18 minutes ago, HazletonEagle said:

We were there in 2022. It was a notable time as James Harden played his first game for the 76ers, and Russia invaded Ukraine. Both while we were on our trip. I had fun filled days at the parks, and then sat down to tons of news, and some 6ers action to watch on my phone while winding down at night.

Planning a trip back for March. This time bringing my parents along. My mom always said a bucket list item was doing disney with our kids. We booked 7 nights. Arrival day will be spent at Disney Springs. Then 5 park days, with 1 rest day somewhere in between.

I only recall 2 meals which were very meh... The rest were pretty normal meals like I could get any day at home. You can watch foodie videos on youtube where people talk so much about the restaurants, or the snacks, or the temporary offerings. The food is definitely so very over hyped. I wouldnt complain but it certainly wasnt anything to brag about. I think youre best saving your money there and eating simple things. Theres probably nothing worth paying Michelin type prices for.

 

That trip basically blows the vacation budget and then some before summer even begins next year. So we are also talking about 1-2 days in Niagra Falls just to do something during summer.

I would say that Niagara Falls is very underrated.  My wife is from Buffalo, so I make a bunch of trips up there.  The falls are beautiful, the maid of the mist is worth it, and the jet boats are actually an incredible time…especially when I did it on an absurdly hot summer day in the 90’s when the water was so refreshing.  It’s also a great place (seasonally) for boating.  Niagara on the lake is a really nice wine region too.

While in Disney, we actually did eat at this restaurant off resort and at our hotel, Capa, which has a Michelin star.  The prices weren’t terrible and the food was pretty good, but I can’t understand for the life of me how it got a Michelin star...no where near that type of standard.  Although it still isn’t the worst Michelin star I’ve been to.  I think you can get decent food at the hotels, but nothing great.  In the parks, even Epcot, which is supposed to be the foodie area, I felt it was pretty bad.  Epcot is still fun for the drink around the world, which we did.  But it was so hot all we really drank were slushies infused with that particular country’s liquor of choice.

1 minute ago, eagle45 said:

I would say that Niagara Falls is very underrated.  My wife is from Buffalo, so I make a bunch of trips up there.  The falls are beautiful, the maid of the mist is worth it, and the jet boats are actually an incredible time…especially when I did it on an absurdly hot summer day in the 90’s when the water was so refreshing.  It’s also a great place (seasonally) for boating.  Niagara on the lake is a really nice wine region too.

While in Disney, we actually did eat at this restaurant off resort and at our hotel, Capa, which has a Michelin star.  The prices weren’t terrible and the food was pretty good, but I can’t understand for the life of me how it got a Michelin star...no where near that type of standard.  Although it still isn’t the worst Michelin star I’ve been to.  I think you can get decent food at the hotels, but nothing great.  In the parks, even Epcot, which is supposed to be the foodie area, I felt it was pretty bad.  Epcot is still fun for the drink around the world, which we did.  But it was so hot all we really drank were slushies infused with that particular country’s liquor of choice.

I remember getting ice cream in the France section. The one pricier meal we paid for was Hibachi in the Japan section. Every hibachi place near me is better than that one. As was the Hibachi meal we paid for on our cruise last summer. It was fine, but far from the best and not nearly worth the Disney pricing. I think the best thing about it was the kids chop stick which were rigged somehow with rubber bands so that kids could use them without having to learn how to hold them. Nothing memorable about the food.

I think my favorite meals were some random place for lunch in Animal Kingdom and I dont even remember what I ate there. And some random pizza place that I think was in Hollywood Studios. I actually quite liked that pizza which was served personal pan style.

Otherwise, I think paying for experiential meals like the atmosphere at T-Rex in Disney Springs, is more worthwhile than paying with the expectation for tastier food. We really wanted to eat at the new (at the time) space themed restaurant but it was booked full already despite the fact that we were booking our meals as early as you possibly could, 60 days in advance or whatever the timeframe is...

1 hour ago, HazletonEagle said:

 

1 hour ago, eagle45 said:

I would say that Niagara Falls is very underrated.  My wife is from Buffalo, so I make a bunch of trips up there.  The falls are beautiful, the maid of the mist is worth it, and the jet boats are actually an incredible time…especially when I did it on an absurdly hot summer day in the 90’s when the water was so refreshing.  It’s also a great place (seasonally) for boating.  Niagara on the lake is a really nice wine region too.

 

I second all of this.  My mom is from Buffalo, and I'm up there every summer at our family cottage on Lake Erie (Port Colborne).

