Recently in travel Category
As I mentioned some time ago, this year mark's the centenary of Ian Fleming's birth.
While the Royal Mail have issued a gorgeous set of stamps to commemorate the man and his most famous creation - James Bond, the Imperial War Museum in London is marking the occasion with an exhibition.
The exhibition, For Your Eyes Only, is being held in the Imperial War Museum and is well worth the entrance fee. Not only does it chronicle the life and work of Fleming, but it also explores the literary and cinematic world of James Bond.
The exhibits include a very impressive selection of international editions of the books along with some of the props and costumes from the films, including an atomic bomb!
When I was a teenager my cousin took me around most of the museums in London, such as the Imperial War Museum. I may not have been as deeply affected by some of the themes as I am now, I was always impressed by their usage of multimedia. Over 20 years later the technology has advanced considerably and so have the displays.
The James Bond exhibition is a rich multimedia experience and allows you to explore many of the themes "a la carte". Unlike so many exhibitions that are simply flat and static, the use of multimedia enriches the overall experience and allows you to explore in your own way.
If you get a chance to drop in before next year (when it closes) I'd highly recommend it.
While the Royal Mail have issued a gorgeous set of stamps to commemorate the man and his most famous creation - James Bond, the Imperial War Museum in London is marking the occasion with an exhibition.
The exhibition, For Your Eyes Only, is being held in the Imperial War Museum and is well worth the entrance fee. Not only does it chronicle the life and work of Fleming, but it also explores the literary and cinematic world of James Bond.
The exhibits include a very impressive selection of international editions of the books along with some of the props and costumes from the films, including an atomic bomb!
When I was a teenager my cousin took me around most of the museums in London, such as the Imperial War Museum. I may not have been as deeply affected by some of the themes as I am now, I was always impressed by their usage of multimedia. Over 20 years later the technology has advanced considerably and so have the displays.
The James Bond exhibition is a rich multimedia experience and allows you to explore many of the themes "a la carte". Unlike so many exhibitions that are simply flat and static, the use of multimedia enriches the overall experience and allows you to explore in your own way.
If you get a chance to drop in before next year (when it closes) I'd highly recommend it.
I'm heading off to Dublin shortly to catch a flight to London where I'll be for the next couple of days.
I haven't been in London, apart from its airports, for about 15 years, so I'm looking forward to the trip.
Tomorrow evening I'm meant to be going to Top Cats, which is a networking event organised by Paul Walsh of Segala. Of course, as I mentioned previously, there are a few other things on in London this week, so I'll be trying to fit as much in as possible.
Unfortunately I won't make it to London in time for the Nominet AGM, but I'm sure that I'll be able to hear all about it later! (On a sidenote my recent post on ccTLDs made it onto CircleID!)
I haven't been in London, apart from its airports, for about 15 years, so I'm looking forward to the trip.
Tomorrow evening I'm meant to be going to Top Cats, which is a networking event organised by Paul Walsh of Segala. Of course, as I mentioned previously, there are a few other things on in London this week, so I'll be trying to fit as much in as possible.
Unfortunately I won't make it to London in time for the Nominet AGM, but I'm sure that I'll be able to hear all about it later! (On a sidenote my recent post on ccTLDs made it onto CircleID!)
As I'm heading over to London later this week, and I'm a bit disorganised, I only got round to booking a hotel this evening.
I'm heading across for a mixture of business and pleasure, so my laptop will be an obligatory accessory.
With that in mind I needed to find a hotel that offered wifi (or even wired) internet access. There are plenty of hotels in London with wifi, so that shouldn't be an issue.
Unfortunately a lot of the hotels are charging rather high rates for using their wireless. If I were to stay 3 nights in some of the hotels and pay their internet levy I'd be adding quite a bit onto my bill.
Fortunately there are at least two hotel chains that actually cater for travellers like me.
Both the Best Western group of hotels and the Radisson group offer free wireless in their properties, so you won't get any unpleasant surprises on checkout!
The thing that gets me is that the free wifi vs. paid wifi choice does not seem to be linked to the hotel's star rating or nightly rate. It's not as if you're guaranteed to get wifi in a 4 star or unlikely to get it in a 1 star.
And the rates for the wireless internet access vary a lot. From my "shopping" this evening I've seen prices from as low as £1/hour to £14/hour. Is the £14/hour gold plated access or something? Doubtful!
Then again, it's the same issue in Dublin.
If you are flying out of Dublin airport Bewley's offers free internet access, but if you're staying in some of the city centre hotels you can pay up to 30 euro a day (in one case we had to pay close to 100 euro!)
I'm heading across for a mixture of business and pleasure, so my laptop will be an obligatory accessory.
With that in mind I needed to find a hotel that offered wifi (or even wired) internet access. There are plenty of hotels in London with wifi, so that shouldn't be an issue.
Unfortunately a lot of the hotels are charging rather high rates for using their wireless. If I were to stay 3 nights in some of the hotels and pay their internet levy I'd be adding quite a bit onto my bill.
Fortunately there are at least two hotel chains that actually cater for travellers like me.
Both the Best Western group of hotels and the Radisson group offer free wireless in their properties, so you won't get any unpleasant surprises on checkout!
The thing that gets me is that the free wifi vs. paid wifi choice does not seem to be linked to the hotel's star rating or nightly rate. It's not as if you're guaranteed to get wifi in a 4 star or unlikely to get it in a 1 star.
And the rates for the wireless internet access vary a lot. From my "shopping" this evening I've seen prices from as low as £1/hour to £14/hour. Is the £14/hour gold plated access or something? Doubtful!
