Staging Site

There's something about the weather that ev'rybody loves. They call it the Indian spring of Sacramento. And when the sun is up in the sky The wind is blowing by the riverside most ev'ry day. You're in Sacramento, a wonderful town. Sing, sing, sing, din-di-din.

—"Sacramento," Middle of the Road

Why is it that you always end up leaving for a road trip several hours later than planned?

There are always those last-minute errands, that pair of swim trunks that you can't find, and the cat, who you forgot needs to be fed by someone while you're away.

It wasn't surprising that we left for our I-5 road trip later than expected and encountered traffic hell going to Sacramento. I found myself wondering why they don't set up a walking lane on Highway 80 on Friday afternoons.

Enough about traffic because we eventually make it to Sacramento. Here are three highlights from our evening.

1) The Nut Tree, Vacaville.

Above is a photo of my kids sticking their heads through the legendary Nut Tree Wall. Can't see their faces?

Here's a closeup.

When we couldn't take the traffic any longer, we pulled over at this legendary road stop. The Nut Tree originally opened as a fig stand in 1921, evolving over time into a major tourist complex on Interstate 80. For decades travelers stopped for pineapple marshmallow delight in its restaurant and then rode the little red train that circled the shady grounds.

Today, a smaller version of the Nut Tree lives on. The original train chugs around a courtyard surrounded by some restaurants and shops. We also found the original carousel and of course the Nut Tree Wall.

2) Discovery Park, Sacramento.

We arrived in Sacramento at dusk. The kids were ready to run around so we pulled off the freeway to go to this 160-acre park at the confluence of the American and Sacramento rivers.

3) Quan Nem Ninh Hoa, Sacramento.

We were delighted by the food at this restaurant that's the No. 1 rated Vietnamese restaurant in Sacramento on Yelp.

The photo above is of the $13.99 special, which is basically "make your own spring rolls." Our waitress carried little plates of food to our table: vermicelli noodles; skewers of charbroiled pork; a pile of fresh lettuce, cilantro, basil, and mint; pickled carrots and daikon; bowls full of sweet peanut sauce; fried egg rolls; and then rice paper that you soak in water before stuffing with your choice of ingredients.

Our waitress showed us how to make the spring rolls.

4) Best Western Sandman Motel

My kids would tell you that this is one of their favorite hotels ever. They loved the animal statues placed around the hotel grounds. There was a "Bambi" right outside our room door, and an alligator swimming in the pond with a real waterfall. My husband and I liked this hotel for its location. It sits right on a walking path that traces the Sacramento River and takes you right into Old Town where you'll find shops, restaurants, and train museum.

Trip details

Miles: 120
Hours in car: 3

Expenses:

Dinner: $33
Hotel: $80 (Best Western Sandman)
Entertainment: $5

Total: $118

Read the complete I-5: San Francisco to Seattle series.

Hello Sacramento! Read Post

I-5 road trip: S.F. to Seattle

Hello Sacramento!

We kicked off our trip with a TV segment in Sacramento:

Summer road trip 2010: San Francisco to Seattle. Read Post

I-5 road trip: S.F. to Seattle

Summer road trip 2010: San Francisco to Seattle.

The Griswolds are on the road again!

Well, not quite. It's just my family piling into the car for yet another summer road trip. Yet while my husband isn't anything like Clark and would never crash the car through closed road barriers and sail us all through the air (we hope), there will certainly be some laughs on our trip with a 5- and 7-year-old riding in the backseat.
Last year, we traveled along the Mississippi River. The year before that we zipped along Route 66. This summer, we're driving I-5 from San Francisco to Seattle.
We've driven this stretch of highway many times. Typically, we're in a rush to get to my aunt and uncle's house. But on this vacation, we're taking it slow and spending nine days to cover over 800 miles.
We're excited about walking across the Sundial Bridge in Redding, visiting the Oregon Vortex where balls roll uphill, and strolling through the zoo in Portland. We want to stop at the fruit stands outside Sacramento and track down food carts in Portland, which supposedly dish up some yummy and cheap food.
Sound fabulous? Well, there's a catch. We're on a budget of $200 a day. This might sound like a lot to those who traveled around Europe on a shoestring budget, but keep in mind that our daily allotment must cover gas, lodging, attractions, and food.
How will we do it? Over the next week, I'll be telling you exactly how. I plan to share the good, the bad, and the ugly, and offer up practical tips on how you can travel on a budget. And I hope that you'll provide me with some guidance along the way. Know of a great place for cheap food in Sacto? Got a favorite roadside attraction along I-5 in Oregon? I'd love to hear about it.

