travelwriter

Dave Freeman, the 47-year-old co-author of the unusual travel guide ‘100 Things to do Before You Die: Travel Events You Just Can’t Miss’ has died at his home in California.

Freeman’s goal was to travel the world experiencing the adventurous side of travel.  Some of the 100 items in his list included doing a vine bungee jump in the South Pacific, going on a voodoo pilgrimage to Haiti, the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, and the Nude Night Surfing Contest in Australia. 

Originally published in 1999, co-author of the book, Neil Teplica, said that the book’s “title meant you should live every day like it would be your last.” 

Ironically, Freeman died at home after falling and hitting his head.  A family spokesperson said that Freeman had completed about half the list. 

Southwest Airlines (WN) announced earlier this week that they will follow other domestic USA carriers by eliminating flights to reduce overall costs.

Being attributed to rising fuel costs and a downturn in the US economy, WN will be cutting almost 200 flights by January 2009 which is roughly 6% of the airlines 3,400 daily flights.  WN plans to accomplish this by reducing frequency of flights and not eliminating flight routes entirely.

The only US airline to report a profit so far in 2008, WN provides service to passengers in 60 US cities and will continue with its plans to partner with Canada’s WestJet airline which will provide an international flight link starting in 2009.

Destination of the week: Spokane, WA

Where?  The second largest city in Washington state, Spokane (Spo-can) is located in the inland Pacific Northwest and is populated with approximately 205,000 people.

Why Visit?  It’s a great city to visit – not too big, not too small – there’s definitely something for everyone.  Spokane is home to the Lilac Bloomsday Run with over 50,000 participants and it’s also home to Hoopfest, the largest annual 3-on-3 basketball tournament in the world.

When?  Spring, summer and fall for warmer temperatures and the winter months for skiing & sports.

Sightseeing?

•         Riverfront Park with the Expo 74’ Pavilion and giant Red Ryder Wagon

•           Spokane Falls Skyride

•          Finch Arboretum

•          Riverside State Park

•          Manito Park

•          Bing Crosby Memorabilia Room

•          Japanese Cultural Center

Travel Tips?  Make your hotel reservations in advance as rooms tend to fill up quickly with Canadians shopping for bargains.

Nightlife?  Try your luck at the Northern Quest Casino or check out the Big Easy for live concerts.

Shopping?  Northtown Mall or Spokane Valley Mall, plus River Park Square in downtown Spokane.

Dining?  Both Spokane favourites, try Cyrus O’Leary’s or C.I. Shinanigan’s.

Hotels?  The Oxford Suites offer good rates and a very nice complimentary breakfast daily.  The Davenport Hotel has recently been brought back to life as well has the Montvale Hotel.

Transportation?  If you want to go to Northtown and the Spokane Valley Mall, you’ll need to be driving.  The bus service is great but can be time consuming.

According to a recent report by the American Automobile Association (AAA), bus and train traffic for the Labour Day weekend is expected to increase dramatically.

The AAA is predicting that 83% of the total 28.6 million people who will be travelling in the USA on Labour Day weekend will be driving to their destination, which is actually a decrease of 1.1% from last year.  This figure could have been higher but due to the recent drop in gas prices, many people will still opt to drive their own vehicles.

The AAA is also predicting that less than 4 million people are expected to travel by air, which is a further decrease of 4.5% from last year.

In sharp contrast, the AAA is forecasting a 12.5% increase in the number of people expected to take the bus or train this Labour Day weekend.  This type of travel is convenient, economical and takes the worry out of travel for most passengers.  (See Canadian Greyhound Bus story)

Given the above, many USA families will instead be choosing the very popular ‘staycation’ this holiday weekend – where they simply stay at home and don’t travel at all in order to save money.

Okay, so this upcoming long Labour Day Weekend might be your last summer hoorah so you may as well make your flight go as smoothly as possible, right?  Follow these tips and you’ll be flying high.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) reminds airline passengers of “three simple steps to security.”

1.  1. Show your ID and your boarding pass. Don’t wait until you get to the front of the line to look for them.  Have them in your hand and for heavens sake, don’t put them down.  We don’t want everyone including security looking for them.

2.  2. Take out liquids (in a Ziploc) and laptops.  Remember to use the 3-1-1 rule for liquids:  3 ounce bottles or less, 1 quart size clear Ziploc bag, and 1 bag per person.  Drinking that bottle of water before you go through security will make things a lot easier.  Laptops need to be taken out of their cases and placed in a separate security bin.

3.  3. Take off shoes and jackets.  As your mother would say, make sure you’re wearing clean socks and make sure they’re the ones without the holes.

If you have any questions, check out the ‘Things You Should Know’ at the TSA website here.

