Category: Travel tips

Five family activities in Chicago for spring break

See weird specimens in a new, behind the scenes exhibit at the Field Museum Photo by Jodie Jacobs
See weird specimens in a new, behind the scenes exhibit at the Field Museum.  Photo by Jodie Jacobs

The kids are saying yea, no school for a week. But what’s a parent to do when there is more to plan for than a weekend outing?

From a tomb and T Rex to penguins and planets, the Museum Campus has lots to keep families fascinated for an entire day.

Penguin antics also make visitors chuckle at Lincoln Park Zoo.

Lego is a hit at the Museum of Science and Industry and at the Legoland Discovery Center in west suburban Schaumburg.

The Centennial Wheel and musical play equipment are awesome at Navy Pier. Check them out and enjoy.

 

Explore Chicago’s Museum Campus

Youngsters don’t all like the same things but on Chicago’s Museum Campus at the south east end of the downtown, you can probably satisfy two different interests if you plan carefully.

Children fascinated by mummies, dinosaurs and native American tribal life will love the  Field Museum while adults will likely want to detour over to its gem exhibit.

Anyone who likes penguins or  pretty much anything live that moves through water will want to stop at the Shedd Aquarium across from The Field.

Budding astronomers and space explorer wannabes will want to go to the Adler Planetarium that’s further down the museum campus’ arm.

Families might be able to take in some of two places but really shouldn’t try to do all three museums on the same day.

Tip: While on the museum campus walk past the aquarium towards the planetarium .then turn around and look at the city. This is where journalists take photos of the skyline and TV broadcasters go for a super camera op of Chicago’s skyline. Your photo will look like you are out in a boat on Lake Michigan because you are on a peninsula.

 

Put on your minor’s hat or thinking cap at the Museum of Science and Industry

The Museum of Science and Industry south of downtown should satisfy all interests from its coal mine experience, Lego exhibit  and futuristic thinking room to Colleen Moore’s Fairy Castle, the Great Train Story’s model railroads and the Mirror Maze.

Tip: On April 8 and 9 and April 15, you can also see special Robotics week events.

 

You play at Navy Pier

Ride the Centennial Wheel at Navy Pier. Photo by Jodie Jacobs
Ride the Centennial Wheel at Navy Pier. Photo by Jodie Jacobs

 Navy Pier, a 3,300 foot long entertainment pier jutting into Lake Michigan from Illinois Street east of the Mag Mile is home to the Chicago Children’s Museum,  a Ferris-type ride called the Centennial Wheel that is almost 200 feet high and ethnic festivals in its Crystal Garden.

Tip: There is also an IMAX Theater so check out its film schedule. Plus do ‘Impulse: An Interactive Art Exhibit,’  in the Polk Bros Park at Navy Pier, now through May 21. It’s a light and sound experience where visitors can try out seesaws and other play equipment that produce different tones and colors when activated.

 

Watch animals play at the zoo

Stroll through Lincoln Park Zoo to see two new, polar opposite,  animal habitats: South African penguins in their cozy cove (It’s not icy) and Arctic polar bears in a coldly comfortable place.

Tip: The zoo and its Lincoln Park environment are fun places to spend a day so plan on eating at Park Place Café which has Mexican, Italian dishes and burgers or if warm enough, the roof top Café at Wild Things above the Wild Things gift store. .

 

Discover what can be done with Legos

From things to ride, play with and see in 4D to Star Wars episodes to experience, there is an entire Lego world at the Legoland Discovery Center in Schaumburg,  Entry and experiences are ticketed so plan ahead because tickets are timed to prevent overcrowding, particularly during winter and spring vacation breaks.

Tip: Online tickets save money so check it out at Tickets.

 

 

 

 

 

Five ways to ease the change to daylight savings time

 

You know that with seasonal change you are supposed to “spring” ahead sometime really early Sunday morning, March 12, right?

Well yes, it does depend on where you live because not all places in the United States go from standard to daylight time. Your friends and relatives in Hawaii and in many Arizona locations probably remind you they just don’t do daylight time.

Are you really going to reset your clock ahead an hour sometime around 2 a.m. Sunday morning? Photo by Jodie Jacobs
Are you really going to reset your clock ahead an hour sometime around 2 a.m. Sunday morning? Photo by Jodie Jacobs

However, the US official time when clocks skip an hour is 2 a.m. whatever local time you’re at.

