My New Dell Mini 10v: I Never Leave Home Without It!

I’m writing to you now, from the V train, in Manhattan, on my way home. How? On my snazzy new Dell 10V. I am in love with my netbook! A netbook is a smaller, scaled-down version of a laptop, essentially meant for getting on the web, and simple tasks which don’t require lots of memory. It weighs a little under 3 pounds, measures about 7 by 10 inches, and comes in 7 bright glossy colors. Mine is fire engine red. It’s especially great for travel, because of its light weight and small size. It fits right in my purse and is handy for getting it out quickly for airport security. Starting at $299, you can get one with 1GB of memory, a 120GB hard drive, Windows XP, and a built in webcam (1.3 mega pixels). Great for holding all your travel photos, for getting a little work done on the road, and we use the webcam to keep in touch with friendsand family via Skype. It comes standard with a 3-cell battery, but for $30 you can upgrade to the 6-cell battery which I've gotten more than 6 hours of use from! You might not want to totally replace your home cumputer or laptop, but for travel you can't beat this for price, size, performance and convenience.

Try the Mobile Edge Sumo Sleeve to protect your Mini 10V. It has no zippers, so it's easy to remove and replace at airport security.

Hidden Gem: St. Louis, Missouri

On a recent trip to a friend's wedding, we discovered what a great place to visit, St. Louis is. Who knew? It’s a small city with a compact downtown area filled with various sports arenas and stadiums, lovely suburbs with brick houses and manicured lawns, sprawling city parks with lush green space, and casinos for those seeking a little gambling action.

As we entered the city, the first thing we noticed was its most famous monument, the Gateway Arch. I have to say, it’s pretty impressive up close. You can even take a trip to the top of this behemoth structure for dizzying views of the city. And the area near the Arch, close to the river, is closed to traffic and home to many restaurants, pubs and shops.

After checking in to our hotel the first thing we did, was to seek out some lunch. Believe me, you wont go hungry in St. Louis. There is no end of BBQ to be had. This includes barbequed meats, sausages, and of course pulled pork, all doused with healthy portions of rivaling sauces. We sampled the 2-meat platter at Pappy’s Smokehouse on Olive Avenue and weren’t disappointed. It was finger-licking good, and only $8.99 for more food than we could finish.

Fuelled by our lunch, we went off to explore Forest Park. Many people had likened it to Central Park, and we thought we could probably do much of it in a day. Not so. The park is actually 500 acres larger than Central Park and is home to 2 golf courses, 2 museums, a boathouse, several ponds, over 1000 acres of woods and lawns, and last but not least, the St. Louis SZoo.

The zoo is a gem within a gem. It has over 3600 animals, many of them endangered, and is ranked as the best zoo in the country by Zagats. Some of the more remarkable features to us were the cold water misters strategically placed all over the property to help you cool down from the relentless St. Louis sun (who new it would be in the 90s!), the fact that you can buy a cold beer and drink it from the bottle while you stroll the zoo, and perhaps most amazing of all: free admission. Doesn't get better than that.

From our hotel room, we spied the Lumiere Place Casino across the street and decided to go see what it was like. Even though it was not officially non-smoking, it was relatively smoke-free and bearable despite my allergies. It was nicely designed and laid out, with endless rows of slot machines, black jack tables and roulette wheels with various limits; we sampled each one. We ended up winning a little, and losing a little so we pretty much broke even. A nice ending to a nice weekend.

Airmiles Deal: United Mileage Plus Saver Award Sale

If you have miles in the United Mileage Plus program, this is a sweet deal. Now through July 24th, you can redeem airmiles at a 20% discount (and more), e.g. a ticket that usually costs 25K miles will cost you only 20K miles. This is a great deal and especially fortuitous for folks who don't have 25K miles in their accounts at the moment. The only catch is that the you can only use these miles to travel between August 18 - November 18. Not such a bad time to be traveling at all. Read more about the offer here.

Photo of the Week: The Oregon Pacific Coast

One usually thinks of California when imagining driving down the Pacific Coast but not to be outdone is its neighbor to the north.

On the drive from Cannon Beach to Brookings, one can take in the huge Haystack boulders that are typical on the Oregon coast, get breathtaking ocean views on winding highways, visit caves filled with sea lions, stop for a ride on the highest sand dunes in the US, and visit forests of 800 year-old Spruce trees... and that's just the beginning.

Air Travel for Pets

Pet Airways launched its inaugural flight today from Republic Airport in Farmingdale, New York. It is the first of its kind; an airline dedicated to transporting pets in comfort and safety (see our earlier post for more details). Until now, anyone with a pet too big to fit under a typical commercial airplane seat, would have to settle for transporting them in the cargo hold with the baggage, where temperatures can vary drastically, and pet carriers, are handled by the baggage handlers (and we know how 'gentle' those guys are with the rest of your baggage!).

Now, for about the same price as subjecting your pet to the bowels of the cargo hold, pets can travel in comfort, and under constant care and supervision on Pet Airways. A one-way ticket from New York to Los Angeles will run about $250 and pets are given a bathroom and exercise break before boarding. The airline was started by a pet-loving husband and wife team who were struck by the idea after a terrible experience transporting their pet terrier, so the comfort and safety of their "pawsengers" (as they call them) is paramount.

Even the most domesticated and pleasant pets, can be highly disturbed by air travel. If you're not lucky enough to be in a city serviced by Pet Airways here are a few tips that can make travel more comfortable for your pet:

**Pets are particularly susceptible to motion sickness, so even the ride to the airport can begin to upset them. Avoid feeding pets within 3 hours of heading to the airport. You can allow them to have water (and should travel with some as well), but try not to leave home until they've had a chance to relieve themselves.

**Pets' upset often manifests itself with vomiting; another reason not to feed them beforehand, and certainly don't feed them during travel in an attempt to calm them. Last weekend, at the Houston Airport, I couldn't believe when I witnessed a pet owner feed her cat an entire can of food right before boarding a 4 hour flight to New York. It was going to be a long time before that kitty would get a bathroom break!

**Avoid medicating pets with sedatives, which can make them frightened and disoriented. Rather, exercise your pet with a good walk or run, shortly before heading to the airport.

**If you're lucky enough to have your pet in the cabin with you, opt for a carrier that you can easily reach into and assure them with a loving stroke when needed. Avoid the instinct to take them out if they become agitated; cats especially, actually feel more secure in an enclosed space, and feel very vulnerable and nervous in wide open, unfamiliar spaces.

Pet Airways, An Airline Just for Pets

A new airline is set to launch next week... for Pets only! Instead of under your seat or, worse, down below in the baggage hold, your pet gets to fly first-class in the main cabin on Pet Airways. Although service is only currently available to a handful of US cities, this has the makings of a competitive alternative to the services provided by the major airlines. We hope it catches on. Fares begin at $149 one-way. Read more here.

Turtles Shutdown a New York City Runway

About 80 diamondback terrapin turtles delayed traffic today at JFK airport in New York for about 90 minutes. You can read more here. I guess not such exciting news, if you live in Hawaii or Ecuador, but this is New York City! Who knew that we had anything approaching a sea turtle here! OK, so technically, diamondback terrapin live in brackish water, so they are not sea turtles, but still impressive nonetheless. (For the curious, it turns out we actually do have sea turtles here in the New York area, but they prefer to not hang out at the airport.)

I wonder how many folks were on flights at the moment to places where they planned to view sea turtles? Having gone on a few supposed sea turtle viewing adventures that turned out to be a bust, this might be the only turtles that they actually get to see in the wild on their trip. Hope that they took some good photos.