| Rotary Trips Emails Western Trip Disney Trip (Done) Eastern Trip (Done) Newest Emails at the Top |
| Western Trip Emails May 15 We have sent the rooming lists to the hotel on Friday (which is why I didn't answer a lot of your emails about rooming changes... too late). The rooms will be fine, trrrruusssttt meee. There are 96 students on the trip right now and it's probably filled. I may be able to squeeze two more students if I have to. Remember all your tickets are issued except for 4 students whose money we are awaiting. Those will be issued as soon as they arrive. Remember this one thing. GET TO THE AIRPORT AT LEAST TWO HOURS BEFORE FLIGHT TIME. Time and airplanes wait for no man or woman. TSA likes to hold people up in security, especially people with foreign accents, which most of your qualify for....especially the Australian. Wear shoes which are easy to remove when you flight. Anything metal shows up in their detector. Also if you were setting off fire crackers or shooting guns you may have a problem going through their sniffing equipment. It doesn't like gun powder. The Western Trip has one day where we drive all day, stopping at the end. It's from Fallon NV to Jerome ID. It's a long day where we stop and visit places like Winnemuca NV (home of a sizable Basque community) and Elko NV (named after the animal by a railroad president who liked animals). Not an exciting day, but the scenery is quite beautiful. That part of the USA has been called the loneliest part of the USA. Something to look forward to. We usually see a lot of movies that day. We do stop at Temple Square in Salt Lake City NV and do a tour of what could be called the Mormon Vatican. The students who do our tours are from all over the world and they are actually part of a mission all Mormons must do when they are 18. Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney is a Mormon and graduated from Bingham Young University, right near our hotel that night in Provo. Temple Square is beautiful and clean. It is also the site of the best genealogical center in the world. Chances are they could do your family tree pretty quickly, no matter where you live in the world. None of the chaperones are Mormon and we aren't selling Mormonism, but its a chance to see a very relevant place. Salt Lake is named after the Great Salt Lake, an inland sea with has no fish life except brine shrimp. We went to visit it last year and it really smelled bad, so we aren't going to do it this year. My favorite part of this day is our hotel is across the highway from a great shopping mall. Chaperone News: Christine O'Donnell, our chaperones from Eastern and Disney trip just completed her Masters Degree in Library science and is in Disney World to celebrate. Told you she was a Disney Addict. Youngest Chaperone is Greg Miller, oldest chaperone is Jack Young. Three chaperones are over 60, one is in her 40s, another in his 30s (for one more week after the trip), three are in their 20s. May 14 Make sure you check out and join the Trip Facebook Page, https://www.facebook.com/groups/119739031483098/ We put a lot of information and you can share pictures and ideas on that web site. Remember on the western trip that it is longer than the other trips. We are on the road 14 days and very active everyday. Each year a lot of people get sick on the trip because they exhaust themselves. Make sure you get plenty of sleep on the trip. We have you in your rooms by 10pm every night. We leave in the morning at 7:30am every day so you will have to get up around 6:00 am if you are eating breakfast. Drink lots of water, and eat healthy food. You will have opportunity to shop at some supermarkets for snacks and lunches. It is a tiring trip. It's amazing what a family this trip becomes over the two weeks. Students who went on it 13 years ago are still close. Several have married, a few have gone into business together and most have remained friends. The idea is to try to get to know everyone. By being open and friendly to everyone, you will make some amazing friendships. One of the reasons we push everyone to speak English is so you can all communicate. Students who only talk in their own language don't made friends and often are avoided by other students. When you see someone speaking a language you don't understand, it's natural for you to think they are talking about you. That makes people uncomfortable. We have the English rule because year after year students ask us to enforce it. Almost every year exchange students get sent home because they go to drunken graduation or end of year parties. Be careful and remember you have the best trip you'll ever take in your life waiting for you June 14. Don't blow you amazing accomplishment and the last two weeks of fun. Make smart decisions. Ipod/MP3 Players. Make sure you start getting your playlist ready for the trip. Got to have at least 5 California songs (including LA .....Red Hot Chili Peppers, LMFAQ, Motley Crue,Buena Vista Social Club; San Francisco music.... Grateful Dead, Scott Mackenzie, Janet Joplin, Colbie Caillat ). Try out some Western Songs from the Country and Western genre for Cowboy Country like Dwight Yoakum or Wilie Nelson or folk like John Denver or Byrds or Bob Dylan. Mood music for the desert..... Aaron Copeland, Eagles, Chingon, (I Iike Bacilos or Mano Chao). When we are in Grand Teton I have to listen to classical, usually Hayden or Mozart. I have 5,600 songs on my ipod and 20 genres so I cover almost everything. Bring a splitter so you can share your music with friends and both listen at the same time. May 10 ROOMING LIST DONE We have been working really hard on the rooming list and it is done. Some of you will be mad of me, but I think you will love me after the trip because as an old person I know best :D. We have set up the rooms so each bus has the same number of students who have been on past trips and those for whom this is the first trip. There is nearly an equal number of people from the majority languages, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish. We have worked hard to make sure the students who told us are in rooms with their best friends. We have also moved the students so the largest districts are all on the same bus. The idea is for you to make new friends and get to know everyone. Look at it at http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotaryweststudent2012.pdf The password is "Rotary". Get to know your room mates and friend them on Facebook. TEAM LEADERS ASSIGNED We have assign students as team leaders. If you were a team leader on the other two trips and you are not one now, DON'T FEEL BAD. We decided the reduce the number because our meetings are held in small places. We have put team leader next to your name on the rooming list. Anyone is welcome to come to a team leader meeting and give us their feedback. We want the students to own this trip and we do so by have a student leadership group we call Team Leaders. They meet frequently with chaperones and tour leaders and represent the voice of the students. We also ask them to help us with certain tasks and to make sure all the information gets to the kids. Sometimes we'll use then to assist in leading hikes and tours. Team leaders have actually saved lives on this trip through their information. ENGLISH IS TRIP LANGUAGE The language of the trip is English. It is the only Language we all speak so we want you to speak it on the bus, in your rooms, and when you are around the group. If you want to talk to students from your own countries in your own language when you are on free time we have no problem with that. BUT PLEASE SPEAK ENGLISH ON THE BUS. We will correct you on the bus because it is rude to students who don't have someone from their country on their bus. We don't like rudeness. One of the things we won't put up with is being mean, rude, or cruel to other students, chaperones or people we meet on the trip. We expect you to act in a courteous manner during the entire trip. If I think someone is being cruel or mean, I will make sure you are removed from the trip. May 8 I have been out of town having fun for 5 days walking around Civil War Battlefields, but am now back at work. Folow me on Twitter. @billmcmurray. Will be twittering before, during and after the trip. The rooming list on the website now is NOT accurate. I am in the process of working on it and will have it done by Thursday or Monday at the latest. I will also have the list of team leaders on line then too. We want both buses to have the same experience and we want you to make new friends so it will be super wonderful.... I hope. Every chaperone has a different favorite place on the Western trip. Some like San Francisco best, some Yellowstone, some the Desert cities we are in. All are completely difference. If you don't like the place we are, wait a few hours and you will be a place you will love. We have been trying to make this itinerary the best it can be over the past 13 years and we think we have a winner. One of the people who suggested a lot of the places we go is our bus driver, Virgil Winters. He is a great guy and very knowledgeable of all the places we are visiting. Ask him about his days as a Disney Animator. He can draw the coolest pictures on fruit you have ever seen. Our other driver is William and he is cool, competent and one of the nicest people I've met. We have known these guys for four years (Virgil for 3) and love having them as our drivers. We do drive a lot during the trip, but the scenery is incredible throughout the entire trip. Keep your camera handy. From the most impressive cacti you've every seen, to the world's largest windmill farm, to the sprawl of Los Angeles, to the beauty of Santa Barbara, the incredible hills and huge farms off CA101, through Silicone Valley, entering amazing San Francisco, the broad plain of the Central California Valley, the Sierra Nevada Mountain range, fun Reno, the high mountain beauty near Virgina City, and this is just he first four days. The most amazing places we see are in the Snake River Canyons, Tetons, Yellowstone, Wyoming Mountains, Valley of the great Salt Lake, Provo, Moab, Western Colorado Mountains, Mesa Verde, my favorite Monument Valley, Glen Canyon/Lake Powell, Grand Canyon, high desert of Arizona, and much much more. You won't believe the things you'll see on this trip. Good tip from one of our host mom's. Get some gift cards for McDonald's, Subway, Burger King, and other places which are found all over the west. Look up the restaurant's web site to see if they have restaurants where we are going. I know McDonald's and Subway do. Make sure you put aside $50 for baggage fees at the airport. Chaperone Fact: Jackie, Julie and Greg all went to Catholic High Schools. May 2 We will be doing some hiking in some of the most beautiful places on earth. In Grand Teton National Park we do String Lake Trail, which climbs up a mountain and walks completely around a incredibly beautiful lake. The trail is a little wild and not paved or anything so you have to be careful where you walk. In the past we have seen lots of wildlife including one Mother Bear and her two cubs,, which created a very dangerous situation. It's common to see woodchucks, elk and antelope as we walk along if we aren't too loud. Another trail we walk is s fairly short trail in "Windows" in Arches National Park. In the high desert, about 2700 meters in altitude, it's a beautiful red soil. You have to be really careful to not go off the trail, because the soil is a living thing. Called macrobiotic soil, it can be destroyed (killed) by being walked on. It takes 100 years to be restored. Arches is made up of many huge stone arches carved by water and rain. The rock formations are amazing. It can be really warm in Arches where 40C is pretty common. White water rafting is near Arches and we do it the next morning. We are picked up at our hotel and we drive out 20 or 30 miles up the Colorado River into an amazing canyon. We float down the river past huge red stone cliffs, buttes and rock formations. If there is a lot of water in the river it can be a strong 3. You have to be very careful, but we have very professional guides leading us. We actually tour two "Grand Canyons", the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone's Artist Point and Grand Canyon National Park. The GC of the Yellowstone is found in Yellowston National Park. Shear drops of 300-500-meters are found here. The yellow sulphur walls of the Yellowstone give the world's oldest national park it's name. The Yellowstone River and it's two falls are amazing. We tour Grand Canyon National Park from the South Rim, taking you to some amazingly scenic viewing points. Some of these have protective fencing and some don't. We require that you stay 2 meters from the edge whenever we are around. The Grand Canyon, while not the largest canyon in the world is the most famous. 1,500+meters deep and 4000-6000 meters wide it was carved by the Colorado River. Make sure you contact the chaperones and introduce yourself to them. Emails can be sent by clicking on their names on the chaperone website, http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotinfo.html May 1 I have done 25 trips so far and each of them has been fun. There are some things to remember to make this trip even more amazing than it is. 1. Make sure you become friends with everyone on the trip. There are presently 94 students signed up on the trip. It's hard to do but you can do it. Bring your cards or if you are out, make some up at a cheap card place like vista print. 2. Don't waste your free time. Do things. Walk, explore and plan. Come up with a list of things you want to see. We are going to have time in some amazing places. Hollywood, San Francisco, Jackson Hole, Moab. Each offers chances to do some amazing things . 3. Fine people on the trip who like to do what you do. If you like to shop look for other shoppers. If you like to go to museums, look for people who like museums. If you like to walk and enjoy the street culture, look for people who like to do that. If you aren't a shopper and find yourself with shoppers, you will be unhappy. 4. Be inclusive: Go up to people you might not know and find out something about them you might have in common. This includes the chaperones. We will be bringing some movies to watch on the trip. Most are new movies with some fun classics. There are some long drives and movies make them seem shorter. Make sure you take pictures on the trip. You will value these pictures as much as your children's pictures when you are older. Take lots of pictures. Share them on Facebook. We are still working on rooming. The rooming list on the website is obsolete. I updated the money list Monday and will do so again tomorrow. April 29 It's really frustrating when your Email goes bad, but it happened to me so thanks for letting me know. I have put a lot information into the Emails since March 27, you can review it on the website at http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotemails.html Flights Most important thing are your flights. Almost all have been done. We will be doing the groups in a week or so, but we have already put deposits down on these flights so you are locked in. The other tickets are e-tickets and you can get boarding passes, either on line the day before the flight or at the airport. You will need your passport to get through security and check your luggage. There will probably be a $25 baggage fee the airlines access both ways. Make sure you put aside 25.00 for the return flight. You can use a credit or debit card for that. We won't be helping you with these. http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotwestair2012.html is where you'll find your flight info. CHeck on your name and it will take you to your schedule. Schedule do, and probably will change, keep checking them on the airline sites. Especially 24 hours before you fly. Rooming We are working on rooms right now. They won't be up to date for a while. When I get them done I'll put them on line. As always if a page is password protected, the password is "Rotary". Money Money Money I have updated the who owes money site. Please check to see what you owe. If you have done a wire transfer, remember it can take up a week for me to get a wire transfer. Check the page http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotwest12owes.pdf ... password "Rotary". Chaperone News We have added another chaperone since March 27. Greg Miller is once again going on the trip. A former exchange student to Russia (and short term to France) Greg is a student at Georgetown University in Diplomacy. Greg speaks several language (Turkish, Russian, French) and he is a great tour guide. Janine Cannell just got a great job in her field (she is a registered Nutritionist) and we will miss her. There is a lot of updated chaperone Bio's on the Web Site. http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotinfo.html. Just got Jack Young's Biography for the page. Amazingly accomplished and interesting guy. Check it out. Trip Info: If any of you have ever shopped at J.C. Penneys, we go through the little town in Wyoming where that huge chain started, Kemmerer. That area is also where the Oregon Trail took the pioneers across the west to Oregon. If you look hard in that area you can see the wagon tracks from 175 years ago when they first starting heading out there. One thing we constantly see on these trips in Idaho, Wyoming and Utah is Crop Dusting airplanes. These beautiful plays fly only 3 meters off the ground spreading chemicals on crops. April 26 I hope you have checked the web site for your flight information. It's all there. You can start planning your way to the airport. For the 10th time get to the airport 2 hours before your flight. How much money should you need for spending money. You'll need between $400-500. If you and your friends are cheap you can save on this. We do try to stop at a lot of supermarkets where you can buy food cheaper. What Do I Need To Know About Flying? You
will need a valid government issued ID such as a Drivers License or
Passport. An original, not a copy. You will need to get to
the airport at least 2 hours before flight time. If you live in a
major hub airport, I would get there 2.5 hours ahead of flight time.
