Posts Tagged ‘travel’

I can’t believe it has been so long since I posted on here. For those of you that haven’t given up on this blog of mine--thanks! And please understand it has not been ignored, but just shuffled aside while I’ve been doing some non-travel writing to pay the bills (along with decorating a new house, enjoying the summer sun and reading (the Game of Thrones series is addicting!)

So back to the writing to pay the bills thing… yes, you read this correctly! Whoo hoo–the dream is becoming a reality. However, the bills that would be fully paid by my writing thus far would maybe pay for a lightbulb to glow in a Barbie Dream House–but still, whoo hoo!

thats me, the blonde, showing off the lightbulb I was able to finance

But seriously — I have once again been writing for my local area newspapers and lately have had the pleasure to interview and write about local “heroes” that give of themselves to help those less fortunate.

I know, its not the 100% travel writing I set out to do but the other day I had the fortunate experience to speak with a Lonely Planet author (check out their guidebooks) that told me “most of us travel writers do non-travel writing to pay the bills.” While I see that is true, I wonder–in this dying print media world — will I ever make a career out of just travel writing?

Yes. Unequivocally, yes. But in the mean time, if I have the opportunity to do other writing that feels good, enriches others (and pays the bills) I will be perfectly content.

Trip Advisor, an essential website for any traveler regardless of your destination, just put out their “Top 25″ list for different regions of the World listing the locations where people say they want to go.

There are some obvious ones like Banff. Banff was voted #1 for Canada and if you haven’t been to Banff stop everything (after you finish reading this post) and book a trip there. Soon. Winter or summer–it doesn’t matter. There were also some interesting choices… Machu Picchu got #3 on the World list below Cape Town and Sydney? Hmmm, yeah… I’m not sure.

Me and Banff

Of course, I have an opinion on all of the rankings, but thats the point — opinon is what generated this survey. Here I choose to focus on the United States top 25 and rate them based on MY opinion.

Trip Advisor’s #1: New York City
Diana’s #1: New York City

NYC over the Hudson

No argument here. I am biased and if you don’t know of my love of this city please refer to my archives or at seenyc.com, the NYC travel site I write for. I love this city. Anything you want to do, want to see, want to eat, want to BE– NYC is the place. THE place.

Trip Advisor #2: Honolulu, Hawaii
Trip Advisor #3: San Francisco
Trip Advisor #4 Las Vegas
Trip Advisor #5 Lahaina, Hawaii (Maui)

Maui

Spoiler alert: Hawaii appears often in this top 25 list, but personally I would have put Lahaina at #2 behind NYC. Honolulu is nice, but the island of Maui offers less tourism and just as much to do.

I’d also put San Fran above Honolulu. What a fab city SF is and if you catch it on a sunny day as I did this past April, you’d be hard pressed finding another city that can beat the vibe SF gives.

Las Vegas. Well, for me, Vegas would be near the end of the list–if it even made the list. I do think everyone needs to see Vegas once, but there are so many cities in this country that deserve a much more serious look than Vegas.

Trip Advisor #6 Kona, HI
Trip Advisor #7 New Orleans
Trip Advisor # 8 San Diego, CA
Trip Advisor #9 Sedona

Wait — stop right there. I am ok with New Orleans being on the list and even in the top 10, and San Diego–I LOVE the La Jolla neighborhood, but for Sedona to rank lower… I’m not sure about that. Maybe its because I recently spent some time in Sedona and perhaps the beauty still has me hypnotized, but this eccentric town with the captivating scenery is easily in my top 5.

Sedona, AZ

Trip Advisor #10 Seattle
Trip Advisor #11 Anchorage, AK
Trip Advisor #12 Chicago
Trip Advisor #13 Boston

Being a Seattle native I can appreciate the beautiful mountains, the surrounding water and abundant supply of fleece jackets, but I still wonder: “Why do people vacation in Seattle?” The weather is TOO unpredictable and the sights to see can be done in a weekend. IF you have a desire to go to the Seattle area, stay for an afternoon and then head to Vancouver, BC. Trust me.

I am ok with the other 3 being in the top 25. Boston though—should be much higher. The history and walkability of the town is addicting.

