Travel Musings

One of the Nomad’s favourite winter vacation spots is The Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. He recently went there for a couple of weeks and had some musings to share:

The flight to The Yucutan this time was on Alaska Airlines from Vancouver, BC. One has to wonder how the airlines get away with not serving any food on a 5hr plus flight unless you are willling to pay $5 for a sandwich (no choice…only turkey …and not real turkey but ‘pressed into service’ ), and no entertainment unless you pay $10 to rent a thingamajig with unknown movies! The only enjoyable aspect of the flight was the ’singing stew’ on the flight into Cancun..the only idol to be idolised at Alaska Air!

Two excellent restaurants in Cancun always worth a mention. They are both next to the Hotel Casa Maya (near the big flag). You can enjoy superb Italian at Dolce Mente Pompeii with the ocean lapping the beach about 10ft. from your table. The second restaurant is The Cove Restaurant with ‘on the beach’ dining. They have a superb fish platter that you really should try.

Being one of my favourite winter destinations I’ve done most things on offer around Cancun. So this time I opted for a brisk catamaran sail to Isla Mujeres, and it made for a memorable day on the water.

With so much to do in Cancun, there is something for every traveler. We rented a ‘beater’ and drove to Merida for a few days. We were advised to take the toll road, which was quite pricey and resulted in 180 miles of very boring scenery. On our return to Cancun we drove on old roads through local towns and villages which was far more enjoyable.

Merida is a gorgeous Spanish-Colonial City dating back to the 1500’s. It is well worth a visit to walk the city streets and try the local Yucatan foods. You can also pick up a genuine Panama Hat from the ‘Fair Trade’ shops.

There are many places close to Merida to visit but these will have to wait for another trip. One could easily spend 7 days in Merida, making day trips to the surrounding country where history abounds. And when you’re out and about there are plenty of local taverns where you can grab a cold one and some table snacks.

For some great travel options check out www.ecotravelmexico.com. These folks were very helpful when I needed some expert advice on Merida - boutique hotels, restaurants, places to stop and see, etc. If you like what you see, check out TopTravelVouchers and save some money with your booking.

The Nomad

• Read More »

If you’re looking for a great show to see while you’re in Vegas but don’t want to break the bank, consider seeing Gordie Brown at the Venetian. Gordie Brown is a comedian who sings his own lyrics to popular songs, and does some great impersonations.

You can get tickets for his show at Tix 4 Tonight at up to half off, but even at full price his show is a great value. We paid less than $40 each to see Gordie Brown perform, and would easily pay more to see it again.

With all the entertainment choices to chose from in Las Vegas, you can’t go wrong with Gordie Brown’s show.

The Travel Bum.

• Read More »

We had a wonderful trip to France this year. Paris was nice and warm, not too crowded, and provided a nice contrast to our second week in Annecy. The French Alps were inviting, friendly and peaceful, although a bit wet the week that we were there. But hey, that’s the mountains - ever changing weather. It was over 30 degrees Celsius a few weeks before we arrived.

Enjoy your next trip to France. Just like any trip overseas, bring some reading material, playing cards and a desire to relax.

And have a great time. We sure did!
The Travel Bum.

• Read More »

Today was the day we’d all become cyclists, so we headed to the local bike shop and got ourselves some bikes. The prices are very reasonable, and the shop owner, a bloke from Australia, was very accommodating, even giving us some bonus time. I made the mistake of not wearing sunglasses, so other than watery eyes, enjoyed the ride a lot.

There is actually a bike route all the way down the west side of the lake from Annecy, continuing after the lake ends, for a total distance of about 40 km. The route is nicely paved and makes for a really nice biking tour of the area.

After the wonderful sun of our biking trip, it rained again. Guess that’s the Alps for you. We found an internet cafe in Annecy to check our emails, but had trouble because the keyboard is not configured the way we are used to. So plan to be there twice as long as you originally thought, because it will take you twice as long to type your emails (at least).

We also stopped in at Auchon again. This wonderful chain of groceries stores are not as plentiful as Champion, but are much larger and offer a wonderful variety of French foods. Cheeses and wines galore.  Keep them in mind on your next trip to France.

