Walt Disney World in February is delightful. The crowds were very light. The weather was perfect, high 60’s to low 70’s, blue skies, not a cloud in the sky, perfect Chamber of Commerce weather. Of course we don’t know how long the perfect weather and small crowds will last, but this sure beats the fool out of snow and ice and layers of clothing. We and most of the other visitors were in shorts and tee shirts.

The most popular attraction in Walt Disney World is called “Soarin”. “Soarin” is in Epcot. Yesterday the wait was about forty minutes, which is great. Since this is our favorite attraction we have had waits much longer. The smart thing to do is to take the time to plan your day. What attractions would you like to visit today, get your Fastpass and come back at the designated time and walk right in. Beats the fool out of wasting the day standing in line!

We didn’t have reservations for lunch, so we chose to have a salad at the American pavilion in the World Showcase, which is a part of Epcot. Here again it was a very short wait with many tables available to us.

Another of the attractions we visited yesterday was the Land. We’re fascinated by the innovative ways that the folks at Walt Disney World and their partners are growing food. Tomatoes and melons from trees, huge fruit, and growing fruit and vegetables suspended in the air. Hydroponics is where you grow vegetables and fruit, without soil. This is another wonderful possibility to feed the world. There are aquaculture exhibits, growing fish including; sturgeon, bass, and catfish in tanks. The world presently grows thirty percent of our seafood on farms. 

During this economic slowdown Walt Disney World is offering terrific bargains on tickets to the four theme parks that make up Orlandos’ Walt Disney World. Best HotelsNow.com is also offering great rates on hotels in and around Walt Disney World. Rental cars are also available a reduced rates.

With the weather being great in the Orlando area, prices reduced, and easy availability why put that long awaited vacation on hold. Now is the time to start making those memories you and your family will cherish forever.

Daytona Beach Fl
The NASCAR racing season officially got rolling Saturday. The smell of gasoline and burning rubber was added to the salty smell of the Daytona Beach area. The ARCA race was run Saturday afternoon. As usual it was a wreck filled show with both veteran and newcomers spinning wildly on the two and a half mile track. The race boiled down to two eighteen year olds driving Joe Gibbs Racing prepared cars prepared in Charlotte, North Carolina.
James Buescher held off the sensational Joey Logano for the win.

 The race took longer than was expected, causing Logano to miss the drivers meeting for the Bud shootout, which was run later Saturday evening. This is Logano’s first full year driving in the top NASCAR series. That’s amazing, to think about. Eighteen years old and already a veteran of many years of racing, he’s taking over the driving duties of two time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart. Stewart is a native of Indiana and a past open wheel champion as well as a NASCAR winner.

Twenty eight cars took the field in the shootout, which turned out to be almost as wreck filled as the ARCA race. And these drivers are the elite of stock car drivers. They aren’t a bunch of eighteen year olds full of testosterone. Kevin Harvick, a California native won the race with a last lap move reminiscent of his win in the 2007 Daytona 500 in which he slid by Mark Martin on the last lap to take the victory.

Tony Stewart finished a very respectable third. This was his first race as the owner driver of a team that he started just recently. Stewart showed he has the power, handling, and smarts to win at Daytona.

It was a full weekend of racing at Daytona with qualifying for the Daytona 500 on Sunday afternoon. There are more cars trying to qualify for the Daytona 500 than any other race. To start this race pays two hundred fifty thousand dollars, a handsome amount for some of the cash strapped teams.

Sunday qualifying only sets the top two spots for next Sundays’ Daytona 500. The pole award was taken by New Jersey native Martin Truex Jr. followed closely by longtime Arkansas driver Mark Martin.

Thursday, the other drivers have their opportunity to qualify. This is determined by the finishing position in the dual races. Third through thirty nine will be set, but it’s a bit more complicated than that. There are thirty five drivers from last year that are locked into the race by virtue of their standing at the end of the year. Thursdays’ races are guaranteed to be a fun spectacle.

Tampa Florida
Today the hoopla came to an end. Thank goodness. Everyone in the world is not a professional football fan. The game was played in Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.  The Pittsburg Steelers won the game beating the Arizona Cardinals 27- 24.

The halftime show was a great show. Those New Jersey boys, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band put on a terrific show. And as usual the television commercials were outstanding. How a company justifies the cost of one is baffling, but they were for the most part entertaining.
Now that the forty third Super Bowl is over those who want to come to the Tampa area to visit can find great deals on hotels and rental cars. Contact Besthotelsnow.com for reservations.

Undoubtedly Tampa had nothing going on except the Super Bowl last week. The local news at 6:00 PM had nothing but information about the Super Bowl and a short weather forecast concentrating on what the temperature would be at game time. Maybe they work for the NFL. Nah! It must have been infomercials and I missed the disclaimer.

