Go Away With … Dominik Garcia-Lorido

By Jae-Ha Kim
Tribune Content Agency
January 27, 2015

“I grew up in the Valley and had the opportunity to travel a lot with my family,” says actress Dominik Garcia-Lorido, 31. “I really enjoy it, whether it’s with my family or for work. I’m not high maintenance when it comes to travel.”

The daughter of actor Andy Garcia, Garcia-Lorido remembers visiting her father at work. This included a half-year stay in Italy, which she remembers fondly.

Her latest film role is in Jason Statham’s action-packed “Wild Card.”

Q. What is your favorite vacation destination?

A. I loved Sardinia. It was so beautiful. I loved traveling around Italy. We do family trips there every few years. We went to Tuscany a few years back. We spent some time in Rome. That’s where we lived for six months when I was a kid.

Q. What was it like living overseas as a child?

A. It was fun. I loved it! I was 6 years old and we went with my father to Italy while he worked on “The Godfather: Part III.” I still remember the school I went to and what the hallway looked like, what our house was like and all that. I went to an American school, so I didn’t learn to speak Italian, which is a shame. But, Italy is still my favorite place to go. That and the Bahamas.

Q. Where have you traveled to in the Bahamas?

A. We like Bimini and Harbour Island.

Q. When you’re on vacation, do you prefer to lie out or stay active?

A. We’re a fishing family! We have a home in Key Biscayne, Florida, where it’s really beautiful. We enjoy catching our fish and then eating fresh fish that evening — mahi mahi, dog snapper — those kinds of things. We enjoy seafood, so it’s best to catch your own and fry it up, put a lot of lemon on it and dip it in tartar sauce or serve it sashimi style. I actually prefer not to eat fish at most restaurants.

Q. Do you remember when you started fishing?

A. I was little. My mom and dad started dating when they were both young, and my mom had grown up fishing all her life. Her dad then taught my dad how to fish. It’s just part of what we do. My brother is 12 and he likes to dive and go spearfishing!

Q. Do you ever take cold-weather trips?

A. Yes! I snowboard and enjoy going to Mammoth. I’m the only one in my family who prefers to snowboard rather than ski, actually.

Q. What’s on your travel bucket list?

A. I’m dying to go to Tokyo. I’ve never been anywhere in Asia, actually. I’d love to go to Thailand one day. Like a lot of people, I want to go on a safari in South Africa. I want to go to Greece one day. I have lots of friends from Australia, but I’ve never been there. I remember friends in college did a semester abroad and didn’t want to come home. Every Australian person I’ve met has been so cool. (Laughs)

Q. When you go away, what are some of your must-have items?

A. I’ve been traveling a lot lighter these days. I used to have a huge carry-on, but now I travel with fewer things. I have an iPad Mini, because being on flights is a good time to watch TV shows. I get so into them and want to keep watching them until 4 a.m., so I may as well do that on the plane when I’m not sleeping anyway. It helps pass the time. I enjoy reading books, too, but watching shows makes the flight go faster. I also like to have ChapStick and a big bottle of water.

Q. What was your worst vacation?

A. (Laughs) I don’t think I’ve had a really bad vacation. I’ve had times when things went wrong, like everyone else. But I kind of just deal with it. What else can you do? I’ve been on planes that have been struck by lightning and I was on a flight where the person behind me had a panic attack and we had to have an emergency landing. Generally, I’ve been really lucky to get to travel to so many interesting places. I hope that never ends!

Q. What are some of the mishaps you dealt with?
A. One that really stands out is this one British Airways flight we took. (Laughs.) I don’t mean to single them out, but one time in the 1990s, we were heading from Los Angeles to Spain and had to stop in London first and an engine blew in the air. The plane was shaking and it was pretty bad. We had to make an emergency landing in Boston during the middle of a blizzard. We couldn’t get another flight on the same type of plane, so they put us on a Concord. This was back when it was all new. So, I flew to London on a Concorde as a kid. It was kind of a cool experience. I had no idea at the time that it was a big deal. I just thought it was a faster plane.

© 2015 JAE-HA KIM
DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC.