Reviews

Holiday Inn & Suites : Anaheim (1 Blk/Disneyland®)

10 July 2024
0 Comments

Walking Distance to Downtown Disney - This Holiday Inn is a Disneyland Neighbor Hotel and only a (long) block away from Disneyland Main Street (you have to wrap around Pixar and pass around Disney Hotel). Good exercise at an approximate 15 minute walk. From there you can jump on the Monorail or walk downtown tot the gates of Disneyland or California Adventure. Parking is convenient, but not necessarily more affordable than parking at Disneyland. Parking at Disneyland offers a ride to the front gates. They do offer (for a cost) front door transit with Anaheim Resort Transit (ART) directly to the front gates. The hotel has easy on/off access to I-5 and is literally just behind Disneyland parkade. They have a heated outdoor pool with cavana service window, Whirlpool, and a Splash pad for the kids. Breakfast is not free, is available for extra charge - but the food is great as it is serviced by Onyx Restaurant and Bar. They have a good business center and 24-hour fitness center. WiFi is decent, though experienced some down time watching movies during our two-night stay.

Holiday Inn – Red Bluff, CA

10 July 2024
0 Comments

This Holiday Inn Express is an easy on-off of I-5 travelling North or South in Northern California. A modern hotel near infamous tourist attraction Mount Shasta. The hotel is non-smoking, has shade/snow structures for parking, a hot breakfast buffet with pancakes, indoor pool, whirlpool, business center, fitness area, wired and wireless high-speed internet. Great spot for tourist visitation of Win-River and Rolling Hills Casino, Mount Shasta, Shasta, Weed, Redding, Sacramento, Chico, Lassen Volcanic National Park, Lake Tahoe, Reno, Redwood National Park, and Shasta National Park.

Starbucks: The Rise, the Stumbles, and the Loyal Addict’s Story [2025 Update]

19 February 2024
3 Comments

If you’ve ever arrived jet-lagged and far from home, you know the comfort that comes with spotting that familiar green siren shining in a city square; a warm beacon of WiFi, a reliable menu, and a seat where no one rushes you out. For me, as someone who has traversed the world’s airports, train stations, and city streets, Starbucks has always offered a pocket of consistency, a place where one can recharge both phone and spirit, connect with loved ones, or just fade into the background with a sweet, icy chai. It’s not just caffeine on demand, it’s the closest thing to home base I could rush to, wherever I wander, and it’s held my loyalty for decades. Unfortunately, this is no longer the case. My original article on Starbucks, with high ratings of 5 stars out of 5, has dwindled to 2 stars out of 5, and I unfortunately see myself divorcing from the long-standing relationship I once shared with the Siren.