Going to Australia

On July 2nd, April & Jon Rose embarked on a trip to the other side of the world where no West Indian has gone before. LOL Okay maybe we're the second set that has made this journey but whatever the number I couldn't wait. So for this trip I kind of handled it a little differently. Those who know me know that I have a trip bible filled with daily itineraries. This time I just wanted to wing it. Jon's Dad picked us up that Thursday morning and took us to Newark where the first leg of our journey started. By the way thanks Dad for that airport drop. I decided to use Continental Airlines because we have frequent flyer miles with them through our Chase account (trust me it comes in handy) and I find that leaving from Newark is relatively cheaper than the other NY airports . Another plus is that their planes are really nice and roomy and offer a free food and beverage service. Even though there were self-service kiosks instead of counters, the attendants present were still very helpful. One attendant helped us to get two exit row seats.
Our flight was due in at 4pm at LAX and David and Jeff were scheduled to get there around the same time..... oh, so we thought. Since my cousin David works for US Airways he tends to fly with them or their partners, standby. As we were taxing on our aircraft, I decided to check my voicemail and I listened to a message that started with," Well, April we're having a great start to our trip." Apparently David and Jeff were supposed to fly to Long Beach but then they got a flight out to LAX instead. However, their luggage went to Long beach which is 30-45 minute drive on the infamous 405 during rush hour. Yeah... Great Start. How are we going to get the luggage? Well: by driving. Jon and I checked in at V Australia first and met up with the boys. Since I have never been to LA and we had all of this lay over time, I didn't mind going with them for the ride. We passed by and took pictures of the famous Randy's Donut shop where I had a delicious glazed donut for 60 cents. We were hungry on our way back and Jeff recommended the In~and~Out Burger joint. The burger was just okay. It was really thin like a White Castle burger and the fries were freshly cut and only had flavor once you added their secret sauce on them ( the secret sauce of course being Thousand Island).
Now that we got the luggage, ate, and checked in it was off to our gate . David was a little disappointed that he could not see the different international airplanes because it was dark, but at least we did see the big LAX sign. Wi-fi is available at the airport but for a cost of $7.99 via T-mobile hot spot. There are also Samsung charging stations. 10:30pm rolled around eventually and it was time to board . My hands began to sweat because I couldn't believe I was about to embark on this dream trip of mine for 14 hours, but, here we go. As I approached the jetway, I saw what resembled a bar at a club. I said to myelf like Madea would say," Hallelulya! I can get drunk." The plane was so wide, fresh and brand new smelling, with subtle blue atmospheric lights that made you feel as if you were in a lounge/club..... and it just felt great. We had seats in economy and David picked them out the right way. Before I proceed I will let you know that unfortunately Jon could not get an exit row seat. On V Australia you have to pay a little over $100 each way for an exit row seat. He was still comfortable in the seat we had in economy. Now back to the genius of my cousin. We were all in row 26 but it was in this order: window- David, middle seat- empty, aisle seat- me, then in the middle group of seats were : aisle-Jon, middle seat-empty, aisle- Jeff. We were counting on the fact that the flight was not fully booked. At first the counter clerks told us they were fully booked but when we saw no one sitting in-between us we knew we were in the clear. Now I could rest and watch some movies with their excellent in-flight entertainment. G'day mate.

Governor's Island

OK I know it has been awhile , but between school politics and graduation, I have been quite busy. Well I am still going to Australia next week Thursday for 10 days but I also decided to vacation in Brooklyn and the five boroughs. My first venture was to Governor's Island during my godson, Ryan, birthday. I have never been there before but it was such a beautiful weekend (the beautiful weekend we had , June 6th & 7th) that I woke Jon up at 11am and said let's go. Our best friends Rodney and LaShawn packed up the kids, LaShawn's Dad, Drew, met up with us in the city, and off we went to catch the ferry.

Governor's Island is open for the entire weekend starting on Fridays. The free ferry leaves hourly from the Maritime Terminal, which is to the left of the Staten Island Ferry terminal. The best way to get to this area is to take the N/R to Whitehall Street/South Ferry or the 1/9 to South Ferry. On Saturdays, there are ferries that leave every hour our on the hour from Fulton's Landing in Brooklyn. When I try it out next time I will report about that experience.

Once we reached the terminal there was a line that stretched all the way outside and persons who had bicycles were able to enter the ferry via a different entrance. We went through a security checkpoint where they made sure you didn't have any alcohol, pets or weapons. After that it was off to the ferry for a seven minute ride to the island.

