The gems you find when cleaning up your office. :)
This list is not all-inclusive. I can't guarantee with 100% accuracy to its correctness, and some of them I might even question, but it's a list I found years ago and stuck away for informational purposes. I thought it would be fun to share.
A PRIDE OF LIONS
A GAGGLE OF GEESE (on the ground)
A SKEIN OF GEESE (in the air)
A MURDER OF CROWS
A SCHOOL OF FISH
A LEAP OF LEOPARDS
A POD OF SEALS
A SLOTH OF BEARS
A GANG OF ELK
A COVEY OF PARTRIDGES (AND QUAIL)
A FALL OF WOODCOCKS
A WEDGE OF SWANS
A PARTY OF JAYS
A COLONY OF PENGUINS
A RAFTER OF TURKEYS
A BUSINESS OF FERRETS
A CRASH OF RHINOCEROSES
A SIEGE OF HERONS
A GAM OF WHALES
A HOVER OF TROUT
A HUSK OF HARES
A LABOR OF MOLES
A BALE OF TURTLES
A DULE OF DOVES
A SHOAL OF BASS
A DRIFT OF HOGS
A TRIP OF GOATS
A CHARM OF FINCHES
A SORT OF MALLARDS
A TIDINGS OF MAGPIES
A CAST OF HAWKS
AN OSTENTATION OF PEACOCKS
A BOUQUET OF PHESANTS
A CONGREGATION OF PLOVERS
A PADDLING OF DUCKS
AN UNKINDNESS OF RAVENS
A BUILDING OF ROOKS
A RICHNESS OF MARTENS
A BEVY OF ROEBUCKS
A HOST OF SPARROWS
A KNOT OF TOADS
A DESCENT OF WOODPECKERS
A MUSTERING OF STORKS
A DRAY OF SQUIRRELS
A SPRING OF TEAL
A ROUTE OF WOLVES
A SHREWDNESS OF APES
A SOUNDER OF SWINE
A MURMURATION OF STARLINGS
A PARLIAMENT OF OWLS
AN EXALTATION OF LARKS
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Yard Adventures - Sep 2008
I've had a few yard adventures I thought I'd share. A lot of activity this month. Oddly, with the cooler fall-like weather we've seen an increase in grasshoppers and dragonflies. And also more black widow spiders than I care to have. I decided I needed to clean up the yard a little bit. That lasted two days before I realized leaves were falling in my wake. Thank you, autumn. It’s a never-ending battle. There just aren’t enough hours in the day.
I looked out the kitchen window one day and saw a coyote lounging in the shadow of the oleanders by the pond. I was lucky enough to be able to get a couple of pictures through the window. You can see them at my Flickr account. A couple of days later I found three coyotes drinking from the pond. Every morning you can hear the pack off in the distance howling and yipping at each other. It’s an eerie sound if you’ve never heard it before, frightening even, and the sound carries a long way.
A few days ago we looked out the kitchen window again and found a roadrunner crouched down behind the rocks encircling the pond. He (she?) was catching dragonflies. He stayed low until one dared to fly over him, then he’d jump up and grab it, run a few feet away to eat it, then was back in his hiding place. He was very well camouflaged next to those rocks. No pictures this time. He was too aware of us watching and I didn’t want to scare him off.
I was walking home from my son’s house one day last week at around dusk. The sun had set but the sky was still somewhat bathed in yellow light and I was able to see well enough to walk home without a flashlight. I was halfway to my house when I saw something very large fly away from the mesquite tree out back. My first thought was that I’d startled an owl, since the wing-span was so big. Then about two dozen more of these birds burst into the air from the tree. Because they were silhouetted against the fading day, I couldn’t tell what they were but did determine based on the migratory patterns and time of year that it most probably was turkey vultures. It was an amazing and breath-taking sight.
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
I looked out the kitchen window one day and saw a coyote lounging in the shadow of the oleanders by the pond. I was lucky enough to be able to get a couple of pictures through the window. You can see them at my Flickr account. A couple of days later I found three coyotes drinking from the pond. Every morning you can hear the pack off in the distance howling and yipping at each other. It’s an eerie sound if you’ve never heard it before, frightening even, and the sound carries a long way.
A few days ago we looked out the kitchen window again and found a roadrunner crouched down behind the rocks encircling the pond. He (she?) was catching dragonflies. He stayed low until one dared to fly over him, then he’d jump up and grab it, run a few feet away to eat it, then was back in his hiding place. He was very well camouflaged next to those rocks. No pictures this time. He was too aware of us watching and I didn’t want to scare him off.
I was walking home from my son’s house one day last week at around dusk. The sun had set but the sky was still somewhat bathed in yellow light and I was able to see well enough to walk home without a flashlight. I was halfway to my house when I saw something very large fly away from the mesquite tree out back. My first thought was that I’d startled an owl, since the wing-span was so big. Then about two dozen more of these birds burst into the air from the tree. Because they were silhouetted against the fading day, I couldn’t tell what they were but did determine based on the migratory patterns and time of year that it most probably was turkey vultures. It was an amazing and breath-taking sight.
