Here are some useful notes for travelers visiting the city of Oaxaca. Transportation There used to be no nonstop USA flights to the city of Oaxaca. Normal stops included Guadalajara or Mexico City or both and still do on some routes. However, Aeromexico, Delta and United Airlines now have daily nonstop flights from Houston (IAH) and Dallas (DFW) to Oaxaca. Mexicana airlines offers nonstop flights to Oaxaca from Mexico City. A toll road … [Read more...]
Oaxaca, Mexico – Markets
Oaxaca is known for both its artisan crafts and local foods. Brilliantly colored wood carvings are much sought after by visitors. These carvings often differ dramatically in both quality and price. A general rule is to spend time shopping around - do not purchase the first item you see just because you like it. With so many similar items available, competition is high for your peso. Perhaps you will return to that original item but chances are … [Read more...]
Oaxaca, Mexico – Attractions
A Short Walk One day I decided to walk due west and see where I ended up. I left the phone at the hotel, I didn't research anything. I just began walking. I passed by Mercado de Abastos (a market) and then drifted by an extremely polluted river, an ecological disaster so to speak. I spent some time watching people wade back and forth through the water. I witnessed several people use the soil behind small bushes as a bathroom. I watched the wind … [Read more...]
San Francisco, CA – Driving
San Francisco is NOT a car friendly city for many reasons; it is a very difficult city to drive in. In general, drivers in San Francisco tend to be aggressive and quick to honk. There are numerous hills and many are extremely steep. Space is at a premium in San Francisco - especially on the streets. Some streets do not allow parallel curb parking. They are so steep that you must park your car perpendicular to the curb. There are quite a few … [Read more...]
San Francisco, CA – Museums
Aquarium of the Bay is one of San Francisco's newer museums. This aquatic museum is located next to Pier 39. The primary feature housed inside is the long cylindrical glass tunnel. Visitors can walk through this tunnel and watch fish swim all around you. There are also other aquatic tanks. Allow at least one hour to absorb everything. They are open daily from 10am until 8:30pm. General admission is $19.95 with discounts given for those over the … [Read more...]
Vancouver, Canada – Western Canada Trip
The total trip described on this page took 17 days including transportation from one's home airport. Suggested visit times and attractions are only listed as options for someone roughly following this itinerary. Any names of hotels or motels I stayed at have been included along with contact information. Day 1 : Stay at a motel near your home airport. This saves the hassle of driving to the airport on that same day that you are flying, unless … [Read more...]
Santa Rosa, CA – Wineries
Sonoma County, while not the first destination in the state for growing commercial grapes (that being in Los Angeles County), is certainly one of the state's most historical viticultural regions and posseses a heritage that the county does not necessarily promote as much as they should. While not the first wineries founded in the state, two of the oldest ones still in existence are both in Sonoma Valley - Buena Vista (dating from 1857) and the … [Read more...]
Santa Rosa, CA – Annual Events
This is only a partial listing of events. Music, arts, wine and food. Common themes. In addition to the annual events listed below, a number of seasonal events are held in Santa Rosa throughout the year. Looking no further then downtown, the weekly Wednesday night market is held from early June to early September. Vendors fill and pedestrians fills some of the space at Old Railroad Square and part of 4th Street is closed to vehicular traffic. … [Read more...]
Nepal – Kathmandu Attractions
Swayambhunath or Monkey Temple is well worth seeing. This temple is located a short distance from Katmandu. The reason this temple is called the Monkey temple is that there are many many wild monkeys crawling around on the steps and buildings. Be careful not to have any exposed food with you because the monkeys will jump you and try to take away your food. There are 365 well worn steps leading to the top of the temple. These steps become … [Read more...]
Nepal – More Info
Books There are many, many books written on Nepal. Some of them are listed below Nepal Handbook by Kerry Moran is probably the best all around travel book written on Nepal. You should be able to find it at a good bookstore. It sells for $18.95 Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen is his written account of his trip to Nepal to track the elusive Snow Leopard To the Navel of the World is a book by Peter Somerville Large which chronicles … [Read more...]