Now at tikichris.wordpress.com

Hi. I’ve decided to consolidate my personal blogging activities and have started a wordpress blog, tikichris.wordpress.com. Anything that I might have posted here at ontoTravel will now be posted there. Same goes for content that I might have published at ontoLondon or the The Adventures of Tiki Chris: it will now be posted on the new site. I'm not doing away with these old sites - just not actively posting on them anymore. Indeed, I may find some need to publish content through them in the future.

To be sure, there will be plenty of travel related content on the new blog. In fact, I have a feeling there may be even more of it in the next year! For off-the-cuff mobile blogging, I’m keeping my Tumblr blog, tikichris-to-go. If you haven’t checked it out yet. I hope you will, I have a lot of fun with it.

Thanks so much to regular followers of this blog. It means a great deal to me to have had you “tuning in” these past few years. I look forward to continuing the journey with you!

Sincerely,
Chris
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London, I’m Coming Home (Qype does London)

London, I’m Coming Home
Chris Osburn
Qype does London
January 11th 2009

I’m sitting here at Hartsfield International Airport (ick) in Atlanta waiting for my flight back to Heathrow (double ick). Despite the prospect of an especially sinister case of jetlag and an ever increasing pile of work waiting to gang up on me across The Pond, I’m more than ready to return. Three weeks is a long time to be away. I miss my wife, my kitties, my daily routine and the city I call home.

Read the complete London, I’m Coming Home post at Qype does London.

Pub Quiz Winner! (Qype does London)

Pub Quiz Winner!
Chris Osburn
Qype does London
January 7th 2009



To be honest, this was my first pub quiz, something I’ve always associated with London. Maybe they used to have them back when I lived here, but I don’t remember ever hearing about pub quizzes then or on any past visits. Anyway, our team won ...

Read the complete Pub Quiz Winner! post at Qype does London.

I Like Bodean’s But … (Qype does London)

I Like Bodean’s But …
Chris Osburn
Qype does London
January 3rd 2009



Don’t get me wrong; I like BoDean’s (especially their wings). But they could learn a thing or twelve from world famous master of the pit, Big Bob Gibson. As I said in my last post ...

Read the complete I Like Bodean’s But … at Qype does London.

“London Style” Fish & Chips in Chattanooga, Tennessee (Qype does London)

“London Style” Fish & Chips in Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chris Osburn
Qype does London
January 2nd 2009



Driving around Chattanooga, Tennessee the other day I happened upon the above pictured van advertising Tugboat “London Style” Fish & Chips. I thought all you folks back in the UK would get a kick out of it.

Read the complete “London Style” Fish & Chips in Chattanooga, Tennessee post at Qype does London.

Berliner December

I spent the weekend in Berlin catching up with a good friend from grad school, and I have to say that visiting Berlin during the run up to Christmas is well worth considering. The city glows with equal parts urban cool and winter wonder and there are a gazillion and one things to do - Christmas-y or otherwise. April in Paris? New York in June? Sure! But don't count out a Berliner December.

This wasn't my first time in Berlin (and I sincerely hope it won't be my last!), but it was my first during December. With pretty winter lights strung along trees, streets, homes and shop windows, and Weihnachtsmarkts (Christmas Markets) scattered throughout the city (erm, sorry, I don't think Berliners scatter anything; strategically placed at optimal locations might be a better way to put it), the festive season was in full swing.

Of course, the highlight of the trip was getting to spend some quality time with my old classmate, but I loved munching and sipping my way through the markets and sampling all sorts of yummy German treats. It was also an opportunity to try out my new Nikon D700 (which moving to it from the D70s is like hopping from the driver's seat of a VW to a Porsche). I've still a ways to go climbing the learning curve to operate this camera but I'm pretty happy with my results so far. See what you think:


Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR. Can't see the above pics? Click here to view them on Flickr.

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Read more about my weekend in Berlin ...

Berlin!
Chris Osburn
Qype does London
December 16th 2008



Our line of attack planned, we set out Saturday morning to do Berlin in grand style. A mix of the sobering (Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe and nearby Memorial to Homosexuals persecuted under Nazism) with the delightfully festive (Christmas markets at Charlottenburg and Gendarmenmarkt) and the historic (Brandenburg Gate, the remnants of the Berlin Wall) made for a perfect weekend, with plenty of glüwein and würst and all sorts of yummies (I loved the seasonal grünkohl with ribs!!!) rounding out the tour.

Read the complete Berlin! post at Qype does London.

Book UK Airport Hotels with Airport-Hotels.co.uk

Every so often, I find myself with an upcoming flight taking off at the crack of dawn. When I’ve been able to spend the night before the flight at accommodations near the airport, it’s made those trips so much more relaxing than if I would have had to drag myself to the airport in the wee early morn feeling like a zombie.

Have you got a similar travel situation coming up? Consider booking a room at an airport hotel and cut down on any early morning stresses trying to make your airport.

A useful resource for booking your room near the airport is Airport-Hotels.co.uk, which lists every hotel available near every major airport in the UK. Whether situated within the airport perimeter (on-airport) and just a short walk to the airport terminal or off-airport and requiring a short transfer to the terminals, you’ll find the right hotel on Airport-Hotels.co.uk.

Airport-Hotels.co.uk compares relevant hotel prices from five leading hotel providers, including Holiday Extras, Superbreak, APH and FHR, helping to ensure you pay the lowest price for you room. With Airport-Hotels.co.uk, you can also choose to include dinner or breakfast, additional car parking or – of course – simply book a room. In addition to those features, Airport-hotels can be used to reserve hotel parking for up to fifteen days.

You also might want to keep Airport-Hotels.co.uk in mind to bypass any potential late night hassles associated with an upcoming flight arriving just in time for you to want to hit the sack. I’ve been in this situation a few times before too. And when I’ve been able to simply make it to a room quick and move on the next morning after a decent night’s sleep, I’ve gotten more out of my trip. Of course, should you have an upcoming business meeting near a UK airport, Airport-Hotels.co.uk is an obvious choice for booking as well.