The Experiment - Bye Bye SF (for now)

6:33 AM AirplaneFoodCritic 0 Comments



I can see my house from here!!


The day is finally here! I am at the end of my experiment. What are the results? What happens now? What happens next? I will tell you.

First of all, the results. My short term seven day diet went OK. It would have gone much better if I hadn't cheated two of the seven days! One of the seven days I had my Greek food party and it was fantastic. My cupcakes came out....interesting. I added, among other ingredients, one whole cup of honey to the recipe. I was aware that doing so would cause the resulting cakes to be a little sticky and perhaps runny but I didn't expect them to pour out of the cups and cover the whole pan with one giant cookie. A DELICIOUS cookie, but it wasn't cupcakes. I was pressed for time so I ended up taking the remainder of the batter and made a cake out of it. It was a hit, everyone loved it. I will include the recipe at a later date. Other food that was at the party was stuffed zucchinis which were fantastic too. I will write up a healthy recipe for that in a future blog as well. The lamb was cooked perfectly, the olives were stuffed, the pitas were toasted, everything was great. Everything was exactly what was not on my seven day diet though. Oh, and the three ciders I had were not either, but they tasted so goooood!
Me, eating :)

Another day I cheated was this Monday. I went out to the vineyards with our grower relations guy and checked out how bloom was going this year. While we were out we had lunch at Mustards Grill. When the company is paying, and the food is that great, there is no way in hell I am passing it up just because I want to lose a pound. We also imbibed in a few drinks.

So, where does that leave me after my seven (five?) day diet? I lost two pounds. Nothing to poo poo. Just imagine if I had stayed on it and didn't have the fried calamari and cornmeal breaded fried catfish tostada with cilantro aioli! Twopounds is a healthy loss in a week anyways. If I had lost the four I really wanted, it would have been bad for me because we all know that rapid weight loss followed by cheeseburgers (that is the first thing I am eating when I get to Hawaii, along with my Mai Tai) means rapid weight gain and I don't want to start my trip with that.

Since the beginning of the year I have lost exactly 30 pounds. It took me two months to lose five pounds, then I began The Experiment and since then I lost 25 more pounds. This is no small feat seeing as how I never exercised but one time when I went hiking up a little hill. It is also amazing since I cheated so many times on the diet too. I had burgers with peanut butter on them, tons of wine, beer, vodka and cider. I had a full Irish breakfast, several greasy champagne breakfasts, many cupcakes, cheesecake, pizza...the list goes on. I think this blog has helped me stay focused in those times between all those diet cheats. If you take the time I was doing the experiment (85 days) and divided it by the amount I lost in that time (25 pounds) you will see that I lost an average of two pounds a week which is exactly the maximum recommended number one can safely and healthily lose a week according to most experts. This is something to be proud of and I am.

What now? Well, now I go to Maui and have the time of my life with the love of my life. I will be bringing back pictures to post here when I get back.
Landing in Maui
What next? When I get back I am going to be continuing to eat healthy. I will raise my caloric intake above the 1200 cal/day, fat burning level to a weight maintaining level. I am going to come up with, and post, recipes for a healthy lifestyle. As usual, I have something planned every single weekend as far as my calendar can reach that involves parties, food, drink and other potentially unhealthy things that I will be trying to put a healthy spin on. As a wine maker, I will always be drinking wine, but I will try to do it in relative moderation from now on as a weight control thing.

Where does that leave you? I know I am leaving you for a while but I will be back in a couple weeks. If you are needing a weight loss/healthy lifestyle blog fix while I am gone, please call upon my friend, Jase's, blog. He is losing weight like it is going out of style and he posts every day to keep you inspired.
Until I get back, Aloha and Mahalo

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The Experiment - Beans!

8:44 AM AirplaneFoodCritic 0 Comments




Yesterday was the first day of my seven day diet. I am sure it was just a fluke but I lost a half a pound since starting it. I do not have such high hopes as to think I will see the same results tomorrow when I step on the scale but I am still very encouraged and happy.