 

Niagara Falls State Park on the American side is the first and oldest state park in the US.  It was designed by noted landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, of Central Park fame.  The city has a little bit of historic architecture, but if you're pressed for time, just do the state park and hurry over to the Canadian side.

 

Victoria Park on the Canadian side is really pretty.  It's very beautifully landscaped, and it has better views of the falls. 

 

I believe there are fireworks over the falls every Saturday night, but they are quick: 15 minutes.

 

Niagara-on-the-Lake is a jewel of a town.  It was named prettiest town in Canada, and deserves the title.  Go for a nice romantic walk with your wife there.  There's a few firsts/oldests in NOTL: First and oldest golf course in Canada, oldest tavern in Canada, oldest Anglican church in Ontario, and some others.

 

You can get to NOTL from Niagara Falls via the Niagara River Parkway, which is one of the more scenic drives in Canada.  You'll go past tons of wineries, including Inniskillin, which I believe is the birthplace of ice wine (wine made by letting grapes partially freeze on the vine, then harvesting and pressing them half-frozen to remove water from the grape juice, resulting in a higher sugar content in the juice).

 

Buffalo has some great architecture around town that is worth seeing, especially if you're into that stuff.  There are a few Frank Lloyd Wright houses in town that are popular to visit.  Anchor Bar is the birthplace of chicken wings, so if you've never been there, it's worth a stop (but it's now a tourist trap like Pat's and Geno's).

 

I have a trip to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick planned for a long Memorial Day weekend.

Has anyone traveled with any of these Eagles fandom groups to comment on their experience or preference? I’m strongly considering joining one as an excuse to pop the cherry on my (true) international travel and get to experience a few parts of Brazil. 

On 5/24/2024 at 9:30 PM, Agent23 said:

Has anyone traveled with any of these Eagles fandom groups to comment on their experience or preference? I’m strongly considering joining one as an excuse to pop the cherry on my (true) international travel and get to experience a few parts of Brazil. 

I've done the Green Legion a few times and I love it.  I have done Fans of Philly once, and it was pretty good, but I think the Green Legion is better.  There were some small touches with extra care that you notice here and there.  I know for the Brazil trip, the Green Legion has already ensured private security for the entire trip in Brazil, which seems important for a first international trip to a country that has that type of reputation.

13 hours ago, xzmattzx said:

I've done the Green Legion a few times and I love it.  I have done Fans of Philly once, and it was pretty good, but I think the Green Legion is better.  There were some small touches with extra care that you notice here and there.  I know for the Brazil trip, the Green Legion has already ensured private security for the entire trip in Brazil, which seems important for a first international trip to a country that has that type of reputation.

Good to know and appreciate the input. I’m not sure if I’ll pull the trigger in the coming days or hold out for 3ish weeks (when I anticipate annual bonus to get paid) and use the euphoria of a lump sum deposit to influence my spending decisions. 

14 hours ago, Agent23 said:

Good to know and appreciate the input. I’m not sure if I’ll pull the trigger in the coming days or hold out for 3ish weeks (when I anticipate annual bonus to get paid) and use the euphoria of a lump sum deposit to influence my spending decisions. 

You can also use your iron covers to smuggle cocaine in your bum.  I don't think you get in much trouble if they catch you down there.  

4 hours ago, hputenis said:

You can also use your iron covers to smuggle cocaine in your bum.  I don't think you get in much trouble if they catch you down there.  

my clubheads remain so nice!

I'm back from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.  Here's some thoughts and observations:

 

Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are bigger than you think.  I rented a car to see both provinces.  Nova Scotia is a little smaller than West Virginia, and New Brunswick is a little bigger than West Virginia.  Even little Prince Edward Island is about the size of Delaware.  Since much of these provinces are rural, in some places you need to take two-lane roads between destinations.

 

New Brunswick has nicer scenery than you would think.  The southeast corner of the province is probably the nicest, with the famous Hopewell Rocks, the Bay of Fundy and its tides, little valleys here and there, tidal bores on the rivers, and so on.  Moncton makes a nice base to explore this part of New Brunswick, and also venture into Nova Scotia or PEI.

 

In addition to being a nice central base for most of the Maritimes,

 

Halifax is a pretty cosmopolitan city.  It seemed to be the only cosmopolitan city in either province.  There are a lot of young people and people of different colors there, more than you would expect in a Maritime city in Canada.  There is also a gravitational pull to Halifax from around the province and even the other Maritime provinces.  They're building a lot of highrise condos there, too.

 

Halifax has a pretty nice waterfront along the harbor.  The Atlantic Maritime Museum seems interesting, but I did not have time for it.

