This Ancient Italian City is Worth the Visit

Mary Yohannan on

Pompeii, Italy should be on the list of 100 places to see before you die. If you ever take a Mediterranean cruise this is always one of the optional tours or included as a portion of one of the optional tour. Pompeii is very close to Naples. To get there by bus it usually takes 30 minutes to an hour, depending if you have any additional stops along the way.

This Roman city was thriving until the volcanic explosion of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD which buried it under volcanic ash for centuries. Pompeii was considered to be a modern city with an amphitheatre, a public gymnasium with a swimming pool, and an aqueduct. The aqueduct would supply water to street fountains, public bath houses, and if you were really rich you would have water in your house. The city streets were also very modern for their time. They had curbs and there were houses or shops on both sides of the streets. To ensure that people would stop at intersections when on horse or horse-drawn carriage they had circular stones at the end of the streets. This was like a modern day stop sign or speed bump.

Now I truly believe that Pompeii was a city that wanted to be alive. Even though it was buried for almost two-thousand years, due to the lack of moisture and oxygen it remained very well-preserved. A large percentage of Pompeii has been excavated but there is still some of the city that wants to be re-discovered. Today there are millions of visitors to this ancient city every year. Now Pompeii is a large city. Some people think that when they take a short day tour to Pompeii that they are seeing the whole site. You really need a whole day to see the entire excavated portion of the city.

I have yet to take a whole day tour. I have always been on a tour where we are there for just a few hours. Regardless of which tour you choose you will still be amazed by the site. Most tours will take you to the outdoor warehouse which houses some artifacts and moldings of those who were frozen in time by the ash.

If you are lucky enough to get to walk through some of the houses you will be able to view the beautiful mosaics. We were told that this was a sign of wealth. So the wealthier you were the more mosaics you would have in your home. These mosaics also told stories so they were unique. All I could think when viewing these mosaics is what the excavation process was like. You really have to be extremely patient and meticulous to ensure that you don’t ruin it. I will say this over and over again in my blogs but when you are standing on a site that is thousands of years old you really appreciate your life and realize how fast it goes by. Pompeii is one of these cities where I realized that Life is Better Traveling.

Mosaic in a Home

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When in Rome…

Mary Yohannan on

If you ever find yourself in Rome, I highly recommend seeing the Roman Forum

One of my favorite tours in Italy was that of the Roman Forum in Rome, Italy. It is a sprawling mass of ruins, that once was the center of Pictures by: M. Yohannan ancient Rome, with temples, courts, markets, and government buildings in full swing until the 4th century AD. While it may appear that all that remains today are an array of ancient columns and arches, the forum is one of the most important archaeological sites in Italy. Daily excavations occur unearthing new structures and buildings. Many people will skip this part of Rome and head directly to the iconic Colosseum. But I personally, love walking between and around ancient Rome. If you aren’t interested in seeing the forum, you can still get a great view of the Eternal City from the overlooking Palatine and Capitoline hills.

The Basics about the Roman Forum:

Many tours through the forum will last around three to four hours especially if you combine a tour through the forum culminating with a tour of the Colosseum. I personally loved our tour guide, Flavia, and I still use her today for all my clients who go to Rome. She is a wealth of knowledge about the forum and the Colosseum, while enjoying a private tour. She even showed us the expansive ruins at Circus Maximus.

Picture by: M. Yohannan

What is the best time to visit and what to know:

Most tour options include hotel pickup and drop-off. If you would opt for a private tour with Flavia, then she would come to your hotel.We would make sure that all your admissions to the various sites are included, so that you can enjoy the skip-the-line entry. On some days this will save you an hour or so in line. I would recommend the Roman Forum to any visitor whether you are in Rome for multiple days or just one day. It is a must see VERY ancient part of Rome.

Picture by: Mary Yohannan

Some “Know Before You Go” from Viator.com:

How To Get to the Roman Forum
The Roman Forum is located in the area between Piazza Venezia and the Colosseum in the southeastern end of Rome’s historical center. You can get there by metro and bus from most central hotels. The closest metro stop is Colosseo.

