Travel 2024

Best cheeseburgers in the world are at the Stockman Bar in Livingston. And the best steaks I ever had were at the Land of Magic in Manhattan.

I lived in Gardiner for seven years so I’ve driven Highway 89 through the Paradise Valley a thousand times.

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Back yesterday from fourth and probably last trip to South Africa. Had previously flown Qatar but went with Delta’s direct flight out of Atlanta and it worked pretty well, though Delta check in at Tambo rivals the best of Chinese fire drills. Load shedding (rolling blackouts) remains as an interesting part of everyday life there as well as yours truly eviscerating a number of shirts on camel thorn trees.
Pick up some Nando’s Peri-Peri sauce on Amazon. It’s pretty decent.

Anyone have recommendations for Barcelona? Both sights and dining.

The market on Las Ramblas - a sight worth seeing and a great place for breakfast.

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It’s been a very long time since I’ve been there but La Sagrada Familia, obviously, along with Park Güell and any other Gaudi creations, of which there are many. I second the Ramblas. There are at least a dozen urban beaches so it’s always pretty cool to dip your toes in the Mediterranean (Balearic). We also took an easy train trip to San Sadurní de Noya and visited a couple of the sparkling wine cavas there.

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That part of our trip to Spain was a bit surreal since we had our passports and wallets stolen on the way to Barcelona. I can tell you what a lot of the city looks like from taxi to and from the consulate, but that may not be quite as much interest to you.

That said, wandering around the Gothic Quarter is amazing and one of the world’s great wine shops is very close by - Vila Vinoteca. Stupidly large selection of wine and the staff is very helpful.

ETA: if you do have a reason to visit the consulate, there is a lovely square a few blocks away that Kara and I walked to after getting our emergency passports. The two of us enjoyed the hell out of a cold beer at one of the cafes as we decompressed from the previous 24 hours.

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How did this happen? Were there any warning signs you missed or things you wish you had done differently? I’m alway looking to learn from others experiences.

Always wish there was something I did differently. Long story short, we had to rent a car and drive from San Sebastian to Barcelona (the only direct train was oversold and due to various hotel reservations and meeting up with friend in Barca, we couldn’t stay in SS). We stopped for lunch at a rest stop in Lleda, a few hours outside of Barca. An hour later, at km 42 on Autopista 2, we blew out a tire and had to pull over. For some reason, there was no spare and to this day I still wonder whether the agent at SixT who talked us into upgrading the car was somehow in on this little scheme. Anyway, maybe fifteen or twenty minutes after we pulled over, a car stopped to allegedly help us. The driver distracted us, had us completely turned around looking away from the car while his hidden compatriot grabbed Kara’s purse and my wallet and passport. The police later explained this is a common trap in that area. It’s not an affluent part of Spain, so the locals prey on a lot of the wealthier tourists driving into Barcelona.

Fortunately, no one was hurt and the two of us still had our phones with digital credit cards and photos of our passports; something I learned years ago is always have a copy of your passport when traveling internationally for an emergency like this.

Still wish I’d booked that train days earlier when I was first thinking about it - but, in years of traveling in Europe (admittedly, pre-pandemic) I never had a problem booking a seat on a train. Also wish we’d just stuck with our original car or at least checked for a spare tire. And I should’ve told Kara to wait in the car because she doesn’t speak Spanish. All lessons learned for the next trip, I suppose. Like I said, no one was hurt and it could’ve been far worse.

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The train has its own perils…

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I’ve flown quite a bit and have only had 2 horrible flights. One was a last-minute NYC to Warsaw on LOT, the Polish airline, and that was just because I got stuck in the literal back row, upright seat, no leg room for 12 hours or so.

The other was AeroMexico from Houston to Puerto Vallarta, never figured out why, but the pilot was making vector changes at seemingly random intervals throughout the flight: up, down, left, right

Oh, and I got flagged on a no-fly-list because of an idiot buddy I was traveling with. Made my next airport trip much more interesting than I expected.

I just got back from Hawaii. We visited Kauai, which is delightfully overrun by chickens, and the big island. I am changed. I’ve never been in so unpoisonous a place. Also I got to drive a Jeep Wrangler and take the lid off it. I’m so happy and Hawaii-crazed it’s a little annoying for everyone around me.

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The Hawai’i flying/layovers are some of the main reasons I commute to LAX from Austin.
I’m going to Lihue tomorrow morning and that does not suck.

Glad you had such a superb time.

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I’m off to Barcelona/Roma/Mediterranean for the next two weeks.

You clowns keep things afloat while I’m gone.

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Safe travels!

Have fun!! I’ll try not to burn this place down while you’re gone.

@JimR Coach, you and Mark (as well as HH and a number of other knuckleheads here) owe me a visit to wine country.

I used to get to the Bay Area semi regularly, but haven’t traveled much since the pandemic. You’re on the list when I get back.

I don’t know if you can handle all the bitter biased blathering the two of us bring, buddy.

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Just booked flights for Italy at the end of august. Ischia to relax then probably Rome. I’m catching a soccer match this time, missed out for various reasons the last couple trips.

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Anger and bitterness are what keep me warm at night.

Seriously, though, hope y’all can make it out here at some point. A trip the Coliseum to see the Astros play the A’s isn’t the most enticing offer, but the seats would be pretty damn good.