Through the Eyes of a Tourist

Well here I sit...enjoying a cup of coffee from one of my most favorite Nashville hangout spots, Bongo Java.  But now I am here as a tourist, a visitor, and I am seeing my old stomping grounds through a completely different set of eyes.

My wife and I called the Nashville area (Franklin to be exact) home for over 11 years.  And, as many do when they live somewhere, we did not really appreciate the fact that many actually make plans to vacation here.  Travelers from all over the country and even the world view this area as a tourist destination.  For many...they want to come see the birthplace of country music.  Others come here to visit so many of the places that played such a significant role in our Country's history, i.e. the Civil War.

See...when you live here, you tend to become desensitized to the fact that this area is a huge draw for thousands of people from all walks of life and each has their own reason for wanting to vacation here.  What I am again seeing through my "touristy" eyes is that Nashville has its own energy, its own vibe.  If you think this area is simply a place for country music lovers, you are sorely mistaken.  Nashville has become one of more eclectic parts of the Country.  I know some native Tennesseans are not going to like this, but one of the things that makes Nashville so vibrant and fun is the fact that it is no longer made up of mostly native Tennesseans.  Folks from the east to the west coasts have now moved here and call this area home and I love that about Nashville. Sorry natives.

This area exploded a few years ago when people, like myself, discovered that it is a place that offers a good climate, decent employment opportunities, affordable housing, and a quality entertainment of all types.  It should go without saying that this is a music-lover's paradise.  But again...don't think it is simply for those who appreciate a little "twang" in their music.  Nashville oozes music from all genres including hip-hop, jazz, alternative, classical and of course blue grass and country.  What makes Nashville special is that someone can come here and visit a different local venue every night and enjoy some of the best music around with little to no cover charge.

But again...there is more here than just music.  If you love history and art, the Frist Center is a top-notch art museum located in the heart of downtown.  Or someone might appreciate the fact that they can visit an exact replica of the Parthenon and see ancient Greek artifacts and then understand why Nashville is called the "Athens of the South."

But some of the most interesting history that can be explored in this area is that related to the great Civil War.  You can tour some of the old plantations such as the Hermitage, the Carnton or the Belle Meade Plantation and battle sites such as the Battle of Franklin and get a real sense of what life was like during that turning point in our American History.

And let's not overlook the opportunities that abound here when it comes to professional sports.  It is home to SEC football, the NHL's Nashville Predators, the NFL's Tennessee Titans and a fun AAA baseball team which means you can see some form of professional sports no matter what time of the year you choose to visit.

And I have yet to even mention the beauty that is Tennessee.  This great area is surrounded by rolling hills and lots and lots of trees which again I took for granted when this was my permanent residence.

So with all of that said...here is a list of some of my favorite eateries and areas that I have visited on this trip and I encourage you to consider these when you start planning your next visit to "Music City" or "Nashvegas" as many of us affectionately call it:

1) The Country Boy Restaurant.  This small, quaint cafe is located in historic Leiper's Fork which is about 35 minutes south of downtown Nashville.   I had visited this restaurant "back in the day" when it was just your local "greasy spoon" option with little to no character or ambience.  But it has gone through a revamping of sorts and is now a wonderful place to stop for food and even potentially for some "star gazing" since this small town is home to some very well-known country music stars (I won't mention any names...Judds *coughing with my hand to my mouth*).  Anyone can visit an IHOP or Cracker Barrell when on vacation, so forget those and give this true local establishment a try instead.

2) Chuy's of Nashville.  Ok, so it is not a Nashville original, but it has a great atmosphere that has become very popular with the locals.  Their version of Tex-Mex is fresh and flavorful and is located in the affluent area called Cool Springs (20 minutes south of dowtown Nashville).

3) Noshville.  No I did not misspell "Nashville."  Noshville is a local "New York Style" deli.  It is one of the iconic Nashville eateries that has been here forever and continues to bring the locals in everyday.  I recommend the location closest to Music Row so you can get a good feel of the original versus visiting one of their other, newer locations around the area.

4) Bongo Java.  Anyone can visit a Starbucks when they travel, but it takes some research into a destination to be able to find this Nashville gem.  It is located in "the village" close to Vanderbilt University.  If you want to see where creative people go to find some inspiration, make sure you visit this coffee house on your next visit.

5)  Sweet CeCe's.  No better way to end an evening than with a stop at this wonderful frozen yogurt shop in downtown Franklin.  Franklin should be one of the places you decide to visit when traveling to Nashville so a stop here is a no-brainer.  I love to find places that are local and not mega-franchises that someone can find in almost any city across the U.S. and this is one of those finds.