Then again, it's the same issue in Dublin.
If you are flying out of Dublin airport Bewley's offers free internet access, but if you're staying in some of the city centre hotels you can pay up to 30 euro a day (in one case we had to pay close to 100 euro!)
Since I'm now able to get photos from my camera to my computer I'll be uploading them over the next couple of days.
The weekend before DomainFest we were having a drink in the lobby of the hotel when we got to see several stars including John Travolta.
And here is the photo to prove it!
The weekend before DomainFest we were having a drink in the lobby of the hotel when we got to see several stars including John Travolta.
And here is the photo to prove it!
There are over 12 thousand emails in my inbox that have accumulated during my recent trip to Los Angeles. I'll probably start downloading them to my office PC on Sunday afternoon, so that they're all in place for when I get into the office on Monday.
Of course I don't have to read all of them, as many are automated etc., but if I'm going to start using a Blackberry at some point I will really need to do some more rejigging of where my email goes!
Of course I don't have to read all of them, as many are automated etc., but if I'm going to start using a Blackberry at some point I will really need to do some more rejigging of where my email goes!
I'll be leaving LA in a couple of hours time. I'm looking forward to the flight back, as I could do with catching up on some sleep!
Once I get home I should be able to get photos off both my camera and my n95. I really must remember to pack a card reader next time! I know there were other people at the conference that had readers, but we never quite seemed to coincide.
This morning I headed up to one of the many malls that dot the city and picked up a few goodies in the Apple Store. My sister's boots proved impossible to acquire, as they only had large sizes (9+) in the department store I found.
The weak dollar combined with post-Christmas sales made a trip to the Virgin Store on Hollywood Boulevard both highly tempting and incredibly dangerous. They were selling a very large selection of DVDs and CDs for $10... I ended up getting a couple of this year's Oscar nominees instead.... They weren't $10, but they were on offer
Once I get home I should be able to get photos off both my camera and my n95. I really must remember to pack a card reader next time! I know there were other people at the conference that had readers, but we never quite seemed to coincide.
This morning I headed up to one of the many malls that dot the city and picked up a few goodies in the Apple Store. My sister's boots proved impossible to acquire, as they only had large sizes (9+) in the department store I found.
The weak dollar combined with post-Christmas sales made a trip to the Virgin Store on Hollywood Boulevard both highly tempting and incredibly dangerous. They were selling a very large selection of DVDs and CDs for $10... I ended up getting a couple of this year's Oscar nominees instead.... They weren't $10, but they were on offer
I'm heading off to LA on Thursday at the crack of dawn (I wish I was being metaphoric!).
You'd think that at this stage I'd be that bit better organised, but of course I'm not. I've organised hotels, my pickup from LAX and all that stuff. I've even got myself a fistful of dollars, albeit a small one.
What I haven't done, yet again, is even start to pack my bag.
I guess I could say that I've mentally packed it, but you can't wear your thoughts !!
So it's another evening of chaos tomorrow while I try desperately to ram a week's worth of clean clothes into my poor unsuspecting suitcase!
I was looking into things to do in LA before DomainFest and I still haven't made up my mind.
Wicked is still playing in Hollywood, but I've heard very mixed reviews.
The other thing that attracted my attention was, naturally enough, the cinema. But it's January, so it's not exactly the best time of the year to see films. There are a few upcoming releases that I'd like to see, but they're all being released after I leave. Of course I'm sure there are plenty of films still showing that I wouldn't mind seeing and if nothing else the cinemas are bigger and cheaper in Los Angeles than they are in Ireland.
Another attraction that caught my eye was the Star Trek Expo, which is starting its US tour this Friday. It looks like it could be great fun if you're a Trekkie. If nothing else I'm sure there'd be plenty of characters to see outside. All I need to do is work out how to get myself from downtown Hollywood to Long Beach without spending a fortune...
Alternatively there's always Warner Brothers.. I was hoping to make a pilgrimage there in November when I was over for the ICANN meeting, but I ended up going to Universal Studios instead.
At least I can safely say I'm truly spoilt for choice!
You'd think that at this stage I'd be that bit better organised, but of course I'm not. I've organised hotels, my pickup from LAX and all that stuff. I've even got myself a fistful of dollars, albeit a small one.
What I haven't done, yet again, is even start to pack my bag.
I guess I could say that I've mentally packed it, but you can't wear your thoughts !!
So it's another evening of chaos tomorrow while I try desperately to ram a week's worth of clean clothes into my poor unsuspecting suitcase!
I was looking into things to do in LA before DomainFest and I still haven't made up my mind.
Wicked is still playing in Hollywood, but I've heard very mixed reviews.
The other thing that attracted my attention was, naturally enough, the cinema. But it's January, so it's not exactly the best time of the year to see films. There are a few upcoming releases that I'd like to see, but they're all being released after I leave. Of course I'm sure there are plenty of films still showing that I wouldn't mind seeing and if nothing else the cinemas are bigger and cheaper in Los Angeles than they are in Ireland.
Another attraction that caught my eye was the Star Trek Expo, which is starting its US tour this Friday. It looks like it could be great fun if you're a Trekkie. If nothing else I'm sure there'd be plenty of characters to see outside. All I need to do is work out how to get myself from downtown Hollywood to Long Beach without spending a fortune...
Alternatively there's always Warner Brothers.. I was hoping to make a pilgrimage there in November when I was over for the ICANN meeting, but I ended up going to Universal Studios instead.
At least I can safely say I'm truly spoilt for choice!
