The Su Nido Hotel, which means "your nest" in Spanish, is just a three-minute walk from the main drag, which has colorful art galleries, shops, restaurants, museums, thrift stores, and beautiful mountain vistas.

I’m surprised at how many people I talk to that have yet to discover the magic of Ojai. The tiny idyllic town, hidden in a bowl of hills behind Ventura, has to be one of the best kept secrets in Southern California. In fact, I’m almost afraid of telling people about my last visit for fear of letting the cat out of the bag. But it’s my job, so here goes.

I began a recent getaway to slow-moving town at the Su Nido Hotel, a beautiful boutique inn located in the heart of the village. Designed in Mission Revival style, Su Nido features spacious one- and two- bedroom suites, built around a charming cobblestone courtyard with trickling fountains, arched doorways and spiral staircases. It instantly reminded me of Spain.

Su Nido means “your nest” in Spanish, and after a friend and I checked into our suite, we felt like we were in a big, cozy nest. The feeling was highlighted by a a plush feather bed in the bedroom, a fireplace in the living room, a quaint kitchen area, free wireless Internet, and a private balcony.

One of “our nest’s” best features was its proximity to downtown. We were only a three-minute walk from the main drag, with all its colorful art galleries, shops, restaurants, museums, thrift stores and beautiful mountain vistas.

After spending the afternoon strolling down Ojai Ave. we found the Azu Restaurant, which also featured a Spanish flare. Led by Chef Laurel Moore, Azu serves an eclectic California Spanish Menu inspired by traditional Mediterranean Cuisine with fresh local ingredients grown and hand-picked by Moore from local farms and her own garden.

For our dinner at Azu we enjoyed a roasted beet salad with ricotta Salata, fried chickpeas, Moroccan olives and sherry vinaigrette; and the chef’s unique chile relleno, stuffed with Ojai spinach, pine nuts, currants and Oaxacan Mexican cheese.

For the main course my friend had pan roasted Chilean sea bass with lemon risotto, and I devoured a memorable seafood paella with shrimp, calamari, scallops, sausage, saffron rice, artichoke and peas. We shared homemade banana fudge gelato for dessert.

The next morning we kept with our unplanned “Spanish getaway to Ojai” with a tour of the Ojai Olive Oil Farm (www.ojaioliveoil.com). Here we met owners Ron and Alice Asquith, who first showed us their groves of olive trees from Spain, France and Italy. We then went inside and learned how olives are processed to make oil. Our tour ended with a tasting of numerous award-winning olive oils.

After the farm I relaxed at the Su Nido and then took an exciting electric bike ride through the back roads of Ojai with Kelly Pasco, owner of Project Ride (www.project-ride.com). Dubbed
“Spirit of Ojai,” the journey began at Meditation Mount and continued around Ojai, while Kelly discussed Ojai’s prominent New Age Movement leaders, the native Chumash Indians, and local organic farms.

For more info on visiting Ojai, visit www.ojaivisitors.com. For more info on staying at Su Nido, call (805) 646-7080 or visit www.sunidoinn.com.

I answered the call of the wild last summer when I took a land tour of “last frontier” via a mixture of trains and coaches running through beautifully rugged interior.

The journey began in July, when a friend and I flew to Fairbanks and met up with representatives from Gray Line of Alaska, a tour company associated with Holland America Cruise Line. We then took a comfortable charted bus to the Westmark Hotel in Fairbanks.

After checking-in, we explored the small town charm of Fairbanks, where gold mining history coexists with art deco buildings, native peoples and rugged individuals. Located 358 miles north of Anchorage at the end of the Alaska Highway, Fairbanks sees remarkable temperature fluctuations, ranging from 65 degrees below zero in the winter to more than 90 degrees in the summer.

In the morning we drove to historic Gold Dredge No.8, where between 1928 and 1959, hundreds of thousands of ounces of gold passed through the five-deck dredge, which functioned as a gigantic mechanical gold pan. Our tour featured a wooden train ride through an actual mine used in the early 1900’s, real gold-panning and a hearty miner’s lunch of stew and biscuits.

The next day we visited the world-famous Alaskan Pipeline. A marvel of engineering, the 800-mile-long pipeline was built to move oil from the North Slope of Alaska in Prudhoe Bay to Valdez. Along the way, the pipeline crosses three mountain ranges and 800 rivers and streams.