There you have it...5 places that hopefully will make it onto your travel agenda the next time you make plans to visit Nashville and the surrounding area.  I hope this article also helps you see that there are vacation spots right here in the U.S. that are more than just "drive-through" or "bathroom stop" spots on the road.  If you have never vacationed in Nashville before, I hope you will consider it soon, you will not be disappointed.

So until next time Nashville...

2011: A Look Ahead

First of all...thanks to all of you who made my 2010 the best year I have had the travel business thus far.  I made a commitment when I started in this business to grow only through providing the best service possible which in turn will make me referable.  I can now say that over 90% of my business comes from the referrals that my friends, family and past clients send my way.  I may not grow as fast and get as big as some of the more aggressive travel companies, but I am also not willing turn to my attention away from my clients in order to spend more time in the realm of mass advertisement and marketing schemes.

I set out in 2010 to make it the year I really become an expert in certain areas related to travel.  I decided to continue my focus into cruise vacations and Caribbean destinations.  I targeted courses and programs that helped me do just that.  I was also able to travel myself throughout 2010 which gave me that all-important first hand knowledge of most major cruise lines.  Book smarts are one thing, actual experience is another in my humble opinion.  While I may not quite be an "expert" yet, I am for sure on the track of becoming someone who you can turn to for help and guidance in those areas along with my continued knowledge of Disney.

Now, looking ahead to 2011, it is my continued goal to further my education in the area of Caribbean destinations including both the Eastern and Western Caribbean (including Mexico on the Pacific side as well).  I already have courses I am looking to take along with 1 personal trip already booked for May.  My trip will take me once again to Cancun and the Riviera Maya.  I will be staying at the Secrets Capri Riviera Cancun Resort and Spa (more details on that as the time gets closer).

I also have a very important and exciting trip planned for Walt Disney World later in the year to celebrate my parent's 50th wedding anniversary.

Somewhere between May and September, I might just have to plan another trip to a new destination in the Caribbean, but we will have to wait and see.

In addition...I hope to further develop my skill in the area of travel writing.  This blog has seen continued support by readers from all areas of social media; Facebook, Twitter, Youtube etc.  I hope to be able to better understand what readers are interested in and provide honest and sometimes thought-provoking content.  Some who have come in contact with me are not completely open to the idea of me being candid with my reviews and honest even if that means criticizing places or companies that they might hold near and dear to their heart.  But I have refused and will continue to refuse to write some middle-of-the-road article or gloss over glaringly negative aspects of any destination or travel provider.  I figure...if you didn't want my opinion, then why did you read my review?

So that is what is on the agenda this year.

I have some growth goals I am excited about which again means I will maintain my current course and put clients and their referrals first.  Thanks to all of you who support me through encouragement as well as your patronage.

So sit back and stay tuned...2011 is going to be a great year.

January Quiz: Caribbean Geography

Here is your chance to win a $20 Target Gift Card. All you have to do is answer the question below correctly and you will be automatically entered into a drawing which will be held on February 10th. You can send in your answer via the comment section of this blog (along with a way for me to contact you in case you win) or you can also visit my page on Facebook: Operation Destination



Which of the following is farthest to the east?
a) Cuba
b) Jamaica
c) Hispanola
d) Puerto Rico

Theme Park Wars

The war wages on in Orlando...Disney and Universal continue to try lure guests from their competitor's parks and into their own.  I have to hand it to Universal and their marketing team.  Now no one staying on Disney property can say..."I don't want to have to pay for the transportation to get from our resort to one of the Universal parks."  Universal has cleverly offered "free transportation" from any of the Disney resorts to one of their parks when someone purchases a 1 day pass to Universal Orlando (advance purchase required).  The opening of the "Wizarding World of Harry Potter" has been a big success and has started to draw some would-be Disney visitor dollars over to Universal.  So it is time to see where allegiance stands...who gets your hard earned dollars when you visit Orlando?  Which theme park wins out?  Cast your vote today...

December Quiz...The Cayman Islands

Here is another chance for my readers to win a $20 Target Gift Card.  All you have to do is answer the question below correctly and you will be automatically entered into a drawing which will be held on January 2nd.  You can send in your answer via the comment section of this blog or you can also visit my page on Facebook: Operation Destination Vacations



Ok...here is the question:

The Cayman Islands is known for its beautiful water and pristine beaches.  What is the name of the beach most visited by tourists?