The Travel Bum

• Read More »

Albertville, site of the 1994 Winter Olympics, is approximately an hour drive south east of Annecy. Like most of the drives around this part of the world, the drive was spectacular. Cute and small, Albertville has a great walking downtown with lots of shops for a town of its size. Sites to see include the Stadium Olympic and the hockey rink, as well as an old medieval city.

We then headed up the Col de la Madeleine, one of the famous Tour de France mountains, with a height of 1984 meters. The stunning alpine terrain and huge mountains take your breath away. Our drive took us to the very top, above the snow line (even in May), and our road actually climbed above the tops of the ski hills. It was very interesting. After posing for photos at the top to commemorate our summit, we headed down the other side of the mountain, through the local ski village. At the base we had a snack at St. Jean de Maurienne, and dropped 2 of our travel mates off so they could ride their bikes up Cole de Glandon, another famous Tour de France ride. The roads are narrow, steep and very impressive for cycling on.

On our way back we stopped in Grenoble for some very nice Indian food, before heading back to base camp at Annecy, via Chambry.

The Travel Bum.

• Read More »

Annecy is located a 30 minute drive from the Swiss border. So when a friend of ours was flying into Geneva we all piled into the car and headed out to pick her up. Crossing the border, we had to buy a permit to drive on the Swiss highways, required for all vehicles. After collecting our friend, we headed downtown to see Geneva. Located right on Lake Geneva, the city is bustling with activity and quite charming. Everyone in Switzerland speaks English, so you won’t have any trouble getting around.
Our next stop was Lausanne, headquarters of the International Olympic Committee. Lausanne is further along the north side of Lake Geneva. Our GPS had a bit of a tough time getting us to the entrance due to some construction, but we eventually made it and really enjoyed the IOC museum. Memorabilia from the Olympics are on display with some interactive displays, and as we have recommended before, get the audio guide.

The Travel Bum.

• Read More »

After a late start to the day, probably because of our long drive the day before, we headed out to explore the Lac D’Annecy area. We began by heading towards downtown, although we did not head into the old part of the city. We had been warned by several people that the traffic in the older part of town is atrocious, and to not drive there. We meandered around the lake until we came upon Chateau de Menthon Saint-Bernard.

This 1,000 year old castle is still inhabited, and offers tours of some parts of the castle. Although it was all in French, we still enjoyed the tour guides dressed in costume and taking on roles of castle inhabitants during its day, and we could make out the general idea from the small English guide book. Beautifully maintained, the Chateau gives you an idea of life in a French Castle a thousand years ago. If the name sounds familiar, its because St. Bernard was a mountaineer who made many of the mountain passes safe for travellers and gave his name to the famous rescue dogs of the mountains, St. Bernards.

We continued around the lake on our drive around the lake, which is well worth the effort. The small towns on the lake shore are very cute and quaint, and include Talloires and Sevrier, our home base for the week.

Take a drive to the top of Col de la Forclaz. Popular with cyclists, the top of this mountain offers panoramic views of Lac D’Annecy, and one the right days, the chance to watch paragliders and hangliders launch form its lofty perch. You might even be able to see someone taking off on this webcam.

yours in travel,
the travel bum

• Read More »

The drive from Lyon to Annecy is, like most drives in France, beautiful. There are two ways to go…you can travel on the main auto routes, which are fast and efficient, or you can take the lesser roads, which are more scenic, although no less pleasant to drive. Driving through the French countryside on the smaller roads gives you an opportunity to take in the beautiful French towns and villages that dot the countryside, and affords more opportunities to stop. Either way, you’ve made a good choice.

Anney is a city of 50,000 situated at the north end of Lac D’annecy. This picturesque city has an old, historic town brimming with restaurants that line the river leading from the lake. All around the lake are small towns nestled along the shore and surrounded by towering mountains and peaks. During the winter Annecy is a ski town with many great ski hills close by. In the summer it is a water playground, with the lake offering many water activities. The mountains offer hang-gliding, parasailing and some great mountain biking.

Lake Annecy

yours in travel,
the travel bum

• Read More »

The second week of our trip to France was in Annecy, in the French Alps. We had heard a lot about Lyon so we decided to overnight there.

We got up early and began our drive out of Paris. Be prepared for traffic, because like large cities all over the world, Paris has traffic. However, once you get out of Paris, the drive is very pleasant. The motorways if France are top notch and the scenery is great.