You can pack no more than 50 lbs per bag. You are only allowed one
duffle or suitcase. You will probably have to pay $25 each way for
Baggage fee. If you don't have the money on the return you will
have to leave your suitcases home. Do not carry any knifes, sharp
objects or any weapons at all when you fly. Keep liquids like creams,
and lotions in your checked luggage. Put all metal objects in your
carry on back or backpack for ease of security. Most Tickets are
Electronic Tickets, there is no hard ticket. The exception is
Southwest Airlines group tickets (only Columbus kids). You get
your ticket by presenting your valid ID and record locator. They
can also find it by your name and arrival city. Why is the Language of the Trip English? We have nearly 30 different countries and 20 different languages represented on this trip. We ask that everyone speak English so your room mates and bus mates don't feel isolated. It's the only common language for all of us. How Are Not Included Meals Handled So It Doesn't Cost Too Much? We stop at places where are a variety of food options. Usually we try to include a supermarket, fast food and sit down restaurants in the same location. You get to chose how much you want to spend. Go together with other students and purchase food you all can share. Cheap things in the US include fruit, bread, dairy products, and sale items. Canned meats and meals are very inexpensive compared to many fast food restaurants. Make sure they are precooked. Last year one room shared meals and spent less than $10 per person per day. That's only $150 for the trip. Shop smart. We do stop at some truck stops. They have delicious hot dogs, 2 for $1. Be creative and you will save money. Peanut butter is good and cheap and doesn't need refrigeration. Good for lunches and breakfast. Why Can't We change Our Rooms and Buses All The Time? About a month before we depart we send each hotel a rooming list showing what room you will be in. . They need to know where you are so if a relative calls you for some reason, they can contact you. It also means if we are looking for you because of an emergency we will know where you are. When we hand out keys, the keys are assigned based on that rooming list. It causes huge delays when that list is changed. Also if there is a hotel fire, or regional disaster, we need to know where you are. Buses can't be changed because they have exact counts on each bus. Each time before we leave we have to count everyone on the bus. If our counts are off because of people switching around, we leave people behind. April 25 I have the flight schedules and confirmation numbers on line, organized two ways. By your Last (Passport) name. And by departure city. You can find it at http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotwestair2012.html All tickets have been issued EXCEPT, Columbus, Charleston SC, and people who haven't paid yet. (There is one other person who we are going to issue tomorrow. The flights are all Non-refundable (there is not money back if you cancel or are sent home). They are also non=changeable. All flights leave extremely early in the morning and you should start talking to people about getting you to the airport. Most airports are what you asked form The Cleveland people are leaving from Canton Akron (only 35 miles away) because the extreme expense of going out of Cleveland Hopkins. John Young is flying with this group. There are a large number of people who are meeting the same connections so you will see other exchange students on these flights . YOU MUST GET TO THE AIRPORT 2 HOURS (120 MINUTES) BEFORE FLIGHT TIME. If your plane leaves at 6 AM that means you have to be there at 4 AM. Every year someone tries to cut this and every year someone is late. The buses CAN NOT Wait for you if you miss your flight and can't arrive until the next morning. The last flight arrives around 12 Noon. If everyone's planes are on time we will be on the Road at 12:45 AM. We are scheduled to leave the airport around 1:30 pm. We will break down which terminal in Phoenix you will be arriving at later. You are instructed to meet the chaperones in Terminal 4 at Phoenix Skyharbor Airport PHX. There are frequent shuttles from terminals 2 and 3 to Terminal 4. With the exception of Columbus, your tickets are all electronic tickets. You will need a Government Issued ID to get on the plane. For Exchange students that means bring your Passport. We will collect them before we leave the airport and keep them in a safe place to be given to you before departure. April 24 We have been getting ticketing done for the trip. For most of you we are issuing electronic tickets. All you will need is your Government issued ID (Passport) and to get to the airport 2 hours ahead of time and you will be ready. For the Columbus group, we are issuing hard paper tickets, but you will get these from someone at the airport (so you don't lose them). Columbus folks will be traveling with chaperones. I will be putting the flight schedule and confirmations on line as soon as I get them all done. Just know they will be really early in the morning. For a couple of you I have you leaving very late the night before. Should be out there by early next week. There are still a few folks we haven't done yet because we haven't received their money yet. We are doing something different with rooming. We are going to have you pick one person you want to room with (give me a couple of other choices in case that person is already selected). The other two people in your room will be someone you don't know that well or haven't roomed with before on the other trips. The idea is to get you to know new people. Many students have suggested this and we think it's a great idea. I am looking at the lists now. We will have kids from your districts on both buses. We are also splitting up the countries so there is an equal number of kids on each bus from the same country. For example, if there are 10 Brazilians, there will be 5 on Bus A and 5 on Bus B. Same is true for Team leaders. We are cutting the number down to 5 on each bus. Makes it easier to coordinate with everyone and get things done. We will be selecting them shortly. Let me know if you are thinking about being a team leader. We will have some new kids and kids who have been team leaders. Don't feel bad if you aren't selected. We still want to listen to your opinions. Trip Fact: Phoenix Airport has 4 terminals. Most people are arriving at Terminal 4 (Goldwater Terminal, where we will all meet). The rest of you will have to take the free shuttles to Terminal 4 to meet your chaperones. We hope to be leaving Phoenix about 1:30pm and head off to California. Expect the temperature in Phoenix to be around 40C. April 19 We are issuing tickets today for the people who have paid at least a deposit on the trip. We are trying to have you fly with as many other students as we can. If there is someone else from your area who is going on the trip they will go on the same flights. If you haven' paid, we will try to get you on the same flights, but cannot issue tickets without payment, so there is no guarantee you will be on the same places with your friends from your area. All tickets are non-refundable, that means we cannot cancel them. We are flying you from airports close to your home. We will have the flight schedules on line by next week and will be sending by email your confirmations with instructions on what to do. Some of the flights involve changing planes. Most of your flights are leaving very early in the morning and so you can get into Phoenix before 12 noon. Make sure you get to the airports AT LEAST 2 hours before flight time. If you miss your flight because you are late and you miss connecting with the trip, it is up to you meet the trip at our next stop. April 16 There has been some confusion. We write the airline tickets from your home town to Phoenix and back. The tickets are part of your tour payment. They will be REALLY EARLY in the Morning. Like having to be at the airport at 4:00 am early. Most will be electronic tickets. You will need a passport or Government issued ID to get your boarding pass at the airport. CHECK THE WEBSITE http://www.rotarytrip.org/airportsticketing.html to make sure we are sending you to the right airport. Once you see (Ticketed) next to your name you can not change the flight without YOU having to purchase another ticket. Also once we have written your ticket, it is non-refundable... that means you own it forever. We will give you more information and the flights will be listed on the web site soon. The spelling on your name on the website for airline tickets. http://www.rotarytrip.org/airportsticketing.html is how we are going to issue the tickets. Check it to make sure it is correct and the same as your passport (we don't have all your passport copies). If it's not you will have a problem at the airport with the security people. We have had a major Chaperone change. Janine Cannell who was going to chaperone just got a new job (she is a Registered Nutritionist) and sadly can't go on the trip. Taking her place is Greg Miller who chaperoned last year. Greg is a student at Georgetown University in Washington DC, learning how to be a diplomat. He was an outbound exchange to Russia a few years ago (Eastern Russia). He also had been a short term exchange student to France. He speaks Russia, French, and Turkish. He is also a great tour guide and a fun guy to be around. We are going to completely change to rooming list and who is on which bus. We will have you room with at least one friend you have requested, but you will also have the chance to make some new friends. We will be working on that in a couple of weeks. There are 12 places left on the trip. We hope to have the same number of students on eat bus. There won't be a Brazilian, French, Spanish or German bus. We are also going to equally divide the kids who have been on trips and who haven't been on trips on each bus. We will be assigning team leaders also in the next couple of weeks. If your name isn't on the list, don't worry we still want your feedback. The Itinerary we give you will have team leader meetings times listed. We are cutting back to 10 team leaders to make it more workable. One of the things Rotary does really well is service projects and volunteering. To make this trip work we need volunteers everyday to load and unload the bus, tidy up the bus, lead hikes, run an occasional errand and especially to count on the bus every stop to make sure everyone has gotten on the bus before we leave. We hope you all volunteer to help with these little jobs. Chaperones are all volunteers of their time and energy too. Sometimes on weekends it takes me a couple of days to answer email. This weekend we have a Rotary Assembly and some other events. If it's really important text me 614-517-7702. Don't call if possible. April 12 We are starting to ticket and we need you to help us make sure everything is correct and we have you flying out of the right airport. We are not yet locked into different flights (with exception of one student. We need to know the following. 1. Is the airport we have you leaving from OK? If there an alternative airport we can use for cheaper flights. (We are averaging over about $75 more than we budgeted per flight). 2. Is your name spelled correctly and is it your legal name (as spelled out on your passport. We have copies of many of your passports, but not all so we need you to let us know. 3. If you can fly with one of our two groups, Columbus OH or Charleston SC it is better. The Columbus group will have chaperones on your flights to help you and airlines will accommodate a group better. 4. Please give us an answer as soon as possible. We will place this on the website also. If your name is missing please email me with the proper info. If we haven't gotten an application from you yet, we might not have you on this list. See http://www.rotarytrip.org/airportsticketing.html for up to date info. April 11 Friday is the final payment deadline. Just let me know if you are going to be late (if you haven't already). Weather: What is the weather going to be like? Good question, it will be 43C in Phoenix and maybe higher. In LA it should be around 26C. In San Francisco around 18C. In the desert in daytime around 35C at night as low as 0C. In Yellowstone it can be -5 and snowing. In Salt Lake around 26C. In Moab around 35C. We may have rain in San Francisco or the National Parks. It will probably be dry most other places. I would bring a folding poncho (about $5 or less at a dollar store). Clothes to Bring A hoodie, a medium weight sweater, lots of T-shirts, a pair of jeans, really good walking shoes. We hike on rough trails in the mountains so bring a sturdy pair of sneakers or hiking boots if you wish. There were a couple of issues with clothing which was not appropriate on the Eastern Trip. Please keep shorts at a decent length and dress modestly. We will be going to one church (Mormon Temple in Salt Lake), and some of the places we go to really get upset when clothes are sexually suggestive. We've had boys and girls thrown out of restaurants for dressing scantily. Especially in Utah, Idaho and Wyoming and parts of Nevada. We spend a lot of time in these places. In San Francisco it's just cold!!!! We do spend a lot of time in the mountains where it can be cool. Another cool place is Flagstaff, Arizona. At 3000 meters in altitude it can be really cold there. Especially at night. You are going to want to bring a bathing suit, but no speedos or skimpy bikinis. There are usually families with small children in our pools. YOU DO NOT NEED YOUR ROTARY JACKET. Leave it home. Bring your pins and cards to share with other students and chaperones. Camera Make sure you have a large SD card in your camera. You will probably take between 500 and 1000 pictures on the trip. Most students do. We see some amazing places and things. One awesome thing we do is walk to the middle of the Golden Gate Bridge and the pictures from there are so great. You will want to get pictures of bison, bears, moose and elk in Yellowstone and Grand Teton. If you look at the web site there are just some of the pictures I took last year on the trip. Drivers and Buses Our buses are really nice on this trip and we know our drivers well. They have traveled with us before and are friends. Virgil is doing his three Rotary Trip. This is the same bus company which does luxury trips out west for top tour operators. Chaperones: Caryn Knott has been both a host parent and the mother of an outbound exchange student. Caryn is a teacher of special needs kids and is married to a Rotarian. Larry Jenkins is hosting a student right now and is RYLA Chair for our district. Larry is in his third year of chaperoning trip. He is a Dad to two young kids. Jack Young is a former District Governor and presently is inbound chair in Youth Exchange. Bill McMurray has been inbound chair as well as doing these trips for 13 years. Jackie Favret has been a RYE volunteer for 5 years. Julia Cannell is a teacher. Janine Cannell just got her Masters Degree in Public Health and is registered dietician. Janine is going on her third western trip. Dave Saho had been on every Eastern and Western trip for the last 4 years. Caryn, Larry, Jackie, Janine and Julia have all been band geeks. Larry at Purdue University. April 9 It's really important that you get your payment for the trip to me as soon as possible. We are going to issue tickets next week and if you don't have payment in we obviously can't issue tickets which are non-refundable. If we have to issue your tickets later and the price is higher than what we paid for the tickets next week, you will have to pay the difference. If you can't make the full payment at least get us the deposit right away. We have to start paying for things really soon. Please hurry and get your payments to us. I don't want to sound like a pest, but it is really important. We have a Trip Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/119739031483098/ , make sure you join the group. Jackie and I put lots of information on that page and you can talk to other kids through the page. You an share pictures and join the community. I have been playing with the rooming list and it is still a big work in progress. I have to send the final to the hotels in early May. After that we can't change it. Let me know who you want to room with. NO GUARANTEES. One thing we want to do is try to put at least one or two people in each room that you might not know so you can meet new people. It is so much more fun that way. Tonight the chaperones are getting together to talk about the trip and rooming is a big topic of conversation. We really hate yelling, in fact we despise having to yell at people. How do you avoid the wrath of chaperones. On the bus don't stand up and talk, move to a seat as soon as you can. Don't stand up at all in Phoenix, LA, and San Francisco traffic, just too dangerous (panic stops by bus can really injure you). Don't run or yell in the hotel hallways. Don't be out of your rooms after 10:00pm. Don't be late getting to the bus after a stop on in the morning. (Everyone hates you when you do that). Planning your fun part of the trip: Several of your chaperones are real experts when it comes to LA, San Francisco and the other places we are going. Bill has been everywhere many times and knows lots of