Category: Activities

Chichen Itza Travel Guide | Explore the Mayan History in Mexico

Explore the incredible ancient Mayan city of Chichen Itza! Travel Guide with transit time, tours, the pyramid, beyond the pyramid, Mayan History in Mexico, and more!

Art, Museums, History, Science, Natural Wonders, and Archaeology are a few of my favorite things!  So what could be better than an archaeological site full of art, culture, science, an ancient pyramid, an astronomical observatory, and more located in a jungle? That was my motivation to spend the day at Chichen Itza Mayan archaeological site.

The Chichen Itza site is located in the Yucatan state of Mexico, the nearest village is Piste (pronounced pis-tay).  Our adventure started in Cancun, Mexico on the far East coast.  The cheapest way from Cancun to Chichen Itza is by tour bus, it is also the slowest and most restrictive.  We skipped that and arranged for a private car through our resort, paying $250 USD for private driver all day including fuel.  Slightly more expensive, but we set the schedule and our little car passed all the buses so we arrived before the crowds.  By car, it is a 2 hour drive using toll roads, or an extra hour to avoid the tolls.  Tolls are charged by type of vehicle, meaning that our private car paid approx $500 pesos for both tolls (approx. $42 USD) but van or bus is more expensive.

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Canyon Ranch Spa Las Vegas | Venetian Spa Review and Amenities Guide

Canyon Ranch Spa in the Venetian Resort of Las Vegas is a little slice of heaven. Full review of my experience and the incredible amenities in the spa.

Hidden between casinos and pools in the Venetian resort in Las Vegas, there is a magical place of beauty called the Canyon Ranch Spa.  This little slice of heaven is world famous, but it was my first visit.  On a recent girls trip, we scored spa credit as part of the reservation package.  Any service was going to be a bit pricey, but the spa credit was a fantastic deal!  Massages were booked for the group, and a full day pass to the spa was included for the day of service.  Without a paid service, it is a $25 per day for hotel guests, and $40 for non-guests, to use the spa amenities (totally worth it, and here’s why).

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The Venetian and Palazzo Resorts | Why These are My Favorite Resorts in Las Vegas

The Venetian and Palazzo Resorts are currently my favorite on the Las Vegas strip! This self-contained resort is my favorite for gambling, shopping, dining, spa, pools, and sleeping accommodations.  This visit, I tried a bit of everything.

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I Forgot to Cash Out My Slot Machine Winning Voucher

Last year I went to Las Vegas. I normally play at the tables and a little bit of slot machine gambling.  On my way back to the airport I found at $58 slot machine voucher for Treasure Island.  No worries, I love Vegas and I will be back.

Well, that may have taken a bit longer than what I planned. Or did not plan, more accurately.

I still had the voucher 18 months later.  Opps.  

I had not gone back to Las Vegas.  Until now.  I tried using my voucher in a slot machine at TI, and the message on the screen informed me to see a cashier.  I took my voucher to the cashier and she manually entered the ticket number in her system, but it was not found.  The cashier assured me, this happens all of the time, not just at TI, but at all of the casinos.

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American Girl Cafe Chicago | Afternoon Tea Review and Tour

The American Girl Dolls are hugely popular with little girls, especially for 2 special girls in my life, ages 4 & 7.  While in Chicago, we visited the American Girl Doll store in the Water Tower Place, a close neighbor to the John Hancock Center.

american-girl-doll

AG_BooksThere is a bookstore, hair salon (for the dolls), photo studio, Hospital (for emergency doll repair), snack shop, and cafe. AG_Hospital

This store is 52,000 square feet split between 2 levels and has everything you never knew you needed for Doll and Doll accessories.

I reserved our table for afternoon tea 3 weeks in advance via the web site.  We arrived early to allow for horrible Chicago traffic, plus nightmare parking, which left us a bit of time to shop before check-in for tea (15 minutes before tea time). Afternoon tea is seated promptly at 4 PM.   Continue reading “American Girl Cafe Chicago | Afternoon Tea Review and Tour”