Some Frozen Cocktails to enjoy if your visiting St Maarten. I really enjoyed BBC and Strawberry Shortcake. You can find these at most bars on St. Maarten, or goto the pool bar at Pelican Bay. Each drink cost about $6.

• Mango, Strawberry or Banana Coladas, Daiquires and Margaritas
• Melon Coladas
• BBC
• Mud Slides
• Blue Simson Bay
• Banana Delight
• Strawberry Shortcake
• Lime Lambada
• Toasted Almond
• Mango Madness
• Pelican Passion
• Guavaberry Coladas
• Bushwacker

If you are staying at the Perlican Bay Resort you can buy all the ingredients at the Peli Deli and make these drinks in your own room cheaper than getting it at the bar. Be creative and get a good Frozen Cocktail book before you go so you can try different tropical drinks.

Anyone know anything about the Scratch Tickets given out by Dream Pro Marketing in Phillipsburg on St Maarten?

If you get approached by someone with the scratch ticket, avoid them. It appears to be a scam done to get people to purchase timeshare or merchandise.

I'll be away for a couple of weeks, first in Glastonbury CT. Then off to St. Martin and staying at the Pelican Resort.

I'll probably won't be doing any updates until December 10, 2007. Have a great Thanksgiving!

In the C terminal at the San Jose International Airport, there is a NOAH'S New York Bagles counter. Here's a brief price list on November 6, 2007:

Beverages
Fountain Soda $1.89
Milk $1.99
Juices $2.79
Bottle Water $2.19

The prices of beverages is importaint to look at, since passengers are unable to bring drinks past security. This is due to strict Homeland Security regulations.

However the drinks go through the same security screening as any other luggage. While I was in San Jose I noticed that a couple of cases of water was going through security. They weren't "double checking" the water or doing some complex chemical analysis. The water went through the same xray as my suitcase. However, I couldn't bring water beyond this point.

I think the liquid restrictions are unnessary and should be removed. I have no problem with drinking in front of security to show that the liquid is what it says it is. I do have a problem having to pay $2.19 for bottle water. Seems to me that some people are profiting from this regulation.

You can bring food past security. Which is good. I usually have these in my laptop bag:

• Tic Tacs
• Trail Mix
• Jelly Belly Fruit Snacks or something similar
• Gum
• Necco Wafers

JetBlue doesn't offer PowerPorts for laptop users. Don't go out an purchase an iGo, or some expensive power converter for a long flight on JetBlue. You won't need it.

I guess JetBlue thinks that since they have TVs at every seat, they didn't need to offer Power ports. The problem is that not everyone plans to watch TV, some people might need to work during the flight.

I recently took a Red-Eye from San Jose to Boston and most people did have their TVs on. I was the last person on the plane to have the light on as I was trying to finish a book on the flight. This particular flight offered the FOX Pay-Per-View movies for free. I guess JetBlue does this since there's nothing really on TV.

Possible Solution

So the easy solution to this is to just buy an extended battery for your laptop so that it lasts the entire trip. The total travel time to California from Boston is about 6 hours. In most cases just having a five hour battery pack would be good enough.

A quick posting. I am in training in California this week. My first time in California since August 17, 2002 , when I left California to return to Boston, Massachusetts.

This is a quick two day trip so I won't be able to see many of the sites that I want to see, but I hope to be back soon! Would like to see my old apartments, Apple headquarters, Fry Electronics, and the Great Mall.

It has been a fun trip so far, more later. I'll be taking the JetBlue red-eye tonight back to Boston.

This past week I was on a business trip to Received exception:undefined method . I really didn’t do any site seeing on this trip, didn’t have time for that. However, its another state that I can claim that I slept in.

When I got to Wellington Amtrak station, I took a cab and the driver was nice enough to give me his business card and made sure that I got a cab the next morning at 7:15am. Very cool! That’s one less thing that I had to worry about the next morning.

When I was done with my work, I would call the cab company and within 15 minutes they came by and picked me up. The same guy picked me up both days that I called for service, the second day when I called I just told him my name and he said that he would be there in 15 minutes.

The whole time I was in Wellington, I had two different cab drivers and they provided excellent service and were very reliable.

Why don’t other cab drivers do this? When dropping a customer at a hotel, cab drivers should ask if they need a cab the following morning. This seems like a simple value add service and beats having to waiting for business at airports or train stations.

Thanks to Noni Taxi of Wellington, Delaware for great service this week!

