06
Orbitz Vacation Rentals – Are They Going To Work?
Published by admin, under Uncategorized. No Comments.
Vacation rentals are gaining popularity very quickly and the best testimony to that is when a major site such as Orbitz shows interest in them. Orbitz, traditionally a flights search engine, added hotels, rental cars, etc. over time. But in August 2008, they started vacation rentals too. However, the chances that their initiative will succeed is limited. The big problem? – they are trying to be everything to everyone. When customers look for a vacation rental, they don’t think Orbitz. They only think ‘vacation ‘. They think about the specific place that they are going to stay at and want rentals and information that are relevant to that area.
With flights, it’s alright because flights take you places so you can’t really be specialized. Rentals cars are fine too, afterall a rental car in Las Vegas is the same as a rental car in the Florida Keys. However, not everything works that way. Vacation rentals are a very specific thing to the locale. A vacation rental in Florida looks nothing like one on Phoenix, Arizona. Specialized sites such as http://vacationrentalhotspots.com focus on Florida and thereby provide information that is specific to these locales. From watching out for weather-specific information to information about rentals that only locals could know, these specialist sites make your life easier and your vacation all the more enjoyable. If you are trying to sell a vacation rental, the same argument applies. Generalist sites impose huge fees and involve too much competition. You are just a commodity. Do you really care whether you stayed at the Marriott or the Hilton. Unless you are worried about points, there really is not much of a difference. That’s not true with vacation rentals though. Your rental has a personality and you know it. The best way to bring that out is to diversify your marketing efforts but remember to focus on local area-speciific marketing.
However, vacation rentals are becoming a big thing in the US slowly and steadily. People are tired of renting hotels that all look the same and are impersonal and expensive. Good news for owners and vacationers alike!
- Kenny Doucette
Florida Vacation Rentals
05
Episode 47 - Tokyo Game Show
Published by admin, under Road Trip. No Comments.
Short video clip from the Tokyo Game Show. I only had my cell phone on me that day so I was only able to get some small video. No narration or commentary, just some sights from the show. Hope you enjoy!
04
The Top 7 Bull**** Holidays
Published by admin, under Top lists. No Comments.
In honor of today being Valentine’s Day, I thought I’d do a rundown of the other bulls*** holidays that we continue to acknowledge despite their having lost all meaning or purpose.
7) Valentine’s Day.
Human beings seem to have this illogical need for ceremony and ritual. You can be a complete Homer Simpson all year long, but as long as you remember flowers on Valentine’s Day, you get out of jail free. Or, at least, you’ve fulfilled your obligations. Valentine’s Day is the Catholic Church of Holidays. Go through the motions and the slate is wiped clean. Forget, or worse yet, half-ass the holiday and the Boss is very mad. Isn’t the idea to be good and romantic every day, all-year long? But I guess we all know deep down this is impossible, so we put up with this meaningless holiday of obligation. And that doesn’t even go into the forced subsidization of the greeting card, chocolate and floral industries! But hey, this is the only holiday where you’re pretty much guaranteed to get laid, so it’s not all bad.
6) Columbus Day.
First of all, who gives an s***? He wasn’t the first. Plus, discovering something by stumbling bass-ackwards onto it is not exactly something to celebrate. It’s not like winning a battle or finding a cure for something. Then there’s the whole angle of “celebrating” the beginning of a genocidal holocaust. And then there’s the fact that some white trash Italians look at Columbus Day as their St. Patrick’s Day. But the most annoying thing about Columbus Day is that we’ve never been able to settle on exactly what this is… Is it a federal holiday? Do we get mail? Are banks open? You’re probably going to have to go into work anyway. Growing up in the south, I can tell you that never once did we have school off for Columbus Day. (more…)
03
Reminder Valentines Day is Here!!!
Published by admin, under Evolution. No Comments.
