What are some great communities to reside at in TEXAS?|187556

My husband and I are hoping to relocate to TX in a few years. He is from the Dallas area but I was hoping for a more low-key, quaint town to raise our children in (outside of any major cities). Any suggestions?

Going South of Houston is a great place to live to raise a family and can cost anywhere from a tight budget to a higher budget.

Here is what i call some great communities outside the Houston Area:

Kemah
Seabrook
Galveston

Here are some smaller scale cities that are great:

Waco
Corpus Christi
Beaumont
Tyler
Abilene
Austin
Lubbock
Amarillo

Plano is a great suburb. Its about 45 minutes away from Dallas. Allen is also a good place to live.

How are people on the West Coast and East Coast different from each other?|112272

I_ve never lived on the East Coast and only have visited but I was wondering from people who have lived on both coasts what is the difference between life on both coasts. I live in San Diego and there a ton of East Coast transplants, especially from the Boston/ New England area and New York/New Jersey area and I don_t notice anything different about them or how they act and present themselves. I_ve heard things like the West Coast is more laid back and casual, but what does that exactly mean? I heard East Coast people dress up more when they go out on, as opposed to the casual way people dress here; is that true? I_m just curious to what people who have lived on both coasts think are the main differences between the two in terms of people.

The reason you don_t notice any difference is because the people from the East coast that have gone to the West coast don_t fit in here, on the East coast.
Just from experience and having friends that have moved here from California- we East coasters are snobs in general. _Oh, yes... let us go to the Cape for the weekend, dahling_
East coasters are very money driven. Have to have the nicest car, the nicest house, and have to let everyone know about it. Connecticut is the worst! Heard of _keeping up with the Jones__- that is the East coast to a T.
Ya wonder why I want California? I am down to earth, want enjoy life and not work myself into the grave. I want to be near the ocean- not a sound where all the crap from the ocean winds up.

East coast wants you to _conform_, use the old standards of society. I feel constantly on guard here, came from San Diego
was there for 18 years, but originally from Buffalo. Never thought I_d be back here but _never say never_ is truth. West coast accepts you, East won_t unless you conform.

Having lived in 46 of the 50 states in the last 35 years, I can honestly say the only difference I noticed is the New England area has _older money_ than the west coast where you get _new _ money generating all the time with the movie studios. As for snobs, I grew up in Grosse Pointe and went to school with the grand children of the Fords and Chrysler_s that obviously came from old money. There are snobs in different pockets throughout this country. The west coast has more favourable climate then the east coast, however, more tenseness regarding the more severe catastrophic weather conditions that the west coast is subject to. Even though every state has its own weather element, depending on what season it is, I currently live in south Florida and prefer to live here than anywhere else because of the climate. Sure, we may have a hurricane once in awhile but at least we get fair warning and the climate is much better in the winter months than the west coast and the northeast that have a higher preciptiation level creating havoc winters. We dress casual when it calls for yet can dress fit to kill if we need to. A great place all around.

I don_t know about the Northern part, but in the Southeast, we do typically dress up a little bit more... ie you will typically see more tucked in shirts, etc. This is especially prevelant on Sundays.

That is one side of the culture. The other side of the culture tends to dress very similarly to that of the typical thought of Southern Californians.

very different everywhere you go people are different eventually

Where can i find a place that is mostly cloudy and nice?|197587

I live in CA and I_m tired of seeing the sun. I wanna move to Massachusetts or some other place in New England thats always or mostly cloudy and doesn_t involve a lot of sun. I_m planning to move after my high school graduation and its really hard to find a place that I_m looking for in that specific location

Boston, Massachusetts

The UK. The sun only makes a showing on special occasions here. Not so sure about the _nice_ bit though ;)

I_ve heard Maine is cloudy alot, but I_m not sure.

OT: Love Sandman

How old will i have to be to stay in a motel / hotel in the uk?|138547

I am planning a trip to london, and i want to know how old i have to be to stay in something like a travel in, i am 16, i know its gonna be pretty slim chances, especially as i want to go with someone who will be 15

there is no age limit..

any age.. at least 16 ?

What is the cheapest way to make a 450 mile trip?|136164

It_s from the western part of SC to the northeastern part of NC, over the week(s) of Thanksgiving. Back anywhere from 3 to 10 days later. One adult, two small children, one infant.

