Tour Time!

I got back Sunday from a tour of Washington, D.C., and NYC with a group of students from LA. We had a really nice tour, but very interesting. We had to send a kid home in the middle of the tour for attempting to shoplift in Walmart! There were a few other mishaps, but everyone had a great time. It was a flexible group, so all is well.

I was surprised at how light the crowds were in DC and NYC. At Arlington National Cemetery, I could get some decent shots of the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The soldier marching marches 21 steps, waits 21 seconds and then does it again. This is in honor of the 21-gun salute.


The Changing of the Guard includes inspecting the gun and the guard's uniform.





In NYC you may have heard about the city closing down parts of Broadway to make it more pedestrian friendly. Now they have lawn chairs in the middle of the streets to lounge about.

Here's me and some of my closest friends ... By the way, the weather was crazy! We about had heat strokes in D.C. and then it was cool in New York. That's spring for you!


I couldn't make it home the same day my tour ended, so I spent an extra night in NYC. I then had a lengthy layover in DC, so I went to take a closer look at some of the museums.

The magnolia trees were in bloom in DC as well, and I think they're absolutely gorgeous.

Happy Travels!

April Tour

I failed to blog about my tour in April that was with my most favorite school group. I had the same school last year, and these girls were fantastic. They did there home country of England proud. Our tour started in NYC, then DC, where the cherry blossoms were in bloom and gorgeous and ended with a drive up to NYC and a stop in Philly.

The teachers and me acting like fools in front of the White House. Obama is waving from the top floor, second window from the right.

I really liked this photo. I took it from the Lee Mansion, which is in the Arlington National Cemetery. You can see the Washington Monument and the Capitol in the distance.

Inaugural Ball

No, I don't get to go to THE Inaugural Ball, but I do get to go to AN Inaugural Ball thrown by the Smithsonian Student Travel folks. It should be a lot of fun. The kids from all the tours come together at points around the city to eat, dance and mingle.

Keeping with my fun facts, the tradition of the Ball was started after the Inauguration of James Madison. First Lady Dolley Madison hosted the gala at Long's Hotel with 400 tickets being sold at $4. Quite a price for 1809!

From then on, the Inaugural ball quickly turned into an anticipated highlight of Washington society. However, Harding requested that the Inaugural committee do away with the elaborate ball and parade in 1921 to help set an example of thrift and simplicity. (Something that I think should be done today ...) Subsequent Inaugurations followed this trend, with charity balls becoming the fashion for the Inaugurations of Coolidge, Hoover and FDR. Harry Truman broke the tradition in 1949 and got the official ball back on its feet.

Presidential Inauguration Tour

I forgot to share this tidbit of information. I was asked by EF Smithsonian Student Travel to lead a tour during the January 2009 inauguration. They have a lot of tours going out that week because it is such an historic event. It will be a madhouse! But, who could pass up an opportunity to be a part of it?

British Invasion

I'm back from my EF Smithsonian Tour, and it went smashingly! I had 24 British 17-year-olds and three teachers from a private girls school. It was so much fun! The girls really enjoyed the cities, and they were so very respectful. They knew a lot about American history already, and they were piecing it all together during the trip. They're a special group that I won't soon forget. I failed to take many pictures, and my one group photo didn't take ... Enjoy the photos I did manage to snap.

P.S. You'll be delighted to know that I was able to finally use my Civil War rap that I've been carrying around in my head since 5th grade as part of my tour. Now all I have to do is tour somewhere in Montana so I can use my Colonel Custer rap ...

"Top of the Rock" - I went to the top of Rockefeller Center the day I came in since I didn't have to pick up the girls until the following day. Pictures include Central Park, St. Patrick's Cathedral and the Empire State Building.

Chrysler Building from Grand Central Station

Macy's Annual Flower Show - The displays were amazing! The entire outfit is plant life.

George Washington's Mt. Vernon Estate. If you haven't been to Mt. Vernon in a while, you should make a point of going. They have a great new museum which answers any and every question you may have about the time period and Washington's hand in the development of America.

Smithsonian Castle on the National Mall in Washington D.C.

U.S. Capitol

On the Road Again

I just love Willie Nelson, don't you? Even if you don't, it's time for me to get back in the travel groove. Saturday I'm leaving for sunny San Diego. There I'm attending the ITMI Symposium and plan to interview and network with tour operators.

To top it off, I get to catch up with many of my tour director friends. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone from my graduating class and those from my Alaska tour. Oh, and San Diego will be a nice change from the 20 degree weather that feels like 5 degrees. I'm ready for the warmth.

As for an update on the job hunt, I had an interview with GrandLuxe Rail Journeys. This is an amazing luxury rail company that I hope to work for this summer as a tour leader. I should know more about the opportunity later this month, the first of February.