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
Saturday, August 23, 2008
How Much To Tip And When
I just read a good article in Travel and Leisure on The Art of Tipping. Has some great info. It also includes information on customs around the world. Here's the link if you'd like to read:
The Art of Tipping
:) Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
The Art of Tipping
:) Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
Thursday, August 14, 2008
How hotels help themselves to your money
Reposted From CNN.com.
How hotels help themselves to your money
By Christopher Elliott
Tribune Media Services
(Tribune Media Services) -- If you think your hotel is done with you when you check out, think again. It might just be getting started.
Charges can be quietly added to your hotel bill after you've left. And increasingly, they are.
When John Richards was a weekly guest at a W Hotels & Resorts property, the items he found on his credit card bill after checkout were often bogus -- a candy bar he hadn't eaten or a bottle of water he hadn't drunk. Although he successfully fought to have the charges reversed, "it got to the point that before I checked in, I would ask them to remove the goodie-box from my room," he says.
Just a year ago, about one in 200 bills at full-service hotels were revised after checkout, according to Bjorn Hanson, an associate professor at New York University. Today, as hotels struggle with slipping occupancy levels and flat-lining growth, properties are wasting no opportunity to add late charges. As a result, the number of re-billings has doubled.
The late charges are usually correct, say experts. And if they aren't, most hotels are quick to correct the error. But not always. Some properties either resist crediting their customers or refuse.
That's what happened to Charles Garnar when he stayed at the Renaissance Fort Lauderdale Hotel recently. "When we checked out, we were told there were no charges so we had a zero balance," he remembers. But when he returned home after a cruise vacation, he found an unwelcome surprise on his credit card statement: a $57 charge. "It took two days to get through to the accounts payable department," he says. "They said we used the minibar."
The hotel only removed the charges after he proved it couldn't have been him. How? Garnar had turned down the minibar key when he checked in.
This shouldn't be happening, of course. The latest hotel accounting systems let you see your room charges in real time, often from your TV screen. There's no reason the bill that's slipped under the door on the morning of your checkout shouldn't include all of your charges, with the possible exception of your breakfast check. "It should be your final bill," says Robert Mandelbaum, a hotel expert with PKF Consulting.
I contacted several hotel chains to find out about their policy on late charges, including Marriott (which owns the Renaissance) and W Hotels. Only one of the major hotels, InterContinental, bothered to respond. My favorite non-answer came from W, where a spokeswoman told me that, "because of transitions in the company, we don't have an appropriate spokesperson to speak on this topic right now."
Oh, too bad.
Here's what InterContinental, which owns the Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn and Staybridge Suites brands, had to say about late billing. It's rare, and usually only happens when guests choose the express checkout option -- that's where the bill is slipped under your door on the day of checkout. If you bill something to your room after 3 a.m., chances are you'll get a late charge.
Normally, guests aren't notified about the charges, because they've agreed to them as part of the terms of their express checkout. But when there's a significant additional fee, a hotel typically notifies travelers before billing them. What if they disagree with the bill? Contact the hotel and tell a representative you have a problem with the charge, recommends InterContinental spokesman Brad Minor.
"Our hotels value their guests and we want to make sure guests are satisfied with all aspects of their stay," he says.
I'm pretty confident that the other hotels would have said more or less the same thing. But guests don't necessarily agree with that. After I posted Richards' story on my blog, I received a firestorm of comments accusing the hotels of deliberately charging guests after their stay, in the hopes that they wouldn't notice. InterContinental says that's not how it works.
It doesn't really matter. What matters is that you, the guest, don't get socked with a surprise charge on your credit card days or weeks after your vacation. Here are three excuses hotels use for separating you from your money after you're long gone. You might hear some of these reasons articulated by a hotel employee -- other excuses are probably reserved for the privacy of the break room or the hotel's executive offices.
You sure you didn't take something from the minibar?
A vast majority of late checkout charges -- about 75 percent, according to Hanson -- are from those little refrigerators stocked with vastly overpriced snacks. Hotel minibars have become figurative traps that guests get stuck in. Often, they don't even know about it until it's too late. The newest minibars have sensors that charge your room the moment an item is moved. Here's a chilling first-person account of an unsuspecting guest falling into one of these traps at a Los Angeles hotel, courtesy of HotelChatter.
The solution? Don't accept the key to your minibar. If there's no key, ask to have the minibar (or goody-basket) removed. It's the only way to be sure.
But you checked out before we could charge you!
Unless you're talking about breakfast on the day you check out, this is an empty excuse. Remember, most hotel accounting systems are lightning-fast. The moment you sign your check for an activity or meal, your account is charged. Experts I spoke with say it's possible some charges can get stuck in the system. A good example is a hotel gift shop that for some reason still uses a paper system to handle room charges. But if a major charge shows up on your credit card, it's worth calling the hotel. If it took this long to get billed, can they be sure it's correct?
