USA: Western (CA, NV, AZ, HI)
Las Vegas, NV [1]   |   Las Vegas [2]   |    Las Vegas [3]   |   Laughlin, NV [1]   |    Laughlin [2]   |   Laughlin, NV / 
Bullhead City AZ   |   Maui   |   Monterey & Carmel   |    Oahu, HI   |  Oahu, HI (2)   |   Palm Springs   |  
Parker, AZ (1996)   |   Parker, AZ (deja vu)   |   San Francisco, CA   |   Oahu (3)

USA: Elsewhere
Chicago   |    Louisville, KY   |   Michigan   |   Minnesota   |   Nashville, TN   |   New Orleans, LA   |   New Orleans + Cruise  
NJ (southern)   |  Palm Beach, FL   |   Philadelphia, PA   |  Rockford, IL   |    Tampa + Cruise   |   Washington, DC    |   Chicago   |
Pontiac MI / Detroit   |   Pontiac, MI (2)  

Mexico and the Caribbean
Bonaire, NA   |   Cabo San Lucas (1997)   |   Cabo San Lucas (2003)  |  Cabo San Lucas (2004)  | 
Cancun, QR [1]   |   Cancun [2]   |   Cancun [3]   |   Cancun [4]   |   Cancun [5]   |   Cancun [6]  
Cancun[7]   |   Cancun Club Med   |   Carnival Cruise   |   Cuba   |   Chihuahua   |   Cozumel   |  
Manzanillo / Club Med Playa Blanca   |   Mazatlan, SIN   |  Puerto Vallarta(1)   |   Puerto Vallarta(2)   |
San Felipe, BCN   |   Playa del Carmen

South America
Argentina   |      Rio de Janeiro. Brasil (1997)   |   Carnaval in Rio (1998)   |   Sao Paulo and Rio (2003)   |  
Rio, Bahia, and Pernambuco (2004)   |   Rio, Bahia, Ceara, and Amazonas (2005)

Europe
Ireland   |   Spain (Madrid, Pamplona, Ibiza)   |    Portugal   |   Spain (Barcelona & Alicante)   |   Italy  

Asia and the South Pacific
Australia [1]   |   Australia [2]   |   Bali, Indonesia   |   Fiji   |   Malaysia   |   New Zealand   |

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

October, 1993

Best Part of the Trip: It was FREE! Thanks to my friend Jeannie and the Gods of PacTel Cellular, the airfare, accommodations, most food, a few cocktails, and a wild ride in a parachute strapped to the back of a boat were all included.

Las Vegas, NV; Silver City, NM

November, 1993

The Bad News: Trying to drive 500 miles of mostly 2-lane highways isn't a great idea after 1 hour of sleep.

The Good News: The hitchhikers I had to pick up -- talking to someone keeps me awake -- they didn't try to kill me. One said his "friends" had left him camping in the desert for days and was plenty happy to see I had a water bottle. The other reeked of tequila and said he'd spent the night in a cave. All in all, made for interesting conversation and an alert, safe driver.

The Unfortunate: New Mexico doesn't sell beer on Sunday... well, at least not in the store. That's what the bar is for. 40-ouncers were available to go.

And the Ugly: The further east from Phoenix you go, the more it looks like a dentist could make a killing in these here parts.

Mazatlan, Mexico

August, 1994

Best Part of the Trip: The lodging, at the aforementioned El Cid, courtesy of Yvette's parents generosity with their timeshare property.

Other Memorables: $15 all-U-can-drink-all-nite at the Valentino's/Bali Hai/Bora-Bora complex and hanging out with a crowd of very few Americans, mostly Mexicans from nearby Guadalajara -- and these people know how to have a good time.

Low Points: Breaking my nose (well, again) on the Banana boat ride, and not realizing it until I got back home (the subsequent fight with PacifiCare over getting it fixed was no picnic either).

Weird Events: Running into someone I know there... who happens to be named Erik as well. And the activity director at El Cid -- the woman who arranged contests of daring, skill, and alcohol-tolerance -- was a dead-on Nicole Brown/Simpson lookalike. It's a small world, after all.

