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Celebrity Travel: Go Away With Matt Marinovich

By Jae-Ha Kim, Tribune Content Agency on

Author Matt Marinovich says that his ultimate excursion would involve his career. "As a writer, I would love to be able to cover a true crime story that would lead me to strange places across the country, preferably in a mid-sized rental car," says Marinovich, whose latest thriller -- "The Winter Girl: A Novel" (Doubleday, $24.95) -- is set in the Hamptons. "I've always envied the backstory of how Truman Capote became involved with 'In Cold Blood.' It was one of the most memorable books I've read." To keep updated on the 49-year-old Brooklyn resident's book tour, check out his page on Goodreads for upcoming events/readings.

Q. What is your favorite vacation destination?

A. I'd have to say Dubrovnik, in Croatia. My late father was born there and it's an unforgettable city, right from the moment you drive in from the airport late at night and see the walled city lit up far below you. It doesn't have sandy beaches. All the shoreline there is rocky. But there is a wonderful island that's just a 15-minute ferry ride from the old town, called Lokrum, and they have these ladders that lead directly down to the sea. My daughters loved it.

Q. To someone who was going there for the first time, what would you recommend that they do during their visit?

A. Dubrovnik gets pretty crowded during the summer months, especially in the old town. If you have kids, the best place to stay is in Lapad Bay. And if you can splurge a little, there are some really nice hotels there like the Hotel Splendid. You can sit on the terrace and have espresso while your kids splash around in the calm water. If you've really saved up a little vacation cash, you can hire a boat to take you to one of the nearby islands, many of which still have bullet holes in the facades of the buildings from the civil war in 1991. The snorkeling is amazing. You can rip a sea urchin off the rocks and eat it right on the dock.

Q. What untapped destination should people know about?

 

A. Untapped is so hard for me to find. But it's funny, because I've lived in New York City almost my entire life, and I went out for the first time on one of those fishing party boats where you drift about half a mile off Coney Island and hope to catch some fluke. After years of waiting in three-hour traffic to get out to the Hamptons, there's something even nicer about staying in the city on a summer weekend and watching a kid reel in a small shark under the Verrazano Bridge. The boat was called the Sea Queen, by the way, and it's a bargain. Twenty bucks for four hours of fishing and you can bring your own beer.

Q. What was the first trip you took as a child?

A. My first big trip that I remember distinctly was somewhere in Miami. There was a red tide and all these dead, bloated jellyfish were washing up onshore. So we spent the whole vacation cooped up in a hotel room with the air conditioning on max and nothing to do. Maybe that's where I get my sense of impending dread from.

Q. What's the most important thing you've learned from your travels?

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