Travel for Pennies

The frank, the dog, the weenie, the frankfurter…the hotdog.  This is subject of the quest that I was asked to take with my father.  He had recently retired from the Phoenix Police Force.  After 20 years of patrolling South Phoenix, and another ten years as a detective working with stolen cars, he wanted to take it easy, but not do nothing.  So he bought a hotdog cart.  He told me that he wanted me to come with him to New York City, the home of the “best hotdogs in the world” he said, recalling a story when he was 7 and had the best dog of his life on Coney Island.

This was a “research trip” to find the best hotdogs and bring them back to Phoenix to sell from his new hotdog stand. I told him I would go, but that the hotdogs must be strictly daytime fare.  At night I wanted to go to the nice restaurants of the city, I wanted to experience the variety of cuisine, made by some of the top chefs.  He agreed.  I found my list of my desired nighttime destinations at this site, and we were on our way.  On the plane ride he began to tell me the history of the hotdog.  He said they come in all sizes, from the large frankfurter to the tiny cocktail weenie.  This I knew as one of my grandmother’s favorite holiday dishes was the BBQ cocktail weenie delight.

My father went on to tell me the statistics, that most hotdogs in the United States are eaten between the months of May and September, “a summer time treat” he said.  He noticed that my eyes had begun to cross, as too much information about something like hotdogs just kind of tended to scramble my brain.  This is when he pulled out ancient Greek mythology, and informed me that hotdogs were basically a sausage, and were mentioned in Homer’s Odyssey.

Pushcart hotdog sales became popular with the German immigrants in the city of New York during the late 1800′s and to this day the lines at lunch time, in the carts from 5th Avenue, to Brooklyn, to those outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art stand testament to the time trial of the love of the hotdog.

I loved traveling through the city with my father, and enjoyed his stories along the way, but I must say that each night I looked forward to a sit down meal in one of the lovely restaurants the city has to offer.  He did bring home the world’s best hotdog, and each day at lunch, hungry Phoenicians line up to buy one of my father’s dogs, and to listen to his stories while they take their lunch breaks.

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Tags: Coney Island, http://www.bestrestaurantsnewyorkcity.com, Pushcart hotdog sales

Who would suspect that the most entertaining thing to do in Williamsburg, Virginia, might be to hunt down ghosts?  For the last fifteen years, the Original Ghosts of Williamsburg Candlelight Tour has been named the Number One Most Requested Evening Program.  Perhaps it shouldn’t surprise me.  Ghost tours are extremely popular throughout the world; I’ve been on them in London and Edinburgh, in Albuquerque and New Orleans, even in downtown Hollywood.  And when one considers ghosts, one doesn’t think about modern ghosts, recent passings, as it were, one thinks, instead, about the past.  For that, Colonial Williamsburg is a fine fit to pursue its many hauntings.

This particular ghost tour offers a guide who will take you through the city streets of Colonial Williamsburg, leading you by candlelight (perhaps to make the experience just that much more eerie).  A number of past visitors with the Original Ghosts tour have taken some fairly startling photographs: mysterious faces and bodies behind windows (taken in front of the Bruton Parish Church, about a month ago); weird floating orbs and ghost mist in the air (taken over on W. Nicholson St.).  Despite the many interesting photos, I remain a skeptic, especially about orb images, which often seem to me to be more than dust captured in the camera’s light.

The ghost tour through Colonial Williamsburg is based on L.B. Taylor’s book, “The Ghosts of Williamsburg.”  Taylor is the author of 18 books filled with stories and eyewitness accounts, providing historical background and information about the culture and buildings of the time the ghosts first appeared.  In fact, Taylor’s book is a good thing to read once you get back from the tour, safe in your hotel room in Williamsburg, to really delve into this matter of ghosts.  Perhaps I shouldn’t be so skeptical.  It’s more likely than not in a city that dates back to 1632, which is plenty of time to build up the ghostly population.

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Tags: dust captured in the camera's light, hotel room in Williamsburg, Original Ghosts of Williamsburg Candlelight Tour

Our third day in New York City, we slept-in, that was our first good nights sleep. When up, we went straight to the Natural History Museum. There was an exhibition that was all about ‘Extreme Mammals’, which was very fascinating. Then we purchased tickets to see a Space show, which my husband wanted to see, he really liked it, I could have done without. Afterwards, my husband needed to watch the England game, so we asked about where there might be a place we could watch it on TV, we got a few recommendations on which bars to try and one of the three that was recommended was showing the game, but they wanted to charged us $20 to enter the establishment! My husband didn’t need to see the game that bad.

