My girlfriend and I are going to Portland next week for the first time, and had been planning to take a day to drive out to the Bagby Hot Springs (she was thrilled when she found out they're the springs featured in
Old Joy). Upon researching further, I discovered that it doesn't have the greatest reputation in terms of safety. But, much of what I read was from years ago, and it's difficult to an find up-to-date state of things. For those who have been there recently, is it a reasonably safe trip?
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posted by (lambda (x) x)
on Jun 7, 2013 -
7 answers
I currently have a
Samsung Guru E1081T. It is a very simple phone, and I can use it in Australia and Europe. However, it does not work in the USA. What is the simplest phone that uses SIM cards that I can use in all three places? No smartphones please; battery life is the paramount consideration. I don't care about features, apart from phone and texting.
posted by Philosopher Dirtbike
on May 18, 2013 -
6 answers
My brother left for Rome, Italy on Monday to do a summer job for a lab there and we (his friends and family) still haven't had any contact from him.
I'm worried that something might have happened to him and his wife and kids are worried sick. Is there any good routes to trying to find him in case he's been in an accident?
I don't have the name of the lab he's working for or I'd just call them :(
posted by Ikazuchi
on May 15, 2013 -
20 answers
Our daughter is going to a
dance intensive program in Guinea, Africa. While my wife and I have traveled quite a bit in Europe and Asia, Africa is new to us.
She will be getting all necessary shots, travel insurance, etc., but we're more interested in the less than obvious. While she will be in and out of Conakry, from our understanding she will also be helping to build a school and traveling around other parts of Guinea. Does anyone have any advice for our daughter about Guinea, travel to Africa, cultural dos and don'ts or logistical information about communications, phones, or anything else?
Thanks!
posted by BillW
on May 14, 2013 -
8 answers
We're road-tripping from Sacramento to Salt Lake City to Denver with our five-year-old, and are looking for tips on routes and places to stop.
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posted by DakotaPaul
on May 13, 2013 -
8 answers
Hi CT mefites. I'm looking for help locating sunflowers in grocery/box stores between Windsor Locks and Storrs before I travel there next week.
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posted by ovenmitt
on May 9, 2013 -
5 answers
I'm road trippin' with friends. They are driving from Boston to Deleware. I'm in NYC.
I need to meet them somewhere along the 1-95 route in the NYC area, So they don't have to go out of their way to pick me up.
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posted by thatgirld
on May 9, 2013 -
10 answers
I'm planning on taking a solo trip to Berlin for a week. As a general guideline, if I stick to cafes (and the occasional doner kebab) how much should I expect to spend on food?
posted by GenericUser
on May 5, 2013 -
7 answers
I have several good friends who will be traveling abroad this summer to work with elephants in Thailand and wildlife in Zimbabwe. I wanted to get them each something that would be thoughtful, useful or fun, especially in a foreign land. I have never traveled abroad, so I am having a hard time deciding what is needed or wanted when one is in Thailand or Africa.
So, I am looking for something small and not terribly expensive. What would you have wanted on your trip to Thailand and/or Africa?
posted by Seppaku
on May 4, 2013 -
11 answers
I reply to a fair number of L.A. travel questions here and many of the answers (including mine) often contain dire warnings about traffic. This happens even if traffic isn't directly related to the question being asked.
So, visitors to our fair city, how bad was the traffic
really, and what information/advice can I give to newbie LA tourists who drive?
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posted by Room 641-A
on Apr 29, 2013 -
60 answers
Wife and I are going to Italy in a couple of weeks. It's our first trip there, and one we wanted to do for a long time. Friends that have been there are telling us all the places to see in Rome, Venice, Florence etc. Thing is, other than being in Rome the first & last night, we aren't going to any of those places, and don't really want to! We're planning to get off the beaten path as much as we can. Is this a good/bad idea? I'm having doubts now..
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posted by dukes909
on Apr 26, 2013 -
38 answers
So Belize has some pretty backwards laws regarding gays and who can and cannot enter their country. Is this something that we should *actually* to worry about? Or, what are some alternate travel destinations we should be considering?
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posted by wats
on Apr 18, 2013 -
16 answers
What does it mean to have one-way tickets vs one reservation for a person?
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posted by Anwan
on Apr 16, 2013 -
5 answers
By my searching, it seems that there hasn’t been a “moving to Vancouver” question yet this year, so I’m here to fill the gap. I am considering a move from Sacramento, CA to Vancouver, BC and would very much appreciate advice and ideas on getting immediate needs met in Vancouver for the first 1-3 months. (I have read the cbsa.gc.ca site’s “Moving Back to Canada” pages, previous Ask MeFi answers, and other sources.)
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posted by booksarelame
on Apr 14, 2013 -
10 answers
We are headed to the UK in late July and plan to go to Scotland for about 9 days in early August. I just realized that Edinburgh will be in the midst of its festival season in August and my partner is now thinking maybe it will be unbearably crowded and expensive, and we should avoid it on this trip. Is Edinburgh doable in August if you don't particularly like crowds? Are there ways to lessen the pain?