San Felipe, Mexico

Memorial Day Weekend, (May) 1995

The Good: Tearing up and down sand dunes on kiddie-Quadcycles.

The Bad: Hearing everyone else tearing up and down sand dunes on Quadcycles (generally 6AM to midnight).

The Feo: Whatever was in that fish taco turned out to be the gift that kept on giving (thank the pharmaceutical gods for Lomotil and Dramamine for an eventual resolution of that problem).

Cancun, Mexico

June, 1995

Would I go back? Oh, hell yes. And I did. Twice.  Peruse Tales from the Yucatan for another exciting Cancun adventure

!Tip from the Trip! If you have a connecting flight in Mexico, don't despair. This just means that when you arrive in Cancun, you find yourself passing through the National arrivals terminal, which spares you the lines for customs, the red-light-green-light game, etc. You'll be served all the necessary paperwork as you await your connecting flight (in Mexico City or wherever). Meanwhile, your baggage is snaking its way through the bowels of the airport to your connecting flight with nary the curious hand of a customs agent pawing your packed silky intimates.

 Jump to info about another Cancun trip.
 

Laughlin, NV

Labor Day Weekend, Sept 1995

Don Laughlin's new tower was a nice departure from an otherwise dingy, smoky casino. The guys at Harrah's had the newest jet-skis; although they did cost a few dollars more to rent than elsewhere, they were a lot of fun. And Harrah's William Fisk Steakhouse served us up excellent dinners with class (although the joint has got a lot noisier, judging from a more recent visit).

 Another Laughlin trip >>

Miami / Palm Beach / Singer Island, FL

Aug 1995, Jan '96, Feb '96, Most of March '96, May '96 and Feb '97

The Good: Oh, too numerous to count... let's see...
Being in Florida in the winter and having someone else foot the bill?
$5.00 open-bar evenings at the classier local establishments?
The kind accommodations and even kinder staff of the Singer Island Holiday Inn SunSpree Resort?
Club Jet Ski waverunner rentals and the beautiful Intercoastal Waterway?

The Bad: The foul Radisson Singer Island hotel (the Holiday Inn was full once for an unfortunate 3-day period) . . . and also your typical cotton-topped Floridians who know that the safe speed for driving whilst looking through the steering wheel is no more than 30 MPH.

And Would I Go Back? Of course, and I did... once just for fun. If I could get my work to sponsor more trips there, even better, but lately it's been Chicago in the wintertime for me.

Southern Caribbean Cruise

January, 1996

Would I do it again? Oh certainly, particularly aboard one of new gargantuans of Carnival's royal armada. But I'd spend more time on Barbados, less time on Martinique, and calm my desire to participate in (and eat) everything that's offered.

Tips from the Trip: Flights leaving Puerto Rico on Sunday afternoons are terribly overbooked. I took advantage of this situation and reached Miami a couple hours late, sure, but with $950 in free American Airlines travel in my pocket -- I volunteered to get bumped off three consecutive flights. But heed this warning: Should you join the ranks of the bumped, you will get a free meal ticket for the restaurant at the San Juan airport. Have you ever had a grilled cheese sandwich that was somehow flatter than ONE slice of bread? Well, pondering that mystery was the high point of my meal there.

Too Weird: Canadians seem to think I resemble their most famous serial killer Paul Bernardo.

Las Vegas, NV

February, 1996

The Good: That the Sahara's discount accommodations didn't turn out to be that bad after all. Just get a tower room and avoid the motel-like wing!

The Tasty: The Dim Sum Sunday Brunch at the Mirage. At $20, yeah, it's a little steep. But it's in its own exceptionally quiet corner of the Mirage and everything down to the chicken feet was tasty. Also tasty and fun was Dive!, Steven Spielberg's submarine sandwich submarine.

 << A previous Vegas trip       Learn what 2-Pac for a Vegas trip ... >>

Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles

May, 1996

The Good: Hell, it was free. . . what more can you ask for?

The Not-So-Good: Not all aspects of the trip were free, or as stated in the award... but us beggars can't be choosers. Us beggars ended up having many a meal at the KFC in Krallendjk (highly recommend is the Power Combo, consisting of spicy wings, a biscuit, and a Heineken, all within your budget).

