Tag Archives: Tourism

Hello Kitty Says Hello to New Travel Job

Regular readers of this blog know how completely obsessed my young daughter is with Hello Kitty. The popular fictional feline with the oversized face is a staple in our home. From shirts to pens, purses to sheets, pillows, sandals, stickers, sunglasses, hair pins, tote bags, duffels, backpacks, hats and banks, Japan’s No.1 export has invaded every inch of our living space and it looks as though she will be sticking around for a while. Hello Kitty is known for winning over the hearts of girls my daughter’s age, but now her cuteness is being marketed to another sector of the … Continue reading →

The Big Easy Getting Ready for the Big Game

The Big Easy is getting a big boost from loyal football fans and travelers who are simply looking for a place to party. As I mentioned in my previous blog dozens of my pals from Hawaii boarded 16-hour flights from Honolulu to New Orleans to watch our beloved Bows get bowled over by Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Tuesday. Now, it’s time for Ohio State fans to make the trip to the Crescent City to watch the Buckeyes take on LSU in the coveted Bowl Championship Series title game on Monday night. No doubt about it… it’s prime tourism … Continue reading →

Mothman Mania

Roswell, New Mexico has its aliens, Green Bay, Wisconsin its cheeseheads, but if you travel to Point Pleasant, West Virginia, be prepared to come face to face with the “Mothman.” You can’t miss him. His name decorates signs, his unsightly body hangs in shop windows and restaurants, heck, there’s even a museum devoted to him. Oh, and did I mention there’s a gigantic sculpture depicting his enormous wings and glowing red eyes standing prominently in the middle of town? So just who is the “Mothman?” According to locals, a group of residents first reported seeing the mysterious creature 40 years … Continue reading →

New York Post 9/11: Still A Tourist Hot Spot

There’s no doubt the September 11th terror attacks crippled New York’s tourism industry. I remember watching the news in the dark days and weeks following the collapse of the World Trade Center and hearing hotel operators say they could barely give rooms away in the heart of the city. It was an unbelievable sound bite that still sticks with me these many years later. I remember my best friend, a flight attendant for American Airlines, telling me how empty the flights to JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark were. Add that to restaurants, theaters, museums, and other local attractions that saw patronage … Continue reading →

Visiting Chicago’s Sears Tower

A recent posting the in Families.com “Family Travel” forum asked for advice regarding an upcoming vacation to Chicago. The “Family Member” had listed a few attractions her family was planning to visit (Navy Pier, Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium, etc.), but she wanted to know if there were additional spots that others could recommend. I responded with my list of favorite Chicago attractions, which included Sears Tower. At 1450 feet and 110 stories high, Sears Tower is the tallest building in North America and the third tallest building in the world. I have been to the top of the Sears Tower … Continue reading →

Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Park–Come Celebrate!

Wow! It’s hard to believe that it has been 10 years since Atlanta hosted the 1996 Summer Olympic Games. It was exactly ten years ago today that I was offered (and accepted) a job as a news reporter covering the Olympic Games. It’s still hard for me to believe that an entire decade has passed since I loaded my belongings into my little Toyota Corolla and headed down south. When I got Atlanta my first assignment was to cover the progress being made on Centennial Olympic Park. Since it was May, the finishing touches were still being put on what … Continue reading →