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Bus Trip to Longwood Gardens and Philadelphia Flower Show 2015

3/9/2015

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To break up the monotony of what seemed like a never-ending winter in Central New York, the first weekend in March, we enjoyed a Spring adventure to Longwood Gardens and the Philadelphia Flower Show.  Our quick 2-day getaway would not have been possible without the efforts of Lisa and Tim of Ballantyne Gardens, who have been taking friends on this bus trip for the past 13 years.
Beginning at 7am on Saturday morning, Lucia and I, along with my Mom and David (who have been on this bus trip several times in the past), grabbed a seat on the charter bus with about 30 others.
Our first stop was to Bingham’s Restaurant right off the Lenox exit in Pennsylvania.   A stretch, a drop in the potty (no pun intended) and a really yummy breakfast… homemade bread included.. and it’s back on the bus, but not before placing our order for take-out, which we picked up on Sunday night when we returned here for dinner on the way home. Not being familiar or even knowing what I would be missing, I only ordered one loaf of the cinnamon raisin bread.  Sadly, I will soon learn that I should have ordered 2 or even 3!
Breakfast for 2: $15.00
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When we made it to Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA, it already felt like Spring.  Just a few hours south and the weather was above freezing, I smelled the aroma of fresh flowers, and I saw color – lots of color! 

Inside the greenhouse areas, the temperatures were warm and I floated from room to room following the cascade of vibrant colors in this plant paradise.  From tropicals to orchids, roses, and even strange looking face figured flowers that I had never seen before, this place picked up my attitude for sure – even though I was so disappointed at the start of this tour, thinking our camera crapped the bed.  Needless to say, our Longwood Garden adventure was all shot with an iPhone 6, and I am not a bit sad about it!

Click any photo for a larger slideshow view... and please don't steal my photos. Thanks.
Our lunch at The Café, located on the grounds, was amazing! In one word – “fresh”.  The mushroom soup comes highly recommended, since this region of Pennsylvania is known for their shroom production.  (The legal kind).  My salad and sandwich was out of this world!  And I wouldn’t balk at the prices, they were typical.  I think I paid even more for not-so-fresh chicken tenders at our local zoo café the last time I visited.
Lunch for 2: $34.00
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Right around the corner from Longwood is The Inn at Mendenhall Hotel.   Lucia and I were both pleased to be staying in “non-chain” accommodations. When we experience new things, we prefer different, unique, or anything out of the ordinary.  Though I do love a Hampton bed, I’ve stayed in hundreds of them, not to mention that there are several right in our own hometown.

The rooms were clean and spacious, staff was friendly, dinner was fabulous, the drinks we had in the cozy bar were the bomb, and breakfast certainly exceeded our expectations.  Certainly couldn’t call that a “continental.”

We lost an hour on Sunday due to the Spring ahead clock situation, which stinks and left us a bit on the tired side today, though it didn’t ruin our fun! 

The Philadelphia Flower Show was simply spectacular! The theme this year was Hollywood movies and the exhibitors out-did themselves! From classic Disney flicks such as Tarzan and Cinderella to the latest favorites like Maleficent and Frozen – the scenery was creatively genius!
After bumping and grinding with hundreds of others at the show, we stepped outside for lunch the Reading Terminal Market and a walk in the heat wave.  40 degrees felt like Hawaii …our February went down in history for the coldest month on record and I believe we also hit record numbers for the most amount of days below zero.  We live in Upstate New York, not Alaska!

Lunch for 2 at the market (Frank’s): $25.00
At about 6pm, our group boarded the bus and headed home.  We made our stop for dinner at Bingham’s, grabbed our pre-ordered fresh homemade items and were back to our own vehicles by around 9:45pm.
For two people who are avid travelers and have become set in our ways after 5 years on the road together, I can say without hesitation that I appreciated someone else taking the wheel.  I was able to sit back and just have a good time without the worry of directions, parking, gas, or even deciding when to stop for food.

Thanks again Lisa and Tim for all your coordination, research, organization, and tour humor!
As always, I have a cost breakdown for those on a budget. Total spent $739.75 for two people.

