THIS WEEK'S JOHNNY JET 1/29/2003
|
SAN DIEGO, TIMES SQUARE Web Site Of The Week BIDDING FOR TRAVEL Bonus Mile Offers Of The Week AIR FRANCE, CONTINENTAL, NORTHWEST, USAIR, ... Special Offers Of The Week AIR TRAN, CARIBBEAN, WYNDHAM, UNITED ... Where's Johnny Jet? CALIFORNIA, HAWAII Tip Of The Week TIP FROM A READER SkyGirls/Guys ?'s WHAT MOISTURIZER DO YOU USE TO AVOID DEHYDRATION? Jet Captain ?'s DO PILOTS SLEEP IN THE COCKPIT? |
Washington Post USAToday Other News Yahoo ABCnews CNN MSNBC SmarterLiving |
HOTEL DEALS UP TO 70% OFF IN OVER 165 CITIES WORLDWIDE!
SAMPLE CITIES
New York .................from $69 La$ Vega$ ......................from $39 London ..........from $79
CLICK HERE FOR ALL CITIES:
WEB CAMS OF THE WEEK
*
* *
*
*
*
*
*
*
* **
*
*
*
*
*
* *
*
*
*
*
*
*
* *
*
*
*
*
*
*
* *
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
HELP SUPPORT
JOHNNY JET! BOOK YOUT
TRIPS THROUGH US
Hotels.com
|
tripadvisor
|
Hotwire
|
Priceline
|
Orbitz
|
Expedia
|
Travelocity
***
*
*
*
*
*
*
* **
*
*
*
*
*
* *
*
*
*
*
*
*
* *
*
*
*
*
*
*
* *
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
WHERE'S
JOHNNY JET
?
Didn't have a chance
to read last week's newsletter? Click here!
KEY:
BOLD
= PICTURE,
HYPER LINK
= WEBSITE
Last week
I told you about how my sister Carol surprised us with a very last minute
trip to sunny California. It was a great surprise because I have
been begging (even threatening to stop my visits to Erie) Carol for years
to take her kids and come visit me in California. She always said it's
too far to travel with the kids because they would be tyrants on a long flight.
Well, they behaved well and they landed late at night so we went right back
to my house and went to sleep. Around six the following morning I
awoke to my nephew Johnny standing at the front of my bed saying, "Uncle
Johnny, I'm hungry". I sleep walked to the kitchen and got him some
cereal, turned on Cartoon Network and told him not to go looking for candy
in the drawers (why would I say such a stupid thing? The kid is a sugar
addict and I now know that I made a BIG mistake). I went back
to sleep, another BIG mistake. I woke up an hour later and sensed some
mischief and sure enough... little Johnny found Amber Airplane's "goody drawer".
Candy wrappers were everywhere and he was running around the house like
a lunatic yelling, "I'm a sugar freak, I'm a sugar freak". I seriously
thought I was in the twilight zone. I ran over to the sink, threw
some cold water on my face just to make sure I wasn't seeing things.
I wasn't.
I got the little animal dressed and took him down to the beach to try
and wear him down, which was yet another big mistake. First of all,
the kid doesn't listen to me. Carol keeps saying it's the terrible two's,
but he's three. Johnny ran down the beach and headed straight for the
water. I ran after him puffing on my asthma inhaler the whole way.
I finally caught him to give him the usual (and boring to him) "Danger Speech".
I knew it went in one ear and right out of the other, so I kept a close eye
on him. The kid is quick and when he saw a
steep sand dune
he was off. I'm running down the beach laughing to
myself, thinking this cannot be happening. I used to think
those kids leashes were cruel and ridiculous, but I would've paid a lot
for one right then and there. Heck, if someone were selling duct tape
on the beach they would've made a pretty penny. Johnny lay at
the top of the sand dune and was getting ready to roll down it when I said,
"Johnny, don't even think about it". He gave his normal devilish
laugh with a smile of course and off he went. I didn't want to look
like one of those parents that have no control over their kids, so I lunged
forward and tried to grab him. I guess I am a lot slower than I thought,
because I wasn't even close to grabbing him, and to make matters worse
I did a face plant midway down the dune. Seriously, I rolled
down the rest of the way. I wasn't only amusing to Johnny,
but to all those beach goers, who were enjoying the 80-degree weather, as
well. I spit the sand out my mouth, shook the sand off of my
cell phone and called my sister to come save me. Carol came down with
Amanda
and instead of mellowing him out; it gave him a second wind.