I don_t have a vehicle that will make the trip. I am open to rental car, plane, bus, whatever. I am just looking for a list of what is cheapest, quickest, and overall best.

Well, you asked for the cheapest, quickest and overall best which isn_t going to necessarily be the same, so I_ll give you my opinion of your overall best option. Given that you_re traveling alone with three small children, especially one being an infant, I would rule out the bus or driving no matter what the savings because it will be difficult on them and you. (busses only make planned rest stops/bathroom breaks every couple of hours.)

If the train is a possibility, that might very well be your cheapest solution and you have more ability to move about the train during the trip. Check www.amtrak.com for tickets. Good luck!

edited to add: Wow! I was surprised to see how expensive the train was listed in the post below, so I checked it out. To depart from Greensboro, NC to Wilson, NC (I don_t know your actual cities, just using the same ones below) on the 11/22 is $60 for 3 coach seats (1 adult, two children) and $42 on the return trip on 11/27, totals $102 round trip. That assumes you hold the infant, but you can also purchase an additional child ticket ($15 each way) and bring along the car seat.

I change my mind... after seeing the fare is only $102 round trip and each leg is under 3 hours, I_d say this is the fastest, cheapest and best opt.

Don_t trust on numbers from bluestem... she gave you the train cost from: Greensboro, NC to Wilson, NC

North Califorcnia to North California

The price from Wertern SC to Northeast NC is $US 220 each way!!!

Just to advice... that train is not so cheap!

(Train is the best option to one person travel... for 4 people (you + 3) the cheapest is car!

B.F

Ahhh...correction: Greenville, South Carolina to Wilson, Northeast Carolina is $144 each way for all four of you (amtrak.com) The layover you mentioned seems pretty long! I_d suggest saving up for airfare if you can. Hope you enjoy a happy Thanksgiving anyway!

BF- you obviously don_t have young children if you think traveling alone by car with three kids, especially one being an infant, is the way to go. ;P

Hi...

I don_t know the exact places...

But take a look at train and car comparison!

Lets suppose you are going from:

- Greenville, South Carolina

to:

- Wilson, Northeast Carolina

(313 miles - each way)

November, 21st - November, 25th

By car: 6h 15 min (+ 2 hours resting (2h driving + 45 min resting + 2h driving + 1h 15 resting/eating + 2h15 driving)

- TOTAL US$ 130 in gas + car rental (US$ 235 Chevrolet Aveo or similar in ECAR) + tolls (???) = US$ 365 (MORE COMFORT)



By Train: US$ 220 SC to NC + US$ 220 NC to SC

- TOTAL US$ 440 (+ small deslocations by bus if no one will get you to train station)

Hope you have a great thanksgiving

B.F

Greyhound! the bus is the cheapest way trust me. unless you want to hitch a ride...lol

rental car from a reputable company

My husband and I are leaving on a 800 miles road trip Sunday. What are good ways to pass the time?|102451

What are good travel games? Trivia? etc.

We stocked up on magazines and ITunes already.

pull over and have sex every 75 miles if your not driving and on a bus go in the bathroom and do it

When travelling in Canada or the U.S.A, my husband and I tend to listen to the CBC or NPR respectively on the radio non-stop. It_s available pretty much anywhere throughout the country, and you_ll always learn a lot through the variety of programming they have and will never get bored. Best of all, the programs tend to incite a lot of conversation - and debate - between us.

Travel games will get old really fast...you_re better off just chatting and staring at the scenery.

I always like to take the cards from my Trivial Pursuit games with me on road trips.

and IPOD with speakers is a good start.
Get a trivial pursuit board game, but just use the box of questions.

I have a cd, that is sooo fun. Its called Battle of the Sexes.....

check walmarts game section for CD type games such as that.

You can also do I SPY games...or picking letters or numbers on license plates...kinda kiddish, but it works.

Find different radio stations at each area you drive thru....Listen to the news.....

Take a camera and dont forget to take pictures!!

Take an Ambien or a Soma and just let your husband drive.

Books on CD/tape.

Cross word puzzles. The person sitting can ask the person driving and the person sitting writes down the words.

or Travel Scrabble: the person driving calls out random letters from signs and billboards. The person sitting then has to make some words and a sentence with the words. This can get very silly.

One great way to pass the time on a road trip is to pick a subject that both of you are interested in and then quiz each other. For music, you could do _Name that Tune_, either by humming a few bars or giving a verse or two. Movies is another excellent category.

