Pisa, Italy

Naz-

The plane flight from Macua China to Pisa Italy was quite pricey, and cost us $2,352 per person, this turned out to be a total of $14,112. From the airport we took one of the many free shuttles they have to get to our hotel. i found my information at http://www.orbitz.com/App/ViewFlightSearchResults?null&retrieveParams=true&z=756f&r=39&z=7571&r=3b&lastPage=interstitial.
For transportation in Pisa, Italy, i figured we could keep it easy and just take the city bus. Pisa has two trains, but since it is such a compact city there is really no need to waste money on the railroad. Also, there are many taxis and tourist horse carriages but once again, both of those are more expensive then the bus. The bus has many stops all around the city of Pisa so it is very convinient. I figured we would buy a 10 ticket booklet to save some money, which costs $12. About 3 of these each we would probably get to keep it safe. If each of us all got 3 10 ticket booklets the total price would come out to be $216.



Ryan-

This week in Pisa, Italy for the built monument, I thought we could go and see the world famous leaning tower of Pisa! I have always wanted to see the tower for my own eyes. It was quite the sight. It was amazing to see the 207 columns that make the tower. We got to go around the tower and experience the culture of Italy as well. It was a workout walking up the 297 step spiral staircase. But we eventually got to the top and it was a great sight to see Pisa, Italy from the top of the tower. This was one of my favorite monuments I have ever seen. It was a short taxi drive from our hotel to the tower. It was free to walk up the tower and around it. The taxi trip was about 10 Euro's. Which equals about 13 US dollars. I have also attached the picture and I got my information about the tower from http://www.towerofpisa.info/


Josh-

Accommodations, for Pisa, Italy. We are staying at Hotel Republicca Marinara. It would be 64,00 euro per night/ $88.17 per night is USD. So total would be $ 529.02 For the week.

Hotel website: http://www.hotelrepubblicamarinara.it/en/

Night 1 food: We walked to sub shop recommended by the hotel/ we had chicken parmigiana subs. 7,00 euro per sub, so $57 total. Our first night we would go and eat at one of the best places to eat at in town! Osteria Dei Cavalieri, we would each have a fabulous grilled beef fillet! Sounds fantastic! 16,00 euro, $22.04. So it would be $132.24 USD plus a $40 tip. So $172.24 total.

Night 2 food: One block away from the hotel we found cart selling sausage and pepper subs! At 6,50 per sub it was excellent! So $52.68 total. Night two we would have to eat pizza! The restaurant is only 1 mile from the hotel so would have a beautiful walk to help our appetite! We ate a Margherita pizza! (yum!) 5,50 euro and pizza salsiccia! (sausage) 6,00 euro. This pizza was wonderful and filling! So our food would cost us $7.57 and $8.26. So our meal would be cheap but amazing! So $16.43 total!

Night 3 food: For lunch we stopped by a restaurant that specializes in salads, we ordered 3 cold antipasto salads! 1 could feed 2 people, so at 8,00 euro, $32.61 total. All of us seemed to come to the conclusion that we wanted Chinese food, so we went to one right down the road, he had some sesame and Kung Pow chicken! At 7,50 euro. So it would $10.32 USD. So a total of $61.92. The food was pretty good.

Night 4 food: We wanted seafood for lunch, so we stopped by a small seafood restaurant and we ordered mussels scoppiate! They cost 10,25 in euro, so $83.70.Just down the road is a self service pizza and pasta bar. It has pizza, pasta, and salads. It is basically like a buffet, it would be plenty of food for us to eat. We ate so much food that we cold barely walk anywhere else! At 8,00 euro, so it would be 11.01 in USD. So total would be $66.06 total!

Night 5: We noticed a baked goods shop, so we stopped by and just ate bread, cookies and chips. It was filling and only cost 20,00 in euro, so $27.20.We ate at La Mangiatoia Ristorante Pizzeria, we ate gnocchi (9,00) and a risotto di mare (9,00). So it would be $12.38 USD per item. So total it would be $148.56 for meal and $50 tip! So the whole meal would cost $198.56.

Night 6: We stopped by the same place we had our chicken subs at, so we had a classic Italian sub. It had provolone, cappicola, salami and prosciutto. It was probably my favorite meal! It was 6,50 euro, so $39 total. On our last night we voted to decide on what we wanted to eat, it was a unanimous decision that we just have a pizza and pasta like we did on night 2, we found a another pizza place called Pizzeria La Spigolatrice, I was only 2 blocks away from the hotel so it was a great find! The pizzas were 6,75 euro and we ordered 2, we also ordered 3 places of spaghetti and meatballs! They were 6,25 euro a plate. The spaghetti cost $44.38 and for the pizza $18.58. Total for the food would be $62.96.

I had a lot of fun trying to new and authentic italian food places!

Total for food $870.36 in USD, euro is 639,32.

Total for whole trip is $1399.38 in USD, euro is 1023,32.