This time the kid dropped his drawers (is that even legal) and makes another
mad dash back to the sand dune. I just laughed and let
my sister deal
with him.
When Grandpa woke up, we all went to
breakfast
at Martha's in
Hermosa Beach
(Martha's 22nd Street Grill, tel. 310.376.7786). On weekends
the wait can run about an hour for an outdoor table, but it's worth the
wait for, out of this world, French toast stuffed with cream cheese and
raspberries. If a billion calories are too fattening for you, then
try the unreal white corn and Havarti cheese scrambled. Throw some
Tabasco and salsa on there and you will be on cloud nine. After stuffing
ourselves we went to the beach to play on the swings, then Grandpa volunteered
to watch the kids for the afternoon while Carol and I shopped. The
kids seemed to be too mellow so before handing them over to my Dad I took
them to
Cold Stone
Creamery. After all, a little sugar never hurt anyone
:-). My Dad is still mad at me.
That evening we went to 3rd Street Promenade in
Santa Monica
to see some of the Venice Beach type street acts, but at nighttime.
The kids got hungry, so we had to drop everything and make a mad dash to
the closest restaurant before we had a meltdown.
Trastavere Restaurant
was the closest and is located right on the Promenade at 1360
Third Street, tel. 310.319.1985. The restaurant has great thin pizza,
and pretty good pasta. During dinner, little Johnny crashed out and who got
to carry the 40-pound kid back to the car? Keep in mind that we were
in the middle of the Promenade. I was with Carol and Amber Airplane, two
of the biggest shoppers in the world. So we stopped at every store on the
way. I never thought 40 pounds could get so heavy.
The following day (Sunday) we met up with Carol's friend
Monica and her kids
at the Santa Monica's
Farmers Market
. Everyone loved it. The kids were happy because
they went on
pony rides
, and the adults we were happy because they have great snacks and
breakfast there.
Speaking of Farmers Market. Amber Airplane and I took my Dad and
Nancy to the original area
Farmers Market
in the heart of L.A. earlier in the week.
The
Farmer's Market
has been around since 1934 and you can
feel the history
and see it in family run food stands. They have all kinds
of food, fruits,
desserts
, and shops.... Especially the latter, since they just opened
up a great open air
shopping area
just a few feet away called
the Grove
. Stores include: Nordstrom, Banana Republic,
the Gap,
Abercrombie & Fitch
, Crate & Barrel, FAO Schwarz, Nike Goddess ... I had to
pull Amber Airplane out of there. There's also a 14-screen Pacific
movie theater and a handful of new restaurants. 6333 West Third Street,
Los Angeles, CA 90036
On Monday and for the grand finally, we took the kids to
Disney's California Adventure
. It's right next to Disneyland and currently;
Southern California residents who buy a full-priced ticket to one Disney
Park will receive a free ticket to the other for use by May 14. I
ordered the tickets and guess how much it cost for 3 adults 2 kids?
$226.00. Are you kidding me? Luckily, the lady didn't check any of
our ID's to see if we were So-Cal residents so we all got a free pass to
Disneyland! Now that's a good deal. It was a thrill because it was
the
first time the kids
have ever been to a Big Time theme park (
Waldameer
in Erie, PA. is great, but it's not Disney).
We thought
we were only going to go for a few hours, but soon realized that
is just not possible. It took almost an hour to park, get on the
tram and buy tickets. For the first ride we
stood in line
and it took 50 minutes. It was for
Soarin' Over California
and in my opinion it was worth it because it's the best ride around.
Themeparkinsider.com
describes it best: "It's a hang gliding simulator that offers
a wonderful experience of site, feel and smell. When you fly over the waves
you feel a spray, when you glide over the mountains, you smell pine, and
when you soar over the orange groves, and you smell oranges. Its poised to
be one of the most popular, with the longest lines, so be sure to either
get there at opening, or get a fast pass as soon as you enter the park".
After a little lunch next to the Soarin' ride we headed towards the
Grizzly River Run
(water rapids). While in line, I noticed many people were
getting soaked and the smart ones had ponchos. I figured we could
buy a poncho at the front of the line (BIG mistake). When we got to
the front of the forty-minute line, the ride operator said "Oh you have
to buy them in the general store out front but then you will have to wait
in line again". No need to tell you that we didn't get one and
I got completely soaked. I mean drenched. In fact I had to go
buy a t-shirt, and if I could’ve... I would've bought shorts, boxers, socks
and shoes. That's how soaked I got. Funny thing is, I was the
only one who really got that wet on our float.