We ended up hopping on the tube to 5th Avenue so I could do what I’ve been wanting to do ever since we arrived, shop! We we got off the tube, we notice that there was a crowd hanging outside the plaza. We saw a film crew and a few cranes with lights hanging on them. I told my husband that I bet they’re filming ‘Sex and the City’, but he just rolled his eyes at me. Then, when we crossed the street and realized that the street was blocked off and saw this man pushing the crowd away, I went up to him and asked what was going on? He said they’re filming ‘Sex and the City 2!’. I rushed over to where I could get a better view, husband in tow and I managed to get a few good photos. Now that’s what I’m talking about! New York’s fantastic!

We hung around until the filming stopped and I didn’t have the urge to shop anymore, so we began to leave 5th Avenue. That’s when I recognized the writer just standing there, so I approached him and asked for his autograph! I had a nice little chat with him about London and all the while, my husband was all starstruck!

We headed back to our suite at the hotel, here’s the site: http://www.newyorkhotelsuites.com, if you’d like to check it out. Once we recovered from all the excitement, we decided to use the complimentary tickets our hotel gave us for a Comedy Club located on Broadway. We got to laugh hard at six very excellent comedians, or were we just drunk, hard to tell, but we did stagger a bit on our way back to our suite. I have a feeling tonight we’ll have another good nights sleep.

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Tags: http://www.newyorkhotelsuites.com, Natural History Museum, Sex and the City 2

There’s always been a lot of interest in the Cossa Nostra, and it has an uncomfortably large number of fanatics who know every detail.  There are scores of films, documentaries, and books about the mafia in the U.S., and in other countries as well.  But it’s got a peculiarly local flavor.  A lot like linguini with clam sauce to be specific, but made by an Italian-American chef in a New York kitchen.  People visiting New York City are always impressed by the sheer number of famous people who have lived, and died, in the city.  In some of the old neighborhoods, you can find stories about mob bosses, people like Joe Masseria, who is buried at Calvary Cemetery in Brooklyn.

There are many different ways to get close to this history, and there are also many reasons not to get too close.  But for fans of Scorcese films, it’s possible to visit some of these famous places.  Of course, if you’re staying in New York, business hotels are a great way to go.  They cater to the traveler with more immediate needs than others, and specialize in offering the same splendid hospitality you’ll find elsewhere, but with more amenities to help you get your work done.  Writers looking to research a new article or book will find excellent services here, and will lose none of the charm and sophistication of other hotels.

Brooklyn is within easy reach of any of these establishments, and is in fact one of the easiest boroughs to get to from Manhattan.  There is a spectacular history here, and it’s not surprising that it’s been one of the best hot spots for the new generation of artists moving the New York to begin a career.  It also has some old neighborhoods, where there might even be residents who remember something about the Masseria family.  However, it’s always a good thing to keep a good head on your shoulders.  In the cemetery where Joe was buried, there are also rival gangsters buried here, and it’s best to keep any unkind words between families and just politely observe.  If you know what’s good for you.

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Tags: Joe Masseria, Masseria, New York business hotels

We arrived to JFK with stinging eyes due to watching a handful of films during the flight from Australia, and also due to several glasses of red wine. We hit the subway to make our way to our hostel located in the Soho area of New York City. The subway ride seemed forever, but we finally arrived at our destination. There was this big man in a black leather coat standing in front of the hostel telling anyone arriving that the hostel was closed down because the NYPD found it to be a fire trap.

So, here we are, after a 25 hour flight, with no accommodations and on a Saturday night! Yes, we were frustrated. Luckily, though, there was an Internet terminal that wasn’t disconnected at the hostel, which the man let us use. I managed to find a hotel on this USA hotel site: http://www.newyorkusahotel.com that had rooms available and it was only a block away! We really didn’t have the money in our budget for the room, but we figured why not splurge for one night, then find another hostel. This allowed us to have the experience of a great private room with great amenities that we fully took advantage of before we moved on to a hostel. We figured it was meant to be, so we relaxed and had a great time.