According to a US Navy site, Congress designated that beginning in 2007 daylight time started on the second Sunday of March and ended the first Sunday of November when clocks would “fall back” to standard time.

Mark your calendar Nov. 5 for your extra hour of sleep if you think the date applies. You can click policy act for more  information.

 

Here are five suggestions to help get through the tough change.

1.    Change different clocks at different times. Change the clock by your bed before you go to sleep. So if it’s 10 p.m. move it to 11 and tell yourself you are becoming a night owl. Change the kitchen clock in the morning and think how nice it is have slept in so that what was 8 a.m. is now 9 am.

2.    Don’t set the alarm for Sunday morning. See what time you can sleep to if given the chance (Unless you are in the church choir but maybe others will also be late).

3.     Now, go around the house to check all the other clocks you don’t always look at such as the one on the oven, microwave and coffee pot.  Even in this era of automatic computer time adjustments those don’t usually change by themselves. If you would rather not have to do this again in the fall, get a new appliance that does change automatically.

4.     If you have one of those bird clocks that sounds lovely when it tweets on the hour but which you hate when you have to take out the batteries and go back to a specific time, put batteries back in and reset, then ask a friend to come over. Tell the person you want to share the joy of learning the different bird sounds and show your friend how to turn the tiny wheel in back until the right time appears.

5.    Call a friend to see if that person is up. Say it’s a friendly wake-up call but actually misery likes company.

 

Spring training at Wrigleyville West

 

Hey Cubs fans, tickets are on sale now for home games at Sloan Park in Mesa AZ. Here are some tips if you snag a ticket for the Cubs’ Wrigleyville West location (yes, that really is the park’s nickname) or to see the Cubs at another of the Cactus League parks.

Sloan Park before the crowd enters Jodie Jacobs Photo
Sloan Park before the crowd enters
Jodie Jacobs Photo

 

1.    No matter how you feel about the cost of ball-park programs do get the Cubs official Sloan Park Spring Training 2017 program. You might even want to get an extra one for a Cub fan back home who didn’t make the trip.

It will have photos and good info on the Cubs players similar to baseball cards.

In addition, it will have the rosters of other Cactus League teams so you will be able to tell who is or is not on the field when they play opponents.

It will contain highlights from the 2016 Championship season and tell about player’s awards.

The program will also suggest where to stand for autographs and buy Cubs items. It also mentions places to dine and things to do.

 

2.    The first full-squad workout is Feb. 18. The first Cubs spring training game is Feb. 25 when a split squad will play the Oakland A’s in Sloan Park and the San Francisco Giants at Scottsdale Stadium.

If going to the Scottsdale game check out the Western Spirit, downtown Scottsdale’s terrific Museum of the West. It features western paintings, sculptures and a collection of western gear from saddles and spurs to badges and rifles.

 

3.    When going to Sloan Park, prove to your friends that it is Wrigleyville West by snapping shots of its abutting street signs: Waveland Avenue on the north, Sheffield Avenue on the east side and Clark Street on the west.

A fan photo op Jodie Jacobs photo
A fan photo op
Jodie Jacobs photo

The park also looks like a somewhat smaller version of Wrigley Field. However, the famed marquee is inside here.

You can have a message light up on it or take a selfie in front of it.

 

Sloan Park is at 2330 W. Rio Salado Pkwy, Mesa, 85201. 480-668-0500.

 

A Day in LA

 

Sometimes you go to a city to visit relatives or friends. Other times you are passing through on the way to a vacation spot. Then there are those times the city is your vacation destination but there are so many things to do you’re not sure how much to fit into one day.

To help you start out the year on a you-can-do-it note, here is a Day In series for towns that ought to be on your  bucket list or when visiting friends and family. Don’t be surprised if the people you visit say they’ve been meaning to go there. People who live in an area often don’t  play tourist in their own city.

The recently redone Petersen Automotive Museum. A subway system is currently being extended just outside and below the museum.
The recently redone Petersen Automotive Museum. A subway system is currently being extended just outside and below the museum.

The Day In series spotlights two main places and a restaurant, however, one or two alternatives are also included. Tip: no matter what the reason for the trip or what you do – plan some down time.

