The Final Countdown

So we are officially within the 40 day mark of classes being over. I know... I'm crazy with countdowns and typically always have one going at a given time. I'm so excited to think that classes will be officially over in that short amount of time and all I'll have to do is wait around for 6 days to receive my diploma (yes, I know... another countdown). With this realization comes the fact that move out time is going to come a lot sooner than I think. Not to mention, I'll finally be relocating to Charlotte, who's forecast tends to have a little sun in it instead of grey clouds with rain pouring out of them.

With this move comes summer finally and hopefully warm weather! Although, with this rain it makes one think that the sun will never come out again. Apparently we're making records for the month of March in Boston. I guess if we have to suffer through it we might as well make something of it?

Anyway, with summer comes little vacations, which, as you know, I love! So a group of my friends have been throwing plenty of ideas out there for places to go and ways to get together seeing as I'll be leaving the Northeast most likely in June. Right now it seems as if another Sacco River canoe trip is an idea for July, alongside a weekend stay in Myrtle Beach (seeing as I'll be only a few hours away), and I'll also probably be making a trip to New Hampshire or New York as well for a little fun on the lake. Summer is definitely the right time to make weekend trips and I'm definitely looking forward to it. Maybe it's time to start some more countdowns to make me more excited for the things to come!

Bostonian Tourist

This weekend my parents were up to visit and we did a little tour of Boston. Sometimes it's nice to go back to the time when I haven't spent the past 5 years in the city and just take in the sights and sounds of the cities. Saturday we spent the day touring around Faneuil Hall, had the cliche Boston Chowder Company clam chowder for lunch, walked around the North End just to end up at Mike's Pastry for the stereotypical (but delicious) Italian cannoli, took a pit stop in a little restaurant on the water for a drink, then endured the cold to have dinner in the North End in spirit of the beloved Boston Restaurant Week. I stayed in the hotel with them for the night at the Longwharf Marriott where my family always stays in Boston. All in all, I was able to become a tourist in the city I've been living in for years. It's funny too because my dad actually lived in Boston for a few years to attend BC for law school so he got the touristy experience too. I never thought I would be one of those people walking around with a Mike's Pastry box and walking into the Boston store in Faneuil Hall. Sunday continued the trend by starting the day off on Newbury Street walking all the way up and all the way down it.

It was fun to be a tourist finally in this city, especially before I leave for the south! I guess you can go on mini-vacations and tour around even places you've called home for a few years!! Next weekend I'll be venturing to Charlotte to enjoy the 80 degree weather they'll be having so finally I'll get to a warm destination! I'm more than excited... it's okay to be jealous too.

Baffled By Twitter

For my graduate level e-marketing class we were assigned to "brand ourselves" on the web through different social media outlets. One of the outlets I chose to use was the popular outlet, Twitter. On Twitter I have chosen to brand myself as a poor graduate student who is looking to relocate to Charlotte and loves to travel, but due to the "poor" aspect I'm solely looking for cheap travel. Therefore, my tweets revolve around cheaper flights, trips and even sweepstakes. I don't tend to tweet the sweepstakes too much though because I tend to be selfish and want to keep the odds on my side!

Now... why I'm baffled is because today I may have received around 8 e-mails since I woke up saying that new people were following me on Twitter, all involved in the traveling world. Now, I understand that this is part of the assignment... to gain followers who are going to listen to you and appreciate your brand, I just wonder why all of a sudden today people decided to follow me. The past few days' tweets are simply these:

1. hopefully the weather improves so i can work on this list! RT @cheapflightscom 25 things to do in Boston this spring http://bit.ly/9OHQFz 8:29 AM Mar 24th via TweetDeck
2. the family vacations of the feinbergs: http://bit.ly/c3Beux 8:28 AM Mar 24th via TweetDeck
3. you always go back to those who were there in the beginning... 11:07 PM Mar 23rd via TweetDeck
4. really craving spring weather. 12:40 PM Mar 23rd via TweetDeck

As you can see... nothing to crazy! I mean to even further leverage my "brand" on the web I'd like to think that these followers are due to my blog links that I put on Twitter. If so, please become a follower of my blog so that I can even further see my impact!