The solution? Review your bill before checking out to make sure nothing is missing. And check out your credit card bill after your stay to make sure nothing is added.
We didn't think you would notice
I have no proof -- no memos or transcripts of scheming hotel employees saying this -- except for scores of guest experiences that suggest this attitude is pervasive behind the front desk. For example, Eugene Santhin, who was a frequent business traveler from Mt. Laurel, New Jersey, before retiring, says he was often billed for water and minibar items that weren't consumed. "Many properties charged for breakfast when it was included in the room rate," he adds. To their credit, the hotels quickly removed the items when he protested. But it was the speed with which they did so that made him suspicious. Were they adding these extras to his bill, hoping he wouldn't notice? It's difficult to say for certain.
The solution? Pay attention! Your hotel may be trying to pull a fast one, despite its denials. Keep all of your receipts.
Not all late billings hurt hotel guests. Reader Kate Trabue remembers a recent stay at the InterContinental Sydney where she was hit with unexpected room charges after she checked out. "A call to the billing department got the charges reversed without a problem," she remembers. "The interesting part of this transaction was that because of the exchange rate, I was credited more dollars than the original charge."
(Christopher Elliott is the ombudsman for National Geographic Traveler magazine. This column originally appeared on MSNBC.com. You can read more travel tips on his blog, elliott.org or e-mail him at celliott@ngs.org).
© 2008 CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.
How hotels help themselves to your money
By Christopher Elliott
Tribune Media Services
(Tribune Media Services) -- If you think your hotel is done with you when you check out, think again. It might just be getting started.
Charges can be quietly added to your hotel bill after you've left. And increasingly, they are.
When John Richards was a weekly guest at a W Hotels & Resorts property, the items he found on his credit card bill after checkout were often bogus -- a candy bar he hadn't eaten or a bottle of water he hadn't drunk. Although he successfully fought to have the charges reversed, "it got to the point that before I checked in, I would ask them to remove the goodie-box from my room," he says.
Just a year ago, about one in 200 bills at full-service hotels were revised after checkout, according to Bjorn Hanson, an associate professor at New York University. Today, as hotels struggle with slipping occupancy levels and flat-lining growth, properties are wasting no opportunity to add late charges. As a result, the number of re-billings has doubled.
The late charges are usually correct, say experts. And if they aren't, most hotels are quick to correct the error. But not always. Some properties either resist crediting their customers or refuse.
That's what happened to Charles Garnar when he stayed at the Renaissance Fort Lauderdale Hotel recently. "When we checked out, we were told there were no charges so we had a zero balance," he remembers. But when he returned home after a cruise vacation, he found an unwelcome surprise on his credit card statement: a $57 charge. "It took two days to get through to the accounts payable department," he says. "They said we used the minibar."
The hotel only removed the charges after he proved it couldn't have been him. How? Garnar had turned down the minibar key when he checked in.
This shouldn't be happening, of course. The latest hotel accounting systems let you see your room charges in real time, often from your TV screen. There's no reason the bill that's slipped under the door on the morning of your checkout shouldn't include all of your charges, with the possible exception of your breakfast check. "It should be your final bill," says Robert Mandelbaum, a hotel expert with PKF Consulting.
I contacted several hotel chains to find out about their policy on late charges, including Marriott (which owns the Renaissance) and W Hotels. Only one of the major hotels, InterContinental, bothered to respond. My favorite non-answer came from W, where a spokeswoman told me that, "because of transitions in the company, we don't have an appropriate spokesperson to speak on this topic right now."
Oh, too bad.
Here's what InterContinental, which owns the Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn and Staybridge Suites brands, had to say about late billing. It's rare, and usually only happens when guests choose the express checkout option -- that's where the bill is slipped under your door on the day of checkout. If you bill something to your room after 3 a.m., chances are you'll get a late charge.
Normally, guests aren't notified about the charges, because they've agreed to them as part of the terms of their express checkout. But when there's a significant additional fee, a hotel typically notifies travelers before billing them. What if they disagree with the bill? Contact the hotel and tell a representative you have a problem with the charge, recommends InterContinental spokesman Brad Minor.
"Our hotels value their guests and we want to make sure guests are satisfied with all aspects of their stay," he says.
I'm pretty confident that the other hotels would have said more or less the same thing. But guests don't necessarily agree with that. After I posted Richards' story on my blog, I received a firestorm of comments accusing the hotels of deliberately charging guests after their stay, in the hopes that they wouldn't notice. InterContinental says that's not how it works.
It doesn't really matter. What matters is that you, the guest, don't get socked with a surprise charge on your credit card days or weeks after your vacation. Here are three excuses hotels use for separating you from your money after you're long gone. You might hear some of these reasons articulated by a hotel employee -- other excuses are probably reserved for the privacy of the break room or the hotel's executive offices.