Yates-

For our natural site in Pisa, Italy I figured we should check out the Arno River which is the biggest and most renowned river in the region of Tuscany. The river runs from Mount Falterona (near the city of Arezzo), cutting through Florence to Pisa, where it enters the Tyrrhenian Sea. The river has a history of dramatic behavior water levels can be almost non-existent, then rise to near flood level in a matter of days. The dams built near Florence have alleviated to flood problems in past times. In both Florence and Pisa several grand buildings line the Arno, which added to the great atmosphere while we were relaxing by the river. We also got to see other scenery as we walked to the river.

Here is a link to what the Arno River looks like:

http://3scape.com/pic/1740/Ponte-Vecchio-on-the-Arno-River

Matt Whitlow - Cultural/Historic Site or Event

A short walk from our hotel in Pisa, Italy, we decided to take a 2.5 hour guided segway tour around historic Pisa. What a great choice. On the guided tour, we also had an audio component that described all of the sites we stopped at. We saw so many historical sites, it was amazing! We saw:

• The Leaning Tower of Pisa
  
• The Cathedral
• The Baptistery
• Piazza dei Cavalieri
• San Michele in Borgo
• Across the arno
• San Sepolcro
• San Paolo a Ripa d'Arno
• Santa Spina

The tour was great, however the tour did not allow time for us to spend any quality time at any of the sites, nor did it include any admittance into any of the sites. My favorite part of the tour was seeing the Leaning Tower of Pisa, because this has been on my bucket list of things to do before I die, and now I can cross it off.

http://www.pisatours.com/?event=offer.detail&offerId=8517&startDate=11/01/2011&endDate=11/30/2011

$114.59 Per Person USD + $4.95 USD Processing fees per person
83.20 Euro Per Person + 3.59 EURO Processing fees per person
Total - 520.74 EURO = $717.24 USD

Recreational/Sport Activity By: Erin Starnes

For this leg of the trip we decided to take a cycling tour around Pisa. The venue we rented the bikes from had self-guided and tour-guided tours. Knowing so little about the city we dicided to spend a little extra and have a tour guide. Along with a tour guide they provided us with an MP3 player as well so we could listen to further information about the city! The bikes were in great condition, and it was a very unique way to experience Pisa. The tour itself lasted 3 hours and we got to see: Piazza de miracoli, Piazza die Cavalieri, San michele in Borgo, San Sepolcro, san paolo a ripa d’Arno, and a little church in Santa Spina. The tour guides were very good about keeping us away from traffic on the roads which allowed the entire group to feel much safer. Our tour guide met us at the Leaning Tower of Pisa where our tour began. We quickly learned that the quickest way, and most popular way of travelling in Italy was by foot, so we set out early and took in the sights and sounds and walked to the Leaning Tower. This also alowed many members of our group to get out and take numerous pictures and experience a little bit of Italian lifestyle. It was amazing to hear the many different languages and smell the delicious aromas that seem to always occupy the streets in Italy.

http://www.tickitaly.com/tours/italy-bike-tour-pisa.php

http://www.tickitaly.com/tours/italy-bike-tours.php

39 Euros/Person

$ 53.63/Person

234 Euros total for 6 people

$ 321.62 Total for 6 people

Male, Maldives

Accommodations: Nazmi:

What's up everyone, this trip was the most fun trip we've been on so far in my personal opinion! They had a lot of nice resorts, but i thought to save money we would stay at Marble Hotel located right in the middle of Male, Maldives! This hotel is a very cozy hotel, with the luxury of also having a buffet for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!! This hotel is located in the middle of Male so it was very easy to get to all of the locations we needed to. Each room has 3 beds, and so we got 2 rooms. The total price for the week of accommodations turned out to be 4,900. I thought this was a good price and a very good deal considering the fact that we are on a budget!

Transportation: Erin:

From our hotel in Macau they provided a free shuttle to the airport for us!
The flights for this leg of the trip were quite more expensive than the res of our trip.
For 6 people the total price was $5458.44 which is 34684.0194 Yuan.

For the first lef we took an air bus off Air macau Flight # NX882 to Bangkok, and then spent the night in the Bangkok Airport. The next morning we took Malaysia Airlines Flight #MH785 that lands in Kuala Lumpur, and then a connecting flight to Male, Flight #MH177. The sleeping in the airport was not ideal, however we all slept a little bit which was nice. The Airbusses were very comfortable and had very nice accomodations so that was nice.

https://www.vayama.com/checkout/checkout.jsp?s=50090502&cb=1853313422&source=landing
https://www.vayama.com/checkout/checkout.jsp?s=50090502&cb=1853313422&source=landing
Luckily the hotel in Male also had a shuttle bus for us to our Airport!

