vacation – Destination NOW

Arrivederci Switzerland, Ciao Italia

We have mainly lucked out with the weather during our stay in Lugano, Switzerland. The only exception was our arrival and departure nights, when it rained heavily. It wasn’t a problem for our departure night, because we were content to stay in the hotel, packing and resting. Arrival night, however, was another story. After checking into our hotel, we took a brief orientation walk. We got DRENCHED! No photos — just imagine what 15 wet rats looked like!

Luckily, the next morning was breathtakingly gorgeous, so Susan and I took advantage of our group’s 10 AM departure to take an early morning walk around Lake Lugano.

But wait…I almost forgot about our drive TO Lugano. As is usually the case with OAT trips, our drive was broken up by stops in interesting places. The first was Candelo, a very old walled village that was used as a refuge and to store food should marauding bands try to rape, pillage and plunder. Today, it is a refuge for shoppers and hungry travelers.

The gift shop where I bought “prizes” from this artist

Our next stop was this small winery. If my sister, Sandy had been with us, she would have instantly fallen in love with the owner before the end of the tour.

As for me, I was far more interested in the wine and its beautiful labels.

Of the four wines we tasted, my favorite was the last — the Gattinara, of which the winery only makes 3,000 bottles per year.

I decided it was the perfect gift for my favorite chef. When I get back to New Jersey, he promised to delight me with his excellent polenta, which is far more delicious than any a I’ve had here in Italy.

So once we got to Lugano. How did we spend our time?

One day, we hiked along the “olive trail”, a beautiful , narrow mountain path along the lake. It was well worth climbing the 270 steps (yes, I counted, but only the steps UP; like my Apple Watch, I figured the down steps weren’t worth counting). Our reward? Four different kinds of chocolate, supplied by Luca.

According to my Apple Watch, I climbed the equivalent of 28 flights of stairs that day! (Thank you, Somerset Hills YMCA).

This isn’t a great photo, but I’m including it because Luca told us that on the OAT trip he guided last summer, the travelers stripped to their underwear and jumped into the lake right here! I imagine that was quite a sight. Fortunately, it wasn’t so hot, and I suspect none of our group was so inclined.

Good thing, because we wouldn’t have had time to dry off before our funicular ride to the very top of Monte Bre.

To be more accurate, we actually rode TWO funiculars to get to the top, where we enjoyed this majestic view ( and of course, took a group photo).

Jodie and Dan very graciously shared the food they had purchased earlier at the supermarket in town with Susan, Luca and I. To walk off the calories, we strolled down and back to the villa we spotted below.

I know everyone is curious about the day’s step count: 21,157 steps, just a hair under 10 miles!

For our last full day in Lugano , 8 of us chose to take the optional trip to Lake Como. This was a particularly great day for me, because our ferry sailed by Tremezzo. Let me tell you, I was absolutely thrilled that I remember — and spotted the hotel where I stayed in 2018!

I recognized the hotel’s tower, which brought back memories of our wonderful trip to the Dolomites before Covid rocked our world. If you are interested, click on the underlined word in the paragraph above to access the 2018 post, which includes a photo of the tower’s interior.

THIS time, we visited a different villa, the Villa del Balbianello.

This absolutely gorgeous villa was the setting for scenes in Casino Royale and Star Wars II.

It is also a very popular spot for photos, with the “models” queuing up, patiently waiting for their turn, including these ladies. It wasn’t hard to figure out which was the photographer and which was the photographed.

There was a bit of drama, when a photographer asked a bystander to move out of the background. I was relieved to hear that the entitled, bitchy bystander had a German accent, not an American one, when she berated the photographer for what I considered to be a polite, reasonable request.

The last owner, Guido Monzino, never married, so he bequeathed the villa and its contents to the Italian National Trust when he died in 1988.

Our tour ended with an incredibly delicious lunch, that was SO filling, that even I who never misses a meal, skipped dinner that night.

These last photos are designed to have you scratching your heads, thinking “what the …”

Here’s the story. I had thought that the shower head was in the same position I’d left it the day before. But no. The maid had turned it so it faced the ceiling. As a result, the entire bathroom got drenched, including the floor, door, mirror, toilet seat, etc. What a memorable way to end my stay in Lugano!

