Don't Judge A Bean By Its Color

Before you cock your head to the side, scrunch up your nose, and go "Huh?" (I see you!),  check this out...

...You can't determine what is on the inside by simply looking at the outside.

Over 5 years ago, iCelebrateDiversity.com founder Tracy Brown Jackson created a fun way to open up the dialogue about blasting stereotypes in a really sweet way with her product Diversity Jellybeans where any 6 jellybean colors offered might have any of the 6 different flavors inside.  Eat a red jellybean and the flavor might be licorice...or it might be something else.  The point?  "Like people, you can't determine what is on the inside by simply looking at the outside."  It probably goes without saying that I wholeheartedly agree.

Tracy's client list is pretty impressive (read: Target, Starbucks, Harvard, NASA, HBO, Disney, FedEx, etc.) and I'm pretty impressed with a product and inventor that creates a simple, relaxed and clever approach to a necessary dialogue related to diversity.  #kudos

I was going to wait until Thoughtful Thursday to post this, but there is no time like the present.  So if you have a moment, kindly take a look at Tracy's indiegogo campaign (great video!) as she is currently raising funds so that Diversity Jellybeans can stay alive.  #checkitout 

Thanks for listening....and stay sweet.  =D

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The One Brown Girl Challenge

Image Credit: @OneBrownGirl

Stream-line (strmln) 1. To construct or design in a form that offers the least resistance to fluid flow.

 

Lately, I've been busy as a bee.  Truth be told, that's the way I like it.  I don't really believe that entrepreneurs ever realistically achieve that ever-elusive balance everyone seems to be seeking and I'm cool with that, but I do like to assess my journey every now and then just to be sure that I'm still on track...and I'm not.  That means it's time to streamline again:  To re-construct my life path in a form that offers the least resistance to fluid flow.  #ilovethewaythatsounds

I don't want to be a travel blogger.

I've decided that I don't want to be a traditional travel blogger.  In fact, I don't want to be a traditional anything, but that's a subject for another post.  I don't want to go on group press trips unless I put the trip together myself.  I don't want to feel the pressure of thinking of a story angle when I participated in press trip activities that were structured and forced.  I don't want travel writing to feel like gasp...a job.  No, no, no.  What I do want is what I initially conceptualized and that is to share my journeys at will, to travel with purpose, to write if I have something meaningful to say...whether I travel to culturally immerse or to simply vege out in my quest to unwind. 

Streamlining + Authenticity go hand in hand.

Authentic

Of course, I'm always down to travel on behalf of a travel brand that understands the real me and wants to build a relationship based on our mutual interests (mine being global awareness and outdoor experiences for teen girls and unique travel opps and cultural exploration for myself), so going solo is always an option, but any trip I take must appeal to my personal style of sharing, storytelling and advocacy.  Anything else isn't authentic and for me streamlining and staying authentic go hand in hand.  I feel like I got away from that just a little bit.  It was starting to feel forced.

The Authentic Thing vs. The Popular Thing.

Authentic

So here I sit ready to take on my very own challenge by releasing myself from the pressure I somehow managed to place on myself over the past year by doing The Popular Thing and not The Authentic Thing.  You'll still hear from me of course, and I will never tire of sharing my little trips and what I know about the world of travel blogging with others, but strictly on my own terms. 

I feel lighter already.  =)

It's so easy to get off track, isn't it?  Is it time for you to streamline too?

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Travel Tuesday: The Ultimate Travelista Weekend

OneBrownGirl in Paris

This fall, I'm doing it again.  I'm renting an apartment in Paris for six weeks.  In Le Marais even.  (Don't hate me.)

Château des Milandes
Source:  Wiki

My husband will show up at the start of my third week. I will have recovered from jet lag, been to Josephine Baker's former chateau in Dordogne (another story entirely), and will then be on my way to London for a quick trip before I scurry back to Paris for my November guests and a side trip to Morocco. This travel stuff makes my heart go pitter patter. I'm excited.

