...constantly searching to find the best travel deals and places to visit. A never-ending quest for adventure!

Saturday, December 30, 2017

Hyatt New Change for 2018: Free Night Awards Count toward Tier Status

Hyatt has been my mainstay hotel chain of choice over the last number of years.  I've visited quite a few properties in the U.S. and other foreign countries - while their footprint is smaller compared to other chains, I find the quality to be a step above the rest.  Take for instance the Hyatt in the Maldives (from site):



Since World of Hyatt changed up the earning process for qualification, there has been a lot of grumbling about how to get stay credit and other points.  Thankfully, Hyatt is introducing a feature that most will probably like: credit for award stays.

From their email:

You deserve to be rewarded for your loyalty. We are excited to announce starting January 1, 2018, all nights on free night awards will count toward tier status. You can now earn elite status and additional benefits and rewards faster.
Plus, we’re extending the validity dates for the following free night awards. Starting with awards issued January 1, 2018, you can use them up to 180 days from issuance.
Free night in a Category 1-4 Hyatt hotel or resort when you stay 30 qualifying nights or earn 50,000 Base Points in a calendar year
Free night in a Category 1-7 Hyatt hotel or resort when you stay 60 qualifying nights or earn 100,000 Base Points in a calendar year
Wherever your travels take you, World of Hyatt looks forward to rewarding you even more in 2018.

This is an excellent upgrade in service!

Saturday, December 16, 2017

The Christmas season is upon us

Another year is winding down. Soon 2018 will be here - thinking back on the many adventures this past year brought, I find myself thankful for the opportunities to travel, experience immersion in cultures, and explore new locales. I may not have traveled as many BIS miles as other years but I have no complaints.  The new year promises a similar amount of fun and exploration.  I'm also looking forward to visiting family back in Wisconsin and in Arizona.

Curious if anyone else has big travel plans in the new year? 

Wednesday, November 22, 2017

Walking and Dining: Prague

Our three days in Prague were very fun - the weather held up with only a few raindrops in between which allowed for easy walking and exploring.  I admit that I was having a bit of deja vu walking around from my past visit during choir tour.  There wasn't a trip to Plzen in the cards for this trip.

We were able to visit some excellent restaurants along with the Palace, Dvorak Museum, and the main square and clocktower.

Pod Vezi - traditional Czech menu (site)

Sad Man's Tongue Bar and Bistro - Kudos to owner Steve who was kind to chat with us and share some great recommendations (site)

Wine O'Clock - hidden and well worth the find - reservations needed in advance! (site)

We chose to stay the Charles Bridge Palace (through Booking.com) - very close to the Charles Bridge and within easy walking distance of the Metro.  The room was average; shower was excellent though the furniture was old and the inner room did not allow for any air movement whatsoever, meaning it was generally hot.

It was fun to be back.  Looking forward to another visit soon.

Saturday, November 18, 2017

Thanksgiving Trip 2017: Prague

Departure day!  I'm excited to be heading out for this year's Thanksgiving trip which will take us to Prague via Switzerland.  It's been a long semester and we were once again able to fit in a trip over this time period for an amazing deal.  The weather might be a bit on the cool side, though I'm not anticipating any major flight problems at this point.  Ready for snow in the Alps!

Thursday, November 16, 2017

50th Anniversary of Choral Fest

I had the privilege to make it home last weekend for the celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Choral Fest, a tradition started in 1967 by David Adickes at Luther High School.

The Friday night Pops Concert can be seen here: https://youtu.be/5tElac4WFmY

On Sunday, the Sacred Concert included a mass choir selection of all students along with alums who had previously participated in past Choral Festivals.  I consider myself fortunate to have attended all four years of high school (92-95) - it was even more meaningful to be able to sing in the choir with both mom and dad (who are also alums).

