Photos posted to make Rob Glaser jealous … inspired for his own family holiday in Hawaii later this year.
more pics in this set – flickr
I forget which 5 star resort we were crashing that evening.
Category: travel
holiday reading
I’ve been advocating a paperless future.
Yet, … I find myself still somewhat envious of those reading books, now that I’ve given them up.
There’s something about a hammock and a good read. Especially on a holiday.
Masons in Hawaii
I crashed the Mason family holiday in Kaua’i. We’re having a great time.
Air Canada proposes you tag your own luggage. Thanks again Montie Brewer!
I’m still waiting for a reply about my lost luggage from Air Canada CEO Montie Brewer. He invites all valued customers to tell him what they really think.
Here’s another goofball Air Canada cost savings suggested in an hilarious post Dana forwarded to me penned by SCOTT FESCHUK in MacLeans magazine:
… The process is simple! Upon arriving at the airport, you go to one of those convenient electronic kiosks, stand in line behind someone who’s never used the kiosk before, sigh wearily as countless minutes of your mortal lifetime drain away, stab the clueless person ahead of you in the back with a pen, step over his bloody corpse, enter your booking reference number, watch the system crash, endure the system rebooting, stab yourself in the thigh with a pen and then print out your boarding pass and your baggage tags!
Then you just step back over the corpse (it’ll be there until Air Canada rolls out its new Self-Body-Bagging technology in the spring), attach the tags to your luggage, place the bags on a conveyor belt, fuel the jet, replace a gasket on its starboard engine, scrub the front and back lavatories — and you’re ready to sit back, relax and fly. …
If you hate airlines, read the entire article. It’s Hunter S Thompson funny / true.
image – Air Canada: A Review
I put Montie’s name in the title as he’s bound to have some lackey surveying the www to see what we happy customers are saying about him.
“Stand Down, Monty, Stand Down.”
sailing the Na Pali coast in Hawaii
I’ve been getting major dental work in Mazatlán over the past week. Perhaps you’ve been feeling sorry for me on my Mexican Dental Vacation … as I’m spending so much time in the chair.
I don’t need your pity.
I hopped a plane — as clearly I needed a vacation from Mexico — next morning joining my friends the Masons on a cruise of the Na Pali cliffs of Jurassic Park fame.
Kaua’i – larger original – flickr – iShot71
It was just as amazing as we expected. One of the great vistas of the world.
We snorkeled under these cliffs, the highlight for me being the first sea turtle I’ve seen in the wild. What an amazing sight.
I posted a few photos of the trip to flickr.
Mazatlán, Mexico – Land of the Deer
The name “Mazatlán” derives from the Nahuatl Indian word “Mazatl,” which means “deer.” Therefore, “Mazatlán” is the “Land of the Deer.”
Miscreants from a rival nearby city, Culiacan, lassoed the beloved Monumento Venado, the iconic Mazatlán deer statue, and broke it.
making repairs – yod
The deer back in full glory, in front of my hotel:
Here’s the view from atop Hotel Siesta:
And traditional musicians for hire across the street on the ocean promenade:
more photos of Maz – flickr
I had a great time there once again. El Centro in Maz is almost a home away from home these days.
Cholla Cactus Garden, Joshua Tree, California
A must stop in the National Park.
Beautiful.
more of my photos – flickr
more and better photos – Cholla Cactus Garden – A photo essay by Brad Biringer.
what do YOU think of America?
Here is the result of an Economist magazine survey in 2005.
Amar C. Bakshi has spent the past year travelling the world, video blogging on the topic: “How the world see’s America.”
Of course the world loves American culture. American movies. A few still want to move to the USA more than anywhere else in the world. (I’m not one of those.)
video source – The View From the Border
Most around the world dislike U.S. foreign policy.
Seems simple to me. America, change your foreign policy.
Express Rent-a-Car San Diego – thumbs down
I rented from one of the “discount” companies in California on recommendation from USAHostel San Diego.
A mistake.
Rent-a-Car companies already are amongst the most hated type of corporations. Their deceptive pricing offers ($15 A DAY!), vague terms and surprise additional charges are the norm.
Competition is so fierce, it’s tough to make a buck in this business.
In Arizona I could rent a $15,000 car for less than a $1000 mountain bike. What’s up with that?
Blogosphere, consider this a “Express Rent-a-Car Sucks” post. It does. I should have gone to a big name company.
homeless war vets in San Diego
I tried to capture a most interesting scene on the Embarcadero in San Diego near the USS Midway aircraft carrier museum, opened 2004.
A large group of homeless folks were enjoying a gabfest at sunset.
For me it juxtaposed the American cultures of homelessness and militarism.
You might end up homeless, or an amputee …
But chicks will dig you.
more San Diego photos – flickr
I quite liked surprisingly mellow San Diego. It’s a world away from Los Angeles.
Rick McCharles 