The first day went well but I was very full, stuffed even, the whole day through. I guess this is a good thing but it is a strange feeling to be so full yet lose weight. Whatever, it is working so I should shut my mouth. I briefly went over how I came about designing this particular diet plan. I wanted to go into a bit more detail about a particular ingredient here. Beans. I love beans. They are filling and yummy. They can be mushy and buttery at times. They are very good for you. There are a bazillion kinds of beans out there. Which ones are the best for you? Why did I choose Pinto Beans? I will tell you....

A bean is a little nugget of nutrition. They are high in soluble and insoluble fiber, antioxidants and a multitude of vitamins and minerals such as calcium, potassium, vitamin B6, magnesium, folate and alpha-linolenic acid. They are a good source of complete proteins which is rare to find in plants. They are known to lower cholesterol, fight heart disease and diabetes and can possibly help prevent some cancers. Can't beat that, can you?? So why isn't everybody eating their recommended three cups a week of beans? Beans have a taboo about them. You have the high carbs and the gas it can produce. When you weigh that against all the benefits you get out of eating beans I think it is a no brainer. Plus, I LOVE BEANS! There, I said it.

I made a list of some of the nutrients found in beans and some of their health benefits below:

Folate (aka Folic Acid):
Folate plays a role in reducing blood homosysteine levels, the formation of red blood cells, metabolizes protein, aids in the growth and division of cells and helps prevent many birth defects.

Molybdenum:
This mineral helps detoxify sulfides (a common preservative and allergen) from the body. It is required to make several enzymes in the body and helps process Iron. Molybdenum also promotes carbohydrate and fat metabolism.

Magnesium:
Builds bones, releases energy from muscles, builds muscle tone, releases toxins and manufactures proteins.

Manganese:
Manganese is involved with bone formation, thyroid function, calcium absorption, immune function and in fat and carbohydrate metabolism.

Phosphorous:
Helps build strong bones and teeth, involved in the release of energy from fat, protein and carbohydrates during metabolism, helps in the formation of cell membranes, and genetic materials.

Copper:
Copper is necessary for the formation of hemoglobin, increases bone density, and promotes tissue health.

Potassium:
Regulates acid-base levels and blood pressure, is important is the transmission of nerve impulses, builds muscle tissue and metabolizes carbohydrates and proteins.

Which beans are the healthiest? There are many types of beans out there but the top rankers are black beans, kidney beans, navy beans, pinto beans and lima beans. I broke them down below for you to make your own decision. The nutrition info is for 6 oz of canned beans.
Black Beans: Calories: 144, Fat:1g, Sodium: 589mg, Carbs: 30, Fiber: 9g, Protein: 11g
Source of antioxidants. High protein.
Kidney Beans: Calories: 139, Fat:1g, Sodium: 503mg, Carbs: 25, Fiber: 7g, Protein: 9g
Source of Molybdenum.
Navy Beans: Calories: 192, Fat:1g, Sodium: 762mg, Carbs: 35, Fiber: 9g, Protein: 13g
Source of Folate, Manganese, B1, Phosphorous, Copper, Magnesium and Iron. High Protein.
Pinto Beans: Calories: 146, Fat:1g, Sodium: 500mg, Carbs: 26, Fiber: 8g, Protein: 8g
Source of antioxidants, Molybdenum, Folate, Manganese, B1, Phosphorous, Iron, Magnesium, Potassium and Copper.
Lima Beans: Calories: 134, Fat:0g, Sodium: 572mg, Carbs: 25, Fiber: 8g, Protein: 8g
Source of Manganese, Potassium, Folate, Iron and Copper.

I compiled this information from several websites including webMD and The Mayo Clinic. The calories et al, I got from calorieking.com.

It was a personal preference to choose the Pinto Beans. I found it has more trace minerals with less carbs, sodium and calories. I was willing to give up a little fiber and protein because the rest of my diet had plenty of each of those already.

So here I am half way through my second day. I will report back tomorrow if there is a change. Wish me luck!