Biella, Italy

What?! You never heard of Biella? Before this trip, neither had I. That’s one of the many reasons I choose to travel with OAT. Their itineraries include places I didn’t know I wanted to visit until I got there.

Our hotel, the Agora Palace, is across the street from a beautiful park. Unlike the USA, Biella has public sources of pure mountain water, like this one, from which you can fill your water bottle.

Also near our hotel is a small mall with a grocery store and an inexpensive clothing shop. Because the weather has been unseasonably warm, and we were ALL expecting cold temperatures, most of us went shopping for lightweight clothes. For 30 Euros, I got a tee shirt, shorts and a long skirt. I wasn’t crazy about the slit in the long skirt, but that’s all Piazza Italia had in stock. (That’s the name of the store).

Before we arrived, Luca explained Biella is a quiet town, without much going on, so we were a little surprised when we encountered this:

Turns out, an “old car” race with over 100 cars was taking place that night. We were a little puzzled by the cars departing one at a time, but we learned it was a TIMED race, and unlike most “races” , the speed was not the point. It was actually an opportunity to show off your old car. Supposedly, the race went on all night!

Babes, band & cars — in a “sleepy” town??

As I mentioned in an earlier post, we were unable to visit the ice cave in Chamonix, so Luca negotiated with the OAT office to replace THAT activity with vermouth tasting at a historic bar.

We were all quite delighted with the change in activities!

Our second day in Biella started with a guided tour of the city’s highlights, namely churches, including this baptistry.

We’ve all seen churches, and the remainder looked like every other church I’ve visited, so I took no photos.

We then hopped onto a bus, which whisked us up to the old section of Biella, where we toured La Palazzo La Marmora. Here’s another reason I love OAT. The palace is normally closed on Sunday, but it was opened just for us.

Our guide, the marquis, was a member of the illustrious family, whose tree adorned the dining room wall.

To say the artwork and antiques were interesting would be an understatement.

The matriarch who commissioned the following family portrait gave birth to 16 children. The girls all moved away after marriage, so the artist had to visit the homes of the daughters to create “sketches” that he later incorporated into the portrait. Of course, the gathering of all surviving children portrayed in the painting never occurred. (Was this the forerunner of Photoshop or AI?)

I thought I could figure out who was who by matching the clothing, but apparently the artist preferred different outfits.

The 4 sons on the upper right were all generals in the Crimean war. So what do you do when a cannonball almost kills you? Why, if you are a member of nobility, you bring it home, melt it down and recycle it into a chair.

One final example of the artwork, before we move on.

For some unknown reason, the marquis didn’t point out this mural on the dining room wall. Perhaps he didn’t want to have to explain what his ancestors were thinking about while they were munching on their Cheerios?

After the tour, most of the group chose to take an optional cooking class, but Susan and I decided to skip it. Instead, we had lunch in upper Biella at the “Hasta La Polenta” restaurant. How could we resist a restaurant sporting a plaque that said ( in Italian) “Ernest Hemingway never was here”?

I absolutely LOVE the Italian sense of humor. Take a look at the English translations on their menu.

Of course, after our entree, we HAD to have dessert. Here’s Susan, showing off her selection.

After our wonderfully filling lunch, Susan and I worked off some of our dessert by walking back to the hotel.

By then it was time to get ready for a “home hosted” dinner with Marcelo and Claudia in their historical home, built in the 1800’s.

Our group of 14 split up to have dinner with 3 different families.

For final day we visited a cheese farm, to partake in what OAT calls “A day in the life”. As the name suggests, OAT travelers are given an opportunity to experience the area’s daily life. The best part? We walked part of the way there — and the weather was perfect!

We all got a chance to “make” cheese, while we learned more about Elisa, our host. Although she has a degree in economics, Elisa decided she preferred to take over her grandparents’ cheese making business.

OAT group at a Day in the Life, with our hosts

We ended the day with a visit to (what else) the church complex at Oropa.

This “new” church was built for a papal visit

The original church incorporated this rock into its wall, presenting the perfect backdrop for yet another group photo.

Dinner was on our own, so four of us went for pizza at Doppio Zero. It was very good, but very different.