Our next excursion was a paddlewheel cruise down the Chena River and encountered a dog sled training operation, an Alaskan boat plane pilot, and an authentic Native Alaskan village.

We then boarded the McKinley Express. Operated by Holland America, the two-story dining-lounge cars are highlighted by glass domed roofs which blend into the train’s large side windows, providing riders incredible 360-degree views of the Alaskan landscape.

On our four-hour trip to Denali National Park, we past lush forests, rivers and streams lined rocks and beaver houses, lonely bridges, grazing moose, bald eagles, Alaskan peaks covered with snow, and opaque lakes shimmering in the middle of lost meadows.

At Denali National Park we checked into the McKinley Chalet Resort, overlooking the gorgeous Nenana River, in the shadow of Mt. McKinley. From here we explored the park and the tiny town of Talkeetna.

The next day we met Iditarod champion Martin Buser and his dog sled team. We then visited Kenai Fjords National Park, near Seward, where we took a cruise deep into the fjords. During the voyage we drifted past towering glacier ice and encountered bald eagles, sea otters, sea lions, hump back whales, and an pod of killer whales.

Gray Line of Alaska is currently taking reservations for the 2010 season, which runs May – September. For more info and specials, visit: www.graylineofalaska.com or call (888) 452-1737.

My getaway began Saturday morning at Channel Islands Harbor in Oxnard, where a friend and I purchased two whale watching tickets through Island Packers and boarded a 68-ft. vessel named Vanguard.

With a cool wind blowing and an escort of squawking seagulls, we set out on a four-hour journey in search of Eschrichtius robustus, or gray whale. Thirty minutes into the adventure we encountered school of playful risso dolphins, jumping alongside the boat, delighted to see us. A crew member said the mammals were in the area feeding on squid.

When the dolphins departed, the captain turned down the engines and nearly 80 passengers and crew scanned the ocean surface for signs of whales. In a few moments the captain turned everyone’s attention to 75 yards off the right side of the bow.

“Do you see that glossy, calm area in the water, with no ripples, that kind of looks like an oil spill,” he asked. “Well that is the footprint, or impression that a whale makes on the water’s surface when it dives.”

As we studied the footprint, a spout of water erupted like a volcano and a huge gray and white body rolled atop the surface, exposing a large dorsal fin. As we gasped in amazement, the whale vanished, leaving us in silence, with cameras and binoculars in hand. In a couple minutes, the beast popped up a few hundred yards in the other direction and our ship began pursuit.

We enjoyed a few more good looks at the whale and his friends before the ship reached the rocky perimeter of Anacapa Island, where we spotted a herd of brown sea lions and California seals.

On the way back to the harbor, I sipped hot chocolate and read about gray whales. Growing to 50 ft, they began migrating in October as northern ice pushes southward. Swimming around the clock, up to 25,000 of them cover 80 miles per day until reaching Baja by early January. After relaxing in Mexico for a while, they head back up the coast around April, completing their 12,500-mile roundtrip.

Island Packers offers daily whale watching trips from Oxnard and Ventura. When the gray whales leave in March, they began Humpback whale tours. For more information, call (805) 642-1393 or visit www.islandpackers.com. For an overnight getaway package, Embassy Suites Mandalay Beach Hotel & Resort in Oxnard is offering a romantic Whale Watching Package, with overnight accommodations in a deluxe suite, two whale watching tickets with Island Packers, full breakfast, and a daily Manager’s Reception with free beer, wine, well drinks. For more information on the Whale Watching Packages call (805) 984-2500 or visit mandalaybeach.embassysuites.com.

But on my last journey to Alaska I wanted to see things from a different angle. I wanted to experience the mountains, glaciers, wilderness and people of the “last frontier” in greater depth. To do this I booked a week-long tour with Gray Lines of Alaska.

My Gray Line getaway began in early July, when a friend and I flew to Fairbanks, where we met a Gray Line representative, who led us aboard a comfortable charted bus. From here we drove to the Westmark Hotel in Fairbanks.

At the hotel we met other Gray Line guests and then checked into a modern room. After unpacking we met our tour leader in the lobby and she gave us a brief orientation about our upcoming adventure. At about 6 pm, we explored the small town charm of Fairbanks, where gold mining history coexists with art deco buildings, native peoples and rugged individuals.

