When I first wrote about this imaginary trip, the issue I had was combining my Delta points into one account so I would have enough miles. Months later, Delta finally did and guess what? The 80k flight is still available from SEA to AMS to JRO. At least that’s what Delta’s website says until I tried to book online over and over again. I called Delta in Hong Kong, Delta in Singapore, Delta in Tikrit and ended up with the same apologies from agents that said that the website is not accurate.
I wish I could speak to the Delta CEO and look him straight in the eye and tell him what a cheap, lying, no good, rotten, far flushing, snake licking, dirt eating, inbreed, overstuffed, ignorant, blood sucking, dog kissing, brainless, dickless, hopeless, heartless, fat assed, bug eyed, stiff legged, spotty lipped, worm headed, sack of monkey shit he is!!! Halleluah!! Holy shit!! Where’s the Tylenol?? Where’s my flight!?
Mt. Kilimanjaro? Delta Points? Forget About It
TPOL’s CFB Playoff Selection
Let the madness ensue. Tomorrow Condaleeza Rice and other randoms tell us who the top four teams in college football are.
Let’s start with who should be in without question.
1. Alabama: No need for an explanation.
2. Clemson: They repeated as ACC champs and lost on a last second FG to Pitt because of questionable play calling.
3. & 4.
I just heard Kirk Herbstreet make the case that Penn State should jump over Washington for the 4th spot. As a Michigan fan, I will say that makes absolutely no sense. Michigan destroyed Penn State and Penn State squeaked by Ohio State on a lucky blocked FG. Washington deserves to remain in the playoffs.
This leaves one spot. And if we are going on which team is the best out of Penn State, Ohio State, and Michigan, I can say with a straight face that Michigan should be in. They do not deserve to be in as Ohio State beat them but under the current playoff system they have the strongest case. I make the same argument for Michigan being in as I did for Washington. Michigan killed Penn State and OSU lost to them. Michigan could’ve, should’ve, would’ve beat OSU but they executed poorly, were the victim of questionable refeering, and lost on the road in Columbus, a place they have not won at since 2000. And they lost in double OT by a matter of inches.
In fairness, the rankings should be Alabama, Clemson, Washington, Ohio State. However, under the current system, which ranks the four best teams, Michigan should take the final spot.
Who’s in? Michigan should be.
#GoBlue #FactsOnly
Travel Advice: Mistakes in Medellin
The Mistakes in Medellin Post is part of The Quest Around The Globe Trip Report which covers the following places:
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Grand Cayman
- Cartagena, Colombia
- Medellin, Colombia
- Miami, Florida
- Houston, Texas
- Moscow, Russia
- St. Petersburg, Russia
- Ayia Napa, Cyprus
- Amman, Jordan
- Abu Dhabi, UAE
- New York, New York
Vacations are supposed to be fun. Drama should be left at home. My time in Medellin was anything but drama free. A night of aguardiente resulted in losing my phone and more importantly all of the photos from Cartagena and Medellin that I use to write trip reports. In my 34 years, I have never lost my phone so I had to take a moment to reflect on this incident. The hassle of canceling the phone, getting a new phone, protecting my data, and having no way to communicate was more than an inconvenience. I also lost my ID and credit cards which was aggravating. I had many fraudulent charges and had to cancel the cards. The worst part was having to set up auto pay again on my bills and the headaches that come from that process. I write this disclaimer to warn others who may get too excited while traveling as a reminder to stay safe and to be aware. It does not matter if you’ve traveled to 80 countries or this is your first time leaving the country. Danger is lurking around the corner. On a lighter note, the people who recovered my Blackberry Passport did not realize that my photos automatically sync to DropBox. Before wiping and disconnecting my phone, there were plenty of photos of them taking selfies with guns. And now back to the fun.
Guns & Butter: Cartagena Travel Guide
The Cartagena Colombia Travel Guide is part of the Quest Around The Globe Trip Report which covers the following places:
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Grand Cayman
- Cartagena, Colombia
- Medellin, Colombia
- Miami, Florida
- Houston, Texas
- Moscow, Russia
- St. Petersburg, Russia
- Ayia Napa, Cyprus
- Amman, Jordan
- Abu Dhabi, UAE
- New York, New York
The Guns & Butter methodology:
- A trip is composed of two factors: Labor And Lazy.