 

First in the series: A Day in LA

A red building wrapped with a chrome-like grill, rises from one corner.  Across the road, another modern art structure seems to beckon you to go over there and see what’s inside. You’re at Fairfax Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles,

Park the car within the red building’s garage and you are ready to go exploring.  You don’t have to try this building first. Both corner buildings are filled with treasures.

Inside the eye-catching striped structure is the newly remodeled  Petersen Automotive Museum. You don’t have to be a car buff to fall in love with the beautifully designed Bugatti, silver “gullwing” Corvette, Steve McQueen’s 1956 Jaguar XKSS or the Batmobile, all currently on exhibit.

Start on the third floor and then head down. You might come across a car your parents or grandparents drove such as  a red 1956 Bel Air Chevrolet convertible or a black 1922 Chevrolet 490 series coupe that the great grandparents might have driven.

The Petersen Automotive Museum is at 6060 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036

 

Chris Burden's 'UrbanLight'
Chris Burden’s ‘Urban Light’

Across the road is what everyone in LA knows as LACMA, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, with its 21st century remodeled look and added buildings.

The very contemporary, multi-winged-topped structure on the campus’ western corner includes Renzo Piano’s Workshop-designed Broad (pronounced Brode) Contemporary Art Museum.

Often referred to as BCAM, it opened February 2008. It is adjacent to the Lynda and Stewart Resnick Exhibition Pavilion added in 2010.

But first, pull out the smart phone to take photos of your group wandering through artist Chris Burden’s “Urban Light” outside LACMA. It’s a fun collection of old-looking street lights. Then, stop at the LACMA Will Call window for tickets to  “Picasso and Rivera: Conversations across time.”

Tip: Many LA area attractions including this exhibit need tickets so instead of waiting in long lines, purchase or reserve them on line to be picked up at the venue’s Will Call.

The ‘Picasso and Rivera’ show reveals how much the two famed artists were alike as they changed styles ranging from classical to abstract. Opened December 2016, the exhibit is in the BCAM section of LACMA through May 7, 2017.

Anyone who missed  the “Moholy-Nagy Future Present” show at the Art Institute of Chicago fall of 2016, can catch it at LACMA Feb. 12 through June 18. It’s a fabulous exhibit of  László Moholy-Nagy’s photographs, paintings, graphics and commercial designs.

Moholy, as he usually was called, was an influential Bauhaus teacher, founder of the Chicago Institute of Design and a pioneer of combining art with technology.

LACMA also has fine Asian, Latin American and Islamic collections. So you might want to divide up the time to do more than see a featured exhibit.  The museum is at 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles CA 90036.

 

Now about food. It would be a shame to be in the area and not take advantage of lunch at Canter’s Bakery and Deli about a mile east of the two museums on Fairfax Avenue. Since opening in 1931, the famed deli has been the background for the ‘Mad Men’ series and has fed such celebrities as Barack Obama, Wayne Gretzky, Mick Jagger and Larry King. Canter’s is at 419 N. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90036.

 

Canter's Deli has been serving up some of the best Jewish food in the LA area since 1931
Canter’s Deli has been serving up some of the best Jewish food in the LA area since 1931

An alternative suggestion: The Broad Museum that opened to well deserved hype September, 2015 is worth a stop when in LA.

You will want to snap photos of the building, inside and out, see its exceptional collection of contemporary art and check out Yayoi Kusama’s “Infinity Mirrored Room.”

Museum admission is free but reservations are essential. If going there, get in line once inside for a timed ticket to the Infinity Room. The Broad is at 221 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90012.

 

As to getting to these places, just be patient. Almost anywhere else you would likely time your forays to miss the rush hour. However, it always seems to be rush hour when driving the LA freeways. Since you are likely visiting or traveling with a companion take the car-pool lane.

Tips: Attractions are less crowded when they first open in the morning. Whatever attractions you choose, base your day on location. The places suggested here are near downtown LA.

Photography by Jodie Jacobs

 

Cubs Parade 108 years in the making

When it takes more than a century to achieve a monumental goal the celebration has to attract millions of people, lots of speeches and selfies and photos for the album and social media. In other words, joyous crowds will carpet the parade route and rally. What you need to know is where to go and how.

