FTW-Best Out of Office Message

You are packed and ready to go on vacation, just a few small details left to take care of, confirm reservations, download some movies to your iPad, oh, and put your out of office message up on your email. Who hasn't been on vacation and neurotically checked work email? Part of me wants to read and respond, but I don't want to set some level of expectation that I will always do that. At my office, everything is always urgent, and many people act as if the information they need will in fact cure cancer, and that it is imperative we respond. Not to make light of our very fast paced office, but we aren't saving lives for sure! So how do you tell people that while I am sure whatever you need is SUPER important, most things are not as important as some hard earned time off with my family?
Well the good people at Gizmodo have posted the best out of office email I have ever seen, written by Josh Kopelman, and maybe one day I will have enough guts to try something similar at my office!

It reads:

I am currently out of the office on vacation.

I know I'm supposed to say that I'll have limited access to email and won't be able to respond until I return - but that's not true. My blackberry will be with me and I can respond if I need to. And I recognize that I'll probably need to interrupt my vacation from time to time to deal with something urgent.

That said, I promised my wife that I am going to try to disconnect, get away and enjoy our vacation as much as possible. So, I'm going to experiment with something new. I'm going to leave the decision in your hands:

• If your email truly is urgent and you need a response while I'm on vacation, please resend it to interruptyourvacation@firstround.com and I'll try to respond to it promptly.

• If you think someone else at First Round Capital might be able to help you, feel free to email my assistant, Fiona (fiona@firstround.com) and she'll try to point you in the right direction.

Otherwise, I'll respond when I return…

I love that he makes sure that they know they will be interrupting his vacation, that his wife will be mad, and that they should feel bad about it. But if after all that you really need that answer, go ahead and email him. I wonder how many emails he received to his interruptyourvacation email address?

Ryan Air Anyone?

I have heard so many stories about Ryan Air and other budget airlines. Lets start with Ryan Air it is a budget airline, and you should expect to get what you pay for. But if what you are paying for is just to get from point A to Point B no frills needed, then you are in business! If what you think you are paying for is top notch service and extras than you should look at Virgin Air.

My favorite Ryan Air story comes from a co-worker. You see the airline does not assign seating, so first on the plane gets the best seat. And they board everyone at once (with one exception) and from both ends of the plane. So his story goes like this: Everyone gets checked in, and gathers outside the gate on the tarmac. An attendant unhooks the stantion, and everyone starts hauling ass to the airplane. No holds bars mad dash to the plane, children and elderly be damned, everyone for themselves kind of thing. I think-"well that just adds to the experience!". If you have a Ryan Air (or other budget airline) story, please share it in the comments-I'd love to hear it!

Let me tell you something...when Italians are confused and start asking you questions about how the airline works and if they are in the correct line, you should be concerned. When tell them in your best Italian (which is horrid) that you are in line for flight 1234 and hope you are correct and they take your advice-worry more. Low and behold my sucky Italian actually got me in the correct line, but not before I creeped up on other passengers to sneak a peek at their boarding passes just to be sure. And that one exception I mentioned before? For like 5 euros you can get priority boarding, which to me seems worth it, but at a 70% increase to my 7 euro ticket, I guess it is kinda steep. At the end of the saga (yeah, there were delays) my 5 extra euros got us all exit row seats, for far less than what American charges. And since our flight was just over an hour, it was all worth it. If you are flying a short flight and don't care about frills, I would highly suggest trying Ryan, if you are in for a long haul, I would seriously weigh comfort vs price, because sometimes, the extra $200 is well worth it.

Italian Odessey Part 2: Venice

Ahh, Venice. Often referred to as one of the most romantic cities in the world. Well, if you like see teenagers making out on every corner and think droves of tourists romantic, then I say go for it! In all honesty, while I don't think Venice is very romantic, it is an incredibly interesting city, and I think it should be visited at least once.

You may remember from my previous post here that there was a public transportation strike the day we arrived in Italy. Well, Venice was no different and when we got to the rental car drop off we learned that there were no taxis or vaperettos going to the island. So, we decided to keep the car, drive across and deal with that later. Pain in the ass that turned out to be.