Next stop Lugano, Switzerland.

The Alps with OAT

Okay, so plan A was to spend most of the month of May on the OAT trip to Azerbaijan and Turkey, but when OAT canceled the pre-tip to Azerbaijan because of its proximity to Iran, I decided it was time to activate Plan B. Turkey ALSO shares a small part of its eastern border with Iran, and because US leadership is wildly unpredictable these days, I decided not to take a chance. It’s too bad, because I was really looking forward to travel with my buddy Janis. Maybe we will travel to Turkey in the future, once things settle down.

I was really lucky to discover OAT’s Alpine Europe trip was not only deeply discounted, but it also had single availability AND the timing was perfect. This particular departure offers neither pre nor post trips, but that suited me just fine.

Ignore those boxes on the map at the top of this post. Instead, follow the red arrows. I flew into Geneva a day before the tour starts, got picked up at the airport and driven to Chamonix, a small town at the base of Mont Blanc, about an hour away. Eventually 18 days later I will end up in Innsbruck, Austria.

There are 14 of us on this trip, 4 couples, and 6 singles. We are already a very congenial group, with 12 of us choosing to have dinner together for what was supposed to be an “on your own” night.

Luca, our trip leader, took this “selfie”

The restaurant Luca chose, The Rose du Pont, is located right by the river, which winds thru the center of Chamonix.

Earlier that day, I had hiked along the river walk and saw that I could have booked a river rafting trip,

or gone paragliding, had I planned ahead.

Only joking…walking along the river is as adventurous as I get these days.

In the afternoon, I took advantage of the pool and whirlpool. The outdoor hot tub and sauna were being cleaned today, so I wasn’t able to use them, but we have another full day here, so maybe.

I’ll end the first day of our tour with two night shots. The first is of four of the “single ladies”, with Mont Blanc clearly visible behind us.

The second is the night view from my balcony.

Hawaii – with Family

I have been WAY behind in my blogging, so as I cool my heels at the airport, I decided to use the time productively by writing about last April’s trip with Sandy’s daughter and granddaughters. San would have LOVED this trip and I would have loved to have her sharing my room with me!

I had been to Hawaii twice before. My initial Hawaiian experience was when I was 26, on my first ever business trip, with Harper & Row publishers. We spent early December 2025 on the “Big Island” at the Mona Kea Resort. Fortunately, we didn’t have cell phone back then to immortalize the scandalous goings on.

My second trip was to Maui, another business trip, this time with Prudential in 1986. That’s when I discovered I really, REALLY liked red wine.

My third trip will be my first pure vacation, with Kristen, Katherine (13 years old) and Bonnie (12 years old). Because we will be going during their April 2026 spring break, and time was limited, we decided to stay in Oahu on Waikiki Beach.

I was surprised to find that Costco had some really great packages. I decided against using them for airfare. Although the pricing was attractive, the flights were decidedly not. Given that Kristen and the girls already had to endure long flights from and back to Boston, I wanted to make it as painless as I possibly could.

We met at the Denver airport, then flew together to Honolulu

Costco came through with a great price for the Outrigger Reef Hotel, right on Waikiki Beach. The package came with lots of perks, like entrance to the gorgeous lounge, which offered complete breakfasts and late afternoon snacks that were substantial enough to serve as our dinners, accompanied by as much wine or soft drinks as desired.

Also in the package was a $250 credit for the poolside restaurant (which paid for 2 lunches for the 4 of us) and a Costco gift card to use upon return.

Because I had heard so much about Pearl Harbor, I decided to book a tour there, right after the lei lesson. What I hadn’t counted on was Mark, our instructor, seemed intent on talking about everything except how to make leis. I finally told him I had to leave for my Pearl Harbor tour in 30 minutes, which prompted him to dub me, “Miss Arizona”.

The three girls weren’t interested in visiting Pearl Harbor, so they instead took a trolley tour around the island. I think they made the wiser choice. I’m not sure why people go on and on about Pearl Harbor. I was decidedly unimpressed.

Because we had so many activities planned, we didn’t take advantage of as many of the resort programs as I initially expected. As usual the girls wanted to do different things.

