Sunday, December 19, 2010

Hawaii (but not me)

I got a new friend on Facebook a week or two ago, and he just posted pictures of his Clemson gnome in Honolulu, Hawaii. The objective of this blog is really to just show Clemson's presence all over the planet (although it gives me a great excuse to travel), so I added a picture from Chris' photo album to my map to show the additional coverage Clemson gnomes have had on the planet. Make sure to go take a look!

As always, safe travels, and let me know if you need any company on future adventures!

~G4

Monday, November 29, 2010

It's Basketball Season

Well, that was embarassing. After our first touchdown against SC we seemed to be flying high, but then after Dawson couldn't hold on to a snap all of a sudden it was over. Extremely disappointing - first time losing to SC back to back in 40 years. The only reason I haven't stopped my payments to IPTAY is because rumor has it Terry Don is on his way out...if that isn't the case, I doubt I'll be getting season tickets next year. I'd rather spend my money/Saturdays traveling as is.

That aside, Thanksgiving was a blast. Saw tons of family and friends throughout the holiday weekend, and even made plans to go to New York in August of next year. I'm also working on details for a trip to Europe around the June-August time frame. Should be a fun summer - now I just need to make some plans for Winter and Spring.

Here's hoping the basketball team can salvage some sort of moral victory this weekend in Columbia. Won't be holding my breath, though.

As always, safe travels!

~G4

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Trip to Oklahoma


I got back from my trip to Oklahoma last weekend, and what a trip it was (but don't get me started on the long drive). Seeing a game at Oklahoma was a truly awesome experience - for any college football fan, it is a must. From what I've seen so far, they take the cake on pageantry and the overall game day experience.

Also, if you're ever in town make sure to try the Iron Starr and get the BBQ Club. It's smoked turkey, brisket, bacon and cheese on Texas toast. It's out of this world, and a short walk from the stadium.

The other highlight of the trip was getting to try the infamous Whataburger fast food chain. I'd hear stories of their superiority to other fast food burgers, and I will admit that outside of the West Coast it is the best fast food burger you can get. But In-N-Out still reigns supreme (that being said, I would still take a road trip to Birmingham to get to the nearest Whataburger).

We got to drive through Arkansas and Mississippi as well, but we didn't really have time to stop and check out any of the sights along the way. I'll just have to make sure to swing back through at some point in the near future (I know Clemson will be playing Ole Miss in a few years, so perhaps then).

But as of now, it's just traveling around for the holidays. Don't really have a ton coming up other than our big night game this Saturday and doing Thanksgiving in Charleston and Greenville. If you've got any big trips coming up and want some company, I've got nothing but free time. :)

As always, safe travels! And Happy Holidays!

~G4

Monday, October 25, 2010

Yet Again, Long Time No Type

So much has happened since I last posted. We went to Auburn and lost. Our football team was awful. Now we look half decent, although not nearly as good as we should. I went to Penn State and saw Illinois win for the first time ever in Happy Valley (meaning I must have brought Clemson's good fortunes in football up north). I've gone back and forth for many tailgates, and had great times on campus at Clemson.

But I haven't been anywhere exotic or new lately. That will be changing in just a few weeks when I go to Norman, Oklahoma to see the former #1 team in the country take on Texas Tech. We'll be stopping in Nashville and probably Arkansas along the way, so there should be new experiences to share in the near future.

Unfortunately, my trip to Rhode Island never came to fruition. There is still the possibility of me going there in the future, but no plans have been put in motion yet.

I also found out that I will be spending Christmas in Blue Ridge, GA which will be another first for me - it's still Georgia, but hopefully we can have a white Christmas!

Anyway, just wanted to touch base and let everyone know that I haven't been on the road much, and sure could use a nice trip. You going anywhere soon? :)

As always, safe travels!

~G4

Monday, September 6, 2010

Costa Rica

Firstly, I had a blast this weekend at the North Texas game. Our defense looked nothing short of awful so that has me worried for the Auburn game, but at least our running game doesn't appear to have too much of a falloff. Can't wait to play Presbyterian next week - let's see if they have any more trick plays like the one they ran against Wake!

But on to the more important story, my week long adventure in Costa Rica. There's too much to share on here so I will try to keep it as short as possible.

We landed in San Jose on the 21st and had private transportation to the Arenal Volcano - the third most active volcano. Our room had a private porch with rocking chairs so you could sit outside and enjoy the view. If there aren't clouds around the top of the volcano at night, you can even see magma come shooting out the top of it. While there we visited La Fortuna Falls (which you can go swimming in - although the water is quite cold), did a hike in the Arenal National Park, and went whitewater rafting. All along the way we saw wildlife, had great local food, and had amazing tour guides. If you ever plan on going to Costa Rica, a stop at Arenal and La Fortuna is an absolute must.