In addition, I have my Smithsonian tour ride along scheduled for the first part of Feb. I'll be in New York City ... it's not San Diego in the winter time, but it's just as exciting.

Bon Voyage!

Happy New Year!

My year finished off with a bang. We celebrated Wyatt's 4th birthday and he received another toy gun and plenty of fishing supplies. He's definitely his father's son! During his party I got completely addicted to Guitar Hero 3. LOVE IT!

New Year's Eve was celebrated with friends in Kearney. We had a great time playing new games, or new games to me. Did anyone happen to catch Dick Clark on TV? It was so sad. He looks great for a stroke victim, but it was hard to watch.

BIG NEWS: I was just offered my first tour with Smithsonian Student Travel. This is an eight-day tour in March with NYC and D.C. as the main attractions. I'll have a "ride-along" in February so I can get a feel for how the tours work with SST. I'm so excited!!

Here's wishing you a bright and blessed 2008!

Oh, to be me ...

If you know me at all, you know that I'm not the most graceful person in the world. I have my moments, but in all, I'm a klutz. I would like to present Evidence A.

Now that you've had time to wipe the tears of laughter from your eyes, let me explain. Yesterday I was sitting on the couch. Normal enough, right? I got up from the couch. I took a step with my left foot, but I couldn't feel my left foot. It fell into a deep coma-like sleep. In the midst of me trying to fall I heard a pop in my foot.

At first I thought I sprang it, but after propping up my foot for a couple hours with ice attached, it still hurt. Later that evening, I couldn't walk and I'm hopping around my house. This is the first time I've truly cursed my house for all the stinking steps it has. Needless to say, my bum is a bit dusty from the stairs.

That evening, I call my physical therapist friend, and she suggests I wrap it in an Ace bandage. I told her I didn't have one, so this is what I came up with - duct tape. I know it's glamorous, and you'll see it will soon be all the rage.

To top it off, we've received an ice storm over night, so when I do try to get into the doctor tomorrow, I'll have to skate. My thoughts are this; If I can't walk on a normal floor, I may break something else on my way there and I could get a two for one deal ...

Here's a photo of my house once I got home from Boston. Shortly after, it began icing.

BOSTON
My time spent in Boston was great. I'm even more excited about the Smithsonian Student Travel position than before. In two days I went through very intense, thorough training. They are very supportive of their tour directors and are willing to do most anything to keep the tour running as smoothly as possible. I should have a tentative schedule of tours by the first of January. First year tour directors may receive two to four tours for the season, so it's not a lot. We'll see what kind of work I can drum up in San Diego when I go to the ITMI Symposium.

I didn't get to see much of Boston. We were in training all day both days. I did, however, get to spend time with a fellow tour director from Alaska and a gal that was in my same ITMI class. As for my presentation, I did a good job. We didn't have to present until Friday morning, so I had Thursday evening to polish.

This is a piece of the Berlin Wall that stands outside the EF Smithsonian building. It's very fitting since the motto of the program is to break down cultural barriers.

Boston Bound

Leave it to me to procrastinate ... Tomorrow morning I'm leaving for Boston to go through the EF Smithsonian Student Travel orientation. I received my packet of information on Saturday. The idea was for them to send it to me in order to prep for the couple days.

Have I done so? No.

Tonight I'm to do laundry, pack, pick up my house, read the orientation manual and prepare a little speech to give as if I were on tour. I'm assigned the transfer between New Jersey and Philadelphia. So, tonight I need to figure out what's in Philly.

Oh, and I need to figure out the Boston public transportation in order to get from the airport to the hotel. Just writing this is beginning to stress me out. But what am I doing instead of getting on the ball? Writing a blog!

I keep telling myself that I perform better under pressure.

New Job!

You may wonder what a jobless person does to keep busy. A jobless person says, "Plenty." If I didn't have a job, I could still keep going on all the odd jobs around the house or social outings with friends. Maybe that's what I should be when I grow up, a socialite.

Anyway, I have been keeping busy with substitute teaching and doing some PR projects for an old employer.

The big news is that I just got word that I'll be working with EF Smithsonian student tours this spring. This is a student travel company that does a lot of its tours in the D.C. and NYC area. I'll be heading to Boston Dec. 6 and 7 for an orientation and then I'll be scheduled for a shadow tour. This is not a full-time position like the Holland America/Alaska gig, but just a few tours through the spring. Once I go to the symposium in January I hope to be hired by a few more student tour companies to help fill up my calendar.

I'm still playing it by ear and hoping it all falls into place. I've never felt stressed by my situation, which I believe is a God thing. I hope this means many more tour jobs to come ...