Katherine had wanted to go surfing and Bonnie chose snorkeling, so I signed them both up for both activities. Thanks to my son, Greg, I used ChatGPT to help me narrow down the choices for activity vendors.

We were able to walk to the surf lesson at a nearby beach. Initially, I was annoyed because I had wanted the two of them to take a private lesson for two. My thinking was that they would be scheduled at the same time and it would be easier for us to watch them both. Because Bonnie was under 13, the company insisted that she have her own instructor, so they each got a private lesson. That turned out to be best, given how many other people were in the water. They BOTH were able to stand on their boards, but they were too far out for me to capture them riding the waves. Although a photographer was in the water with them, you could only buy a package for $80 each ($160 total). Sadly, they didn’t sell individual videos or photos. It was all or nothing.

I don’t remember which surf company we used, but I recall that we used the Honolulu Snorkel Company for our snorkeling adventure.

We were unable to drive there, so we took a taxi. The driver didn’t put on his meter and attempted to overcharge me. Because I knew the cost per mile and (thanks to Google Maps) the distance, I did the math and told him what the fare should have been. He agreed to pick us up and bring us back to the hotel for no additional charge — which was a fair price for round trip.

Upon arrival, we learned that the private guide I booked had been in an accident that morning, so I decided to just stay on the boat rather than join the snorkelers. It was a good decision, because both Bonnie and Katherine got stung by jellyfish. Fortunately, they were BABY jellyfish, so the damage was minimal, but still. The company KNEW that when the wind shifted direction, baby jellyfish were blown into the area, but no one warned us. Despite the stings, the girls had a good time, and didn’t complain about the stings at all.

Another fun activity was riding an outrigger canoe at the beach. We rowed out, then rode the waves back to shore.

We were able to walk to the luau that I had booked but I was disappointed to see that it was in the center of a nearby MALL. The food wasn’t great, but the audience participation was lots of fun. We all got tattoos:

Bonnie was invited onto the stage to join the drummers, and the dancers were excellent!

The following image was taken at the mall, but ChatGPT changed the background to make it look like the girls were on a beach with the “fire eater”. Where is Katherine, you ask? Well, she’s 13, so she doesn’t always want to have her photo taken.

All in all, it was a memorable, wonderful way to spend time with my three favorite girls! I got to sit with Bonnie on the flight to Oahu and Katherine on the way back. It doesn’t get much better than that!

The Falkland Islands

Whoever said “All good things must come to an end” was certainly right about this trip. It has been abso-bloody- lutely FANTASTIC. Every time I thought it couldn’t possibly get any better it DID.

Our four days in the Falklands were magical!

Here are some highlights, not in any particular order:

Eating in unusual spots:

Tea in the ship’s laundry room, and in a beautiful little cottage after a hike,

the garden outside the cottage, and in line for the barbecue at a different venue, on a sheep farm.

Sorry, no photos of the barbecue. My hands were full of delicious food, and then I was so caught up in the moment, I forgot to take a picture.

Hiking, hiking and MORE hiking

Wonderful friendships

I wasn’t able to find photos of ALL the friends I made on this trip, but here are a few of my favorites:

Interesting Sights

Lichen on rocks Dennis the naturalist told us ALL about them.

Animals animals and MORE animals

Partying down with the ship’s staff

On our last night in the Falklands, as we set sail for Ushuaia, the ship’s staff put on a very joyous show for us.

Most of the ship’s staff are Philippine, so they dressed up in traditional costumes and danced around the room, to the delight of all.

To end the evening, we were all invited to shake our booties, and we DID.

Our last night, we were able to thank our hard working staff:

Carlos, Marketa and Chef Sarah who were responsible for the wonderful meals ( and my considerable weight gain!)

And our captain, who was Scandinavian and therefore had an unpronounceable name spelled with unrecognizable letters.

I think he might have been with the penguins too long. Do you think he’s adopted the macaroni penguin’s hairdo?

Okay, so now you’ve heard about our wonderful experiences on the trip. My next post will be about Ushuaia and our return home.

Departing from Buenos Aires

When we traveled to Antarctica in 2011, we went via Santiago. This time, I am flying to Ushuaia through Buenos Aires.