Total Cost for 6 people: $5458.44
Total Yuan for 6 People: 34684.0194 Yuan
Cost for Individual: $909.74 USD
Cost for Yuan: 5780.6699 Yuan

Built Monument/Attraction: Robert:

For our built monument or attraction I figured we could check out the Grand Friday Mosque in Male. This grand architecture of bygone times was constructed by the Sultan Ibrahim Iskandhar in 1656. The grand Friday mosque of Maldives also includes the famous Islamic center. Grand Friday mosque in Maldives has a capacity to accommodate nearly 5000 people. The dominant golden dome of the Maldives Grand Friday mosque adorns the facade of Male. The artwork in this mosque was simply mind blowing. This magnificent edifice, with its unique minarets, amazing coral engravings and tombs of national heroes and members of royalty, provides the tourists with the glimpses of the past. It is the biggest mosque in Maldives. There was no cost to see the “grandness” of this mosque. It was very beautiful. We would recommend it to anyone.

Cultural and Historic Site: Ryan:

For our cultural and historic site I chose for us to visit the National Museum of Maldives. This is located in Male, in the Sultan Park which was part of the Sultan's palace. The museum has a great selection of objects that show the rich cultural heritage of the country. Some of the objects consisted of costumes, objects, pictures, and armor of the past Maldivian way of life. It was a great place for us to experience something new to us. We all had a ton of fun! The museum is located in Male so we only had to take a taxi from where we were staying to get to the museum. The taxi costs only about 115.00 Moldovan Leu's which is only about $10.00 I got my information from http://maldives.tourism-srilanka.com/tourist-attractions/national-museum.html Recreational Activity: Matt:

A short walk from our hotel is a large dive shop called Prodivers. Prodivers offers full day snorkeling trips on boats that visit multiple multiple dive sites. We checked in here and decided to each rent snorkeling gear and head out on the boat for the day. Throughout the course of the day, we saw many great species of turtles, manta rays, sharks and coral reefs. The water was so warm and clear and you could see the bottom from the surface in most places. We were all amazed by how abundant the tropical fish are there, and especially how huge these manta rays are. Check out the picture I snapped during one of our dives. A few of us had not been snorkeling before and were truly fascinated by this experience. The down side of the day was that a couple of us did not pack the Dramamine and got a little sick along the way! Thankfully our captain had some extra laying around, which made the rest of the day bearable. Gear: $9.00 per day / Per Person = $54.00 USD Total. = (821.88 MVR) Boat Trip: $48.00 / Person = $288.00 USD Total. = (4,383.36 MVR) Day Trip Total: $336.00 USD = (5,205.24 MVR) http://www.prodivers.com/Kuredu-Diving-Prices.aspx Natural Site: Josh:

Hey man, the natural sight was difficult, but I figured since the Maldives Islands are known for their beaches and crystal blue oceans. I figured that we could take trip and just hang out at the beach and watch the sunset. We could swim, bogey board, surf and just lay out on the beautiful white beaches! It would be so relaxing, peaceful and just an extraordinary to experience!

 Destination 4- Macau, China

Transportation- Matt

Accomodations- Erin

Natural Site- Naz

Built Monument or attraction- Josh

Cultural/Historic site- Yates

Recreational/Sport activity- Ryan

Blog- Josh

Matt Whitlow-Transportation

On this leg of the trip, we made our way to the airport from the Sumo Backpackers Hostel via subway on the Red Line.  That total cost was 800 Japanese Yen per person for a total cost of 4800 Japanese Yen.
Once we arrived at the airport, we made our way to Eva Airlines where we caught our first leg of the flight, it was a 2 hour and 55 minute flight out to Taipei, Taiwan.  We had a quick stop in Taipei, Taiwan for only an hour and 15 minutes.  We had to frantically change planes in this time, and we almost didn’t make it.   We were all also worried about our bags making it and thankfully they all did.
We hopped onto another plane for our final flight to Macau, China.  This leg of the flight was a quick hour and forty-five minutes.  I thought the flight was going to be longer, but was relieved when I found out we would be there quickly.  Total travel time from Osaka to Macau was 5 hours and 55 minutes.
Once we arrived in Macau, China we jumped on one of the free shuttle busses, and that took us to our hotel a few minutes later.http://www.macau-airport.com/site/php/en/shuttle_bus.php
Transportation Spend:
Subway to airport
800 Japanese Yen (JPY) per person,
4,800 Japanese Yen total (JPY)
$10.51 USD Per Person
$63.04 USD Total


Airfare from Osaka to Macau
45,230.7 Japanese Yen (JPY)
271,384.2 Japanese Yen Total  (JPY)
$594 USD per person
$3,564.00 USD Total

Macau Shuttle to Hotel:
Free

Total Transportation Spend:
$3627.04 USD Total
276,184.2 JPY Total

Erin- Accomodations

 For Our Hotel we found  a quaint little hotel located in the heart of Macau, and A short 5 minute drive to the airport.  Our rooms even came with internet and TV’s!  We decided to book 2 rooms for our group

Zhuhai Bihai Hotel No1 Bihai Rd. Xiangzhou Zhuha,GD 519000,China

$46/Nt/Rm. 

