Pack This....

Just found a new luggage/packing product! Eagle Creek Folders and Cubes.

My friend just went to Europe and when I went to her house to pick her up she was just finishing packing. Her suitcase looked amazing! So organized and it looked like she barely had anything in there. Plenty of room for souvenirs!

Now, granted I have learned to pack lighter. I used to use the big suitcase for every trip. However, now that you pay for checking bags at the airport (and the fact that lugging a huge suitcase around big cities is NOT fun), I have learned to use the small rolling suitcase you don't have to check. Needless to say, I am excited to try out these products.

They are a bit pricy. Ranging from $24-$35 each. I bought one for now and may add to my collection.

Here is the Packing Folder:

You use the folding template shown in the picture above to fold your shirts/pants/etc. This makes sure they are folded neatly and in the same size. Once you have the clothes stacked in the middle, you put the template on top and close the folder tight. So, all of your clothes are inside the folder. They have 4 different sizes. Each size holds different amounts of clothes. My friend had 2 sizes. So all that was in her suitcase clothes wise were these 2 folders. Nice and compact.

They also have other products such as packing cubes. Packing cubes are good for such things as socks, underwear, undershirts, etc. They have tons of different sizes. I got one like the picture below. You can get these products at specialty luggage stores or The Container Store.

There are tons of other fun luggage goodies out there too. Sleeves for your shoes so you keep your luggage clean. Small containers so you can put your favorite products in them instead of bringing your full size products. Toiletry bags for organizing. And many, many more! I wish I could buy them all! I love luggage stuff!!!

I will let you know how my new packing folder/cube works the next time I pack for a trip.

What are your favorite packing tips??

Mom Boss Approved

So, Mom Boss approved my time off in November!!! Yayyy!

I was soooooo excited when she told me.

I don't know what I'm going to be doing but I do know I will not be working and I WILL be doing something fun. A whole 4-5 days of fun.

Excited Excited Excited.

Workaholic's Don't Travel!

So, I would not really consider myself a career girl. I am not aiming to become some top Executive. I don't have awesome girl power career goals. HOWEVER.....I do take my job very seriously. When I'm there, I'm 100%. I try very hard to do a really great job. I take pride in my work. I try to be organized. I want to learn new things. I research if I don't know how to do something. I want to fully understand what my job is. I want my bosses and colleagues to think of me as a key player. I stay late and work weekends if need be to make sure my work is taken care of. All of those good things. But like I said. No grand career aspirations.

I do enjoy my hectic job. This new job is an extension of what I was doing at my previous job. Adding to that, a whole new accounting side. Plus a little bit of this and a little bit of that. Throw in many meetings and there you have it. I also have the whole commute thing which adds about 3 hours to my day.

My main boss (who we call 'Mom') just reassigned all of our upcoming groups. Long story short, we got assigned to specific managers and we will now take on their specific groups. Well, my 2 assigned managers just happen to be VERY busy in the next few months and the beginning of next year. So, their groups will now be my groups. Plus I have my own groups. Also will still have a few groups I have kept from other managers that I was already involved in. Starting in the next few days, I will be slammed until November 19!! I will have one week of freedom and then more groups until December 14. I have not had a day off (minus the weekends) since my New York trip in January! Not even one day. Boo hoo!

So, what is my point??!! My point is....I need to ask Mom Boss for a few days off during that week so I can for sure take a little trip! I need to ask her NOW before she assigns another group to me during that week. So that's the plan. Mom Boss is crazy busy right now, but I think the sooner I ask her, the better. I may sneak my request on her desk tomorrow. Wish me luck!!!!

By the way. I'm thinking this may be a good time for that Chicago trip I've been wanting to do. Thoughts?

Sincerely,
LA Working Girl

Online Travel Tip

Hi Travel Peeps!

Just thought I'd share a website I use to check flight prices when I'm researching a trip. I use http://www.kayak.com/ . You just load your dates and destinations and it searches direct airlines and a bunch of discount websites such as Priceline, Expedia, Cheap Tickets, etc. When it's done searching, you end up seeing all of the available flight options. This lets you know which website offers the cheapest rate. Once you've selected the flight you want, just click on the one you would like to book and it takes you directly to the website offering that rate. You are not purchasing your tickets through Kayak. Kayak is just your "search engine".

I absolutely love this site. It's so much easier and faster than my previous ways of searching. Me, being the careful shopper, used to check all of the different websites on my own. This just makes it so much easier.

