Huis - Jake Matthews

A New Yorker: Fresh Back from London

I recently took a vacation to London and had a bunch of fun over there.  I've been to London a bunch of times so I didn't spend a lot of time taking pics, but I did do this one which was not quite Abbey Road :-) I traveled with my brother and we really enjoyed ourselves.  A couple of notable things that we did:

• A day trip out to Cambridge.  Cambridge is an outstanding town to visit for a day.  One can walk the famous university campuses and explore the cobblestone streets.  It a truly gorgeous city with tons of history.  Here's a helpful Cambridge visitor's site.
• Notting Hill Gate and the great restaurants in that area.  I recommend Black and Blue Steakhouse for a delicious, affordable meal.  Stay away from the Hyde Park portion of NHG b/c there's a bunch of touristy junk there.
• Clarke's Restaurant on Kensington Church Street (off of Notting Hill Gate) - this place is pricey, but a very nice dining experience.
• For a Saturday afternoon lunch, I highly recommend The Ebury in Chelsea.
• If you are into a really cool cocktail place that slowly advances into a club in the evening check out The Collection in South Kensington - on Brompton, just around the corner from the South Ken. tube stop. (they have the worst website!) 
• Westminster Abbey - this place is awesome.  Darwin is there; so is Isaac Newton. Do not miss this.
• St. Paul's Cathedral - this place left me speechless and I think a tear came to my eye when I looked up at the vaulted ceilings. Do not miss this if you go to London.
• 3 jogs in Hyde Park and Kensington Garden's kept the blood flowing and shed some calories after all of the great meals.
• Queens Gate is worth checking out of course.  That's just near Royal Albert Hall
• One of the most fun things for me, being such a sports-car buff was all of the outstanding vehicles in London - it's absolutely insane.  A highlight was seeing the Ferrari Owners Club of London run through the streets with about 50 cars in tandem!  Really a site to see.
• I took the trip through Virgin Vacations. Virgin had and amazing 6 night deal on the Royal Lancaster Hotel right on the north side of Hyde Park and very affordable round-trip on Virgin Atlantic.  Flying Virgin Atlantic is really great - they have an awesome entertainment system and really nice planes.

There are probably 100 other things that we did while we where there on this visit.  It was so spectacular.  A special thanks to my friends Charlie and Isabella who I've not see in so long - you guys are welcome in NYC ANYTIME!  Can't wait to get back to London.

Vacation-Newport, Rhode Island

About a week ago I visited Newport, Rhode Island for a brief getaway.  Newport is one of the most beautiful small cities in America.  It’s truly rustic and scenic in so many ways.  This is a great town to visit. Yachting, surfing and seafood dining in unique establishments are the perfect compliment to the scenic and historic walks one can take around this town.

Points of interest in Newport, RI include: Easton’s and 2nd Beaches for surfing, Thames street for shopping and antique browsing (The Armory), and Cliffwalk for a brisk walk along the cliffs of the Atlantic lined by Mansions such as “The Breakers”. If you enjoy tennis, you must visit the National Tennis Center (where the US Open first started in the late 19th century).  They also have a Court Tennis Court on the grounds – “ The Casino.”  Jamestown is just a short boat ride across the harbor or drive across the bridge for rustic and rural farm scenery along with gorgeous homes and great cafes and trattorias.

For restaurants in Newport try 22 Bowens, on Bowen’s Warf.  At Bowen’s try the 2lb Maine Lobster and a good bottle of white wine to compliment.  A great café on the West side of downtown Newport is Salvation Café.  Salvation is an American/Asian fusion café with an emphasis on seafood.  It is sure to delight the pallet.  Dessert at Castle Rock Inn down on Ocean Drive is a great way to wrap up an evening out.  Bars are aplenty on America’s Cup downtown for late night partying in Newport.

One of the best day trips to enjoy by Newport is to take a quick jaunt out to Block Island. You can take a fast ferry right out of a couple of places around Newport.  It’s about a 1+ hour trip out, but a fantastic way to spend a day.  I was lucky enough to have a great friend who took us on his boat across to BI, but the ferries are pretty frequent, so check it out.

One great Bed and Breakfast to stay in is the Touro Park Inn at the top of the hill near Bellevue Avenue.

As a side note, I was astounded by how clean the waters are in Rhode Island.  It’s reassuring to see that at least in some aspect organizations such as Save the Bay, residents and businesses are steward a recovery of the ocean in the area.  Ten to fifteen years ago when I would vacation frequently  in Fisher’s Island, NY (Long Island Sound) the waters were not nearly as clean as they were when I saw this time in Block Island and Newport.  It was so great to be able to look into the water and be able to see no less than 6-10 feet clear through to the bottom of the ocean floor!  Congrats, Rhode Island and Connecticut for cleaning up a bit.  I’m sure that New York is making the effort too with organizations like Save the Sound.

Great Vacation Packages

Vacation Packages - Paris Travel Deals, London Travel Deals, Britain Travel Deals

Virgin Vacations is one of my favorite vacation package websites.

They offer tons of great vacation pacakges to top destinations all over the world - all at very affordable prices.

Check 'em out

Arizona Vacation

In early February my mom, and I went on a trip to visit her sister Christine and her family.  It was great to see my cousins, Haley and Katherine and uncle Steve.

One of the highlights of our trip was a ride in a rented convertible on the Apache Trail through Tonto National Forest.  It is a must see for everyone in their lifetime.  Do it!

Arizona is so gorgeous!