutson is still dealing with severe pain in her leg. "You can only imagine what something like that feels like," she said. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Man fined $100 for touching endangered Hawaiian monk seal

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Man fined $100 for touching endangered Hawaiian monk seal 23 Jun 2011, 10:34 pm By Associated Press 4:34 p.m. CDT, June 23, 2011 HONOLULU (AP) — Touching an endangered Hawaiian monk seal will cost a 19-year-old man $100. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported Thursday that Cameron Cayaban pleaded guilty in federal court to harassing, harming or pursuing an endangered species. A federal magistrate judged imposed $100 in fines and fees. Cayaban was charged with slapping a Hawaiian monk seal at Kalaeloa's White Plains Beach in March. His lawyer says Cayaban was overcome when he saw the seal, ran up to the endangered animal and touched it. Witnesses reported it to military police. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Chicago museum taking applications for monthlong stay

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Chicago museum taking applications for monthlong stay 23 Jun 2011, 4:33 pm By Associated Press 10:33 a.m. CDT, June 23, 2011 CHICAGO (AP) — A Chicago museum is offering another lucky winner a chance to live at the institution. The Museum of Science and Industry is accepting applications for its Month at the Museum competition. The winner will live at the museum from Oct. 19 to Nov. 17 and get to roam the 14-acre museum at will. They will also get $10,000 for interacting with visitors, blogging, tweeting and posting videos about the experience. Applications are due July 22, and require a one-minute video. Museum vice president Rob Gallas says they're looking for adventuresome people with a thirst for knowledge. Last year Chicago theater artist Kate McGroarty beat out 1,500 other applications to win the contest. __ Online: www.msichicago.org You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: On the healthful highway

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com On the healthful highway 24 Jun 2011, 7:00 pm For the junk food junkie, a road trip can be a dream journey. Between the fast food outlets and the glop at gas station minimarts, travelers may find themselves on a never-ending sugar/trans-fat wallow. But on a monthlong road trip from Los Angeles to Naples, Fla., to visit friends and family, my wife, Landry, and I decided to go another direction: We would eat healthfully. It was a challenge, but not an insurmountable one if you knew where to look. Our goal on this trip was to find those hidden, healthful dining oases. As a bonus, we hoped we wouldn't gain weight. Bye-bye, guilt. About 18 months ago, in an effort to achieve a more healthful lifestyle, we made big changes in our diets. I became a vegetarian, and Landry became a vegan, cutting all animal products, including eggs and dairy, from her edit. As we laid out our plans for our 5,516-mile journey, we plotted our stops based on where we could find health-food stores, vegetarian and vegan restaurants and Whole Foods markets to stock up in between. Our route directly followed major freeways: Interstate 10 from L.A. through Tucson; past El Paso and up Interstate 20 south of Dallas to Atlanta; and south on Interstate 75 to Naples. We hit bumps along the healthful highway only twice: One night as we drove through Midland, Texas, the only healthful option we could find was a plain baked potato and salad at Wendy's. On another afternoon, we gave in to our grumbling bellies and ordered veggie sandwiches at a gas station Subway outside San Antonio. But overall, like modern-day explorers charting new territory, we made some notable discoveries that may serve as a new healthful road map for travelers who want to travel the green highway. Tucson This Arizona desert city was our first major stop. We took a 10-mile detour off the freeway for lunch at Lovin' Spoonfuls (2990 N. Campbell Ave., [520] 325-7766, http://www.lovinspoonfuls.com). As we were driving through a not-so-nice part of town to arrive at its strip mall location, we wondered whether we had made the right choice. Once inside the air-conditioned restaurant, though, we found modern decor, friendly people and a tempting menu. The house specialty is the Route 66 bacon cheeseburger, a grilled soy patty topped with crispy soy bacon strips and melted vegan cheese. The highlight, at least as far as Landry was concerned, was the chocolate truffle cake. Divinely creamy and darkly fudgy. You'd never know it was vegan. Arlington, Texas In major metropolitan areas, we had no trouble finding a vegetarian restaurant or a grocery store that carried organic produce. In the hinterlands, salads are a fine choice, although they are not always organic. So we veered north on Interstate 20 near