Pros and cons of cruises

I went on a cruise recently and learned a few things that I like and don't like about cruises.   This is the third cruise I've been on, and I've gone on two different cruise lines.  There are pros and cons to everything, and a cruise is no different.  I tend to enjoy the type of traveling that allows you to wake up in some place different every night.  A cruise is basically a hotel on the sea.  However, there are some great things about cruises, and depending on the type of traveler you are, it may be what you're looking for.

So, let's start with what I don't like about cruises.

1.  Rude Americans (and other nationalities.)  This is probably my least favorite part about cruises.  Americans are known for their sense of entitlement, and believe me, cruises bring out the worst.  They are demanding of the staff, they don't care how loud and drunk they get, they have no respect for personal space, and they treat the staff like their own personal slaves.  This is just something you have to endure.  I was in line at a pasta bar and there was one person working and you could loudly hear someone say, "WHAT'S TAKING SO LONG?"  I think people feel that since "they paid for this," they're allowed to be as rude as they want.  

2.  You're only in one location for a short time.  Usually you're only in one place for about 8 hours.  You dock around 8 a.m., and then you have to be back on the boat by 4:30.  This means that you don't get a whole lot of time to experience where you are, and you definitely won't be seeing the night views.  This means that I will never want to take a cruise in Europe.  Europe needs to be experienced in the evening.  (In my honest opinion.)

3.  Constant party-like atmosphere in the public areas, such as the pool.  I actually told someone on a shuttle from the airport to the cruise that the last time I was on a cruise they were playing Shakira at 8 a.m. and I asked if they could turn it off.  The person looked at me funny, and I proceeded to explain, "Well, it's basically a party ship."  They said, "That is so great!"  Apparently, she didn't catch my sarcasm, because I'm not interested in a booze cruise.

4.  Overpriced alcohol and lattes.  Not only are the drinks around $8-$12, but they tack on a 20 percent service charge as well.  So it's pretty expensive to have an alcoholic drink, or a specialty coffee from the bar.  I paid $5 for a latte.  I guess it's not that bad, considering how much it costs at Starbucks, but still. 

Alright, now that I've been Debbie Downer, I'll tell you what I like about cruises.  I hope my limited scope on this subject will help you weigh the pros and cons to see if you want to go on a cruise.

1.  The service.  Oh my.  I've never had better service than I do on a cruise.  The staff are amazing.  They clean your room every day, sometimes twice.  They come and meet you and ask you if you need anything else.  The wait staff at the restaurants check on you constantly and you never have to ask for a refill, they are there before you can even gulp the last sip.  They are so friendly and welcoming, it's like being pampered day in and day out.

2.  The restaurants and the food.  I've never paid extra for an "upscale" restaurant on a cruise because I think the food they have is excellent.  I had New York Strip, Prime Rib and gelato all at the regular restaurants.  These are classy places with menus, nice napkins, China and good service.  It's amazing to me that you can dress up and go into these restaurants and leave with no bill.

3.  All-inclusive (minus alcohol and excursions.)  It's a pretty good deal to get your lodging, food and transportation for such a low cost.  It really is a good deal for what you get.  I don't think you can do a cheaper trip to the Caribbean than you can on a cruise.

4.  The views.  I love the views on a ship at sunset and at night.  Nothing beats waking up and seeing a sunrise on the open waters, and having your breakfast overlooking a dock.  The star gazing is also amazing.  The views on the open water are stunning, and unlike even staying at a waterfront hotel.  You actually are on the water with an unobstructed view of sunrises and sunsets.

Desert Island: Quart-sized bag challenge

If you were going to a deserted island and you could only fit five liquid items in your quart-sized bag, what would you choose? At home, you may have a routine that includes using every kind of lotion, gel, and make-up item available to you. When you’re limiting yourself to one small quart-sized bag, you have to be very choosy about which liquid items you can fit. What items can’t you live without?

Click here to read about which five items I would choose and why on 

Travel Fashion Girl

Mixed Weather for Travel: 6 Simple Packing Tips

When you’re going from the hot city streets to a cold mountain landscape in one trip, packing light can become a challenge. You may be frantically wondering how you’re going to fit rain boots, snorkel-gear and multiple coats in your carry-on.

When dealing with mixed weather for travel consider a few of these tips to help you pack light and still have all the items you need!

Click here to continue reading on Travel Fashion Girl

No-heat hairstyles

In an effort to prepare for a five-day camping extravaganza in Chile where I will not be able to bring any hair tools, I've been trying out new "no-heat" curling styles.  I figured this is not only good for camping, but also would be a great way to limit the amount of appliances you bring on any trip.

I never bring a hairdryer anymore, because you have access to hairdryers almost anywhere. In Europe, I strongly recommend using theirs because not only does it plug in without an adapter, but you don't have to worry about blowing a fuse with your high-powered dryers.  (And yes, I have done that before.  Oops.  Sorry, Ridgemount Hotel!)  I even looked up the cost of a hairdryer at their drugstore nearby to see if I was in a pinch, I could buy one.  You can get one for $10, just like here.  So honestly, do you really want to waste valuable luggage space with that bulky item?  Or spend $10 there, if for some strange reason the place you're staying doesn't have one?

So normally I don't bring a hairdryer, but I always find one to use.  I usually bring a curling iron or a straightener.  I don't typically bring both, because I think it's a waste of space.  But now, I'm faced with a new challenge.  No hairdryer.  No curling iron.  No straightener.  Sure, people all over the world don't use them.  But I'm an American woman and have been used to these luxuries, so this is a challenge I have to face.  How do I get my hair to look good without the use of these helpful aids?  I know it's not going to look fantastic, and I know it's not a big deal if I look like I just rolled out of a dumpster.  However, if there's a good, easy alternative, count me in!