Trip Advisor #14 Estes Park, CO
Trip Advisor #15 Washington DC
Trip Advisor #16 Poipu, HI (see—I told you Hawaii was on here a lot)
Trip Advisor #17 Orlando, FL

As we get to the bottom half of the list I think the locations are reaching to be part of the top 25 (I am surprised Portland, Or; Santa Cruz, Ca or Boise, Idaho aren’t on the list).

Colorado is great regardless of the city and I think I would have chosen Boulder for the top 25, but Estes Park is only an hour away and with 345+ sunny days a year how can you NOT want to live visit there? Ski, hike, shop, swim. Colorado is like Seattle, but less natural water and MUCH more sun.

Washington DC is great. History is #1 here but if you escape to the Georgetown area you really get a taste of DC–and in a good way.

Lincoln Memorial in DC

Orlando.
Apparently the top 25 for Trip Advisor was voted on by parents. Yes, Orlando is fun and I say that as a non-parent. But it is all Disney and while Disney is fun, Orlando IS Disney and that only goes so far.

Trip Advisor # 18 Big Sur, CA
Trip Advisor #19 Bar Harbor, Maine
Trip Advisor #20 Carmel, CA
Trip Advisor #21 Destin, FL

Two in California and Destin is a great getaway. My brother and sister-in-law in Dallas love the driving distance and white sand beaches–so I can see why Destin made the list. And Maine is neat. Just neat. Bar Harbor has been a top vacation spot since the 19th century.

Trip Advisor #22 Savannah, GA
Trip Advisor #23 Gatlinburg, TN
Trip Advisor #24 Miami Beach, FL
Trip Advisor #25 Myrtle Beach, SC

I was happy to see the South represented in the top 25. Savannah and Gatlinburg are NOT to be missed. Here you can get a taste of the real south. Grits anyone?
Miami Beach and Myrtle Beach are known more for their name than the place/experiences, but nonetheless, they do belong in the top 25. You can’t really go wrong with any city that has “beach” in the name.

Whether you agree or not with my comments, below is my ranking of the top 25 (using only cities on Trip Advisor’s top 25).
Let it be known that there are some major cities missing that would be on my Top 25–some I mentioned above but others are Austin, TX, Missoula, MT, Princeton, NJ and Key West.

Diana’s Top 25
1. New York City
2. Lahaina, HI
3. San Francisco
4. Sedona, AZ
5. New Orleans, LA

6. Boston, MA
7. Chicago, IL
8. San Diego, CA
9. Washington DC
10. Honolulu, HI

11. Savannah, GA
12. Estes Park, CO
13. Poipu, HI
14. Kona, HI
15. Big Sur, CA

16. Anchorage, AK
17. Bar Harbor, Maine
18. Destin, FL
19. Carmel, CA
20. Gatlinburg, TN

21. Miami Beach, FL
22. Myrtle Beach, SC
23. Seattle, WA
24. Orlando, FL
25. Las Vegas, NV

Tell me — what are your top cities in the US? Where am I wrong? Where am I right?

I am happy to re-proclaim my aspiring (and inspiring) travel writing career but I also have to do a little self promotion with my recent published articles at a newspaper in the greater New York City area. The paper—the Daily Record– covers the hub of New Jersey: Morris County (in Northern New Jersey about 25 miles outside of Manhattan).

I am happy and proud to be a freelance writer for this paper and lately my articles have consisted of interviews with bands that have been either new to me and/or prominent bands that are known for their ability to ROCK.

So is Rolling Stone next for me? YES! OF COURSE! Who knows! But my love of music combined with my love of travel— that can only mean one thing: Groupie! Music Road Trip!! Now if I can only convince my husband to agree to me having a VW bus again…

Here is my latest article on the legendary band Little Feat on their latest acoustic venture.

Little Feat

Stay tuned, especially if you are a fan of Western Swing, Gypsy Jazz and Traditional Irish Music!

I can’t take credit for the title of this post–but I can say there is a lot of truth to it. This statement was repeated many times in the form of bumper stickers throughout the island.

Like most islands off of major cities (Whidbey Island and Bainbridge Island near Seattle or Block Island in RI) the pace is slower, the roads are windier and the international way of telling time goes out the window in favor of “island time”.