Sometimes when you select your dates, you will notice a pop up calender on the right which shows the cheapest dates to travel to your destination within your travel month. This helps if you are flexible on your dates.

Try it out and let me know how you like it!
http://www.kayak.com/

Good Night Globe Trotters!!

Madame Tussauds- London

Madame Tussauds- London, England

A fun place to see if you have some extra time in London is Madame Tussauds wax museum. Entrance is about 25 pounds but the museum is so much fun. I thought it was quite worth it. So did my friends. I could barely drag them out of it to see the rest of the London sites! :-)http://www.madametussauds.com/

Madame Tussauds also have locations in Las Vegas, Washington DC, NYC, etc. I have been to the Vegas one and that one is smaller but still really fun.

Each Madame Tussauds location has different sports, political, musical, television and movie celebrities. The fun thing about this wax museum is that you get to pose with them and take as many pictures you want. You can be "interviewed" by Oprah, hug Brad Pitt, stare into George Clooney's eyes, etc. You will see a few examples below. :-)

They also have tv's showing how they make the wax figures. When they have the celebrity there, every inch of their body is measured, perfect eyes are matched, hair is matched, etc. So much detail is involved in one of these. It really is amazing.

So if you ever see a Madame Tussauds and have some extra time, definitely check it out!!

********

Getting There by Tube:

2 Minute walk from the Baker Street underground station.

**Tip: You can get discount tickets if you purchase your tickets online.

********

Check out some of my fun pics:

Me & William. I know, he's super tall!! (i'm not short!)

Running from Harrison Ford! (& charlie chaplin....& someone wearing feathers)

Saved the best for last.....

Me & George! <3>

Check out some of my previous London blogs:

http://christinamg.blogspot.com/2008/05/london.html

http://christinamg.blogspot.com/2008/06/excerps-from-travel-journal.html

Where to stay in London?

I love London! I could definitely live there. London has always been my "hub" while traveling in the Europe/UK area. I always fly in to London and then go from there. Whether I'm going to Paris, Scotland, Ireland or a Contiki Tour accross Europe.

While in London, I've stayed at major hotels (Marriott's of course since I work for Marriott and get a sweet discount!), bed & breakfasts and once I also rented a room for a few weeks. All of my accomodations have been different and amazing in different ways.


Marriott Hotels:
It's nice to stay at these hotels every once in a while because they are much bigger than your typical "European" hotels. So if you've been hosteling it or staying in little European Inns where you've been sleeping in a tiny twin beds, this will be a nice luxury. However, I definitely endorse trying out a bed and breakfast at some point for some English charm!

A few I've stayed at:

London Marriott Hotel Grosvenor Square
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/londt-london-marriott-hotel-grosvenor-square/
I think this is my favorite one. Near Oxford Street (5 min walk) which has tons of shopping and restaurants. Closest tube stop is Bond Street. Great location.

London Marriott Hotel Regents Park
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/lonrp-london-marriott-hotel-regents-park/
I liked this one too. Closest tube stop is Swiss Cottage Station.

Renaissance Chancery Court London
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/loncc-renaissance-chancery-court-london/
For me, this one was a little out of the way. Renaissance is still a Marriott, but it's fancier. Closest tube is Holborn Station.

London Marriott Hotel Marble Arch
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/lonma-london-marriott-hotel-marble-arch/
I didn't stay at this one but my friends did. Still very nice. Closest tube is Edgware Road or Marble Arch.


Bed & Breakfasts:
http://www.londonhometohome.com/homes_central.html
(the one I stayed in is second on the website! my room was the one with the red twin bed!!)

I stayed at the "Kiln House" with my host Lee. She was super nice. I had a room on the main floor. The only room on the main floor. I had my own bathroom too. She had a continental breakfast set up for me each morning. However, she figured out what I'd actually eat and would just leave exactly that (instead of her huge spread of breakfast foods). She even made me hot water for my hot cider a few times! Her house is actually a historical landmark and has been featured in tours and in a book. Her house was an actual kiln. The kiln is now actually a dining room.

What I loved about staying at a bed and breakfast, is that you just get a whole different experience than if you were staying in a hotel. Just make sure your house is within walking distance to a tube station!

The "Kiln House"

A few more London Pics....

Tiffany's Taxi?!

Oh how I miss Pret a Manger!!




Ciao World Travelers!!

Train Rides to Scotland....

Rail Europe Travel….

I found a few pictures I had from traveling on the Rail Europe train. We traveled from London to Edinburgh, Scotland. You can check them out online. http://www.raileurope.com/ . They also have discounts for travelers 25 years old and under!

