Lisa Niver's Blog: We Said Go Travel, page 40

Dreams Come TRUE: Niver’s News: June 2022

June News 2022 with Lisa Niver & We Said Go Travel:

This month I was a finalist at the 64th Southern California Journalism Awards for book critic! It was my TWENTIETH (20th!) nomination and I have won FIVE times so far! I am now represented by Chip MacGregor of MacGregor Literary, Inc. 

I went on a dream trip to Denali, Alaska and went to my 102nd country–ICELAND! Two places on my bucket list that I have always wanted to explore! Explore with me by clicking on the links below to my photos and video!

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Thank you to Pursuit Alaska for my bucket list trip to Denali!

Read about my adventures from Anchorage to Talkeetna here and next month I will share another article about our adventures in Denali.

See all of the videos here:

Earlier this year I went to FOUR NEW STATES!! For the first time, I visited Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee and Wisconsin–state #43! I went to Elkhart Lake which is an hour from Milwaukee. I loved our adventures and –of course–the cheese! See two articles below about where to stay, eat and what to do:

Exploring Elkhart Lake: Where to STAY and EAT

What to DO in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin

See all of the Elkhart Lake videos here:

I am honored to share this excerpt from Alan Henry’s new book, Seen, Heard and Paid: The New Work Rules for the Marginalized. Alan is my incredible editor at WIRED!

Thank you to this month’s THEY SAID writers:

Terry Lee Marzell about her trip to the Dead Sea, Drew Steinberg honoring her mother, Jeff Blumenfeld on how to stay safe while traveling and Rabbi Knobel on how to educate and inspire Jewish youth.

Thanks PENN GAZETTE for sharing my alumni news!

Lisa Niver C’89 writes, “I’ve been sharing ways to help Ukraine on my website, www.wesaidgotravel.com, such as ‘You Can Help Keep Ukraine’s Media Going’ and ‘You Can Help Rescue the Refugees at the Ukrainian Border.’ During the ongoing COVID Coaster, I have been working on my memoir about 50 crazy challenges I did before turning 50! I was a two-time finalist for the 2021 National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards and recently was published in HuffPost: ‘My Octopus Teacher Was Mesmerizing but There’s 1 Thing that Deeply Troubled Me.’ My other COVID project was to join TikTok—find me @LisaNiver—and my YouTube channel is now over 1.5 million views (youtube.com/WeSaidGoTravel). Thanks to everyone who watches, comments, and shares! I hope my next update is about a book contract for my memoir!”

WHERE CAN YOU FIND MY TRAVEL VIDEOS?

Here is the link to my video channel on YouTube where I have over 1.6 million views on YouTube! (Exact count: 1,606,000 views)

Thank you for your support! Are you one of my 3,560 subscribers? I hope you will join me and subscribe! For more We Said Go Travel articles, TV segments, videos and social media: CLICK HERE

Find me on social media with over 150,000 followers. Please follow  on TikTok: @LisaNiver, Twitter at @LisaNiver, Instagram @LisaNiver and on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, and at LisaNiver.com.

Fortune Cookie SAID:“Minutes are worth more than money. Spend them wisely.”

“As a chapter ends, you will find yourself on a road to a new discovery.”

Lisa Niver in Talkeetna, Alaska seeing ALL of Denali June 7, 2022. WOW!! Put this on your bucket list! I loved it!!

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We Said Go Travel editorial review process

We Said Go Travel editorial review process

Every article is taken seriously from concept to production. Each one is reviewed for accuracy and editorial content. Only photos and videos that are owned and allowed are used. Every article has a byline.

I strive to have content that is original and within the scope of my readers interest. I appreciate all of the readers who send me their comments and suggestions.

My articles are shared across my social media platforms. When I write about a new book, I also make sure to send the article to the author and the publisher. When I write about a destination, I share it with the local teams and places that I visited.

My team is carefully vetted and know to come to me immediately with any issues, mistakes or concerns. 

I am honored to have won so many awards for my digital, print and broadcast stories. I look forward to writing more and continuing this site. Please get in touch with any comments, suggestions or issues.

Contact me at Lisa[at]WeSaidGoTravel[dot]com so I can make the changes. Thank you for reading and engaging with me and my site. Lisa Niver, We Said Go Travel LLC

Editorial Mission

We Said Go Travel shares the best inspiration and information about travel to outward places and inward journeys.

