Girls Getaway Guide 
In This Issue
Win A $75 Kodak Gallery Photo Book Gift Card
Girlfriend Getaway to Orlando
Win Free Stuff
Upcoming Events
Submit Your Girlfriend Getaway
Where to Purchase Merchandise
Visit The Getaway Girl® Online
The Getaway Girl® in the News
Girls Getaway to Montreal
Join Our Mailing List 
Win A $75 Kodak Gallery Photo Book Gift Card

kodakWith more than 70 million users and billions of pictures in our care, KODAK Gallery (www.KODAKGallery.com) is a complete online photo service where people can easily share and manage their images, get high-quality Kodak prints and create high-quality personalized photo products that last a lifetime
�KODAK Gallery Photo Books are the fastest and easiest photo books on the market
�KODAK Gallery's Photo Books using SMART FIT Technology is the smartest way to create, share and preserve, always
�SMART FIT Technology Photo Books:
*Automatically arrange unlimited photos by size and date they were taken
*Make it easy to refine your book with personal touches
oInstantly enhances the color and layout of your photos
*Automatically calculates the price as you go
*Have a "save as" function so you don't have to start all over for Grandma in Chicago and Grandma in New York
*Have "project share" allowing you to share your books with friends and family, they can add to the book and then send it back to you

Visit the Girls Getaway Guide Facebook Fan Page, tell us why you want to use Kodak Gallery Photo Book and you could win one of two $75 Gift Cards.
 
Girlfriend Getaway to Orlando Winner Announced!

Girlfriend Getaway to Orlando Winner 
Three lucky ladies won the ultimate Girlfriend Getaway! Pilar from Miami, FL and her two friends will enjoy some "girl time" in Orlando with Casey Wohl, The Getaway Girl�. As the author of Girls Getaway Guide to Orlando: Leave Your Baggage at Home�, Casey will be their hostess for a fabulous three-night getaway, October 7 - 10. 
 
Here's what Pilar won:
�Roundtrip flights for all three girlfriends
�Full size rental car
�Deluxe accommodations at the new Waldorf Astoria Orlando
�Private poolside cabana
�Individual treatments and a group experience at The Waldorf Astoria Spa by Guerlain�
�VIP tickets to La Nouba by Cirque du Soleil, and a meet and greet with an artist
�Taste of CRAVE at the Chef's table for a memorable dining experience
�Personal luxury shopping experience at the Mall at Millenia and more!

 
To plan your own Girlfriend Getaway to Orlando, visit
www.VisitOrlando.com/fall.
 Win Free Girls Getaway Stuff 

Love to win free stuff?  Looking for prizes to help you getaway and travel the world?  Be sure to visit the updated "Win Free Stuff" section of the Girls Getaway Guide website at www.GirlsGetawayGuide.net where you will find fun, travel-related prizes that are up for grabs.  Every few months we will post new and exciting prizes for Girls Getaway Guide fans, so be sure to check back regularly.
win free stuff 
Current prizes include:
- Okabashi Shoes: Value $30
- Nuova Vita Modern Mary Lynn Convertible Maxi Dress: Value $175
- Everlon Diamond Knot Pendant: Value $229
 
Register today at GirlsGetawayGuide.net in the "Win Free Stuff" section.
flip flops
Upcoming Events
 
October 7-10
Girls Getaway to Orlando

Pilar from Miami, FL and her two girlfriends will join Casey Wohl, The Getaway Girl�, the ultimate Girlfriend Getaway to Orlando.  To follow their adventures October 7-10, just become a Facebook Fan of Visit Orlando and/or Girls Getaway Guide or follow them on Twitter at @VisitOrlando or @GetawayGirl.  To plan your own Girlfriend Getaway to Orlando, visit www.VisitOrlando.com/fall.
 
October 11
Daytime TV Taping, Tampa
Looking for a great Winter Travel Deal?  Or how about the perfect destination to send your guy on a Mancation?  We will tape these travel segments, so stay tuned and watch Daytime TV www.DaytimeOnline.tv.
 
October 21
Every Girl Needs a Getaway Party at Embellish

Getaway for a night with your girlfriends at Embellish (914 4th Street N., St. Petersburg, FL 33701) from 7-9 PM!  Casey Wohl, author of the Girls Getaway Guide travel book series and Daytime TV Show Travel Correspondent, will be with us to share her insider tips on the best places to travel with your girlfriends.  Join us and receive a $10 gift certificate to spend shopping with friends (valid only during the event). Enter to win a night away with your girlfriends at the The Don CeSar Beach Resort - A Loews Hotel, spa treatments and more.  A photographer will be on hand to take a few shots of you and your friends together free of charge. Enjoy wine and dessert!  For more information, call (727) 821-1834. 
 
October 22-25
Girls Getaway to NYC
To help The Getaway Girl� celebrate her 25th (again) birthday, some of her favorite gal pals are  meeting in NYC for a fabulous birthday weekend that will end with VIP tickets to see the David Letterman Show tape that Monday. 
 
