The Week In Travel: March 12, 2010
posted March 12th, 2010 by EverywhereistRand and I are currently in Rye Brook, NY (as an aside, NEVER VISIT HERE), so you’ll have to forgive me if this post is a wee bit late in going up – it was a pleasant flight, but the non-stop string of trips we’ve been on has made us a little batty.
So batty, I might have started yelling at Rand when he politely stopped for me to take a photo of something, saying something like, “HOW CAN I TAKE A PHOTO?! It’s pitch black and we’re in a car. ”
A few Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies later (courtesy of the Hilton vending machine), all is well, and I have stopped yelling at my husband (and I’ve also stopped trying to take photos, because of the aforementioned pitch-blackness.)
Sigh.
But it’s not like I can complain right? Despite any tiffs or feuds, Rand is still the best travel partner a girl could ask for. I can’t imagine sitting next to anyone better on a cross country flight. And after listening to Ian Lurie’s account of his trip next to Captain Crazy Pants, I should thank my lucky stars once again - because 90% of the time that I travel, I’m sitting next to Rand.
In other crazy-people news, this might be one of my favorite headlines, ever: “Man claiming to be vampire prompts bomb scare near courthouse.”
For some slightly more rational reading, check out Slate’s coverage of international signs - and the push to replace red “EXIT” signs with ones that depict a man, well, exiting (a building). Are STOP signs next? Because I’ve always found it fascinating that those are in English, all over the world …
As for all my friends who are off to the Emerald City Comicon, I wish you fun and joy and a day full of nerdy awesomeness. I will be with you in spirit. While disappointed that I can’t re-wear my Star Trek Halloween costume, I’m pretty sure that watching our dear friend Eytan (of Oyster.com fame) get hitched will be just as cool. Very nearly, anyway. 
Oh, and for those of you who have some extra spending money (because, you know, you won’t be spending it on a Leonard Nimoy autograph), I strongly suggest you do something good with your cash – like giving it to Chile’s Earthquake Relief fund. Mashable has a great list of all the ways you can donate.
Anywho, I’m off to bed (the madness of a Friday night spent watching PBS and eating cookies in Rye Brook has me beat) – see you next week!
Tags: The Week in Travel
March 13th, 2010 at 11:59 am
I’ve always found the universal stop signs interesting as well. The only places I’ve seen otherwise are in Québec and my own Winnipeg neighbourhood (http://www.flickr.com/photos/codyrl/2956749673/). In France I received blank stares when inquiring why they used STOP there.
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March 13th, 2010 at 10:17 pm
Hello,
Just wanted to comment. I’m a Rye Brook resident and I grew up in Port Chester/Rye Book. But I have to agree with you about the Rye Town Hilton. I’m guessing you’re from out of town? No one I know who’s a local resident goes there for the food. Usually going to the Hilton means you’re taking the CT Limo to the airport or picking someone up from there.
All you had to do was drive down Westchester Avenue for about 5-10 minutes and there are so many more options. Rye Brook is mostly residential (there are a few places along S Ridge St), but Port Chester’s Main Street and environs offers so much in terms of great places to eat, a few of which have made the NY Times. (I recommend this place, ate there a few weeks ago and the pollo a la brasa IS pretty damn good: http://events.nytimes.com/2009/12/06/nyregion/06dinewe.html. If you want a good steak, check out The Willett House.)
Word around Rye Brook is that the Hilton’s due for a huge makeover in the near future. The Village just reviewed their revised master plan. So maybe things’ll change for the Hilton. But for the meantime, if you’re in this neck of the woods again, check out South Ridge Street in Rye Brook, and Main Street and thereabouts in Port Chester. Don’t eat at the Hilton unless you’re attending a function/conference.
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March 14th, 2010 at 8:04 pm
Raf – in all fairness, now that it’s no longer pouring rain, I’m starting to like Rye Brook a little more. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see much of the town, but once we stumbled onto the downtown area (with cute little shops and restaurants), the fog of depression lifted.
Still, do not eat at the Hilton.
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March 16th, 2010 at 10:24 pm
Why did you go to Rye brook? If you wanted to explore the rest of NY, I could have introduced you to my relatives who would have happily shown you through Yonkers, Mamaroneck, White Plains and Rye Brooke while talking about swimming pools, police investigations, and potentially how to properly dismember a slab of beef (what they’re butchers)
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