Located within premeir apartment communities, Marriott Execustay is proud to offer extended stay housing solutions to Opulent Professional Services and its members. Their full-sized full appointed apartments are furnished with a designer furniture package and all the accessories necessary to feel at home, including their exclusive Marriott Execustay Elite Dreamer bedding package. Marriott Execustay is the only corporate housing provider to offer Marriott Rewards points. And with over 80 years of Marriott’s hospitality experience, superior quality and service is ensured.

Check out www.execustay.com to see locations all across the country and more info.

OPS MEMBERS- ENJOY SPECIALLY DISCOUNTED CORPORATE RATES BY CONTACTING MEGHAN DONNELY AT 201.681.9558

TVI Express s’est joint aux plus grands noms de l’industrie du Voyage et du Tourisme.  Cet alignement stratégique a permis à Travel Ventures International de créer une nouvelle catégorie de produits à plusieurs milliards de dollars.

En tant que membre de TVI Express, VOUS pouvez récolter d’importants bénéfices en aidant les  gens qui voyagent à obtenir ce dont ils ont besoin. Pensez à tous ceux qui rêvent de voyager aux quatre coins du monde et d’économiser en même temps des milliers de dollars!!!

Voici les partenaires de TVI Express:

Hilton, Hertz, KLM, Avis, Sheraton, Crystal, Disney, Le Meridien, Carnival, British Airways, Swiss International Air Lines, RoyalCaribbean, Malaysia Airlines, South African Airways, Thai, Lufthansa, Hyatt, Marriott.

TVI Express est indirectement lié aux compagnies mentionnées ci-dessus.

OK, je veux devenir membre de TVI Express

.

Bien amicalement,
Gilles Vitu

I logged into my Marriott rewards account this morning to verify that some nights have been posted.  Two hours later, I log in again to book a trip, and what do I see?  A COMPLETELY different layout!

Unbeknownst to me (and some of you I’m sure) the Marriott has jazzed up its homepage to rival that of any upstart tech corporation.  It’s beautiful.  With point and click applications that eliminate searching through hotlinks, this site will surely make doing business easier. 

I was easily able to locate the login to for my account.  The new drop down feature showing you at a glance your nights and points is a hit for me.  I can also see my upcoming reservations without having to load another page!  This is really a step up!

Check out the new Marriott website here.

Day 1 – Nov 4, 2009

8:10 AM PST – I leaves Seattle (SEA) on a Southwest flight. Pretty smooth. I’m able to secure a window seat with no one in the middle. I love non-full flights.

10:35 AM PST – I arrive at the Las Vegas Airport (LAS) and am welcomed by the rings of slot machines. A quick restroom break and salad from Wendy’s before boarding on the 11:20 AM flight to Midway.

11:20 AM PST – I depart Las Vegas on a super packed flight. I unwisely board in the Bs when I had an A ticket. I’m still able to snag an aisle seat but unfortunately a mother with two children sit in the row behind. At one point I feel a yank at the top my head. My pony is loosened. The last hour of the flight was pure nightmare. One of children, a girl, a toddler, screams for an unbearable amount of time. I put on her earphones which is not quite enough to drown out the crying but better than nothing. Thankfully the flight arrived on time.

4:55 PM Central – I arrive at MidwayAirport (MDW). It’s the smaller of the two Chicago Airports but still pretty decent sized. S is already at baggage claim, but they still have to wait for the baggage claim to be assigned. It’s pretty quick, and my luggage is among the first to come out of the baggage shoot.

S has thankfully already gathered information while waiting. We discuss an airport shuttle but decide to take the train (the El or Loop). It’s a short trek to the train entrance. When we arrive, there are a number of ticketing machines, however no map of the train system. S calls the hotel for directions while I spot a Chase ATM and get some cash. Unfortunately for S, no Wells Fargo ATMs were there. There were a few pass choices available – 3 day pass for $14 or a 7 day pass for $23. They opt for the CTA 7 day pass for $23.

A few notes:

• The machine was supposed to take American Express, Visa and MasterCard, but my American Express did not work. Oh of course, it also took cash.
• The pass is good for all CTA Transportation (Chicago Transportation Authority). This includes the El and CTA buses.
• It is “Valid for unlimited rides on CTA for 7 consecutive days from date & time of first use and no value can be added to pass.”
• There is an expiration date, but it was Feb 1, 2011 so there’s not any danger of not using it before then.

RIDING THE EL TO THE MARRIOTT DOWNTOWN MAGNIFICENT MILE

• Ride Orange Line at Midway
• Transfer to Red Line at Roosevelt
• Get off at Grand Ave Station
• Walk on Grand Ave towards Michigan Ave
• Marriott is on the left, across the street from Nordstrom

SOMETIME AFTER 6PM Central – We check in at the Marriott. Assigned to the 12th floor, which considering the low rate, very reasonable. We conclude that we are most likely on the lowest floor possible because floors 1-10 seemed to have function rooms and administrative offices. In my opinion, the colors… reds, greens, and yellows —pretty dark tones of these, not great. But again, can’t really complain with the low rates.