My website was founded in 2010 and focuses on culture, history and destinations. I was named both a top 10 travel influencer and top 50 female influencer by Afluencer for 2021. My travel blog was named at #3 on the top 1000 travel blog list as well as the top female blogger. We Said Go Travel was read in 235 countries in 2020. I published 2500 writers and photographers through 15 writing and photo competitions. 

I am honored to be able to share my personal stories and those of others. My hope is that we can all learn to see how we are so much more alike than different and find ways to create community together.

Thank you!

Lisa Niver

We Said Go Travel LLC

One Page

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Ethics, Standards and Corrections

The goal of We Said Go Travel is to share travel stories, videos, photos, news and information of the highest quality. I have run my site since 2010 as transparently as possible and my integrity and credibility are my most precious assets which are arduously acquired and easily squandered. I have the ethics, standards and practices below from the Society of Professional Journalists which I use on this site.

I will make corrections quickly when advised or made aware of any issues with my site and stories. Contact me at Lisa[at]WeSaidGoTravel[dot]com so I can make the changes. Thank you for reading and engaging with me and my site. Lisa Niver, We Said Go Travel LLC

ETHICS and STANDARDS from the SPJ which I follow on We Said Go Travel:
Members of the Society of Professional Journalists believe that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy. Ethical journalism strives to ensure the free exchange of information that is accurate, fair and thorough. An ethical journalist acts with integrity.

The Society declares these four principles as the foundation of ethical journalism and encourages their use in its practice by all people in all media.

Seek Truth and
Report It

Ethical journalism should be accurate and fair. Journalists should be honest and courageous in gathering, reporting and interpreting information.

Journalists should:

Take responsibility for the accuracy of their work. Verify information before releasing it. Use original sources whenever possible. 
Remember that neither speed nor format excuses inaccuracy. 
Provide context. Take special care not to misrepresent or oversimplify in promoting, previewing or summarizing a story. 
Gather, update and correct information throughout the life of a news story. 
Be cautious when making promises, but keep the promises they make. 
Identify sources clearly. The public is entitled to as much information as possible to judge the reliability and motivations of sources. 
Consider sources’ motives before promising anonymity. Reserve anonymity for sources who may face danger, retribution or other harm, and have information that cannot be obtained elsewhere. Explain why anonymity was granted. 
Diligently seek subjects of news coverage to allow them to respond to criticism or allegations of wrongdoing. 
Avoid undercover or other surreptitious methods of gathering information unless traditional, open methods will not yield information vital to the public. 
Be vigilant and courageous about holding those with power accountable. Give voice to the voiceless. 
Support the open and civil exchange of views, even views they find repugnant. 
Recognize a special obligation to serve as watchdogs over public affairs and government. Seek to ensure that the public’s business is conducted in the open, and that public records are open to all. 
Provide access to source material when it is relevant and appropriate. 
Boldly tell the story of the diversity and magnitude of the human experience. Seek sources whose voices we seldom hear. 
Avoid stereotyping. Journalists should examine the ways their values and experiences may shape their reporting. 
Label advocacy and commentary. 
Never deliberately distort facts or context, including visual information. Clearly label illustrations and re-enactments. 
Never plagiarize. Always attribute. 

Minimize Harm

Ethical journalism treats sources, subjects, colleagues and members of the public as human beings deserving of respect.

Journalists should:

Balance the public’s need for information against potential harm or discomfort. Pursuit of the news is not a license for arrogance or undue intrusiveness. 
Show compassion for those who may be affected by news coverage. Use heightened sensitivity when dealing with juveniles, victims of sex crimes, and sources or subjects who are inexperienced or unable to give consent. Consider cultural differences in approach and treatment. 
Recognize that legal access to information differs from an ethical justification to publish or broadcast. 
Realize that private people have a greater right to control information about themselves than public figures and others who seek power, influence or attention. Weigh the consequences of publishing or broadcasting personal information. 
Avoid pandering to lurid curiosity, even if others do. 
Balance a suspect’s right to a fair trial with the public’s right to know. Consider the implications of identifying criminal suspects before they face legal charges. 
Consider the long-term implications of the extended reach and permanence of publication. Provide updated and more complete information as appropriate. 

Act Independently

The highest and primary obligation of ethical journalism is to serve the public.

