Category: Travel

Go Away With … Margaret Cho

Jae-Ha Kim

Margaret Cho knows a thing or two about traveling. After beginning her standup career at 16, she toured the United States nonstop, bringing her unique brand of comedy to venues across the country. At 26, she broke barriers with her short-lived ABC sitcom “All-American Girl,” where she played a fictionalized version of herself. It was the first American television series where all the lead actors were Asian-American. In her standup routines, Cho talks frankly about how producers asked her at times to try to be more — and less — Asian. Now 39, Cho is ready to debut her new VH1 series “The Cho Show.”

Go Away With … Janis Ian

Jae-Ha Kim

Janis Ian is back in the news thanks to her provocative memoir “Society’s Child” (Tarcher/Penguin, $26.95). Ian, 57, recounts her life as a teenage prodigy and lets readers get a glimpse of how she came up with her hit songs (“At Seventeen,” “Society’s Child”), the sexual abuse she suffered as a child and her friendship with Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin.

Go Away With…Simone

Jae-Ha Kim

It’s not easy for the child of any celebrity to come out of their parent’s shadow. But Simone — the daughter of the legendary Nina Simone — makes it look effortless. A talented singer in her own right who performed on Broadway in “Rent” and “Aida,” the 46-year-old beauty is nonplussed by the comparisons some critics have made between the songs on her debut album “Simone on Simone” and her mother’s classic recordings.

Go Away With … Henry Winkler

Jae-Ha Kim

It has been three decades since Henry Winkler became a pop culture icon, thanks to his scene-stealing portrayal of the Fonz on “Happy Days.” These days, the actor has a whole new generation of fans, thanks to his Hank Zipzer: The World’s Greatest Underachiever series of children’s books. Hank, an irrepressible fourth-grader, deals with dyslexia, bullies and a potential love interest in the latest installment — “The Life of Me: Enter at Your Own Risk” ($5.99, Gosset & Dunlap).

Go Away With … KT Tunstall

Jae-Ha Kim

Singer KT Tunstall has always been environmentally conscious. When she began touring to promote her quadruple platinum debut album “Eye to the Telescope,” Tunstall traveled on a biodiesel-powered bus. “It’s unacceptable to tour using non-environmentally friendly fuel when there are alternatives,” says the outspoken Scot whose London home benefits from the use of reclaimed wood, Thermafleece wool insulation and solvent-free paint.

Go Away With … Clay Aiken

Jae-Ha Kim

Clay Aiken is in the news a lot these days. Besides getting good reviews for his performance in the Broadway musical “Spamalot,” the former “American Idol” contestant is busy promoting his latest album “On My Way Here.” But the congenial redhead is keeping mum about the juicy tidbit that has the tabloids drooling: becoming a baby daddy with his good friend Jaymes Foster, who also executive produced his CD. Aiken is more vocal about his love of music and traveling.

Lulu of an island: Oahu delivers

Jae-Ha Kim

I like to think of myself as an adventurous traveler. I’ve hiked glaciers in New Zealand, eaten sheep entrails in the Orkney Islands and jet skied my way around Bora Bora. But when my mother suggested that we take a family trip to Hawaii last February, the little kid in me emerged and I wanted to do nothing more than just be a tourist. And for that, the best place to go was the island of Oahu.

WaterColor Inn & Resort

Jae-Ha Kim

The WaterColor Inn & Resort, named for the small planned town it fronts on the Panhandle’s charming Route 30A (between Destin and Panama City) is one of those hotels that has had a surprisingly good reputation from the start, for no particular reason. The proof is in the fact that everytime you try to book a stay, the rates are astronomical. That is, if you can even get a room. Hassle! Just to make a visit more difficult, you can no longer fly nonstop to the region. Already, you’re wondering: Why not just go to the Caribbean?

Go Away With … Pattie Boyd

Jae-Ha Kim

Pattie Boyd is one of rock ‘n’ roll’s most famous muses. Married first to George Harrison and later to his best friend Eric Clapton, Boyd was the inspiration for such songs as “Something,” “Layla” and “Wonderful Tonight.” In her New York Times bestselling memoir “Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me” (Three Rivers Press, $14.95) – just released in paperback – Boyd talks not only about her life with the musicians, but also her early love of travel and exploration. Based in her native Great Britain, the former model prefers being behind the camera these days. Though Boyd cites India, Africa and Thailand as a few of her favorite destinations, she says there’s nothing quite like Venezuela.

Go Away With … Simon Le Bon

Jae-Ha Kim

With their telegenic good looks and lush music videos, which were filmed in such exotic locations as Sri Lanka, Antigua and France, Duran Duran helped put MTV on the map in the ’80s. More than two decades after the success of “Hungry Like the Wolf,” the British quartet is back with its new album “Red Carpet Massacre.”

