Celebrity Travel: Go Away With Chelsea Cain
New York Times bestselling author Chelsea Cain's latest thriller, "One Kick" (Simon and Schuster, $25.99), kicks off a new series of novels centered on a former abductee, who becomes immersed in a missing child case. Based out of Portland, Oregon, Cain says nothing completes a road trip like a gas station PayDay bar. As for her dream trip? "Murder on the Orient Express!" says Cain, 42. Keep up to date on her work at http://chelseacain.com/, or via her Twitter feed (https://twitter.com/ChelseaCain).
Q. What is your favorite vacation destination?
A. Poipu Beach, Kauai, Hawaii. I know that probably seems cliche. I wish I could say Bali or the Galapagos Islands, because how cool would that make me seem? I have traveled a fair amount and I have visited some great cities. I love architecture and museums and castles and ruins and central markets and even double-decker bus tours. But, I am a sucker for a tropical beach. It's ironic because I am fair-haired and pale skinned and I burn and blister in any sort of direct sunlight. I think it's because I grew up spending the school year with my mom in the Pacific Northwest and the summers with my dad in Florida. No matter what fabulous place I visit, I don't feel like I'm on vacation unless I'm dehydrated and covered with sunscreen.
Q. What untapped destination should people know about?
A. Dzibilchaltun, a Mayan ruin outside of Merida in the Yucatan, Mexico. It's an amazing place and includes The Temple of the Seven Dolls. I especially recommend visiting the natural spring at the center of the ruin. They call it Cenote Xlakah. It is absolutely ancient. This is one of those ruins visited by travelers instead of tourists. Hire a guide. And bring your swimsuit.
Q. What was the first trip you took as a child?
A. I took the train from Iowa to San Antonio, Texas, to visit my grandparents. It was me, my mom and my cousin, Jessica. Jessica and I each got a bag of candy and a comic book. It was very exciting. I spent a lot of time with my head pressed against the window. The ground changed color. I remember that so specifically -- how red it got in Texas. Even the rivers were red. It was my first sense of landscaping shifting.
Q. What's the most important thing you've learned from your travels?
A. I used to write travel essays and I was struck by how the fact of writing about a place would change my relationship with it. I would make completely different choices, do things I wouldn't have normally, because I had to fill this narrative shape. And it was wonderful. It made travel so much more alive. So, I try to travel like that, open to any experience, as if I have a word count to fill. I am a control freak, but not when I travel. For some reason when I travel I am able to surrender more than in my real life. I am able to let go. I think it's why I like it so much.
Q. Have you traveled to a place that stood out so much that you felt compelled to incorporate it into your work?
...continued
(c) 2014 DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.
