New York Traveler.net

New York Zip Code Map and GPS

I found a terrific article today at Retire in Paradise, about using a zip code map (usually downloaded from a website) and/or a handheld GPS for navigating your way around New York City’s crazy streets. I lived in Manhattan, and making your way through the city can drive you crazy!

A New York zip code map is easy to find online, either for sale or for free. The free maps tend to be low quality though, so your best bet is to buy one for under $20. Not only is it sent to you immediately, but there are no shipping and handling costs because it’s not a physical map, but an electronic one. Any good map will highlight major routes and landmarks and shade different zip code boundaries. Any other map tends to be a bit cluttered with every road, boundary and body of water in existence.

Taking a trip to New York can be an event of your lifetime, if you take it easy. By getting a New York zip code map, you can easily plot your trip out and save time getting from place to place. And since time is money…you might as well save a little of that as well!

Good advice. When I lived in NYC, there was no such thing as GPS. What a terrific resource for any large city!

Got Lyrics?

Hey parents, do you know what your kids are listening to? I’ve heard the rap and hip hop music playing today. I’ve heard some OK stuff, but some of it– I really question what it’s about. I’ve found a terrific website for researching lyrics to the rap and hip hop music your kids and peers are listening to: RapArtists.com. They have a ton– and I mean a ton– of listings of songs, artists, and profiles of the artists. They have a listing for an Eminem profile (one of the most popular rappers today– they also have a comprehensive listing of Eminem lyrics to all his songs, too).

I admit, sometimes I hear this music and wonder what on earth they are saying. If you have the same puzzlement, check out the site and wonder no more. You’ll probably be surprised!

Don’t Borrow for Your Vacation

The travel season is upon us! Some people are actually thinking (and have even done it!!) of going into debt to go on vacation. That makes me terribly nervous. The economy is so shaky, and consumer debt (as well as national debt) has grown to such heights that I’m afraid it will all come crashing down. And consumer debt is so hard to pay off. A vacation is a wonderful treat, but is it really something you should go into debt for? There are better ways to manage money and debts, IMHO.

Just about everyone I know has some kind of consumer debt. It’s time for us to get smart about our debt management, which, simply put, is don’t go into debt any further, and pay off what you owe! Easier said than done, I know– believe me! First thing we can all do is be wise with our credit card spending and choosing. Compare credit card rates and always check for annual fees or other slippery charges. There are some good articles about debt management: Advantages and Disadvantages to Getting a Credit Card, and Credit Repair Do’s and Don’ts. You can compare credit cards at the site, too.

Sometimes, we go through hard times and cannot avoid some debt. But remember, a vacation is not a necessity, it’s a luxury. Going into debt for a vacation is risky!

And there you have it. My humble opinion.

Enjoy the Ride

At the dinner table this evening, I was asking the children (I have four, ranging in ages from 11 to 18) what they liked best about traveling. I was thinking of writing a blog article about how to travel with kids. But as we talked about our experiences over our baked ziti and bread and butter, it became clear that the children enjoyed our adventures during the car trip more than the distractions to make the trip bearable. In a nutshell, I guess you could say we enjoy the ride.
They had some good ideas. Of course, being older (and more articulate), they are beyond the bingo games and sing-a-longs that make younger children happy. My youngest would still love a van with a built-in DVD player, but the others offered some sage advice. I’ll share them with you, because I thought they were very open and frank with their thoughts.

1. Take the scenic route.

This ranked number one among them all. They hate taking the highways and thruways, even if it means we will arrive at our destination sooner. Why have misery all the way to your destination and then all the way back home from it, just to save time? Enjoy the ride!

As New York travelers, we have the advantage of day-long car trips and beautiful scenery. We’ve had our share of I-90 road trips, and the trip is never as much fun as the trip we had when we took local routes like Route 5 or Route 20 or Route 8 or even the out-of-the-way local roads. Improvise a little. Make stops along the way, go to a grocery store and talk with the locals, or do your homework and find some local oddity in town to see before reaching your “big” destination.

