If there’s one thing Jim Ward loves more than photographing Hawaiian spinner dolphins, free-falling into waterfalls and carving up waves in White Plains, it’s his girlfriend, Alicia Franco. If it wasn’t for this spunky bikini model, he wouldn’t be living in Oahu at all. Quick recap: Alicia was thumbing through the June 2010 of ISLANDS when she landed on page 22. There was her dream man (aka Jim). Toothy smile. Golden tan. Washboard abs.
My train-riding experience — except for a few jaunts around Europe — has mainly consisted of trips around Florida via Amtrak. Those trips, as many train trips are, were for one purpose: to get from point A to point B; they definitely had nothing to do with sightseeing. With that said, there was a lot left to be desired. When I heard about a luxury train in Canada, The Rocky Mountaineer, I knew it was gonna be good. Here are the highlights:
The Atacama Desert is the driest place on earth; I have the hiking boots filled with red dust to prove it. Yet, it’s also one of the most alluring places around.
What’s better than gliding through the barrel of a 6-foot wave? Gliding through it with a GoPro HD Surf Hero cam strapped to your board. You’ll walk away with bragging rights and the footage to prove it.
I’d come to a small town in Iceland to test my prowess, to do something I wasn’t sure I could handle. No, it wasn’t eating fermented shark that had me panicky,
It was an overcast afternoon at Discovery Cove’s new SeaVenture attraction as I shimmied my way down a ladder into 70-degree water.
Published on nileguide.com April 28, 2011 If you head to the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival (now through May 15), chances are you’ll spot an HGTV personality. The star-studded lineup includes Genevieve Gorder, Lisa LaPorta, Kim Myles, Brian Patrick Flynn, Taniya Nayak, Ahmed Hassan, Patti Moreno, Michele Beschen, John Gidding, Frank Fontana and Vern…
Published on Tripatlas.com Jan. 16, 2011 If you could pick up and move any place on the planet, would Colombia top your list? It did for David Lee, editor in chief of medellinliving.com and gobackpacking.com. I recently checked in with him to find out why Medellín, the City of Eternal Spring and once one of…
It’s a drizzly September morning in Quebec as I hop into my temporary new ride — a shiny, silver Range Rover Sport. I take the wheel and drive around a bit with a big goofy grin on my face. Already, I can tell, it’s everything I imagined it would be. But, I don’t even know…
The giant tortoise, nibbling slowly on neon blades of grass in front of me, is hardly disrupted by my presence or the constant snap of my camera for that matter. Seems this 800-pound guy is used to being the star of the show. I mean who doesn’t drop by to see these famous reptiles during…
I can only imagine the want ads for Mystère performers. We’re looking for a person with 3 percent body fat who can do a one-armed handstand atop of said coworkers head who, by the way, is walking a tightrope. Seriously, how does Cirque find these people who make near impossible feats look effortless and oh-so-graceful?…
Caesars Palace was once a boxing hot spot. The “Home of Champions” hosted more than 160 boxing contests over a two-decade span featuring famed fighters like Muhammad Ali. These days the competitive prizefighting has faded away (unless you count a summer taping of Shaq vs. Shane Mosley). But its celebrity sightings have not. Today, Caesars…
Published on nileguide.com October 2010 While traipsing around the South Rim of the Grand Canyon last month, I brought back a few nuggets of wisdom that might be helpful next time you plan a trip. (Note: Consider going on Nov. 11 when the U.S. National Park system offers a fee-free entrance day.) Rule # 1…
Published on nileguide.com October 2010 At first glance I think Parc des Chutes Coulonge in the Outaouais region of Quebec might be just another zip line park. But within the space of 30 minutes, well, it is apparent — clearly I am wrong. Let me explain. The day begins with a series of zips that…
Published on nileguide.com September 2010 During my lifelong stint of adventuring, I’ve rafted my way through giant waterfalls in Costa Rica, paddled through a torrential downpour in North Carolina and taken family-friendly rides in Tennessee. All good fun. However, I’ve never, ever thought to hop aboard a zodiac at 10 p.m. and raft until nearly…
Published on nileguide.com September 2010 Dear Utah: You had me at first glance. As soon as I peered out the airplane window at 30,000 feet, your snow-capped mountains welcomed me, as if saying where have you been and why have you been skiing the East Coast your whole life? (Okay, truth be told, that’s really…
Published on nileguide.com September 2010 It’s time to gear up for ski season. And what better place than Park City? For newbies, Brighton Resort and Park City Mountain Resort are great slopes to play on. For advanced skiers, check out the Ski Utah Interconnect Tour (epic video posted below). Warning: don’t boast about your skills….
