Tagged With "Motherland is Calling"
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Re: Ryanair's O'Leary: I have a way to make flying free
I would call some of his ideas just "plane" silly - but never threatening. Twice. But Michael O'Leary is often the victim of the American media circus who love to inflame public opinion .
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Re: Huntingdon, Pennsylvania: Peaceful Holiday Getaway
Thank you George. They close in the winter, so call first to be sure so that it's not a wasted trip.
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Re: Sydney Expat Guide
My first impression of Australia was how clean and modern everywhere is. Oz has a shorter history span than the US. Their view of people from other countries is limited to what they see on TV News. Similar to Americans. My 3 kids lived in Australia for a while and found it very safe with well mannered folks. I have lots of family over there and the great plus of living in Oz is being able to enjoy the great outdoors. Even in winter when most days are above 60f - which the locals call cold !
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Re: Canters Deli and the Original Farmers Market, Los Angeles
My Cantor's story is one day in the late '80s while living in LA, I got a call from the manager of the restaurant. I had a wallpaper installation business and Cantor's wallcovering needed repairs. So I and my worktable spent an afternoon in the dining room, surrounded by people enjoying their sandwiches. I also have fond memories of the Farmer's Market, where I first went with my Aunt Ruth and many times thereafter. Thanks for the memories, Rob.
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Re: Now an airline charge for NOT flying!
If you do call the airline to cancel your return ticket you get no refund. They will probably sell your seat for more than your two-way ticket cost. If you try to reschedule your return for another day they will charge full price with no discount for being polite and doing the right thing. So you just walk away and find another airline. The Philosophy of W.C. Fields. "Never give a sucker an even break"
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Re: July 11, 2018: New Orleans Streetcars
Pittsburgh residents also call them streetcars. They were such an easy way to get around when I was a youngster. Not sure if the city has them any longer, but I took the German Strassenbahn's many times during my 18 years of living in that country. Unlimited weekly tickets made it a breeze to get around the cities.
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Re: Luxembourg, Old City
It looks like rhubarb to me, too. I'd call it a tart but where do they call it a clafouti? I've never heard the word.
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Re: Where in the World is Gumbo? #11
CICAK. The locals call it the same as the American version of Chester. Nothing different. Maybe in a wet climate seats made from rock would be cold and damp for most of the year !
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Re: Should Wi-Fi be free in all hotels?
Good discussion! WiFi has for me become an indispensable part of traveling. It allows me to stay in touch with family easily and cheaply (remember how hard it was even 25 years ago -- a phone call could run you $5 a minute? And there was no email). It lets me spend evening hours clearing out a hefty email que, and doing research on what I am going to see tomorrow and the next day. And with "Gumbo on the Go", it lets me share my travels as they happen with fellow Gumboites! I echo PHeymont's...
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Re: Budget Deal Asks Air Passengers to Pay More
I especially don't like it that they call it a fee- so members of Congress can keep their pledge not to raise taxes.The above Forbes link was good to compare it to the gas tax. This reminds me of a Simpson episode where Lisa( in Barts vision) is President. she is told to call a massive tax hike a refund adjustment.
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Re: Budget Deal Asks Air Passengers to Pay More
Ok...I'll bite. I think we have got to realize that air fares are cheaper than ever before, and like it or not security is a much needed part of traveling today. Generally I favour user pay taxes where possible and the U.S. federal government is in no position to subsidize much of anything right now. As far as what to call it... the names that taxes are given bug me too...but I think the public is at least partly to blame for that as well...because if you called it a tax, then there surely...
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Re: Where in the World is Gumbo #5.5
Just so everyone knows: From now on, the puzzle remains, in most cases, open until the Tuesday morning unveiling of the answer. Gumbo had a pleasant Saturday realizing there's no reason to call the puzzle before everyone has had a chance to weigh in, even if someone does get the answer. After all, who are we to deprive others of a different opinion? So, guess on, and your only true clue is: If a hint is given by the puzzler, you'll know it's needed. And if no hint is given, it only means...
