I just got back from a bachelor party (not mine) in Las Vegas, and even though I was there three full days, looking back at the weekend, it seems to closely resemble this sped-up video of a trip down the Las Vegas strip. Lots of lights, blurred vision, and traffic; it seems like we just arrived, and then BAM! the trip was over. Check it out:
One of the best plane trips we took when our daughter was small was a Japan Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Narita, Japan. Instead of letting you figure out what to do to amuse yourselves for the hours on end it takes to get across the Pacific, they help you out. We played Sky Bingo as part of the entertainment. Whoever wanted to play got a Bingo card and the numbers were shown on the big screen. (I think that’s how it worked.) I do remember that our daughter was given extra prizes just for being cute. I have no idea if Sky Bingo is still played, but it was a great idea, I thought.
Another fun thing was the exercises we were led through after we had whatever sleep we could snag. I loved the exercises. These were the kind you do in your seat, but meant to get your blood flowing and the kinks out. Here is a video I came across on You Tube of exercises being done on a plane you can even try at home. This is some Chinese flight, I assume. You can practice counting in Chinese while you watch.
While you’re in Japan watching fatties bump bellies, be sure to stop at a “sushi-ya” and eat some hand-rolled heaven. Don’t know all the tricks to eating sushi? Check out this excellent, informative, and completely serious clip about how to eat it the right way! Among the important topics covered in the video are:
Now you know. You’ll look just a local.
[Via Pink Tentacle]
Online video site Travelistic, whose CEO was gracious enough a while back to do a podcast with us, has got some lovely vids to check on from Chile, one of my favorite countries on the planet. The selection ranges across the vast and diverse Chilean countryside, from the hot, dry zone of Arica to the frigid loveliness of Tierra del Fuego and Easter Island. Having lived for a spell in Chile, the series here, while consisting of some less well produced videos than others, brought back some fine memories.
Yesterday, the wind whipped through my yard pulling the covering off the outdoor furniture. Yes, it’s March and the wind has picked up. Thinking about wind got me thinking about kite flying.
Turns out, you don’t need wind to fly a kite. In Lincoln City, Oregon people fly kites indoors. At least the end of March they do. Not just any kite will stay aloft above a high school gym and not just any technique will keep it up in the air. At the Indoor Kite Festival, March 30-April 1, you can learn exactly how to send a kite soaring. During the festival, expert kite flyers demonstrate how to get a kite to look like it’s dancing at the end of its lines. The result is that as the flier moves in certain ways, the kite will move in response. Instead of the wind being a force, the kite flyer is. There is a video on the website that highlights different performances and some kite flying tips.
If you go, you can take kite flying lessons and there are activities geared towards children. This festival could hardly be any cheaper. It costs $2 for all three days. For an article that explains more about the festival, click here. The photo is of Penny Lingenfelter who is featured in the video on the website. She explains what helps this kite fly.