Our World Today

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“You know we leave for Vegas soon?”

”I know, I’ll double check our reservation.”

“You’re awfully calm, you know there was a horrible shooting last night in Las Vegas, right?”

”I saw the news”

“And….?”

”And what? This is who we are today.  You’re actually surprised by this?”

“Yeah, I’m shocked! Why are people like this?”

”My guess, they’re fed up. Nobody listens to anybody, there’s just too many people and their voice gets drowned out and forgotten. They feel irrelevant. Unfortunately, this is the world we now live in. I’m not even slightly surprised, actually, it wouldn’t shock me if there was a copycat within a week.”

”That’s terrible, people need to change. It seems so dangerous to travel anymore.”

”Yeah…unlikely.  We will still travel and we will still be careful. Nothing people do surprises me anymore. Humanity is capable of the worst kind of violence, so I stay calm and keep living.”

”You could at least act surprised, shocked or angry!”

”I am angry about a lot of things; politics, crime, the press, people in general. You know what does surprise and shock me though? When somebody does something that is truly altruistic and kind! That surprises me. The idiot news rarely reports about that. A shooting?  Sadly, just a daily reminder of life in America.”

”Ugh, that’s depressing”

”Cynical yes, but realistically true.”

”I’m going back to bed”

“I’m packing, life goes on”

 

 

 

 

 

These Precious People are My Life.

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912E83B3-ED1A-4ABD-9222-A8B9811E8CD6I’m taking a moment to be thankful for my wonderful family,  Like us, they are all travelers, braving life’s challenges to see the world and to live their dreams.  They are all successful in their chosen fields, driven by an incredible urge to succeed and to make a difference.  Spending time with them is our favorite thing either here or abroad and we are always left with a sense of awe at the way they continue to face the world head on.  They are our greatest success although with the mistakes we made as parents, I  really don’t know how they did it.  They have each conquered the world on their own terms while we have enjoyed a front row seat.  I am truly the luckiest Dad in the world and I have loved every minute of it!

Tired of Traffic Congestion? How ‘Bout the Versatile Scooter!

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In most major cities of the world, the scooter is the “family car”.  Not here in America though.  Our love affair with the automobile is well known as are the excuses we offer as to why scooters won’t work for us.  Such as:

We can’t haul our “stuff” for work or pleasure…

 

….and how do we haul our pets?

 

I need my SUV for my kids; what about the family?

But what about the weather?

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Ok, but my car defines me, I like some Bling!

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Fine! But how can I dazzle my love? What about romance?

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The next time you’re bogged down in traffic, maybe you’ll consider the glorious and versatile benefits of the scooter.

Happy Giggling Travels!

Don’t Forget About The AAA

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It always amazes me when I speak with people who travel and they don’t have a membership with AAA.  For $54.00 a year, you get this:

Most say “I’ve got towing with my auto insurance” or “Really, why do I need that?  I have it for two main reasons; Hotel and Car rental discounts.

If you rent cars and stay at Hotels, you could save a lot of money over the span of a year.  Here is just one example from Hilton Hotels.

Kansas City, Missouri Downtown, AAA rate $179.00 and the best rate with the Hilton Honors Discount, $195.00.  That’s a $16.00 savings for just one night.

Below is an example of a Hertz Rental.  Same date and time from San Francisco International.  The left two examples are through the AAA site, the right example, through the Hertz site.  They were both “pay later” and no additional discount codes were used beyond what you would receive as a member of either.  AAA came in at $79.08 and Hertz at $117.69.  With AAA, you saved $38.61.

 

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Remember the cost of AAA? $54.00 a year.  We just saved $54.61 in one hotel stay and one car rental.

https://www.aaa.com

Happy Travels!

 

 

Women, World Travel and The Idiot Male

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“Ten of the world’s most dangerous cities for women who travel alone”.  I’m staring at the screen and getting angrier by the second, not at the writer who wrote the piece, but at the title.  I just can’t seem to get beyond it.  I’m hung up on the fact that such an article would even have to be written today. That a woman, by virtue of her gender, has to “travel” differently than a male.  What pathetic class of knuckle-dragging idiots caused this?  Easy answer… men.

