Victor Dees Travel World

Rotorua City, New Zealand - The Lake & Volcanic Resort offers natures wonders

2011-03-09T01:25:00.000-08:00

January 5, 2011 - the City of Rotorua, the sulphur city, smells like rotten eggs - this city was so much fun to be, lots of sights and shops, after a while you forget about the smell..

The city's busy streets, lined with signs of specialty foods like pickled pork and some not too tasty dishes... watch out for pedestrians, they own the road in this town..

The Main seat of Government right in the center of town...

The Rotorua Wildland Reserve provide New Zealand's lumber supply, systematically planted and harvested as seen here on the almost barren side of the mountain before reaching Rotorua...

This is the hotel we stayed in Rotorua, somehow our travel agent had booked us all the Ibis Hotel in our trip which was great because we were in walking distance to all of the city centre's busy activities...

My sister and Sandy while we were waiting for our local guide to the sights and attraction this beautiful town had to offer, this area is so rich with lakes (a total of 12 lakes through out the park), volcanic activities, geysers, lava trails, sulphur banks that gives the town that distinct smell of sulphur, reminds me so much of Hawaii's volcano parks...

Sandy standing by the launch pad for the amphibian boat ride tour in Lake Rotorua...

The locals call this the Sulphur Lake, that is the hiking trail for those who want to hike along the lake, picnic areas surround the lake (that is if you can get past the smell of rotten eggs...)

This is the Blue Lake, smaller lake from all around the volcano park, good for picnic and sailing, locals hang out here more than the tourist....

Totem Pole at the Lake Tarawera Lookout, in case you haven't noticed, Sandy blended in well with the color of the totem pole..

Isn't that a gorgeous sight? Once only accessible by boat, the lake is a favorite summer resort of New Zealand's elite in the 1800...

The Village of Tarawera was burried in the eruption of Tarawera caldera in 1886 that is now a tourist center not to be missed, preserved buildings and kitchenwares abound in the displays, as usual since this was a walking tour, we did not have the luxury of touring the village since our schedule did not permit us, but I have to say that this would be a good place to visit and stay at least 5 days to see all the sites to visit and the water/hiking activities that younger travelers love to do.

Entrance to the Burried Village visitor center/gift shop, if you like Paua shells (Abalone), this shop had some really pricey pieces... for gifts to take home I suggest shopping at the town centre, prices are much more reasonable..

"I see dead people", thats my sister behind some dead people...

This is the garden patio for the restaurant in the center, we didn't eat here again because of the high prices of the menu...

I took a picture of the Lake Tarawera park to show the diverse sights and activities this area has to offer, they can all be booked by the concierge of your hotel or just go to the hotel lobby and pick all the tourist brochures...

After we left Tarawera park, we headed down to the Green Lake, I guess they call the lake for the color of the water, unlike the Blue lake, this is a much larger lake, more beaches to swim and sail.. no thats not tourist, thats my sister and she considers herself a local Kiwi.

After Green Lake, we headed down to Hell's Gate, this is a sulphur bath mud spa, good for your skin and aching bones, we also did not have the time to indulge, first it cost $65NZD per person to enter and walk around the sulphur mud where the spa is located, about 10 min walk to the site..

Beware! There is an entrance fee to get in and see the sulphur mud banks... thats Sandy saying "the Hell, its too expensive to get dirty in a mud"...

After our short tour (took about 4 hours to visit and travel to the different destinations) we decided to have lunch where the locals hang oug out - 'THE PIG & WHISTLE' right in the heart of the town, the building I was told used to be the Police Station and was converted into their PUB...

A lost Filipino in the town centre of Rotorua, I looked the part, everyone knew we were visitors, some even commented on our American accent...

We visited the town's outdoor fair (equivalent to our swap meets) they closed the entire shopping center (about 8 blocks) and opened the fair with food, fresh produce, displays, souvenirs, and local products made in Rotorua, I didn't know that New Zealand's Lavender Farms are the largest in the world (even larger than England's), they grow the highest quality of the flowers that is used for perfumes, soaps and other health & beauty products... Who Knew? My sister didn't even know, I got this from a local vendor selling Lavender soaps...

You've got to try their fresh french fries, this is the 'Lord of the Fries'

I have to admit, the cherries and the grapes were probably one of the sweetest I have ever tasted, here is Sandy buying fresh fruits...

This Rotorua's public bath house, they have mineral baths and sulphur baths at very reasonable prices, sorry, we didn't have time to go in and try the spa... maybe next time..

A Historical Landmark, this is Rotorua Museum, it looks deserted because we took these picture at 5 AM, so the museum opens at 10 AM, we couldn't wait to see the displays either...

Taupo Lake, New Zealand - North Island - Beautiful Lake Resort Community

2011-03-08T18:32:00.000-08:00

January 5, 2011, wednesday - Majestic Lake Taupo trip en-route to Rotorua...

Introducing the Majestic Lake Taupo, one of the many beautiful Resort town in the North island of New Zealand, comparably breathtaking as Big Bear Lake in California.

The lake is vibrant with water activities, sailing, water skiing, swimming, picnicking - you name it, this place is a mecca for a daytripper...

BEWARE: There is a licquor Ban and the fine is hefty... $20,000.00NZD, this is just one of the many signs posted prohibiting consumption of licquor in this lake community..

Snow capped mountain is breathtaking even in the summer months, due to the high elevation, there is always snow in the mountains year round...

Meet my Ex-Brother-in-law, Norm Daken (he is kin'na camera shy) he is in charge of highway traffic, they have several vans in their pretty laid back highways, since theres not much traffic, motorists tend to speed, that is when you watch out for 'Betty Van', manned with high tech surveilance cameras taking pictures of speeding cars, relays the pictures to their database and a ticket is born, NICE!

Scenic mountain pass going towards Lake Taupo...

Since it was a 2 hour drive from Hastings to Taupo Lake, we got cravings for the New Zealand Pot Pies, this stop used to be their bathing resort in the 1800, a hotel back then, visitors would come to this resort and swim in the river and the natural thermal baths just a few yards from where this picture was taken.. that's Sandy saying 'I'm hungry, lets eat'..

No, my sister is not mad, she is busy chewing on the Beef Pot Pie, freshly baked for weary travelers like us.. but let me warn you, the prices are high, thats a $10NZD pot pie she's eating - around $8US.

Now a picnic area, this is where the once visited Hotel stood until it burned down to the ground in the 1800's.

Right at the end of that ledge, lies a very cool and beautiful river, we couldn't take pictures due to the heavy vegetation in the area, but trust me, there's a river below there...

Well, time to hit the road again, its another hour before we see the lake..

Thank heavens for american franchise, yep, thats a Subway in the middle of this busy resort town, oh, they have the big 'M' even equipped with an airplane..

Right across, just a walking distance is where the beaches are found, since it was prohibited to park and swim in this busy shopping area, the beaches are only for viewing...

Yup! thats a plane alright, no it didn't crash there, its their McDonalds...

And this is their McDonald Menu board, notice the prices?, yep yep, they're really pricey, a mac & cheese is $12NZD, thats about $10USD..

And that was Lake Taupo, clean, bright, warm and inviting and bustling with people from all over...

Te Papa Museum, Wellington, New Zealand - Home of the 20 foot Squid

2011-02-01T18:18:00.000-08:00

January 3, 2011, Te PaPa Musem in Wellington, New Zealand..

New Zealand's Te Papa Museum, home of the largest Squid ever discovered and captured... this was the entrance to the museum. General admission is Free, special showings of the European Masters cost $40 per person to enter, we went cheap - you guessed it FREE is best.

Sandy and my sister, Nilda Daken, infornt of the Maori Totem Pole...

We decided to explore the sea exhibits since this is perhaps the most visited part of the museum, the marine life in New Zealand..

Some of the rarest species of fish is found at the oceans of New Zealand... everything the ocean floor grows seems enormous...

Altho I was disappointed in being able to see a KIWI bird in its natural habitat, I settled for these specimens...

This is a 20 foot Giant Squid caught in 2004 and preserved under a flexiglass, this animal was large enough to even capture a great white shark...

Te Papa's collection Maori Sculptures and arts... all hand carved and hand laden.

Weta Cave in Wellington New Zealand - seat of imagination and technology special effects

2011-02-01T17:53:00.000-08:00

January 3, 2011 - Weta Caves - wizardry of special effects in movies... Lord of the Rings, Avatar, Narnia, District 9, just to name a few big blockbuster movies...

Weta Caves, the worlds renown special effects company has a visitor's center in Wellington, it is a small shop with a screening room chronicling the creators and artist who work the magic of special effects, costumes, props, sets, sceneries, etc.

The entrance is FREE, you are greeted at the door by perhaps Weta's most famous resident, Gollum of Lord of the Rings, you can actually touch and feel the material and fabrics used to create this haracter out of the book...

Gollum telling me to go away, 'Precious'...

Sandy can almost taste that sashimi on Gollum's hand...'PPPreeciouss'

My sister posing with Gollum, she didn't even see the movie....

Hub-nubbing with Hollywood's most mis-understood villain, Gollum...

This was Sarum's armor and Headdress, this is almost 12 feet tall, the actor who actually wore it was this tall...

Sandy and my sister posing with Saruman's Ohlog-hai Troll, known to be 12 feet in height, cross between orcs and trolls, they are the fiercest warriors of the middle earth...

I'm just up to his waist, thats how tall this Ohlog-hai troll was, actual suit worn by actors of the original Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

Who can resist posing with Gandalf's Grey cloak? Not me, yep yep yep... I was there...

Actual props and swords used for the movies...

The hand was created to be chopped off in one of the many scenes in LOTR movie...

Here is an Orcs, said to be able to climb walls with bare hands, eats flesh and formidable warriors and archers...

This were the alien weapons in the newly released 2009 Movie, District 9...

Weta not only caters to mature audiences, they have created Australia & New Zealand's beloved children character (guess she is like a Pippi Longstocking character in their animated movies.)

As we say goodbye to the magic of Special Effects and Weta Cave's wondrous collections..