Funny thing we noticed on this voyage was that there were some individuals dressed as if there from the 1920's. Then I remembered I read earlier on the website that there was going to be a 1920's Jazz Band and dance on the island. Well I know we would see it in passing because my crew was just interested in having a relaxing picnic. It is about a 15 minute walk from the boat to the main area and as we were walking we saw many people on their bikes and a variety of 19th century style homes and buildings. Because we had the kiddies we eventually caught a tram which took us to the picnic point that was on the other side of the island. We found a great spot and called it ours.

Pluses : You can bring your own bike or rent one for the day for $20. There are even two- and four-seater bikes, but they may cost you more. If you are lucky to visit on Fridays you can rent a bike for free.

You can bring anything onto the island except alcohol, drugs, pets, or weapons.

WARNING: The public restrooms are port-a-potties but they are surprisingly clean.

There are a few food vendors on the island and a West Indian woman who has a tent with food. You must have cash to pay for everything you buy on the island because there are no banks or ATM's on the island.
The last ferry for home leaves at 7pm.

All in all, this was a great day trip that was FREE (except for the cost of food and train fare). We saw beautiful views of the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and the bridges. Ryan enjoyed playing football with his Dad and trying to fly a kite with his Uncle Jon. Rachel enjoyed herself by getting her tan, and the boys relaxed while the women just soaked up the air. Can't wait to get back , I just need the Sun to come back.

Cruise 2009- Royal Carribean Serenade of the Seas

Okay folks I am back from cruise and I must say that Royal Caribbean is the way to go. My group of girls and I traveled on a seven day cruise leaving from San Juan, Puerto Rico. The itinerary included St. Thomas, St. Maartin, Antigua, St. Lucia, and Barbados (Home Sweet Home).Here is the review of the cruise and pictures will be included.


Day 1: Arrival @ San Juan
My group included My two co-workers Sonia and Jeanette who are expert cruisers and my Auntie Jean, from Thunder Bay, who is a novice cruiser. We booked our flights in late January and got a real good deal with Continental Airlines leaving from Newark,NJ. The flight was a 767 aircraft with thre classes- first, business, & coach. The seats were roomy and we had on demand movie service going and coming. Plus the best thing of all ... they fed us REAL food.

Now I forgot to mention about my aunt; she has a slight mobility problem so I brought along with me a wheelchair in order to get her around easier. I checked it in with regular luggage and found out you don't have to pay for accessibility items. When I reached there the wheelchair was in the over-sized luggage area.

San Juan's airport was very organized and clean. I had the intentions to meet my aunt in the other terminal since she was coming from an Air Canada but they rolled her over to our terminal. With all of our luggage combined we had to take turns moving the luggage to the taxi stand area. We able to get a van and the total trip for all of us to the port was $26. Once we got to the pier we had to go through the check-in process which was made easier since we had my aunt traveling in the wheelchair. The lines for that were short almost non-existent . They take your luggage in the beginning where it will be dropped off later in your room around 2pm.
As soon as we got on the boat we ate lunch in the Windjammer Cafe which like most cruise lines offers a variety of food in. When we first entered the cafe we saw these beautifully carved watermelons . Jeanette got carried away and took a lot of pictures of them. Here is just a few of them. Even on Easter they had carved Easter Bunnies.

For the rest of the afternoon we got settled in and took a nap and got ready for the muster drill and then dinner. The muster drill is a mandatory safety drill that we all loathe so much to do but it is for our safety. We posed for ours and luckily because of Auntie Jean we were able to leave it earlier and beat the traffic. We met our waiter staff and our maitre'd and had a wonderful dinner. Because we were up so early, we called it an early night.










Our First Dinner Picture

Travel Deals

As millions of people await mid-winter break and/or President's Day next week, they think to themselves, " I don't have anywhere to go. I guess I am staying home." Naw man. There are too many deals to be had. Well, if you have some extra cash , let's say from your refund of some sorts, maybe you would like to try any one of my top ten deals for February Break.

10. Las Vegas, NV
February 13th Valentine's Weekend
3 Night Las Vegas Hotel & Air $846 per person (Expedia)

Included Hotel: Luxor Hotel and Casino

9. Paris, France
February 13th Valentine's Weekend
3 Night Paris Hotel & Air on KLM from $726 per person (Orbitz)
Included Hotel: Courtyard by Marriott Paris Defense West

8. Barbados, WI
February 16th
4 Night Barbados Hotel & Air from $694 per person (Expedia)

Included Hotel: Allamanda Beach Hotel

7. Cancun, Mexico
February 17th - 20th
3 Night Cancun Hotel & Air from $659 per person (Orbitz & Expedia)
Included Hotel: Terracaribe Hotel

