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Feb 23 2012

Beads Just Fell From The Sky and Clobbered My Face: Mardi Gras, New Orleans

Since Saturday, countries all over the world have been dancing and partying the nights away in the streets and at backyard barbeques to bring in the Lent season that started yesterday, Ash Wednesday. Carnival in Rio de Janeiro is definitely on my bucket list, but this year I was lucky enough to go to the “biggest free party” in the States: Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Unfortunately, I couldn’t stay for the official Mardi Gras Day, Fat Tuesday, but it was an experience none the less.

The door on the 16th floor that leads to...nowhere?

A year ago, I was incredibly jealous of my friends for hitting the freeway immediately after school to take the drive to New Orleans for Mardi Gras. Living in Houston, Mardi Gras is a huge temptation as it is only a few hours away. This year, I was determined not to miss it. We looked into hotels last August and found the Best Western on Magazine St. near the French Quarter for around $250/night.  Although we could split the room multiple ways, Tiffany is lucky enough to still be on her family’s Hilton Rewards card and they were able to use their points to book us the Renaissance Pere Marquette Hotel on Common St.   I was able to transfer the room to my friends who had not yet booked accommodations so it worked out well for all of us.  In exchange, I used my Southwest Reward miles to get Tiffany’s flight over to NOLA. I was also even able to get my flight paid with miles since the flights were so cheap from Houston.

We didn’t know much of what to expect and we all packed fairly random things. I forgot pajama t-shirts, Karem completely forgot any shirts, and Tiffany packed a plethora of things at random, including a tutu we made together for a festival last year.  When I arrived, I was quickly greeted with some beads at the airport and a “Happy Mardi Gras!”.  Tiffany compared it to getting lei-ed in Hawaii without the beautiful flower scent.

As soon as I made it to the room, I found Karem and Tiffany power napping before the first night’s festivities.  I took the opportunity to finish up my lesson plans for the following week, along with the Hunger Games Part I quiz I was going to give on my return (Tuesday was definitely going to be a quiz day).  When I finished, I decided a nap wasn’t a bad idea and crashed with Tiff.  When we awoke, we prepared for cold weather as we watched some Disney Channel.  I never realized how much Disney has changed. I never did get to see what happened to Radio Rebel, but I’m going to assume she was revealed and had a cheesy and happy ending, as it should be.  I had bought some masks from a Houston party supplies store so we put them on to look more festive despite our fairly simple – and warm – attire for the night.

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Feb 21 2012

10 for Tuesday: DOs and DON’Ts for Mardi Gras, New Orleans

So it is Mardi Gras weekend, and you are ready to celebrate! Unfortunately, the party is over before any real fun can begin.  You find out your friend booked a hotel room 15 miles away from where you need to be, you overpaid for it, you didn’t bring any cash for the bars, and you have been drinking since the airport and haven’t had a bite to eat.  After you finally make the cab ride to downtown after endless traffic, you are overcome by the visions you have in your head of Mardi Grass stereotypes and start yelling at girls to show you their goods.  Before you know it, you have a black eye, you’ve thrown up your many Hurricanes and Hand Grenades, and you are being arrested by the good old NOPD for urinating in public at Jackson Square. This is all, of course, after you were already pick pocketed and your only finances and identification for the weekend have vanished. After you waste your time sitting in a cell sobering up, your friends officially decide you will never be invited anywhere ever again.

While Lemony Snicket may enjoy your failure at a fun-filled debaucherous weekend, these rookie mistakes are sure to be ones you wish to avoid. While I am by no means a veteran to Mardi Gras in New Orleans, as this year was my first, I have compiled some tips my veteran friends suggested, as well as those I took away after my weekend experience.

Here are my 10 DOs and DON’TS for Mardi Gras New Orleans.

