William Stade

Freelance travel industry writer

Subject: travel experiences for conde nast navigator promotional pages

     He’s Liberal Arts in the Humanities who has been doing informal indie. studies predominantly in forex market day, swing, and, at times small position, trading at FXCM, as a small hedge fund client/trader growing an account trading world currencies on an initial investment placed about six months ago, beginning to explore other online trading environments, currently TD Ameritrade’s.     

      

Vessels on the ocean surface were my home, stratospheric high altitudes were my other travel routes, both were often places of awe-struck contemplation.

     Wow, a somewhat brief paper for Conde Nast?  Sure, I’d love to.  I was raised on a cruise ship two to four months per year from the time that I was roughly five till around the age of 18.  Home Lines cruises; the company was an industry leader for their three decade existence. circa 1957 to 1987.  My time with them was as basically a young observer and assistant free to use all of the onboard lodging and amenities as a normal passenger, quite lucky.  This upbringing brought me to the following resort and travel famed focuses; Bermuda, the Caribbean, the Bahamas, and Caracas, Venezuela, the latter in South America.

     My first big trip was to Nassau from New York, winter had been the weather up north, cold and occasional snow, and Christmas morning had arrived design would have it.  My elementary school aged self had been hearing about the special event during a very special time of year , being going to meet my step-dad for the very first time on Christmas day while the ship on which he worked berthed at Nassau during it’s Christmas/New Year’s celebratory voyage.  La Guardia airport, though it might have been Kennedy/Liberty, would transport my mom and I via Eastern Airlines and American Airlines mostly, Eastern had the best ticket price that day for the Christmas morning flight.  

     “Do you have your suitcase zipped closed?”  Mom asked.  I walked over to it when in my bedroom and began to somewhat wrestle it closed stuffed with all of the things that I wanted to take.

     “Can my stuffed animal named bear come??”  I asked.

     “Of course he can.”  Mom answered.  Though now at the ripe-old age of 44 am joking to myself that a bearskin rug by firelight and beverages sounds like a should do once while in the world.  

     The bags went soon thereafter to an old Pinto’s trunk, we got ourselves comfortable in the car commenting on seatbelts.  I watched the exhaust thicken due to the cold winter air outside my window and began to wonder curiously and nervously about that first flight and approaching airport.  

     “Are you nervous?”  My grandfather asked, he was doing the driving to and from the point of departure.

     “A little.”  I commented back.  It was more than slightly at times.  I was only five years old and the prospect of being hurled 30,000 feet into the air was quite frightening though I also knew that it would be a very safe and even luxurious journey having been my dad’s description of it.   

     When not too nervous felt like a kid heading off to Disney world, exciting and quite nice.  

     The car headed down my home street and after one or two larger thoroughfares wound up on a main artery in the NYC tri-state area the radio broadcasting local news, traffic, and, weather.  

     “Way up in the air?”  I asked pointing at the overcast sky.

     “In the clouds??”  I asked incredulously.  

     “Just put on your seatbelt.”  I remember hearing.  

     “I already have my seatbelt on.”  I stated.  I seem to remember there being some good natured laughter and hearing, “No, when you’re on the plane silly.”

     This only broached the 30,000 feet in the air near always imagined phantasm debacle and asked that I not be called silly.  My family agreed and our car continued towards the Secaucus, NJ area.     

     The rest of the drive went by in quiet with occasional conversation till the highway signs began announcing exits for the airport.  It was within a couple of hours of dawn as the car was navigated into one of the pay and park sites, time card grabbed and gate lifted, and we headed towards a main departures terminal on foot bags in tow trunk pushed shut and locked.

     Not far from the departures terminal a baggage-check attendant asked if we had our tickets and if we’d like him to check our bags and relay them to our flight.  We responded yes, made idle conversation while the attendant put our bags on his cart, and he handed my mom and I our boarding passes.

     We tipped the attendant and walked inside the auto open shut sliding glass doors.  Quiet conversation became audible from the busy travel morning flight processes with people lined up at the ticket counter and public address arrivals and departures announcements being made.  

     Soon, I was by a small bank of chairs with my schoolboy nose pressed to a full length window staring in curiosity at the large silver and stripes of blue plane.  They put the ornamental plastic wings on my lapel and even showed me the cockpit up close; it was a bit of a wonderment to my eyes and mind.  I‘m at my current age very glad that the memory is there.  I really should have had a mimosa though I’d been far too young and besides, that wouldn’t be for years down the road.

