I love to travel! Orlando

I have been extremely fortunate to travel, and one of my favorite (new) places to visit is Orlando! Walt Disney World is a travelers (and a foodies!) dream. My September trip included trying new restaurants and photo scavenger hunt for pictures. I needed pictures to complete my scrapbook, and Monique was on a quest to document the accessibility of WDW. (You can read more about Monique's accessibility blogs and about Pompe Disease here.)
My first night in Orlando, Monique and I headed to Downtown Disney, where you do not need park tickets, and can visit the world's LARGEST Disney Store (you know this is a favorite destination of mine!). There is a great sandwich shop at DT Disney, called Earl of Sandwhich, which I LOVE! This first night, however, we headed over to Pleasure Island and Paradiso 37. This is an "American" restaurant, with food from all over North and South America. It was definitely an interesting place, but the jury is still out.

Day two was spent at Universal Studios and Island of Adventures, but we headed back over to Disney for dinner. 'Ohana Restaurant at the Polynesian Resort is INCREDIBLE! Hawaiian food served family style. (Okay, yes, I said trying new restaurants, but I had only eaten at 'Ohana once before, and once is not enough!) This meal starts with a salad with a fuity-vinaigrette, then glazed chicken wings, potstickers, and noodles. The main course is skewered chicken, beef, pork and shrimp. The meal is finished with a bread pudding topped with a banana's foster sauce! YUM.

The grill at 'Ohana

Our next day started at Animal Kingdom. While waiting to meet up with Monique, I had breakfast at a quick service hole-in-the-wall, specializing in coffee and danishes. I had an apple turnover, that I have to say was flaky and moist all at the same time. That was a first, and I was very impressed. Once Monique arrived, it was supposed to be a quick trip of getting pictures. I had not been up to Rafiki's Planet Watch, as of yet, so we took the train up to the conservation area. Definitely a good stop for families with kids. We saw Rafiki and Jiminy Cricket signing autographs. Next stop was to get pictures at Expedition Everest. For those of you unaware, this was WDW's answer to the Matterhorn, at Disneyland. In other words, a ROLLER COASTER. I have riden this before, and it is a fun ride, but it generally takes me some time to work myself up. This particular day, I thought we were just going over there to get pictures, me of the area and the ride, Monique of the sample vehicle.

Expedition Everest

 Little did I know that Monique was in cahoots with the cast member. The two of them start chatting it up about blogging, next thing I know, he has talked us (ME) into going for a ride right then. He gave us a fast pass so we did not  have to wait in line. GOODY. Actually, the ride was fun, and Monique was able to get up and out of the car all by herself! Yay, that means I don't have to ride next time, right? RIGHT? Just kidding, like I said, it is fun.

From Animal Kingdom we headed over to Disney's Hollywood Studios. We had lunch reservations at the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater. This is a really cool idea! You are on a movie soundstage of the Drive-In Theater, and dine sitting in a car. The food was good, not spectacular, but I am learning about the Disney dining options (the more the meal costs, in general, the better the meal). If for no other reason than the ambiance, you gotta try this restaurant. Oh! Our waiter gave us (glow in the dark, as we later learned) water bottles that said Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater! Thanks Tony! :)

That night we had probably the best meal EVER! Boma at the Animal Kingdom Lodge (which in itself in awesome! I have to stay there at some point.) is an African buffet, with food options from all over the continent.

Zebras, grazing at the Animal Kingdom Lodge's savannah

With Monique's dietary issue (she stays away from sugars, starches, and carbs) we weren't sure what we were going to find, but as the chef walked us around, and walked us through each option, we soon learned that there was plenty for Monique (and picky-at-times-eater me!) to eat. Starting off with 3 types of hummus! Oh my gosh, so good! Move on to Peanut Butter soup. Yes, I said soup, made from peanut butter! I am not even a huge fan of peanut butter, and this soup was DELICIOUS! All kinds of proteins to eat, as well, including pistachio-crusted salmon, so good. Something I loved that Monique was not able to eat, was the mashed potatoes, made with Idaho, sweet and red potatoes, oh my gosh, delish! There were also so many good desserts, but Monique probably got the best. Goat cheese cheesecake with strawberries. Yep, I said goat cheese. It was light, creamy, and tangy. So good.

