The Noon-Collins Inn, originally built in 1834 as a judge’s residence, was also a YMCA, a small library before it became the bed and breakfast it is today. In 2024, it cost US$122.10 for a night. I called to make the booking, but they requested that I just do it online through Expedia. When I booked, they asked us to call ahead to let them know when we would arrive. I told them in a note that it would be 7 or 8 and called on the day of to let them know 7:30. The parking lot belonging the inn…
In 2023, our tickets for Universal Studios in Osaka, Japan, were bought as a group of 6. It sent a single .pdf with 6 tickets. Unlike at Disney, we could not scan the tickets to our individual apps. We had a group talk the night before about what to do if the first pair to go managed to keep the rest of us from scanning the remaining 4 tickets in that .pdf. However, we did not have to all enter at the same time! The two who prefer to arrive early did so and were able to scan the .pdf…
TSA PreCheck is wonderful to have at a US airport— unless you cannot actually use it. Whether you can or cannot use it depends on what airline you are flying on. To check whether your outgoing flight is going to let you take advantage of TSA Precheck, see if your airline is on this TSA list: TSA PreCheck® Participating Airlines | Transportation Security Administration. If your airline is not on the list, you will be unable to use the TSA PreCheck line. Why would TSA PreCheck be related to the airline? Because on your ticket, they mark who is eligible…
Toei Park, or TOEI Kyoto Studio Park, is a fake old-fashioned town where period dramas are sometimes filmed. They bill themselves as the only Jidaigeki theme park in Kyoto. (And they are authentic enough that jigaideki filming takes place here.) The park clearly provides side work for make-up artists and stunt actors through the live shows and the dress-up-like-an-Edo-Period-person experience. The park reminded me of a Renaissance Faire— but Edo period. I had a good impression of them from the beginning. Tickets without an attraction pass were JP¥2400 (~US$16.21 in 2023) per adult if in a group of 25 or…
The Cutler Botanic Garden is a small free-to-visit learning and research botanical garden in Binghamton, New York, in the United States. It is meant to help teach visitors about horticulture in self-guided tours with the help of signs that explain what is going on. Visiting in April is a sort of dead time, because of the natural cycle of the plants. For example, the Rose Path was still on its winter Thorn Path variation. However, there are still things to see as things are preparing to bloom or starting to grow— all of which are neatly labeled— and fun landscaping.…
I rarely cross from the US to Canada or Mexico by car, but I recently did. All I really knew was that US citizens just need their passport and that the US-Canada land crossing has a reputation for being a lot quicker than the US-Mexico land crossing. Contrary to what I expected after reading about others’ experiences, the US agent was more friendly on our way back than the Canadian agent on our way to. United States to Canada When we crossed to Canada by Champlain, NY in 2024, it was very quick. You can look ahead to see what…
The Auberge Saint-Antoine in Québec, Canada is a pleasant old hotel with an archeological theme. It is located close to an old alley of Québec, the Rue du Petit-Champlain, which is a lovely little street to walk down. In 2024, I got to find out for myself how comfortably placed it was. Although only a 4-star hotel, the Auberge Saint-Antoine was cleaner and in better condition than the 5-star Fairmont Le Château Frontenac. For example, there were no discarded bandages lurking by the mattress, the bathroom was not dusty anywhere, and the only dirtiness was that the bottom of the…
In Tokyo, Japan, you can buy cheap suitcases, as in roughly US$50 for a 28-inch, in several of the covered shopping streets. If the shopping streets are closed or you do not want to go there, Ginza Karen in particular is well-known for selling suitcases at that same price point. This shop is extremely popular with Chinese tourists and one location, in Nihonbashi, is conveniently open until midnight! Ginza Karen also sells higher-priced suitcases, but most people who go there— myself included— are looking for the ~US$50 suitcases to quickly and cheaply carry back our purchases. I have purchased from…
If you attend in 2024, it is the 70th anniversary of the Carnaval de Québec, a winter festival held ! Attendance requires an effigy of Bonhomme Carnaval if you are a teen or older. For example, my 2-year-old will not need her own effigie parce que les effigies sont “obligatoire pour les 13 ans et plus”. To purchase your effigy, you visit Nos produits carnavalesques – Carnaval de Québec. The snowmen are not sold in mid summer, but sales opened up at some point before I returned to the US in November. Purchasing before January 15th, 2024, allowed for a…
Whenever you buy anything in Taiwan and are given a receipt, you may receive a physical printed out QR ticket along with your receipt. If you are a resident, you have the opportunity to not take a physical printout but instead have it added digitally to your collection. These are entries to a government lottery that was started to incentivize reporting sales and therefore allow the government to collect more of the sales tax owed to them. These QR lottery entries are done as a straight entry into the lottery, not a multiplier. It has led to silly situations such…