AFTER THAT – Dinner at Giodano’s. This is because I wanted to check off deep dish pizza on my list of things to try. The smallest was a 10″ and we decide on the one with the works – with sausage and mushrooms. We are advised that it would be 20 minutes to prepare – in actually, it was probably longer. When the pizza arrived, we were pretty overwhelmed by the size.  It was…. overrated. It was good pizza— but I actually prefer thin crust.

AND THEN AFTER THAT – We stroll along Michigan Ave and enjoy the city lights and architecture. More on that later.

Marriott International has announced the launch of a new brand within its portfolio. The Autograph Collection will comprise of upper upscale and luxury, independent hotels with distinct personalities in major cities and destinations around the world.

The Bethesda, Maryland-based company has plans to add up to 25 properties to the brand in 2010. The iconic hotels will be grouped according to the unique experiences they offer to guests, ranging from boutique arts, resort getaways, to historic and urban-edge encounters.

The Autograph Collection combines the experience of an independent hotel with the product and standards of Marriott’s other full-service hotels. Each hotel will be featured on the group’s sales and marketing platforms, with affiliation with the Marriott Rewards guest loyalty program. The properties will also be required to maintain high levels of guest satisfaction and quality assurance to remain part of The Autograph Collection.

Marriott International joins rival hotel groups Hilton Worldwide and Starwood Hotels & Resorts in managing a portfolio of independent luxury hotels under the Waldorf Astoria Collection and Luxury Collection brands respectively.

For more information, visit www.marriott.com.

“Lacoste Launches Holiday Digital Campaign” (WWD)

Lacoste has launched an online initiative for the holiday season that allows users to create a kaleidoscopic music video using Lacoste product and logo imagery, and then share the video with friends or post it to online social networks. The site will be live through the end of December.

“EBay For Billionaires?” (Forbes)

A new Web site bill itself as the online marketplace for billionaires. Good luck getting those 10-figure titans to log on. In the market for a 51-carat pink diamond? How about a $74 million, 313-room resort in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico? Perhaps you’d like to buy Alex Rodriguez’s Miami mansion for $9,999,999?

“Online Ads Are Booming, if They’re Attached to a Video” (NY Times)

News Web sites are starting to look a lot less like newspapers and a lot more like television. CNN.com and ESPN.com are featuring video much more prominently on their home pages, often prompting visitors to press play before they begin to read. Even The Wall Street Journal has moved its video player front and center with a twice-a-day live newscast on WSJ.com.

“Neiman Marcus Christmas Book leaves me a day late and a dollar (or two) short” (True/Slant)

The Neiman Marcus Christmas Book just arrived and I’m vaguely irked that I may already be too late for the 2010 Jaguar XJL Supercharged Neiman Marcus Edition. Only 50 of the $105,000 cars exist and interested buyers were supposed to call in to reserve theirs starting at noon Oct. 16. That was almost a month ago!

“Marriott Launches an Upscale Franchise” (Washington Post)

Hospitality giant Marriott International is launching a new brand called the Autograph Collection, aimed at tapping customers who prefer independent, high-end hotels over brands such as Marriott, Hilton and Four Seasons. The Autograph Collection will allow independent hotels, many of whom have lost business in the recession, to maintain their character while using Marriott’s massive reach to bring in more customers and save on costs.

An unknown anarchist group claimed responsibility for a bombing at a bank in Santiago which injured a security guard.

In an e-mail sent to a radio station, the Efrain Plaza Olmedo Explosives Band said it was behind the blast at a branch of Banco de Credito e Inversiones inside a Marriott hotel in Santiago’s affluent Las Condes neighbourhood.

“The tranquility of the world being built by defenders and administrators of this order of hunger and servitude has ended,” the group said. The message also criticized the Marriott’s management for not warning people to evacuate the building.

Calling the attack a “conscious act, charged with libertarian content,” the group said, “Today we bomb this building, tomorrow there will be others. Attacks of this kind will continue, will expand and will intensify,” the e-mail said.

Chile has experienced 101 such bombings since 2004, most of them involving low-power, homemade explosive devices, some of them linked to Chile’s disgruntled Mapuche Indians. No one has died in the incidents.

Efrain Plaza Olmedo was an anarchist militant who gunned down two upper-class youths on a Santiago street corner in July 1912. Sentenced to 40 years in prison, he was paroled in 1925 only to be found dead in the capital a few days after his release. Authorities never determined whether he was murdered or committed suicide. EFE

Newcomer „Hairspray“ in Köln, „Starlight Express“ in Bochum oder „Elisabeth“ in München – Packages ab 143 Euro pro Person im Doppelzimmer

Von Köln bis München – Musik liegt in der Luft und Marriott International lockt mit tollen Angeboten in die Metropolen. Warum nicht zu Weihnachten einen unvergesslichen Musical Besuch verschenken? Die Auswahl reicht  von Newcomern wie Hairspray über etablierte Shows wie Starlight Express, Der König der Löwen oder Ich war noch niemals in New York bis hin zu Dschungel-Action mit Tarzan und Romantik mit Elisabeth.