My journey started in Newark. I was amazed at how empty Newark’s airport was. I left home slightly before 11 AM; by 11:50 I had checked my bag, been through security, changed into my Houston/Buenos Aires clothes in the Polaris lounge bathroom and was enjoying the excellent buffet.

My first flight was to Houston. Because I used miles and points to book my flight, I traveled business class for both segments. Let me tell ya, domestic business class isn’t worth it. International business class, however, DEFINITELY is!

I normally sit on the aisle, but for the Houston flight, I had a window seat. Sadly, when the flight attendant attempted to pass me my lunch tray, I managed to knock a full glass of red wine over myself and the very gracious man sitting next to me. But in my defense, the passenger in the seat in front of me had his seat all the way back, so the clearance was really tight.

As luck would have it, my friend Sharmon’s younger daughter, Sol flew from San Francisco to Buenos Aires and we both had a stop in Houston around the same time. We were on the same flight from Houston to Buenos Aires, so we hung out in the United Club. The time went by MUCH faster because we spent the two hour layover catching up.

I almost didn’t recognize Sweet Sol, because the last time I saw her, she had long blondish hair, no glasses, and wasn’t wearing a mask. She pretended not to notice I smelled like the frat house the morning after a wild party. But then again, stale wine doesn’t smell as bad as stale beer.

Because Sol holds dual citizenship, she was able to whisk thru passport control WAY ahead of me. It took over an hour for me to get thru. HELPFUL HINT: if you’re coming to Argentina, visit the bathroom BEFORE getting in the passport control line. Don’t ask how I came to that conclusion. Let’s just say I was jiggling a lot.

I’d been to Buenos Aires twice before, so I didn’t feel compelled to see Evita’s grave or the Opera House. Instead I figured I’d enjoy the beautiful hotel, and I certainly did.

Check out the rooftop pool:

The view was so spectacular, and the pool was so glorious, I used it on Friday AND Saturday.

My son Greg clued me in to the wonders of ChatGPT. So, when I was unable to find any cafes full of people having lunch outside near Alvear Art Hotel, I asked ChatGPT.

I ended up choosing a delightful cafe about a mile away, which allowed me to stroll thru some very interesting streets.

Waiting for the elevator before tonight’s information session, I met Leslie, another solo traveler. Like me, she’s a widow who is comfortable traveling alone. Her cabin will be across the hall from me.

We had a lovely cocktail “hour”. I’ll admit that our table was having so much fun, we had to be asked to leave! And yes, we closed the place down.

Probably a good thing because we have to be on the bus by 7AM tomorrow. I had hoped for a later departure because Buenos Aires is much closer to Ushuaia than Santiago. But nope. Same departure time as it was in 2011.

Who knows whether I’ll have connectivity once I board the ship, so I’m sending this off now.

Yes, indeed, I’m excited and thrilled that I have already discovered such congenial travel mates.

Antarctica

The first time I went to Antarctica was in January of 2011. At that time, my friends thought Mike, Greg and I had completely lost our minds. “WHY in the world would you want to go THERE?” was the most frequent comment we received from friends and family.

Although Mike was retired, Greg and I were employed, so we were limited to a 15 day journey, 10 days with the National Geographic tour and 5 days on our own traveling to and from Santiago via Lima.

THIS time I’m retired, going solo, so I am able to spend 24 days traveling beyond the Antarctic peninsula to the South Georgia and the Falkland Islands. Instead of meeting the group in Santiago, I’m traveling to Buenos Aires. As with last time, however, we are flying to Ushuaia where we will board the ship, then sail through the dreaded Drake Passage. (Yes, my doctor gave me an adequate supply of seasickness patches. They worked well last time for me and Greg, not as effective for Mike.)

Photo from 2011, taken at the end of our voyage

So why in the world am I going again?

Where else can you experience creatures so unafraid that they follow YOU?

Where else can you see so many different shades of blue and white?

Or learn about the different seals and penguins living in this frozen wonderland?

But won’t it be cold?

Yes, sometimes it is cold, but National Geographic’s trip cost includes matching parkas for those times. (Laura,one of my trip leaders said “there is no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing choices”.)

Sometimes it’s warm enough to have a cookout on the back deck wearing just a sweater (and a smile) over your tee shirt.