1.) DO: Plan Ahead. - We booked our hotel over 6 months in advance, but some even plan a full year in advance. Most of the hotels in walking distance of the French Quarter hotels require minimum 3, 4, or 5-day stays. Make your reservations early, and if you planning on packing people in a room, make sure to call about hotel security around Mardi Gras. Some hotels – annoyed with drunken people asking to use the toilet – often enforce hotel key room checks or wristband checks for entrance.  It is also not necessary to get a room directly in the French Quarter.  Making the cross over canal st. during a parade can be tricky, if not impossible, and you don’t want to be stuck and unable to get a cab ride before you need to leave.
DON’T: Stress. Mardi Gras weekend is meant for celebration and carefree fun. Do not stress your vacation away. So it’s Februrary, and you have officially not booked a hotel but want to go to Mardi Gras anyway? Don’t give up! It will by no means will be easy, but call hotels non-stop and there are often cancellations. We met a group of guys who booked their hotel only a week in advance within walking distance to the French Quarter due to a cancellation. In all fairness, they paid a hefty amount for the last minute booking, but it’s definitely possible. Another option is staying in the outskirts such as in Mettarie and driving early into downtown to celebrate the festivities.  Most of my friends had a hotel in the outskirts and saved their money for other things for the weekend.  Although it is nice to have a hotel nearby to crash to, it isn’t a necessity.  If you are planning late, be realistic. Be happy with what you get and stay optimistic and in good spirits. Above all else, don’t complain.

countinue reading the top 10

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Feb 17 2012

How Carmen Sandiego Changed My Life

Long before internet, e-mail, or Ipads, there was just a single slow computer that took 5 minutes to start up. In front of one such old computer sat myself – at 5 years old – playing Reader Rabbit, Doom, and Minesweeper.   I’m not sure which adult thought Doom was a good idea for a 5 year old, but I somehow got past the nightmares to kick some serious butt.  I owe my early reading skills to Reader Rabbit and my analytical math skills to minesweeper (thanks for teaching me dad!).  There was one computer game, however, that made a lasting impression: Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

Not only did Carmen teach me about geography, she made me want to go to the places she had been. She was my first exposure to the infectious travel bug.  For those of you that don’t know Carmen Sandiego, she is a former ACME agent who went rogue and is now a V.I.L.E. ringleader.  What is ACME?  After years of playing, they never really explained it, but I know it was in San Fran and it had a Chief to report to…so it must have been legit.  V.I.L.E. was an acronym for Villain’s International League of Evil (clever right?).  The objective of the game is to follow clues and figure out her disguise and her next travel destination by talking to locals. There are also guides who help you learn about the destination you are at.  She made jetsetting an addiction.

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Feb 15 2012

Wanderlust Wednesday: Movies that Inspire Travels

My second addiction following travel is definitely movies. From indie flicks to action thrillers, I’m enthralled by popcorn (with nacho cheese) and the big screen. I read scripts off the “Black List” and stalk them during production until it finally hits the screen years later, if at all.

I am known for IMDBing a movie weeks before I see it and then again immediately after (and weeks following). The IMDB app is by far my most used app. I read about movies I’m too scared to see myself like Human Centipede, Cannibal Holocaust, Men Behind the Sun, and Salò, and learn random trivia facts about my favorite action flicks.  Did you know the infamous hallway scene in Inception used an actual giant rotating hallway.  Yeah, they built that thing.  Christopher Nolan, ever since Memento, I knew you were a genius. Aside from learning about disturbing movies and tracking every Leo Dicaprio flick in existence (Don’t Judge. I liked him since Growing Pains, okay?), some of my favorite movies spark the travel bug inside me too!

Here are a few of those movies that give me the travel itch.

The Bourne Series (2002, 2004, 2007) – So in all fairness, the handheld camera style and the fast paced scenes of these filmsdon’t give ample time to show off Bourne’s travel destinations.  Nevertheless, throughout the trilogy, we head through the UK, Morocco, Germany, Czech Republic, Spain, Italy, France, Greece, Morocco, India, and Russia.  Although we only get glimpses into each city, the movies still definitely had me thinking throughout the film, “Where is that? I want to go there….Oh sh– Bourne is the new MacGyver, but no seriosuly, where is that?” Props Matt Damon. The Bourne Legacy will not be the same without you.

In Bruges (2008)
Okay, so this movie is not exactly PC.  In fact, I’m pretty positive most of my friends would hate it, but I think it’s genius.  An incredibly dark movie set against an incredibly beautiful, bright, and upbeat town, this Colin Farrell flick made me more than ever want to go to Bruges.  Our Bruges trip without Colin Farrell ended a whole lot happier than the movie, but we might not have found our way to the quaint little town without it.

Lost in Translation (2003)
Scarlett Johansson’s breakout role resonated in my heart.  Japan has never been a “must-see” for me.  I’m not sure why, but this movie isn’t just about an unlikely friendship in Tokyo.  It is the perfect example of fleeting friendships and acquaintances made while traveling that – although are sometimes strange and quirky – are completely memorable.