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posted by WorkingMyWayHome
on Apr 12, 2013 -
9 answers
My wife's father (Caucasian American) spent five years teaching in Chad, Africa in the late 60's and early 70's. A few years ago he told my wife that while he was there he had a relationship with a woman and that after he left the village where he was living he heard that she had a child who "looked like him." My wife and I are thinking about traveling to Chad to see where her father lived and to possibly try and find this woman who would now be in her 40's. We have some limited information from him (names places etc.) Finding information about Chadian culture has been difficult and we want to be sure that there would be no negative consequences for this woman and her family if we went and tried to find her. We want to be as low-key as possible but it looks like most of the westerners who travel to this part of Africa use guides or tourist companies. We speak a little french but not much. Any info would be so much appreciated!
posted by bjharl
on Apr 9, 2013 -
4 answers
Can you help me find a zine article I read some years ago? A man decided to say "yes" to all offers made to him during a 24 hour period. He was traveling in Europe by train.
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posted by mai
on Apr 6, 2013 -
7 answers
In one short month Mr. Bruno and I are traveling to California (from Boston) for a long overdue vacation. I am hoping you can help me make it even more awesome (it’s been years since we got to travel without a family visit or a wedding to attend, so it’s already pretty awesome). I have seen
this thread, and used it to plan parts of this trip, and would like some specific feed back as well as general recommendations, if you’ve got ‘em. Accomodations and number of nights are set, but activities are not. Things we like: eating, walking/not-too-long hikes (especially in parks/gardens), people watching, unusual museums/unique visitor attractions, farmer’s markets, bookstores, unique food shops. Most of our vacations are just walking around, poking into places that look interesting, and eating.
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posted by hungrybruno
on Apr 5, 2013 -
51 answers
How early should two people who will not check baggage arrive at JFK airport for an 8:00 AM flight to Barbados (BGI)?
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posted by neushoorn
on Apr 1, 2013 -
11 answers
I'm traveling to Hawaii for much of next week. This would be awesome except that I will probably be spending most of my time at a conference. I'm hoping that I can get at least one day for exploring and enjoying myself. What is the one specific things I should definitely try do while I'm there?
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posted by raeka
on Mar 29, 2013 -
20 answers
In about a month, 3 friends and I are going to an all-inclusive in Cancun. I'm fairly well-travelled, but I prefer going to cities and exploring around, so I've never done a cruise or any type of beachy resort vacation. What kind of tips/tricks does Metafilter have for getting the most out of relaxing, and drinking tropical drinks on the beach all day?
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posted by Fig
on Mar 28, 2013 -
25 answers
As you can see from my past posting my husband lost his job last month. In the meantime the jobs he's qualified for are probably not in our area (CT). Chances are after talking to recruiters in his specialty, he will have to take a job in another part of the country - probably south/southwest.
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posted by lasamana
on Mar 27, 2013 -
31 answers
I had a passport when I was a kid. My dad was USAF and I spent about 40% of my childhood overseas. However, I have not had a passport since and I have not left the country since I was in college. What do I need to get a passport?
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posted by COD
on Mar 25, 2013 -
12 answers
I'm in London, staying in a nice little self-catering flat. There's a sticker on the inside of the lid of the toilet that says:
"Because of various of environment will effect the tardiness down. The best tardiness down effect will after the cover board completeness open. Push the cover board to the position of self-down, and then the effect of tardiness down without voice will following."
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posted by still_wears_a_hat
on Mar 24, 2013 -
9 answers
I am on a cross country flight on a Delta 737-800 with DVOD. Everything I am reading says I should have a USB port at my seat, but I can't find it. The flight attendants seemed very confused when I asked them about it. Can anyone tell me exactly where this mysterious USB port would be?
posted by couchtater
on Mar 22, 2013 -
6 answers
I have always checked baggage when flying due to a large suitcase. And there is something so liberating about just dumping the bag during check-in, and then jaunting through the terminal sans baggage. Tomorrow, I am going for a short trip and could pack everything into a regulation-size wheeled suitcase and thus do carry on. Both planes (+ 1 connection), are full to capacity. Is it worth the hassle of trying to find overhead? Schlepping it through two airports? Compared to the potential of losing my bag for the duration of my trip, which recently happened? What do you do? Strategies?
posted by nanook
on Mar 18, 2013 -
34 answers
I am travelling to China from Canada in the near future. I have hundreds of questions and concerns but mostly just need reassurance that I'm not forgetting anything. Bonus, what should I do for carry-on?
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posted by sarae
on Mar 13, 2013 -
19 answers
My wife and I will be visiting New Orleans at the end of this month with our almost 1-year old son. Having the baby with us has required two contingencies: we are renting a car, and our days will have to end by 6:30 or 7 pm-ish (although they do start at 6:30-7am). We will also need to find a quiet place for him to nap during the day, or else sit in the car/return to our lodging for an hour or so. I am hoping he'll nap in the stroller as we wander the city, but can't take this for granted. Given this, and the fact that we only have two days (Friday-22 and Monday-25, the weekend is taken up by the wedding we are travelling for) how best to organize our time? Any advice on travelling with an infant?