Boma Buffet

You would think how could we even try to top this meal. We knew better, but had reservations the next day at the Via Napoli, in the Italian Pavilion at Epcot. A brand new restaurants, with wood burning pizza ovens, named after Italian volcanoes. This restaurant was what I was really looking forward to. We started out with the Frito Misto, fried appetizers. I had heard of aracini, fried risotto balls, but had never had them. WOW! It's good that Monique can't have carbs, because I got to eat both of them! For our entrees, Monique ordered a chopped salad, and I ordered a pizza with artichokes. When the food came out, Monique's salad was HUGE, and my pizza looked like it was covered in green beans. I am generally really open-minded, but the artichokes on my pizza were hard to eat. Apparently, they sliced up the outer leaves. I had to send it back. I then ordered the four cheese pizza. A much better fit for my taste. After the frito misto, and about half my pizza, I was stuffed. When Monique realized that my pizza was sauceless, she decided to remove the crust and enjoy the cheese. We will definitely be returning to Via Napoli!

Monique enjoying her creation, Crustless Cheese Pizza

Pizza Ovens

I have to say also that if you are Epcot, you need to go over to the UK Pavilion to the Rose & Crown Pub and try a Snake Bite. This is a mix of cider and ale, and one of the things I miss from living in England. Not so big on the ale? Try and Cider and Black, they add a shot of black currant to the cider. (What I really miss from England is the Snakey B, a Snake Bite, with black currant!)

Enjoying a Snake Bite in the Rose & Crown Pub

We also made it back to DT Disney and had Earl of Sandwich for my last dinner! It was a great trip, and I look forward to my next trip. No date as of yet, but it will be soon!

Next I love travel! city: SIN CITY! Las Vegas for my 30th Birthday!

I love to travel! New Mexico

I have been fortunate (especially in these hard economic times) to be able to travel to some places I really love. This is the first of several blogs on my travels this year. As I wrote a while ago, I was given the opportunity to work with the Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau on a project for Grad School. While I was an intern for ACVB I got to go to Santa Fe and represent ACVB at a New Mexico Tourism Department at a grant writing workshop. While in Santa Fe, I took in some of the sights of the Plaza.

St Francis Cathedral Basilica

Yummy Restaurant, upstairs, on the Plaza

Delicious Navajo Taco from the Blue Corn Cafe
(only downside of this restaurant, no daiquiris, only margaritas!)

Loretto Chapel

Miraculous Stair Case, there are no nails or screws holding this stair case together

Local Artisans, selling their goods on the Plaza

Santuario de Guadalupe

Santa Fe Train Station

 At the end of my time in Albuquerque, Marshall came to visit, and we took a road trip South, so he could experience more of the land of Enchantment.

Marshall and I in front of the World's Largest Pistachio, Alamogordo, NM

White Sands National Monument, Alamogordo, NM

Looking out over Alamogordo from the Lodge at Cloudcroft,
Cloudcroft, NM

The Lodge at Cloudcroft

The Natural Entrance to Carlsbad Caverns, Carlsbad, NM

New Job!

I have recently been hired by an independent travel agent as her assistant. It's a part-time job, which is absolutely great! Working 6 hours a week fits into my school schedule perfectly. Only problem now is that it opens up yet another door, but that is a great thing.

While pursuing my Master's degree I've had the opportunity to work for the Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau, completing analyises of Albuquerque as a cultural destination and a new event. I learned so much about the city I hope to work for/in once I graduate, but I also learned even more about myself.

The new job is with a high end/luxury agency, and I am very excited because I was able to visit many high end hotels in Cancun and Jamaica. While working as a travel agent, most of the hotels I visited were out of the price range of most of my clients. It will be very nice to be able to recommend some of these beautiful resorts.

I have to say that I have loved being a travel agent. I enjoy helping people plan vacations, and even more, I love helping create a trip of a lifetime. My Master's degree in tourism is something different. Instead of working with the travelers, I am learning to work with the destinations, which sounds great. However, I like helping people. I consider my bachelor's degree a degree in customer service, and I hold service people to a higher standard. I have worked as a restaurant server, and as a front desk agent/manager of a hotel. I know how difficult the job can be, but I also know the bare minimums to expect. For this reason, I feel like even with the Master's degree I want to remain on the service side.

Does this mean I should work for a tour conductor? I don't know. I do have a long term goal, and I have said before that my mom thought I should open my own B&B. Maybe that will happen some day.

All I know right now is that I am happy to have another door. I just hope I can decide which one to open when the time comes.