$15.00 - Saturday breakfast at Bingham's
$34.00 - Saturday Lunch at Longwood Gardens
$39.75 - Saturday night drinks at the bar
$25.00 - Sunday lunch at Frank's (Reading Terminal Market)
$35.00 - Sunday night dinner at Bingham's
$6.00 - Bread to take home from Bingham's

$75.00 - Gifts

$3.00 - Room service tip
$7.00 - Bus driver tip

$500.00 - ($250 per person) Hotel stay, Longwood Gardens admission, Flower Show admission, bus ride, formal dinner on Saturday night, snacks and water on the bus.

PLEASE TAKE NOTE:  The photos above are just a preview of some that we took on this trip. I will quickly be adding them to my inventory of handmade note cards. I make them using the photos from our travels, please take a moment to preview my Etsy store. I would be grateful! 

www.Etsy.com/shop/moodmetals 

SIDE NOTE: For those of you who are skeptical about bus trips and think you can't afford it, think again.  It saves a TON of money!  I did a quick estimate of the comparison price that we paid for the bus trip, without any other expenses.

BUS TRIP:
$500, 2 people:
one room, one night hotel,
bus ride with different stops at many locations
Formal dinner for 2
Admission to Longwood Gardens
Admission to Flower Show
Snacks and water on bus

GOING IT ALONE:
$159.00 plus taxes - one room, one night hotel
$70.00 formal dinner for 2 with gratuity (estimated)
$40.00 admission for 2 to Longwood Gardens
$56.00 admission for 2 to Flower Show
$364.00 round trip bus ticket for 2 from Syracuse, NY to Philadelphia (91.00 per person each way on Grayhound) - and this doesn't even get you to Longwood... only Philly and back.
Doesn't include snacks and water on the bus, nor does it include the memories made on a trip with a bunch of strangers!
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2014 NYC/JC Trip Tally

11/11/2014

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Syracuse to Long Island
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Long Island to Jersey City
With business to attend to, we headed out for a quick 48 hour trip.  Thankfully, traffic wasn’t too bad so our travel time from Syracuse, NY to Calverton, Long Island was just under 6 hours. The trip would have been much longer if we stopped for a pee break every couple hours, but thankfully that wasn’t necessary since we left Marshmellow with his grandma for this trip.
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Shelly, Manny & Jose
After our accomplished mission in Long Island, we headed to Jersey City for dinner with friends that we hadn’t seen in over a year.  Sadly, the Brooklyn Bridge was closed this weekend so we had to take the Midtown tunnel but there was certainly no shortage of the best view in America while driving straight through the world’s most inspiring city to get to the other side of the Hudson.

We enjoyed catching up with friends over dinner at More Restaurant, which carries the same owners as SkyThai Restaurant, and was just as I remembered it.  I had been dreaming of chicken pad thai for months!  We stayed with our friends who happen to have the best skyline view of NYC.  Great way to fall asleep and an even better way to wake up!  Our bed sat directly in front of the picture window.
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The view from our suite at NYC-JC www.nyc-jc.com
Before breakfast at the Beechwood Café, we headed to the waterfront for a walk and some photos.  During breakfast, we again enjoyed the company of friends, along with our neighbor who is attending Parsons School in NYC, which we enticed to take a quick path train ride over for breakfast.  It’s great going out of town, only to catch up with your next door neighbor!

Although short, our trip was worth a permanent spot in the memory bank!

Things to be grateful for today:  Friends who stand by you through sickness and health.

Trip Tally: $307.12

$57.14 gas in PA (3.09 per gallon)
$47.30 gas in NJ (2.99 per gallon)
$45.60 gas in NY (2.94 per gallon at Fastrac with member card)

$13.01 Grape juice
$5.39 Dunkin Donuts
$111.00 Breakfast at Beechwood
$9.27 Downtown Yogurt
$14.96 McDonalds for lunch on the way down
$3.45 Dunkin Donuts
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2014 Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Vacation Expenses

10/17/2014

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All in all, we saved money because there is no line item for 'accommodations', which used to be our most expensive cost, prior to getting our camper.  We would spend at least $150 a night for hotel stays.  So we saved money here but increased the gas line item due to the camper in tow. 