Valentines Day is tomorrow! Make sure you get that special someone in your life something that shows them just how much you love them! Roses, chocolates, clothes, jewlery, sports gear, concert tickets, candle light dinner, a card… whatever your sweetheart desires can be found online! Happy Shopping and Happy Valentines Day everyone!!!
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01
National Spumoni Day
Published by admin, under birthdays. 4 Comments.
Yesterday was National Spumoni Day, which, in my opinion, is the only national holiday worth celebrating. I took the Chinatown bus up to NYC and spent the day celebrating with Albee. It was the most delicious day ever.
Bonus - CvT is up here for the weekend too. I hope to see him and the Brooklyn crew out tonight.
(ps - happy birthday to gabriel and genny)
30
Seen Only in Surigao
Published by admin, under General Discussion. 4 Comments.
Copyright © 2008 deuts. Visit the original article at http://www.deuts.net/archives/2008/seen-only-in-surigao.html.
Or maybe, at least, so far, I only get to see this in Surigao.
Bike with Wings
It’s like a motorcycle with wings. Its wings from both sides are designed to hold passengers. In Surigao, these are usually employed in order to get to the mountains where no passenger jeepneys can go. Locals say it can hold up to 10 passengers in one trip, depending on the size/weight of each passenger.
—
Related Articles at Deuts.NET:
- The Road Not Taken
- The Hour of Twilight
28
Where the Hell Am I? Auntie Em, Uncle Henry!
Published by admin, under Travel Tales. No Comments.
What happened? 17 planes, 8 rental cars, 12 cities, 11 states, 13 different hotels and there are only 31 days this month! May is one big huge blur. Kind of like having way too much wine except there wasn’t much wine involved this month, just a whole lot of travel. Seeing everything from the Rocky Mountains to the “low country” of South Carolina, Toronto, Canada, Nashville (where it all began) and a whole lot more. As Johnny Cash would sing…. “I’ve been every where man, I’ve been everywhere” A screaming kid in seat 15b, a very large person next to me in 17C, delayed flights, airplane wine that doubles as toilet bowl cleaner…
During what seemed like a quasi-crash landing, the pilot thought the earth was a few hundered feet further below than it really was and we hit the runway with a horrible bang. - Oops - My Bad! Having made thousands of flights I never had a landing like that and apparently neither had the flight attendant. She had this very worried and panicked look on her face thinking perhaps the nose wheel was damaged. When we hit the runway (slammed into the runway) all the passengers gasped and from the smell a few also loaded their underwear. Since the flight attendant’s job is to keep us all calm during times like this, she picked up the 1950’s CB radio looking microphone and with her shaking, cracking reassuring voice says, …. “I guess you noticed we landed” Oh.. that’s what that was, I mentioned on my way out the door. Doesn’t the captain know objects in the mirror (including the earth) are closer than they appear? - next time read the little sticker on the mirror.
During my travels this month, I also had to drive to Toronto which was an adventure. Entering Canada was easy and they must have known I was coming because there was a welcome sign for me. A Bigger Better Angus has Arrived! How cool!
Returning to the United States was a different story. “What do you mean you were slaying corks in Toronto?” Asked the customs official at the border. That’s what I do for a living I said with a sheepish grin. (knowing I probably gave a bad answer) He just looked down at me from his omnipotent perch in his power booth scowling at me in my little rental car while I was attempting to head home. Who were you seeing there? he barked, trying to intimidate me. A fellow cork slayer that flew in from Switzerland. This time he just starred in total disbelief. He looked at my passport, looked at me, looked at my passport, looked inside the car again and finally shrugged his shoulders, grunted and motioned me on. And so goes another day of life on the road with Angus, cork slayer extraordinaire.
After the blur of May, I am safely back at Vintage Tuesday’s corporate headquarters’ (home) and it’s time to do a little catching up so off we go to see the Wine Wizard. As we approach the wizard, she said in her wizard voice “Step forward Angus and Trixie, you dare to ask for a good bottle of wine do you?” First bring me the cork screw of the wicked witch of the North. Excuse me kind wizard, there isn’t a wicked witch of the North. Only the border agent between Canada and the U.S. and the TSA took my cork screw.