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The Experiment - Seven Day Diet

8:45 AM AirplaneFoodCritic 0 Comments



It's crunch time. I have 7 days left before I leave. Seven days is a good amount of time because it is a round number in calendar terms. I have stayed at the same weight for the past week as I seem to have been doing on and off every month or so. Too bad it happened right when I am about to leave on my trip. I am nervous that I won't lose the amount I set out to lose in the time I gave myself. The bf says I should stop worrying because my physical appearance is such that it I need no more weight loss but my goal is my goal and I am so close.

What to do? I sat down and devised a strict seven day diet. I plan to stick to it rigidly for those seven days. . I used a website that I have mentioned before to calculate my weight loss caloric intake zone. I found that 1200 calories a day is a good number for me, based on my weight, gender and height, to have to have energy but still lose weight. So I started there. I am going to stick to the 5 meal a day plan that I have been following the whole time. I am also sticking to drinking two liters of water a day. I want this diet to have protein, good fat, fruits, vegetables, fiber and low sodium. How much protein do I need? I found a cool protein calculator that will tell you how much you need in a day based on your age, size, gender and activity level. There is also a cool fiber calculator. If you enjoy those, you might also like the fat calculator. These will tell the amounts recommended for your daily intake based on a recommended weight sustaining caloric intake for your particular body type and age.
Thinking about these things I came up with a diet plan that fits, basically, what I am looking for as well as is relatively tasty albeit a bit boring. I repeated the same meal plan every day. I figure I can't get that bored in seven days' time. So here it is:

5AM - BREAKFAST
3/4 cup pinto beans
1/2 avocado
1 poached egg
Hot sauce (preferably low sodium)

Heat pinto beans in a bowl, top with sliced bits of avocado and the poached egg. Season with hot sauce to taste.

Calories: 400, Fat: 20g, Sodium: 484mg, Carbs: 42.4, Fiber: 18g, Protein: 17.3g

8AM - MORNING SNACK
1/2 cup non fat cottage cheese
Pepper or hot sauce to taste

Calories: 52, Fat: 0g, Sodium: 239mg, Carbs: 5, Fiber: 0g, Protein: 7.5g

11AM - LUNCH
4 oz baked, grilled or poached chicken breast.
1 cup fruit (see below for fruit suggestions)

(This will vary depending on the fruit, this calculation done using an average fruit from the list below)
Calories: 265, Fat: 5.1g, Sodium: 86mg, Carbs: 19, Fiber: 4g, Protein: 36g

1PM - AFTERNOON SNACK
1/2 apple
1 Tbsp almond butter

Calories: 142.5, Fat: 8g, Sodium: 1mg, Carbs: 15.5, Fiber: 4g, Protein: 4g

4PM - DINNER
4 oz chicken breast, poached, grilled or baked
1 cup baby spinach
1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 apple (from snack)
1 tbsp toasted chopped walnuts
1 oz feta cheese

Either eat the chicken breast alone or with hot sauce and mix the rest together as a salad or chop up the chicken into bite sized pieces and mix with other ingredients for one big salad.

Calories: 356.5, Fat: 12.5g, Sodium: 506mg, Carbs: 17.5, Fiber: 5.5g, Protein: 44.5g

TOTAL FOR THE DAY:
Calories: 1216, Fat: 45.8g, Sodium: 1316mg, Carbs: 99.4, Fiber: 31.5g, Protein: 109.3g

Shopping list:
I took this menu and made a shopping list. I needed:
4 avocados
4 cans of pinto beans
6 eggs (I still have some in my fridge)
1 bottle of hot sauce
4 cups (32 oz) non fat cottage cheese
1 package of frozen chicken breasts
7 apples
8 oz feta cheese
1 pkg of walnuts
1 bottle of balsamic vinegar
1 pkg of baby spinach
1 jar almond butter
2 grapefruits
1 large papaya
1 can unsweetened sour cherries in water (they aren't quite in stores fresh yet)