I was then transported from Arenal to Playa Flamingo on the Pacific coast. This is one of the many hotel resorts you can stay at in Costa Rica (we choose the Pacific because it seemed to be a little bit safer than the Caribbean). The resort we stayed at was gorgeous and had all drinks included. You know I loved that! But around the pool you could constantly see iguanas and many indigenous birds, which was a nice reminder that you weren't just at some resort in Florida. While at the beach we went zipling on a canopy tour (which is worth the trip to Costa Rica by itself) and had an ATV tour along the beach, which was incredibly fun.

We then went back to San Jose for a day to do a coffee plantation tour at the Doka Coffee Estate. It was actually quite interesting to see the process they use to pick which coffee beans meet their high quality standards. We sampled a lot of coffee, had a bunch of chocolate covered coffee beans and bought a bunch of bags of coffee to bring back for friends. We then stayed the night at a wonderful 5 star hotel (we had been slumming it in 4 star hotels until that point), and woke up the next day to fly back home.

All in all, it was probably the best trip I've ever been on. When you factor in the total cost of the trip, I don't know if I'm going to find a better "bang for your buck" trip than Costa Rica. I highly recommend you go find out for yourself! If you're interested, I've included links below to the companies we used on our trip.

All of my pictures are on Facebook (posted by my friend Kris), so make sure to take a look when you get a moment!

And finally, it appears that work may bring me to Rhode Island at the end of this month or the beginning of October. I'll make sure to post more details when I have them.

As always, safe travels!

~G4

Links from the trip:
The company who booked everything for us (I can't thank them enough!): http://www.mapcr.com/
The resort we stayed at near Volcan Arenal: http://arenalspringshotel.com/
The company that did all our tours/transportation around Arenal: http://www.desafiocostarica.com/
The resort we stayed at on the beach: http://www.resortflamingobeach.com/index.cfm
The hotel we stayed at in downtown San Jose: http://www.mybeaconescazu.com/

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Long Time No Type

It's been a while since I've updated. I've been so busy traveling that I haven't really had the chance to update the blow with pictures. Here's a quick summary of what we've missed since my last post:

- I visited Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia for the first time over July 4th weekend. Saw many beautiful sights, visited a brewery and a vineyard, and managed to get to a friend's renewal of vows in Frostburg, MD. Also had some pints at Dante's in Frostburg - I highly recommend you drop by if you're ever in town!
- I then flew to California (another first) with my friend Justin. It was my first trip where someone volunteered to bring me along (since I was shipped to Ethiopia with Christen years ago). We got to see San Diego and some of the sights in Los Angeles. What a trip!
- Upon arriving back from California, I then joined a group of Clemson graduates on their Annual Beer Trip. We drove around North Carolina visiting many breweries, bars and restaurants. Needless to say, while many mornings we didn't feel the best we still had a heck of a time. Among the places I would recommend, I'd say that Raleigh was by far the best city of the trip. With places like Big Boss, LoneRider, and The Pit BBQ we had ourselves filled with pork and beer. The Highland Brewing tour in Asheville was also a trip (if you go, make sure to check out the Big Ass Fans that they have on the ceiling - they are unreal). And of course we stopped at Foothills in Winston-Salem, which has long been a favorite of mine. I'm just waiting for the day that they release a shirt for my favorite beer they make - People's Porter.

Since then, I've been preparing for my trip to Costa Rica next weekend. I'm getting very anxious for this - can't wait to share all my stories with you upon my return! Hopefully it won't take me more than a month to update next time. :)

Up until now I've posted all of my pictures both to Facebook and Google Photos. Instead of using both, I'm just going to be uploading to Facebook from here on out. So whenever you want to see pictures from my latest trips, head over to the FBook or check out my Google Map.

Well, that should be enough of an update for now. As always, safe travels!

~G4

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Upcoming Trips to Maryland and California

On Friday I am heading out of town to go to Frostburg, Maryland for a family friend's renewal of vows. While en route we'll hopefully get to see some of the area, and just maybe I'll get to stop by Dante's (http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/17830) for a pint or two of brew. Can't wait!

But in bigger news, one of my facebook friends has invited me to go on a trip with him! Justin and his family are apparently traveling to California for the week of July 12-18 and he will be bringing me along. We'll be going to Anaheim, San Diego, Los Angeles and Hollywood to take in all the sights and all the experiences southern California has to offer. Should be a really great time.