Go Away With … John Cho

Jae-Ha Kim

It has been a busy year for John Cho. He has been cast as Sulu in the upcoming “Star Trek” film to be released in 2009 and he reprised his role as the stoner Harold in “Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay” – the sequel to the 2004 hit comedy “Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle.” But the 35-year-old actor — who was born in Seoul, South Korea, and raised in Los Angeles — is about to tackle his most important role: that of dad. Cho and his wife, actress Kerri Higuchi, are expecting their first child – a son – at the end of May. “I’m taking a maternity leave with my wife,” Cho says, laughing. “We’re really anxious to meet this baby. I can’t wait.”

Go Away With … Marilu Henner

Jae-Ha Kim

With several New York Times bestseller books already under her slim belt, actress Marilu Henner (“Taxi”) is excited about her latest self-help book: Wear Your Life Well: Use What You Have to Get What You Want (Collins, $24.95). Co-written with her brother Lorin Henner, the book is easy to read and full of tips that range from common sense (“mascara needs to be tossed out after three or four months”) to just a tad more esoteric (“fall in love with your stress or it will kill you”).

Go Away With…Phil Collen

Jae-Ha Kim

Phil Collen doesn’t need a chauffeur. After finishing an interview at a Los Angeles radio station, he jumps behind the wheel of his own car, gets directions and heads onto I-405. “I love living in California,” says the guitarist for the British band Def Leppard. “The weather is beautiful every single day. Sure the traffic can be spotty, but it’s a small price to pay for the lifestyle.”

Go Away With … Lenny Kravitz

Jae-Ha Kim

It’s all about love with Lenny Kravitz. He released his debut album “Let Love Rule” almost two decades ago. His latest CD is “It is Time for a Love Revolution.” “I believe in love and that is a theme I like to address in my songs,” the sexy rock star says. “But I never repeat a particular sound on my albums. People know it’s me by my voice and musical sensibilities, but hopefully what they’re hearing is unlike what they heard (on my last record).”

Get Fed: Honolulu’s Waialae Avenue

Jae-Ha Kim

RARELY does a month go by anymore without urgent news from Honolulu’s Waikiki Beach, now feverishly making itself over after decades of fading away. New shops! More malls! New hotels! More glitz, more glamour, better decor…oh, and don’t forget, higher prices too. Less than four miles away, another neighborhood is experiencing a resurgence of an entirely different sort. Along Waialae Avenue, there’s no fancy window dressing, but there is great food. Here, three great stops to make.

Weekend getaways

Jae-Ha Kim

To quote songwriter Frank Loesser, baby it’s cold outside. And nothing helps beat the winter doldrums than a weekend getaway to some place fabulous. We know what you’re thinking: There’s not enough time to plan a trip… It’ll be too expensive… It’s not really a romantic getaway if you have to plan all the details rather than your man. Don’t worry about that. We’ve got all that figured out. Read on.

Go Away With … Marlee Matlin

Jae-Ha Kim

After winning an Academy Award for her breakthrough performance in “Children of a Lesser God,” Marlee Matlin has proven herself to be a serious actress with a deft comedic touch. But Matlin, 42, is also an accomplished author of children’s books. Her latest, “Leading Ladies,” which features a spunky young heroine who Matlin says is a lot like she was as a child, picks up where her previous novels left off.

Go Away With … Taylor Hanson

Jae-Ha Kim

It has been a decade since Hanson burst onto the music charts with their ubiquitous hit single “MMMBop.” Today, the boys are all young men in their 20s with families of their own. The trio of brothers – lead guitarist Isaac, drummer Zac and keyboardist-vocalist Taylor – is still making beautiful music together and touring to promote their latest album “The Walk.” As it turns out, “The Walk” provided inspiration for the Oklahomans to return to South Africa (where they had recorded some of their album) over the Thanksgiving holiday to donate 50,000 pairs of shoes.

Go Away With … Joss Stone

Jae-Ha Kim

British singer-songwriter Joss Stone is just 20, but she has strong ideas about what she likes. And now that she’s got some power in the music business, she’s not shy about voicing her opinions. “I was only 16 when I made my first record so I wasn’t allowed to do what I wanted,” says the bluesy singer, whose latest CD is “Introducing Joss Stone.” “My first two albums were really a learning period for me, which was also a little irritating at times. But with this album, I took everything that I learned and went with it. It’s the first album I’ve made where I feel it’s really representative of who I am.”

Go Away With … Josh Duhamel

Jae-Ha Kim

“It was so much fun making [‘Transformers’],” says Duhamel, 34. “People ask if it was difficult to physically prepare for the role of a soldier, but it wasn’t really hard work to be honest. I was expecting an intense boot camp where they would kick (our butts) for three weeks. But it was kind of fun. It was more difficult getting all the terminology correct. I had a mouthful of words that I kept getting wrong – I think it took about 20 takes for me to finally get one scene correct.”