I think I am slowly emerging from the funk. I even took off Friday. Well, here's the real reason. Over the weekend, I figured I needed to deal with the whole catastrophe that is my life. Meaning, the Seattle trip. So I created an account on tripadvisor.com and posted about hostels. Yes, I've never stayed in one, but I figured, for $37/night plus the $2 fee to rent a lock, that can't be bad right? That is assuming I am going. After one text and a phone call message, I finally heard back from SA (self absorbed) and she said she would just pay me for my flight. Which is totally correct, she was the one that screwed me over, so she should pay up. Only, the catch is that she has to wait till Friday when she gets paid. Here's where the little voice in my head is saying what if she doesn't give you the money? Which makes me think that I should go. Yea, all by myself. L thinks that SA isn't stupid enough to waste an entire friendship over this...I hope she's right. My other friend thinks I should go either way, and if my friend pays up, great. If she doesn't, no biggie, since I've already gone. I would feel sorta bad if I got paid for a flight I took, but at the same time, this is the second time this person has flaked out on me...
Here's my running pro/con list...
Pros:
- I'll be spending time alone, which is what I've been wanting lately
- Gain the frequent flier miles
- Take a trip by myself, which I've never done before.
- I could stay in a hostel, which would also be a first or I could pony up a few more dollars and stay at the Moore Hotel.
- I will be spending more money, because I won't have the luxury of splitting costs with anyone.
- I need to find a place to stay like STAT, cuz we all know I like having a plan.
- I might be lonely.
- If I don't go, and I don't get the money from SA, I'll be screwed.
1 comment:
Personally, I LOVE staying in hostels. I've stayed in probably 2 dozen, and I've never had a horror story. That said, the quality is absolutely all over the place, and no two are alike. I was in Costa Rica last weekend (by myself :-) ), and I stayed a in a hostel that was more like the stereotypical romantic B&B you'd picture in a New England small town. I've also stayed in some that were more like the Boy Scout camps we stayed in when I was in Elementary and Middle School. (DISCLAIMER: I was never a Boy Scout, but I was in some school clubs that used Boy Scout Camps.) But if you go in with summer-camp expectations, and more focused on meeting new people and saving a few bucks than you are with luxury, you def won't be disappointed, and you might just fall in love with it.
BTW, did you see this article in the NYT? http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/04/19/travel/19hostels.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&pagewanted=print
If you want hostel pictures, lmk. :-)
That said, as much as I LOVE hostels, there are some insane hotel bargains on Priceline right now if you use the "name your own price" feature. I don't know if you've ever used it before, but with the Name Your Own Price, you enter a city, a neighborhood within a city, a star level, your dates, and the max you're willing to pay. (I chose 2.5 stars, or 2 if I'm having no luck.) Then, you enter your credit card number. If any hotel that meets your criteria is willing to accept your price bid, you automatically buy the room. Your card is charged, and then you find out what hotel you have. You can't cancel. If no hotels accept, you can change your criteria or wait 24 hours to try again.
The downside is that you don't know what you're paying for, but the upside is that you can get amazing bargains. I've used it successfully about 65 times, and I don't have a single complaint. I get a room 56% of the time--I keep track! Last month I had a 2 bedroom suite in a Marriott with free breakfast and dinner for $58/night. It was $350/night on Marriott.com. That's the exception, but I get 60% off a decent room at a name-brand hotel very frequently. It's great. The advantage to the hotel is that they can fill excess rooms without looking desperate, but they can still quote high rates to people who are dead-set on staying at that specific hotel.
lol, anyway, I'm sorry for talking your ear off. But I just get so excited about travel! lol.
Whatever you do, definitely go, and have a GREAT time! I totally want to visit Seattle; I'm jealous!
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