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Monthly Archives: March 2018

Hampton Inn Hartford/East Hartford

30 Mar

Here For The Planes and Some Relaxation

I was in Hartford for a weekend to visit the New England Air Museum, and the East Hartford Hampton Inn and Suites was in a great location for my visit.

Located right off of Route 84, Hampton Inn Hartford has a nice central location. Arrival at the inn in the mid afternoon and checking in was a quick and easy process. I had already done an online check-in the night before and everything was ready for my arrival. A quick orientation about the inns amenities, a cup of coffee from the 24-hour hot beverage station and I was headed to my room.

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My room was a 1 King Bed Studio Suite. The room itself had a good amount of space. Right inside the door is the kitchenette type area which includes a minifridge, a microwave, a coffee maker and a small sink, on a good sized counter. The main room had the bed, of course, a couch with a pullout bed, a desk and a bureau with the television on top. The television had a lot of local programming as well as some pay-per-view programming available.

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For me while I am on a weekend, I like to keep in touch with my friends via skype, so a good WIFI internet connection is important to me. I had no issues with the connection though out the entire weekend. Besides skyping, I was able to stream Pandora without interruption and even watched a movie, again with no problems.

After a relaxing evening .it was off to sleep, The bed was nice and clean and very comfortable, giving me a good nights sleep. I heard no noise from outside my room and the room darkening blinds did a sufficient job at keeping out the light, including the morning sun

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Morning comes with the complimentary breakfast buffet. The coffee station was open for business and flowing freely. The staff was doing a great job at keeping everything full. For me, breakfast was a couple of slices of toast, freshly toasted by me at the toast station, a bowl of oatmeal, and some ham and cheese scrambled eggs. All was freshly cooked and tasty. There are plenty of other breakfast items available to choose from, including a self serve waffle station.

After my days adventures I was looking forward to a late afternoon of relaxing before dinner, so back to my room I headed. Returning to my room I found it cleaned and refreshed for me, my bed was freshly made and towels have been replaced.

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After another great nights sleep and a nice fresh breakfast, I was getting ready to get back on the road for my drive home. Check out was a quick and easy process, turn in my key card and have a receipt sent to my email and I was on the road home.

Thank you to the entire staff of Hampton Inn and Suites Hartford/East Hartford for giving me a wonderful and relaxing weekend.

 
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Posted by on March 30, 2018 in Hotel Review, Travel, Weekend Trips

 

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March Weekend Trip To New England Air Museum

24 Mar

March has brought me to Hartford Connecticut for a visit to the New England Air Museum. I started my weekend on Friday a little earlier than I had expected due to a rather smooth work day. Headed out from my last job and onto the highway for what was just over a two hour drive. Arrived at the Hampton Inn Hartford around 3:30. I had done online check-in the night before so checking in was quick and easy. I was in my room less than ten minutes after parking.


My room was a 1 King Bed Studio Suite. The room was good sized and made me feel comfortable all weekend. I like having a minifridge and microwave so that I can have a snack when I like. My weekends are about me getting away and having a bit of me time.

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Friday night found me at the local Longhorn Steakhouse for dinner. After about a fifteen minute wait for a table I was seated and perusing the menu. Started off with a blackberry iced tea and a bowl of Potato Soup. Dinner was a Flatiron Steak with the Spaghetti Squash, something that I remember enjoying as a kid but have not seen in a restaurant until now. It was a nice bit of comfort food for me.


Saturday adventure started at the New England Air Museum, a museum of flight including space flight. I had a great time waking around reading about the different planes and seeing the reconditioned planes. I found the visit to be entertaining, interesting and educational.

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Finding out recently that Teavana Stores have been closed, and being a fan of loose teas, I needed to find another source of said teas. Oddly enough I was making the discovery of the closing of Teavana whilst talking with a friend of mine who lives in Calgary Alberta Canada who told me about a tea store that are in Canada called DAVIDsTea. A quick search in the area that I was visiting for DAVIDsTea located one that was not out of the way. I was glad that I stopped by the store, it was enjoyable to shop there and I made a good sized purchase.