You sure you didn't take something from the minibar?
A vast majority of late checkout charges -- about 75 percent, according to Hanson -- are from those little refrigerators stocked with vastly overpriced snacks. Hotel minibars have become figurative traps that guests get stuck in. Often, they don't even know about it until it's too late. The newest minibars have sensors that charge your room the moment an item is moved. Here's a chilling first-person account of an unsuspecting guest falling into one of these traps at a Los Angeles hotel, courtesy of HotelChatter.
The solution? Don't accept the key to your minibar. If there's no key, ask to have the minibar (or goody-basket) removed. It's the only way to be sure.
But you checked out before we could charge you!
Unless you're talking about breakfast on the day you check out, this is an empty excuse. Remember, most hotel accounting systems are lightning-fast. The moment you sign your check for an activity or meal, your account is charged. Experts I spoke with say it's possible some charges can get stuck in the system. A good example is a hotel gift shop that for some reason still uses a paper system to handle room charges. But if a major charge shows up on your credit card, it's worth calling the hotel. If it took this long to get billed, can they be sure it's correct?
The solution? Review your bill before checking out to make sure nothing is missing. And check out your credit card bill after your stay to make sure nothing is added.
We didn't think you would notice
I have no proof -- no memos or transcripts of scheming hotel employees saying this -- except for scores of guest experiences that suggest this attitude is pervasive behind the front desk. For example, Eugene Santhin, who was a frequent business traveler from Mt. Laurel, New Jersey, before retiring, says he was often billed for water and minibar items that weren't consumed. "Many properties charged for breakfast when it was included in the room rate," he adds. To their credit, the hotels quickly removed the items when he protested. But it was the speed with which they did so that made him suspicious. Were they adding these extras to his bill, hoping he wouldn't notice? It's difficult to say for certain.
The solution? Pay attention! Your hotel may be trying to pull a fast one, despite its denials. Keep all of your receipts.
Not all late billings hurt hotel guests. Reader Kate Trabue remembers a recent stay at the InterContinental Sydney where she was hit with unexpected room charges after she checked out. "A call to the billing department got the charges reversed without a problem," she remembers. "The interesting part of this transaction was that because of the exchange rate, I was credited more dollars than the original charge."
(Christopher Elliott is the ombudsman for National Geographic Traveler magazine. This column originally appeared on MSNBC.com. You can read more travel tips on his blog, elliott.org or e-mail him at celliott@ngs.org).
© 2008 CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Top 10 smart vacations
From cnn.com
Top 10 smart vacations
Come home from your next trip relaxed and smarter. Where to learn Spanish, whitewater rafting, astrophysics and more...
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
Top 10 smart vacations
Come home from your next trip relaxed and smarter. Where to learn Spanish, whitewater rafting, astrophysics and more...
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
Monday, June 16, 2008
Mesa Verde National Park
Bottom line -- This is an amazing place!
First...the "important" stuff. Pictures! I've uploaded and identified a good percentage of the pictures we took during our trip to Mesa Verde National Park. It helped keeping a log as we stopped at each place. Just click this link and you'll be able to browse through them.
I'll touch on some of the incidentals first -- food and lodging. Unless you're camping, the only place to stay within the park is Far View Lodge. Most of the sights you'll want to view take about one or two hours to reach from the entrance of the park. There is only one entrance. We arrived the night before our planned visit and stayed in Cortez, Colorado, which is only a few miles from the entrance. If you don't want to stay at Far View Lodge and don't mind the long drive each day to see everything, Cortez has a lot of hotels. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express (using up those free room rewards from my husband's business trips) and were able to take advantage of a great complimentary breakfast there. The breakfast room was fully stocked and constantly replenished.
Far View Lodge could be considered "rustic". It's rather like being in a mountain cabin, but much smaller. Each room has a refrigerator and microwave. The promised view from every room is somewhat misleading. Our view was of three trees right outside our back window (which leads to a narrow porch), but if you stood on the porch and leaned out you could see the landscape. Each morning we awoke to deer across the drive. The bathrooms are very small. The shower stall gives you enough room to turn around and that was about it. I didn't mind the lack of amenities -- no TV, no cell -- but for the price of the room I would have appreciated it if housekeeping would have cleaned...and not left the door wide open when they were done. Also, if you're planning to stay here, make your reservations early.
Food was a bit tricky the first night since we didn't know where everything was located. The hotel restaurant (The Metate Room) was very expensive. However, they do have a great breakfast buffet each morning for $9.50. The waitstaff was very plesant and the food wasn't bad, just expensive. We were pleased about the breakfast buffet because when we know we're going to be hiking all day we like to get off to a good start. And, of course, we always carry snacks with us. After the first night we discovered Spruce Tree Terrace at one of the other sights and were able to get great, quick food for a reasonable price. Far View Terrace (next door) also had a coffee bar with pastries and served lunch.
