More Packing List Essentials

Duct Tape - Many travelers swear they would never leave home without their travel sized rolls of duct tape. Think 'torn luggage', for one.



Plastic Wire Ties - If you can't fix it with the duct tape, you might be able to fix it with the wire ties. I also use mine to lock my suitcase when it is left in a hotel room during the day. (Just make sure you have something to cut the ties open with.) I have found packages containing multiple sizes at the dollar stores.

Travel Scissors - And speaking of something to cut with, I would never travel without my folding scissors. I have carried these through security and NEVER been stopped because of the scissors. I 'lock' my luggage with the plastic ties and store the scissors in an outside pocket of my suitcase.

Cruise Packing List Essentials

One of the things that can frustrate me the most about cruising is not enough hooks in the room. I want a place to hang my bathing suit to dry. A couple of hooks to string a clothesline between would be nice too. My husband likes a hook to hang up his hat.

Enter 3M Command Wall Hooks! They are perfect for your cruise cabin as they can be removed without damaging the walls. With the package containing two sets of adhesives, they are an easy an inexpensive way to add hooks to your cabin.

JFK Runway Construction

Be prepared for big delays at JFK. A 4 month project is starting this month.

The longest and most heavily used runway, Runway 13R-31L, will be closed. Airlines have been required to reduce their number of flights. With this major runway not in use, wind and weather conditions could end up causing significant delays.

You can read the full story at

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/08/nyregion/08runway.html

International Dining Etiquette

Friend of mine forwarded this link to me for a Dining Etiquette Quiz.

I thought I was pretty knowledgeable about international dining etiquette but boy was I wrong. I got a lousy 4 out of 10!

Can you do better? Click on the link above and find out.

How to find a good travel agent

A good travel agent is worth their weight in gold. I've been working with mine for 15 years. I sure hope my traveling days end before she decides to retire because I don't know what I'd do without her.

I was fortunate to find her through the recommendation of a very good friend. Over the years she has always been there for me, advising me on trips, tour companies, handling things when the tour/cruise company messes up and, yes, providing perks as a Thank You.

Would my TA work for everyone? Probably not. Some people feel the best TA is the one that gives them the biggest discount and gets them the best price. That's fine. And there are TAs out there that will meet those needs. Just not my TA.

My TA knows that she provides a valuable service. She has gotten certified as an ACC (Accredited Cruise Counselor), spends time and money to tour ships and attend trade shows. She belongs to a consortium (which also costs money) because it gives her access to out-of-the-norm industry information and also gives her special perks that she can pass along to her clients. She knows what her expertise is worth and won't compete with the online discount sites.

Want to work with an online discount TA? That's fine. Just be sure to ask them a few questions like how long have they been in the business, where have they traveled to, do they have any certifications (like the ACC), do they belong to a consortium?

Set your expectations for your TA. Make sure they meet them. And then when you've found one that does, stick with them. It will pay off in the end.

How to find your luggage in a sea of bags

Have you cruised? On a large ship....with maybe like 3500 passengers? And when you are ready to disembark, you are directed to a HUGE warehousing area where you have to find your luggage.

Oh sure, the luggage is separated by different color coded tags but there is STILL a sea of luggage out there. First you need to find your color. Then you search for your suitcases.

Want to make this easier on yourself? Have you considered that your luggage can tell you where it is?

Enter the Luggage Locator! I, personally, have not had a chance to use it yet but there are posters on a cruise forum I participate in that RAVE about it.

Child Directing Traffic at JFK

Did you read the report about the air traffic controller who brought his son to work and let the son give directions to the pilots?

I heard the tape. It's all on the internet and the story can be found here. The controller and his supervisor have been suspended.

The child was supervised, was very professional, and the pilots certainly had no problem with this. I have no idea what the outcome of this will be but, if the pilots were comfortable with the transmissions, would you be upset? The FAA obviously is.

Review: Blue Lagoon, Iceland

A question to me on a travel forum I participate in reminded me that I never got around to post a review of the Blue Lagoon.

Our last night in Iceland we stayed at Northern Light Inn. It is a relatively new hotel and it is definitely the most modern hotel we stayed at....huge room with king sized bed and flat screen TV.

Our flight the next day wasn't until late afternoon. Our plan was Blue Lagoon in the AM, and then off to the airport.

So...what can I say about the Blue Lagoon? I got there when it opened at 9 AM. Compared to the public pool I went to in Akureyri, the Blue Lagoon is expensive! Actually, I think it's expensive no matter what you compare it to. It was 25 Euros and that got me nothing except admittance to the pool...not even a towel. (I knew this and had brought towels from the hotel.)

Protocol for the locker room was the same as I found in Akureyri. When I entered the pool it was relatively empty. It is as turquoise blue as it appears in the pictures. As I walked from spot to spot, the water temperature changed from comfortable to a spot where it was actually too hot to stay.

The bottom of the pool is a bit rough...like a paved over rocky bottom. The Blue Lagoon is famous for its healing treatments, including the mud that collects at the bottom of the pool. You can feel the mud as you walk but I didn't find it too weird squishy. The mud is collected and put in pots around the pool, making it available to give yourself a skin treatment.

I was at the pool about an hour. Afterall, how long can you sit there???? I returned with my husband for him to see it as there is a huge window overlooking the pool that is accessible without paying. And when we got back there close to noon, it was CROWDED!

Was it worth it? Not in my opinion. But I did have the opportunity to compare it to the pools in Akureyri, which cost me all of about $3.50 US.