June 24 Blog

Brit-Bound-Blog

Issue #27…

This Sunday’s Meeting

3 p.m., this Sunday, First Presbyterian on College Avenue. Enter through the north doors and we’ll be in the fellowship room up the stairs and to your right.

I’m sure I’ll have your plane tickets by this time along with the names and addresses of the hotels where we’ll be staying. I guess all that leaves is packing your toothbrush and jumping onto the plane.

I’d encourage you to skim through the blog entries this week if you’ve not done so lately. I was a bit taken aback this week when one of our young travelers asked me, “What’s a carry-on bag?”

Changes..Changes…Changes…

As I’ve mentioned ad nauseum, “change” is not only the motto of both political candidates, but it’s the by-word of travel. We’ve had some changes. Since certain events simply don't happen on Sunday in many parts of the world, and because our schedule is tight, the following edits have taken place in our tour:

1) the schedule doesn’t allow enough time for the “Mystery Tour” option, so those of you who signed up will be refunded the money for that one. They’ll send one check to me.

2) River Dance does not play on Sunday night and on Monday most are scheduled for the Abbey Tavern so you’ll be refunded the River Dance bucks. Yeah, I know..I wanted to see that rascal, too. But hey, it’s all good and we’ll have a great time wherever we go.

3) Some of us opted out of the Loch Tour option in order to spend the day with Jackie Shores, a friend. There’s now a possibility that Jackie will be stateside due to her father’s illness. So…I’m checking with our tour consultant about us signing up for the Loch Tour instead.

More Money Matters…

This from Kathy Bernard, our tour consultant:

Based on the tipping guidelines (which can be adjusted at your own discretion based on service received) the amount to your courier would be $48 per person. The amount to your driver in Ireland would be $15 per person (given to him on Day 6 when he drops you off at Dublin airport), and the

amount to your driver in Scotland and London would be $18 per person, given the day before you leave to come home.

Remind travelers that they'll also want some cash on them for baggage fees. They should try very hard to not exceed one medium sized suitcase of 44 lbs or less.

If they check two bags, Delta will charge $25 for the second bag. Ryan air charges for any checked bag exceeding 33 lbs, so many will probably have to pay a fee at the Dublin airport. Packing light has always been an art form, but these days, not having that talent really costs the traveler, on the spot.

Please don't look upon this tipping as a “hidden charge.” Believe me, it’s standard practice in the tourism industry, although one that sometimes we Midwesterners have trouble understanding.

The Truth about London Taxis

From Bill Curry, re: an article in Budge Traveler magazine: London
Always take the city’s old-fashioned black cabs, which are licensed by the city, rather than the so-called minicabs that sometimes wait outside theaters, restaurants, and bars at night, says Scotland Yard spokesman Alan Crockford. In 2006, an average of 10 women a month were assaulted by the drivers of minicabs, according to the most recent data available from the London Metropolitan Police. Minicabs belonging to a car service are licensed, but even those cars are only legally permitted to pick up passengers who have called to make a reservation-they can not stop for people in the street. Contact the Transport for London office (011-44/20-7222-1234, tfl.gov.uk) if you want a list of licensed minicab company numbers, Crockford says.

A Tip on Ryan Air from Anne

Anne Wildrick passed along this bit of info regarding the airline hopping us to Scotland: Ryanair.com's worst fees are for luggage. Its free weight allowance on checked bags is about 33 pounds collectively. Whether you check one, two, or three bags, if their collective weight exceeds 33 pounds, you'll pay about $10.40 for each pound over the limit!) (about €15 per kilo, or the local currency equivalent; full fees listed here.)

And don't try to pool or share luggage within the same traveling party. That's a no-no. But you can try this Budget Travel tip, instead: Stick an empty duffel bag in your suitcase; if Ryanair tries to charge you extra, shift some of the weight to the duffel and use it as your carry-on bag (which Ryanair allows, given that it's a reasonable size carry-on).

June 16 Blog

Brit-Bound-Blog

Issue #26…

We’re Getting Closer!