Es gilt als eines der erfolgreichsten Musicals aller Zeiten und wurde bereits mit 31 internationalen Preisen ausgezeichnet: Hairspray kommt im Dezember 2009 in den Musical Dome Köln und feiert dort Deutschlandpremiere. Für das Köln Marriott Hotel – nur 200 Meter vom Musical Dome entfernt – und das Renaissance Köln Hotel Anlass genug, ein attraktives „Hairspray Musical Arrangement“ zusammen zu stellen. Darin enthalten sind eine Übernachtung im Deluxe Doppelzimmer, ein amerikanisches Frühstücksbuffet für zwei Personen sowie zwei Musical Tickets der zweiten Kategorie für Freitag Abend, Samstag Nachmittag oder Abend sowie Sonntag Nachmittag. Im Köln Marriott Hotel ist das Arrangement ab 318 Euro pro Doppelzimmer unter reservation.cologne@marriotthotels.com und im Renaissance Köln Hotel ab 298 Euro unter reservation.cologne@renaissancehotels.com bis zum 31. März 2010 buchbar (Promotion Code: P53).

Zum wohl rasantesten Musical-Klassiker in Deutschland, der auch heute noch nichts an seiner Faszination eingebüßt hat, laden die beiden Häuser Renaissance Bochum Hotel und Courtyard Bochum Stadtpark ein. Das „Starlight Express Musical Package“ im Renaissance Bochum Hotel, nur 300 Meter vom Austragungsort entfernt, beinhaltet neben dem Begrüßungscocktail in der Franklins Bar und dem Starlight Buffet oder Menü im Restaurant Sutherland auch eine Eintrittskarte zum Musical (zweite Kategorie), die Übernachtung im Deluxe-Zimmer sowie das Frühstück. Es kostet zur Zeit ab 159 Euro pro Person im Doppelzimmer und ist Mittwochs bis Sonntags nach Verfügbarkeit buchbar (Promotion Code: CUE). Das Courtyard Bochum Stadtpark ist nur 800 Meter vom Schauplatz des Rollschuh-Spektakels entfernt. Es bietet sein Starlight Express Musical Package aktuell ab 143 Euro pro Person ohne Abendessen sonst aber zu den gleichen Konditionen an (Promotion Code E0N).

In der Musical-„Hauptstadt“ Hamburg stehen gleich drei Shows mit dazu passenden Packages im Hamburg Marriott Hotel oder im Renaissance Hamburg Hotel zur Auswahl: Das Special für Der König der Löwen im König der Löwen Theater im Hafen ist ab 383 Euro im Hamburg Marriott Hotel (373 Euro im Renaissance Hamburg Hotel) buchbar; Ich war noch niemals in New York spielt im Operettenhaus auf der Reeperbahn und steht im Paket ab 395 Euro (385 Euro) zur Auswahl; Tarzan schwingt seine Lianen im Theater Neue Flora mit dem aktuellen Special ab 383 Euro (375 Euro). Im Angebot enthalten sind zwei Karten je nach Wunsch der ersten oder zweiten Kategorie sowie die Übernachtung inklusive Frühstück im Doppelzimmer.

Romantisch wird es mit dem Musical Highlight 2009 in München: Elisabeth. Die Geschichte von „Sissi“ rührt noch bis zum 12. Dezember 2009 die Herzen in Bayerns Hauptstadt. Wer diesen Musik-Genuss mit einem Aufenthalt im Renaissance München Hotel verknüpfen will, kann dies mit dem „Elisabeth Package“ zum Preis von 366 Euro tun. Darin enthalten sind zwei Karten der ersten Kategorie für das Musical, zwei Übernachtungen in einer 64 Quadratmeter großen Executive Suite, ein Begrüßungstrunk in der Bar 48°, das Frühstücksbuffet im Bistro 46°47° sowie Tickets für die öffentlichen Verkehrsmittel in der Münchner Innenstadt. Das Musical im Zeltpalast des Deutschen Theaters in Fröttmaning ist von der Haltestelle „Nordfriedhof“ direkt am Hotel in nur zehn Minuten mit der U-Bahn zu erreichen. Buchbar ist das Angebot bis zum 11. Dezember 2009, mögliche Anreisetage sind jeweils Mittwoch, Donnerstag oder Freitag (Promotion Code: M16).

Marriott Hotels & Resorts ist die Flaggschiff Marke der bekanntesten Hotelfamilie der Welt. Zielgruppe sind Reisende, die professionellen, herzlichen und  sehr guten Service in einem hochwertig ausgestatteten Hotel erwarten. Die mehr als 500 Hotels in 60 Ländern der Erde bieten voll ausgestattete Fitness Center, Swimming Pools, Concierge Level, Business Center und Konferenzflächen.