You can find the Sacred Concert here: https://youtu.be/q-C5bqzOf_Y

Thursday, October 26, 2017

The Starwood/Uber partnership is ending

One of the easiest ways to maintain active status in Starwood since 2015 has been to use Uber - for every $2 you spend on Uber you accrue 1 Starwood/SPG point.  There are some pretty interesting Starwood properties - one that I'm saving up to stay at is The Liberty (a former jail) in Boston.

Unfortunately, this partnership is coming to an end.

I received the following notification today via email:


I'm disappointed the partnership is ending, as the occasional Uber ride would guarantee account activity.  I'll need to investigate some other options for points (and maybe structure things to include a property here or there outside of my usual Hyatt stays).

Friday, October 20, 2017

Next trip Coming Up: Back to San Diego!

I'm excited that next week I'll be able to get back to the west coast and San Diego!  I've got a quick jaunt planned for Thursday evening through a Sunday return where I will be able to reconnect with friends and colleagues at USD and SDSU (as well as take advantage of a yearly eye doctor appointment).  The last number of weeks have been focused on the rollout of Field Services and it will be nice to fit in a short trip.

Thursday, October 12, 2017

Conference Trip 2017: IMTA

Greetings from Switzerland!

My week so far has been a bit of a blur, though I finally think I'm adjusting to the change in timezone (and sleeping through the night).  Of course just the time I get this all figured out, I have to fly back on Sunday.  Oh well.

I'm here attending and presenting at the 2017 IMTA conference - my presentation was on a chapter submission that Jimmy, Mo, and I submitted and were accepted for earlier this year.  Unfortunately neither Jimmy nor Mo were able to join me here so I took the reigns of our presentation.  All went well and feedback was good for our work!  It also didn't hurt to see and receive a copy of the actual book onsite:


We have one final day of activities here and then its off to Brussels for the ILA conference.  Fortunately the timing worked out that I could attend these back to back.

Monday, September 25, 2017

Labor Day trip: Forum and Colosseum

The proximity of our AirBnb was very close to the Forum and Colosseum, so we made the most of it in between initial raindrops.



We even managed to fit in some pizza and gelato for lunch as we walked back home.  Our dinner of choice for the evening was a nice place just a short walk away called Il Girasole (I was craving lasagna and was not disappointed):


Overall our trip was very fun with no real problems to speak of.  It was a great decision to do an AirBnb close to the forum and within walking distance of the train station.  Would definitely do the same again on a future trip!


Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Labor Day trip: Vatican and Pantheon

The weather was perfect and we were off to the Vatican for a 12:30p entry time to the museums.  Only problem - we got a late start and I thought we could make a Trevi Fountain stop:


The Vatican museums were not busy though the Sistine Chapel was packed - no pictures!

After taking time through each of the exhibits we maneuvered our way back toward Raphael's tomb and the Pantheon:


For dinner we decided to try a place near the Pantheon that was a bit hidden out of the way - La Ciambella.  It was quite possibly the best Italian meal we've had:




Tuesday, September 12, 2017

United Introduces New International Routes

United announced today they are expanding international service in several markets with new locations and frequencies.

From USA Today:

Newark-Porto
Begins May 4 and runs through Oct. 4. United will fly one daily round-trip flight on Boeing 757 aircraft. Flight time is scheduled for 7 hours, 5 minutes eastbound and 8 hours westbound.
Newark-Reykjavik
Begins May 23 and runs through Oct. 4. United will fly one daily round-trip flight on Boeing 757 aircraft. Flight time is scheduled for 5 hours, 40 minutes eastbound and 6 hours, 10 minutes westbound.
Washington Dulles-Edinburgh, Scotland
Begins May 23 and runs through Oct. 4. United will fly one daily round-trip flight on Boeing 757 aircraft. Flight time is scheduled for 7 hours, 15 minutes eastbound and 8 hours westbound.
San Francisco-Zurich
Begins June 7 and runs through Oct. 27. United will fly one daily round-trip flight on Boeing 787-8 “Dreamliner” aircraft. Flight time is scheduled for 11 hours eastbound and 11 hours, 50 westbound.

