Five ways to rock Idaho for the holiday season

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Coeur d’Alene, Idaho may not be the first destination that comes to mind for holiday travel. I mean … who jumps to Idaho?! Well, this is a problem that needs to be remedied. If you’re looking to take off for a few days between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, there’s a lot happening in Coeur d’Alene.

1. Holiday Light Show: More than 1.5 million lights are hung along the Coeur d’Alene waterfront every winter, creating the largest on-the-water holiday light show in the United States. The festivities kick off the day after Thanksgiving with a parade through downtown with more than 5,000 candles. One button is clicked at the end, bringing the waterfront to life with white lights, a 30-foot wreath and a fireworks display. This event runs through the end of the holiday season.

2. Fantasy Cruise to the North Pole: Cross the water by boat to visit the workshop run by the esteemed Santa and Mrs. Claus. On display, you’ll find a 161-foot Christmas tree with north of 30,000 sparkling LED and colored lights. The lights themselves take on the shapes of nearly 150 characters, from fire-breathing dragons to dancing elves to giant snowflakes. You can take advantage of this from the day after Thanksgiving until New Year’s Day. Set sail at the Coeur d’Alene Resort.

3. Migrating Bald Eagles: Watch the bald eagles stop in Coeur d’Alene every winter to dine on Chinook salmon near Wolf Lodge Bay. From Thanksgiving until the end of the year, you can see up to 100 eagles hanging out on the shore of Lake Coeur d’Alene.

4. Shop for the Holidays: Stop by Sherman Avenue, where you can find plenty of unique shops and art galleries. Add a local flavor to the gifts you give this year — a great alternative to the big box stores (and their online equivalents).

5. Parks of All Types: At Silver Mountain, a half hour from Coeur d’Alene, you can do some skiing or tubing — or throw on a swimsuit to splash around at an indoor water park, despite the freezing temperatures outside.

[Photo by Jami Dwyer via Flickr]

Own the Curtis Hotel in Denver for one night

by Katie Hammel on

The Curtis Hotel in downtown Denver is not your typical hotel. Staying here is all about having fun. And what could be more fun than owning an entire hotel, even if only for one night?

Through its Won Night Only promotion, the Curtis is offering up the whole hotel for one night – December 31, 2009 – to the highest bidder.

Up for grabs is a package that includes occupancy of each of the hotel’s 330 rooms (2 people per room, max), including the Rolling Stone suite and the British Invasion suite. The winner, and about 600 of his or her closest friends, will also enjoy a rock-star worthy New Year’s Eve bash with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, dinner, drinks, late night munchies, live music, the services of a DJ and a professional photographer, and limo service.

The current high bid on eBay is $50,000 (but the undisclosed “reserve” has not been met). Bidding ends on October 11, 2009.

While I’ve never seen a promotion quite like this, it fits right in with the style of the Curtis. The guest rooms themselves are sleek and luxurious, but the rest of the hotel is decked out in whimsical touches that appeal to the kid in each guest.

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Each floor has a theme that’s evident in quirky touches like movie posters and colorful silhouettes decorating the wall. Guests can stay on the “dance floor”, a scary movie floor (appropriately located on floor 13) or other floors themed around pop culture. Each room has a flat screen tv, iPod dock, and free wireless internet.

There’s a fitness center, 24/7 business center, and the lobby features a kitschy “five and dime” that sells classic candy. The lobby also has a Wii system and classic board games for guest use and is decorated with Lite-Brite art . Even the bathrooms are a surprise, with silly sayings painted on the stall doors.

The hotel restaurant, The Corner Office, serves an eclectic menu that’s reasonably priced (the $15 lobster macaroni and cheese is delicious, with big chunks of lobster meat, and the $3.50 desserts like peanut butter crepes and espresso creme brulee are worth every calorie). The Curtis also accepts pets with a $15 daily fee.

Galley Gossip: HAPPY NEW YEAR!

by Heather Poole on
Happy New Year, everybody! For the first time in fourteen years I’ve actually got the day off. I know, even I can’t believe it. “So what do you have planned for New Year’s Eve?” several people have recently asked.

They always look a little surprised when I say, “Not much. Just hanging out at home and making my famous spicy blacked eyed peas.”

“You’re not going out?”