fun things to do during free time. Jackie also knows her stuff. Listen to them and ask them questions, we'll be glad to help you. Dave and Janine have been to these places a few times. We love San Francisco and have been all over the city (we also know the place to not visit ... listen to us on these). It's a walking city. A hilly walking city, but you can walk to most of it in a couple of hours. You have plenty of time to explore. It is also a shopping city. It has maybe the best Chinatown in the USA. Right next to that is North Beach (which isn't a beach or even near the water). It is the Italian part of town and has tremendous history. Walk from there to the "Crookedest Street in America", Lombard Street (right over the hill is our hotel. The views from the top of this hill is amazing. There is Coit Tower, Russian Hill and many more awesome places. April 6 We are getting very close to final payment deadline. Please send me your payments as soon as possible. Here is a list of folks and if they owe or don't. This will also be on the Website, Look at Website April 4 We want you to start planning the trip from your point of view. Get to know the other kids on the trip. Friend them on Facebook and I'll copy a rooming list as it is now (it will change a lot) so you can find names. You will have some free time. In LA and San Francisco. Plan something cool to do together. The chaperones do, you should too. In Moab there is quite a bit of free time, plan on renting bicycles and trying some of the nearby mountain biking trails in the early evening. Look at the itinerary on the web site and plan around some of the things we are doing. Just a tip, cool places, Jackson Hole, Virginia City (3 hours there). The kids who get organized have the best times. http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotwest12.html The itinerary is at the bottom of the page. Final payment is coming up April 13. If you have a problem and can't get the money to me in time, and haven't contacted me yet, please do email me. The official name of Los Angeles is El Pueblo de la Reina de Los Angeles. Movies moved here from New York because of the year around sunshine. Old movies were shot outdoors, including indoor scenes. San Francisco was settled by Franciscan Monk, Fr. Junipero Serra in 1769. In 1906 most of the city was destroyed in a devastating earthquake and fire. Both the Hippie movement and "Summer of Love" began in San Francisco in 1966. The Beatnik movement started here in the 1950s. Beat writer Lawrence Ferlinghetti mentored writers like Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginzberg. He still owns the City Lights Bookstore in North Beach part of the city near China Town. The chaperones go there every year. Sometimes you can still see Ferlinghetti working at he book store. Mark Twain was a newspaperman in Virgina City in 1863, until someone threatened to shoot him and he left. It was here he first used the pen name Mark Twain. Twin Falls, Idaho's Perrine Bridge, over the Snake River Canyon is one of the few artificial structures worldwide where BASE jumping is legal. In July 2006 Dan Schilling jumped off the bridge 201 times in 21 hours to raise money for charity. We stop at the bridge and have seen base jumpers. April 2 Make sure you check out the photo rooming list. If you aren't going on the western trip and your name is on the list, please email me. Also please remind me with whom do you wish to room! We are planning air, and later this week there will be a list of who you are and where we are flying you from. We are getting ready to start issuing tickets. WE DO THE TICKETS AND PICK FLIGHTS. You want everyone to be in Phoenix by 12 pm (Noon). Airline tickets are included in the price of the trip. We ask you for the city you want to fly from. If there is a cheaper city within a hour or so of your choice, we will ask you to go to that city. If you live within a couple of hours of Columbus Ohio can you fly from Columbus? Please let us know if you can or can't. We have 26 seats reserved on a non-stop from Columbus to Phoenix and want to use all these great tickets. You will need somethings before the trip. Bring a water bottle, canteen, which holds 2 liters of water. I carry two 1 liter bottles. Our biggest problem is dehydration because we will spend a lot of time in high altitude desert locations and every year students get really sick from not enough drinking water. On this trip if you feel thirsty you are already dehydrated. You will also need a strong sun tan lotion, PDF30 or more. The sun is incredibly strong in the west. I always tell kids to bring a hat. You never see a cowboy without a hat, there is a reason for that. What is the reason we do the trips? 1. So you will see the United States and learn and understand our culture, history and the diversity of this country. 2. So you can meet other exchange students, make friends and contacts for life. 3. To give you clear view of how America isn't just New York, or LA. That it's small towns, medium cities, amazingly beautiful barron vistas, and many different types of people. 4. Because we think it's really fun to get to know you all. March 27 We are back from the Eastern Trip and working on the Western Trip. There is still a lot of work to do on Rooming List, flights and more. Make sure you get you money into to us (the money list will be updated later this week) so we can issue tickets. Once we have issued tickets, they are non-refundable. We just spend 10 days with 97 exchange students on the Eastern trip and will probably have a similar number on the Western Trip. We will be assigning rooms really soon. Although we take your ideas into consideration, we have other reasons for how we place students on buses and in rooms. 13 years of experience and 26 different trips have taught us a lot. The Western Trip is very exhausting and dehydrating. Start looking for a 2 liter or two one liter water bottles to carry with you. if you don't you will have severe headaches, fatigue, maybe pass out, and might end up in the hospital. Happens every year. You need to drink at least two liters of water every day. Every year someone doesn't think they need it and they have a "fever" and feel really sick. Water fixes that. The trip is still available but we have a number of students sending deposit to join the trip. Tell your friends. March 13 Since the Eastern Trip is Friday, I am basically ignoring you. Sorry. but we are really crazed getting all the many things done we need to do to get this trip together. If you are interested and can get to Columbus, there are still two Girls places left on the Eastern Trip. We have 98 kids seeing Washington, New York, Boston, and Gettysburg and everywhere between these awesome cities. If you have a question or need a answer feel free to contact Jackie or me on Email or Facebook as we have our phones with us and can answer you back. We do change the trip every year to make it better (and have been doing that since 2000). This year we added Meteor Crater in Arizona. If you have ever seen the movie "Starman" Jeff Bridges was found in the bottom of Meteor Crater. It is the largest meteor crater in the world which is intact. It's huge. That same day we are going to Sunset Crater, which isn't a meteor crater but a 1000 year old volcano in the middle of the desert. These are two new places that neither you nor the chaperones have ever visited. Our next to last night on the trip is in Flagstaff, Arizona. Located on famous Route 66, our hotel is on the original part of that road. Flagstaff is very high in elevation and is known as a cool weather location. During the winter it is a ski resort. We have 20 places left on the trip, which is ahead of our normal schedule for filling the trip. If you have friends who might be interested, please have them send their applications soon. After the Eastern Trip this trip fills up very quickly. March 5 I'm just back from the North American Youth Exchange Network conference in Anchorage and I got the chance to meet a number of your district folks. I'm looking forward to meeting you after talking to them. We are 101 days away from the Western Trip. Make sure you get your money to us as soon as possible. Also make sure you are familiar with the web site. Take a while and look at every link and web page. I have updated the money page http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotwest2012moneyowed.pdf The password is "". Also take some time and look at our rules. They have taken 13 years to put together and most were suggestions from students. We don't have any unnecessary rules on this trip. We are starting to get flights together. We try to have you fly with other students from your district. For instance if you are in 7770, we will probably fly your from Charleston as most of your district live in that area. All flights are EXTREMELY early as we want to get our bus on the road before 1:00 pm to our hotel in Blythe. Also, if you are on an early flight and their is a delay or cancellation you can usually still make it to the tour location with few problems. We will do all flights for the Western Trip. Our rooming list is still a work in progress. Let me know who you want to room with and remind me. There are no guarantees it will happen, but we try to make you happy. Trip Fact: Last week's Academy Awards were held on Hollywood Blvd, right where we drop you off. February 16 Sorry for totally ignoring you but we are a month out from the Eastern Trip and am very busy. There are still three places left on the Eastern Trip if you want to go. We have had one recurring medical problem on the Western Trip. That is dehydration and exhaustion. It comes from students not drinking enough water. While we are in the desert (a big part of the west is desert) you need over 2 liters of water a day. We ask that you bring a two liter canteen, or water container and fill it each morning before trips. It's a serious problem. Over the years we have made over 6 trips to emergency rooms where students have made themselves sick from not drinking. Every year a lot of the students gets sick with a fever, headache and flushed skin. It's always dehydration. So make sure you bring the water bottle. They don't have to be expensive. My water bottle cost $3 at Walmart. You can get a cheap on, pack it to the trip and leave it when you come home. You'll see the chaperones sipping at their water bottles all the time. We know what it takes to stay healthy. Our hotel in San Francisco is right in the center of the action. It's just down the hill from the "Crookedest Street in America", 3 blocks from Ghiradelli Chocolate, and 4 blocks from Fisherman's Wharf. It's a very nice Comfort Inn. From there you can walk to the best parts in San Francisco in under 20 minutes. Chinatown, North Beach, City Center are all only a few kilometers from tour hotel. Just a note of caution. Keep alert and don't get into trouble before the Western Trip. I'm always sad because a student makes a stupid mistake and gets sent home. We chaperones are really looking forward to meeting you. Make sure you contact then and friend them on Facebook. Our chaperones, as of now are, Bill McMurray, Jackie Favret, Caryn Knott, Larry Jenkins, Dave Saho, Janine Cannell and Julia Cannell, and Jack Young. Most of us have been on over 3 Rotary Trips. Interesting Trip Fact: San Francisco is a big city with over 800,000 population. In 1850, 21,000 people lived there, In 1900 it was one of the USA's largest cities with over 300,000 residents. Many of the earliest residents were Chinese laborers brought to work on the Railroad and in the gold fields. January 26 If you haven't sent your deposit for the Western Trip, please do. We need your money to purchase airline tickets. If we purchase tickets and they go up dramatically it may cost you more money so get it to us. You can tell if you have paid by checking the Website http://www.rotarytrip.org/Money%20Due%20Roteast12.pdf You may have problems seeing this in Google Chrome. It works perfectly in Firefox or Internet Explorer. Remember that the links on the web site are colored blue. You can see a lot of great information in those links. Old Faithful is a Geyser or hot water spring which constantly explodes into boiling water. It's located in Yellowstone National Park. It's always on our tours is considered one of the must see things in the USA. Also in Yellowstone are bears, elk, American bison (also known as buffalo), and many animals who can not be harmed by law. The entire park is a giant active volcanic caldera which may be the largest in the world. If it did go off, half the USA would be destroyed. We learn a lot on this trip. If you are interested in archeology, geology, marine biology, history, volcanism, show business, you name it we touch on it during the trip. You can't help but come away smarter on this trip. We have 65 student on this tour. Tell your friends and have them sign up. After the Eastern trip we have added up to 40 students. We have updated the Rotary Chaperone page. Check it out. http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotinfo.html January 17 We are over 60 students on the trip and well into our 2nd bus for the trip. Really looking forward to doing this amazing experience with all of you. There are many really interesting things we do on this trip. White water rafting is done in one of the most beautiful places on earth. This valley has been featured in Movies, TV shows and commercials. I saw it on a credit card commercial yesterday. It's on the Colorado River, heading into city of Moab. It is surrounded by 1000 meter high red stone cliffs, beautiful rock formations and red sand. Our hike in Grand Teton NP is another amazing place. A clear mirror lake surround by 3000 meter high mountains covered in glaciers. There are wild animals everywhere including bear, elk and antelope. The only sound, except for noisy exchange students, is the wind whistling through the trees. Truly an amazing place. We stop in many places to see some amazing sights. In Mesa Verde NP there is one place you can see for over 200 kilometers. In another you can see 4 USA States. Driving up the coast of California we can see oil rigs, seals, surfers, crashing waves and beautiful hills. On one of the routes you drive by Google and Apple's Headquarters. We are going to seeing 1000 year old Indian cliff dwellings which are very sophisticated. We will meet Navajos and maybe have them sing for you. Our chaperones are pretty neat. Caryn Knott has been involved in Rotary for several years with her husband Pat. She is the mother of an exchange student and has been host mother for exchange students. She is tough, but so much fun you won't mind. Dave Saho is a retired Steel Worker and long time veteran chaperone. Julia and Janine Cannell are sisters. Janine is going on her third western trip, while Julia is going on her first trip. Our other first time chaperone is Jack Young, a long time RYE officer in Northeastern Ohio and former District Governor. Weird Trip Fact: The most people from one country ever on the trip, 24 Brazilians.... 1 in 4 students, 4 years ago. Trip Web Sites: http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotwest12.html January 10 We have added three new chaperones to the Western Trip, Sid Jordan is the inbound chair of Rotary District 6600 in Vermillion Ohio. Julia Cannell is an English Teacher in Columbus Ohio. Caryn Knott works at Westerville Schools in Westerville Ohio. Janine Cannell (yes Julia's sister) is going to chaperone her third Western Trip. That means that 3 or our 8 chaperones are red headed. Julia, Janine and Dave Saho. That's a lot of Ginger. The Eastern Trip only has 16 places left, so if are thinking about adding that trip, I would do it soon. Make sure you get your deposit it. We will starting to issue airline tickets soon and we won't issue your tickets unless we have your deposit in. That means if the flight prices go up, you will have to make up the difference. Just a reminder. We are spending two nights in Jackson Hole, WY, this is a famous city which is very popular with celebrities. When we are there keep looking, you may see Harrison Ford or any number of other stars. Ford lives in Jackson Hole. What is the most dangerous beast we will see? The American Bison, also known as buffalo. People are killed and injured all the time by these stupid, smelly yet beautiful animals. They about 1000 kg (a little over a 2000lbs) and can run at over 60 kph. When they see people they think they are bears, their natural enemy, because they are very nearsighted. This past year there have been more bear maulings in Yellowstone National park than anyone can remember. There are two types of bears in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. The black bear and the grizzly. The grizzly is very aggressive and will attack people if they see you. We advise you all stay at least 100 meters away from these animals. November 21 We are starting to send emails more frequently, preparing you for the trips. There are a couple of things to remember.
Make sure you look at the web site which answers many many
questions. There are links to FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions),
packing info, health tips for the trips, hotel listing, your room
mates (with pictures) and much more.
Email me at
bill@mcmurraytravel.com with any questions you might have.