I actually already had the vinegar, cheese, walnuts, cherries, apples, chicken and almond butter. So all the rest at Trader Joe's cost me less than $20. Not bad for a week's worth of food!
I got home and defrosted 6 chicken breasts then grilled them up on my indoor grill. I put them in the fridge to be eaten for the next three days. That is really the only preparation I need to make for these meals. What takes longest is breakfast but I have a routine down now. I get up and turn on the pot of water with a splash of vinegar on the stove. I open a can of beans, pour about half out and microwave them for maybe 30 seconds while I cut the avocado in half, saved the half with the pit in the fridge for the next day and sliced up today's half. When the water is boiling I drop in my egg. While the egg is cooking (about two minutes) I put the avocado over the warm beans and top with a hot sauce. I scoop the egg from the water with a slotted spoon and top the beans with it. Done!
I did some research on fruits looking for the lowest carb, sugar and calorie ratios I could. I came up with a small list fruits that fall into this category:

Blueberries
Cherries
Grapefruit
Raspberries
Peaches
Papaya
Apples
Strawberries
I am considering doing some exercise just to tone up the softer parts. I have access to an exercise bike and I may try to use that every day until the trip. I say that now, but we shall see how I feel when I get home from work. I usually just want to snuggle up on the couch with the bf and doggy.
Saturday will be my one day off of this diet. I have another food group meeting, this time the theme is Greek food, one of my favorite kinds of food! Along with making Stuffed Courgettes (Kolokithikia Gemista) with Avgolemeno sauce, I am going to attempt some ambitious cupcakes and I am very excited about it. I have only made up the recipe in my mind so I have no idea how it will go. I plan to make baklava mini cupcakes. All the people who have attempted this type of cupcake so far have claimed it didn't come out very good. The only recipe I found that people liked was one where they took regular yellow cupcake mix and stuck a real piece of baklava in the center. I do not want to go that route though. I will share my results when I actually attempt to make the recipe that is in my head.

I will try to update as often as I can while on this seven day adventure. So far I would still like to lose 4 pounds. Let's see how it goes!

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Travel - Books

8:23 AM AirplaneFoodCritic 0 Comments



I spent an hour today in the bookstore. We have a fantastic locally owned bookstore here. I love going there just to flip through the different books. The section I spend my time in depends on my mood or what I am interested in at the time. I have worn the rug in the cookbook section and the travel section. I have found some real gems for cheap in the used section on several occasions too. This trip was in one of my favorite places to spend time, the Mystery/Thriller section. I am going on vacation and I need a new book.

As an avid reader, I have blown through thousands of books in my time. I enjoy reading a great deal and never am without a book that I am in the middle of. I have a list of favorite authors whose book releases I track. I have a sort of schedule. I usually know the next two or three books I am going to be reading at any given time. Vacation books are different. The book I bring on vacation has to be different. It must reflect the vacation I am going on. Depending on the location of my destination I read at different times of day. On a trip to Paris I will be reading mostly on the airplane, then at night before I go to bed. If I am on a tropical vacation I begin by reading on the plane but most of the reading is done during the day while laying out on the beach.
Breakfast on our balcony in Kauai

When I went to Ireland, I read a murder mystery book set in Ireland one time, and another time I read The Lost Painting, partially set in Ireland.
When I went to Paris last, I read "The Judgement of Paris" by Ross King because it was about the revolution of Impressionism in France.


Most of the books for these types of trips I read are a little bit thought provoking and insightful.

Today I had to pick out a book for my trip to Hawaii. What I look for in a book that I am bringing to Hawaii is anything but thought provoking. I want an easy to read, fun, exciting book. I like the book to be set on the ocean, in the tropics, in a jungle or other warm, humid place. In the past, I have brought along some Clive Cussler books.
Clive Cussler is a very simple read with very simple characters. There is action sprinkled with cheesiness. His writing is not juvenile, just simple. One thing I like about his books is that he always puts himself in them. It is very egotistical but always hilarious and silly. His books center around a group of renegade scientists who work for NUMA, The National Underwater Marine Agency. The books are categorized as "techno-thrillers" but unlike other authors in this field, like Michael Crichton, Cussler makes no attempt to be realistic, but rather eccentric and outrageous. I like this in a "lay-on-the-beach" book.
Another great author that I have taken to Hawaii is James Rollins. In recent times, Rollins has been writing a series of books about the same group of people called the Sigma Force which are basically "killer scientists". I read the Sigma Force novels as they come out but these are not the ones I like to bring on my vacations as much as James Rollins' other novels. In the beginning of his career writing as James Rollins he wrote a series of fantastic adventure books set in jungles, caves and underwater. There is no connection between these books aside from how great they are. One time, I was on an 8 day vacation and I blew through one of these books so fast that I ran to the bookstore on the island I was staying on to get another. The best books of his for reading in a tropical setting are Amazonia, Excavation, and Subterranean.