They have different classes of seating with different restrictions. We just got the economy seats. If the seats are not full, you can actually sit wherever you want. My friend and I got seats with a table to ourselves. Awesome!

I did find out that I can not face backwards while the train is moving. Nauseaus!! So I had to make sure my seat faced forward. Luckily my friend didn’t have that same problem so we were able to sit at our own table. And spread out our stuff. The views were great. Lots of green, lots of water and lots of sheep! They also have a snack car if you get hungry.

The train leaves from Kings Cross station in London. Kings Cross like in Harry Potter! Look for Platform 9 ¾ if you have some extra time. It does exist!


Gotta have your tunes on a trip like this. I'm not gonna lie, I totally have a Europe Trains playlist. Ha ha. Such a dork.



Train ride essentials: travel journal (my friend's), reading material & water of course. Oh and of course the previously mentioned iPod/Zune/etc.



Previous post on Scotland:
http://christinamg.blogspot.com/2008/06/edinburgh-scotland.html

Good Day Travel Peeps!!

Flying.....

Random pics of the day:



Can I tell you how much I love flying? I mean I really love it. I love airports and their little newstand gift shops. I love the excitement of knowing you are about to take a crazy trip and see new things and new experiences. I love knowing that I don't have to worry about work for x amount of days..... etc.

When I fly to London, I almost always use Virgin Atlantic. www.virgin-atlantic.com/en/us/index.jsp Each seat has it's own tv where you can watch movies, tv shows, track your flight, text message any guest on the same flight (seriously you can!), listen to music, meditate, etc. I would normally try to catch some zzz's while flying but I get so excited about all of the possibilities of catching up on movies and what not. I'm not gonna lie....I also kind of like the airplane food. Not always. But it's so cute on it's little tray with it's little wine glass and it's little salt and pepper. They also give you a little care packet with an eye mask for sleeping, ear plugs (just in case some people think it's happy hour and talk during the entire flight!), pen and paper, socks, a toothbrush and toothpaste! **sigh** It's the little things that entertain me.....

What I don't like about flying are the bathrooms. I mean seriously. Do I even need to explain why I don't like them? Anyways, here are a few pics from one of my flights to London.

Have a great day Travel Kiddos!





Previous London posts:

http://christinamg.blogspot.com/2008/05/london.html

http://christinamg.blogspot.com/2008/06/excerpts-from-travel-journal.html

LA Travel Show this weekend!!!!

So I just found out about this travel show coming up this weekend in Los Angeles. It's called the Los Angeles Times Travel & Adventure Show. The show will be at the Los Angeles Convention Center this Saturday 2/14 and Sunday 2/15. The cost to get in is $10 at the door or $8 if you purchase them online. Parking is $12 so car pool!! The show will be open to the public from 10am-5pm. http://www.latimes.com/extras/travelshow/index.html

I checked out the exhibitors list and they have some really awesome ones. A few that I am excited to see are:

Authentic Ireland- www.authenticireland.com
Car Italy And Tours- www.caritaly.com
Celebrity Cruises (Europe)- www.url.com
Contiki (Europe)- http://www.contiki.com/
Greek National Tourist Organization- http://www.visitgreece.gr/
Holland America-Cruise Stars- www.hollandamerica.com
Holand America Line Alaska- www.hollandamerica.com
Jet Blue- http://www.jetblue.com/
Oceana Cruises (Europe)- www.oceaniacruises.com
Travel Bound (Europe)- http://www.aaa.com/AAA_Travel/EuropeanVacations/european_vacation.htm
Travel Impressions Africa- http://www.travimp.com/brochures/ti_south_africa/index.html
Travel Indochina- www.travelindochina.com
US Department of State Passport Agency- www.travel.state.gov

Some of their sponsors are AAA, National Geographic Adventures and The Travel Channel.

Along with all of the booths, there will also be Destination Workshops, Speakers and chances to win some sweet prizes (trips!!!!!).

**Also, the US Department of State Passport Agency will be there and you can apply for a passport if you need one or renew your current passport. I will be renewing mine as I'm pretty sure it's almost expired. ;-) See the show's website for information on what you need to bring to the show if you are interested in getting a passport or renewing your current one. If you don't have a passport, it is always good to have on hand.....just in case!!!!

I am looking forward to collecting brochures and information and adding my name to all of the drawings. ha ha.

Hope you get a chance to check it out too!

