Mardi Gras 2012!

The only time I have gone to Mardi Gras in New Orleans was in the 1980s. Of course, I had a great time! I went with two friends, and we booked a hotel room outside of New Orleans to save some money, and because it was really, really hard to find a room in or near the French Quarter.

Some things I learned from that Mardi Gras trip:

• Prior to my trip, I had only heard of the raucous, depraved side of Mardi Gras. I found the celebration to be much more family friendly than I expected;
• In my 20s-something mind, I thought the parades would be boring. Little did I know, they were so much I wanted to experience them all to the end;
• When you put 100s of mardi gras beads around your neck, they are really hard to detangle and remove at 3 a.m the next morning;
• You don't have to do any thing risque to get those beads;
• Some floats are more likely to give you beads than others. You can yell at some floats all you want, and you still won't get them;
• Pralines still are wonderful;
• It really would be a good idea to get a hotel room in or near the Quarter, as you don't want to spend all of your time fighting the crowds to go 25 minutes away.

Let the Good Times Roll!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/travel/mardi-gras-celebration-rocks-new-orleans-with-fat-tuesday-music-revelry-and-parades/2012/02/21/gIQAjfeMRR_story.html

Delbert McClinton's Sandy Beaches Cruise 16--Another Week In Paradise

Cruiser Log: 


Day 1--Set Sail From Tampa Florida, January 10, 2010
The weather is cold in Tampa, but the excitement is hot as cruisers look forward to another week in music and cruising paradise. The gangway is raised, we do the drill, and we are on our way.
Nick Connolly, Wayne Toups, Marcia Ball, Mingo Fishtrap, Big Joe, host Delbert McClinton, and the first night jam kick off the week-long music fest.

Day 2--Day at Sea
A day at sea is a day in music heaven for the Sandy Beach cruisers. Concerts, dancing, noshing,  imbibing, reveling make it a nonstop party. And of course mingling with your favorite artists and catching up with friends from cruises past. Everyone is so happy that Delbert provides this opportunity. (I overheard someone say that she is very grateful--that the cruises have changed her life because she has met so many lifelong friends over the years.)

On the schedule today: the singles mixer, Seth Walker, Teresa James, Cyril Neville, Nick Connolly, Clay McClinton, Tab Benoit, Raul Malo, Big Joe, Fred Eaglesmith, Jimmy Hall, the Songwriters panel, and of course, the jam session.

Day 3--Cozumel

I was excited about Day 3, because not only do I love the music, I love the sightseeing too, and I have wanted to go to Cozumel for a long time. The order of the day was to figure out how to get the most out of the day. Do we rent mopeds or a jeep? Consensus was a jeep, and five of us went tooling around the island. Of course, we took time out for margaritas and a little shopping too.

When they say the gangway is raised at 4:30, boy do they mean it. If you are late, too bad! Mingo Fishtrap provided the sailaway concert, and other performers that night included Nick Connolly, Raul Malo, Doyle & Debbie comedy show, Paul Thorn, Mike Farris, Foy Vance, and Marcia Ball, as well as a songwriter-o-rama and the nightly jam session.

Day 4--Costa Maya
Seemed like a hop, skip, and a jump to Costa Maya in Mexico. It was still a little cool to swim and rain threatened, so many of us stayed close to the pier where the ship was docked. Plenty of things to do there. Good food and great drinks. A market for shopping. What else do you need?

Dick 50 did the sailaway cruise that evening, and Nick Connolly did his nightly Ocean Bar gig. The lineup also included Wayne Toups, Fred Eaglesmith, Cyril Neville, Big Joe, Mingo Fishtrap, Songwriter's panel, and jam session.

Day 5--Mahogany Bay, Roatan, Honduras
The excitement of going to Honduras was tempered by learning more about the grim results of the earthquake that occurred in Haiti on Tuesday while we were in Cozumel.  Oddly enough, Haiti was really not that far from where we were.

Some cruisers ventured into Roatan, but others stayed on Mahogany Bay. The weather was warm enough to swim for the first time, so some of us jumped in,. There was a great bar by the beach and rumors have it that some were dancing on the bar!