Midland the day after our Wendy's experience to stop at the huge Whole Foods store in Arlington (801 E. Lamar Blvd., [817] 461-9362, http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com). Whole Foods, founded 150 miles south in Austin, always felt like a homecoming. We stocked up on vegetarian and vegan dishes such as tofu curry over brown rice, spinach cakes and organic fruits and vegetables. We loaded our score into our cooler and hopped back on the highway, happy to have satisfied a craving. Atlanta Atlanta surprised us. This may be the land of deep-fat friers, but we also found several vegan and vegetarian restaurants. World Peace Cafe Atlanta (220 Hammond Drive, Sandy Springs, Ga.; [404] 256-2100, http://www.worldpeacecafeatlanta.com) is a haven in the midst of the bustling metropolitan area. Volunteers staff the café, which was built through donations. All tips go to create a meditation center. (In the tradition of the Buddhists, meditation contributes to world peace.) The tofu scramble was laced with turmeric, cumin and other tasty spices and was delicious, but my favorite dish was the vegan cranberry-orange pancakes. We ate here several times and felt good about doing so for reasons beyond the food. After all, how many places can you eat pancakes and contribute to world peace at the same time? R. Thomas' Deluxe Grill (1812 Peachtree St. N.W.; [404] 872-2942, http://www.rthomasdeluxegrill.net) is a longtime Atlanta vegan favorite. Decorated with Chinese paper lanterns, bamboo curtains, seashell wind chimes and a chirping canary, the restaurant is more aptly described as outdoor seating in a heated tent. Its menu has offerings as diverse as tempeh (a soy-based meat substitute often used in things such as vegan burgers and bacon) and quinoa (a South American "supergrain" with a texture like couscous) served 24 hours a day. We showed up at 6 one morning and found that the Thai Express — a bowl of quinoa topped with sautéed broccoli, red cabbage, carrots, scallion and cilantro in a spicy peanut sauce — was a delicious breakfast choice. When we ordered, John Vo, a manager, who has been at R. Thomas for 19 years, said: "Laughter is still the best medicine, but quinoa is a close second." No argument from us. Naples, Fla. We weren't expecting many options in Naples, so we again stocked up on prepared vegetarian and vegan dishes at the local Whole Foods. But to our pleasant surprise, we found some notable options. Food & Thought Farm Market & Café (2132 Tamiami Trail, [239] 213-2222; http://www.foodandthought.com) brought us back several times during our visit for flavorful prepared and takeout dishes, organic coffees, smoothies and vegan desserts for breakfast and lunch. It offers both a market and cafe with outdoor patio seating under pleasant trees. Plus, the fruits and vegetables are picked daily from Food & Thought's own certified organic farm. Our favorite dishes here included the Holy Yamoli sandwich, with yams, avocado, lettuce, tomato, onion and vegan mayo, and the Bunny Wrappit, a raw vegan lettuce wrap made with sprouts, avocado, tomato, vegan cheese and cucumber. Less adventurous souls can order a raw vegan Caesar salad and be safe and happy. Austin, Texas On the way home, we made a point of stopping in Austin. We figured that a city whose unofficial motto is "Keep Austin Weird" must have some good vegan and vegetarian food. Alternative eating, after all, often follows alternative thinking. Here, we found a food truck called the Vegan Yacht that parks just a few blocks from Whole Foods' flagship store on 6th Street and around the corner from a tasty raw restaurant called Beets. The Vegan Yacht (1001 E. 6th St., Austin; [512] 619-7989, http://www.theveganyacht.com) menu includes mock chicken "sammies," organic "TLTS" (tempeh/lettuce/tomato) sandwiches, quesadillas and wraps, but what caught my eye was the mock chick'n wrap. One reviewer on Yelp recommended: "Get the fake chicken wrap thingy with the apples. I wanna bathe in it. It is not fast food. So much love and care is put into your meal — it will fill up your insides with joy and tenderness...mmm. It's like eating Al Green." Who could resist such a recommendation? This flour tortilla stuffed with mock chicken, diced apples, local sprouts, organic shredded carrots and creamy avocado was amazing. We also chowed down at Beets Café (1611 W. 5th St.; [512] 477-2338, http://www.beetscafe.com). Beets is a "living foods" cafe that serves raw and yummy meals and desserts. It was the inspiration of Chef Sylvia Heisey, who worked for 16 years in the corporate world before opening Beets in late 2010. Nowadays, she can be found enthusiastically discussing the benefits of raw foods with customers and encouraging them to try her fruit or vegetable smoothies, fresh salads and nut milk "i-screams." We split a raw pizza rustica, with a sprouted sunflower seed crust topped with