Our most expensive meal was just over $40.00 so I would say we budgeted pretty well and stayed within our means for food, not to mention that our refrigerator at home is now filled with all the groceries we returned with.  Marshmellow also got himself a new leash and collar!

The parking ticket we got in town could have been avoided... if we both weren't still suffering from a bit of the #chemobrain.  Lucia caught several cancer symptoms from being attached to my hip for the past year.

Our total trip costs ended up being $836.71 for 2 people and a puppy.  The trip started in Syracuse, NY and our destination was Gettysburg, PA for a total of 4 night and 5 days.

CLICK HERE to read our Gettysburg adventures from Day 1.
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What Does it REALLY Cost to Cruise The Caribbean?

9/6/2014

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At only $468.00 per person for a 7 day all-inclusive cruise to the western Caribbean, would you say, “No thanks?” What does all-inclusive really mean?  How much cash-on-hand should you bring? What costs will be incurred, other than room, food & airfare? 

I've recorded one of my past cruises and every penny I spent, in order to bring you a list of all your necessary expenses, right down to the $15.00 bottle of sun screen, that although isn’t considered a necessity, try having fun in the Caribbean sun without it.

The Itinerary
Jan 2011
$468.00 Sunday to Sunday cruise on Carnival Glory (per person) Ports of call: Cozumel, Mexico; Costa Maya, Mexico; Isla Roatan, Honduras; Grand Cayman
$370.00 Airfare from New York to Miami (roundtrip-pp)
$60.00 Taxi from airport to port – roundtrip (cost can be split with more people)
$60.00 Taxes and port fees
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Packing List
Make sure to pack light… for two reasons. First, it will cost you $25.00 for each bag of luggage you check on the plane, as well as a hefty fee for luggage that weighs more than 50 lbs. Second, you want to save room for the gifts, clothes, novelties and JEWELRY
you will buy while in International waters, where everything is duty free! Side note: On full flights, 9 times out of 10 they will make an announcement shortly before boarding that they will check your extra carry-on bags for free, due to the lack of space in the overhead compartments since, because of the cost, many flyers are carrying their luggage in lieu of checking their baggage.
$50.00 One suitcase - roundtrip

A few items you will want to purchase when you get off the plane (no matter what Florida port you depart from), because they are less expensive in town: tanning lotion and sun screen! Australian Gold is a favorite brand and since its bottled in Tampa, you can snag it for about $9.00. Bathing suits are always in abundance and less expensive, even at the plethora of tourist shops. Side note: It is less expensive to purchase your underwater camera and simple snorkel gear at home.
$9.00 Sun screen

Glorious living:
At less than $500 per person, for a staff that pampers you as if you were the only person on board, along with the ample variety of food that is at your finger tips 24/7, it leaves you wondering how Carnival makes enough money to run the $500 million, 110,000 ton, 952 foot long
Glory for an entire week?

All the extras: 
Photos -It’s not as easy as you think to walk away from all the professional photos that the ship’s staff are constantly taking. Almost guaranteed that you will say to yourself, "how can we leave without at least ‘one’ photo?" They also offer a ‘voyage video’ DVD of your week long adventure at sea, for about $30.00. 
$21.99 One 8x10 photo
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Alcohol – Your Caribbean concoction, garnished with fresh fruit and an umbrella is moderately priced at around $9.00 per drink. Try a fruity rum punch, tropical pina colada or my favorite, a BBC (Banana, Baileys & Coconut). Side note: If you plan your trip well enough in advance, purchase drink coupons on the Carnival website before you board! 
$126.00 14 drinks

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Gambling – If this is your game, make sure you budget wisely, since the casino on board is open all day and all night while in International waters. Side note: The casino and all on board stores close while stopping at the ports of call. 
$200.00 Gambling 

Spa Treatments – The spa treatments are a bit overpriced, even coming from a New Yorker, but while on board, if you find an overwhelming need to pamper yourself, be aware that you will spend about $140.00 for an hour treatment. 
$140.00 One hour at the spa 

Gift Shop – A lanyard is very helpful since you have to use your ‘sail n’ sign’ card for every purchase and when leaving and returning to the ship at each port. 
$5.50 Lanyard 
$20.00 Key chain/tshirt 