These routes are in addition to the already announced service additions from Houston to Sydney and Los Angeles to Singapore.

I'm looking forward to seeing what redemption options are possible/open on these routes.

Friday, September 8, 2017

Losing another option to Qatar: Lufthansa ending flights to Doha

During a recent schedule update (via AirlineRoute), Lufthansa will be ending service to Doha, Qatar and the end of the summer season.

the airline closed bookings for Doha flight from 28OCT17. The Star Alliance member currently operates Frankfurt – Kuwait – Doha sector on daily basis, with A330-300 aircraft. 

They will continue to fly the segment to Kuwait.

Friday, September 1, 2017

Labor Day Weekend Excursion: Rome

Last weekend I was able to make it back home successfully to spend time with my grandparents and family. This was a redo trip from July 4th weekend which failed spectacularly when United cancelled many Milwaukee flights and had no options for three days.  And this weekend continues the travel plan for August with a last-of-the-summer jaunt to one of my favorite places: Roma!

I'm writing this from the British Airways Galleries Lounge in T5 at Heathrow while we wait for our connecting flight on BA.  This is an all miles trip this time on United and British Airways - connecting through Heathrow only cost 30,000 Avios each to fly Club World.

The weather right now looks good and Vatican Museum passes are in hand...should be fun!

Monday, August 21, 2017

A Redo Planned for This Weekend...

I'm excited about my trip coming up this weekend where I will by flying back to Wisconsin and spending time with my grandparents.  I've tried this excursion once before - my previous trip planned over the July 4th holiday time was interrupted and ultimately cancelled when United claimed that weather was impacting all regional jet operations from Newark.  Actually, to be clear, the customer service agent noted that the problem was also related to a "schedule reduction".  How an airline is able to get away with reducing the schedule during a holiday weekend is still a mystery to me.  Anyway.

So far the weather looks perfect for Friday and I am scheduled to fly once again on the regional jet operation to Milwaukee from Newark late-day.  I hedged my bets on the way home and am flying through O'hare...no need to tempt fate this time.  I'll take the larger plane.

Thursday, August 17, 2017

American (AA) Adjusting Flights from JFK to PHL

I'm always on the lookout for changes relating to the destinations at the top of my list (Zurich, Rome, etc) and it appears that American will be implementing some adjustments to their transatlantic route network from the Northeast.  From Airways:

American Airlines will soon add several transatlantic routes from its Philadelphia hub while making large cuts to its international network at New York’s JFK. Today, American announced routes from Philadelphia to Budapest (BUD) and Prague (PRG).

As Philadelphia sees transatlantic growth, American will be making serious cuts to its JFK hub. American will cut one of two daily flights to Paris (CDG), cease service to Manchester, and move its Zurich route to Philadelphia. These cuts signify American betting on Philadelphia over JFK and surrendering the international New York market to Delta.
In addition to these routes, American will add additional service to Venice (VCE) from Chicago with the 787 Dreamliner. This route will also start on May 4th, 2018. All three routes will be seasonal and last until October 27th, 2018. The airline already serves Venice from Philadelphia.
It's great to see a transition away from JFK which in my opinion is a difficult departure experience.  Having a Zurich option return to PHL along with Budapest and Prague is a great change and opens up several new redemption possibilities.  I was bummed when the seasonal Zurich option was cancelled in 2016 - close competition with United from Newark may help lower prices.

Thursday, August 3, 2017

Chase Freedom Quarter Bonus through September

Don't forget!

If you have a Chase Freedom card, this quarter's bonus is for movie theatres and restaurants - normal dining may afford you some fast accumulation of Ultimate Rewards points by combining with another Chase UR card (such as the Sapphire Preferred or Reserve).

Another tip: registering and using your Freedom card at Mileage Plus Dining locations (or others) will add another bonus mile opportunity to the quarter. VIP members earn an additional 5 miles per dollar!

Thursday, July 20, 2017

Primera Air - another option to Europe for $99!