When to Get There
As the Roman Forum shares an admission ticket with the Colosseum, it stays consistently busy throughout the day and often has long lines. Choose a walking tour with priority access to jump the queue and maximize your time.

Discovering the Roman Forum Ruins
Inside the archaeological area, stick to the Forum’s main thoroughfare, Via Sacra, to pass by important ruins such as the Julia Curia and the house of the Vestal Virgins. Some of the forum’s most impressive ruins include the white marble arch of Settimio Severo, the first-century Arch of Titus, and the remains of the Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine. If you can’t get enough of ancient Rome, there’s plenty more history just outside the city with day trips available to Pompeii and the Appian Way.

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Picture by: Mary Yohannan

Beware of booking online…

Mary Yohannan on

Beware of Booking Travel Online. Read the fine print.

I recently had a friend ask me what to do when she needed to change their flight that they booked through one of these large travel booking engines or in the travel business what we call an Online Travel Agency (OTA). The problem was that the airline they were using was now using Expedia or Travelocity exclusively and not offering direct booking on their website. When they needed to change the flight, they had to call the booking engine company directly and not the airline. They had a lot of trouble speaking with a person and once they did they were charged all these extra fees to change the ticket. These fees were almost as much as the cost of the original airline ticket! What could they have done to avoid this happening?

So many people ask me “why should I use you or any other travel agent when I can just book on-line?” They are right, they can just book online. Unfortunately, when you book online if something goes wrong you end up being your own travel advocate and it could end up costing you many hours, energy, and money to get it fixed. My friend not only had to pay the airline fees to change the flight (which can be up to $150 on domestic or $200 on international) but they also had to pay the travel booking engine fee. For example, Travelocity’s fee to reissue an airline ticket is $40 per passenger in addition to the airlines fees of $150 per passenger. A total of almost $200 per person for the change.

Picture by: Pixabay

Many people don’t want to pay a travel agent a service fee, especially upfront. However, when I looked further into these “fees” that were charged by booking online, many people are paying large amounts of service fees.

I found that Travelocity charges a “Processing Service Fee” for all cruise line reservations. There is no set amount so it may vary depending on the price of your cruise. When booking vacation packages they have a “Facilitation Fee” that you pay them for facilitating your travel arrangements. Again, there is no amount so it probably is a percentage of your total amount of the vacation package. All of these fees are incorporated into your final amount.

Other travel booking engines like Expedia have similar fees but you really have to look deep in their website to find them. What ends up happening is that you are paying service fees to the online booking site, and you still have to go through an automated system when you need to make a change. Also, do you know where your money is going? When you book with a travel agency like Life is Better Traveling, service fees go towards supporting a family which goes back into your local community.

Now back to the question I get a lot “why should I use you?” Why not pay a travel agent service fee to have the same person throughout the entire planning process, during the vacation, and even after the vacation? Someone who knows your whole vacation intimately so that when you call them, it is a quick and easy phone call, no automated system or long hold times.

Also, working with a travel agent gives you peace of mind that when something goes wrong you have someone who is in your corner and already knows your information and details. You won’t have to repeat it 10 times like my friend did with the booking engine company!

Picture by: Pixabay

Did you know that travel agents can sometimes get you extra amenities, meals, or other special treatments that you won’t get from booking on-line. Want a free massage, a suite upgrade, a $250 resort credit, or a free tour? Yes, these are all incentives that, if available, a travel agent can provide to you. There are many times that I have been able to get my clients more incentives than that “deal” they thought they were getting if they would have booked online.

When it comes to finding a travel agent find someone out there who has a niche for where you want to travel. Try them out. They may or may not be a good fit for you. When picking a travel agent make sure you do your research. You don’t want somebody who doesn’t know what they are doing or hasn’t been to the places they are selling. I am speaking from experience, having had a great travel agent for our first Mediterranean cruise. She helped us find tours we never would have found on our own. So when you find a travel agent you love, DON’T LOSE THEM!!!!

Good travel agents are like good doctors, they are hard to find but when you find them hold onto them, even if you have to pay a service fee! Besides you will be spending a lot of money on your trip and you want the special touches and reassurance that a travel agent can give you.