This is all adding up to a very busy July, as at the end of the month I also have my beer trip to North Carolina. After a mostly uneventful beginning of the year, I can honestly say I'm ready to hit the road - it's going to be a blast. :)

Safe travels!

~G4

Saturday, June 19, 2010

St. Pete Beach

Last weekend I took a trip to St. Pete Beach in Florida, and wow did I have a blast! Unfortunately, on Saturday we had a heat index of 110 degrees, so it was sweltering outside. But we still made the most of it - enjoyed a cabana on the beach, laid in a hammock in the afternoon and evening, and got to spend a lot of quality time with family and friends. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fun place to go (we stayed at the Tradewinds, which is a massive complex - it seemed to keep going on and on and on and...).

Only news to report is that some friends of mine may have snagged some tickets to the Auburn football game. I'm not adding it to the calendar until things are set in stone, but it looks promising! Can't wait for football season, especially now that the baseball season is almost over (also can't wait for us to kick some Sun Devil ass tomorrow in Omaha).

Well, here are the best pictures of me from my trip - hope you enjoy them!

~G4


From Florida

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Auburn football game

Unfortunately, it looks as though it is going to be far more difficult for me to get tickets to the Auburn football game this year. Single game tickets aren't available, and since gnomes aren't made of money I may be SOL. We are still going to do our best to make it happen...but I'm not holding my breath. Darn shame.

Next weekend, however, I will be heading to the oily beaches of Florida's gulf coast. I'm really looking forward to see in person whether Florida's advertisements of having clean beaches is really true or not.

And before I sign off, best of luck to the Clemson golf and baseball teams! Golf is in the hunt at the national championship tournament up in Chattanooga, while the baseball team begins regional play against Southern Miss in Auburn on Friday. Should be an interesting baseball game - especially since Brett Favre told the Southern Miss baseball team that he'd return to the Vikings if they return to Omaha.

Go Tigers!

~G4

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Mother's Day in Charleston

On Mother's Day I headed down to the battery park in Charleston for a picnic. 7 red ant bites aside, it was a wonderful time! Great food, sneaking booze, and beautiful weather - what more could anyone ask for? Just wish I'd had time to take more pictures around the park! Hopefully I can change that later this summer.

Safe travels!

~G4


From South Carolina

Trip to Athens

Back at the beginning of May, I made a trip with some friends up to Athens, GA. At first we stopped at the Terrapin Brewery, which was a blast. It's hard to beat the deal they have there - you pay $10, get to hang out and listen to music, get a free pint glass, and get enough pours for you to have a good time (I think by the end of it I had 3+ pints worth of beer). The atmosphere there is awesome, so if you have the chance to visit Athens, doing a tour at Terrapin is a must.

From there we headed out to dinner at Cali N Tito's, a BYOB Mexican establishment. I recommend the enchiladas - exquisite. While there we also dropped off my brother to hang out there for a while. So if you stop in, see if you can spot a Clemson gnome in the establishment - he should be there somewhere. :)

I'll post a short update about my trip to Charleston after this. In the meantime, check out the pictures from Athens!

As always, safe travels - and if you need any company on a future trip, you know who to call!

~G4

From Georgia

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Mayfield Dairy

This past weekend I went on a short excursion to Braselton to check out the Mayfield Dairy. Had some great ice cream, and got to hang out with the largest (and only) cow there.

But surprisingly, that's all I really have to report for the past few weeks. I'll be going to the Clemson/GT baseball game on Saturday here in Atlanta, so perhaps I'll snap a photo or two there.

As always, safe travels!

~PG

From Georgia

Friday, April 2, 2010

St. Petersburg, FL

I'm in the final stages of planning my trip to Costa Rica (looks like I'm going to have a heck of a time), but I also just found that I'll be traveling to St. Petersburg, FL for a long weekend in June. It'll be my first trip to that area since losing to Georgia Tech in the ACC Championship Game, so we'll see what I can do to keep from getting misty-eyed while down there.

I'm also flying to Charleston the weekend of the 24th...up until then I don't really have any travel plans, but hopefully I can find a weekend adventure to go on...

As always, safe travels!

~PG

Monday, March 22, 2010

Costa Rica and free Thrashers tickets!

Firstly, I've planned my first TRUE international adventure to Costa Rica! Still need to book everything, but it looks like I'll be leaving the last week in August. I'll be going on canopy tours, hiking volcanos, white water rafting...and that's just the first 3 days! I'll post more details as I have them.

Also, I just won a free pair of tickets to the Thrashers/Bruins game tomorrow. It's the biggest game the team has had in probably 2 years, as this determines who owns 8th place in the playoff race. Thanks to The Blueland Chronicle for the tickets. I'll hopefully have pictures after the game tomorrow!

