Last year the family of one of my son’s friends offered us something we couldn’t resist: free accommodations at their timeshare in Flagstaff, AZ. If you aren’t familiar with Northern Arizona, this may seem like a specious offer. If you are familiar with it, you know Flagstaff is a cool mountain town (home of Northern Arizona University) and centrally located to The Grand Canyon, Sedona and other breathtaking wonders. We snapped up the offer, only to have a bit of a travel tragedy take place. The television show my husband is working on had a change in production schedule. He ended up on hiatus for three weeks in July and, thus, being scheduled to work six days a week all this month.

Since the timeshare was booked months in advance, the dates couldn’t be changed. We were all extremely disappointed, especially since I’m VERY pregnant and taking my son by myself wasn’t terribly appealing. Thankfully, our intrepid friend and Exurb contributor Sofie Sausser felt sorry enough for us to go along! Hallelujah! Sofie proved to possess the perfect combination of travel skills:

1. A sense of humor, combined with highly refined parenting skills and extreme flexibility. Having three kids herself (ages 15 to 20), she has tickle techniques and the ability to talk a child into nearly anything. Did I mention, too, that I’m due in two months? Can you imagine traveling with a huge, pregnant woman and a just-turned-7 boy?  Sofie also has patience.

2. Expert navigation skills. We made only one minor wrong turn the whole trip. Enough said.

3. Supreme photography skills, plus a real camera. I travel light and only take photos with my iPhone, which is partly the reason most of my photos are lame. (note: obviously Sofie has contributed the photos for this post)

Now, about the Grand Canyon…

We discovered that one of the easiest ways to get to the Grand Canyon is to ride the train. You can catch the historic Grand Canyon Railroad in Williams, AZ, which is an easy 40-minute drive from Flagstaff (just west on I-40). Book your tix in advance online. The train departs Williams at 9:30am (get there by 8:45am or so for the Wild West pre-show) and returns from the Grand Canyon around 5:30pm. You have the option to also book a room at one of the many Grand Canyon hotels and return on the train the next day (or whenever you want), but we found a day trip was fine for us given my non-hiking condition, etc.  The train takes about 2.5 hours to get to the South Rim and then you have four hours to take in the view. They try to make the ride entertaining too. There are guitar and fiddle players/comedians who do a schtick, as well as a fake holdup on the way back. Just like the Old West town of Williams itself, it is more than a bit contrived. Along with looking for elk, deer and jackrabbits, though, it helped pass the time. Thankfully, there’s also a snack car and bathroom on the train. Don’t miss your chance to enjoy a Grand Canyon Ale on board. It’s actually good (or at least Sofie says it is).

What do you do once you get to the Grand Canyon? You have some options. Either you can pre-book a guided tour through the Grand Canyon Railroad site or you can go it on your own (there are some free park service shuttles to various lookouts). Given our circumstances and limited time, we decided on the safer option of the tour. It was a good bet for us. Our tour included a young, thoroughly knowledgeable guide and a comfy ride on an air-conditioned bus, plus a buffet lunch (about $35 each). At the end of it, we had an hour of free time in which we could wander around aimlessly. The tour hit all the major breathtaking vistas of the South Rim and gave us plenty of gawking time. In my prior life (meaning, not pregnant and not being the parent of a young child), I would’ve likely sneered at someone who took this option.  I would’ve thought the only proper thing to do given enough time would be to take one of the gnarly hikes or mule ride trips down into the canyon. I guess I’ve either grown up or gone soft (definitely round), though, because I was thorough satisfied with the amount of gazing and light walking we did. If you choose our option, though, I’ll offer one warning. The buffet lunch that comes with the tour is about as bad as you can get. Had we known, we would’ve opted for the Freedom Tour (it just includes the tour and bus, with lunch on your own at one of the many lodge restaurants). Sofie said that the Freedom tour must mean freedom from bad food, which is no joke if you saw what we were served. So if you have a refined palate — or if you just prefer your vegetables and fruit to look like the real thing– opt for the lunch-free tour.

Friends have told us that they’ve had trouble visiting the Grand Canyon because of parking reservations or other restrictions. The beauty of the train is that you’ll easily chug right in and out. Below, I’ve included some other Flagstaff area info that may be useful…

Getting There…

The Flagstaff/Williams area is drivable from L.A., but we decided to fly into Phoenix and rent a car. We purchased tickets on Southwest from Burbank for around $150 each and secured a tiny rental car for about the same price (on Priceline). The drive up to Flagstaff took about 2.5 hours (compared to the roughly 10 it would take to drive from LA/Ventura County). On the way up, we hit the Frank Lloyd Wright house Taliesin West in Scottsdale. You have to book a tour in order to see Taliesin West. We got there just in time for a 90-minute tour (around $25) and, despite the 110 degree heat, lasted for nearly a whole hour of it.