291.30 Yuan/Nt/Rm

$5 Taxes and Fees/Nt/Rm

31.66 Yuan Taxes and Fees/Nt/Rm

Total Cost 7 Nights, 2 rooms, $710     

4496.19 Yuan Total Cost

http://www.kayak.com/h/hotel/details.vtl?idx=63&hid=116689&hideSplit=1&ro=false&rating=3&bookiturl=-895608590.BOOKINGDOTCOM,BOOKINGDOTCOM.5070|858358101.EXPEDIA,EXPEDIA.-100&searchid=ZAEB6tz1p&page=rates

One patron that has visited before us had this to say about the hotel:

“For the price we paid this is a good hotel to stay. Surprisingly clean but basic. Only time in China when we get non-smoking room as promised by staff. Aircon's working well and cold.Nearby hotel,there are plenty of bus services to bring you to all tourist/local destinations.” http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g297418-d504853-Reviews-Starway_Bihai_Hotel-Zhuhai_Guangdong.html

Food

The first night of our trip we decided to eat at a famous retraunt reccomended by the hotel staff; the 360 Café

360 CafeBuffet: Dinner 88.86 Yuan $14/Person (6 People 531.94 Yuan, $84)

For our second night we decided to go to an authentica Macau Restaurant, Well Worth the price, and an awesome atmosphere!

Jade Garden:  Shanghai Dumplings  108 Yuan $17 ( 6 People 645.93 yuan $102)

For Night 3 we decided to seek out a retaurant that served the Chinese noodles we had heard so much about!  Made from Bamboo very different then what we are used to in the states!

Luk Kei Noodle:  Bowl of traditional Chinese Noodles 25 Yaun $3.95 (6 People 150.08 Yuan  $23.70)

For Night 4 we found a Mcdonalds to grab some food that reminds us of home!

Big Mac:   12.35 Yuan $1.95 (6 People 74.09 Yuan $11.70)

 For Night 5 we decided to search out some seafood! We found a gorgeous retaurant that smelled divine!

Clams with Spicy Sauce:  186 Yuan $29.37 (6 People 1115.94 Yuan $176.22)

Night 6  Macau Restaurant, a very popluar spot for locals!

Roasted Pork Cheek with Baked Rice 52 Yuan $8.21 (6 People  311.95 Yuan $49.26)

Street Vendors Bowl of Rice:  10 Yuan $1.58 ( 6 people for 6 days $56.88 360.20 Yuan)

We decided to do this for lunch every day, and spend a little more on dinner each night!

We were very glad we decided to save money on lunch and spend more on Supper, each night we were able to get a different taste of authentic chinese food, that was absoluetely delicious!

Transportation in China is mostly by foot, so in order to truly immerse ourselves in Chinese Culture we decided to travel by foot to all of our meals.  All were conveniently located fairly close to our hotel, and it was good exercise after we stuffed ourselves each night!

Total Food Cost: $503.76  3190.14 yuan

Total Cost Accomodations:  $1213.76  7686.33 yuan

Naz- Natural Site

It took me a real long time to find a natural site in Macau, China.  However, I think i finally found one.  The natural site I found is Lou Lim Iok Garden.  Located in central Macau, Lou Lim Iok garden is a great place that has a couple of different natural sites.  In the garden there are stone mountains and pools, and bridges over flowing streams.  After walking through the garden and walking through an arch door you will see  bamboo thicket, among which there are two trees with beautiful shape and huge umbrella - like tree crowns.  Those trees are Sphaeropteris lepifera, a very rare tree in china that is protected.  The main natural site in Lou Lim lok garden would have to be Exquisite mountain.  After walking through a forest trail you reach Exquisitie mountain.  Exquisite mountain is a stone mountain with a flowing waterfall.  This was the best natural site I could find in Macau, China, so I hope that it works out! The best part about this natural site is that, like most natural sites, it is completely free! It would only be a 10 minute walk from the hotel.

Josh- Built Monument

 For our built monument, I thought we would visit Monument to the Macanese Diaspora. Located in the western part of the city, the monument was built in 2001 to represent the new millennium of meeting of the Macanese culture. The sculpture has a lotus flower that represents the religion of the Macau people. There is an A-MA temple replica that represents the time honoured Chinese culture. A bronze globe that represents Portuguese discoveries in Macau. The monument brings all of the people of Macau together in a monument that they can celebrate. It is a great place to recognize that culture, history and religion are greatly celebrated in China! It is a beautiful monument and a great experience to see! It would take us about 10 minute taxi ride to the location from the hotel.

Ryan- Recreational/Sport Activity

For our recreational activity in Macau, China I thought we could wonder around the Inner Harbour.  There was plenty of things for us there to see.  We were able to take a tricycle rickshaw tour along the waterfront.  This was beautiful and it was amazing to see the different scenery that the city had to offer.  It was also a new experience for us to take a tricycle tour along the water.  It was something that I would recommend everyone to do sometime in their life.  Along with our tricycle tour we saw the Casa Garden and Guia Hill fortress and lighthouse! Both of these were quite the sight! It was great to enjoy the inner harbour and great weather that we also experienced while in Macau.  After seeing all of these things here in the Inner Harbour, it is making it pretty tough to leave again to our next destination. 