Marriott International Inc. mit Sitz in Bethesda, Md. ist ein führendes Hotelunternehmen mit mehr als 3.200 Häusern in 66 Ländern weltweit. Im Beherbergungsbereich bietet Marriott derzeit folgende Marken: Marriott, JW Marriott, The Ritz-Carlton, Renaissance, Residence Inn, Courtyard, TownePlace Suites, Fairfield Inn, SpringHill Suites, Marriott Executive Apartments und Bulgari. Zudem betreibt Marriott den Marriott Vacation Club, Horizons by Marriott Vacation Club, The Ritz-Carlton Club und Grand Residences by Marriott sowie Conference Centers und Marriott ExecuStay für Unternehmensmitarbeiter. Im Jahr 2008 erwirtschaftete Marriott International fast 13 Milliarden US-Dollar durch den laufenden Geschäftsbetrieb. Das Unternehmen beschäftigt rund 146.000 Angestellte und ist ENERGY STAR® Partner der US-Umweltschutzagentur EPA.

Weitere Informationen und Buchung unter den kostenfreien Marriott Reservierungsnummern: Deutschland: 0800/1 85 44 22, Österreich: 0800/29 67 03, Schweiz: 0800/55 01 22 oder über www.marriott.de.

Woman with shopping bags

As the holiday shopping season is quickly approaching.  I thought I would share a few great choices nearby the hotel.  First we would like to welcome Dick’s Sporting Goods to the neighborhood.  They just opened last week in the Crossroads at Orenco Station shopping center, located with-in walking distance to the hotel.  The store carries everything sports related and we are happy to have this new addition to our local shopping community.  Also nearby for those that like to make their own gifts is a Joanne Fabric and Craft Super Store located next door to Dick’s Sporting Goods. Whether creating a holiday decoration or a hand made hostess gift, you are sure to find what you need by visitng Joanne’s    Also nearby is retailer Kohl’s, located in the same development.   A little over a mile from the hotel, you will find The Streets of Tanasbourne.  A delightful little town center style shopping area with national chains like Macy’s, American Eagle Outfitters, REI, Hollister, Lane Bryant, The Gap, Christopher & Banks, Coldwater Creek, J. Jill, White House Black Market and many more.  Also find a unique store to Oregon, Rice NW Museum of Rocks & Minerals featuring a variety of unique gifts and trinkets that are beautiful and often times hard to find.  Not to be left out, we also have Barnes and Noble books as well as Target, Best Buy, Old Navy and the ever popular Nordstrom Rack.  All this with-in a two and a half mile radius of the hotel.  One of the best features about shopping in Oregon is all your purchases will be tax-free.  We do not have a sales tax on retail items, so the price you see is the price you pay.  While in town if you need overnight accommodations we are happy to provide them for you at reduced holiday rates on selected weekends between now and the end of the year.  We also have a special going on right now through December 13, 2009.  Stay two nights and get the third night free.  For complete details visit the Deal & Packages section of the hotel website, or call the hotel directly at 503-547-0202 and any of our ready and willing front desk agents will be happy to make reservations for you.  So come and stay for a few days, shop to your heart’s content and get a jump-start on your holiday shopping.

Τα ξημερώματα της Πέμπτης, στις 1.30, εξερράγη μια βόμβα έξω από υποκατάστημα της Banco del Estado στη συνοικία Ρικολέτα στην πρωτεύουσα Σαντιάγκο.Επίσης, την προηγούμενη Τρίτη το απόγευμα έγινε άλλη μια έκρηξη στο ξενοδοχείο Marriott στην πολυτελή συνοικία Λας Κόντες. Η βόμβα είχε τοποθετηθεί στις τουαλέτες του ξενοδοχείο και κατά τη μεταφορά της έξω εξερράγη και τραυματίστηκαν 6 άτομα.

Μια πρωτοεμφανιζόμενη ομάδα ανέλαβε την ευθύνη για την έκρηξη στο ξενοδοχείο, η “Εκρηκτική Ομάδα Εφραΐν Πλάζα Ολμέδο”. Σε email που έστειλε σε ραδιοφωνικό σταθμό αναφέρει μεταξύ άλλων “η ηρεμία του κόσμου που έχει χτιστεί από τους υπερασπιστές και διαχειριστές αυτής της τάξης της πείνας και δουλείας έχει λήξει”, αναφέροντας και την άρνηση της διοίκησης του ξενοδοχείου να εκκενώσει το ξενοδοχείο, ενώ είχε προηγηθεί προειδοποιητικό τηλεφώνημα, ενώ δηλώνει ότι θα προχωρήσει και σε νέες επιθέσεις. Παράλληλα, εκφράζει αλληλεγγύη στην εξέγερση των Μαπούτσε.

