Reading time once again.  I offer up a good variety to keep you informed and entertained this Sunday afternoon.
Consumer Traveler – Chris Elliott shares good advice about dealing with a bankrupt, or soon-to-be bankrupt, airline.  Ignore this advice at your peril.
Ciao Amalfi – Taking the boat from Salerno to Amalfi.  Just a little slice of heaven.
Travel Blog Camp – Registration for this travel blogger meet up opens. . . and closes.  If you’ll be in London next month, it may still be worth getting on the waiting list.  I’ll be there, so let me know if you will too!
Almost …read more

It’s been a busy week of travel for me, with overnights in Vancouver BC and Chicago, but I still managed to find some great travel posts to share with you this weekend.
Velvet Escape tackles the weighty topic of. . . refrigerator magnet.  I love them!  And now, I think I’ll start a collection of my own.
The Paris Traveler shares a whiff of the Paris exotic with information about how to get your very own custom French fragrance.  What a delightful, and practical memory of a great vacation.
The Trends explain about a sort of reverse pick-pocketing going on in London.  Instead …read more

When people visit Seattle and ask me for recommendations about what to see, the Pacific Science Center is always on my list.  In addition to its location on the grounds of the Seattle Center, home of the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair, the graceful arches and fountains, make it an architecturally pleasant and appealing place to visit.  Everyone seems to enjoy the Science Center.
During the World’s Fair, this was home to the US Science Pavilion.  Today it is an independent, not for profit science museum, with eight buildings housing hundreds of science exhibits, two IMAX theaters, a large Laser Dome …read more

Today’s Matchbook Monday comes from a Seattle restaurant that is one of my favorites.  It’s been quite awhile since I’ve been there, the last time was with a bunch of my tech friends who were in town for a conference.  Going through the matchbooks made me realize that I’m ready for a return trip.
Assaggio’s is simple Italian food, presented with exceptional customer service.  Dinner there is reminiscent of the food I ate in Italy:  simple, fabulously flavorful, and full of the best from the local garden (in this case, the Pike Place Market).  Owner Mauro Golmarvi will greet you …read more

If you live in Seattle, as I do, there’s only one answer to that question – they come from Boeing.  As the saying around here goes, “If it’s not Boeing, I’m not going!”
While some of the Boeing plants have relocated elsewhere, the plant at Paine Field (about 30 miles north of Seattle) is still home to The Future of Flight & Boeing Tour,
This tour of the Boeing factory lets you see the flight line where the 747, 767, 777, and 787 are made.  This tour takes you through one of the largest buildings in the world (by volume), as …read more

Today’s Matchbook Monday is from one of my standby restaurants here in Seattle, Tulio Ristorante. 
Located adjacent to the Vintage Park Hotel (a great place to stay, by the way), you can enter Tulio’s through the hotel or through its own entrance.  It’s like eating in a wine cellar or trattoria in Tuscany – cozy, full of wonderful aromas, and with wonderful waitstaff to help you make the best meal choice.
If you’re not certain if you want to have dinner here, just step inside and take a deep breath.  That’s the aroma of delicious Italian food.
Share the salumi plate …read more

Today’s Matchbook Monday is from a top notch hotel, spa, and restaurant not far from where I live.
Salish Lodge & Spa is about 30 miles east of Seattle on the Snoqualmie River.  The lodge is in a rustic setting, overlooking the 268-foot Snoqualmie Falls, but it is also elegant and steeped in northwest history.  The lodge is just as romantic as its setting, and is a popular spot for proposals, anniversary celebrations, and other special events.
The lodge has gone through a variety of reincarnations since it was first opened in 1919.  Originally it was just a small in known …read more

Palisade is a Seattle restaurant located at Elliott Bay Marina (2601 West Marina Place). 
Although this matchbook was picked up on a trip to the restaurant years ago, when I came across it, it prompted me to visit again.
The interior has saltwater ponds, full of fish, and a bridge to walk over to get to the dining section of the restaurant.  The waterfront view is great, but probably more spectacular before dark as the twinkling lights of the city are a bit obscured.  The bar, which is stays open two hours past dinner service, had a simple combo playing, …read more

You can find it at the Adventure Travel Expo in Seattle this weekend, September 13-14th.
I’ve been to the Expo in previous years, and am excited that’s it’s come to my hometown of Seattle.  There lots of great stuff – trade show with great information booths, educational sessions, panels, and presentations.
I’m very pleased to be speaking on a panel myself with a great group of other travel blogging women.  The panel is Wandering Women…Planning Your Next Great Adventure! 
Panel Moderator is Beth Whitman from Wanderlust and Lipstick, and the panel includes  Pam Mandel from Nerd’s Eye View, Chris Mackay from Crooked …read more

I love the other travel bloggers here at b5media, and we now have three more GREAT travel blogs:
 
Travel Product Guide, written by Sports Channel Editor Kori Ellis and Travel & Culture Channel Editor Mary Jo Manzanares, will focus on all the products you’ll need for travel.  Whether it’s high tech or no tech, you’ll get lots of ideas of products to make travel more comfortable, simpler, and fun!
 

 
The Phoenix Traveler, written by Jackie Dishner, joins our other Traveler destinations blogs and focuses on the city of Phoenix and the surrounding area.  There’s lots going on in the desert year …read more