Bruges is SO flipping cute. There isn't much to do there in terms of Official Sites, but a solid day to luxuriate in a canal boat ride, ambling around, drinking in cafes, and generally enjoying life would not be ill spent.
Amsterdam (and the surrounding area) is awesome but at some point you guys are going to spend so much time racing from place to place that you will only have experienced the inside of restaurants and trains/cars. Up to you, of course, but while eating local food and listening to the people around you converse in the local language is fun, these are beautiful cities steeped in history and deserve to be experienced - leisurely and by foot, if possible. Ghent is similar (not trying to push to a particular city, just re-affirming that this is a great way to spend a day in either place).
In San Francisco for 6 days starting tomorrow for work. Anyone have good recommendations for dinner or quick breakfast spots (breakfast burritos, etc)? I’ll be in Union Sq / Financial District / Chinatown area.
What kinds of cuisine are you into? There is SO MUCH, it’s really hard to narrow it down. Sam’s for super old school seafood and grumpy old man waiters. They don’t take reservations and they seat in order of who they know, and the fish is cooked to perfection. Rosa Mexicana is a solid happy hour choice, great margaritas and basic Mexican food. If you like grilled cheese (I am aware some do not, and I don’t trust them), you must go to Hog Island in the Ferry Building. Everything on that menu is excellent. For bourbon and southern inspired food, Hard Water. People love Mister Jiu’s and China Live for modernized Chinese food, I haven’t eaten at either but the fancy cocktail bar inside China Live is pretty spectacular. There’s also a lot of bad options because you’re in one of the more touristy areas, which is sad because having a single bad meal in SF is such a waste. If it’s 7pm and the place isn’t packed... bad sign. Ooh! Liholiho Yacht Club is Polynesian inspired and SO good.
Thanks- We actually went to Hardwater while out there and it was great. One of my team members that lives in SF also suggested it. Other places we went were Hakkasan and Campton Place. I went to the latter by myself because 1) It was in my hotel, 2) I’d never been to a Michelin Star restaurant before. Really great.
10 year anniversary is coming up in a few months, looking to go somewhere neither of us have been. Only thing we know for certain is that we wanna fly into Boston, we wanna catch a baseball game (not a fan of any teams, just like watching in person), and spend a few days there. Ideas on things to do around boston? Then we’re looking at either driving over to Niagara Falls, checking that out and spending a few days in Toronto before we fly out (she’s never been to Canada). Or we could go up to Montreal and/or Ottawa and spend some time there before flying out? Looking to spend roughly a week. We’re both big on food and anything outdoors. Any ideas? Should we consider something else in the area? We’d be going in the summer.
I'm in Salt Lake City for a few days. I have some freetime in the evenings. Is there anything I shouldn't miss?
Hello all, Long time lurker but this is my first post. I wanted to tap into the collective knowledge of this group and inquire about an upcoming trip to Africa, specifically Kenya and Tanzania. I have a unique opportunity to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro next month and was curious if anyone has experience with this climb. If so, what was your experience like? What guide did you use and is there anything that you would change or do differently? I have not yet booked anything so I am open to any suggestions or recommendations. Thanks!
Can't help you at all with the climb, but I did a safari in Kenya a few years ago and it was amazing. Stuck with the Fairmont chain of hotels, and if I were to do it again, I'd just spend all my time at the Fairmont Mara Safari Club. https://www.fairmont.com/masai-mara-safari/ We did some day trips South almost to the Tanzania border (that's where the elephants were collecting when we went). It was a magical trip, and I highly recommend anyone who has has the chance to jump on it. Good luck with the climb! Sounds like a great opportunity! The people in that part of the world are insanely nice.