6. Royal Caribbean Cruiseline:
February 15th
7 Night Southern Caribbean Cruise
Starting from $649 for an outside room per person
Ship Name: Adventure Of The Seas
Departure Port: San Juan, Puerto Rico
Ports of Call: San Juan, Puerto Rico; Oranjestad, Aruba; Willemstad, Curacao; Philipsburg, St. Maarten; Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas; San Juan, Puerto Rico

5. San Juan, PR
February 17th - 20th
3 Night San Juan Hotel & Air from $537 per person (Orbitz & Expedia)
Included Hotel: Embassy Suites San Juan - Hotel & Casino

4. London, UK
February 13th - 18th
4-5 Nights American Airlines ****Air Only from $486 per person (AA.com)
Suggested Hotels: Copthorne Hotel, Wembley Plaza Hotel $67.14 per night

3. Royal Caribbean Cruiseline:
February 16th
4 Night Bahamas Cruise
Starting from $389 for an inside room per person
Ship Name: Monarch Of The Seas
Departure Port: Port Canaveral, Florida
Ports of Call: Port Canaveral, Florida; Cococay, Bahamas; Nassau, Bahamas; Port Canaveral, Florida

2. Miami,FL
February 17th - 20th
3 Night American Airlines ****Air Only from $389 per person (Orbitz)
Suggested Hotels: Ocean Spray Miami Beach Hotel, La Quinta Inn $75 per night

1. New Orleans, LA
February 17th - 20th
3 Night Southwest Airlines**** Air Only from $389 per person(Southwest.com)
Suggested Hotels: Bienville House Hotel - $99 per night, Historic French Market Inn - $63 per night

The Obsession Starts

I am very happy to announce that the first cruise for the year is booked and paid for in full. Royal Caribbean Online had a really good deal on Caribbean cruises during the Easter break starting from $699. For this journey, I have recruited two of my co-workers, Sonia and Jeanette, and my Auntie Jean (Thunder Bay). This will be my first experience on Royal but my fifth cruise. The girls and I have been talking about this for awhile and on one particular night Sonia said, "Let's Book". At the time of booking with Royal Caribbean (RC), we had to put down a $250.00 deposit per room ( not per person) and we were given until the end of the month to pay in full. After I made my deposit, I immediately went to register on their website. By doing this, you can manage your own reservation, add shore excursions and/or travel insurance, etc. The best part is the countdown. So I will sign-off with my countdown of 72 days to go. Woo-hoo.

Thunder Bay, ON Canada

Well as I sit here watching MLK Jr. on CNN I felt that I should do my service today which includes restarting my blog. I feel that it is my duty to share my experiences on places that I have traveled. So here goes.

First Destination: Thunder Bay , ON Canada

My husband Jon, my cousin David, and I decided to go up north for the winter to visit my Auntie Jean. Well , needless to say it was about -12 F the entire time we were there. We were only there for a few days but it was still fun. Thunder Bay is a small city north of Minnesota populated by Finnish, Italian, Irish, and Eastern European immigrants, and a few Bajans (Barbadians for those of you that don't know). I have been there both during the winter and summer months, and I prefer the summer but I will give you my take on this place from a winter perspective.

Shopping- I found that in Thunder Bay there are a lot of American stores like Staples, The Gap , and Pizza Hut so you will definitely feel at home there. The currency is 1 Canadian dollar= $0.79. There is the local department store like our versions of Target/Kmart and it is called Zellers.

Sites- The most beautiful sites of

Thunder Bay are definitely seen during the summer (when I go back later this year I will report on my findings). We did manage to see one the most famous sites called the Sleeping Giant. It is a peninsula in the shape of Native American sleeping. 

We stood on top of Hillcrest park to get some scenic pictures of the city and of the Sleeping Giant.

Things to Do - Well even though it was really cold we were still able to do some winter activities . We visited one of my aunt's family friends and I have a

good picture of Jon singing karaoke . This family lives on a lake off of Salt Lake road, and it was the first time this New Yorker ever walked on a frozen lake.  I sang some songs  during our Canadian Idol contest where I acted like Randy, drank a lot of Irish coffee but for the most part I observed. David went snow mobiling ,which they call skadooing, and played ice hockey. I was too chicken to do any of that. Like I said before it is best to come in the summer and that way you can enjoy the city more. My cousin David should be soon adding an article about his trip to Mexico City during MLK weekend so look for that to come soon.

New Year New Blog

Ok I decided to this again with the commitment that I will be traveling a lot this year and also asking my cousin David to join in. This is a blog to help out those of us who like to travel but need info about the places.  The  real deal about where to go, how to shop wisely , etc.  The perspective is based on Young Black American Professionals ages 25+. Enjoy.

• View my profile


• Create your own travel map or travel blog


• Travel Info at TripAdvisor