I am SUPER excited!

Massachusetts!

Maine to Massachusetts...

The drive from Maine to Massachusetts was approximately 4 hours. Our longest drive so far. By the time we got to our hotel (which was right outside of Boston), it was too late to do anything. We grabbed some maps and brochures from the lobby and planned the next day.

Plymouth-

The next morning, we decided to go to Plymouth. We went to Plimoth Plantation (yes, it's spelled correctly). http://www.plimoth.org/ Plimoth Plantation takes you back to the 1620's. You can also get tickets to go onto the Mayflower II which is near by. We did go on the Mayflower II which is a lifesize replica of the orginal. They even have actors staged around the Mayflower II in period clothing who don't go out of character. Any questions you have, they answer as if they were back on the actual Mayflower taking the journey from England to The New World. Crazy to think that there were 102 people on this tiny ship for so long!

We also went to see Plymouth Rock which is a short walk from the Mayflower II.

Mayflower II

Nutrition of the passengers....ek.

Cape Cod-

The same afternoon, we decided to drive out to Cape Cod. Apparently they practically have closed down for the season. It was tough to find anything open. Like at all! I took a really long time to find a place to have dinner. All of the restaurants were closed for the season. We finally found a restaurant where the bar section was open. The bartender explained that they close down for the whole season. It works out well for them because they are so busy during the summer with tourists.

Cape Cod is divided into a bunch of sections. We stopped in Hayannis and Chatham. Even though almost everything was closed, it was a nice drive and fun to see all of the little neighborhoods and main streets. We also found another lighthouse! Chatham Lighthouse. It was a great one with a nice view. Very windy though! Actually, all of the Lighthouses we saw were really windy. Duh, they are all on the water. ha ha.

Chatham Lighthouse

Near Chatham lighthouse

Chatham Lighthouse

Boston-

Our last day!!!!! :*( We decided to go to Boston finally! Pronounced Bahston to the locals. Oh how I loved Bahston. Well, actually the only thing we did was go to Faneuil Hall Market Place.....but I got a real taste for the city. I absolutely loved the people and their accents. Everyone was cracking me up. The Market is filled with shops, restaurants, tourists, locals and street performers. There was also a farmer's market going on. That's where all the locals were! There was also a dog Halloween costume contest going on. They had some hilarious costumes out there.

Cheers! Where everybody knows your name....

Faneuil Hall Market Place

Pretty much the most awesome sign EVER!

I learned a few Bahston words for you:

Bahston- Boston

Chowda- Chowder

Lobsta- Lobster

Awesome. Can't wait to go back and visit!!!

So, that was the trip. After going to Faneuil Hall, it was time to go to the airport and drop off our car. We flew out of Boston on Jet Blue again to Long Beach. We arrived at about 9:30pm. By the time we got home, it was after 10. My little niece (2 years) waited up for us so she could see her mom and big sister. It was the longest they had ever been apart. My nieces were so excited to see each other. Don't worry, we brought the little one tons of presents so she wouldn't feel left out. Sure, when she's older, she will most likely be bitter that we didn't take her. But there is no way we could have done it with both of them at these ages. When she gets older, we will definitely take her on a nice trip too. We should actually take her to NY or Boston because she totally has an east coast accent. She calls her pink bear, "Pink Bayer". ha ha.

Maine

Rocky coastlines, fresh seafood, loads of lighthouses and some amazing scenery.

Being as though we were here in October, it was the perfect time for the changing of the fall leaves. Bright orange, red and brown leaves were everywhere. I have to say, I knew the least about Maine before going on this trip. But the scenery was probably the most beautiful. I mean just from the freeway, all we could see were trees and bright leaves and blue lakes and rivers. It was amazing.




Portland Maine:

We decided to stop in Portland Maine. Again, we stopped at the Tourist Station and got our fill of maps and brochures.



Off of Highway 95, we took exit 44 towards route 1. We made a left at route 1 (Main Street). Right on Broadway and that took us all the way to two lighthouses. Bug Light and Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse. By this time, it was freezing out. (I'm trying to remember, but I believe it was in the low 40's) We had seen so many lighthouses at this point that basically I was kicked out of the car to take some pictures and that was that. Back into the car and back on our way.

I was actually able to walk out all the way to Bug Light. It was freaking freezing and windy, but for some reason I really wanted to go on it just for the reason that I could. On my way back, I could see my sister in law yelling at me to go back on so she could get a picture. It was absolutely freezing and water was splashing up under my feet. But hey, she got the picture!



