Travels

There are 241 posts filed in Travels (this is page 6 of 25).

Shattered

Every 6 months to a year I will have these very odd health symptoms. Last week I experienced one of these internal health storms and it happened very inconveniently during a trip away from home.

It began last Thursday morning. When my brain suffers from a fever I start to not think straight. I noticed that taking hold during breakfast and began to wonder what was going on.

By Thursday at lunch I began to feel stomach pains and a bit of queasiness. The stomach weirdness continued though the day until I began our drive up to DC.

I had handed the driving over to Kelly and taking a short nap when I noticed my ears felt hot against my car pillow. I told Kelly that something was going on with me but I wasn’t sure just what. In spite of my stomach pains continuing and the feeling of coming down with something, I managed to complete our drive to Kelly’s parents’ home.
Continue reading →

New York City and Carnegie Hall

Ligon Middle School performs at Carnegie Hall

Ligon Middle School performs at Carnegie Hall


Wow, it’s been a busy few weeks not just for me but for all of us. Hallie took three days off of school last week to travel with the Ligon Philharmonic Orchestra up to New York to play at Carnegie Hall. Kelly, Travis, and I along with Kelly’s parents joined her after taking the bus up.

We arrived Friday afternoon and had plenty of time to do some sightseeing. First we checked in at the Union Theological Seminary which was to be our hotel for the trip. Then we hit the subway to check out downtown.

Our first stop was the Brooklyn Bridge. I’d seen it from a distance of course but had never walked over it before. It was windy, cool, and very crowded, but it was nice to be able to say I’ve been across it.
Continue reading →

Plane truths

The Manhattan skyline appears in the windshield of a Vamoose bus.

The Manhattan skyline appears in the windshield of a Vamoose bus.

Last week I was booking a flight for my upcoming business trip to California when I discovered to my surprise that Southwest Airlines, long my airline of choice, offered fares twice as expensive as the lowest airfare. My company’s travel booking system actually wouldn’t let me book a Southwest flight because it was too expensive. I never thought I would ever get in trouble with my boss for booking Southwest, but it’s reached that point.

We’re on the road today to New York City by way of bus from DC. The bus is less than a year old, it’s quiet, clean, comfortable, and there are AC power outlets under each seat. Free WiFi, too, and we can make mobile calls anytime we want. I didn’t know what to expect when we began talking about a bus trip but I’ve been pleasantly surprised.

Putting these two ideas together, I mused to Kelly how perhaps these bus lines owe at least part of their renewed success to Southwest’s decision not to be the “bus of the skies” any more. Or perhaps travelers have simply gotten fed up with the unbelieveable hassle of air travel and have sought out more civilized means of travel.

Yes, I’d never thought I’d say it but traveling by bus may be more prefreable than travel by air. Are the high-flying days of air travel over?

New York City bound

As I mentioned, the Turners are on the move again. And, as usual, we’re all headed in different directions, at least initially.

Hallie left for school at 4 AM for her bus trip to New York City, where she and her fellow Ligon Middle School orchestra members will play Carnegie Hall Saturday night. An hour later, Kelly took Travis to his Conn Elementary school field trip to Fort Fisher. I’m staying here for work before heading to a fundraiser for Kay Hagan this evening.

Thursday night, Kelly, Travis, and I will travel to Kelly’s parents’ home (leaving the Rottweilers to guard the home while we’re away, of course). Friday morning we’ll head to DC to hop a bus which will take us to New York. We’ll stay long enough to watch Hallie’s performance before taking the bus back home.

Oh, and the following week I travel to Sacramento for work: the first business travel I’ve taken in a while. Should be fun.

Don’t drink the water: Translated travel tips for coming to America | Compass – Yahoo Travel

This is a very funny and insightful look at how foreigners view America.

Travelers love coming to America, a land many of them have seen via exports from Hollywood. They rave about the landscapes, the recreational opportunities, the vibrant cities and the culture.

But like international travelers anywhere, foreigners visiting the United States from other countries can be flummoxed by some of what they encounter. Fortunately, their fellow travelers have plenty of advice. The picture they paint portrays Americans as relentlessly cheerful yet sensitive folks who just might raid your fridge.