Other area attractions…

While staying in Flagstaff, we visited nearby Wupatki National Monument and Sunset Crater Volcano (both located within the same national forest just off I-89, 12 miles from Flagstaff). Wupatki is the ruins of a thousand-year-old Indian pueblo, which was cool (but actually quite hot). The volcanic debris on the way to the ruins is astounding. I’ve seen lava rocks but this was more like fields of black lava boulders. Another great Flagstaff site is The Snow Bowl. In the summer, you can take a ski lift up to the top and have lunch at the lodge. Unfortunately, this was our one wrong navigation day. We missed the turn and didn’t get there in time for the ski lift. I hear it’s fun, though.

We also spent a day in Sedona, home of the astounding Red Rocks (also known as a “spiritual” vortex). If you go, don’t miss The Chapel of the Holy Cross. There are tons of hiking trails, jeep ride and helicopter experiences to have here, too. Again, I wasn’t exactly suited to bumpy jeep rides or 95-degree hikes, though. We plan to do this stuff next time. Still, we enjoyed taking in the Red Rocks and tooling around the town. Call it healing energy or retail therapy, we were all happy after purchasing sparkly rocks and healing crystal necklaces at one of the shops.

Speaking of retail, there are lots of cute shops in historic downtown Flagstaff. A few miles away, though, there’s Savers (5060 U.S. 89)! It’s a huge thrift store (like the size of a Kmart actually). Sofie, who I’ve nicknamed Sandpiper because of her knack for scoping treasure amongst rubble, snagged a corduroy blazer for $5 (similar to one she had her eye on in a catalog for $200). She also bought a retro-chic pair of eyeglass frames for $2 (Oliver Peeples is selling a similar style these days for about $400). My son bought a load of Halloween decorations (obviously donated by a defunct Halloween store) and I bought a cute short-sleeve hoodie, a chic strappy summer top and Shiva Rea’s 10-year-old prenatal yoga DVD all for a couple of bucks each. I’m no real Sandpiper, but I also felt I scored!

Food…

My friend Lon, who lives in D.C. now, calls Flagstaff her hometown. Her restaurant recommendations were right on. Our faves downtown were Macy’s Coffee House (14 Beaver St.) and Mountain Oasis (11 East Aspen Ave). Off the beaten path, we also enjoyed dive Mexican at La Fonda (1900 N. Second St. — really unhealthy and really good).

Lodging…

Again, we had the privilege of staying gratis at a Wyndham Flagstaff timeshare condo. Our place was geared to families, with an activity center, spa, gym, nightly movies, miniature golf and snack shop. We had absolutely no complaints and thoroughly availed ourselves. Flagstaff has an astounding amount of lodging in all price ranges, though. The historic Hotel Monte Vista downtown looks very interesting, though not as kid friendly maybe.  You could also stay in Williams, right near the Grand Canyon Railroad.

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(Originally written for Robb Report)

If you’re heading north to California Wine Country, you’ll need a place to stay. Lucky for you (and lucky me), I’ve checked out the area’s best digs. Here are four classic, time-tested choices, from big resorts to cozy B&Bs:

Fairmount Sonoma Mission Inn is the Grande Dame of Wine Country. Designed to resemble a California mission — complete with arcade, bell tower, arched windows, footbridges, and courtyards, this 1927  inn is located on the site of centuries-old hot mineral springs that bubble forth from more than 1,000 feet underground. Guests today continue to “take the waters” at the resort’s acclaimed spa.

Bodega Bay Lodge and Spa offers casual, comfortable accommodations and great views in a secluded setting.

Applewood Inn is a charming Guerneville country inn hidden among the redwoods, with five-star amenities, including Frette towels and robes, turndown service, complimentary gourmet breakfast, and acclaimed California-Provencal style restaurant. This place oozes romance.

Honor Mansion, a few blocks from picturesque Healdsburg town square, is an elegant and graceful   Victorian bed and breakfast.

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Excerpted from my article originally published in American Way

Some of Malibu's best eatin' is found in the casual restaurants along the coast.