Journalists should:

Avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived. Disclose unavoidable conflicts. 
Refuse gifts, favors, fees, free travel and special treatment, and avoid political and other outside activities that may compromise integrity or impartiality, or may damage credibility. 
Be wary of sources offering information for favors or money; do not pay for access to news. Identify content provided by outside sources, whether paid or not. 
Deny favored treatment to advertisers, donors or any other special interests, and resist internal and external pressure to influence coverage. 
Distinguish news from advertising and shun hybrids that blur the lines between the two. Prominently label sponsored content. 

Be Accountable and Transparent

Ethical journalism means taking responsibility for one’s work and explaining one’s decisions to the public.

Journalists should:

Explain ethical choices and processes to audiences. Encourage a civil dialogue with the public about journalistic practices, coverage and news content. 
Respond quickly to questions about accuracy, clarity and fairness. 
Acknowledge mistakes and correct them promptly and prominently. Explain corrections and clarifications carefully and clearly. 
Expose unethical conduct in journalism, including within their organizations. 
Abide by the same high standards they expect of others. 

Now available: Media Ethics: 5th Edition

Closely organized around SPJ’s Code of Ethics, this updated edition uses real-life case studies to demonstrate how students and professionals in journalism and other communication disciplines identify and reason through ethical dilemmas.

The SPJ Code of Ethics is a statement of abiding principles supported by explanations and position papers that address changing journalistic practices. It is not a set of rules, rather a guide that encourages all who engage in journalism to take responsibility for the information they provide, regardless of medium. The code should be read as a whole; individual principles should not be taken out of context. It is not, nor can it be under the First Amendment, legally enforceable.
For an expanded explanation, please follow this link.

The SPJ Code of Ethics is a statement of abiding principles supported by additional explanations and position papers that address changing journalistic practices. It is not a set of rules, rather a guide that encourages all who engage in journalism to take responsibility for the information they provide, regardless of medium. The code should be read as a whole; individual principles should not be taken out of context. It is not, nor can it be under the First Amendment, legally enforceable.

Sigma Delta Chi’s first Code of Ethics was borrowed from the American Society of Newspaper Editors in 1926. In 1973, Sigma Delta Chi wrote its own code, which was revised in 1984, 1987, 1996 and 2014.

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Anchorage to Talkeetna: Dream Trip to Denali

View from the terrace at Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge, 9pm June 5, 2022

I spent three summers of my seven years at sea sailing the inside passage of Alaska with Princess Cruises. I heard passengers talk about their pre-cruise adventure in Denali National Park and it has long been on my bucket list!

Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge

I absolutely LOVED my road trip adventure to Denali with Pursuit Alaska. View our Anchorage to Talkeetna experiences in the videos below and look for PART TWO with our stay at Denali Cabins, Denali Backcountry Adventure Tour and Moose sightings!

Base Camp Bistro at Talkeetna Alaskan LodgeWHERE to STAY and EAT in TALKEETNA?

The views at Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge were beyond belief! I could not believe how great this location is for seeing the mountains. You can have happy hour at Base Camp Bistro outside-and then move inside to Foraker for dinner.

We had lunch at the brand new Homestead Restaurant. Chef Richard Pace is serving hearty dishes with a warm welcome right on Main Street!

Homestead Kitchen on Main Street, Talkeetna, Alaska

After lunch, I walked on to Talkeetna Riverfront Park at the end of Main Street where three wild rivers, the Talkeetna, Susitna, and Chulitna join to form the “Big Susitna River.” I loved the panoramic view of the Alaska Range! I want to stay in the cabins on the trail. In town, I met the Mayor–a cat named Denali.

Seeing Denali from the air was exceptional! Thank you to our pilot Leon & K2 Aviation for an incredible flight seeing tour, the Denali Experience. It was so awesome! Thank you to Colin Dougan for the photos of me in the Cessna.

Photo by Colin DouganI flew to Anchorage from Los Angeles on Delta which was also like a flight seeing tour!

Lisa in Anchorage talking about her bucket-list adventure:

What to see in Anchorage?

I loved walking the Anchorage Coastal Trail. It is easy to go through the tunnel at Elderberry Park (5th & N) and I strolled along the water to Westchester Lagoon. Next time, I am going kayaking! I saw the planes taking off from the airport and saw a train go by! I also went to Centennial Rose Garden.

WATCH ALL OF MY DENALI ADVENTURE VIDEOS HERE

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I am a 2022 Southern California Journalism Awards Finalist!