Waiheke Island, a 50 minute ferry ride from the Auckland area is no exception. Being in the South Pacific, you can’t get much more islandy than this, but Waiheke doesn’t have the grass skirts or fruity coconut drinks like Hawaii or another tropical island might. Waiheke, although being an island and on island time, is pretty fancy shmancy.

Regardless of your agenda, on Waiheke you can find something to do whether it be hiking, surfing, laying on white sand beaches or visiting the 30 local wineries. As with Auckland, whatever activity you choose to partake in on the island, you will marvel at the cleanliness of the country and the friendliness of the people.

Waiheke (and New Zealand in general) produces vast quantities of wine that is distributed all over the World is and historically and consistently known for producing the best Sauvignon Blanc in the World. Wine is taken very seriously here.

In case I haven’t mentioned it yet in the recent NZ posts, the reason for our trip was to attend the wedding of our dear scuba diving buddies/world traveler/life long friends. After our initial tour around Auckland once arriving in NZ (see my previous posts here and here) we took the car ferry to Waiheke for a few days of beach, wine and relaxation (and a little hiking). NZ is a long way to go to get married — our friends live in California, us on the East Coast — but they were in the same mindset as we were when we got married in sunny Curacao; whoever wants to come can come, if not, thats fine too.

Their wedding was at the most beautiful winery on the island: Mudbrick. The restaurant and gorgeous gardens (complete with Olive orchards that many of the wineries here have) look out to the city of Auckland over the Hauraki Gulf. It was a serene setting for a perfect wedding and a beautiful bride–and the party after was pretty excellent!

Two other wineries we really enjoyed were Cable Bay (looking over the sheep filled countryside and seeing Auckland in the distance over the water offered a modern yet rustic image for us the wine tasters) and Te Whau that offered spectacular architecture and as you guessed–more stunning views. The day we were at Te Whau the grapes were actually being stomped on (is that the right term) and yes, with bare feet–but as we found out from our waitress — you have to be a young, pure woman to stomp the grapes–they don’t want tainted wine (I couldn’t help but think of the I Love Lucy episode… but I didn’t dare bring that up to the waitress).

At Te Whau on a windy day

For the budget traveler, well, I really don’t have too many tips for you at Cable Bay, Mudbrick or Te Whau. The prices were high; but the food, wine and views from the grounds were spectacular and well worth the money.
Click here for a website with all of the island’s wineries complete with pictures and descriptions.

So as far as the “being so far behind we are ahead” saying… I guess that is true about any island, but what I do know is that we felt rested and relaxed each day on Waiheke and I don’t think that was just because of the wine.

More pictures of Waiheke will be in my next post, but I wanted to point out a few things that really stuck out about this island for me, aside from the clean air, nice folks and anything else I have already mentioned prior.

1- The Beachfront Bar and Cafe has a buy 7 get the 8th free punchcard for coffee, beer or wine!? Genius.

2- Sheep are everywhere. This fact would be proven again and again on our trip but here, they seemed to multiple at every turn.

3- But as you can see, Emus and Llamas are also popular. Or are these Alpacas?

4- I don’t think crocodiles are really here… although that took convincing from my husband when we saw this sign after a long hike to a hidden bay (Crocs are in Australia right? And Australia is semi-close to NZ…).
Anyway, what this sign should have been warning people about was: “old man who lives in this remote area walks around at his leisure– naked,” ’cause that was the only thing I saw that was scary.

As I was roaming around the first garage sales of the season I saw many collections for sale. Pokemon cards, animal salt and pepper shakers and even rubber bands. I have never really collected anything since stickers when I was a kid (remember sticker books from the 80′s? Do those still exist? What an odd phenomenon that was…)

some actual stickers I had

Collections are a funny thing — attachment to items are and the insistence of on adding to and preserving the collection becomes an obsession. I said I haven’t really collected anything since I was a kid and that is true, except for my collection of Starbucks mugs.

I love to travel and aside from getting t-shirts from many locations I visit (wait, is that another “collection”)? Years ago I decided to acquire a Starbucks City mug in every city/country I visit. Many places I have visited don’t have Starbucks (which is fine–I think if I saw a Starbucks in Guanajuato, Mexico it would make me sad) so of course I do not own mugs from all the places I go, but I have acquired a pretty good collection. The city mugs have gone through re-designs over the years and I don’t collect a certain version or style — it just has to name the city.