I am on the computer ALL THE TIME so you might get an answer
immediately, even in the middle of the night. October 28 Western Trip includes airfare but we must have the right airport information. We try to get everyone from your district to fly together so make sure you are leaving from the same place your friends are. We will need your birthday (if it is on the Application) and when you travel you will have to have your passport with you for ID. There will be an extra charge by the airlines for your baggage. Usually around $25 each direction. We will let you know more when we book tickets. We spend the beginning of the trip in the amazing desert of Arizona and California. The most beautiful cactus in the world is found in this desert, the saguaro cactus. It takes 300 years to grow to maturity and often the nesting place of the huge tarantula spider. We will also be crossing the Colorado River several times during the trip. At one point we will be white water rafting in one of it's tributaries. The Colorado River feeds water to millions of acres of farms in the USA and Mexico. It carved out the Grand Canyon. The other river of note is the Snake River. It travels over 1000 miles and we cross and recross it many times. It travels through Idaho, Wyoming and Utah. Both are famous for their amazing natural beauty. The next day we drive into Los Angeles and explore the city. You'll have a lot of free time on LA's Hollywood Blvd. which is the center of the Movie Industry. A highlight is the Kodak Theatre which is the center of the Awards Red Carpet. Last year the premier of Green Lantern was being held. You almost always see someone famous wandering around. . Now is the time to plan for the clothes and things you need for the trip. A good backpack/dufflebag is handy, so is a good digital camera. Start looking for a 2-liter water bottle. Every year people on this trip get sick from dehydration (lack of water). In the high altitude and extreme dryness of the west, a number of kids get really sick. It causes headaches, nausea and in some cases kids have passed out. We require you have a water bottle and ask you to drink from it all the time. The bottles shouldn't cost over $5. If you have people you want to room with please let me know. We have put together a picture list of the students on the trip. http://www.rotarytrip.org/RotaryWestTrip2012Students.pdf. There is a password "Rotary". Fun Fact: There are numerous bear attacks in Yellowstone National Park each year. Remember you don't have to be the fastest person to outrun a bear, just the 2nd slowest. October 21 We have nearly 30 people on the trip and it is filling up quickly. Tell your friends to sign up quickly. We do fly you to Phoenix to meet the tour. The flights leave from a city near where you are living now. Those tickets are included in the tour price. We will be gathering everyone at the airport and taking the buses to a city on the California-Arizona border. The next day we drive into Los Angeles and explore the city. You'll have a lot of free time on LA's Hollywood Blvd. which is the center of the Movie Industry. A highlight is the Kodak Theatre which is the center of the Awards Red Carpet. Every year we see someone famous. Now is the time to plan for the clothes and things you need for the trip. A good backpack/dufflebag is handy, so is a good digital camera. Start looking for a 2-liter water bottle. Every year people on this trip get sick from dehydration (lack of water). In the high altitude and extreme dryness of the west, a number of kids get really sick. It causes headaches, nausea and in some cases kids have passed out. We require you have a water bottle and ask you to drink from it all the time. The bottles shouldn't cost over $5. If you have people you want to room with please let me know. http://www.rotarytrip.org/RotaryWestTrip2012Students.pdf. You need to put in the password "Rotary" to see that. Make sure you send me an email with your present host family address and your next host family address so I can send you some confirmation. Make sure you check you email frequently as I send emails almost once a weeks telling you about the trip. They will get you excited and give you want you need to have to trip of your life. Also email me and tell me about your self. You can find me on Facebook under Bill McMurray. Also look up Jackie Favret and Dave Saho and Tessa Mauer and Greg Miller. October 9 Thanks for signing up for the Western Trip so early. The trip is filling up quickly and you are all booked on the trip. Make sure you send your deposit as soon as you can, if you haven't sent it yet. I will be sending emails during the next few months to get you ready for the trip. I will go over rules, what we will be seeing, introducing the chaperons and give you some interesting facts about the trip and the people on the trip. There are a couple of Web Sites you must become familiar with to make your trip go perfect. http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotwest12.html - This is the trip website. We update it all the time so check it frequently. There are many links which are important to you. http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotemails.html - features all the emails we will be sending. They are order of the newest ones on the top. Read them and keep up with them because they answer all your questions. http://www.rotarytrip.org/FAQ.html This has answers to many of the questions you might have. It is the Frequently Asked Question Page. Check it out. http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotinfo.html - Has biographies of the chaperons. You can email them from this page and get to know them. They are a pretty interesting group. Right now we are adding chaperons weekly and will have 7 or 8 of them for the trip. http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotwesttkid12.html includes everyone who is on the trips. We will eventually have this by rooms so you can see who your room mates are and who is on your bus. If you have a friend in your room, please let us know as soon as possible. http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotpacking.html is a great packing list for the Rotary Trips. http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotwesthotels12.html features pictures and addresses of our hotels. http://www.mcmurraytravelservice.com/rules.htm - Read the Rules, we are strict in our enforcement and although we don't want to, have had to send people home from the trip for violating the rules. This is a Rotary Trip and if you are sent home, you are probably having your exchange terminated at that time. Not a good thing. http://www.rotarytrip.org/Flying%20Instructions%20Western%20Trip10.pdf - This are instructions on flying to meet the trip. Air fare is included on this trip up to a value of $450 ticket. We issue all tickets. Please make sure you know which airport you are leaving from. Once airline tickets are issued, they are non-refundable (you don't get that money back). Keep looking at these sites all the time as we update them all the time. Also keep you emails clean as we will be sending frequent emails. They are informative and interesting and will make your trip more fun. Jackie and I are really looking forward to meeting all of you. Make sure you contact me if you have any questions. My email is bill@mcmurraytravel.com, my Facebook is Bill McMurray, My Twitter is @billmcmurray. We do a lot of communication by Facebook and even some by Twitter.
--
Disney Trip Emails Nov 28 I've been getting emails from students who don't seem to know anything about the trip. Here are some basic information you MUST know for the trip. I have also outlined all the places you can find more detailed information.
You need to pack light (you need to carry
your own suitcase).
Pick Up and Drop Off You will arrive on December 9th. and be picked up on December 16th after 6 pm.
You need to get to the follow hotel and
address - Best Western Port Columbus 1450 Airpointe Drive, Columbus,
Ohio, 43219-1501 -
614/337-8400
Pick up is at the
same place.
Google Maps Link to the pick/up drop off hotel: http://g.co/maps/vax94 Where Do You Find Everything:
November 21 There are rules for this trip,because without them with 40 plus people there would be real problems. So here are a few of the rules you have to know about. When you go into your rooms for the night (usually 10pm) you can't leave your room and wander around. Make sure you get all your water, ice, soda pop etc... before you go into your room and stay there. The chaperones check through out the night. If you are out of your room you will miss the next days events. Last year one boy missed the Magic Kingdom in Disney and so did I, so I wasn't happy about it. No standing on the bus. If the bus stops you will be horribly injured. The paperwork is horrible. You can move from seat to seat, but be quick about it. Our driver gets really angry when kids stand up as he can get a ticket if a police officer sees it. No screaming or running anywhere unless you are being chased by a people with a gun or a large blood thirsty beast. Walk and talk in a nice conversation voice. Also I hate loud whistling. Just a personal thing. You can whistle a nice little tune but nothing loud. None of the D's. Driving would be horribly dangerous and make the bus driver mad. Drinking is a quick ticket home. Drugs will get you arrested (we call the cops if we find drugs) and American Jails really suck. Dating is a no no because if we can't have our loved ones with us, neither can you. No PDA (personal displays of affection like necking, making out, kissing, excessive hugging, and being obnoxious about it.) Be nice to everyone. Don't be creepy. We all want to be friends and make friends. Being "un-nice" is a no-no. Trip Fact: Jacksonville Florida and Charlotte North Carolina are two of the top banking centers in the USA. November 17 Three weeks from Tomorrow we will all get together for the Rotary Disney Adventure. We will be traveling on the 10th early in the morning. We are working on rooming list and because of our Disney Contract our rooms are slightly different from Columbus to Spartansburg to Disney. Students in North Carolina and Kentucky will be pickup up en route on the 10th. North Carolina kids can meet us along the way, place contact me so we can coordinate those stops. Kentucky kids will meet the tour off Interstate Highway 64 in West Virginia on the 10th. It's all fun. We will tell your district chairs so they know and contact you directly so read your email and keep up on Facebook. One of our chaperones arrived today, Lucas Chacana, from Catamarca, Argentina, one of our exchange students from a few years ago. Lucas flew up to join the trip and help us chaperone it. Lucas is actually the reason we go to Disney. He and I made the first trip together while I was his Counselor. Make sure you have paid because if you haven't you won't be allowed on the trip. If you haven't paid, cancel the trip and don't go, you won't be allowed on the other Trips as we expect that you all will pay at this point. Also make sure you applications and all it's parts are included or you won't be allowed on the trip. Trip Fact: We are traveling through Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina the first day. West Virginia was part of Virginia until 1863. Our Bus Driver is Doug Wilson, who has done every Disney and most of our Eastern Trips as a driver. Doug is a former forest ranger and father of 4 daughters and grandfather of a grand daughter. He was also a former Paratrooper in the US Army so I would listen to him. November 10 THERE IS STILL SPACE AVAILABLE ON THE DISNEY TRIP. QUICKLY TELL YOUR FRIENDS. There is very little time before the trip. You need to make sure you have some things done. 1. Make sure you know how you are going to meeting the trip. A. We will able to pick up some students en-route. If you live in West Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina we can pick you you on the 10th en-route. Have the people driving you contact me to arrange is pick up place. B. Most of you will be driven to Columbus Ohio. Tell your drivers it is a different place than in years past. We are staying at the Best Western Port Columbus Airport. There is a good link with information and maps on the web site. http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotdisneypickupdropoffinstruction.html 2. Pay for the trip. We have some people who owe money on the trip. A. Make sure you are not one of them. Get your payment to me immediately. Check to see if we have your money on the web site download http://www.rotarytrip.org/Money%20Owed%20on%20Disney%20Trip%20.pdf It is password protected, the password is "Rotary" B. If you only owe $14 you can payment on the trip. Some early applications were before we upgraded to Disney World Resort so the price was a little lower. Trust me staying in Disney is a big upgrade. 3. See and get in touch with other students on the trip. A. Almost all of you are on Facebook so you can catch up. You can see who is on the trip by checking the PDF download found at http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotary%20FLorida%20Trip%202011%20Studen.pdf It is password protected, the password is "Rotary" B. Contact them before the trip. Means for lots more fun on the trip and an easy way to make friends. C. Check out your room mates on the same site. It is fun to plan before the trip. You can share Hair Dryers, toothpaste, etc.... 4. If you want travel insurance you can buy it for this trip. I'm not an insurance agent, but you can get insurance for the trip if you get sick and can't go on the trip or have to come home in an emergency (very expensive). Check out web site Link http://www.travelguard.com/agentlink.asp?ta_arc=36535811&pcode=TGEP&agencyemail=bill@mcmurraytravel.com. You can book it yourself. 5. Mentally getting prepared for the trip. The Chaperones build themselves up into a crazy frenzy over this trip. You should too. :D A. Watch Disney Movies B. Watch and Read all the Harry Potter Stories. C. Get a good map of the Eastern USA and mark the places we are traveling to. November 8 I have just put a link on the web site (and attached it to this email) about who owes money on the Disney Trip. It is a password protected PDF file (password is "Rotary"). Please get your payments to us as we are running out of time rapidly. It's difficult to put this trip together and we need your payment to pay for the trip at least a month before the trip (Wednesday is one month out). Please tell your friends about this trip. The students this year have been very slow to sign up for the trip. We will be finalizing rooming in by the end of this week. Please let me know who you want to room with. Make sure that person has signed up for the trip. We are staying on site at Disney at the All Star Music Resort. It is a spectacular and large facility with an amazing swimming pool. Our motor coach company is Brewster Travel and they have been doing our trips for 5 years. The driver assigned is Doug Wilson who is a former forest ranger and soldier and is a great guy. Looking forward to getting together with all of your on December 9, only 32 days away. Trip Fact: Our trip is going to drive through Charleston and Beckley, West Virginia; Wythesville, Virginia; North Carolina through Charlotte and ending up in Spartansburgs, South Carolina. The next day we will drive past Charleston, South Carolina; Savannah, Georgia; Jacksonville & Daytona, and finally into Orlando, Florida. During the day we will stop frequently, show movies, visit with each other and have a lot of fun. We specialize in finding weird place to stop for lunch. October 28 First night we stay in Spartanburg SC. We will be able to pick students up enroute if we have any. After most of you arrive in Columbus on December 9, we leave Saturday Morning at 7:30am. We take Interstate Highway 75 south from Cincinnati. We will be driving through Kentucky, Tennessee and into North Carolina. Some of your from Charlotte will have to make your way to Spartanburg to meet us on the night on the 10th. We will also be staying there on the 15th and dropping kids off that day or the next morning. This will keep some people from having to buy airline tickets to meeting the tour in Columbus. If you are flying to meeting the tour in Columbus. Send me an email with your cell phone number, the city you are flying out of. Jeanne in our office can help you book airline tickets or you can also purchase your own tickets on line. I urge people to take the earliest flight to Columbus. Make sure you arrive mid-day if possible on December 9th returning to your home on the first flight December 17. Then email me your flight information so we can pick you up at the airport. We will have someone at the airport meeting our flyers and getting them to our hotel but we need to know when you arrive. If flying you will need your passport. When you arrive give it to the chaperones for safe keeping. Check the web page and links http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotdisney1112.html for additional information. If you live in Ontario, Michigan, West Virginia, Ohio contact your Rotary chairs to help set up car pools to get you to Columbus Ohio. We hope you can arrive before 6pm on December 9. They need to pick you up at 6:00pm on December 16. It's only a few hours drive. If you are coming from Canada we will send you an itinerary, invitation to join the trip, and a rooming list to get through customs. You will need your visa and passport. Keep it in your carry on back and give it to the chaperones when you arrive. Check the web page and links http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotdisney1112.html for additional information. We are getting very excited. We have 5 chaperones on the trip. Jackie Favret, Lucas Chacana, Larry Jenkins, Christine O'Donnell and me, Bill McMurray. Larry, Jackie,Christine and I also do the Eastern Trip and Jackie and I are doing the Western Trip too. Larry has been a Rotary Club President and is also the District Chair for RYLA in District 6690. He and I are in the same Rotary Club. Christine is a graduate student, studying at Kent State University to be a Librarian. Both are very experienced Rotary Trip Chaperons having doing trips for several years. Lucas is a former RYE who is coming from Argentina to chaperone. Make sure you contact them and say hello on the Rotary Chaperone web