Τον τελευταίο καιρό το Χιλιανό κράτος έχει ζητήσει τη συνδρομή του FBI προκειμένου να προχωρήσουν οι έρευνες για τις βομβιστικές επιθέσεις που έχουν σημειωθεί. Ένα άτομο έχει προφυλακιστεί κι άλλο ένα καταζητείται.

Ο Εφραΐν Πλάζα Ολμέδο ήταν αναρχικός μαχητής που σκότωσε 2 μεγαλοαστούς νεαρούς σε δρόμο του Σαντιάγκο τον Ιούλιο του 1912. Δικαιολόγησε την πράξη του σαν μια κίνηση για να τραβήξει την προσοχή για την αδικία που υπάρχει λόγω της απληστία της μπουρζουαζίας.

Καταδικάστηκε σε 40 χρόνια φυλάκισης, και πήρε αμνηστία το 1925. Βρέθηκε νεκρός λίγες μέρες μετά την αποφυλάκισή του.

Ποτέ δε διευκρινίστηκε αν αυτοκτόνησε ή δολοφονήθηκε.

Δημοσιεύτηκε από Αναρχικό Πυρήνα ΞΑΝΑ ΣΤΟΥΣ ΔΡΟΜΟΥΣ

I had such a tremendous response on the last photo I posted of the Wentworth By the Sea in New Castle, NH that I wanted to share another shot from that evening.  Not quite as vibrant as the last one, but a beautiful shot of a beautiful hotel nonetheless. Many thanks to all for their great feedback!

Part II

The following day, we  each took our turns at the wheel. But there was lots of free time on our hands.  I like to be doing something most of the time, so I would clean anything I could.  We  also took turns at cooking the meals.  Everyone else had either a gadget to mess with or a book to read.  I could never slow down enough in the past to read so I didn’t even bring a book.  Then the issue came up of Felicia.  She was only able to pull one of her shifts and was down sick the rest of the time.  When she felt a bit better she would come up on deck, with blanket and pillow, and lay down on one side of the cockpit which would force four of us to sit on one side.  At this point Michael decided that we would continue on all night all the way to Jacksonville, FL..  Michael and I took the 2 am to 6 am shift.  I took the first two hours and Michael took the next.  Everyone else had retreated to their cabins for the night, so I grabbed my pillow and blanket and layed down beside him.  There were lots of stars out that night.  It was so very dark.  The wind was on the port quarter and we were sailing at a good clip.  All you could hear was the sound of  splashing on the side of the boat as we made way thru the water. I was almost a sleep when out of the blue Michael yells “Oh my God, What is that?” I jumped up (out of my skin) looked in the direction he was looking, behind the boat, and there were two tubular shaped figures coming up very fast.  He thought they were torpedoes.  He explained later that we were passing Kings Island where the U.S. has a big submarine base.  We were also 20 miles off the coast which is where the subs like to come to the surface and he was watching for them.  With all this going through his mind in the middle of the black ocean, torpedoes seemed logical.   But as they got closer, we realized they were dolphin approaching the boat at a high rate of speed and the phosphorous  was lighting them up as they went along.  So they glowed.  It was wild looking. The excitement was enough to keep him awake until the end of the shift.  I knotted off until the sun was in my eyes and noticed the humidity had risen substantially.

As I sat up and looked around the sun was extremely bright, and the strong scent of salt was in the air.  Over to our port side was a huge ocean liner headed in the opposite direction. The difference in size between our boat, the Flying Dutchman, and the ocean liner was immense.  It took my breath away.  I thought “If he hit us, he’d never know it”.  We were approaching Jacksonville, Florida Inlet .  The ocean liner was one of many huge vessels moving up and down the inlet that morning.  As we approached Florida, our quiet stretches of sailing would be few and far between.  The term “snow birds” started to make sence to me.  Florida had a “hum” to it.  There were people, and every kind of boat you could imagine on the water.  This seemed to be the dividing line from cold weather to warm, each had a price.  Navigating on the Intercostal Waterway (ICW) was similar to I95 or I75 on a Sunday afternoon.  Up till now, Michael would be doing maintenance on the lines or the engine or studying the charts down below.  Now, he stayed close by and kept the charts up top.  With all of the commotion of life going on, he had to stay on his toes at all times.

A couple of days passed, now it is Thanksgiving Day.  Thinking that it was a family holiday, there may not be as many boats on the water.  Our location is still the ICW and we were approaching Juno Beach, Fl.  The waterways characteristics started to change from here south.  It had the appearance of a suburban neighborhood.  Houses were lined along the waterway with canals that fed into it like fingers or streets that fed into a main road.  The smell of turkey dinners permeated the air.  We hadn’t planned for a turkey dinner that day and hot dogs were on the menu.  Needless to say I was salivating for homemade bread, baked turkey, dressing, green beans, cranberry salad and pecan pie.  I failed to mention earlier, spending time on the water had a way of keeping me hungry.  I spent lots of time thinking of “what would be good right now”.  Especially when I had no way of getting it.  This frame of mind drove Michael crazy.  He barked at me once “keep your thoughts to yourself”.  As the day wore on, the number of boats on the water increased.  The wake from the “fast boats” churned the water up and had the “fishbowl” effect.  It was very uncomfortable with the constant up and down motion of the boat.  If anyone was drinking anything, they had to keep it in their hand, otherwise it would be knocked over.

