Nov 12th, 2009 at 2:00PM: For a tree-grower, there's no honor greater than to have yours chosen to sit at the center of the Christmas universe: Rockefeller Center. This year, the winner is Maria Corti. A 10-ton, 76-foot Norway spruce was cut down in her Easton, Connecticut backyard on Wednesday and is being carted down to Manhattan. She called Rockefeller Plaza more than nine months ago to make the offer. This was one of ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
Christmas posts
Rockefeller Christmas tree chosen and en route
Nov 12th, 2009 at 2:00PM: For a tree-grower, there's no honor greater than to have yours chosen to sit at the center of the Christmas universe: Rockefeller Center. This year, the winner is Maria Corti. A 10-ton, 76-foot Norway spruce was cut down in her Easton, Connecticut backyard on Wednesday and is being carted down to Manhattan. She called Rockefeller Plaza more than nine months ago to make the offer. This was one of ...Berlin's best way to shop for the holidays
Nov 11th, 2009 at 4:00PM: Need a change of pace for your holiday shopping? Try Berlin! A new deal from the Hotel Concorde will make this year's hunt for the perfect Christmas present more exciting than ever. The "Shop in the City" package starts with luxurious accommodations and includes plenty of discounts and other shopping perks to help you get the most from your trip.
The Hotel Concorde is right on Berlin's ...Five ways to make a dollar go further in New England this holiday season
Nov 11th, 2009 at 3:00PM: New England was made for the holiday season. Sure, it's a bit chilly up there in the winter, but bundle up, and it's impossible not to be sucked in by the charm of one of the oldest corners of America. If you're looking for a great way to maximize your spending power this Christmas (who isn't?!), check out five great ideas from New England Inns and Resorts. There's plenty of variety ... but little ...Six ways to make waiting in line better (and shorter)
Nov 10th, 2009 at 8:00AM: The holidays are coming, and if your plans involve travel, expect to lose large chunks of your youth to the painful ritual of waiting in line. Aside from the occasional ascetic masochist, nobody digs the ol' "hurry up and wait" game. Yet, you'll be doing plenty of standing in line at airports, hotels and retail establishments. Last year, I wrote about what you can do to make this easier. Now, ...Five ways to rock Idaho for the holiday season
Nov 3rd, 2009 at 9:30AM: Coeur d'Alene, Idaho may not be the first destination that comes to mind for holiday travel. I mean ... who jumps to Idaho?! Well, this is a problem that needs to be remedied. If you're looking to take off for a few days between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day, there's a lot happening in Coeur d'Alene.
1. Holiday Light Show: More than 1.5 million lights are hung along the Coeur d'Alene waterfront ...Put your Paws Up for the holidays this year
Oct 20th, 2009 at 1:00PM: While the rest of the world is trekking out to Rockefeller Center to see the tree or hanging around Times Square while waiting for the ball's big drop, head the other way. "The Last Best Christmas Vacation" package from the Paws Up resort in Montana pulls together everything you'd want in a traditional winter holiday celebration ... along with the luxurious touch that you'd expect at a remote, ...Five tips for booking holiday travel
Oct 18th, 2009 at 8:00AM: If you're planning to fly home for the holidays this year, it's time to start booking your flight. Even though fares are cheaper than they were last year, prices have been going up over the fast few weeks, according to a report in USA Today. Thanksgiving prices are down around 7%, with the Christmas/New Year's season down 12% from last year. Since the travel market is still limping along, you may ...Ten Finnish festivals to finish the year
Sep 26th, 2009 at 2:00PM: We're into the home stretch on 2009, with only three months left to enjoy. Then, the calendar page flips over, and we take on 2010. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways left to make the rest of this year memorable. In Finland, home to some of the strangest celebrations on the planet, you can find a few interesting distractions – and they'll make for great stories when you get home. Of ...Internet search results show soldiers are thinking of home
Apr 29th, 2009 at 8:00AM: Life in Iraq isn't necessarily what you think. While there are tough conditions for those outside the gates, life on the large camps that shares some startling similarities with major U.S. military installations at home. On Camp Anaconda, for example, you can visit a library, shove some fast food fare into your mouth and burn your quads at the gym. Of course, the occasional mortar does get through ...In Iraq, soldiers get a holiday break
Dec 31st, 2008 at 9:00AM: Whether you stayed at home or suffered airport crowds to visit your family this holiday season, you were lucky. For more than 100,000 members of the U.S. armed forces and many civilian contractors, Christmas was limited to deserts, rifles and a brief phone call home. I remember from my service in Korea (10 years ago), that the military does make the effort to ease the pain a bit with a fantastic ...Eggnog: Where does it come from?