Music that night included Tommy Castro for the Sailaway concert, Nick Connolly, Gary Nicholson, Clay McClinton, Jimmy Hall, Raul Malo, Teresa James, Songwriters panel, and jam session.

Day 6: Another Day at Sea
Sailing and music make a perfect combination. Concerts included Mingo Fishtrap, Pianorama, Wayne Toups, Delbert, Nick Connolly, Clay McClinton, Doyle & Debbie, Seth Walker, Paul Thorn, Whitey Johnson, Fred Eaglesmith, Cyril Neville, and of course the jam session.

In addition to our special music, cruisers also get to enjoy more standard cruising fare during the week, such as fitness classes, spa and health workshops, champagne art auctions, digital workshops, blackjack tournaments and casino, etc.

Day 7: Final Day at Sea
Day 7 is always bittersweet. Everyone enjoys another day at sea, relaxing and listening to music, but it also signals the end of the cruise. Oh no! I want a couple more days.

Music on the last day included Mike Farris, Tab Benoit, Teresa James, Nick Connolly, Jimmy Hall, and Marcia Ball, and our grand master, Delbert.

Usually on the last night, you see more of the ship's personnel out and enjoying the concerts too. I think they are sorry to see it end as well. See you next year!

Eurotrip

Written by my friend Teodoro Martin

We upgraded to High Definition Satellite just in time to watch a few travels shows before we made our trip to Europe. We were gone for four weeks. We started in London because we had both never been. We loved the city and the history, but the weather was lousy for the few days we were there. We took the famous Chunnel to France. We spent time in my absolute favorite city in the world, Paris. We had so much fun together there. We splurged and stayed in a fancy hotel for a few nights. I felt like Carrie on Sex in the City when she wore couture, went to Paris, and stayed in a fine hotel. The only difference was that I was really excited to be there. On a travel show we watched, it suggested taking a day trip to Normandy. It was truly a highlight of the trip. The beach and the history is extremely moving. We traveled to Monaco, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. It was truly a trip of a lifetime.

Trying out my new car on a roadtrip

There is really nothing like getting in your car on a pretty day and heading down the road. I had a long distance trip scheduled this past week, and in addition to looking forward to getting out of town, I was anxious to try out my new car on its first roadtrip. The stereo system is very nice, and the interior of the car is quiet, unlike my previous car, so I was happy to find out I could listen to music without having to crank it up to split eardrum level. All was well until I got back into my car after lunch and headed back to the highway.

A few seconds later, the absolute worst noise surrounded me. I couldn't hear the radio anymore. The sound was indistinct--almost seemed like a pulse that was getting louder and louder. Then I noticed a squeezing pressure on my eardrums. I became frightened, thinking, what is this? The noise just came out of nowhere.  The car still seemed to be driving all right, and there were no warning lights on the dashboard. I pulled off at the next exit and got out to look at the exterior auto parts. I thought maybe I had a flat tire, even though it didn't seem like that was the case. And no one passing me had been pointing at the tires, like people do when you have a flat.

I circled the car--no flat tire. I didn't see anything wrong--not that I would have known what to do if I had. I got back in the car, hoping miraculously it had disappeared. I started the car up and drove off, and it was fine--for a second. Then the loud, almost sonic boom started again. I felt dismayed. The car was driving OK, and I had an appointment that I had to keep. Is there anyway I could drive 250 more miles under this condition? Do I dare consider that? No, I didn't think I could. And what if continued driving hurt the car? It is driving fine now, but what about tonight? Maybe it would strand me in the middle of nowhere.

I looked around at the surrounding billboards, hoping to see an auto parts store advertised, but no luck. The best I could hope for would be to get to the next town, find an auto repair place or an auto parts store to see if they could figure out what was wrong. And fix it quickly!

Just as I was about to despair, I turned my head around and looked into the back seat.  My right rear window was down. I must have hit the automatic window button by accident. Could that be the problem? Holding my breath it was, I hit the button to roll it back up. Success! How could a rolled down window have caused that racket? And that weird sonic boom feeling? Well it did. I continued down the highway once again a happy camper. And my car was a 10 on the road.