Finally we arrived at our apartment, which was very cool and modern, which was strange to see inside such an old building (but also the reason that we picked it). Venice is a maze, a tangle of streets, canals, and piazzas with dead ends everywhere. Get a map. A good one, and then cross your fingers that you get where you are going because even the street names change every block in some places! If you do find your way around, Venice is packed with museums, great churches and neat little shops. One of our favorites was a tiny Venetian mask shop. And by tiny I mean it was maybe 10x10' and packed, there was probably only 10 sq ft of space to stand in and the four of us pretty much were cramped in there. The thought was that as a thank you for traveling to my sisters wedding in Italy, she would give them a Venetian mask (along with some other items). The store was so charming filled with all these masks, just magical.

 

 

The Wedding party and guests in our masks

One of the masks from the tiny shop

We did check out the Rialto Market, which was pure insanity. So much hustle and bustle, and everything from beautiful stores selling Murano, to stands selling key chains-and people everywhere, lots of tourists. I love open air markets enjoy the hustle and bustle of them, just know what you are getting yourself into-this place is busy with tourist shopping for souvenirs, chefs strolling the pesceteria, and everything in between. I believe that having a realistic expectation of what you are getting into is part of the key to enjoying travel. If you expect to stroll charming markets and get crazy market, you will be dissapointed. If you expect crazy market you will get and experience that treats all your senses, sight, sound, smell. taste, everything.

In fact, expectation is key to everything. I have heard from so many people, and read so many unhappy reviews, and I often ask, "Well what were you expecting, and why?". When you read reviews, take the exceptionally good and bad with a grain of salt-the truth is in the middle somewhere. And, lighten up some. I read a review once that said "BUGS!! Do not stay here!" in the title. I was totally thinking bed bugs. Ick! It turns out that he saw some ants by the window and it ruined his experience at that hotel. Really. Ants. They ruined his trip. Lighten up-you are in the tropics there are way worse things there than ants.

A typical Venitian canal at night

All in all I can say that we checked out Venice and I truly appreciate the engineering that went into building this city, but it is over run with visitors and for me at least, was not as charming as others made it out to be. I did however take some great photos, and can see why people see this labyrinth of a city as being among the most beautiful in the world.

The Shopping Bag Six!

One of the Animal Rescue of Texas volunteers was at the Texas Theater in Oak Cliff last month. She was approached by a couple of kids who asked if she wanted a puppy. They opened a sack and inside was 6 overheated, dehydrated, hungry, five week old puppies that they were trying to sell for ten bucks each. She could not turn her back and took all six home. They have since been dubbed "The Shopping Bag Six". 

All puppies are doing well and are as cute as can be! There are still four available for adoption if anyone is interested! So here is some puppy cuteness to get your day started:

 

 

 

You can also visit their Facebook page here!

Life is Too Short to Drink Bad Wine

Ahh...Northern California, I love you so! With your great weather, great wine, and the great outdoors I could stay there forever-or at least until I run out of money. We just got back from a mad dash weekend trip to Sonoma. We typically go to wine country once or twice a year, and always discover new wineries, and usually squeeze in time to hike in some Redwoods.

This trip was a little different than our usual ones and we learned a few things along the way. My BF owns a restaurant, and usually his fantastic reps set us up at wineries who then wine us and dine us, but this trip we were meeting friends out there and opted to forgo the rep itinerary. We learned a thing or two on this trip, and had a travel ideal really come into focus for us also.

The first thing we learned (or realized) is that we use Sonoma/Napa as the test run for whether we can travel with other people. After all, that is how the four of us started traveling together several years ago. With all of us staying in a house together, plus all the wine and the general having to cooperate so we can follow/agree on a plan it is a true test of patience, planning, and perseverance. If we can't work it out here, we certainly won't survive each other outside the country.

Lesson 1-You should actually stay with the people to get a good picture of if you will travel well together. It also makes it easier to find said people once you are there, and keeps everyone on the same schedule. Otherwise someone is coming while others are going. It may be worth noting that the more people in your group, the bigger the need to have a more defined plan. Ever ask a dozen people what they want for lunch, and then try to make them all show up at once? Its not easy, and then people get "hangry", you know, when your hungry, and the lack of food makes you angry? Not pretty.

The bocce score board

We visited several wineries, our aim was to visit small "mom and pop" type wineries, and just have a laid back weekend. At Sunce, a winery in front of the owners home, the guys had bocce ball smack down, while us ladies relaxed in the amazing weather. Sunce is super charming and owned by the regions reining bocce ball champ, who also happens to make an excellent Meritage.

