Monday, August 16, 2010
The Great Pizza Race 2010 - Aug 15th
Today, at 7:10pm, 3 people at my home placed orders at 3 different pizza places. Everyone was instructed to order a medium, one-topping pizza for delivery. My mother called Domino's and ordered 1 medium cheese pizza. She was told that her order did not meet the minimum cost for delivery, but the employee recommended upgrading to extra cheese. The total was $13.25 and she was told the pizza would arrive in 45-60 minutes. Andy called Mr. Gatti's and ordered 1 medium pepperoni pizza. He was told that a large, three-topping pizza would actually be cheaper so he upgraded to a large pizza with double pepperoni. The total was $12.98 and he was quoted a 45 minute wait. Lastly, I called Papa John's and order 1 medium cheese pizza. My phone call was the shortest because they were satisfied with my order and had my address on file. I was charged $12.76 and told to wait 45 minutes. The race was on. The first pizza to arrive was Papa John's after a 29 minute wait. Next was Mr. Gatti's, 32 minutes after being ordered. Last was Domino's, 37 minutes after the order was placed. Each pizza made it within the quoted time, but Papa John's was voted the favorite by the diners. Mr. Gatti's was certainly the best deal. Eventually I will post the picture of the 3 pizzas side by side so that you may make your own conclusions about pizza size and quality.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Tokyo and Tahiti! - Day 5
Day 5 – August 12/13, 2010 – Moorea, PPT, LAX, AUS
We woke up today knowing it was our last. Kevin, Mom, Dad, and I were determined to do something fun; Korey was content to stay at the place and pack up. The four of us decided to try a place called the Lagoonarium. It was the only place we paid to snorkel. We were allured by the promise of rays and baby sharks. We drove to a little spot of land on the coast and parked the car. A big motorized canoe was waiting offshore and, after we waded to it, the driver took us a few hundred feet to a small motu (island). On the little island there were a few huts where we were told to put our stuff. At 11:30 we got into the water off the coast of the tiny island. It was about 4 feet deep and full of beautiful reef and fish. The tour guide began feeding the fish and immediately we were surrounded by hundreds of them. After about 20 minutes of watching the fish eat, Kevin and I were sure that the ad had lied about the rays and baby sharks. Then, out of nowhere a ray swam up to the man with the food and started climbing up his body to get to the food bucket. Soon after, we saw three 4 to 6 foot long sharks swimming around our group. They slowly got bolder and swam right up next to us to get to the food. It was incredible. Kevin, Mom, and Dad were all able to touch one of the sharks and all four of us were easily able to feel the texture of the ray. After the feeding, we followed a set of ropes out into the reef. The current was very strong so it was necessary to grab the rope and pull yourself forward. Two cups of complimentary hot chocolate later and we were headed back to the rental home to pack for our flight. We caught the last ferry to the main island of Tahiti and had four hours to kill before our flight. The plan was to do a bit of souvenir shopping along the main strip, but everything closed before our 6pm arrival. We got to the airport around 7pm and found two shops, enough to get the few souvenirs we had promised our friends. Back in the waiting area we played ‘Presidents’ until it was time to board and head to LAX. We left Papeete at 10pm August 12th. Eight hours later (during which I watched Dear John) we arrived in Los Angeles at 9am August 13th. From there we caught a 1:30pm flight to Austin where someone I’d been missing picked us up :)