What outsiders say about the U.S. will strike an American as very true, very strange, or both. Here with some help from Google Translate are some travel advice gems from around the world.

via Don’t drink the water: Translated travel tips for coming to America | Compass – Yahoo Travel.

Labor Day lake visit

Yesterday the family packed up some snacks, supplies, and the dog and drove up to Lake Gaston to visit our family friends, the Naylors, at their lakehouse for the day. We had a nice ride around the lake on their pontoon boat, stopping in a cove to go for a quick swim before returning to their house. Storm clouds were approaching by that time so we stayed inside and caught up. It was a wonderful visit with wonderful friends.

On the way back those storm clouds continued darkening and 45 minutes into the drive home the bottom absolutely fell out. I spent a good 15 minutes driving through very heavy rain! It reached its fiercest when we neared Franklinton but never completely ended. By the time we got into Raleigh we were hitting large puddles all along Atlantic Avenue and Kelly saw Crabtree Creek nearing the top of the bridge at Hodges St. Fortunately for us it stopped raining almost exactly as long as it took us to unload the major things from the car.

At some point yesterday afternoon I developed a raging headache which continued through dinner and never let up. Driving in a heavy rain did little to relieve it, too. I got home and decided the only thing that could make me feel better was a shower and bed. I was asleep by 10 after 9. I feel better now, though.

Abingdon vacation

We got back Friday evening from a great vacation in Abingdon, where much of our activity was spent outdoors.

I found a little cottage (the “Craftsman”) on the Cottages on the Creeper website and booked it last minute for a good price. We hauled our bikes with us, too, which allowed us to roam much of the town and Creeper trail without an automobile.

We had dinner Sunday evening at the Bone Fire Restaurant, mainly because it was one of the few places open. The meal was only so-so, and afterwards we roamed the town a bit before relaxing at our cottage.

Monday was spent riding the Creeper trail from Abingdon to Damascus and back, stopping in Damascus for lunch at the Blue Blaze Cafe. The Cafe had good food but had very slow service. Kelly and the kids wandered the nearby stores while I waited at the table for our order to arrive. Afterward we got ice cream at a corner shop, the Dairy King, before riding the 16 miles back to Abingdon. Oh, and it rained on us a bit while we were in and near Damascus.
Continue reading →

Hertz rips me off again

At the end of our recent vacation to Wisconsin we dropped off our Hertz rental car at the Minneapolis airport and gathered our belongings. The Hertz attendant smiled as he approached.

“Good afternoon, sir,” he said. “Our receipt print-out takes a while. If you want you can get a receipt at the desk.”

“Ok,” I responded and let him do his inspection, thinking nothing of it. We left the city without a receipt for our Hotwire-paid car.

I should have known better. Hertz socked us with a gas bill of over $90, in spite of filling up the car only minutes before.

This is the second time Hertz has ripped me off by charging me for a phantom tank of gas. Hertz is a lying, dishonest company and I won’t be giving them any of my money ever again.

My experience with Gulf War Syndrome

USS Elliot (DD-967) in North Arabian Gulf, circa 1998

USS Elliot (DD-967) in North Arabian Gulf, circa 1998


On the Gulf War Veterans Facebook group, one of the members asked if anyone had mystery illnesses. It sparked a lively discussion – one that sometimes veered off into black helicopter land – but it did inspire me to share my mystery symptoms with the group. I’ve alluded to these previously but have not shared them in this detail on my blog before.

As I said in my Facebook post, my desire for answers outweighs my reluctance to post this info in a public forum. If you know me you know what a statement that is. I hope it draws out others to share their experiences, too.
Continue reading →

High Bridge Trail State Park

High Bridge Trail State Park


I write this from cabin 4 of Twin Lakes State Park, located near Farmville, VA. It’s Saturday evening, November 24th, 2012 around 8:49 PM. Kelly and I are here alone tonight, the kids preferring to sleep in their grandparents’ cabin a few meters away from ours. As there is no Internet access here (nor no phones), I am writing this to post later.

We’ve been here since the day after Thanksgiving, having felt the urge to go camping one more time this year but not having the guts to tough out another camping trip when temperatures dip to the mid-20s in the morning. Cabins proved to be a good compromise, with the added bonus that Twin Lakes is closer to home for we Turners (we spent Thanksgiving with Kelly’s parents in Warrenton this year).
Continue reading →