For my third night in Rio, I switched hotels because my friend was staying at the Sheraton Grande Rio his second night. Prices were a little less than the Caesar Park, so I decided why not. The property is in Leblon, about 10 minutes from Ipanema – a bit west of the main beach and
Read More
I’d already been to Brazil twice since November, with Rio and Iguazu in one trip, and Bahia, Sao Paulo, and Brasilia in another. But American had a really cheap, sub-$500 fare from DCA to Rio, and a friend was going down for a weekend. I hadn’t done the Rio nightlife on my last trip, with
Read More
This is Part 3 of a series of trip reports on my November trip to Rio de Janeiro and Iguazu Falls. On my ticket to Iguazu, I could book a stopover in Sao Paulo or Rio de Janeiro for no extra cost. At first I was planning on doing Sao Paolo, but folks suggested 2
Read More
My October and November have been a little more hectic than anticipated due to my decision to buy a condo and move in between two international adventures. But I *will* get back to blogging about my Korea and Taiwan adventure– especially given the lengthy coach flights and long layovers I have this week as I
Read More
Etihad Flight 131, Abu Dhabi to Washington-Dulles A345, Steerage Sched. Dep. 11:30am Actual Dep. 2:34pm Sched. Arrival 4:02pm Actual Arrival 8:45pm My flight home from Abu Dhabi could accurately be described as an ordeal. Now that I’ve done it, I see no reason ever to fly Etihad in coach, or any trip for 15 hours
Read More
On Christmas day, there were mistake fares on Etihad, allowing for pretty cheap flights from the US to cities in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. A flight on Etihad’s Washington-Dulles to Abu Dhabi nonstop could be had for as low as $270. Nonetheless, I wasn’t planning on jumping on the deal. I had Budapest
Read More
Or really a day in a half. By the time we landed in Catania, it was already almost 7:30, and it took me a while to find a functioning ATM. (Note: following the signs to “Bank” at the Catania airport leads to a nonfunctional ATM, but there’s a functioning one on the Departures level.) Although
Read More
Due to the delay of our American flight from New York, we ended up with only about 3.5 hours in Zurich, which isn’t a very long time to do anything but wander and get a decent feel for the city. We started with a walk down the Bahnhofstrasse, the main shopping street in Zurich. Unfortunately,
Read More
As an extended Veterans’ Day trip, two friends of mine and I took advantage of a mistake fare from New York to Catania, in Sicily, with a fare of $270. The routing was a little bit kooky – flying American from JFK to Zurich, a 9 hour layover in Zurich, then onto Catania on Swiss
Read More
Before my excursion to Little Rock, I had never been to Arkansas before. I’ve always had an interest in seeing some of the nation’s smaller cities, particularly in the South, as they often have interesting racial and industrial histories that are more well-preserved than those of bigger cities. In addition, I will probably always have
Read More