The best part was traveling with National Geographic experts: Photographers, naturalists, geologists, penguin and whale experts. We would gather in the bar every evening for presentations by those experts, showing us how they spent their day.

The walls of the bar/lounge were covered with big screen TVs so no matter where you sit, you still would have a great view.

Fifteen years ago, our ship was the Explorer. This time, I’ll be sailing on the Endurance, a newer ship serving 126 passengers, with 8 cabins for us traveling solo. I’m not sure how effective the internet is at the bottom of our planet. 15 years ago, I didn’t have a smart phone or a blog so it wasn’t an issue.

I hope you’ll join me on this adventure; I’ll be posting when the spirit moves me and the internet grants me connectivity.

OAT VS TAUCK

I’ve had several friends ask me to compare and contrast these two travel companies.

Full disclosure: I have only taken one Tauck tour, to India, in late October, 2025.

I have taken over 20 OAT tours, to every continent except Antarctica, with the most recent one being to Costa Rica. Obviously, I’m far more familiar with Overseas Adventure Travel.

Having said that, BOTH are excellent companies, and you won’t go wrong choosing to travel with either. It was either Socrates or Elvis ( maybe both) who said “Know thyself”. And that’s the most important factor in determining which travel company to select. It all boils down to what kind of experience will make you happiest.

Let’s start with what BOTH companies have in common.

Both offer small group options. OAT’s maximum is 16; Tauck’s is 25, however I have been on OAT trips with only 9 travelers. There were 17 on my only trip with Tauck.

Both offer large group options: OAT uses its sister company, Grand Circle, which maxes out around 44. Tauck’s big groups are similar sized.

Both have excellent trip leaders, whose job is to oversee all aspects of your experience. They choose the local guides, the restaurants, and add additional experiences that are not on the published itinerary. If an OAT trip leader doesn’t get high ratings on the customer survey, they are not rehired. Not sure whether the same applies to Tauck.

Both allow for free time and meals on your own, with the trip leader available to offer suggestions.

Both include cultural activities.

Both take care of tipping, except for trip leaders. Tauck also takes care of tips for hotel housekeeping; OAT does not. OAT tips the bus drivers, Tauck does not if you have the same bus driver for most of the trip.

Both will handle airfare, however both will allow you to make your own flight arrangements. OAT includes the cost of the flight in their quoted prices on their website, Tauck does not. If you choose not to use OAT for your flight, you simply deduct the airfare cost from the total price.

So what’s different? The biggest difference is the cost of the trip. Tauck is significantly more expensive. However if you only take one or two trips per year, and you want to have your every need taken care of, Tauck is an excellent option.

I’m not at that point yet. My preference, RIGHT NOW, is more trips, less luxury.

PRE-TRIP INFORMATION

I really like the booklet OAT mails out a couple of weeks before the trip starts. It includes helpful hints, the full itinerary, the hotel names and addresses, and a list of the group participants.

With Tauck, you won’t know how many are traveling with you until you get there. At our introductory meeting, our trip leader gave us a piece of paper with the names of our fellow travelers and would email (and print out) info about the following days. I strongly prefer having the booklet because all of the info is in one place, which makes it handy for taking notes.

Being slightly obsessive compulsive, I like being able to plan in advance for free time.

The trip leaders from both companies send travelers a welcome email, full of helpful information but OAT travelers who have taken more than 3 trips, also get a phone call from the trip leader who can then answer any questions one might have.

WEBSITE

Although both companies offer websites from which you can print out your itinerary, I find the OAT website far easier to use. I thought it was because I was more familiar with OAT’S website, but Joann, one of my favorite fellow travelers, said she felt the same way about Tauck’s website—that it wasn’t easy to find what you were looking for.

ARRIVAL

If you buy your airfare from OAT, you also get transfers to and from the airport included. If not, you can either pay OAT for transfers or arrange your own.

With Tauck, transfers are automatically included in the price of the trip. Because I made my own flight arrangements, I can’t comment on flight services Tauck provides, but I CAN say that they do everything possible to make sure your arrival goes smoothly.

HOTELS

Both companies select clean, safe, comfortable hotels, but with Tauck, replace the word “comfortable” with “ luxurious”, at least that was my experience in India.