We woke up today knowing it was our last. Kevin, Mom, Dad, and I were determined to do something fun; Korey was content to stay at the place and pack up. The four of us decided to try a place called the Lagoonarium. It was the only place we paid to snorkel. We were allured by the promise of rays and baby sharks. We drove to a little spot of land on the coast and parked the car. A big motorized canoe was waiting offshore and, after we waded to it, the driver took us a few hundred feet to a small motu (island). On the little island there were a few huts where we were told to put our stuff. At 11:30 we got into the water off the coast of the tiny island. It was about 4 feet deep and full of beautiful reef and fish. The tour guide began feeding the fish and immediately we were surrounded by hundreds of them. After about 20 minutes of watching the fish eat, Kevin and I were sure that the ad had lied about the rays and baby sharks. Then, out of nowhere a ray swam up to the man with the food and started climbing up his body to get to the food bucket. Soon after, we saw three 4 to 6 foot long sharks swimming around our group. They slowly got bolder and swam right up next to us to get to the food. It was incredible. Kevin, Mom, and Dad were all able to touch one of the sharks and all four of us were easily able to feel the texture of the ray. After the feeding, we followed a set of ropes out into the reef. The current was very strong so it was necessary to grab the rope and pull yourself forward. Two cups of complimentary hot chocolate later and we were headed back to the rental home to pack for our flight. We caught the last ferry to the main island of Tahiti and had four hours to kill before our flight. The plan was to do a bit of souvenir shopping along the main strip, but everything closed before our 6pm arrival. We got to the airport around 7pm and found two shops, enough to get the few souvenirs we had promised our friends. Back in the waiting area we played ‘Presidents’ until it was time to board and head to LAX. We left Papeete at 10pm August 12th. Eight hours later (during which I watched Dear John) we arrived in Los Angeles at 9am August 13th. From there we caught a 1:30pm flight to Austin where someone I’d been missing picked us up :)
Tokyo and Tahiti! - Day 4
Day 4 – August 11, 2010 – Moorea
We woke up and set out to hike through the wilderness to find a waterfall. After a beautiful drive part way up the mountain, we unloaded from the car and began our walk to falls. A few short feet into the walk, Korey, with her camera on her wrist, was attacked by a bug. In the process of flicking the bug off her shoulder, Korey propelled the camera from her wrist. It broke. She was bummed. Like really bummed. So she walked back to the car to sulk. After another few feet, Mom got tired and turned back. Soon, Kevin saw a waterfall. Actually more like a water trickle. Kevin, Dad, and I were sure there was a bigger waterfall out there so we continued our hike. The path continued to descend the mountain so eventually we decided that this was actually the hike up to the waterfall that was indeed the little trickle we had seen before. On our return trip to the car, Kevin climbed a tree. It was either 25, 35, or 50 feet tall depending who you ask. Next we headed west in the direction of the map’s “Paradise Beach”. After about 45 minutes we realized we were back on our side of the island. We accidentally drove around the entire island looking for a beach that apparently doesn’t exist. So we stopped in at the Hilton. Mom and Korey went off for a little retail therapy. At the Hilton I saw my first needlefish and ray of the trip. Quick meal at the Hilton restaurant and then the ladies picked us back up and we headed back to my favorite beach, at Sofitel. Although Korey was with us at my favorite beach this time, she never got in the water. Kevin and I found the friendly fishes again. We left Sofitel with growling stomachs. Kevin, Dad, and I decided that there were quite a few leftovers that needed to be eaten for dinner while Mom and Korey decided that going out was the better decision. We also played Scrabble while they were gone; Dad won. As a full family, we again played Presidents. I think Mom probably won that one. During the games we had laundry in the washer. When Dad went to rotate the clothes, he noticed that the washer was still full of water. It seemed the drain feature was broken. He moved the first load to the dryer and started the second load in the washer after Kevin assured him that we would have plenty of time to dry all of the clothes. After load 2 was done washing, we attempted to pull load 1 out of the dryer; it wasn’t even remotely dry. Currently, load 1 is still in the dryer and load 2 is hanging out the clotheslines. I’ll give a laundry update tomorrow. Kevin, Dad, and I played another round of Scrabble which Dad again won and now I’m off to watch another chunk of The Bounty.
