Category Archives: Trip Reports

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Are Travel Mistakes Avoidable? Maybe! (Part 3)

We’ve all made them, though I don’t think we’ll ever avoid all of them. But more often than not, there are ways around the travel mistakes we make.  Sure, it might be way more fun to talk about all the room upgrades we score, the elite status benefits we enjoy, or the deal for flights that DIDN’T get away, but let’s face it, we’ve all made a bunch of mistakes. So let’s air them and have some fun laughing at ourselves and commiserating with each other. Here’s Part 1 and Part 2 of the series.

The Most Common Mistakes

No matter how much we plan or how well we assume we’ll carry out those plans, there’s always a lot that’s not under our control. I started asking around and found that some travel mistakes are more common than others. And some people agree on how best to avoid those mistakes, but not always. Based on my own experience as well as that of many other frequent travelers, here are the mistakes and how to avoid them. There are so many of them I’ve actually made this a 3 part series!

Passport issues

This one surfaced for a friend of mine just last month. Passports have an expiration date, that’s obvious. And in general, they are valid up until the day they expire. But not always and not everywhere. Some destinations require at least 3-6 months remaining on your passport in order to travel. If you need a visa for your trip, these remaining months are essential. It’s good to have a beginning of the year checklist for travel. Or maybe start your checklist on your birthday so it coincides with your passport. In either case, do put checking your passport dates on that travel to-do list.

a close-up of a passport

Image source: https://www.rushmypassport.com/passport-renewal-faq.html

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Tarom Airlines Schedule Change? Email Reservations Department to Fix

Good morning everyone.  A few months ago, I booked a flight on Tarom Airlines (SkyTeam airline based in Romania) to fly from Chisinau, Moldova (KIV) to Bucharest, Romania (OTP) to Sofia, Bulgaria (SOF) with a 7 hour layover in Bucharest to explore the city.  I booked the flight directly on the Tarom Airlines website and all was good until I received an email from Tarom with the subject line “Schedule Change.”  If you get a similar email from Tarom Airlines regarding a schedule change, I will show you exactly what to do.  Since the whole email was in Romanian, and my Romanian is a little rusty, I used Google Translate to understand the email.

a screenshot of a email

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You’ve Never Seen Anything Like This Superpod of Dolphins!

When I lived in the Bay Area the Monterey Peninsula was my favorite get-away spot. Hiking, kayaking, walking along the coast in Pacific Grove, enjoying the Monarch butterfly migrations, the local movie house and coffee shops and one of the best bagel places, ever……..the Monterey area had it all. I’ve spent countless hours gazing at the ocean watching and enjoying the marine life, but never ever did I see anything like what this lucky guy who works for the Monterey Aquarium captured last week on video. You have to see this. Be prepared to be awed and to view this over and over again!

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The FERRY Best of Staten Island

I’m not much into cruises but I do have one that’s my all-time favorite, and it just might surprise you. Even better than it being my favorite, one thing about this cruise seems to be something most people don’t know……it’s FREE! And you’ll almost cruise close enough to be able to shake hands with a very famous lady! Okay, enough with the hints. I’m talking about the Staten Island Ferry Harbor Cruise.

The Staten Island Ferry – A Free New York Harbor Cruise

You’d think there wouldn’t be much to know about the Staten Island Ferry Harbor Cruise except you get on, you cruise and see incredible New York Harbor sites, you get off. But as I recently found out, just knowing about the cruise and that it’s free is only the beginning of what you need to know to make this outing a great memorable adventure.

a ferry boat in the water with Staten Island Ferry in the background

Image source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staten_Island_Ferry

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Visit San Francisco’s Newest Attraction: Salesforce Park

Good morning everyone.  On Monday, I finally got to experience the brand new Salesforce Park, the newest attraction in San Francisco.  The bottom levels are the new Salesforce Transit Center and the top level is the new Salesforce Park.  The park is surrounded by Salesforce buildings and is a short walk from Embarcadero Bart, Montgomery Bart, and the SF Ferry Building.  If you are planning to visit San Francisco, I highly recommend visiting the new Salesforce Park.  It is free to visit and is open everyday from 6am to 9pm.  I walked the entire park path in 13 minutes and that included taking in the sights and taking a few photos.  There are lots of tables, chairs, green spaces, and activities throughout the day.

a group of people sitting on a lawn in front of a building

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