OAT and Tauck, however, were using the same hotel during my stay in Halifax. For the Egypt trip, both used the exquisite Aswan’s Cataract Hotel.

On the whole, however, I believe Tauck tends to use the best hotel in the area, generally 5 star, while OAT usually choose hotels by location, normally within walking distance to restaurants and sights.

I think the best comparison I can come up with is Four Seasons (Tauck) versus Marriott or Hilton, except OAT tends to choose local, non chain lodgings. Because I have taken so many trips with OAT, I know that the hotels vary greatly from one country to another. In Morocco, for example, the riads were over the top gorgeous,

While in Costa Rica, they were more rustic.

FOOD

Based on my sole experience with Tauck, I would say that the food on their trip is truly outstanding. The buffet breakfasts offered an amazing array of choices,

while the OAT breakfasts tend to offer the basics, with little variety.

Tauck, like OAT, had some included meals at which we were all served the same.

Generally for OAT, there are lots of buffets.

For some of Tauck’s included meals, on the India trip, at least, we were offered a choice of restaurants, and were able to order whatever we wanted from the menu.

Although OAT’s included meals offered limited choices, the group always dines together at the same time and at the same restaurant. For solo travelers this could be a huge plus, particularly if the other travelers prefer to dine with their travel companion(s)

BEVERAGES

Both companies offer some included alcoholic drinks, but you are free to purchase whatever you want.

LOYALTY PROGRAM

This is an area in which OAT excels. People who have taken multiple trips with OAT are recognized with pins, gifts, and special perks (which vary by trip leader), plus a host of other financial incentives.

FINANCIAL INCENTIVES – OAT

All travelers get a percentage of the cost of the trip if they take another OAT trip within the following two years.

If you recommend OAT to someone who has never traveled with them before, you each get a $100 credit. The friend saves $100 immediately, and the “recommender” gets $100 toward a future trip.

After 10 OAT trips, if you take more than one trip in a given year, you save $350 per subsequent trip. Before your 10th trip, you save $250 per subsequent trip in a year, but I have forgotten if you need to take a minimum number of trips for that credit to kick in.

It all adds up. Especially for someone like me, who LOVES to travel.

OTHER TRAVELERS

The group on the sole Tauck trip I’ve taken was wonderful! That was also the case with most of my OAT trips. (As one would expect, occasionally you get one or two clunkers, when you take over 20 trips with the same company).

If I had only taken the Costa Rica trip, I would be exclaiming how outstanding OAT travelers are.

That’s all I can think of. Feel free to correct any misconceptions and add your experiences with either company in the comments section.

Tortuguero, Costa Rica

Our farewell dinner took place at L’Olvio, the Italian restaurant around the corner from our hotel. The food was great, but this is definitely not a restaurant to frequent if you are in a hurry. It was an hour before our food started to arrive, one dinner at a time. But the food was very good, and luckily, we were not in a rush.

Randy managed to get everyone (except himself) into one photo,

so I fixed that by taking this photo of him with his lovely wife,Cindy. I’m so glad that they are coming on the post trip, along with Mike and Jo-Lynne, Jolene and me.

The start of OAT’s post trip was a little sad, because we had to say goodbye to Esther, Cindy, Edwin, Lee Fa, Phil, Marianne, and Lester.

We will miss them all greatly, but especially Edwin’s superb translation skills, and Phil’s excellent photos. At least we still have Malo, who is an amazing photographer. I’m sure he will miss Edwin the most, because Malo will now have to do ALL the translations…no breaks for him!

Before we posed at the airport, I told Randy I’d hang all over him so he looks like he travels with TWO chicks. Is it my imagination, or does he look a little worried? Cindy was rightfully unconcerned.

I’m glad the 7 of us were the only passengers because the plane was TINY! So how many times do you think I bumped my head?

Our boarding pass was almost as big as the airplane!

Here’s what Mike and Jo-Lynne think about our flight. They were in the second row. Now how did THEY get to be in business class?

Because we were flying so low, we were able to get a spectacular view of Costa Rica, starting with the arial view of San Jose,

and ending with the Caribbean Sea.

We still had another leg of our journey, because you can only get to Tortuguero by boat. No cars or buses are allowed on what is essentially a sand bar and yep, I bumped my head yet again climbing into the boat.

