new Dreamliner service

As reported by Ben at USA Today, Boston just became the first US city to land the new Boeing Dreamliner - you can check out the report here:

http://travel.usatoday.com/flights/post/2012/04/japan-airlines-tokyo-boston-dreamliner-boeing-787/679619/1

I'm excited about the new amenities on this plane - humidity and window dimming will make flying a little more bearable.

And if you missed it, it will also be coming to San Diego in December:

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/feb/27/tp-boeing-to-bring-787-dreamliner-tour-to-sd/

Direct service is always best! (unless of course you're mileage running)

Place of the Day: Chichen Itza

Happy Friday everyone!  It's been a long week, but I couldn't think of better thing to do than post another "Place of the Day" - I'm a little overdue in that department.

One place on my list to visit that is a lot closer than I realize is the Chichen Itza - even though I love Roman history, the Mayan culture also intrigues me and I really need to do more research on the culture and ceremonies that were part of that time period.  The spring or summer equinox is really the time to visit, when the moving serpent can be seen down the steps of the structure over 34 minutes.

Probably the easiest way to get there is to drive from Cancun - it's about a 2.5 hour trek.  Flights to Cancun are plentiful, or you can also cruise your way there if you're so inclined.

Now all I need to do is schedule it!

looking for some easy points?

Daily Getaways are back!  Sponsored by American Express and the USTA, these are fairly good deals for various point and hotel redemption options that can be had for fraction of cents on the dollar in some cases.  Check out the site here:

https://dailygetaways.ustravel.org/

The calendar button will give you an idea about what the coming promotions are - May 9th will be next on my list as it is a Hyatt-based focus day.

Oh, and don't forget - if you use your American Express to pay for the rewards, you quality for 10% off the price!

Qatar article

As most of you probably know, I'll be heading back to Doha this fall to do onsite research for my dissertation - I'm excited to be back there as I've found it to be a very exciting and welcoming place.  When my group from USD was there for our global study trip, we all had an excellent experience and hoped more individuals would be able to see the things we did.

I wanted to post this article that was shared with me by a friend from Doha - it's a pretty interesting read and one perspective:

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/04/23/the_qatar_bubble#.T5V2Rwezubs.email

Playlist post #1

I'm often asked about what music I currently have on my playlist - it's an interesting question for me since most things are in the cloud or on YouTube these days and access to music is so much easier then it ever was with the first iPods.  Nevertheless, I know I'm not the only one that creates playlists in iTunes and has a 'favorites' folder. And the DJ part of my past always can't help but keep a steady stream of variety playing. 

So I will do a few random posts coming up about what's currently in my playlist (for those of you who may be curious).  Then I've covered my bases.  Here are three to start off the fun!

1. Olly Murs - "Dance with Me Tonight"  (the first half of the video is a little lame, but I like the end)

2. Rodrigo y Gabriela - "Hanuman"  (thanks to George Reed - they are incredible players!)

3. Loona - "Vamos a la Playa - Extended Mix"