Then we headed for the
Carousel
and on the way spent too much money playing carnival games.
Tip: Don't give one prize to one kid and then give the other kid a different
prize. That's just what I did and yes it was yet another: Big Mistake.
Like a good Uncle and God Father, I gave Amanda the first prize
I won
(an ugly rally monkey). She was happy until Carol won a
Dolphin and gave it to Johnny. Amanda started crying, so I switched
the animals and then Johnny started balling. To tell you the truth
and at that point,
I felt like crying
. . It was a no win situation, except to try to win another
dolphin. But since the darn game was probably “rigged” (number 2 kept winning)
it was futile. For the amount of money we spent trying to win that
dolphin we could've bought a section at Toys-R-Us. Carol and I alleviated
some of our tension when we went on the Screamin’ California roller coaster.
I'm not going to ruin it for you but this thing is insane.
Early Tuesday morning I was at LAX twice within one hour. The first
time I was there to drop my sister and her kids off at 6:30 AM., then I
went back again at 7:30 AM. This time I was with Amber Airplane, my
Dad and Nancy
waiting to catch our flight
to Hawaii! That's right HAWAII! We had to take
advantage of the
$281 R/T fares from LAX-HNL
. Tune in next week to see if
my Dad
made it to the top of Diamond Head... Aloha, Johnny
PS: Don't forget to come by and say hello when we are at the
Long Beach Convention Center
this Saturday February 1, 2003 at 2:00 PM.
PPS:
Johnny Jet Is In The Tour Business
! To stay competitive we have lowered the price to $500.00 (Those
who have already signed up will be refunded appropriately).
WE NEED YOUR HELP! JohnnyJet.com was founded as a labor
of love. To keep supporting this valuable information
please send your friends, colleagues, and anyone else
you have in your address book an email encouraging them to log
on. Make sure you ask them to sign up for our weekly
newsletter, and to book their travel from our site! Thanks
for all your support! Johnny
SALE!!!!
on Johnny Jet T-Shirts &
Hats
Click Here for more Details
.
Next Week:
?
WHAT'S NEW IN
JOHNNY JET
JET CAPTAINS
QUESTION OF THE WEEK:
Do Pilots Ever Sleep In The Cockpit While The Other Pilot Flies The Plane?
SKYGIRLS
QUESTION OF THE WEEK:
What moisturizer do you use to avoid dehydration on long
haul flights?
SKYGUY
QUESTION OF THE WEEK:
What do you enjoy most about you job, and what do you hate
most about your job?
TIP OF THE
WEEK FROM OUR READERS:
Although the TSA specifies that you do not
lock checked baggage I've found another alternative that's
not necessarily real secure but works as a deterrent to possible
thieves, and is real easy. I left the locks on my baggage
but just pulled the zippers together tight, it looks like the
bag is locked but it's not. I even had one of the TSA guys ask
me to unlock it once. This probably wont work for all bags
but and the plastic zip tie is the only way to go for overseas flights
but for quick trips it works well. Ken Bruce
Have A Tavel Tip?
(Reply to this email)
GOOD TO KNOW!
Fewer rental car shuttle vans at LAX?
You may soon have to ride an extra shuttle
if you're renting a car at Los Angeles International Airport.
Shuttle vans operated by rental car companies are facing
new restrictions at the airport, which will now allow only
10 firms to drive their vans into the terminal area. The customers
of the other 29 companies licensed to operate at LAX will have
to take an airport bus to a remote parking lot, beginning in February.
Airport officials say the change is aimed at cutting the number
of annual rental car shuttle trips through the terminal area
from 1 million to 810,000 and — surprise — they hope the move will
increase annual rental car revenue by up to $8.2 million. Currently,
all rental car firms are allowed to send shuttles through the terminal
area. (From USA Today)
Travel Portal
All your travel needs can be accessed
from one spot - Check it out because
Johnny Jet Takes
You There!!!
Click Here:
http://www.johnnyjet.com
To unsubscribe
or Subscribe a Friend To
Johnny Jet's
Travel News:
Click Here
:
http://www.johnnyjet.com/folder/signup/signup.html