At the Route 128 Station, you should consider parking at the second level. This is because when you return you will be going upstairs to get back to the terminal. By parking upstairs you can make your return trip easier.

You can buy Doritos at the vending machine at the Route 128 Station for $1.00. On the train Doritos and Pepsi 16oz cans sell for $1.75. Plan ahead and bring snacks with you on the train, you’ll not only save money but you’ll probably pack better snacks.

AAA Members get a 10% discount when booking Amtrak tickets in advance. In some cases this makes a First Class ticket the same price as regular class. Note this discount doesn’t apply to Acela trains. I highly recommend taking the Acela train since its the fast way to travel by train, you save an hour by going from Boston to Phil.

As for Internet access on Amtrak trains, they are still working on it. I asked the conductor if any of the first class cabins have Internet access and he told me that they are trying to make it work on the Acela. Using my Verizon phone I had no problems with phone connections and it looks like that the PCI Wireless cards would work.

I am not really not sure if its worth spending $30 to upgrade to First class on the Amtrak Regional. I believe on the Amtrak Regional you are paying for slightly more leg room and a quieter car. On the Acela First Class includes a meal.

Mass Pike Construction

Taking the Massachusetts Turnpike to Logan International Airport late at night might not be the best idea since that's when construction usually happen and parts of the highway is closed. I would suggest checking the website to see if there's any road closures. The road was closed this morning, and traffic was averted through the city. I avoid this by getting off at the Cambridge exit and taking Storrow Drive to the Sumner Tunnel.

I highly recomend this route since its very difficult to navigate through the city of Boston while looking for the 'Detour' signs to get back on the Mass Pike. You are much better using Storrow Drive when the Mass Pike is not an option.

Central Parking at Logan Airport

Travelers that plan to use Central parking and are taking United Airlines, CapeAir or Jet Blue, will be using Terminal 'C'. The best place to park for Terminal C is Level 4 rows L-M.

I notice this morning that there were a lot of parking spaces in rows 'L' because the row not easily seen when you drive by the Terminal 'C' section on the 4th Level. When driving around, look for row 'L', you may have to drive a little bit to find it.

Dulles to Washington

Getting from Dulles to downtown Washington DC doesn't have to cost a lot. In the past, I used to take a taxi and it would cost about $60 to get to the downtown DC. This is the "fastest" way from Dulles to downtown and also the most expensive.

The Blue Super Shuttle bus is another option and it cost about $35 to get downtown, The problem with the Blue Shuttle Bus is that it may take a while to get to your final destination because you are sharring the ride with other people. Its the cheapest direct route if you are not in hurry.

The Washington Flyer Bus will get you to the Falls Church Metro stop in about 20 minutes for only $9. You can find the Flyer Bus at the #4 door by the baggage claim. Be sure to purchase a round trip ticket at the airport! You'll save $2.

In the American Airlines terminal at the Ronald Reagan airport there is a Panda Express restaurant. I really like the Orange Chicken at Panda Express, very yummy and certainly worth a sample if you haven't tried it yet. I remember when I lived in San Jose and enjoyed going to the Panda Express near my apartment near the Capital Expressway movie theaters.

Near the Airport there's another Panda Express at the Pentagon City Mall in Arlington which is a couple of stops away on the Blue and Yellow Metro. If you are catching a flight out of Reagan National. I would suggest going a little early and catching a bite at the mall. You'll probably have better seating opportunities and there's better food selections, including some sit down restaurants such as TGIF Fridays.

The prices at the Mall and the airport are the same, at least that's the case for a Panda Express meal. So it isn't any cheaper to stop at the mall or to goto the airport. However, the Mall does have more food and shopping options. The Panda Express at the American Airlines terminal is in an area where they have few tables.

The METRO stops right at the Pentagon CityMall, so there's little walking from the train to the food court. Not too bad even if you have a suitcase. You'll be doing more walking at the airport than from the Metro to the food court.

I am back in Washington DC this week on a business trip. I am staying at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, I'll be posting my review of the hotel later this week. I flew from Logan Airport to Washington National Airport.

Here's a hint about parking at Central Parking at Logan International Airport:

If you are taking a flight from Terminal 'B' and plan to use Logan's Central Garage, you should plan on parking on the fourth floor near section 'U'. This is because this the closest section to the terminal. By parking on the 4th floor you will avoid the need to take the elevator or the stairs to the pedestrian walkway.

The easy way to remember this is remember "Central Parking For You", that's Central Parking 4 U.