spicy almond nut cheese and tomato sauce and loaded with marinated mushrooms and other vegetables. The combination of crunchy/seedy crust and fresh vegetable toppings was so good that we contemplated going raw then and there. Greater Phoenix Green (2240 N. Scottsdale Road, Tempe; [480] 941-9003, http://www.greenvegetarian.com) is in a busy storefront near Old Town Scottsdale and the Arizona State University campus in Tempe. It serves some creative vegetarian dishes: The Apricot Miso bowl sounded tempting, as did the Singapore Tofu — curried tofu tossed in a spicy orange soy glaze over rice noodles. But we just had to try the Texas "Moo-Shroom" Po-Boy, a tangy mock meatball sandwich smothered in tomato sauce topped with melted mock mozzarella. Licking my lips, I thought, "Take that, Texas." Los Angeles We made one last stop before finding our front door. Since we were getting into town around dinnertime, Native Foods (now with seven locations; http://www.nativefoods.com) was calling our name; it was an ideal place to celebrate our four-week accomplishment. The creativity and passion of chef Tanya Petrovna shows through on the menu. The sweet potato fries, the Very Voluptuous Veggie Pizza and chocolate Good Luck Cupcakes are daily staples, but the Gandhi Bowl is my standard order, which is perfectly blackened tempeh with steamed veggies, organic greens and curry sauce over brown rice. We pulled into our driveway and reflected on our sojourn: We had not only maintained our weight over the journey but we also had discovered a growing health-food consciousness across the country. For us, the road trip had evolved. It wasn't the junk food jamboree we remembered from our childhoods. It was better. travel@latimes.com You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Producer goes on a high-octane 'Expedition' for ABC

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Producer goes on a high-octane 'Expedition' for ABC 23 Jun 2011, 3:23 pm It's probably good luck that when Lisa Hennessy was looking for a different challenge than the one her public relations job posed, the guy she approached was Mark Burnett. Burnett, after all, would go on to become one of the dominant reality television producers, with his name on everything from "Survivor" to "The Voice" to ABC's "Expedition Impossible" (premiering at 8 p.m. Thursday), the African adventure show that Hennessy is running for Burnett's company. But Hennessy's ability to take that good fortune 16 years ago and turn it into a lasting career she attributes both to her adventurer's spirit and a sports-minded upbringing in Chicago's northwest suburbs. This is an edited transcript of a phone conversation from earlier this month, when she was back from Morocco and busy in postproduction on the 10-episode series that pits carefully chosen teams (California Girls, The Cops, Mom's Army…) against one another in physical competition. Q: The comparisons with "The Amazing Race" are inevitable. How does this show differentiate itself? A: I feel like "Amazing Race" is more of a global scavenger hunt. This is really a true outdoor expedition. It's kind of going back to the basics: Could I, when stripped of all the comforts of home, work together with two other people and climb that massive sand dune, or rappel down that 300-foot cliff? I think immersing the audience in the culture and terrain of Morocco also separates it from "Amazing Race." Q: Yes, on the teamwork aspect, my litmus test for getting married was always, "Could I hike the Appalachian Trail with this person?" A: It's true. These are ordinary people and we're putting them in extraordinary situations. They're competing together in the elements — sandstorms, snowstorms — in places they've never been before. When you're really being pushed to the limit and working together in a team of three, that's where true character is revealed. Some people will work together, and some people will implode. We were there with the Berbers. It's a beautiful culture. They're known for their world-class hospitality. And the Berbers have a saying, "Choose your companions before you choose your road." How you handle yourself on that road is really what this show is about. It's also very inspirational. We have this team called No Limits, and on the team is a blind competitor, Erik Weihenmayer. I have chills thinking about him. Can you imagine doing the hardest thing in your life and doing it blind? It's one of those programs that I think will really ... inspire people to get off the couch and try doing something extraordinary. Q: How does a person go from Chicago, then the University of Illinois (speech communications), to executive producing network reality shows? A: I grew up in Park Ridge. I'm a Maine South Hawk and proud of it. I used to play basketball in high school. I was a center; I'm tall, 6 feet tall. I still track the football team. I think they've