October 26
Better TV Taping, NYC
Better, a nationally syndicated lifestyle TV show, aims to make your life "better" by focusing on trends and hot topics that affect your family and relationships.  Past guests include Paula Abdul, Kim Kardashian, Jerry Seinfeld, Vanessa Williams, Ivanka Trump, Naomi Judd and Maria Shriver.  Follow The Getaway Girl� on Twitter and Facebook as she travels to NYC to tape a travel segment.

Submit Your Girlfriend Getaway Photos

This month's Girlfriend Getaway photo was submitted by Angela Newell of Lakeland, FL who proves you don't have to travel far to have a great time with your girlfriends.  She writes: "To celebrate the upcoming arrival of "Baby E," my girlfriends surprised me with a gathering of my best gal pals at our favorite sushi restaurant, Gosh!  They themed it for the occasion with fun decor, a cool cake, party favors and some Girls Night Out (GNO) memories."
GNO in Lakeland 
Pictured: Angela Lovering, BayLeigh Lovering, Leah Morris, Angela Newell, Cathy Hayes, Andrea Reed, Eliska Poirier and Tiffany Hughes
Where to Purchase Merchandise
 
 GirlsGetawayGuide.net www.Amazon.com www.Target.com  
 
Barnes & Noble 
Select Stores
Cat's On Main, Wauchula
Gift Basket Boutique,
Lakeland
Highlands Art League, Sebring
Key West Art Bar,
Key West
Peppers of Key West, Key West
Red Geranium,
Winter Haven
Visit The Getaway Girl Online 
 
Greetings!

I cannot believe 2010 is coming to an end.  Where does the time go?  The end of the year means lots of Girls Getaway Guide fun as the "12 Days til Christmas" will begin next month. 

If you cannot wait to win free things, check out our Win Free Stuff section of the website and read through this email to see how you can win a Kodak Gallery Photo Book $75 Gift Card.

 The Getaway Girl� in the News
 
Fall Travel Deals on Daytime TV
Fall Travel DealsLooking for a great place to travel this fall?  Watch the most recent Daytime TV Show travel segment with The Getaway Girl� on the topic of Fall Travel Deals.  Click on either the image or link below www.GirlsGetawayGuide.net/news.html 
 
NPR's Florida Stories
The Getaway Girl� on NPRFlorida Stories is a National Public Radio segment featuring the personal memories of Floridians.  Writer Casey Wohl talks with life long friend Jennifer Maxwell about how some low points in her life inspired her to write a travel guide series and re-invent herself.  To listen, visit http://tinyurl.com/3aeu8jq
 
Capitalist Chicks
Capitalist Chicks are the productive women of the cap chicksup and coming generation.  The Getaway Girl� is featured in the Capitalist Chicks' "I Went Through Divorce and All I Got Was this Amazing New Life" article under the topic of, Survive: Surrender is Not an Option.  To read the article, visit http://capitalistchicks.com/  
 
Live Solid
live solidIn the fourth part of Suntrust's Live Solid's Solid Summer Travel series, travel blogger Casey Wohl talks about reliving her summer memories and how she stays solid while on the road. Read all about it at http://tinyurl.com/3yn4tek

Girls Getaway to Montreal
 
After just a three-hour direct flight from Orlando, I riverarrived at the Montreal-Trudeau International Airport ready to take on the island of Montreal.  That's right, Montreal is actually an island with more than 20 miles of "underground" that comprise the largest underground city in the world.  It is also the second largest French speaking city (after Paris) in the world,  the most bilingual city (most everyone speaks French and English) and the second largest Catholic city in North America (after Mexico City). 
 
I was not only excited to explore North America's circus festival opening nightmost European city, but to also get a firsthand look at the city's newest festival (Montreal is known for its many festivals held year round): the Circus Arts Festival, which was held for the first time July 8-25, 2010 and is the only venue of this kind in North America.
 
I arrived at the Hotel Intercontinental Montreal, intercontinentalwhich is conveniently located between Old Montreal and downtown and within walking distance to dining, shopping and entertainment.  In addition, the hotel links directly to the underground pedestrian network.  Location, location, location...it is prefect.
 
The next morning we met Annique Dufour for a tour of Montreal.  We started with a tour of the underground (not all 20 miles) that has 69 subway stops, 7 shopping centers and 300 police cadets that patrol the underground daily.  We also drove to the Island of Expo (named for when Montreal hosted the World's Fair in 1967), which is now home to their Formula 1 racetrack, the Gilles-Villeneuve, that you can drive, walk or bike on (when there is no race in progress, of course).  We went for a spin in the minivan and kept on driving.  We also learned about their new BIXI system, which is a public bicycle sharing system Montreal has developed and has now been duplicated and sold to London, Boston, Toronto and Melbourne (Australia).  For $5/day, you can find a bicycle at one of BIXI's 600 stations throughout the city that houses about 4,000 bicycles. With nearly 250 miles of bike trails, Montreal is easily a top bicycle city.  

