On the Road with Lori Rothschild Ansaldi

What to do when there is Nothing to do…

loritravels — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 18:40:47 +0000

As a traveler, there is nothing more annoying to me than having nothing to do. I am on bed rest for the next few days for a minor health issue. I am fine… but, the doing nothing thing is killing me. It has become so boring that it had me start thinking about all of the people that cannot travel. People who are sick or care for them… or people who just do not have the means to get away.

Everyone knows that I am a TV addict and believe me…I have had my share of Gossip Girl, The Bachelor and Oprah this week! However, the one thing that really did the trick for me a good book. Right now, I am in the middle of The Shiksa Syndrome by my good friend, Laurie Graff. This is a novel about a Jewish girl looking for a good Jewish guy in New York. I also love going back to re-read Eat, Pray, Love. Elizabeth Gilbert is a wonderful storyteller who immerses the reader into a story within a destination. There is nothing more vibrant than imagining her in an ashram in the middle of India as she describes the “prayer” part of her story. It is the perfect way to escape the everyday.

Since I really have a lot of time this week as I lay on the couch, I thought I would compile my travel reads for 2009… because even when you are not traveling… anyone can use an escape. Here’s what I have on my list… please send me your suggestions.

(1) Wetlands by Charlotte Roche (born in High Wycombe but living in Germany) is a graphic portrait of a young woman’s sexuality, and has been a European sensation, selling hundreds of thousands of copies. A woman I was sitting next to on a flight was reading this and we talked about it. Her copy was in German… Now it’s available in English.

(2) “The Bad Girl’s Guide to the Open Road” by Cameron Tuttle is full of sarcastic and sassy tips on how to take a highly adventuresome, Thelma-and-Louise-like road trip. I am also a fan of “Sand in My Bra”… another compilation of hilarious stories from women on the road.

(3) “Lonely Planet Unpacked” compiles hilarious travel disasters. There is nothing better than reading and learning from other traveler’s mistakes. Here’s one of mine… Back when we were shooting Passport to Latin America with Samantha Brown, I was trying to meet the crew up in Cusco, Peru so that I could be there for our Macchu Picchu shoot. I was in LA on another project and I was trying to figure out my travel itinerary. So, I called the producer and told her that I would fly into Lima and just “drive up” Cusco and will meet them up in Macchu Picchu. Yeah, not so much… Cusco is a flight from Lima and at a little under 11,000 feet above sea level I also forgot about the reccomended acclimation period in Cusco before heading up to Macchu Picchu. This coming from a Travel Expert. Nice work, Lori.

(3) “Testosterone Planet: True Stories from a Man’s World” is a compilation of daring stories by male adventure-seekers, including Tim Cahill, Jon Krakauer, Frank McCourt and Sebastian Junger. I love reading these adventure stories and the amazing skill and endurance that these guys have. An inspiration to try something new this summer.

(4) I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti, by Giulia Melucci. (Not released yet…) This memoir chronicles the food Melucci made to entice men — and console herself when they left her broken-hearted. Anyone who makes a ziti during a crisis is my kind of girl.

(5) A Fortunate Age, by Joanna Smith Rakoff. (Not released yet…)This novel is about the lives of a group of Gen-Xers in pre- and post-9/11 New York City. My generation… my home city.

Also, mentioned above and two of my faves from 2008…

Eat, Pray, Love, by Elizabeth Gilbert. The story of a travel writer who, after a painful divorce, uses travel as her therapist. She heads to Italy to eat and to learn a little Italian, India to find inner peace by living at an ashram, and then to the Island of Bali in Indonesia to lay by the sea, study with a medicine man, and look for Love. If this does not give you the travel bug, nothing will.

The Shiksa Syndrome, by Laurie Graff. A story of a Jewish Girl who after a makeover looks a little less Jewish and finally lands a nice Jewish boy. Adorable and a perfect escape to the very “oy vey” world of dating in New York.

What are you reading? Let me know.
Travel on.
Lori

New Year… New Blog and LOADS of Travel to come

loritravels — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 12:56:35 +0000

Travel and I have been on a break. After months of travel in ’08, the start of ’09 for me was about staying home and enjoying life in Washington DC. Well, sort of… We spent Christmas down in Orlando where we rented a wonderful vacation home. It was a great trip filled with family, food and Disney… but, wearing shorts and t-shirts on Christmas Day was just odd.