Call us today to book your Europe trip. Looking for a motor coach tour, self-drive, or private tour, we can easily put together the perfect European vacation for you and your family’s needs.

Tulips in Amsterdam

Mary Yohannan on

What an amazing site to see, tulips in all colors carefully landscaped to look like it is a river of tulips.

Picture by: Pixabay

Not many people know about the amazing Tulips that bloom every time this year in the Netherlands. If you love flowers, then I highly recommend that you make a trip to see the tulips in around Amsterdam.

If you have ever been to Europe in the Spring time you see many vases filled with tulips. These tulips originate in Holland. The sight of them all over Europe is a sign that summer is on its way. Here are a few ways to visit the famous tulip fields in the Netherlands.

Kuekenhof Gardens

Just outside of Amsterdam in the quaint little town of Lisse, is the famous Keukenhof Gardens. These gardens are one of the most iconic places to see various displays of tulips. They offer viewing of millions of varieties in every imaginable color, and they are immaculately landscaped to make the grounds look they are flowing with tulips. Tours depart Amsterdam regularly, with round-trip transportation allowing travelers to visit Keukenhof with ease.

Picture by: Pixabay

If you are already heading the town of Lisse you may also want to stop and see the 17th-century Keukenhof Castle and grounds. You don’t want to miss the Black Tulip Museum (Museum de Zwarte Tulp) shines a light on the region’s history and the development of tulip varieties. This museum is centrally located so you don’t have to worry about getting there.

I would recommend choosing a tour from Amsterdam that visits Keukenhof and allows you time to explore Lisse. After all, there are also many amazing sites to see in Amsterdam including the Hortus Botanicus, one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world. You can take a leisurely stroll among the beds of vibrant tulips and combine your visit with other Amsterdam highlights such as the bustling Albert Cuyp Market—where shoppers browse for sweet treats, fresh fruits and vegetables, and, of course, colorful tulips.

Remember, a Life is Better Traveling Travel Agent is here to help make your next European vacation amazing! Make sure to contact us for the latest promotions to Europe.

This “Chilling” experience you can do in Scotland…

Mary Yohannan on

Touring a Close in Scotland is an Experience that you will find Chilling…

Subscriber, do you know what a “close” is? This is a very simple term that the Scottish people use for alleyway or Side Street. As there are many “close” in Edinburgh especially along the Royal Mile, one of the most famous closes is Mary King’s Close. It was named for Mary King the daughter of Alexander King who owned the property. It is believed that this close was used between the 16th and 19th centuries. For many years it was buried under the Royal Exchange
and was shrouded in mystery. Once it was excavated, it was found that this one close was actually made up of several close with many homes. It is believed to be around seven stories high.

Is it haunted? I will leave that up to you to find out. I will say though that there are several stories about those who succumbed to the plague were left down in the close to die. It is believed that they are still down there wandering around. Some believe that their bodies were then used to help rebuild walls or build new ones.

I will say this, having walked around Mary King’s Close personally, there is a sadness in the air that can overcome you. Whether it is the darkness of being underground, the small rooms where several families lived, the memorial to a little girl who died down there, or the various reenactments from our tour guide, Mary King’s Close was tour that was enjoyed by everyone who took it.

Don’t forget to pop down one of the many other closes that are used today along the Royal Mile. You never know where you will pop out but don’t forget to look up, you know, in case someone is dumping a bucket of water out their window.

I LOVE the Crayola Experience!

Mary Yohannan on

This is a great place for kids of all ages, even those 83 year old kids?

I can’t believe that I have not written an article about the Crayola Experience sooner! About two years ago we took the kids to the Crayola Experience in Easton, Pennsylvania as an easy trip from my parents’ house. We loved the experience so much that we used our admission that day to purchase the annual pass, which pays for itself in two visits.