The Inner Harbour was about 11 miles away from our hotel that we were staying at in Macau.  So I thought the easiest way would be just to take a taxi.  The price for a yellow taxi cab for our whole group would be about 160 MOP$ round trip.  The tricycle rickshaw tour along the water front cost us about 80 MOP$ as well.   So the total that it cost for our recreational activity was about 240 MOP$ which turns out to be 30 US dollars. 

I got my information about The Inner Harbour in Macau, China from

http://www.china-macau.com/inner-harbour/activities.htm

Yates- Cultural/Historic Site

For our cultural/historic site I thought that we could explore the Ruins of Saint Paul’s Cathedral. It is located in Macau, China and it is the most famous landmark in that area. St. Paul's Cathedral was first built in the 17th Century, with the design of an Italian Jesuit and the work of Japanese Christians. This mammoth and spectacular building dominated the city until 1835 when it was savagely destroyed by fire and only the facade, the mosaic floor and stone steps approaching the building survived. In fact, the ruins of St. Paul's are still impressive and inspiring despite this destruction, perhaps even more so because of it. It is about a 20 minute cab ride to the Ruins of St Paul’s Cathedral. The cathedral is open 24 hours and it is FREE to get in and look around. We had a great time and enjoyed every bit of history that we could take in. It was a beautiful place and now we know why it is a top landmark in this country. It was GREAT

Here is a pic of what it looks like now…ENJOY

Blog Posted by: Ryan Metts

-Sumo Backpackers Hostel
-Tennoji Park

Natural Site: Erin

For this weeks natural site we decided to visit the Tennoji Park. This park was as beautiful and as green as New York’s Central park. This historic park opened in 1909, and is open during all seasons with a greenhouse, many flower beds, and a rose arch for people to walk under. The park is also home to the zoological gardens and the Osaka Museum of art. We walked to the park from our hotel because the weather was so beautiful , and we wanted to get the full experience of Osaka and the weather and nature that they experience. The park was very tranquill and quiet, we all got the chance to walk around the park and look at the flowers and reflect on everything that we had seen up to this point on our trip. I was able to actually sit down and read a book and thoroughly enjoy the park. It was almost taboo to actually talk in the park, so our entire group was able to just simply enjoy the sights. The cost was 150 Yen per person, which equals out to $15.66 total, or 1200 Yen.

http://www.asiarooms.com/en/travel-guide/japan/osaka/parks-and-gardens-in-osaka/tennoji-park.html

http://www.osaka-info.jp/en/search/detail/sightseeing_2186.html

Recreational/Sport Activity: Yates

For our recreational/sport activity I figured we could go to Nishikinohama Beach Park. It is a ten-minute walk from Nishikihama Station of the Nankai Electric Railway main line. It is less than an hour from downtown Osaka, Japan. The park is full of people enjoying various marine and beach activities, including families and young windsurfing and jet-ski enthusiasts. I figured we could just sit back, relax and enjoy the beach. The park also has facilities for barbecuing. “Nishiki” (literarily two colors) in “Nishikinohama” refers to the white of the 1 km-long sand beach and the green of the pine groves. Nishikinohama beach has long been well known as place of scenic beauty and has been designated as one of the 100 most scenic greenery spots in Osaka. We decided to take a long walk on the beach and watch the sun set over Osaka Bay. It was beautiful. I decided that we should buy the Osaka Unlimited Pass (One-Day Pass) which is a sightseeing card that offers unlimited use of trains and buses in Osaka City and neighboring areas, as well as admission to 24 popular sightseeing facilities. Other privileges (discounts, presents, etc.) are also available at 14 sightseeing facilities and approx. 40 restaurants, shops and hotels. This costs 2,000 Yen which is $26.09 for a one day pass. The train station is just a short walk from our hotel so it all works out for us.

Accommodations: Matt

Sumo Backpackers Hostel.

1-11-28, Nakatsu, Kita-ku,

Osaka, Japan

1,776.81 Per Person/Per Night (Japanese Yen)

63,965.33 Total for 6 nights (Japanese Yen)

$23.17 Per Person/Per Night (USD)

$834.12 Total for 6 nights (USD)

"Very practical if you come from Osaka / Shin Osaka station. Less than one minute to subway exit. The owner is very friendly and can be good advice. Fluent in English. However, you can really see how the earthquake disaster has effected tourism - we were the only ones in the hostel which is a shame as its such a quirky place."

Reference: http://www.japanese.hostelworld.com/hostelreview.php/Sumo-Backpackers/Osaka/6480/reviews/

Food:

Dotonboriimaihonten (Noodle Bar) $13.00 Per Person x 6 people = 5,981.51 Yen

In addition to the great noodles, they also had the best soup I have ever had

Gogoichihorai (Dim Sum) $12.50 Per Person x 6 People = 5,751.45 Yen

This restaurant has the best Bao in Japan and they sell over 140,000 a day!!