2. Interact with the passengers.

My husband and I like talk radio (well, my husband loves it). We could have it running the whole trip. But the kids hate it. This makes sense, since half the time they don’t understand what the radio host is talking about. They’re kids. Who the heck is Bill O’Reilly to them?

My children want us to interact with them. They love conversation and stories. So hubby and I try to keep the car trip lively by informing the kids of all our youthful foibles, to their great delight! I also try to research the site we are visiting, and give a short history lesson before we get there. This adds a great deal of depth and appreciation to the site we visit. It also impresses the tour guides with our great knowledge.

I believe children- for all their groanings and complaints– truly desire their parents’ input. Mine certainly do, and aren’t afraid to let us know. Traveling in the car for long distances, where else can parents find such a captive audience? We mostly discuss the Bible, history, family life, philosophy, and current events. Find out what interests your child, but also teach the child some new things. Travel is really the perfect time to bond closer together and learn more about each other. It especially helps if you have a talkative group, as do we.

3. Bring along audio books for quiet times.

When you are tired of talking (or listening), an audio book works wonders. We have the Bible on tape, and several CDs of sermons from ministers, which are wonderful for quiet thoughts on the road. I rarely play music, and I never play heavy rock music, because those are distractions that work against reflection and conversation, I believe. Travel should be more than just a means to an end. Traveling to the destination is 90% of the journey, and I want it to be filled with convivial depth, not anarchistic distractions.

So there are my kids’ ideas. Nothing against Uno or sing-a-longs or hand-held computer games, as everything has its place I suppose. But keep in mind that the journey is half the fun, and children are as happy with simple things as complicated things. I will take that a little further and say that they are happiest when they are involved with the parents, and when there is unity among the group. This makes the traveling so much more enjoyable.

Enjoy the ride. Enjoy it together!

Photo courtesy of Vintage Clip Art.

National Finals Rodeo

We have rodeo here in Upstate New York. There are actually a huge number of rodeo events and fans, particularly in the agricultural eastern end of the state. I never knew New York had rodeos; I thought these events were always specifically reserved for the southwest. Of course, when one thinks of rodeo, the hilly, lush forests of Upstate New York do not immediately come to mind. My kids are BIG western fans and love everything western. The biggest rodeo event in the nation is without question the National Final Rodeo, sometimes called the “SuperBowl of rodeo.” It’s been held since 1958!

This event, sponsored by Wrangler (we love their jeans– it’s one of the few brands the boys have not worn holes through), and has been held in Las Vegas, Nevada, since 1984. National Rodeo Finals tickets sell quickly, and no wonder. Watching the events must be thrilling (and terrifying). I just cannot envision my boys undulating on those nasty brute beasts, their heads jerking back and forth and their hats flying. But the boys love that stuff. The NFR has seven events and eight champions (world champs!) are rated. The Team Roping is our favorite.

This year’s rodeo event will be December 4-13th, at the Thomas & Mack Center, on the campus of the University of Nevada. Yes, people are making reservations early! You should, too, if you’d like to go!

P.S. Did you know that there is a special dirt reserved for this rodeo? Yes, indeed! The dirt is stored on campus for the rodeo every year. LOL! Dirt or no dirt, I’ll bet those nasty spills and horse hooves hurt every time. :S

The Virtual Vacation

Ah, the world of “virtual” travel. Where would I be without it. Lol, probably in the same place as I am right now– at my desk.

I love travel carnivals. Here’s a huge one– the biggest I’ve ever seen– at Travel on a Shoestring. This blog is going in my travel blog list! I’ve visited it from time to time, and I admire it more and more. I think frugal travel is the new trend; gone are the $5,000 cruises to Antarctica and Tasmania, gone are the posh resort-y vacations.

I also like Travel on a Shoestring because they like my blog and they have a few of my posts in the carnival.

Really, it’s a blast. See you later, I’m going to go on my virtual vacation now…

Perfect Green Gadget for Travel!