Many people call it the Crayola factory because it was originally named that, but it is not the actual building where crayons are made. The original factory is down the road in the next town but very close. So what is the Crayola Experience if it is not the factory where they make crayons? It is as it is named, an Experience. There are two other locations Orlando, Florida and Mall of America in Minnesota. I have not yet been to the one in Orlando, but with the amount of fun we have at the one in Easton, I am intrigued to try it out!

The Crayola Experience in Easton is comprised of four floors with different experiences on each floor. The ground floor is houses the ticketing desk, lockers, food café, and the Crayola store. You don’t want to miss the world’s largest crayon on this floor either. On the second floor, you are welcomed into a room where you can make your own labels.

Here you can choose the color crayon you want, which the colors change daily, and make your own personalized label for the crayon. Also on this floor, you can bring your art to life with the 3D experience artwork, maybe mold some modeling clay into a new creature, or take in a short movie about the history of Crayola. You can also get your picture taken with animated crayons on various backgrounds, have simulated crayon wax drip over your head, or create a fun under the sea creature and watch as they float around on the underwater sea wall.

You will find that you can spend many hours just on level two, but once you venture up to level three you are introduced to more advanced experiences such as making crayon boats navigate through a series of locks and waterways. On this floor, you can also make your own puzzle, create a treasure box or shark hat, or make watercolors into amazing artwork. Newly opened is their Adventure lab. Here you are giving a smart table preloaded with tasks. Once you enter into the lab, there are 14 tasks in total, but you are given only three to master. Tasks can range from fun games to solving problems, to making your way across the molten, rainbow river of wax! Children must be at least eight years to do the task themselves, but all ages can play with adult supervision.

Do you remember melting crayons as a kid? If this was one of your favorite activities to do then the top floor will be your utopia! There are several stations of where you can melt crayons into shapes, make spin art, or just make your own creative art. It really is best to make sure you stay with little ones in this area, as many of the devices do get warm.

The Crayola Experience in Easton is about a half hour drive from Allentown, an hour and a half drive from Hershey, 40 minutes from the Poconos, and about a two-hour drive from Philadelphia area.

We went looking for Dracula but instead fell in love with Bucharest, Romania…

Mary Yohannan on

We went looking for Dracula but instead fell in love with Romania…

Yes, believe it or not I had spent an entire week in Romania traveling around the country with a guide in his very tiny vehicle, while enjoying the country of Romania. How did I come about taking this journey through Romania? One word…Dracula! I absolutely love Halloween and so one year my husband had the great idea that we should take a Dracula tour around Romania during Halloween. Intrigued, I looked into tour operators who did this and actually found a reputable one. After everything checked out, I booked our flights, hotels, and tours and we were off to Bucharest. Unfortunately, no Dracula tour was offered over Halloween so we opted for the beginning of November. This ended up being a great time of year to go because it wasn’t too hot or too cold.

I would love to talk about our whole trip in one article, but it would be way too long, so for this article I am going to focus on Bucharest, Romania. So what is there to see in Bucharest, Romania? Surprisingly, a lot! On our day we opted for a full-day, private sight-seeing tour of Bucharest. We first stopped at the Dimitrie Gusti National Village Museum which I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect. After touring the grounds for two hours, we ended up having an amazing time looking at various structures that have been built throughout Romania including wooden churches dating back 1000 years. All of the buildings and monuments were physically transported from all over Romania and placed here to preserve them.

Did you know that Bucharest is one of the few cities like Paris, New York, and Rome to have an Arcul de Triumf (The Triumphal Arch)? That’s right, it is located in one of the busy intersections so if you were going by it and blinked, you might miss it. This city also has its own little Times Square with billboards and lights that take over the side of buildings. Some are in English, but most are in Romanian.

My favorite tour of Bucharest was their parliament building which is called the Palace of the Parliament, and was built in the 1980s during the reign of Communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu. It was a long and arduous project building this massive complex, but it is now the largest parliament/administrative building in the world, even larger than the Pentagon. The palace houses the Romanian Parliament which consists of the Chamber of Deputies, and the Senate, as well as the National Museum of Contemporary Art. The building boasts one of the largest convention centers in the world.

The view from our hotel room. You can see the massive building even in the thick fog.