 

The Halifax Public Gardens are a great place to spend a couple hours.

 

Lunenburg is a nice town to explore.  There's a ton of historic buildings and houses.

 

Windsor, Nova Scotia, is arguably the birthplace of hockey.  The first documented hockey game took place on a pond west of town.  The oldest hockey building in the world, circa 1894, is also in town.

the wife is pushing for a trip to italy this fall & worked up an itinerary with us staying 3 nights in rome, 2 in florence, & 2 in venice. seems kind of rushed to me but i've never been there before, so....

anyone whose been there before have an opinion on visiting these 3 cities in 8 days? is that enough time to see the main attractions?   

 

On 6/6/2024 at 9:29 AM, mr_hunt said:

the wife is pushing for a trip to italy this fall & worked up an itinerary with us staying 3 nights in rome, 2 in florence, & 2 in venice. seems kind of rushed to me but i've never been there before, so....

anyone whose been there before have an opinion on visiting these 3 cities in 8 days? is that enough time to see the main attractions?   

 

Spending the most time in Rome makes sense. Btw never been to Venice but I hear it smells like a ****house's outhouse.

In Rome they have "hop-on, hop-off" buses that make a continuous circuit through the city to most of the places tourists want to see. You buy your pass in the morning and you can get on or off at any of the stops all day. I can't recommend it enough - if you're on a time budget it's a super efficient way to see the sights.

I'd recommend doing a full day at the Vatican, though. You could probably use some churching up anyway. I also saw a really hot nun there. I was like... wow there are hot nuns? I actually went up and talked to her hoping to practice my Latin and she ended up being from Philly . She was like 24 and there on some kind of nun exchange. I really am going to hell.

Also, if you're doing your own hotel, I recommend staying near Termini station. There you can get a cab, bus, or train pretty much anywhere. We stayed here and it was a great value for what you get and a really good staff https://www.bestwestern.com/en_US/book/hotels-in-rome/best-western-premier-hotel-royal-santina/propertyCode.98296.html.

One other thing, breakfast is a very different concept in Italy - or at least Rome. They mostly just do coffee and some kind of pastry. They have these crowded little cafes where people are standing at a bar eating. You have to look around a little for a non-guido breakfast but they are there.

50 minutes ago, Arthur Jackson said:

Spending the most time in Rome, makes sense. Btw never been to Venice but I hear it smells like a ****house's outhouse.

In Rome they have "hop-on, hop-off" buses that make a continuous circuit through the city to most of the places tourists want to see. You buy your pass in the morning and you can get on or off at any of the stops all day. I can't recommend it enough - if you're on a time budget it's a super efficient way to see the sights.

I'd recommend doing a full day at the Vatican, though. You could probably use some churching up anyway. I also saw a really hot nun there. I was like... wow there are hot nuns? I actually went up and talked to her hoping to practice my Latin and she ended up being from Philly . She was like 24 and there on some kind of nun exchange. I really am going to hell

Also, if you're doing your own hotel, I recommend staying near Termini station. There you can get a cab, bus, or train pretty much anywhere. We stayed here and it was a great value for what you get and a really good staff https://www.bestwestern.com/en_US/book/hotels-in-rome/best-western-premier-hotel-royal-santina/propertyCode.98296.html.

One other thing, breakfast is a very different concept in Italy - or at least Rome. They mostly just do coffee and some kind of pastry. They have these crowded little cafes where people are standing at a bar eating. You have to look around a little for a non-guido breakfast but they are there.

In the overcrowded city of Rome, were you "accidentally” bumping into unsuspecting little, old Italian women with your tiny British nubbin, saying "Would you fancy going up the wooden hill to Bedfordshire with a micro-petered bloke?” 

3 hours ago, hputenis said:

In the overcrowded city of Rome, were you "accidentally” bumping into unsuspecting little, old Italian women with your tiny British nubbin, saying "Would you fancy going up the wooden hill to Bedfordshire with a micro-petered bloke?” 

sew your lips to @olsilverhair's bum, rear centipede

14 hours ago, mr_hunt said:

the wife is pushing for a trip to italy this fall & worked up an itinerary with us staying 3 nights in rome, 2 in florence, & 2 in venice. seems kind of rushed to me but i've never been there before, so....

anyone whose been there before have an opinion on visiting these 3 cities in 8 days? is that enough time to see the main attractions?   

 

I've never been to any of them, but if you drop one, drop Venice.  I hear it's overcrowded with tourists, like Times Square.  They also passed that tourist tax, where you have to pay to get into the city.  It's the first in the world.

