My personality has always been to obsess over something for a time. Once I obtain said obsession, whether it be some new shirt or home item, I move on to the next. I forget the last obsession and hone in a new one. Like with items in my life, I tend to do the same with travel. I think I want to travel non-stop. I try it for a while by spending three months gallivanting around Europe. I find after three months, I am too tired and cranky to keep this up, having no real constant home. I read about another traveler, wandering from place to place solo. I go try it out in Ireland for a month and Continue Reading
Hotel Improvement: Lessons For The Hospitality Industry in 2012
I booked a night in between Dublin and Kilkenny in a nothing town, along a nothing road. The only hotel I could find in between here and there pictured itself far better than it was. I arrived to find nothing as it appeared on their website. In fact, the photographs online were for a different property. Looking back now, the website is mysteriously under construction. In 2011, I stayed in countless places across the globe, some the definition of perfection and others the definitions of grimy and gross. That hotel in Ireland, in between nothing and next to nothing, reminded me hotels should Continue Reading
The Annoying People You Meet in The Airport
My bag took a tumble down the escalator as I made my way to airport security. Before being intercepted by a man, I watched in horror that I could possible take down someone before his or her flight. I could just read the headlines, “Girl loses control of suitcase, injures 1”. The scene at the airport, especially around this time of the year, is usually one of complete and utter chaos. You have your novice fliers, those who are just headed to grandma’s house, their one trip of the year. Then you have your families, clustered together with a mom just hoping all will go smoothly with the three Continue Reading
Checking Out the Supermarkets of the World
I stood with two travel companions in a German supermarket. The food selection was decidedly German. I wish we had a whole section for pretzels in the U.S. When it came time to get in line, I placed my basket on the moving conveyor belt as a very German looking woman sized me up and down. As she started scanning each item, she threw them down the line. I just stood there, motionless, unable to assess the cultural differences of this situation. A giant line was forming and I was still frozen in a German supermarket. One of my friends quickly started to bag the items, laughing at me for just Continue Reading
A Year in Travel
It is the eve of the last month of the year. December is a month I seldom travel. It is a month designated for family time. Each weekend seems to spur an event or occasion. It is also the final chapter of the year, a time for reflection. And on the eve of the last month of 2011, I couldn’t help but think back on my travels for the year, as many of us do throughout this time of ending and beginning. What I have concluded about my travels this year is that I learned something about travel I didn’t realize before. The realization comes after travel, when you are home reflecting on experiences. Continue Reading
The Strange and Simple Travel Items For Which I Am Thankful
Everyday of travel involves countless items, tools that facilitate the entire process. I don’t always pause to thank these products, nor do I always notice how instrumental they can be on my travels. It seems like a clique around Thanksgiving that Americans actually pause and consider what they are thankful for in life. And while I am thankful for friends, family, life and the like, there are just some items I will be forever indebted to on my travels. Call me a materialist, but I’ll raise a glass and a mouthful of turkey to these travel items. A GPS on Solo Travels They say true travelers Continue Reading
My Airline Broke Up With Me: The Importance of Airlines Flying The Friendly Skies
My sister was set to leave for England. Being a brand new doctor, it was her only time off for some 200 days. It was a trip she was anticipating with each passing day, until she received this email from the airline: “Dear _____, We regret to inform you that a cancellation has affected the following flights: (Flight numbers listed) We apologize for this disruption and any inconvenience this might cause you. Thank you for choosing (Insert airline of your choice here).” The message included no explanation, no phone number to call to figure out if she had been rebooked. As she Continue Reading