You can see the massive parliament building even in the thick fog. This was the view from our hotel room.

Walking through this massive building makes you feel as though you don’t belong there. However, the building is so massive that curiosity really got to us. There are marble stair cases, meeting rooms that are larger than my house, carpeting that rivals the carpeting in Kensington Palace, and many treasures. We only did a 2-hour tour but we could have easily done an entire day in this building.

It is quite cheap to travel around Romania as when we were there one USD was equivalent to almost four Romanian Leu. Full meals would cost us $3 and that was with a beer. The food is very good there, and if you ever go you must try the smoked lard.

NOTE: I must give warning that in the 1980’s when many people were forced out of their homes and into apartment style living. They had to leave their pets outside. Bucharest and southern Romania have a large dog population that roams freely and they sometimes form packs. As Americans, we are kind to our animals but if you were to travel here you must be cautious when approaching any animals.

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Lost Luggage: It happened to me!

Mary Yohannan on

Is your fear of losing your checked luggage like mine? Well, the airline misplaced our checked baggage.

When packing your carry-on bag for your next vacation, a good rule of thumb is to have two days of clothes packed. The thought is that if your checked baggage would be lost, you would have two days’ worth of clothes, and the clothes you were wearing, until they found your luggage.

Pixabay

After many trips to Europe, I learned that two days’ worth of clothes in your carry-on is the perfect amount. It gets me through the first two days without having to open my larger luggage. On the other hand, I decided that I wasn’t going to lug around that huge suitcase anymore. I was tired of herding around the luggage carousel like a cow at feeding time. After a long flight waiting for my luggage to come out was even more tiring. I learned to go to Europe having only my carry-on allowance and never checking a bag again. Since having kids, I now have to check my luggage because it is impossible for me to lug suitcases and kids through an airport. So now my worst fear when I travel is that the airline will lose my checked luggage.

Questions run through my head like: What if they lose my bag? Will I have to find a store to buy the kid’s more clothes and shoes? How long will it take for them to find it? What if they don’t find? How long before they let me know if they have no idea where my luggage really is? Will I be reimbursed for these precious belongings?

Well, my worst fear happened to us. We didn’t lose a piece of our luggage but they lost our car-seat. Yes, the one thing that you truly need when transporting a child, the airline misplaced it. What did we have to do? It was actually quite simple and painless, and exactly what you would do if they lost a piece of your luggage. You need to go to the airline’s customer service counter located in the baggage claim area. Talk with their representative and tell them your baggage did not come out of the carousel. This is where you will start to fill out paperwork so you can start your claim. Most airlines will reimburse you for any checked baggage fees you had paid. For us, they provided us with a car seat that they had.

Pixabay

If your carry-on baggage was flagged to go under the plane and it was misplaced, do the same thing. Thanks to the US Department of Transportation, if an airline loses your carry-on luggage they are required to reimburse your carry-on fees for all flight segments and any “reasonable expenses” if they completely lose it, damage it, or it is has been delayed.

Remember to make sure to put your claim paperwork in a safe spot. Better yet, take a picture of the paperwork on your phone so even if you misplace it you still have a digital copy of it. Having piece of mind about what to do if your luggage is misplaced and two days worth of clothes in your carry-on makes Life Better Traveling.

Have you KISSED this?

Mary Yohannan on

Kissing this might bring you luck…

Photo by James Sterganos

Everyone wants the gift of eloquence and the luck of the Irish. Some say the Irish are gifted with this by kissing a stone, the Blarney Stone to be exact. It’s all down to the Blarney Stone, not Leprechauns. For over two centuries people have been coming to Blarney Castle in the south of Ireland to kiss this stone set into the battlements in the hope of gaining a silver tongue. It used to be that you were hung over the battlements from above by your ankles, and I guess it was luck if you made it back up alive. These days there’s less risk involved in leaning backwards from the parapet walkway while holding securely to a metal railing.