Sadly some mugs I have acquired have met their demise from daily use.
Yes, unlike some collections, these mugs get used regularly — in fact this morning I drank coffee from “Zurich.” The mugs go through the dishwasher and sit on our regular mug shelf. Apparently these Starbucks mugs can actually be worth some money— certain cities are quite valuable— but I collect mine simply for me, to remind me of my travels.

*If any of my readers live in or visit the following places in the US or Canada listed below where I have been but either 1) did not find a mug or 2) had one that broke and you feel friendly, buy me one and I will send you the money plus postage via paypal!

Here are the cities I can think of at the moment:
Boulder
Calgary
Indianapolis
San Diego
Las Vegas
San Francisco
Paris
Rome
Barcelona
Montana (anywhere–not sure if they exist)
Idaho (anywhere — not sure if they exist)
Chattanooga
Orlando
Miami

I am happy to announce (again) and (still) so happy to be a part of the amazing mini-blog website that IS… NOMAD COURIER!!!

Check us out–me and 6 other nomads send our travel postcards to our courier who then tirelessly posts them on this site. Here are my latest entires (click the postcard to see the flip side)!

Thanks for the support!

To complement the NZ posts so far and yet to come here are some pictures that truly deserve a post of their own!

I saw this shop in Auckland. I think there was a small mistake in the translation or proof of a horrible cliche.

Love the street art.

Bon Jovi continues to be a constant presence in my daily life — check the license plate!!

Only a $1?

Mrs. Merlot — the resident cat at Te Whau Vineyard on Waiheke

As I write, this is my current view:

It is from our flat on Waiheke, an island off the coast of Auckland.
Waiheke is sometimes referred to as Wineheke for the amount of Vineyards and Wineries (a total of 30) scattered across the island. Before I get to the subject of this current paradise I am surrounded by, let me finish our adventures in Auckland.

We pretty extensively and without really stopping, toured the city by foot for nearly 3 full days. There were touristy must-do’s including heading to the top of the Sky Tower (think Space Needle) where we had the option to either:
1) embrace the adventurous spirit New Zealand is known for and bungee JUMP off

2) WALK the fenceless perimeter of the tower for a little less intense adventure with only a harness attaching you to the building or,

3) Safely stay inside behind the safety glass and look out at the 360-degree views like all of the other scaredy cats… and MAN were those some 360 degree views (you can guess which option we chose. I may be adventurous but I have my limits!)

As seen from the Sky Tower, Auckland has it all—mountains, the bay, the ocean, the city.
After seeing city sights from above we decided to head out again on foot to see these same sights up close.

Albert Park, a lush green oasis in the center of town is where the city campus of Auckland University is located; Queen St. is the main part of town with tons of shopping; the waterfront claims the largest marina in NZ (actually one of the largest in all of the Southern Hemisphere) and has some of the most luxurious private sailboats I’ve ever seen including the America’s Cup yachts and the factory that builds them; the Auckland Museum with extensive material on the Maori people and culture that is native to New Zealand; and great bars and restaurants all along Quay (pronounced “Key”) Street. Quay St. was also the starting point for my daily “urban runs” that took me through many of these same areas before I met my husband at our “regular” coffee shop (the girl at the coffee shop thought we lived in Auckland since I seemed so casual (read: sweaty) about stopping by after running. You know you made it when you’re mistaken for a local.

an Americas Cup sailboat

Because we are still messed up on time (by the way—thanks day light savings for coming while we were gone—it is easier to “spring ahead” on holiday) and since time seems to actually go slower here, we had sufficient time to tour Auckland and add it to the “Yeah, I could live here” list.

After Auckland we were off to the outer limits we decided to head outside of the city limits.

Like most cities, when you leave the metro area it feels like you are in a different country, which is exactly how we felt when we hopped in the car and headed south of Auckland City. The terrain went from reminding me of Vancouver to reminding me of Hawaii. Dormant volcanoes covered in various types of trees, red lava sand beaches (Piha is gorgeous) and narrow winding roads through cow and sheep pastures had us in disbelief that we were really only 40 min away from Auckland.