Parking at the Central Garage cost $22 a day.

I am currently in Washington DC on a business trip assisting a customer with some development work. The work I am doing is pretty cool, unfortunately I am not at liberty to go into great deal about the project.

Usually when I visit Washington DC I like to visit the Lincoln Memorial at night. The Lincoln Memorial is a great inspiration spot. There's something magical about the place at night, something about walking up the steps and then looking back at the Washington Monument glowing light on the reflection pool. If you visit the Lincoln Memorial during the day, you really should plan to return at night.

I have been very fortunate that I have been to the Lincoln Memorial many times over the past 3 years. I have been to the memorial during the Cherry Blossom Festival, twice, and walked up the steps during a brief snow storm.

Two things about the Lincoln Memorial you may not know about: There is a marker in the center of the second landing to commemorate the speech given by Martin Luther King on August 28, 1963.( This is very hard to see at night.) At the top of the memorial are the names of the states that were part of the union when Lincoln was president. Massachusetts is in the middle because Daniel Chester French, who sculptured the Abraham Lincoln statue in the memorial, is from Massachusetts.

Daniel Chester French and Henry Bacon did a great job designing the Lincoln Memorial. If you ever visit Concord Massachusetts, be sure to stop by the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery and look for Daniel Chester French grave stone. See what some Daniel Chester French fans have left on his grave.

Last Week I was on a Business Trip to Washington DC. On Friday, I grab a cab from downtown to Dulles International Airport, and along the way my Fuji e900 camera fell out of my laptop bag. The bag was next to me in the Taxi.

I didn't notice the camera missing until I got into the terminal, and the cab was well down the road with my camera in the back seat. ($250 camera that my girlfriend gave me as a Christmas gift.)

All I have left is a receipt which has the driver signature, nothing else. No Taxi Cab info or name of the Taxi cab. I'll scan the receipt in later tonight to see if someone can help.

My advice to anyone getting into a cab is to write down the driver and cab information while you are ridding in the cab. Obviously double check your bags before leaving the cab.

Assorted Quotes/Notes from Lou Holtz's book Winning Every Day:

Our team wasn't merely ready to play, we were ready to win.

We won that game the moment our group of young men focused on what we had instead of what we lacked. That's the only perspective you can take in hard times. Remember that adversity presents us with numerous possibilities for success, if we are just willing to see them.

Winner and losers aren't born; they are the products of how they think.

But compensation does not guarantee performance. You must possess something inside of yourself the eschews mediocrity while embracing greatness. You must welcome adversity as a test of your resolve.

All this demonstrates that things have a way of working themselves out if we just remain positive.

We are not going to win because you have a new head coach, any more than you are going to fix a flat tire by changing the driver. We will win the minute all of us get rid of excuses as to why we can''t win and stop wallowing in self-pity

My players seemed to have forgotten that whenever you point your finger at someone, three fingers point back at you.

The inspirational verse, "I am only one, but I am one; I can't do everything, but I can do something; what I can do, I ought to do, and by the grace of God, I will do,"

The great jazz musician Miles Davis once said, "Don't be afraid of failure. There is no such thing."

You just have to remember: Don't let what you don't have keep you from using what you do have.

This morning we visited Disney's Animal Kingdom.

This park does involve a lot of walking and this was the first park where I noticed a lot of visitors using electric wheelchairs. Some of the attractions were walk around attractions.

Kilimanjaro Safaris
This attraction is to mimic the African safari. I was pretty surprise that there were a lot of animals walking around near the safari vehicle. The driver does not stop to allow people to take photos, they instead slow down to allow people to focus and center the animals.

DINOSAUR
This ride is almost a duplicate of the Indy Ride at Disneyland. If that is your favorite ride then you'll sure to enjoy this one.

Today we visited the Future World and World Showcase at Epcot.

If you plan on attending the "IllumiNations: Reflection of Earth" fireworks show, you should know that the area in front of the Showcase Plaza is a pretty good viewing area. About 10 minutes prior to the show, they open up the area and have people "walk" to their spots and sit and watch the show.

This park also escorts early morning visitors to their first ride, with most people going to the Mission:Space ride.

This is the only park where you can get free soda. Coke-cola has a booth that allows you to taste various coke products around the world. This is at the Innoventions West, the igloo entrance is to the right of the water fountains. This is closed at least an hour before the IllumiNations show.

Today we visited Universal Studios in Florida. This is about 5 miles from the Marriott's Cypress Harbour Club Resort where I am staying.