While I tend to stick to the mainline carriers (and subsequent large-body aircraft) when traveling to Europe, I've been intrigued by Norwegian Air and its recent low fare offerings to Europe.  Another player in the game will also be offering $99 flights from both New York and Boston:

Primera Air

The $99 only gets you the seat and extras cost more including advanced seat assignment.  But if you're looking to get to Europe on the cheap and aren't concerned about points, miles, or aircraft type, this may be a great option!

Monday, July 17, 2017

Plenty of fall travel ahead

My fall is shaping up to be busy and travel-filled - both of which I am grateful for.  I went into the year thinking that I probably was going to end up scaling back on much of the typical travel I've done in past years, but some very fortuitous opportunities presented that I couldn't pass up.  Right now I have a few busy months ahead - some highlights:

August: Illinois
September: UK/Italy
October: Switzerland/Belgium
November: Czech Republic/Switzerland
December: Wisconsin/Vermont

October in particular is a highlight - I'll be attending the 59th IMTA Conference followed immediately by the International Leadership Association Global Conference.  I especially look forward to networking and connecting with colleagues from past conferences.

Thursday, July 6, 2017

American/Alaska Earning Partnership changing

One of the best partnerships I've used for travel east coast to west coast is Alaska Airlines and American.  The ability to fly Alaska (on their ticket) and credit both miles and elite qualifying to American helped me retain my Executive Platinum status in years past.  Unfortunately, American will be changing the parameters of the partnership and its not to the better.  From the notification:

Starting January 1, 2018, American Airlines AAdvantage® award miles, Elite Qualifying Miles (EQMs), Elite Qualifying Segments (EQSs) and Elite Qualifying Dollars (EQDs) will be earned on Alaska Airlines only when the flight is marketed by American Airlines. 

Elite benefits on Alaska Airlines, such as priority check-in, priority boarding and complimentary checked bags, will be discontinued.


The complete information outline can be found here.

Thank goodness mileage earning is not being eliminated altogether, though I will say that in general buying the AA-marketed flights tends to be more expensive.  Given American's addition of an Elite Qualifying Dollar requirement, I can't say these changes surprise me.  I'm disappointed that another good option for flyers is being eliminated.

Tuesday, July 4, 2017

4th of July trip update

Update: my email to United Customer service is answered!  In fact, I received a phone call (which I believe is the first time that United CS has reached out this way - typically it's through email).

Along with a refund of my original ticket, they also included a voucher for future travel.  Very nice of them to recognize what happened and try to make it better.  It doesn't completely make up for losing time at home but I can look for another weekend to travel coming up.  The CS agent also described the cancellations as a possible "schedule reduction".  If that's the case, then someone at United isn't thinking: why would you do that on a holiday weekend??

Sunday, July 2, 2017

My 4th of July trip home that wasn't

Very rarely do I get frustrated about air travel in general. There are often variables that can't be controlled and generally I've had great success with getting to places around the world (case and point last November when we went around the world with no cancellations/delays).  This weekend, though, was an exception.

I was due to fly home for a family get together, picking up my grandparents along the way since they can't drive.  We had planned this trip for some time and with holiday flight costs being high I carefully planned to take advantage of the time.

The NJ transit train to Newark went quickly and so did check-in via Pre Check.  I was just about ready to do the bus transfer to Terminal A when Tripit showed that my flight to Milwaukee was cancelled.  Just like that.  No bad weather at the time.  Beautiful sun on the horizon.