Piha

We had about three hours to roam this country before catching the car ferry to Wahike for even more scenery changes…

to be continued…

We embarked on our trip from our home in the Northern Hemisphere to what we refer to as opposite land. After traveling 18 hrs (not counting our 3 hour layover in LA) we made it to Auckland at 7am on Saturday—where it is summer—while at home it was still 1pm on Friday in Winter. That international date line can really mess with your mind if you think about it too much so we’re just going with the flow and know that when we leave Auckland days from now at 6pm on a Sunday we will arrive home at 7am—that same Sunday.

See—you are thinking about it aren’t you?

All in all, the trip to NZ went off without a hitch. As much as I preach about having a “positive mental attitude” and to “just go with the flow,” there is something to be said about expecting the absolute worst and since that is a natural trait of my husband when it comes to airlines (who can blame him really?) that is what we did and as history has shown—for us anyway– we were pleasantly surprised.

To state a fact most won’t disagree with: flying in the US is a pain. There aren’t many nice things to say about any of the airlines these days. Put aside the bag charges and the blanket hoarding or the $5 headset rentals for a VHS movie they OWN, there are many things about flying that will cause immediate headaches.

With that said, our flight to LA was forgettable. In fact, I do forget it. That is troubling actually. I seriously do not remember anything about it. Maybe because it was like 3 days ago even though I am still wearing the same clothes as when I got on that flight (PS: I am going on being awake for nearly like 8 days [more like 2 not counting the small interrupted naps I managed on the plane] so please forgive any attitude this post may be tainted with.

ANYWAY— as we boarded the Air New Zealand flight we were of course skeptical and expected the worst. Because we chose not to pay $14,000 dollars for “premier economy” seats (an actual price), we chose seats in the regular “oh that flight is going to suck in economy” economy section. Expecting the worst, I rolled my jeans up (you know how those airplane bathroom floors get—gross!) and repeated aloud to my husband like it were a bible verse the every 3-hour exercise regiment I devised consisting mainly of deep knee bends in the aisle to avoid blood clots and sore joints.

I am sure you can imagine our delight when our hardened faces and the stink eye I was giving my seat mate (not to my husband–I was in the middle seat and the guy on my right was sort of big) began to slowly dissipate and we found ourselves laughing at the very well done safety video played on all of the TV seat backs. The “star” was a kiwi puppet (kiwi being the NZ mascot) and he poked fun at the “fancy shamncey” first class people who didn’t have to raise their seatbacks for take off and the really funny part when he had issues with his inflatable oxygen mask—wait, why were we laughing at that?

My point is, from the minute we got on that flight and realized our legroom was ample enough, the food being better than prison grade and the over 200 different movies and TV shows available to watch for free on the seatbacks (complete with remote control)—the flight from LA to Auckland was a breeze. The sleep meds we took I’m sure played a supporting role, but not much—clearly since we only got about 5 hours of sleep through the entire day. Or days?
Air New Zealand is my new favorite airline. I wonder if they’d consider flying domestically in the US…

Wow-Tuesday came around fast this week!! Sorry for posting a day late, but here is this weeks Travel Tuesday photo!

While in Belize a few years ago I had the experience of witnessing this boat sail (barely) into the vicinity of population near the hotel I was staying. The boat passengers: 12 Cuban residents roaming the ocean for 16 days, with little to no navigation capabilities and minimal water.

All 12 people survived, but were severely dehydrated and weak. The makeshift sails (on what clearly was a row boat modified to try and withstand high waves) were detached and torn and the floatation devices strapped to the sides, to help keep the boat from tipping, were actually old tire inner-tubes patched with materials that looked to have come from a bike tire patch kit. Inside the small boat were only a few signs that life had existed: scattered empty water bottles, a few blue tarps and some random black dress socks.

This is not the first incident of Belize welcoming Cuban’s escaping to freedom– Belize seems to be on the path of the ocean current from Cuba. The Belize people aid the refugees that survive these trips–they do not send them back or notify Cuban authorities.

It was a very interesting moment of contemplation for me. I couldn’t imagine being in the situation of boarding a rickety boat, leaving all of my possessions, my country, my friends and family behind–risking my life hoping to survive to start a new life. Whenever I feel that my life is not going the way I want it to–I look at this photo and remember how fortunate I am.