One of my biggest pet peeves when traveling are hotel rooms that are just too tiny to really enjoy. It’s a bit ironic when you consider that Lauren and I live out of a 2-door hatchback, but when I check into a hotel, I want to feel like I can spread out and relax while also enjoying some of the usual amenities from “home”. Well I think I hit the suite spot when I checked into the residential suites at the GrandStay in Rapid City, SD.
Are you a friend of coal? West Virginia is a state that highly supports the coal industry. Coal occurs in 53 out of their 55 counties and provides about 30,000 jobs in the state. You can’t go anywhere in the state without passing a vehicle with a “Friend of Coal” bumper sticker proudly emblazoned on the bumper. Wanting to get a little more familiar with coal and understand its place in West Virginia, Kenin and I decided to pay a little visit to the Exhibition Coal Mine in Beckley, and boy were we in for a lesson.
The word love isn’t one that I toss around lightly. I don’t spend a lot of time telling people that I “loved” this movie or really “loved” this new restaurant. It’s just not in my nature. I reserve the word for things that I hold in extremely high regard. Well, after staying at the Aloft Hotel in Calgary, I’m ready to pronounce that I’ve absolutely fallen in love with this hotel brand. It’s not just me that feels this way either: Zoe would tell you the same thing (if you could wake her up :-) )
I love Banff. Located in the Canadian Rockies, it’s the ideal place for skiing, snowboarding and all other winter activities. What do you do though, if you have the grace of a flamingo when put on a pair of skis? Well, being a Floridian that was born and raised in the Caribbean, I don’t fair well trying to be mobile in the snow. Here are a few of my favorite things to do in Banff that have nothing to do with snow.
From the moment we started looking into the best places to eat in Minneapolis, one name started coming up over and over again: Hell’s Kitchen. Located in the basement level of a skyscraper (where else would Hell be? ) in downtown Minneapolis, this restaurant has been a local staple of the Twin Cities’ food scene since the doors opened over a decade ago. When you look at the restaurant, with its heavy over the top kitsch decor you have to ask yourself: Is this all style or is there substance? Well we decided to descend into the depths to find out.