The Tampa area is a great area to visit. There are many things to see and do. Visit the docks at Tarpon Springs. You will see amazing sponges brought in by the local sponge divers. Visit the museum where you will see artifacts of the sponge industry such as ancient diving equipment. There are many seafood restaurants that serve freshly caught seafood in and around Tarpon Springs.

If you are more interested in seeing man made attractions such as thrilling rides along with a free beer during the day visit Tampa’s Busch Gardens. Busch Gardens has a wild animal park that most city zoos would be proud to have.  Busch Gardens is a wonderful place to spend a day while visiting Tampa.

A short drive from Tampa is Walt Disney World, the worlds’ number one vacation destination. There are four theme parks, two water parks and five championship golf courses along with approximately thirty five thousand hotel rooms ranging from modest to deluxe. There is something for all ages to enjoy. Another popular vacation destination is Universal Orlando. Universal draws enough visitors to be considered the third most popular vacation destination in the United States.

Thursday January 29, 2009 President Barack Obama and Timothy Geithner, the U. S. Treasury Secretary held a press conference in Washington D. C. One of the presidents’ comments was that it was irresponsible for the Wall Street bankers to give themselves bonuses while taking handouts from the government.

I agree whole heartedly. The only problem is he didn’t go far enough. When small businesses which are the majority of the companies in the United States, begin to run out of money and credit lines to run their businesses, they have to first tighten their belts. This includes layoffs, salary cuts, benefit cuts and the instructions from the boss telling the employees that are left not to spend a damn penny without his or her permission.

The management of the large publicly traded firms conveniently forget that they don’t own the businesses they run, they only work there. The top management in all companies are paid ridiculously high salaries. None of the top executives are worth what they are paid. NONE! They work for the stock holders. The stock holders should get the benefit of the good years when profits are high. That doesn’t happen. The management receives the benefit. There are very few companies that ever increase their dividend; they only cut it during slow periods. When a management team runs a company into the ground, then up and leaves the company, why are they paid millions in severance? It isn’t sound business and doesn’t make any sense at all.

When a company has to be told it shouldn’t take delivery on a fifty million dollar aircraft by the government that is bailing it out of financial difficulties, heads should roll. A complete new management team should be brought in and the old one summarily fired. No severance packages, no perks lasting far into the future or any of that wasteful spending that hurts the stock holders.

The board of directors is to blame for these shameful practices. They, in way too many cases, rubber stamp the wishes of the management team without a second thought to the effect on the stock holders whose money is at stake. They agree to outrageously high salaries for management, stock options, golden parachutes, and perks that cost untold millions of dollars that rightfully belong to the stock holders. They do all of this with complete immunity, never listening to a stock holder complaint about the above mentioned practices.

President Obama campaigned for change. Corporate governance will be a great place to begin. We have a new president and a new legislative body in Washington D.C. It is time for the politicians to make changes in the way American businesses are run. It is painfully obvious that the corporations are not going to do it themselves. They have the opportunity to do this now, before every person that purchases shares in a company are completely broke and asking for a handout.

Chicago, Illinois
Chicago, Illinois is now famous for being the home town of President Barack Obama. After a news conference yesterday in Washington D.C. it is also famous for being much better at handling a snowstorm than the people of Washington. Mr. Obama, our forty fourth president said that even his children couldn’t believe that their school was closed due to snow, adding that would never happen in Chicago. Of course all of these comments were made with a smile; he really is trying to make a good impression on the other powerful politicians.

Chicago is one of the premiere destinations in the world for visitors, attracting in excess of forty million per year for both pleasure and business. Chicago has the Lake Michigan waterfront; where one of the nicknames of the city comes from. Known as the windy city the wind blows across Lake Michigan, in the winter bringing fierce ice and snow storms to Chicago and the surrounding area. The Lake Michigan waterfront is also the focal point of the local nightlife which attracts both residents and out of town visitors. For hotel, rental car, and other travel needs contact Besthotelsnow.com.

Chicago is the largest city in the state of Illinois, although it is not the capitol of Illinois. That honor falls to Springfield. Chicago has approximately two point eight million residents with the Chicago metro area which encompasses parts of three states has approximately nine and one half million residents. In number of residents Chicago ranks third in the United States behind New York City, New York and Los Angeles, California.

Chicago is easy to get to with interstate highway systems, and Amtrak trains serving the city, along with many state highways. Chicago has one of the busiest airports in the world ranked second in number of visitors behind the Atlanta  Ga. airport. Seventy million plus passengers fly in and out of O’Hare annually.