A book I read recently would be perfect for a tropical vacation but unfortunately I have already read it or I would be bringing it on this trip. It is Michael Crichton's last book, Pirate Latitudes.
Set in the Spanish occupied Caribbean, this book has everything you could ask for in a pirate book. I would imagine that Congo would be another good book by this author to bring on a tropical vacation but having seen the movie, I am reluctant to bring the book on vacation because if I do not like it, I have no other option. I prefer to read the book BEFORE seeing the movie.

So there I was, standing in the middle of the Mystery/Thriller section, browsing the various authors. I was looking for an interesting title or cover. Something with water, jungles, boats...something that implies lots of action, espionage, killing, science or something along those lines. It is risky to pick out a book whose author you are not familiar with. You may not like their style and then you are stuck on vacation with something that you do not like. I did this with Dean Koontz. I did some research on him and found that he wrote some thriller books but I then found that his writing style is too juvenile like he is writing for kids or illiterate people. I found that very distracting. I was stuck camping and had two of his books to read. I got through them, but was disappointed. This trip is going to be 10 days of relaxation and good times so I decided to go with an author that I am vaguely familiar with just to be safe.

The book I settled on? Don't laugh. Matthew Reilly's Six Sacred Stones.
Why? First, Matthew Reilly. I have read one or two of his books before. His books are insane, literally. They are lightening fast paced, completely unbelievable, action packed, and ridiculous. To give you an idea of what I mean, in one book I read a long time ago, there was a point in the story where the main character was underground next to a harrier jet (also underground for some reason), chained to a nuclear weapon, surrounded by corrupt Marines, being attacked by Nazis while psychotic monkeys escape their nearby cages, the area is beginning to flood and prisoners infected with a racist, engineered virus are running amok. Get the idea? Crazy books. I think Reilly fulfills the "easy reading" and "thriller" part of my criteria. The book is set all over the world but mostly in jungle-like settings like China and the Congo but also places like Egypt, England, Zanzibar and Ethiopia. I guess they have to get the six sacred stones into the same place or the world ends or something like that.
I look forward to reading it. I will feel a little bit like I am cheating on Jack Reacher though. I am on book 5 of a 14 book series. I will return, Jack!

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The Experiment - Summery Smoothie

8:37 AM AirplaneFoodCritic 0 Comments


It has been a week since I have said anything about The Experiment (AKA my diet) so I thought I would do a check in. I am just over two weeks away from my trip and getting very excited. Last week I did some things different, I ate prunes, I went swimming and, of course, I cheated horribly on the diet.
The prune

Last week I tried out a new thing. I decided to eat 5 to 7 prunes every day. Just to see what would happen. I had had a bag of prunes in my cupboard for some time and thought, why not? What happened was very little, which is a good thing. In the morning I would place 5 to 7 (depending on how many fell out of the sticky bag) on a plate. I would begin eating them for my morning snack around 8am and snack on one here and one there until about 11. These things are filling!! I know there is a lot of sugar in these little guys but I didn't feel I was eating that many of them and by lunch time I was stuffed. I could barely eat my lunch. On the downside, I did have a puffed out stomach feeling by the afternoon that didn't go away until the evening. This was a bit uncomfortable but manageable. Over all, I think they were an asset to my diet because I was full most of the day and I ate smaller meals after eating the prunes.