I hopped off and went back into Terminal C and the customer service desk which honestly was a terrible idea.  There were only 5 of us in line and four agents.  Except the four agents became three and 45 minutes later I was still in the same spot in line with about 100 people having joined.  I decided United phone support was probably going to be faster and made the call.  20 minutes later a nice agent answered but I found out quickly she was not at all informed.  Example (in paraphrase):

Her: Hm, yes, so, let me see what I can do to get you to Milwaukee.  Right now I'm not seeing anything until July 3rd.
Me: O'hare or Cleveland would be options but I looked already and didn't see any airlines showing to Milwaukee.
Her: Hm, ok, sir. Well.  Would Austin work for you on the 2nd?
Me: Austin? As in Texas?
Her: Yes.
Me: I don't think that's a possibility.  How do I get to Milwaukee from there?
Her:  Oh. Ok. Well, let me look.  Hm.  Well, sir, how about LAX, is that close for you?
Me: LAX?  Los Angeles?  No, that is not a close option. I would have to fly across the country and back.
Her:  Oh, ok, sir.  Let me see...

Needless to say this was quite a poor experience.  And I don't blame United for the plane issue since this is a holiday weekend with many people traveling, though I'm perplexed to know why they would cancel three out of five flights to Milwaukee.  They can do better.  I'm really bummed that my grandparents and I couldn't get up north after all this planning.  Hopefully I can find a time in the coming weeks to go back.


Sunday, June 25, 2017

Hyatt Credit Card Signup bonus changing 6/29/17

One of the better credit card signup bonuses available for the last number of years has been the Hyatt Card from Chase.  By signing up and meeting the spend requirement you receive two free nights that can be used at any Hyatt worldwide.  This includes Category 7 properties such as the Paris Vendome or my preferred hotel in Europe, the Park Hyatt Zurich.

It appears this bonus is changing 6/29/17 - per CC Guide.

Changing to points will mean less value since the point value to redeem for Category 7 rooms will be more than the bonus change.

Take advantage now and sign up before the two free nights deal is gone!

Thursday, June 22, 2017

Breaking News: Qatar to buy stake in American?

Just reported, Qatar Airways has expressed interest in buying up to a 10% stake in American Airlines.

More to come...

Update: An excellent article providing more analysis of this news is available here.

Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Castles and Scotland

One of my still to do items in the UK is to visit Hadrian's wall - while I've shared this in a prior post, I also enjoy finding and visiting castles.  I've never been to Scotland though recently found an excellent resource if you're looking for castles to visit in northern England:

From the Culture Trip: Castles

Flying into Heathrow for these is still a bit expensive for both miles and/or regular tickets. It may be easier to find a deal to get you into Manchester or Edinburgh and then drive to many of the locations. 

Sunday, June 18, 2017

Place of the Day: Montenegro

There are quite a few European countries I still want to visit, and one of them is Montenegro.  In a prior posting I talked about visiting the Bay of Kotor, though I recently found a property that is certainly a place not to miss:



Yes, that "island" is the place to stay.  It is a former fortified village dating back to the 15th century.

My previous post details possible avenues to arrive, including via Dubrovnik. Since I wouldn't mind visiting the walled city one more time this wouldn't be too bad of an itinerary.

Monday, June 5, 2017

Travel Update: Qatar

It pains me to report on this, since Qatar is a special place for me and one where I spent time doing research for my dissertation working with students and Qataris at Education City.  In the last 24 hours relations between Qatar and many other nations in the Middle East have soured - so much so that diplomatic relations have been suspended.

In addition, many of the airlines in the region have also suspended flights.  From Doha News:

Dubai-based Emirates, Abu Dhabi’s Etihad, Air Arabia and the low-cost airline Fly Dubai all confirmed this morning that they will cease routes to Doha from tomorrow (June 6) until further notice.
Saudi’s Jeddah-based national flag carrier Saudia also joined, announcing in Arabic on Twitter this morning that it too is stopping flights to Qatar.
Stay tuned for more information. I'm holding out hope that this is a temporary halt based on recent hacking that took place on several Qatari websites and not related to anything else.

Thursday, May 25, 2017

New TSA screening processes on the horizon?

Lines are already long at airports for security, and now a new report is out that the TSA may be looking to adjust screening for larger electronic devices.

From CNBC here.

It appears that testing is already underway.

I'm not opposed to changes that make flying safe for all - I just hope they take into account how the process is already affected for those without Pre Check or GlobalEntry.