Cutest travel game ever! Read Post

Cutest travel game ever!

We're taking off for a summer road trip next month, and so I'm starting to shop for some new travel games to keep the kids entertained in the car. I came across this adorable handmade tic-tac-toe set on Etsy. It's made of 100% felt and decorated in diverse embroidered technique. $30. More info.

Drive, fly, or take the train? Read Post

Drive, fly, or take the train?

Everyone in the travel industry is talking about it. Airlines are up this summer. If you didn't book weeks ago, you're going to be hard pressed to find any deals for June, July, or August.

So if you're traveling on a budget, does that mean you should opt for a road trip or train travel? Are these options cheaper?

USA Today answers this question in a recent article by looking at the cost of travel for three summer trips. Boston to New York City, Los Angeles to Las Vegas and Indianapolis to Chicago. The writer priced out airfare, bus fare, train tickets, and road-trip fuel costs, and also calculated the amount of time each respective travel method would take. Each scenario shows round-trip per-person costs, including all taxes and fees. Estimated duration times are each-way. For the fuel test comparisons, the writer checked prices on AAA's Fuel Cost Calculator using a 2005 Honda Civic as an example.

Route: Boston/New York
Flight Price/Duration: $123/1h 20m
Train Price/Duration: $98/4h 10m (NE Regional), $221/3h 35m (Acela)
Bus Price/Duration: $19/4h 15m
Fuel Price/Duration: $42/3h 40m
Route: Los Angeles/Las Vegas
Flight Price/Duration: $130/1h
Train Price/Duration: No train option
Bus Price/Duration: $60/5h 45m
Fuel Price/Duration: $54/4h 20m
Route: Indianapolis/Chicago
Flight Price/Duration: $156/1h
Train Price/Duration: $56/5h 5m
Bus Price/Duration: $28/3h 15m
Fuel Price/Duration: $35/3h 6m

A camera kids can't break! Read Post

A camera kids can't break!

Mom and dad enjoy snapping pictures on family trips--why not let kids get in on the fun?

This real digital camera from Fisher Price is tough enough, and easy enough, for kids to use themselves. The buttons are big and easy for little hands to press. And the controls are simple to follow. Store up to 500 pictures with 64 MB of internal memory. Requires four AAA batteries. Retails for around $50. More info here.

My new favorite iPhone app for travel: AAA TripTik Read Post

AAA

My new favorite iPhone app for travel: AAA TripTik

You're on a road trip, in the middle of nowhere, nearly out of gas, what do you do?

If you have an iPhone you check out AAA's latest app, AAA TripTik, that allows you to find gas stations close to your locations--and not only that. It will provide fuel prices at those stations so you can locate the cheapest price.

Yet again, the auto club comes to the rescue. This time with a GPS-enabled app that's basically a mobile version of the popular TripTik travel planner available at AAA.com. It similarly shows fuel prices and spots AAA Approved hotels and restaurants, attractions, AAA offices and other points of interest near a user’s location. Hotel information includes AAA’s Diamond Ratings based on professional in-person inspections and the option to call for reservations with the touch of a button. What's more, this app is free.

Kids Night Out Bingo Read Post

Dining out

Kids Night Out Bingo

We all eat out more when we're traveling. It's part of the fun. But when you have young kids--who can't sit still for longer than 10 minutes--it can be challenging.

Enter Kid's Night Out Bingo, a great game designed to keep little ones entertained in restaurants.

This twist on the classic is completely self-contained and portable, with punch-through icons to mark success in bingo (and not chewing with their mouths open).

Purchase the game for $8 here.

Smarter Travel: 5 off-peak summer destinations Read Post

Smarter Travel: 5 off-peak summer destinations

Summer is the most popular time for family travel because the kids are out of school. But it's also an expensive time to hit the road.

Smarter Travel came up with these five destinations where you'll actually find lower air fares and hotel rates in June, July, August.