got three titles in a row. (They do.) I grew up in a very supportive environment and in a very sports-oriented environment, where teamwork is taught and leadership is rewarded. (After college), the sunshine brought me to California. I heard about this project that was about to launch called the Eco Challenge (a sort of all-terrain race event that later became a TV show). I basically bugged Mark Burnett until he hired me, because it was all the things that I love. It was sports, it was adventure, it was travel. So I bugged him for about four months, and he hired me on the very first Eco Challenge, which took place in Utah in 1995, and the rest is history. Q: Do you do hiking, running, that kind of thing? Is that what drew you to Eco Challenge? A: Absolutely. It's definitely my lifestyle. I feel like I don't have a job, I have a lifestyle. And to be able to get paid to do what I love is an amazing thing to have accomplished. I pretty much hike, do yoga every day. I live in Santa Monica right at the beach. I take care of myself, and I can compete with a 30-year-old. Three years ago, I climbed Kilimanjaro. I like having physical challenges, something to train for. ("Expedition Impossible") was actually great because I did a lot of the course (before the contestants). I was the litmus test. I was like, "If a 41-year-old chick like me can do it, you can do it." Q: When did the filming take place? A: In March. The shoot took 20 days, but I was in Morocco a total of about five months. In Morocco, the (democratic political) wave kind of missed us during the production and then hit as we were leaving. We didn't really come up against that. The wave sort of went through the cities. The production was based in Marrakech, but the entire shoot kind of took place in the high Atlas Mountains and the Sahara Desert. Q: Did you set up the course as you were there or was it all ahead of time? A: Oh, no, no, it's all ahead of time. I was there with mountain guides. We scouted it on Google Earth, which is a new world now — it's awesome. And we knew it really well because we had lived there during 1998, doing Eco Challenge. Q: What is the job of the executive producer? A: My job is basically (to) supervise the production from preproduction, both creatively, financially and logistically, from the beginning to production and now through (postproduction). I'm very hands-on. During the actual shoot, I was almost like the general, managing the crew and keeping everyone on track. That was a total in some situations of about 300 people. We had 15 camera crews, plus an aerial camera, plus a jib. We had five camera crews running with the contestants, so if you think it was hard for the contestants… Q: Right. Carrying a camera and running backward, like Ginger Rogers. A: Totally. We had some guys, like, melting down on Day 1, just from the heat, incredible athletes. We had digestive issues, ankle injuries, passing out from the heat. One day you're in the Sahara Desert and it's 110 degrees. Four days later you're in the high mountains in snow. We were literally in tank tops on a Monday. On Thursday we're in Patagonia poofy jackets. It's crazy. This is by far the most challenging and logistically brave thing I think I've taken on and the company has taken on. But we achieved the results. Q: In the clip that's up on the ABC website, did the Berber guy really say about the bickering New York team, "I will not have them for my wives"? A: Yes. I think the direct translation, though, is "wife." The rule in Morocco is they don't have multiple wives. In the new cut, it's singular. But those girls (the team known as Latin Persuasion), you wouldn't want one for a wife. They are How Not to Be a Team. But it's very New York. It's like the difference between New York and Chicago. Chicago people are nice and say "please" and "thank you." New Yorkers are, like, loud and yell at each other, and that's how they show they're, like, kindred toward each other. Q: That's part of the genius of reality TV. Because it's real it lets producers, networks get away with stereotypes that you could never put in a scripted show. A: Yep. As producers in this genre, we can't make a good person look bad and a bad person look good. People are who are they are. They forget the cameras are around very quickly. Especially in a competition like this. People are not sleeping, they have bad stomachs. They're hungry. They're not even thinking about what they look like on TV. They're thinking, "Oh my God, I might die going over this cliff." We're not manipulating anything. I've never done, nor will I, those other kind of docu-soap programs (such as "Big Brother"). I wouldn't even know how. I want to inspire and entertain. I don't want to make trashy television. sajohnson@tribune.com Twitter @StevenKJohnson You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Un-Bourbon Street is where it's at