Despite Malibu’s rich reputation and movie-star residents, the most popular eateries in town aren’t the high-priced, highfalutin’ establishments, but the casual watering holes and beachfront dives where beach-lovers wearing board shorts and flip-flops seek good food and camaraderie by the sea. Beginning at the southern end of town near Santa Monica to the city limits 27 miles north on Pacific Coast Highway, here’s an insider’s guide to Malibu’s best munchies. You needn’t even brush the sand from your toes before being seated.

1. REEL INN
18661 PCH (across from Topanga State Beach)
(310) 456-8221
Don’t be deceived by the shabby exterior or decor consisting mostly of neon beer signs: This is one of the best places in town for fresh fish cooked to order. Join the queue at the walkup counter; choose from the chalkboard menu; grab your own tableware and condiments; then sit on a picnic bench and listen to piped-in blues while waiting for your name to be called.  * What to eat: lobster-shrimp combo.

2. JOHN’S GARDEN
3835 Cross Creek Road
(310) 456-8377
This gem of a combo health-food store/sandwich shop in the chic Malibu Country Mart has aisles stocked with everything from gourmet groceries and organic potato chips to Pez, Hawaiian ware and vintage toys. * What to eat: “The Princess” — a turkey-avocado sandwich and fresh peach shake

3. COOGIE’S
Malibu Colony Plaza, 23750 PCH (at Malibu Canyon Road)
(310) 317-1444
This sunny  coffee shop with skylights, cobalt-blue farmhouse chairs, and ceiling-high palms is a Malibu institution.  * What to eat: “Malibu Style” chopped salad

4. MALIBU SEAFOOD
25653 PCH (a mile and a half past Pepperdine)
(310) 456-3430
This fish market isn’t much to look at and doesn’t have a liquor license, but it enjoys a loyal following. Pick up your food from the takeout window outside, and carry it to the patio, which offers good ocean views (the beach is right across the street). Some locals bring their own bottle of wine to enjoy with their lunch. * What to eat: fish tacos, fish & chips, ahi tuna burger

5. CORAL BEACH CANTINA
29350 PCH (past Heathercliff)
(310) 457-5503
Camouflaged by trees, this restaurant is undiscovered by tourists who don’t notice it as they zoom right by. Patio dining here means plastic tables under paper lanterns. Sadly, you can’t see the ocean from here. But local families and surfers come for the excellent margaritas, huge burritors and hearty Mexican food at good prices. * What to eat: Chicken enchiladas covered with mole sauce .

6. NEPTUNE’S NET
42505 PCH (past County Line)
(310) 457-395
This restaurant is a bit of a dive — but it’s a must for its Sunday afternoon So Cal biker-beach scene. Grab a beer from the fridge, place your order at the counter, then sit outside on the well-worn picnic benches and mingle with the Harley riders. Note to the squeamish: If you need to use the bathroom, you’ll find outhouses in the parking lot. * What to eat: calamari basket,  fish & chips

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A version of this article was originally published in Robb Report.

While Napa gets the most press, Sonoma is the true birthplace of California’s wine industry. The first commercial vineyard was planted here in 1857, and today the area’s 12 appellations boast 56,000 acres of premium grapes and almost 300 wineries. The region’s substantial charms extend far beyond wine, including a dramatic coast, majestic redwoods, restful fields of California poppies and golden mustard, and rolling oak-studded hills. Manicured vineyards line winding country lanes, and small towns — many a mere block or so long — dot the peaceful landscape. Despite its rural simplicity, or perhaps because of it, the area brims with civilization’s perks: world-class restaurants, enchanting galleries, quaint boutiques, and accommodations ranging from deluxe resorts to country inns and historic lodges.

Think ahead and plan a trip to Sonoma county for a few months from now. The region is at its best in fall. The weather is at its most crisp and perfect; vineyards come alive with the sounds and sights of harvest; jazz musicians riff on the Russian River; and chefs get creative with the season’s just-picked bountiful produce. And the grapevines in autumn! Laden with plump ripe fruit, their leaves turn red with the season — or perhaps they blush from the attention.

Here’s some Sonoma trivia:

Trivia:

* Zinfandel, California’s most prevalent varietal, got its Golden State start in Sonoma.

* It is possible to see the moon rise and set more than once in the same night in Sonoma Valley, dubbed by Jack London as “Valley of the Moon.”

* During World War II, the airport landing strip was painted to look like vineyards to those flying overhead.

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Note: this story was originally published in Vista magazine.