Dried Fruit vs Fresh Fruit

Dried fruit pros are that they are not perishable, they are easy to pack and transport, some fruits provide even more antioxidants (like blueberries) than their fresh counterpart, they are a good snack when you have a sweet craving and they are high in fiber.
Dried fruit cons are that they have less nutrients then the fresh fruit, they have more sugar in a smaller area,
Fresh fruit pros are many, they are rich in fiber, nutrients and minerals and the water in them helps fill you up more.
Fresh fruit cons are that they are perishable and bulky.
The best option when it comes to fresh vs dried fruits is to use both in your diet. Use dried fruits to help with any sweet tooth cravings, to punch up meals and to add more fruit to your diet. Use fresh fruits every day as part of your nutritional program. As for the sugar levels, just don't eat all your daily fruit intake in the form of dried fruit. I don't think you could anyways, it would make you pretty uncomfortable.
I am out of prunes now or I would probably be eating them still just for the filling feeling it gives me.

Swimming
When I say I went swimming, I mean I laid by the pool reading a book while my bf worked out in the pool. I know I should be working out. Building muscle increases your metabolism. It was a Saturday afternoon and I was feeling lazy. What was memorable about going to the pool is that I had to walk across our whole condo complex to get there. I am so happy with my weight loss that I did the whole walk in nothing but my bikini and slippers. Strutting my stuff, if you will. I am so close to my goal weight I am giddy!
The lovely swimming pool

We made a fabby new smoothie that I would like to share with you. When we got back from the pool we decided to make homemade salsa and have aqua frescas on the balcony. Aqua frescas are made with fruit and water. It is basically a watered down fruit drink. They can be very refreshing but most recipes call for sugar to be added. I was in the mood for pure fruit. We came up with a fantastic smoothie that was refreshing and tasted like summer.

Cantaloupe Smoothie

1 cantaloupe, seeds and rind removed
1 cup pineapple
2 cups frozen peaches
2 cups water
2 cups ice

Put everything in a blender and blend until smooth. If I hadn't killed my mint plant (which is a great feat in and of it's self) I would have loved to have garnished with a sprinkle of mint.


Mother's Day was a toughy for me. But then again, isn't every weekend for me?? It was a big cheat on my diet but a fabulous one. I think, by this time, I shouldn't even call it a cheat on my diet, I should just consider it part of my diet since it is a weekly (at minimum) occurrence. My brother, father and I took my mother out to a lovely lunch in Napa at a French restaurant. We had a fantastic bottle of French rose, of which I drank half . I ordered like I was on vacation because in my mind I was on vacation from worrying about my weight. I had a pork belly salad with chicories and candied pistachios to start. Then I had braised short ribs and yukon potatoes and for dessert I had a banana gratin with almond crunch and vanilla ice cream. IT WAS SO GOOD!! Boy was I stuffed after that. I got home at 3:30 and wasn't hungry the rest of the day. I wanted to make a drink to both hydrate myself after the alcohol I drank and to aid in digestion. I came up with a ginger lemonade. I put two inches ginger, peeled, in a blender with the juice and zest of one lemon and a whole other lemon. I added about a cup of ice and a cup and a half of water. I also added a tiny bit of honey but for most that would not have been enough. I like the tang of the lemon so it was just right for me. I whirrled it all together to make a frosty drink. It really hit the spot. I didn't feel that food hangover I can get after eating a lot of fatty foods.
Braised Pork Belly....yum

That pretty much sums up my week of dieting. I am still on track. I have 5 pounds to lose in 16 days. What I need to do now is not become complacent. I must soldier on to the end of this experiment. Wish me luck!

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Travel - Planning: Eat Go Do Buy

8:55 AM AirplaneFoodCritic 0 Comments


A vacation is like a favorite meal. It has main ingredients that are always there and then seasonings that vary trip by trip to make each vacation different from the last. The main ingredients of a European vacation are a little different from the main ingredients for a tropical vacation but I always have the same general interests: Eating, Doing stuff and Shopping. This is where I focus when planning a trip once I have my dates and flights determined.

