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Bali

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 My international trip of the year is to Bali, Indonesia! For this trip, I had to really think through how I was going to get to Indonesia and in what ways. So I ended up on two itineraries, one with United and the other with Singapore Airlines . There is no real easy way to Indonesia, most flights from the US will force you to layover somewhere. I was traveling with family on this trip and they opted to fly Eva Airways (even getting the Hello Kitty plane). Airline On this trip, we splurged to get onto Polaris Business Class on United from the US to Singapore and offset the cost with using points on Singapore Airlines Business Class from Singapore to Bali. Because of the Polaris flight, I was able to spend some time at the Polaris Lounge in San Francisco International Airport. Compared to the Los Angeles International Airport Polaris Lounge, I find the SFO location appealing because of the bartenders. The Asian gentleman that works there has probably worked there for decades. I alw...
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Las Vegas

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I headed out to Vegas for SEMA ! Because of the Southwest promotion over the summer, I was the free companion ticket.  Due to the popularity of SEMA, I had also booked a two-bedroom unit in Elara . Initially, the possibility of a large group had me book two two-bedroom units but we ended up canceling and couldn't downsize the two-bedroom unit. There are some pros and cons to staying at Elara if you are going to the Convention Center. In this trip, I did take alot of mass transit to get around which is probably not a common thing for a tourist. I did find the local buses quick, often, and convenient enough for my needs. The RTC transit mobile application was easy to set up. I did rent a Turo car for the day and was able to get around greater Las Vegas to eat out and take someone to the airport. Pros The hotel itself is conveniently located in the middle of the strip, across from Aria and Cosmo next to Paris.  The hotel is also connected to Planet Hollywood through the Miracle M...
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Washington DC

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Headed out to the nation's capital and Dulles International Airport for a work conference. Unfortunately, I was not able to snap extra segments on this itinerary on United Airlines . If I had opted for Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, I could have but the month was already packed with travel and my brain was no longer working at full maximum capacity. Checked into the Westin Downtown DC (not to be confused with the other Westin DC/near Chinatown). Learned that the hard way when I chose the wrong Westin on an Uber ride from dinner. Formerly a Renaissance, I have not been in this particular hotel in a few decades. It used to be a site for events in with former employers. The rebranding is very bright and airy compared to the Renaissance. The service is quite good as the hotel gave me a $150 credit towards food when my room wasn't ready. I had secured an upgrade to a peloton one bedroom suite. I wished they had given me more credit as the Peloton didn't work until my...
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