Located 358 miles north of Anchorage at the end of the Alaska Highway, Fairbanks is known as "The Golden Heart of Alaska.” Because of its location, Fairbanks sees remarkable temperature fluctuations, ranging from 65 degrees below zero in the winter to more than 90 degrees in the summer. When we walked around town, the sun’s rays shot down like laser beams.

In the morning we took a charter to Gold Dredge No. 8, near Fairbanks, the only gold dredge in Alaska still open to the public. Between 1928 and 1959, hundreds of thousands of ounces of gold passed through the five-deck dredge, which functioned as a gigantic mechanical gold pan.

The tour began with a wooden train ride through an actual mine, where we met a “miner” working below. The miner wore a microphone and told us of gold mining techniques used in the early 1900’s, and about the harsh conditions miners faced.

Out of the tunnel, we saw a black bear as we passed old mining cabins, a flowing stream and old mining equipment. The train stopped at a visitor’s center, where we watched workers pan for gold at a real working mining slide. We were then handed a bag of dirt and a pan and went mining for ourselves.

After this we toured giant Gold Dredge No. 8, a National Historic Site. Besides mining equipment, the site is a museum with items such as mammoth tusks and other prehistoric bones dug up by the dredge. We concluded our visit with a hearty miner’s lunch of stew and biscuits.

Next week I continue my Gray Line tour through Alaska’s rugged interior. I will board the legendary McKinley Express Railroad, meet champion Iditarod racers and dogs, take a paddle boat to a Native Alaskan village, encounter killer whales and much more.

For more info of Gray Line of Alaska and its tour packages, visit: www.graylineofalaska.com or call (800) 544-2206.

I began a recent fall getaway to Big Bear at Honey Bear Lodge (www.honeybearlodge.com), located a short walk from “The Village,” Big Bear’s charming downtown community of shops, restaurants, art galleries and pubs. Here, a friend and I checked into a large, comfortable loft room.

Sleeping two to six people, the room came with a queen bed on the first floor and one in the upstairs loft. It also had a futon; television; work station with free Internet; microwave and refrigerator; and an old-styled wood burning fire stove. The room’s high vaulted ceilings gave things a spacious lodge feeling, and stunning views of Big Bear Lake and surrounding mountains completed the post card experience.

After acquainting ourselves with the room and the thin, 7,000-ft air, we drove to The Aspen Grove, one of the best places to experience Big Bear’s fall colors. From October to November, a variety of local trees, including the “glowing” aspen, transform from flourishing greens to spectacular hues of gold, ambers and yellows.

For dinner we found Sweet Basil Bistro, an intimate Italian eatery, known for home made pastas, sauces and creative creations. Led by Chef Sally Hill, the bistro was packed with locals when we sat down. With helpful advice from our friendly server, we enjoyed crab cakes, lobster ravioli, grilled salmon and local beer.

After dinner we stopped at Nottingham’s pub for shuffleboard, and closed the evening with karaoke at Murray’s bar.

In the morning we drove along the lake to Lucky Bear Fishing Charters (luckybearfishing.com), where we met guides Mike and Trish Marzell, boarded their modern pontoon boat, and motored into the lake with six fishing lines in the water.

As we trolled for trout, Mike and Trish told stories of Big Bear history and lore, and pointed out million-dollar mansions lining the banks. When we got to Trout Alley, a line began to shake and my friend reeled in ft-long fish. And shortly thereafter I reeled in one of my own. We had successfully caught dinner.

Back on land, we put the fish on ice and then drove up the mountain for one of the newest and coolest attractions in Big Bear: zip lining with Flying Bear Zip Lines (flyingbearziplines.com). This thrill takes guests 100 ft above the forest on cables for magical views. Once strapped into a safety harness, we clipped on to the cables and rode five different zip lines from giant boulders to treetops in semi-Tarzan fashion.

We concluded the day at Oktoberfest, located at the Big Bear Convention Center. Running through Oct 31, this extravaganza features German bands, polka dancing, log sawing, beer drinking, a petting zoo and much more.

For more info on Big Bear and current activities, visit: www.bigbear.com or call (800) 4-BIG-BEAR.