1) St. Lucia — Many tourists stay away during hurricane seasons but the storms rarely touch ground.
2) Costa Rica — Summer is the rainy season but temperatures are still in the high 70s.
3) Miami — Summer humidity and hurricane warnings keep many tourists at bay, which means the beaches, hotels, restaurants, everything is less crowded.
4) Sri Lanka — It's Monsoon season on this island south of India, but the rain usually stops in the late afternoon and you can enjoy the spectacular scenery and wildlife.
5) Australia — It's winter time down under but even then the weather is quite pleasant.

Read the full story.

Kids addicted to computer games less likely to travel later in life Read Post

Kids addicted to computer games less likely to travel later in life

As 3-D technology improves, children are increasingly able to visit exotic, virtual worlds simply by parking themselves in front of a computer screen.

Futurologist Ian Yeoman, author of Tomorrow's Tourist, is predicting that this will curb kids' curiosity in exploring the real world.

In a report sponsored by Lastminutetravel.com, Yeoman said that kids who are spending their time playing computer games and surfing the Internet are less likely to travel.

What's he basing this on?

Trends he has studied in Japan.

Yeoman says: “They’ve had deflation and also the Japanese consumer has gone inward. So what they’ve seen in the last ten years is that they’re spending more now on in-home entertainment and technology rather than traveling the world. That’s an indicator of what could happen here.”

Source: Marketing Times

Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ivanwalsh/ / CC BY 2.0

Don't forget to sign your kids up for frequent-flier programs Read Post

Budget Tips

Don't forget to sign your kids up for frequent-flier programs

It's a huge mistake so many parents make--they sign themselves up for the airline frequent flier program but they never take the time to fill out the forms for their kids.

Yes, it's a hassle, but you should take the time because you don't want to throw miles out the window.

My kids recently became members of Virgin's Elevate program and at first I tried to sign them up online. But the system wouldn't allow me to do it and it wasn't clear why. I called customer service and the problem was that you can use only one email and I was using the same email for my account, and trying to use the same one for theirs. They're only 5 and 7 so they don't have email addresses.

And so I had to get them email addresses...sounds like a lot of work but they're already flown Virgin three times and they're on their way to a free flight.

Budget Travel: 15 places every kid shcould see Read Post

Budget Travel: 15 places every kid shcould see

Budget Travel magazine has put together a list of 15 places all kids should see. This list is a great resource as you plan your summer travels.

You'll find an excerpt below and can find the full story by clicking here.

1) Ellis Island Museum, New York City: About 40 percent of Americans are descended from someone who immigrated through this station. Visiting is a powerful experience, thanks to the smartly curated exhibits—and you get a terrific view of the Statue of Liberty on the same ferry ride (ellisisland.org, free guided tours, audio tours $8).

2) Ground Zero, New York City: The hole in lower Manhattan is sacred ground. The nearby Tribute-WTC Center exhibits crushed firefighter helmets and other recovered items (tributewtc.org, $10, students $5, kids under 12 free).

3) Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C.: This is a city of inspiring sights: the Washington Monument, Arlington National Cemetery, and the Jefferson and Vietnam Veterans memorials. Still, the 19-foot marble statue of our 16th president is a can't-miss (nps.gov/linc, free).

4) Colonial Williamsburg, Williamsburg, Va.: Kids growing up with e-mail and iPods might not believe it, but there was life before electricity, and even before a United States. The 301-acre open-air museum features hundreds of restored, reconstructed, and historically furnished buildings, and costumed guides tell the stories of the men and women of the 18th-century city (history.org, $35, kids 6-17 $18).

5) USS Arizona Memorial, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii: Sunk by a surprise attack on December 7, 1941, the USS Arizona remains six feet below the water as a lasting monument to World War II veterans. A memorial that spans the sunken battleship was dedicated in 1962 (nps.gov/usar, free).

Click here for all 15.

Venice, La.: After Katrina, before the oil spill Read Post

Venice, La.: After Katrina, before the oil spill

Last summer, my family drove to Venice, La. This is one of the first places to be affected by the oil spill and so I thought I'd re-share this post. At the time, the area was recovering from Katrina and now they're being hit with this spill.