page. http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotinfo.html We now have 28 people on the trip and we expect around 40+. Please get your friends to send in their applications right away. Fun Fact: Heinz is the official catsup of Disneyworld. Voldemort and Larry Jenkins are not the same person although they are close. Oct. 10 We are working on updating our rooming lists on the trip. You can find them online. We put everyone who has either send an application, deposit or told me they are going. Check the list at http://rotarytrip.org/Rotary%20FLorida%20Trip%202011%20Studen.pdf There is a password "Rotary" which will give you access. Make sure you friends have signed up. If not please call them and tell them to rush and contact me. Make sure you get your payment in. It's only 60 days until the trip. We will have several chaperones on the trip. Myself, Larry Jenkins, Jackie Favret, Chrisine O'Donnell and Lucas Chacana. Lucas is flying here from Argentina to participate. He was an exchange student 4 years ago. He will be spending the holidays in the USA with us and his former host families. Jackie, Christine and Larry are old veterans of this and other trips we have done. Lucas gave me the idea to do a Disney Trip (he and I did a test trip in 2008.) Weather can be very cold in Florida in December. Last year we had one day at -6C with high winds, so bring warm clothes, coats, gloves, hats and shoes. It can also rain so be prepared for that. It can also be 25C, so bring some summer clothes too. Columbus, Ohio is going to be cold. If you need airline tickets get them booked as soon as possible. Most of you will be driving to Columbus, but flyers should arrive on December 9 and leave on the 17th. Take the earliest flight available both days. Fun Trip Fact: Disney World is 40 years old this year. It was the last vision of Walt Disney and his biggest project. October 19 Tell your friends there is still space on the trip. We are getting everything together on this trip and are looking forward to seeing you. Make sure you have gotten your money and applications to us. A couple of you paid for the trip but haven't sent your applications. We must have those before the trip or you can't go. Packing for this trip is tricky. You WILL need warm clothes, maybe rain gear as well as a few summer clothes. It can be really cold. There is an amazing swimming pool at our hotel in Disney and if it is warm you may have some time to swim so bring your swim suit. Modest please, nothing skimpy. I will have some idea of who is rooming with whom soon and it will be on line (remember password is "Rotary"). If you have to fly to Columbus get your tickets done SOON. The longer you wait the higher the price will be. Remember flights are included on this trip. We show movies on the bus on the way over. Of course we will bring Disney and all 8 Harry Potter Films (last one is on order), but if you have a PG13 film you love bring it along. The chaperones have an extensive collection. Bring your Ipods (MP3 players) and if you have a splitter headphone bring it to share music with friends. No speakers or musical instruments on the bus (it really distracts the driver). Make sure your camera is working and bring extra batteries or chargers so you can get plenty of pictures. I average between 500-900 pictures a trip. If you aren't on facebook, get on it. We all are on facebook and share pictures that way. It is also a way to communication between the other kids on the trip. I would friend everyone (I have friended everyone). Also befriend Jackie, Larry, Lucas, Christine and me. Chaperone Brenda can't go on the trip this year, but she will be on the Eastern trip. Interesting Trip Fact: Enroute we go through the Smoky Mountains, the Piedmont of South Carolina, the Salt Marshes of Georgia, the Blue Grass of Kentucky, and Ohio River Valley. It is a very pretty drive there and very historic. We stop every two hours on the trip for a bathroom or food break. Make sure you get back on the bus in the allotted time, 1 hour for Lunch Break and 20 minutes for Bathroom Break. Enroute we will be staying in Spartansburg, SC. October 9 2011 This is the first email of the year, sent to the participants of the Disney Trip. It is only 65 days until the trip and we are all getting excited about it. The chaperones are a wonderful group of experienced chaperones and former exchange students who are all very knowledgeable about where we are going and what we will see. Make sure to get you payments in to us if you haven't. The end of this week we will have a list of who is on the trips to day with pictures. It will be a password protected PDF (Password is Rotary, exactly as it is written). All our passwords on the trip sites are Rotary. The web site for the Florida Adventure is http://rotarytrip.org/rotdisney1112.html.. We are working on a system to send you invoices, please make sure you email address works. The Master website for all the trips is http://rotarytrip.org/rotarytrip.html I imagine if you are going on the trip you may be a Harry Potter freak. Jackie and I both love the books and the movies and are really looking forward to Universal's Wizarding World of Harry Potter". My daughter's forced me to start reading these books years ago and they created a monster. We have all the books (including one in Turkish and one is Spanish), The Audio Books (American and English Versions which are different), and all the movies on DVD and on my Ipod. You can share your Harry Potter obsession with us if you like. Jackie is a Disney Fan, having been there about 20 times. She is our guide in the two Disney parks We are visiting. My favorite Disney ride is the Haunted House. I really like the shows and rides at Disney Hollywood. Tower of Terror is a crazy, scary ride. The fastest Roller Coaster I've ever been on is the Rock and Roller Coaster. It goes from 0-75 miles per hour (about 120 kph) in under 3 seconds. That is a rocket like G-Force. It is a short ride but we usually end up doing it about 5 times. The Magic Kingdom is fun because it is where you'll find MIckey Mouse, Goofy, and all the crazy characters. My favorite Disney character is Donald Duck. Make sure you tell all your friends about the trip and have them get their applications to us. We expect about 40 students on the trip but may have as many as 50. The kids who were on all three trips last year made incredible friendships. By the time the Western Trip comes along, we are all like family, with me being the grumpy Grandpa and Jackie as the crazy cousin . Looking forward to meeting all of you. Make sure you clean out your emails as you should be getting at least weekly emails about all trips you are on. YOu will be able to check the emails you might not have read on http://rotarytrip.org/rotemails.html. Make sure you contact me if you have any questions. My email is bill@mcmurraytravel.com, my Facebook is Bill McMurray, My Twitter is @billmcmurray
Eastern Trip Emails
March 9 We are going through all your applications and making sure we have everything we need. We are sending emails to the folks who are missing things we need. For instance, Parental Permission forms, we need you "Birth or adoptive Parents or legal guardians", that is the people you live with in your own country, to sign a permission form so we can take you to the hospital if you are sick or injured. Also we need recommendations from your district chairs so we know you better. The bus is filled and there will be just enough luggage space. ONLY ONE SUITCASE IS ALLOWED PER PERSON. Otherwise you will have to leave it at the hotel before we leave Columbus. You can bring a small day or backpack to bring on the bus for your music, books, snacks sunglasses and stuff. You have to carry your own luggage, so don't make it too heavy. Often you must carry it up stairs. Most importantly we need flight info. Many of you have personally sent your flight information, but a few have just given me flight numbers. We need your confirmation numbers so we can track you down if you are lost somewhere on the air grid. We are also putting together check-list, check in sheets, rooming list updates, our books for running the trip and more. It's a very complicated and intricate task. One more week, by this time next week most of you will be in Columbus, and the rest of you will be on their way there. Columbus is the Capital of Ohio and one of the largest university towns in the USA. There are 20 institutions of higher learning, including the largest university in the USA, Ohio State University. Columbus has an NHL hockey team, a MLS Soccer team, the Crew, the Blue Jackets, minor league baseball team, two horse tracks, a speedway, and several college stadiums including Ohio Stadium which holds 106,000 people. Crew Stadium is the first purpose built professional soccer stadium in the USA. It also performs to sold out crowds during the season and has produced several stars who went on to fame in Europe and South America. Columbus is a huge international city with large Asian population (Honda's largest factory in the world is located 20 miles west of the city). Dublin High School in suburban Dublin Ohio has a large Japanese student population. There is a large middle eastern, Somali, South American and European population. The city has a large number of international restaurant choices. We are particularly fond of Turkish food (my daughter is an English Teacher in Izmir and was a exchange student to Turkey in 2005-2006) and there are three great Turkish restaurants and a Turkish Supermarket for the local Turkish population. There is Korean, Japanese, Ethiopian, Indian, Halal, Chinese, Irish, French, German, and many other restaurants. Columbus is also the largest city in Ohio, with 1.7 million people in the area. March 8 Actually we have people arriving 1 week from today, so in reality it's a week until my part of the trip starts. :D Exciting ain't it kiddos. There is no reason to be excited. In 8 days, 98 exchange students from 29 different countries, living all over the USA and Canada from Western Canada to South Carolina, from California to Eastern Canada. 62 girls and 36 guys, 4 guy chaperones and 4 girl chaperones. Student Ages from 15-18, 5-15 year olds, 28- 16-yeard olds, 36- 17-year olds, 27- 18-year olds. Number 1 country, Germany with 14 and 2nd if France with 12. There are only 9 Brazilians, the lowest number I've ever seen. I don't see any reason to get excited. After all you are only going to walking in the center of power in Washington around some amazing monuments and American icons. You are going to be able to touch the Statue of Liberty, Times Square, Wall Street, Central Park. In Boston you'll walk the streets which were the haunts of Mark Walberg, Ben Affeck, Matt Damon, John Adams, Benjamin Frankin etc... You'll be able to see some amazing scenery and meet some awesome people. I don't understand why you are all getting exciting. When I was in Alaska last weekend I heard a report that 7 people were sent home (ended their exchange) from the Hawaii Trip last week, which is offered out west. It is so stupid to be sent home from one of these trips and we really get mad when we have had to do it. It is upsetting and unpleasant knowing that you have to ruin a entire year of someone's life and maybe ruining their chances at scholarships and no being able to use their exchange to get into universities and for future jobs. When you get sent home to you have to explain why to your parents, your friends, and family. You'll be unable to start school at a normal time. You'll also miss all your new friends from exchange. One year we had to send home two kids for drinking because they were carrying beer. In fact the girl didn't even drink, she bought it. If someone in your room is drinking/doing drugs, etc... the entire room loses their exchange. Bad thing. Just remember that when you get home in June you can drink and party all you want without a problem. One student in 2007 went home and calculated that his drink cost him $1200 USD in airfare and lost tour. Chaperone Fact: Luhan D'Olivera is a final year Law Student in Brazil. Tessa Mauer is an Engineering student. Larry Jenkins studied Engineering at Purdue. Bill and Dave both went to the Franciscan University of Steubenville, Dave in Accounting, Bill in History. Christine is a Library Science student, Jackie is a Art History student. Brenda is a manager at a great ice cream parlor. March 6, 2012 We are 10 days away from the trip. Here some things you should remember. If you smoke, you might have some major problems. You can't smoke in the Rooms (huge fine of $200 to $500 between all people in the room). You can't smoke around the buses or on the buses. It's not legal to smoke if you are under 18 anywhere we are going. When you arrive, we are going to have a large group meeting and pizza party to get to know each other and get prepared for the trip. Try to be there for it. The party starts at 6:30pm, we need everyone there at 6:00pm if your flight or ride can't arrive before that make sure you let me know. We are tracking flights and planning on having chaperones at the airport to meet you. Worst case scenario, arrive before midnight if possible. Our plan for flyers is to send them to the hotel in the hotel shuttle. We will also have a couple of cars if needed. The shuttles holds 8 people and luggage. The chaperones will be waiting in the middle baggage claim area in the center of the airport (for map see http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotary_eastern_trip_flying_instr.htm) If for some reason you can't find them (they will be wearing Rotary Symbol sweatshirts or t-shirts or jackets) the shuttle is from the Best Western Plus Port Columbus. There are still a number of people who haven't sent us their flight information. IF YOU HAVE THE POSSIBILITY OF BEING LATE FOR THE TOUR, BUY TRAVEL INSURANCE http://www.travelguard.com/agentlink.asp?ta_arc=36535811&pcode=TGEP&agencyemail=bill@mcmurraytravel.com . That might defray from the costs of getting out to meet the trip. HOW TO AVOID PROBLEMS WHEN FLYING
If Driving We have only 11 days until the trip, which will be here right away. Make sure you have everything together. Especially your flight/ride to the Hotel in Columbus OH . I just spent a long weekend with some incredibly neat people. I got a chance to meet a lot of your district chairs, including those in Idaho, Nevada, Colorado, California, Washington, Canada, South Carolina, Tennessee and lots of other places. Also met Rotary people from Mexico, Brazil, Taiwan, Thailand and a few other countries. Many of these people knew some of you. We had a lot of fun talking about youth exchange and especially you :D. I've been given the low down on how wonderful you all are... aside from all the warnings, LOL. The highlight of the weekend was seeing two moose in downtown Anchorage. It was so cool. Reminds me of the Western Trip. I have moved around the rooms a little as we have had a couple of people drop off the trip. Please check http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotaryeast2012student.pdf Password "Rotary" for new room assignments. Things that might make your trip easier. Alarm clock, you don't want to be late any morning. Small flashlight. There are days when we will be in the bus at night and you can use the flash light to look for stuff in your bag or on the floor. Also if you are going to the bathroom in the middle of the night, a flashlight can make it easier to navigate around luggage. Emergency Phone numbers: We'll give you numbers for us and hotels. You should carry numbers for your family, host family, district chairs, people you know. Candy and snacks: You will have days when we must drive a while or when you might miss breakfast. Bring some snacks on your bags for those times. We bring Cliff Bars and dried fruit, but you can bring candy and other things. Don't recommend chocolate as it melts. Baseball cap: If it is raining, the bill of the cap can keep rain off your eyes, also in bright days, it keeps you from getting burned. Money: You'll need between $250 and $300 for extra food and incidental expenses. Pillow: Bring an inflatable or small pillow for the bus. Spare Glasses: If you wear glasses, pack a spare set if you have one. Glasses sometimes get lost or broken. Batteries: You might need extra batteries for cameras. I have an emergency Ipod charger which uses AA batteries. Tissues or Handkerchief: Colds are common on the trip, be prepared. Business Cards and Pins: For sharing with kids and chaperones. Notebook and Pen: For writing observations and taking down phone numbers and email addresses. February 28 I'm off to the North American Youth Exchange Conference in Anchorage Alaska for a few days, but will be back Saturday. Jackie and Jeanne will manage the trip in my absence so feel free to contact Jackie jcffav@msn.com or Facebook her to get to get answers. If any of your District officers are going, have them look me up. I'm representing RYE District 6690. Jackie has been for the past 4 years the other Group Leader on this trip. It is she who books all the hotels, coordinates the tours, chaperone schedules, and runs room checks. She is a Rotary Exchange volunteer during her off weekends. Jackie has been part of these trips since 2007. We MUST have your flight schedules. We will be contacting you soon if we don't have your flight schedules. SEND THEM TO US. If you don't send it to us there will be no one to meet you at the airport. If you are from District 6380 contact Ellen Blauer about coordinating rides from Ontario and Michigan to meeting the trip. Ellen's email is ryeblauer@yahoo.com. This past weekend I met with most of the chairs of Ohio-Erie and they are all trying to figure out ways to help make sure you get to the airport or drive to Columbus to meet the trip. Make sure you know what your schedule is to get here. Unfortunately we will be missing the Atheist March on Washington by 4 days. U.S.S. Constitution is the oldest ship in the U.S. Navy. It was built in 1797 and was of revolutionary design. Because of her and her sister ships all the world's navy's had to develop new building techniques for their Frigates. The sides were so strong that most cannonballs would not penetrate and some bounced off. She was given the nickname "Old Ironsides". During the War of 1812 she defeated 5 British ships of her class. We are planning on dropping you off after our Boston tour at her berth on the Freedom Trail.