Even though we were an hour and a half late, Jim of Pedroncelli Winery, gave us a lovely tour and told us about how four generations of their family have worked the winery and vineyards. Built around the original family home, Jim's office is his old bedroom when he was a child!
Imagery was another cool winery we visited, all of the artwork for their labels is commissioned by artists. The winery sits on a beautiful property, and on the weekends they grill on the patio for guests. Special thanks to our host Bull, who tipped us off to great burgers at the Wolf House, Jack London's Pub. Very laid back cool staff, a gorgeous patio, and awesome burgers and fries. They were so yummy I took a pic before they disappeared.

Beer on tap at the Wolf House Jack London's Pub, and the best fries ever!

Misty-soft and fuzzy, but watch out!

We also checked out Merry Edwards, run by one of California's first female winemakers. Merry Edwards has two winery cats-a nice one, and a not so nice one...and although she was very sweet to my travel companions, we were told that there was an incident that spurred the winery to make a warning sign! Another winery we checked out was the Larson Family Winery, who makes a wine called Three Lab Cab. Yes, we picked the winery based on the fact that they named one of their wines after their dogs. The winery has been family owned since the 1800'. 

Sunny, doin' what what he does best.

And on that note, Lesson 2-wineries with dogs are always more fun than ones without. I think we may have to plan a trip just based on which places have winery dogs. I have never been to a winery that had dogs and wasn't in general full of laid back, friendly, and genuinely nice good people (and their furry sidekicks).


So Lesson 3, is really something we already knew, but I think is the key to traveling-or at least why we enjoy traveling. It is the people you encounter along the way that make traveling worth it. Of course I want to see the ancient places, natures greatest, and all the other things the world has to offer, but it is those people that we come across along the way that make the best trips, whether it is for a few hours of wine tasting, or weeks trekking across a country. I feel very fortunate to have family and friends that I can travel with and am grateful for all of those that I have met all around the world.

Rentals vs. Hotels

I am a HUGE advocate for renting properties while you travel. Rental properties allow you to find exactly what you want and have a space that caters to your needs. It typically allows you a little more room to relax while you travel. Again, like planning your own travel, this is one of those things that requires a little research and time, but the payoff is tenfold.

One of the reasons I like renting properties is the people that you meet. Every place I have ever rented, we were happily greeted by the owners. The benefit to this is you are really welcomed into someone's home and have an opportunity to get the scoop from them first hand on where to go and what to skip/avoid. I have met lots of wonderful people this way and the hidden gems they have always sent us to have been superb. Renting is also well suited to traveling in small groups. Depending on where you travel and your level of accommodation standards, the average hotel costs somewhere around $150-$200 depending on where you go (for a mid-range hotel with amenities). Since there are four of us that always travel together, that means we need two rooms, or at least $300 a night total for you standard hotel room. But for $200 a night total ($100 a couple) you could get a house or apartment right next to that hotel, and have TONS more room to settle into and relax.

Another bonus is the kitchen-buy some basic groceries and you can save lots of cash making breakfast and lunch that you can spend on your vacay, or a fancy dinner. We have rented some places with such fantastic decks or views, we even stayed in for dinner, opting to grill a healthier meal ourselves. Also, many rentals have a washer (and sometimes a dryer) to do laundry...which make packing for two weeks in a carry-on bag super easy. Other bonuses include free wifi, computers, bigger beds, DVD players, bicycles, lake/beach toys, game rooms, and, the best of all...? Dogs!! Yep, we have even rented places with resident dogs that we could cuddle with when we were missing our pups who had to stay at home.

Homero-the cutest beagle in Argentina was a wonderful host and companion. He is especially fantastic at tricking visitors into all kinds of things...just look at that sweet face!

Italian Odessy-Travel by Plane, Train, Car, Boat, and by Foot!

On a recent trip to Italy, the travel gods truly tested not only our patience, but our resourcefulness. Murphy's Law was working in full force. All travel plans usually have some snags that pop up, but this trip was one for the books. To be fair, we had a fairly complex travel schedule set up, so clearly there was lots of opportunity for things to go wrong, but still....

Over the next few posts I will recap our travels, the good and the bad, and share the things we learned along the way.

We decided to go through Zurich and take the train through the Swiss Alps to Milan, then another train to Venice. We planned for a 3 hour layover, what we didn't plan for was the 2 hour delay our flight would have on the way out, which now gave us one hour to connect and was starting to cut it close.