I told her I have been traveling every where this month and this is really a Big Ass Place. Without skipping a beat she said “then you need a Big Ass Shiraz”. As soon as Trixie heard this, she grabbed a glass and shoved me out of the way. “I love Shiraz” she said with a big grin holding her glass out for the wizard.
The Big Ass Shiraz was a 2005 from Southern Australia and was just under $10. It had a big ass flavor as well with hints of berries, I think it was blackberry and it had some spicy taste as well. Adding this to our evening barbeque (no more travel food) and it topped off a great evening.
Auntie Em, Uncle Henry, where the hell am I?
Oh yea, there’s no place like home.
Angus
26
Carp Fishing Abroad: What Should I expect to Catch?
Published by admin, under Carp Fishing Tips. 1 Comment.
by Gareth Watkins
I often here anglers who have booked onto a commercial venue in France complain about the difficulties they face catching carp.
“It’s outrageous, I’ve paid X amount and I still haven’t have a touch.!!” Some anglers even doubt the presence of the fish in the lake!!
It is almost as if having paid to be able to fish a venue they have a certain quota of fish they expect to catch.
Unfortunately the simple fact of paying to fish a holiday venue can’t possibly guarantee that the carp will crawl up the rods. All our Angling Lines venues have good stock level and are of varying difficulty and have varying size fish. Most are however significantly more pressured than day ticket or club waters in the UK.
So What Should I expect to Catch on a trip to France, and how do I get the best out of a new venue ?
Firstly I think anglers need to appreciate that carp fishing is the same everywhere. A carp is a carp is a carp. They behave the same in France as in the UK. Most of the continental waters do contain bigger fish than their UK equivalents, but on some of the southern English waters this divide is narrowing.
What you have in fact paid for is a chance to pit your wits against some big fish…And this is where your part of the deal comes in. You have to fish well to do well. If you are blanking, then you ARE doing it wrong!! Ok, I accept there are times when the carp don’t play the game, are spawning or feeding on naturals. But the good anglers nearly always do well.
I have seen it time and time again over the last 10 years, some guys always struggled and others always do well…. Is this just good luck? I think not!!!
Our venues are primarily holiday venues, offering the chance of a good fish, plus facilities, or accommodation on site. Some even offer food or complete packages. All contain good stocks of carp. We pay very close attention to this and any lake that comes up short is dropped, unless steps are taken to offer the best sport possible.
The first thing to bear in mind is that you do need to fish to catch them… simply chucking a boilie out into the middle of the lake and sitting back with a beer won’t guarantee you a fish. Ok on some of the runs waters this can work, but on most waters it will more often than not result in a blank session. So what do you do?
1) Get to know your swim… use a marker and find out the depths, nature and make up of the bottom.
2) Use your eyes. Look for signs of carp, they usually show themselves at some point.
3) Use a good bait and tackle. Plan your baiting campaign, but don’t be afraid to change tactics, swims, baits etc if your standard tactics don’t work. If you haven’t had a take after a day or two you are certainly off in your approach to the swim. You’ll need to reappraise your tactics or move to a new swim (if this is possible).
4) Don’t waste your chances. Lost fish, through poor tackle, poor playing or being too far from your rods is your own fault. Ok the odd lost fish has to be accepted, but more than that and you are doing it wrong. I’ve seen so many anglers accept 6, 7 or 8 lost fish without questioning their approach. I just couldn’t accept this. Check your hook holds and adjust your end tackle, bait presentation, hooklink length etc until you are hooking the fish well in the bottom corner of the mouth.
5) Do your homework before you go, but don’t go with a preconceived idea of which swim you want and how you’re going to fish it. Just because it has worked in the passed doesn’t mean it will work again. Conditions change, fish wise up to certain tactics and baits.
