Changing Money In Italy

I made a trip to Italy right before they switched over to the Euro so I had a pocket full of Lira that I wanted to change out when I was returning home. Typically, the currency exchanges won't take coins, but they would do that at the Rome airport. I was heading to London for a couple of days and wanted to change my lira to Pounds. Unfortunately, they only had 50 pound notes (at that time about $80). I got out all the Lira I could find and counted it out. I was a few hundred Lira short so I couldn't get the money changed there. When I got to London, of course they wouldn't take any of the coins and I had enough paper money to get only 20 pounds. That was enough for the bus ride to and from my hotel and a liter of Bombay Sapphire Gin (with 5p left over!) so that worked out well.

The first laundry day after my return home, I checked the pockets of my pants. In the little "watch pocket" of the pants I was wearing on the my travel day was a 1000 lira note...I wish I had found that earlier!

I still have all those coins, maybe I will drop them in one of those donation boxes I have seen in European airports...maybe they can do something with them :-)

Expedition Everest



Expedition Everest



When we spent our honeymoon at Walt Disney World seven years ago, we were taunted by the construction of a new ride at Disney's Animal Kingdom. Unfortunately it would not be completed for some time after we left. We were finally able to make the trek back to the Animal Kingdom on Christmas Day! The ride, of course, was completed and fully operational.

Once we got to the park, we made a bee line for Expedition Everest, got FastPasses and went to the line, which was already a 40 minute wait. We kept the Fastpasses for a later time, realizing that the line was not going to get any shorter as the day progressed.

Big Thunder Mountain used to be my favorite coaster at Disney. This ride is like BTM on steroids! It starts out with a little jaunt through the countryside, peaceful enough. Then it makes a very steep climb into the mountain (as you can see by the picture). After climbing into the mountain and cruising around a bit, you come to a complete stop where the tracks have been torn up by a Yeti. The train then goes backwards through the dark with some thrilling twists and turns. There is then a brief pause and the train heads forward again through a bit of a drop and several curves (excellent g-forces!) and comes to a rest back at the train station.

It is a very smooth ride without any inversions. There is a high-g backwards curve in the middle of the ride which is quite fun, then there is the drop and curve as you emerge from the mountain (smile, they take your picture there). I tried riding through it with my hands in the air, but couldn't do it :-)

We used our FastPasses around midday and got another set of FastPasses to use right before we left for the evening. I really enjoyed this ride!

Christmas Eve At Hollywood Studios



Osborne Family Lights

We had the joy of spending last Christmas Eve in Disney's Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World. Of course we rode on several of our favorite rides like Rockin' Roller Coaster, Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and Star Tours. We also caught some of their many shows. We saw Beauty and The Beast, Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular, and Lights Motors Action.

One of the new shows there since our last wisit was the Comedy Warehouse. This show used to be on Pleasure Island before it closed. They were doing a Christmas themed improv show which was a hoot!

When we emerged from the Comedy Warehouse, we were treated to the splendor of the Osborne Family Christmas Lights. As a power system engineer, I was very impressed with the 5 million twinkling lights (they have all been converted to efficient LEDs :-)

Here is the scoop on this display.

Fun at the Airport

One-man band
 

We flew out of SeaTac airport a couple of days before Christmas and were pleasantly surprised at the holiday festivities they had there.

We started off by going through the TSA PREcheck line (check out my previous blogs) which took mere seconds and we didn't need to reassemble our bags or ourselves.

Once we got through security, we encountered strolling carolers, a pianist in the atrium, a one-man band, and people in costume. There was a joyful and festive atmosphere there, which is a nice change from the normal airport humdrum.

This was the most fun I have had in the airport in a long time, and a great way to start our Christmas trip :-)

Tying It All Together (NEXUS Fin)

Sunset Over Greenland

Sunrise 11 Minutes Later

 

 

In this final (maybe) installment on NEXUS, I will tell about our first-hand experience with TSA PreCheck and Global Entry on a recent trip to Istanbul.

We were originally not going to try the TSA PreCheck since it was on the opposite side of the airport from where we were and where we needed to be, but the security lines were as long as I had ever seen them at SeaTac so we changed our minds. When we arrived at the PreCheck line, the officer there said that they weren't set up for international flights so we had to go through a regular check. This wasn't too bad because the line for the regular check in at the PreCheck checkpoint had only a couple of people in it. We did watch some people go through the expedited check and they went through quickly and easily.

When we returned to Seattle, we went straight to the Global Entry Kiosks in the international arrival area. I breezed right through, but Judy's NEXUS card had expired so the kiosk directed her to the normal Passport Control line. I proceded to the baggage claim. Normally we try to just have carry-ons for our returning flights, but my bag was too heavy so we decided to check both our larger bags. The nice ticketing agent at Istanbul gave our bags "Priority" tags and mine was the first one on the carousel in SeaTac, Judy's bag was a distant sixth. I was able to collect our bags and be waiting near the exit for Judy to get through passport control.

Judy's NEXUS card has since been renewed.

More on Istanbul later :-)

TSA Pre (Nexus part trois)

Another perk for Nexus cardholders is in the works. The TSA is starting a program where certain travelers may be able to go through security checkpoints with less hassle. This means they can keep their coats, belts, and shoes on as well as leaving their laptops and liquids inside their carry-ons while going through the checkpoint. Of course the TSA can make any of them go through the regular check.

Currently this is available to certain frequent fliers of Delta and American (and soon Alaska! ) at a handful of airports. Ultimately people in trusted traveler programs such as Nexus and Global Entry will be able to participate. This feature will eventually be available at many more airports (including SeaTac! )
You can find out more at the TSA website:

http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/escreening.shtm

Bad Jet Lag Advice



I get very jet lagged when I fly Eastbound. When I lived in Spokane, WA I used to joke that I got jet lagged just driving to Montana (90 miles to the East). I have unsucessfully tried many of the recommended ways to avoid jet lag, but haven't found one that really works for me. On a recent trip to Dubai, I ignored most of the advice I have heard and it really worked out well for me.

I flew overnight from SeaTac to Amsterdam and arrived there early in the morning. I was meeting up with the rest of my group there and we had booked some day-rooms at the Park Plaza hotel near the airport. It would be about three hours before the rest of the group arrived and another 10 hours after that before our flight to Dubai would depart, so I decided to sleep the day away. I typically do not sleep on airplane flights, so I was ready for some shuteye. The hotel was comfortable and very quiet. It had room-darkening shades so the daylight didn't illuminate the room. Most of the jet lag advice would have me staying awake during the day to help my body clock adjust to the new time zone, but my desire for slumber was overwhelming.



Park Plaza Hotel Room

I slept for a few hours then met up with the group for lunch. Afterward, I was contemplating taking a walk and exploring the area around the hotel, but the lure of the comfortable, quiet room was too much and I bedded down for another 5 hours.

We had another overnight flight to Dubai and, of course, I was jet lagged. I recovered in a couple of days like I normally do. I don't remember how bad I felt while for those first few days in Dubai, but I do remember that nice day of sleep I got in Amsterdam!