And the Wild Nights The KFC after dark. Or maybe it was tearing around the empty, dark streets on rented scooters. Or maybe a couple of beers at Karyl's Beach Bar (conveniently located across the street from the KFC). Anyway, not a whole lot happens in greater metropolitan Bonaire when the sun goes down. If it's not underwater, it's apparently not happening.

Las Vegas, NV

September, 1996

Hey, Nice Froth:  Wanna plush weekend room in Vegas for about $75, complete with big-screen TV and Jacuzzi?  Centrally located on the strip -- did I give it away -- it's the Center Strip Inn.  A proud recipient of AAA's one-diamond award, the Center Strip's rooms are decent; you could do much worse for the same price with Circus Circus, where you wouldn't even have a Jacuzzi to dump in bubble-bath.

Cancun, Mexico, and the general surrounding area

Thanksgiving (Nov/Dec), 1996

 [<<Jump Back] to information about my previous Cancun trip,
 [Jump Forward>>]  to information about a later Cancun & Cozumel adventure.

Chicago / Rockford, IL

January, 1997

Louisville, KY and Nashville, TN

January 1997

The Good: The friendliness, the tasty food, and a visit to the birthplace of my benevolent uncle in Lynchburg, TN, the esteemed Mr. Jack Daniels.

The Unbelievable: Lynchburg is in a dry county, meaning no tastings... and no purchases from the gift shop on Sundays. Can you believe that??

The Redemption: It wasn't just any Sunday, it was Superbowl Sunday, and the next county was only minutes away.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

April, 1997

I enjoyed Rio to the point that I'd consider life there, if the opportunity presented itself. I have the good fortune of knowing a Carioca (a Rio resident -- not someone who sings in Japanese bars). Not only does she know the city inside and out, but she's also an airline employee capable of procuring free travel.

 Some high points and recommendations:

• The beautiful, clean beach at Barra (Praia Barra)
• Rodizio style barbecue food: served continuously, it's a carnivorous feeding frenzy guaranteed to satisfy the heartiest of red-meat cravings (try Cruiziero do Sul in Botafogo or Porcao in Isla do Governador)
• Club Maxim, located atop a 45 story office building, between the mountain peaks of Corcovado (with the giant, yet benevolent, Christ statue) and Pao de Acucar (with the aerial cable-car ride you saw in the James Bond movie Moonraker)
• The Buzios region, about 150km northeast of Rio... clear ocean water, numerous sandy crescents making for 101 beautiful beaches, and some of Argentina on vacation.
• The Tijuca forest, a national park actually within the city of Rio, with 3000-foot mountains to climb.

San Francisco, CA

May, 1997

Laughlin, Nevada

June, July and August 1997

  << Back to a previous Laughlin trip

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

August, 1997

The Hot:
Cabo San Lucas at the height of summer... 100F with high humidity. The ocean was somewhat refreshing, at a reported 85-90F water temperature.
The action at El Squid Roe, usually starting up after 11pm.
The desert sand betwixt the buildings of the Terrasol Beach Resort, which was otherwise a fairly decent place to stay (we had a 1-br condo replete with two balconies, dishwasher, blender, washer/dryer, funky artwork, and a couple 3-inch-long cucarachas as amigos).

The Not So Hot: The food there. I mean, for a world-class fishing locale, the seafood was consistently an expensive disappointment. Major offender was a place called Kokomo's, which also offended by playing Macarena twice while people were trying to eat.

Is This Really Mexico? Well, sure, the currency was occasionally in pesos, the employees were Mexican... but I was hard-pressed to find any Mexican tourists there! I've noticed about 50%+ tourists from other parts of Mexico in such places as Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan (in particular) and Cancun. In Cabo, they e'speak English, the prices are American, and I encountered something I could not even fathom outside of the US: a couple of mixed drinks were too watery!!. Can you believe that?

Would I go back? Oh sure... if the Yucatan, Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta, Hawaii, and the Caribbean were all devastated by the nefarious effects of El Nino. Or if SunQuest continued to offer $220 airfares there.