If you look at a satellite map and zone in on southern Louisiana, you'll see that the Mississippi River branches out into several water channels. Before dumping into the Gulf of Mexico, the channels run through skinny fingers of land, and on the last day of our road trip we take Highway 23 down one of these peninsulas to Venice. A two-hour drive from New Orleans, the town is the most southern community on the Mississippi accessible by automobile and many refer to it as the end of the world.
Our drive through the lower Mississippi River delta immerses us in a landscape that's long and flat, vast and mysterious, even mystical. The land rises only an inch or so above sea level and it is so low-lying that at a distance it disappears into a blend of sky and water. The road is surrounded on either side by levees, which serve as protection when the Mississippi water level rises, and as we drive I feel as if the smallest wave could cover us in water.

Highway 23 also offers a front-row view of Hurricane Katrina damage. The storm hit southeastern Louisiana on August 29, 2005, and it completely destroyed Venice and nearby towns, leaving them 10 to 20 feet under water. We pass demolished homes, fire stations, and grocery stores with sunken roofs, broken windows, and fallen walls. Rusty cars are piled high in open fields; dejected boats clutter the roadside.

While the devastation is apparent, signs of rebirth are even more discernible. The community has worked hard to rebuild and new construction is everywhere. We drive by countless new homes, most of them lifted high up off the ground on stilts.

The kids spot a shiny new playground, constructed with funds from Project Rebuild Plaquemines, a nonprofit organization established after the hurricane to assist with restoration of the area. A sign reads: "This park is dedicated to those whose lives were forever changed by Katrina--those who lost so much and those whose generosity helped to restore what was lost. Let it be known that this storm has marked us and changed us, but we have persevered." It's a gorgeous playground but nobody is there.

Where do you grab a bite to eat at the end of the world? The Riverside Cafe in Venice is one of the few places. We walk into a dimly lit room with deer trophies decorating the walls. A few men wearing rubber boots that ride up past their knees sit around picnic tables. We're clearly the only people eating in the restaurant who don't work on a fishing boat or an oil platform. We order some fried catfish, which tastes as if it was just pulled out of the river.
Our waitress, Leslie Smith, tells us the restaurant was under 15 feet of water after Katrina. She says that's why the mural of a swamp on the back wall is faded. It was painted by a French man who traveled through town, bedded down with the cafe owners, and paid for his keep by painting the back wall of their restaurant. "We're so glad the mural survived," Smith says. "It's special."

Smith was born and raised in Venice. She moved up the road to Belle Chasse after Katrina hit but eventually came back to her hometown and now teaches at the K-12 school that she attended as a child. "Why did you come back?" I ask her. "There's no place like home," she says. "And that's how 90 percent of the people who lived here before Katrina felt. People wanted to come back. They moved into tents because their homes were demolished. They wanted to live here on this land."
We drive 10 miles down the road beyond the cafe, past a marina where some fishing boats are docked. This is a popular spot for sport-fishing, and the few outsiders who do visit this part of the world come to catch fish.

As we head further south, water laps up against the road and sections are under several inches of water. Egrets and cranes wade through the small lakes. The birds get thicker and thicker and we have to drive slowly.

The road suddenly ends. A sign reads: "You have reached the southern most point in Louisiana." We stop to take photos of the sign. A crab scurries across the road.

We drove over 2,5000 miles to reach the mouth of the river--and taking a few photos of the sign doesn't satisfy us. I want a more poignant conclusion to our trip. We decide that we'd like to rent a motor boat and travel further down the river and so we follow signs to Bud's Boat Rentals. On the way we meet a friendly pelican who probably would have let me touch him if I tried.

