“It has too many notes.” -Amadeus (1984) I tend to plan fairly active vacations. Reading my itineraries, some people have commented that they’ll need a vacation after doing all that! Take my planned upcoming Africa trip as an example. Sightseeing tour of Istanbul, Turkey including the famous Blue Mosque Mingling...
Just like you, I get junk mail all the time. Perhaps unlike you, I sometimes open and look at mine. 99% of the time still end up throwing it away but every once in a great while I find something golden. Such is what happened to me the other day....
The airport bombing in Belgium took place on the very morning me and a couple of others were flying back from Mexico. If you read my article on planning layovers, you know that I’m generally a fan of them. (Unlike most travelers.) Despite the fact that it was on the other...
Central America / Mexico / Miscellaneous
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published April 7, 2016 · Last modified May 1, 2016
“How do you know where it’s safe to go?” I get asked this question all the time. To be honest, I rarely think about it. The American news media, and even the American government, would have you believe that the whole world outside of US borders (except possibly for most...
Flying into Bogota Colombia for the first time I passed over beautiful farmland and dramatic mountains on the outskirts of the city. As we approached the edge of the city I saw clusters of buildings that I assume must have been greenhouses. At least that’s what they looked like from...
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published February 16, 2016 · Last modified May 1, 2016
I still remember the day. I think I was 33 years old and was actually in the black marble executive bathroom at the huge worldwide mega-bank where I worked at the time. I don’t remember what spurred it but I just had this quiet epiphany and made a resolution to...
Another way of keeping the memories alive after your vacation is to turn your computer’s desktop background into a running slide show of all your best vacation photos. That’s what I do, with the computer serving up a new photo every few minutes. This is easy to do. In Windows...
A dear friend of mine came up with this brilliant travel idea. When she goes on vacation, she makes it a point to buy a bottle of essential oil. The oil should be bought either just before the trip and taken along, or on the first day or two of...
The premise was simple enough: I wanted to take my (then)girlfriend on a trip for her birthday. I got the idea while we were on a day trip together to the National Aquarium in Baltimore. She was fascinated by the display with Atlantic Puffins. I read on the placard about...
Logistics / Modes of Transport
by Jeffrey Kontur · Published January 26, 2016 · Last modified January 23, 2016
I’ve touched on this idea once or twice before but let me expand a bit. I have a friend who is exceptional at finding certain types of travel bargains. I once found a rental car for $8/day. She found one in the same place for just over $1/day. That said,...