In our classified ads department.. Fellow traveler Bill Curry ended up with one too many around-your-neck travel pouches and he’d like to sell his $25 L.L. Bean dark green neck pouch measuring 8 inches by 5 ¾ for 12 bucks. Contact him at gwcurry3@verizon.net if you’d like to purchase it. He can bring it with him to the meeting on June 29^th.

The Yarn Lady…

Although Janet Long has been accused of spinning many a good yard, this time it’s for real. She’ll be bring little tassels of yarn of the same color for you to put on your luggage and your carry-on. This way the big, healthy guys in our group can stand at the baggage carousel and grab the properly-yarned luggage without all forty of us trying to find a place at the trough. (And I know…we’ll undoubtedly run smack into a group with the same idea and the same color of yarn.)

At Our Final Meeting …

I’ll be sharing more materials with you.. specifically a Travel Handbook with lots of good information, plus a fact sheet on each of the cities we’ll be visiting. I’ve read them all and it’s good stuff. And since these “last minute reminders” will truly be in your hands at the last minute, I’ll pass a few salient points along to you now. I know, I know, much of this has been covered in previous mailings, but just to make sure…

--What to Pack in your carry-on: a change of clothing, toiletry items, contact lens kit, medicines, camera, all travel documents, books. And remember: carry your money on your person, not in your luggage.

---Look both ways before crossing a street! These folks don't drive on the correct side of the road and believe me, I never get used to this!

--Be sure to read the “tipping” information carefully. Let’s don't stiff our courier or our drivers.

---Remember than any liquids, gels or aerosols in your carry-on must be in containers that are 3 oz. or smaller. All such items are to be place in ONE 1-quart plastic bag zip-top bag. All lighters and matches are prohibited as carry-on items.

--Things to carry on your person: flight tickets, passport, cash, credit cards, foreign currency

--Be sure that your medicines are in their original containers.

--When you go through Irish Customs, they’ll likely ask you where you’re staying. Know the name of the hotel. (Yes, many travelers can’t remember, but it’ll speed things up and you might get an Irish smile if you know.)

---Please make lots of copies of your passport. Give one to your roommate, put one in your luggage, give one to anyone else on the tour, put one in your carry on. If you have to get a new one overseas, this will be invaluable.

---Unless you’ve had better luck than me with wake-up calls, I’d advise a travel alarm.

---Most travel info says “take three times the film you think you’ll need.”

---If you’re taking a wallet, please clean it out and leave all the unnecessary stuff at home. Do you really need your Sears card in a Sears-less Dublin?

---It’s a good idea to take a copy of your medical and eyeglass prescriptions.

---Carry your shoulder bag in front of you! If you think it looks dorky for group photos, then hide it behind your back during the snapping.

---And again, I urge you to tape a copy of your home address to the inside of your suitcase..and while you’re at it, why not place a copy of our group’s itinerary (the names of the hotels once we get them.) In case your tag gets ripped off, someone can open the luggage and find you.

Congrats to Nancy Bradbury on her 35^th year of putting up with Keith. They say they’re going to Ireland, Scotland, and England to celebrate.

A Secure Offer…

From Keith: “If anyone wants to bring a copy of their passports to the meeting on the 29th, I will keep a file of them at the bank as a backup. If we run into problems on the road, I can call the bank and have a copy faxed.”

Just an offer of added piece of mind.”

A Tip On Tipping

I’d reminded you in a previous newsletter that it’s customary to tip certain folks who help make our journey more pleasant. For those of you attending our final meeting, I’ll give you a sheet explaining this in more detail, but here’s the recommendations that are pretty standard throughout the tourism industry:

For our courier (guide): $4 per person per day. For our long-distance bus driver, $3 per person per day. You may of course tip in local currencies…any currency. For example, in the “euro zone” it amounts to 3 euros per day for the courier and 2 euros for the driver. In the England that translates to 2 and 1 pounds respectively. Restaurant gratuities are included in our trip price as are short-term gratuities to city bus drivers and local guides. (However if the local guide is really good, I usually slip them something extra…some are really worth it.)

