Back in May there was an airline mistake deal, New York through Milan and onto Asia for ~ $130. For instance, When a mistake fare comes along, you have to move fast! You can’t dither, talk to your friends, think about whether you want to travel. You have to act. And buy. Right away. Here’s […]
The post What Do You Do When You Grab a Mistake Fare to Europe and Asia for Someone, And… appeared first on View from the Wing.
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Doha is a rapidly expanding hotel market, and nowadays they have a property from just about every luxury chain. While W Hotels perhaps don't fit in the "luxury" category, I really enjoyed my stay at the W Doha a couple of months ago.
The only problem is that most of the nicer hotels are located in the Diplomatic Area of Doha, which is a 30-45 minute drive from Hamad International Airport, depending on traffic.
However, the purpose of this stay was a bit different. I was landing from Cairo at 5:30PM, and departing for London the next morning at 7:55AM. I expected I wouldn't be out of the airport before 6PM, and wanted to be at the airport the next morning by 5AM, so that I had plenty of time to catch up on work before the inaugural Qatar Airways A380 flight.
So my top priority was finding a hotel that was close to the airport. In looking at chain hotels, it seemed like the Crowne Plaza Doha and Marriott Doha were the two closest properties to Hamad International Airport. Neither are my preferred chains (I'm generally loyal to Hyatt and Starwood), though I am IHG Platinum, while I have no status with Marriott.
The post Review: Crowne Plaza Doha The Business Park appeared first on One Mile at a Time.
In the past I've written about how I'll always only book flexible hotel rates. I should modify that statement, since I now live in hotels full time and have changed my policy slightly -- now I'll only book flexible rates, except within a few days of arrival. If I'm booking only a couple of days in advance and there's still a non-refundable rate, I'll often lock that in if the rate difference is substantial.
But in general, why do I avoid non-refundable rates?
-- Sometimes my plans do change, even when I don't foresee it, and it sucks to basically forfeit the cost of the hotel stay
-- The bigger reason is that rates often drop as the stay date approaches -- if a hotel has lots of rooms left to sell, they might drop the price
The post The Most Frustrating Hotel Rate Changes appeared first on One Mile at a Time.
Virgin America is moving forward with an initial public offering of shares despite poor financial performance when the airline industry overall is doing well. Ultimately, Virgin America hasn’t succeeded because it doesn’t work to be a high cost, low fare carrier. And because they have neither the frequencies nor the reach to appeal to high […]
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Aer Lingus has been undergoing some very positive changes with Christoph Mueller at the helm, whereby we're seeing them both improve their onboard product and grow their route network in a sustainable way.
First Aer Lingus will be installing a new business class product throughout their longhaul fleet, which consists of fully flat seats.
They're also investing in other aspects of their product, from pre-flight supper for business class passengers in Boston and New York, to an arrivals lounge in Dublin, to onboard wifi.
Aer Lingus is also growing their route network quite a bit. Earlier this year Aer Lingus added flights to Toronto and San Francisco, which have apparently performed very well for them.
The post Aer Lingus Announcing New US Destination On Wednesday? appeared first on One Mile at a Time.
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I’d never visited San Luis Obispo before. As an ignorant East Coaster, this area between San Francisco and L.A. was a no-man’s land to me — a vast, yet-to-be-explored swath of Pacific Coast highway dotted with nameless small towns, hippie surfer hangouts, and maybe a few vineyards. As it turns out, this is how many […]
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Scott Mayerowitz writes about the Starwood mobile room key which has launched today. Your SPG mobile app is your room key if you wish, although only so far at the following 10 hotels: “W Downtown” is the New York property down by the World Trade Center. The SPG app has been updated to include new […]
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Life was never easy in high Caucasus. Nomads from northern steppes eager to get their hands on the riches of Mesopotamia, and Empires battling for supremacy — Assyrians, Macedonians, Persians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Turks, and Mongols — all clashed with fearless locals. The list of invading armies is nearly endless.
Svans — a subgroup of Georgians, who speak their own unwritten Svan language, practice blood revenge, and sing complicated polyphonic vocal songs — were the traditional gatekeepers of mountain passes, and since the time immemorial have been hardy survivors, the archetypal highland warriors. Every household in Svaneti is a true fortress. Villages in these rugged landscape are often too scattered to be encircled with a protective wall. Each individual house thus had to be separately fortified.
The tower homes of Svaneti were at the same time familial living quarters, fortified fortresses of defense, and personal treasuries. They offered protection to their owners and to their livestock, and also served as shelters for the most valuable possessions of every family, as well as copies of holy scriptures and religious icons and relics. Most of the towers date back to the period between 9th and 12th century.
The turbulent history of the region ensured that these fortifications remained in use long after similar defenses become redundant elsewhere in Europe. In recent times families have slowly begun moving out into more comfortable living spaces. However, many of Svan towers still remain in use, and the village of Chazhashi boasts as many as 200.
The similar dwellings can be found in a much wider area all over Caucasus. However, the typical Svaneti towers are concentrated in Mestia district, 128 km northeast of the regional capital of Zugdidi. Anyone wishing to see the towers should head to the remote village of Ushguli.
With elevation of 2086m Ushguni is one of the highest inhabited places in Europe. According to local lore, in Middle Ages it served as a summer retreat for fabled Queen Tamar. Since 1996, the traditional towers of upper Svaneti have been protected as an UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Drivers heading north to San Francisco on Interstate 280 will notice a peculiar home just east of the Eugene A. Doran Memorial Bridge. The house, playfully nicknamed by Bay Area residents as The Flintstone House is actually an experimental house built in 1976, with rooms in which every surface is rounded. Beneath its burnt orange (originally white) coat of paint is a slew of cement, rebar, plaster putty, wire mesh and aeronautical balloons.
The house looks somewhat like a series of inflated balloons, which makes sense, as this was how it was constructed. Steel rebar and wire mesh frames were constructed over large inflated balloons and then sprayed with high velocity concrete known as gunite or "shotcrete."
This building technique, known as "monolithic dome construction" was invented by the South brothers in Shelly, Idaho in 1975. One year later, Bay Area architect William Nicholson built a series of domes using this method, including The Flintstone House in Hillsborough, California.
The home, which is also referred to as the Dome House, Gumby House, and Bubble House, is a three-bedroom, two-bath house with a two-car garage and about 2,700 square feet of living space. The upstairs bedroom, located in the tallest dome, has a spiral staircase inspired by a sugar-cone with a diameter that increases to equal that of the floor above. The master bathroom is also unique with its scattering of large rocks in place of floor tiles.
While The Flintstone House is marveled at by many passerby, it is also loathed by many Hillsborough residents. In the mid-1980s the home began to show serious wear as water runoff on the steep hillside caused the home to sink and the walls began to develop deep cracks. Word spread of such problems and several neighbors pushed to have the home removed. However, to their dismay, a severe renovation and change in ownership brought the home back to life in 1987. It took on its characteristic "Flintstone" look when it was painted completely orange in 2000.
Today, The Flintstone House is as well known for its architecture as it is for its sporadic tenants, which has led to several urban legends surrounding the home's ownership. It is rumored that George Lucas once owned the house and that O.J. Simpson made a bid following his infamous 1995 trial. It is also said that several famous Sillicon Valley investors have lived there as well.
Regardless of ownership and neighborhood complaints, The Flintstone House remains standing. Overlooking the freeway and reservoir, it continues to serve as an unofficial California landmark and lighthearted reminder of the Bay Area’s forward, yet sometimes quirky, thinking.
