Archive for the ‘Leisure’ Category

If you like a drink out in the open air where you won’t run afoul of local drinking ordinances, then you may wish to avoid most of the United States; however, there are a few places where this combination of alcohol and fresh air are encouraged: Montana, Missouri, Texas, Georgia, Louisiana, and – last, but not least – Nevada, all contain places which allow open-air drinking. Even so, it’s best to apprise yourself of the different areas so you won’t have a need to find an attorney to tutor you in matters such as Nevada Law.

Often, most states forbid possession or consumption of an open container of alcohol in a public place, namely the street. While police in college towns may look away during “tailgate parties” at football games, it’s best not to take a chance. Instead, travel to six states where open containers are legal.

In Savannah, Georgia, it’s permissible to drink one alcoholic beverage in an open plastic container in the Savannah Historic District (but no more than 16 ounces!); however, this is the only area in Savannah where it’s legal.

You might try Butte, Montana, which also doesn’t have an open container ordinance. Drinking in this fashion is allowed throughout the city, but the city does frown on open containers in vehicles. That’s not legal, but once you’re out of the car, you’re safe.

In Kansas City, Missouri, specifically the Power & Light District, a special Missouri state law allows you to get around the city’s laws against open containers, which allows you to possess and consume the beverages in an open plastic container. But be clear on this point: It’s allowed only in that area, and nowhere else in the city.

In New Orleans, Louisiana, you’ll find you may also drink and hold an alcoholic beverage as you roam the city’s iconic bars, such as might be found on Bourbon Street. The drinks just have to be in an open plastic container. In most of the cases cited so far, the drinks are allowed because the states have no public open container law. When that happens, the laws are up to the individual city.

In Fredericksburg, Texas, a small German town, you can drink in open containers in the shopping district of Main Street; however, the drinks are limited to beer or wine. Similar to Fredericksburg’s Main Street and New Orleans French Quarter, Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee is exempt.

The best place, though, to drink openly is in Nevada on the Las Vegas Strip. Unlike any other place, even in Nevada, city law allows you to possess and consume any alcoholic beverage on the street in an open container anytime during the year. The restriction? The container must be plastic for 4th of July and New Year’s Eve (and other days considered special events). Open containers are allowed in the rest of Las Vegas, too, but they’re restricted during some times of the year – except for the Strip, so be sure to check the times in case you roam off the Strip and find yourself in need of a Las Vegas lawyer.

Luxury in New York

Author: Sam

     A trip to the big apple calls for the “works”. If you are going to take the time to visit New York then, you have to as the saying says, “go big or go home”. New York City is full of life and to get the full experience you must experience everything.


     First are your hotel accommodations, you will want to stay in a nice hotel as it will only serve to heighten your enjoyment. Let’s be honest, who wants to stay in a bargain motel in NYC? The Distrikt is a New York boutique resort and is a modern embodiment of all of the New York districts. It will give you the feel the different districts in an upscale atmosphere. The hotel is located in the heart of Manhattan and is walking distance from Times Square.


     New York is known as one of the culinary capitals of the world and you will definitely want the full culinary experience. From the hot dog carts to the five star restaurants you will want to try a little bit of everything. One of the best restaurants in New York is Marea, which offers a tasting menu that is absolutely delicious. The menu is 6 courses of small morsels to tantalize your taste buds yet fill your tummy. You will also want to stop at one of the local hot dog carts for an authentic New York dog.
     While you are in New York you will obviously want to visit the touristy sites such as Central Park and Times Square but one thing you will not want to miss out on is the entertainment. Broadway is the best known theatrical stage in the United States, so why not take advantage of your location and see a show.
     New York is the city that never sleeps and the city has so much to offer. Visiting New York should be a time to treat yourself and to experience all of the luxury of NYC.

Once you actually arrive in Vegas it can be a little overwhelming in visual and auditory stimulation. There is something known as excitement overload that can leave tourists a bit frozen in movement and at a complete loss of decision making capacity due to the amount of choices. And they’re all so incredibly exciting and attractive. For this reason, it can be helpful to have a predetermined priority list, schedule or other plan of attack before you arrive at the glittery gates. Or at least bring a friend who can settle you into a comfortable chair in front of your favorite slot machine.

Speaking of slot machines, there are a number of them in the casinos in Vegas, and many people are drawn to them without really understanding how they work or how to play them. A variety of different games can be played on the slot machines, including different poker games.

Texas Holdem’ , which is the most popularly played poker game, is available on machines as is the standard five card draw. Another popular electronic version of a table game is blackjack . And it’s actually possible to play with other players at separate kiosks representing different places at a single table.