(L to R) Oneika, Tracey, Monique

I'm making plans to host a private meet-up in London at local hot-spot Caribbean Scene with help from fellow travelista and Huffington Post travel contributor Oneika Raymond during World Travel Market London, a collosal global travel conference described as a "must-attend four-day business-to-business event, presenting a diverse range of destinations and industry sectors to UK and International travel professionals." #thatwouldbeme

Social media buddies in the Webosphere, Oneika and I met face-to-face at WTM London last year and along with Air France / KLM travel blogger Monique White Rubin hatched a plan to meet up in London again in 2012. The only difference this year is the group of rock star travel bloggers that will be joining us! WTM won't know what hit it.

I'll be staying in a lovely three-bedroom London flat with some of those same rock star travel bloggers: Carol Alvarez Cain, Monique White Rubin, April D. Thompson and Tawanna Browne Smith for what I think will be The Ultimate Travelista Weekend.  We are going to share our very own London apartment courtesy of Go With Oh, a European apartment rental agency based in Barcelona Spain.  Check out our apartment:

Cute, isn't it?  Besides the conference and seeing some of the local sights, we're going to talk travel, make Go With Oh videos and binge on cupcakes crumpets...in our very own London flat.  I'll be coming in from Paris, Monique will be coming from The Netherlands, April from Jamaica and both Tawanna & Carol will be coming from the US.  Some will even be meeting for the first time.  And since none of us will know exactly where we're going on The Tube, it oughta be a hoot.  And of course we'll be sharing every moment.   

You all know that I love a luxurious hotel just like everyone else, but there's something far more local about hanging out in your own apartment, having your own kitchen, and actually feeling like you're a part of the landscape, which is why I rent apartments for all of my guests in Paris every year.  As you can imagine, partnering with Go With Oh to London simply made sense.

The purpose of this post is to simply go on and on about introduce you to The Ultimate Travelista Weekend made possible by Go With Oh.  April, Carol, Monique and Tawanna will all add their own point of view in the months that lead up to our time abroad.  In fact, April is going to share her 5-point wish list for the perfect London apartment next, so be on the lookout for that.

I'm looking forward to London this year - more than ever because of Go With Oh, a fun meet-up, and my rock star travelista roomies - and hope you'll come along for the ride, whether online or in person.  In the meantime, *Cheers* to travel and ultimate travelista weekends.  ;-)

Disclosure:  This post is sponsored by Go With Oh, the European apartment rental agency that will be providing our London digs during World Travel Market London this year.  All opinions are my own.

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What a Super Sunday!

Me & The Giorgio Armani on the beach at Galley Bay #Antigua

I have been at Galley Bay Resort & Spa in Antigua on holiday for the past week and sadly, I go home tomorrow.  This has been a rather restful vacation for me and since I was asked to write a post about it on Luxury Link, I will save the details for later.  In the meantime, feel free to check out My Love Affair With Galley Bay here. 

What I will tell you, however, is that it's not even 11am and it has been a Super Sunday already because this morning, I met The Giorgio Armani on the secluded beach at Galley Bay (his island home is right next door).  Not one to be star struck, I will freely admit that I was over the moon that he was kind enough to take a photo with me.  (The irony is that since I've been here, I have only taken about a dozen photos and this morning Something Told Me to bring my camera to breakfast.)  Needless to say, I am the envy of all of the guests here at the hotel that saw me approach Mr. Armani and his friends while they strolled by (which is not that many since this is not one of those mega-properties in the least).  The man is an icon.  What a Super Sunday!

Giorgio Armani's compound right outside & next door to my beachfront suite at Galley Bay.

Disclosure: There is no disclosure necessary for this post. I'm actually on vacation. #itsamiracle

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OBG®'s WOW: ¡WEPA!