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Re: Newgrange; Ireland’s ancient Passage Tomb
On my first visit to Anna Maria I was amazed that the Pelicans would sit next to you on the pier by Allemande Villas. Like a pet dog. They would try and steal your bait as you were fishing. But like a good dog they responded to a "Hey you!" and sat watching you. When I caught my first fish I pulled and fought with the monster! As I lifted my prize from the water my new Pelican friend flexed his wings. He glided off the Pier and with great precision removed my catch from the hook! He passed...
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Oct. 23, 2013: Iceland's Black Sand Beach
Beautiful Photos indeed Paul. I often think travellers who choose the best weather for a vacation miss out on moments like these. I blame the TV weather forecasters who always call a Rainy Day "Bad Weather". If you don't get rain then you wont get Rainbows !
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Re: World's most dangerous airport? Would you land here? Lukla, Nepal
I try not to let any aspect of travel faze me, but I'm perfectly happy to have watched the video and call it a day on that one!
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Re: Capital of Culture Series: Liverpool
No, not thinking of mills and chimneys, necessarily--note my very pre-Industrial Revolution examples--but certainly industrial, and by the nature of sizable cities with people living in close quarters and with the side-products of their industry, an argument can be made for dirty. It's not a slam...it's just the condition of cities that are alive. Here's a quotation, by the way, from the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health: The industrial revolution in England had by the beginning...
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Re: Whom did you say was flying this plane?
GarryRF makes a great point. Computers are very sophisticated and can do a lot. But they lack "human judgement". Call me old fashioned, but I'm more comfortable with a human pilot flying my aircraft.
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Re: Doctor List for Traveling
SueZee, I'm sure there is but, as I mentioned, I just don't think you need to worry about it. As a last resort you can call the embassy if the first line of defense, hotels & pharmacies, can't help. Very unlikely. Tell your cousins only rank beginners and sick people spend time worrying that could be enjoyed planning their trip.
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Mar. 30, 2014: Jean Cocteau on Wine
Yes, I saw the Alcazar pictures and loved them. I was thinking more along the lines of a suitable place for hanging out a few days or more, my favorite activity, if you can call sitting in cafes an activity. Sounds like a candidate. I still consider it at an edge, less than 100 miles from another continent.
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Re: AAA Premier a Good Idea for Budget Travelers
AAA seems to choose their contracted towing services very well. I have always had good luck with them. I used the coverage when I had a break down with a rental car in a small town. The rental car company suggested that I call AAA for towing to their office in a nearby larger town to exchange the car. The rental car company had a contract with the same towing company that was under contract to AAA in that area. So that was very easy. If the tow goes over the 200 miles, they charge something...
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Re: Kyoto Tells Tourists What Not To Do
This...I don't know what to call it. "List" is too small a word. Visual manifesto? Fascinating, the way a car wreck is fascinating. Japan was the first place I wanted to travel when I had a childhood friend from Japan. As an adult, I've had any number of opportunities to visit and haven't. I realized recently that what was stopping me was fear of giving offense. Kyoto has been the place that I thought I might brave my fears to see but this piece of municipal propaganda has wiped that thought...
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
Call it whatever you like, but I seem to have missed your point. But, no matter, MY point was simply that I see no excuse for charging astonishingly different prices for the same product, transportation from point A to point B, on partner airlines ostensibly selling the same thing.
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Re: Wolves or Cheese: France must decide
Tough call. Roquefort is my all time favorite cheese. Not sure killing wolves when in pasture land is workable. When wolves get hungry they go where the food source is located. Wouldn't they keep repopulating and returning until they're all shot? Eradicating wolves is not a good decision for ecological balance. Difficult for the government to make either side happy.
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Re: Lyndale Park, Minneapolis, Minnesota
That's a wonderful oasis of paradise hidden away in a busy city. I love to follow sign posts to what I would call "picnic spots". Take a seat and feel all that strain melt away. Good find Ottoman !
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Re: April 24, 2018: Thirsty?
