July 2013

Yesterday I spent the majority of my day in various airports. I had to say that flying out of Sarasota, FL is great compared to most other options. Everybody is very friendly and lines are non-existent. I made the mistake of getting to the airport 45 minutes prior to my flight with a bag I needed to check, but it all worked out with 15 minutes to spare waiting at the gate. See why I like this airport?
 

The flight to my Atlanta connection was okay. The plane was not cleaned very well previously since it came in late. Also, there must have been at least five infants on board, half of which were crying. What can you do?

Now why is it every time I go to Atlanta and have a connecting flight with the same airline it arrives in terminal A and the connection is in terminal D. I have made many a sprint across that airport.  At least this time there was plenty of time so I got to spend some time watching the planes with some wine at a pub right outside my gate.

From Atlanta to Myrtle Beach I met a gentleman from Germany flying with his family. Apparently, he was meeting his father for the first time. He was so excited and nervous so we chatted the whole time. Then when departing the plane there was another man who was also meeting his father for the first time. I kept wondering if they had the same father.

So, I am now here on my little vacation in Myrtle Beach, now relaxing on the lanai overlooking a lush golf course where these poor golfers keep hitting balls into the pond. 

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I saw this article today and figured since I will be in Paris in less than two months it was fitting.


July 17, 2013 by Laura Bowman


Thirty thousand copies of a new 13-page politeness manual, Do You Speak Touriste? has been distributed in Paris to restaurants, shops, and other business that interface with tourists. Even though tourism to the city, which received 29 million visitors last year, is expected to continue to grow exponentially, it still faces challenges. The image of Paris as a rude and cold city has as much to do with different traditions of polity as it does with actual rudeness.


Another factor is a rash of pick pocketing in areas around tourism attractions. According to French journals, Asian travelers are most often targeted. Last month, Paris put an extra 200 police in attractions around the city and the decrease in crime was dramatic. Asian tourists are a growing priority for France as the Asian market for tourists grew at a rate of 9.9 percent with visitors from China up 23.3 percent for a total 1.4 million visitors.


Overall, foreign tourists spent $46 billion in France last year. The country attracted 83 million foreign visitors in 2012, tops in the world and topping its own record of 81.4 million foreign visitors in 2011. In 2012 France was the No.1 European destination for U.S. travelers as 3.5 million Americans (+6 to 7 percent) visited the country.

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Carnival Vista is the name selected by Carnival Cruise Lines for its new 135,000-ton ship scheduled to enter service in 2016.

The announcement was made today by Carnival President and CEO Gerry Cahill during a media briefing aboard Carnival Sunshine which is in the midst of its inaugural European season.

To be built by Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri, the 4,000-passenger Carnival Vista will be the 25th vessel in the line’s “Fun Ship” fleet.

Carnival Vista will offer a wide variety of dining, bar and entertainment options that are part of the line’s groundbreaking Fun Ship 2.0 product enhancement initiative, along with a number of innovations unique to this vessel.

Additional design details regarding Carnival Vista, as well as homeport deployment and itinerary information, will be announced at a later date.

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Taste your way around the world at Epcot® International Food & Wine Festival, Sept. 27-Nov. 11, 2013. This annual event transforms Epcot into a food and wine lover’s paradise with specialty food items, culinary events, sophisticated parties and live musical entertainment. Discover more in this video!

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