     Have you ever seen the Eiffel Tower glowing from a Paris high-rise?  I ask, not to invoke ill feelings in the reader, I mention it only because at night in the lower levels of alcohol reverie from soft-lighting polished clubs in the area it could be gazed at for at least an hour solid if one relaxes and lets oneself.  Same as doing similar from far closer to home out a window there at a starlit sky or other favorite impressive sight in your home country or country of citizenship.  The Parisian one a slightly staggering and beautiful sight truly.  

     I can remember urging myself to sit back and relax in the at times unusually large seat once onboard the plane.  This was the vote every single time I wound up on a flight for a decade solid to come.  Mom and I had bickered for the window seat like kids do over a mutually desired toy.  I’d every time been given the option gratefully since whence due to my exceptionally young age.  

     The, I believe 727, began to taxi towards the runway.  I’d already pulled the seatbelt on remembering my grandfather’s words, or tried to clumsily, having to ask my mom help me make sure it was on right, jesus ever-loving christ I didn’t want my life to end in screams of lunacy at 30,000 feet for lack of a tight seatbelt. 

     No mimosa and without any mad with fear and pain plummeting parachuteless, the plane gained velocity on the runway.  I leaned back into my seat quiet enthusiasm arriving, and the plane’s nose lifted, the two back wheels left the ground also, and another flight was up and on it’s way.  I gazed out the window for an interminable amount of time watching as I always did the Earth growing more and more distant below me.  Fluffy warm airline food concession omelet eggs were served on the pull down travel tray eventually from a smiling stewardess asking if I’d like some orange juice.  I said, “Yes, please.” while relistening in my mind to the cockpit announcement from moments back informing that we were at our cruising altitude.  

     William’s experiences with the travel industry had begun, age… five.

ws

     

       

     The industry really has more to do with a contented staff taking care of passengers, visitors, and guests, from their staterooms, also often called cabins on ocean going vessels, to the dining places, to entertainment halls, to late night snacks, to group shore excursions, to places of interest at the departure city and the traveled to city/s.  Yes?       Considerations like f.e.m.a. type standards helping to ensure the peace and safety of travelers and employed support staff and maritime codes could conceivably take up an entire conference and, ongoing conferences easily, to ensure these code’s precise implementation on properties.    

     The s/s Doric was at sea somewhere far south of the plane though within miles of her next port of call often called Paradise Island.   

     Hospitality workers, a formal industry, serving leisure and business travel, locally, regionally, nationally, and, internationally, in advisably world safe zones, are at your service on and in tens of thousands of properties, with millions of rooms worldwide.       

     Clients are guests of the hotel and hospitality industry.  They left their home’s doors hours ago, days ago, journeying towards their chosen vacation, and at times, business associations destinations, in planes, cars, trains, cruise ships, and, taxis , on foot too with some frequency.   

     The industry and use of it taking place internationally, inside and outside the country’s borders, right now, as we live and breathe.  Chances are not too far at all from where you live. 

ws

      My distant first flight became a two to four times per year regularity with arrivals in Bermuda, one of the best tourism driven island economies to visit if you haven’t already, and,  arrivals in the Bahamas and Caribbean, Bermuda being located only hundreds of miles off Cape Hatteras, America’s central eastern seaboard, latitude lines pointing more towards Georgia and South Carolina, unlike Bermuda’s sister Caribbean and Bahamian islands closer to the equator off of southern Florida’s shores.

     Nassau is a tropical island warm breezes destination with two of it’s more notable resort brand names being Atlantis and Baha Mar, the first an old standard years present as an opulent and highly sought vacation and travel spot, the second being the next big thing hopeful providing a perfect new balance to the hotel business competition island side. 

Both are staggering from the air at relatively low altitudes and also from the taxi or other ride in.

     Local news for Nassau discussed their immigration and employment tensions covered by ZNS; the broadcasting corporation of the bahamas.  I was listening to it from my computer up in the New York City suburbs only moments ago.   

     Amidst this news rise two of the most impressive tropical isle vacation spots available for travelers while alive on Earth; Atlantis and Baha Mar.  if you have the budget they are yours for any number of days to walk, swim, eat in, and absorb the warm tropics mentality, relax ‘mon, your supposed to on Earthly island paradises.

     “I’m going to go explore.”  I said after arriving at our paradise island hotel.  I walked the grounds beginning to inquire the best way to get to the beach to anyone who happened to also be out on the hotel grounds at that moment.  The clouds were a bit over cast as the memory arrives back in mind.  I’d walked around on the beach’s shore and eventually became captivated by the first wild small hermit crabs that I’d ever had in front of me.  Almost got called a five year old smuggler for trying to get them in my suitcase to keep as pets, humorous.  

     A small number of miles away the s/s Doric was approaching a twenty minute ship’s tender ride distance from the island's main harbor.