The origins of this magic stone are still debated. Was it Jacob’s pillow, St Columba’s deathbed pillow, or the stone that gushed water for Moses? Was it brought to Ireland after the Crusades or given to the Irish by Scot Robert the Bruce in gratitude for helping him defeat the English in 1314? We’ll probably never know. But after you kiss it, tour the ruined castle, visit elegant 19th century Blarney House, and wander around the lake, you sure will have some good stories to tell back home.

If you’re thinking of a trip to Ireland, make sure to visit this magic stone in the South of Ireland near Cork. You can easily get there as a day trip from Dublin, or if you are feeling a bit more adventurous, try a self-drive itinerary. You don’t want to miss out on the luck of the Irish, after all, when in Ireland!

Call us today to book your Ireland trip. Looking for a motor coach tour, self-drive, or private tour, we can easily put together the perfect Ireland vacation for you and your family’s needs.

Phone: 919-606-4604

Email: mary@lifeisbettertraveling.com

About Mary Yohannan, CTA

Travel is a passion of mine and it is something I absolutely love to do. When I personally travel, I get feelings of excitement, relaxation, interest, curiosity, and a bit of anxiety. When it all comes together I have created a memory that reminds me of all of these emotions. I have traveled to 17 European countries, and in each country, I experienced what I just described. I felt excitement when we were roaming the canals of Venice and thinking this is nothing like Italy in Epcot Center. I felt relaxation in Scotland when my husband and I enjoyed an anniversary dinner on Rose Street in Edinburgh drinking Scottish beer. I was interested in touching a 1000-year-old entrance to a library while in Ephesus in Turkey. I was curious what smoked lard and Palinka tasted like in a small café in Bucharest, Romania. I was anxious going up the cogwheel train to Jungfraujoch in Switzerland while my head was pounding from altitude changes. The best part of travel is that when I am not traveling and I think of those places I instantly get a smile on my face regardless of the emotion that I felt.

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Passport Card vs. Passport Booklet

Mary Yohannan on

Passport Card vs. Passport Book

Which one is better?

I recently read an article on Facebook about a lady whose daughter booked her and four of her friends on a week-long vacation to Turks and Caicos. The daughter booked everything through an Online Travel Agency (OTA), which I will not name, but an OTA is Expedia, Travelocity, or Hotels.com. The ladies were excited, all packed, ready to go, and at the airport the lady whose daughter booked the trip was denied boarding. She had a passport card instead of a passport book. She could not get through to the OTA so she called a local travel agency and one of their travel agents told her what to do so she could get to Turks and Caicos.

So why couldn’t she board with a Passport Card? According the U.S. Department of State, a passport card can be used to enter the United States from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda at, here is the big red flag, land border or sea ports-of-entry only. The passport card cannot be used for international travel by air. As this lady was flying to Turks and Caicos she was required to have a passport book.

Picture from Pixabay

So why is there a passport card? The passport card is very convenient to have as it is the size of a driver’s license and can easily be carried around in your wallet. It is much less expensive than getting or renewing a passport book. The passport card also contains an RFID chip that according to the U.S. Department of State does not contain any personal information. When the chip is read, it “points” to your secured information in one of the government databases. Border Patrol can then access your information and photo identification. Each card comes with an RFID blocking sleeve, just in case.

If you plan on crossing the Mexican or Canadian border often, a perk of having the passport card is that you can go through Ready Lanes. These are certain lanes at the border that can expedite inspection when you are crossing the border. Not all ports of entry have these lanes, but if you are interested in learning which ones have these Ready Lanes you can visit www.travel.state.gov.

If you are an avid cruiser and leave from ports of call in the US, then having a passport card is a convenience. But next time you are flying out of the US, please keep in mind to grab that passport book on the way out of the house so you don’t get denied boarding at the airport. Having the wrong identification will surly have you starting your vacation off on the wrong foot, and could cause delays in getting you to your destination.

If you have any questions about photo identification for travel, please contact me with any questions or visit www.travel.state.gov.

NOTE: Life is Better Traveling always recommends a Passport Booklet even when cruising out of a US port. Why? If something were to happen and you were left behind on the island, you would need a passport booklet to return back into the states. The Passport booklet is just a few dollars more, and is good for 10 years, so we always recommend getting a passport booklet.