Some of the maps of the park and sights and the information provided (in person and online) were a little outdated, but we were still able to figure things out as we went along. You'll want to do a little prior planning before you go. Read thoroughly on their website. I will say that although the information indicates it is handicap accessible, I would question that. The trails down into the sights are very steep. Here's the link to Mesa Verde National Park.
You'll need tickets to go to three of the sights--Long House, Cliff Palace, and Balcony House. The cost is very, very reasonable--$3.00. Each one of these sights involves steep descents and ascents, climbing ladders, and narrow passages. It is strenous. Several other sights don't require tickets--Step House and Spruce Tree House. These don't have ladders but are still very steep.
Of the five places mentioned, we saw four. After doing these over two days I knew I wouldn't be able to climb a 32-foot ladder and 200 steep steps at Balcony House. I also drew the line at crawling down into a kiva with 10 other people at Spruce Tree House. That was too enclosed for me. My husband went down, but didn't stay there long.
It's difficult to say what impressed us the most. I will say that the Nordenskold Ruins were the most disappointing and I would recommend not doing this little 1.5 mile hike. We planned three days there and those days were filled. We planned in advance to see as much as we wanted to see and I have to say that we met those goals. Once we arrived we made a few adjustments, i.e., not going to Balcony House and also not going on the 2.5 mile hike to the Balcony House overlook or an equally long hike on the Petroglyh Trail.
There were three major areas to view, one of which is only accessible in the summer (Wetherhill Mesa). With the minor exception of our last day, the weather was very nice. We were also spoiled our first day visiting Long House by an extremely knowledgeable park ranger. She was amazingly informative and a pleasure to be around. We also ran into her as we toured the Step House. We were the last persons viewing that particular sight for the day and she was there to make sure all visitors were out safely. It was a pleasure to spend "private" time with this amazing woman. I was also pleased to see that she was huffing and puffing to get up those steep inclines just like me.
We discovered that of the 58,000 acres the park encompasses, 32,000 acres have burned in the last ten years. All of the wildfires were started by lightning strikes. The damage is still apparent and will be for all of our lifetimes. But the beauty of the area was still there. We also learned that the historical inhabitants of this area are no longer called Anasazi. They are now called Ancestral Puebloans. Apparently, Anasazi is a Navajo term and the inhabitants weren't Navajo. Also, though it's called Mesa Verde, the area isn't a mesa. A mesa has a slope on all four sides. This only had slopes on the south side and were technically called cuestas. The area was created millions of years ago by an inland sea.
There were a lot of people there, but it didn't feel crowded. The tours were never full. Some people dart in, see what they want and rush off. My husband and I like to take our time and explore, think about it all, and talk about the experience. We came home with little brochures from each place we visited and a ton of pictures.
Can you visit Mesa Verde? Well, there was a couple on one of the trails ahead of us. She had a pacemaker. He'd just had knee replacement surgery and indicated he wouldn't have been able to do it without new knees. Both made it down and up, slow but sure. There were a few places where it was a little too close to the edge for me, but I wasn't the only one who felt that way. All you do is step back. (I was more intimidated at the Grand Canyon.)
Mesa Verde was truly an amazing place. I would definitely recommend seeing it as circumstances allow. Small children probably wouldn't be a good fit here. Neither would people who get tired of exploring. An experience like this should be savored.
Here's the full list of what we visited:
Far View Sites
Mesa Top Loop and all overlooks associated with it
Nordenskold Ruin - disappointing
Cliff Palace
Spruce Tree House
Badger House Community
Long House
Step House
Park Point
Mancos Valley Overlook
Montezuma Valley Overlook
Park Point Overlook
Geologic Overlook
Kodak House Overlook
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
First...the "important" stuff. Pictures! I've uploaded and identified a good percentage of the pictures we took during our trip to Mesa Verde National Park. It helped keeping a log as we stopped at each place. Just click this link and you'll be able to browse through them.
I'll touch on some of the incidentals first -- food and lodging. Unless you're camping, the only place to stay within the park is Far View Lodge. Most of the sights you'll want to view take about one or two hours to reach from the entrance of the park. There is only one entrance. We arrived the night before our planned visit and stayed in Cortez, Colorado, which is only a few miles from the entrance. If you don't want to stay at Far View Lodge and don't mind the long drive each day to see everything, Cortez has a lot of hotels. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express (using up those free room rewards from my husband's business trips) and were able to take advantage of a great complimentary breakfast there. The breakfast room was fully stocked and constantly replenished.
