Vacations Blog

The view of Flagstaff from the top of Mars Hill.

Last weekend my husband had to work up in Flagstaff, AZ, about two and a half hours north of our home in Chandler. I availed myself of the opportunity for a free hotel room, and drove up to join him on Friday night.

Saturday I set out to explore the lovely city of Flagstaff. I wanted to enjoy the wonderful fall weather to its fullest, so I decided a bit of hiking was in order. After perusing the area map provided to me by the hotel, I found one of the entrances to the Flagstaff Urban Trail System (FUTS, pronounced “foots”).

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What's your Twitter handle, pal?

Here’s how I learned to never underestimate a tourist attraction.

One advantage of being a social person is that I get to meet lots of different people and I’m not afraid to find out what their stories are.  I’m truly interested in them.  And because of that, interesting things come my way.  And so it happened that during my very short stay in Hawaii, I found myself in a submarine 107 feet below the surface of Waikiki bay.  And it was awesome.
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I’ve mentioned before, more than once, that Boston Massachusetts is one of my favorite cities. It’s hard to beat the combination of fresh seafood, architecture, and history of the place. Handily, there is one ideal location that combines all three, to provide you with an unforgettable experience on your next trip to Boston – The Freedom Trail.

The Freedom Trail is a three-mile walking tour along the heart of historic Boston, marked by a red line or red brick along the sidewalks. It begins in Boston Common (America’s oldest public park), and ends in Charlestown at the Bunker Hill Monument. Area maps can be purchased at the Information Booth near Park Street Station, and are also available at most area hotels.

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I’m a pretty big fan of Dan Brown, so of course I purchased a copy of The Lost Symbol the week that the book came out. I read it in a day and really enjoyed it (though “Angels and Demons” remains my favorite of the “Robert Langdon” books). More than any other reaction I garnered from the book, I was left with an increased desire to visit some of the historical landmarks of Washington D.C., which is where the book took place.

I’ve always wanted to go, but now I really want to go. Without giving away any of the plot lines of the books, here are four of the landmarks featured in “The Lost Symbol”:

The Library of Congress, along with being the largest library in the world, is “the nation’s oldest federal cultural institution and serves as the research arm of Congress.” The Thomas Jefferson building, which hosts the Library of Congress Experience, is located on 1st Street S.E., between Independence Avenue and East Capitol Street, on Capitol Hill. It is open to the public from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday. There is no charge to visit, though entrance wait times sometimes exist, and vary from 15 to 45 minutes. Tours occur daily, and various concerts, exhibitions, and other events occur throughout the year.

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Chicago's Navy Pier

Do you have a family?  Is Chicago your kind of town?  Well, you’re in luck.

The Navy Pier, pictured here, is free to the public.  That’s FREE.  It’s Chicago’s most visited tourist attraction and has all kinds of activities and events for travelers of all ages.

The Ferris wheel, a carousel and swing ride bring the boardwalk to life.  The miniature golf course, the Amazing Chicago Funhouse Maze and Chicago Children’s Museum give the area a taste that is strictly Chicago.  Also, stuff to eat.

Visit Chicago.  Take the kids.

UPDATE: Sorry about the Olympics, Chicago.  We still dig you.

Photo courtesy of the City of Chicago

For more family-friendly travel photos visit DeliciousBaby’s Photo Fridays.

My regular readers reader knows that I’ve written once or twice about my home town of Clayton.  Well, I would be dreadfully remiss in my “representin” duties if I did not blog about our annual Oktoberfest.

This year’s Oktoberfest was held on the weekend of September 26-27. Yea, I know. Don’t ask me. I guess all the weekends in October were spoken for. Whatever. In fairness though, that other Oktoberfest actually begins mid-late September, and ends in early October, so I guess we Claytonites just decided to jump right into the middle of the whole brew-ha-ha.  Get it??

*crickets*

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This weekend marks the spectacular close of the 63rd annual Aloha Festival in Hawaii, a month of festivities that celebrates Hawaiian culture.  With this year marking Hawaii’s 50th year of statehood, the celebration is even more special.  The grand finale is Saturday’s Aloha Festival parade which will feature 13 floats, 4 schools of hula dancers (hula halua), 14 marching bands, 4 trolleys, and representatives from all 8 Hawaiian islands.

I am visiting Oahu to get a first-timer’s taste of the island, as well as peeks behind the scenes of the parade’s attractions.  Tune in for photos and stories from this adventure.  For now, I venture out for a few hours of exploration.  I’m off to explore the USS Arizona Memorial at Peal Harbor, and later take a ride on a submersible vessel called Atlantis.  This is one tough job.

My home base in Waikiki at the Embassy Suites Waikiki Beach Walk is beautiful, but who wants to stay inside on a day like this?

View of Diamond Head from Embassy Suites Waikiki Beach Walk

It would seem that summer has finally arrived in Ohio and while temperatures in the mid to upper 80’s and low 90’s might seem insignificant to the majority of people in America, it’s the humidity that’s bothering us.  We’re Ohioans, we don’t do humidity!  Besides, it frizzes my hair.  The most logical alternative is to stay indoors in very close proximity to an air-conditioner and a well stocked refrigerator.

I’m not logical.  (I blame the kids–they incapacitate the area of my brain responsible for rational thought.)

Sufficient Cause for Insanity

Kids thrive on adventure, activity, intrigue.  I thrive on cool temperatures.  I found both at the Olentangy Indian Caverns Read More »