One of the things I love most about Instagram is that I can connect and see the world through another person's eyes.

This week, St. Regis Singapore caught my attention with this one shot.

@stregishotels Instagram account St. Regis Singapore #afternoontea

I think it's just beautiful. As you know, I love afternoon tea and I swooned as soon as I saw this photo in my IG feed from the main @stregishotels Instagram account. St. Regis told its Instagram community that the china is the Anatolia Blue pattern by Narumi. I think it is exquisite.

Of course by connecting with this hotel brand on Instagram, I wanted to learn more about the St. Regis Singapore I am very impressed with its family adventure program, and offerings for family travel at this property.  I'm not sure if, or when I'll ever get to Singapore, but I look forward to visiting a St. Regis somewhere in my future travels.

Who has stayed in a St. Regis? Where? Have you been to Singapore?

Join us for #IGTRAVELThursday. 


Do you have a great Instagram travel story to share? Read the linky rules below and join us this week (but don’t forget to grab our logo {here} and link to at least one of hosts in your post). If you are not a blogger, but have an Instagram account tag your lovely travel moments with #IGTravelThursday. No blog, no Instagram? You can still join in the fun by reading our IG-related travel stories and by giving us some feedback love!  If you want to host the IG Travel linky on your blog so that your readers can easily find our posts, you may use this,  get the InLinkz code

Lauren Kennedy and her own daughter, Riley Campbell, in NC Theatre's production of  Les Misérables Photo by: Curtis Brown

Raleigh's own Lauren Kennedy in the Broadway Production of Les Misérables Photo by: Joan Marcus

A winner will be drawn at random by Rafflecopter on Feb. 11. To enter the giveaway, make sure you sign in the rafflecopter box either by using a Facebook log-in or your email.

Raleigh, N.C. saw snow for the first time since 2010 on Wednesday this week. We love a good snow in N.C.  You guessed it. Snow is a big deal in the South. So much so that Garden and Gun magazine started the IG hashtag #snowysouth, and will share some of its favorite photos on the magazine's website next week.

@GardenandGun IG account

The IG hashtag is becoming popular with Southerners. By 5 p.m. on Wednesday, #snowysouth had over 1,160 photos.

I had so much fun in the snow that I shared a few myself. This one is my most popular. It was taken in Raleigh shortly after sunrise. I slept in and almost missed color in the sky.

@Hinessightblog IG account

And in keeping with my hotel tradition, a few hotels were excited to post about the area's snow. The Pinehurst Resort in Pinehurst, N.C. has a very white golf course right now. Pinehurst will host both the 2014 U.S. Open and U.S. Women’s Open Championships in back-to-back weeks in June, marking the first time in history that both tournaments will be played in the same year, on the same course.

@PinehurstResort IG account

Cary's Umstead Hotel and Spa saw some accumulation.

@TheUmstead IG account

@NorthHills_ IG account

@OfflineMedia account

I love the fact that Raleigh IG user @SPCOGGS captured this great N.C. snow measurement. She lives a little west of me so we had more snow at my Raleigh home. She had over an inch. We had about three inches at my home.

@Spcoggs IG account

Hopefully, it will not be another four years before we see another Southern snow. But, if it is, we certainly had fun being Raleigh snow bunnies.

@Hinessightblog IG account

Join us for #IGTRAVELThursday. 

Do you have a great Instagram travel story to share? Read the linky rules below and join us this week (but don’t forget to grab our logo {here} and link to at least one of hosts in your post). If you are not a blogger, but have an Instagram account tag your lovely travel moments with #IGTravelThursday. No blog, no Instagram? You can still join in the fun by reading our IG-related travel stories and by giving us some feedback love!  If you want to host the IG Travel linky on your blog so that your readers can easily find our posts, you may use this,  get the InLinkz code

I made a joke on my Instagram account that it was nice that the trees on Glenwood South in Raleigh put on their sweaters before the snow rolls in town.


Yes, snow is actually in the forecast for my hometown, and our trees are wearing sweaters. What has happened in the South? I covered this art story for examiner.com today. I'm a new writer for the website covering North Carolina travel and tourism. The entire story is now online now for you to read. If you are in Raleigh, the trees will be wearing sweaters through Feb. 25.

If you get snowed in your home this week then I have the perfect read for you. I am so excited to show you the debut of Skimbaco Lifestyle's first e-magazine. It's wonderful to write for a site like Skimbaco, but you and I both know that the Web is big, and sometimes our stories get lost because you just don't have enough time to read them, or when you do plan do read a post then someone or something interrupts you. I'm behind on reading some of my favorite blogs and magazines right now. The new Skimbaco magazine will have some of our best content plus new content. When it came out yesterday, I had to pinch myself. I think it looks wonderful.

I'm back in North Carolina after a whirlwind trip to Springfield, Illinois. I can't wait to share with you what I saw and learned there.

In the meantime, I've been searching Instagram for this week's hotel eye candy. These are the types of photos that make me want to experience what the hotel offers.

I'm going to start with the @WaldorfAstoria account. The hotel posted a photo of the ice bar "Powder" in Park City, Utah this week.  The Sundance Film Festival is underway right now in the city so I'm sure this is quite the hot spot to chill. You may even see a celebrity or two.

Waldorf Astoria Instagram Account Ice Lounge at Waldorf Astoria Park City

The @WaldorfParkCity is also on Instagram. Here is another look at the Ice Lounge from that IG account.

WaldorfParkCity Instagram Account Ice Lounge in Park City

I found this "Frozen" bar fascinating on Instagram. I've never seen anything like it.  You can bet if I'm ever in Park City then I'll be heading to the Ice Lounge because it just seems so cool.

Join us for #IGTRAVELThursday. 


Do you have a great Instagram travel story to share? Read the linky rules below and join us this week (but don’t forget to grab our logo {here} and link to at least one of hosts in your post). If you are not a blogger, but have an Instagram account tag your lovely travel moments with #IGTravelThursday. No blog, no Instagram? You can still join in the fun by reading our IG-related travel stories and by giving us some feedback love!  If you want to host the IG Travel linky on your blog so that your readers can easily find our posts, you may use this,  get the InLinkz code