WHAT IS THE MOST REWARDING WAY TO TRAVEL? WELL, THAT IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER BUT I CAN TELL YOU THAT ONE SOLO TRIP IN YOUR LIFETIME IS A NECESSITY!
I recently read an article from Afar Magazine entitled, 10 reasons why you should travel solo, and I totoally agree with each reason. In my most recent past life...aka when I living in Virginia...I met not just a few but several people who didn't even believe traveling was important. And who knows, you may believe that too, but I feel it is my duty to share with the world that the most rewarding way to travel is in the eye of the beholder.
To me the most rewarding way to travel used to be solo and some of my most beloved memories have come from the trips where I was out in the world on my own. BUT NOW now that I am married with a son I want to travel with my family...most of the time that is.
I am not going to preach to you about why solo traveling is the most rewarding because I am sure you can already imagine the life lessons that would be learned upon the way.
WHAT I DO WANT TO DO IS MAKE YOU UNDERSTAND THAT ANY TRAVEL IS THE MOST REWARDING WAY TO TRAVEL AND I WILL DO THAT BY SHARING THE TOP 10 THINGS TRAVELING WILL TEACH YOU.
It teaches you to save month
It teaches you how to live outside your comfort zone
It teaches you how to make friends
It teaches you that the world is not just what is broadcasted on the news
It teaches you culture
It teaches you no regrets
It teaches you to loosen up and live
It teaches you more about who you are in one week than you have ever known about yourself.
It teaches you that maybe...just maybe...you don't need to be on a schedule 24/7/365.
It teaches you patience, generosity, the ability to listen, the ability to contribute, and how to be appreciative.
NO MATTER WHAT BRANCH OF THE SERVICE YOU ARE IN, IF YOU ARE A MILITARY SPOUSE, OR A RETIRED VETERAN GO OUT AND TRAVEL. GO FIND THE MOST REWARDING WAY TO TRAVEL FOR YOURSELF AND THEN DON'T STOP....
CHECK OUT THESE 6 GREAT TIPS ON HOW TO FLY WITH CHRISTMAS PRESENTS TO LESSEN THE BURDEN THIS HOLIDAY SEASON!
The great debate is here again...to ship or fly....that is the question?!?!?!! And the answer is truly up to you because it really depends on how many gifts you have, their weight and which airline you are flying with. If you are considering putting them in your suitcase please keep reading to learn how to fly with Christmas presents for a much less hectic travel experience!
1. TO WRAP OR NOT WRAP, THAT IS THE QUESTION
While wrapped gifts are allowed on both carry on and checked luggage, you are far more likely to have TSA open a wrapped gift then not. If you are like me and are super meticulous about your wrap job, I would wait until you reach your destination to avoid all your hard work being thrown down the drain. But, if you do want to wrap ahead of time they will be far less likely to be opened when in your checked luggage as opposed to your carry on. Just always remember, NEVER put anything of value or something irreplaceable in your checked luggage. If the item is stolen, damaged, or lost, you will have little recourse.
2. FLYING WITH A VALUABLE OR IRREPLACEABLE GIFT
This is simple, carry it on yourself. The only way to make sure it is not lost, stolen, or damaged is to have it with you at all times. Pack it in the smallest carry on bag that you are bringing with you that way you won't be forced to gate check it if the overhead bins are full or God forbid ship it via a shipping service!
3. FRAGILE AND OVERSIZED GIFTS
So what if your gifts aren't necessarily valuable, but they are fragile. Bubble wrap....lots of bubble wrap or anything that you can wrap the gift in for protection. Layering your clothes are the item etc will work and this does work, but if you are transporting wine or liquids I would suggest something a little heftier.
*Make your life easier and just don't travel with fragile gifts....its a headache.
Talking from experience, an over weight or over sized bag can cost between $200 -$400 roundtrip so check your airline's website for their baggage allowance before arriving at the airport to avoid being shell shocked at the ticket counter. You need to decide if you are willing to turn the $50 item into a hundreds of dollars gift or could you take a pic of it for Christmas morning and let the person have it when they get home.
4. GIFTS THAT DON'T BELONG ON A CARRY ON
Ok folks, lets use common sense here so we can avoid the embarrassment of a full body search in security. Toys that look like weapons are an obvious NO. Also, any foods that are liquid or even semi-liquid are a no no too (ex. jams). Large items such as hockey sticks, baseball bats, ski poles etc are allowed, but they seriously are not a good idea because they could be used a weapon. While it is highly unlikely, you don't want to be the person who brought onboard the weapon that knocked out a stewardess....just saying.
And I have to mention an item that people do not think would be a problem but will be on of the highest ranked items confiscated this month - snow globes. If they contain more than 3.4 ounces of liquid TSA will take it because it technically is a liquid item and we all know that TSA shows no mercy when you tell them it is for your elderly grandmother.
5. GIFTS YOU RECEIVE THAT NEED TO GO HOME
Before you ever leave for your destination find a super sturdy duffel bag that you can use as an additional piece of luggage on your return flight if you think you will receive more gifts than what will fit in your first checked bag. Then, transfer all your clothes, shoes, and non-breakable items to the duffle and pack your gifts in your suit case since it is more protective than the duffle.
