Beginning on Friday March 11, 2011, comedienne Kathy Griffin is performing her stand-up act on Broadway.   In “Kathy Griffin Wants a Tony”, this infamous D-list star breaks all the boundaries of typical Broadway shows. She continues to dish on all A-list star activities and news of the day. Kathy’s signature style of story telling and position as the so-called underdog makes the audience feel as though they are visiting with a best friend, a best friend with cool insider info. Her show is not confined to a time limit but can run anywhere from 90 minutes to 120 minutes. This show is a much more organic format and you know that the show you are seeing live is unique. An additional, rare treat of this type of format is the stage door experience. After the show, Kathy comes out of the stage door (the black gate on the left side of the main door you walk into) and will pose for photos and sign autographs for some lucky fans. Since the crowd will no doubt be enormous she will not get ...

What do you do when you feel stressed?? Is there something you picture yourself doing?? Do you put yourself in another place?? Typically we tend to think of our happy places. Today on the bus I saw a lady and her suitcase and it filled me with such a feeling of calm and envy. This sense of tranquility put me in a dream like state if only momentarily. I went to my happy place, which is apparently in a state of planning a vacation. I love to fantasize about upcoming trips, what I will finally get to see, to eat, and take pictures of. Oh how I love taking pictures on vacation! Actually I love taking pictures any time anywhere but that’s a topic for another time. Every time I see a tourist on the street I think how lucky they are and that I can’t wait for my turn again.

The Pompeii Exhibit at Discovery Times Square opened March 4 th . For anyone who is at all interested in the events that took place before and after Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D. in Pompeii Italy, this exhibit is a treat. It is the very first time any such pieces have traveled and been put on display. Upon arriving you watch a brief film describing the town and what you are about to see. From there you walk through to see the relics of a life that could have been from any ancient time or place. Upon completion of this portion of the exhibit there is yet another short film and then the doors fling open to show you the body casts. The entire mood, settings, temperature, music, and layout provides the perfect combination of eerie and interesting for what you are looking at. The body casts were molded in the exact shapes of the organic materials left behind. That is, you see the way a dog was laying or expression on a parents face before they were befallen with volcanic ash and killed...

It has finally happened!!! I HAVE MET HER!!! Its all too much. There are almost no words to describe it but alas I shall try. After years upon years of meeting/stalking celebrities and collecting memorabilia, I finally have the ultimate piece of my collection. But to appreciate what this has meant to me you have to first understand what Samantha Brown has meant to me. About 6 or so years ago, I stumbled upon her show Passports to Europe and was totally intrigued. While I have always wanted to travel she became my teacher, my mentor via television.   Since our “meeting” I have followed the places she has gone, the tips she gave, and the inspiration she provided to want to do the same things. It was always a dream of mine to be able to meet her and tell her that she gave me the world. So last weekend when I was attending the aforementioned NY Times Travel Show, the opportunity FINALLY presented itself. I was first online to meet her after hearing her speak so passionately abou...

The NY Times Show is a nationally recognized trade show for travel. It has all the best experts in the field in NYC for one weekend every year at the Jacob Javits Center. As if this were not enough, there are hundreds of booths representing all countries, cities and/or localities you may ever wish to visit.  Besides having great information it’s an opportunity to score free bags, flashlights, pens and other inexpensive items. But for me the highlight of these booths is a chance to win a free vacation. While learning about an exotic corner of the world, the possibility of going for free is almost too much! This has not yet happened but a girl can dream can’t she? There are also cultural performances, seminars, book signings and even meet and greets. It puts the world at your fingertips and all for $15!! You cannot beat it. 

The best travel advice I can give mirrors a saying that is popular in real estate but instead of location, location, location, the words to live by are insurance, insurance, insurance!! No matter if you are booking through a travel agency, or a flight/ cruise directly every carrier offers insurance and if you say no you are simply tempting fate. Unless you are one of these miraculous lucky people who never get sick, have a death in the family, work crisis or experience a natural disaster. If this is the case I am green with envy. For the rest of us insurance is just a smart and relatively cheap (when you consider losing the entire cost of your trip) option when traveling domestic or internationally. However, this advice is not something I recommend for plays. It is a little know fact (until now) that play tickets are non refundable but can be exchangeable. I have been noticing lately they option to add insurance for about $10 or so per ticket as a checkout option. I never use this ...

Travel is my religion- it is that simple. It is the guiding force in my life. I live to see the days that each of these dreams comes true whether it’s a small day trip or finally making my way overseas. My personal motto is this: “Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breathe away.” Each location within itself has smaller opportunities for fulfillment and dreams realized. While this may sound overdramatic, for me it isn’t. It’s a way of life. A life I have great hopes of accomplishment for so many of these.   I carefully file and save everything on every place I hope to visit no matter if it’s the first time or not. I am like a boy scout, I am always prepared! To borrow from the great travel author Patricia Shultz I have “1,000 places to see before I die.” Although I am sure by now that count is way higher.