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Un-Bourbon Street is where it's at 23 Jun 2011, 8:00 am Casamento's Restaurant on Magazine Street in New Orleans. (Peter Ferry / June 23, 2011) Peter Ferry, Special to Tribune Newspapers June 23, 2011 NEW ORLEANS — Everyone should walk down Bourbon Street once, but for some of us, once is enough. There are, of course, lots of other streets to walk down in New Orleans' French Quarter, nearly all of them imbued with charm and infested with us: tourists. So where does the artist in Jackson Square or your waitress at Pat O'Brien's stop for a drink at the end of the day or eat the next morning? Try two of New Orleans' other great avenues: Frenchmen and Magazine streets. Frenchmen is northeast of the Quarter and easy walking distance (follow Chartres Street across Esplanade Avenue and you run into it). It's two busy blocks of let-your-hair-down local color, emphasis on local. There are short-order places, BYOB places, a tiny grocery, a junk shop/used-book store and a place to get something tattooed or pierced. The Spotted Cat is a crowded, little bar full of live jazz and blues with a reputation approaching legend. One flight up is Adolfo's, a threadbare trattoria with a medieval kitchen and good pasta. Across the street, Snug Harbor has great jazz every night and wonderful beers, and down the block The Praline Connection offers excellent Cajun fare. But everywhere there is good food, strong drink and music. Magazine Street, on the other side of downtown running roughly parallel to the river, is six miles of gingerbread bungalows, sidewalk cafes, eateries of every description, bars, art galleries, boutiques and antique shops. Slim Goodies Diner boasts the best breakfast in town; Lilette is for the white-truffle-and-Kobe-beef crowd; The Rum House is perfect for people watching on the sidewalk; and the no-nonsense tiled lunchroom called Casamento's Restaurant, a local institution, is a must stop for Dixie Beer and oyster lovers. What both Frenchmen and Magazine streets have are lots of customers who are NOLA natives. Visit either and you'll feel like one too. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Un-Bourbon Street is where it's at in New Orleans

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Un-Bourbon Street is where it's at in New Orleans 23 Jun 2011, 8:00 am Casamento's Restaurant on Magazine Street in New Orleans. (Peter Ferry / June 23, 2011) Peter Ferry, Special to Tribune Newspapers June 23, 2011 NEW ORLEANS — Everyone should walk down Bourbon Street once, but for some of us, once is enough. There are, of course, lots of other streets to walk down in New Orleans' French Quarter, nearly all of them imbued with charm and infested with us: tourists. So where does the artist in Jackson Square or your waitress at Pat O'Brien's stop for a drink at the end of the day or eat the next morning? Try two of New Orleans' other great avenues: Frenchmen and Magazine streets. Frenchmen is northeast of the Quarter and easy walking distance (follow Chartres Street across Esplanade Avenue and you run into it). It's two busy blocks of let-your-hair-down local color, emphasis on local. There are short-order places, BYOB places, a tiny grocery, a junk shop/used-book store and a place to get something tattooed or pierced. The Spotted Cat is a crowded, little bar full of live jazz and blues with a reputation approaching legend. One flight up is Adolfo's, a threadbare trattoria with a medieval kitchen and good pasta. Across the street, Snug Harbor has great jazz every night and wonderful beers, and down the block The Praline Connection offers excellent Cajun fare. But everywhere there is good food, strong drink and music. Magazine Street, on the other side of downtown running roughly parallel to the river, is six miles of gingerbread bungalows, sidewalk cafes, eateries of every description, bars, art galleries, boutiques and antique shops. Slim Goodies Diner boasts the best breakfast in town; Lilette is for the white-truffle-and-Kobe-beef crowd; The Rum House is perfect for people watching on the sidewalk; and the no-nonsense tiled lunchroom called Casamento's Restaurant, a local institution, is a must stop for Dixie Beer and oyster lovers. What both Frenchmen and Magazine streets have are lots of customers who are NOLA natives. Visit either and you'll feel like one too. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

chicagotribune.com - Travel: Hawaii rules best beaches list

chicagotribune.com - Travel Headlines from chicagotribune.com Hawaii rules best beaches list 20 Jun 2011, 7:17 pm ( Michael Goulding/Orange County Register/MCT ) I've spent more time on this beach than any other on the list. The wide crescent on the wet, lush north shore of Kauai is placid in summer, and the great beach town of Hanalei is a short stroll away. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.