【推荐2】Sunrise Magic Balloon Flights

Wondala is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Floating over the city in a hot air balloon in the early morning sky will fill you with peace and quietness. The beauty of the city as the sun comes up will take your breath away! Sunrise Magic offers sunrise flights 365 days a year. After landing, a champagne breakfast awaits passengers at Lakeview hotel. Sunrise Magic has over 25 years of experience and is a leader in commercial hot air ballooning. Passengers meet at five-star hotel Lakeview. Weekend flights, are approximately one hour in length and weekday fights last about 45 to 60 minutes.

Flight prices

Weekday fights

Flight cost: s 180 per person (Children inder12- $120)

Weekend fights

Flight cost: $ 235 per person (Children under12-- $ 150)

Champagne breakfast (optional): Additional $ 25 per person

Groups of five or more will be offered a 10% discount off the normal price of a light.

Phone Sunrise Magic on 53467999 to make a booking. Departure time will be confirmed when booking. Please allow at least two and a half hours for lights and an additional 1-2 hours for breakfast. We advise that you wear comfortable clothes and that you wear strong shoes so that your feet remain warm and dry. If weather conditions don’t allow us to fly on your preferred day, you can have a full refund or we can rebook your flight on another day.

【推荐1】The Memory Box is my fifth book, which begins the story with a simple image of an old lady, Jenny, celebrating her 100 birthday in the care home where she lives. However, instead of being with friends and family, she’s in the company of strangers. Jenny has outlived everybody she has ever loved and it is to her young carer, Candice, that she turns when going through her memory box. As Jenny gently touches the smooth stone, picked up off a faraway beach a lifetime ago, she realizes there is one last journey she must make. She knows it will be painful but if she can talk Candice into accompanying her, she will get through it.

As a writer, I try to keep to a writing routine (常规；惯例) similar to the common working week and am always at my desk by ten at the latest. I know this is not everybody’s idea of an early start. Then, I will go through the various writing work, followed by reading and editing what I wrote the day before. I set myself a target (目标) of 1,000 words a day and, while some days I may achieve many more than this, on other days it’s a right old slog and I can hardly pass the 200 mark.

Many moons ago, I attended a wing group. There, I got the best piece of writing advice from my teacher. She told us to employ the BOSHOK method, which stands for Bum On Seat, Hands On Keyboard. Or in my case, often, Bum On Set, Head On Knees. It basally means, just get on with it. She would always say, “The best advice I can offer to those who want to be writers is a quote from Elmore Leonard, ‘Try not to write the parts people tend to skip (跳过).’ Say it all really.”

【推荐3】Forget calling the front desk. If you’re a guest at an Affinia hotel, the staff will try to find out what you need just by looking at you.

The Affinia Hotel Collection is improving service in its five hotels in New York City and one each in Chicago and Washington D.C. Everyone from housekeeping to management will communicate with guests based on body language.

A body language expert trained employees on what cues(信号)to look for. A guest who makes eye contact while walking down the hall, for example, may be open to conversation. A businessman frequently touching an ear is probably nervous and may be interested in a therapeutic pillow(理疗枕头).

“So many companies, when they talk about service, they program it to how many rings till you answer the phone,” says John Moser, marketing officer for Affinia. That doesn’t sound very reasonable. Let’s give employees some tools they can use to find out what’s the right way to talk with somebody at a particular time.”

Patti Wood, a body language expert who carried out the Affinia training, says she has never seen such training given to all hotel employees. “All of the training is to make sure every single guest is treated as special,” she says.

Staff questions about a guest’s day won’t disappear, Moser says. But, he says, small talk isn’t always enough to get a reading of a guest’s needs. “You can’t always tell from the first sentence whether someone is happy or unhappy," he says. “Measuring some of the things they’re showing with the way they’re talking to you, can help our employees provide a service that’s more personal for them.”

【推荐1】One of the best ways to sightsee your way through a new city is with the help of a local. With this in mind, U. S. News rounded up several Chicago’s best guided tours. You’ll gain a cultural and historical understanding of the Windy City during these tours.

Chicago Food Planet

The three-hour tour centers on the West Loop neighborhood’s amazing food scene and the history and culture of the area. Ticket prices cost $65 for adults and $50 for children ages 12 and younger. Tours are offered Thursday through Sunday at 1 p. m.

Absolutely Chicago Segway Tour

The 8-mile journey on easy-to-ride, two-wheeled, battery-powered vehicles lasts about 21 hours. It has many of the city’s most popular attractions, including Millennium Park, Grant Park, Monroe Harbor, the Field Museum. Tickets cost at least $76, depending on date and time. Note that riders must be at least 12 years old. Tours are offered daily.

Bobby’s Bike Hike Chicago

This tour combines bicycling, food and beer. The four-hour, 13-mile ride is from Gold Coast to Lincoln Park neighborhoods with stops for pizza, beer, cupcakes and hot dogs. Tickets for adults, which include the bike rental as well as food and drinks, cost $86.99 for weekday rides (weekend rides are slightly more expensive). Participants must be at least 21 years old.

Chicago Pizza Tour

On this 31-hour tour, you’ll visit four independently run neighborhood pizzerias and taste six or more pieces. Many reviewers insist that the tour is about more than just pizza and covers Chicago history, architecture and culture. Tickets cost $60 for adults and $36 for children.

【推荐3】The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum lies in National Mall in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1976,the museum has the largest and most important collection of air and space artifacts (人工制品).It receives more than 8 million visitors per year,making it the most visited museum in America.

What You'll Find

In the museum,you'll find thousands of objects.The most valuable ones are the 1903 Wright Flyer,Lindbergh's so-called“Spirit of St.Louis",the Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia and a lunar rock you can touch.

This museum also has an IMAX theater,a planetarium (天文馆) and a building from which you can watch the stars,the weather,etc. Daily tours are offered and educational events are available for children and adults. The museum also features science story times for younger children.

Plan Your Visit

Regular hours are from 10 am to 5:30 pm, but the museum does not close until 7:30 pm during the summer. There is limited metered street parking available, as well as several local parking areas,including two blocks south at 6th and C Streets SW. However,the easiest way to reach the museum is by underground or Metrobus. The closest Metro stop is Smithsonian,on the Blue and Orange lines. The 32,34 and 36 Metrobus routes will all take you to the National Mall.