- Anything on the line (Production Possibilities Frontier for my fellow economists) is an efficient use of your time depending on your tastes and preferences.
- Anything inside the line is inefficient as should be avoided.
- Anything outside is aspirational but may be impossible to do given the constraints of time and resources.
- The opportunity cost (what is given up) for relaxing and being Lazy is gained by being adventurous in the form of Labor and vice versa.
Unlike my Grand Cayman Travel Guide, the Cartagena Travel Guide is more difficult to write for two reasons: 1) There is so much to do in Cartagena 2) Both times I went to Colombia, Aguardiente played a pivotal role in derailing my plans. With that, let’s start with the most labor intensive activity: a night with aguardiente.
Labor: Aguardiente
What is aguardiente? It is the devil’s drink. It is a local concoction similar to Middle Eastern Arak, Bali Arak, Greek Ouzo, Chinese Baijiu, Korean Soju, or Romanov Sambuca. Nothing good comes from drinking this magical potion. Like the other drinks on the list, aguardiente costs next to nothing to buy. The price is paid the day after.
My first run in with aguar was when I visited Cartagena for the New Years celebration in December of 2010. After a night out, my idiot friend, under the influence of aguardiente, thought it best to cut our celebration in Colombia short and head to Bocas del Toro, Panama the 29th day of December. According to the time stamp of this photo, that decision was made at 6:30AM. Long story short, we took a flight on the sunniest day from Cartagena to Panama City, followed by a ten hour hell bus to the port in Bocas, then a boat to the archipelago, only to find disgusting hostels and rainy weather. The next day we took the first flight out of there and spent an unmemorable NYE in Panama City, Panama.
Buckeyes Wolverines: Fourth & Short Trip Report Recap
This is the recap of the Trip Report: Buckeyes Wolverines 2016 which covers the following places:
Points are best used to attend sporting events that otherwise would be cost prohibitive. Weeks before the Michigan OSU game, I bought tickets from StubHub and prepped for a victory over our foe. Alas, we lost off of bad execution and questionable refereeing but at least I have this trip report to show for it. Here is a summary of how it all went down, one link at a time:
Michigan Vs Ohio State: Points With A Purpose
Michigan Ohio State: A Case Study in Ticket Scalping
Sheraton Columbus: Friendly Refuge For Wolverines
The Game: A Wolverine’s Guide For Surviving Columbus
Buckeye Pho: Something I Actually Like In Ohio
Do Not Disturb: Why Is The Sign Required?
Sahara Restaurant Sterling Heights, MI: Real Arabic Food
Sahara Restaurant Sterling Heights, MI: Real Arabic Food
The Sahara Restaurant Review is part of the Trip Report: Buckeyes Wolverines 2016 which covers the following places:
Getting There: Sahara has two locations. One in Sterling Heights and one in Oak Park.
I’ve written about the best places to get kebab and the best gyros in Athens, Greece. While both are delicious, nothing compares to real Arabic food. Absent a trip to Egypt for molokhia, Jordan for mansaf, or grandma’s house for dolma, it is very difficult to find restaurants that serve authentic Middle Eastern cuisine. One of the better options in Michigan is Sahara. Atmosphere I was disappointed with the ambiance of the restaurant. The lights were too bright and they were playing top forty music instead of Arabic music. Pickles And Bread The Arabic pickles (turshee) were delicious. And the bread (khubooz) was freshly made in a fire stove. Warning: Do not get full off of the bread. Mezze Those who have flown Emirates first have probably tried Arabic mezze. Mezze is an assortment of Arabic appetizers including dolma, hummus, tubboli, fattoush, baba ghanoush, and falafel. At Sahara, the mezze is enough for a group of five. I really liked the falafel and the hummus.
