Ot: I'm on a roll/ Travel fantasy

In article , Shirley Shone writes

Wow Shirley - you;ve been all over the place :-)

In article , mkahogan writes

These have been such fun tonite.

Well I've been to:

Germany - but when I was 14 and it was a school trip Jamaica San Francisco Las Vegas Grand Canyon x 2 Houston (but I only ever see inside the convention centre and the hotel) Chicago

I;d like to go to:

All over Europe but especially Sicilly cos my Grandmother went there and had such a great time I have always wanted to go and do what she did and see what she saw. She did dippy things like hike up Etna in her sandals which was fine till they got to snowy bits, and feed tiny lizards at the ruins of the ampitheatre. Jamaica again particularly Dunns River falls San Fran again (so I can go to the wineries and the geyser at Calistoga again they were all great) Las Vegas again (cant get enuff of the place and no i dont gamble but my best internet friend does live there) Grand Canyon again - I want to hike down to the bottom which is a possibility now I am fitter New York Hawaii Canada South America Antarctica - except I dont want to go on one of the tourist cruises cos they just land on the peninsular. I want to go to McMurdo base and go and see Scotts cabin and see where the Discovery got iced in and stuff like that. :-)

Can you make some good scones to eat while we gaze at stonehenge in awe? Diana

Sniff... She Has'nt been to Wisconsin. hmmmph. Diana, the welcome mat is out

On Tue, 27 Apr 2004 16:09:21 -0400, Diana Curtis wrote (in message ):

The only crummy thing about Stonehenge (and a lot of great places) is that they're so darned crowded. The tour buses and throngs of people really take away from the magic of a place.

My solution is to go during "off" times and off-season. St. Mark's Square at dawn is glorious, just me, the pigeons and some nuns going to Mass. St. Mark's Square at noon bears a striking resemblence to an airport lounge when all outbound flights have been cancelled. When all the tourists are visiting the sights at noon, I'm back at my hotel, having a leisurely lunch and a nice nap. I'll be back out again ten minutes after the last tourist ferry leaves for the day, and spend my evening hanging with the locals.

Paris is at its best in August, when all the locals have cleared out for vacation. All the museums have one day with free admission each week, so we plan our museum going for whatever place _doesn't_ have free admission that day. We also buy our tickets to museums at the Metro station, so we don't need to stand in that endless ticket line.

I'm a total tightwad, and I don't like spending a ton of money for just a bed to sleep in. However, in highly touristed places, I'll spring for a middle-priced hotel, rather than a cheap sleep. The least expensive places are usually jammed with students on Eurail passes, and I'm too old to spend every night of my vacation singing and partying. The hotels just a tier or two above that are clean, quiet and safe, although they aren't fancy in the least.

And if I'm willing to use the bathroom down the hall (and I am, since my bathroom is down the hall in my own home), I can save about half over a place with its own bath. (I used to spring for a room with a bath when DD was a baby, because no way was I getting the key from the front desk at 3 a.m. for a diaper blowout or some such) Ideally, I'll find a place with a sink and toilet in the room, and the showers down the hall - best of all worlds.

My favorite benefit of these middle priced hotels is that I get to meet "real" people who are visiting a city, rather than the students populating hostels and cheap places and businesspeople on expense accounts at the luxury hotels. I meet fun families in the breakfast room or the lobby, and often, if the kids appear compatible, we'll tourist as a group for the day.

Stonehenge has a paved path around it, and when I went, you shuffled along the path in lockstep with 10,000 other people. Not my idea of a good time. If I had been there the moment the place opened for the day, I'd have been much better off. Even better, I'd have gone when it was raining. Most tourists take rainy days as a sign that they need to go shopping, but I figure I wont melt, and I enjoy the sights with far less interference.

Just before the tourist season starts is fantastic. The employees are still fresh and happy to see you, unlike in September, when they just want to get back to their real lives. The prices are cheap, and the crowds are non-existant. Some seasonal places might be closed, but most are open year round. Besides, I'll willingly skip a ride on the Alpine slide to spend an extra day at the Louvre.

My other European travel tip (good in other places, too) is to wear a dress - something at least knee length. You'll be treated a lot better in museums and churches than someone who isn't appropriately dressed (shorts are a No Go). You'll also have some built in privacy for the disgusting pit toilets that are still found at roadside rest areas all over Europe (especially Eastern Europe). A dark colored, patterned dress hides all but the most horrible stains, and pack into a lot less space than jeans and tee shirts.

Kathy N-V

I will if I win the lottery. Shirley

In message , Diana Curtis writes

In message , ally writes

Wished I was younger we could have done them together. Shirley

Is that for the Quilt Show? Next time you're coming, e-mail me and you can get to see more of the city -- I enjoy playing Native Guide.

Celine

Just a stones throw from Hudson, yes! You have a good memory. So, when Shirley wins the lottery we can meet her somewhere in the middle of WI and show her the sights. Diana

I would like to go many, many places. But it ain't going to happen, so I don't like to think about it. Not right now, anyway. ~~ Sooz

------- "Those in the cheaper seats clap. The rest of you rattle your jewelry." John Lennon (1940 - 1980) Royal Varieties Performance ~ Dr. Sooz's Bead Links

That would be super! Lets hope the lottery ticket comes up tonight. Shirley

In message , Diana Curtis writes

Good travel advice.

Tina

In article , Diana Curtis writes

Sadly I am a terrible cook but I know a couple of places that does scones to die for so do you want plain cheese or cherry? :-)

In article , Kathy N- V writes

Sadly you have Stonehenge to a 'T'. The path is gone but there is a little wire barrier to keep you from getting near the stones themselves. The best time to visit was 30 years ago before the barrier was up and you could go right up to the stones and touch them if you wanted.

The next best time to visit was 2 years ago the day after they re-opened after being closed for the foot & mouth restrictions. I took from American friends and the place was deserted mind it was absolutely freezing!

I like it enuff but the best view is from 100 ft up in a helicopter. If you want stone circles Avebury is nicer and free and you can touch the stones. If you just want ancient monuments Old Sarum is beautiful too. :-)

In article , Shirley Shone writes

Me too it would have been fun - we'll have to think of something else to do instead. :-)

In article , Lee S. Billings writes

Yes it is the Quilt Show, sadly I cant go this year, but hopefully next year.

I did get to go to Galveston one year, which looked as though it was nice but we werent there long enough and one of my local friends usually organises a bunch of us to go to the Art Museum. Year before last we went to see the Gees Bend Exhibit which was great. :-)

Everywhere! But Scandinavia, Greece, Italy Australia, NZ, Peru and Chitzen Itza (sp?) top the list..... Barbara Dream Master

If you want to make God laugh, tell him your future plans. Woody Allen