The standard or traditional favorite machines that match cherries and other items are one of the ongoing preferred choices for many people. And some of the more experienced, or even daring, players will frequently play more than one machine at a time. Also, keep in mind that some of the best Las Vegas deals can include different options for games and sometimes great deals for, or free options on, buffets.

It’s funny how many people dread an invitation to a costume party. While there are some people who are thrilled at every opportunity to recreate themselves, most see a costume party as a chore that they have to endure in the hopes of having a good time. These are the people who are responsible for the large number of cookie cutter costumes that show up at any party. They are completely missing the point of the event.

Costumes are about expressing hidden or recessed parts of one’s psyche. They are an opportunity for someone to show the world, or at least all their friends, that they have an interest, passion, or quirk that is generally kept out of sight. Maybe it’s overshadowed by other parts of their personality or maybe it’s just a minor interest that they don’t have time to share, but putting on a Beatles Costumes is the perfect way to express an unknown love for the Fab Five.

Some people even choose to express the opposite of themselves in order to understand themselves better. This is why villain and serial killer costumes can be popular. No one is going to think someone is identifying with Freddy Krueger, but maybe Freddy will learn something about his own ability to mesmerize or intimidate people that he didn’t know he had.

Copenhagen, Denmark, a beautiful, progressive and an extremely interesting place to visit. A place that will constantly gives tourists a reason to keep coming back year after year. Copenhagen is in the Northern part of Europe, Sweden is its neighbor and it is Denmark’s capital city. Copenhagen has a low-profile when it comes to international notoriety, but that hasn’t stopped its growth in population, its growing cutting edge, state-of-the-art businesses and its ever increasing prominence with the leisure crowd. A majority of Copenhagen hotels report bookings increasing every year.

There are many reasons for Copenhagen’s growth in population and in the tourist industry, such as ‘Stroget’, the world’s longest pedestrian mall , which runs through the city’s center between Kongens Nyton and Radhuspladsen. The former is the square at the head of the Nyhavn Canal. There are many expensive and famous stores that reside along this pedestrian mall, like the Royal Copenhagen Porcelain Manufacturer, the Illums Bolighus and the Magasin du Nord. Another attraction is the Carlsberg Brewery, which produces 3 million bottles of beer every day. The brewery offers a free 90-minute tour and takes visitors through the brew house and around the lines of production, at the end, the brewery gives its visitors a beer party where they’ll be able to taste many samples of beer. The Thorvaldsen Museum, which has the biggest collection of Bertel Throvaldsen’s sculptures, reliefs and busts, along with a stunning collection of large artwork acquired by Thorvaldsen himself, dating before the 1800s. Or, a majority of visitors enjoy the manicured beauty of the Tivoli Gardens , where they delight in the sea of tulips and roses, frolic around the water fountains or the peaceful, serene lake dotted with swans and ducks. There’s even live entertainment most nights, ranging from musical concerts to theater performances.

Copenhagen isn’t as well-known a destination as its more known for its alluring, cosmopolitan village-like charm, for its Scandinavian easy-going, clean and fun city with a lot of character and a promise to be the best-kept secret in all of Europe.

If you’ve gone to the trouble to rent a room in one of the boutique hotels in New York City, arranged for theater tickets on Broadway, even looked into a few tours of the city’s sights, all you may have left to worry about is food.  Where to eat?  Obviously, New York is one of the great places in the world to find food; there are restaurants on every corner, many of which are already categorized by price, by cuisine, by service, and so on.  But if you want to do something unique, why not try a food tour?

Maybe it’s not surprising that in a city that offers everything from tours of the Statue of Liberty to ghosts, that food is included.  There’s several options here.  Foods of New York Tours is just one of them.  With this company, you’ll find guides who are friendly and knowledgeable, who will take you around to the best culinary treats of New York while walking through the streets.  These tours last from two to three hours and are conducted weekdays and weekends.  You might like to try an East Village Food Tasting and Cultural Tour, or a Taste of Chinatown.  How about an Exotic Southeast Asian Tour.  There’s even a Multicultural Wine and Beer Tour, and, for the health conscious among us, a Vegetarian Tour.

