How To Travel On A Shoestring Budget!

The Start of My Wanderlust

Grandpa Quinn, Aunt Chris, Me and Dad at Edinburgh Castle, Scotland Nov. ''71.

My biggest passion is to travel! The more places I go, the happier I am. My wanderlust at this point is still insatiable.

Over the past couple of years, I've been able to see quite a few places courtesy of IBM. As I'm sent away on business, I extend my trip two or three days either way, and it usually ends up being cheaper for IBM to have me travel that way, then just a one-day, two-day deal...particularly when I'm in New York. (Love Manhatten.)

Here's my list of travel for the past three years. 2001 and 2002 budget cuts happened so travel was eliminated pretty much, so unfortunately I didn't do too much on IBM's tab these past 12 months. : - (

I do hope that next year as we become apart of the Hitachi family, that this will allow me to perhaps get to the Far East and go to Tokyo, etc. for work! If not, perhaps I can convince Andy's wife Miki to allow me to go with her back to Japan. (Miki is originally from Japan).

Germany

England

(Leeds, Selby, London, Oxford, Stratford upon Avon, York, Durham, Warwick Castle, Birmingham, Bridlington, etc)...

Beware of eating Mexican food in Oxford, it just should not be done! Just drink the Grolsch and have some fish and chips! : - )

You also SHOULD go and see a Shakespeare production at RSC (Royal Shakespeare Company 's Stratford Theatre). Saw my absolutely favorite Shakespeare production, A Taming of the Shrew on New Years Eve 1992 there. It was an amazing performance, and I think cost me somewhere around $16.00 The experience is a MUST!

York Minster and the City Wall surrounding York is a MUST! This is the location of where the actual "War of the Roses", (not the movie), occured. Under York Minster you will find Roman, Norman and Saxon Ruins that were only found in the last 50 years. You can tour under it, and really get a sense of how civilization lived.

New York, NY (at least 5 times or so)

Never stay in a hotel for less than $258 a night in Manhatten. Always take time to go to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island via the Subway to Battery Park where you hop on the Ferry, and when you return drink and scarf down food at the American Cafe. Always go to Little Italy and have a Cannoli and FANTASTIC Italian Food and an Italian Ice served by some guy named Bruno who might actually "Know Somebody". See the Empire State Building, and walk down the Avenue of the America's and Broadway for an amazing 'People Watching' experience. The NY City Public Library in Manhatten is pretty amazing.

Dallas, TX

Philadelphia, PA (2 or three times)

In Philly you've got to go to Pat's Cheesesteaks where you can get a Cheesesteak with either the nasty CheezeWiz that typically goes on them, or ask for Provolone, which is much better. But after the grease is dripping down your arm and your tastebuds are tingling, then you'll know that you've had a Pat's Cheesesteak. See the Liberty Bell, Independance Hall, Ben Franklin's original Post Office where you can have your mail stamped by his original stamp. You can run up the steps of the Art Center where 'Rocky' runs in the movie. You can watch people sculling at Boathouse Row on the Schuylkill River and much, much more.

Pittsburgh, PA (If you go stop at Primantis Sandwiches)

Washington DC (Get me the hell off the GW Pkwy now)

You do have to do as much as possible there. The White House, The Smithsonian, Lincoln, Jefferson Memorial and the Washington Monument. Arlington National Cemetary is earily amazing with all of the white headstones, JFK and RFK graves among others. Completeing that is walking to the Vietnam Memorial the Wall.

Bethesda, Maryland

(I cant believe the speed limit is not 83 miles per hour! I had to give a little autograph and show a photograph of myself to Officer Johnnie Law)

Back to England

On my own during that period, I also traveled to:

Maui, Hawaii

Lima, Peru

Seattle, Washington (about 20 times)

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

Wichita, Kansas

Stockdale, Pennsylvania

Altoona, PA

State College, PA : Home of Penn State University

Up and Down CA: (Sacto, Tahoe, LA)