Wellington, New Zealand - Our City Tour of Downtown City Centre

2011-02-01T16:44:00.000-08:00

January 3, 2011 - Wellington, the windy city, seat of government and the arts, plenty of things to do and visit...

Exploring Wellington city was somewhat subdued, the traffic was very light due to being their New Year holiday, most of the main malls and shops were closed, mostly restaurants and eateries like the 'FinC Bistro' were open for us visitors...

My sister ordering gourmet lunch at 'FinC Bistro' in downtown Wellington, I had the best tasting Bruscheta ever... yummy... of course, we had to have Fish & chips, freshest fish ever, still no malt vinegar or tartar sauce but crispy and delicious..

Ordering gourmet lunch for this upscale Bistro in Wellington was a delight, altho expensive...

Sandy by the Crosswalk Bridge of the City Hall and the Harbor beachside...

My sister and I infront of the Circa Theater...

Wellington's indoor Mall is both diverse and on the pricy side...

The Street Maps of Wellington, all attractions are all within walking distance from the main city streets...

Wellington - The Windy City Scenics and places to visit

2011-02-01T16:29:00.000-08:00

January 3, 2011 - the windy city of Wellington, just like San Francisco, this beach resort town is the Capital of New Zealand, center of the performing arts among other things their seat of government...

Beautiful Wellington Bay harbor and skyline... gorgeous city and also very windy on a normal day...

Wellington harbor from the mountain view...

Wellington Harbor provides Kiwis their main transport to the south island via Ferry...

White sandy beach of Wellington, fit for summer swimming and sun frolic, except, it was too windy to brave the waters...

Flocked by seagulls and other sea mammals, Wellington is a haven for natural yet city life style...

The prestigious Marina of Wellington, boasts private yachts and privately owned sea vessels dot the skyline...

The main Ferry transport to the south island can be purchased from $300/Car/person, travel takes about 4 hours.

Whale tail monument along the harbor of Wellington...

Art sculpture along the Te Papa Museum....

Wellington's English Catholic Church is perched right at the top of the hill overlooking the bay...

One of Wellington's performing arts theater... the Circa Theater...

Wellington's Mac Brewery frequently visited by travelers far and near, serves local vintage wines, tasting room and tours...

Beehive Building, seat of the Wellington government, the city hall and city centre...

Imagine bungy jumping in the middle of rush hour, yep, leave it to the Kiwis to thinsk of excitings things to do in the heart of the city...

Award winning architecture - Beehive Building business center...

The Wellington Botanical Garden and Park is walking distance from our hotel, such a lovely way to pass time...

Lo and behold, they even have KFC right from our hotel....good to feel like being home...

Road Trip to Wellington, New Zealand January 2, 2011

2011-01-30T14:41:00.000-08:00

January 2, 2011 - our roadtrip from Hastings to Wellington...

We left Hastings rather early, there was no usual traffic we encounter going out of the city, here, you just hop in your car and go... This was our first trip here so we are enjoying the countryside sceneries, farms and hillsides dotted by pine trees planted by landowners to mark the boundaries of their land, this was also my sister's first trip out of Hastings, altho she's been driving in and around Hastings, the furthest trip she has taken was only to Napier which was a 30 min ride away...

since this was going to be a 6 hour road trip, we decided to stop by a smaller town called Waipawa, there we had breakfast at McDonalds... we were curious the subtle differences in the menu, perhaps the most eye opening is the prices are almost double how much we pay for the same hamburger in California... Sorry guys, just can't get over the high prices of food, one sit down brunch cost almost $60USD (practically $20 per person)..

After we came out of the very winding roads after passing all the dense forest of Whaka, we were greeted by this scenic beauty of Wellington on our way to the Hotel.

Houses dotted the horizon above the sea level... almost like driving to San Diego on Pacific Coast hwy.

The landscape was green and serene... not the usual city hustle and bustle traffic which is what I was expecting, instead we travelled all the kilometers (miles) on a 2 lane hwy and very seldom do you see congestions and traffic buildup...

We arrived at Hotel Ibis, in downtown Wellington, as in most city, traffic was a clockwork of one way streets and again, all driving on the left hand side of the streets...

My sister and Sandy relieved to get out of the car after 6 hours of traveling, the city seemed almost empty...kept forgetting this was their holidays and no one works...

At the Hotel lobby, I was greeted by a very common sight in New Zealand, the All Blacks Rugby team (champions), this fully authographed picture mural was prominently displayed for every guest to see...

2011 New Year's Fireworks spectacular Napier, New Zealand

2011-01-30T14:37:00.001-08:00

January 1, 2011 - Napier, Hawkes Bay, New Year Celebration.....

New Year Revelers, Kayvin, Nilda, Sandy, Jonilyn and Tamway (kneeling)...

Celebrating the New Year at Napier, New Zealand...

The Scottish Marching Band of Napier entertained the crowd with their rendition of modern songs...island style..

Fireworks over Hawkes Bay, shot by and courtesy of Norm Daken, these awesome fireworks display captured right on the beach of Napier.

Welcoming the New Year - 2011, a dazzling fireworks display at the Napier Marine Parade Amphitheater...

2011 New Year's Fireworks spectacular Napier, New Zealand

2011-01-30T14:36:00.000-08:00

January 1, 2011 - Napier, Hawkes Bay, New Year Celebration.....

New Year Revelers, Kayvin, Nilda, Sandy, Jonilyn and Tamway (kneeling)...

Celebrating the New Year at Napier, New Zealand...

The Scottish Marching Band of Napier entertained the crowd with their rendition of modern songs...island style..

Fireworks over Hawkes Bay, shot by and courtesy of Norm Daken, these awesome fireworks display captured right on the beach of Napier.

Welcoming the New Year - 2011, a dazzling fireworks display at the Napier Marine Parade Amphitheater...

2011 New Year Eve Dinner and Dancing at the RPA Club Napier, New Zealand

2011-01-30T13:56:00.002-08:00

December 31st, 2010 - New Year's Eve Dinner celebration at Napier, New Zealand...

Enjoying the New Year Dinner at the RPA Club in Napier, Nilda de Leon, Sandra deLeon and Kayvin...

Kayvin is joined by Jonilyn Domingo and partner, Tamway...

After dinner, we hang out at the Red Carpet Sports Bar in downtown Napier, where, Tamway belows out a Maori love song...

Gambling is legal in New Zealand and Australia, there's slot machines in almost every night club or bars as well as their hotel lobbies and casinos..

I couldn't say not to everyone who was asking me to sing a song or two...

NIlda deLeon sings her heart out at the Karaoke Bar...

While waiting for midnight, we passed the time with dancing total strangers and friends who came with us to celebrate the new year..

Napier City Shops, New Zealand 2010

2011-01-30T13:56:00.000-08:00

December 30, 2010 - Napier City Shops and boardwalk....

Sandy and Nilda enjoying the leisure stroll along Queen Street shops, lined with cafes, bistros, and one of a kind shops, Napier offers every visitor their own attractions, their people...

Outside Cafe and Bistros dot the main streets of Napier making this resort town quaint and very inviting, the people greet you on the streets with warm hellos (G'daay) while boasting the local crafts and curio items...

One of the few Steakhouses open this time of year in Napier, Charlie's offers gaming dishes that to a novice traveler is something exotice such as the Venison steaks, Lamb steaks & other not so familiar dishes..

Napier Beach, New Zealand - Hawkes Bay - Beach Town Resort

2011-01-28T20:19:00.001-08:00

December 30, 2010 - Napier Beach, at Hawkes Bay in New Zealand...Summer during the Holidays which was very unusual to us...

Napier beach is lined by gravel like beach sides, the water temperatures were warm and almost inviting to go swimming during New Year...

Napier beach Marina, found at Hawkes Bay, this sleepy resort town is such a delight to visit during the holidays, simply no crowd to contend with...

Napier's beach front homes along the Marine Parade Avenue, across from the National Aquarium which unfortunately has been closed down and somewhat neglected old building..

Marine Parade Amphitheater is right on the beach, houses music and show conerts, well celebrated is the New Year's fireworks display where thousand of locals and tourist alike flock to this area and revel the coming of the new year...

I am walking along the Marine Parade Amphitheater as we explored the beachside attractions the city has to offer..

Marine Parade Avenue beach walkways offer a visiting traveler the true nature and the laid back spirit of Napier's beach side attractions...

The Marine Parade PAR Mini Golf - a very popular destination for visiting travelers lots of family activity and very affordable.

Sandy as we parked along the PAR Mini Golf on Marine Parade Avenue, the red jeep in the background is my sister's transport, cute and petrol (gas) saver.

Napier's Visitor Center right on Marine Parade offers shopping, tour destinations, sights and brochures for the visitors.

Napier's Sunken Garden, is a tranquil haven for those who just want to absorb the city's freshness and laid back 'NO hurried' lifestyle... Just a few miles(kilometers) from their Botanical Garden, offers local plant varieties and English Garden setting...

Sandy deLeon and Nilda deLeon enjoying the beauty of the sunken park.... how coulod you not? It is right along the beach, just drop your shirt and go swimming..

I was a little overdressed for the locals this time of year, most visitors are in their short & sandals, since I really did not know what to expect, I thought I was dressed casual enough...

Sandy admiring the pebble beach of Napier, we don't come across this kind of beach in California... this tells me that the island is still very young, the water was very inviting and we had to fight the urge to go swimming... since after all, it was freezing in California...

Art Deco Visitor's Center building is lined with Maori Totem Poles on the water fountain in-front of the building..

Napier, New Zealand - Hawkes Bay - Beach Town Resort

2011-01-27T22:58:00.001-08:00

December 30, 2010 - Napier, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand...beach resort town at Hawkes Bay...

This is a very beautiful beach side resort town, almost have the same ambiance as Catalina Island, the City Centre is located right off the beach, surrounded by cute shops, although most were closed, the Kiwis know how to celebrate the Holidays, they take off work from December 23rd to January 10th, it was only a handful of small shops open this time of the year...

The Napier Dome is perhaps the most well known landmark in Napier, right across from the Beach Amphitheater where they celebrate the New Years and Fireworks..

