I’m among the restaurant reviewers who contributed to the new Clean Plates Los Angeles: A Guide To the Healthiest, Tastiest, and Most Sustainable Restaurants for Vegetarians and Carnivores. The guide gives you the lowdown on how and where to eat healthfully and eco-consciously in Los Angeles without sacrificing flavor or gourmet craftsmanship. It hops from casual lunch places like the Coral Tree Café to special-occasion experiences like Josie. Researching and writing the reviews was a deliciously fulfilling experience! Now available for purchase on Amazon and at select local stores, the guide is the perfect size to slip into your glove compartment. Trust me, at all the restaurants included, you’ll want to clean your plate!

It’s the high life at sea level…The Purple Passport has launched its eBook guide The Purple Passport to Palm Beach! I’m one of the writers/editors for this comprehensive guide to the South Florida playground’s choicest hotels, restaurants, nightlife, spas, shops, and activities.

It points locals and travelers to distinctive experiences, which include checking into a lavish, grand dame resort inspired by Rome’s Villa Medici with a pamper-you-silly beach club; capping off a spa day in a relaxation garden complete with hanging chairs over a reflecting pool; shopping for everything from couture gowns to flirty resort wear amid lush, flower-lined vias; scoping original Pollock and Picasso canvases under a Chihuly glass ceiling; dining on delicious Milanese fare while taking in the buzzing crowd on the hottest see-and-be-seen restaurant terrace; and dancing the night away at Palm Beach’s best party spot. Helpful maps and city-orienting information about transportation, seasonal highlights, and local culture are also included.

The eBook is available for purchase at the Amazon Kindle Store and can be downloaded to your mobile device of choice (Kindle or Kindle app for iPhone/Android) for easy, on-the-go use…so you don’t lose a single second working on your tan!

MSN.com just launched a refresh of its “re:discover” series, a collection of web guides that explores the souls of cities across America. I was fortunate to be the writer for the Los Angeles update. I got to profile some amazing cultural insiders, including hip-hop MC The Lady Tigra, music editor Adam Smalley, hair stylist Josh Rosebrook, and fashion designer Johana Hernandez. Each of these incredibly creative individuals gave the lowdown on how the city of Los Angeles has inspired them and on their favorite restaurants, lounges, hiking spots, unique shops, and more in town. I also put together a day trip guide to Los Angeles’ natural wonders culled from their recommendations. Last but not least, I got to tour the downtown headquarters of Homeboy Industries, an incredibly innovative and successful gang rehabilitation organization started by Father Greg Boyle (the Homegirl Cafe is a must-stop for lunch!). Writing about all of these various sides of LA renewed my love for the city and its energy as an incubator for creative and humanistic achievements. Re:discover it for yourself by checking out the guide!

After two trips to Cartagena, Colombia, this year, I feel like it’s my second home. And as cooler weather approaches in Los Angeles, my mind is beginning to drift back to the tropical heat of the Caribbean coast. When the chill and rain of January and February hit, there’s no place I’d rather escape to than the sultry streets of Cartagena to drink in the color, cumbia rhythms, and fresh tropical juices.

For others curious about the magic of this colonial city, I’ve just published a guide to the Best of Cartagena on Trip Out Travel. It’s got all the must-hits for the best sights, restaurants, and nightlife just in time for your winter trip planning. And don’t worry: the city’s come a long way from its “Romancing the Stone” days. The danger is gone, but the beauty and sex appeal remain.

But I couldn’t ignore it for long. Soon enough, I gave into bachata’s slower, smoother charms. I never took a class, but it was easy to fake the dance with a strong leader. I naturally fell into the rhythm of “step 1, 2, 3″ and copied the little “hip pop” I saw other dancers doing on the count of 4. With the basics down, I no longer evacuated the dance floor when bachata came on, but I still didn’t quite get the appeal.

Two years later, bachata is a tour de force on Los Angeles’ Latin dance scene, with its own dedicated night at The Granada in Alhambra and Stevens Steakhouse in Commerce. I immersed myself in the Thursday bachata night at The Granada a couple of weeks ago to write the “Boogie Nights” piece that appeared in today’s Los Angeles Times, and I was blown away by the passionate dancing I witnessed. Most impressive were the young dancers who are making bachata their own by cross-pollinating it with hip-hop. The fancy footwork and fluid body action that results are truly stunning. I can only hope to replicate an iota of their funk and flava! This is one salsera who has been won over by bachata, and I’m definitely not alone… Read more in the Los Angeles Times piece.

Such fun, and it’s practical, too. It allows for music and dancing in public spaces where noise ordinances would otherwise make that impossible. And it saves a lot of eardrums…you can control the volume on your headset, and conversation at a club suddenly becomes possible. Read more about it in my article in today’s Los Angeles Times!

Turns out Larry is a huge Lindy Hop aficionado, and as a survivor of heart disease, his Larry King Cardiac Foundation is throwing its support behind National Dance Day and other initiatives to get America moving through dance. Read about Larry’s aspirations as a song and dance man in my interview with him in today’s Los Angeles Times!

Turns out it’s been going strong for over a decade during dedicated Wednesday hustle nights at the Double H Club (inside the Hacienda Hotel near LAX). The moves have been refined (gone are the cheesy line dances – this is a fun yet complex partner dance), and the music has gone from the Bee Gees to Lady Gaga. Read more in my “Boogie Nights” article in the Los Angeles Times!

Though I’ve only visited Paris in the summer, I have to say that it’s a pretty amazing time to be there. Sidewalk cafes come to life with alfresco diners, sunbathers loll on the Paris Plage, picknickers flock to the Jardin des Tuileries (one of my absolute favorite spots!), and oh those summer nights in the City of Light! Even if the city gets showered in a summer storm, that’s simply a handy excuse to spend the day lost amongst the Old Masters at the Musée du Louvre or the Impressionists at the Musée d’Orsay.

Just in time for the season, The Purple Passport has launched its Paris Guide! It’s the perfect way to plan a trip to the “Metropolis Magnifique.”