A. 8 Mile Beach
B. Governor's Cove
C. Seven Mile Beach
D. Stingray Cay

Thanks to all of my readers and followers.  Please send me your feedback about my blog or send in any travel-related question and I will try to answer it in a future post.  Stop by my Facebook page and become a follower as well.

Carnival Conquest Review Part 4--The Summary

If you had read all of the review up to this point, hopefully you see that I am trying to be objective and fair along with offering my opinion about certain things.  I hope you keep that in mind as you read this section of the review.

In summary, let me just say that we did indeed have a great time on this cruise.  It would take a lot for my wife and I to say that we thought a cruise was horrible and this cruise was no where near something like that.  We enjoyed the peace and quiet that our stateroom afforded us.  We enjoyed the time spent together up on deck enjoying the sunshine and the WATER-SLIDE!  We found the majority of the staff to be pleasant and helpful and again our dining and stateroom staff were superb.  We loved our dinner table mates.

But I do want to mention some things again that we noted as different than our previous experiences.  It seems that Carnival is doing everything possible to get more money out of you while onboard (I know other cruise lines do that too)  and they have kept their cruise prices lower than others in the industry which has created the need to nickel and dime you for everything that seems to be included with other cruise lines.  For example...we always purchase the soda packages.  With Royal Caribbean, NCL and Princess, you get the souvenir, refillable mug as a bonus for purchasing the program.  With Carnival...the price is about the same for the program, but then they make you pay an additional $6.00 for the mug.

I already mentioned the cookies and sweets found at the coffee bar and how they charge for any of their better-made desserts.   If you wanted some quality treats, you had to pay for it.

I had also mentioned the photography in an earlier post.  I have never seen such an abundance of photo ops in all of my previous cruises as I did here on Carnival.  The promenade is laden with one photographer after another waving you over trying to get you to pose in front of such cruise-appropriate backdrops as a rose garden or a flowery trestle or a grand piano.  And to my shock...hoards of guests were having their pictures taken with these.  Normally you will want to have your picture taken with something like oh...the cruise ship in the background which will help others see when and where you had your picture taken.  But for the life of me I could not understand why so many were lined up to have pictures taken with backdrops that you would find back home at your local Glamour Shots.  These photo ops were available EVERY night of the cruise and were EVERYWHERE!  This issue brings me back to the congested photo area where you could go check out your pictures and purchase any that you liked.  They were taking SOOO many pictures, that they ran out of room on the walls and had some of the older ones stuffed in plastic containers where you had to wait to rifle through them in hopes that you actually found the one with you in it.

It is obvious that it is a money-maker for Carnival which is why you felt like they were pushing you to stop and have your picture made at every turn.

We again found it surprising that the cruise director was not that visible.  We also found it a bit shocking that the dining room Maitre’d never ever came by our table to ask if there was any special food requests or to make sure we were all satisfied.  It seemed that he was more interested in putting on their dinner shows than he was making sure guests were actually satisfied with their dining.  If you do a little research about the employees of Carnival and the shows they are made to put on, you will find that most look at it as humiliating and degrading.  Not sure why anyone in a nice dining room needs to see service staff get up on tables and dance to the song “Apple Bottom Jeans.”  Is that an appropriate song for a family dinner or nice dining experience?

This was also the first cruise in which there was a need for the Maitre’d to make an announcement that ball caps are never acceptable in the main dining room.  I was thankful for his willingness to announce such a thing, but I was also noticing a large contingent of guests who completely ignored the dining room dress code completely.  This may have something to do with where this cruise embarks out of.  This was the first cruise I had been on where the majority of the guests were all from one State...Texas.  We saw a large amount of camouflage all throughout the ship.  I actually saw one gentleman wearing a camouflage baseball cap with a fish hook in it to dinner.  This was also the first cruise out of 6 where you could hear an abundance of country music.  The last thing I want to hear while cruising the Caribbean is honky tonk music, but if you like that sort of thing, then this was the cruise for you. 

Cruises that embark out of ports like Miami or Ft Lauderdale etc seem to be a bit more diverse and have guests from all over the Country and world.  Due to this port only offering a limited amount of cruise choices and being so far south in the big State of Texas, it seemed to mainly appeal to those from the region and to a large amount of first time cruisers.  Again...if you are from Texas and you were a first time cruiser on this cruise, I am not intending to offend, but simply point out what I observed from my perspective.  I personally like to be around a more diverse crowd which to me is one of fun things about cruising...meeting all types of people from all types of places. 