The Napier Beach Amphitheater is enclosed by these roman pillars surrounding the stage where famous performers have done concerts..

Sandy at the Breaker's restaurant parking lot which is right below some of Napier's view Hillside homes...

Breaker's restaurant at Napier is a favorite hang out for the locals... I would compare the food just like Fridays, burgers and comfort foods, indeed very tasty is their beer battered Fish & chips, for some reason I was a little disappointed that they did not have Tartar sauce or Malt vinegar, instead they serve their chips with tomato sauce or mayo... WARNING! the price is almost $20 per dish...

At Breakers, ordering at the bar, they serve liquor and local wines as well as beer and other beverages, sorry, strawberry lemonade is not in the menu...

Sandy deLeon and Nilda deLeon seated at the bay window table to soak some sun and enjoy the park scenery across the street.

Hastings, New Zealand - Food & Flowers

2010-12-29T13:33:00.000-08:00

December 29-30, 2010 - Dinner with Kayvin and Nilda de Leon...

New Zealand's CrayFish - bigger than our Maine Lobster, this one is only a 7 pounder, they grow as much as 12 pounds, can't imagine eating a 24 pounds crayfish, this 7 pounder took us 2 dinners to finish...

This one was caught by our friend Kayvin, he had 4 of these and we can only handle one - yummm.... too much cholesterol...

Live fresh green New Zealand Mussels, sold in every grocery stores as well as all other local fish and crayfish...

My sister served us the best, sweetest and most delicious cherries... crunchy & yummy...

These beautiful flowers belong to my sister's neighbor, just full of bloom, vibrant and bright, I was tempted to cut them and make flower arrangments or something, luckily, my sister prefer silk flowers (they dont die...)

Another gorgeous flower, the African Daisy, tall long stems and feathered petals...

Perhaps the most surprising floral discovery of this tour was this giant Protea bush, again grown like a regular garden plant, these blooms would probably cost a tidy sum in the florist market... I remember for my daughter's wedding, I was checking out the salmon protea at the LA FlowerMart, each stem cost about $3.50 per stem, and that was whole sale price...

Hastings, New Zealand - a very laid back town on the East side of the North Island of New Zealand

2010-12-29T13:31:00.001-08:00

December 29-30, 2010 - Hastings, New Zealand....

This is the city of Hastings, a quaint little town, the hub of the city is their city centre where all the businesses and shops are located. The Clock Tower is a Hastings landmark at the heart of the city.

The shops at Hastings are all small and yet very friendly country style hospitality, everyone says hello to you as you meet them on the streets, people seems happy and un-hurried...

The city shops sorrounded by fountains and man made lakes, aside from driving on the left side of the road, we felt at home here. The weather was perfect and everyone was walking around in shorts and sandals.

Hasting's Clock Tower with the sheep statues is the main attraction of this country setting town...

The shops are lined with hanging purple petunias throughout the main shopping district, very clean and almost deserted, since we got there 2 days before New years, most of the shops are closed for the holidays..

K-Mart store was a welcome sight, we were thrilled to find out that most of our franchise stores are everywhere in New Zealand.

Even the aisles look and arranged the same as our stores in the mainland US, here Sandy and my sister checking out the cosmetic section of the store.

At first I thougth this was their Wendy's, it turned out to be their ice cream shop like Baskin and Robbins, except the selections were limited...

That's Kayvin filling up his antique car for the New Year...

This is Hastings after 5PM, all the shops closes, except for their Dairy Stores (convenient store like 7-11)..

Typical Hastings home, tiny English cottages with 1 car garage seemed the norm, very few homes with 2 car garages.

My sister, Nilda and Sandy preparing to sit down for a meal..

My sister washing and preparing the cherries for lunch..

Sandy talking to our girls on our Magic Jack, that worked great, almost like we were just next door talking to them in California.

Nilda Daken and Sandy de Leon, posing infront of the city centre.

My sister and I infront of the Clock Tower & fountain..

Sandy and my niece, Jonilyn, we surprised her on this visit to Waikaparau, North of Hastings, approximately 40 miles away, so she was dressed very casual..

My sister's flat, this is a 2 bedroom and 1 bath home with 1 car garage... I was shocked to find out that they dry their clothes and laundry outside in the sun, not a very familiar sight...

Sandy standing outside the Flat as we were getting ready to leave for our city visit...

Taken December 29th, we made a dash to the City Centre to pick up some items for our New Years Eve...Standing at the Clock Tower Gardens, these Maori Totem Poles are displayed for their native arts..

Arriving in Auckland, New Zealand After 3 hours of Plane ride

2010-12-29T13:30:00.000-08:00

December 28, 2010 - Auckland Airport Arrival @ 6PM local time...

Our 3 hour plane ride from Sydney to Auckland seemed a lot shorter compared to our previous connection... We landed in Auckland International Airport and went through customs.

After arriving in Auckland, we proceeded to the Immigration & customs check, since we declared that we were carrying packaged Salami Sausage, our bags were inspected for any additonal foods or other items. Our Salami Sausage, present for my sister, was inspected, the label read and re-read, plus x-rayed. Guess, DO NOT bring any kind of foods into New Zealand or Australia if you are traveling there. After clearing customs, we checked out our suitcases and we waited in the terminal stops for the shuttle to take us to the Domestic Airport.

Upon arriving at the Domestic Airport, we checked for our flight and gate, our suitcases had to be checked in again, screened our boarding passes issued.

Our Flight was delayed for 1 hour, so I went on the internet Cafe and logged on to Facebook to just let everyone know we arrived safely in New Zealand. Little did we know that our next 50 min flight to Napier would become perhaps the most thrilling ride throughout this trip.

This is our plane from Auckland to Napier, a twin engine jet plane, 15 rows and 2 seats on both sides of the plane. The passengers seemed to sound just like the Australians but with a little harder accent... This ride was ROUGH! It was like riding colussus at Magic Mountain, everyone's head were bobbing up and down and sideways and anyways - we were almost ready to DIE...

We arrived at Napier Airport around 10PM, being the last flight of the day. After our flight we were glad to be back on land. My sister, niece and their partners greeted us. Our trip to my sister's house in Hastings took another 40 mins.

Arriving at Sydney - Airline Travel crossing the International Dateline..

2010-12-29T13:28:00.000-08:00

December 28, 2010 @ 5:58AM...

Arriving in Sydney Airport after 14 hours of flight, we arrived at 5AM local time...

Sydney was our port of entry since there are no direct flights to New Zealand from the US. The International terminal was designed for everyone's comfort and shopping, they had several duty free shops selling most of what we can buy from America, their rate of exchange is $1.20 per $1AUD... better shop in the main City if you want to buy in-expensive souvenirs..

Sandy going through the terminal waiting area at the Sydney international airport... quite a long walk...

The Duty Free shop offers mostly American products but at a higher cost since it is all imported to Australia..

Sandy & i busied ourselves with shopping since we had 6 hours of lay over, they had plenty of places to eat and lie around, couches that are designed for weary travelers needing to lie down or nap while waiting for their connecting flights.

The stuffed Koala bear I was holding in my hands cost $75 AUD (equivalent to $105USD), whew, that was scary, yet cute for a picture taking.

Sandy lounging around the Cafe waiting area, time went by fast, its like shopping in the malls...

Leaving from Moreno Valley to Sydney Australia

2010-12-29T13:24:00.000-08:00

December 26, 2010

We woke very early to start our last day preparing for our trip to New Zealand, Here Sandy is still asleep and I'm beginning to pack, don't worry, Sandy has already packed her suitcase a week before.

Sandy's suitcase has been packed 1 week before the trip, she was all set and ready to go..

I guess when you are running around last minute, you have a tendency to get messy in the bathroom...

This is my suitcase, all neatly packed, but wait have I forgotten anything?

Vanessa, Tyler, Benjamin. Tiffany and Cj came to see us off, since Vanessa and Tyler were dropping us off, we had to say goodbye's at home, we couldn't all fit in the car...

Leaving for our NZ trip, we flew VAustralia, it was somewhat amazing and unexpected... check-in was a breeze, all they had to do was scan our passports and printed our boarding passes, maximum allowed weight per passenger is 32Kilos=50lbs. TSA screening was a bit exasperating, my laptop had to be re-screened because I made a mistake of putting my jacket on top of the pc, other than that, it was a breeze also. Here is a tip, make sure you give at least 3-4 hours before departure.

CCH-BYU Aloha Spirit 2010 - Thousand Oaks, California

2010-10-06T15:40:00.000-07:00

Victor Dees - Master of Events

Bonnie Villaruz - Diamond Bar, CA

Elizabeth Glenn Pedroche - Rancho Cucamonga, CA

Erlyn Pambid Sugarman - Northridge, CA

'Desert smorgasboard'

Josie Yao Koger - Thousand Oaks, CA

Grand Hostess

Linda Javier Joaquino - Chicago, IL

Rodel & Malou Paderanga Idos - Provo, UT

Steve & Mila Paderanga Armstrong - Salt Lake City, UT

Mirriam Flores Villaruz - Diamond Bar, CA

Rebecca Javier Reyes - Las Vegas, NV

Sonya Flores Fahey - Event's Chairperson

Victor Dees organized the CCH-BYU TAYO TAYO L.A. reunion in Thousand Oaks, California.

CCH-BYU Spirit of Aloha - Tayo Tayo L.A. Reunion September 2010

2010-10-06T08:22:00.000-07:00

Erlyn Pambid Sugarman

'Desert Smorgasboard'

Tayo Tayo L.A. -CCH-BYU reunion September 2010, held at the Koger's residence in Sunny Thousand Oaks, California was attended by fellow class/school mates who all went to college in 1969 - 1990

Linda Javier Joaquino - Chicago, IL

Sonya Flores Fahey - Huntington Beach, CA

Tayo Tayo Event Chairperson

Linda Javier Joaquino - Chicago IL

Mirriam Flores Villaruz - Diamond Bar, CA

Rebecca Javier Reyes - Las Vegas, NV

Elizabeth Glenn Pedroche - Rancho Cucamonga, CA

Josie Yao Koger - Thosand Oaks, CA

'Grand Hostess of the Event'

Steve & Mila Paderanga Armstrong - Salt Lake City, UT

Rodel & Malou Paderanga Idos - Provo, UT

Mr Bonnie Villaruz

Victor Dees - Master of Ceremonies

CCH-BYU Alumni's held their mini reunion in Thousand Oaks September 18, 2010 - Hosted by Steven & Josie Koger.