Universal charges $9 to park in their parking lot, compared to $8 charged by Walt Disney.

There are a couple of popular rides in this park that should be early morning targets or at least use the Express Plus option.

1. Revenge of the Mummy
2. Men in Black - Alien Attack
3. Back to the Future

Also there isn't much information on the internet on some of the landmarks around the park. One of the houses on Park Ave is the Cosby Show house. I am unsure which one, but I'll check my notes from my previous trip to see what other landmarks are around the New York lot.

Today we visited the Disney MGM Studios in Orlando Florida.

Unlike Disney, early morning guests are escorted to the two popular park rides, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and The Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith. This morning it appeared to be a split decision between the two rides. As the day went on, the Aerosmith ride had a longer wait time than the Tower of Terror.

There are two rides to avoid: Sounds Dangerous and The Disney-MGM Studios Backlot Tour.

Sounds Dangerous - Starring Drew Carry
You are brought into a sound studio with all sorts of special effects. A brief introduction by one of the Cast Members, and then you are told to put on the headphones that are located to the seat next to you. Then a seven minute sound clip is played, much of which is done in total darkness. At the end of the clip, you take the headphones off and leave the sound studio to another room with some activities center.

That's the whole ride. No explanation on how the effects were done, no lab demonstrations. Very poorly done!

The Disney-MGM Studios Backlot Tour
This starts off with a brief demonstration on some of the special effects in Pearl Harbor. Then you walk through a room full of props, but no one explains what movie they were in. Afterwards you are put on a tram and look at about 15 items in the "bone yard" and then experience a canyon explosion. However, you never get to see any of the "Backlot."

I know that there are some TV studio homes on the lot, such as Golden Girls and Empty Nest. I saw these a few years ago. Very disappointing ride and should be renamed to Studio Fx's or something similar.

This morning we arrived very early at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World. This was challenging since there was an early morning road race.

We ended up walking from our parking space to the Monorail train station, which was about a half mile walk. This was because Disney wasn't running trams and the buses were causing long delays for people waiting to get to the station.

The only major disappointing part of the day was that the Magic Kingdom closed at 7pm this evening. Which makes dinner plans at the park tough since the fireworks goes off when the park closes.

At the Haunted Mansion, the person working the gift stand left an hour early before the park closed. I was planning on buying items before leaving, but didn't want to carry around the items around all day. Because the person left, I was unable to buy any Haunted Mansion items.

After arriving at Orlando International airport, I spent some of the afternoon at Gatorland, which is about 10 miles east of DisneyWorld.

This was my first visit in about 10 years, and the first thing I noticed was that it was pretty difficult to get to the part, due to the road construction. Also it looks like Gatorland will be increasing its size in the near future.

Inside the park there were a few changes, it looks like they added a new childrens play area and there appears to be a lot more alligators than the last time.

Its worth a trip, and most people can cover the entire park in about 2 hours. Be sure to catch the feeding show!

Last night I scanned 20 San Francisco photos from my collection. In 1998, I spent several weekends around the city and took lots of photos. Tonight I'll add the collection to the photo gallery.

Some other categories that will be coming soon include:

• Cross Country 1996
• Boston Massachusetts
• Cape Cod

Most of the photos for the Boston and Cape Cod are digital, so they should be up pretty soon.

Today I posted some of my photos that I took on my trip to Yellowstone National Park last month. Currently there are only 9 photos but I have 19 additional photos that should be available soon.

Most of the photos focus on some of the landmarks of Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons.

I would recommend including it as part of a cross country tour, probably would work well after seeing the Bad Lands and Mount Rushmore.

This past week I was at Yellowstone National Park. This was my first visit to the park, and had a pretty good time. I'll post my notes on the trip later today.

Tip: Bring a pair of binoculars or a camera with a long lens if you plan to visit Yellowstone. Many animals are too far from the road, such as the Wolves.

This past weekend was the official opening of the World War 2 memorial. However, the memorial has been open for at least a month, so it wasn't a grand opening.

I was in Washington DC when the memorial opened to the public for the first time and took some photos.

I also have some photo from my Washington DC trip in 1995, before the memorial was even built, I'll put those up when I find them.

The World War 2 Memorial in Washington DC will open today for the general public. The official ceremony will be on Memorial Day weekend, but the organizers wanted to open it up as quickly as possible to let the veterans see the memorial.

This morning I walked around the memorial with the gates still up. You can see pretty much the whole memorial except the gold stars which represents the price of freedom.