June 2 Log

Issue #25…

Our Final Meeting Before Takeoff

June 29, 3 p.m. 1st Presbyterian in Jacksonville…

A Bit More News…

From the responses I received re: London theatre, here are the three picks I sent Passports in order of preference:

Our picks:

1) Billy Elliot

2) Jersey Boys

3) Avenue Q

Frankly, I’d settle for my 20^th pick in London theatre… and of course you’ll have a chance to buy tickets on your own to attend theatre on our other night in London. Kathy will get back to me on whether we'll get our first choice.

And a Special Tid-bit:

It’s not customary to know our courier’s name before we arrive at the airport, but I asked Kathy Bernard at Passports if she could pretty please 1) do her best to get us a great one, and 2) send me his name. She did.

We’ll be guided around the British Isles by Lawrence (Larry) Alexander. She says he’s forty-ish, he’s good at herding large groups with a sense of humor, and is a delightful guy. Her words to describe him: “Calm and Competent.” Who could ask for more?

The Official Weight Limit

I also learned from Kathy that we’ll be flying Ryan Air from Dublin to Scotland AND the luggage weight limit for Ryan is 33 pounds. That’s a three and a three. Any overage and you’ll have to pay extra. This varies from the 44 pound recommendation in the Passports information, but this applies to International carriers only. So… Toss out that extra pair of socks!

At The Risk of…

…losing a traveler, I thought I’d pass along this great email from Tammy Winters…

OH, I think the whole trip is going to be soooooo much fun!!! I can hardly wait! I have ordered my QVC carryon that Mary Jo and Bonnie told me that I needed. I plan to work on my new camera this week so that I can make it work for the trip! I purchased some new britches yesterday.(darn, I didn't loose the pounds I wanted to for this trip.... Maybe I need to try a month of Nutri System and I will be fine by July 3rd! I was really surprised that the flights are such good times!!! Catch ya later. Tammy

An Aging Group

We are now officially an “older” group as we no longer have high school students among our traveling ranks…Congrats to Erich, Wendy, and Hannah on their graduation from Triopia.

Name Dropping

Have you ever found yourself in a group of folks who are all talking about the same thing and you have no idea what’s being discussed? I’ll warn you… you might be in danger of that at three stops on our journey.

When in Dublin you’ll hear the name of James Joyce tossed up, down, and sideways across the river. If you’re not up on Mr. Joyce, a quick Google search will bring you up to date. His landmark novel, Ulysses, is usually named the best novel ever written in English. And although I was an English major, I’ve still never met anyone who’s actually read the whole thing. I’ve tried twice. If it’s in the heavenly library, I’ll give it a third try.

In Edinburgh, the local literary hero is Robert Burns. Again, a Google will bring you up to date on the Scottish poet. He wrote much more than Auld Lang Syne.

And of course when in Stratford, I assume you know who’ll they’ll be talking about..especially since the town probably wouldn’t be there were it not for young Bill.

A Wee Bit of Mischief from Kay W..

Mrs. Donovan was walking down O'Connell Street in Dublin when she met up
with Father Flaherty.
The Father said, 'Top o' the mornin' to ye! Aren't ye Mrs. Donovan and
didn't I marry ye and yer hoosband 2 years ago?'
She replied, 'Aye, that ye did, Father.'
The Father asked, 'And be there any wee little ones yet?'
She replied, 'No, not yet, Father.'
The Father said, 'Well now, I'm going to Rome next week and I'll light a
candle for ye and yer hoosband.'
She replied, 'Oh, thank ye, Father.'
They then parted ways.
Some years later they met again.
The Father asked, 'Well now, Mrs. Donovan , how are ye these days?'
She replied, 'Oh, very well, Father!'
The Father asked, 'And tell me, have ye any wee ones yet?'
She replied, 'Oh yes, Father! Three sets of twins and 4 singles, 10 in
all!'
The Father said, 'That's wonderful! How is yer loving hoosband doing?'
She replied, 'E's gone to Rome to blow out yer candle.'

(This is one of the world’s few clean Irish jokes. ..kb)

By the Numbers…

Conde Nast Traveler came up with this statistic that might be a comfort to any trembling travelers. If you fly around the world this summer, you will be 18 times safer than your friends who stay at home.

That settles it…I’m leaving home right now.