6) Be realistic and don’t set your sights too high. I’ve seen so many inexperienced anglers chose a difficult big fish venue and struggle. If you have never had a 20lb or 30lb fish in the UK, don’t expect to turn up and haul 40’s in France. Build up your experience progressively. Choose a fairly easy well stocked water first off, until you have a good number of decent fish under your belt and are ready to target the bigger ones.
7) Finally if you do select a big fish lake don’t expect many takes. Big fish venues have lower density of fish stocks, so you’ll often only get a couple of chances in a week to bank a biggie. As I said above don’t waste these or you could easily blank.
Ok so here are a few points about being realistic when you come to France. Bear these in mind and you’ll have a better holiday and catch more fish.
Tight Lines
Gareth
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Carp Fishing Abroad: What Should I expect to Catch?
Tags: angling, approach, bait, carp, Carp Fishing Tips, difficulty, fishing, france, french, guarantee, holiday, holidays, marker, tackle, tactics, techniques, venues
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12
15 cheaper ways to tour Europe
Published by admin, under Travel Tips. No Comments.
With the weak dollar, you have to travel smart. That means doing a lot of research before you leave home and avoiding the places and things that suck up your money — within reason. After all, you are on vacation.
Ouch! Ai! Aie! Autsch!
That’s the sound you’ll be hearing all over Europe as U.S. travelers discover how very weak their dollars have become.
The last time my husband and I visited France, in 2002, the dollar and the euro were more or less equal. On our return trip five years later, the euro was about 40% stronger — and it made a big difference in where we stayed, what we ate and, to a lesser extent, what we did with our time.
You can still have a wonderful visit, but the following tips will help you stretch your money at a time when $6 coffees and $300 shoebox-sized hotel rooms are the norm:
Research like crazy — and be flexible. There’s no substitute for shopping around when it comes to finding great deals on airlines and hotels. No single source always has the best prices; I’ve booked cheap vacations from consolidators, travel agents and third-party travel Web sites as well as directly with airlines and hotels. Several of our friends also swear by the package deals offered off-season by airlines, including United and Virgin. Check them all out, and make sure to look at different departure and return dates. Traveling midweek generally cuts costs, and moving your visit by a few weeks can also save a bundle. Also, check your frequent-flier miles; although it’s harder to book reward flights in peak seasons, you may still be able to find seats on less-popular routes and flights.
Consider a non-euro destination. You can still travel cheap to certain European countries that don’t use the euro, but you have to pick your non-euro country wisely. Americans’ top European destination, the United Kingdom, still uses the pound but is no bargain; ditto for Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland. But Eastern European destinations such as Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania offer culture, dramatic architecture and a decent exchange rate.
Where we go
| International destinations of U.S. travelers | |
|---|---|
| Western Europe | 40% |
| United Kingdom | 14% |
| France | 9% |
| Italy | 7% |
| Germany | 6% |
| Netherlands | 3% |
| Spain | 3% |
| Ireland | 3% |
| Switzerland | 2% |
| Austria | 2% |
| Asia | 19% |
| Caribbean | 18% |
| South America | 9% |
| Central America | 7% |
| Eastern Europe | 4% |
| Oceania | 3% |
| Africa | 2% |
Rent an apartment. If you’re staying at least a week in one place, renting a flat is often more economical than staying in a hotel. We found a cozy little apartment on Ile St. Louis in Paris that worked out to about $150 a night, including all fees; the least expensive hotel we could find in the same neighborhood was more than $200 a night, not including taxes. The apartment had a kitchen, which saved us money on meals, and a washer/dryer combination, which allowed us to pack exceptionally light. Of course, it was on the fifth floor of a building that had no elevator, but we figured the exercise was good for us. You can find apartment rental agencies in every major city; locate them with an Internet search, or ask your well-traveled friends for recommendations.