Other companies also offer up food tours, which you can easily look up, such as the Food on Foot Tours.  Many food tours are about gourmet offerings; Food on Foot is about good but inexpensive food.  It’s a highly rated attraction that combines a walking tour with some subway travel to allow you to find the variety possible in the East Village, a tour called the Midtown Mix, and its world famous Sweet Tooth Tours.  Each one of the places have included an option for vegetarians, so no one’s left out.  it’s a great way to see New York and get something to eat at the same time

A dip in the hot tub, a dip in the pool.  A dip in the pool, a dip in the hot tub.  When I first discovered how great this felt for my body, I had no idea that it was a scientifically proven fact, that this was a form of therapy, or hydrotherapy, that was and is still now, a well known practice in the medical realm, for aiding the body in recuperating, from injury or from stress and anxiety.  I just knew at that time, that it felt good, that it was energizing, and kind of strange feeling.  My sister knew it as well.  We were young kids in the 1970′s, during a time when the city of Phoenix experienced torrential flooding and electrical storms during the monsoon season.  A time when the Book Mobile, a Winnebago library on wheels would park on the corner.

I had recently twisted my ankle, but that element of the story will surface later.  What was important to us at the time, was the excitement of swimming during an electrical storm.  The rain was a fallin’ and the lightening was a flashin’, but we didn’t know then what we do know now, and that is–electricity and water do not mix.  So we would jump into the spa, like the ones found at choosehottubsdirect.com, then we would jump into the pool, hot and cold, hot and cold.  We did this for about an hour or so, and then mom came home from work.  She came out back through the Arcadia door, yelling a stream of words we have yet to understand, but we got it—we were in trouble.

We didn’t know about the hazards.  We went for it because it was fun.  It was different.  I, myself, didn’t know the benefits of the hot and cold water, and how it would actually help my ankle at the time.  Over the years, both ankles have been severely damaged in different ways, and the trainers and the doctors treated the injuries in much the same manner, ice water then hot water, and so forth.  Having a hot tub spa and a pool in your own back yard, well–it’s fun.  It’s good.  And it’s healthy.  Just watch out for mom, if you happen to be swimming during an electrical storm with your sister.

Hot tubs come in various sizes and shapes and include a diverse selection of components and features that can add to luxury and benefits of the item. They also vary a great deal in price and it’s important to consider budget requirements before initiation the investment. With these diverse aspects in mind, it’s also interesting to know that most hot tubs have much in common and are based on only a couple of styles, the wood constructed soaking models and the plastic based spa models. These are not mutually exclusive and developments in technology and design features have expanded these two primary styles and they are often blurred in functions and options offered. The two style distinctions were more exact and common in the last 70s and 80s when the wood tubs were extremely common and popular. Due to the more simple and less costly construction aspect of the single unit tubs, they are now the more popular option. Choosehottubsdirect.com can explain the style and set up features of various hot tubs and assist individuals in making the perfect decision for their home spa.

Two of the common heating systems for hot tubs are those that are powered by electricity and those that are natural gas heated. There are other heating elements for tubs and these include wood fired heaters and the ultra environmentally friendly solar heater versions. Regardless of the style heating system used in a hot tub, keeping the water clean and sanitized is an extremely important maintenance feature. Some spa systems make this easier come in what is known as low maintenance models. These will often include a built in water filtration and ionization system that helps greatly in keeping the water sanitized. Sometimes the sophisticated digital control system can help to test the water and keep it at safe and clean levels and alert the owners to necessary maintenance needs. This is an extremely beneficial feature in some of the contemporary hot tub models.

Walking into your house and knowing that in a few moments you’ll be soaking in your very own spa is a wonderful feeling that never diminishes.  Putting a portable spa in your yard means that you’ve decided to make pleasure and relaxation one of your top priorities.  The needs of your family are more important than the needs of the outside world, and there is time to calm down, every day.  Keep in mind that other people are very drawn to those who understand how to live the good life, so you may find yourself listening to a lot of old friends inviting themselves over.  Portable spas can make entertaining groups rather easy, and it’s an excellent way to get conversations started.

The spa seems like a modern convenience, and something that belongs to our time in the history of the human race, but actually the roots are very deep.  The tradition of the bath goes back for centuries, and across cultures.  When speaking of baths in antiquity, it is probably more accurate to say they were a bit more like our spas than our notion of a bathtub.  Famous baths in Rome were places where people would gather to enjoy the healthy physical and social benefits of spending time in the water together.  Some of the most elaborate baths belong to Islamic culture, where there is a blend of the Roman ideas with the earlier Asian traditions to make a fascinating ritual with amazing architecture.

There are several houses in traditional Islamic baths, typically three, with varying degrees of water, from warm to hot.  There was also typically a container of cool water.  For the bathers, moving from one temperature to another was supposed to have healing qualities and was excellent for maintaining cleanliness.  Contemporary science suggests that these ideas were all indeed correct, and the old notions of bathing are very similar to our own.  It is a sort of double luxury, then, to have a spa with all the technologies of today, blended with ideas that go back for centuries.