Tyler deLeon Visit Riverside Museum and Chinese Pagoda Historical Landmark

2010-08-09T22:40:00.000-07:00

Tyler deLeon infront of the Riverside Museum of Arts and Crafts, great way to enjoy a museum, FREE of charge any donation will do, they have an array of insects indigenous to the area, as well as African artifacts, collection of Citrus tools and history...

Native American artifacts collected from the local Luisiano Indian Tribe.... original inhabitants of the area...

A collection of African Masks and artifacts....

Collection of local insects inhabiting the Riverside Area....

That's a snapping turtle in that tank, this 90 year old reptile can snap you hand off... one of the displayed animal in the reptile exhibit on the 2nd floor of the museum...

Riverside's Landmark Chinese Pagoda built in the early 1900's still a frequently visited and pituresque dsetination right infront of the Mission Inn...

Tyler deLeon visits the Mission Inn & Downtown Riverside, California August 2010

2010-08-09T22:14:00.000-07:00

Tyler deLeon visits historic Mission Inn and downtown Riverside, California. Visiting the famous Riverside Mission Inn and all the fabulous sights to see and best of all, for FREE. Walk through the Courtyard where other known celebrities have come to marvel at the antiques and the famous Spanish Arts Museum which is now used as the banquet room of the Hotel. Built in 1862 as a boarding house and upgraded into a luxury hotel in 1902, this famous site host the yearly Xmas lights extravaganza, right in the heart of Riverside downtown, just a walk to the Market Street where you can find an array of shops and antique museums... wear comfortable shoes, there's a lot of walking.... Tyler deLeon infront of the Mission Inn entrance on University Avenue, downtown Riverside, California....

Majestic Mission Inn, now a 5 Star Hotel and tourist destination...

Tyler deLeon looking at the Spanish Courtyard of the Mission Inn....

Tyler deLeon exploring Market Street in downtown Riverside, California.....

Historic Riverside California Sites and Things to Do Free - Fairmont Park

2010-08-04T22:07:00.000-07:00

Tyler deLeon Visits one of the many parks in the city of Riverside, this is Fairmont Park, almost 4 acres of park, picnic grounds, massive playground, the oldest train that transported passengers from Los Angeles to this desert Oasis, the tranquil lakes and all the fun that comes with it, free admission, bring your own lunch and or just bring day old bread and feed the ducks, so much fun for any ages...

Tyler deLeon infront of the parks 2nd world war army tank on display by the lakeside, you can bring bacon and a string and have the kids catch crayfish... fun for all, kids love it and even teens enjoy fishing in the lake...

Visit the children's playground, make sure you bring the small ones for fun, hours of activity and fun for the tots...

Lani Misalucha Show 'Voices' at the Las Vegas Hilton

2010-04-27T17:15:00.000-07:00

CCH-BYU Depedida Reunion for President Rudy Carlos was held by members of the CCH-BYU Bayanihan Club members which culminates the 40th reunion of the group.

Lani Misalucha Show - 'Voices' is the most entertaining and highlight of the Reunion event held April 10, 2010 at the Las Vegas Hilton Showroom.

Malou Idos getting a hug from Lani Misalucha after her autograph signing - CCH-BYU Reunion for President Rudy Carlos.

Best Friends Emmie & Ramon Flores with Victor Dees hosting the reunion event...

CCH-BYU Despedida Reunion 'Vegas Style' 2010

2010-04-16T00:24:00.000-07:00

Our 40th CCH-BYU Bayanihan Club Prez Rudy Carlos Despedida Reunion 2010 in Las Vegas Nevada!!

Evan Christian Chavez - Newborn additon to Victor Dees grankids

2010-02-03T11:30:00.000-08:00

Evan Christian Chavez, born January 17, 2010, prematurely born 4.9 lbs. stayed at the Orange County Children's hospital for 3 weeks while parents Steven Chavez and Felisa Chavez stayed at the Ronald Mcdonald House to be able to attend to the baby while in NeoNatal care.
Now almost 5.9 lbs came home to his 3 brothers, Erick, Daniel, Nathan and sister Felisa Marisol at Lake Hills last sunday, February 7th....

Tyler deLeon visits Disneyland Jan 2010

2010-01-30T10:14:00.000-08:00

Tyler de Leon with his Mom, Vanessa de Leon and grandfather Victor Dees celebrating Christmas at Disneyland..

Joey Fisher, Benjamin Tillinghast and Victor Dees riding the boat in SmallWorld Christmas Fantasy...

Vanessa de Leon, Tyler de Leon with brother Joey Fisher...

Tyler deLeon - visits Las Vegas July 4th 2009

2010-01-30T09:48:00.000-08:00

Tyler deLeon visits Las Vegas, Nevada on 4th of July Celebration 2009 where fireworks display illuminate the skylights, with his grandfather, Victor Dees.

Enjoying the city light fireworks display on 4th of July, compares to the grand New Year display that the city offers, with mom, Vanessa de Leon and Granma Sandy de Leon.

Dazzling Fireworks that went for almost an hour, first the Bellagio, followed by Caesars, the spectacular display is synchronized to create this firework show last for an hour...

Tyler monkeying around in the hotel lobby with mom, Vanessa and grandma, Sandy..

Tamae Shindo visits Solvang California August 2009

2010-01-21T12:53:00.000-08:00

10 Top Natural Wonders of the World

2009-01-18T17:46:00.000-08:00

10 Top Natural Wonders of the Modern World was based on the number of tourism each park receives every year and the distinction of being the biggest, deepest, widest and the most accessible to visitors....(as published and reported by the Travel Channel, 2009).
#10 - NGORONGORO CRATER - Tanzania, Africa

#10 – Ngorongoro Crater – Tanzania, Africa - The Ngorongoro crater is stunning and most certainly a unique. Designated as the World Heritage site, the creter has one of the largest concentrations of wildlife in Africa. Often called as Africa’ Eden, this 10th natural wonder of the world, is the natural sanctuary to thousands of birds, insects, & animals such as lions, zebras, black rhino to name a few became a conservation land in 1959 covering 8,300 square kilometers or reserve.

Olduvai Gorge known as “Cradel of Mankind” , Lake Ndutu and Lake Masek are all within its borders. Only the indigenous tribe of Masaai are allowed to live in the land.

Located in northern Tanzania, 190 miles from Arusha town. The park is located between the Serengeti and Lake Manyara. Famous the “largest unbroken Caldera in the world”, the crater is 610 meters deep and 260 square kilometers. The crater is most popular for bird watching, photography, walking safaris, and game viewing.

Perhaps the most luxurious accommodations on the park is provided by the Ngorongoro Crater Lodge Travel Agents can contact directly from US (866) 356-4691.

#9 - MT. EVERST - Nepal, Tibet

#9 – Mt Everest – Nepal, Tibet - The pinnacle of every mountain range, of every shifting tectonic plate that sends terra firma into the sky – Mt Everest is the highest point in the world, the holy mountain that oversees the entire globe. Couched within the safe confines of the Himalaya mountain range, it dwarfs the border of Nepal and China without even trying, achieving world renown without the vaguest idea of its meaning.
Though the exact measurement of the summit is the cause of some debate, the official height of Mt Everest is listed at 29,028 feet - exactly 777 feet above the nearby K2, also a member of the Himalayas. Its reputation as one of the most difficult climbs in the world is well-deserved

It is difficult, but not inconceivable, for most travelers to even attempt an assault on the mountain. For years, few climbers tried - now, for the right price (approximately $70,000) one can join an expedition with little to no experience whatsoever. This adventure, however, is extremely dangerous. For every five climbers that leave their mark on Mt Everest, one climber dies.

This doesn't mean that Everest is not an attractive tourist destination. The Everest base camp, found near the Rongphu monastery in the outskirts of Tibet, is still visited by thousands of tourists a year, for whom stepping foot on the great mountain is victory enough.

Best season to visit would be between April to October. Most tours start in Lhasa, Tibet, and flights from Beijing, Chengdu or Katmandu would be suggested routes for first time revelers

#8 - LAKE BAIKAL - Siberia, USSR.

#8- Lake Baikal – Siberia, Russia - Lake Baikal (Russian: о́зеро Байка́л Ozero Baykal, pronounced [ˈozʲɪrə bʌjˈkɑl], Buryat: Байгал нуур Baygal nuur) is in Southern Siberia in Russia, located between Irkutsk Oblast to the northwest and the Buryat Republic to the southeast, near the city of Irkutsk. It is also known as the "Blue Eye of Siberia". It contains more water than all the North American Great Lakes combined.

At 1,637 meters (5,371 ft), Lake Baikal is the deepest lake in the world,[3] and the largest freshwater lake in the world by volume.[4] However, Lake Baikal contains less than one third the amount of water as the Caspian Sea which is the largest lake in the world.

Situated in south-east Siberia, the 3.15-million-ha Lake Baikal is the oldest (25 million years) and deepest (1,700 m) lake in the world. It contains 20% of the world's total unfrozen freshwater reserve. Known as the 'Galapagos of Russia', its age and isolation have produced one of the world's richest and most unusual freshwater faunas, which is of exceptional value to evolutionary science.

As for visiting Lake Baikal, the most common town to stay in is Listvyanka. You can stay in a homestay accomodations, although in 2006 there’s a new hotel called Hotel Mayak which is not too pricey and is of a reasonable standard.

#7 - VICTORIA FALLS - Zimbabwe, Africa

7- Victoria Falls – Zimbabwe, Africa - Neither the widest nor tallest, but Victoria falls with its dimensions of 1700 m width and 104 m height is the largest sheet of falling water on earth. Its local name Mosi-Oa-Tunya means smoke that thunders. It happens to form the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe.