Bug Light

Off to the next lighthouse which I do believe might be my favorite (definitely top 2). Portland Head Light near Fort Williams. This one is a must see. We all got out for this one.


Portland Head Light

While driving along the highway, we saw a lobster shack. It was so cute and very much what I had pictured to be in Maine. However, it was not open. Not sure if it was closed for the season or just because it was so early in the day.




Rockland:

We decided to head to Rockland, Maine. There was a downtown main street with shops, restaurants, museums, etc. We actually found a Puffin Visitor Center. It is a small gift shop/museum geared towards young children. They have a live video feed of Puffins and other sea birds being filmed 20 miles south of Rockland on Seal Island National Wildlife Refuge. They also have a movie about saving the Puffins, a crawl in Puffin burrow for kids, paper work and information regarding Puffins and adopting a Puffin and also small projects for kids to take home. My niece is a huge fan of animals and was thrilled to hang out here for a while. She even got a "Project Puffin" pin for her backpack. The proceeds go to saving the Puffins!
http://www.projectpuffin.org/PPVC.html



We also stopped by Rockland Cafe. Famous for their fish cakes. My mom and sister in law were dying for some "New England" clam chowder, so this seemed like the perfect spot. We were not looking for anything fancy. Just a typical small diner type place. Being as though, I do not particularly like seafood (but I really wanted to say I ate seafood in Maine), I decided to try some little shrimpys. (yes, I said "shrimpys") My mom and sister in law finally got their clam chowder.
http://www.rocklandcafe.com/



My shrimpys......

Another near by lighthouse we stopped to visit was Owl's Head Lighthouse in Owl's Head Maine.

Owl's Head

Somewhere in Maine.....










Hotel:

Again, being that I work for Marriott, we stayed at a Marriott brand property. The Marriott Fairfield Inns & Suites in Brunswick. Free internet & parking! Woo hoo!

http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/pwmbw-fairfield-inn-and-suites-brunswick-freeport/

Only one night in Maine and then it was back down the coast to...... Massachusetts!

Rhode Island!

Providence, Rhode Island.....


Probably the most confusing city to drive in. Seriously. It was horrible. And I wasn't even driving. Every road splits off into two, maybe 3 separate roads. Those 2 or 3 separate roads also refused to have street signs telling us which street was which. Rude. Being named "Map Girl" by my niece, I was in charge of all things directions. For someone who gets car sick very easily, this city was a daunting task. But we all made it alive!!! Barely.

The city of Providence was way more "big city" than I had expected. My mom being a huge fan of the tv show Providence also felt the same way. She thought it would be more of a small town feeling. It was way more urban than we pictured it to be. However, there was so much history there and we were definitely some amazing parts.


Some Pictures of Downtown Providence:

Jamestown & Newport Rhode Island-

Since we were in Providence for 2 nights, we decided that we needed to get out of the city for the 2nd day. We decided to go on a lighthouse search. Being "map girl", I had already noted that there were a ton of lighthouses in Jamestown and Newport. So again, we set sail in our Sebring to find new places.

Jamestown is a very small island off the coast of Rhode Island. We took highway 138 which took us over a bridge to Jamestown. On the bridge, we spotted our first lighthouse. It was a small lighthouse in the middle of the water. Once in Jamestown, we went south to Beavertail Light. This was our very first lighthouse stop! Woo hoo!

Beavertail Lighthouse, Jamestown Rhode Island

From Jamestown, we drove over another small bridge which took us to Newport, Rhode Island. Newport is another small island. Pretty easy to navigate. This is where we found Castle Hill Lighthouse and our new house. ;-)

Castle Hill Lighthouse

My new house and front yard....

After our second night in Rhode Island, it was time to pack up the Sebring again and move on to our next destination. We became pro at packing up the car knowing what we were going to need in the back seat for my niece and what we could shove in the trunk. I have to say, there are so many amazing things out there for kids now adays. She is a great traveler. As long as we had the dvd player, an iPod full of Dora and Backyardigans and her Leapster books to read, she was all set. She kept herself busy with the exception of me needing to select the new shows on her dvd's and iPod.

Our next destination was Maine. However, we made a small stop in New Hampshire. We saw the visitor's bureau from the freeway and decided to stop. We found out that Portsmouth, New Hampshire was near by and decided to go there. It was a great stop. We found a nice little downtown area with shops and restaurants. It was very cute and very festive for the fall time of year.

Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Next Stop.....

Maine!