--
February 21
In a little more than 3 weeks we are heading off the the lights of Broadway and the power center of the USA, Washington DC. Three of you still need to pay for the trip and some of you still owe some money. If you are flying in SEND ME YOUR SCHEDULE if you haven't done so already. If you are driving, make sure you know how you are getting here and with whom. In Boston we drop everyone off at Hanover Street and Commercial St., two of the oldest streets in the USA. The street is filled with interesting places and American History. There is one store there which proclaims it hatred of all things French (which our French students seem to really like). Also is Paul Revere's statue. Paul Revere a part of the "Sons of Liberty" and a major leader in Boston during the American Revolution. He was also a silversmith, brewer, father of 11, and printer. His ride from Boston to Concord to warn the Militia that the "British Are Coming" is famous in American history lore. The signal how the British were coming is found at the Old North Church where lanterns were placed in the steeple ("one if by land, two if by sea"), which still exist and I would highly recommend visiting. The church has changed little and you can see where famous first American's sat during those early political meetings. Hanover Street is also the center of Boston's "Little Italy" and there are numerous wonderful Italian Restaurants there. The best bakery in Boston (and one of the best on the eastern US) is "Mike's Pastry". A stop there for cream cakes, cookies and the famous "Black and White" cookies is always a must. They cannolis are some of the best. Only a short walk from Hanover is Quincy Market, Faneuil Hall, Boston Garden (home of the Celtics and Bruins), and many other famous Boston Landmarks. Downtown Boston isn't that large and you can walk almost everywhere. I highly recommend you walk the 5 km long "Freedom Trail" which takes you all over the city. Chaperone News. We just had a meeting of our chaperones this Sunday and they are so excited. Old experienced chaperones like Larry Jenkins, Jackie Favret, Brenda Gaver, Christine O'Donnell and my daughter Lexi taught the new folks. We could write a large book with the fun experiences we have had with the exchange students since 2000. February 17 I have attached a letter we put together if you need a letter for your school about the official nature of this trip. You can print and give this letter to your teacher. Make sure you emphasize to your teacher that this is an official exchange trip and is considered part of your exchange. In Washington we are going to some places that normal tours don't go to. The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Annex is about 25 minutes south of Washington. It's only about 4 years old and is amazing. Huge, it's houses planes like the Enola Gay (which dropped the A-bomb on Hiroshima), the first Boeing 707, and hundred of other planes. It's space museum is one of the best in the world. By the time we get there, one of the last Space Shuttles may be there. It also has a working control tower you can walk around (the museum overlooks Washington's Dulles Airport). If you like art, the Smithsonian houses some of the best museums in the world. The National Gallery of Art is in two buildings (one of which is an architectural masterpiece by I.M. Pei). Ancient and modern masters share space. The National Portrait Gallery has masters American Portraiture, including works which ended up on American Money. The Hirschorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is a fun place to relax surrounded by amazing modern works of sculpture. That museum houses some of the cutting edge of visual and performance art. The National Museum American History explains the story of American History. The National Museum of the American Indian tells the story of Native Americans with hands-on exhibits. The National Air and Space Museum is the main building, which houses planes like Lindbergh Spirit of St. Louis, Amelia Earhart planes, many space capsules and the Wright Brother's first plane. It is the most visited museum in the world. The Museum of Natural History holds the largest diamond in the world (the Hope Diamond) and lots of amazing exhibits about earth science and animals. There are also memorials for World War 2, the Korean War, Vietnam War, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Einstein, Martin Luther King, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Gandhi, and many many American icons. Just remember it is in very bad taste to bring out your national flag in these places. Chaperone Fact: Christine O'Donnell is finalizing her Masters Degree at Kent State University in Library Science. Christine's bachelor degree is in Music from the University of Dayton. She can play all the instruments found in a modern marching band, many of them expertly. When she was young she was a champion ice skater. Her father is a police officer and her mother a teacher. She spent all her elementary school years with Jackie Favret and Brenda Gaver, not to mention my daughter Liz. February 15 Everything which can be paid ahead has been paid for the trip so all is good. If you haven't paid GET your money in. We have already paid you admissions and hotels and stuff. There is only 30 days until you arrive for the trip. It's pretty exciting. Chaperones will be getting to the hotel around 10am, if you are arriving earlier than that just hang out in the lobby. If you find yourself arriving early at the airport, you can take your bags and get the shuttle to the Best Western Port Columbus Airport hotel from the airport. We will have someone at the airport for all the flights we are expecting, so please tell us ahead of time. Remember to bring your swimsuit. There is a terrific pool and hot tub at the hotel and you will have time to kill if you are arriving early. The language of diplomacy for centuries was French, now it's English. We, being diplomatic people, also require that all speak English. Imagine yourself as the only person for Poland in your room and everyone around you is speaking French. Students get really depressed about that. Think about your other fellow travelers. Please remember to bring a camera. Camera phones don't really cut it as you will take hundreds and hundreds of pictures. It doesn't have to be an expensive camera, my trip camera cost $29 at Walmart and works great. Make sure to charge your camera and bring batteries if it takes batteries. Make sure you have plenty of space on your SD Card. One place we stop at is Plymouth for a 20 minute stop to see Plymouth Rock. It is supposed to be the place where the first English settlers in New England stepped when they arrive. There is a replica of the Mayflower (their ship) and it's a beautiful little town. There is a lot of history on the trip, because there is a lot of history in this part of the USA. We urge you to walk the Freedom Trail while in Boston where you will see where many famous Americans lived and worked. Benjamin Franklin, Paul Revere, John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Samuel Adams, John Hancock and many more people who created the USA were from Boston. The Freedom Trail traces a lot of the important events. The Boston Massacre, Boston T-Party, and Bunker Hill all took place within a couple of kilometers of each other. February 13 Just finished the rooming list and have finalized it. Some of you might find yourself on a different bus than before. Bus A (57 passenger) has 51 students, 4 chaperones, Bus B (55 passenger) has 48 students and 4 chaperones. I try to do a couple of things with rooming list. For one I don't want one country to control a bus so I split up the students from countries we have the most kids from. I also try to keep District's together and friends together. I do a pretty good job but you can't all be happy. I know a couple asked to be on Bus A, but unfortunately I couldn't do it so you are on Bus B with your friends. It's a interesting task. Arrrrgggghhh!!!! You can find the rooming list on http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotaryeast2012student.pdf February 10 I have spend a lot of today finalizing the Rooming list so if you want to see who you are rooming with, check out http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotaryeast2012student.pdf (password "Rotary") Let me know by tomorrow, because after 5pm today I'm not making any changes, only additions. I made a lot of changes yesterday to rooming (moving people from one bus to another etc) in giving people what they want. We are sending the rooming list to the hotels starting today, along with the payments. Please get your final payments to us. There is a list of who owes what on http://www.rotarytrip.org/Money%20Due%20Roteast12.pdf . (Password Rotary) It has the latest updates as of today. Check to see if it is correct. We are still expecting some payments to come in the next few days. THERE ARE 2 PLACES LEFT ON THE TRIP. If you are flying, make sure you get your airline tickets purchased to Columbus. You need to arrive on the first available flight to Columbus Ohio on March 16, and return on March 26. If you driving you need to make sure you have a ride. New York City has so much to see, there is no way you will see it all in two days. One brand new thing to see is the 9/11 Memorial at the site of the World Trade Center which was destroyed in a terrorist attack in 2001. Dedicated this year it does require tickets to get into, but you can see it from the street. Over 3000 people died on Sept. 11, 2001 and it changed America. The site includes a new building which will be taller than the World Trade Center, which was one of the tallest buildings in the world when it was destroyed. A couple blocks away is Wall Street where American Business is centered. You can walk by the two primary U.S. Stock Exchanges. Across the street from the NY Stock Exchange is a the old Federal Building where George Washington was sworn in as our first president. NYC was the first US Capitol. Just a few blocks North is the center of NYC Government, Gracie Mansion, where the Mayor of New York lives and has his office. The present Mayor of NYC is Billionaire Media Mogul Michael Bloomburg. Just North of here is Chinatown, and nearby Little Italy, SOHO (South of Houston Street). Many stars like Gynneth Paltrow, Mariah Carey, Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick. Paltrow is married to Rock Singer Chris Martin. You can often see celebrities in this part of town. Look for photographers. Chaperone Fact: Luhan De Oliveira is a former exchange student from Brazil who is flying the USA to Chaperone. A law student at Universidade Paulista -UNIP he is from Sao Jose Do Rio Preto, he will be finishing up his degree next year and be a newly minted Brazilian Lawyer. Luhan was an exchange student in Flemington, New Jersey and was on the Western Trip in 2004-2005. He has the huge responsibility of the being the first former Brazilian Exchange student to chaperone one of our trips. February 7 Please check the website http://www.rotarytrip.org/Money%20Due%20Roteast12.pdf , Password Protected. It shows which of you owe money. Pay up. I am in the process of finalizing the rooming. Once I have done that, there is no changing of rooms so check out the room list and let me know if you are happy. http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotaryeast2012student.pdf (password protected). I would try to contact the kids you see on Facebook and friend them before the trip. I have done that. It's like meeting an old friend when we all get together on March 16. You can also plan things to do on the trip together. If you don't have Facebook, get it. It's only 37 days until the trip. That's nothing folks. See ya soon. One thing we MUST have is Permission from your REAL parents or guardians signed and in our hands. They can download it (it's part of the application), scan and email it to me This is needed if you have to go to hospital, or we need to do something for you. There is a chance to check out a couple of the World's Great Universities while we are on this trip. We will be around NYU (New York University), you will get a view of Columbia University, and we stop at Harvard and you can walk around. We drive by Brown, Williams, and Yale, and are in the neighborhood of Georgetown U. You can also talk to our chaperone Tessa, who is a student at Princeton. Jackie studies at Ohio State University, Christine is a graduate of Dayton U., and is finishing up her Masters at Kent State University. Luhan goes to university in Sao Paolo. February 2 We only have 2 girl places and 1 boy place on the trip left. We have 97 kids on the trip. BUT, there are 14 students who haven't made any payment on the trip yet and 7 who still owe their final payment. If we fill up, we will take kids on the trip who pay first, putting those who haven't paid on the wait list. Mean, but fair. :D If you are flying to Columbus make your that your flights are ticketed. SEND your schedules to me otherwise there may not anyone waiting at the airport for you. Our hotel has a shuttle from the airport and the hotel is about 2.5 miles from the airport. Remember you are to arrive as early as possible on March 16 and leave on the first available flight on March 26. If you are driving you need to arrive before 6pm on March 16 and be picked up at 6pm on March 25. We have rules on this trip. Most have been created by either former exchange students or RYE officers from the Districts. Every rule has a GOOD reason for existence. I don't believe in rules for no reason. Read the rules at http://www.rotarytrip.org/rules.html. Make sure you know them. Not knowing them can get you in a lot of trouble. Our meeting hotel is the Best Western Port Columbus Airport. It's close to the airport and is a very nice hotel. It has a great pool and hottub so bring your trunks. There is also a couple of restaurants and convenience stores really close, including a Wendy's. The chaperones will be at the hotel about 10:00am. I will be finalizing the rooming list next week. Right now with every room almost filled it's hard to make changes. We will be sending out the rooming list next week, after that there will be no changes. The rooming list can be found at http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotaryeast2012student.pdf . It is a secured document, password protected. It must be viewed in Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader or some other PDF reader. Get ready by reading: Read everything you can about Washington DC, Presidents, New York History, Boston History, Battle of Gettysburg. There is a pretty decent movie about Gettysburg called "Gettysburg". The acting isn't great but most of it is pretty accurate. It's based on a great novel call "Killer Angels" by Michael Shaara. His son, Jeff Shaara has written some easy to read, accurate novels about The American Revolution. If you want a good travelogue like movie, watch Nicholas Cage's "National Treasure". It really goes almost every place we are going on this trip. Historically (if you like it) watch the "John Adams" HBO mini-series. Really well done and pretty darn accurate in describing early America. It starts in Boston area. Interesting Fact: The White House was built by slave labor. January 26 I have listed below all the web site links you will need to the Rotary Eastern Adventure. It should answer all your questions. If you are new to the tour please read the old emails, we add so much important information. I am constantly asked questions which are answered on the web site in several places. Please check there first. It's a great web site. Important Links and Required Information: Bill McMurray Email Address: bill@mcmurraytravel.com Jackie Favret Email Address: jcffav@msn.com Make Checks or Money orders out to McMurray Travel Service Mail to: McMurray Travel 6480 Dobson Sq. E. Columbus OH 43229 Eastern Trip Web Site - http://www.rotarytrip.org/roteast12.html All the Following Web Pages are linked to the trip site. Student List (password is "Rotary") - http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotaryeast2012student.pdf Money Owed on Trip (password is "Rotary") - http://www.rotarytrip.org/Money%20Due%20Roteast12.pdf Past Emails Sent (must read) - http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotemails.html Trip Rules - http://www.rotarytrip.org/rules.htm Pick Up Drop Off Instructions - http://www.rotarytrip.org/roteast%20pickupdropoffinstruction.html Rotary Eastern Trip Hotels - http://www.rotarytrip.org/roteasthotels12.html Rotary Trip Packing List - http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotpacking.html Suggested items to keep happy and healthy - http://www.rotarytrip.org/safehealthy.html Frequently Asked Questions - http://www.rotarytrip.org/FAQ.html Travel Insurance - http://www.travelguard.com/agentlink.asp?ta_arc=36535811&pcode=TGEP&agencyemail=bill@mcmurraytravel.com Chaperones on trip - http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotinfo.html Application for Trip - Word File - http://www.rotarytrip.org/application12.doc Application for Trip - Adobe document - http://www.rotarytrip.org/application12.pdf January 20 As of this morning I have 91 students on the Eastern Trip. We have payment from most of you. We also have about 12 inquiries about the trip so the trip will sell out, my guess is this coming week. If you have promised to send you application and have not please do so. A few of you sent deposits but no application. We need an application. We have to have your Birth Parent's permission form signed by them. The primary reason is to give us the ability to check you into a hospital if you are injured or sick. Without it, your treatment will be held up until the hospital can get their permission. All they have to do is download the form from the web site (you can send it to them by email if you wish). They need to scan or fax it to me. My fax is 614-899-1970. My email is bill@mcmurraytravel.com. We also need proof that your district Rotary chair has given your permission to attend the trip. Usually the recommendation form is signed and sent. An