Jet lag

Jet lag is the curse of the traveling.  It is officially known as  desynchronosis, a chrono-biological problem  that effects us like shift work does to those who constantly work nights. It is a relatively modern dysfunction caused by the easy availability of rapid jet travel in either east-west direction.  It  does not seem to effect those who fly in a north-south pattern. It is related to the crossing of multiple time zones along lines of the Earth's latitude.  If you have been affected by jetlag, medical specialists suggest you need to give yourself one day to recover for every time zone you cross in any given trip.

Having returned from a trip to Europe two weeks ago, I am finally back solidly on Eastern Daylight Savings Time.

I usually try to deal with west-east jet lag by bucking up and getting on with it.  Basically, that means if I am heading east on a plane, I drink water, read a trashy novel, watch a movie, and take a nap. I try to "hit the ground running". I take a shower, brush my teeth, put on clean clothes, and head out  to explore the place.  This works for me, but not for everyone.

My late husband did not travel well.  I think this was because he worked the night shift for over twenty years until he retired, and he had messed up cicada rhythms. When he travelled west to east he would crash for at least five hours usually making up for the five time zones we'd crossed. However, he did better on ocean cruises. My second child is the same, needing several hours of rest before she is able to function in the new time zone.

It took some time, but I finally came up with a viable solution. Most trans-Atlantic flights from the east coast of the US leave in the late evening which is good for business travelers.  They get to their destinations in time for mid-day business meetings.  They are not so great for other travelers who often must wait for hotel rooms to be ready. I found a daily flight from New York that leaves for London in the morning and arrives there in the early evening. One can arrive, check in at a close by airport hotel, have a nice dinner, and get a good night's sleep before catching a connecting flight to your final destination.  We did this once, and it worked out well.

The best way to avoid jet lag while traveling from Europe to the States is definitely to travel by ship. I did this in May and highly recommend it, if you can do it.  You gain back an hour every other day , and by the time you get back home:  no jet lag!

What makes this doubly nice is that the ships have laundries on board, and you can return home with clean laundry!

Observing the Wheel

In several cities that I have visited there is some sort of Observation Wheel that is a main tourist attraction.  The London Eye comes to mind, it's huge cars...big enough to hold up to 12 people, and  so very s-l-o-w rise and descent made it one of the highlights of a trip to London back in 2001.

While visiting Seattle in the fall of last year, an impulsive go round on the observation wheel there was a fun way to see the picturesque harbor and coastal buildings of that lovely city.  The cars there only held four people, and felt more like a Ferris wheel, but nonetheless, it was fun and a great spot to take pictures!

In case you are wondering, a Ferris wheel has open cars, with swinging seats; an observation wheel has enclosed cars with either seats facing each other, or, like the Eye in London, cars big enough to host dinner for eight.

A big local controversy here on the Island of Staten is the local debates surrounding the proposed observation wheel and outlet stores that may or may not be built next to the SI Yankee Stadium by the ferry terminal.  If completed, it will be the tallest observation wheel in the world.  The operative works are "if completed". 

Several of our local politicos have been saying this is a done deal and a really great thing for the re-development of what they are calling "Downtown Staten Island"...just for the record, there really never was a "downtown" on Staten Island.  Various communities on the North and East shores were prime shopping areas in the past like Port Richmond, New Dorp and Great Kills...we could even throw in Perth Amboy in NJ which was at one time easily accessible by local ferry.  St George, where I now live, is the civic center with many municipal buildings, but never was a shopping hot spot.

Yet it could be if the additional Outlet Mall is built by a separate developer on land adjacent to the ferry to be built over present parking facilities. And, guess what??? NY Ferries, who run a private $5 a ride ferry service, want to provide service for tourist from mid-town to circumvent the local ferry service, which is free

But if you listen to regular locals, the idea is sort of held in contempt.  Many feel that parking problems that currently plague the area will be further strained.  Others, including union leaders, point to the less than stellar safety record of the Outlet Mall developer who in his "zeal" to provide work to "locals" has indicated only 20% of the work will go to the trade unions, and the rest will go to "currently unemployed" workers and local contractors, many of whom use unskilled workers.