Tips – Although the gratuity is already added to your final bill at 15%, which you will see on your statement at the end of your trip, it is still customary to tip the staff for a job well done. Feel free to have breakfast delivered to your stateroom every morning in lieu of a wake-up call, but don’t forget to tip the cabin steward. 
$98.00 15% gratuity total 
$20.00 Additional tip to cabin steward 
$20.00 Additional tip to dining staff 
$7.00 Tips for room service

Ports of Call 
Remember to keep cash on hand when shopping off the ship.  Everything you want to buy is negotiable in price, except at the major chain surf shops, such as Ron Jon Surf Shop. And everything has two prices, one for cash and one for credit. 

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Cozumel, Mexico 
So why does Cozumel attract over 2 million tourists per year? Easy… a tropical island with sparkling waters, powdery white sands and endless sunshine! 

I recommend a visit to Bob’s Cozumel! Owned by our friends Ken and Tobin (originally from Texas), and not far from the port. With 41 rave reviews on Trip Advisor, 4.5 stars, and ranked #12 out of 160 restaurants in Cozumel, they are certainly worth checking out!
$30.00 Lunch and a "few" beers 
$6.00 Taxi to Bob’s Cozumel (cost can be split with more people)
$30.00 Novelties & gifts 
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Costa Maya, Mexico 
Costa Maya has the highest concentration of Mayan archeological sites and fantastic excursions that you can feel safe booking on your own, although Carnival prefers that you book your excursions exclusively through them. 

I recommend checking out Maya Chan Beach Resort. Mark, Owner of the resort says: "We have been on 88 cruises and have 4 booked in 2012. We are cruisers that decided to build a resort for cruisers, by cruisers. We know what we want in an excursion, and that was our market." Aquafest Beach Party was held at the Maya Chan Beach Resort in November 2011 and Mark states: "I was honored to officiate my first same sex wedding. It brought tears to everyone's eyes. A very special day for Maya Chan Beach." 
$59.00 Excursion (per person)

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Isla Roatan, Honduras 
The 33 mile long island of Roatan is an untouched Caribbean paradise, with their pristine turquoise waters, white sandy beaches and picture perfect palm trees. Depending on your interests, I have two recommendations for this port that are worth checking out. Tabiana Beach was my personal favorite. Relax in a lounge chair that sits atop the white sand, but partially under a coconut palm. Listen to the Caribbean band play in the background, enjoy a tropical drink and rest your eyes a bit. There’s also Maya Key Beach for the curious. Maya Key has a beach as well as a pool, check out the Mayan ruins museum, monkeys, sea lions, parrots, alligators and even a jaguar. This excursion also offers a swim with the sharks and stingrays for only $25.00 per person. 
$70.00 Excursion 
$25.00 Shark swim 
$30.00 Novelties & Gifts 
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Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands 
Blessed with sun-kissed beaches and waters gleaming with gold flecked fish, the Cayman Islands offer some of the best diving and snorkeling in the world. Grand Cayman specializes in exquisite shopping, especially if you’re looking for a deal on watches, china and crystal, perfumes and fine jewelry. 
 
A must-see on Grand Cayman Island is the sensational Tiki Beach, the newest beach club on the world famous Seven Mile Beach. After your stroll on the powdery white sand beach, join the party at Margaritaville and don’t forget to sign a dollar bill and tape it to the bar! 
$10.00 Taxi to beach and back (this cost can be split with more people)
$30.00 Lunch & drinks 
$30.00 Novelities & Gifts

The Bottom Line: 
Now remember that cruises are based on double occupancy and all the prices we have listed are per person. Not all costs will be doubled for your partner, such as: sharing a taxi, sharing your lotion, and sharing photos purchased.

Grand TOTAL: 
$1,995.49 per person 

Although the bottom line dollar amount is much larger than what you might have expected when you see "all-inclusive" for only $468.00 per person, I would most certainly give Carnival a thumbs-up for all that the "Fun Ship" has to offer!

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I prefer not to be defined by cancer, but my life has certainly changed because of it.
Today, the simplicity of life and small moments of joy is what drives me.
Thanks for following my journey!