Ponpoketei (Traditional Japanese) $25.00 Per Person x 6 People = 11,502.90 Yen

This restaurant has delicious traditional Japanese food and is much cheaper than some of the chain restaurants

Jambo (Noodles) $13.00 Per Person x 6 People = 5,981.51 Yen

Great restaurant for some good noodles and good salad. Perfect location for our large group.

La Golosetta (Pizza and Italian) $22.50 per person x 6 people = 10,352.61 Yen

We all were missing some food that reminds us of home so we decided on eating some local pizza. Glad we did, it was a hit.

Kaisenhyakusaihinabebokitashinchichipao (Chinese) $20.00 Per Person x 6 people = 9,202.32 Yen

This was great Chinese food. Must try the Peking Duck while there.

For breakfast this week, we went shopping at Takonotetsu and got some baked goods along with cereal, milk, fruit and orange juice. Total cost was $70.00 (32208.12 Yen)

All of these restaurants are within walking distance of the Sumo Backpacker Hostel.

Food Total = 80,980.42 Yen = $1,056.00 USD

Accommodations Total = 63,965.33 Yen = $834.12 USD

Totals = 144,945.75 Yen = $1,890.12 USD

This was a fun stop. We were able to try many local foods and see many of the sites around Osaka. The Hostel was really cool and quirky, but not too many other travelers around.

Built Monument or Attraction: Naz

This week for our visit to a built monument or attraction i figured we could go and check out Osaka Castle. Completed in the year of 1597, Osaka Castle is still one of Japan's most famous castles ever. The entire castle covers 15 acres, and has many different things such as a museum, obersvation deck, park, etc. Osaka castle also contains thirteen structures that have been designated as important cultural assets by the Japanese government. I thought it looked really cool and figured we could spend half a day there. The price to enter the musuem is 600 yen, which converts to $7.8268 in american dollars. I figured i would just round that up to $8 dollars a person and the total price for the trip to the beautiful osaka castle would end up being $48 dollars. A great price i thought for seeing one of Japan's most beautiful castles. Here is the website i got my information from http://www.osakacastle.net/english/museum/index.html , and if you go on google images and just type in osaka castle there are a lot of beautiful pictures out there to see.

Historic/Cultural Site: Josh

For my historic/cultural site, I figured we could go to the oldest Buddhist temple in Japan, Shitennoji Temple! It was founded in 593 by prince Shotoku. The design of the temple is from the 6th and 7th century. The most amazing thing about this temple is how it has burned down several times but restored to be as identical as the original. There is a 5 story pagoda and a golden hall where prince Shotoku has a statue. In the garden there is a turtle pond which represents buddhist paradise,around the pond are various sculptures and scriptures. This would be great experience to see how Buddhist practice their religion and see how old the architecture. This would be free to see! Which is awesome!

> http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/location/regional/osaka/shitennoji.html

Transportation: Ryan

We will take a taxi through Alaska Yellow Cab from the Sheraton Anchorage Hotel to the airport in Anchorage that will cost about $37.50. We will then leave Anchorage through Delta on flight DL 9060 to Seattle, Washington. We will then have a relaxing 12 hour layover in the Seattle airport. Then we will arrive in Osaka, Japan at 4:30 PM on flight DL 183. This is almost a 12 hour flight. This flight was pretty exhausting. The total cost per person was $913.16 and $7,304.16. The flights were not too bumpy but just really long and tiring. Once we arrived in Osaka, we will use the Osaka Subway service. We need to take the red line to get to our Sumo Backpackers Hostel. The price of a subway ticket is 800 yen/person. So the total comes out to be $62.46. After an exhausting couple days of travel we have finally arrived in our Hostel. The total cost for transportation is $7366.62

Expenses

Transportation: $7366.62

Monument/Attraction: $48

Accommodations: $1,890.12

Recreational/Sport: $28.09

Natural Site: $15.66

Historic Site: $0

Total for this leg of the trip: $9348.49

Total expenditures: $18742.96

Stop Number 2, Anchorage Alaska

BLOG POSTED BY:  Matt Whitlow!

Anchorage, Alaska.  Stop 2

Ryan - $1,723.00

Josh -  $1,100.00

Matt - $480.00

Erin – Free

Robert –  $1,602.00

Nazmi - $54.00

Total Spend This Leg – $4,969.00

Balance Remaining - $90,605.53

Ryan –

Accommodations

While we are in Anchorage, Alaska I thought we would stay at the wonderful Sheraton Anchorage Hotel and Spa.  This is a great hotel that is located in downtown Anchorage and only 12 miles from the airport. I have booked two separate rooms for six nights.  The total for this reservation is estimated at $1,411.20.  We will be arriving September 21st and departing again on September 27th. The link that I booked our hotel on is http://www.sheraton.com/anchorage.