Don’t overpack. Too much stuff means you’ll wind up taking taxis instead of the cheap public transit that connects most European airports and city centers. You also could pay extra if you have more luggage than airlines allow. I toured India with a single suitcase and managed a 10-day trip to France with one carry-on bag, so I’ve learned that packing light pays off. (You might want to stuff a collapsible duffle bag into your suitcase, however, to bring home any treasures you buy overseas.) Stick to one basic color scheme for clothing, like dark blue or black, and try to make sure each piece works with all the other pieces for maximum variety. Good leather walking shoes, preferably in black, are another must; nothing screams “U.S. tourist” like white sneakers.
Tip the right way. It’s not true that Europeans don’t expect tips, but it is true that the rules are different. Use a guidebook to brush up on the rules of each country before you land, and avoid the mistake I made of overtipping a Parisian taxi driver by $20 and failing to tip a wonderful Italian waiter who bent over backward to make our evening memorable.
How it happens, what you can do to help prevent it and why you may be tempted to give up your seat voluntarily.
Use the right credit cards — and call your issuer. A few years ago, using your MasterCard or Visa for most purchases was a great idea, since you got the best possible exchange rate (the one offered to major banks). Now, many major issuers — including Bank of America, Chase, Citibank and Wells Fargo — are tacking an extra 2% fee on top of the 1% fee charged by Visa and MasterCard. Only two cards, Capital One and Discover, waive the fee entirely, and Discover isn’t widely accepted outside North America. Check with your card issuers to see which issuer charges the least, and use that card for most of your purchases. Be sure to take at least one extra card and to let your issuers know in advance when you’ll be out of the country. On our honeymoon in Spain, our credit card issuer cut off access to our card, convinced that our overseas purchases were a sign of fraud. Fortunately, we had a spare card with us, averting what could have been a disaster.
Fees for international transactions
| Issuer | Fee |
|---|---|
| Capital One | 0% |
| Discover* | 0% |
| Washington Mutual | 1% |
| American Express | 2% |
| Pulaski Bank | 2% |
| Barclays/Juniper Bank | 2% to 3%** |
| Bank of America | 3% |
| Chase | 3% |
| Citibank | 3% |
| GE Money | 3% |
| HSBC | 1% to 3%** |
| U.S. Bank | 3% |
| Wells Fargo | 3% |
Use your ATM card for cash. Banks are cashing in by charging higher fees for overseas transactions, but you’re still better off using ATMs than most currency-exchange kiosks. Just make sure you withdraw large amounts — $200 to $300 at a time — so that the $1.50-to-$3 fees your bank charges don’t add up. (Also, make sure you know your numeric PIN — European keypads usually don’t have letters on them — and try to make your withdrawals at a bank during business hours, in case your card gets eaten.) If you do use a currency-exchange service, pick one that posts the rates at which it buys as well as sells currency. The rip-off places are the ones that post only the selling price, or the ones that have more than a 5% gap between the two prices.
Keep your receipts. If you shop a lot, you can get a refund of the value-added tax (VAT) you pay in European countries. This is something you’ll need to do at the airport on your way out of the country, but the small hassle can be worth the savings — up to 25% of what you spent. Follow the instructions in your guidebook for claiming your refund.
Investigate to save. Speaking of guidebooks, get one that’s compatible with your budget and tastes. In my young, single days, I was a huge fan of the Lonely Planet guides and Rick Steves’ “Through the Back Door” books. They’re perfect for the budget-minded traveler, with excellent information on hostels, cheap eats and inexpensive amusements. I still check one of these out of the library when planning our trips. But now we tend to take more upscale books like Fodor’s that offer more midpriced options, as well as detailed guides to museums and cultural attractions. Read through a few guidebooks at the bookstore before you decide.
Get a museum pass. Most major cities allow you to buy one-, three- or five-day passes that get you into major museums. Not only do these passes tend to pay for themselves with just a few visits, but they also allow you to skip the hours-long lines at popular museums like the Louvre in Paris and the Uffizi in Florence. That alone would have been worth paying a premium.