Upon arrival at the ZHR airport, we booked it off of the plane (thank god we carry on and didn't have to wait at baggage claim) and headed to the train terminal to see if we could still make it (after immigration/customs we only had 40 min). At train ticket office we were informed that we *should* make the train, but there was a strike in Italy, so the train may not go to Milan. What? Where the hell will it go if not to Milan? He said we could take our chances, or fly. Nope, not at $600 a ticket for the flights leaving that day, even on the budget airlines. So we ran to the train, made the connection and were on our way to Milan.

Or so we thought....A few hours later the train stopped in Chiasso and we were told to get off the train, as it could not enter Italy. Great. Luckily we had technology on our side, and looked up the nearest rental car location, which was in Como a few km across the border. Except we couldn't get a cab to take us across the border to Como. We were told we had to walk across the border, then get a cab to pick us up there. Walk across? He said is was a little over one km away. So there we were dragging our luggage across border control and we actually walked into Italy. Got our rental car and drove four more hours to our final destination of Venice.

The lesson here: Build enough time into your itinerary for the unexpected, or have a back up plan. Even though we were exhausted, the train ride was beautiful!

Pack Like a Pro

I am often baffled when I see people at the airport with an excessive amount of luggage. You know who you are...with two pieces of giant luggage, plus a carry on, and a tote/backpack. What do you have in there? How long are you staying? I have to admit some things are hard to pack, like puffy ski gear-but you can still get it all in one bag.

For the past several years, I have packed in only a carry on bag, plus camera backpack (my purse fits into one of those bags). I started doing this after my luggage was lost in Rome. The lady we rented our apartment from pointed us to some shops where locals shop for clothes, but those are some skinny-ass jeans they wear over there. My sister and I had a change of clothes in our tote bags, but the guys were SOL. Fortunately our apartment had a washer, unfortunately the directions were in Italian. We did our best to figure it out, but the washer stopped halfway through and that was that. We rinsed them out in the tub and hung them to dry. But in the morning they were still damp and the guys had to iron/blow dry their jeans.

The airline never called us with our luggage, we even had family back in the states try to locate it with no luck When we went back to the airport to pick up our rental car a week later, we checked with customs, and found our luggage-which had been to 5 more cities than we had. Knowing that we could survive without all the stuff in our bags, we vowed never again to check bags unless absolutely necessary.

I have packed the following into one carry on bag:
10 days in Costa Rica, including two snorkels and masks
13 days in Argentina, which included a stay in a tropical rain forest and in freezing Patagonia
18 days in Italy, which included a wedding, so I had a bridesmaid dress (my sister had her wedding dress!)

How do you do it? Pack light and smart. Some tips:

• Go with a color scheme-either based in black, or neutrals. That way everything goes with everything else, and you have more outfit options with less clothes.
• Layer, layer, layer. This way you can span a wider range of temperatures with less clothes. 
• Keep shoes to a minimum. I bring 4 pairs (which is excessive, I know-but they fit in the carry-on)! A pair of heels to go out in, flats, flip flops to wear at the rental or beach, and either my trail runners or my bikers, which ever I think is more important to have.
• Roll or bundle wrap your clothes to to make best use of space (and prevent wrinkles).
• Stuff anything you can into shoes-socks, undies, chargers, anything that fits.
• If you have something bulky, make use of those space saving bags that you squeeze the air out of. You can find them online or at Bed Bath & Beyond.
• Keep liquids to a minimum. The TSA helps with that since they all have to fit in a zip lock bag now, but always keep in mind that liquids add weight, and almost everywhere in the world you can find shampoo.
• Use a packing list. Either make your own, or download one like this one from OneBag.com

I usually pack 3 tanks, 5 tops, 2 long sleeve shirts/sweaters, 1 jacket (or a rain coat depending on the trip), 2 pairs of jeans (I wear a 3rd on the plane), cargo pants, shorts, a casual jersey knit black dress, enough socks and undergarments for 5-6 days, plus the 4 shoes I mentioned earlier. I may actually travel with more photography stuff (It certainly is heavier). I switch to a small purse that I can shove into one of the other bags.

It all fits, I have never wished I had more stuff, and am glad I am not lugging around all the extra stuff!

Know and Book Your Own Stuff (and Know When Not To)

By nature, I am a total DIY'er. I like to learn about everything and and do things myself. Part of why I like this process is that everything can be exactly the way I want it, and it can be done on my schedule. I also keep that same DIY mindset when planning travel.