Not planning anything else for the day I went searching around for something else to do. Unfortunately all I did was some more shopping, including a stop at an adult toy store where I had a rather enjoyable conversation with the staff.


After another nights rest and a good breakfast at the inn, I was off for my drive home. Not much to say about that. It was a nice sunny day and the roads were not full of idiots. Made a single stop on the way for some lunch at a Wendy’s. Got home at a reasonable time.


 
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Posted by on March 24, 2018 in Life as it is, Shopping, Travel, Weekend Trips

 

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Mystic Aquarium Half The Fish, Just As Much Fun

20 Mar

Had a recent visit to the Mystic Aquarium on a weekend trip. As this was a planned trip, I purchased my entrance ticket in advance, online. When I arrived, I found the parking lot to be quite full, and a long line of people waiting to get in. A quick check at the ticket booth to ask if I needed to wait in the line, I was told that because I had pre-purchased I could bypass the ticket line and go right in.

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At the main entrance I was informed that some of the areas of the aquarium were closed for winter maintenance and renovations. An understandable inconvenience for the time of the year. I may plan a future trip in warmer weather.

My first stop was the 4D theater. The movie was Ice Age Dawn of the Dinosaurs, the 4D Experience. The movie was an animated short with the 3D glasses as well as some other little surprises along the way. If I were to have a complaint about the movie, it would be that it was a little too short for the extra cost.

4-D Theater

From there I went out to the large main tank with the beluga whales. The two of them seemed very playful and liked to put on a show for the people. The tank is outdoors and has not inside viewing areas and the day was a bit overcast, but for mid-February it was a rather nice day to spend outside.


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Next up I went inside the main building to enjoy the different exhibits. The one I was most looking forward to seeing was the Weird & Wonderful exhibit. First up was a section devoted to the different breeds of jelly fish, each in their own individual tanks with plenty of information about each variety. After the jelly fish was another area of tanks filled with some of the strangest fish I have ever seen. I do not want to get to specific and spoil the fun, but I will say that it was very interesting, entertaining and educational all wrapped up in one strange package.

Around the inside area of the aquarium were loads more tanks and displays of all manner of fish and other water creatures. Sadly, one of the closed off areas was the Shark Lagoon. There was an open pool of small sharks that visitors could pet if they were so inclined, I did. One of the rules for the petting of these sharks is that you could not touch them as they swam by, you had to wait till one stopped to rest within your reach. As I was reaching in and petting a resting shark, another swam up just out of my vision and scared the daylights out of me, not knowing what it was going to do. Other than swim by, it did nothing else.

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Back out doors to walk around the outside areas. The seal tanks were interesting to watch, but winter time has no shows to see. The penguins seemed at home and were being playful for people watching them. A walk around the boardwalk past the dormant monarch butterfly area and through the open frozen march. I imagine these two areas are brimming with life during warmer weather, winter time not so much. Back around to another of the seasonal exhibits, the birds of the outback.

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The last area, and unfortunately closed for renovations, was the Foxwoods Marine Theater that when open features a sea lion show. A quick walk through the gift shop to see if there was anything I wanted, all I got was my usual attraction keychain to add to my collection.

I had a good time during my visit. I do recommend visiting during warmer weather as a large amount or the aquarium is outdoors and subject to the seasons. Purchasing tickets in advance is also a good idea if you know exactly when you are going to visit, the prepurchased tickets are dated. I would also recommend that you plan on at least three hours to fully enjoy this attraction.

 
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Posted by on March 20, 2018 in Attraction Review, Nature, Travel, Weekend Trips

 

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A Study In Snow

19 Mar

Hello from New England, land of the unending Nor-easter. Just got ourselves cleaned up from our 3rd large snow storm in the last 2 weeks. This one decided to drop two feet of the fluffy white stuff.


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Yup, thats a snowblow walkway the day after the storm. This storm may have dumped twice as much snow on us as the one the week before, but it was not as damaging as the middle storm, kinda like a middle child. I am amazed at the amount of trees that I see fallen from that storm. On top of the tree damage, one of the main substations for the regions power got damaged to the point that over 700,000 homes and buisnesses were without electricity.