Cancun & Cozumel, Mexico

Yes, I went back yet again . . . same place, different Thanksgiving vacation, with a side trip to Cozumel as a bonus.  This time I spent a six nights in Cancun at the decent Krystal and four in Cozumel at the even more decent Plaza Las Glorias. And nobody called me Paul Bernardo this time around.

The Good:  Entertainment half-price hotel rates, time with my good friend from Brazil, scuba diving in Cozumel, singin' in the rain.

The Bad:  The torrential rains, which poured non-stop for four consecutive days.  Also, don't even consider eating a US-style Thanksgiving dinner in Mexico.  It will make you long for home and for Immodium.

More to follow in the form of Tales from the Yucatan -- The Sequel, appearing soon at a web site near you. You might also find some rudimentary ramblings by searching DejaNews using the keywords Tales Yucatan Sequel.

 [<<Jump Back] to info about my previous Cancun/Yucatan adventure.
 [Jump Forward>>]  to information about a later Yucatan (alright, QR) adventure, this time in Playa del Carmen, mostly...
 

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil:  Carnaval 1998

February 1998

The Good:

• The street parties, particularly one themed Simpatia E Quase Amor (Sympathy Is Almost Love), which involved a flatbed truck carting a full samba band through the streets of Ipanema with a  few thousand pie-eyed pipers in tow.
• The mega-street party known as the Desfile das Escolas da Samba (Parade of the Samba Schools), in which I got to shake it down the street with Uniao da Ihla for a couple hundred thousand spectators and a worldwide TV audience.
• The beaches at Ipanema and Recreio:  sandy, beautiful, fairly clean.
• "El Guapo Loco" Mexican food in Ipanema:  Not terribly Mexican food by Mexican standards, and likely the only Mexican restaurant in Rio, but a cool joint with good semi-Mexican food.
• The hospitality of my good friend Renata and all her friends, who kept us fed, entertained, and always with a cold Caipirinhia or Choppe (Brazilian fire-water-lime drink or beer) nearby.

• The rest of the world gets the Desfile and Rio's Carnaval beamed into their homes... why not in the US?
• That I had to return home to work at some point.

Kuala Lumpur and Penang, Malaysia

September-October 1998

Why Malaysia, anyway?  The Hash House Harriers (that group that sponsors activities that resemble the 10k runs, treasure hunts, and drinking contests all rolled into one) were having a bi-annual “Interhash” gathering in Kuala Lumpur.  This involved gathering about 6,000 like-minded (and loose-livered) souls from all over the world, dumping in equal parts bad-local-beer with bad-manners, and stirring to a frenzy inside the bowl of a decrepit Kuala Lumpur sports arena.  So, about the same time that the Malaysian government was prosecuting its own leaders for various morality code violations, Hashers were running naked through the stands of ol' Merdeka Stadium.  Don't know if the security guards were to keep the uninvited out... or the Hash inside.  And with Malaysia Airlines as one of the sponsors, and a heavy dose of the Asian Economic Flu going about, I was able to score a grand, six-flight, half-way-around-the-world package of tickets LAX-Kuala Lumpur, KL-Penang and KL-Bali airfare for under US$900.

The Good:

• Getting to see the jungle-covered countryside on foot... and always knowing that there would be cold beer at the end of the trek.
• Tasty food everywhere we went in KL and Penang, everything from the Chinese seafood to the less-than US$2 buffets of vegetarian curries.
• Shopping for the latest American movies, already conveniently pre-packaged on MPEG-encoded CD-ROMs, also for less than US$2 apiece.
• A grand evening out in underground KL clubs, thanks to the unflappable Mr. Ng.

• The soon-to-be-unshakable Mr. Ng, whose family moved into our KL condo...
• Semi-crooked cab drivers (but extremely honest compared to those we'd soon encounter in Bali)
• The weather in Penang (El Nino brings bad weather to one side of the Pacific one year, La Nina brings the same to the other side next year)

October 1998

Cheap, beautiful, fun, and we weren't there long enough.  Watch out for crooked cab drivers and money changers!  And Hituk Megawati!!  (More detail coming soon)

November 1998

Just down the coast from Cancun... and a far more of a kick-back environment that, of all things, actually seems Mexican!  (More tales of Uncertified Scuba Adventures, crocodiles, bad howler monkeys, rusty Jeep Wranglers, and the Nickel-n-Dime-Continental Plaza to follow!)