The next day was a bright sun shiny day, so we headed up to Times Square, which wasn’t far away and decided to get in the queue and try our luck at getting tickets for the musical ‘Hair’. We managed to get discount tickets and the musical was still very relevant even in today’s world. Well, after all it was written for the Aquarius age, which is now. We really liked how the cast wasn’t only performing on stage, but through out the audience too; actually, the closing song, there were more audience members on the stage then there were cast members! We were so uplifted after the show, that the thought of staying in a hostel didn’t seem to appeal to us right at the moment, so we managed to book our room for one more night of comfort and luxury.

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Tags: Aquarius age, http://www.newyorkusahotel.com

There are always wonderful things going on in Indianapolis.  It’s known for being one of the cities that represents the heart of the U.S., at least in the idea of what the mid-west is like.  In many iconic definitions of the country, the mid-west seems to stand in for the average Joe and Jane, although everywhere who lives here recognizes that it’s much more complex than that.   Indianapolis speaks to this complexity with an acute ability to articulate itself.  There is a gorgeous ambience here that does speak to something old and rather wholesome, where things like old-fashioned values might find expression.  But just as often, there is also a sensibility here that speaks to a connectedness with the world at large, something almost global in vision, and recognizing the potential of its own citizens.

It’s hard to match the city for beauty, however, and it’s a spectacular place to visit.  Indianapolis luxury hotels offer global sophistication with the sumptuousness of the heartland, and it’s a fantastic place to escape from the rush of the rest of the year.  There are plenty of elegant distractions that will refresh the eyes and the soul.  There is also magnificent theatre to see here.  Indianapolis has a solid history of producing new and essential work for the stage, and continues to be one of the most fascinating places to see new works.  The diversity of the local population is often reflected in the more interesting theatres, and there are multiple sensibilities at work here.  You may have the opportunity to see a work by one of Indiana’s famous sons, Jim Leonard.

He was discovered at a young age, when he wrote And They Dance Real Slow in Jackson, which won him an ACTF award.  He worked with New York’s famous Circle Rep, continuing to write plays based on life in rural Indiana.  He has won multiple awards, and is now based in Los Angeles, working on projects for television and film, as well as developing new plays for a theatre that is hungry for vital and interesting work.

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Tags: And They Dance Real Slow in Jackson, Indianapolis luxury hotels, Jim Leonard

It was a nice Friday afternoon and I just got out of school for my February vacation. I’ve been so tense and stressed with all the exams, papers and rehearsals that it felt so very nice to just get out of the ‘atmosphere’ I call my hometown. We I arrived in Manhattan from Boston, I went to a New York City car hire company to pick up a car that a friend of mine reserved for me, which was great! I slowly made my way through the city, seeing the skyscrapers and honking back at all the taxi drivers, which was fun and helped me release some built up tension from the previous week. I even yelled at a taxi driver who was yelling at me. That was great! I can now see why they like to do it, it really is great fun.

I managed to find my way to the Upper West side, to the Museum of Natural History, which is directly across from the hotel where I have reservations. I let the hotel valet take my car as I checked in for the night. The hotel lobby was stunning, lots of marble, wood and elegant furniture. My room was just okay, I was expecting more after seeing how luxurious the lobby was, but my room paled in comparison. After I unpacked and changed my clothes, I went back out and had valet bring my car hire around. I know New York’s a walking town, but I really enjoy driving in a huge city. I feel like I was born to weave in and out of heavy traffic, honk, yell and bully my way into a lane.

I managed to make my way to a restaurant called ‘Becco‘  to meet my dear friend, the one who reserved the car hire for me. Once again, I took advantage of the restaurants valet service. See, most people won’t hire a car in New York thinking that it’s impossible to find parking. It’s not, most reputable places offer valet parking, even if I’m not going to that particular establishment, I’ll use the valet service anyway; makes it so much easier and if the valet seems to have an issue that I’m not using the establishment, I just give a bigger tip.

The restaurant my friend picked out was Italian and was pretty good. We stuffed ourselves with some of the best pasta dishes in New York. We walked around Times Square and bought tickets for a Broadway show, which was absolutely hilarious. After the show, we walked back to the restaurant and I picked up my car and drove him back to his apartment and me back to my hotel, but naturally, I took the most congested routes.

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Tags: Becco, Museum of Natural History, New York City car hire