Thank you Los Angeles Press Club and Southern California Journalism Awards! I am honored to be a finalist for Book Critic!2022 Finalist: 64th annual Southern California Journalism Awards

B13. CRITICISM OF BOOKS FINALISTS:

Lisa Niver, Thrive GlobalJohn Freeman, Alta JournalM.G. Lord, Los Angeles Times David L. Ulin, Alta JournalChris Willman, VarietyThank you to the Los Angeles Press Club and Diana Ljungaeus, Executive Director!

During COVID, I focused on writing about books that helped people cope or felt like a way to escape in literature. Articles on Thrive Global:

Sizzling Summer Reads: Feel ALL Your Feelings 

Huge Changes Happen in Tiny Steps: The Way of Integrity: Finding the Path to Your True Self

Is Your Life FULLY CHARGED? with Meaghan Murphy

Changing The World, One Connection at a time with Shelley Zalis from The Female Quotient

Prepare Your Pandemic Pivot with Ken Lindner’s 8C’s

Writing and Rewriting during COVID with Alka Joshi

Deepak Chopra Strategies for Success: Mental Health Awareness Month

Surviving COVID like a Superhero with Lisa Genova’s REMEMBER

Gaby Natale Shares her Steps to Success

Lisa Niver has won many awards! From 2017 to 2022, in the Southern California Journalism Awards and National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards, she has won five times and been a finalist twenty times for a variety of broadcast, print and digital categories.

2021 Finalist: National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards2021 Winner: Southern California Journalism Awards for  TECHNOLOGY REPORTING 2021 Finalist: Southern California Journalism Awards for BOOK CRITICISM2020 Winner: National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards for Book Critic. See all of Lisa’s book reviews here.2020 Finalist: National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards for Book Critic2020 Winner: Southern California Journalism Awards for print magazine article: Hemispheres Magazine for United Airlines2020 Five Time Finalist: Southern California Journalism awards2019 Winner: NAEJ Award for KTLA TV segment2019 Finalist: National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards in three categoriesCategory H2a. Soft News: Ms. Magazine: Polar Bears Can’t Vote So You Have ToCategory F6a. Soft News Feature – Under 5 Minutes—Film/TV: KTLA TV Oscars Countdown to Gold with Lisa NiverCategory C1b. Business, Music/Tech/Art: My Wharton Magazine article: Four Female Founders Share Their Origin Stories2019 Finalist: Southern California Journalism Awards for Broadcast Television Lifestyle Segment: Ogden Ski Getaway2018 Finalist for three categories of Southern California Journalism Awards:SCIENCE/TECHNOLOGY REPORTING: Smithsonian TRAVEL REPORTING: Popsugar FitnessPERSONALITY PROFILE: Saturday Evening Post2017 2nd place winner for Southern California Journalism Award Print Column “A journey to freedom over three Passovers” and finalist for Travel Reporting.

More about Lisa Niver: https://lisaniver.com/awards/

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 16: BJ Korros and guest attend the Los Angeles Press Club’s 63rd Annual Journalism Awards Dinner at Millennium Biltmore Hotel Los Angeles on October 16, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Robin L Marshall/Getty Images)

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Second Chances: Two Very Different Visits to the Dead Sea

I was looking forward to many new and exciting experiences when we embarked on our long-delayed tour of Israel and Jordan. One of them was a float in the Dead Sea. At 1,380 feet below sea level, this body of water is the lowest elevation on earth, and is one of the planet’s saltiest bodies of water, nearly ten times more saline than ordinary sea waters. The high salt content of this inland lake makes is unsustainable to any living creatures other than algae and some micro-organisms. However, the high salt content allows a human body to float pleasantly without effort.

The author’s husband, Hal Marzell, enjoys a relaxing float in the saline waters of the Dead Sea on a recent stay at the Hilton Dead Sea Resort in Jordan.

Hal and I actually visited the Dead Sea twice during our guided tour. The first time was early in the trip. We were taken to what I surmise is the equivalent of a public beach on the Israeli side of the Sea. We think it was named Kalia Beach. Although I don’t know for certain, this section of shoreline was very likely on the West Bank, an area carved out of the country of Israel that is currently controlled by the Palestinians.

The small beach was filled with energetic vacationers who, like us, were eager for a day away from the hustle and bustle of school, work, everyday lives. These people created a hustle and bustle of their own. Umbrellas constructed of dried palm fronds provided some protection from the sun, and every scrap of shade was inhabited by however many individuals could fit. Gentle misters provided some welcome relief from the heat. People were sipping soft drinks and licking snow cones and ice creams. What surprised me was the large number of teen-aged girls, obviously Muslim, who went to this beach completely covered in floor-length, long-sleeved dresses and hajib head dresses, even in the sweltering heat. Then again, the dark-colored fabrics may have served to keep them cooler, and certainly offered the wearer protection from sunburn. These young women provided an interesting visual juxtaposition from those who walked about in skin-revealing bikinis.