There are many Pinterest posts and YouTube videos on variations of no-heat curling styles, some include actual hair tools or fancy bands.  I was looking for ones with minimal items such as a few hair ties or bobby pins.  Some of the looks could even be worn during the day as an updo, and then taken down the next day for a long wavy hair look.  I like the flexibility of these different hairstyles, as well as the little effort you put in for a good look.

A couple styles that work well, with minimal effort:

1.  Twist and pin.

I split my hair in two sections.  I twisted it down the side of my head, and pinned it to secure it to the side of my head.  Then I just twisted the hair until it was tight and naturally curled itself up into a ball, then I pinned it.  I repeated on the other side, and voila!

2.  Flat twist

This hairstyle did not stay together well while I was sleeping. It fell out and actually took me longer to learn.  So I did two flat twists and then tucked it in a headband.  My husband said I looked very Renaissance. It's basically a braid with two sections, instead of three.  It had tighter curls and looked more like a braid.  I preferred the twist for the lose beach curl look.  This one is more of what I used to do in middle school with a crimper.  Remember those?

3.  Braided up-do

The next two up-do styles I stole from Keiko Lynn.  She had some great ideas for updos.  I think this one is a good idea because you can do it when your hair is wet and the next day, undo it and wear your hair down and curly.  So this is updo can serve two purposes, I think.

4.  Up-do with scarf

This one is so simple and I think it's perfect for hiking.  It keeps your hair out of the way, but it's got that classic vintage look, as well.  This is a great do for when your hair is unwashed and a mess.  

Of course, you can always go with this classic style.  I call this the "I've been wearing yoga pants for 4 days straight look."

Beating the holiday crowds

Everyone always says, "never travel on a holiday weekend."  And yes, it's true that holiday weekends are much more crowded and harder to maneuver, but it's not impossible.  Sometimes it just works out to be the best for you, especially if you have paid holidays and limited vacation days.

This was the case for us two weekends ago.  We went to California on Memorial Day weekend, which isn't ideal, but we managed to get through it by reading up on avoiding crowds in the places that we went.

We flew into San Jose and rented a car.  We drove to the Big Sur area and had dinner and slept in Seaside the first night.  The next two nights, we stayed in a lodge near Yosemite National Park and drove in to see the park on the actual holiday.  The next day we drove through Livermore Valley wine country and then we slept in San Jose before catching an early morning flight.

There were a few things I learned from traveling during the holiday, a lot of things I knew already, but could be good reminders for others.

1.  Do not check a bag.  I feel like a broken record saying this so much, but it seems like I can't stress it enough.  People who don't travel often may not realize how much more of a hassle it really is to check a bag.  Especially on a holiday weekend.  We showed up to the airport at 5 a.m. for a 6 a.m. flight.  There is a line backed up to the main entrance for Delta.  When we thought it was a line for the self-checks, we got in it.  My husband ran up to the front to double-check, but it was actually the line to check a bag.  Since none of us were checking a bag, we walked ahead of the entire line.  There was a man walking back and said, "Oh, you'll be back to the end of this line.  Don't worry."  We snickered, and said, "No, we won't.  But thanks."  We walked up to an empty self-check, printed our boarding passes and got in line at security.  I am betting that most of those people missed their flight if they were on an early one.  There is no way they could have gotten through that line fast enough to make it to their gates.  

2.  Be prepared for the security line.  Security was the longest line I've seen in Columbus ever, and they were rushing us like crazy.  I stopped to take my jacket off, and the guy seriously said, "TAKE IT OFF WHILE YOU'RE MOVING.  LET'S GO."  So I did, and I didn't take any jewelry off or anything.  They didn't seem to care about that so much as crowd control.  I was glad my shoes were slip-ons, and my quart size bag was already out and ready to go.   They were waiting for no one.  Make sure you have your affairs in order.

3.  Beware if you rent a car.  I knew that since we were flying in on Saturday, that most people would have come on Friday and snatched up all the good cars and the good upgrades.  Well, such was the case with us.  We requested a four door economy, and were told that we would be getting a two door Fiat.  Now, I have a Fiat, and I love it.  I also know that there is no way we can fit four bags and four people inside comfortably.  Since they didn't have any other options, we were forced to upgrade and it ended up doubling the price.  We needed a car, so we had to suck it up.

4.  Visit sites during meal hours.  You will run into traffic.  Of course.  However, you can work around this by choosing to go to sites or parks at times when everyone else will be rushing to the restaurant.  We tried to visit a beach with limited parking in the Big Sur and they were turning all the cars away.  They offered for us to park and then walk two miles there and back to see it.  Since that sucked, and it was 4:30 p.m., we decided that we would go eat and come back.  Sure enough, after we ate (which the we only had to wait 15 minutes for a table since it was early) we drove back and got a spot.  

5.  Do research before you go.  We found some great online resources with suggestions of how to avoid times when Yosemite was the busiest.  One of the suggestions was to get there early and stay late.  We didn't have to wait in any long traffic lines because we left to drive into the park at 7:00 a.m. and got in at 8:00 a.m.  We left around 7 p.m., and a lot of people had left much earlier to go to dinner.  So we ended up beating the crowds pretty well and had a nice time in the park.  We even got to see Mirror Lake with only a few other people there, basically had it to ourselves.  Even though we knew that one of the busiest times for Yosemite all year is Memorial Day, it didn't seem to be busier than going somewhere on the weekend.

If the only time you can go somewhere is during a holiday, don't sweat it.  There are ways to avoid crowds, just takes a little planning, research and flexibility!  We managed it just fine, and had a great time.