When the flow of the Zambezi River isn't too strong, usually from September to December, visitors can swim right to the edge of the falls. A natural rock wall at the edge slows the water and allows swimmers to brave the most amazing view of Victoria Falls.

About Victoria Falls Safari Lodge, Set high on a natural plateau, the westward facing Victoria Falls Safari Lodge borders the Zambezi National Park and is just four kilometers from the thundering Victoria Falls, Southern Africa’s foremost attraction.

Best time to visit is between February and May. Take advantage of Safaris available in the area as well.

#6 - AYERS ROCK (Uluru) - Sydney, Australia

#6- Ayer’s Rock – Sydney, Australia - Uluru (formerly known as Ayers Rock) is a large rock formation in central Australia, in the Northern Territory. There is something totally awe-inspiring about Uluru. There it sits in the centre of Australia, located in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park close to the small town of Yulara (aka Ayers Rock Resort).

A huge monolith, 862.5 metres above sea level, 1395 km south of Darwin and 465 km south west of Alice Springs, rising out of the desert. Uluru, which means ‘great pebble’ in the Aboriginal language. Uluru is a 3.6km-long rising 348 metres above the surrounding countryside. It has an area of 3.33 sq. km and a circumference of 9.4 km. It experiences an average of 200-250 mm of rainfall per annum and a typical desert temperature range which can fall to -8°C at night-time in winter and rise to 47°C during the day in summer.

Uluru is notable for its quality of changing colour as the different light strikes it at different times of the day and year, with sunset a particularly remarkable sight. It is made of sandstone infused with minerals like feldspar (Arkosic sandstone) that cause it to give off a red glow at sunrise and sunset.

Uluru, also referred to as Ayers Rock, is a large sandstone rock formation in the southern part of the Northern Territory, central Australia. It lies 335 km (208 mi) south west of the nearest large town, Alice Springs; 450 km (280 mi) by road. Kata Tjuta and Uluru are the two major features of the Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park. Uluru is sacred to the Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara, the Aboriginal people of the area. It has many springs, waterholes, rock caves and ancient paintings. Uluru is listed as a World Heritage Site.

A reported 400 thousand tourist come and marvel at this wonder destination as reported by the Travel Channel. Visitors can visit year round.

#5 - EVERGLADES - Florida, USA

#5 – Everglades – Florida, USA - Everglades National Park, largest subtropical wilderness in the United States, boasts rare and endangered species. It has been designated a World Heritage Site, International Biosphere Reserve, and Wetland of International Importance, significant to all people of the world.

A subtropical wetland located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large watershed. The system begins near Orlando with the Kissimmee River, which discharges into the vast but shallow Lake Okeechobee. Water leaving the lake in the wet season forms a slow-moving river 60 miles (97 km) wide and over 100 miles (160 km) long, flowing southward across a limestone shelf to Florida Bay at the southern end of the state. The Everglades are shaped by water and fire, experiencing frequent flooding in the wet season and drought in the dry season.

You can begin your trip to the evergaldes from Miami, several tour groups offer a variety of tours in the Everglades, home to the endangered Manitees, choose the best one that interest you the most, from swamp trekking to alligator wrestling. This park attracts 1 million visitors a year.

#4 - SAHARA DESERT - Algeria, Africa

#4 – Sahara Desert – Algeria, Africa - The Sahara (Arabic: الصحراء الكبرى‎, aṣ-ṣaḥrā´ al-kubra, "The Greatest Desert") is the third-largest desert on Earth after Antarctica and the Arctic, and it is the world's largest hot desert. At over 9,000,000 square kilometers (3,500,000 sq mi), it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as the United States or the continent of Europe. The desert stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean. To the south, it is delimited by the Sahel: a belt of semi-arid tropical savanna separating the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Africa..

The Sahara's boundaries are the Atlantic Ocean on the west, the Atlas Mountains and the Mediterranean Sea on the north, the Red Sea and Egypt on the east, and the Sudan and the valley of the Niger River on the south. The Sahara is divided into western Sahara, the central Ahaggar Mountains, the Tibesti Mountains, the Aïr Mountains (a region of desert mountains and high plateaus), Tenere desert and the Libyan desert (the most arid region). The highest peak in the Sahara is Emi Koussi (3,415 m/11,200 ft) in the Tibesti Mountains in northern Chad.

The Sahara divides the continent of Africa into North and Sub-Saharan Africa. The southern border of the Sahara is marked by a band of semiarid savanna called the Sahel; south of the Sahel lies the lusher Sudan and the Congo River Basin. Most of the Sahara consists of rocky hamada; ergs (large sand dunes) form only a minor part.

Villages or Cities surrounding the Desert may well be the entry way into the main Desert regions. Visitors can enjoy the different cultures in and around Sahara Desert, my first choice would be Egypt as a city to visit before entering the desert reserves. There are over 1.4 Million visitors that come to visit this natural wonder.

#3 - GREAT BARRIER REEF - Australia

#3 – Great Barrier Reef – Sydney, Australia - The Great Barrier Reef is the largest coral reef system in the world,[1][2] composed of over 2,900 individual reefs[3] and 900 islands stretching for 2,600 kilometres (1,600 mi) over an area of approximately 344,400 square kilometres (133,000 sq mi).[4][5] The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland in northeast Australia.
The Great Barrier Reef can be seen from outer space and is the world's biggest single structure made by living organisms.[6] This reef structure is composed of and built by billions of tiny organisms, known as coral polyps.[7] The Great Barrier Reef supports a wide diversity of life, and was selected as a World Heritage Site in 1981.[1][2] CNN has labelled it one of the 7 natural wonders of the world.[8] The Queensland National Trust has named it a state icon of Queensland.[9]
A large part of the reef is protected by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, which helps to limit the impact of human use, such as overfishing and tourism. Other environmental pressures to the reef and its ecosystem include water quality from runoff, climate change accompanied by mass coral bleaching, and cyclic outbreaks of the crown-of-thorns starfish
Best season to visit would be in the months of November through May, where the most vibrant sea life activity is at most active. There are estimated 2 million visitors a year who come to enjoy the water sports and the natural beauty of this park.

#2 AMAZON RAINFOREST - Latin America

#2- Amazon rain Forest – Encompassing 8 different countries -The Amazon rainforest (Brazilian Portuguese: Floresta Amazônica or Amazônia; Spanish: Selva Amazónica or Amazonía), also known as Amazonia, or the Amazon jungle, is a moist broadleaf forest that covers most of the Amazon Basin of South America. This basin encompasses seven million square kilometers (1.7 billion acres), of which five and a half million square kilometers (1.4 billion acres) are covered by the rainforest. This region includes territory belonging to nine nations. The majority of the forest is contained within Brazil, with 60 percent of the rainforest, followed by Peru with 13 percent of the rainforest, and with minor amounts in Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. States or departments in four nations bear the name Amazonas after it. The Amazon represents over half of the planet's remaining rainforests, and it comprises the largest and most species-rich tract of tropical rainforest in the world.

My best possible entry into the Amazon Forest would be Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Although any of the other countries would just as good and would be a bargain. This wonder is one that is predicted to be gone before the century is over due to economic developments and progress, so come and see it before it all goes away.

#1 - GRAND CANYON - Arizona, USA

#1 – Grand Canyon – Arizona, USA - The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided gorge carved by the Colorado River in the United States state of Arizona. It is largely contained within the Grand Canyon National Park — one of the first national parks in the United States. President Theodore Roosevelt was a major proponent of preservation of the Grand Canyon area, and visited on numerous occasions to hunt and enjoy the scenery.
Longstanding scientific consensus has been that the canyon was created by the Colorado River over a six million year period. The canyon is 277 miles (446 km) long, ranges in width from 4 to 18 miles (6.4 to 29 km) and attains a depth of over a mile (1.83 km)(6000 feet).[1] Nearly two billion years of the Earth's history have been exposed as the Colorado River and its tributaries cut their channels through layer after layer of rock while the Colorado Plateau was uplifted. The "canyon began in the west, followed by another that formed in the east. Eventually, the two broke through and met as a single majestic rent in the earth some six million years ago. [...] The merger apparently occurred where the river today bends to the west, in the area known as the Kaibab Arch."[2]
Aside from casual sightseeing from the South Rim (averaging 7000 feet (2100 m) above sea level), whitewater rafting, hiking and running are especially popular. The floor of the valley is accessible by foot, muleback, or by boat or raft from upriver. Hiking down to the river and back up to the rim in one day is discouraged by park officials because of the distance, steep and rocky trails, change in elevation, and danger of heat exhaustion from the much higher temperatures at the bottom. Rescues are required annually of unsuccessful rim-to-river-to-rim travelers. Nevertheless, hundreds of fit and experienced hikers complete the trip every year. The Grand Canyon has ridges in it
Over 5 Million visitors every year come and see this magnificent wonder. Can be reached from Las Vegas or Phoenix, or even California as the gateway to this fantastic bargain destination.

Fujii Ushijima - R.I.P.

2009-01-06T08:17:00.000-08:00

Fujii Ushijima - Aunt & Mother - Sister of Masaru Shindo - Aunt of Victor & Sandy - Funeral arrangements:
FUKUI MORTUARY - JANUARY 6TH, 2009
707 East Temple Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Survived by daughters - Corlis & Loris - We pay this tribute to a great Aunt...

With Sister-in-Law, Tamae Shindo of Hilo Hawaii...

Aunty Fujii with daughter Corlis, Tamae Shindo & Sandy deLeon...Taken September 2008...

Aunty Fujii, our favorite Aunty passes away Christmas Eve 2008...

2009 - Post Parade Viewing - Rose Parade Floats

2009-01-01T10:14:00.001-08:00

Rose Parade Guide - 2009
Contact:
Victor Dees – Travel GuyVictor Dees

(951) 230-1812 or (951) 402-9806

TOURNAMENT OF ROSES - FLOATS

POST PARADE: A SHOWCASE OF FLOATS

Park-N-Ride Service Available from Three Pasadena Locations and MTA:

WHAT:

“Post Parade” is a half-mile square park where the Rose Parade floats are exhibited for visitors to view the design detail and amazing floral workmanship in an up-close fashion. This year, Post Parade will provide Rose Parade enthusiasts with an additional day (Saturday, January 3) to get to know the majestic floral beauties.