The changing rooms were crowded and chaotic, offering an atmosphere much like that of a high school locker room or a public swimming pool. The facility was not exactly unclean, but a large number of bathers had left piles of clothing laying around on the benches, presumably because they didn’t want to pay the ten shekels it cost for a locker rental.

The distance between the changing rooms and the waterline could be traversed on a small electric cart, the fee for which was included with the admission ticket, but once a sunbather disembarked from the cart, the distance to the short stretch of shoreline was exceedingly hot and discouragingly rocky, making it difficult to navigate on bare feet. And the water was oily—positively slick, and not in a positive way. And it exuded a strong, nasty smell of minerals and petroleum substances.

Neither one of us actually made it into the water.

This was a unique experience, all right, but not the pleasurable float of our expectations.

Hal and Terry Lee Marzell explore the skin-care benefits of an all-body mud treatment on their recent trip to the Dead Sea in Jordan.

At the end of our guided tour, we visited the Dead Sea a second time. This time, we were staying at a high-end, luxury resort on the Jordanian side. The resort was located directly on the shoreline. We casually strolled from our hotel room down the sandy banks to the water’s edge. I noticed that a section of the lake was cordoned off where hotel guests could bathe, and beyond that area, I observed a hotel employee standing knee-deep in the saline water, collecting handfuls of dark mud from the sea bottom and placing it into a large bucket.

We selected a couple of comfortable lounge chairs shaded by a large, canvas umbrella. Then we skillfully navigated down a gentle incline, over a few rocks, and entered the warm, salty lake. Our bodies were delightfully buoyant in the water. We experimented with floating on our backs, then our stomachs, and then hooked to each other head to foot and head to foot. As instructed, we spent about 15 minutes there, languidly enjoying the buoyancy. The water was certainly salt-laden in the extreme, but was nothing like the oily, petroleum-smelling bilge we experienced on the West Bank side.

After our 15-minute float, Hal and I left the water and made our way up the sandy incline to a small spa hut, where two hotel employees, whose names were Hussein and Amad, bade us sit on a teak bench. Amad then proceeded to slather every exposed inch of us—head to toe, both front and back—with cooling, moisturizing Dead Sea mud. And then Hussein used our cell. phone cameras to take our pictures! After a brief period to allow the mud to dry, we made our way back to the water, where we spent some time washing the stuff off our bodies. Then we returned to the spa hut, where Amad vigorously rubbed each of us down with a salt scrub. He even washed Hal’s hair and massaged his shoulders, arms, and legs. Finally, the man hosed us off, leaving us both with skin as soft as a baby’s bottom.

After the moisturizing Dead Sea mud and minerals have been washed off, Hal Marzell enjoys a shampoo and massage from a hotel employee at his luxury resort in Jordan.

 Later, at the hotel pool, we happened to meet fellow-travelers Patrick and Loren, a couple from the tour group who had been with us during our first visit to the Dead Sea. Only six of the original 29 tour members who had travelled with us through Israel had opted for the Dead Sea extension. Only three of us were willing to sample the body of water on the Jordanian side.

“Did you go down to the shore and get the mud pack?” I asked the pair, describing our experience with enthusiasm.

“Nope!” declared Loren. She said her dip at the West Bank was, to use her word, “icky.” Her bathing suit still smelled like petroleum—in fact, everything in her suitcase was contaminated with the nasty smell—and she refused to get into the water again. No amount of assurance could persuade the two to change their minds, and in any case they were flying home in a few hours and the opportunity had pretty much passed.

The conversation left me feeling very fortunate that Hal and I were open to giving the Dead Sea a second try. I felt sorry for those whose only experience of the Dead Sea was the beach on the West Bank side. They will likely return home never knowing how wonderful it could have been.

“The Dead Sea!” I imagine them telling their family and friends. “That place was horrible!”

I learned an important life lesson from our two visits to the Dead Sea. And this is it: Sometimes you simply must be willing to give things a second chance.

Terry Lee Marzell is Lisa Niver’s (founder of We Said Go Travel) aunt and has written several books! She is an educator with more than 35 years experience in the classroom. Learn more at www.chalkboardchampions.org. AND she wrote about me!

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