“Nope. I never go out. Usually I’m working,” I say because I am, usually working.

“Really?”

“Really.” And that’s a good thing! Trust me

This year, unlike other years, I plan to stay home and celebrate quietly with my family. Because in three days I’ll be on reserve, which means that except for a few scheduled days off, I’ll be on-call to the company 24/7 for the entire month of January. I’ll be stuck in New York where I work, not in California where I live, which is why I’m trying to make the most of what little family time I have left before packing my bags and heading back to work on the 3rd. Don’t worry, you’ll get to hear all about my time waiting around at my crash-pad for crew schedule to call and send me who knows where at a moments notice. It’s not fun.

In the past I’ve always bid to work New Year’s Eve, because most times when you bid to work one holiday in December you can usually get the other, more important, holiday off – Christmas. However, even though I’m working on such a festive night, I’ve been fortunate enough (a few years) to descend into Kennedy or La Guardia airport just at the right time. There’s nothing like being in that dark, quiet, cabin, everyone so still and content, the lights of the city twinkling on the ground beneath us, when the Captain or a flight attendant makes the announcement I’ve been waiting for all night.

“Happy New Year!”

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And just like that every single passenger, and flight attendant, is smiling. It’s always a beautiful sight.

2008 was a good year, and not just because of all the amazing flight attendants I was fortunate enough to work with on each and every trip, but because of all the wonderful passengers I met, and I did meet many. Some I’ll never forget. So here’s wishing you and yours a happy and healthy 2009. Happy travels to all and to all a good flight!

The photo gallery above consists of photos taken from one of my last flights in 2008

Photo of the Day (12-31-08)

by Jamie Rhein on

I chose this picture as today’s Photo of the Day for a few reasons. One is because Jeremy Baumgartner took it at Fisherman’s Wharf at Monterey Harbor in California on New Year’s Eve, January 1, 2008. Featuring it today seems symmetrical. In a year that has had so many ups and downs, symmetry feels fitting and the photo exudes a stillness and calm.

With the hoopla around New Year’s Eve and the upset 2008 has brought, there’s a need for calm and the time to consider the stars. If you look above the warm, friendly glow of the sailboats, you’ll see Orion’s Belt. It’s one of the largest constellations and the one that everyone around the world can see. Part of the belt is the three close together vertical stars.

To have your photos considered for Photo of the Day, post them at Gadling’s Flickr Photo Pool.

Strange New Year’s traditions around the world

by Jeremy Kressmann on

Unlike many holidays, where celebrants are bound by tradition or religion, New Year’s is a holiday that allows each individual to choose his own method of celebration. Some revelers will soak themselves in alcohol, boozing it up with copious bottles of champagne. Others choose to make the evening a quieter affair, settling in for a movie and an early night in bed.

However you personally choose to celebrate New Year’s 2009, people around the world certainly have some wacky ways that they choose to bring in their new year. MSNBC is reporting on some of the more interesting customs. Here’s a look at a few of the more curious:

  • South America – in countries like Brazil and Bolivia, it’s what’s inside that counts. Residents in cities such as Sao Paulo and La Paz ring in the New Year by donning brightly colored underpants. Those who choose red are hoping for an amorous year ahead, those with yellow wish for money. I guess this begs the question of how you tell who is wearing what color underwear. Perhaps that is best left unanswered…
  • Denmark – as if the effects of plentiful New Year’s alcohol were not disorienting enough, many Danish revelers leap off chairs at the stroke of midnight, hoping to banish bad spirits in the year ahead.
  • Philippines – New Year’s celebrations in places like Manila tend to be circular; Filipinos focus on all things round, consuming “round” fruits such as grapes and wearing clothing with round shapes like polka dots. The spherical theme is meant to remind celebrants of the “round” shape of coins and prosperity.
  • Spain – at the stroke of 12, Spaniards begin to consume 12 grapes, attempting to eat the whole bunch by the time the clock stops chiming.
  • Belarus – the new year in Belarus is all about getting hitched. Unmarried women compete at games of skill and chance to determine who will tie the knot in the coming months. One game involves setting piles of corn and a rooster before the potential brides-to-be – whichever pile the bird chooses apparently picks the lucky lady.

You can check out the full list of weird New Year’s traditions here.