Travel and I resumed our break-up when I came back to DC. I decided that the first month of ’09 was going to be about enjoying life at home. No suitcases, no itineraries, and no hotels and I have to say…. it felt really good. I cooked meals in my own kitchen and I went food shopping (a luxury for me…) and I was even able to enjoy our local restaurants right here in DC.

So, now its the end of January and Travel and I had a talk and we decided to resume our relationship. Febuary is going to be filled with fun travel and I am ready to get back on the road. I am heading to New York City in the middle of the month for a few days with the Travel Channel Academy. I will also visit the acclaimed Oscar Blandi salon for a little coahing in NY style. I am then jetting to Vail for another TCA at the Keystone Resort to check out the slopes, spas and fabulous food to be had in one of the most scenic places in the US.

Look, I tried to stay away from the road… I really did. It just keeps calling me back to it. So, now I am on a break with my TV shows (The City, 24, LOST, Gossip Girl, etc.) Instead of being home to watch them live… they will need to go to the DVR. I’m sure they will get over it.

Travel On and welcome to my NEW blog!

Lori

All About the Travel in 2009

loritravels — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 15:20:00 +0000

TREASURE HUNTER: KIRSTEN GUM

ALL NEW PREMIERES STARTS SATURDAY, JAN 3RD AT 9PM

only on the TRAVEL CHANNEL

I was sitting at New Year Eve dinner the other night with my husband at one of our local Italian restaurants when this blog started to take shape. I could not decide how to start my 2009 without the old standby cliches… out with the old, in with the new stuff. As I was sitting there eating a 5 course meal, my husband and I could not stop complaining. The service was slow… they did take our order fast enough, the first course was too skimpy, the second was fine, the third was undercooked… it went on and on. I was so irritated that I was actually excited about making a nasty blog about the place. So, I came home and started to write and the more I wrote, the more I deleted. Was I really going to write a travel blog about my five course dinner out with my husband that had gone bad? It became apparent to me that the fact that my husband and I could afford a nice dinner after a very fun (and expensive) Christmas vacation in Florida with our family was more of a blog than the little scallop and overly seasoned cabernet reduction.

So, after a year of bad news and non-perfect hotel stays … I offer you this.. a look ahead to what I think is going to be the major travel trends of ’09.

(1) Business Travel will be cut significantly. What does that mean for you? Business travel is where the airlines make their cash. These are the travelers who do not have any flexibility in their travel schedules and they end up paying dearly for that. It could mean that airlines cut flights even more creating less seats per route. Your best bet… book early and search my fave sites to get the best deals.

(2) Vacation Rentals instead of hotels. Watch out Marriott! Local homeowners are coming to the table to pull even more travelers out of your hotels. With business travel cut backs and the growing vacation rental market you may very well see those hotel rates drop to fill their beds.

(3) American’s are going to continue to Staycation this year as the economy tightens even more in 2009. We also see a lot more “Family Reunion” type travels coming in 2009 where families vacation together and save on everything from nightly rates, meals and attractions.

As I look ahead to 2009, I see many paths unfolding that will change my future forever. My daughter starts preschool this month… I have a new position at Travel Channel where I have been given the opportunity to work on shaping a new world of online video for the network. I am also responsible for the Travel Channel Academy and all of the graduates who are out there making travel video for us.

Here are a few new pictures from our family trip to Florida. We hit Disney the day after Christmas and WOW that place was packed! I mean wall to wall people. Loads of “family reunion” t-shirts walking around. I feel good about that trend…

Enjoy 2009 and stay with me this year… I’m about to blow out TravelChannel online with some amazing new travel content including a style web series with my close friend, Sammy B’s stylist, and total hottie Christina Burns. (Coming in March)

Talking about hotties… be sure to catch all new episodes of Treasure Hunter: Kirsten Gum coming tomorrow night at 9pm on Travel Channel! This season is all about adventure and Kirsten is one adventurous chick. Check it out.

BIG SHOUT OUT to Kirsten Gum and the entire Treasure Hunter crew at Indigo Films who literally risked their lives shooting this show. You are my rock stars!

Travel On,

Lori

When the Travel Channel goes on Vacation…

loritravels — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 18:13:00 +0000

I am constantly asked if I get to travel for my job at Travel Channel and the answer of course is yes. I travel a lot… a whole lot… I have an addiction. However, I have never been asked where would the entire Travel Channel go if we all just picked up and went on vacation. Wouldn’t that be something? Where would a group of travel passionates go on vacation? Hawaii? Bora Bora? No, No, people… we go to Lansdowne, Virginia!

