Blogs from Virginia, United States, North America - page 19

Geo: 39.0095, -77.4647When I originally booked our award tickets for this trip, there were multiple connection options for our return leg, to include Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Munich, and Frankfurt. I'd selected Brussels for the overall time savings, not to mention its easy connections. I purposely avoided Frankfurt, as connections there can be so cumbersome. For our rerouted return, beggars could not be choosers, and I was happy to have seats at all. Our connection now stretched to nearly 4 hours, which we would need, as the distances within the Frankfurt airport can be extreme, and then you have to factor in the second full security screening, which was understandably extra thorough in light of the still-recent Brussels attacks. We passed the time shopping and reading, and then ultimately dealing with the masses at the gate. As ... read more

Geo: 38.9821, -77.5386Our Spring Break trip this year was earlier than usual, thanks to the date upon which Easter fell and the Loudoun County Public Schools calendar. Coming in mid-March, the date literally snuck up on us. We had debated several options for a trip this year, and originally had booked a Mediterranean cruise. In the midst of my trying to arrange very complicated flights to accommodate that cruise, I stumbled upon a tour to Croatia and Slovenia, which happened to be with the same company we used for our Ecuador trip last year -- Gate1. We'd had success on that trip, and the itinerary for this one looked really good, so following a family meeting we elected to head for the Adriatic.... read more

I arrived back from India almost 5 days ago and am still processing the experience. Our guide, Singh, told our group that it would take several days for us to process all the experiences and he was absolutely right. I've had many people ask what was my favorite part of the trip and I've realized that I can't even begin to answer that question. The sights, the sounds, the smells, the tastes and the PEOPLE were all amazing and all made an impression in many different ways. And I know I've only seen a very small part of India. People tell me that Southern India is a whole different culture...I may just have to go back and see for myself! It is true that the poverty and crowding can be overwhelming at times. However, there is ... read more

Geo: 37.5605, -77.4792We flew out of Richmond early, and had an 8 hour layover in Miami. So, we grabbed a cab to South Beach, had lunch and a couple of drinks, and crashed on the beach.... read more

After a quick drive through the rest of Maryland and then Delaware we finally made it to Williamsburg, Virginia. We had decided we would explore Williamsburg, Jamestown, Yorktown and Virginia Beach. We visited Colonel Williamsburg which is a replica of things from the past. In Jamestown there is the archaeological site where they are digging up artifacts. It was interesting to see the real spot where things were. Then there is Jamestown Settlement which is like Colonial Williamsburg. Fun things to see and do there. We did the driving tour of Yorktown so I really didn't get any good pictures from there. The day we went to Virginia beach is was sunny and warm. The boardwalk and beaches are gorgeous. I can see why people go there in the summertime. I hope you enjoy the pictures. ... read more