Renowned author and humanitarian Isabel Allende is one of Chile's most acclaimed and beloved writers. Currently a resident of California, she flew to Chile last Friday to witness firsthand the effects of the devastating earthquake and tsunami on her homeland and to raise funds for the country's rebuilding. I interviewed her by email on Sunday night. Here is her report.

Don George: Where are you in Chile now, and why have you traveled there?

Isabel Allende: I am in Santiago. I came to participate in a 24-hour television fundraiser "Chile Ayuda a Chile" (Chile Helps Chile) hosted by Don Francisco, the celebrity host of Univision. The goal was to raise the equivalent of $30 million. Amazingly, they were able to raise $59 million in an incredible effort that joined the whole country. Everybody is participating in the reconstruction and emergency effort. Kids in schools collect food, blankets, diapers, clothes, etc. They package them and then big trucks distribute the donations where they are most needed. Banks are open day and night to receive cash donations. Volunteers collect in the streets. Everybody is cooperating. The devastation in the south is impossible to describe. Images on TV can't really give an accurate idea of the suffering. Whole fishing villages were wiped out by the tsunami. Hospitals, schools, bridges, and roads were destroyed, not to mention houses.

DG: What is the mood in Santiago and in the country as a whole?

IA: Chileans are stoic people; they live in the most beautiful country in the world, but it's also a land of earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, and droughts. In 1960 Chile suffered the worst earthquake in history: 9.5 on the Richter scale. The recent tragedy left people stunned and horrified, but soon the mood changed. Solidarity is the word that best defines the mood. People want to help.

The Fairmont Pacific Rim in downtown Vancouver opens this month, and it's worth seeing -- even from the outside.

We don't normally hear about exterior hotel artwork, but this hotel in the heart of the financial district with views of the both the skyline and the harbor features a million dollar installation by UK artist Liam Gillick. The stainless steel piece is a repeating series of words in two-foot high Helvetica bold:

"lyingontopofabuildingthecloudslooked
nonearerthanwhenIwaslyingonthestreet..."

(In case that hurts your head: "lying on top of a building the clouds looked no nearer than when I was lying on the street ..." over and over again)

The artwork, shown, wraps around floors five through 22, "providing a delineation of the hotel and luxury residences." We think it would be a little distracting from the inside, like being trapped inside a neverending game of Quick Wit (remember deciphering those mirror images for the yellow points?).

It may not be everyone's idea of beauty, but it's certainly one-of-a-kind, and a fun new landmark to spot next time you're in Vancouver.

The Fairmont Pacific Rim's rates start at $229 (CAD), about $220 USD, per room per night.

Want more? Get your daily dose of pampering right here.

When it comes to Disney, I'm rather weird - I can recite almost all of Finding Nemo, but I've only ever managed to visit their theme parks once. Thankfully my daughter is now at the age where a trip to Disney is going to have to be on the agenda pretty soon, or I suspect there will be rioting.

Our friends at AOL Travel have compiled a fantastic collection of Disney resources. Their articles can help with everything from where to find the best deals, to picking the best time of year to visit Disney World.

The main information hub also offers a great gallery of images from some of the lesser known attractions. Take for example the Richard Petty Driving Experience or the Disney Wide World of Sports - two attractions I had never heard of.

So, next time you start researching Disney, head on over to the Disney pages at AOL Travel. From the main Disney hub, you can also research Disney Cruise Lines, Disney Adventures or the Disney Vacation Club. The pages are easy to navigate and thanks to the daily updated deals, you'll be able to research and book all from the same site.

How rabid are Canadian hockey fans? The graph above shows that during the amazing USA - Canada Gold Medal hockey game last Sunday, residents of Edmonton were willing to forego even the most basic of all human needs while the puck was on the ice. Canadian hockey fans were, of course, richly rewarded for their urinary fortitude with a 3-2 overtime win to snatch the gold medal from the upset-minded Americans.

[via Pat's Papers, whose post is aptly titled "What if Everybody in Canada Flushed at Once?"]

Funny "man blog" Manolith has put together a helpful chart with tips on how to carry "marital aids" through the airport checkpoint. The list is obviously meant as a bit of a joke, but from my conversations with TSA workers, it appears that the occasional dildo is not that rare in checkpoint luggage.

The full version of the chart is here. One tip you won't find in the list is the Gadling recommendation to send your bags (and toys) by FedEx to your destination. That way, you won't have to worry about a TSA agent questioning you on the purpose of that 12 incher in your bag, or the massive tube of lube you forgot to remove (remember the liquid rules!).