It turns out that Bud's doesn't rent boats to families like us. Rather the business runs supply boats between Venice and the oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. We learn this from Roy Mareno, Jr., who is sitting behind a big desk.
The dark gray clouds outside start dumping rain and so we give up on our plans to find a boat rental. Instead we pull up chairs in Mareno's office. He's a bivocational minister, working as a manager at Bud's and as a pastor at a church in nearby Port Sulphur. When he tells us about his town he's passionate and intense. I can easily picture him speaking to his congregation.
Mareno tells us about enduring Katrina and about the tight-knit community who pulled through the storm. We ask him why people would want to come back to this area that's so vulnerable and clearly exposed to Mother Nature's forces. That's when he starts to tell us about the fish he pulls out of the water and the alligators that come out in the early evening and about the cranes that are pink because they eat so much shrimp. He was born and raised in Venice and he cherishes the area's natural beauty. He's not leaving.
We have been following the river for over two weeks; the river has worked its way into our souls and at the end of our journey it somehow seems fitting to meet someone who has a deep, spiritual connection to the river.
Listen to a sound bite from Mareno here:

The Hawaii jar: My new way of saving for a trip Read Post

The Hawaii jar: My new way of saving for a trip

Gone are the days of putting a vacation on the credit card. With interest rates skyrocketing and credit limits shrinking, it just doesn't make sense.

My daughter and I are now saving for a trip the old-fashioned way. We've put a big glass jar in a kitchen cabinet and we're stuffing it with money that will eventually pay for the two of us to go to Hawaii.

When I have extra change in my pockets, I put it in the jar. When I'm feeling depressed by the cold weather and wishing I was in a tropical place, I grab a twenty from my wallet.

My daughter is only 7 years old, so she's putting her allowance and tooth fairy money in the jar.

Photo credit: bb-shopping.com

8 'things' all kids should see in D.C. Read Post

family fun

8 'things' all kids should see in D.C.

If you ask my daughter what her favorite thing was about Washington, D.C., she'd tell you seeing Abraham Lincoln's hat at the American History Museum. She was absolutely fascinated by this top hat that the former President was wearing when he was assassinated.

During our trip to D.C. I realized that these individual things on display in the museums--Einstein's light bulb, Dorothy's ruby red slippers--helped bring American history alive for my children. When my daughter saw Lincoln's hat, she realized that he was a real person--it humanized him.

And so I came up with this list of 9 things kids should see on a visit to D.C., all of them on display at a Smithsonian museum offering free admission.

1) Julia Child's Kitchen at the American History Museum. All of the ordinary and unusual utensils are on display in this simple, retro-looking kitchen that was once in Julia's home. Kids love watching the cooking shows playing on a TV.

2) Hope Diamond at the Natural History Museum. When you tell your kids that you're going to see the biggest diamond they'll probably be a little disappointed when they see that it's not much bigger than a walnut. But this teaches the lesson that good things can come in small packages.

3) Faith Bradford's Doll House at the American History Museum. You could wait in line for 30 minutes to see Dorothy's ruby red slippers, or you could spend that time studying this five-story doll house with more than a thousand miniatures including a tiny goldfish aquarium and kitchen cupboards with real cut glass.

4) Star Spangled Banner at the American History Museum. It's the flag that U.S. soldiers raised at Baltimore’s Fort McHenry to celebrate a crucial victory over British forces during the War of 1812--and it inspired our national anthem.

5) Bell X-1 at the Air and Space Museum. Piloted by U.S. Air Force Capt. Charles E. "Chuck" Yeager, this was the first aircraft to break the sound barrier and kids love anything that goes really, really fast.

6) The Peacock Room in the Freer Gallery. An opulent London dining room painted by Whistler in 1876–77.

7) Gilbert Stuart's "Lansdowne" painting of George Washington at the National Portrait Gallery. Your children will forever remember who our country's first president was after standing in front of this full-length portrait.

8) Little Dancer Age 14 at the National Gallery of Art. Little girls love this sculpture depicting a ballet student. It's one of Edgar Degas' most famous pieces.

Best Western: Stay twice, get $50 Read Post

Best Western: Stay twice, get $50

Stay twice at a Best Western through May 30, and you'll receive a $50 gift card.

Join Best Western Rewards and register for the Promotion prior to your next stay.

For more details.

Washington, D.C. cherry blossoms Read Post

Washington, D.C. cherry blossoms

"Mommy it looks like it's snowing!"

We were standing underneath a grove a cherry blossom trees in full bloom in Washington, D.C. When a gust of wind swept through the tiny delicate petals fell gently to the ground.

Those trees were absolutely spectacular. Here are a few photos:

On the Go with Amy on 'View from the Bay' Read Post

On the Go with Amy on 'View from the Bay'

Big cities on a budget: Get tips on View from the Bay Read Post

Budget Tips New York City Philadelphia

Big cities on a budget: Get tips on View from the Bay

It seems big cities are best suited to travelers with big budgets but actually urban destinations are filled with bargains. And they're great for families traveling on a shoestring.