Dec 26th, 2008 at 5:00PM: I've long been a fan of spiced 'nog. It's one of the creamiest, best tastes in the world. For over 300 years, eggnog has been a Christmas staple, and I just had to get to the bottom of the mystery of 'why'? What I discovered in my research of the origin of eggnog was quite startling. While 'nog definitely came from Europe circa early 17th century, the term "eggnog" and the etymology of the word is ...Money-men agree on smart destinations
Dec 26th, 2008 at 10:00AM: Nobody has money, and nobody is traveling. Yet, somehow, Smart Destinations found a group of companies willing to sink a whopping $7 million into it. The company also picked up $3 million in debt financing, and it plans to use this newfound lagesse to expand its range of products and the markets in which it plays.
I've seen (and received) worse Christmas presents.
Obviously not off the cuff, the ...Photo of the Day (12.25.08)
Dec 25th, 2008 at 6:00PM: If you were unfortunate enough this Christmas to be stuck in the O'Hare airport, let me apologize in advance for our choice for today's Photo of the Day. This shot by jameskadamson is representative of the experience for so many this Christmas. I especially like the use of black and white, which makes the architecture stand out. The unique design is, in fact, why it was chosen for a scene from ...Galley Gossip: Merry Christmas! (from 35,000 feet)
Dec 25th, 2008 at 11:00AM: So what does a flight attendant do when the flights are packed, the weather is bad, and she has to work on Christmas Day? She plans a quick excursion into New York City to see the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center! There's nothing like the beauty of the lights and the sights and sounds, combined with the world famous Rockette's Christmas show at Radio City Music Hall to get into the spirit of ...New York City's holiday magic
Through the Gadling Lens: capturing your visit home for the holidays
Dec 23rd, 2008 at 11:00AM: Well, it's the countdown to the holidays, folks -- and whether or not this is your favourite time of the year, or you don't celebrate any year-end holiday at all, chances are you're about to get a few days off. Chances are also pretty good that you're going to be traveling back home for the days to come; or, in the alternative, family is coming to visit you. So rather than dread the tension ...Honolulu Christmas Lights
Dec 22nd, 2008 at 4:30PM: So the weather outside may not be frightful, and we might not find the fire necessary, but there is plenty of holiday spirit on the Hawaiian islands -- particularly if you're traveling along King Street in Downtown Honolulu or down Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki. Although you've already missed the 24th Annual Honolulu Christmas Lights Opening Ceremony and Parade, which was held on December 6, the ...Christmas shopping in London - Impossible?
Dec 22nd, 2008 at 3:00PM: I had the dreaded pleasure of finishing my Christmas shopping in London this year. Recently, with the pound sterling so strong against the dollar, I've abhorred the thought of spending money in the United Kingdom, but with work in the city and little time to spare, this year I had little choice. To my surprise, however, the experience was invigorating. With the global financial crisis in full ...The Best Holiday Light Displays Around the World
Send Christmas to a Friend
Dec 12th, 2008 at 9:30AM: This year, a number of my friends are spending the holiday season in remote locations. Some are off helping orphans, others are in Rwanda and Russia working with women's charities, and some enlisted friends are overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan. Also, plenty of college kids can't afford to fly home this year, with the economy being what it is. So? Send them Christmas. The Christmas Tree in a Box ...