Published on nileguide.com August 2010 I was strolling down the streets of Chicago on a sunny morning about six years ago when the fresh smell of melted mozzarella and marinara sauce grabbed me by the nostrils and ushered me inside a small shop. Much to my surprise, it was a DiGorno Pizza store that had…
Published on nileguide.com August 2010 To liven up the table talk at your next meal, I suggest adding a contortionist, an aerialist and perhaps a fire eater. That’s what you get at Circus, a trendy cabaret restaurant I visited in Covent Garden this summer. By 8 p.m., the swanky hotspot was swarming with hipsters (but…
Published on nileguide.com August 2010 The goofy grin on my face said it all; I had just feasted on chocolate for breakfast. And I’m not talking Cookie Crisps cereal or a syrup-drizzled croissant. I’m talking almond-sized chunks of pure chocolate washed down with a creamy cup of, you guessed it, hot chocolate. It’s only happened…
SoBe Surf is a secret Cocoa Beach hideaway that you’d never find if you weren’t looking for it. I, indeed, was looking for it. Ready for my 8 a.m. stand-up paddleboarding (SUP) lesson, I strolled around to the back of the charming resort and found curly-haired instructor Girard and his sidekick Iain — both award-winning…
It was as if I had turned off Central Florida Parkway and wandered onto a lush Caribbean island complete with hammocks and the soft rhythm of steel drum music. Nothing here really looked much like Orlando, not only because of the exotic vibe, but because the theme park element, surprisingly, just wasn’t there. Instead, I…
My friend Kristin told me a few months ago that she has a friend who does aerial workouts. Say what? What’s an aerial class? You know, like Cirque du Soliel style. Like hanging from the ceiling? Yep. Sweet. Count me in. I want a piece of that action. So I lcalled up Jennifer Drabik Pierce,…
My brother, Dan, goes fishing nearly every weekend. It never seems to get old. Guy Harvey t-shirts are a staple item in his wardrobe. Blue marlins adorn his flip-flops. His Blackberry is full of, you guessed it, digital proof that he’s a master fisherman. It never made much sense to me, until today, when I…
“We take time at the beginning of class to fill our glasses with wine,” said Marci Arthur, owner of Truffles & Trifles, where I’d chosen to spend the evening bumping up my cooking cred. “I am, of course, the queen, Marci Arthur,” she announced next, as her lips curled into a smile. It didn’t take…
By the time I was 8, the trampoline had become my world. I’d race home after school, just to spend a few hours flipping around. Front flips, backflips, handsprings. You name it, I was all about that giant, bouncing contraption. With that said, it’s easy to see why my eyes lit up as I walked…
A photo class with Curt and Stephanie is a great way to gain a mother lode of hands-on photography experience and get up-close and personal with the downtown area (30 to 45 minutes from Kissimmee) at the same time. From the first moment you walk into the Nu Visions gallery (at CityArts Factory), these two…
As a soccer player, I’m pretty familiar with kicking people in the shins and, likewise, enduring a few wallops myself. However, I’ve never considered getting this barbaric off the field. On the other hand, in the rolling hills of the Cotswolds, about a 1 1/2-hour drive from London, it’s a national pastime. Seriously, at the…
Cinco De Mayo Slap on a sombrero, and celebrate that famous day in May at Enzian’s Eden Bar. You’ll get $2 tacos, wings for just a quarter and two-for-one margaritas. Then, catch Three Amigos on the big screen, or try your hand at beer pong or flip cup. Cost: Movie is free When: 3 p.m….
Two things I love about Park City: Olympic gold medalist Ted Ligety lives there, and the Roaming Gnome occasionally makes a cameo, too. (Apparently, he loves skiing as much as the next lawn ornament.) Turns out, the 2-foot-tall celebrity had just passed through Park City a few weeks before my ski trip in mid-February. Since I missed…