Be prepared for toll charges on all the major motorways and watch out for speed cameras (the GPS is good at pointing them out).

The drive to Lyon took us about 5 hours. Our hotel, the Hilton Lyon, was right next to the Tete d’or Park, so we meandered over for a walk. There is a zoo at the park and you can get right up to many of the animals, and its free. You can even rent bicycles for a ride around the park.

We were told that Lyon was the culinary capital of France, so we decided to head out for a real French dinner, with reservations made by our concierge. The restaurant was quaint and we had a nice dinner, although French food is not my favourite, so I can’t give comment on the quality.

All in all, it was a pleasant way to spend our one night in Lyon.

Tomorrow, the French Alps,
the travel bum

• Read More »

Today we decided to visit the Champs Elysees for 2 reasons. To see the Arc de Triomphe and to visit the new Adidas store.

The Arc de Triomphe, the world’s largest triumphant arch, was built built by Napolean and dedicated to the glory of his imperial armies. Standing in the center of a star-shaped configuration of 12 avenues, the Arc is fashioned after those of ancient Rome and stands at the end of the Champs Elysees. A walk east along the Champs takes you buy many great shops and restaurants, and is a wonderful place to meander.

At the end of the shopping section of the Champs is the world’s largest Adidas sports performance store. Full of all the latest and greatest offerings from Adidas, the store boasts a high tech shoe fitting machine that will custom fit one of 6 pairs of runners to you exact feet, for approximately 50 euros more than a set off the rack. If you take your running seriously, they might be worth a try. And if you don’t, there are plenty of other great items to choose from. So stop in and check it out.

Next on our list was the Louvre. We knew we didn’t even have time to see half of the museum, but we had a list of highlights we wanted to see (see this post for advice on pacing yourself in museums). So we got our maps, our audio guides and headed off to find the Mona Lisa, passing by Winged Victory on the way.

Probably the most famous painting in the world, the Mona Lisa is in a huge hall with guards keeping the crowds under control and making sure nobody is taking pictures. When we were there the crowds weren’t too bad, but during the peak tourist season it might be hard to get close for a close look. In any case, the works around the Mona Lisa are worth a visit on their own.

After stopping by to see Venus de Milo, we tried to find the exhibit about the history of the Louvre, but unfortunately it was closed. We were able to visit some of the foundations of the original building, a castle dating from the 11th century, but we were disappointed not to find out more information about the Louvre itself because it’s a remarkable building in and of itself. Many of the ceilings are magnificently decorated and in great shape, but none of them have any descriptions. Too bad, because they really should have them.

While wandering our way out of the Louvre we discovered Napoleon’s apartments. This part of the museum was actually used by the French Finance Ministry until 1989. They are in magnificent shape and truly show the opulence of Napoleon during his reign, including the dining room that is set and ready to receive its noble guests.

From the Louvre we caught a train to the airport to pick up our rental car for our second week in France . We were told by our concierge that the train would take approximately 75 minutes, but we must have happened upon an express train. After only 2 stops and 30 minutes we were at the airport to pick up our rental.

Before heading to Charles de Gaulle airport its a good idea to find out what terminal your flight is leaving from. When you get off the train there are 2 terminal stops, but no information about which airlines and services are at which terminal. While its easy enough to catch the airport train, you can save yourself some time by having the information ready. The only monitors are in the airport, not near the train station.

We were picking up our rental car at the airport because it would make it easy to return when we were flying out. One way rentals can significantly increase the cost of your rental, sometimes almost doubling the cost. In our case, we only had to take a 30 minute train ride to the airport to pick up our car, so it was well worth the effort. If at all possible pick-up and drop-off your rental at the same location and save yourself some money.

We also decided to get the in-car GPS. At 9 euro a day, it is well worth it, especially if you’re going to be doing a lot of driving like we were. Although the road signs in France are generally very good, the cities in Europe can be mazes and the GPS will save you lots of time and effort, making your driving vacation relaxed and fun. Have a map with you for overall route planning and to get a sense of where you are, but leave the details to the GPS.

We finished our day with another trip to Pastapapa (see previous post) and a stroll around the Eiffel Tower neighbourhood. Paris was wonderful, and we were now looking forward to the Alps.

a la prochain,

the travel bum

• Read More »