Travel Massive events are excellent venues for meeting other travelers and or those working in the travel industry. Mary Ann of JetSetExtra recently started these Los Angeles based events up again in January - a talk by someone in the travel industry is given followed by networking. These meetups are held in cities around the world - visit www.travelmassive.com for more details. The venue was the Roof on Wilshire … [Read more...]
LACOT Meetup, Luxe Hotel, Los Angeles
I made the mistake of trying to go south towards the Sawtelle district (craving Ramen) around 5pm on a weekday. Barrington was backed up as far as I could see in the northbound direction - after turning around at some point, it took me 30 minutes to go 1/3 of a mile on surface streets and then on Sunset before pulling into the Luxe Hotel entance. Traffic is so intense in this part of town (combined with the major 405 construction project … [Read more...]
Basking in the Warmth of Santa Catalina Island
Catalina provides the calm, quiet and the rural contrast to the urban 24/7 hum of the city of Los Angeles. The Ying and Yang of urban versus rural environments, if you will. Catalina is world's away yet still within the confines of Los Angeles County. In reality the island is only approximately 50 miles away from the extreme contrast of pulsating clubs and the craziness of late night parties on Sunset or Hollywood Blvds. We conveniently stayed … [Read more...]
Oaxaca and Huatulco Mexico Tourism Dinner, Los Angeles
I recently attended a Oaxaca promotion dinner at Geulaguetza restaurant - an authentic restaurant serving Oaxacan cuisine surprisingly located in the heart of Koreatown Los Angeles. One of our contributors and photographers Michelle Yam recently went on a trip to Huataluco along the coast in the state of Oaxaca and invited me to this dinner. The presentation was to promote tourism to the region, inspire and excite us about the wonders of … [Read more...]
Finding the roots of our heritage
I have been fortunate to track down some of my father's heritage - from Luxembourg to Los Angeles. Now it was turn for my mother's side of the family. They come from a very beautiful part of Italy - in the hills along the Italian Riviera. We visited the small town of Casarza Ligure; the "Gallo" name is everywhere which is my mother's maiden name. The homesite of my great Grandfather, Guiseppe Gallo is situated high on a hill above Casarza and … [Read more...]
Driving through Tuscany & Antinori Winery Visit
It was hard to leave San Marino - it is such a unique and small country. Interesting museums, eclectic shopping, great views and good food! We opted for the slow drive through Tuscany - covering windy roads up and down the rolling hills, cresting passes and driving through several National Parks. The roads are narrow, steep at times but always through picturesque countryside. This time of year everything is green or in bloom. Spring has … [Read more...]
Eco tourism in California, Guest Post
CALIFORNIA, America's leading state on Green Destinations California possesses some of the most innovative green destinations and eco-conservation programs in the United States, as well as the chance to be an eco-friendly visitor. As we all know, probably the biggest favor we can do to the environment is keeping our driving to a bare minimum, and California offers numerous car-free adventures to select from. Touring the state via Amtrak … [Read more...]
Gogobot Travel Salon Recap – Los Angeles
I was invited to a Gogobot (a social community for travelers) sponsored event by Kat @travellingreek - who I met at a TBEX event in downtown at the Biltmore a few years back. This event was held at NextSpace in downtown Culver City - this is a creative work environment/community that is open to members at any time. This "travel salon" featured four well regarded travelers - Andrew Bender, who writes the Seat 1A blog for Forbes Magazine, Sara … [Read more...]
Dalian China Greetings
Greetings from Dalian China. This and the last city we visited of Shenyang would EACH be the second largest city in all of the USA! Here is a stat to chew on that I read in the latest issue of Conde Naste Traveler, not sure if its true or not, but it read something like this, "China has 370 cities with populations of between 1 and 5 million, the United States has eight - nineteen China cities have populations of more than 10 million - more than … [Read more...]
LACOT October Meetup – Los Angeles
Our latest LACOT meetup was at Hotel Wilshire conveniently located on "Miracle Mile" next to "Museum Row" and minutes from the popular Grove Shopping Center. Capitalizing on the often pleasant weather year round, Hotel Wilshire has turned their roof into the centerpiece of their hotel. Appropriately named, the "Roof on Wilshire" is located here, along with a bar, plenty of views and a small pool. The night was remarkably windy and … [Read more...]