<==Back to Hyatt Place Auburn Hills – Onto The Trip Report Recap==>
Hyatt Place Detroit Auburn Hills: It’s Not In Detroit
The Hyatt Place Detroit Auburn Hills Hotel Review is part of the Trip Report: Buckeyes Wolverines 2016 which covers the following places:
Getting There: The hotel is not in Detroit and Detroit Metropolitan Airport also isn’t in Detroit. It takes 45 minutes to get to the airport from the hotel.
I’m from Michigan so I know that Auburn Hills is not near Detroit. Downtown Detroit is forty-five minutes away. The closest affiliation Auburn Hills has with Detroit is my beloved Pistons who, incidentally, are leaving Auburn Hills for Detroit next year. Like my Hyatt Place Cleveland Crocker Park Review, I am writing this one in the unlikely event that a points enthusiast ends up mid Michigan and is looking for a cheap, reliable points option.
![Hyatt Place [not] Detroit Auburn Hills](https://thepointsoflife.boardingarea.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/2016-11-30-11.01.02.jpg)
<==Back to ‘Do Not Disturb’ – Onto Sahara Arabic Restaurant==>
Hyatt Place Cleveland Crocker Park: Another American Strip Mall
The Hyatt Place Cleveland Crocker Park Hotel Review is part of the Trip Report: Buckeyes Wolverines 2016 which covers the following places:
I’ll keep this hotel review short and sweet. On the way to see Michigan beat the Buckeyes by stopping them short of the line to gain, I had Thanksgiving in Cleveland. This review is out of order because it’s yet another Hyatt Place review in my quest to requalify for Diamond.
Buckeye Pho: Something I Actually Like In Ohio
The Buckeye Pho Restaurant Review is part of the Trip Report: Buckeyes Wolverines 2016 which covers the following places:
So we lost the game after a tremendous time in Columbus. That doesn’t mean that I shouldn’t treat myself to some yummy pho. After awful, deplorable, disgusting pho in New York time and time and time again, I was beginning to think that I didn’t like this perfect soup. That was before I went to Buckeye Pho and discovered that our friends to the South do something even better than beat us year in and year out. They make great pho.
<==Back to Surviving the Game – Onto Hyatt Place Cleveland==>
The Game: A Wolverine’s Guide For Surviving Columbus
The Wolverine Survival Guide is part of the Trip Report: Buckeyes Wolverines 2016 which covers the following places:
What do you do in a city where everyone hates you? Do you cower and not wear your alma mater’s colors? Do you say, “May the best team win?” Or do you go full monty and floss your Michigan gear from head to toe? Guess which one I did?
The City
Columbus is a great town and the Sheraton Columbus was a great refuge for Wolverines looking for proximity to the game and the bar scene while being far enough away from the mayhem.Day One: Food & Drink
Condado’s Tacos The band of mighty Wolverines braved the empty streets of downtown Columbus and headed to Condado’s Tacos for some fuel for the long evening ahead of us. It was happy hour so I ordered a margarita but quickly switched to Don Julio as the margarita was essentially all sour mix. While I enjoyed the atmosphere, I thought the food was terrible. The restaurant provides a list of taco ingredients and encourages patrons to build their own. Why give people the opportunity to mess up one of the world’s most perfect treats? This do it yourself style became a theme of the trip as we also went to another awful place, Blaze Pizza, for the worst pizza next to Seychelles, that I have ever experienced.
Day 2: The Game
This is what we came for. But before we went to the Horseshoe, a tailgate was in order. Big Bar There’s absolutely no point in going to home games. I realized this after walking into a bar packed with Buckeye fans and having drinks with the enemy. To be perfectly honest, the people were great and hospitable. Initially, I was scared that I would be assaulted, spat on, or shunned but the opposite happened. All we did was make friends.
Day 3
The Hangover The hangover the next day was not from drinking but from losing to a team that Michigan should have beat. I packed up my stuff, checked out of the hotel, and readied myself for the drive back to Michigan. But first, I thought I would stop off for some Buckeye Pho after I had great thin crust Donato’s pizza in bed.
<==Back to Sheraton Columbus – Onto Hyatt Place Cleveland Hotel Review==>