The politicians, many of them Republicans, have cobbled these projects together in seeking approval from the New York City Council. They did not take into consideration the North Shore City Council member, a Democratic woman of color, who is questioning the hiring pattern proposed by the mall developer.  There is an option on the table that is interesting.  Split the project in two...there are already two developers for this program.  The Observation Wheel guy will be using local trade union labor...perhaps because they know what they are doing?  And who wants to have an observation wheel disaster on your hands due to shoddy work?

Now the local newspaper is beginning to put the screws to the Democrat on the City Council, but, gee whiz, she is merely saying out loud and in public, what many local residents have been saying all along. "This isn't for us; it is for the Manhattan greed mongers."

Blaming the tourists

The headline story in today's Staten Island Advance is entitled, " Blame it on the Tourists". In it the local Department of Transportation is blaming the tourists who stay behind taking photographs of the Manhattan skyline or of the Verrazano Narrows Bridge with a dramatic 3 point fall in the on time performance rate of  Staten Island Ferry service, now at an all time low of 87.8% in fiscal year 2013.  In the article, the writer refers to "Clueless tourists" as the major culprits in this performance down turn.

A spokesman for the Department of Transportation stated, "The No. 1 cause of late ferry trips remains the consistently large number of tourists who attempt to remain aboard the boats to make the return trip, taking significant crew time to clear the vessel, as required by Coast Guard regulations."

Now, being a sort-of frequent ferry user, I will admit that I have seen an upsurge in the number of  tourists riding the boats...after all a ferry ride is free to anyone who boards. And I will say the proliferation of digital cameras, and I-phone and I-pad camera apps, has lead to many more people jockeying for spots to take good shots of the Statue of Liberty and Governor's Island.  And then there are locals who also snap an occasional photo of interesting boats going in and out of the harbor. This all adds to a photo-mania that is fast becoming a ship board phenomenon.

But it seems unfair to single out out-of-towners for  the less than stellar on-time performance of the boats.

There are announcements made prior to the landing of the boat that all must disembark.  This is a Coast Guard regulation and since 9-11 this rule has been followed pretty closely...and that is a good thing.  But methinks the Department of Transportation is its own worst enemy, and has an easy to do fix. 

There is a very simple solution: make the announcement in a few other languages! What do you think, guys?  Unless all of your deck hands are multilingual...which I doubt, it would just make good sense to have a recorded announcement in say, oh, I don't know: Spanish, French, Italian, German, Arabic, Mandarin and Japanese? Or at the very least, post a sign in these languages at several places on the ferries and in the terminals explaining the boarding and disembarking routines.

I am sure there will be outcries from xenophobic locals who demand that everything be in English, but if we really want to make the ferries and Staten Island more "tourist friendly", small gestures like these can go along way.

Travel v. Vacation

This morning while I was doing my thirty minutes on the treadmill at the Lyons Recreational Center around the corner from my condo, I read an interesting article in this month's Atlantic Magazine entitled "I Hate Vacations" in which the travel writer Paul Theroux is interviewed by Andrew McCarthy whose name may be familiar to you as he is both a travel writer and actor.

In this interesting piece Theroux muses poetic about the difference between travel and vacation. He says, among other things  when thinking about vacations that "People sit and relax...sit down and have a message, have a spa..."  Gee, Paul, sometimes I want to relax and a vacation is a swell way do that.

His comments about travel include statements that resonate with me.  "Why would I want to be away?", he states, "Well, one reason is curiosity about places I haven't been...or to see how places have changed..."  Sounds good to me, Paul.

There are times I like to relax. Back in 2005, I had taken a new job with the DOE and was finding the schedule a bit challenging.  We, Bob and I, booked a cruise out of NYC in February.  We had already been on this same cruise a few years earlier. "Why are we doing this again?' he asked. "Because I need to get away and relax", was my reply. We did not stress about shore excursions, we lolli-gaged at the pool when we got to Florida and the Bahamas  I went ashore once in Nassau to buy some linens I had previously seen. We slept late and enjoyed the sail back to New York.