A quick view at the travels of the Feinberg Family...

To top off all of my best trips, I thought it was best to culminate all of my family vacations into one post. As a child I was lucky enough to have parents who understood the value of travel at a young age, as well as enjoyed exploring new places. Even to this day, I doubt I would be able to name all of the different destinations I have been to. The big joke about how into travel my family is is that I actually even got the chance to go to France while I was still in my mother's womb (enjoy the poet moment there).

Let's begin the list, which I most likely will be unable to fully recreate:

1. Nice, France
2. Paris, France
3. Italy
4. Spain
5. Greece
6. Cayman Islands
7. Turks and Caicos
8. Cancun, Mexico
   
9. London, England
10. Cayman Islands
11. Aruba
12. Bahamas
13. Barbados
    

....just to name a few.

What's sad is I can't even make this post pretty for you with pictures because these vacations all occurred before the age of 18, in other words before I had this computer to hold the digital copies of the pictures.

Another sad part about this list is the lack of appreciation I had at such a young age for the places we traveled to. I can remember complaining while walking around London in the rain or complaining of boredom while sitting on the beach and reading a book. Looking back on that now I wish I had not taken the opportunities for granted and enjoyed them while they lasted. There has been talk about going to Germany for Christmas potentially if my Uncle, who is in the air force, is working on a base there at that time. If this does happen, it's scary to say, but this may be my last family vacation for awhile. Enjoy them while they last!

Summer Weekend

This weekend's weather was absolutely gorgeous! 70 degrees in March was the best post-birthday gift I could ask for. The only bad part was that it was sadly just a tease seeing as I woke up to a cloudy 42 degrees today...

but as for this weekend, I felt like I was on a mini-vacation. On Saturday morning I ventured over to South Boston and walked from my friend's apartment to Castle Island and back - a whole 4 miles! Then, although it was only March 20th, we grabbed towels and laid on the beach! It seemed like we actually got a mini-vacation for a day (although I bet it was far too cold to join all of the dogs in the ocean). I actually got some sun too and walked away with a burn-turned-into-tan.

To complete the summer day, we returned back to Brighton and spent the rest of the night BBQing with friends and playing cornhole. Although it was an amazing day, it makes one definitely yearn for summer and all that comes along with it. In the spirit of craving summer... only 54 days until graduation!! But in the meantime... back to the schoolwork grind. YIPPEE!!

Another more than memorable trip!

The summer after sophomore year, my roommate and I, Meredith, had the opportunity to study abroad in Florence, Italy for a month. While there, we were assigned to live in an apartment on the outskirts of the city which was approximately a 10 minute walk from Lorenzo de Medici, the school we went to for classes.



Although the apartment was small and very warm seeing as it was July in
Italy, I wouldn't have had it any differently. Meredith and I were assigned 2 other roommates who were going to be seniors at Monmouth University in New Jersey. From spending a month together, we became the best of friends, expanding our group to the other seniors from Monmouth who were also on the trip. On top of the weekly excitement we had in Florence from Tuesdays at BeBop to see the Beatles cover band, climbing up the steps of the Duomo, to "family dinners" of burnt spaghetti, we also partook in amazing excursions to get a better feel for Italian life. One weekend we partook in a bike tour of Tuscany where we got a tour of a winery and traveled on bikes to view the Tuscany scenery. We took a trip to Pisa to take the cliche picture of trying to straighten the leaning tower then went onto exploring the crowded phenomenon that is an Italian public beach.

The most memorable trip that we took within this one month program was to Sorrento and Capri. On this trip we booked a hotel in Sorrento and took a shuttle boat over to Capri for a day. There, we found an amazing opportunity that you would never, ever find in the United States. We were actually allowed to rent a boat by simply putting down some form of identification to explore the outskirts of the island that you can't see by just doing a walking tour. It was so crazy because never did they ask specifically for a license proving we could drive or a credit card or any form of money in case the boat were to be stolen or if any damages were to occur. All in all, the experience was one that the 4 of us that ventured will never forget!