6. SHIPPING VS FLYING
Ok, the great debate! Generally speaking, though, the major domestic airlines charge about $50 roundtrip for one piece of checked luggage that weighs up to 50 pounds, about $70 roundtrip for a second piece of checked luggage that weighs up to 50 pounds, and more for bags that exceed 50 pounds or are oversized. So do the math. Say you’ve got 50 pounds’ worth of gifts. The cost to take them with you on the plane might be an extra $50 to $70. Shipping them ahead via FedEx Ground for 5-day delivery might also cost about $70 (depending on how far you're sending them)…and could save you a sore back and hours spent waiting in an airport check-in line. In most cases it will probably be smarter to avoid checking luggage and ship gifts, as long as you can ship by December 17 and thus avoid the high cost of shipping by air. FedEx Ground includes insurance and tracking, and you can purchase extra insurance, too. Let me put it this way: In most cases you’re better off if FedEx loses something of yours than if an airline does.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE, WE HOPE YOU ARE SAFE, SOUND AND ENJOYING DELICIOUS FOOD TODAY!
In light of the many folks traveling for the holidays, I wanted to share with you this article written for the NY Times by JULIE BOSMAN, RICHARD PÉREZ-PEÑA, EMMA G. FITZSIMMONS and JAD MOUAWAD documenting interviews of travelers in airports on how they feel about our nation's security level. Many of the people traveling are basically saying F U to ISIS. I hope that as you travel over the holidays you do so educated, aware, and safely.
CHICAGO — The State Department has issued a chilling worldwide travel alert, warning travelers that the threat of terrorism looms large. Cable news and Twitter carry round-the-clock breaking news of bombings and attacks around the world. Police officers patrol major airports with bomb-sniffing dogs and carry intimidating weapons like shotguns and AR-15s.
Yet on Tuesday, little of it seemed to matter to the millions of Americans who were determined to fly during Thanksgiving week, arriving at airports with blasé attitudes and shrugs about the possibility of terrorism at home.
“I didn’t think about it,” said John Barragan, a 41-year-old real estate executive from Chicago, as he prepared to board his flight at O’Hare International Airport. “I’m just like, man, what’s going to happen is going to happen.”
In interviews at airports around the country, travelers said they were well aware of the attacks, and some even admitted to a degree of fear. But they said they had calculated that the risk was remote, and they were determined not to let it alter their lives.
At Kennedy International Airport in New York, Campbell McDougal, 55, said he had avoided large crowds on his 10-day trip with his girlfriend to New York. They had touched down from Berlin just hours after the Paris attacks, and it brought caution to their travels, especially with more tourist-centric sites.
“Flights have always been an issue,” he said. “But they’re always stringent with security. Paris was on my mind last week, but not in terms of my flight.”
At La Guardia Airport, Jonathan Zwerling, who had flown in from Atlanta with his 2-year-old daughter, said he had seen the warnings to be more aware of his surroundings than usual, and noted the airport’s version of seasonal trimmings: a police officer with an AR-15 assault rifle, and another with a shotgun.
“My wife was real worried,” said Mr. Zwerling, 45, an aircraft maintenance worker for Delta Air Lines. “I just kind of do my thing.”
Throughout the holiday week, the nation’s railroads and highways will have heightened security. New York’s police commissioner, William J. Bratton, said that with mild weather expected, there could be record crowds for the Thanksgiving parade — and record security to go with it, including, for the first time, about 200 newly trained officers from the Police Department’s Critical Response Command, a new counterterrorism squad.
Amtrak said it would also have a heightened police presence in the coming days. AAA predicted that 42 million people in this country would drive 50 miles or more over the long holiday weekend, a small increase from last year.
But vigilance will be most apparent at airports. Travelers have plenty to be jittery about: the attacks in Paris that killed 130, the downing of a Russian airliner in Egypt that killed 224, the bombing in Beirut that killed 43 — all claimed by the Islamic State — and warnings of a planned attack in Belgium.
Well over two million passengers are expected to board a flight each day during the Thanksgiving holiday period, which began Friday and runs through next Tuesday, the highest figure since 2007 and 3 percent more than last year, according to a forecast by Airlines for America, the industry trade group. United Airlines said it was adding more than 2,200 flights over that period, especially early in the morning and late at night, when many aircraft would usually be idle.
Changes will be obvious at airports in the United States, including longer waits, travel experts say. Travelers with the Transportation Security Administration’s PreCheck program, which allows frequent travelers to speed up the security screening, have been advised that they may be asked submit to procedures they can usually skip, like taking off their shoes, said Henry Harteveldt, the founder of the Atmosphere Research Group.
At Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, one of the world’s busiest, “we’re in a hyper-state of vigilance,” said Reese McCranie, an airport spokesman. He said that the increased police presence would be noticeable and that passengers should arrive earlier than usual to contend with long security lines.
Arnold Barnett, an aviation safety expert and a professor at M.I.T., said security lines at airports could be slower than usual this week. Since the Islamic State claimed that it had used a soda can for the bomb that brought down the plane in Egypt, agents might be more focused on monitoring liquids, Mr. Barnett said.