WHEN:
Date/Time: (Rain or shine)

Jan. 1, 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.* (general admission)

Jan. 2 & 3, 7:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. (senior citizens and disabled guests only)

Jan. 2 & 3, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.* (general admission)

*Ticket sales end at 2:30 p.m. and guest admittance ends at 3:00 p.m.

Venue closes promptly at 5:00 p.m.

No pets, bicycles, skates, or skateboards are allowed in the park.

Wheelchairs are not available for rent.

WHERE:
Sierra Madre and Washington Boulevards in Pasadena

ADMISSIONS:
$7.00 for all adults and children 5 and younger are admitted for free.

Admission to the documentary film is included in the price of admission.

Tickets are sold at the event and advance tickets are available from Sharp Seating (626) 795-4171

PARK-N-RIDE:
Street parking near the event is limited. The Tournament of Roses offers a Park-N-Ride shuttle service and guests using shuttles enter the event through a priority line.
Park-N-Ride service is offered at the following locations:

On January 1 beginning at 12:30 p.m.
1. Pasadena City College (1570 E. Colorado Blvd)
2. Community Education Center (3035 E. Foothill Blvd)

On January 2 beginning at 6:30 a.m.
1. Pasadena City College (1570 E. Colorado Blvd)
2. Community Education Center (3035 E. Foothill Blvd) on
3. Rose Bowl (North Arroyo Blvd & Seco St),

On January 3 beginning at 6:30 a.m.
1. Pasadena City College (1570 E. Colorado Blvd)
2. Community Education Center (3035 E. Foothill Blvd) on
3. Rose Bowl (North Arroyo Blvd & Seco St),

SPECIAL NOTE:
In addition, MTA offers a shuttle service from the Sierra Madre Villa Gold Line Station on January 1 (starting at 12:30 pm) and on January 2 and 3 (starting at 7:00 am).

AUDIO TOUR:
For the second year in a row, the Tournament of Roses is offering a downloadable audio tour with additional descriptions of the 47 floral beauties in the 2009 Rose Parade. For more information visit http://www.tournamentofroses.com/events/showcase.asp#audio.
More information about Post Parade and the Park-N-Ride program can be found at the Tournament of Roses website at http://www.tournamentofroses.com/

Tournament of Roses – Post Float Information offered by Victor Dees – the Travel Guy … YTB Travel Consultant – Certified Travel Agent

Baja Mexico Christmas Cruise

2008-12-22T11:28:00.000-08:00

Baja - Mexico Travelogue:

With our YTB credentials, I was able to book inside cabins for $140.00/pp with Carnival Paradise for this 5 days 4 night cruise, bear in mind, this rate does not include, port fees, taxes and fuel surcharges, total booking came out to $289/pp.

December 15th – Monday – 2008:

Day 1 - Queen Mary - Long Beach Harbor: We embarked on our Christmas Cruise to Baja Mexico with our dear and close friends Long Espinas and Sarah Stuart-Tongco. Long Espinas, as a formal introduction for those who may not know it, was a professional Singer and Recording Star for Villar Records in the Philippines. The best thing about this cruise is that Sarah and I got to work half of the day before we had to board Carnival Paradise.

Sandy & I left Riverside at around 12:30 PM, went to pick up Long in Corona, and Sarah in Claremont. For a Monday afternoon, traffic on the 10 FWY I thought would be light, instead we got into a parking lot traffic around Azusa Avenue, we took the surface street and headed southbound to the 60 FWY, traffic was not as heavy, with pockets of congestions around the 60/605 junctions.

We arrived in Long Beach around 2:45 PM, we unloaded our suitcases with one of the porters, I parked the car in the parking lot for $10/day rate.

Prior to us boarding, we have already pre-registered online with Carnival Fun Pass. The check-in time took approximately 1.5 hours, as soon as it was our turn to get our boarding cards, it took less than 10 minutes to check in.

With Passports and Boarding Cards on hand, we were all excited and lined up for our Boarding Photo shoot. (A note to a first time cruiser, just take as many pictures as you have an opportunity to create a photo journal of your trip; be aware that these pictures are not cheap). We stopped and posed for the photos and somehow between the photo shoot, escalator and INS check in, Sarah misplaced her boarding card which caused a slight delay on our boarding process. INS officer actually went all the way down to check if the card fell and someone have turned it in, but to all our dismay, it was nowhere to be found.

INS officer instructed Sarah to proceed to the Courtesy Booth on the Promenade and have a new card re-issued and void the lost one. We did, this process took about 15 minutes to complete, all in all, it was a very effortless & pleasant check-in.

One hour after we boarded, the announcement came to proceed to the Queen Mary Lounge on the 8th floor for the required emergency evacuation drill. As in any cruise, there is no way around this drill, it is required, so we had as much fun with every new passenger we met during this exercise. I happen to sit right next to couple from Alberta, Canada and we were all having a ball during this drill. A word to the wise, a few inconvenienced passengers were not happy with this, unfortunately we all had to go through with it so you might as well have a blast.

Sarah, Long, Sandy & I went up to the Lido Deck to grab a light snack before dinner, our assigned late dining is at 8:15 PM. We toured the Promenade, the shops and get familiar with the lounges, casino and clubs. We were lucky to find a Filipino Band booked at the Leonardo Lounge, with that, we requested our dear friend Long to sing a song for us and jammed with the live band until it was time for us to leave to have dinner.

Our dining room was the Destiny Dining Room, I would advise for anyone to start showing up at 8:30 pm instead of waiting in a really crowded line to get the tables you’re already assigned to. There were approximately 2000+ guest for this cruise, due to the time and length of food service the two main dining rooms are Elation & Destiny, early seating starts at 6:15PM, late starts at 8:15PM, again, it is always advisable to go to dinner 15 minutes later in order to avoid the rush.

Our head waiter, was Arvin from the Philippines and assistant waiter, Aravelo from Hungary. Both very pleasant and eager to please us every which way they can. Being served and pampered during dinner is just what everyone expects for any cruise, the menu are all gourmet and preferred specially for the guest by the Head Chef.

Joining us for our dining company were Dorothy & Igal from South Bay, and Sharlene & Tony from Culver City. Both couples are just a delight to become friends with and genuinely FUN to have dinner conversation with. (I will have a special BLOG for these two wonderful couple later).

After finishing our scrumptious dinner and to die for “Melting Chocolate Cake”, we proceeded to the Normandy Theater the Opening extravaganza. The theater was packed by the time we got there and we had to be separated for better viewing. When the show ended, Long and Sarah retired early and Sandy & I followed along for tomorrow will be a long day.

Day 2 - Catalina Island:

2008-12-22T10:59:00.000-08:00

Tony & Sharlene London of Culver City...

December 16th – Tuesday

Day 2 – Santa Catalina Island:

Commonly referred to as Catalina Island is a beautiful rocky island off the southwest coast of Los Angeles in California. The main City is Avalon and the other less populated city is Two Harbors to the north side of the island with less than 300 population.

The island’s main industry has always been tourism, although there are 2 very large ranches located in the interiors of the island raising horses, cattle’s and bison’s known as the Middle Ranch and Rancho Escondido, most of the island is owned by the Catalina Island Conservancy bought in 1927 by the magnate William Wrigley Jr., founder of the Wrigley’s Gum. Prior to the Wrigley’s, it was the Banning Brothers who brought the first influx of tourist into the island by renting “Tent Lots”, later on sold for $5,000 a piece in 1891 – 1991.

Between 1927 & 1937, Spanish tiles were made on the island by the Wrigley’s Catalina Clay Products. These items are now considered collectibles and rears large sums of money for each antique tile. The Chicago Cubs also owned by the Wrigley’s used the island as their training camp between 1921 – 1951.

Avalon, was home to such renowned citizens as the Holly’s and the Swanson’s, their mansions still standing and preserved as local landmarks. As well as the other historical landmarks as the Casino Building (not for Gaming) mostly used for concerts, live bands and shows also house the Catalina Island Museum. The building and the museum is a must see destination for Catalina revelers.

Carnival is anchored in the middle of the bay and each passengers who wants to take tour excursion in the island are shuttled by boat tenders every 15 minutes. We landed in 8AM, and the passengers started their tours, we woke up later and decided to have a late lunch and got off the ship to explore around 11AM. While we were in tender waiting to depart, a seal was eagerly performing and swimming alongside our boat, of course we all applauded and encouraged the seal to do more tricks and got the wiser and quickly disappeared.

We went around the different tourist shops and looked for any souvenirs to take to home to our grand kids. Sharlene and Tony later on joined us at the boardwalk, then recommended we take the Trolley (cost is $2/pp RT) and the entire trip is about 1 hour. We joined, Sharlynn and Tony, they wanted to visit the Botanical Garden and take a walking tour. Sandy and I have already taken the tour and feeling lazy for a walking tour and decided not to repeat it, but for those who are plant and green aficionados, I highly recommend visiting the park and see about 1500 indigenous plant varieties in the island, mostly in the cacti family.

As the Trolley made its rounds, the tour driver shared that the best deals for the island is during the low seasons before Christmas, hotel rates down to $45/night from $169 during peak season and some rentals are available for week rates that are unheard of, this gave us the idea that maybe next year, we can rent a summer home in Avalon and bring our family members to experience the island as a Christmas celebration.

Our friends, Sarah and Long are both devout Catholics and when they found out that St. Catherine Catholic Church was a walking distance from the Trolley stop, we all decided to take a short visit, much to our surprise, we got there just minutes from the next service, in the spirit of the holidays, we decided to attend the hour long service, and Long sang a beautiful inspirational song even the priest got choked up saying the closing message.

We also met, 3 Carnival workers who informed us that they have requested on every Tuesday at 1PM a service is offered for them, we considered ourselves very lucky to have the opportune time to offer our prayer for the holidays.

