In the Media
THE COMMUNITY PAPER - November 2025 : Oh, the humanity!
There was a time when my primary goal in travel was to eat. As a food writer in my early career, that was the way I got to know a place, and it became de rigueur to seek out the finest version of the dish for which my destination was most famous.
—Hand-pulled cumin lamb noodles in Flushing, Queens.
—Carbonara in Rome.
—Tacos de cabeza in Chihuahua, Mexico.
—Jerk chicken in Montego Bay, Jamaica.
I would spend hours poring over other writers’ reviews, food blogs, magazines and guidebooks to make sure we spent our time only eating the best…
In the Media
THE COMMUNITY PAPER - Septmeber 2025 : Milestones Matter
My husband and I are celebrating 10 years of marriage this year, and it was never a question of if we’d take a trip; it was a question of where we’d go.
The milestone trip is becoming part of the cultural moment, and I fully support it. How better to add to a special memory or mark a season of life than to create memories in a wonderful place?
Travel brings out a sense of wonder, a mental stimulation that instantly embeds into our long-term memory. That feeling of exploration, of diving into uncharted waters and seeing what’s beneath the surface, can change not only who we are but also our perception of what’s happening in our lives at that moment.
In the Media
THE COMMUNITY PAPER - August 2025 : Take Your Time
It’s no secret: Summer vacation isn’t for parents.
If you’re a stay-at-home parent, your summer was likely spent searching “fun indoor activities for kids in Orlando” and dealing snacks like a poker hand in between skipping YouTube commercials and texting every other parent you know for a playdate.
If you’re a working parent, it was a full three months of week-long, sometimes half-day camps you booked back in February with activities that your kids may or may not be interested in four months later. In my case, I had an entire spreadsheet set up with which camp my toddler was going to, who would be picking her up, and at whose house she’d be playing until the workday was over.
As the school year starts, we’re all relieved to find our routines again.
But, hold up. Can I convince you to eschew the grind for just a few days longer?
In the Media
It’s only July and we’ve already reached peak summer travel fatigue. Don’t be us.
Our family has always kept a full calendar of adventure. But just one day into summer vacation this year, we headed for a weekend in Washington, D.C., followed by a week in Scandinavia. We were home for only 10 days, then headed to South America to join friends on the Inca Trail and visit family in Lima, Peru.
My advice to you: Don’t do this.
In the Media
Before we had our daughter, my husband and I always had a trip planned. Exploring the world and enjoying far-flung experiences together was an essential part of our relationship.
I was determined not to let having a baby change that.
When we first took our mini across borders — to Mexico when she was 7 months old, then to Paris when she was 17 months old — the comments we received were incredulous. We were told we were brave and crazy. Basically, the same things you’d say about Johnny Knoxville.
Yes, those trips were hard. On our overnight flight to Paris, she didn’t sleep a wink, which meant an overtired mama and a scream-crying baby girl when we arrived. I became an expert at changing her diaper in the tiny airplane bathroom. Installing a car seat in a plane is a physical challenge all its own.
But we survived, and better still, we loved it.
In the Media
When I was 12, I rode atop a camel past the pyramids of Giza. At 19, I harvested corn in the Sierra Madre mountains of northern Mexico with the Tarahumara indigenous tribe. At 20, I studied French politics and art history in Paris on a one-way ticket, never intending to return to the U.S. to walk in my college graduation. At 22, I studied the culinary arts in Chicago, returning to France a year later as a personal chef.
Those early travel experiences changed everything for me, widening my perspective and at the same time shrinking our world to a conquerable size.
Grudgingly, I came back to my hometown.
In the Media
There’s just something about taking a trip with your best friend that resets your soul, and this is the perfect time of year to start planning one.
This month’s story on Go Mama Go, a travel agency created by local mom Holly Kapherr Alejos, is sure to inspire you. I love how Holly, who sometimes writes for The Community Paper, turned her own need for adventure and connection into a way to help other women — especially those who might feel intimidated to plan a trip on their own. And she didn’t just dream about it; she made it happen. Go, Holly!
In the Media
Used to venturesome globetrotting, career travel writer Holly Kapherr Alejos decided to pursue a brand-new adventure when she had her first child in 2022.
“After my daughter was born,” she wrote on her website, “I wasn’t sure I would want to travel again.”
But in February 2023, Kapherr Alejos decided to take a “mommy-moon” to Vienna, Austria. She followed an itinerary that reflected her passion for music. After receiving an inspiring amount of interest from other moms on social media, she decided to start her own travel company that provided opportunities for female-identifying caregivers to take trips themed to their own passions and interests.
Press Releases
“GO MAMA GO TRAVEL,” GROUNDBREAKING TOUR COMPANY OFFERING
GETAWAYS JUST FOR MOMS, LAUNCHES TRIPS FOR 2023-2025
ORLANDO, Fla. (Nov. 2023) — Holly V. Kapherr, career travel and food writer based in Orlando, Fla, has launched a first-of-its-kind travel company designed just for moms and mother-identifying people. Go Mama Go Travel, LLC, is an all-inclusive, small-group tour company providing 3-night domestic and 6-night international “mommymoons” for moms to relax, rest and reset so they can return to their families at their best.