I typically like to do things off the beaten path when I travel. Don't get me wrong, I am not totally opposed to seeing things considered "touristy" but I keep that list pretty short, and try to get in and out of those types of places pretty fast. But planning your own trip, at least one more involved than kickin it at the beach, requires a lot of research. But the payoff is great!

For instance, a few years ago we went to Costa Rica. We went to Arenal, did a ton of hiking and canyoning, and saw lots of animals. We hired a driver who took us to a small fishing village on the Pacific Coast where we rented a beautiful open air house with an infinity pool looking over the bay. There was a family of monkeys in the tree in the yard. Horses were brought to our front door, and we rode up to the top of the cliffs and on the beach. We took a puddle hopper that took off in a field of yaks. It was an incredible trip.
Another couple we know also went to Costa Rica. They stayed at a great hotel a few beaches away from where we were. There were various group tours that you could take through the hotel, but without a car, they didn't really get to explore. They had a nice trip, but when we raved about how much we loved CR, they didn't share the same sentiment. After comparing trip reports, they decided that our trip just seemed more fun and adventurous.

I should also mention that what is fun and adventurous to us, may just seem flat out crazy to others (or not crazy enough-depending on your taste). But regardless of your taste in travel, the sure fire way to get a trip exactly the way you want it, is to do it yourself. *Note: There are times that having someone do it for you is best, perhaps if you don't have the time to dedicate to do good research, or if you want to travel to a place that is considered dangerous.

A good place to start is Google maps and Wiki travel. Wiki travel will give you a good idea what is in a country, what the main interests are there, and major airports and airlines that will get you there. With Google maps, you will be able to see how far away your desired destinations are from each other. This should give you a good start on building your own trip.

(C)Ave Canem Project (Pompeii Adopt a Dog Program)

On a recent trip to Italy we decided to go to Pompeii. We had never been, and it is really truly an impressive sight.  Pompeii is a dog friendly place, and there were several people there with their dogs on leash. It seems as if the Jack Russell Terrier is the popular dog in Italy these days (everyone had one). But I also noticed several stray dogs hanging out at the ruins as well. They seemed to spend their day sunning themselves and befriending tourists. They were all very friendly, well fed, and some had collars. We wondered about all of these random dogs. Who did they belong to? Why were they all here? Who took care of them?

As we made our way back towards the large forum, there was a large commotion, and out of nowhere over a dozen dogs came running towards us. I then noticed in the distance a sign that said (C)Ave Canem Project and it all made sense. The (C)Ave Canem Project is named after the famous mosaic found in the House of the Tragic Poet, and means "Beware of the Dog". The project provides care and vaccinates and spays/neuters the Pompeii dogs. They hope that visitors to Pompeii will take home a piece of the ancient site with them, a loving dog, and provide them with a safe and caring home. I absolutely adore this program! The title photo, at the top of the page, is one I took of a Pompeii dog available for adoption. All the dogs have ancient Roman names, and if you adopt one at the beginning of your Pompeii visit, he may make a pretty good tour guide too!

Following the Dog

I have found out that there ain't no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them.  ~Mark Twain

I have been fortunate to spend most of my travels with my boyfriend, my sister and her boyfriend (now husband). I am happy to report that we have survived all these travels, not because they were overly adventurous, but because we haven't killed each other yet on any of these trips! In all seriousness, while we have had our moments, the four of us travel well together. When I think about some of the best memories I have, most of them have taken place together with them, some place far from home.

When possible, like when we travel close to home, we like to bring our four-legged children with us too. While you may think I am anthropomorphizing him, I like to think my dog loves our trips, and enjoys exploring a new place as much as I do. As much as I would love to bring my dog everywhere with me, so he could run wild in the Costa Rican jungle, and play in the Patagonian snow, it is just not possible. That whole quarantine thing. It's crappy.

But what I have found is everywhere we go...dogs just find us (okay-sometimes we find them too). And, so begins many stories, of our travels, with dogs-just not always ours. I picked the title of the blog based on our most recent trip to Capri. We were lost, there was a dog, and so we followed him (I'll tell the whole story later). It seemed like the right thing to do at the time, and as it turns out following the dog was a good move.

 

In loving memory of Buddy, you were a good boy, a loyal friend, and brought so much happiness to everyone who met you.