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posted by arcticwoman
on Mar 13, 2013 -
5 answers
Tactful ways to get out of a corporate retreat when company recently spent a great deal of money on you
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posted by lpcxa0
on Mar 13, 2013 -
19 answers
We want to go on a round-the-world trip in July with an active 9-month-old. Good or bad idea? Tricks to make it work?
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posted by forza
on Mar 10, 2013 -
17 answers
This will be the biggest vacation yet for our family of four (son age 10, daughter age 12). Our vacations tend to run unsmoothly--some ugly surprise always pops up--and I'd like to get opinions from people who know Chicago before we set out. This will be a kid oriented trip.
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posted by mattu
on Mar 9, 2013 -
36 answers
We've only just got our act together to be able to take the same days off work next week - so my husband and I would like to take a quick trip somewhere. BUT - I cant think where to go! We'd be departing from Boston, leaving Thursday anytime, need to be back by sunday noon.
I'd prefer to not have a long drive, or a flight of more than 4 hours, given we dont have a lot of time. I think given the time constraints, we're limited to the east coast USA. But I can't get further than that... Hivemind - help us figure out how to enjoy our first break in a while!
Both of us enjoy going places where there are interesting or historic area to walk around and explore, great food, art galleries to sigh over...
Me: Would love to go somewhere warm.
Him: ability to get outdoors, small towns or rural areas preferred - no big city (so not NYC or DC)
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posted by darsh
on Mar 7, 2013 -
19 answers
Can you recommend men's undershirts (preferably v-neck, possibly tank) as an alternative to cotton tees?
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posted by suprenant
on Mar 6, 2013 -
8 answers
I am visiting NZ (South Island only, unfortunately) for about a week's holiday, starting mid-March (only 10 more sleeps to go, as they say). I'm flying in and out of Queenstown. What places should I visit? What should I see? What should I do? What car rental service is good? Any recommended places to stay?
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posted by vidur
on Mar 6, 2013 -
18 answers
Looking for a compacter-than-DSLR camera to take traveling for a couple of months. I really like my Nikon D90 for its low-light and manual capabilities, but I don't think I'll enjoy bringing it around with me the whole time. I really want a camera that can handle low light and takes good video, without being as bulky as an SLR. I think the NEX-6 satisfies these requirements pretty well. Do I want a NEX-6? Or something else?
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posted by BungaDunga
on Feb 28, 2013 -
9 answers
Tomorrow night, I'll be driving from Seattle to Whistler, BC. What's the drive going to be like, and is there anything that I should know?
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posted by schmod
on Feb 27, 2013 -
12 answers
Last-minute trip to Denver starting March 6. I'll have wed-fri and then monday for me-time in the city and I plan to do my usual routine whenever in a new city: investigate it as a possible future home.
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posted by myriad gantry
on Feb 26, 2013 -
21 answers
My wife, who has had an insulin pump for almost 18 years, has somehow never traveled more than one time zone with it. Next week she has 5 day business trip to the West Coast, and we live on the East Coast. Any diabetic MeFi's have experience crossing 3 time zones with a pump?
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posted by COD
on Feb 17, 2013 -
7 answers
What are a dozen (or more) fun adventures for a six year old in and around Fayetteville?
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posted by dismitree
on Feb 12, 2013 -
5 answers
I am traveling to Shanghai for two weeks soon (Feb. 20th). In one of my finer moments, I completely forgot about the visa until this weekend. I have all the necessary documents but I need a visa ASAP and the embassy is closed on Monday and Tuesday. I'll be using a visa service since I really have no idea what I'm doing but is it possible to still get my passport back in time for my flight?
posted by Loto
on Feb 10, 2013 -
5 answers
So our planned
January trip got bumped to March. I knew enough to not try to book anything around SXSW, but even 2 weeks after, there is very limited hotel availability and very high prices.
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posted by JoanArkham
on Feb 9, 2013 -
22 answers
I'm in the early stages of exploring a career shift into management consulting. I've spoken to a few people in one company, but I'm interested in hearing from people who do not have to speak for their employer as well.
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posted by Kurichina
on Jan 31, 2013 -
4 answers
My wife and I will get the chance to go away for 5 or 6 days without kids for the first time in a decade at the end of this year. It also happens to be my partners 40th birthday.
Where should we go, from Sydney?
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posted by bystander
on Jan 24, 2013 -
11 answers
I'm planning a trip to Iceland, probably for May, and a friend has expressed interest in coming along. I'm a bit worried ...
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posted by like_a_friend
on Jan 16, 2013 -
21 answers
I have NYC-Boston down to a science. Now please help me figure out the other end of my trip to the suburbs in a sane fashion.
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posted by TravellingCari
on Jan 14, 2013 -
23 answers
Currently I'm in Italy. In March I'll be travelling to Scotland by train and making stops along the way. Then I'll be flying home to Toronto. My problem is that I have a lot of luggage that I needed for an extended professional stay in Italy, but which will only serve to encumber me when I go traveling. What is the best way for me to forward one large (standard checked baggage) suitcase home to Canada from Italy when I head out? I would especially appreciate any advice based on personal experience.
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posted by Evstar
on Jan 12, 2013 -
15 answers