Lansdowne Resort sits in the middle of Virginia’s horse and wine country and the grounds are really beautiful. The rooms are very nice with comfy beds (minus the pillows… way too soft), plenty of room and free wireless. The best part of the rooms were the bathrooms with slate tile floors, revolving shower heads and yummy bath products from Gilchrist and Soames.

When we checked in on Sunday, the news quickly spread that Sarah Palin was also a guest and that secret service was crawling all over the building. Now, as I have said in previous blogs… I am a fair shade of purple when it comes to politics and I was just impressed that they chose this hotel over the Ritz! Anyway, that evening we were all in the tavern when we were told that we were not allowed to leave the bar until she went up to her room from the lobby. Can you imagine? They locked the entire Travel Channel in the bar for Palin? For us it meant…

British Leader who loves Obama

Plus security locking us into a bar because of Sarah Palin…

= PARTY!!

JK… I don’t even know who these guys are… but I loved the pic.

I also LOVED that the Palin gang brought the campaign bus and parked it right out in the front drive of the hotel. You know that once that bar door was unlocked I was one of the first ones to run out the door for a photo op! Note to self… I need a campaign bus.

Travel Channel is definitely corporate and this retreat was about real work. We have a real office with a receptionist (her name is Katie). We have little kitchens with microwaves and fridges to hold our brown bag lunches. Our vending machines have the usual crap… no crickets or monkey brains like you see in the commercials. I have a bigger office in this building than Sam, Anthony or Andrew! (Can you guess why?)
It was a great few days filled with cool discussions about our business and networking with colleagues from other departments or offices (our interactive team is based on New York and our Big Daddy, COX Communications, is based down in Atlanta). We also had a great time enjoying some down time in the tavern and playing group trivia hosted by a real Quiz Master! Did you know that you could catch Herpes from a beer glass?

Here are some highlights… enjoy the candids and video.
Travel On.. Lori

On Location on the American Riviera… Santa Barbara

loritravels — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 01:59:00 +0000

Each and every time I visit California, I find something else to love about it. This time was no different when I found Santa Barbara. Unlike my other favorite CA town (Mill Valley), this little town is known for its BIG spenders. This is the land of the vacationing billionaire and I was determined to see what the American Riviera was all about. BRING IT ON!

There are no direct flights from DC to Santa Barbara. You can either jump on a connection or you can try to brave the hour and a half drive from LAX. I chose a connection through Phoenix and landed in Santa Barbara at 10pm. The terminal building looks more like a Spanish style home than an airport. The best part was when the man drove our baggage to us from the plane to the small outdoor space that they called a baggage claim. Quick, Cute and Easy.

I picked up my rental from AVIS and made my way to State Street in the heart of Santa Barbara to find my hotel for the next few days. I was here for a couple of shoot days with Sam and to also start our new style web series with Christina Burns… one of my favorite people in the world and Sam’s stylist.

I checked into the hotel and met up with a friend for a beer at a small pub across the street. I was exhausted and after a few drinks I was starved and ready for bed. We wanted a late night snack… so, we headed out to a local hotdog place and I chowed on a corndog and some fries. The corndog was on a stick and it reminded me of growing up and eating a dog and some cheesefries with my parents on the boardwalk in Atlantic City. Ummm… but, I was going to pay for it in the morning!

My full tummy and the alarm woke me up for our early am call time. It was our first shoot day for the style series and I wanted to meet with Christina nice and early to get our game faces on (makeup). We met up down in the lobby with Brandon, our director and drove over to our first location for the day… Couture Candy.

Yup it is exactly what it sounds like… a perfect little place filled with beautiful clothing that looks like candy to a girls eyes. Couture Candy is an online clothing retailer and this was their headquarters. Their office is on the second floor of a building and looks more like a funky photography loft than a retail store. Oh, by the way… nobody gets access to this place… except for designers and stylists and I had one with me! Here’s Christina with Stephanie of Couture Candy! LOVE that girl.

Couture Candy helps us with wardrobe for Samantha. So, we were going to shoot our first webisode as Christina dives into their fab closet filled with yummy couture for Sammy. It was paradise and Christina was like a rockstar!