Vote For Your Favorite Cool Small Town

Budget Travel Magazine is again running its Coolest Small Town Contest. Only towns with a population under 10,00 are eligible. And they must have that je ne sais quoi.  Plus neat independent shops. Culture. Good energy. And good coffee! You can vote once a day. My favorite small cool town is Franklin, PA.

http://www.budgettravel.com/contest/coolest-small-towns-2012-nominations,8/

Irritated by hotel internet fees? You're not alone

Checking into a nice hotel a few months ago, I held my breath. I regularly use my netbook and was hoping there was not an internet fee. I asked the clerk, and she said no. I was a happy camper!

But more and more nice hotels are charging as much as $14.95 a day for connection, and some charge per computer. That could add to some some hefty extra fees if multiple people in the room have a computer.

Mid-range and lower priced hotels tend not to charge for internet connection, because they want to entice you to stay there and don't assume their guests have big expense accounts.

Hopefully more luxury hotels will drop the fee. They assume their guests can afford the fees or are on expense accounts. It is what the market can bear, says one person quoted in the article below. But even so, that doesn't mean they want to pay it. Guests may pay the charge, but stay somewhere else the next time.


http://www.cnn.com/2011/TRAVEL/09/16/hotel.internet.fees/index.html?hpt=hp_bn12

Gaylord Opryland Hotel Is Back In Business

It has taken me a while to get out to the reborn Gaylord Opryland Hotel in Nashville. You may remember that it sustained a great deal of damage in the 2010 Nashville flood, with water 10 feet deep inside the hotel. Closed for approimately six months, it reopened about a year ago. To the casual eye, you can't really tell that anything is different. It looks wonderful, just as it always did. Except for one major change. The main entrance is no longer the Magnolia entrance but the Cascades.

Photo from the Gaylord Opryland Website

To the uninitiated, Magnolia and Cascades refer to major parts of the hotel, along with Delta and Garden Conservatory. Each of these arms of the hotel have distinguishing features. Cascades, as you may suspect, has waterfalls, Delta has a lazy river with boat rides, the Garden Conservatory is like walking through one of the largest greenhouses, and Magnolia is the original part of the hotel. In addition, there is a gigantic convention center.

Sitting in the Cascades dining area this afternoon, I soaked up the afternoon sun coming through the glass roof and watched conference attendees come and go. And I listened to the indoor waterfall just to my right. It is just like being outdoors, exept you are indoors!

The Cascades

You can find almost anything here in the hotel--shops, food, entertainment, even indoor boat rides. It truly is a little city under a roof. Those from out of town must feel like they have stepped into hotel heaven. So many things to do and no reason to leave the hotel. Those in Nashville, however, may hesitate to go out there, because of the steep parking fee ($18). But just grab a meal while you are there, and you can get your parking ticket validated.

Delta Boat Rides

From the Cascades, you can walk through the Garden Conservatory to get to the Delta or Magnolia areas. There are both lower and upper walkways through the Garden Conservatory. Are you in a greenhouse, an arboretum, or the jungle? A little bit of all of it. Some guest rooms overlook the conservatory area.

Views from the Garden Conservatory Walkway

There are buildings inside the hotel. Below is the Old Hickory Steak House.



Old Hickory Steak House

 

Magnolia Area

The Magnolia area is the original area at the hotel and has its own  convention rooms and ballrooms. Luckily, the great murals in Magnolia, such as the one above of the original Kirkland Hall at Vanderbilt University, were left unhurt by the flood.



There are a number of fine dining restaurants at Gaylord Opryland Hotel, as well as some quick eating options. There are also a number of nightlife spots and retail stores. Buy a pair of cowboy boots while you are there!

Guests have access to a couple of pools, a spa, and a video arcade. The Grand Ole Opry House is next door and a golf course is in the neighborhood. Downtown Nashville is less then 15 minutes away.

At the end of the day, how did the new hotel compare with the older version? As a Nashvillian, I spent many hours in the past at Opryland Hotel attending various functions. I always had trouble finding my way around. But today it seemed like a breeze. What made the difference? Was it that I am older and wiser? That I finally picked up a hotel  map for the first time today at the concierage desk? Or is it because they must have reworked the hotel to some degree to make it more navigable? Probably all of it.