Chicago Cubs Parade from Wrigley Field to Hutchinson Field in Grant Park.
Chicago Cubs parade from Wrigley Field to Hutchinson Field in Grant Park.

By now you probably heard or figured the fabulous 2016 World Championship Cubs will be coming downtown from Wrigley Field, today, Nov. 4, 2016. They start off at 10 a.m. and will end at Grant Park.

But what you need to know is that there are designated viewing areas: ballpark, Magnificent Mile and Grant Park.

Near the park it is Addison Street from Sheffield to Pine Grove Avenues. About 11 a.m. on the Mag Mile the parade is best viewed from Oak to Ohio Streets. At Grant Park it is Columbus Drive from Monroe to Balbo Drives.

Between viewing areas the parade vehicles will be going faster. The rally celebration will be at Lower Hutchinson Field about noon.

If you know Chicago, and there are thousands of fans in town from out of Illinois who don’t know that driving to the viewing areas and downtown is NOT a good idea even on a normal day, so you take the L and Metra trains. Buses are going but are rerouted.

Metra is doing its weekend $5 ticket all day Nov. 4. Just know that no bikes and alcohol will be allowed. There are extra trains running but if full they may pass your station so wait for the next one.

It may seem as if you have plenty of time but fans have already been gathering along the route so if not watching on TV, leave now, plan to celebrate downtown (the bars, restaurants and hotels are prepared for crowds, and return later.

Go Cubs Go!

 

Yummy snack travels well

Getting high grades on my taste to go Try Test are freeze dried fruits from Fairfield, NJ’s Crispy Green.

There are lots of travel items out there now that make life easier, safer, more fun or are just useful to have so I’m going to start including them in Travel Smart With Jodie if it passes the Try Test.

First up that just got high grades on my taste to go Try Test are freeze dried fruits from Fairfield, NJ’s Crispy Green.

Found a fruit snack to go at the grocery store
Found a fruit snack to go at the grocery store

I’m not always into healthy snacks but I like chips. So when passing bags of fruit chips at my grocery store ( I shop at Sunset Foods in Lake Forest), I picked up a bag of Crispy Green freeze dried banana chips. I found out that I could also have gotten them at The Fresh Market, Heinens or on Amazon.

Well, I like fruit but I don’t take a banana with me in the car or my tote bag.

Then I checked the calorie count. It was so low I picked up a few of the brand’s other fruits. For example I’m not a cantaloupe or tangerine eater and can’t do acidic fruits but I like banana, mango , apple and pear.

I loved that I could take them with me whether on a train downtown Chicago to cover a museum or theater opening or on the road or plane for a travel writing trip. Also I liked that there are different fruits so it doesn’t get boring.

Just put banana in my Le Sac travel bag, cause heading down to Chicago to cover to art exhibits.

How to beat January cabin fever blues

Wait until Groundhog Day Feb. 2 to find out when Spring will come or try one of these four remedies.

Cabin fever? It’s early January but cold and snow have already moved Spring up high on the wish list.

We can wait with fingers crossed until Groundhog Day, Feb. 2, 2015, to hear what Punxsutawney Phil has to say in Pennsylvania or Woodstock Willie in Illinois when they predict Spring’s coming. Or we can bring spring closer with these steps.

Woodstock Willie predicted lots more winter last year
Woodstock Willie predicted lots more winter last year

1. Go to the Chicago Travel and Adventure Show Jan. 17-18 to collect ideas and colorful brochures on places to go for spring or summer vacation. The show is in the west suburban Donald E, Stephens convention center in Rosemont. Turn it into a mini break by staying at the nearby Loews Hotel near the upscale Fashion Outlet mall.

2. Breath deeply a botanic garden’s indoor spaces. The Chicago area has the historic impressive Garfield Park Conservatory west of the downtown Loop and the lovely Lincoln Park Conservatory north of the Loop.  In the northern burbs there are lush tropical and flowering desert plants in the Chicago Botanic Garden’s greenhouses in Glencoe.

Feast the eyes on colorful plants and breath warm air inside a greenhouse when outside temps dips way below freezing.
Feast the eyes on colorful plants and breath warm air inside a greenhouse when outside temps dips way below freezing.