We had just enough time to watch a short video about the efforts to save turtles from extinction and walk into town before we checked into our lodge.

Where did our group end up? In a bar, overlooking the river, of course.

Malo told us that Tortuguero’s nickname is “the little Amazon” because of the abundance of wildlife along the river. That was also the case by our lodge’s pool. For those of us willing to get up early, (Jolene and me) Malo offered to take us on an optional tour starting at 6 AM. Our reward? Rare footage of a spider monkey pooping,

and having the jungle (and pool area) all to ourselves.

Because weather has always been somewhat unpredictable in the tropics, and now even more so due to climate change, we were very grateful we were given ponchos for our morning cruise.

It’s impossible to show how hard the rain came down!

Despite the poncho, I still got soaked, but the wildlife we saw made the intermittent showers inconsequential.

Tonight is our last night at the Pachira Lodge. Our return to San Jose is first by boat, then by bus. We spend the night in San Jose and fly home the next morning.

My last afternoon in this paradise was spent by the river, with a tropical drink, catching up with some of the important people in my life and writing this post. The perfect ending to a wonderful trip!

Next adventure, Antarctica in February.

La Fortuna, Costa Rica

Up until day 7 and 8, we had been incredibly lucky. Although it rained periodically, it seemed to happen only when we were on the bus, in a restaurant, or back in the hotel. Until La Fortuna. That was where our fortunes changed.

It was impossible to see the Arenal Volcano during our morning hike,

but I took pictures when Mike, Augusta and I were here in February of 2007. Back then, it was quite active. We were even able to see the bright red lava flows at night from our hotel room.

When we walked in the National Park, it was raining so hard, even my underwear was soaked, despite wearing a rain jacket. These days, if it’s not fun, I ain’t doing it, so halfway through the hike, 5 of us returned to the bus.

Marianne got creative. She took a black plastic shopping bag and with Edwin’s help, made holes in the sides so she could stick her arms through to keep her red jacket dry.

Those of us who chose to forgo the hike DID get to see Lake Arenal from the bus as we were leaving the park. Sorta.

Here’s the 2007 view.

Some brave souls decided to go zip lining despite the rain. Having ziplined twice before, I opted to return to the hotel. Had I known about the Tarzan swing, I might have made a different decision. But probably not.

Les, on the zip line.

Marianne, channeling her inner Tarzan. Jane??

Costa Rica has micro climates, so although it was pouring a few miles away, it wasn’t raining at our hotel. I walked the grounds, where I discovered multiple private hot tubs. Oh, to be with that special someone on a sunny day!

On our second day in La Fortuna, we cruised the Rio Frio, to search for wildlife.

I briefly regretted not bringing my camera, but I was very grateful for my binoculars.

Even with binoculars, it was NOT easy to spot the wildlife.

Were you able to find the “Jesus Christ” lizard in the first photo? For the second photo, I used my phone’s zoom, which is clearly not as powerful as my camera’s.

Why Jesus Christ lizard? Because the basilisk lizard (official name) looks as if he can walk (run) across water.

Check out the difference in quality of these monkey photos. The first was taken with a phone, (by one of the other travelers); the second is from the 2007 trip with my Panasonic LUMIX, way before cellphones had cameras.

Our guide posted photos of the birds we saw in WhatsApp. Of all the birds we observed, the kingfisher was my favorite.

Before our cruise ended, we made it to the Costa Rica/ Nicaragua border, where Malo took this photo of our wonderful group.

My very favorite highlight of our time in La Fortuna was our dinner at Selva Rustica. Raul, our bus driver, offered to take us to and from the restaurant, which was a very good thing because it was raining heavily ALL evening.

We all agreed that this was the best meal of the entire trip, so far. Sorry, Malo. From now on, we are going with Raul’s restaurant recommendations. Although we each ordered something different, we were all very happy with our choices. My grilled tuna atop vegetables and potatoes was heavenly.

Have you ever had a flaming margarita? With a blue Jell-O shot in the bottom of the glass? Neither had I. This was definitely a video worthy experience. Thanks to Phil for capturing the moment.

Next stop, Guanacaste.

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