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I open the article and it has pictures; male soldiers holding rifles in one country, then another with pictures of other men holding rifles, scowling at the camera.  I keep scrolling, more males, more weapons and more warnings; don’t go here, you could be sexually assaulted.  I’m sensing a trend. What happened to us?  How did we get here?  Who in the hell put men in charge of anything?  IMG_0172Unfortunately, I need only look back to my childhood to find the answer. I was raised a southern Baptist and attended a church where the bible was interpreted “literally”.  In other words, if the bible said “Wives submit yourselves unto your husbands, as unto the Lord.  For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church” (Ephesians 5:22-3) then the pastor made sure that we understood that this came directly from God, word for word and that was that.  I was taught that this is just one of the many helpful “marriage tips” contained in a book that many, including myself, hold dear.  Today, I don’t read it as “literal” and simply take these “verses” as the thoughts of writers from a different time and place.  I also read Homer, Dante, Mark Twain and Sports Illustrated in the same fashion.  I also suggest to you that organized religion, in its many different forms, and the varied literal interpretations of their “book” (Bible, Koran, Torah etc…) are the root cause of many of our problems today.  Just turn on CNN.IMG_0183

What does this indictment of religion have to do with travel or the article mentioned above?  Everything.  Why are women in “danger” to travel alone to these places?  Because, since literally “In the beginning”, men have been taught that women are “less than” and that respecting a women is secondary to respecting yourself.  Who taught us this?  Usually a male waiving a book in the air, his feet firmly planted on a raised platform, while an offering plate travels from row to row. IMG_0182 Wait a minute, now you feel offended.  You should be.  Do you really think it’s not that way today, that women ARE equal?  That organized religion plays no part in the formation of today’s laws or has no effect or influence on a woman’s right to choose.  I mean, it’s been 98 years since we “let” them have the right to vote.  But that was then, this is now…IMG_0170

The world seems to think that we are the most progressive country on the planet.  I honestly don’t know what “progressive” means regarding women’s rights but I do know that if we’re the leading example, then the women in “less civilized” countries likely don’t stand a chance.  In fairness, I don’t feel that anyone is safe in the article’s listed countries, male or female.  The centuries old recipe of men+religion+power has been disastrous and it doesn’t look good going forward.  To travel the world freely is to live life to its fullest and this joy should be available to all who desire it.  To deny anyone this gift because of a religious belief or some antiquated male-dominated custom is intolerable.  Incredibly, some “modern” countries still refuse to allow women the right to even drive a car.  To the countries (men) who oppress women, enjoy your 15 minutes, because the passage of time brings change and your days are numbered.

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So why does this matter to me, a male?  I have had the good fortune and privilege of being surrounded by strong women of character my whole life.  The men, not so much.  My Mother, Wife and three brilliant Daughters, who are all world travelers, would never tolerate anyone who suggested that they should yield to any man as described above.  They would gladly display his head at the end of a pike (ok, maybe that would be me) rather than endure the presence of such a person.  And for their strength, perseverance and sheer will to rise above, I am eternally thankful.

It’s amazing how an article about travel evoked such a strong emotion in me regarding the topic of the human condition.

 

The Forbidden City of China, a Thought…

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China was a bit of a challenge for me.  It is a serious country filled with very serious people.  I’m standing in front of the Forbidden City surrounded by citizens who looked less than thrilled that we were there.  To say I didn’t blend in would be a huge understatement.  No one said anything or was rude in any way, but I could feel the tension.  Across the street is Tiananmen Square.  Ultimately, we entered the Forbidden City and it was as beautiful and you would imagine.  Video cameras are noticeably everywhere (look over my left shoulder) and uniformed security officers were never out of sight, be it here or the side streets, you were never alone.  I was a stranger in a strange land…and someday, I hope to return to learn more about this amazing country and it’s people as I feel as if I have just scratched the surface.

Travelinggump.com/china

Mission: Napa. How Hard Can It Be?

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The Master Plan:  Go to Napa, California and tour a few wineries. We’ll go in September and meet our oldest daughter, Lindsay and her husband, Ben. This will be great! Sounds simple enough, right?

I use Delta Miles and get two tickets. I Reserve two rooms at the Hampton Inn in Napa using Hilton Points. SilverCar?, yes please. Done, a well oiled machine at work here… Total out of pocket, maybe $220.00 (most of which was Silvercar as I’m sort of a princess when it comes to Audi). And that was that…inexpensive and efficient.