Scope out transit options. Public transportation in Europe tends to be efficient, cheap and safe. The Tube will get you just about anywhere you need to go in London — including back and forth from Heathrow. Trains and the Metro do the same in Paris. Many other cities, such as Florence and Venice, are small enough that you’ll be able to walk just about everywhere you want to go, or you can rent a scooter. There’s really no reason to rent cars, which are expensive to park in cities; save that for trips to the countryside. Your guidebook will tell you where to buy transit passes. Another great option: renting bicycles. Despite narrow streets and cobblestones, most European cities are very bike-friendly, and you can cover a lot of ground with little effort. In Paris, a road that runs along the Seine River is off-limits to cars on Sundays and holidays, and fills instead with walkers, skaters and whole families out for a bike ride.
Eat like the natives. A popular piece of budget travel advice is to eat your largest meal at lunch, when prices are cheaper. But we’ve found dinner to be the main social event in most countries, and have had good luck getting overseas friends (or friends of friends) to give us recommendations for great places — some pricey, some not. In order to splurge, we typically have light breakfasts and picnic lunches in local parks. We also alternate less expensive dinners in university districts, which cater to starving students, with fancier dinners recommended by city natives.
How it happens, what you can do to help prevent it and why you may be tempted to give up your seat voluntarily.
Shop like a native. One way to really save money is not to shop at all, but few of us can resist the urge to bring back some booty. For the best deals, avoid the shops and stalls around tourist attractions; instead visit the department stores and even grocers that locals use. Which would you rather have: an Eiffel Tower refrigerator magnet or a jar of real French jam? A cheap plastic statue of the David, or a bottle of Italian olive oil? I’m also a big fan of real flea markets, not the overpriced tchotchke markets aimed at tourists that you find operating in city centers most days of the week. Typically, the real flea markets are held once or twice a month in slightly-off-the-beaten-path neighborhoods and attended mostly by locals. In Florence, for example, I found great deals on secondhand pottery, antique fabrics and old lithographs, along with headless Barbies and enormous vinyl record collections, at the flea market on Piazza dei Ciompi; it’s held on the last Sunday of each month. Prices are negotiable, so you’ll need to exercise your haggling skills.
Check out the countryside. This advice is purely “do as I say, not as I do,” because our love of museums keeps us pretty much nailed to big cities. If you can break away from urban areas, though, you’ll often find more reasonable rates for food and lodging in rural areas and smaller cities.
Next time, go in the shoulder season. Technically, winter is the cheapest time to visit Europe, but six years of living in Alaska made me allergic to cold weather as well as reluctant to cart the heavy coats, hats and gloves needed to survive a February day in London. Instead, we tend to visit Europe in the spring or fall, when hotel rates are still cheaper than the busy summer season and there are (relatively speaking) fewer tourists.
11
Choose from 3 XBox 360 Holiday Bundles at Great Prices
Published by admin, under Electronics. No Comments.
Okay, so that Wii that they’re asking for is in short supply…so how about upgrading the old XBox box to one of these special XBox 360 Holiday Bundles…go for the “Pro”, “Elite” or “Arcade”, based on your budget and game type interests…and you can be reasonably sure that these will show up in time for the big day…
Xbox 360 Pro System (20GB HD) Holiday Bundle - includes 2 FREE Games!
Get the Xbox 360 Pro System - now bundled with Forza 2 Motorsports and Marvel Ultimate Alliance for $349.99.
FREE BUDGET SHIPPING
expires 12/31/07
Xbox 360 Arcade System Holiday Bundle - includes 2 FREE Games!
Get the Xbox 360 Arcade System - now bundled with 5 Xbox Arcade Games for $279.99.
FREE BUDGET SHIPPING
expires 01/31/08
Xbox 360 Elite System (120GB HD) Holiday Bundle - includes 2 FREE Games!
Get the Xbox 360 Black Elite System - now bundled with Forza 2 Motorsports and Marvel Ultimate Alliance for $449.99.
FREE BUDGET SHIPPING
expires 01/31/08