We boarded the tenders back to the ship around 3PM, and we headed straight for the Lido Deck where we again ate our light snack to tie us over for dinner. It was Formal Dinner Night, Sandy and I decided not to join Long and Sarah for the mixers and agreed to meet them for dinner. The ship sailed at 5:30PM, while we were having our snacks.

We missed Dorothy, Igal, Sharlene and Tony during dinner because they decided to change their dinging time to the first seating, so we dined with just our friends. The menu for the evening is all you can eat lobster and shrimp trio, I ate 3 lobster tails, and again indulged in the Melting Chocolate Cake for dessert.

After dinner, we made our way early to the Normandy Theater to watch the Hollywood musical show that evening. Again, the show alone is worth the price, along with the endless selection of gourmet dinners, cruising truly is the best bargain for the money.

After, the show, we again went to visit and hear the Filipino Band play, this time Long again was requested to sing with the band and wowed the crowd, everyone was dancing and just having a great time.

Ensenada, Mexico

2008-12-22T10:26:00.000-08:00

December 17th - Wednesday

Day 3 – Ensenada, Baja California:

We docked on the port around 8AM, the day was very wet with rain, steady down pour from the time we had late breakfast at the Lido Deck. All through the morning, the announcement from the bridge announced all kinds of drills and procedures for the personnel, the alrms were constantly going. The ship captain referred to the rain as “Liquid Sunshine”, it poured and kept pouring, luckily right on the pier is a shopping, although the prices are inflated from the downtown shopping area.
Sandy & I went down to the Courtesy Desk and inquired about the available tours, we booked the city tour which included the Santo Tomas Winery wine tasting tour, the Civic Center and downtown Primera Avenida (1st Avenue) shopping center.

The rain was light when we reached the winery, there were 2 other tour buses with the wine tasting, the host explained the history of the winery, 2nd oldest in Mexico with locally grown grapes, we sampled the white wine and red wine, others tasted the Sangria and Chardonnay. Being a wine illiterate person as I am, I thought the best tasting was the red wine, more sweeter in taste and not to harsh.

When we finished wine tasting, we hurried back into the tour bus, still pouring rain and traveled next to the Ensenada Civic Center, here the square is normally lined with several vendors, but due to the rain, all the vendors are indoors and not as many retailers.

Our guide, named Esther explained the history of the Civic Center being a 6 block hotel resort named Riviera Pacifico del Ensenada, a gaming and tourist seaside resort, later demolished and only the main entrance to the hotel remains and now being used for banquets and celebrations. We also sampled the beer, Tecate and Tequila.

After our trip to the Civic Center, our tour proceeded to Avenida Primera or First Avenue, consist of 4 blocks of shopping stores, restaurants, bars and tattoo parlors. We basically went for the small knick knacks that we can carry, we did not purchase heavy items. I would like to caution shoppers in Ensenada that the vendors will not tell you, for items they sell you and will not be able to take onboard the ship.

Here’s a few of these items:
1) Leather Whip or Latigo,
2) Hard Drug paraphernalia’s (vials, pipes, etc.),
3) Knives or any sharp objects made of metal or wood,
4) Wooden Sling shots, this is considered a weapon,
5) Firearms’ to name a few.

If ever in-doubt, any form of souvenir used or can be used as a weapon will be confiscated as you check in the port security. If you buy these items, the port officers will not reimburse or mail these items to you, so be forewarned.

We boarded the ship back around 5PM, we ate (again) for a light snack before dinner. Sandy & I retired to take a short nap, later on we met with Sarah and Long at the Dining room around 8:30PM, after consuming our meals, we headed down to the Casino Boulevard to hear Long sing again with the Filipino Band. The ship sailed at 9:30PM, Dorothy & Igal stayed with us to hear the dancing and singing with Long which lasted till about midnight.

This Evening we spent the entire night with Dorothy and Igal at the Lido Deck after the dancing just talking and having them listen to our life story. To some this may sound really dull, but it turned out to be a riot, Dorothy had a laughed that would infect even the dullest person, Sandy told our birthing story which most our friends find hilariously funny. We turned in around 2:30 AM.

Cruise Day 4 - At Sea

2008-12-22T09:59:00.000-08:00

December 18th – Thursday:

Day 4 – Day at Sea: Sandy & I slept late and joined Long and Sarah for a late lunch, also met with Dorothy and Tony who joined us at the Lido Deck, we invited them back to dine with us for the last evening of the voyage which to our delight they were happy to agree.
This is when the ship makes more money by offering cruisers bargain sales of really high end items in time for Christmas giving. Sandy bought a gold earring and I was content in just looking around that might interest me.

As the afternoon progressed, we hit rocky seas, everyone seemed to be walking like they have balance problems as if we were all drunk. We had a great time hunting for all the pictures taken by the cruise photographers, from the embarkation to our dining. Sandy and I decided to purchase 4 of the 5x7 pictures that seemed reasonable for $33.

In the afternoon, I lost Sandy to shopping and I sat with Tony to watch the cruise version of the “Newly Wed Game”, and the participants were hilarious especially the couple who has been married 55 years. The show ended, and we sat around the theater for this evening, we as late diners had to see the 6PM musical show “Shout”. When the show started, everyone in our group watched this live performance that lasted 1.5 hours, and boy if you have ever seen a Vegas show, this show tops all the other shows we’ve seen so far. Costumes’ and musical numbers were great, the dancing and choreography could compete with any Broadway musicals.

After the show, we headed down to our dining room, this time, we were all together and enjoying the evening’s meal, I ordered both the flat iron steak and the short ribs, topping it again with the Melting Chocolate Cake.

After dinner, we all headed for the Leonardo Lounge to hear Long and the band singing and jamming the night away, we danced till midnight. The best thing about being in this cruise is that, everyone in the ship was just having a great time, we danced with total strangers, some were in their 20’s and with us seniors trying to keep up with their energy. Indeed, the night was a very festive and filled with high energy. The best part about this whole party ship is that you don’t have to be drunk to have a great time.

Let me give my personal reviews with Igal and Dorothy’s pair dancing techniques, they move in perfect synch and seemed effortless in waltz and the tango, I admire couples who share the same energy and passion for dancing, Sandy and I danced with everybody on the floor. When the band played their last song, we all moaned because the end of our vacation was at hand, but smile in our lips we all parted exchanging emails and telephone numbers.

Dorothy invited us to join tony & her for the New Year’s party, which we are seriously considering because they are such a fun couple.

Long Beach - Cruise Disembarkation

2008-12-22T09:49:00.000-08:00

December 19th – Friday:

Day 5 – Long Beach Port: Disembarkation, we woke up around 8AM and met Sarah and Long at the Lido Deck which became our hang out during this fun cruise. We had assigned sequence to disembark, we waited with Dorothy and Tony, they were called first then when it came our turn, we barely spent ½ and our in the line to get off the ship, with boarding card and passport on hand we breezed right through immigration checkpoint. A note to future cruiser, having a US passport is like being treated in a VIP line pass. As soon as we collected our suitcases in the unloading area, we ended our Christmas cruise.

We dropped Sarah off back in Claremont where she picked up a car to go to work, we decided that we needed to stop at Marukai Japanese Market in West Covina, so we took Long and picked up our groceries before having lunch with Long at the Miki House.

We dropped Long in Corona and we came home to our home sweet home, like Dorothy says, “There’s no place like Home”.

Just a prologue for my future blogging, check my tips on how to have a festive Christmas Elegant table for under $50 bucks, next… see you soon.

Vancouver, Canada

2008-12-21T14:11:00.000-08:00

September 6th – Saturday - 2008:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada: As our final destination in our Alaska Southbound Cruise, I found Vancouver to be just as foreign as if I was in Europe somewhere. The ambiance and athmosphere definitely has a strong European influence, Half of the natives spoke French and half in English which was a relief for any American Traveler/Marveler.

September wind in Vancouver is on the chilly side, just as Alaska is ending their fall season, Vancouver just started theirs when we arrived in the Port of Vancouver.

As we disembarked from Princess Cruises, we were greeted by a myriad of tour vendors right on the port, we searched for what I thought was the most prominent in their advertising and was able to book a city tour in a private Van tour.

We were greeted by a young gentleman named Gary, who surprisingly was originally from Downey, California and has since moved to Vancouver to join his family there. He spoke with a slight Canadian American Accent and were delighted to have him as our tour guide.

The tour package consisted of historical City sights, Gas Lamp District, Stanley Park and Granville Market and a drop off to our hotel on the southwest end of the city.

We first started the tour by going to the downtown district of Vancouver, skyscrapers, Starbucks, MacDonald’s, the usual franchises, then we were given a tour of Vancouver’s China Town, consisted of 4 square block on the north end of the city, most of the shops were closed and on to the Zen Garden.

The historical Gas Lamp District was the most exciting part of the tour, we actually got to walk the streets where the gold miners once trekked on their way to the Yukon, the main building where the miners slept and lodged as well as the Gas Clock, one of the only 2 that exist in our modern day.

Followed be a tour of their famous Stanley Park, where the 100+ North American Indian Tribes are represented by their tribal Totem Poles and City Gates displayed prominently throughout the park as well as American Indian Dancer performing his bag pipe.

The tour ended in the Granville Market, used to be their manufacturing of cannery row, building exteriors were kept intact and the inside were renovated into shops and bazaars, not surprising to find that their market produce looked exactly the same as we have in California, but the ambiance due to the French Canadian speaking locals were enticing and exciting to a first time visitor.

As we finished the tour, we were dropped off right in front of our Hotel, the Fairmont Waterfront Hotel where we stayed for the evening. That evening we asked the concierge to the nearest Chinese Restaurant that offered their best.

September 7th – Sunday – 2008:

We had the entire morning to take a cab back to explore more of the residential parts of Vancouver and spent more time at the Granville Market, where we had lunch and shopped for about 4 hours. We took a cab to the airport for our 6PM departure.

We arrived in Los Angeles Airport approximately 8 PM, called the parking lot shuttle to pick us up at the center aisle of the airport and picked up our car. The trip home from the airport was very short and free from traffic since we came back on a Sunday evening.