Food List
Alaskan King Salmon Fillets from 10th and M Seafoods: 4 lbs. x $24.95 = $99.80
Downtown Deli: 6 people = $55.00
2 cases of water = $12.00
Snow City Cafe: 6 people = $60.00
Snow Goose & Sleeping Lady Brewery: 6 people = $65.00
Various Snacks: $20.00

I have attached a picture of our hotel in Anchorage as well.

-Ryan

The total for food and hotel for this leg of the trip comes out to be $1,723.00        

Josh

Recreational Sport/Activity

For our activity I though that we could go whale watching! The boat we will be boarding is called  Lu-Lu Belle, also known as "limousine of the sea". On is boat we will see whales such as Humpback, Killer and Gray whales! We would also see sea lions, otters and seals! We would set sail from Valdez, Alaska and sail into Prince William Sound. We would also see some of the most beautiful scenery in the world! This trip would costs us $105 per person, $630 total. http://www.lulubelletours.com/book/index.asp
For our sport, I thought paintball would be fun! We would go to 907 paintball in south Anchorage. It is $10 for all day pass, $10 all day compressed air, $60 for 2000 paintballs. Which equal up to $480. This would be such a fun time!
 http://www.907paintball.com/

Matt - Natural Site

We took a day trip to Denali National Park to see if we could get a glimpse of Mt. McKinley.  We rode on a bus service called the Alaska Park Connection and the cost was $80.00 per person.  This all day trip, had us leaving at 7:00 am and returning to Anchorage at 9:30 pm.  This road trip took us on the spectacular Seward highway which is Alaska's only scenic Byway.   I don’t think I ever took any more beautiful pictures from the side of the highway.  We went through the small fishing town of Seward, across two scenic mountain passes into Denali National Park.  What an exhausting day, but thankfully we got to see Mt. McKinley.

http://www.alaskacoach.com/index.html

Total Cost $480.00

Erin: 

Built monument or Attraction.

For our historic monument this week we decided to visit the statehood monument of Alaska.  This is a large Bronze statue of President Eisenhower that was erected in  1990.  The monument was raised to celebrate the 75^th anniversary of the first official settlement in the area, which was established in 1915, Tent City.   The Statue was beautiful to look at, and also offered a view of the history of Alaska, which was not well known to  most of us, so it was also very informative. This is not only free, but Is also within walking distance of our hotel!  We also met an elderly gentleman that was looking at the statue who told us about the bitterly cold winters and how much he loved the Summer in Anchorage.  The monument was absolutely beautiful, and we all really enjoyed looking at it, and learning more about the history of Anchorage!

Price:  Free

Link: http://alaska.usl.myareaguide.com/attraction_details.html?detailsListingId=ATTRACTIONS_1a47594861506423500f8547cfac81ff

Robert –

Transportation

We will be taking TLC taxi from Crater Lake Lodges to Medford (MFR) Airport which will be $28. We will arrive at airport an hour or so before departure which would be around 5:00 am. We will be taking Alaska Airlines Flight 2452. Our departure time is 6:20am and we will fly to Seattle, WA and arrive there at 7:44am. When we arrive there we will have a 1h 46m layover. Around 9:30 am we will be taking Alaska Airlines Flight 91 to Anchorage, Alaska. We will arrive at our destination around 12:04pm which will give us enough time to get situated and to take a look around Anchorage at the beautiful scenery. The total duration time of travel is 3h 34m and we traveled over 1,444 miles on a Boeing 737-800. The total cost for all 6 of us to fly to Anchorage is $1554 with each person being at $259 for the economy class. We will take a taxi from the airport to the Sheraton Anchorage Hotel & Spa for $20.

Nazmi –

I looked at the Anchorage Museum website and it seemed like a great place to go visit.  They also have a planetarium in the museum.  However for general admission it costs $12 per person per adult, and $9 per student.  I figured for the 6 of us at general admission it would end up being $54 dollars.

http://www.anchoragemuseum.org/

Crater Lake Oregon; Stop Number 1

Transportation:  Josh

Flight costs $2190.54 for all 6 of us. Depart RDU at 5:55pm on continental airlines flight 1234, arrive in Houston (IAH) at 7:47 pm. Change flights, have a 1hr and 13 minute layover. Depart at 9pm on flight 1495; arrive in Portland (PDX) at 11:26 pm, 8hr and 44 minute layover. Change airline to Alaska Airlines flight 2329, take off at 8:10am. Arrive at 9:10am in Medford (MFR). Total time for whole trip is 18hrs and 15mins, we traveled 3100 miles. We take TLC taxi from airport to Crater Lake Lodges 1211 Avenue C White City, Oregon, 97503. It would cost $28 for the taxi ride.  The flights were bumpy; and somewhat unpleasant, but all in all a good trip.