Photo
An Amtrak police officer watched passengers board a train on Tuesday at Pennsylvania Station in New York.CreditTimothy A. Clary/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
Few travelers appear to be unsettled enough to cancel their flights. Allianz Global Assistance, an insurer, said it had seen an increase in calls from travelers who were interested in buying insurance to protect international trips, in particular, and some cancellations after the Paris attacks. Yet even for travel to cities that have been targeted, there is only scattered evidence of a travel decline.
“I think people are refusing to be terrorized,” said George Hobica, the founder of airfarewatchdog.com, a travel website. “There have been no panic or fire sales. Airfares have not gone down to Paris or even to Brussels. You’d think no one wants to go anymore. But it still costs about $1,200 to fly there from Chicago or San Francisco.”
But some travelers, as they made their way through airports on Tuesday, admitted that they were a little worried.
At Los Angeles International Airport, Cynthia Diaz, 45, an accounts receivable supervisor, was headed to Boise, Idaho, to visit her partner’s family. “I was little bit nervous this morning when I thought about it,” she said.
Christian Miller, a 29-year-old flight attendant for Shuttle America, said the Paris attacks made her change the ritual prayer she says before every takeoff.
Usually she prays for God to send six angels to her plane — two to carry the front and back, two for the big wings, and a pair for the top and bottom. Then she asks God to ease the troubles on the minds of any of her passengers. For more than a week now, since she received pleading text messages and phone calls from family members scared for her safety, she has added extra emphasis to that last part.
“I pray, ‘If someone is feeling like they need to be violent, let my smile maybe change something in their heart,’ ” said Ms. Miller, who lives in Atlanta. “It’s tough; we’re at a tender place now not only for America, but for the universe.”
On Tuesday morning at O’Hare, travelers were greeted with a surprisingly cheerful tableau: moderate crowds, short security lines, strings of sparkling holiday lights and, in one terminal, a table where airline employees handed out free cups of steaming apple cider and coffee.
In the international terminal, as passengers arrived to board flights to Seoul, South Korea; Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; New Delhi; and Hong Kong, one traveler said he had few worries about flying so soon after the attacks in Paris.
“Everything is O.K.,” said Michiel Wehbeh, a 55-year-old engineer from Syria, who splits his time between Chicago and the United Arab Emirates. “Security is a must, as it should be. But I have confidence that everything will be fine.”
Maurice Nguiffo, a 41-year-old taxi driver, said he was worried about flying in light of terrorism fears around the globe. But he felt he had to keep his plans to go to Montreal, where he would reunite with family, who would then fly with him to Cameroon.
“We are not comfortable flying,” he said. “But sometimes you don’t have a choice. I want to see my family.”
View the full story on The NY Times official site - Happy Thanksgiving and be safe!
WHY DO WE CELEBRATE THANKSGIVING AND WHERE DID WE GET ALL OF OUR TRADITIONS FROM??
WELL, FORGET EVERYTHING YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW ABOUT THANKSGIVING BECAUSE THESE MYTH BUSTERS WILL SET YOU STRAIGHT.
Thanksgiving myths busted: When the Mayflower pilgrims and the Wampanoag (native american tribe) sat down for the first Thanksgiving in 1621, it wasn’t actually that big of a deal. Likely, it was just a routine English harvest celebration that did not involve religion, family, or turkey. We also know very little about the first Thanksgiving, that is why our government did not establish it as a national holiday until the 19th century, during the Civil War to be exact by Abraham Lincoln. So in short, we have developed our own traditions over the years and just assumed they came from the original breaking of bread.
1. THANKSGIVING MYTHS: THANKSGIVING MEANS GORGE ON FOOD
Wrong. To Pilgrims a "thanksgiving" was a time of powerful fasting and they actually never used such a word to describe their meal in the letter written by pilgrim Edward Winslow. Alexander Young published a book containing the letter and called it their "first Thanksgiving" in the footnotes and the word stuck.
2. THANKSGIVING MYTHS: THEY WERE THE FIRST SETTLERS
Little did the pilgrims know, Cape Cod and Plymouth were well populated communities before they got there. Europeans who sailed there in the mid to early 1610's found flourishing communities along the coast, but by 1620 when they Mayflower arrived, the area looked abandoned. Just a couple of years before they arrived an epidemic wiped out most of the coastal population so what the pilgrims thought to be undiscovered land was actually just a cemetery.
3. THANKSGIVING MYTHS: PILGRIMS ATE TURKEY
What did the Pilgrims eat at their Thanksgiving meal? Well they certainly didn't eat apples, pears, green beans or even cranberries. No one knows if they even had turkey, the only food we know they had for sure was deer. We have adapted our Thanksgiving menu off what the Victorians ate for their first Thanksgiving and subsequently attributed it to the pilgrims.
Even though many of our beliefs have come from falsehood, I still consider Thanksgiving a wonderful holiday because it makes the entire nation spend time thinking about what we are thankful for and forces us to get together with family. We have so much to be thankful for and if anything good comes from the holiday is that it makes us recognize all the good we have in our lives.