In February of 2012 my friends Gene and Rita invited me to join them at their timeshare in Cancun.  At first I was leery, but decided to go anyway.  I am eternally grateful to them for their hospitality. We had a restful time walking the beach, dipping in the pool, going deep sea fishing with the dolphins, enjoying the local markets and dining well.

Last month I went to Nantucket for a few days with my sister, her kids, grandkids and my cousin.  We had a wonderful time eating seafood and visiting the beach.  We also read trash novels to our heart's content.

Vacations are restful and wonderful.  Travel can be wonderful, but travel is different.

This past April I traveled by myself to England to do some genealogy work on my Mother's family.  I transversed England from London east to Nottingham and then west to Coventry, Cookham, Winchester, Bath and Southampton visiting genealogical libraries, museums, churches, cathedrals and assorted friends along the way  It was travel at its best, using the British rail system was challenging and rewarding at the same time. At the end of this travel trip, I got to vacation on the way home meeting travel pals Paul and Diane for a trans-Atlantic crossing that was wonderfully relaxing.

So depending on my state of mind, I like to both vacation and travel...sometimes they merge and sometimes they don't.

Tourist in your hometown

Yesterday Tara and I had TDF tickets to see the latest production of "Annie" on Broadway at the aptly named Broadway Theater.  It is a marvel of late 19th Century over the top theatrical design with cavernous interior.  From the outside, facing the glitz and glimmer of the "new" tourist-friendly Times Square, it shines like the "top of the Chrysler Building", in the words of the lyricist Martin Charnin. Its huge stage has seen productions of "La Cage Aux Folles" and "Les Miserables" over the course of its long and storied history.

The show itself is a bit stilted and rather done by rote.  The set is interesting, and the dancing is really good, but most of the cast seems to be phoning in their performance with the exception of Faith Prince who is thoroughly  enjoying herself in the role of the man-starved and gin-infused Miss Hannigan. 

I understand that Jane Lynch of "Glee" fame was in the role earlier in its run, and received some very good reviews.  Faith, it seems, has nothing to prove since she is the "replacement", but she does shine in this gem of a role.

We had dinner at "Don Giovanni's" on West 44th and Ninth, local place favored by Hell's Kitchen residents and a smattering of tourists.  Most tourists prefer to go to the over advertised "Carmine's" where the potions are huge; the food mediocre, and the room too crowded and noisy.  I prefer the smaller venue that serves a better quality food in a neighborhood setting.

The streets, the subway and the ferry were crowded with people, mostly out-of-towners may of them from other countries, who are here in NYC doing the "tourist thing".   You need to remember that they are here on vacation and are not of the same mind set as those of us who live here, so be both polite and tolerant.  Yes, they walk slower, yes they look up at stuff you have seen over and over again a hundred times.  Don't let it get on your nerves.  Their spending helps to drive this city's economy, and remember that you may be visiting their hometown, and what you do there can also be irritating to them.

Just keep smiling at them...you'll be home soon...do yourself a favor...take the local...not as many tourists.

Do your homework

As an educator, I became convinced, towards the end of my career, that  assigning homework and projects over holiday breaks and weekends were futile.  I finally had my students do the leg work and research for projects in class, making it a learning experience: how to use resources, what internet sites were credible, how not to plagiarize, etc.  But when I decide to go on a trip, I ALWAYS do my homework.  My ultimate objective is to not necessarily look like a tourist. 

As you may know, I live in a city, NYC that is, a major travel destinations for both Americans and others. Added to that, one of my major modes of local transit is the Staten Island Ferry, probably the number one tourist attraction in the city.  It is free to anyone who wants or needs to ride it.  I am in the later category, I need to ride it to get to most other areas of the city...the major exception is Bay Ridge, where I occasionally work; I can hop on a local bus and get there in a reasonable amount of time.

