Sandra Lopez Booher is a go-getter. She went from working for an accounting department at a law firm to the oilfield. From there, she met her lifetime partner, Joseph Marquardt, and the two formed an internet-based company. The business became extremely successful, allowing the couple to buy a 5,600-square-foot home in Youngsville.
So let me get this straight: You’re taking a bus from Houston to Austin — and this isn’t some winery tour bus or something?” inquired my friend, Lana Stack. A flight attendant for United Airlines, Lana was mostly amused about my mode of travel for this trip because, as her friend, I benefit from free standby tickets through United’s Buddy Pass program. Why, then, would I opt to take a bus as opposed to booking a free ticket for what’s essentially an hour-long flight?
After a 40-year career in broadcasting in Acadiana, well-known and much-loved 99.9 KTDY morning show co-host Debbie Ray retired from the air in 2018. Soon after, she made a cross-country move to Homer, Alaska. Debbie had been carefully planning this move for several years prior, as she and her husband fell in love with Alaska in 2002, when they traveled to Anchorage so Debbie could participate in an Arthritis Foundation fundraising run. “We explored over 1,100 miles on that trip and fell in love with the Kenai Peninsula, Homer in particular,” she explains.
Marc Rose and Med Abrous of LA-based hospitality group Call Mom have brought their trend-setting, creative approach to designing great restaurants to Nashville. The hospitality veterans, longtime friends and NYC natives are behind LA’s most sought-after bars and restaurants, including The Spare Room, an award-winning gaming parlour and cocktail lounge at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel and Genghis Cohen, an LA classic that serves New York City-style Chinese food. The duo is also set to launch a new rooftop at the Graduate Roosevelt Island hotel in New York City.
The elevator doors open and the pulse of Music City below has somehow evolved into this rooftop oasis — whitewashed with an infinity-edge pool, crisp, white daybeds and skyline views, meet The Pool Club, perched on the 14th floor of the Virgin Nashville Hotel on historic Music Row. Bright red and white striped umbrellas harken a big top tent, a reminder that in this city, always be ready for a show — you can just tell something cool is about to happen here.
Hotel Effie was thoughtfully designed and created by its owners to welcome all guests of Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort to a new hotel experience - one that exemplifies southern hospitality and exceptional service, wrapped in comfortable luxury that feels like coming home.
The quaint town of Covington lies only 45 minutes north of bustling New Orleans, or a nice two-hour drive from Lafayette. And, yet, it feels a world away. Wetlands turn to pine forests, soil to sand, and the pace becomes slow and easy. It’s an ideal getaway, whether for the weekend or a longer vacation. And the best place to call “home port” is the Southern Hotel in the heart of downtown Covington.