After Couture Candy, we headed up to Montecito to a little boutique called Kate to meet up with a local bathing suit designer named Sonja. Sonja is a Brazilian and she makes beautiful “loungy” bathing suits that are just dreamy. Sam wore one in our Miami episode and now we were looking for a couple more for the new episodes being shot in Hawaii next month. So, Christina went to work… and so did we for another webisode.

By the time we got finished with our bathing suit piece, we were all starved. So, we walked down to street to Tre Lune… a small cafe only a few stores away from Kate. The place was adorable with old black and white Hollywood photos and tiny dollhouse style wooden chairs hung on the walls. Each little chair had a golden label with a name. I asked the waiter about the chairs and he told me that each chair represented one of their regulars. I walked around and noted Ellen Degeneres and Portia DiRossi had their names on chairs. That’s kinda cool.

I ordered a tossed salad with grilled shrimp and Christina and I shared a veggie panini (a recommendation from Sonja) and it was yummy. My new mission… get a chair at Tres Lune in Montecito. I made a mental note.

Our next shoot location was back at the hotel with Christina unpacking Sam’s bags. It was a long day and I was hitting the wall after the late night and now a full work day… so, as soon as I could back out… I went back to my room and took a nap.

Sam called me at 8:30 to see if I wanted to meet her for a late dinner. So, I walked back across State Street to a restaurant named Joe’s Cafe which is known to have the stiffest drinks in town. (Note to self… order water.) Sam and I both had a spanish style meatball soup and we shared some grilled salmon and veggies. Her hubby met up with us for a bite and some conversation and we called it night. I had a bunch of shows to screen and some scripts to work through before I went to bed.

The next morning, I was up early and we did not have a crew call until 1pm. So, I decided to get some green tea and take a walk through town. I took a left out of my hotel and found some amazing shopping. State Street is like an outdoor mall… it has everything from drug stores and small cafes to a Macy’s, Nordstroms and Anthropologie. It reminded me of a bigger and better version of Georgetown. Kind of posh with some cool skateboarder stores mixed in. I stopped into a kids store and picked up a cute stuffed puppy for Eva-Bel and then I went into a yoga store and finally found a travel yoga mat. Yeah… no more borrowing from random studios!

Before I headed back to the hotel, I grabbed a bite to eat at a place called the Natural Cafe. This is California… the land of healthy food and exercise and I alwayys try to eat “clean” while I am here. I ordered a grilled veggie platter with tofu and a green tea with ginseng. Just eating and drinking this stuff made me feel skinnier.

After lunch, I met up with the crew at the hotel for our day of shooting with Sammy. We went over to the Four Seasons Biltmore to shoot at the Coral Casino. The Coral Casino is a members only club right across the street from the Four Seasons. With a membership fee of $250,000 per year… this place is not for millionaires… its for BILLIONAIRES. It was beautiful and it certainly feels like the riviera. Just perfect.

We shot with the Executive Chef of the property, Pilar Sanchez, one of California’s best who had a beautiful little place called Pilar Napa that I read about and always wanted to try. Pilar made a yummy salad with Sam up in one of the private cabanas and she was amazing.

The shoot ended at 6pm and we were all ready for a bite to eat. So, we headed back to Joe’s for a bite. I was not going to the late night salsa shoot because I had to be up for a 7am flight back to the East Coast. So, after dinner I said my goodbyes to the crew and went back to my room. I decided that I wanted to take a late night yoga class at a place called Yoga Soup a few blocks from the hotel. So, I grabbed my new yoga mat and went to class.

The class was called Late Night Flow and I was suprised to see so many people waiting for the class with me. The class was a perfect way to end my few days in Santa Barbara. It is totally worth checking online for local gyms or yoga studios while you are on the road. It is always fun checking out a new class and feeling like you tried to stay on your gym schedule while you are away from home. Try it sometime… PLUS, the stretching was just what the doctor ordered before I had to jump on two airplanes for the long trek back to DC.