A Hawaiian vacation's main ingredients are: Beach, Island Food, Sunset Drinks, Tropical Activities. This is where I start doing research. First I look at where I am staying. If I know the island well, I already know where I am staying. If it is a new island to me then I first go to a hotel chain that I trust. One that I know is in my price range and offers the amenities that I like. I MUST have an oceanfront room. I do not need poolside service and fancy spas. I then look at where the most activities, restaurants, beaches, etc. are and choose a hotel from my favorite chain in the middle of that area. Easy. Once I have done that I get to focus on the really fun stuff.
Our oceanfront view in Kauai, 2009

Research: I start with going to the library. Yes, I go to the library. You can also go to a bookstore but I like to check out a few books on the area I am going to and take them home to take notes. Get as many different books as you can on the subject. In my case right now, Maui. I go there often enough that I actually purchased a book on the island but checking one out from the library is a great idea because you can save your money, do the research and even take the book with you on your trip before you have to return it. I purchased the Maui Revealed book. This book is part of an infamous book series by the same authors who live in Kauai and write candidly about each island's beaches, activities, companies, restaurants and more. They are wildly popular among visitors to the Islands and for very good reason. They give you an insider's guide to secret places and very honest (of course, it is their opinion, but usually reasonable) reviews. The books are wildly UNpopular with the locals on the Islands because places that were, at one time, only their secret places are now flooded with tourists (book in hand) wandering all about. I could go on and on about how great these books are. If you are planning on visiting Hawaii, you must secure yourself a copy of these books.
Maui Revealed, one of four essential Hawaii travel books

If you are planning on visiting a place other than Hawaii, there are lots of guide books out there that do editions about all sorts of different countries. I say choose several of these and peruse them all. Take notes as you go through. You will find that certain authors may have more similar tastes to yours so use those more heavily in your research. Using several different books will give you several different perspectives giving you a more rounded idea of what you want to do, see, eat in your destination. It will help you personalize your vacation.

Beaches. When planning my trip to Maui this year, I began with beaches. I read book after book and website after website about Maui beaches. There are things I know I like and things I know I do not. I do not scuba dive, surf or windsurf so I can rule out some beaches that are supposed to be only good for those things. I do like playing in waves, snorkeling and laying out so I wrote down the beaches that are good for those things and their locations. I also noted any beaches that are a "must see" even if you just go to take a picture and leave. For example, there is a wildly popular windsurfing beach in Maui that every guide book says is spectacular for a nice view. I have that down on my list because there must be something to it. I note next to each beach what it is best for: Snorkeling, playing in waves, romantic sunsets...whatever.
Secluded beach in Kauai.

Restaurants. This one is the most and least fun to research. The most fun because I get to look at menus and pictures of their views and decor. The least fun because before a tropical vacation I am usually on a pretty restricted diet to fit into my bikini so it is a bit of torture to see all that wonderful food on my lunch break at work while munching on a lettuce leaf. Looking for restaurants is usually easy. Just Google the area you are going and type in "restaurants". You will end up with a list of places. Go through each one and narrow them down. If you want specific things like Sushi or Breakfast just type in "Best breakfast Maui" or where ever you are looking for. Places like Yelp and Citysearch will come up and you can read people's ratings of specific categories. Once you have a list of places you are interested in you can break the list into subcategories like by price, location, dinner or lunch. I like to mix a few expensive places into more moderate priced places so I do not end up with gout from overindulgence or broke before the trip is over.
Restaurant with a very tropical feel at Mama's Fish House in Maui.

Sunset drinks. This research is similar to the restaurant one but a little more elusive. Guide books don't always have a section on places to have a cocktail before dinner. I usually find places that I know have a fantastic view and a drink menu. That is a good key that it will be worth putting on your list of nice places. You can also search online for places that have special house drinks, a happy hour or is a local favorite. I put these places on my list and note their specials, happy hour or other special things like live music times and schedules.
Drinks lined up in Maui.

