Lunch Break Getaways

I often find myself eating lunch alone in my office.  It doesn't bother me, but at times I feel closed in with no windows to view out of.  So today I went to get a small bite to eat (a child's plate at a local restaurant...I'm on a budget) because I forgot my lunch (salami and cheese sandwich). While I was out of the office, I thought about a few getaway spots one can go to during their lunch break and not "break the bank".

#1 The library- this is a fun spot to go to find the latest books or my "new find", DVD movies. I don't know about your local library, but mine offers DVD movies for up to week. For FREE. I've seen most of the major blockbusters that have come out this Summer...2 months after they are released...but I still see them.  I gave up my Blockbuster card with a quickness.

#2 The Park- I've did this once, but only because I was assisting the Director during a park scene in a local movie shoot. Overall, it seems like a great place to sit on a bench, eat a meal (ie..sandwich), and watch life before your eyes. Kids playing. Dogs running (on leash...state law; whew). And birds flying.

#3 The Car- I sit in my car. Sometimes I eat lunch, listen to music, or write in my journal/notebook. It's amazing all the feelings that can go on pages of paper once you get out of your office.

#4 Home- depending if you live near or far, home is a great get-away lunch spot. I live a little further than I used to, but when I lived in my apartment, I was less than 10 min. from work.  So occasionally I would take-off and head home for a quick 25-30 min. power nap, and return refreshed. Or those times when I forget my lunch (which is often) I sometimes find my way home, grab lunch (often a sandwich), and eat in the car (I know bad habit) on the way back to the office.

#5 Lunch-Buddy- my sister participates in this during the school year. She takes one lunch per month to spend with an elementary-aged child. She often brings her lunch although I've advised her to give school food a try. It's not as bad as it looks!!

So these are fun-filled ways to spend your lunch break away from the office.  What other getaway spots have you found?

Public Transportation

My sister and I had a blast in NYC over the weekend during our family gathering. Other than hitting up a few eating spots and entertainment in Times Square, most of our time was spent traveling between shopping districts.  We assisted in shuffling thirty something people from place to place via NYC's ever changing public transportation system.  We did it all.  Train, bus, taxi, and ferry.  And for a directionally challenged individual like myself, the fact that I was able to get around via the various train and bus connections, and understand that the Uptown train takes you to "locations above" & the Downtown train takes you to "locations below" (if you live or ever been to Charlotte, NC...it's the complete opposite...Uptown is actually Downtown & Downtown is actually Uptown) is miraculous. Even after more than a dozen years living here, I still can't get around certain areas in Columbia, SC without my "trusty" GPS. Anyways....

chargrillkiller's photostream via Flickr

So in my wondrous thoughts about the ins and outs of getting around the various international cities we'll be visiting, my mind pondered on a few questions.  Here in America, there tends to be a "stigma" if you utilize public transportation services, but in other countries the train, "tube", bus, etc is the way to go. Are there certain cities where public transportation is acceptable, and others where it is not? Must the population be of a certain size to be "cool" to utilize public transportation? And with recent news in NYC about another subway fare hike, is public transportation becoming less accessible to the masses?  Any thoughts or inputs on the topic, greatly appreciated.

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