THIS WEEK'S JOHNNY JET 12/26/2002
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HOTELS 70% OFF IN OVER 165 CITIES WORLDWIDE!
SAMPLE CITIES:
Paris ..............from $59 London ..........from $79 New York .................from $69 La$ Vega$ ......................from $39
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We Want To Hear Your Best or Worst Travel Story
from 2002. Please send an email to
Johnny@johnnyjet.com
with your story.
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MERRY CHRISTMAS! We left off last week from action packed Las Vega$. The good news is I left Vega$ with more money then I went with and did not come home alone. I flew home with my buddy, Mike, and my brother Frank. Frank decided at the airport not to go back to Connecticut, but instead to go see his little brother in California. We flew Southwest and the great thing about them is they don't rip you off with a walk-up fare. He paid $96 one-way, pretty good deal, eh?
Since my bro loves to get in shape the first stop was Sand Dune Park in Manhattan Beach. This is the toughest workout I have ever had and this is where most of L.A. pro athletes work out. Frank said it wasn't that tough but I'm not so sure if I believe him. After all, he only ran up it once. Not so tough, Ha Ha Ha.....
Instead of being a workout Nazi, I took them on a leisurely bike ride down The Strand. They worked up an appetite and wanted me to take them somewhere different and healthy. Hmmm... I figured Typhoon at the Santa Monica Airport would be a good treat for them. I wrote about this place this last summer, remember they serve water bugs, scorpions, ants... Not only do they serve an Indiana Jones-type of menu but they also have a great array of asian cuisine. I love the Thai chicken curry and Amber Airplane loves the Kung Pao chicken. Tough guy Frank ordered a bowl of crickets for an appetizer. I thought he would just eat one just as a novelty, like I did, but boy I was wrong. After witnessing Frank eating the crickets like they were popcorn and enjoying them, I decided Frank would be a perfect companion to be stuck in the woods with. Not only that, he found a nice little worm at the bottom of the bowl and he ate that too. I was shocked, but Amber Airplane was speechless.
Frank had to go back to work and Amber and I took Mike down to Tijuana, Mexico. (I promised him a while ago.) It's an easy drive from L.A. because it's only 130 miles from LAX. If you are just going to Tijauna , don't drive across the border. The traffic is horrendous and you can park your car at the last USA exit for $7. The walk is about two blocks to the border entrance. Once you walk through the metal gate, you do feel like you are in another country. Pretty amazing feeling especially because you don't have to travel far.
Tijuana is not in my top 1,000 favorite places to go but if you have a buddy who has never been to Mexico then it's an easy way to chock up another country. It's definitely not a good idea to go at night unless you want to party with all the college students and it's not a fun to take a woman, especially a beautiful woman. It was uncomfortable walking through town hearing all the cat calls and having all the salesman say with thick Mexican accents, "Hey, lucky meign (man) come to me (my) bar and have a Margerittaaaaa..." I also heard horror stories about friends getting thrown into jail protecting their girlfriends. We got a late jump so we arrived almost at dusk and after walking about three hundred yards I said, "Mike, you seen (and heard) enough?" He said, "Yeah, let's get the hell out of here." We were there literally for twenty minutes and didn't buy a darn thing. Even though there are some bargains but 99% is junk and over priced. We went to one store and the guy said $20 for a blanket. We said, "No, thanks," and the next thing you know he followed us down the street dropping his prices rapidly. He went all the way down to $4 and realized we weren't taking it even if he gave it to us. Another bargain is prescription medicine which you don't even need a prescription for.
We had to wait in line about ten minutes so the US Immigration officer
could look at our drivers licenses and ask a few standard questions
like, "Where were you?, What did you buy? How long were year here
for?".... He was shocked when we said twenty minutes. Since
we didn't trust the food in Tijuana we were off to
Old Town
, San Diego to take Mike for the next closest authentic
Mexican food
. Driving back we hit a little detour when eagle eye Amber
Airplane spotted a brand new
outlet shopping plaza
. Plaza Durango is located about 5 minutes from the border.
It's full of great shops including Banana Republic, Gap, Old
Navy, Harry and David... What amazed me was we used to go to
Mexico for the shopping, but by the looks of the Plaza Durango clientele
the Mexicans are now coming to the US to shop.
