It’s back to business as normal for all Global Traveler staffers after a visit to New York and a successful awards luncheon on Wednesday! Over 300 travel industry elite turned out for our luncheon at the Jumeirah Essex House and enjoyed the festivities as over 40 awards were presented. The delicious lunch consisted of tomato and mozzarella salad, filet of beef, and a chocolate passionfruit dome dessert. The chocolate centerpieces adorned with a white chocolate GT logo were also a big hit! But the true highlight was Ivana Trump, guest of honor on behalf of The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Ms. Trump was gracious, generous and a real treat. The luncheon went off without a hitch and the day was wonderful. Check out our upcoming March issue for the complete recap and photos of the event. (You can also read about the award-winners in our December issue.) The time away in New York was also a great opportunity for the staff to get together and regroup. Everyone got a chance to meet the newest staffers, Morissa and Courtney. All the different departments of the magazine were able to meet and discuss – look for some exciting changes coming to the magazine and the Web site in the upcoming months. And, once again, we all had a chance to laugh, catch up and create stories that we will all be talking about for weeks to come. But all good things come to an end, and we are all back in our respective offices in Yardley, New York, Boston, Florida, Chicago and LA hard at work again. Check out Monday’s blog, the first written by the newest addition to the GT team – Courtney Centeno. Courtney joins us as a recent graduate from Mt. Holyoke and is working with Alex Young in New York as an account executive. Welcome Courtney! — Kimberly Krol, circulation and public relations executive