Hey, look what I found! It’s flexible solar panels for your electronic gear! Isn’t it the neatest thing?? If you have a digital camera, then you know how those things gobble up the battery juice. I spend a fortune on AAA batteries. Not very efficient and definitely not very economical. Bit how about a solar panel? I think it’s neat. There are a variety of such flexible solar panels available– even one for a laptops, outdoor lights, cell phone chargers, iPod chargers, and more. Very “green” and I’ll bet these little things would make great gifts. I do know one would definitely come in handy for traveling. The sun isn’t partial to your location, so you can always be charged and ready. Nice!

Photo Hunters: Candy!

Today’s Photo Hunt involves candy. It took me a long time to think of something. We don’t eat much candy and I don’t regularly visit candy stores after having six teeth removed! (I had a vicious sweet tooth as a kid).

However, last time we were out, galavanting around Barneveld, NY, up in the lower portion of the Adirondacks, we stopped at an old time-y country store. It had wooden floors and enormous wooden bins. There were hundreds of wonderful things to see and buy. The kids and I paused to drool over the Adirondack cheese (homemade!), horehound candy, and peppermint sticks, but stopped when we saw this:

It’s candied ginger. None of us had ever tasted it before. I bought a small bag and we ate a little on the way home. It’s very spicy! My youngest son said it made his mouth feel hot. The granulated sugar coating was so, so good… uh oh! I must remember my teeth!

Here’s a traveling tip for you: ginger is known to help relieve nausea and motion sickness. Pack a small bag for people in your company who are prone to car sickness (we have two in the family who feel it). Sucking on the ginger will help.

What did you do for Photo Hunters today?

Free Ticket Exchange Website

Hmm, here’s something very interesting, a Free Ticket Exchange website. This sounds very appealing to me, because sometimes I win free tickets to something that totally disinterest me (like the Shriner’s Circus or a Mets game) but I would really love concert tickets or movie tickets. B.B. King came to Utica’s Stanley Theatre a few weeks ago, but tickets were a stunning *gulp* $50 apiece! I would have loved to have taken my husband to see B.B. (he’s a big fan– hubs is a musician), but I just couldn’t have afforded $100! However, I always am getting miscellaneous tickets to things that do not interest us. Something like the FreeTicketExchange is a cool idea! This is from their website:

FreeTicketExchange is an online social network of real fans who connect to buy, sell and trade tickets with each other for FREE, by using fanTokens. When you join, you can invite your friends to be your fans. You can find fellow fans that are like you or fans that can introduce you to something completely new. You can even start or join an exclusive group of real fans for your favorite sport, band, performer or play. FreeTicketExchange is an exclusive network that gives the fans the ability to set the price and control the ticket market place. Where fans with a shared interest meet, stay informed, and buy and sell event tickets with each other.

Buy and sell tickets with fans like you!

1. Avoid high fees
2. Choose from whom you buy or sell your ticket
3. Name your price
4. Build lasting relationships with like-minded folks

It sounds interesting, for the benefit of both parties! It doesn’t cost anything to join the community or to buy/sell tickets. I wonder, however, if some states in the U.S. have laws about reselling tickets? I don’t know if New York does. I would be willing to just swap tickets. This website uses fanTokens, so maybe that’s the best way for everyone and for every state. Sounds like a terrific idea.

If anyone has any experience with this, I’d love to hear! Please leave a comment. Thanks!

Frugal Hacks Alert

This is for all you Frugal Hacks out there– if you haven’t heard of Buy.com yet, you have got to check out their deals. I’m in the habit of perusing their weekly specials now. The prices are incredible! A few weeks ago I blogged about how my poor little laptop mouses (or mice or whatever they are called, I’m still not sure!) constantly die on me. They, uh, have this habit of falling to the floor. heh heh. I go through about two or three mouses a year. So I am ALWAYS looking for a good deal. I’m not very keen on paying $25 to $30 a pop for a new mouse. However, I don’t have to! Buy.com has a fabulous deal on a Targus notebook optical mouse for $10! Yes, you read that right! The Buy.com price is 74% off retail pricing. And the shipping is free! I’m going to get a couple of them, and hopefully it will last me, oh, through the summer.

Buy.com also has great specials going on for external hard drives and other computer gadgets, plus stuff like mp3 players, printers, and excellent prices on GPS systems. Check out their weekly specials page here and bookmark it.