Go Away With ... Luna Blaise

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Luna Blaise has been juggling her burgeoning acting career (“Concrete Kids,” “Fresh Off the Boat,” “Surviving Theater 9”) with concert dates to promote her latest single, “Camera Roll.” One of the best parts of her job, she says, is getting to travel to so many different places. “I’m pretty adventurous when it comes to trying new food while traveling,” says Blaise. “I try street cart food sometimes. I love both sweet and spicy foods. I’m very open-minded.” Blaise also is a social media star, with a strong following of fans on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/lunablaise/), Twitter (https://twitter.com/lunablaise) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/lunablaiseofficial/).

Q. If you’ve ever gone away for the holidays, which was the best trip?

A. I was actually in New York for Christmas! This was my first Christmas away from home, but I loved it. I was in New York already because I had just gotten off tour and was preparing to go on a second leg of touring with Jacob Sartorius. Since I was already in the area and New York is one of my favorite cities, I decided to just stay there for the holidays. I met up with family friends to explore the city, visit museums and eat some great food like poke bowls.

Q. What was the first trip you took?

A. The first trip I remember taking was to Spain when I was a little girl on vacation with my family. I loved being near the ocean and eating yummy food on the boardwalk. We ate a ton of fresh fish there since we were on the southern coast of Spain. I remember eating this great pastry that was stuffed with fish and vegetables. After I tried it the first time, it’s the only thing I wanted to eat the whole trip.

Q. What is your favorite vacation destination?

A. Maui. The last time I went to Hawaii was when I was a kid, but I want to go back so badly! I love being by the water and think it’s such a beautiful tropical destination. I would recommend that they see any of the beautiful waterfalls. Everything in Hawaii is really beautiful in general, so I just recommend getting outside to see all of the views it has to offer.

Q. What untapped destination should people know about?

A. I’m from Los Angeles, so there aren’t too many untapped destinations here with all of the tourists and people who live here. An untapped destination that I would love to be able to visit one day would be the hidden ancient ruins buried in the rain forests of South America. I loved learning about it in school and would love to get to see it in person one day.

Q. What’s the most important thing you’ve learned from your travels?

A. That it is so important to just experience things on your travels and not feel the need to always document everything. That being present is sometimes the most important thing to do.

Q. Where are your favorite weekend getaways?

A. I love going down south to Huntington Beach. My schedule is always pretty crazy between singing, songwriting, touring and acting. I love going there with my family to escape for a little when I do have some downtime. I’ve also been doing a lot of local activities in L.A. with my friends lately, like escape rooms or pop-up museums that come to the area.

Q. What are your favorite cities?

A. New York, London and Paris. I love exploring big cities.

Q. Where would you like to go that you have never been to before?

A. I would really love to go to Australia. The beaches look so beautiful. I love being anywhere near the water. I would want to visit the Sydney Opera House and visit the zoo.

Q. When you go away, what are some of your must-have items?

A. I always have to take my hair straightener and lip gloss on long trips.

Q. What would be your dream trip?

A. I think my dream trip would be traveling in a private yacht around the Mediterranean Sea.

Q. What is your guilty pleasure when you’re on the road?

A. Chocolate. I always have to have it with me.

Q. What kind of research do you do before you go away on a trip?

A. I (want to know) what’s within walking distance of the hotel. It has been a fun experience to explore new cities with my friends who are on tour with me. When I went to Canada on tour, we stopped at Niagara Falls. It was snowing and I was freezing, but it was so beautiful!

Q. What is your worst vacation memory?

A. My worst vacation memory happened this past summer when I went to Mexico. I went with my family on vacation and caught a parasite from my food. I spent the whole trip really sick! It took me a couple weeks to fully recover. It was an awful experience.

(Jae-Ha Kim is a New York Times bestselling author and travel writer. You can respond to this column by visiting her website at www.jaehakim.com. You may also follow “Go Away With...” on Twitter at @GoAwayWithJae where Jae-Ha Kim welcomes your questions and comments.)

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