3. Host a Super Bowl party with a desert theme. NFL’s Super Bowl XLIX is February 1 in sunny Arizona at the U Of Phoenix stadium, Glendale. Turn up the heat, wear shorts, serve margaritas and be inspired by some of Phoenix’s Mexican restaurant menus.

4. Or just celebrate winter with a trip to Lake Geneva, WI for the National Snow Sculpting Championship the last weekend in January. Teams come from across the United State to sculpt amazing, fantastical forms and vignettes.  The town will be celebrating Winterfest with lots of food and fun. Stay the weekend at the Grand Geneva Resort for its ski slopes and spa.

How smart are you about traveling with your cell phone?

But if you haven’t worked out a cell phone usage plan you may be headed for trouble. Not only can roaming costs add up fast when traveling out of the United States, but your valuable data can be stolen.

You may think you have done everything right for a good vacation or business trip abroad.

Arrangements have all been made and you even have a check list. But if you haven’t worked out a cell phone usage plan you may be headed for trouble. Not only can roaming costs add up fast when traveling out of the United States, but your valuable data can be stolen.

Some travelers call their provider ahead of time for an internet usage package. It typically doesn’t cost much and can be as little as $25. But that is typically for internet use  so you may still have to try to limit talking by phone.

It also doesn’t take into account cell thieves. Because even if your phone isn’t stolen while traveling, it can be hacked by skilled cyber criminals.

Cellhire USA CEO Greg Kraynak shows the phone that can be rented for international travel. when
Cellhire USA CEO Greg Kraynak shows the phone that can be rented for international travel.

One way to leave worry behind is to rent a phone. Cellhire.com has International Prepaid phone packages used by such companies as CBS and ABC when covering international events such as the recent Olympics and FIFa World Cup.

Users rent a phone before they leave that will work in the countries visited so personal cell phones can be left at home. Check International Prepaid Data to learn more. Cellhire consultants help clients choose a device and package deal that relate well to places visited.

“Essentially we urge travelers to leave their personal SmartPhone at home.  This doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice your contacts and personal info, it just means that you rent or purchase a “travel phone” and only use a secure network,” said Greg Kraynak, CEO of Cellhire, USA.

“Using public WIFI is a recipe for disaster, ” Kraynak said. “When you access personal data, social media, bank accounts, photos, etc., on a public platform then you are basically offering your data to be intercepted by cyber criminals.

In addition, visit Kaspersky, an internet security and antivirus company, for  several tips on securing information when in airports, hotels, cafes and other public places.

Traveling smart is more than remembering to bring comfortable shoes and electronic chargers.

Tips for fun fall color drives

But before packing the car and heading out check the following five tips to make the trip fun, not frustrating.

Deep reds are already tipping the tops of some trees. Drops of crimson sprinkle others. Gold leaves are beginning to line parks and parkways. Enjoy the local scenery, however, to feed that inner urge for a vista of color look for state and national forests nearby and in neighboring states.  But before packing the car and heading out check the following five tips to make the trip fun, not frustrating.

A state park in Door County glistens with gold
A state park in Door County glistens with gold

1.Don’t use your neighborhood color changes as the definitive guide. Colors in states or area of your state to the north and west may be in full fall color palette or just beginning to change south or east. In the Midwest visit these state information sites: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan,  Minnesota and Wisconsin.

2. Take advantage of local Visitors Bureaus to find accommodations. As an example, Door County in northeastern Wisconsin, and Traverse City in northern Michigan (below the Upper Peninsula) and Brown County (Bloomington and Nashville) in central Indiana keep tabs on what is available and know price points and type.

3. A GPS works some places but not all so stop at the area’s Information Center for maps, brochures and suggestions.

4. Because you are driving, not flying, throw those extra boots, hiking shoes, jackets, sun protector hats and sprays, water bottles, first-aid kits and backpacks into the car.

Bright reds dot a peninsula road near Traverse City
Bright reds dot a peninsula road near Traverse City

5. Don’t forget chargers for phones, ipads, cameras or whatever other electronics you take everywhere. Also check your accommodations before you leave, they already have enough chargers from previous visitors.

From crimson and copper to delicate pinks and sherbert oranges, colorful leaves surprise drivers around every corner in the upper Midwest. Just get in the car and go.