After a month filled with gelato, cobblestoned streets, and saldis (sales in the stores of Florence), my younger brother actually came to Florence to meet Meredith and I to travel for 10 more days around the country. We traveled around by train, which, with 6 weeks worth of luggage was definitely a chore. Luckily my brother, Ross, is a little stronger than us 2 girls and was able to life the luggage on and off the train filled with people who did not speak our native language. We traveled to Monterosso, Rimini, Venice, and Rome, fully completing our Italian experience. I could go on for days talking about everything that happened on this 6 month adventure, but I think pictures speak more than words!


Since the trip, our roommates, Meredith and I have actually visited numerous times despite the distance between Boston and New Jersey. Either way, we all gained friends and memories to last a lifetime!!

Apparently this spring break has been busier than expected...

So I've been meaning to post every day this week, but somehow, this at-home spring break has become busier than I ever thought! On that note... onto my last vacation memory.

Junior year of college a group of my friends decided it was time to break up the cold Northeast weather by taking a trip to ARUBA! It was a group of 4 boys and 2 girls and we all actually got to stay in one condo due to someone's family's timeshare. The week was spent in the sun and I actually celebrated my 21st birthday on the beach with a strawberry daiquiri in hand. I can't say my birthday this year will be spent the same way, but I'm sure that it will be spent surrounded by friends.

I had actually been to Aruba before with my family a few years back, but this time was quite different. We spent days on the beach, waking up extra early to ensure we got huts to avoid constant sun-exposure. That then later usually equated taking a nap on the beach and participating in at least one drink at happy hour. Then came dinner and most likely drinks somewhere along the downtown strip. Tough life, right? I definitely miss that weather right about now... although it has been quite springy at home this past week. The only problem I'm having now is focusing on that homework I have looming over my head with the start of classes only a few days away....

RIP Spring Break #1

Like I said... this week I will be reminiscing about my past travels and vacations in the spirit of spring break being upon us since... sadly this is my last one and I'm doing a whole lot of, well, nothing.

The most recent vacation I've taken was with 500 of my best friends to the beautiful Atlantis resort in the Bahamas. Thanks to Bentley University, the entire senior class embarked on the trip of a lifetime consisting of Bentley-only bar trips, days on the beach, coconuts, inclusive meals, lazy rivers, and lots of sunburns. All in all... the complete trip of a lifetime without going into pages and pages of specifics. The Atlantis is definitely a must-see for everyone from families to students on spring break. From the water slides to the immense array of activities, restaurants, shops, and casino tables to immerse yourself into... the Atlantis is a trip of a lifetime even if you're not fortunate to go with the entire graduating class of Bentley University. Thanks again Student Activity Fee!

The next stop on our trip down memory lane will be Spring Break 2008. Destination: ARUBA. Come back tomorrow to read more!

Spring Break, is that you?

Now... with spring break almost upon us, it makes me think about all of those vacations I used to be able to go on (thanks mom and dad!). This is just a heads up on my next week or so's worth of posts. Going with the theme and my passion of traveling, I guess I'll live vicariously through my past-self and talk about past vacations I used to go on! Maybe I'll miraculously receive an amazing vacation for my birthday (which is conveniently in 10 days...) but I'll keep dreaming.

Anyway, tune back in for the way I'll be spending my spring break... dreaming about past trips that I've been on. If you want to see most likely embarasing old-school pictures of me from vacations please come back and read about my past worldly travels!!

Mother Nature's Gone Crazy

It's pretty funny that this post comes right after my last one saying how beautiful Boston has been. Today I woke up to the loudest wind I've ever heard and eventually even saw hail! What is going on Mother Nature? You're kind of torturing the Northeast if not the rest of the world...

With this weather I have even more reason to dream about a warm destination. I have friends gallivanting off to beautiful vacations for spring break and where am I going? Delmar, NY. What a trip! I'm definitely glad to be going home for awhile since the move to Charlotte will take me a distance away, but I would absolutely love to be on a beach with a drink in my hand. Yesterday I actually signed up for a sweepstakes to win 2 round-trip tickets to Thailand and stay in a wicked posh hotel; the trip being equivalent to about $5,000. I always enter this ridiculous sweepstakes hoping to win but always come up short. Maybe I'll get an early graduation gift!!