 

Pisa is directly west of Florence, along the coast.  Maybe you can convince her to go to Pisa for 1 day instead of Venice for 2 days and get an extra day in Rome.  Rome is one of those cities, like London or New York City, where the number of things to see is completely overwhelming.  You could spend a month there and still have interesting stuff that you haven't seen.

10 hours ago, xzmattzx said:

I've never been to any of them, but if you drop one, drop Venice.  I hear it's overcrowded with tourists, like Times Square.  They also passed that tourist tax, where you have to pay to get into the city.  It's the first in the world.

 

Pisa is directly west of Florence, along the coast.  Maybe you can convince her to go to Pisa for 1 day instead of Venice for 2 days and get an extra day in Rome.  Rome is one of those cities, like London or New York City, where the number of things to see is completely overwhelming.  You could spend a month there and still have interesting stuff that you haven't seen.

thanks for the info.

i don't think i'd have any luck convincing the wife to drop venice since she thinks life is like a disney movie & won't be complete unless we do a romantic gondola ride through venice...since i'm a regular prince charming and all that. 

On 6/6/2024 at 9:29 AM, mr_hunt said:

the wife is pushing for a trip to italy this fall & worked up an itinerary with us staying 3 nights in rome, 2 in florence, & 2 in venice. seems kind of rushed to me but i've never been there before, so....

anyone whose been there before have an opinion on visiting these 3 cities in 8 days? is that enough time to see the main attractions?   

 

how many different cafes you trying to dine at bruh?

9 minutes ago, Agent23 said:

how many different cafes you trying to dine at bruh?

 

all of them.

I have some little notes on interesting things in Rome (at least to me), if you want them.  Most are related to Ancient Rome or the Catholic Church, as you can imagine.  A lot are relatively famous, but because they are not as famous as the Vatican or Colisseum, they may be overlooked.

On 6/6/2024 at 10:29 AM, mr_hunt said:

the wife is pushing for a trip to italy this fall & worked up an itinerary with us staying 3 nights in rome, 2 in florence, & 2 in venice. seems kind of rushed to me but i've never been there before, so....

anyone whose been there before have an opinion on visiting these 3 cities in 8 days? is that enough time to see the main attractions?   

 

I remember @eagle45 having some Italy experience.

5 hours ago, HazletonEagle said:

I remember @eagle45 having some Italy experience.

 

6 hours ago, xzmattzx said:

I have some little notes on interesting things in Rome (at least to me), if you want them.  Most are related to Ancient Rome or the Catholic Church, as you can imagine.  A lot are relatively famous, but because they are not as famous as the Vatican or Colisseum, they may be overlooked.

 

On 6/6/2024 at 10:29 AM, mr_hunt said:

the wife is pushing for a trip to italy this fall & worked up an itinerary with us staying 3 nights in rome, 2 in florence, & 2 in venice. seems kind of rushed to me but i've never been there before, so....

anyone whose been there before have an opinion on visiting these 3 cities in 8 days? is that enough time to see the main attractions?   

 

Italy is my single favorite place on Earth.  The best advice I can give you is to establish pacing that works for you and your wife.  I’ve been on trips where I did 3 continents, 7 cities, 5 flights, and a few work meetings/lectures in a week and savored every minute of it.  The second time I went to Rome, I stayed for 10 days and felt like I still did not peel back all the layers.  I’ve been to Rome probably 9-10 times and still haven’t seen it all.  But that doesn’t mean that you can’t experience any one of these cities in a meaningful way in as little as a day.  So you need to figure out what the maximum pace is that you and your traveling partners can enjoy.

First thing to consider is the jet lag / arrival day.  Between jet lag, international flights getting delayed, customs, etc…don’t plan on anything too ambitious.  

Rome: for any first timer, I like to allocate 1 day to the Vatican, 1 day to all the other big touristy sites (Colosseum, Piazza Navona, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon), and 1 day to walking the city, having wine and pasta in a cafe, etc.  Florence generally needs 1 day for the Duomo, Academia to see the David, plus one day to relax and meander about the city.  The Uffizi is one of the best museums in the world and can absorb weeks of your time…but if you’re not into that, it’s not necessarily mandatory viewing either.  Tuscany is on the doorstep of Florence and is amazing, but that’s best left for another time.  Venice gets so much criticism for being crowded, smelly, and touristy, but it’s so special if you do it right.  All the touristy stuff can be done in about a half day.  Check out the Rialto Bridge, Dodges Palace, St. Marks Square…and ride a gondola.  But the real highlight is finding a great restaurant on the grand canal and having a 3 hour lunch watching the boats go by. 