My family of four just got back from a spring break in Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and D.C.—and this same itinerary also makes for a fun summer vacation.

The budget for our trip was $250 a day, and over eight days we spent about $2,000. And yes, we actually had fun. (Today, I'll be talking about the trip on ABC's View from the Bay, a California Bay Area afternoon lifestyle show.)

Here are four things that we did to keep costs down:

1) Take public transportation.

In big cities it doesn't make sense to rent a car because you'll have to pay hefty parking fees.
On our trip, we mainly traveled between cities on the Greyhound bus. It's cheaper than the train—and actually quite comfortable because Greyound recently introduced new buses with comfy seats and free wi-fi.
In the cities, we made use of the subways.

2) Stay at hotels that offer value.

We stay at Best Westerns because they offer lots of free perks—all the hotels we stayed at offered free breakfast, so that easily saved us $10 – 20; the free wi-fi was also a big help.
The Best Western rewards program also allowed us to get one of our nights for free. Travelers commonly join airline rewards programs but they often forget that hotel chains offer them too. Right now, you can earn $50 after staying twice at Best Westerns.

3) Don't spend a dime on activities and attractions.

In New York, we walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. You can also take the Staten Island Ferry as a free way to see the Statue of Liberty or spend the day in Central Park.
In Boston we walked the Freedom Trail.
In D.C. we visited the recently reopened American History Museum as well as the many other museums that don't charge admission.
Convention and Visitors Bureau Web sites and information centers are great resources for lists of free activities and events.

4) Dine out at restaurants that dish up cheap, yummy food.

It’s easy to spend only $5 to $7 per person on dinner when you can choose from ethnic eateries, street vendors, and hole-in-the-walls.
In Boston you can grab a cup of clam chowder at Quincy Market. We enjoyed a tasty dinner at Picco Pizza in the South End.
In New York, my favorite cheap eats are from the street-side vendors selling roasted peanuts, hot dogs, and pretzels.
D.C. is a little trickier when it comes to cheap food—especially in the central area around the museums. I like the cafeteria in the Museum of the American Indian. We had a lot of picnics on the Mall (pictured above).

Revisiting destinations Read Post

Revisiting destinations

I like going to new places. Exploring an unfamiliar city gives me a rush.

But I'm learning that my kids are quite happy going to the same places again and again. They'd be happy going to Tahoe every summer, and my son would be quite content returning to Philadelphia again and again.

My son and I visited Philadelphia over a year ago. We spent a long weekend seeing all the sights, from the Liberty Bell to Betsy Ross's house. We had a fun time, but I never expected the excitement he expressed for the city when we revisited over spring break.

"When are we going to Philadelphia?" he asked repeatedly during our time in New York and Boston.

"I can't wait to get to Philadelphia because we'll have so much fun there," he kept telling his sister.

Of course, part of this was him rubbing in the fact that he had already been to Philly and she hadn't.

He was particularly enthused about going to see the Liberty Bell, which cracked me up because when we visited it last time, his exact words were, "This is boring" (read the post).

When we finally arrived in Philly, he was ecstatic and only minutes after checking into the hotel, he started pulling my hand toward the door, "Let's go see the bell." (We were staying at the same Best Western Independence Park Hotel, where we had stayed a year ago. It's only a few blocks from the bell.)

We finally got settled into our room and headed out to explore the historic district. My son marched ahead, leading the way to the bell, and me made sure to walk into the building that houses the great American symbol first.

Like a tour guide, and proudly pointed out the crack in the bell.

"That's it..." my daughter said, clearly disappointed. I could tell that Dante was feeling rather disappointed by her disappointment--but he charged on and showed us Independence Hall across the way.

That night we ate at Campo's, a cheesesteak restaurant where my son and I had eaten. He was so happy eating at the same restaurant, sitting at the same table, and eating the same thing he had a year ago.

"When are we coming back to Philadelphia," he asked.