Chicago is a professional sports town with a professional football team, two professional baseball teams, and a professional basketball team. The Chicago Bears is the NFL football team. The Bears have been a championship caliber team for countless years and have had such great players as Rex Grossman as their quarterback. Rex played for the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida before joining the Bears and leading them to the Super bowl under Coach Lovie Smith. Lovie Smith also coached the Tampa Bay Buccaneers while Tony Dungy was the head coach in Tampa. That was before his years in Indianapolis where he won the Super Bowl beating his old assistant coach and good friend, Smith. The Chicago Bulls NBA was also a championship team for many years while the great Michael Jordan was delighting the fans in Chicago. Today the Bulls have Joakim Noah trying hard to match the exploits of Jordan. Noah played college basketball at the University of Florida in Gainesville Florida. During his time at Florida he was instrumental in leading the Gators to back to back national chapionships in 2006 and 2007. The Chicago Cubs are one of America’s favorite teams. They play professional baseball at Wrigley field which was made famous by Harry Carey, longtime announcer. During the seventh inning stretch he would lead the fans in singing “Take me out to the ballgame”.
Chicago is a major financial center with the Chicago Stock exchange, Board of Options Exchange, and the Mercantile Exchange all located in Chicago. Chicago is also home to many Fortune 500 companies including; Boeing, Allstate, Baxter, Abbott Labs, and Armour and Co.

Blue Ridge Parkway
As you are sitting by your warm cozy fire watching the Super Bowl hoopla being broadcast from Tampa Florida are you wondering where to go on this years vacation?

Will it be the sea shore or some large expensive city with too many people and too much pollution?

Let us suggest the Blue ridge Parkway. This is some of the prettiest unspoiled mountain scenery in the world. The Blue ridge Parkway begins a little ways north of Cherokee North Carolina and meanders through mountains and valleys for four hundred sixty nine miles. Along the way you may visit recreation areas, lakes, streams, rivers and see plenty of wildlife.

Take Highway 441 north out of Cherokee, North Carolina and the entrance to the parkway will be on your right. It is clearly marked. If for some reason you are rubber necking and miss the entrance you will shortly enter the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Don’t worry about it, go with the flow, it must have been meant to be. Here you will find pull outs and great viewing areas. You will shortly understand why these mountains are called The Great Smoky Mountains. The mist hangs on the peaks and into the valleys, sometimes you have to wait for a breeze to clear the mist away. If you decide to continue on through the park you will come to Gatlinburg, Tennessee. From there it’s a short hop over to Pigeon Forge, Sevierville and Townsend, all in the beautiful state of Tennessee. All of these towns have lots of motels, restaurants and various entertainments. For reservations contact Besthotelsnow.com.

After a visit to Tennessee make a u turn and head back over the mountain to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Driving on the parkway is even more enjoyable because of the ban on commercial vehicles using the parkway. No eighteen wheelers to tailgate you as you enjoy the mountain views and wildlife.

The parkway has many campgrounds, along with an occasional motel. Restaurants, and snacks, along with gasoline are available, but don’t try to stretch your gas too far for the stations are a good distance apart.

The Blue Ridge Parkway has access roads that lead into some of the most charming towns and cities in North Carolina and Virginia. Some of these include in no particular order; Boone, NC, Asheville, N. C., Roanoke, Va., and Charlottesville, Va. Taking leisurely side trips to the towns and cities is what makes a delightful vacation. There are places just off the Parkway where you can dig for precious stones such as emeralds. These are the vacations that become the most memorable and you look back years from now and remember the fantastic time you had.

The Blue Ridge Parkway ends and the Skyline Drive continues on to its terminus at Front Royal Virginia ending a wonderful two day or two week adventure.

Tampa, Florida
Time is getting short. The excitement in the fans is building. What is it time for? The forty third Super Bowl! The NFL believes the super bowl is so important they should use Roman Numerals to remind the fans which one this is.

Restaurants and bars are crowded with patrons who have come to Tampa to enjoy an hour of football. Hotel rooms are hard to find. Contact Besthotelsnow.com for reservations.

Of course this football game will be hyped and discussed for the rest of the week. On Sunday television coverage begins at 12:00 noon. Kickoff is supposed to be at 6:00PM. It’ll never happen. The true couch potato can spend the entire day watching featured players and coaches talk about what a great season it’s been and how pleased they are to have the opportunity to be in Tampa to play in the ultimate football game. If you start watching at noon you will be so sick of that mess that you’ll probably skip the game. Read a book, play with the kids, do something productive such as taking a long nap.

If you are in Tampa for the game take the time to see the sights of the city and the surrounding countryside. The game doesn’t begin until Sunday evening, you have lots of time.

Tacoma Washington
Tacoma Washington is on Washington’s’ Puget Sound thirty two miles south of Seattle and fifty eight miles northwest of Mount Ranier National Park. Tacoma is the third largest city in the state of Washington with an estimated population of approximately two hundred thousand residents.

