Layout:
Home > This & That

This & That

March 19th, 2017 at 07:08 pm

**Since MH has never been to Europe, and London probably topped our list of "future travels", we are shifting gears and planning a Europe vacation, quite suddenly. I'd say otherwise it was something we were thinking about in 5+ years. But the thing about travel not being a huge priority for us is we don't want to save for a long time and spend a lot of money on *one* trip. But if we can easily afford it, then it's not a big commitment and we will take advantage.

Hotel and airfare will most likely be covered by our meager vacation budget. (Hard to believe!)

I was already on track to match my highest OT payout this spring, so will have some extra monies to throw at this trip. (I don't expect this to change our sidebar goals at all). For the most part we would be fine with walking around and enjoying the museums, and using the public transport. But since I doubt we will ever go to Europe again, I also feel we should just do the big stuff too. We are thinking of an excursion to Paris, for example.

I seem to travel abroad once every 10 years. MH mentioned my passport. I thought I might squeak by, but apparently it expires 2 months before we are planning our trip. I will renew ASAP. (I don't know when I ever would have thought of that, but I am knee deep in work).

**MH was teased about a $500 focus group. !! But he didn't make the cut. Bummer!

**DL(11) is selecting his electives for next school year. How exciting! He just had to take "a little bit of everything" for this year (art school). He wants to focus on drama and music, next school year.

**MM(13) was accepted into the Honors program at the high school. We never had any doubt that he would be. But... It also looks like he may get back on track with his math. I am so happy that something seems to be going very right on the math front!

We need to find out more, but it looks promising that he will be able to get into Trig next year.

---------------------------------------------------

Edit to add: I spotted London airfare for $504 per person (after taxes and fees) today, for our preferred August dates. Our flights are booked!

Second Edit: I also wanted to say, Europe is a HUGE trip from the west coast. I am *very* sensitive to jet lag and crossing time zones. Cut us west coasters some slack. Wink This is not on my fun list of things to do, in the grand scheme of things. As we were discussing flight logistics and so on, I was thinking the trip sounds much more bearable from the east coast.

11 Responses to “This & That”

  1. snafu Says:
    1489967056

    Suggest you task DL or MM to track currency conversion looking for best possible exchange rates. Also review financial institutions to work out lowest fees and these add up. I thought the rates were best using ATMs but was knocked hard on fees from both my home bank and the banks used overseas. Some banks had ridiculously low withdrawl limits compared to our Canadian limits. I'm really angry about being clobbered on both Visa and ATM fees from the same bank. I'm visiting my home bank tomorrow, to ask if they'll rebate any fees as a gesture of 'goodwill'.

  2. Butterscotch Says:
    1489969243

    Very exciting about the London trip. However, I can't help but notice that this is the second time you have said that this is probably the last time you and your husband will get to Europe. You're only 40! Are you along that line of thinking because you want to see other parts of the world as well? Asia, Or maybe Australia? I hope you're not feeling like you're getting too old to travel!

  3. scfr Says:
    1489977325

    London! How wonderful!

  4. VS_ozgirl Says:
    1489996673

    That's a great price for an airfare!

  5. Dido Says:
    1490009506

    Exciting that this trip is falling into place for you. Enjoy the planning and anticipating!!

  6. MonkeyMama Says:
    1490015435

    Thanks for the tips Snafu!

    Butterscoth - neither of us particularly likes to travel, so it's not anything we are planning for the future.

  7. LivingAlmostLarge Says:
    1490023517

    Fun! how much was hotel and airfare for 4?

  8. MonkeyMama Says:
    1490025716

    LAL - For two, we will pay around $2,000. (It's just us adults going).

  9. Kiki Says:
    1490030015

    WOW! What airline did you find that?

    So exciting that you will be able to go this year. Get hopping on the passport!

  10. MonkeyMama Says:
    1490031206

    Kiki, Several airlines were offering this price. $500-ish Non-stop from San Jose (which is the most convenient airport for us). We chose British Airways.

  11. FrugalTexan75 Says:
    1490409887

    What an awesome opportunity!

Leave a Reply

(Note: If you were logged in, we could automatically fill in these fields for you.)
*
Will not be published.
   

* Please spell out the number 4.  [ Why? ]

vB Code: You can use these tags: [b] [i] [u] [url] [email]