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Feb 14 2012

10 for Tuesday: Romantic Cities

So St. Vincent’s Day is upon us and Richard and I don’t have much of a Tuesday planned. It is a Tuesday. We work longer than the average man’s 9 to 5. The last thing I want to do is get dressed up while I could be watching Glee in my pajamas.

This weekend, however, we did have a celebratory breakfast at a local diner that had a mix of a hospital vibe and a senior citizen home. It was apparently the place to be on a Sunday, and – despite one’s first impression – the food was amazing. Hole in the wall places are usually a hit or miss and this was definitely a hit. Aside from that, we went to REI and tried on some backpacks for Richard’s first backpacking trip coming up this Spring Break! We’ll have to leave those specifics to another post, but our “romantic weekend” was just any other weekend…both of us working on Saturday and being completely lazy the rest of the weekend, and I don’t think I would’ve wanted it any other way.

Richard set his alarm at midnight this morning to wish me a Happy Valentine’s Day, but I was way too tired to wake up and hear him. He’s making me waffles for breakfast with the waffle iron I bought him in college (which he has yet to use). It’ll be a fairly simple Valentine’s Day for us, and I love it.

Despite the fact that we aren’t having an overly romantic weekend doesn’t mean we won’t take advantage of a romantic getaway some other weekend, particularly on a weekend that isn’t grabbing for money out of our wallets. (side note: I went over personification with my students today, and I included this example. They nailed it).

Paris, Venice, and Barcelona might be the go-to romantic city destinations, but there are plenty romantic places to spend a weekend getaway in The States.

Here are my top 10.

10. Santa Fe, New Mexico- Santa Fe is known for many things other than a reference in a RENT song. Richard and I are determined to make it there on our upcoming road trip. It is an atypical southwest getaway with some iconic sites and many Spanish cultural influences (It was once Spain’s capital for it’s US territories). Throw in some desert sunsets and you have yourself a beautiful and relaxing weekend.

Santa Fe, New Mexico

Finish Reading the Top 10…

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Feb 8 2012

WTF Wednesday: Tourists to be Banned from Coffee Shops

War on Drugs, but Tourist Drugs Only?

The Netherlands is apparently going through a 1920s-style prohibition phase with their coffee shops. While coffee shops in The States spur up imagery of over-sized cups, sugar drowned beverages, and caloric mini pastries, coffee shops in Holland are no more than a euphemistic effort to sell high quality narcotics. Let’s break down the various coffee lingo in the Netherlands:

1.) Coffee Shop – a licensed seller of cannabis products including – but not limited to – weed, hash, and space cakes

2.) Coffee House (koffiehuis) – establishment that sells coffee and light meals

3.) Café – casual restaurant and/or bar

Confused yet?

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Feb 5 2012

Super Bowl Infogasm: 5 Sports that are More Popular Around the World

The Super Bowl is on.  Richard is watching it, not because he loves football, but because there’s some type of manhood associated with watching football on Super Bowl Sunday and kicking back to beers.  I put up with it for the commercials.  Don’t get me wrong, I like sports.  I love watching basketball.  I even like watching soccer or baseball if it’s a live game.  Now, I’m sure if I were actually in the audience and experiencing the football game, it would be a big deal.  Sitting at home, kicking back on junk food, not so much.  I just don’t get it.  It got me thinking if other countries actually think American Football is a big deal.  They don’t.  Although it is played in 50 countries around the world, most countries aren’t big on the pig skin sport.

After going through various sources, here are the 5 sports in the world that are more popular than American football. I’ve also chosen to include the country that won 1st place in that sport in the last Olympics because…oh that’s right, American football isn’t in the Olympics.

1.) Football (REAL football=soccer). Soccer as we Americans call it is the most popular sport in the world.  Soccer, futbol, is everywhere.  In 2008, Argentina took gold for the Men and USA took home gold for the Women. My recent trip to Ghana definitely reinforced the value of futbol to me. Almost every student I talked to aspired to be a futbol player. Crowds of people surrounded themselves around a tiny television at the neighborhood bar to watch the games. Soccer is the sport loved by the masses. American football might be played in 50 countries, but there are 208 countries in the world that play soccer professionally.