For visitors to Tacoma there are plenty of hotels, motels, restaurants to please any budget. Contact Besthotelsnow.com for your hotel reservations and rental car needs.

The Port of Tacoma is a long time center of international trade on the Pacific coast of the United States.

Mount Ranier National Park is a popular destination for visitors from all over the world. Mount Ranier is an active volcano that climbs over fourteen thousand feet into the air. Mount Ranier is a glacier lover’s paradise. The mountain has more glaciers than any mountain in the lower forty eight states. Believe it or not as many as twelve thousand climbers attempt to reach the summit each year.

For those not quite that adventurous you can go hiking, do nature photography or perhaps camping while in mount Ranier National Park. Popular winter sports include snowshoeing and cross country skiing.

Tacoma Washington is a wonderful base for you to explore the beauty of the state of Washington. Mount Ranier National Park glaciers are probably the largest draw to the park, along with the secret wish to see a volcano erupt harmlessly. There is so much more to see and enjoy such as alpine wild flowers, and numerous species of wildlife.

Los Angeles California
Los Angeles and the greater Los Angeles Area is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. With many great hotels, motels, attractions, and restaurants please contact Besthotelsnow.com for your hotel, rental car, and airline reservations.

What comes to mind when you think of Los Angeles? Known worldwide as L.A. and the city of angels Los Angeles is the Promised Land for many people looking to make it big in the entertainment industry. With two thirds of the movie production of the world coming from the L.A. area, would be stars and starlets flock here to make their dreams of stardom come true. For millions more the greater Los Angeles area offers an opportunity for employment and to start new businesses that is not available to them in their home country.

Los Angeles is the largest city in California with 3.8 million residents with the metro area population estimated to be almost thirteen million residents. Los Angeles attracts immigrants from all over the world looking for their piece of the American dream.

Los Angeles is a world center for business, international trade, entertainment, culture, media, fashion, science, technology, and education. L.A. leads the world in producing the entertainment of today not only is it the leader in producing motion pictures; it is also the leader in video games, television programming, and recorded music.

Los Angeles is served by many interstate and state highways along with the busiest airport in the world. LAX has been the subject of more movie chase scenes than any airport in the world.
Some of the famous landmarks in the metro Los Angeles area are Grumans’ Chinese Theatre, the Hollywood bowl, L.A. Memorial coliseum, and the Capitol Records Building. Probably the most famous of all is the Hollywood sign made of huge letters and anchored to a hill in Hollywood.

The University of Southern California or USC as its known in the sports world is the largest private sector employer. USC is a perennial contender for the national championship in college football. USC has had the distinction of turning out some of the most famous running backs to go on to stardom in the NFL.

Los Angeles is a land of sunshine, oil wells, orange groves beaches, mountains, famous attractions, and earthquakes. Wildfires seem to be an annual occurrence in the L.A. area. Mudslides are another disaster that hits the area every year. Despite all of these draw backs the L.A. area is one of the most popular destinations in the world. Tourists and immigrants alike can’t wait to relocate to Los Angeles.

Daytona Beach, Florida
The Rolex Twenty Four at Daytona officially kicked off the racing season with David Donohue winning the super bowl of Grand Am Racing. Forty years after his father won this prestigious race David did the same by beating Juan Pablo Montoya and Joad Barbosa to the checkered flag. Max Angelelli finished a distant fourth the only other car on the lead lap.

David Donohue was driving a Porsche sponsored by Brumos Porsche in Jacksonville Florida. This was the first win for Brumos since 1978. Donohue and team spoiled Ganassi racings’ bid to win four Twenty Four of Daytona races in a row. Donohue won with worn out Pirelli racing tires, low on gas, and with some of the rear bodywork flapping in the wind. After the last pit stop it was a four car race with Juan Pablo Montoya leading the Daytona Prototype cars onto the track in first place. For roughly ten laps the top four cars were nose to tail, and then Donohue showed the superior power of his Porsche and managed to get around Montoya who was driving a Lexus. The Porsche of Donohue then led the last ten laps of the race, although he couldn’t put a lot of distance between his car and Montoya. If Donohue would have made any kind of bobble Montoya was close enough to pass for the win.

This is the first race of the Grand Am Series in 2009 and kicks off with arguably the most prestigious race of the year. Some drivers refer to this race as their Super Bowl. Donohue joins former champions such as his father Phil Donohue, A.J. Foyt, Juan Pablo Montoya, and Scott Pruitt to name just a few of the past winners.

The fans were treated to great racing and wonderful weather. The temperature in Daytona Beach was in the mid 70’s with clear skies, sunshine and hardly a breeze. Come down to Florida and join in the fun for the remainder of Speed Weeks in Daytona Beach.