Wine and Spirits Travel

I've been to many Chicago hotels, but  StayPineapple is one of my best discoveries in years. I love pineapple and was very intrigued about a hotel built around the fruit. When I heard they were very dog friendly, I knew I had to go. I brought my friend Kim and my Yorkie Teddy along to enjoy the fun for a quick trip. Even though Teddy is a service dog and is welcome everywhere, I try to take him to pet friendly places so he gets the dog perks. We received welcome drinks (Sauvignon Blanc for me and pineapple beer for Kim), pineapple shaped cookies, pineapple water, and, of course, dog biscuits for Teddy, as soon as we arrived at the hotel. My corner suite was perfect, with a king bed in the large bedroom, and a couch, chair, and second television in the living room. Kim had the room next door to herself. We had a beautiful view from the window.  Teddy had a bed set up for him and bowls for water and food next to it. In his goodie bag was also a yellow container with a clip,

I covered Bourbon & Beyond two years in a row. It was by far the best music festival I had ever been to. Unfortunately, before the final day, there was a major rainstorm that continued for hours, and I had trouble getting my wheelchair through the mud. I was concerned about it happening again, and Covid put it off the festival that next year anyway. Then, this summer, I found out about a most amazing lineup, in a venue that is very accessible, the Highland Festival Grounds at Kentucky Exposition Center.   It’s all aligned, and I am looking forward to Louisville, Kentucky, next month. Below is a summary of this fantastic event. There are still tickets left if you’d like to come along. Just visit the Bourbon & Beyond website for details . Headlining for Bourbon & Beyond this year is Sting, but he is far from the only top name. Among the list of 100 artists are: Beck Dave Matthews Band Zach Bryan Maren Morris The Beach Boys Melissa Etheridge Matchbox 20 T

  I’ve done a CI Living TV segment , three stories, and nine blogs on my Princess cruise and there are a few more articles to come, but I wanted to put together a summary for all of those thinking about going on a cruise to Alaska. Here’s a breakdown of my opinions: The Ship I have always preferred small ships and my previous two cruises on American Cruise Lines and Seabourn were just that. Alaska didn’t work out with those, and I was anxious to give Princess a try. A mega ship was out of the question, but the Royal Princess, a mid-sized ship with about 3,500 guests, seemed doable. It turned out to be just that. The ship was spread out enough that I never felt crowded, and we didn’t really wait for much (except at the Gelato Shop where there was always a big line). The only times I wished I was on a smaller boat was when we were waiting a long time for an elevator. The embarkation and debarkation went better than any of the other large ships I have been on. The Cabin We had cabin

After a week on the Royal Princess, it was time to leave. Sometimes I am anxious to get off a ship—especially in hot weather when my only escape is a too cold ship. This was not the case during our voyage to Alaska. Everything had gone pretty much according to plan and Princess Cruises had treated us very well. We had to get up very early to have breakfast and get the last of our carry-on packed up and ready to be off by about 9:00 am. We had decided, instead of rushing to the airport, we’d take an 11:30 pm flight home and explore more of Seattle. The Hilton Motif had generously agreed to let us spend the day and have dinner before heading to the airport. I had taken advantage of Seattle’s excellent Port Valet program , so we didn’t have to worry about our luggage.   Brittany and I went to the dining room for our final breakfast. The food and service were as good as usual, even though it was clear the staff needed to get everything turned around quickly for the arriving passe

Our cruise on the Royal Princess was coming near the end, but we still had one stop left and it was one of my favorite cities—Victoria, Canada. I had been three times prior and looked forward to this trip. When I first found out we were doing this cruise I immediately thought about Afternoon Tea at the Fairmont Empress hotel. It was something I had never gotten around to doing in Victoria. Unfortunately, the ship wasn’t getting into the British Columbia city until nighttime so that wasn’t going to work. I was intrigued when the public relations rep for The Empress told me, since there were so many cruise ships coming in later, the hotel had added a Sunset Sips program for those who had wanted Afternoon Tea. I agreed that we would come try it. We had many hours to go before our scheduled 9:00 pm arrival in Victoria. I wanted to take it easy, so I didn’t overdo it during the day. The International Café became the standard for our breakfast, and we didn’t change that on this last sea