Tuesday, May 9, 2017

100k Ultimate Rewards points for a new mortgage?

It appears Chase is getting pretty creative with how to get business - this time, offering up to 100k Ultimate Rewards points for a new mortgage.  From Marketwatch:

Chase offering UR for Mortgage

Not sure I would go this route, but I'd take a look to see if it made sense with interest rate, points, etc.  And only available through August 6 if you had a card as of May 7th.

Saturday, May 6, 2017

Fare Alert: Newark to Ho Chi Minh City for $574 in fall

Fall travel alert!

Fares are at fantastic rates for fall travel to a number of locations, one of them being SGN (Ho Chi Minh City).  Here is one option for a potential PQM mileage run Oct 30-Nov 1 (just under 20k PQM):

https://goo.gl/flights/c2QM

$574 is a great deal!  Longer stays are possible.

Sunday, April 23, 2017

Family trip: visiting Murren

Mom specifically requested a trip to Switzerland and the Alps, and I was more than happy to plan and share one of my favorite places: Murren.  I was wondering how the weather would hold this time of year and we were treated with amazing sun, warmth, and snow!



It was the first time visiting the Eiger Guesthouse and the room did not disappoint.  I also liked its close proximity to the BLM station.


We had time to take a hike on one of the lower trails and had nice conversations with a local man also on the same path before finding dinner at a Rick Steve's recommended restaurant, Hotel Restaurant La Grotte.



Sunday, April 9, 2017

Treating Mom: Flights and stays

I had my eye on flights to get us over to Switz for some time, but the challenge is to find mileage options along with a paid ticket itinerary that matches (and doesn't make you break the bank in the process).  Thankfully, mom's flight options were fairly straightforward - I also needed to get her to Newark to meet me before we took off for Zurich.

American miles to get mom to EWR: 54,000
United miles to Zurich: 180,000 (a surprise: Polaris Business class!)

For places to stay I once again used Booking.com and found some fantastic deals.  We'll be staying at the following locations:

Eiger Guesthouse

Hotel Alpha

Park Hyatt Zurich

The best way I've found to get around Switz is to use the train system - fast, efficient, and always on time.  As luck would have it, a March promotion was happening on RailEurope that took 30% of tickets purchased through 3/27...and made the cost of a 2nd class pass the same as 1st class.  Score!  Quantities were limited and I'm fortunate we could take advantage.

Saturday, April 1, 2017

New Chase Freedom Bonus Categories

Don't forget!

If you have and use a Chase Freedom card, the 2nd Quarter bonuses are now in effect (provided you clicked enroll for this quarter).  As a reminder, Chase offers 5x points on all purchases at grocery stores and drug stores up to $1500 until June 30.

The 5x points you earn are transferrable to Ultimate Rewards if you also have a Chase Sapphire Preferred, Reserve, or other premium card.

I'd be happy to refer you if you're interested. Or you can also use the following link and receive the bonus on sign up:  Chase Freedom

Wednesday, March 29, 2017

World of Hyatt suite upgrades need some work

Earlier this month Hyatt rolled out its new loyalty program called World of Hyatt.  At the time they touted this as an upgrade to an already existing loyalty program that would enhance benefits for members.

For those members staying at least 60 nights the benefits are fairly robust including the ability to receive unlimited suite upgrades on checkin (based on availability).  For others at that level (or Diamond members who were grandfathered in the first year) four suite upgrades are also available for use ahead of time.  Gone are the 1000 point Diamond welcome amenity as well as the ability to qualify based on stays.

Hyatt still has work to do in my opinion with this entire new system, especially the ability to use suite upgrades ahead of a stay.

Over the weekend I made my first attempt to confirm an upgrade for an upcoming stay I have at a Park Hyatt property, and the experience itself was less than stellar and took three calls.  My first call to new World of Hyatt number was answered by a lady who was clearly upset about something and extremely short in her responses - a shock since every agent I've interacted with up to this point has been extremely professional.  When I asked to confirm the upgrade, I was put on hold for five minutes abruptly and then told it would be taken care of.  I asked for an email confirmation and was assured I would receive one.