I am now writing this blog from my sister’s couch in Greensboro, NC. I landed in DC on Thursday night, worked from home on Friday and then got in the car and drove to NC to be here for my neice’s 6th birthday party. The party was great… but, the highlight of this weekend was the yummy North Carolina BBQ at Stameys! The barbeque here is not the sweet smokey type like you would find in Texas. The sauces here have a vinegar base and it gives the meat a real bite. I chowed down on some chicken and pulled pork and some hush puppies. I then washed it down with some homemade peach cobbler and vanilla ice cream. See… in Cali I was all healthy.. in NC I am all BBQ. When in Rome…

Travel On
Lori

Pumpkin Picking in Maryland

loritravels — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 13:24:00 +0000

There is something about the smell of spices this time of year. Every September, my sister in law always had a homemade potpourri burning on her stove. She boiled a muddy mess of water, sliced apples, orange peels, and spices that smelled like autumn. Her kids always knew that the smell of “Reenie’s potpourri” meant that it was the end of summer and time to go back to school. Watever it looked like in the pot, it smelled like a warm home. This weekend was our annual pumpkin pick’n weekend. We live around the corner from Butler’s Orchard in Montgomery County, Maryland and we just love their Pumpkin Festival. Butler’s is a working family farm that does all sorts of events for the family all year long. But, their pumpkin and harvest festival is our favorite. Hundreds of people come out to the farm to enjoy their open field filled with fall fun. There is a little petting zoo filled with goats, sheep, pigs and chickens. Then there are corn mazes, a moon bounce, live music, pony and hay rides, a hay loft and a cool slippery slide. After we enjoy our time in the field, we head out to the patch to pick our pumpkins! The kids run around trying to pick the biggest one that they can find. Just fun. On our way out, we stopped at Butler’s sweet general store where they have loads of fresh produce, crafts, preserves and more pumpkins. I made sure to pick up their yummy apple butter and a bushel of freshly picked gala apples to make my homemade apple sauce. (Yes, I do make my own… no comments needed) Wanna try it for yourself? Here is the recipe… Grandma and Aunt JoAnn’s Applesauce
bushel of freshly picked apples (store bought is fine… you will need a dozen)
1 c sugar (and a little more to suit your taste)
Cinnamon

Peel and Core your apples and slice them in half. Add to large pot of water and cook the water and apples until they come to a boil. Reduce heat and let them simmer until all of the apples are fork tender. With a food processor, puree your apples in batches and transfer into a large bowl. Add sugar to the finished puree and as much cinnamon as you like for flavor. (Some just add the sugar and nothing else)… enjoy.

Happy Harvest!

Stay tuned… I am jetting off to Santa Barbara tomorrow to meet up with Sam and the crew to shoot our new style series for the website. I am also going to check out the Hotel Santa Barbara and some other local faves. This is going to be fun! Travel On! Lori

SISTAH’s Weekend in Jackson, New Hampshire

loritravels — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 16:18:00 +0000