Have a great long weekend!  Take care,

Connie

The Oregon Zoo in Portland is pleased to announce the newest member of its family born on Saturday – a baby boy elephant weighing in at a very healthy 286 pounds.

Unfortunately, almost immediately after birth, his 13 year old mother, Rose-Tu, showed aggression towards the baby by repeatedly kicking him.  Zoo officials had to separate the pair in fear for his safety.

The anguished elephant baby has been ‘crying’ ever since by letting out constant calls to his mother.  Zoo officials are doing their best to reintroduce the pair and have been hand rearing him until he can be reunited to get his much needed mother’s milk.

Open 7 days a week and for over 100 years, the Oregon Zoo has been promoting wildlife conservation to its visitors.  For only $9.75 per adult, this makes for a great family day out.

Now this is my kind of vacation.  Beautiful beaches, parties, and the gorgeous French Riviera – all in Paris.

Debuting in 2001, the 7^th annual Paris Plage (beach) opened in July along the banks of the famous river Seine.

Central Paris roads are closed to traffic until mid-August and over 4 tonnes of sand are brought in to make up the ‘beaches’ of the Seine.  Add some palm trees, deck chairs, and umbrellas along the 3 kilometre beach strip accompanied by concerts, sports and DJs spinning their music and you’ve got the perfect staycation for Parisians.

A staycation is where people opt to stay at home and vacation instead of burdening themselves with the expense of an actual vacation.  With the high costs of fuel, both driving and flying can be costly.

The Paris Plage staycation was the idea of Paris’s Mayor Bertrand Delanoe and has since been copied by other European cities.  Over 4 million people enjoyed the beaches of Paris last year alone.

Earlier this morning, on a flight from Bishkek, Kyrgystan, to Tehran, Iran, an Itek Air (GI) flight crashed shortly after take-off killing 65 of the 83 passengers and 9 crew members onboard.

Only 10 minutes into the flight, the captain declared an emergency landing due to the sudden loss of cabin pressure.  As the Boeing 737 aircraft was returning to the airport it crashed six miles short of the Manas International Airport.  The plane then caught fire and became engulfed in flames. 

Emergency crews were immediately dispatched to help fight the blazing fire.  The reported 25 survivors were taken to hospital; all others are reported to have perished onboard.

It has also been reported that Itek Air has been banned from flying in the European Union (EU) because of failure to meet safety standards as of this past July.

Officials are investigating. 

Located at the foot of the Sierra Madre Mountains on the Pacific Coast and founded in the early 1500’s, Oaxaca is rich in history.  This colonial city offers some of Mexico’s most beautiful architecture including the impressive Zapotec ruins.

In recent years, Oaxaca has gained popularity with tourists looking for more than the average Mexican beach vacation.  With only 4 rooms, the Casa Cid de Leon boutique hotel is offering a Two for Two special valid until October 20, 2008.

Guests that stay two nights will receive two complimentary cocktails from the hotel bar, two snacks from the hotel restaurant and two full breakfasts.  Rates for this gorgeous hotel start at $200 USD per night.  To make reservations from the USA and Canada, contact the hotel at 1-800-728-9098. 

United Airlines (UA) announced today that effective October 1, 2008, on all flights between Washington, D.C. (IAD) and Europe, complimentary meals in Economy Class will be replaced by buy-on-board ‘fresh food’ and ‘snack box’ offerings.

‘Fresh food’, according to UA is either:

1.    Cheese & crackers, fresh fruit, yogurt and your choice of a mini banana loaf, or a raspberry breakfast cake, or an apple Danish

2.    Or dried fruit and your choice of 3 salads

3.    Or a bag of chips and your choice of 3 sandwiches

The ‘fresh food’ goes for $9 USD per.  I think I’d be checking out the fast food restaurants before boarding.  Trust me, Cinnabon always makes for a lovely smelling cabin and fellow passengers that glare in envy.

The ‘snack box’ comes in a variety of confusing combinations:

1.    Chips, cheese spread, granola, pears, pastry, candy & mints

2.    Or cheese spread, salami, chips, crackers, applesauce & cookies

3.    Or rib cuts (don’t ask), chips, salsa, trail mix & cookies

4.    Or tuna, crackers, hummus, pita chips, cheese, raisins & Toblerone

The ‘snack box’ goes for only $6 USD.  But here’s the catch:  UA snack box varieties may not be available on all flights so you might be stuck with the rib cuts. 

And they’re only available on flights that depart before 8:00 p.m. and that are 3 or more hours in length as well as any flights longer that 5 hours. 

So, check your watch, pre-pack your food and you’ll be set.  And why just Washington, D.C.?   By the time you’ve finished reading this blog, I’ll bet it will be more departure cities, more airlines…all in the name of saving a buck.  Hey, didn’t the airlines hear that fuel prices are going down?!!