My various travels on the ferry have shown me how I do NOT want to behave in the places I visit.  Loud talking, the sporting of foam Statue of Liberty crowns, mis-naming important sites ( such as pointing at the Verrazano Bridge while declaring it to definitively being the Brooklyn Bridge), cracking open the beer can (yes, they still sell beer on the SI Ferry, as well as hot dogs), and wearing those ridiculous fanny packs with shorts, all of these are dead giveaways as to who you are...not to mention poor fashion statements. So I try not to be so obvious when I travel.  And the way to do that is to do your homework. 

The first thing I do is check the weather for my planned destination.  I like the "Weather Underground" site, but you can use whatever works for you.  I look at the weather history for the past few years for the dates I am going and check the day-to-day weather from about three weeks before I get there to figure out what to wear. I always carry a travel/rain jacket with a hood that is lightweight and can be literally stuffed into itself.  I found one at a second hand store in Brooklyn; it is Lands End and the whole thing fits into its own pocket...and even better?  All the pockets zip shut and there are three inside pockets.  Inside pockets are a must for traveling.

Next, I check on TripAdvisor to look at reviews for hotels, restaurants, museums, and other attractions.  I then narrow my search and begin to check out the individual websites of the places I want to go to, and the hotels I am considering using.  I found a great discount for the Louvre online and was able to save both time and money on a trip to Paris.  Booking tickets and tours beforehand can save both time and money.  This time in Rome, booking through the travel agency eliminated the lines at St Peter's Basilica, the Vatican Museum, the Coliseum and the Forum...well worth the cost.

Sometimes tourist offices offer "City Cards" that offer transit and museum entry at no or low costs.  The value of these depends on the place itself.  I successfully used these in Amsterdam and Stockholm, but passed on Rome and London because it just did not make financial sense.  Again, do your research.

Review the local transit system and see if you can get tickets before hand, or if they have special transit tickets for visitors such as day passes or week passes.  I used a Brit Rail pass this spring in England and it was the best investment I made.  In Rome recently, my sister and I used a full day transit pass and saved several  Euro over using cabs.  In Germany they often have special prices for groups traveling by rail, and in London the fare on the tube drops during off-peak hours.

Buy yourself a tour book...I am partial to Rick Steves' books, but there are others that may work for you. Study the maps of the places before you go.  Think about what you need to see, what you would like to see and what may be nice to see...then plan accordingly. Learn some local language phrases.  This often breaks the ice with service providers.

Secure your personal items.  I have it down to a science now.  I have a discrete money holder that fits under my shirt, I have jackets that have zippered outside and inside pockets.  My purse or tote bag is zippered shut, and I wear them cross body if  I take them with me at all.  Just be alert...show the same diligence you would if you were traveling on a crowded subway or the streets of Manhattan or downtown Brooklyn at lunch hour.  Don't be foolish.

Most importantly...have fun!

Be nice...it pays off.

Sometimes when you travel, you may become, well...frustrated at your traveling situation and may be sorely tempted to vent your personal frustrations on the airline employee standing in front of you delivering the bad news.  This, I have learned, is not such a good idea.

I know that on an intellectual level, we all understand that the hapless person standing in front of a computer screen desperately trying to avoid eye contact with us, is merely a cog in the gear of whatever airlines we are traveling on.  I do empathize with these folks, because one of my part time jobs at the DOE was, and still is, to work with people seeking employment.  In my position as a certification specialist, I often encounter teacher wannabes who may lack some of the necessary requirements for the job.  Those of you who know me, understand that I often shoot from the lip, and I have had to learn the  art of restraint and  presenting a calm demeanor when dealing with the delivery of unpleasant news.

So, I feel for those airline employees who I often see being verbally abused by irate passengers whose flights have been cancelled, or who might have missed a connection due to the late arrival of their original flight.