You can forgive visitors for getting lost on their way to the Vincent Arroyo Winery in Calistoga, California. Easy to miss, the place is on a quiet country lane at the end of a long gravel path, past acres of grape vines, past the rose garden, past the black Labrador retriever snoozing in front of a barn. Compared to the glitzy commercial wineries in Napa Valley, this one is unassuming. There’s no fancy facade, no snazzy retail shop, no expensive artwork on the walls.

Inside the gray barn, the air is cool and fragrant. Wine-filled oak barrels are stacked one atop another. A small makeshift table behind a curtain serves as a tasting room. The black Lab — her name is J.J. — hops up from her nap and wanders inside. She grips a golf ball in her mouth in hopes that someone will play fetch with her.

And then there’s the winemaker: Vince Arroyo. Soft spoken, slightly round, and as unpretentious as his namesake winery — he greets visitors, pours wine, signs bottles.

But don’t let the casual simplicity of the place fool you. Vince Arroyo’s hand-crafted wines have put a star on many Wine Country maps as a spot that shouldn’t be missed. Thousands of wine lovers find their way here every year, snapping up almost 6,000 cases. His signature Petite Sirah,  so popular that people line up on a waiting list for it, sells out even before it is bottled.

And don’t let Vince Arroyo’s mild-mannered demeanor deceive you either. He may seem gentle as a lamb, but he has the tenaciousness of a pitbull. “I usually don’t stop when I make up my mind to do something,” he says.

Quite an understatement when you consider the obstacles he overcame to establish his boutique winery. He gave up a Silicon Valley engineering career, bought a 23-acre dilapidated ranch, and spent the next seven years laboring to transform it into a thriving 68-acre vineyard. He worked alone – ripping out old prune trees, planting grape vines, working on the tractor and in the cellar. He ran out of money. He lost almost everything to fire. And still he didn’t give up.

He vividly remembers the day he decided to flee the corporate life and run a vineyard. “I was at work, bored to death,” he says. “I couldn’t stand being locked up in a building. I was at the point where I hated to get up in the morning. Then one of the guys I worked with told me that a ranch was for sale in Calistoga. I got out a map and drove up here the next weekend.”

The ranch wasn’t much to look at. There was an beat-up barn, some old prune trees, unhealthy grape vines, and a lot of chicken coops and rabbit hutches. “It was a mess. There was all kinds of junk,” Arroyo says. He jumped back in his car, drove home, returned to work on Monday. But he couldn’t stop thinking about the property — and the potential it had for changing his life. Two hours later, he quit his job, and he bought the ranch. “I decided the place needed me,” he jokes. Or maybe he needed the place.

Not that Arroyo was entirely new to winemaking. In the European tradition, both his Spanish father and grandfather made wine at home. Arroyo enjoyed his first glass at age 5. Nor was he a novice when it came to farming. As a boy and later, as a young man, Arroyo held summer jobs in the nearby agricultural community of Hollister. “I cut apricots, picked prints, drove tractors, hauled tomatoes,” he says. But back then, he never figured that he would ever return to working the land — or owning it.

After he bought the farm, he spent the next year working on it, while also working for his neighbors — for free, just to learn the ropes. “They grew grapes, and I wanted to see what a whole grape-growing season was like,” he explains. His savings began to run out, and he was forced to resume his former career as a mechanical engineer. For the next seven years, he commuted two hours each way to the San Francisco Bay. But he hadn’t given up on his dream: Nights and weekends he was back at his vineyard. “The hardest part was doing it all without any money,” he says.

Only once — in 1989 — did he think about giving up. “I looked out the back door and my barn was on fire! It burned down. I lost it all — the building and 10,000 gallons of wine. At that point, I finally said, ‘I don’t know if I can keep going.’”

But he rebuilt the cellar and started over. “I was committed. I had made up my mind,” he says. “The smartest thing I ever did was start this winery.” As he wanders among the rows and rows of vines, he stretches his arms and says, “People see this and say, ‘Look at this! Isn’t this beautiful!’ But I look at all this and say, ‘Look at all this work!’”

Arroyo still handles many of the chores around the winery himself. “This morning I pumped wine from the bottom of the tank to the top, to circulate it. Then I ran a forklift. And  did a little tractor work out in the field. I don’t ask anyone to do anything that I wouldn’t do myself,” he explains. “A lot of people come here with romantic notions about wine, but when you are on this end of it, it’s hard to find that romance. The romance comes in when you sit down with someone you care for and can finally have that nice glass of wine.”

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