Some of the clientele also found it appropriate to have balcony-to-balcony conversations with one another.  I am not talking about connecting balconies...I am talking balconies far removed from one another which required a bit of yelling which again tends to take away from the peace and quiet of your own balcony.

I know some are not going to like what I am saying when it comes to the demographics onboard, but I would rather someone go into their cruise prepared than being surprised. 

I say all of that to say...this is not a cruise for everyone.  We found what made us happy and stuck to it for the duration of the cruise.  We enjoyed the cruise but I doubt we will ever sail again on the Conquest out of Galveston again.  This is not a reflection on Carnival as a whole, but only my opinion about this specific ship out of this specific port.

I hope this helps you when pondering your next cruise option.  Everyone has an opinion and this review reflects mine.

I am already looking forward to my next cruise which may either be on Holland America or Celebrity...I am still trying to decide.  Or I may head back to Royal Caribbean and give the new Allure of the Seas a try.  Thanks again for reading and feel free to comment or ask any sort of cruise related question.

Carnival Conquest Review Part 3

This edition of my review will cover the entertainment and ports of call.

The Entertainment:

Boo!  That should pretty much sum it up.  There were 4 comedians onboard during this cruise.  One was very funny (Mutzie), one was ok and 2 were simply awful.  This was also the first cruise out of 6 where there was not some form of show every night in the main theater.  They opted for “adult laser tag” instead on some nights.  But after watching a couple of the shows...I see why.  They tried to make up for the lack of dancing and singing talent by wearing practically nothing (at least for the ladies in the production).  These were not family shows.  These were Vegas showgirl style shows.  I am sure the costumes cost a lot of money, but maybe they should try to pay for better performers instead and go with cheaper costumes.  We always try to see the shows, but we missed at least 2 of them on this cruise and we wish we would have missed at least 2 of the comedians and one more of the shows.  We have seen a lot of shows at sea and these were the worst by far.

The cruise director was heard but not necessarily seen.  All of my previous cruises had a cruise director that would come out before each show and talk to the crowd and joke and sort of get things started.  Not on this cruise.  Chris Jefferson would be heard over the speaker as an intro voice, but rarely made an actual appearance.  The same was true for the comedy shows.  You would hear an announcement by him before the show, but it was always one of the assistants doing the actual introduction.  They played Bingo in the main theater every night right up until it was showtime. 

The musicians were good.  The calypso band (duo) that played out by the pool were excellent and kept things “groovy” as they liked to say.  The best entertainment we found on board was us actually going down the water-slide which was a real hoot for us.

But the overall entertainment onboard gets a C- grade and that is me being nice.

Ports of Call:

Jamaica.  We have been to Jamaica before so our intent with this port was to hop off the ship, buy some goodies in the cruise ship center, and hop back on to take advantage of a practically empty ship.  We stuck to our plan and did just that.  Jamaica is not a port that I feel visitors should get out and explore on their own.  Safety is a concern and I only recommend doing “planned and organized” excursions through reputable companies.  We heard a few comments from folks who did planned excursions and some were not thrilled with how far most excursions are from where the ship docks in Montego Bay.  Jamaica is not our favorite port which is why we opted to take advantage of the quiet ship

Grand Cayman.  In contrast to Jamaica, this is a port that is easy to get out in and explore on your own.  We opted for a nice leisurely day of shopping so we waited until about 9:30am to try to tender into shore.  Carnival’s tendering process went very smoothly.  We were actually “anchored” very close to shore compared to some of the other ships in port that day.  We were onshore in about 10 minutes.  We took in some of the scenery, shopped and then found “Breezes” for lunch.  You get good food and a GREAT view from Breezes so I recommend checking them out the next time you visit Grand Cayman.  The cruise lines need to skip Jamaica and offer an overnight stay in Grand Cayman instead...in my opinion.

Cozumel.  I love the Puerto Maya area where our ship docked.  Good places to eat right there by the pier and lots of shopping.  We chose to do an excursion that we booked through Shoretrips.com.  We took a short 5-10 minute taxi ride ($10 each way) to the Fiesta Americana where we had full access to their pools and beach.  Lunch and open bar was also included.  The staff at the resort were great.  The food was good and it was a great day.  It was a bit windy, but still warm and enjoyable.  Give Shoretrips.com a try when looking into excursions.

Stay tuned for part 4 in which I will summarize the experience and give my overall grade. :)