email though will be enough. Money on the trip. You will need cash for the trip. We don't provide all meals, only most breakfasts, a lunch and a dinner. I recommend that you bring $300-400 with you. You can spend a lot less. We will be stopping for dinner on day 2 -4 at a place where there is a supermarket. You and your friends can coordinate lunch and other food which can save you a lot of money. There area always less expensive options (dollar menus, papaya dogs in New York, and other cheap places to eat). One of our chaperones lived on $100 one eastern trip a couple of years ago. Thank you for paying (most of you). We have been a little overwhelmed with all the payments coming in. Hopefully today we will have all the accounting done and put it on the web site. (remember password is "Rotary"). Get ready for a lot of walking. Usually 8-10 miles a day you do it right, especially in Washington, Boston and New York. It's about 7 miles from Wall Street to Midtown Manhattan. Bring really comfortable walking shoes. Also remember it can be wet or even snowy. Weather is usually chilly and it has been REALLY cold at times. Last year it Rained in New York. The Mall (not a shopping mall but a park) in Washington is 2.5 miles long from Capitol Hill to the Lincoln Memorial, add in walking around museums and crossing back and forth from one place to another you might do 10 miles easy. 10 miles is the same as 16 kilometers. The Freedom Trail in Boston is 3.5 miles long, about 5.7 km. Trip Fact: This week in 1919 the Great Molasses flood occurred in the North End of Boston killed 21 people and injured 150. This happened right near where we are dropped off and meet the bus. A tank 15m tall and 27m in diameter with 2,300,000 gallons collapsed flooding the neighborhood with a wall of liquid sugar traveling at 56 km a hour. Many horses died also January 18 Many of you are following up sending your money or have told me why they are running late. Next week we will be going through and updating that. My money manager, Jackie is off work today so it will be a couple of days until I get an update on the web site. We are over 90 students now and have added more today. The trip will be filled up by next week. We have nice hotels on this trip. The rooms a clean and comfortable and they are located in nice areas. Most are considered 3-star or 2.5-Star hotels. On this trip only two have pools you can use, Columbus and Somerset, so bring your swim wear. We do ask you bring your more modest swimwear. No string bikinis or skin tight speedos for the guys. We are representing Rotary and that can be an issue with some hotel guests, especially if they are older Rotarians. In the hotels they expect us to act like adults and our kids are usually great about that. No running or screaming in the halls (no screaming anywhere), hushed talking in the hallways (other people are sleeping) and quiet walking to rooms etc... On this trip there are few days where you don't get into the hotel later so you won't have much time for hanging about the the hotel. Our absolute rule is being in your rooms by 10pm. This is a standard rule for student groups from hotels and we enforce it. If you are out wandering around you will miss the next fun activity. A few years ago 19 kids were out of their rooms and they missed the big day in New York City. Our chaperone was REALLY ANGRY. She had to stay back with you. The buses are comfortable, roomy and have a bathroom you can use. They are also DVD equipped so we can show movies during the duller travel times (there aren't many dull moments on this trip). You CANNOT stand in the aisle of the buses. You must be sitting in a seat. You can switch seats, but you have to switch with someone because every seat will be filled on this trip. No flash photography on the bus at night (really messes up the driver's vision) and not loud noises. We expect the bus to cleaned up everynight by the kids who sitting on it. If not, you will be cleaning it later or early in the morning. No reason to throw anything on the floor. We have many many countries represented on this trip. Also a huge number of native languages which are spoken. We ask that you speak in English. There are a large number of French, German, Thai, Portuguese and Spanish speakers on this trip. Other students will feel left out and angry if people are speaking their own languages. The kids asked us to put in the English Only rule. After all you aren't here to learn to speak your own language, practice your English. Trip Fact: The iconic American chocolate is Hershey's. We plan on going to the Hershey Chocolate factory store on the next to last day. It is amazing. You can buy a Hershey's Kiss which weighs 5 kilos. You can also tour part of the factory while there. They also make Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, and much else. I prefer Lindt or Cadbury's but Hershey's is good too. Save some calories for that day. January 16 We have been tabulating the money which is coming in for the final payment deadline and many of you still owe. A large number haven't paid anything. Please get that payment to us. I have put a new "Money Owed" list is also on the web site. Password "Rotary" I have updated the rooming list. Look at the Rooming list and see if you are on their. It is also password protected Adobe acrobat file, "Rotary" is the the password. We only have 13 places left on the Eastern Trip and I am getting applications daily. We are almost at 60 on the Western Trip. Please get let me know if you want to do that trip. You don't need to do another application, just send me the deposit of 1000.00 USD. I was away from Email from Friday until this morning, so I might have been a little behind answering emails. Please tell your friends to sign up for the trips. We don't want them to miss the trip. Eastern Trip Deadlines: Tomorrow is the day where all trips are under cancellation penalty. There is a 25% penalty for cancellation after 12 Midnight tonight. January 12 We have put money owed on the web site, http://www.rotarytrip.org/Money%20Due%20Roteast12.pdf There may be some discrepancies because when people wire us money it sometimes take a week to get notification from our bank. If you haven't send anything, you might find yourself off the trip because we look on date of application and if someone sends us money they will take the place of someone who hasn't sent anything. It's just fair. Final payment is due this Sunday. Contact me if you have problems, bill@mcmurraytravel.com. People ask why we don't take credit cards. Several years ago a student paid for this trip with a credit card and we got a international chargeback after the trip and could not collect our money. It cost us over $1200. Since then we only take Checks, money orders or wire transfers. We put all our emails we send you on a website http://www.rotarytrip.org/rotemails.html. We have been sending emails for months. Check out the ones you missed. That site also has all the Disney and Western Trip emails on it also. Another important page to remember is our "Frequently Asked Questions" page. http://www.rotarytrip.org/FAQ.html It answers almost all of your questions. Read it. We suggest how much money you might need, but it's only a suggestion. If you are planning on buying everyone you know gifts, bring more money. I have been working hard on getting the web sites up to date. Had some problems, but should be OK now. Our websites tend to get real complicated. Put this website http://www.rotarytrip.org/roteast12.html this is the Eastern Trip website. Pull it up and bookmark it on your favorite browser. I know what it looks like in Firefox and Safari. Another page you might want to look at every day is http://www.rotarytrip.org/Rotary%20Eastern%20Trip%202012%20Studen.pdf. This is the rooming page. Again, it's a PDF, if you don't have Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Acrobat Reader, get it from Adobe.Com. We HAVE to use PDF's because we can password protect them. ALSO REMEMBER, if it has a password, that password is "Rotary". I changed that page 9 times in the last 24 hours. When we do rooming we look at a lot of things. Don't want a bus which is overwhelmed with one country or language. Want to mix up kids who have been on earlier trips and kids who are on trip for the first time. The idea is for you to meet bunches of new kids and make new friends. We have 8 great chaperones on this trip. Some of your know Christine, Larry, Jackie and myself from the Disney trip. We also are adding Brenda Gaver, Dave Saho, Luhan De Oliveira, and Tessa Mauer. Luhan and Tessa are former RYE kids who are chaperoning for the first time. Tessa was an exchange student in Cordoba, Argentina. Luhan was a Brazilian exchange student who was here in 2005-2006. Luhan was on the Western Trip in 2006. Tessa is from Columbus/Bexley Ohio and is a Junior at Princeton University in Engineering. Her sister, also an exchange student in Chile two years ago, is studying at Mostar School in Bosnia. Tessa speaks Spanish and heaven knows what else. January 10 I have had a rooming list on the web site for a few weeks, it is a PDF file, which is password protected ,,, password is "Rotary". PDF files need Adobe Acrobat reader to be visible. You can download that free from http://www.adobe.com. It's a very handy program because so many things are sent in PDF format. PDF means Portable Document Format. If you have Adobe Acrobat in your computer that will also open the site. I have to use passwords to protect any part of the web site which has your name, picture or any information about you. My password is always "Rotary" and my documents are all PDF formats as it is easily password protected. Right now we have 83 people on the Eastern Trip, that means there are only 17 places left. Please tell your friends or they will miss the trip. There are still plenty of places left of the Western Trip. Remember that our trips are open to all Rotary Exchange Students in USA, Canada and Bahamas. We have some really important rules you need to know. One is the Rule of 4, during free time there HAVE to be 4 people or more. We are really serious about this. The 2nd rule you need to know is the 10pm rule. You have to be in your rooms for the night by 10 pm. It's a hotel rule and we strictly enforce it. Students out of the rooms at night can get the group thrown out of the hotel which is very uncomfortable. Our hotels love our groups which is pretty cool for us. January 5 I have attached a letter I wrote which you can give to your school if you are taking off time from school. It shows them that the trip is an educational tour and should make make them happier. I had a major email fail today and lost a two days worth of emails before I read them. Please resend me any emails you might have mailed me. Send me your flight schedule and arrival information as soon as you can. Try to fly with the other kids in your district so you can fly together. There is safety in numbers. We can do the tickets for you but it's fine if you want to do them locally or on line. Make sure you fly to Columbus Ohio March 16 early, and return early March 26. We are working on a rooming list. It is set two ways, we will put all the students from the same district in the same bus. We work hard to not have rooms which are all from one country so you can meet people from other places. We cannot guarantee room mates. Some of you are so popular there are multiple requests. There are less than 16 places left on the trip (we added 4 today). It will be sold out before the end of January. We will then start a waiting list. If you are taking your national flag with you on the trip there area few place you can not pull it out for pictures. Any US National Monument, like World War 2, Korea, Lincoln, US Capitol, Statue of Liberty, Iwo Jima, Vietnam, Arlington Natl. Cemetery, 911 Memorial is totally taboo. At the War Memorials you risk getting beaten up. It's also very rude to wave your flag in these places. Imagine if a bunch of loud noisy Americans were pulling their flags out at your National War Memorials, or other sacred place. This isn't a trip about nationalism anyway. Flag etiquette: Your Rotarian's and local veterans will get really angry if you use an American flag to get autographs or as a wrap. I'd get a yellow Rotary flag or something like that to get autographs for keepsakes. Maybe a state flag would be OK. Kids (and chaperones) have gotten into big trouble over this. I you are getting this email, we have you signed up for the trips. If you don't have it already please download Adobe Acrobat Reader from www.adobe.com. We will have the rooming list on line later today, also most of the attachments I send are sent in this format. The rooming list is password protected. The Password is "Rotary", with a capital R. Anything with a student name on it is password protected. "Rotary" is always the password. Chaperone Fact: We have 8 chaperones on this trip. Myself, Jackie Favret, Christine O'Donnell, Brenda Gaver, Tessa Mauer, Larry Jenkins, Dave Saho and Luhan Oliveria. January 2 If you are flying to Columbus please get it done. Again, remember you need to get a ticket to Columbus arriving as early as you can March 16, and return on the first available flight March 26. Remember the longer you wait, the more expensive the ticket prices will get. You can contact our office to make the reservations if you wish. Call for Jeanne 614-899-1979. Sorry but Jeanne has been unavailable during the holidays due to holiday stuff. :S. She's back now. Those of you who are NOT flying, just let us know that you aren't flying. Try to arrive here before 6pm if you can and you will be picked up on March 25 after 6:00 pm. :D We are getting much closer to the trip (time flies kiddos, don't put it off). If you need a letter to excuse yourself from school please contact me, I have a standard letter you can use for the trip. Also if you need information to get out of Canada (for you students in Canada) we can send it to you. Please contact us as much as you like. We like answering your questions and it's important we keep in contact. I am a huge user of Facebook and check it several times a day on my Phone and computer. You will get pretty much an instant response for that. If we aren't friends, my Facebook URL is https://www.facebook.com/bill.mcmurray. Please friend me. I also am on Twitter @billmcmurray . Follow me. All the chaperones have Facebook pages. You can contact and friend them as they also are all addicted to it. The Western Trip is pretty awesome and although costs $1875 includes airfare from your hometown. It is a huge circle of all what I think are the absolutely coolest places in the American west. It is our premier exchange trip. If you haven't joined it, please look at it and let me know. If you have filled out your application, all you need to do is let me know if you want to go and I'll hold you a place. Right now we are half filled on the Western Trip, On the Eastern Trip we have slightly more than 20 places left. I know the Eastern Trip will sell out. Chaperone Fact: Dave Saho has been doing the trips for 4 years. Dave is my oldest friend, and is a retired steel worker. He attended The Franciscian University of Steubenville for 3 years, and graduated from West Virginia Northern Community College in accounting. He is an active Volunteer in his local community, being responsible for recycling for Amsterdam, Ohio Library and fundraising and is an avid and accomplished golfer. Dave has been married to Irene for 38 years. He has traveled extensively and did his first "student" trip with me in 1999. December 30 The Eastern Trip is a crazy, fun trip which has some amazing chances for exciting adventure. Here is a few things you might experience day by day. First arrival day is pretty boring except for the fact you are going to meet 100 other exchange students from all over the world. I'd guess you will be me some kids who might be some of your best friends in the future. The drive to Washington takes a few hours but once we arrive you will see the amazing view of seeing Washington DC from a spectacular entry. The monuments are bigger than you imagine and they entire city glows with white marble. The view is one you've seen a hundred times on TV or movies but in person but is so much more spectacular. We will see the World War 2, Korean, Lincoln, Reflecting Pool, Vietnam and if time permits, Martin Luther King (we'll see it sometime during the time in Washington). The 3rd day we hope to get you right close to the White House so you can get pictures. Lafayette Square which fronts the White House has so much history. A presidential assassination attempt (Harry Truman by Puerto Rican Separatist), a cold blooded Murder which resulted in the first temporary insanity plea, and two hundred years of protests, celebration and anger. From there we go off to the National Air and Space Museum Annex, which is a spectacular new museum which houses the plane which dropped the A-Bomb on Hiroshima, a space shuttle, first planes of all sorts and countries. It's new, fun and amazing. That afternoon we'll give you a chance to explore the Washington Mall. No, it's not a shopping area, its the massive park from the Capitol Building to the Washington Monument and the Lincoln. You can see a couple of the many Smithsonian Institute museum complex. This is America's finest grouping of museums. American History, National Gallery of Fine Art, National Air and Space, American Indian, Holocaust, there are too many to mention. You will have two afternoons to explore as the next day we'll also see the museums. If the weather is nice, Larry, Dave and I will take a group to walk around the amazing Arlington National Cemetery, where American heroes and leaders are buried. Here is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, John F. Kennedy's Grave and much more. The view of Washington is unsurpassed from the Lee-Custis Mansion. The 4th day we'll take a tour of the U.S. Capitol. Most years we see some famous lawmakers and congressional leaders walking around. It is where America is governed and you will see the the heart of it. The afternoon will include the