On the job front I've sadly hit a plateau and lost some motivation. With the busyness of pre-spring break and the increase in rejection letters a girl's gotta take a break. I guess my job over break will be to try to apply to more and more jobs. It gets pretty tiring doesn't it? I think I've joined all possible job websites and used all Bentley-allotted outlets, but my next step is to try to use the career services center at school. Hopefully I'll have some luck in the next few months! Otherwise... why would I want to graduate? On that note... only 78 days until graduation! Thinking about graduation makes me dream back to 500 of my best friends on the beautiful white sandy beaches of the Atlantis... take me back....

Beautiful Boston

Since there are now only 82 days until graduation I'm starting to realize I need to make the most of my time left in Boston. I wish that I had other friends that lived around here who had weekdays free because I would love to spend a beautiful day like this exploring! It's funny how Northern I am, today especially, seeing as coming back from the gym I drove with my sunroof open... Don't we all do it when the first spurt of semi-warm weather hits? (if you're not from Boston when I say "warm" I mean my weather.com gadget informs me it's a steaming 45 degrees!!)

Anyway, for the time being I will get all of my work done so I can hopefully enjoy this city this weekend! Due to my obsession with knowing the weather (as you see above) I read that we're supposed to have snow/rain until probably Sunday. Either way... I'm going to have to enjoy the next 82 days!!

Either way... if you're a Northerner I definitely recommend driving around with your windows down today. It feels like 80 to us on this beautiful Monday.

The Application Process...

Seeing as Bentley so nicely decided that no grad classes will be scheduled on Fridays I was lucky enough to have the day off. After my gym trip I strapped back into my job applying chair and sifted through the options BentleyLink has to offer right now. After a 6 month-hiatus, I finally got a new password and am able to use the database again! (it's really sad how excited someone looking for jobs gets about things like this... I think I need a hobby) After looking through about 1,200 jobs, yes 1,200, I actually applied to some promising positions! With last night's riveting search and today's I think I may have applied for 15 jobs in 24 hours. Pretty crazy if I do say myself, but this battle will be won!

Since all of my friends are silly accountants I was afraid for my lack of activities this weekend and actually played with the idea of going to Charlotte for the weekend. Pretty crazy when I was looking this morning to leave this afternoon... but I hate sitting around and doing nothing all weekend when that's basically what I do all day anyway. From this search I was surprised that even when I was searching at about 9:45 AM, they were still selling seats on flights that left at 10:40 AM! That's cutting it a little close don't you think? Especially when the airport advises flyers to be there about 2 hours prior to take-off. Either way, I was shocked. On twitter I found a crazy article about how to find the cheapest flight possible and the way one blogger goes about his booking process. Great read for cost-conscience travelers!
http://frugaltraveler.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/16/click-it-and-ticket-booking-a-flight-the-frugal-way/

Hope everyone enjoyed another beautiful day in Boston! Happy weekend!

And so it begins...

Being in my second semester as a 5 year student, I'm beginning to face the reality that there's a real world out there and I guess I need to try to enter it. To add onto this huge issue, I'm planning on relocating to Charlotte in June making this an even more difficult feat to accomplish. I've been applying and applying, adding my resume onto different job websites, and the like. While you would think this is a good thing and I'd hear back from a lot of different companies, the only responses I've gotten are from sales jobs. No offense to the sales occupation, but I just wouldn't fit in... so thank you for your consideration and everything, but it's just not for me. On the other hand, if someone out there in the Internet world is looking to fill a marketing position in Charlotte pleaseeee let me know.

On the Charlotte note... I've started to look at ways to decorate my new apartment in warmer weather. Too soon?

Also... with this pending real world and freezing, snowy weather I'm realizing I need a vacation. There are so many deals out there I should really just hop on one and go. Nah... I'll save my money. Such a better idea? Either way... it's supposed to be at least in the 40's today in Boston and I woke up to a sunny day so I can't really complain too much :)

Enjoy the beautiful day Beantown!