Far View Lodge could be considered "rustic". It's rather like being in a mountain cabin, but much smaller. Each room has a refrigerator and microwave. The promised view from every room is somewhat misleading. Our view was of three trees right outside our back window (which leads to a narrow porch), but if you stood on the porch and leaned out you could see the landscape. Each morning we awoke to deer across the drive. The bathrooms are very small. The shower stall gives you enough room to turn around and that was about it. I didn't mind the lack of amenities -- no TV, no cell -- but for the price of the room I would have appreciated it if housekeeping would have cleaned...and not left the door wide open when they were done. Also, if you're planning to stay here, make your reservations early.
Food was a bit tricky the first night since we didn't know where everything was located. The hotel restaurant (The Metate Room) was very expensive. However, they do have a great breakfast buffet each morning for $9.50. The waitstaff was very plesant and the food wasn't bad, just expensive. We were pleased about the breakfast buffet because when we know we're going to be hiking all day we like to get off to a good start. And, of course, we always carry snacks with us. After the first night we discovered Spruce Tree Terrace at one of the other sights and were able to get great, quick food for a reasonable price. Far View Terrace (next door) also had a coffee bar with pastries and served lunch.
Some of the maps of the park and sights and the information provided (in person and online) were a little outdated, but we were still able to figure things out as we went along. You'll want to do a little prior planning before you go. Read thoroughly on their website. I will say that although the information indicates it is handicap accessible, I would question that. The trails down into the sights are very steep. Here's the link to Mesa Verde National Park.
You'll need tickets to go to three of the sights--Long House, Cliff Palace, and Balcony House. The cost is very, very reasonable--$3.00. Each one of these sights involves steep descents and ascents, climbing ladders, and narrow passages. It is strenous. Several other sights don't require tickets--Step House and Spruce Tree House. These don't have ladders but are still very steep.
Of the five places mentioned, we saw four. After doing these over two days I knew I wouldn't be able to climb a 32-foot ladder and 200 steep steps at Balcony House. I also drew the line at crawling down into a kiva with 10 other people at Spruce Tree House. That was too enclosed for me. My husband went down, but didn't stay there long.
It's difficult to say what impressed us the most. I will say that the Nordenskold Ruins were the most disappointing and I would recommend not doing this little 1.5 mile hike. We planned three days there and those days were filled. We planned in advance to see as much as we wanted to see and I have to say that we met those goals. Once we arrived we made a few adjustments, i.e., not going to Balcony House and also not going on the 2.5 mile hike to the Balcony House overlook or an equally long hike on the Petroglyh Trail.
There were three major areas to view, one of which is only accessible in the summer (Wetherhill Mesa). With the minor exception of our last day, the weather was very nice. We were also spoiled our first day visiting Long House by an extremely knowledgeable park ranger. She was amazingly informative and a pleasure to be around. We also ran into her as we toured the Step House. We were the last persons viewing that particular sight for the day and she was there to make sure all visitors were out safely. It was a pleasure to spend "private" time with this amazing woman. I was also pleased to see that she was huffing and puffing to get up those steep inclines just like me.
We discovered that of the 58,000 acres the park encompasses, 32,000 acres have burned in the last ten years. All of the wildfires were started by lightning strikes. The damage is still apparent and will be for all of our lifetimes. But the beauty of the area was still there. We also learned that the historical inhabitants of this area are no longer called Anasazi. They are now called Ancestral Puebloans. Apparently, Anasazi is a Navajo term and the inhabitants weren't Navajo. Also, though it's called Mesa Verde, the area isn't a mesa. A mesa has a slope on all four sides. This only had slopes on the south side and were technically called cuestas. The area was created millions of years ago by an inland sea.
There were a lot of people there, but it didn't feel crowded. The tours were never full. Some people dart in, see what they want and rush off. My husband and I like to take our time and explore, think about it all, and talk about the experience. We came home with little brochures from each place we visited and a ton of pictures.
Can you visit Mesa Verde? Well, there was a couple on one of the trails ahead of us. She had a pacemaker. He'd just had knee replacement surgery and indicated he wouldn't have been able to do it without new knees. Both made it down and up, slow but sure. There were a few places where it was a little too close to the edge for me, but I wasn't the only one who felt that way. All you do is step back. (I was more intimidated at the Grand Canyon.)
Mesa Verde was truly an amazing place. I would definitely recommend seeing it as circumstances allow. Small children probably wouldn't be a good fit here. Neither would people who get tired of exploring. An experience like this should be savored.
Here's the full list of what we visited:
Far View Sites
Mesa Top Loop and all overlooks associated with it
Nordenskold Ruin - disappointing
Cliff Palace
Spruce Tree House
Badger House Community
Long House
Step House
Park Point
Mancos Valley Overlook
Montezuma Valley Overlook
Park Point Overlook
Geologic Overlook
Kodak House Overlook
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
Sunday, May 25, 2008
The Living Desert
During the early part of May 2008, my husband and I decided to visit The Living Desert, located in Palm Desert, California. We hadn't been there in many, many years and had been hearing some great things about it from our son and daughter-in-law. Their little boys love going there to see all the animals...and the model train display.
