By Jae-Ha Kim
Tribune Media Services
November 23, 2010
Singer, actress and former “American Idol” runner-up Katharine McPhee, 26, was born and raised in Los Angeles, where she currently resides.
“I love traveling and am on the road all the time for work, but I don’t get to go on as many vacations as people would think,” she says. “But a lot of people can work on vacation or relax while they’re traveling for business. And that’s what I’ve started to do.”
Her favorite vacation memory, actually, is of the days off she had during a business trip to Italy.
McPhee’s latest CD is “Christmas is the Time …(To Say I Love You).”
Q. What is your favorite vacation destination?
A. All my relatives are from Seattle and Spokane and for me, that’s an amazing destination. I seriously love that part of the country. I could buy a little house on Lake Washington and spend all my summers there. My mom used to ship us off to our relatives during the summer and we would go camping and do water activities. You could take a ferryboat and visit a bunch of obscure islands and visit all the little towns and sweet shops. Puget Sound is so beautiful and secluded. Washington is almost like a second home to me.
Q. Where are your favorite weekend getaways?
A. I love going to Montreal. It’s such a romantic and beautiful city. Santa Barbara is also beautiful and is only about 15 minutes from my house. I like to cruise down there and stay at the Four Seasons. Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, is less than a two-hour flight away for me but it’s like you’re in a different world when you’re there. That’s become a hot spot for a lot of Los Angelinos for quick getaways. I enjoy going to Catalina, even for just a quick overnight trip. And San Francisco! My in-laws live up there and my husband is from the Bay Area so we spend a lot of holidays there. I don’t really think of it as a vacation spot — but again, it’s kind of like a second home.
Q. What are your favorite hotels?
A. I love the Four Seasons hotels. I really enjoy the Montage Hotel in Laguna Beach, Calif. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in New York is amazing. The Jumeirah Essex House in New York is great, too. I love the old school hotels and the way they decorate their rooms so beautifully. It makes you feel like you’re in Europe somewhere.
Q. What are your favorite restaurants?
A. I’m just a simple girl. I love pizza and pasta, and my favorite pizza is in the San Fernando Valley (in Calif.) at a place called Barone’s. It has an old school Italian feel to it. It’s a simple place but everything is so good. Their Italian salad has just plain lettuce with some garbanzo beans and dressing and it is so good. I always order their plain cheese pizza and it’s the most delicious thing ever. My favorite place in Los Angeles is Katsuya.
Q. When you go away, what are some of your must-have items?
A. My new must-have item is my iPad. I can’t go anywhere without it. It’s so convenient and helpful. Let’s see — also, all my makeup and about 15 pairs of shoes! I almost always wear a scarf at the airport. I use it to put over my head so I can sleep with my mouth open without anyone seeing.
Q. What are your five favorite cities?
A. Nashville, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and Dallas. People always think it’s weird that I love Dallas, but I love Texas. There’s great shopping in Dallas. And I love Nashville, too. My favorite boutique — H. Audrey (www.haudrey.com) — is there. It’s owned by (singer) Holly Williams, the daughter of Hank Williams Jr. She is an incredible buyer and always carries incredible things that are so unique and have great structure to them. The pieces can be very expensive but I love them.
Q. Where would you like to go that you have never been to before?
A. The (Italian island of) Capri. I saw it on television and just thought to myself that it looked so beautiful and romantic.
Q. What is your best and/or worst vacation memory?
A. I had to go work in Bologna, Italy, and I got to take my husband — who at the time was my boyfriend. I had to work a little and then we got to travel for a week or so. So we took day trips on the train to Florence and Milan. We stayed a few days in Venice and then ended our last two nights in Rome. We had the most amazing food in Italy. I’ll always remember that trip.
© 2010 JAE-HA KIM
DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.