Sydney and Cairns, Australia

Jan-Feb 1999

A contender for Erik's Favorite Country award, right up there with Brazil.  Underwater adventures! (I'm now a PADI-certified scuba diver, finally).  Above water hazy recollections! (I developed a certain enthusiasm for Aussie brews).  I sent off some e-mails from the road; be sure to check out Tales from Down Under.

Washington, DC

March 1999

Turned a three-day industry seminar into a six-day tour of our nation's capital...

The Good:

• DC is truly Land of the Free.  Free admission to the various Smithsonian museums, monuments, and government facilities.  Free for you, me & every junior high school student in North America.
• The DC Metro subway system gets you almost every place you'd ever want to go.  Plus it's fairly clean (especially compared to some of the neighborhoods it cruises beneath), and the cavernous stations are impressive (and really don't smell all that bad).
• Miss Paula of Louisville, who made me a 7th-grader for the morning and slid me through a school-group tour of the White House.  Yep, even on the day that we began to drop bombs on the former Yugoslavia, 15-minute tours of some obscure wing of Bill's house were being given.

• The Quality Inn Iwo Jima in Arlington.  Sure, the only place convenient to DC that had $80 hotel rooms and appeared in the AAA book, but really folks, wouldn't hurt to lift a paintbrush every now and then.  And while most modern showers feature hot and cold water, remember, that's hot and cold, not hot or cold.  The two do mix rather nicely.

The Good:

• HomeGate Suites:  It's a few blocks from the Strip.  It features rooms that have kitchens and recliners.  It has a pool.  It's new.  And the guard keeps an eye on the adjacent rehab center.  But best of all, it's $40-$60 a night... on the weekend!  On Flamingo near Maryland; call them at 888-456-GATE.
• Martinis at the Red Square, located in the new Mandalay Bay hotel/casino.  The Red Square has some 500-odd vodkas on site, some in a glassed-in walk-in freezer.  There's also a strip of ice that runs down the center of the bar for keeping your drink cold, dampening your forearms, and playing shot glass ice hockey.
• Club Rio -- although the older of the casino mega-clubs, it's loads more fun, the staff is more pleasant, and most important, it has ventilation. Not so with some of its successors (most notably Ra at the Luxor).
• The Frontier has a mechanical bull.

• The Stratosphere restaurant:  it is to a fine dining experience as the Stratosphere's roller coaster is to excitement.  Can't go wrong with the rotating view of Vegas from 800 feet up, but you'll probably find better food and service at your local (dare I even say it?) Outback Steakhouse.  For about 80% off, and the Stratosphere don't serve no Bloomin' Onion.
• Casinos attitude to Hash House Harriers en masse.  But what did you expect?

July, 1999

I spent 12 days in and around Cancun, the Mayan Riviera, and a rarely-explored island a couple hundred miles across the Caribbean.  For the first third of the journey, I stayed at the Sheraton.  The second portion found me in Cuba, and the final installment took place back in Cancun at our favorite standby, the hotel Krystal.

The Good News:

• The Sheraton's beautiful view and stretch of beach... and all for only $99 a night, I might add.
• The help from Otelia at the Sheraton's travel desk, which got me to Cuba.
• Cabellito del Mar's outstanding scuba outfit on Cozumel.

The Not-So-Good News:

• Everything costs about 1/3 more in Cancun in the summertime... a little something special to go with that 1/3 increase in humidity.
• The Sheraton's leaky rooms and sporadic electric service.

Fidel's Lil' Promised Land

July, 1999

Sandwiched neatly within those 12 days in Cancun was a jaunt across a short stretch of the Caribbean sea to Havana.  I spent four days and three nights in Fidel's Workers' Paradise.  Some of the strangest experiences of my life happened in those four days -- many more details to follow.  Stay tuned.