Photos by Jodie Jacobs

Visit the Antiques Roadshow online or in person

Here are some of the nuggets I picked up while interviewing the Antiques Roadshow’s directors, executives, experts and people who brought items to be valued.

Antiques Roadshow Chicago visitors wait near the appropriate table to see an appraisal expert.
Antiques Roadshow Chicago visitors wait near the appropriate table to see an appraisal expert.

I recently had the good fortune to cover the Antiques Roadshow when it taped in Chicago this summer. It was fun, interesting and surprising. Here are some of the nuggets I picked up while interviewing its directors, executives, experts and people who brought items to be valued.

1. If you live in Albuquerque, NM, Chicago, IL, New York, NY, Charleston, WV, Austin, TX, Birmingham, AL, Santa Clara, CA, Bismark, ND, the towns visited this spring and summer, you can check  Antiques Roadshow about late September or early October to see when the segment closest to home will air in 2015.

2. To get more information about the 2014 summer tour click here. To see photos of some gems taped during the 2014 summer tour, go to behind the scenes.

3. If you want to attend an Antiques Roadshow appraisal event, check the first Monday in January when the show premiers its 19th season. Announcements are made on line and usually at the premier about where the show will tape that spring and summer.  Look online for ticket application information.  Tickets are given out by random drawing, not first come, but be sure to get yours in before the deadline, usually early April. Two tickets are given free of charge to the applicant drawn.

Surprises

A century-old German doll with all its original clothes was worth much more than its owner thought.
A century-old German doll with all its original clothes was worth much more than its owner thought.

There’s more to an Antiques Roadshow event than the expected wow.  Yes, some items are valued much higher than the people who brought them think. But other items are chosen for their education value as copies, tourist market objects or fakes. An art object brought to the Chicago taping could be worth $20,000 if authenticated but would be $2,000 as a decorative piece, if not.

Among the surprises in Chicago was that even though 3,000 people received two tickets each and could bring two items, meaning that the experts had 18,000 objects to consider, the appraisals and discussions were all done in one Saturday starting with 8 a.m. ticket holders and not ending until all 5 p.m. ticket holders were seen.

Another amazing tidbit is that the experts pay their own way to come to the cities being taped. They do get television exposure but they cannot hand their cards to the people they meet.  Of the approximately 150 experts on the show’s roster, about 70 came to the Chicago taping.

Reaction to an appraisal value is often a surprise. During a Chicago taping that evaluated a century-old doll, its owner became emotional when learning she would have to add a zero to the couple hundred dollars she thought it would bring. She kept it in a closet but originally was going to sell it. After the appraisal she changed her mind.

Keeping an object after appraisal is not surprising according to Executive Producer Marsha Bemko who speaks to groups across the country. “ One of the interesting things is whether its business or another group, 20-year-olds, 60 or 80, they have a question in common:  what happened to the objects after a person leaves the Roadshow. I tell them it’s about the relationship. It does not matter what the object is worth. They never sell the objects,” Bemko said. She added that a few exceptions did occur when the object was picked up cheap at a garage sale and had no family value.

Visitors were divided according to objects they brought by a generalist appraiser who gave them a ticket for the right table and area.
Visitors were divided according to objects they brought by a generalist appraiser who gave them a ticket for the right table and area.

Interesting

No matter where the Antiques Roadshow visits and how the the town’s convention center is configured, the set where the appraisals and taping are done will be the same. Windows are shut off and backdrops are set up.

Each town’s one-day taping is divided into three episodes. Host Mark Walberg introduces three visits outside the convention center using a different expert at each place. The outside visits, typically to a museum, a person’s collection or a significant building, is to give a sense of place to the town visited, according to Bemko. “Otherwise, all you see is the convention center,” she said.

In Chicago, the outside the convention center visits were to the Art Institute of Chicago, the Lyric Opera and Crab Tree Farm in the northern suburbs.

For more Antiques Roadshow interesting insight visit the Roadshow Scene

Fun

Merely circulating among the experts, camera crew and folks carrying paintings, sculptures, vases and carefully wrapped treasures was fun. It was also delightful to talk with people who loved coming even though their objects were not worth much

To learn about some of the items that  will appear on Chicago segments click Chicago

Photos by Jodie Jacobs