I keep a toilet roll on my work bench. Perfect size for drying WD 40 off my machine parts and grease off my fingers. Everyone who spots it says it's disgusting. Maybe I should call it Bathroom Tissue !
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Re: Aug 17, 2017: Harvest Time - Northern England
Thanks for commenting Travel Luver. They are called Katy. They were invented (?) in Sweden for cooler climates. Self pollinating, disease resistant and quite a heavy cropper. Its only a dwarf tree and only 2 years old - when I picked 9 apples. Count is around 40 now so who knows - next year maybe 100 ! I grow them in front of the kitchen window - always admired when visitors call.
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Re: Walking the Freedom Trail in Boston
Must be 15 years since I walked most of your journey through Boston. The mix of old and new buildings are fascinating as you walk the city. Many of the older buildings look like they have shared an architects plan with older buildings here in Liverpool UK. I do find it odd that 5 Bostonians were stoning a single Redcoat then you call them unarmed ! A situation that would bring about the same end results today. I enjoyed your Blog. Thanks.
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Re: Popularity of POD hotels grows
Funny seeing this come back...50 years ago, there was something like this at Washington: A pair of what looked like trailers, mounted above stairs with a small office at the bottom to rent resting places by the hour or afternoon. And the next size up is the very spartan motels like Premiere Classe and Formule One...we call them "a bed in a box," which is about what they are. Great for when you fly in late at night and just want to sleep and then go in the morning!
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Re: Finding Reiner #8: Trail's End?
I know that feeling, GarryRF. Though, in this case, I would call it walking on HIS grave.
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Re: Finding Reiner #7: Shrapnel & Bones
I can't help thinking, as I read your descriptions, and the memories of the people you met, at the people, old and young, caught up in Palestine and in Iraq in circumstances not very different. It is sad that we continue to live in a world where their wishes and hopes are of so little consequence to those who call the shots. Literally.
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Aug. 24, 2014: Chicken Hawaiian Style
And if Ben Franklin had told anyone he'd seen these photos, he'd have been locked up and we'd have never heard of him. It was probably a close call for him as it was.
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Re: Picturing Dolls in Different Places?
PHeymont, I don't think Travelocity with be pleased to hear you call their cute cheeky gnome a troll. Trolls are said to be quite hideous. I was thinking more along the lines of a cute stuffed animal...maybe your wife (who I know is handle with needles) can create something..?
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Re: Gallery: St. Catharines Market, Ontario
GarryRF -- They are one of a hundred varieties of squash. I believe you guys on the Isles like to call everything of this type "pumpkin". Excellent in stir fry, in a pasta sauce, or grilled with olive oil and pepper.
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Re: Help with mobile phone for Morocco
If you take a look at http://prepaidgsm.net, you’ll see the reason for PortMoresby’s recommendation. It’s not the cost of the phone, it’s the cost of every minute, often many times that of a local SIM. For example, the Mobal SIM comes with a rate for Morocco of $1.50 a minute outgoing and $1.50 a minute incoming. Meditel, one of the Moroccan carriers, charges (depending on plan) about 10c a minute up to 40c a minute, and no charge for incoming. Mobal will sell you data at $28.99 for ONE...
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Re: Help with mobile phone for Morocco
I have a Mobell (same company as Mobal) UK sim that I got years ago, very convenient, phone bills charged to my credit card, rather than having to keep track of the balance and "top up". However, calls are relatively expensive although I don't mind for the convenience and limited use when I'm in the UK. Knowing full well it would cost me, about a £ a minute because I was in Italy, I allowed a British friend who was meeting me in Italy to call me when she arrived using her UK phone and my UK...
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Re: Welcome to the town of Dawson City, Yukon
That's the nature of gold boom towns, PHeymont. I believe another gold vein had been found in Alaska near the mouth of the mighty Yukon River, and most of the Klondike prospectors flowed downriver to it. I've been fascinated by the Klondike gold rush since I was a school boy in Canada, reading the writing of Pierre Burton (famous Canadian author, former resident of Dawson City, whose father was one of those who came here during the Klondike Gold Rush and unlike most stayed in Dawson). On the...