But it pays to be nice....let me give you two examples:

February of 2006 I took a cruise out of New Orleans to the Western Caribbean.  Cruise went great, but when we got to the airport in New Orleans there were gale force winds plummeting the entire Gulf and East Coast.  We could, we were told, take our scheduled flight to Dallas, but would never make it back to New York that day.  My late husband was beside himself, and I am not sure why, he was retired and I was still working. I looked the rep straight in the eye and asked, "How soon can we realistically get back to New York?"  She replied there was a morning flight, and this delay was considered an "act of God", but she did have one room left at a near by hotel, the airlines would pick up the tab since we were flying business class (we used points to upgrade), but we would have to fly back in coach and, we would have to take the room right now! We did, and she threw in dinner (with a decent bottle of wine), breakfast and a free rental car. She also put our unused points back into our accounts without the usual fee because we were relatively calm.

In July of 2010 we took a trip to Germany to see the Passion Play, and then took a river cruise to Budapest.  It was a long trip, and we were ready to go home, but there was a glitch. The flight we were taking to London was delayed three hours.  When we finally got through Hungarian customs and on the plane, it sat on the tarmac  thirty minutes. Then we saw a fire truck approaching us, and discovered there was smoke coming out of one of the engines. We were all deplaned, escorted through arrivals and customs, and told to go to the terminal.  Once there, the same British Airlines crew checked us in for the next flight...after another hour, we were informed that the crew had to be relieved and there would be no more flights to London that night.  Could we please go through customs, again,  and meet at the departure check in for hotel assignments.

On the same flight was the British  Formula One team, and they were not a happy bunch.  Mostly because they had been spending time in the airport bar waiting for the plane; the testosterone level was much too high.  They were yelling and screaming at the BA employees at check in   By the time we got to the  front of the line, the gentleman at the desk was flustered and guarded.

So I said," I know this is not your fault.  I am sorry you have to put up with this abuse" He replied, "Thank you, madam. Would you be interested in staying at the InterContinental Hotel on the Danube this evening?  Dinner, breakfast, and any phone calls you need to make are on the airline.  Oh, I see there is only room in Business Class for your flight to New York.  Enjoy your trip home."

So, boys and girls, always be nice to the folks behind the counter.  They appreciate it.

Factoids for Travel

Over the years I have developed a set of travel rules and ideas that seem to work well for me, and I thought I might share them because some others might find them helpful.

So, here goes....

1. Always carry an extra set of underwear, socks, and a tee shirt in your carry on luggage.  I put these in a gallon sized zip lock bag.  I learned this the hard way when my late husband's luggage was lost between Rome and Athens on an Alitalia flight....it was four days into the trip before it caught up to us in Kalambacka.

2. If you are traveling with a traveling companion, pack an extra complete outfit in their checked luggage, and do the same for them.  The reason?  See above.

3. Zip lock storage bags are your friends.  Use them to separate items in your carry on luggage: one can hold your prescription drugs, another can carry your various electric wires and power convertor,  (invest in a good electric converter if you will do any serious traveling), and yet another is good for holding travel documents. You should also keep a few coins of your destination currency in one of these bags, if you have any coins.  You can use them to tip at your destination.

4. If you are making an international connection, remember, if you purchase anything at the duty free shop at the first airport, be careful NOT to purchase any liquids in containers larger than 3 fluid US ounces.  I was reminded of this the hard way on my recent trip to Italy.  My sister bought a 10 euro bottle of lemoncello in Rome, only to have it confiscated in Montreal by US customs agents.  The cute little boxes of four 3 ounce bottles of the same liquid that was supposed to go to her kids as gifts were not.  They have now became her's to keep, sorry girls.

If the duty free shop is in your ultimate return airport, this is not a problem.  Unfortunately for her, they don't sell lemoncello in Montreal.

5. Always bring a small tube of zinc oxide and several packets of alka seltzer....because, that is why. Buy bottled water at the local grocery store.  You will save money.

6. You get the best exchange rate using a debit card.  Make sure it has an electronic "chip" in it, and you should notify your bank that you are going out of town. You will pay a fee for use, as you do here when you use your debit card to get cash from a non-network bank. I also use the debit card to pay for meals and other items for the same reason.

7. This one is a tip from my daughter, Tara. Don't be buying new underwear for your trip.  Wear the old raggedy stuff and throw them out as you use them.  Buy the new stuff when you get home; you'll enjoy them for a longer time and eventually, they will become your travel panties.