We woke up and set out to hike through the wilderness to find a waterfall. After a beautiful drive part way up the mountain, we unloaded from the car and began our walk to falls. A few short feet into the walk, Korey, with her camera on her wrist, was attacked by a bug. In the process of flicking the bug off her shoulder, Korey propelled the camera from her wrist. It broke. She was bummed. Like really bummed. So she walked back to the car to sulk. After another few feet, Mom got tired and turned back. Soon, Kevin saw a waterfall. Actually more like a water trickle. Kevin, Dad, and I were sure there was a bigger waterfall out there so we continued our hike. The path continued to descend the mountain so eventually we decided that this was actually the hike up to the waterfall that was indeed the little trickle we had seen before. On our return trip to the car, Kevin climbed a tree. It was either 25, 35, or 50 feet tall depending who you ask. Next we headed west in the direction of the map’s “Paradise Beach”. After about 45 minutes we realized we were back on our side of the island. We accidentally drove around the entire island looking for a beach that apparently doesn’t exist. So we stopped in at the Hilton. Mom and Korey went off for a little retail therapy. At the Hilton I saw my first needlefish and ray of the trip. Quick meal at the Hilton restaurant and then the ladies picked us back up and we headed back to my favorite beach, at Sofitel. Although Korey was with us at my favorite beach this time, she never got in the water. Kevin and I found the friendly fishes again. We left Sofitel with growling stomachs. Kevin, Dad, and I decided that there were quite a few leftovers that needed to be eaten for dinner while Mom and Korey decided that going out was the better decision. We also played Scrabble while they were gone; Dad won. As a full family, we again played Presidents. I think Mom probably won that one. During the games we had laundry in the washer. When Dad went to rotate the clothes, he noticed that the washer was still full of water. It seemed the drain feature was broken. He moved the first load to the dryer and started the second load in the washer after Kevin assured him that we would have plenty of time to dry all of the clothes. After load 2 was done washing, we attempted to pull load 1 out of the dryer; it wasn’t even remotely dry. Currently, load 1 is still in the dryer and load 2 is hanging out the clotheslines. I’ll give a laundry update tomorrow. Kevin, Dad, and I played another round of Scrabble which Dad again won and now I’m off to watch another chunk of The Bounty.
Tokyo and Tahiti! - Day 3
Day 3 – August 10, 2010 – Moorea
Today was a day devoted to snorkeling. We began at Les Tipaniers beach where the coral went on for miles but the water was only about 3 feet deep. Kevin was determined to get as far away from shore as possible so he and I started to snorkel and follow paths of sand in between coral. He is a faster swimmer so he took the lead and I like to drop back a bit so that he doesn’t kick me or stir up all the fish that I want to see. The distance between us eventually led to me following a different path that dead-ended in a large mass of coral that reached the water’s surface. I got scratched. It hurt a lot. Korey and Dad joined us for awhile then we all swam in to shore to eat lunch. I tried a Mai Tai which was either created here or is just super popular here. After the meal we dropped Korey off at the rental place and the rest of us went to the Sofitel resort to peruse its beaches. We got a close up look at the grass-roof bungalows that you see in all the tourism photos of Tahiti then hit the beach. Here there was a lot less coral and a lot deeper water, but somehow there were also a lot more fish. Good deal. We swam around and I made a few fish friends that followed me around. Finally, we checked out the infinity pool then set off for the grocery store. After cooking a delightful meal, the entire family played “presidents” for a few solid hours. I think tonight we may be watching The Bounty (a 1984 movie with Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins) because it was filmed in the bay right outside our window.
Today was a day devoted to snorkeling. We began at Les Tipaniers beach where the coral went on for miles but the water was only about 3 feet deep. Kevin was determined to get as far away from shore as possible so he and I started to snorkel and follow paths of sand in between coral. He is a faster swimmer so he took the lead and I like to drop back a bit so that he doesn’t kick me or stir up all the fish that I want to see. The distance between us eventually led to me following a different path that dead-ended in a large mass of coral that reached the water’s surface. I got scratched. It hurt a lot. Korey and Dad joined us for awhile then we all swam in to shore to eat lunch. I tried a Mai Tai which was either created here or is just super popular here. After the meal we dropped Korey off at the rental place and the rest of us went to the Sofitel resort to peruse its beaches. We got a close up look at the grass-roof bungalows that you see in all the tourism photos of Tahiti then hit the beach. Here there was a lot less coral and a lot deeper water, but somehow there were also a lot more fish. Good deal. We swam around and I made a few fish friends that followed me around. Finally, we checked out the infinity pool then set off for the grocery store. After cooking a delightful meal, the entire family played “presidents” for a few solid hours. I think tonight we may be watching The Bounty (a 1984 movie with Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins) because it was filmed in the bay right outside our window.
