Tag: culture

48 Hours on Easter Island

48 Hours on Easter Island

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Easter Island. Rapa Nui. Isla de Pascua. Whatever you call it, it is a mysterious gem in the middle of the south Pacific Ocean. I mean it’s really in the middle of nowhere, with being about 3,756 km (2,340 miles) to Santiago, Chile and 4,231 km (2,646 miles) to Tahiti and 1,922km from Pitcairn Island, the closest inhabited place to it. Fun fact: Pitcairn is trying to recruit new residents since the population has dipped so low – as in, to 45 people –  in the past few years – read more on that here:  http://www.immigration.gov.pn/

Here’s what I knew about Easter Island before we went there:

1) there’s Moai there (the big stone heads)

2) it’s technically part of Chile, and

3) …Ok…that’s about all I knew.

Moai of Easter Island

The Moai at Ahu Tongariki

So why go? Seeing those big, beautiful stone dudes was on my bucket list. And Easter Island is pretty expensive to get to if you’re traveling around South America as a student or a poor, newly-employed attorney. It was more expensive to go there for a weekend than to go to Rio de Janeiro for a week. So, let’s just say it was on the list but wasn’t do-able until my friends and I started seriously talking about a South America trip this year.

First – how does one get to Easter Island?

You fly, obviously. But, not so obvious is the complete lack of variety when it comes to airlines and direct flights. You basically need to fly on LAN and fly from either Santiago, Chile or from Tahiti. There’s one flight a day, in the morning around 11am. And that’s it. You miss it, you wait until the next day. So when our flight departing New York’s JFK was late in leaving (because – get this- the plane was on the other side of the airport and took an hour and a half to DRIVE TO THE GATE), we knew we were going to be cutting it close and our 2.5 hour layover in Santiago was shrinking.

Pro-Tip #1: arrive in Santiago the night before your flight to Easter Island, or leave at least a 4-hour window between your connection’s arrival at the airport and your scheduled departure.

Easter Island

The arrivals gate at the airport

We nearly missed the flight, and after some begging/pleading/nearly crying to the LAN employees at Santiago airport, we made our connection. If you miss your connection, you can consult this post and thank me later.

I don’t recommend starting your vacation nearly missing your connection. I’m typically probably way too nice to airline personnel, but this was a moment where I almost truly lost it. Mainly because we were promised by the flight attendants and the desk staff in New York that we’d make our connection without a problem, even with the delay. So give yourself a good cushion!

So the plane you take to Easter Island is a jumbo jet – a 787- for some reason, I was thinking that there would only be a small plane since it seems like a semi-unpopular destination. Continue reading →

Daytrips from Dublin – Howth, Ireland

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Daytrips from Dublin - Howth, Ireland

What do you do if you’re spending a week or so in Dublin, don’t have a car, but want to get out of town and see more of Ireland than the big city? A day trip to Howth could be just what the doctor ordered.

It’s easy to get to on the DART, walkable, offers beautiful views, good dining options and is not far from the center of the city.

DSC03142

EAT: The House Restaurant & The Brass Monkey

When you go to Howth, you should go hungry so you can enjoy the little pubs, cafés, and, of course, the world-famous smoked salmon from Wrights of Howth.

We wandered up the main street up into the hills (take a left out of the DART station, bear right onto Church Street and continue on up the hill to the right to Main Street) and into this adorable restaurant called The House Restaurant. Continue reading →

Yankee Stadium: Catch A Baseball (or Soccer) Game in NYC

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New York City has its fair share of professional sports teams and there’s something for everyone here as a tourist to this great city who wants to catch an iconic team play at one of the NYC stadiums.  There are so many sports arenas in the NYC area: Madison Square Garden (just “the Garden”, to locals), Barclay’s Center, Giants Stadium (now MetLife Stadium), Yankee Stadium, Citi Field, Red Bull Arena, Prudential Center… and a few more all call the New York metropolitan area “home”.

Yankee Stadium at night

Enjoying a New York Yankees baseball game is a great way to spend a spring, summer or fall afternoon in New York City.  For the soccer (football) enthusiast, maybe you want to catch a NYCFC game instead.

Yankee Stadium exterior

This post covers the perhaps most iconic stadium we have here in the City That Never Sleeps: Yankee Stadium. This NYC stadium is home to the Yankees and the New York City Football Club.

However, going to a game can be a really expensive endeavor, and neither NYC stadium is centrally located in Manhattan, so it’s a bit of a trek to go to each. I’d guess that, unless you’re a die-hard sports fan, only one event like this will be part of your NYC trip. So, you’ll have to pick between this or Citi Field.