The Living Desert is a combination zoo/museum, a nonprofit organization. The animals living there are ones unable to be reintroduced into the wild. Pathways wander from exhibit to exhibit where you'll find aviaries, gardens, a plant nursery, a wildlife hospital and conservation center. A map and various other information at The Living Desert website.
We took a lot of pictures and you can check them out at this link. Photos of The Living Desert
If you're planning a visit, remember this is in the Palm Springs area and it does get very, very hot during the late spring and in the summer. Plan accordingly. We were there the first weekend of May. Temperatures were in the mid-90s. Water fountains and restrooms conveniently located throughout the area. There are also several places to grab a bite to eat.
If you're not up to walking, there's a tram you can ride. Tickets are $12.00 per person. The tram makes frequent stops and one ticket gets you a ride all day. We purchased tickets at the recommendation of our daughter-in-law, but didn't use them. We like to walk and wander. But by the end of the day (and it was all day) we were feeling it. If you have children...take the tram.
It wasn't crowded the day we went, although the parking lot was full. We have no idea where all the people were, but we felt The Living Desert was laid out in such a nice flow that it handled the crowd without it being a crowd.
Animals living there are: zebra, giraffe, bighorn sheep, gazelle, ostrich, cheetah, mountain lion...we never did see the leopard. Because it was a hot day most of the animals were snoozing. I felt the coyotes and wolves were grossly overweight. We'd been warned that the mountain lion was aggressive. However, it was sound asleep the day we were there. Wires and plexiglass provide a barrier between it and humans. In 99% of the exhibits I felt there was enough protection...except when we got to the cheetah. No cage. No wires. No plexiglass. Just a short wall and a moat. I'm not a cheetah expert and I'm sure the people working there know what they're doing, but I still wasn't comfortable.
As you look through the pictures you'll notice rather quickly what held our attention the longest. You'll need to look very carefully at the pictures of the bighorn sheep. They are very well camouflaged. There are two sheep in most of the photos--male and female. The female didn't budge. The male finally stretched to his feet and gave us the beautiful skyline photo. I think he felt sorry for us.
Though we all might know how big these wild animals are, sometimes that information doesn't sink in until we see the animal in person. And so it was with the giraffes. There were three--a couple with a baby. The baby decided to come check out all the people watching. I was thinking, "Wow, they really are big." Then the mother came over the hill. Yep...WOW!
The golden eagle held our attention, too. You'll notice in some of the pictures it's holding something in its talon. It's a squeak toy. This eagle had been raised in captivity and didn't have the ability to hunt for itself. It was a beauty. Several great pictures here, but we could never catch it when its wings were spread.
My number one favorite exhibit was the model train display. This thing is huge with waterfalls, rivers, bridges, mountains...even the Grand Canyon. The trains are constantly running and make their depot stops. Very detail oriented. It made me want to come home and build a display for myself.
We thought we'd seen all we wanted to see. We didn't. There's Gecko Gulch and a petting corral, hands on fun for kids. There's a wilderness trail system with short, medium, and long hikes. There's the wildlife hospital and conservation center that gives presentations. There's a nursery where you can buy some of the plants that are on display. Lots of stuff to go back and see.
The Living Desert continues to grow. There are plans to expand its East African Savanna exhibit. If you're in the Palm Springs area during the fall, winter, and early spring, I would definitely recommend this as a place to see. Just make sure you plan for a full day.
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
The Living Desert is a combination zoo/museum, a nonprofit organization. The animals living there are ones unable to be reintroduced into the wild. Pathways wander from exhibit to exhibit where you'll find aviaries, gardens, a plant nursery, a wildlife hospital and conservation center. A map and various other information at The Living Desert website.
We took a lot of pictures and you can check them out at this link. Photos of The Living Desert
If you're planning a visit, remember this is in the Palm Springs area and it does get very, very hot during the late spring and in the summer. Plan accordingly. We were there the first weekend of May. Temperatures were in the mid-90s. Water fountains and restrooms conveniently located throughout the area. There are also several places to grab a bite to eat.
If you're not up to walking, there's a tram you can ride. Tickets are $12.00 per person. The tram makes frequent stops and one ticket gets you a ride all day. We purchased tickets at the recommendation of our daughter-in-law, but didn't use them. We like to walk and wander. But by the end of the day (and it was all day) we were feeling it. If you have children...take the tram.
It wasn't crowded the day we went, although the parking lot was full. We have no idea where all the people were, but we felt The Living Desert was laid out in such a nice flow that it handled the crowd without it being a crowd.
Animals living there are: zebra, giraffe, bighorn sheep, gazelle, ostrich, cheetah, mountain lion...we never did see the leopard. Because it was a hot day most of the animals were snoozing. I felt the coyotes and wolves were grossly overweight. We'd been warned that the mountain lion was aggressive. However, it was sound asleep the day we were there. Wires and plexiglass provide a barrier between it and humans. In 99% of the exhibits I felt there was enough protection...except when we got to the cheetah. No cage. No wires. No plexiglass. Just a short wall and a moat. I'm not a cheetah expert and I'm sure the people working there know what they're doing, but I still wasn't comfortable.
