Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
“[‘A Taste of Love’] was mostly filmed in the charming beach town of Dunedin, Florida, which is near Tampa,” said Susan Gallagher. “It is the perfect backdrop for a Hallmark movie and the audiences are going to love the beautiful cinematography and Florida beaches.”
“Jessica Jones” actress Susie Abromeit (“King Richard,” “Chicago Med”) said Utah is the perfect place for her home base, because she loves “being in nature by the mountains and lakes. I feel my best when I’m living in nature.” That said, Abromeit – who’ll next be seen in the Great American Family network movie “Love in Bloom” – said she often gets the itch to travel. “I think I was made to travel,” she said. “I usually just have the best time being in another country exploring new cultures and eating delicious food. Even when I would have challenging moments, I’m still learning about myself and others. So even the tough moments are great, because you learn something from it about yourself and humanity.”
The daughter of the Dutch national team’s dressage coach Sjef Janssen and dressage trainer Kerensa Muller, Kayden Muller-Janssen paved a different career path for herself. A former competitive baton twirler, the 20-year-old singer is best known these days for her acting career, which includes Disney’s “The Villains of Valley View.”
“I never fully understood the privileges I had as a westerner until I started to travel outside of the country,” said “The Good Doctor” actress Jasika Nicole. “My first trip out of the States was when I was in my mid-20s, so I had a perspective about these experiences that I probably would not have had if I had been traveling the world as a kid.”
“I Still Do” singer-songwriter suggests that when planning a trip, “Get a hotel with an ocean view where you can walk across the street and be at the beach within less than a minute.”
“I have regarded myself unambiguously as a Chicagoan,” says “Presumed Innocent” author Scott Turow. “But we will spend more time in Naples than any other city. Sandy Stern, my main character, is an elderly lawyer. To me, there is a lot to love in Naples, but Stern despises all of Florida. He says that America’s elderly are like characters in a Shaw play who do not realize they are actually in hell.”
The star of Doug Liman’s highly anticipated new YouTube Red series, “Impulse,” Maddie Hasson says that when she thinks of travel, she thinks of her husband, Julian Brink. “He is very related to travel for me,” says Hasson, 23. “I do all of my traveling with him, including a lot of firsts. South Africa was the first really different and exciting place I went to and I went with him.”
Born in Louisiana and raised in Florida, Paxton Ingram won over viewers with his magnetic personality and gorgeous vocals during his stint on “The Voice.” He says everyone expected him to pick Pharrell to be his on-air coach. Instead, he selected country superstar Blake Shelton. Ingram, 21, recently released the single “Bad Luck.” He will be performing a showcase at this year’s SXSW.
Actor, writer and comedian Marc Maron loves to travel, which is fortunate since he is on the road so much for work. “I don’t get to clubs to hear music as much as I’d like,” says Maron, 52. “But if I have time, I go, because I really do enjoy it. I once got to Ireland a day early and Richard Thompson was playing. I had just had him on my podcast, so it was a fun coincidence. It was pretty exciting to watch him perform, even though I was getting just through my jet-lag.”
“Each language has its own advantages,” says Dino Lingo founder Serdar Acar. “I realized that being able to communicate in (more) languages opened new doors and opportunities for me. But when it comes to traveling, I think English speakers are a bit luckier, because you can find an English-speaking person most of the time, especially if you stick to the tourist routes. That is why most people in other countries learn English.”
Back in the day, Joseph Simmons was best known to music fans as DJ Run, one of the founding members of Run-D.M.C. Now 49 and a practicing minister, Simmons is familiar to a new generation of fans as Rev Run, the television personality. He and his wife, Justine, star in their current HGTV reality series “Rev Run’s Renovation.”
Grits and Glamour celebrated the completion of its CD “Dos Divas” in a relaxing way. The duo — comprised of country music stars Pam Tillis and Lorrie Morgan — took a trip to Mexico. “We went with our husbands on a couples’ getaway to celebrate the wrap of our new album and stayed at Garza Blanca Preserve Resort and Spa in Puerto Vallarta,” says Morgan. “We were treated like royalty and I’m ready to go back.”
R and B singer Ywada, who hails from Tampa, Fla., says that it didn’t come as a surprise to family and friends when she decided to pursue a career in music. Born to a singer and a sound engineer, she grew up in a household filled with music. Now 26, the mononymous artist is celebrating the release of her current single “Count Me Out.” She’s also working with the Women’s Breast Health Initiative (WBHI) to bring awareness to breast cancer — a disease her close family and friends have had to battle.
I recently did a fun interview with Helio Castroneves. I asked if he was a backseat driver, and he said, “I’m OK with being in the backseat but, yes, I can be. I’m mostly concerned when people try to show off. That’s when I get a little uncomfortable. People don’t realize that with ordinary cars, you can’t go fast like you can in a racecar and still be safe.”
Diana Nyad is back in the news. In the next few weeks, the swimming legend is going to attempt a 103-mile swim from Cuba to Florida — a feat she failed to accomplish in 1978 when she was in her late 20s. When Nyad turned 60, she began thinking about the swim that eluded her.
“One time when we were planning a trip to Cambodia, my husband emailed an old friend who lived in Vietnam for advice on planning our trip,” Eberjey co-founder Ali Mejia recalls. “(His friend) was so excited to share all his knowledge with us that he decided to be our tour guide! It was one of the best trips we’ve ever taken, because we visited places we would have never known about and got to really immerse ourselves in the local culture.”
Venus Williams isn’t content with a slew of tennis trophies. She also is an entrepreneur and author. In her recently published book “Come to Win: Business Leaders, Artists, Doctors, and Other Visionaries on How Sports Can Help You Top Your Profession,” Williams interviews powerhouses such as Bill Clinton, Vera Wang and Denzel Washington and asks them to discuss how their background in sports helped them excel in their chosen professions.
HGTV designer Monica Pedersen can be seen regularly on programs such as “Bang for Your Buck,” where she shows homeowners how to maximize their living space and beautify their homes. A well-seasoned traveler, Pedersen — who resides in the Midwest — sees the potential in taking trips to Wisconsin, as well as heading overseas for a longer family vacation.
It has been more than two decades since the Indigo Girls made their music debut and the duo is still going strong. On their new double album “Poseidon and the Bitter Bug,” Emily Saliers and Amy Ray show off their rich harmonies. Their versatility shines through on the CDs — one is solely acoustic; the other features a full rock band.
Part of the Route 30A New Urbanism movement, where places like Rosemary Beach and Alys Beach recreate small-town Americana fantasies in a strikingly appealing fashion, WaterColor is both mesmerizing and a little unnerving. Mesmerizing because it’s perfect, and unnerving for the very same reason. Most people who know the area are aware that the film “The Truman Show” was filmed nearby Seaside for a reason: It looked too good to be true.