To date each of us were still taking our turn on the wheel, all except Falicia.  She had stayed in the parallel position most of the way .  She seemed mostly tired all the time.  It put Michael in an awkward position, due to the fact that “her spot” was intended to be a “paying position”.  And she had not payed her way nor was she able to work.  After discussing the sensitive topic with her husband Bruce, Michael realized they had no intention of paying and expected meals as well. As the boat approached Fort Lauderdale, it was determined that the boat needed some maintenance work.  We docked at a Marriot where Michael gave Bruce and Falicia the proverbial “boot”.   It was then that Michael announced the alternator wasn’t working and needed replaced. He was a good mechanic and needed someone to pick up the part while he worked on the boat.   I volunteered and headed down the docks, thru the Marriott and out to the street where there were several taxi cabs sitting waiting for business.   The first one that approached me was a tall young dirty blond guy.  He opened my door for me, ran around and got back in the car, turned and asked me where I was headed.  I told him the Napa and he started driving.  It was then that I noticed the naked Barbi Doll leg hanging from a chain on his rear view mirror.  All I could think of was “Oh God, If I get to where I’m going and back to the boat, it will be a wonder.”  He tried to drum up conversation, but I was a little “weirded”  out to talk.  Fort Lauderdale turned out to be an interesting/wide open town.  We passed several strip clubs along the way and the people were very interesting.  Thankfully, I got the part I needed and was back on the boat safely.  Michael fixed the problems and we were off and sailing again.

I travel every week. Everyone has alliances. From airlines to hotels to car rental to credit cards. You can always earn something from one service provider by purchasing something from another. What you can’t do is go to the grocery store and receive a discount for purchasing products from the same producer. You don’t get a discount on toothpaste and soap if you buy detergent from the same manufacturer. Coupons are next to useless if you’re on the go all the time. The first company to institute this method should see an immediate increase in revenue, especially after they stop paying to have coupons printed. What a waste of paper.

Hosted at the Overland Park Marriott, tonight was an evening of fun and who’s who!  So many great faces came out to grab their copy of the November issue of 435 South Magazine! Take a peek, it was an exciting night!

Ron Mayer (Owner of Sole Patch Barber shop in Prairie Village, KS, and also you might remember him from “The Bachelorette”), Allyson Ellis, Sarah McEnerney, & Curt McConnell

Laurel Austin (Living Moment Images, laurelaustin.com) Shawn Nishikawa (Make Me A Supermodel, Season 2)

Brian Bruce (Sound Affect, Inc.), Staci Broski (Make-Up Artist/Hair Stylist from KC After Hours and 7th Row), Shawn Nishikawa (from “Make Me a Supermodel” Season 2)

Kathy Boos (Owner and Publisher of 435 South Magazine), Tricia Cronk

Brian Bruce (Sound Affect, Inc.), Laurel Austin (Me, Owner of Living Moment Images), Shawn Nishikawa (Make Me A Supermodel), Staci Broski (KC After Hours, 7th Row)

Randy Jones, Dan Torello (Vice President of M&I Bank), Steven & Lea Nickell

Bubba John of BubbaJohn’s Seafood & Kate Szuk

Mitsu Sato & Gina Boyce (GEGI Designs)

Reggie Banks (Blackberry Castle Productions) and Allen Boyce (GEGI Designs)

Shawn Nishikawa (Make Me a Supermodel), Laurel Austin (Living Moment Images, &  laurelaustin.com), Ron Mayer (Sole Patch Barber shop & “The Bachelorette”)

Gina Boyce, Shawn Nishikawa, Staci Broski, Allen Boyce, Tricia Cronk, Brian Bruce, Heidi Bacon, Clay Dickason

I couldn’t resist this last post about Egypt.  I stayed at the Marriott in Cairo.  This may not sound interesting, but this hotel has a building with an interesting history.  I took some shots of the original building of the palace.

Below is from their website:

The Palace Al Gezira was built by Khedive Ismail, a palace guest for the Suez Canal inauguration celebrations in 1869. The architecture reflects the Khedive’s passion for the neo-classical style. It housed European monarchs, including Empress Eugenie, wife of Napoleon III, and was the venue of the first performance of Verdi’s Opera Aida. Today, the Palace is all that remains of the estate, many of its rooms and furniture have been restored to their original splendor.