My husband is the youngest of 5 boys and all of them are now married with children. The “brothers” are very close and spend a lot of time together in social and family situations. It’s special being a part of a big family and I adore each of my brother-in-laws and four sister-in-laws. Sister-in-laws are special people because we all come from very different places and environments, but we all have one common denominator… we married into the same family. Does that mean that we automatically will get along? As I have heard from my other friends and family… not so much, but I’m lucky. I have four sister-in laws who I consider my siblings and I love each of them because of our differences. Early in the summer the “brothers” planned a weekend getaway with their father to Saint Louis to see the Cardinals play some baseball. They planned, the went, they had fun at the games, they ate and drank. They had a blast… which got all of us girls thinking. How about an annual girl’s getaway for the “sistahs?” Hell yeah… and that’s exactly what we did last weekend up in Jackson, New Hampshire. The planning of this trip was far from easy. Remember, we are all very different people. June is almost 50 and she has 3 grown sons and works in a pharmacy. She has not been on an airplane in 33 years! Maureen is in her 40′s and is a mother of 6children! The oldest is 21 and the youngest a mere 11 months! Lori is a working mother of 2 in her 40′s and has such a cool government job… we don’t even know what she does. Kathleen is 40 and she is a mother of 3 and is a labor and delivery nurse. Kathleen was in the room when I had Eva. Then, there’s me… 34 with a 2 year old who travels the world for work. My idea of a getaway is certainly different from June’s or even Kathleen’s! So, Kathleen took on the job and planned a girls weekend in the White Mountains of New Hampshire during the peak of the fall foliage. Sounded great to me because (1) there was a spa and (2) someone else did the planning for me. Just pack me a suitcase and I am there. Kathleen, June and I flew from Baltimore up to Manchester and we then met Lori up at the Manchester airport because she was up in Boston for business. The four of us then drove 5 hours (should have been 3) to the beautiful little town of Jackson, New Hampshire. Someone forgot to make a turn and we wound up at a Dunk’n Donuts and finally used the GPS on my blackberry to get us back on track. (see video below) Jackson is a quaint little town in the heart of the White Mountain ski resort area. You arrive into the town after passing under the historic wooden covered bridge. We were staying at the Christmas Farm Inn and before winding up the hill to our hotel, we noticed a buisling with a sign that said “Jackson Grammar School” – Who calls an elementary school a grammar school anymore? The people of Jackson do! We checked into the Christmas Farm Inn and drove up the windy path to the two bedroom “Smokehouse” cottage that we booked for our stay. On the way up the path, we found that we were not alone… there were several wild turkeys (among other guests – see video) at the inn. The cottage was small and cozy with two nice bathrooms and a large living room area with a nice gas fireplace. (Did I mention that it was 50 degrees outside?) Maureen, the missing “sistah” was already at the cottage waiting for us. So, we all got settled and headed out for a much needed cocktail and some dinner. We went to a local pub and got all caught up on the kids and life over wine. The fireplace was lit in the main dining room and it was very cozy. The next day we drove into the town of North Conway where we browsed the little boutiques and country stores that line the main drag of the town. I loved Jeb’s Country Store with its beautiful old fashioned candy counter where I found a baseball sized gobstopper. WHAT? You know I pulled out a $10 bill for one of those babies! We then stopped for a light lunch at Delaney’s Pub before heading down to their outlet area where I paid my monthly dues to Banana Republic. After our day of shopping, we really did not want to go out for a big dinner. So, we rested up, drank some wine and got all dolled up and went over to a popular joint that just happens to have karaoke on Friday and Saturday nights. Maureen has a beautiful voice, so it is always fun for us to go to karaoke with her. She is like our own free live entertainment! So, we put on our jeans and went out for the night. Karaoke was in a place that Maureen called “the Peking” and it looked exactly what I thought it was going to be… a Chinese Restaurant. We walked in and went to the back of the restaurant where there was a door that led us right into a full-on bar with pool tables, darts and a big area for karaoke. With our group included there was about 15 people in the place … so, that, plus a few cocktails later… you know who was up singing like Mariah? Yup. It was a real mess that kept up into the wee hours of the morning. We laughed so hard that my stomach was sore the next morning! The next day, we were all nursing a hang over and decided to “detox” with a healthy breakfast and a hike to a waterfall. Lori and I decided to head out early and we hiked the amazing Jackson Falls which were only a few minutes from our Inn. It was beautiful… and I could have sat on the rocks in the middle of the river for hours. We met up woth the girls a few hours later and we headed to another waterfall called the Glen Ellis Falls where we were able to easliy navigate a path to another amazing waterfall. Lori and I cut the path and again found some amazing rocks in the center of the ice cold river to play on. The clean air was dusting all of the smoke out of my lungs and it just felt awesome to play outside like a kid. Later in the afternoon, Lori and I went to the spa for a massage and steam while the other girls napped. The Christmas Farm Spa is very nice and the massage was welcomed after a long day of hiking. However, I hear that you can get a better massage in town for half the price. So, traveler beware!

That night, we decided to go up to the Wentworth Inn to have dinner in their restaurant. Maureen’s oldest son is a chef there and we were all very proud to see him in his chef whites! The Wentworth is a beautiful historic property that sits right up next to the Jackson Falls. The campus is exquisite and certainly worth the time to stop in for a cocktail, tea or for the rest of your natuaral life. Dinner was very nice and it was a great way to cap off our “sistahs” weekend in the mountains. Overall, our weekend was full of fun and a big “hot mess” of karaoke. There was a bit of tension in the group… one of us was on a strict diet and found it hard to eat at the places we chose…. I had a problem with one of the servers at a restaurant called The Thompson House Eatery and Kathleen almost crawled under the table when I opened my Rothschild mouth. (The food was great… the service… not so much) But, we were all fine and at the end of the trip we were already thinking about what our next trip should be. The entire experience got me thinking about women’s relationships with each other and how very different we are with other women than we are with men. We had some pretty healthy discussions about politics, our kids, and our families. We talked about how hard marriage is for all of us… at all stages of our lives and the joys that come along with it. So, what is it about being around women that is so special for other women? It’s the understanding and perspective that only a female friend can give you. Women need women to get through the best and worst times and what I found in a small town in New Hampshire… is that I have four of them that I can count on for the rest of my life. Travel On Lori