Then…our second oldest daughter, Nicole  found out that she and her husband, Andy could join us. This was fantastic news! We never seem to get enough time with our kids, especially our two oldest daughters. I match our Delta tickets using a Delta companion fare and we are set. We’ll fly to Napa together. We’re excited, they’re excited. And that was that…

Then… Lilly makes an interesting observation;  The Grandkids. See, if something goes wrong in our daughters’ world, we’ve got to be there for the kids. Now we’re all on the same flight.  This is a problem. We bite the bullet, trash our two Delta tickets and book United Airlines with United Miles…and some cash. Problem solved, all is well and right again. And that was…

Then…wait, we need another room. Hello Hilton, what do you mean full!? That’s fine.  We want our kids close anyway. Goodbye Hilton, Hello Airbnb. Everybody chips in and we’re back on track. And that’s…

Then…our oldest Points out that there is six of us now and the Audi seats five. Crap! Goodbye Audi, hello Enterprise and a… Minivan.  And that…Oh, Gawd, a minivan. Ugh

Finally! The day arrives. We are outta here!  Lindsay is already on her way. We fly out on United and Nicole flies out on Delta a few hours later. We should all get to San Francisco at about the same time. An excellent Master Plan executed with catlike precision… We land in Chicago and settle in for a delicious breakfast. It’s right about here that the wheels came off the wagon…

It started with a text. Nicole’s Delta flight was delayed 30 ish minutes due to a “fluid” leak. This is still ok as it works with the Atlanta connecting flight. I booked the flights for her using my account, so I start getting delay notifications on my phone. Ding, ding…now it’s an hour delay then an hour and a half, ding ding ding! Ok Delta, we only have two hours to work with here.

The news is really getting grim, it’s a fuel leak, delay, delay, delay and now we’ve passed the connecting flight time. Alternate fights to Atlanta…none. Crap! Nicole has brow beaten everyone she can and we are far away in Chicago. Delta keeps texting flight delay times.  My phone is blowing up. They are now sending another plane with a departure of 6:30pm and an arrival in Atlanta at 9:30pm (ish).

Delta feels they can get them to San Francisco sometime Saturday, maybe. Screw Delta, Hello United! United has a flight that would work well. Two one-way tickets to San Francisco please. $675.00 each or 12,500 miles plus $81.00. I used Miles which I transferred from my Chase Sapphire account. Then I called United and verified that it all worked, thumbs up…Done. And that’s that…

Then…as we are boarding our plane, Nicole calls and they won’t issue boarding passes at the gate. Are you $&#%* Kidding me! I’m on the phone with United, Nicole is also on with United, Lilly is on her phone with Andy. At one point, I was on two phones. It’s chaos.  The line is moving and United wants me to “certify” my account before they’ll issue Nicole’s boarding passes. Their flight on United is getting ready to close the gate and they can’t board.

Now we’re on our plane and they’ve closed our doors, the United representative, who keeps putting me on hold, comes back and casually says “what’s your least favorite vegetable?”. I bark the answer and he puts me back on hold. I’m losing my #%!* and about to have a stroke. He then comes back and says “you’re certified, have a nice flight”. That’s it? That’s it…bye. Ooooo k! I get a text from Nicole; they are on the plane, finally. I slump down in my seat, exhausted. I’m starting to giggle as I say to myself, “I hope our car rental goes smoothly, I mean, what else could possibly go wrong?”

 

And Lassie Gets A Window Seat…

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We just boarded our flight from Chicago to San Francisco.  Clank, clank, clank.  I lean out into the aisle and see a large sheep dog trotting towards me, his name tag making a metallic sound with each step.  The 737 is a 3-row-3 and the dog and his owner, who looks like an older hippie, stop at the seats in front of me.  The window seat was empty and the other two filled with bewildered passengers.  “We’re in the window seat” the dog owner says, “Both of you?” asked the passenger in the middle. “Yep, and this is his first flight too, he will be sitting on my lap”  Everybody gets up and they squeeze in.  The dog is soon asleep and seems quite content.  His owner, however, has the look of a man who’s just realized that he’s got a very large, very hairy 50 lb dog on his lap for the next four + hours and no room to move.  I wonder if he is rethinking his plan…

 

 

 

Dear Denver, You’re Supposed To Be IN The Mountains?!

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I’m dreaming of Denver.  Ritz-Carlton owed me two free nights.  I Scan the Ritz website and Denver has one!  Awesome, I’ve never been to Denver, Colorado and I find myself humming Rocky Mountain High by, wait for it…John Denver.  I have this mental picture of tall mountain peaks, ski lodges, pine trees and cool mountain air….Ahhh, this will be great!  I should probably rent a four-wheel drive, It could snow early this year in the city and with all those hills…

I used American Express MR points to book two round trip tickets (they are still giving me 1/2 the points back) and National Car Rental, where we have Executive status that will allow us to choose any vehicle from the lot (which will be handy as I’m feeling like a Jeep or a Land Rover).

Now, I’ve been all over the World and have somehow avoided Denver and for that matter, most of Colorado.  I’m certain that my ignorance is based on the idea that I am a KC Chief’s fan and the Denver Bronco’s are our sworn enemy.  It must have been a loyalty thing or something.