Sales team from SpringHill Suites Hillsboro dressed for Halloween 2009

In my experience in sales for select service Marriott branded hotels we wear a lot of costumes.  Give us a holiday of any kind and we find a reason to dress up.  We come up with a theme, develop costumes around it and go and visit our local clients.  It’s silly, fun and leaves what we hope is a positive impression with our clients.  This year is no exception and with the popularity of the Broadway hit musical “Wicked” and the timeless story of “The Wizard of Oz,” the members of our sales team dressed up as the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch of the North. The Wicked Witch is our Sales Coordinator Celina Wrzesinski, and the Good Witch is our Sales Manager, Lora Heitzenrater.  I really like this picture, especially the reflection of the flash in the framed artwork behind them.  It looks like The Good Witch is casting a spell on The Wicked Witch with her wand. 

The truth is we know our parading around Hillsboro representing the hotel while dressed up may be a little wacky, but it is all in good fun.  For those that saw our sales team the last couple of days, we hope you enjoyed visiting with our duo and we hope to book a piece of business with you soon.  If you are interested in receiving more information about the SpringHill Suites by Marriott – Portland Hillsboro, please contact our sales team at shs.pdxhl.sales@marriott.com, or visit our website at http://marriott.com/PDXHL. Also check out our new Flickr page for some of our favorite sales blitz costumes through the years.  http://www.flickr.com/photos/springhill-hillsboro-hotel/show/.  Happy Halloween.

Welcome to the Blog for SpringHill Suites by Marriott – Portland Hillsboro, an award-winning hotel located in the heart of the Silicon Forest.  Our primary writer will be hotel General Manager, Terry Goldman.  I am actually writing this inaugural post.  I have been with the hotel since opening and worked with Marriott branded hotels in the Portland Metro area for the past fifteen years.  I hope the content will be interesting and provide our guests, members of the local community or people interested in Portland’s westside with some helpful information about our area. 

With that I wanted to talk about where I stopped in for lunch today. Extreme Pizza, located in the Tanasbourne area of Hillsboro, not far from the hotel.  Extreme is a fantastic little place with a customer centered staff providing great service in an informal atmosphere.  The restaurant is clean and well-maintained, an important part of any restaurant experience, but it is the service and food that keeps me coming back.  I am a pretty basic guy when it comes to pizza and I like the traditional pepperoni, but at Extreme there are many exciting choices available.  Whether it’s the Yard Sale with everything on it or their version of the Hawaiian style pizza called the Paia Pie, you can’t go wrong.  My family enjoys Hawaiian style Pizza, but the simple yet tasty change on the Paia Pie is the addition of mandarin orange slices.  As the father of a toddler who loves mandarin oranges, this is a plus for our family. 

Extreme produces a high quality pizza pie and that is one reason we have honored them at the hotel with being our preferred pizza vendor.  The pizza button on the guest room phones goes directly to Extreme.  One of their friendly staff members will take your order, happily answer your questions and in a short time you can have a fresh, hot, out of the ordinary, delicious pizza delivered to your guest room.  I mentioned earlier the restaurant space was also very nice and if you would like to get out of your suite and make the short drive to the restaurant, you will find comfortable seating, a large flat screen TV, music at a comfortable level, ample seating, including an area where you can sit and watch the staff make your pizza.  (The area where you can watch your pizza being made reminded me of the pizza parlors I visited with my family as a child.) 

I highly recommend Extreme Pizza as a place for our guests and friends.  Try it and you too will see why I am a fan.

The Coming Halloween weekend will bring an end to October. We’ll stop thinking about our Halloween costumes and more about turkey and stuffing. But October still has a few treats in store for us.

To begin I’m sure many of you have noticed E. Beaufort has opened. Just in time considering that the weather is getting drearier by the day. The newly opened streets and sidewalks should come in handy for the upcoming Halloween weekend.

The are also two major events to look forward to this weekend. The Uptown trick-or-treating “Treat Feast” will be held tomorrow, October 30th, from 5-6:30. Local Uptown businesses will be getting into the Halloween spirit, and handing out treats and goodies for trick-or-treaters. Another long awaited event will be the opening of The Marroitt Hotel and Conference Center. The Marroitt, according to rumor, will be opening it’s doors to the public for the first time at 3pm tomorrow. Visitors will be able to look forward to restaurant, bar, cafe, and wifi services.

This weekend promises to be one of the biggest Halloween weekends ever for Normal. We hope to see everyone out and about.

Een foto die ik gemaakt heb voor de leverancier van de gevelplaten van dit luxehotel. Normaal gesproken hangt één van mijn foto’s nu in het bureau van die man.

Help support Dana’s Miracle Journey by joining us at The Funny Bone for a silent and live auction plus comedy with Willie Farrel. The event will take place on Tuesday, November 17th  at 5:30 pm  Tickets are $20.00.

We have a huge number of auction items available. Click here to get a printable flyer or check out the great items below!

Auction are listed by item number and item with donor’s in italics.