One of the best days in Manhattan Beach
is the Christmas fireworks that usually takes place the second Sunday
in December. It's one huge party in town and at all the Strand
houses. This place is more crowded then the 4th of July when
the temperature is 30 degrees warmer. The reason is Manhattan
Beach only shoots fireworks off in December and not in July. I
went
to a few parties with my
buddies
and
cousins
, it was fun and I found the best place to watch the
fireworks
. It's not in town where everyone is singing Christmas carols
or on The Strand where everyone is elbow to elbow. It's on the beach.
The beach is empty and watching the fireworks go off almost directly
above you feels surreal.
I ended the week with a trip to the Staples Center. I wasn't
there to watch the second to last place LA Laker's, but instead the
third to last place
LA Clippers
. I went with
Joe Lewis and my old roommate
, John. The game wasn't too exciting especially since they
played the last place Denver Nuggets. But hey, whose gonna turn
down Sky Box seats that have a
dessert cart
come by at half-time? Not me.
Happy Holiday's everyone!
We Want To Hear Your Best or Worst Travel Story
from 2002. Please send an email to
Johnny@johnnyjet.com
with your story.
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TIP OF THE WEEK:
CHECKED BAGGAGE PACKING TIPS
• Don't put food or beverages in checked bags.
• Don't stack books -- spread them out.
• Put footwear on top of other
items.
• Leave gifts unwrapped.
• Put personal items into clear
plastic bags.
Source: TSA
GOOD TO KNOW!
Staying healthy while
you travel By Peter Greenberg
MOST OF these tips are important to consider
before embarking on your trip, so be sure to plan ahead.
GET INSURANCE
This is the most important thing to do before
travelling. If you should get sick overseas and need medical treatment,
this will cover your treatment and some insurance companies even
will send a private plane to take you to a better facility. Best
of all, this insurance can be as little as $200 a year. There are
a few websites that have information on this type of insurance,
like
www.travelguard.com
or
www.medjetassistance.com
.
GET APPROPRIATE VACCINATIONS
There are different vaccinations that apply to
different areas of the world. This information is available
on the Center for Disease Control website. It also breaks up the
information that is important for adults, children and infants. Get
the flu shot and the vaccinations for hepatitis A and B, since these
would most likely cover easily contracted viruses or bacteria.
PACK A MEDICAL KIT
The kit should include Tylenol, adhesive bandages,
tape, tweezers (for removing splinters), antiseptic towelettes,
antibiotic cream (for bites and rashes), Benadryl, stomach remedies
and most importantly, any prescription drugs you are taking.
Make sure you have enough of these so that you
don’t run out while on the road. Along these lines, also make
sure that your doctor writes down both the brand name and the
generic name of any prescription drug that you are on so that if
you should have to get it filled abroad you will be able to show the
pharmacist there.
STAY HYDRATED
While on the plane, some people like to have
a drink to calm their fears about flying. This is a mistake.
You should drink a lot of water to stay hydrated and stay away
from alcohol. The combination of dehydration and the pressure
of the plane can be really strong — one drink in the air has the same
effect as two and a half drinks on the ground. It is important to keep
drinking bottled water — do not drink water that the flight attendants
might serving in glasses since there is the possibility that this
water could come from the airline’s holding tanks which could have
a ton of bacteria.
Along the same lines as keeping hydrated, you
should bring a saline nose spray to keep from getting a cold.
The spray will help to keep your nose clean.
KEEP MOVING
DVT, which stands for deep vein thrombosis, has
been reported often over the past few years. It occurs when the
flow of blood is restricted in a vein, and a clot forms. It can be
caused by poor circulation because of problems such as heart disease,
a recent heart attack or stroke, varicose veins, or from inactivity.
DVT may develop during a long flight and has been dubbed ‘economy
class syndrome’ because the cheaper seats in a plane have less leg
room, encouraging minimal movement. Take walks up and down the aisles
during the flight, or if you’re stuck in your seat, to move your feet
around and loosen the shoelaces if you’re wearing sneakers or shoes
that lace up.
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