As you look through the pictures you'll notice rather quickly what held our attention the longest. You'll need to look very carefully at the pictures of the bighorn sheep. They are very well camouflaged. There are two sheep in most of the photos--male and female. The female didn't budge. The male finally stretched to his feet and gave us the beautiful skyline photo. I think he felt sorry for us.
Though we all might know how big these wild animals are, sometimes that information doesn't sink in until we see the animal in person. And so it was with the giraffes. There were three--a couple with a baby. The baby decided to come check out all the people watching. I was thinking, "Wow, they really are big." Then the mother came over the hill. Yep...WOW!
The golden eagle held our attention, too. You'll notice in some of the pictures it's holding something in its talon. It's a squeak toy. This eagle had been raised in captivity and didn't have the ability to hunt for itself. It was a beauty. Several great pictures here, but we could never catch it when its wings were spread.
My number one favorite exhibit was the model train display. This thing is huge with waterfalls, rivers, bridges, mountains...even the Grand Canyon. The trains are constantly running and make their depot stops. Very detail oriented. It made me want to come home and build a display for myself.
We thought we'd seen all we wanted to see. We didn't. There's Gecko Gulch and a petting corral, hands on fun for kids. There's a wilderness trail system with short, medium, and long hikes. There's the wildlife hospital and conservation center that gives presentations. There's a nursery where you can buy some of the plants that are on display. Lots of stuff to go back and see.
The Living Desert continues to grow. There are plans to expand its East African Savanna exhibit. If you're in the Palm Springs area during the fall, winter, and early spring, I would definitely recommend this as a place to see. Just make sure you plan for a full day.
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Cool Gardens To Visit In California
Love flowers? Then here are some cool gardens to visit in California.
The Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve
Lancaster, California
Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden
Claremont, California
Santa Barbara Botanic Garden
Santa Barbara, California
Theodore Payne Foundation Nursery Garden
Sunland, California
Arroyo Seco-South Pasedena Woodland and Wildlife Park
South Pasadena, California
Audubon Center at Debs Park
Los Angeles, California
El Alisal, The Charles F. Lummis Home
Highland Park, California
Fullerton Arboretum
Fullerton, California
The Water Conservation Garden
El Cajon, California
Enjoy the adventure!
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
The Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve
Lancaster, California
Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden
Claremont, California
Santa Barbara Botanic Garden
Santa Barbara, California
Theodore Payne Foundation Nursery Garden
Sunland, California
Arroyo Seco-South Pasedena Woodland and Wildlife Park
South Pasadena, California
Audubon Center at Debs Park
Los Angeles, California
El Alisal, The Charles F. Lummis Home
Highland Park, California
Fullerton Arboretum
Fullerton, California
The Water Conservation Garden
El Cajon, California
Enjoy the adventure!
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
More Travel Tips
From cnn.com
Be ready to go on a moment's notice
My 2008 calendar could put me on the road for 90 days.
From the BCS Championship in New Orleans, Louisiana, to the Summer Olympics in Beijing, China; from the Final Four in San Antonio, Texas, to the U.S. Open in San Diego, California, travel is a part of my everyday life. Add in those unexpected trips -- like a day on Capitol Hill for the Roger Clemens hearings -- and you'll understand if I forget whether I'm coming or going!
But I wouldn't trade my job for anything, so I've found ways to make the travel process easier, regardless of where I'm going, how soon I need to leave, or what I have to do to get there.
Click on the above link to read the rest of the article.
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
Be ready to go on a moment's notice
My 2008 calendar could put me on the road for 90 days.
From the BCS Championship in New Orleans, Louisiana, to the Summer Olympics in Beijing, China; from the Final Four in San Antonio, Texas, to the U.S. Open in San Diego, California, travel is a part of my everyday life. Add in those unexpected trips -- like a day on Capitol Hill for the Roger Clemens hearings -- and you'll understand if I forget whether I'm coming or going!
But I wouldn't trade my job for anything, so I've found ways to make the travel process easier, regardless of where I'm going, how soon I need to leave, or what I have to do to get there.
Click on the above link to read the rest of the article.
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
Friday, May 16, 2008
Five common ticketing errors -- and how to avoid them
More travel tips....
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
Five common ticketing errors -- and how to avoid them
As far as mistakes go, the one Janet Gordon recently made didn't seem like a big deal. She booked an airline ticket from Toronto to London under the name "Jan."
Read Article
Caitlyn
www.caitlynwillows.com
Five common ticketing errors -- and how to avoid them
As far as mistakes go, the one Janet Gordon recently made didn't seem like a big deal. She booked an airline ticket from Toronto to London under the name "Jan."
Read Article
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