Second, I don_t know how long you_ve been married or how busy your lives are, but a long road trip can be a great time to _reconnect_ with each other. You can review your memories about how you met, when you dated, your marriage, your early years, etc. Also, good marriages take work. This trip will be a great opportunity to review your shared goals, your life plan, and ideas for strengthening your marriage.

Good Luck!

listen to music
chill
sleep
talk
read a magazine
read a book
watch a movie
think
eat
draw
write
plan

Do I need to book a special day trip to see whales?|153362

I am going on a 7 day Alaskan Cruise that departs from Vancouver on Sept. 10th. Will I see whales while I_m on the ship? The ship will stop at 3 ports...Ketchikan, Juneau, and Skagway. There will then be two days of scenic cruising in Glacier Bay and College Fjord before docking in Anchorage. Once there, I_m taking a three day trip inland, stopping at Denali and ending up in Fairbanks. I would really love to see some whales at some point. However, the only day trips listed on the cruiseline form that involved whale watching was in Juneau and I_ve already booked a glacier walkabout helicopter tour. I_m afraid to book two day trips so close together in case one runs late.

You_ll probably see whales all along the way and especially in Glacier Bay. Also you_ll see the white Belugas around Anchorage. The helicopter trip is awesome anytime. If you want to take side trip to see whales, I suggest something out of Vancouver before you start. There are orcas all year round.

My friend just got back from this cruise. I asked him your question. He is in SoCal and I am in Vietnam. This guy can pull off miracles. He always bumps into the right person and is in the right place. here is his response to my question about whales and the Alaska Cruise.

Whales are whales. The most amazing thing about Alaska is being there. The place is so untouched, so big, so beautiful that the whales become very secondary to the visual delights. If you can tell me where he_s going to be I can, perhaps turn him on to a local that can magnify his trip to truly one of the most incredible places on earth!!!!! Is he only going on a cruise? If that_s the case, then if you see one whale, good, if not you_re SOL. Yes they will have _watching_ excursions, if the ship is in port long enough. Seeing them from the ship is probably not something to bet on, especially if you are on port side and they_re on starboard side of the ship. So, let me know his itinerary and hopefully I can help him out. We_ve been known to pull that off occasionally right? CSL 111. BUENAS NOCHES.

If you give me your email I will contact you with more info and put you in touch with CSL 111--- that_s Charles S. Lav****** the third! A really great guy!

Email 2 from Chuck:
R=== The first stop of Vancouver is a must. If she can get there for at least one day early the $30 bus tour is incredible. You can get on and off and the buses come by every stop 15 minutes apart. Stanley Park is magnificent! Whiskeytown Chinatown, the whole ball of wax. Really worth seeing. Ketchikan, iis one of the top 100 Small Arts Communities in the U.S. Lots of window shopping and if she_s interested ,the logging show is really worth seeing in the amphitheater across the street from the docks. I_ts where ESPN does the world championships from every year. Juneau, is nice but not alot to do. The aerial tram and shopping downtown. We had friends pick us up at the dock and got the 8 hour locals only tour, bars etc. She should definitely see the Mendenhall glacier there. Skagway is pretty incredible. During _ the winter_ the entire city locks up and leaves. The only stores that remain open are the liquor store _naturally_, the market, the pizza joint and the post office. we_re talking 70 below 0! There are two things to do there, 1 is the train over the mountain and the other is going to the musher camp, where they are now preparing for the Idatarod. An unbelievable look into the life of some the knarliest people imaginable. Definitely worth the time and money.After that more than enough time, before the ship leaves to hang out at one of the local, great watering holes. Glacier Bay and College Fjord will definitely change her outlook on life!!!!!!!!!!! That_s where she will probably see a whale, if she_s on the right side of the ship! But what she will see will make the sighting of a whale very unimportant as far as the memories she will have the rest of her life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! At this time of the year, Fairbanks is directly underneath the auroa borealis. There is a place right outside of town where you can sit in a hot tub and look straight up at them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The airport is currently adding a new terminal building to handle the two 747_s thatr come in everyday from Japan. They believe that if you conceive under the Northern Lights that it is very good luck for your children and insures sucess in life. Pretty far huh? Why did_nt our parents go to Fairbanks? One more must do in Fairbanks, is the river boat , paddle wheeler. The family that runs it is like on their 4th generation and really is so well done that it_s actually one of the highlights of the whole experience!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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