8. And finally...if you forget something, don't worry, you can buy on the road. There are stores all over the world.

Things to Bring Home

Besides the usual array of photos, used entry tickets, brochures from "must see" spots, and the inevitable pile of dirty laundry (bring a plastic shopping bag to stow that in, or use it as Charles Carlson does, to wrap bottles of the local spirits before putting them in your checked luggage), I like to spend some time perusing the local charity shops, flea markets (be sure to keep an eye on your valuables in crowded areas), covered and open air markets, pharmacies and supermarkets.  I have found some interesting stuff in these places when I travel. 

I found an interesting copper etching of Durham Cathedral while I was looking around a charity shop there.  It cost me 2 pounds sterling, and it is now part of my travel art collection.  In Rouen, France, I bought some very nice talcum powder because I forgot to bring mine from home.  The French product proved to be vastly superior.  When I go to Europe, I often stop at a pharmacy just to see if they carry that brand.  If I see it, I buy at least two more.

Flea markets are fun to go to for both people watching and for picking up some interesting items.  I bought a lovely brooch in London some time ago that was a small embroidery of flowers and deer...a steal at 3 pounds.  Alas, I bought nothing at the flea market in Budapest, but had fun watching people.

My friend, Brian, told me about some face cream that is made in Hungry, and I bought some at the central market in Budapest. I actually bought several and gave them to friends as gifts telling them what I had learned in Budapest, that it is made from sunflower stems and was smuggled into the US by the Gabor sisters who used it to keep their skin supple.  I now order it online...no need to ship it through Canada like Cuban cigars.

But by far, the best local market to visit has got to be the local supermarket. It is here that you get a real feel for what the locals eat and products they use in preparing their day-to-day meals.  This is how I discovered PG Tips Tea, which I can now get stateside at Fairway or Key Food.  I also have found it to be a place to buy interesting gifts for folks back home. Chocolate, I must say, is one of the things I buy and bring back, but I have also found that things like fleur de sel, flavored olive oils, marmalades, jarred peso and other condiments, nut butters, Nutella, and even honey are unusual and interesting tokens for family and friends back home.

And I have to admit, that I had more fun this time around in Rome, more precisely at the Vatican buying Pope tchotchkes: prayer cards, key rings, playing cards, pocket calendars and the ultimate "popeners", a combination kitchen magnet, bottle opener, and laminated picture of a smiling and waving Pope Francis I.  Perhaps some may think these irreverent, but I think they are a fun way to honor the new pontiff.

So, when in Rome: Go to the supermarket...when at the Vatican: stop at one of those street stands and have fun!

Roman thoughts...

I returned home from a brief trip to Rome last night. I have some observations about the impressions various Europeans give while they travel.  We often hear of those "Ugly Americans", but I have to say that the French, Italian, British and Germans also have some interesting national traits that seem to pop out as they travel.

Here are just a few examples from my recent observations while staying at a tourist class hotel in Rome:

1. Italian women can be dismissive.  I think this is because they live with Italian men.

2. Italian men can be both charming and too macho for words.  I think this is because they live with Italian women.

3. The French don't clean up after themselves....this was noted whilst eating at the hotel's complementary breakfasts each morning.  They also all seem to like dunking their pastry into their coffee.  The French don't drink tea.

4. The Brits like their tea.  Since I drink tea also, so I usually like them.  They do have some odd expressions, but since the language was theirs first, I guess they are entitled.

5. The Germans speak very precisely and in a sort of clipped manner.  This makes them sound abrupt, but they aren't really that way.  I know this because I have several German friends and they are quite warm, funny and generally interesting.

6.  Teenagers are all the same.  They can looked bored and sullen, travel in packs, dress in a uniform of jeans, tee-shirts and hoodies, but when you put two separate groups together...in an hour and a half, new "best friendships" are wrought and young hearts beat all a-twitter.

So, I guess I can say that Travel is educational...also tourist class hotels hold a host of interesting characters.