At our home we lost power for just under 24 hours, some of my customers lost power for 4 days and some areas were in the dark for almost a week.



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Just a few more shots from around my area this past week. Plenty of snow to go around. And the weather forecast for the beginning of next week is another big snow storm. Stay tuned for another possible edition in the study of snow.


 
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Posted by on March 19, 2018 in Adventures In Maid Servive, Life as it is, Nature

 

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99 Restaurant Groton – Quick and Easy Take Away

16 Mar

It was a bit later than I had expected and I didn’t really feel like waiting for a table so I called in a take away order. I ordered from the winter specials menu and got the Sirloin and Baked Scallops with an order of steamed broccoli as my vegetable choice.

The order was ready for me when I arrived, I paid and headed back to my hotel room. The order came in a large take out order box, this made the order seem a little smaller than it really was. I also got a knife and fork pack with a salt and a pepper packet and a napkin. The knife impressed me as it did a great job of cutting the steak.

The steak was cooked just the way I like it, medium rare, and was nice and tender and very flavorful. There were not as many scallops as I had expected, but for the price it was fair enough. The scallops were baked to perfection, the cracker topping had a nice garlicy flavor to it, but I would have liked a little more of the topping. The broccoli was a bit crunchier than I prefer but was flavorful and had a bit of butter on it.

I was glad I ordered out and enjoyed the meal, even if I would have liked a few more scallops.

 
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Posted by on March 16, 2018 in Restaurant Review, Travel, Weekend Trips

 

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Hilton Gardens Groton Fishy Weekend

07 Mar

My weekend plans where a visit to the Mystic Aquarium and the Hilton Gardens in Groton seemed like a great place to stay, less than a 15-minute drive to the aquarium.

I always enjoy staying at Hilton properties and Hilton Gardens in Groton lived up to my expectations from Hilton. When I arrived at the hotel I found no line at the front desk, I did an online check-in the night before so my key card and reservation where already for me. A quick orientation for the hotels amenities and I was off to my room. On the way I stopped by the 24-hour hot beverage station for a coffee.

I had a 1 King Bed 1 Bedroom with Whirlpool tub room. Upon entering my room, the first thing I noticed was how spacious the main room was. The separate bedroom was also just as spacious. This was the first time I stayed someplace that had a full bath and a half bath which I found a bit odd. The suite itself was very clean and the temperature was comfortable. One thing I do like about Hiltons is that they always have a light on for when you enter your room.

The bathrooms where both spotless. The main bathroom with the whirlpool tub had plenty of fresh, clean towels as well a collection of toiletries. The living area had a nice kitchenette with a Keurig coffee maker, a minifridge, a microwave and a counter with a sink.

The main room had a pullout couch, a couple of chairs, a desk with another chair and a big screen television with a lot of local programing to choose from. The bedroom had the king bed and another television for sleepy time watching.

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Sleeping was great, the room darkening shades kept out all outside light including the morning sun. The room was also very quiet, I heard no outside sounds either from the rest of the hotel or outside.

Morning and breakfast go together, and Hilton Gardens offers a mixed bag of breakfast choices. I went with the full buffet which includes everything available for the continental breakfast with a selection of fresh cooked choices including your choice of eggs and pancakes.

The buffet had a great selection. A toaster with a collection of breads and such, I had a bagel with cream cheese, some fresh baked pastries, fresh fruits and juices and a self-serve waffle station. My eggs where perfectly prepared as a ham and cheese omelet. Staff was there doing a great job of keeping everything full.

After my day of adventuring and returning to my room I was greeted by a fully cleaned and restocked room. Second night of sleeping was just as wonderful as the first night. Knowing that I would be spending a couple of hours in my car driving, I had myself a light breakfast. A bowl of Red Berries Special K and a bagel. Checkout was quick and easy. A printed receipt, handed in my key cards and I was on the road.

Hilton Gardens Groton gets a double thumbs up from me for having a great staff all around. For being clean and for all around friendliness.

Hilton Garden Inn

 
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Posted by on March 7, 2018 in Hotel Review, Travel, Weekend Trips

 

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