Shopping. Researching shopping is not just looking up where the malls are. What I research when I am looking where to go shopping is what to shop for. What is that area famous for? Is it wooden shoes, fine china, blown glass, painted coconuts....? Find where the shops that sell those things are and plan to go there. And don't forget to find where all the souvenir shops are. You usually do not have to do much research to find the "junk" shops. They are front and center in the middle of where the most tourist action is. I love souvenir shops. I shop them all until I see what items are in every one. That is how I know what is most popular to buy. That is what I buy for myself, friends and coworkers. If you buy the things you saw the most, you will be reminded of the trip more once you get home, right?
Lahaina, in Maui, has fantastic shopping.

Activities. This is a broad area to cover. You can look up in your guide books if there are any festivals, celebrations or scheduled events. See if anything occurs on the dates you will be in the area. You can look up hikes, museums....all sorts of stuff. For my trip this Spring, I looked up agricultural tours, hikes, special boat rides, para-sailing, helicopter rides, the Road to Hana, and historical landmarks like ancient villages and grave sites.
Hiking the Kalalau Trail in Kauai.

This should help you plan out your vacation. Me? I have my schedule down to the hour of what we are doing. We will, of course, stray from this schedule and I left plenty of room to do anything else we want, but the planning of the trip has been a ton of fun. Now I am off to plan our route to Hana.

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Travel - Planning Where and When To Go

12:43 PM AirplaneFoodCritic 0 Comments




Planning a trip is a hobby of mine. If done correctly, it can be a prequel to the trip....a mini trip in itself. Looking up the location, reading the menus of the local restaurants, looking at the attractions, choosing which things you would like to do in that area. It is a great way to spend your lunch hours or evenings at home. It is sort of like daydreaming. This blog is about the most important steps of planning but not really the most fun part...but still sorta fun because you are thinking about your vacation at least.

The first step is to decide where you are going. In my recent case, Maui. I chose Maui because we love Hawaii and knew we wanted to go there this Spring as we always do. My bf and I have been to Kauai multiple times already and I thought it would be nice to show him a new island. I, personally, have been to Maui more times than I can count but I keep going back because it is my favorite of the four Hawaiian islands I have visited.

Once the destination is chosen you need to choose dates. Usually the general timing is already decided and often has a factor on your destination. My job is such that I only get time off in the Spring and Winter and I already have plans this Winter. Often your job will dictate when you can go and how long you can go for. I chose a time to go when there is also a paid holiday. This is a fantastic way to extend your trip without burning vacation hours. The downside to that idea is that you will not be the only person who had the bright idea so your destination may be more crowded at that time. If you can, be flexible with the dates you can go. I will explain why below.
Once you have your destination and time frame you need to find the best deal. I have about four places I look to find a good deal to Hawaii. I search each one at least twice a day. This particular trip I found a super fantastic deal but it took me a lot of time, searching, checking, changing the dates and worrying. In the end it was all worth it because it is the best deal I have ever seen for this type of trip. You have to know what things you are steadfast about and what things you are willing to compromise. In my case, I was flexible with the date I left and came back and, to a lesser degree, with the flight times. If you are flexible with your departure day you usually can save money. A flight that leaves on a Thursday or Wednesday is much cheaper than a flight that leaves Saturday or Friday. The same for returning. The most expensive return flights are on the weekends. As far as the time of the flight goes, it is cheaper to take a "red-eye" flight but it is so exhausting that you need another day to recover just from the traveling. If you choose to save money by using an overnight flight, do it when you are coming home. You and those you are traveling with will be much easier to get along with if you arrive to your destination rested. I was lucky to get a direct flight at very decent times. You have to think about the times as well. If you take an afternoon flight from the West Coast to Hawaii you are going to land in the late evening. This is a day you took off work and are paying for a hotel room but are not going to be spending any time at the actual destination. I think of it as cutting the arms off of your trip. Taking an overnight flight on the way home can give you a longer last day of your trip so it does have some upside.
Check your favorite travel websites and airlines for different schedules. Play around with the dates and times you leave and come back until you find something that works for you. You need to check often too. An airline may offer a certain price for a certain seat on a certain flight one morning and change that price for the exact seat later that very day. When you see a travel plan you like...BOOK IT.
This is the little door opening to the REAL fun of travel planning. Now you know your destination and the dates you will be there so you can start looking up what is going on there at that time.

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