Accommodations:  Yates

The accommodations for our trip is that we will be camping for the week at Mazama Village Campground. There is one site that we will be camping at. The cost for the week for the site and campground is $210.00. The site can fit 8ft by 8ft tents. The food for the week is going to be just like any other camping trip (non perishable foods) like beans, 2 loaves of bread, peanut butter, jam, cases of bottles of water so we don't get dehydrated, granola bars, and then ingredients to make smores (chocolate bars, graham crackers, marshmallows. The cost of all of the food was 55.93. 

Arrive: Thursday September 15, 2011

Depart: Wednesday September 21, 2011

Number of sites: 1

Nights: 6

Adults p/room: 6 ($3.50 x 4 extra guest)

Children p/room: 0

Special Requests (not guaranteed): Total Width: 8, Total Length: 8

Thu 15th	1 x $35.00
Fri 16th	1 x $35.00
Sat 17th	1 x $35.00
Sun 18th	1 x $35.00
Mon 19th	1 x $35.00
Tue 20th	1 x $35.00
Total:	$210.00

Food list:

Beans 12 cans: $20.04

2 loaves of bread $3.00

Bottles of water (2 case): $12.00

Peanut butter: $3.99   

Jelly: $3.50

Marshmallows: $2.00

Hersheys chocolate: $4.65 (3bars)

Graham crackers: $4.50

Granola bars: $2.25

Total: 55.93

Natural Site:  Ryan

For our natural site while we are here at Crater Lake, I thought we could take a look at Vidae Falls.  It is a waterfall with a 100 foot drop and spectacular view.  It was a great piece of scenery.  Along with the waterfall there were wildflowers growing along side which added to the color and created an even better view.  You could not see the top of the waterfall which made me a little curious as to where the water was flowing from.  Vidae Falls was very easy to travel to as it located on the south side of the lake along Rim Drive nearly six miles east of Rim Village.  Overall, it was a great experience for me to see something like that in nature.  I cant wait to see what the rest of our trip has in store for us.  Another plus is that there is no fee to pay to view Vidae Falls. 

http://explore.globalcreations.com/places/vidae-falls-crater-lake-national-park/

Built Monument/Attraction:  Matt  

 

This morning we woke up early and hiked to the community house at Rim Village.  Once we arrived there, we took a 2 hour trolley ride around the rim trail at crater lake on a trolley that runs on Compressed Natural Gas.  I found this attraction online through web site http://www.craterlaketrolley.com .  This tour had a handful of stops at some of the most beautiful vistas around the lake, the views were breathtaking.  Our guide told us about a lot of the history of the lake and the park and some of the cool things that are unique to the lake.  First, the lake is the deepest in the United States at 1,949 feet deep.  In addition, there are no rivers in or out of the lake, it is solely fed my the surrounding snow melt and rain fall.  This is one of the clearest lakes in the world.  Our guide was very knowledgeable.  Our total cost was $25 per person for a total of $150.  Well worth the money.  I was bummed though that there were no student discounts!  

 Cultural Site:  Erin

 

For our Historic Site, While Crater Lake is a historic site in and of itself I decided we should visit one of the many caves located in Southern Oregon.  The tours are 8.50/Adult equalling out to $51 in total.  The tours include a guide which take you through the caves regailing visitors with stories and historic facts about the site.  We will take a tour through a marble cave. Learn and discover how the geology, fossils, cave life, bats, watershed, old-growth forest, and human history all make the Oregon Caves unique and fun to visit.  The Caves will be an interesting aspect that many of our teams have never experienced, and will help go along with our camping Theme!  The caves were absolutely gorgeous, and we got to see things that some members of the group never got to see!  Being the only girl in the group I got a little scared by the bats, but it was very cool being able to see the inside of a cave!  The tour guide also had a lot of funny stories about the people who used to go through the caves looking for gold and other treasures, he was very informative, and our entire group would recommend this tour to anyone visiting the area!

http://www.nps.gov/index.htm

 Recreation Spot/Activity:  Naz 

 

For our entertainment I figured that we could go white water rafting for one of the days on Rogue River, which is located in the Crater lake national park area.  It cost us 95 dollars a person for a full day pass, so the price ended up being $570 for that part, a good deal I thought for all the fun that we had.  I figured that we also spent a day just enjoying the scenery, I feel like Crater Lake NP is known for it's beauty that a tour that Matt had planned could also be included in the recreation and entertainment part of the trip.  Other then this, we spent a day out on the lake fishing. Fishing cost 195 per person for a full day, so it turned out to be $1170 total... overall for the trip we ended up spending $1740 for one full day of rafting (8:30 am - 4 pm) and one full day of fishing (6 am to 3 pm)  I've never been fishing and didn't catch any fish, but the rest of the group was pretty good at it and we all enjoyed it immensely.

http://wildrogue.com/rogue-whitewater-rafting-trips.htm

We all had a really great time in Crater Lake Oregon camping out and living in the wilderness while also being given the chance to experience the beauty of the outdoors, and all of the attractions that Crater Lake has to offer!  Looking forward to stop Number 2, we hope you've enjoyed reading about our first week!