2.) Cricket. Okay so in all honesty, I have never in my life watched a game of cricket, but I have seen Alice swing a flamingo at some hedgehogs. Does that count? Shoot, I think that’s croquet….Anyway, cricket is apparently the second most popular sport in the world. Go figure.  Although cricket isn’t played in the Olympics. It was, once. In 1900, two guys went to a festival and competed for the UK (then Great Britain) and won their tournament.  They didn’t even realize they were competing for the Olympics until after they had won. The games have never been played in the Olympics since then, but it is rumored they might likely come back in the future due to its increasing popularity. Increasing popularity? Sure, okay.

3.) Tennis. Here’s a sport I can invest in a tad bit because my dad and grandpa like to play. I was forced to watch many tennis games while I was simultaneously whining over my inability to watch Rugrats or Clarissa Explains it All.  After the hatred of the sport subsided, I picked up a racket and learned that this sport is pretty difficult and fun too. Most of the world would agree. Although some may argue it is not the most exciting sport to watch, others adore the short skirts and attractive people whose faces aren’t covered my masks.  In 2008, the Wiliams’ sisters took home the gold for women’s doubles (of course), the Swiss took home the gold the for men’s doubles, and Spain and Russia each got a gold in singles.

Man, this is a rough sport....

4.) Hockey. All the various kinds of hockey are actually more popular around the world than American football. Whether it’s ice hockey, field hockey, or air hockey…those little doughnut-shaped pucks are all the rage. Okay, so maybe air hockey isn’t as big as American football, but it might be. I’ve always liked ice hockey ever since Joshua Jackson made the Mighty Ducks movies so darn addicting.  Knuckle-puck and flying V shout out!  Field hockey on the other hand, I didn’t really know about. I honestly thought field hockey was the same thing as lacrosse. Thanks to Google, I not only learned that field hockey is the 4th most popular sport in the world, I learned the Germans and Netherlands took the gold for the men and women’s teams, respectively.  Oh, and it’s a damn dangerous sport.

Awh, there's so happy. Go USA!

5.) Volleyball. Volleyball was always one of those sports that I thought looked really easy until I played it myself. Saved by the Bell summer days definitely had me fooled. Damn you Kelly Kapowski. It’s definitely a fun sport, but I never thought about the extreme strength it takes to have a great serve or the technique involved. In 2008, the USA was close to winning Gold medals for all 4 of the volleyball tournaments (men and women’s indoor and beach). The women’s indoor team lost the gold to Brazil, but we took home the rest!

Well, there you have it. 5 sports that are significantly more popular than American football.  I could have actually extended the list to 10 if I included single person sports such as golf, but the half time show is on.  Damn Madonna.  You go, girl.

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Jan 29 2012

Land of the Fighting Irish: Dublin

Last week I made a post reminiscing on past couchsurfing experiences.  I’d like to this start this gloomy Wednesday with an in-depth account of one those trips.

Our host - Loch - lives in an incredibly cute, story book, blue house.

Dublin, the head quarters of Ryan Air, was being offered as a 5 Euro (no taxes) trip from London back in the fall of 2008.  Karen – my traveling buddy – and I jumped on the chance to buy the tickets and decided even 2 nights in Dublin is better than nothing.  We hopped onto couchsurfing.com and sought out a couchsurfer host.  I don’t know how we got so incredibly lucky, but Loch – who is usually booked with couchsurfer guests – had some room for us!  He even offered to pick us up from the airport.

Despite being delayed, Loch waited patiently for us and was an amazing host for our entire trip!    We perused the list of many things to do, and the Guinness Storehouse is definitely a tourist favorite!  Unfortunately we had to pass on it due to our time constraints, but maybe we’ll head there on another trip.

We did, however, make some time for some delicious food and a tour of a prison. Yeah, a prison.  Kilmainham Gaol is Europe’s largest prison no longer in use. The leaders of the 1916 Rebellion were executed here.  I think this prison should be at the top of the list for must-sees due to it’s eerie vibe mixed with its history.  The tour is absolutely fascinating and, for 2 Euros for students, it is budget friendly as well.

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Delicious Mussels in Ghent w/ some fries of course
Jan 28 2012

A Few Gastrogasms from Belgium

Belgian cuisine can be summed up as French-inspired cuisine in large-German quantities.  We left Belgium with filled stomachs stuffed with chocolate, waffles, mussels, and fries.  Who knew the combination of potatoes and seafood could be so scrumptious?

Hot Chocolate for a Cold Night

Soup in Antwerp

The best fries in Beligum from a small cart in Ghent's square.

Continue Gastrogasms…>