NO, DAVID! and the National Book Festival in DC

loritravels — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 19:08:00 +0000

My daughter loves books… and I’m not just saying that because I think it makes (1) her look smart or (2) me look like the parent of the year. She just loves them. She wakes up at 7am every morning and says, “Can I read some books?” Granted, she is 2 and a half and is not reading them yet, but she memorizes stories and then just repeats them as she looks at the pictures. Its kind of amazing. One of her favorite books is called NO DAVID by David Shannon. She equally loves another of his books about a dog named Fergus. They are super easy for her to memorize and the illustrations are adorable and crazy. Just what she loves to look and giggle at as she makes up why David got into trouble again.

So, this weekend was the National Book Festival on the National Mall here in Washington, DC. This summer was all about taking advantage of our home cities and this was one event that was perfect for our family. Just a 30 minute drive for us into DC and it was FREE! Perfect. AND… all in the shadows of the Capitol building where Congress was diligently working on how to save our economy. We waved for good measure.

The highlight of the event was that THE David Shannon was going to read his new book and then do a signing. Another author that Eva reads, David Carter, was going to be there too. He is the guy that writes those cool bug books. Eva loves them… so, we definitely wanted to get him to sign her copy of his Big Bug Book.

We hit the mall around noon and the place was swarmed with people. The children’s tent was packed with parents and kids all eagerly listening to David Shannon read through his book. He even pulled out an easel and started to draw David for us. Eva was super excited to meet him and have her personal David and Fergus books signed.

We walked down the mall towards the Capitol building where folks were lined up eagerly waiting for their favorite authors to start signing their books. You should have seen the line waiting for David Shannon! It was a good thing we brought lunch! It was like waiting in line (old school) at Disney for the Haunted Mansion! There were no speed passes at the Book Festival!

So, we waited. Eva had her lunch and we chatted with other fans. We then realized that David Carter was also signing books and was about to close up his line. So, Peter stayed on the Shannon line and Eva and I walked over to meet the bug guy. We waited for a few minutes and he happily greeted Eva and signed her book. He even took a picture with her and she was just thrilled to think that he was the man that made the bug book.

Eva and I were excited after meeting David Carter to now meet her favorite… David Shannon. As we headed back to the line, we realized that it was MOVING!! Which meant that he was there and he started to sign the books! The event staff handed everyone a post-it note so that we could write exactly what we wanted in the book. We wanted “To Eva” on the David book and we wanted “To The Ansaldi’s” on the Fergus book (we are dog people). So, we waited… and waited and finally it was just before our turn and the girl managing the line apologized and said that he was no longer personalizing the books…. meaning, he did not want to take the extra 5seconds to write “TO Eva” on the book. IS HE KIDDING ME? I just spent two hours on line and HE does not want to take the time? Hey, I did not really want to wait for all that time… and I really did not HAVE to purchase his books for $16.99 each! I was infuriated, but Eva loved him and wanted to see him. So, we walked up to the table and said that she was his biggest fan and he smiled when she said, “NO DAVID”. She even asked how Fergus was and we found out that Fergus is his real dog! He is a star in our house!

So, I dedicate this blog to David Shannon…. who is a CHILDRENS author. I say, if you ask CHILDREN (your fans) to come out to meet you for PUBLICITY… I say, take the 5 seconds and sign her name. I know it would have really been special for her. AND (smiling to myself)… you kind of shot yourself in the foot because now that I have a brand new copy of your book with your signature (not personalized)… I can sell your book on Ebay and make 100% profit. My daughter can use the extra 16 bucks for her college fund. So, no harm done. Right?

I’m heading to NY tomorrow to meet up with Sam and the Passport crew. I am then off to the White Mountains of New Hampshire on Thursday to check out the fall foliage at the Christmas Inn in Jackson, NH.

Travel On.
Lori

To Boldly Go Where No Woman Has Gone Before

loritravels — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 16:47:00 +0000

I believe that I have seen the Twilight Zone. I’ve been on several flights where I question if something happened and we flew right into another dimension. I have actually been through production meetings and had the same feeling. Well, I can now tell you that I have officially entered the Twighlight Zone and instead of taking a Jet Blue flight to LA for a meeting, I may be flying aboard the starship Enterprise.