Going to a baseball or soccer game in New York City is a true hometown experience and I would recommend even folks who do not like sports to go check out a game. The atmosphere, camaraderie, merriment and energy are contagious – you can’t help but have a good time at an NYC stadium.

Here’s a brief rundown of Yankee stadium, how to get to there, what to expect once you’re there, and what it’s all about. Continue reading →

Top 15 Reasons to Love Dublin, Ireland

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Dublin, Ireland is one of my favorite cities in the world. There are several reasons for this. And, without further ado – here are my…

Top 15 reasons to love Dublin, Ireland

  1. Its Size

    Population-wise, Dublin has about 527,000 inhabitants, and covers an area of about 44.4 square miles. Much of what a tourist wants to see and do is packed into only a few square miles in the city center and this results in a very accessible, walkable town.

    Samuel Beckett Bridge, Dublin, Ireland

    View of the Millennium Spire through the Samuel Beckett Bridge

    I’ve spent a day walking one end to the other – starting around the Grand Canal Dock at Samuel Beckett Bridge and strolling along the Liffey all the way to Phoenix Park and Kilmainham Gaol. It takes a few hours if you stop here and there to see the sights, and it may not be great if you have older folks in your group, but it’s a definite plus that you can see most of the sights on foot if you want.

  2. Ease of public transportation

    You can take public transport all around the city and skip taxi cabs all together if you like. Take the DART from the outer neighborhoods to Tara Street and you’re smack in the middle of Temple Bar, for example. Or, take the DART out of the city to Malahide or Howth and take in the beautiful sea views.

    The Luas, a relatively newer light rail system, hits the city’s shopping streets north of the river, but it doesn’t go many other places that a tourist would want to visit.  Nevertheless, DART and Luas tickets are cheap and are a great option for travelers who are solo or are in small groups (when splitting a taxi doesn’t make sense).

  3. Direct flights to Dublin from many cities

    Dublin’s status as the capitol of Ireland and a tourist destination means that it’s easy to get to from many world cities. There are direct flights daily from the U.S. cities of San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, New York and Orlando, for example.  The best airlines to get you there would be Ireland’s own Aer Lingus, or the other major carriers like Delta, American Airlines/US  Air, and even Emirates. I love Aer Lingus personally because you start getting the hospitality and flavor of Ireland the minute you step foot on the airplane.
    Continue reading →

Review: Try The World

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Update 10/6/18: Try The World has vastly updated how they do business since my original post below. We had a good run of delightful boxes that arrived in beautiful packaging, on time, and full of quality products. That has changed. How so? Try The World no longer offers country boxes – they give you a random assortment of items that have no cohesive theme, don’t ship on time, sometimes skip months for no reason, and the overall quality of the product and packaging has taken a serious nose-dive. A TRY THE WORLD MEMBERSHIP IS SO NOT WORTH IT. I really wanted this company to make it. I did. I loved getting our box every month. Now, Try The World can try making itself better. But first it should try to avoid bankruptcy, where it is likely headed, judging from its behavior these last few months.

Hubby and I have been subscribers of Try The World since Christmas and recently received our second box – the Venice box – in the mail. So, I thought I’d write a review.

Try the World

Contents of the Try The World Venice Box

“What’s Try The World?” you ask? I have to admit, I was hesitant to sign up for it because I found it via a Facebook ad. Normally, I ignore Facebook ads… and I would say that one out of 2 times I actually clicked on them and ended up buying something, I have been horribly disappointed. Continue reading →

Happy Women’s Day!/Feliz Día de la Mujer!

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Today’s International Women’s Day, and I have to say, women celebrate it with much more gusto in Argentina than they do in the USA. Feliz día de la mujer, a mis hermanas argentinas!

It’s always been interesting to me that, although Argentine society is afflicted with extreme “machista” (chauvinism, machismo), Argentine women really come together to celebrate a few different holidays and raise each other up.  Maybe it’s because they’re subject to such blatant sexism, that they celebrate it so fervently. Whatever the reason, it’s a really great day to honor the ladies in your life and celebrate their accomplishments.  Día de la Mujer is one of them, and another is Día del Amigo (Friend’s Day), which is July 20 every year, the anniversary of the first moon landing.

Friend’s Day is also a fascinating tradition to me, as a gringa. Really, it’s about celebrating your friendships and treating your friends especially well on that day. It’s basically a Valentine’s Day for your platonic pals.

Unless you don’t have a heart, Friend’s Day is a really great, feel-good day that will leave you with a smile on your face and a warmth in your heart. Unlike Valentine’s Day, when a lack of Valentine can cause depression, sadness, anger and hurt for so many.

Take a minute today to let your lady-friends know today that they rock. Not only because they do, but because they need to hear it every so often! Feliz día de la mujer!!!