Planning a Major Vacation

2008-12-21T12:17:00.000-08:00

(Booking an Itinerary for the Tour)

In 2007, my 87 year old mother in law, told my wife Sandy & I that she wanted to visit Japan one more time before she go. We planned on taking her this year, but she told my wife in January 2008 to forget about Japan and that her dream vacation was to take an Alaska Cruise to see the glaciers.

I priced the cruiselines as far out to get better pricing, I checked and compared prices from Carnival to Holland America, even checked with the cruise lines booking engines themselves, as well as other booking sites, I was happy and surprised to find a southbound Alaska cruise by Princess (5 Stars) for $398 inside cabin and $598 window cabin.

I don’t like inside cabins because they have no windows, I booked a partially obstructed cabin (FF category) for the best price, since you only really need the room for sleeping and showers. I priced it with and without the airline package, decided to book the cruise ala carte only due to financial constraints. We would have to save for the airfare and book it later, we booked the cruise in my daughter’s site, Vanessa so she could get the travel credit for certification.

Much to our delight, when we got the YTB confirmation regarding our booking itinerary, we found out that we got upgraded to the HH category, for those who are starting to book cruises, FF category rooms would have been on the 5th floor of the ship, we got upgraded to the HH category room which was on the 8th floor. The thing to remember here is that cruiselines charge by room category, the higher the rooms are on the ship the more expensive the rates.

(Booking the Airline Tickets and scheduling the Flights)
From there, I started to price open jaw flights, a point I would like to share with future Alaska travelers, when and if you book an Alaskan Cruise, book a round trip cruise, they may cost a little more, but sure would be cheaper on the airline tickets, remember, we don’t get paid high commissions on flights so why not book and get paid for a roundtrip cruise (i.e. Vancouver – Vancouver or Seattle – Seattle round trip).

I found this out after we booked the southbound cruise that leaves from Whittier, Alaska going to Vancouver, Canada. Although the cruise itself would have been worth the money, the airline tickets however can cost even higher than the cruise.

I priced the open jaw air tickets from Expedia to air consolidators FareBuzz and Cosmopolitan, the prices ranged from $469 - $789 PP/RT. I waited till the very last minute to book the flight, believe it or not, in my daughter’s YTB site. We saved around $700 for all four passengers compared to Expedia & Orbitz.

Next, since my mother in law is in her 80’s, I made sure a wheelchair was available for her on the airport as well as the embarkation on the cruise. Make sure you include this in your booking requests, if not available in the website, call the carriers and make the arrangements by phone.

(Scheduling Timelines & Transfers)
My daughter work and she needed to get her paycheck before departing, so I had to book a flight out of LAX after 12:00 noon. The direct flight in the early morning would have been cheaper but due to schedule constraint, we ended up with a 4 hour layover in San Francisco.

Our arrival in Anchorage was scheduled at 11:53 PM, Friday, August 29, 2008, I needed to book a hotel in Anchorage, called the hotel directly since the hotels I was finding in the booking portal was averaging $289 for 1 night. I booked the hotel by the airport to make sure that there will be a shuttle from and to the hotel. Spoke to a girl at the America’s Best Value Inn, 5 minutes from the airport, I introduced myself as a travel agent, I was able to book the hotel room for 4 @ $162, equipped with a kitchenette, regular room rate $189 (just a note, the rooms would have cost us $89 agent rate for double occupancy but since there were 4 of us traveling together they charged an extra per person rate of $20). We booked on their peak weekend, Labor Day which was on September 2nd Monday that is why the rates were so high.

Lastly, I needed to book transportation from Anchorage to Whittier, I tried rental cars, limousine services and shuttle services on the website and was not able to find any that could go one way, I ended up checking with Anchorage Visitor’s Center website to find shuttle services specializing in cruise transfers. I even called Princess Cruises to see if it was not too late to book hotel and transfer through them, customer service at Princess told me they were sold out for transfers in Anchorage and could only accommodate Vancouver transfers, the rate I quoted was $425 for just the Vancouver transfer hotel, ship, & airport transfers.

I priced out 3 shuttle companies and booked with the least expensive shuttle service and for what they offer. I booked with Girdwood Shuttle Transport (P.O. Box 1316, Girdwood, AK - Phone number (907) 783-1900) which included a sightseeing tour, Anchorage and Whittier is about 2 hours by travel distance, this shuttle service provided a way for us to experience Anchorage for the least amount of money.

And there we are, our tour manually packaged 1 week before our cruise, let me tell you, Sandy was really very anxious about all these, we are so used to booking all these steps at one time, again, we had to do this due to lack of funds at the time of booking.

Incidentally, just to encourage some of you who might want to plan travel on a budget like we did, I checked my booking engine for the same cruise category with Princess and found out that the price we paid for more than doubled by the time I finished booking the shuttle transfers, it went from $598 PP to $1489 PP. I was indeed pleased with these results.

(Trip Travelogue)
2 days prior to departure, my son-in-law who was going to drop us off at the airport found out he had to work, so I scrambled for one last minute arrangement, it meant we would have to drive to the airport and park our car at the airport while cruising.
I considered 5 options, (1) one way rental car, (2) airport shuttle, (3) park fly, (4) Limo service or (5) airport extended parking.

(1) One way Rental car – this option I priced would have cost me about $190 drop off + taxes included for an economy car ( wasn’t sure if the car would have enough luggage space for 4 travelers).
(2) Airport Shuttle – from m home in Riverside to airport and pick up upon our return would have cost us $249 per person.
(3) Park & Fly – this included a one night hotel stay at the airport and a maximum 7 days for parking included in the price for $389.
(4) Limousine Service - $129 per person one way x 8, would have cost me $1,032 and that is without the tipping.
(5) Extended Airport Parking - $9.95 per day x 9 days = $89.50.

As you would guess, I booked Extended Airport parking on my site because of the price. If you ask me, I personally would have liked to have the Limousine Service, but I guess beggars can’t be choosers.

LAX - San Francisco - Anchorage

2008-12-21T12:07:00.000-08:00

August 29, 2008 - Friday - 2008.

San Francisco - Anchorage

Sandy did all my packing, my daughter Vanessa was to arrive at my house after picking up her check and depositing it at the bank around 10:00 AM. Our timing and schedule was stress free, we had enough time to get to the airport, park the car and be shuttled to the terminal.

We checked in at the United Airlines curbside baggage check-in because of my mother-in-law who needed a wheel chair. The porter immediately weighed my daughter’s suitcase (since it was the biggest one), and it weighed 58 lbs. The porter instructed my daughter to move some of the contents out to meet minimum weight of 50 lbs. She transferred her cosmetic bag into Sandy’s and her weight came in just under 50 lbs. We paid the $15 per baggage charge and proceeded to the gates.

For those who do not travel as often as we do, keep your driver’s license and boarding tickets on hand while going through Airport Security, remove shoes, metal belts and jackets including blazers, separate laptops from the case, bagged liquids no more than 2 ounces, cell phones & keys. I forgot my belt, while going through the metal detector I beeped the hell out of the machine, of course I had to be frisked, an experience that is quite embarrassing and at the same time funny because I wasn’t the only one, on the other side of the glass screening room was this 80 year old woman clearly far from a suspected terrorist.

I also forgot to mention that my mother-in-law decided to walk with her cane through the security, even the cane had to be checked-in as well, how far we have come as far as beeping up security I found to be hilarious.

After the security check we proceeded to the gate, luckily the walk for my 86 year old mother-in-law wasn’t that far, the flight to San Francisco was booked solid, UA was selling upgrades to available business and first class seats, knowing this I did not even attempt to ask for an upgrade because there were 4 of us who needed to sit close to each other. On the 1 hour flight to San Francisco, I handed my business card to a lady who works as a marketing rep for a Sacramento Pharmaceutical company and who obviously travel frequently. She got so excited to find out that we are travel agents she asked for 3 more of my cards and handed it out to 2 other passengers on the plane.

We had a 6 hour layover in San Francisco, this was my 2nd time at this airport and my first time to have a long layover so we made the best of it, we arrived around 2 PM and our flight leaving at 8:00 PM. At the main terminal hub, they had shops and even Starbucks as well as other fast food services. We decided to have Sushi for snacks and parked our hand carries on one of the Eating areas’ table.

Sandy, Vanessa and Mom went shopping at the bookshops and the gift shops for about 3 hours while I started this trip report. Around 6 PM, we decided to have dinner and agreed on Chinese food because we were in San Francisco known for the largest Chinatown outside of China, I was pleasantly surprised the wonton soup I ordered tasted just like the ones you eat at Chinatown, I would definitely recommend the noodle or the wonton soup, very filling for $8.95.

The flight from San Francisco and Anchorage took 4 hours, we boarded at 8:15 PM, I pointed out to my daughter Vanessa that the stewardess was an Alaskan native, very pretty Eskimo Indian features, tall and very pleasant. I later overheard this stewardess speaking tagalog to one of the passengers and found out she wasn’t an Eskimo lady but a Filipina. Tells you how much I know about other cultures.

While on the flight, I sat right next to a gentleman who was going salmon fishing in Sitka, after exchanging a bit of conversation, he slept most of the way. I have to caution travelers who travel with children and mature women, this flight is 1 hour shy of a Hawaii flight, moving about the cabin wasn’t a pleasant experience with not enough leg room and fully booked flight we were all on top of each other. Those of you who travelled long flights know what its like, you just make the best of it, take frequent bathroom breaks because for some unknown reasons, sitting for extended time your bladder cant hold water for more than 2 hours, 3-4 trips would be an average for this length of travel.

UA offered free drinks on flight and free headsets to watch the movie northbound. We arrived in Anchorage at midnight, it took another hour before we got out of the terminal, I called the hotel who sent a shuttle to pick us up, much to my surprise, the shuttle driver, Onassis, is a Filipino from Cebu my mother’s island and we both spoke Visayan.

If you want to find out about the cheapest way to see a city, talk to a transplant native, Onassis has been in Anchorage for 10 years, from the Philippines he went and got a job there as a banker (his day job and works partime as a shuttle driver), of course he took my business card regarding travel and pointed out that there was a city trolley tour.