We spent about 2 weeks in Tanzania, 8 days of which was spent on Kilimanjaro. I won't say that it's impossible to have a better experience than the one we had, but I will say that I have a hard time conceiving of ways that I would have improved upon it. We hiked the Lemosho route, specifically because it is one of the longest routes up the mountain and winds you through all of the different ecosystems. In addition to seeing a lot more of the mountain, it provides more days to acclimate over the course of the hike, which reduces the possibility of altitude sickness. We hiked with Peak Planet, on a private 2-person tour - on the site, it's the "10 day Lemosho route" though only 8 days are spent hiking. It's more expensive to hike on private tours, of course, but it's such a great experience, especially if you like being able to take photos, or choose your own pace. We're photography nuts, so the private tour meant we could stop and set up a tripod, or pause for nice flowers, or whatever, and not feel pressed. And we're fast hikers, so it also meant we could pick up the pace when we wanted to. The guides were great and super interesting, one of them was a botanist so we got an education on all the plants we saw. You're responsible only for your daypack, everything else (food/camping gear/clothes) is carried by the porters. They'll cater to any dietary restrictions. The food isn't gourmet, but it was all delicious and plentiful. The booking company will help you with things, but I will say bring at least one more warm layer than you think you'll need, because it gets fucking cold when you're summiting on the last day - you start out shortly after midnight so that you are at the top for sunrise, and between the dark, the elevation, and the howling wind, it's not warm. It was just a magnificent trip. We met up with lots of people - some parts of the hike are quiet, and some parts (especially the last two days) are full of other hikers. A lot of them were not having quite as nice an experience as we were, and there are some big commercial outfits up there who cram as many people into a hike as they can. The reverse is true, too - fly-by-night companies exploiting their workers and porters. So just be aware of who you're booking with and what kind of experience you want. For fitness I would say you need to be fit but not a marathon runner. If you're an experienced hiker there are no surprises, but you don't at all have to be an experienced hiker to complete it. Lastly I would just say you should be aware that altitude sickness has precious little to do with your fitness level, so it's entirely possible to simply not be able to summit, no matter what your prep looks like. Enjoy the hike, don't stress about it, be honest with your guides about symptoms if you're feeling them. We saw some scary shit, like guides who were helping their nearly-incapacitated clients up the mountain. You can die that way. If you're sick, tell your guides and stop climbing. Happy to answer any other questions. I'll shoot you a PM with our blog link. edit: also that kind of turned into a book. Sorry for the length. I'm enthusiastic about travel.
We also did a great safari. I think there are tons of ways to do a good safari, but if possible I'd suggest that the Ngorongoro Crater is a must-see.
Thanks for the feedback. Nett: If there is any extra time available after the climb, I will definitely check out the Safari Club. That experience looks incredible. Binary: Appreciate all the details! Hopefully I can set up a trip as successful as yours. I do have some follow-up questions but I will send them via PM.
If you would have told me that one of my favourite memories was sitting on a cliff, overlooking a bloat of hippos, not 50 yards from our riverside tent, for hours on end... I would have called you crazy. We sat here for hours just watching and listening to them.
We had a similar experience with the gazelle. Our guide thought it was funny. He said that tons of people basically come in with a checklist and expect him to deliver each animal in turn - like, "okay, show me a lion now" - and once they see the thing they want, then it's done and it's time to race to the next animal. We'd just park and watch the gazelle grazing and socializing. It was so relaxing.
My ll bean duffle bag looks like it’s on its last legs (wheels?) after about 20 years of pretty solid use. I want to get something before it fails, because when it does it’ll be on a trip or getting ready for one and too late to acquire a new one. Thus, the search for something new. Website lists the my xl duffle at 137 liters, which is massive, and that’s what I love about it — I can just throw shit in and not worry for weeks at a time. I am looking for a new suitcase/duffle with similar capacity, and with wheels which that duffle also had. Those are my only two requirements. Price is important, but given the amount of use it gets, buy once cry once. Any style, brand, anything I’m game for. I’m hesitant to go back to the same well, given the material it’s made from almost acts like a sponge when wet and that’s been a significant issue for me before. okay tib, WHATCHUGOT?!
I just got this one. https://seatosummitusa.com/products/sea-to-summit-duffle-bag?variant=19730192957543 It’s super sturdy and well built. Probably the best duffle I’ve had and it can be worn like a backpack. I also like Patagonia black hole duffles but they are lighter weight.
damn I woulda pulled the trigger on that sea to summit right now but it doesn’t have wheels. The way we are with the kiddos, sometimes my wife has all the bags while I’m dealing with the car or whatever and taking the boys. Absolutely gotta find something that rolls unfortunately.
https://www.patagonia.com/product/black-hole-wheeled-duffel-bag-100-liters/49387.html biggest they gave is 100L for the rolling one. But it’ll cost you.
I saw that. For the frequency of use, that price isn’t an issue. Anything below $500 really I can easily justify. It’s the size thing. Gotta be big, gotta have wheels. I feel like I’m looking for the Goldilocks bag at this point that doesn’t exist edit to add: that is the one I’ll go with though if I don’t find something larger. I’ll compromise a bit on size if necessary. Not on wheels, or quality of materials