After a rough mile high landing, we navigate our way outside as it’s time for a looksy.  Ok, there are no mountains, none.  It’s relatively flat and “prairie” like, I mean, I can count the number of trees with one hand and it’s 88 degrees… I looked way WAY off to the west and I see mountains, but not near Denver.  I’m stunned! Denver is IN the mountains, right?.  That damn plane screwed up and landed us in Kansas!  Nope, sign says Denver.

At National, we choose a Dodge Charger.  I don’t see the need for a 4×4 now.  We then drive south, flat flat flatter…it’s a large metropolitan City with traffic issues and one way streets.  It’s clean and the residents seem nice but it’s absolutely nothing like I imagined.

I know this article may seem strange.  I am absolutely amazed at how ignorant I was regarding the City of Denver.  All my life, I had this picture.  Never bothered with research or even to look at a brochure.  Just assumed…

We ultimately drove an hour and a half to the Rocky Mountains and did the pine tree, tall mountain peaks and cool mountain-air thing.  It was beautiful.  I was only off by about 60 miles.

And that was that, so back to Denver we went and did the “Big City” thing.  So much for my silly dream.

 

 

Travel Safety and the 1st Rule of Bears

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Lately I’ve seen a rash of travel blogs talking about Travel and Safety.  I suggest that those two words should never be used in the same sentence.  Saying “have a safe trip” is reminding us to not walk in front of buses and don’t try and pet a mountain lion.  The no-brainer things (common sense).  It should be “have a great time and don’t forget your Plan”.  “Safety” is what we do every day, it’s the basics.

A “plan” is: I want to travel to so and so and what do I do if… This is where you do your homework.  Your travel options can be unlimited if you have a good solid plan.  “Safety” gets you to the airport, a plan is what brings you home.

Making a plan is about managing risk.  This is how we can go anywhere, have a great experience and not be consumed by worry.  You could go to Darfur, Sudan and get out alive if your plan is solid.  Though It might need to include the 101st Airborne and a military tank.  The plan should be equal to the risks of the desired destination.

FunFact:  The “safest place” for most people is their home.  Not!  They hide there and tell ME to be safe.  Yet, more people die each year in their home than do people who travel.  Why? Accidents.  People get careless at home.  So much for safety and common sense.

A Traveler travels with a heightened sense of awareness, a level much higher than just safety.  They’re prepared for problems, the unexpected.  They have a plan.

I always have a plan.  Today we are going to hike in the Rocky Mountains near Denver.   My plan includes the what if’s and means bringing a map, water, sunscreen and a plan in case Mother Nature decides to get ugly.  I later found that I did forgot one thing though…

We’re on the shuttle heading to the trailhead.  I notice a couple who have large cans of bear repellent attached to their packs.  Crap, I forgot about the bears!

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What should we do?  Cancel our hike?  Running into a Bear can be a big problem, right?.  No Way!  We’re staying flexible.

I scan the shuttle and notice it’s a large group.  There is an obnoxious boy who is pitching a fit and talking back to his parents, a few seasoned hikers and large group of senior citizens, all wearing sensible shoes, who really should re-think this expedition.  I then remembered the 1st Rule of Bears and I like my odds.  After some thought, I adjusted the plan and we’re off to the wilderness with no worries.

The First Rule of Bears:

  1.  If pursued by a bear you need only remember to run faster than the slowest member of the group.
  2.  If you are alone, haul-ass towards the group and see #1.

So remember, any destination is possible with a good solid plan… and a sense of humor.  My luck, I’ll probably get plowed over by a bus, while lost in thought, planning the details of our next trip.

Happy Travels

 

At Least Buy me Dinner First…

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Oklahoma Turnpike Authority, Really!? I’m amazed that you 1. Get away with charging drivers while having terrible roads, 2. Get away with your ridiculous toll system and 3. Screw so many drivers and they keep coming back for more.

My gripe: Missouri border to Yukon, Oklahoma;~200 miles.  Three Turnpikes and four Tollbooths.  $4.50, $4.50, $1.30 and $1.90 and we still have a lot of Oklahoma to go.

Seriously?… Ironically, the turnpikes are probably the worst roads you’ll experience from Missouri to the California coast.

By the way, the last two tolls were within about 15 miles of east other, on the same turnpike and both were supposed to be $1.30 each.  Why $1.90?

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Here’s how it works; exact change only, toss coins in basket, an evil gremlin inside decides if you are worthy and if so, a green light signals that you may pass.  It took $1.90 to get a green light (the four axel price).  We are in a small car and I now hate gremlins even more.

If you’re driving through Oklahoma, make sure you bring a bucket of money, cause you will definitely need it.  Also, most booths are unstaffed and require “exact change only”.

Happy Travels