Put that all together and you really can do it all in that time frame.  You’ve got to keep the pace up and keep moving.  It depends on what works for you.  Some people would say it’s perfect and others would say they needed more time.  If you plan on returning, I would carve Italy into sections.  I like to combine a city with another resort-ish area.  Rome + Amalfi coast.  Florence + Tuscany.  Venice + Dolomites/Greece/Croatia.  Milan + Lake Como.  

I’d just add that Venice is amazing and is one of the most romantic, surreal, historic, and interesting cities on the planet.  The downside with Venice is that it’s very easy to do it wrong and have a bad time.  If you do it right, it can be incredible.  I’ll actually be in Venice in a few weeks as a gateway to some hiking in the Dolomites.  Venice has some of Italy’s best food (spaghetti and clams, razor clams, seafood carbonaras are the unique strengths)…but it also has Italy’s highest concentration of bad touristy restaurants.  So you have to be careful with where you eat.  

The gondola ride will make the wife happy for a long time.  Some of the bars on the grand canal have an ambiance that you wont beat anywhere in the world.  Venice is the best city on Earth for a bar crawl.  Puts New Orleans to terrible shame.  The terrace at the Gritti Palace is the ultimate place for a lunch and drinks on the grand canal.  Harry’s bar is where the Bellini was "invented.”  The rooftop at the Hotel Danieli is another rare spot.  You can hit 5 or so incredible spots for 1-2 drinks each on an easy stroll.

@eagle45 you should quit your lame job and just plan people's Italy vacations.

2 hours ago, eagle45 said:

I’d just add that Venice is amazing and is one of the most romantic, surreal, historic, and interesting cities on the planet.  The downside with Venice is that it’s very easy to do it wrong and have a bad time.  If you do it right, it can be incredible.  I’ll actually be in Venice in a few weeks as a gateway to some hiking in the Dolomites.  Venice has some of Italy’s best food (spaghetti and clams, razor clams, seafood carbonaras are the unique strengths)…but it also has Italy’s highest concentration of bad touristy restaurants.  So you have to be careful with where you eat.  

The gondola ride will make the wife happy for a long time.  Some of the bars on the grand canal have an ambiance that you wont beat anywhere in the world.  Venice is the best city on Earth for a bar crawl.  Puts New Orleans to terrible shame.  The terrace at the Gritti Palace is the ultimate place for a lunch and drinks on the grand canal.  Harry’s bar is where the Bellini was "invented.”  The rooftop at the Hotel Danieli is another rare spot.  You can hit 5 or so incredible spots for 1-2 drinks each on an easy stroll.

I've heard that to get good restaurants in enice, you need to get farther away from the Grand Canal.  It's akin to getting farther away from Times Square for an authentic NYC experience for someone from Nevada or Calgary or Europe.  Would you say the best restaurants are on the fringes of Venice?

 

What are your thoughts on the other islands besides Venice's islands in the lagoon?  Personally, I'm more interested in them than the tourist traps along the Grand Canal, if I ever make it there.

6 hours ago, xzmattzx said:

I've heard that to get good restaurants in enice, you need to get farther away from the Grand Canal.  It's akin to getting farther away from Times Square for an authentic NYC experience for someone from Nevada or Calgary or Europe.  Would you say the best restaurants are on the fringes of Venice?

 

What are your thoughts on the other islands besides Venice's islands in the lagoon?  Personally, I'm more interested in them than the tourist traps along the Grand Canal, if I ever make it there.

There is definitely truth to that, but there are exceptions.  The vast majority of tourist trap restaurants are scattered along the grand canal, but there are some amazing ones too.  As a general rule, if you are going to get good food on the grand canal, it’s only going to be at a very expensive Michelin guide type restaurant.  As you get further away, then you’ll find the down home cooking places that are delicious.  Anything that has that look on the grand canal probably won’t be so good.

I am an obsessive trip planner.  When I pick a restaurant abroad, I’ll check out TripAdvisor, yelp, Michelin guide, will ask the hotel for a list of their favorite, Fodors…in isolation any of those sources can lead you far astray, but anything that keeps popping up on all of them must be doing something right.  Check out the menus and food pics online…these days, even mom&pop fruit stands in the Moroccan desert have instagram pages for that info.

As far as the other islands, I actually still like Venice best.  Burano is less crowded and cute with the mini canals, but it doesn’t capture the scale and awe of the grand canal.  Murano is famous for the glass factory, but that wasn’t really my thing.  They do have tours and demonstrations there.  The Lido beaches are nice, but they are pretty far down the list of Italian beaches.