It must be getting boring reading this blog, or at least depressing. Service is getting worse, everything costs extra and prices have not come down to reflect the economy. The airlines have re-written the law of supply and demand. “Don’t supply anything and charge to the hilt when customers demand what they deserve”. All of a sudden a mumified kosher meal sounds tantalizing when compared to the peanut butter and jelly sandwich packed 7 time zones away.
So, I take my East Coast and New England readers back to another time and another place.
Imagines that it is a crisp October day and you are building a Sukkah with your dad. Maybe even before pre-fabs became popular so you had some collection of wood, screws, canvas and pipes that no one really remembered how to put up from year to year (or where the brackets were hidden).
Now look up at the trees. They are not the palm trees or citrus trees outside of your Raanana Sukkah. They are Oaks, Elms and Maples in every shade of yellow, gold and orange imaginable. Yup, those are Fall Colors and it turns out that New England Fall Foliage is the best in the world.
So, pack your bags (maybe even a sukkah) and plan to spend the holiday in NY Foliage. Here are some ideas for day trips from Brooklyn or Brookline. We guarantee that the experience will be very different from Sukkot in Israel.
- Catskills Fall Foliage – Ever been up in a vintage 1921 biplane? Stop off at Rhinebeck and admire the New York State Fall Foliage from 3000 feet, with the wind in your goggles.
- Heading south to Philadelphia or DC? Stop by and enjoy Fall Foliage PA with the Amish. You might even find a Sukka or at least a harvest festival. Sorry kids, Hersheypark is closed for the season. Next stop - Maryland Fall Foliage along the banks of the Potomac.
- Combine Massachusetts Fall Foliage with some American history and culture at Lexington, Concord and Walden Pond.
- Get up earlier in the morning and head north to Maine and catch one of the Fall Foliage Cruises.
- Brave the crowds and head north to enjoy the New Hampshire Fall Foliage. The show lasts for most of the fall – leaves too green? Go higher or further north. Too brown? Go south.
And an honorable mention of places more than 5 hours from New York City – Adirondack Fall Foliage, – great for early in the season – they show has started already; New Mexico Fall Foliage and Fall Foliage in Colorado – very different from the East – Golden Aspens, towering evergreens and of course, ski season around the corner. And no jokes, please – Pittsburgh Fall Foliage.
And if it starts raining – duck into an enclosed mall.
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Nava and Nahum Sharfman death notice from shopping.com family
Travel Protection Insurance – Trip Interruption / Delay
The New York Times “Haggler” column featured an informative and relevant article on travel protection insurance. Like all insurance – if you didn’t need to file a claim – you are happy. If, like me, you don’t buy things like earthquake insurance in Ranana and flood insurance in Beersheva – you are also happy.
But what if you were being cautious and bought insurance that covered Trip Interruption, Trip Delay, Trip Cancellation and whatever else you could think of? And what if you actually had to cancel the trip?
The New York Times covers a story of a couple that bought Trip Cancellation Insurance from the travel agent that sold them the trip. The premium was 10% of the cost of the trip (which is high for almost any kind of insurance – even for Bear insurance in Yellowstone). The husband had a heart attack and they cancelled.
The story only gets worse, and I won’t repeat it here. But if you are the type or even have good reason to buy Trip Insurance, bear in mind the following, when reading the fine print that you may get a credit (and only for use with the same travel agent) instead of a refund. The call center operators seem to be instructed to use every comforting word like “protection” and “guarantee” while never invoking the word “refund”. They will not say refund, but you will hear it. So, read the fine print and insist that the term “full refund” appears somewhere in the agreement. And enjoy your fall foliage cruise to New England.
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