After 24 hours and no confirmation, I called again and talked to a different agent.  Apparently the new system is difficult to use/navigate and agents are increasingly finding it difficult to help customers with no help from the Hyatt team.  She confirmed that the suite upgrade had been processed in the notes but was concerned about the missing notifications and said "the system is completely different" and they were still tweaking things.  In addition the changes to upgrades would mean no notification of confirmation as had been in the past.  She said she would try resending.

I did receive the second try but the email itself was incorrect - it said "change" at the top but only confirmed my initial reservation and not the upgrade. Clearly they have form work to do in their notification system.  Not only that but upon checking my account I had two suite upgrades deducted instead of one.  That required a third call to an agent to get one returned which was successful.

Hyatt, clearly you have work to do.  How about working to improve your notification system so that upgrades do not require a phone call to confirm?  You're risking a negative impact to your existing relationships with your most loyal customers by not having a program system in place to correctly handle these changes.

Friday, March 24, 2017

Upcoming trip: treating mom!

Back in 2013, I had an opportunity to take my dad to Norway and we really enjoyed exploring Oslo - I'm hoping someday I can get back to do more work on family genealogy.  When I had planned that first trip I also knew that I would do a similar trip for mom.

Well...very soon I will be back on the road with mom on a trip to Switzerland!  Seeing the Alps was one of the things she wanted to do so we'll be visiting the Bernese Alps region and a few other places along the way.  As in the previous trip, I was able to use all miles for mom's tickets and found a matching itinerary for myself that had good value.  We'll be flying United on the way over though mom will be connecting through O'hare on American to get to Newark.

I have some writing to complete before we leave, though with a 4/7 deadline it will be wrapped before we take off.

Looking forward to the fun!

Saturday, March 11, 2017

Winners of United Miles Giveaway

Have you ever received the emails from various airlines running promotions for miles giveaways and wondered "does anyone ever really win these things"?  A recent United giveaway made me think this same thought and after clicking on my submission, also encourage me to seek out the terms and conditions.  All of these giveaways offer you the chance to see the winners list though I've never asked for one...until now.

If you're at all curious and happened to sign up for United's Billion Mile giveaway, here is the list:



Unfortunately, I was not a winner...

Friday, March 3, 2017

No longer three beeps but one…

I enjoy traveling and over the last number of years have taken advantage of the opportunity to fly to numerous countries around the world.  One thing that has helped me immensely has been using Global Entry.  It allows for Pre-Check when flying domestically and the easy use of global entry kiosks when flying back into the United States.  During domestic travel, one of the easiest (and early) ways to know that my global entry/pre-check notation was correct on my boarding pass was the sound of three beeps when the pass was scanned by TSA.  Though it appears something has changed.  At least, I think it has.

Over the last bunch of months while traveling (and using Pre-Check) there has been an interesting adjustment.  Instead of three beeps, the machine at the TSA checkpoint is now only beeping one time before I’m waved through.  Normally I wouldn’t notice this type of change but I’ve seen some curious facial expressions now from several TSA agents during my last few flights after the single beep.  In fact, they all curiously read whatever is being shown on the box and then wave me through (usually faster than others they are checking).  

Maybe I’ve missed something in the course of all my travel work, but does anyone have an idea about what this change might be?  Have I been put on some alternative travel list?

Wednesday, March 1, 2017

Already March...and Lent


I apologize for the length of time between posts – this semester so far has been one of the busiest I can remember.  Between normal work and other travel in between, I’ve also been working on several education initiatives and teaching opportunities.  In fact, I just returned from an Ivy+ meeting at Stanford where my group completed its second meeting.  I’m grateful that there has been such excitement among my colleagues from the other institutions about our work to support faculty, students, teaching, and learning.   

More posts to come!