Get Ready The Smart Way For Your Thanksgiving Trip
By Joyce Jackson
In a very short time Americans will be off in masses for family gatherings for the Thanksgiving holiday. While staying home is the best advice the reality is that this holiday is the most heavily traveled in the country.
Regardless of the delays, exhaustion and memories of arguments from last year, we're all heading out to do it again.
You can get ready and be less stressed than last year with a few easy Thanksgiving travel tips.
Pack light. Carry one soft side bag. The one thig to count on at this time of year is long lines. Set your mind that delays will happen. If you pack light you can move around more easily while waiting for that late bus, train or plane.
Take a special book, magazine or DVD movie for those delay times. If you have something special to do while waiting the time goes much smoother. Pack low-sugar snacks and drinks. Travelers don't need a sugar rush while waiting or in cramped quarters.
Flying
Arrive at the airport two hours prior to scheduled flight departure time, both on the outbound and inbound trips. This is once you get into the terminal. Build in extra time to park your car. Remember, lots and parking resources will be filled so making a reservation at an off site parking facility will help. Most of them take holiday reservations with a deposit.
Stay Informed. Stay in touch with real-time flight status on the airline's web before heading to the airport. If you have an e-ticket the kiosks and skip ticket counter lines. Most airlines have these now so use them. Consider full-service curbside check-in if you have ski, snowboard, golf or sporting equipment.
Expect to stand in long lines. Expect planes to be jammed. On board stowage space will be critically limited so again, take only one small soft side bag to slip under the seat. If you are taking a gift leave it unwrapped. Most security checkpoints will now require you to unwrap wrapped gifts. Better yet, mail it on ahead a few days before your plane flight.
Driving
If you are hitting the road in your car and driving, make sure its in good working order. Check you oil, water, washer fluid and tire pressure. Make sure you pack emergency supplies in case you get stranded. Take fresh containers of drinking water. If you are in colder areas take blankets and warm jackets, tire chains de-icer.
Plan your trip so you do not return on Sunday. It' not recommended to drive on the SUnday after Thanksgiving. It is the worst, most traffic-heavy day of the year. Try leaving Saturday or staying through Monday.
Take games. Better yet, if your vehicle or laptop has a DVD player, take movies. There's no shame in a quiet, fight-free ride on the way home.
See you on the road!
About the Author: Joyce Jackson travels, writes and lectures extensively on simple, easy but great travel preparation so that you have a great trip each and every time with information, resources and articles on her website at < a href="http://www.travel-packing-tips.com/" style="text-decoration:none">
www.travel-packing-tips.com
Source: www.isnare.com
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Info for Stepney Limousine Service
The Stepney Town Green, originally called Birdsey's Plain, after Joseph Birdsey who settled in the area around 1780, is in the heart of Upper Stepney and is the only green in Monroe owned and maintained by the town today. Originally the site of militia drills, the green quickly grew in size and importance during the nineteenth century, and in 1817 it was set aside as a "place of parade" for "publik use." This "parade" ground officially became Monroe's "second" town green. (The town at that point already had one green at Monroe Center, which was established in 1784 with land donated by Captain Joseph Moss and Nehemiah DeForest. Today that green is owned and maintained by the two churches that face it: Monroe Congregational Church and St. Peter's Episcopal Church.)
In 1839 the Stepney Methodist Church was built on Pepper Street. A decade later local Baptists constructed the Stepney Baptist Church on Main Street, which was a near duplicate of the Methodist Church directly across the road. Because of their structural similarities, the two were referred to as "sister churches," or the "twin churches," by those in the community. In 1973 the Orthodox Roman Catholic Movement acquired the former Stepney Methodist Church (which was relocated to Cutler's Farm Road) and transformed it into Our Lady of the Rosary Chapel, where the traditional Latin Mass is still celebrated today.
Presently the green is bordered by an antique store and other quaint retail shops, the two churches, and a cemetery where an apparition called the "White Lady" has often appeared. The Stepney Green is a piece of history nestled in Upper Stepney, which many residents feel should be preserved for generations to come.
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