I'm so happy to announce that I have completed the training and passed the test with flying colors and can officially say that I am a Certified Autism Travel Professional. What does this mean? It means that I have successfully fulfilled the requirements and can provide support and travel related services to an individual on the autism spectrum as well as their family. With my background in teaching special education this certification means the world to me. Unfortunately there are not an over-abundance of certified resorts and hotels but the list is growing! Please spread the word to anyone who may need this specific service.
Turns out the rest of this newsletter is mostly about food. ha! We visited Chicago in October for a Chaine Grand Chapitre so I guess the food theme makes sense. Here is the link to my YouTube Video. https://youtu.be/GsiR6BNL1VY Please be sure to like the video and subscribe to the YouTube Channel. It helps get the word out.
How is that for a quote? Life is too short not to drink well. :) However, let's start with eating well. I'd like to first talk about one of our first foods and really really tasty. It was at Michael Jordan's restaurant in our hotel, the Intercontinental Hotel. (Click the link to see my photos of the hotel room) On to the food. It was at the bar and simply named "garlic bread". The description: Wisconsin Roth Kase blue cheese fondue. It is a MUST eat item.
Our trip is well documented in the YouTube video but I'll discuss a few highlights here. We had lunch at a place called Eataly (where I took the photo of the quote up above) and we participated in a cheese making class. Serious fun stuff! Who knew how easy it was to make mozzarella balls from curds?
Eataly is a strange mix of shopping and restaurants. Look at the one of the produce departments!
Another great experience that is now in my repertoire for guests heading to Chicago is a visit and tour of West Loop Salumi. Greg Laketek is the owner and he trained in Italy under the famous Massimo Spigaroli only to keep to his Italian roots and the salumi traditions and open his place in Chicago. Our visit with Greg was really a highlight of our trip. He's such an amazing and inspiring entrepreneur.
On the recommendation of Greg and several others we went to Scofflaw in search of good gin. I can highly recommend this little establishment even if it is a bit off the main beaten path.
We tasted so many gins and of course I had to try one of their homemade bloody mary's. So good. What a fun time we had drinking and chatting with a few of the locals.
Now...I know you're wondering and yes we did try traditional Chicago foods. I'm happy to report that I was pleasantly surprised by 'deep dish'. Normally I'm a crispy, thin crust kind of girl but Giordano's totally won me over! OMGosh! It can be best described as cheese pie. Here are two photos that cannot possibly capture the greatness that is deep dish. Note the second photo...the crust is -not- thick at all.
Finally! We had to try a Chicago Style Dog.
Again, I was surprised that I enjoyed this hot dog as much as I did.
Not to be outdone in the cities of food, I had the opportunity to visit the new NOPSI Hotel in New Orleans. It opened in July 2017 and is the old public service incorporated building. I think they did a great job of keeping the history of the building. The floors in the lobby are original to the building. It's a Salamander Hotel. 217 total guest rooms with 76 suites. The clientele is eclectic from locals to tourists and business people. One pool and no spa but they have a company they partner with to do in room services. About 30 minute drive from the airport and about a 15 minute walk to Jackson Square in the French Quarter. It's a really great property. Here is a link to my photos of the property.