After working up quite an appetite, we were ready for lunch at the famous Schwartz's Deli that has served some of the city's best smoked meat since 1928.  It was amazing, but bring cash.  Schwartz's doesn't take plastic.  
 
With our smoked meat intrigue "cured," it was time to focus on the Circus Arts Festival.  While many of us in the U.S. are familiar with Cirque du Soleil, (the largest and most branded of the modern circuses), there are other troops as well that are part of the festival, which has been planned for the past 18 months.  There are three main sites for the festival: 1) Tohu, 2) Old Port of Montreal and 3) Downtown Montreal.  There are also 15 different shows that portray the innovation and creativity that is unique to this "circus of tomorrow" performance. 
 
Our first (and probably favorite) show was ID by Cirque Eloize (think Broadway's Rent meets what you know about Cirque du Soleil and you may have some idea).  It was refreshing to see the young performers incorporate new elements into the routines, such as the BMX bike.  
 
After the show we stopped at Auberge du Vieux-Port for sangria (which we enjoyed while overlooking the Port and Cirque du Soleil tent) then it was off to see the closing night of Totem, Cirque du Soleil's latest creation,
before it begins its traveling series.  As with any Cirque show, it was incredible.  
Sangria at Auberge du Vieux-Port  
 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
The next morning started at the National Circus School circus schoolMontreal, where potential circus artists can come and train (as early as age 9 for part-time learning and 12-16 for full time students).  They have 140 total students in total from various countries; I even met a girl from Florida while there.  We watched students working out and also rehearse for performances, which was quite interesting.  We had our own "workout" as we couldn't resist laying in the foam pool. 
Cirque Foam Pit 


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Next stop: Cirque du Soleil headquarters that employs about 4,000 people from 40 different countries.  We got an amazing behind-the-scenes tour of the various gyms, training rooms, make up room, costume department (wigs, shoes, headdresses, outfits) and the scheduling department (just the interpreters' schedules alone cirque maskswere overwhelming).  About 30 different people work with each circus artist, including a massage therapist, nutritionist, interpreter, coach, physical therapist, etc.  Each performer is responsible for learning how to do his/her own make up.  They also have three full sets of costumes for each performer.  Cirque has 400 costume artists, produce each wig hair-by-hair and order 80% of their fabric in white (which means they custom dye most of the costumes you see on stage).  This company is like nothing I have seen before!!!

After being completely blown away by the Cirque trapeze practicetour, we were ready for our own trapeze lessons by Carpe Diem at La Tohu.
We all practiced on the ground before getting harnessed up and climbing the big ladder.  We were assured it was much harder to put your legs over the bar while on the ground than it would be in the air.   However, there is a reason why trapeze artists are short and my long legs just didn't want to cooperate!  Although I didn't follow directions very well and failed to hang upside down, Sharron named me Easy Trapeze and I was happy.
was next on our agenda.  This neighborhood bistro offers regional dishes that change with the season and promote local farmers and ranchers from Quebec.  My Canteloupe Soup and Entrecote de Beouf 1855 was delicious. 
 
We woke up Tuesday morning ready for our jukariJukari Fit to Fly workout at Club Sportif MAA. Jukari is the culmination of a Cirque du Soleil/Reebok partnership intent on making exercise more fun for women by injecting a touch of artistry into the workout (la Cirque du Soleil), alleviates boredom and makes for one tough workout.  Plus, our instructor was Olympic Gold Medalist Speed Skater Nathalie Lambert from Canada...super cool!

We had a lovely lunch at Le Chateau Ramezay's dinnerRestaurant Chasse et Peche, which features an outdoor seating area in the summer.  I enjoyed the Asparagus Soup and Tuna Tataki, while Sharron and I had a conversation about who we "fancy" (I am working to incorporate British jargon into my all-American vocabulary).  We all "fancied" our server, Maxim!
 
With our free time after lunch, Sharron, Jan and I shopped along St. Paul West Street and found some great stores.  We had so much fun shopping together that we were late for our dinner at Restaurant O'Thym, which is located in Montreal's Village.  It's trendy and BYOW (Bring Your Own Wine) as most Montreal restaurants are, so be sure to pick up a bottle (or a few) before you arrive.  I loved my Carrot Soup, the bison we shared and my dinner entree, Halibut with Olive Tapanede.
After dinner we were off to our fourth and last show (and last evening of the trip).  Le Cabaret Des 7 Doignets opened tonight to rave reviews.  I especially enjoyed the girl who moonwalked while she juggled five balls and the girl who danced in the chains above our heads to a cabaret rendition of Roxanne (a la The Police). 

After the show, we sadly said our goodbyes and started planning our next trips together.  Many thanks to Tourisme Montreal and the Circus Arts Festival for a spectacular Girls Getaway to Montreal!  Au revoir Montreal...� la prochaine!!!

Thanks for reading! Wishing you safe travels! 
Getaway Girl Casey Wohl 
Sincerely,
Casey Wohl, The Getaway Girl &
Author of the Girls Getaway Guide series