The Association of Flight Attendants has been leaning on Congress to amp up counter-terrorism measures in the cabin. After all, the security teams in the airports haven't exactly impressed over the past few years. So, what happens to the passengers and crew when some scumbag finds a way to tote a gun, knife or oversized bottle of shampoo on board? The flight attendants' union believes it has the answer: hand-to-hand combat. Whether it's a killer choke hold or a beverage cart to the 'nads, they're ready to take charge.

Well, the Association of Flight Attendants, which represents more than 55,000 employees at 20 airlines, actually has a four-point plan to increase cabin safety, but most of it is pretty boring. The group proposes communications devices to help them speak directly to the pilots when an emergency breaks out, standardized carry-on luggage size (to make it easier to spot the suspicious people with oversized bags) and the terminating of in-flight wifi during periods of peak terror risk.

And, the grappling, kicking and boxing.

Someday, this will probably be remembered as one of those "What the hell were they thinking?" moments – if it's remembered at all. But, for now, it's something that the flight attendants' group has plopped on the table, and it strikes me as unlikely to make a difference. Why?

Here are six reasons to get you started:

Starting May 7th, all gold and platinum members of the Marriott Rewards frequent guest program will get free Internet access when they stay at a Marriott, JW Marriott or Renaissance hotel.

All other Marriott properties already offer free Internet access for all their guests, so if you are staying at a Courtyard, Fairfield Inn, Springhill Suites, Residence Inn or TownePlace Suites, you won't need to worry about being elite enough to get online for free.

This of course raises the question why Marriott can't offer Internet for free, for everyone? The three hotels brands within the chain that still charge for Internet access are the "upscale" brands - and you'd expect the more expensive rooms to come with free access.

I've written about this before - in my opinion, every hotel should offer Internet for free to all its guests. By offering access for free to elite guests, Marriott gets one step closer to this, but this still leaves plenty of guests that will need to fork over some of their cash just to get online. It never ceases to amaze me how hotels tend to ignore this important perk.

Planning on beating the crowds to Brazil before the 2016 Olympics? If you've put a shred of research into visiting the beautiful South American country, you probably now know two things: a) its far and b) visas are expensive.

With over $100 in visa fees, a trip to the consulate and a long flight to the southern hemisphere involved, many American travelers are often deterred from visiting the country of Brazil, opting for the less expensive Argentina or more accessible Central America instead.

But several changes this year could help alleviate some pressure. To begin with, ten new flights from the US to Brazil will start operating, spurring demand, capacity and hopefully lower prices.

Brazil is also taking the positive step in reducing some restrictions on tourist visas. Soon, applicants wont need to travel within 90 days of acquiring their visas, and after it's purchased, the document is good for ten whole years. This means that one can go the first time to scout out rental vacations this winter, again to crash for the Olympics in 20106 and again in 2019 for Carnivale -- all on the same visa.

Sure, the $150 visa fee is still a pain in the ass, but at least the investment stays sound for 10 years.

Need some inspiration? Check out Gadling's 24 hour in Rio guides for a snapshot of beautiful coastal city. Hint: it's amazing.

For travelers who never leave home without their iPods, it's an extra convenience when hotels provide in-room docking stations that sound better than anything your ear buds or your laptop speakers can pump out. In fact, for a certain class of boutique hotel properties, an iPod dock is almost expected on the list of amenities (along with the flatscreen TV.)

In the past month, two of the five hotels I've stayed at (the Bellagio in Las Vegas, the Kimpton-owned Hotel Palomar in Philadelphia) have all carried iHome docking stations. When I later searched for the model numbers online to compare prices and specs, I was surprised at how quickly those numbers are phased out and replaced with newer, sleeker models like the iP90 ($99.99).

If you stay in a hotel that doesn't have an iPod dock, iHome makes a sweet set of portable speakers: the iHM78B ($49.99). The set, which debuted in January, sports a funky bubble design and is available in fun colors like red and blue. The accordion-like speakers pop up for fuller bass and swivel down into a compact capsule. Magnets at the ends keep the pair together in your bag, so you don't have to root around for the other half.

But does anyone actually travel with portable speakers? I feel like I always get bogged down by all my cords and chargers. But after testing out this set, I have to admit that it'll be hard to return to the puny sound. Whether the speakers were plugged into my iPod or laptop, I actually had to turn down the volume because it was way too loud. Note: There's no master volume control on the speakers; you have to adjust the volume level from your laptop or iPod itself, but that's a small annoyance compared to the huge sound you'll get.

Luckily, the mini speakers are good enough to use in everyday life so it's not some travel gadget you'd only use once a year. The bottom line? Sure, if you always stay in hotels with iPod docks, portable speakers won't be as useful. For everyone else, the iHome speakers are a solid pair to make space in your bag for.