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Re: AirBnB vs New York. Update
Everything you say, P, is logical and fair. The problem becomes compliance and enforcement, not a separate issue. A segment of people will always try to game the system and it's impossible to enforce these kinds of regulations in such a complex and populous place. Even here, where I live in a relatively rural place, I suspect I'm the only one in a large county collecting and paying the short-term occupancy tax. I do it, not because I'm honest, but because I don't want to think about possible...
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Re: GPS v. Sicily = WTF
I have mixed feelings about GPS. Sometimes they're a good send. Other times they make for hazardous driving. As a rule, I still prefer old fashioned maps. Call me old fashioned..... As Pheymont said, hope you can share some of those great Sicilian travel experiences with us, Rbciao!
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Re: "Pops" is a New Route 66 Icon
Cola outsells beer in every country. But this country is famous for an alcoholic drink- but not for beer So we're looking for a "soft" drink - as we call it. (Non-Alcoholic)
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Re: New York Taxis Debut App to Compete with Uber
Anything that pushes back at Uber is generally fine with me, but there are a few side issues here...starting with the "aging taxi fleet," which is actually newer than it's been in many years. The NV2000 boondoggle (and that's what it is) started with the previous mayor, Bloomberg, who decided that all owners should be forced to use the same cab..and then chose the NV2000, which does not, and cannot, meet ADA standards. For it to be wheelchair accessible requires an aftermarket conversion...
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Re: Sick of Your Credit Card Being Declined While Traveling? Visa Offers New Service
The credit card companies are shy about any purchases abroad of a substantial amount, because of they risk they pose. Even if I call and let them know my step by step plans, I can still run into trouble with one or more cards. I don't carry my cell phone on major international trips (yet) and don't like the idea of geotracking me. If someone has stolen wallet, they could just as easily have stolen my identity. PIN identifications works fairly well, but even that is not without glitches as I...
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo, #104
The control panel says its a Boeing B17 Flying Fortress. The call sign says its N3509G. But there are plenty of examples around the world .. Best get to work on the clues !!
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo, #104
I would love to pay the fair maiden a call Mac. But alas, I fear, you may have courted her emotions and beat me to the post !
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Re: SF: Walls take revenge on public urination
Time will tell to see if this will work. In that particular area of the city, the worse offenders are usually (1)too drunk to notice until it is too late or (2) are transient. If it does work, I say that they add this special paint to all areas of the BART stations! Please! It sure is a wake up call on certain mornings!
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Re: Travel for Garden Lovers, Part I
Dgems, maybe you should give Patricia Silva a call and ask her about her varieties of roses. She's up off 49, down Newtown Road and must have deer too. I don't recall fences that would inhibit them. The only one I checked was a David Austin variety, the pale pink climber in the horizontal photo above.
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, May 12, 2015: Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
Excellent pictures! Now that's what I call a HOLIDAY!
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Re: Airlines defend holding onto fuel surcharges
I agree with Garry. It is dishonest to call something a "fuel surcharge" when it's not used for that purpose. They should just make it part of the fare.
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Re: Airlines defend holding onto fuel surcharges
Or, alternately, if it’s a time-limited charge to pay for specific capital costs of improvement, call it that—and take it off when the work is done. Although those of us who live with bridges and tunnels that were supposed to become free after they were paid off…good luck!
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Re: Visiting Cuba.
The enthusiasts I've met in the US are looking for genuine cars ! The Cuban guys call these blasts from the past " Frankencars " Like the original Frankenstein's monster these beauties are made of parts from maybe a dozen other cars. Moskvich and Lada engines from Russia. Brakes from China and everything else off the scrap heap! Panel beaters ( now there's a dying trade ) will beat a new wing from the hood of a dead Russian truck in a few hours. You'd be surprised how much these trade for in...
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, April 13, 2015: Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii
Did you have to climb one of these to take a photo ? That's what I call dedication. Take a day off and take it easy.