~PG

Saturday, February 27, 2010

Pictures from Montreal

So I just got back from the great white north yesterday - what an experience! The first three days I was there it was incredibly gray and snowy...very depressing. But on Friday the sun finally came out, and I got to see what a beautiful city Montreal is. The parks are gorgeous, and the city has a very unique feel to it. I unfortunately did not have a chance to go to any well-known breweries or restaurants, so I'll just have to go back sometime in the future.

I've included some pictures from my trip below - hopefully they show how much fun I was having while in Quebec (even though I don't know a single word of French).

But now that I'm back, I'm not certain if I'll be going anywhere new in the coming weeks. If you know of any fun trips that you're going on and want me to tag along, by all means let me know!

As always, safe travels!

~PG


Canada

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

In Montreal

So I arrived in Montreal today - and all I've seen is gray skies, snow and rain! Plus, let me tell you, driving around here is quite confusing. A GPS is a must, and even at that you still can get lost.

But today was still fun! My flight was uneventful, and once I finally got to my rental car I headed out to the Parc Mont-Royal to go playing in the snow and get a view of downtown. I saw some cross-country skiers, snowmen, kids sliding down hills on sleds...it's a true winter wonderland here!

I'm not sure if I'll have the chance to go do anything else in town, as I've got some business to take care of while here, but I'll try my best to see one or two other things. Once I get back to Atlanta, I'll make sure to post some pictures from my trip.

As always, safe travels! Hope to see you on the road (or in this case, in the skies!)

~PG

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Pictures from trip to North Carolina

So I had a blast in the mountains this past weekend! Although the Honda Civic we took to the mountains was not nearly prepared for the icy mountain roads we had to climb (we got stuck for a few hours), we managed to survive just fine. The cabin in Hot Springs was incredible, and getting to see a bunch of different towns in the mountains was incredible. I highly advise you taking a trip there if you get the chance.

Asheville was also awesome. I had the chance to try maple syrup / brown sugar / bacon ice cream at the French Broad Chocolate Lounge, and oh my it was close to life-altering. One of the most creative and tasty ice creams I have had in a while.

Also had a chance to go to The Beacon in Spartanburg, SC for the first time. You can see pictures of that in my South Carolina album on Picasa.

Other than that, I'm just back in Atlanta waiting for my trip to Montreal next week. Hope you enjoy the pictures, and as always, safe travels!

~PG

From North Carolina

Monday, February 8, 2010

Canada!

So I just found out that either next week or the week after I'll be traveling on work to go to Montreal, Quebec. It'll be my first time north of the border, and I really can't wait to see the sights and sounds (and especially all the snow).

Should be a fun couple of weeks with my trip to North Carolina coming up this weekend as well - keep an eye out for pictures in the next few weeks!

As always, safe travels!

~PG

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Football!!

So Clemson released their football schedule today (you can see the impact on my upcoming trips list), and man is it brutal. Two soft games, the Auburn game, then we have our bye week. Then we have 9 straight weeks of games against our entire ACC schedule and South Carolina. Just brutal.

That being said, it also looks like it'll work out that I can go with some friends to see games at Oklahoma and Penn State. I've added the dates on there, although they are tentative. But if things work out I'll see PSU play Illinois, and Oklahoma go up against Texas Tech. I'm quite excited!

Anyway, nothing new to report - just going to North Carolina next weekend. Also, going to try to brew the North Carolina beer trip happening in May. Lots going on!

As always, safe travels!

~PG

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Hiking over the weekend

Hey all! Just thought I'd give a quick update on some weekend plans. I'm going hiking with some friends up in the Georgia mountains (we're still determining a location - perhaps close to Helen). It'll be the first time I've had a chance to go anywhere since Christmas, so I'm really looking forward to it. I'll try my best to get pictures up ASAP (if for no other reason than to get them off of my to-do list), so keep an eye out for that!

As always, if you or anyone you know is going somewhere fun and want a friend to tag along, you know who to point them to.

Safe travels!

~PG

Thursday, January 7, 2010

National Championship Game

Just thought I'd send a note out there to everyone hoping they have fun watching Texas play Alabama tonight. We're due for our first snow of the year here in Atlanta, so it should be a fun evening! Be safe tonight, and hopefully I'll have travels to report of in the near future!

~PG

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Happy New Year!

Hopefully everyone had a safe Friday night as they celebrated the new year. I know I enjoyed myself down in Hilton Head...although I may have had one too many thimbles of alcohol.

All the same, here's to another year of travels and sharing my exploits with whoever will read of it! See you on the road.

~PG