WINE DINE & TRAVEL MAGAZINE ISSUE 2 2016 issue

REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS
Alison DaRosa
Alison DaRosa is a six-time winner of the Lowell Thomas Gold Award for travel writing, the most prestigious prize in
travel journalism. She served 15 years as Travel Editor of the San Diego Union-Tribune and was the award-winning
editor of the San Diego News Network Travel Page. She created San Diego Essential Guide, a highly rated travel app
for mobile devices. Alison writes a monthly Travel Deals column for the San Diego Union-Tribune and is a regular
freelance contributor to the travel sections of the Los Angeles Times, USA Today and AOL Travel.
Sharon Whitley Larsen
Sharon Whitley Larsen’s work has appeared in numerous publications, including Los Angeles Times Magazine, U-T
San Diego, Reader’s Digest (and 19 international editions), Creators Syndicate, and several “Chicken Soup for the
Soul” editions. Although she enjoys writing essays, op-ed, and people features, her favorite topic is travel (favorite
destination London). She’s been lucky to attend a private evening champagne reception in Buckingham Palace
to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee, to dine with best-selling author Diana Gabaldon in the Scottish
Highlands, and hike with a barefoot Aborigine in the Australian Outback. Exploring sites from exotic travels in the
Arctic Circle to ritzy Rio, with passport in hand, she’s always ready for the next adventure!
Carl H. Larsen
Carl H. Larsen is a veteran journalist based in San Diego. He now focuses on travel writing, and is summoned to pull
out his notebook whenever there’s the plaintive cry of a steam locomotive nearby. In San Diego, he is a collegeextension
instructor who has led courses on the Titanic and the popular TV series “Downton Abbey.”
Maribeth Mellin
Maribeth Mellin is an award-winning journalist whose travel articles have appeared in Endless Vacation Magazine,
U-T San Diego and Dallas Morning News among others. She also travels and writes for several websites including
CNN Travel, Concierge.com and Zagat, and has authored travel books on Peru, Argentina, Costa Rica, Mexico,
Hawaii and California. Though known as a Mexico pro, Maribeth has written about every continent and was especially
thrilled by the ice, air and penguins in Antarctica.
Judy Garrison
Judy is the editor of Georgia Connector Magazine and Peach State Publications as well as a freelance writer/
photographer/traveler for national/international publications including Deep South Magazine, Interval Magazine,
Simply Buckhead, US Airways Magazine, Southern Hospitality Traveler and has a bi-monthly blog in Blue Ridge
Country’s online edition. Her first book, North Georgia Moonshine: A History of the Lovells and other Liquor Makers,
is available at Amazon.com. She and Len own Seeing Southern,L.L.C., a documentary photography company.
Priscilla Lister
Priscilla Lister is a longtime journalist in her native San Diego. She has covered many subjects over the years, but
travel is her favorite. Her work, including photography, has appeared in the San Diego Union-Tribune, Los Angeles
Times, Alaska Airlines’ magazine and numerous other publications throughout the U.S. and Canada. She is the author
of “Take a Hike: San Diego County,” a comprehensive hiking guide to 260 trails in amazing San Diego County.
But when the distant road beckons, she can’t wait to pack her bags.
Robert Whitley
Robert Whitley writes the syndicated “Wine Talk” column for Creators Syndicate and is publisher of the online wine
magazine, Wine Review Online. Whitley frequently serves as a judge at wine competitions around the world, including
Concours Mondial de Bruxelles, Sunset Magazine International and the Dallas Morning News TexSom wine
competitions. Robert also operates four major international wine competitions in San Diego: Critics Challenge,
Winemaker Challenge, Sommelier Challenge and the San Diego International.
Jody Jaffe & John Muncie
Jody and John are the co-authors of the novels, “Thief of Words,” and “Shenandoah Summer,” published by Warner
Books. John was feature editor of the San Diego Union-Tribune, arts editor of The Baltimore Sun and writer-editor-columnist
for the travel department of The Los Angeles Times. His travel articles have been published in many major newspapers;
he's a Lowell Thomas award-winner. Jody is the author of "Horse of a Different Killer,"'Chestnut Mare, Beware,"
and "In Colt Blood,” As a journalist at the Charlotte Observer, she was on a team that won the Pulitzer Prize. Her articles
have been published in many newspapers and magazines including The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times.
They live on a farm in Lexington, Va., with eleven horses, three cats and an explosion of stink bugs.
6 Wine Dine & Travel 2016