Tokyo and Tahiti! - Day 2
Day 2 – August 9, 2010 – NRT, PPT
Today we woke up with the intention of exploring Tokyo, specifically the Imperial Palace. After a delightful breakfast at our hotel, we packed up our cameras and headed to the metro station. We bought a train ticket to downtown Tokyo which is about an hour and a half from Narita International Airport. The train ride was fun; we got to see many rice paddies, apartments, and Japanese signs. At the Tokyo station, we got off the train and headed for the Imperial Palace. Twenty minutes of walking later, we arrived at a “closed” sign. Apparently, the gardens are not open on Mondays. Thanks Guide Book Mom. Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough time to do anything else but go back to the hotel and prepare for our flight. In the airport we did a bit of souvenir shopping and ate McDonald’s. At 3:00 my mother went up to the Air Tahiti Nui desk to check us in for our 4:25 flight. The woman told us to come back at 3:15 since we were stand-by customers and she wanted to get all of the revenue passengers checked in first. At 3:15 on the dot we returned to the counter. No one acknowledged us until 3:35 and even then they only said to hold on while they figured out if they had seats. We still had all of our checked bags, we still had to go through security, and we still had no piece of paper that showed that we were on the priority list. We also had a back-up plan that if we could not make the flight to Tahiti we would head for Honolulu at 7:00. Finally, at 3:55, the women working for Air Tahiti Nui begin taking our checked bags. We are trying to ask them if they are sure we have seats on the plane before they send the bags to Tahiti without us (the next flight isn’t for a few days), but none of them speak enough English to understand what we’re asking. At 3:57 five tickets are handed to Mom and we are provided an escort who runs us through the crew security line and sprints with us to the gate. At last we are aboard the flight and on our way to Tahiti. Ten hours later, our flight lands in Papeete (PPT) and 8am Monday morning. We get to start August 9, 2010 all over again. We grab a taxi to the ferry port and take a ferry to Moorea, rent a car, and drive to the home we are renting. Kevin immediately starts pressuring us all to quickly get ready to go to the beach. Korey insists on sleeping since she got little sleep on the flight, so the other four of us head to a nearby public beach and do a bit of snorkeling. Later in the evening we pick up some groceries, eat some pizza, and play some Hand and Foot (Mom and I beat Kevin and Dad). Just now I got to check my Facebook messages; thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday :)
Today we woke up with the intention of exploring Tokyo, specifically the Imperial Palace. After a delightful breakfast at our hotel, we packed up our cameras and headed to the metro station. We bought a train ticket to downtown Tokyo which is about an hour and a half from Narita International Airport. The train ride was fun; we got to see many rice paddies, apartments, and Japanese signs. At the Tokyo station, we got off the train and headed for the Imperial Palace. Twenty minutes of walking later, we arrived at a “closed” sign. Apparently, the gardens are not open on Mondays. Thanks Guide Book Mom. Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough time to do anything else but go back to the hotel and prepare for our flight. In the airport we did a bit of souvenir shopping and ate McDonald’s. At 3:00 my mother went up to the Air Tahiti Nui desk to check us in for our 4:25 flight. The woman told us to come back at 3:15 since we were stand-by customers and she wanted to get all of the revenue passengers checked in first. At 3:15 on the dot we returned to the counter. No one acknowledged us until 3:35 and even then they only said to hold on while they figured out if they had seats. We still had all of our checked bags, we still had to go through security, and we still had no piece of paper that showed that we were on the priority list. We also had a back-up plan that if we could not make the flight to Tahiti we would head for Honolulu at 7:00. Finally, at 3:55, the women working for Air Tahiti Nui begin taking our checked bags. We are trying to ask them if they are sure we have seats on the plane before they send the bags to Tahiti without us (the next flight isn’t for a few days), but none of them speak enough English to understand what we’re asking. At 3:57 five tickets are handed to Mom and we are provided an escort who runs us through the crew security line and sprints with us to the gate. At last we are aboard the flight and on our way to Tahiti. Ten hours later, our flight lands in Papeete (PPT) and 8am Monday morning. We get to start August 9, 2010 all over again. We grab a taxi to the ferry port and take a ferry to Moorea, rent a car, and drive to the home we are renting. Kevin immediately starts pressuring us all to quickly get ready to go to the beach. Korey insists on sleeping since she got little sleep on the flight, so the other four of us head to a nearby public beach and do a bit of snorkeling. Later in the evening we pick up some groceries, eat some pizza, and play some Hand and Foot (Mom and I beat Kevin and Dad). Just now I got to check my Facebook messages; thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday :)
Tokyo and Tahiti! - Day 1
Day 1 – August 7/8, 2010 – AUS, DFW, NRT
