Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens

Hello Readers! 

I am back from a road trip to Miami (approximately 2300 miles round trip).   It was great to get away but it is nice to be home. Here are a few photos from the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens in Delray Beach, FL.  



A Reservation Warning

It took 2 hours, 6 phone calls, 3 companies, 1 manager and 6 customer service representatives.

I made hotel reservations for a 3 day business trip. I was provided the name and address of the hotel. I searched online to find the hotel phone number. A site came up with the hotel information, a phone number, and photos of the hotel exterior and a list of amenities. I called the number and was greeted with “Reservations”. I made arrangements for a three night stay.

The business trip was cut short and Tom informed the front desk he would be leaving a day early. The front desk informed him that he could check out but he would be charged for three nights. This is when I discovered I called a third-party reservation site and prepaid the stay. Their policy is no early checkout or cancellations.

I revisited the website where I found the phone number. At first glance, the site appears to be the official website of the hotel chain.

But it was not…

I was on the phone for over an hour trying to figure out the confusion. The third-party would only agree to credit my account if the hotel chain would agree. I spoke to several agents at the third-party reservation company, a hotel chain representative, a front desk clerk and the front desk clerk manager.

The most disturbing revelation from this ordeal…the agents from the third-party hotel reservation company are allowed to say they are from the actual hotel chain when asked directly because they are affiliates. This does not seem right to me….

I believe we are going to get a refund.

Lesson learned…

Road Trip Homework

It has been years since my sister and I went to a concert together. One of our first concerts we saw was in 1991…the original Lollapalooza concert. Lollapalooza is an all day concert event created by Jane’s Addition front man Perry Farrell. In 1992, we headed to Albany NY to see the second concert. It was our first official road trip. This was before cell phones, GPS and CD’s. We drove listening to cassettes, missed our exit and ended up somewhere in NJ.

We arrived in Albany the day before the concert and stayed in the worst motel ever. The bathroom was disgusting and there were old marshmallows under the bed. The hotel managers sat on lawn chairs outside the office. As bad at the accommodations were…it did not matter. The 1992 Lollapalooza concert had an amazing line up. Performing on the main stage were Lush, Pearl Jam, Jesus and the Mary Chain, Soundgarden, Ice Cube, Ministry and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

I have been to many concerts ranging from Pink Floyd, Garbage, Depeche Mode, Ozzy Ozbourne, U2, Guns N Roses and Disturbed. After my daughter was born, my concert list changed dramatically - The Wiggles, Cheetah Girls and Miley Cyrus to name a few.

This month, my sister and I are going on a road trip. We are going to see Pearl Jam at Madison Square Garden. My sister has been a fan since our 1992 Pearl Jam concert. She would attend every Pearl Jam show if she could. This will be my first Pearl Jam concert since 1992. I know the old songs but I have 18 years to catch up on. In preparation for the concert, Sis assigned me homework. She handed me CDs and told me to “Learn the words”. She calls or emails me with the first few lines of a song and wants me to finish it.

So far, I failed every pop quiz.