Chicken soup, just like mom made Read Post

Dining out

Chicken soup, just like mom made

The plan was to walk from the Liberty Bell to Reading Terminal, an indoor market with food stalls dishing up cheesesteaks, crepes, soft pretzels, and a myriad other options. This is one of the best places to find a cheap meal in Philly.

But it started raining and we were without an umbrella so we stepped inside the nearest restaurant, Delicatessan: A Modern Jewish Deli.

I ordered a bowl of chicken noodle soup--at $5 it worked within our budget.

"You ordered well," our waiter said. "It's the owner's mom's recipe."

Everything about the soup was perfect--the broth was homemade, flavor and just a little bit oily. The noodles were thick, not at soggy. The chicken was moist and sweet. But what really made this soup were the sprigs of fresh dill.

9 things to do with kids in Boston Read Post

Boston family fun

9 things to do with kids in Boston

1) Walk the Freedom Trail. Follow this 2.5-mile painted path and you'll pass by Boston's most historic sites including our country's first public school, Paul Revere's house, and the site of the Boston Masacre. You can pick up free maps at the tourist information booth at Faneuil Hall, where the Sons of Liberty once met.

2) Fill up on mac n cheese at the Quincy Market. Adult tastebuds will be tempted by the lobster rolls and clam chowder at this famous food market, but little tummies much prefer the creamy cheesy pasta served at MMMac & Cheese, where the stuff is made-to-order in a skillet.

3) Say hello to the ducks at Boston Common. In the oldest park in America, children love to get their picture taken in front of the bronze re-creations of the mother duck and her ducklings featured in the classic book Make Way for Ducklings.

4) Enjoy a tasty dinner at Picco Restaurant. The thin-crust blistery pizza are scrumptious and kids love the margherita with only fresh tomato sauce, mozzarella, and a little basil. Also try the homemade ice cream.

5) Visit the Boston Children's Museum. Kids can clamber up a three-story staircase, create a collage in the art studio, or blow gigantic pubbles in the science lab. Admission is only $1 Fridays, 5-9 p.m.

6) Savor a Cannoli at Mike's Pastry. Quite possibly the best dessert that you will ever taste, these Sicilian treats have perfectly crisp shells and creamy ricotta fillings.

7) Take in a bird's-eye view of the city. Along the Harborwalk, stop at Independence Wharf, where you'll get sweeping views of Fort Point Channel and beyond from the 14th floor of the observation deck. High-powered binoculors allow you to zero in on the planes taking off and landing at Logan Airport.

8) Hop a boat. Catch a Boston Harbor Cruise shuttle from Long Wharf to Charlestown Navy Yard to see the famous USS Constitution.

9) Cross a bridge. Drive across the Zakim bridge--it's especially beautiful lit up at night. This is one of the world's widest cable-stayed bridges and it's the the most visually stunning aspect of the massive Big Dig project. Kids will think it's cool!

Holy moly! It's the world's best cannoli! Read Post

Boston

Holy moly! It's the world's best cannoli!

Have you ever eaten something and then spent every day afterward craving more...That's how I have felt ever since I devoured a cannoli at Mike's Pastry in Boston.

Actually, I shared one of these Sicilian pastries with my two kids and husband--that's what you have to do when you're traveling on a budget of $250 a day.

We tried the ricotta and chocolate chip flavor, which the lady behind the counter recommended. We were all fighting over every single bite and my son was licking the plate. The filling was perfectly creamy and just a tad sweet, and the shell light and crisp. Honestly, this ranks among the top 10 things I have ever eaten.

We love the bus! Read Post

We love the bus!

Last spring break, my kids and I took the Amtrak train between Oakland, Calif., and San Diego. We had a great trip and you can read about it in this past blog post.

This year over the kids' vacation we decided to try out a different mode of transportation -- the bus. We traveled between Boston, New York, Philadelphia and D.C. via Greyhound.

When I told friends about our plans, I received mixed responses. It seems people have preconceived notions about Greyhound. They think the buses are painfully slow and dirty--and they have all sorts of things to say about the passengers. One friend told me she had read about a shooting on Greyhound in the newspaper.

We actually found the buses to be quite delightful. "I love the bus," my daughter squealed about half-way through our bus trip between Boston and New York. "This is so much fun!"