In preparation for our travel extravaganza, Kevin, our resident jet lag guru, and I determined to stay up all night Friday night. The plan was to be incredibly tired for our 10am Saturday flight to Narita/Tokyo (NRT), sleep through most of the 13 hour flight, and then to spend the afternoon exploring Tokyo after landing at 3pm on Sunday. Of course, very little went according to plan. I was able to stay up all night while Kevin was not. Our 6am flight from Austin (AUS) to Dallas (DFW) was delayed by hours and, even if we could get seats, the chance of making our connection in Dallas looked grim. So began the 3.5 hour drive from Austin to Dallas. We had almost exactly the right amount of time to get to Dallas in time for the 12pm flight to Tokyo. We had been hoping for first or business class seats on this flight for the previously mentioned purpose of getting a full night’s rest aboard the plane. Unfortunately we were all condemned to coach seats. If you think flying coach domestic is cramped… The middle aisle of seats contained 5 seats with barely enough room for a person to walk through the row before the presence of the other passengers’ legs. The seats barely reclined and when they did, the person behind you was incredibly irritated. But we were of course thankful to be on the flight at all. It was tough to sleep on the plane so instead I watched a few movies (Clash of the Titans, The Time Traveler’s Wife, Leap Year, The Last Song, and part of The Bounty Hunter). We landed promptly at 3pm, claimed our baggage and went through customs without a hitch. With the help of some friendly Japanese citizens, we found the bus to our hotel where we checked into our rooms and quickly changed into downtown-walking clothes. Here came the next hitch in the plans. We boarded what we thought was the bus back to the airport (where we would buy subway tickets and take the train into downtown). Instead the bus took us to a shopping mall about 25 minutes from our hotel. We then had to stay on the bus and ride back to the hotel to transfer to the airport bus. Once we finally arrived at the airport, it was 6pm. Getting a ticket into downtown didn’t seem like it was going to be a problem at all, but after numerous talks with various limited-English companies we determined that we would not be able to get back to the hotel by any means except taxi. The prospect of paying for an hour’s cab ride kept us from going downtown and instead we stayed at the hotel, had dinner, and tucked in for a much needed night of rest.
In preparation for our travel extravaganza, Kevin, our resident jet lag guru, and I determined to stay up all night Friday night. The plan was to be incredibly tired for our 10am Saturday flight to Narita/Tokyo (NRT), sleep through most of the 13 hour flight, and then to spend the afternoon exploring Tokyo after landing at 3pm on Sunday. Of course, very little went according to plan. I was able to stay up all night while Kevin was not. Our 6am flight from Austin (AUS) to Dallas (DFW) was delayed by hours and, even if we could get seats, the chance of making our connection in Dallas looked grim. So began the 3.5 hour drive from Austin to Dallas. We had almost exactly the right amount of time to get to Dallas in time for the 12pm flight to Tokyo. We had been hoping for first or business class seats on this flight for the previously mentioned purpose of getting a full night’s rest aboard the plane. Unfortunately we were all condemned to coach seats. If you think flying coach domestic is cramped… The middle aisle of seats contained 5 seats with barely enough room for a person to walk through the row before the presence of the other passengers’ legs. The seats barely reclined and when they did, the person behind you was incredibly irritated. But we were of course thankful to be on the flight at all. It was tough to sleep on the plane so instead I watched a few movies (Clash of the Titans, The Time Traveler’s Wife, Leap Year, The Last Song, and part of The Bounty Hunter). We landed promptly at 3pm, claimed our baggage and went through customs without a hitch. With the help of some friendly Japanese citizens, we found the bus to our hotel where we checked into our rooms and quickly changed into downtown-walking clothes. Here came the next hitch in the plans. We boarded what we thought was the bus back to the airport (where we would buy subway tickets and take the train into downtown). Instead the bus took us to a shopping mall about 25 minutes from our hotel. We then had to stay on the bus and ride back to the hotel to transfer to the airport bus. Once we finally arrived at the airport, it was 6pm. Getting a ticket into downtown didn’t seem like it was going to be a problem at all, but after numerous talks with various limited-English companies we determined that we would not be able to get back to the hotel by any means except taxi. The prospect of paying for an hour’s cab ride kept us from going downtown and instead we stayed at the hotel, had dinner, and tucked in for a much needed night of rest.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Yesterday I finished unpacking. I am now settled in Arlington. None of you Austin people need to worry though; with Fridays off I'll be around at least every other weekend (when I'm not stealing Swift from you). And now that I've started this blog I'm bored of it. I'm going shopping for random little things I still need. Swift, you forgot to remind me to move my car last night. If it has damage...
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