A Trip with a Difference

Sydney
Clive and I are in trip mode once again, heading off next week to visit family in England and the U.S. and to spend some ‘just us’ time in Paris.
Earlier this year, I wrote a Passion for Travel series, in which I described a number of our travel tips and techniques, beginning with a master trip [...]

Hungry Heart: Counting the Days in Paris

Sydney
Clive and I depart in about a month for our next trip to Paris, England, and the U.S.  We’ll be spending seventy-three nights away from our home in Sydney.
Fourteen of them will be in Paris.
Only fourteen will be in Paris.  How can this be?  How can we be away for seventy-three nights and only spend [...]

U.S. Airlines, Infrastructure, and Attitude

Sydney
Yesterday we booked flights for our next trip to Paris, England, and the U.S.  As I’ve written about in previous posts, we have a global family, and try to see them, especially our aging parents, as often as possible.
We’re not using any U.S. airlines, and a U.S. family member asked if it wouldn’t be best to do so.  [...]

My New Netbook

Sydney
Until recently, I hadn’t considered purchasing a netbook, a smaller, lighter version of a laptop.
My partner, Clive, subscribes to two Australian computer magazines, and we’ve talked on and off for some time about netbooks as an option for travel.  While Clive is a multi-media power user (I call him my IT guru), my computing demands [...]

Family Globalisation: A New Way to Stay Connected

3 More Things to Take, but Small, Light, and Worth It

Sydney
We found a new way to stay connected on our recent three-month trip.  The technology is still evolving, and we’re not sure it’s the best solution available, but it was a huge step forward in our ability to communicate, conduct personal and professional business long-distance, and [...]

Currency Conversion Fee Class Action Lawsuit

Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey, U.S.A.
On top of everything else we’re doing in the U.S., I received a formal letter stating I needed to provide additional information to the settlement administrator for the Currency Conversion Fee Antitrust Litigation lawsuit.
In an earlier post, “Why Should They Have It? How to Avoid Currency Conversion Fees,” I wrote about my longstanding practice [...]

Asia 101: How Not to Get to Paris

Beijing, Tuesday morning
Why are we in China?  From Sydney, Beijing is not on the way to Paris.  It’s 17 degrees Centigrade, with sunshine and bright blue skies.  Paralympic greeters are all around us.
What’s happened so far:
Update from Paris, Tuesday night:  the Air France flight from Beijing to Paris was fine.  Our journey time was 42 hours, [...]

Why Should They Have It? How to Avoid Currency Fees

Sydney
“Why should they have it?”  says my partner, Clive.  They = those who charge outrageous currency fees.  It = our money. 
Clive taught me a simple method, which I think is quite clever, for saving currency fees at both ends of a trip.  When we were planning our first overseas journey together a few years ago, [...]

Travel Planning: Vote Early

Sydney
How important is voting?  Today we went to the Returning Officer of the Electoral District of Manly to get our ballot papers for the September 13 local government election.
Clive and I share the longstanding belief that it’s a privilege and a responsibility to vote, whether in person or long-distance.  We’ll be away for the this [...]

Getting to Paris: The Long Way

 
Sydney
After spending the past two days firstly attending Clive’s youngest grandson’s dedication and then visiting his mother, we are now focusing on our upcoming trip to Europe and the U.S.  This trip will be the longest time Clive and I have been away from Sydney, three months total, September, October, and November.
September 1st, our departure [...]