Cancun

Nov-Dec, 1999

Trip number 5 to Cancun found me enjoying yet another Mexican Turkey Day on the shores of the Caribbean.  This time I didn't even venture alone:  my friend Mark went for his first Cancun experience.  More details to follow...  

Fiji

Feb, 2000

Bula!  Mana Island is beautiful.  More to follow.  I mean it.  Really.
 

Australia & Tasmania Wilderness InterHash 2000

Feb-Mar, 2000

G'day, once again!  And you will find more exciting info about the follow-up to my 1999 Sydney & Cairns adventure here.  In the meantime, enjoy some HHH photos of the Tasmania InterHash portion of this trip.

Various trips to Laughlin, NV and that Bustling Metropolis of Bullhead City, AZ

Summer, 2000 up through Nov. 2000

Several high-speed trips across the desert brought about several extended weekends with my new friends Chris and Renee, residents of that glistening desert oasis known as Bullhead City.  Conveniently located across the river from Laughlin, Bullhead City offers a glimpse of true desert life, replete with 120F heat, rusting trailer parks, active methamphetamine trade, and a former El Pollo Loco converted into the town's hippest bar.  Many, many tales to follow...

Cozumel and Cancun... Again!

Nov-Dec 2000

Trip Number 6 to one of my favorite places... and this time with a contingent that continues to grow.  Several friends joined in at various times to enjoy the reefs of Cozumel and the liver-wrecking evenings of Cancun.  Many, many tales to follow... pictures, too.

Club Med, Playa Blanca / Mexico

Feb 2001

Never the real fan of the all-inclusive vacation concept, I was a little apprehensive about what to expect in a week at a Club Med.  It turned out to be one of the best (and by far the cheapest) solo vacations I've ever taken.  More to follow... really.

Oahu, Hawaii

April 2001

A good trip... but Oahu's no Cancun.  More to follow.

Ireland:  Dublin, Galway and Limerick

September 2001

My friend Heather talked me into this one.  I've never put Ireland, Britain, etc. at the top of my list of travel destinations due to my allergy to cold, dreary, drippy weather.  But she talked me into it, and I was glad we went: one of the many rumors that we quickly dispelled was that weather one.  It was sunny and warm for 7 of our 8 days there!

We stayed in the Temple Bar part of Dublin (it rocks!), took the train to Galway (greater downtown Galway rocks, too!) and went to Limerick, where they have in fact heard about The Man From Nantucket.  Made it back home just in time in the evening of September 10th, too...

New Orleans

October, 2001

Spent the weekend there on a solo trip and had a my fair share of oysters and Hand Grenades.  Explanation to follow... really!

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

November, 2001

A long weekend with the Iguana HHH and the Predator.  More to follow...

Cancun and Cozumel, Mexico

November/December, 2001

Yes, it's an annual pilgrimage.  More to follow...

Chihuahua, Mexico

New Year's, 2002

More to follow...

Oahu, Hawaii

January, 2002

More to follow...

Philadelphia, PA and southern NJ

April, 2002

Yeah, you're asking why?  Coming soon...

Spain and Portugal

July 2002

More to follow...

Maui, Hawaii

September, 2002

More to follow...

Buenos Aires, Argentina and Iguaçu Falls, Argentina / Brasil

October, 2002

More to follow...

Cancun and Cozumel, Mexico

November, 2002

More to follow...

Brasil:  Carnaval in Rio + Sao Paulo and Some Kick-Ass Islands

March, 2003

More to follow...

Barcelona & Alicante, Spain + Italy

June - July, 2003

More to follow...

Tampa, FL + Western Caribbean Cruise

September, 2003

More to follow...

New Zealand

November, 2003

More to follow...

Cancun's Club Med

February, 2004

More to follow...

Brasil:  Carnaval in Rio + Bahia + Pernambuco

Feb - March 2004

More to follow...

 ^^^ Return to the Index ^^^

Jump on back to the tripEEE.com main page for more fun stuff.  Comments? Questions? Mail them to erikofca (at) yahoo.com