Here's why are family loved riding the bus:

You can see lots of stuff outside the window. "Look! The Empire State Building!" "Look, there are deer over there on the side of the road!" The kids loved looking out the window, and on the bus you're riding up high so it's easy to see everything. I got quite excited about rolling through Baltimore--a city I've never actually visited before but became familiar with by watching the Wire. I think I spotted the Shipyards area featured in the second season from my big picture window on the Greyhound.

The people are nice. On our leg between Boston and New York, the bus was so full that our family couldn't even sit together. I figured that this would be a disaster, but when my son plopped down into a seat next to a lady, she immediately asked him, "What you got in that Thomas the Train backpack?" I was sitting right behind him, and several people offered to switch seats so I could sit next to my son, but he refused. He wanted to stay where he was.

The passengers are interesting. Between Boston and NYC we sat next to a man who went to high school with Cyndi Lauper. Between Philly and D.C., the kids sat in front of a man who was part Native American. He was going to the capitol to visit the Museum of the American Indian. At over 80 years old he had returned to school and going to the museum was a class assignment.

You get lots of legroom. Ahhh....you can stretch out your legs. And there's usually a nifty little foot rest that you can pull down, which makes it easier to find a comfortable napping position. First class? No, but a lot better than what you find in coach on any airplane.

The travel time is slow--but not too slow. Yes, the bus is generally slower than the train or driving in your own car. But when you're traveling shorter distances, say between NYC and Boston, you can typically find a nonstop express bus that gets you there in the same time it would take you in a car if you drive 55 mph. I actually relished the leisurely pace. My daily routine involves rushing from here to there so I found the bus rather relaxing.

There's free wi-fi. Many of the Greyhound and Peter Pan buses traveling along the I-5 corridor have free wi-fi--yes, free.

It's cheap. An adult ticket between NYC and Boston cost us $23 on Greyhound. The ride was 4 hours and 20 minutes. For comparison, I looked at the same trip on Amtrak. I found adult tickets for as little as $49 and that particularl trip was 4 hours and 13 minutes. The Amtrak itinerary that's only 3 hours and 40 minutes costs $95 for an adult.

You might score one of the fancy new buses. Last year Greyhound introduced sparkling new buses with plush seats, electrical outlets, wi-fi, and even more legroom. These travel along the I-5 corridor on the East Coast, only on specific routes such as between New York and Boston. You can't specifically book a seat on one of these new buses, you just have to get lucky. However, you can book the new Neon Service that mainly services cities in New York and offers the same perks.

Tips for taking the bus Read Post

Tips for taking the bus

We arrived at the station in New York City 20 minutes before our bus was supposed to leave. It seems this would be early enough. After all, we were only taking the bus.

But when we arrived at the Port Authority Bus Terminal between Fifth and Eighth Avenues, it was packed with people. The line to check in was long.

I booked our tickets online and accidentally printed out only the receipt, not the actual tickets. Greyhound charges $5 to print out online tickets at the ticket counter. And if I printed out the tickets we could have immediately jumped into the boarding line. Oops!

We also learned that you can book reserved seats for an extra $5--this gives you priority in boarding a bus.

Long story short, we missed our 11 a.m. bus and caught the later 11:30 a.m. bus.

Here are some tips for taking the bus--so you don't make the same mistakes we did.

Join Greyhound rewards. You'll get 10 percent off your first ticket purchase, and you'll collect points, which can eventually lead to free tickets.

Book online. You'll generally find the lowest prices online.

Reserve seats. It's worth paying the extra $5 for a reserved seat.

Print e-tickets: If you book your tickets online, be sure to print out the actual tickets. When your receipt of purchase pops up on the screen, you'll see a place to "print tickets." The receipt won't get you on the bus.

Arrive one hour early. Bus terminals are busy, like airports. If you need to check luggage or pick up tickets, you can expect a long line. Also, travelers line up early to board a bus, and if you want a good seat you want to get in that line early. Also, if the bus fills up and you're still in line, you have to wait for the next bus. Purchasing reserved seats makes a difference because you get to board the bus before the people in line for reserved seating.

Pack snacks and water. There's no food for sale on the bus.

Bring your laptop. Many of the buses have free wi-fi so you can pass time by checking your email and cruising the Internet.

Day 1: San Francisco to Sacramento