“Game On”

1 Waukee High School – Ball Boy for 2010 Home Football Game  - Waukee High School

2 Valley High School – Ball Boy for 2010 Home Football Game – Valley High School

3 Dowling Catholic High School – Ball Boy for 2010 Home Football Game – Dowling Catholic High School

4 DMCS Basket – 4 mugs, Event Admission, DMCS Pens; Valley West Mall Backpack - Des Moines Christian School and ValleyWest Mall

5 UNI Autographed Basketball – UNI Athletic Department

6 ISU Autographed Basketball – ISU Athletic Department

7 ISU Autographed Basketball – ISU Athletic Department

8 ISU Autographed Football – ISU Athletic Department

9 ISU Autographed Football – ISU Athletic Department

10 Drake Men’s Basketball Game and Dinner at Mustards Restaurant –  Drake University and Mustards

11 Tom Watson Autographed Hat –  Todd Beyers

12 Fry Fest High Porch Picnic Basket – Coralville Visitors Bureau

52 ISU Golf Basket – Tyler Brady and Jay Horton

“Life’s a canvas…paint it”

13 Maynard Reese Signed Original Print of a Pheasant Matted and Framed (27” x 30”) - Judy Martin

14 “New Orleans” Framed Photograph – Dennis Atherton/Andy’s Frame Shop

15 “Jeff’s Porch” Framed Photograph – Dennis Atherton/Andy’s Frame Shop

16 “Nile Kinnick” Framed Print (1/5) – Jeff McNutt

17 “Hayden Fry” Unframed Print (25/25) – Jeff McNutt

18 Ducks Unlimited Scene by Brian Murillo (373/600) – Randy Munson and Deck the Walls

“Date Night”

19 Overnight Stay at Hilton Garden Inn, Jordan Creek and Dinner at Appare – Hilton Garden Inn and Appare

20 Overnight Stay at the Marriott and Dinner at Iowa Beef Steakhouse – Marriott and Iowa Beef Steakhouse

21 Overnight Stay at the Hilton Garden Inn, Jordan Creek and Dinner at J.Benjamin’s - Hilton Garden Inn and
J. Benjamin’s

22 Dinner at Biaggi’s, Bottle of Wine and Babysitting!  - Biaggi’s, Johnson Brothers & Caleb Brown

23 Steak Dinner for Two and a Bottle of Wine – Johnson Brothers and Iowa Beef Council

24 Overnight Stay at the Staybridge Suites and Dinner Certificate at a Downtown Restaurant- Staybridge Suites and the Des Moines Transportation Management Assoc.

54 Overnight Stay at the Hotel Pattee in Perry, 30 minute Massage and an Evening of Bowling - Hotel Pattee

“Accessorize”

25 Kate Spade “Pearl” Women’s Sunglasses – Saflo

26 Gucci Women’s Sunglasses – Saflo

27 Chesterfield Men’s Sunglasses – Saflo

28 Hand Crafted, One-of-a-Kind Necklace, Bracelet and Earring Set Kris Victor Brashear – Red Daisy Studio

“It’s all about me!”

30 Description Needed – Prairieland Herbs

31 Aspen Athletic Club – 6 Month Membership – Aspen Athletic Club

32 New Patient Package – Center for Medical Weight Loss - Center for Medical Weight Loss

33 Teeth Whitening – Sharpe Family Dental

34 Haircut and Style – Amanda Harris

35 One Hour Massage – Jill Hanna - All About Massage

36 Mary Kay Cosmetics Basket – “Private Spa Collection” – Cindy Doty

37 “Pamper Yourself” Basket – The Amazing Women

“Kiss the Cook”

38 “Fight Like a Girl” Kitchen Package – Kitchen Collage

39 Culinary Institute of America 7-piece Tool Kit – Ador Kitchens and Baths

40A Fresh, Homemade Apple Pie, in a Basket – Mary Cross

40B Fresh, Homemade Apple Pie, in a Basket – Mary Cross

40C Fresh, Homemade Apple Pie, in a Basket – Mary Cross

41 John Boos 10” Square Cutting Board and Knife – Ador Kitchens and Baths

42 Basket of Canned Goodies – Mary Cross

43 Living History Farms Package – Living History Farms

“Grab Bag”

44 Tax Preparation - Ian Harr

45 Photography Gift Certificate  - Jill Brown Photography

46 Clear Lake Vacation Home –for the Week or Weekend – Jim Schreck and Family

47 Photography Gift Certificate – Jennifer Black Photography

48 Full-size Handmade Quilt – Judy Martin

49 Handmade Baby Quilt – Judy Martin

50 Handmade Baby Quilt – Judy Martin

51 Wells Fargo Arena Suite for Sporting Event- ARAG

53 A Day at the Beach – IPod Cooler, Polar Fleece Jacket, 2010 Entertainment Book - JR Phillips and Kris McCullough

“Live Auction”

“On Iowa” The painting, named “On Iowa,” is the original oil and Kinnick brick painting.”On Iowa” is framed in black and is 24″ X 30″. - Jeff McNutt

“Cy” The painting, named “Cy” is the original oil painting. - Jeff McNutt

Bertolucci Women’s Watch - Amerigem

Other jewelry item – Amerigem