Smithsonian and at the end of the day the Marine Corp Monument, known as the Iwo Jima Monument. The 5th day we drive to Liberty State Park in New Jersey and take a Ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Museum of Immigration. The view of Manhattan from these points is amazing. The Statue of Liberty was a gift of the Children of France to the USA honoring the 100th birthday of the Declaration of Independence. If everything goes smoothly we will then drive into New York and give you a couple of hours of free time to explore Times Square in New York. What can you say..... it's NEW YORK. Thousands of stores, restaurants, hundreds of museum, parks, and incredible buildings. If this doesn't excite you, you might be dead. The 6th day is a complete tour of Manhattan (New York City) and in the afternoon you'll have some free time to explore the city on your own. This of course depends on how everyone follows the instructions we give you. This is too cool a day to explain. I just let you think about it. The 7th day of the trip is a drive up towards Boston. We up through New England which is much different from what we have seen earlier. There is a special treat and surprise that day en route. In the afternoon we'll give you some free time to explore North Boston and Quincy Market. North Boston is the old Italian part of the city. Culture and history oozes from the old streets. It's the most European of American cities. The people are brash, funny, and friendly. The 8th day is a exploration of Boston. We get there early and drive to Harvard Yard and give a chance the explore American's most famous college. From there we'll give you a basic tour of the city. At the end we'll drop you at the beginning of the Freedom Trail, a world famous walk through the birth of the USA. 5 km of history, beauty and culture. There will be time to shop, walk around the city and experience the wonderful Boston atmosphere. See the USS Constitution, the oldest American warship, dating from the birth of America. It is still a commissioned US Navy ship. The attached museum is great. Nearby is Bunker (Breeds) Hill sight of a spectacular battle which was the first major battle of the American Revolution. It's also the neighborhood that John F. Kennedy called home. The 9th day is a driving day through New England and Pennsylvania. We'll stop the Hershey, PA to explore the amazing Hershey's Chocolate Store and see some of the exhibits about the iconic Ameican Candy Maker. We spend the night in Gettysburg, PA, sight of American's most famous battle and a town which is locked into history . Our last day begins with an early morning tour of the Gettysburg Battlefield. It's impossible to know American without experiencing this event which shaped the history of the country. Returned to what it was like July 1-3, 1863, and guided by men and women who are considered the best guides in the world. Battlefield Guides know everything about this event and bring it to life. It is a sad, solemn, and absolutely beautiful place. Every student we have brought here has been touched by the place. You'll enjoy it. This afternoon we'll drive back to Columbus arriving around 6 pm. Students flying out will leave the next day. December, 22 If you are getting this email you are on the trip as of now. If you haven't sent a deposit you are tentatively on the trip. You aren't officially on the trip until we receive your deposit. Password protected Links. The Department of State requires that we don't advertise your name, location or picture until it is a password protected link. Mostly we use it on who owes money and the rooming list. Email Bill@mcmurraytravel.com to get Password. Only RYE students and Approved RYE people can get the email. If you are looking to room with a particular person please let me know. I am going to start doing rooming list on the Eastern trip next week. If you don't want to rooming with someone let me know that too. Nothing is guaranteed, but we will do our best to make you happy. Behavior on trips will get you excluded from future trips. Right now two students on the Disney Trip are not on the other two trips because they didn't follow our rules. We expect a lot from our students. We don't want to take students on trip who we think might get into dangerous situations on the Eastern and Western Trip. The Eastern trip is really fun, but really busy too. We are sightseeing every single of day of the trip. The adventures include tour the Capitol Building, New York, North Boston and the Freedom Trail, walking through History, government and culture in some of the greatest cities of the USA. December 20 We are only 3 weeks from the final payment date for the Eastern Trip. Get your money in to us. Make checks out to McMurray Travel Service and mail them to McMurray Travel Service, 6480 Dobson Sq. E., Columbus OH 43229. I am back from the Disney Trip and it was a terrific trip. We all had a great time in Disney and Universal Studio Theme Parks. I want to thank all the kids who participated. They were a wonderful group. Chaperones had as much fun as the students. After the trip I got a horrible cold and ended up in bed for two days. Just getting back to health and working on the trip. I hope to have the web site with the Rooming list up to date by Monday. Have a wonderful Holiday Season in the USA and Canada. In the next 10 days you will really enjoy too much food and great parties. Trip Fact: The Statue of Liberty is a French Woman. She was built in France and paid for by the children of France, who raised money all over France for her construction. November 29 Safety First: We are going to three of the most exciting cities in the world, but you have to be careful. (This stuff is true on all three trips) Rule of 4: We have one rule to keep you safe and it works. You have to stay in groups of 4 or more at all times. 4 people are not a target for muggers, street gangs etc.... 10 people are even better. It's also more fun the travel in a group. Start now looking for a like minded group of friends on the rooming page. If you are a shopper look for other shoppers. If you like art look for fellow art geeks. If you like history look for history geeks (I'm a history geek). Plan ahead all the things you want to see. Wandering around the hotel: You can't walk around the hotel late at night in these cities. Hotels are not safe places late at night. You have to be in your room and in for the night at 10pm. The hotels force us to use this rule and if we don't the entire group may spend the night sitting in the parking lot. Running and acting stupid: The leading cause of death in the world is stupidity so we ask kindly that you don't be stupid. Don't run in the street or hotels hallways & Lobby, don't scream, whistle or act weirdly which may make people really angry with you. Being Smart: If someone is acting weirdly around you, keep moving and get away from them. This is good advice anywhere. Don't go into alleys or places where you can't get out. Stay with groups of people. Keep looking around and be aware of what is happening around you. If someone is trying to pick a fight, walk away. Reading to Make the Most of the Trip: Reading makes all trips more fun. On the Eastern Trip read on the internet or books about the places we are going. Learn a little of the history and the people who made these areas what they are. Some people discount them, but I think Wikipedia is a good source of general knowledge. Movies are great to. One Movie covers all the cities, "National Treasure" Suggested Washington Reading and Movies: Books about the US Presidents, U.S. Politics, Congress. Biographies of Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, Pierre L'Enfant (who designed the city just like it is today in 1791.) It was the first capital which was designed from nothing. Movies like "Dave", "The American President" "National Treasure". Suggested New York Reading and Movies: The New Yorker Magazine (anthologies or my Favorite book, "My Life With Ross" by James Thurber). Books about Dutch Settlements. Biographies of Frederick Law Olmsted, Fiorella LaGuardia and Rudolph Giuliani. Movies, "Godfather(R)", "Gangs of New York (R)", "Damned Yankees"(G), "Wall Street". Boston Reading and Movies: Anything about the American Revolution. John Adams by David McCullough, the Kennedy Family, "Rise to Rebellion" and "Glorious Cause" by Jeff Shaara . Movies, "John Adams" mini-series, "The Town"(R), "The Departed"(R),"Good Will Hunting". November 20 If any of you are interested there still is space on the Rotary Florida adventure. Email me bill@mcmurraytravel.com if you want to go. We can fit you in. A lot of you have to get to Columbus Ohio to meet the trip. It's important that your know how you are going to get here. If you live out of Ohio/West Virginia, Michigan, Ontario you will be flying to meet the trip. Make sure you get your flight reservations done. You can do them locally or call our office to help. You have to arrive in Columbus on March 16 and have to fly out of Columbus on March 26. If you live in Ohio, West Virginia, Michigan, Ontario and maybe Kentucky you can usually arrange a ride to Columbus. Check with all the kids in your district and get a car-pool group together. If you haven't paid your deposit for the trip get it into us. The final payment is due in our office January 15. Don't be late. This trip is filling up very quickly. One of cooler things we do is on the last day. That day we do a tour of Gettysburg Civil War Battlefield using registered Battlefield Guides from the National Park Service. These guys are some of the best guys IN THE WORLD. Every year we have done this kids find it really interesting. To find out more (and make it more interesting for you) make sure you read something about Gettysburg. There is a pretty good movie call Gettysburg, which is very accurate and pretty exciting. It is a beautiful, sad and impressive place and maybe the best preserved battlefield museum in the world. Right now we almost have 60 people and 8 chaperones. We have room on the bus for 108 people. So we are getting there. Tell your friends to hurry up and get it done. November 8 If you are interested, we do available places on the Disney Trip leaving December 9. If you haven't signed up yet, please do if you are interested. Washington DC is our first stop after leaving Columbus Ohio. Only about 6 hours from Columbus, Washington is the center of the USA Government and where you will find the president. The first day, upon arrival, we see the monuments of the city starting at the World War 2 Memorial, Korean War Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Memorial and time permitting the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial. We stay outside of Washington in College Park, Maryland, near the campus of the University of Maryland. This morning we'll go to see the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum Annex. This is a museum which is rarely seen and is one of the best museums of it's kind in the world. See the plane which dropped the first atomic bomb, Enola Gay; a full sized mock up of the space shuttle, missiles and more. This afternoon explore the museum complex called the Smithsonian. The largest museum in the world it features all types of art, natural science, history and much more. This evening we'll visit the impressive Iwo Jima Monument, dedicated to the US Marine Corps, it has deep meaning and features a magnificent view of Washington. Our final day in Washington includes a visit to the White House, a tour of the Capitol Building and more time to explore the Smithsonian, If the weather is nice, you can join Chaperones on a private tour of Arlington National Cemetery, where you will find the remains of Presidents like John F. Kennedy and William Howard Taft as well as a chance to see the Robert E. Lee Home and the USA's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. We have been working on adding more to this trip and there are some nice surprises which are not in the itinerary. Trip Fact: Washington DC was selected as the Nation's Capitol by George Washington, who lived nearby. During the American Civil War it was surrounded by areas filled with Southern Confederate sympathizers. Washington is located in the District of Columbia which is not a state, but a federal district. It is surrounded by the States of Virginia and Maryland. October 28 Hope you have a Happy Halloween in the USA. Make sure you tell you friends to get their applications in for the trip. We are a third filled at this point and hope to have enough for two buses. Right now we have almost filled the first bus and will be starting to fill the second bus. If you are coming from outside Central Ohio or related areas, remember that no flights are included in the cost of this tour. We can make the flight for you if you wish. There may be a overnight room charge of $40.00 as well as your hotel. If you fly arrive on March 16. We urge you to take the earliest flight available from your hometown. Our bus MUST leave early in the morning and if you can't arrive you may miss the trip. This should keep you from missing the trip due to flight delays and cancellation. Return flight must be March 26 also the earliest flight. To Make Reservation with McMurray Travel, contract by e-mail JEANNE MCMURRAY at jeanne@mcmurraytravel.com. Make sure you give her your departure city, time zone, phone number and best time to contact you. There are still places left on the Disney Trip, December 9-16/17. This trip is a great way to see some of the southern USA as well as enjoy the world's greatest theme park, Walt Disney World. We are also going to Universal Studios, another amazing park. It's newest feature is the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. We will see a total of four parks, 2 in Disney (Magic Kingdom & Disney Hollywood Studios and two in Universal. Please sign up soon. Mention it to your friends. If you haven't done it please send your deposits. Final payment will be in January. Chaperones on this trip are already firm. Larry Jenkins is a Rotarian and has done 4 trips; Jackie Favret a student at Ohio State (has done every trip the last 5 years); Christine O'Donnell, a graduate student at Kent State University and veteran of 5 trips; Luhan Oliveria, former RYE and a college student at Universidade Paulista - UNIP in Brazil; Tessa Mauer, former RYE, student at Princeton University; Brenda Gaver, a veteran of 3 trips; Dave Saho is a retired steelworker who has done 10 trips as a chaperone. This trip will be my 24th. October 20 Make sure if you live a long way from Columbus Ohio to get your flights arranged and send them to us. Arrive in Columbus Ohio on the earliest flight from your home city on March 16, returning on the first flight March 26. Everyone who is driving in (people from Michigan, Ohio, WVA and Kentucky) you will be leaving on the 25th after 6:00pm. The trip is selling very quickly and the first bus is getting near being sold out. Tell your friends to get their application in on the trip. The trip is open to any Rotary exchange student in the USA, Canada and Bahamas. The first day and evening is spent gathering students for the trip. We are staying in a very nice hotel, with an indoor pool and nice lobby. There are a couple of food places nearby. We leave the next morning at 7:30am and by early afternoon we are in Washington DC touring the Monuments. Washington is a fun city to walk around in and we allow you some free time. You have to stay in groups of 4 or more for safety. Our trips involve a lot of walking so bring really comfortable shoes for walking. Some students in New York have been know to walk 25 kilometers during a day. All our cities involve a lot of walking. Check the Web Site http://www.rotarytrip.org/roteast12.html for all the details of the trip. There are Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), list of kids on the trip and much more. Oct. 13, 2011 We have you fill out applications to go on these trips. This is why. We need information if there is an emergency. We need to know who to call and have permission to have you treated for injuries or sickness. Over the past 13 years we have made about 10 trips to emergency rooms or doctor's offices. They need info. We need your district chair's information if we need to get permission from them. Many of them call us during the trip to see how you are doing on the trips. We want to know personality and personal information about you because we want to get to know you. The reason we do these trips is because we want to know you. We love doing them and the chaperones really enjoy talking to you. We need your pictures to identify you at airports, figure out who you are, be able to do a better job on the trip. We actually modify to the trip to fit the personality of the entire group. We need deposits and payments on time because we pay deposits on buses, hotels, and we need to pay for tickets early. Make sure you pay us on time. We are finalizing our chaperones on this trip. So far we have the following chaperones locked in. Bill McMurray (The best looking chaperone), Jackie Favret, Chrstine O'Donnell, Brenda Gaver, Dave Saho, Larry Jenkins. There are one or two other chaperones we are waiting to hear from on the Eastern Trip. All these chaperones have done several trips before. Look for the entire list at http://rotarytrip.org/rotinfo.html Trip Fact: New York City was orginially know as Nieu Amsterdam and was a Dutch Colony. Lot's of Dutch words can still be found in NYC place names. Many famous New Yorkers were of Netherlands Descent: Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt, Martin Van Buren; Gloria Vanderbilt, and many more. October 8, 2011 I
have received all your applications and want to welcome you to the
Rotary Eastern Adventure. We will be emailing your regular updates so
make sure we are not in your spam filter. My emails are
bill@mcmurraytravel.com or
bill.mcmurray@gmail.com. Make sure you get your deposit into us as
soon as possible. You aren't officially on the trip until we received
your deposit for each trip. There will be two buses on the Eastern
Trip and between 80 and 100 students. |