Flashback:  Hispanicize 2011
Tracey @OneBrownGirl and Mirna Lorena Arce @AhorrosConCupon
Image credit: Lilian Hurn @Súper Baratísimo

 ¡WEPA!

From UrbanDictionary.com: Pronounced Weh - pah, a word of jubilation that is uttered by mainly Hispanics, especially within the Puerto Rican community. It normally is yelled at high volumes in a nasal manner, especially after something that is celebrated. ...[M]eans, "All right! Good job! Congratulations! Yeah!"

PLEASE MAKE NOTE: This week, I'm in Miami for Hispanicize 2012, an annual event for Latino trendsetters and newsmakers in social media, marketing, entertainment and innovation. And even though it is the norm for me to celebrate Latin culture on a regular basis, it's going to be "all things Latino" on OneBrownGirl.com® this week with [unsponsored] shout outs to Hispanicize sponsors and blog posts that started with OBG®'s Multicultural Monday and then with OBG®'s Travel Tuesday, and today with OBG®'s Word of the Week! Enjoy!

Forgive me for my enthusiasm (well, not really), but one of the best things about being at Hispanicize this week is that I get to say ¡Wepa! as much as I want to without people looking at me like I'm crazy.  *Laughing with my mouth open wide*  I'm already having WAY too. much. fun.  ¡Wepa!

Pitbull WEPA Remix 

OBG®'s Word of the Week Shout Out to Hispancize and a few of its sponsors...

OBG®'s Word of the Week (WOW!) post is a mini-homage to my mom who taught me new words by using flashcards at the dinner table and made mealtime entertaining. And while you might not necessarily learn a new word today, the idea - as always - is to have a little fun! Word.

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OBG®'s Travel Tuesday

Cabrera, Dominican Republic
Image credit: @SandraFoyt

PLEASE MAKE NOTE: This week, I'm in Miami for Hispanicize, an annual event for Latino trendsetters and newsmakers in social media, marketing, entertainment and innovation.  And even though it is the norm for me to celebrate Latin culture on a regular basis, it's going to be "all things Latino" on OneBrownGirl.com® this week with [unsponsored] shout outs to Hispanicize sponsors and blog posts that started yesterday with OBG®'s Multicultural Monday and today with OBG®'s Travel Tuesday! Enjoy!

La Concha Resort
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Venue for The Official
Passport Party Project Wrap Party
Click here for details.

This Thursday, I'm going to be part of Hispanicize's first-ever travel panel - Tengo Blog Will Travel: The Adventures of Latino and Multicultural Travel Bloggers - and I can't wait!  And to top it off, I'll be hosting The Miami Passport Party sponsored by Expedia.com® just a few days later.  (BTW, you do know about the Wrap Party in Puerto Rico next April, right?) Moving right along... 

While I typically use this Travel Tuesday space to highlight just one destination, today I'm going to break my own rule and present a mini-photo gallery from three traveling Latina blogueras:  Of Spanish and Venezuelan descent Ana Serafin of Traveling Latina (pictured below right); raised in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands and of Argentinean descent Sandra Foyt of Albany Kid Travel and Being Latino (pictured below center); and Puerto-Riqueña Maria Alexandra Laborde of latinAbroad and TravelTheMiddleEast.com (pictured below left).  These highlighted travelistas all have some fabulous photos to share.  Ready?  Vámanos!

  

***

Cordoba
Spain
Image credit: @TravelingLatina

San Blas Islands
Panama
Image credit: @latinAbroad

Hong Kong
Image credit: @TravelingLatina





White Desert
Egypt
Image credit: @latinAbroad

  

Cheeseburger in Paradise
Honeymoon Beach / Water Island
United States Virgin Islands
Image credit: @SandraFoyt

 

OBG®'s Travel Tuesdays celebrate every imaginable facet of travel by posting travel photos of memorable destinations taken by some of our favorite travelistas in social media...

Travel Tuesday Shout Out to Hispanicize and their travel & theme park sponsors:

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