The World War 2 Memorial is full of controversy since its the only war memorial in the middle of the Washington Mall, and some veterans don't think it a good memorial.

If you are visiting Washington DC in a couple of weeks for the Cherry Blossom festival, you might want to consider staying at the Hotel Harrington.

This is a nice quiet hotel that is near just about everything in Washington DC. For less than $100 a night you are only a couple of blocks from the White House and the Smithsonian.

I personally like the elevator that you have to take to the 7th - 14th floors. Its an old elevator that goes pretty slow.

A lot of people do not know that there is a September 11th memorial in Arlington National Cemetery. The memorial is for those that died as a result of the terrorist attack at the Pentagon. Several people that died are buried near the memorial.

The memorial is in a shape of a pentagon with the names of all those that died in the plane and in the building. There is a special marker next to the name to indicate if they were on the plane.

The memorial is far away from other popular sites at Arlington, which include: President J.F. Kennedy gravesite and the tomb of the unknown.

I found out this weekend that the Old North Bridge in Concord Massachusetts will be rebuilt this summer. After the April 15th parade and re-enactment the Old North Bridge will be taken down.

Tourist that come to Concord will be disappointed to find the bridge gone this summer and instead will most likely see construction crews building the new bridge. This means the only way to get a close up view of the Minuteman statue will be to park at the Minuteman Visitor Center and walk down the hill.

The reason the bridge is being rebuilt is because the bridge is out of shape because of weather elements and the current of the Concord River.

This week I am in the Nation's Capitol on a business trip. Unfortunately I am unable to visit many of the sites, such as the Smithsonian and the Spy Museum. Last night I walked around the Lincoln memorial and the White House.

There is a 15 foot white wall all around the Washington Memorial, which was built to protect the memorial. This limits a 360 degrees access to the memorial, the only way to walk up to the memorial is via the 14th Street entrance.

The White House also has limited access, a few years ago I was able to walk by the road between Lafayette Park and the White House. Today the road is block off from public access and an ugly green fence prevents you from accessing the wall from Lafayette Park. If you plan to take day photos of the White House you are better off doing it from the South Lawn or Pennsylvania Ave.

I have been doing lots of travel lately and was doing some shopping this morning for my trip next week to Washington DC. One of the items I was considering buying was Tylenol travel size because the container is small enough to fit in my Laptop bag.

However at $2.99 for only 10 caplets didn't seem to be the right Economic price. Since another Tylenol package right next to it was only $5.99 for 50 caplets. I decided to by the larger size and will be looking for a small container.

Why was I looking for Tylenol travel size? Pure Economics. At most airport news-stands they sell 2 caplets with a drinking cup for $2. In most hotels they sell a 24 count package for about $7.

I found that Excedrin Quicktabs to be a good alternative to put in my Laptop bag since I don't need water and I can carry what I need. However, since it contain caffeine its not a good choice to take at night if I can't sleep due to a headache.

This week I am in Oklahoma City on a business trip. Its been pretty cold and last night it was well below freezing. Still warmer than New England. However, a light snow storm hit Oklahoma City this afternoon.

I walked down to the Oklahoma Memorial and took some night photos of the snow. I was the only person around there last night, with the exception of the security guard.

If you plan to visit downtown Oklahoma, be sure to check out the underground tunnels, there are lots of good eating places to visit at lunch time and it makes it easy to walk around the city without worrying about getting hit by a car.

Today I walked with my friend around Walden Pond. The leaves are still pretty much green, but I suspect in a couple of weeks it there will be plenty of great photo spots.

It still cost $5 to park even at 4pm at night on the last day of September. I don't know the logic to still charge people to park since most beaches in New England stop charging after Labor day.

If you do plan to visit Walden Pond, be sure to bring a small rock from home. It is a tradition to leave a stone at the Thoreau House Site.

Much of Concord and metro Massachusetts is still very green. However over the next couple of weeks the color of fall will enlighten the area. This is the best time of year to be in New England.

Favorite Photo Places:

• Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Concord, MA. (near Author's Ridge)
• Downtown Concord, MA.
• Old North Bridge, Concord MA.
• Stow Road, Acton MA. (Near the Acton/Stow town line)
• Along the Cape Cod Canal, Bourne, MA.

You can not buy chewing gum in any of Walt Disney property in California or Florida.

If you buy a drink on the Washington Mall (Near the Washington Monument), you will not find any straws. This is because empty straws are dangerous to the small birds around the mall.