A friend of mine is a huge Trekky… you know the kind… the people that dress like aliens and characters from the popular series Star Trek? It’s a slice of American life that I covered in the past for a series on conventions that I did for Travel Channel. We covered Star Trek conventions, the Big Beautiful Convention and several others that were just as “out of this world.” Anyway, so my friend is involved in the production of an online production of some “lost episodes” of Star Trek. Somehow they got their hands on some old scripts that were never made into episodes and shoot them up in a studio in upstate New York. They then master the show and upload it to their website where millions of their Trekky friends can download them.

Anyway, they were searching for girl to play a character named Isel for their next episode shooting in October. This character is a bald “Deltan” and is a Lietenant aboard the Enterprise. So, my friend asked if I would be interested in auditioning for the part… being that I meet all of the requirements for the part (girl – check, Lietenant – I know how to be a fierce bitch, bald – check) At first, I thought it was a joke… and when I realized it wasn’t… I told my family and they said that I should try just for fun. So, I agreed to the audition.

Yesterday, I made my way over to his house to shoot a screen test for the Executive Producer. We are shooting an episode called “The Child” and I play Isel who was impregnanted by a parasite of some sort. After a 3 day gestation period, I give birth to a health human baby girl. The short story is that I am a mother trying to protect her child and everyone else aboard the ship thinks that she is an alien trying to kill everyone… and wants to kill her (the baby… not me).

So, now… I am officially on tape auditioning for the role of Isel for this series. I am admitting to it now in case one of you wants to use it against me in the future. I can see Howard adding my Apprentice audition to the reel.

I’ll let you know what happens…

I’m home this week and then off to NYC to meet with Sam and the crew for season 2 of Passport to Great Weekends. I am then heading up to New Hampshire for a fall foilage weekend where I will be checking out the beautiful Christmas Inn in Jackson.

Travel On…
Lori

Hotel Review: Partying at the Mondrian Scottsdale

loritravels — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 19:55:00 +0000

Do you know that I had never been to Arizona before I went to Scottsdale a few weeks ago for a bachelorette party!?! With all of my years as a travel writer, I just never had the opportunity to explore it for myself. I remember a layover in Pheonix for a few hours before a flight to Telluride… but all I was able to see was a few margaritas before I boarded that tiny toy airplane up to Colorado.

So, this was my chance to experience Scottsdale. One of my dearest friends was getting married and she picked Scottsdale for our girls weekened because she spent 4 years living in the area when she was a student at ASU. Now, being a graduate of SUNY Buffalo, I just could not understand why anyone would want to go back to their college town for a girls weekend. Well, now I know why.

The air was a balmy 97 degrees when I stepped off the flight from Baltimore. Did I mention it was 9pm? She told me that it was going to be hot… but, this was a real hot.

She picked me up from Sky Harbor Airport and we made our way to our home for the next few days… the Mondrian Scottsdale. Yes, the Mondrian… my home away from home in Los Angeles has another location in Scottsdale and from what I hear… it is supposed to be just as fun.

I shared a room with my friend and another girl this trip and they arrived earlier in the day and was already checked in. I walked into the room and was waiting for the crisp whites of the Mondrian in LA. I was actually shocked at what I walked into. The room was a typical room size for a motel (notice I used an “m” and not an “H”). It had two full sized beds that were nicely dressed with fluffy pillows and cotton duvets. The furniture was very modern and all black with a subtle sense of funkiness that you could mistake for bad taste. The desk and table that lined one of the walls was trimmed in black tassles… like the little thingies that drop off of a 20′s style flappers dress? That was not the best part… it also had a box shelf that was lit from the inside with a single red apple sitting in the box. Ummm, note to self… don’t eat that.

Our couple of days in Scottsdale were made up of lazy days by what we called their disco pool. The pool was quite the scene and we enjoyed the people watching as we sipped champagne toasting our friend’s last few days of singlehood. Hey, I’m not saying that we did not have fun…

My rating of this hotel overall was piss-poor for service and cleanliness. I think we would have had a better room and service at the local Homewood Suites. However, there were a few people on the staff that made up for their overall lack of good guest judegment. The rates were decent… but, you really do get what you pay for. I say stay away. When I go back to Scottsdale, I’m going to try the Phoenician or the new W Scottsdale.

Travel On…
Lori