Learn about the Year of Return and my adventures in Ghana
#BelizeDat- One Year Anniversary
Out of Office AF
OOO AF
...and not feeling bad about it
Booked your flight, found a place to stay and now it’s time to request the time off. You just planned the perfect trip.
Anxiety looms, guilt begins to build as you try to be charismatic, funny and likable to request a week off to travel.
This happens to me just about every time I prepare to request paid time off (PTO). I cringe at the thought of any negative commentary for taking time off that I rightfully deserve. I like to call it vacation shaming.
You know, the guilt you feel when asking for time off to take the vacation your rightfully deserved and earned?
Vacation Shaming - the act of judging others for taking time off because they secretly wish they could take time off too.
I work in a traditional corporate environment in New York City. We're all in before 9:00 AM, phones ringing, conference calls happening, we're working through lunch, we're leaving the office late, and we're complaining about it all, as if somehow this means we're hard workers? Imagine being told “Early day?” for leaving on time? I've witnessed the side eyes given to those who leave early (on time), but I've let go of that toxic judgement long ago because, self care.
I sense a bit of guilt when I go on vacation, I begin to think of the backlogged worked, pre-anxiety to the hundreds of emails I'll return to, or my colleagues being overwhelmed because they didn't realize just how much work I really do.
I started my new job last year. Prior to me starting this new job, I had seven trips planned within the first five months of the year that were either domestic or international. Admittedly, I was a little nervous to tell the recruiter this before I signed the offer letter, but I had to because every trip was important and I had to be there. I was gone every month, sometimes twice in the month. I was lucky enough to have communicated the expectation prior and to be working in the travel industry where we have a bit more flexibility.
“A survey conducted by Glassdoor found the average US employee took only 54 percent of their allowance compared to 62 percent in the UK, with two in three (66 percent) working while on holiday”
Taking time off aids in protecting your mental health, and we all need to make sure we’re making time for ourselves. So the next time you turn that Out of Office alert on, don’t feel bad about it, remember you earned and deserve this!
Let me know what you think below or on my Instagram here.
InnReview: Greece in Four Days
My travel schedule can get pretty hectic. Between important events for my friends and family coupled with other personal obligations, things can get a little crazy. Greece was no different!
When I travel, I normally am traveling because of an amazing flight deal. Greece was no different. My trip was $350 round trip! So I HAD to book it, I told a few friends about the deal and we all agreed to go.
My original plan was never to do four days in Greece, more like eight. But when my best friend asked me to be in her wedding, which was during my trip, I had to choose, so I picked both! I altered the trip to make both scenarios work, see how I did it, below:
DAY 1- ATHENS
Athens was named after the Greek goddess Athena. Greek Mythology tells us Athena defeated Poseidon when the people chose her as their protector. When I arrived in Athens, I didn't know what to expect. Driving from the airport, it felt like any other big city, when arrived to our Airbnb ($50 for one night), it was a 2 bedroom and one bath space with cafe's in walking distance. We had to quickly get dressed for Dinner in the Sky, so there wasn't much time for me to wander around the neighborhood that evening.
Dinner in the Sky takes you 164 feet in the air to have a five course dinner and wine pairings. It cost about $170 for the experience, while this was a little pricey, the views, the wine, and the food were all worth it. We dined as the sun was setting, over looking the Acropolis and the City of Athens. After few glasses of wine, I relaxed and took in the views. I am not afraid of heights, and I do not recommend if you are terrified of heights as the table does turn constantly which really helps you take in the views.
Check out my personal video from dinner in the sky here.
DAY 2- ATHENS/SANTORINI
I spent the morning with friends exploring Athens. I walked the neighborhood for breakfast and then prepared to see the iconic Acropolis, the ancient citadel built on a rocky mountaintop above the city of Athens sitting at 490 ft above sea level.
The climb to the top of the Acropolis can get tricky, be sure to wear shoes that have a good grip, the worn out limestone is extremely slippery. The views from the top are breathtaking, this is a must see site when visiting Athens. The cost to enter was 20 Euros.
Photos of the Acropolis and Parthenon below.
After leaving the Acropolis, we head back home to collect our things and fly to Santorini for our afternoon flight. The flight took less than an hour from Athens to Santorini and is the quickest mode of transportation between the two.
We rented out a beautiful villa in Thira, a city within Santorini about 12 mins away from Fira, the capitol of Santorini.
Check out the view when I first arrived in Santorini this video.
Without a doubt, the views will be stunning where ever you go on the island, and I often took strolls around the villa just to take it all in. Accommodations in Santorini are on the higher end, so before planning to travel to Santorini, establish the objective of what you want to see and do and then pick the best city to accommodate your needs.
The island of Santorini is more beautiful than any video or photo can depict. The primary way to travel around the island is by four wheelers (ATVSs) or cabs. There are very limited number of cabs, alternatively, my friends rented ATVs and small cars to get around. The island is filled with narrow roads, ATVs are you best bet to get around rather quickly. Keep in mind, there are no ride sharing companies on the island so you must pre-plan a car service from the airport, or find a cab company to work with for airport transfers
Night time has arrived, and 170 young professionals have finally arrived to Santorini, and we decided to all go to "The Highlander' in Fira, about 12 mins away from my Villa. The venue was filled with locals and trip attendees. We took over the bar and spilled out into the streets for an unforgettable night. Quick video of the epic night to the right.
DAY 3- SANTORINI
Finally, it's time see the Santorini we've all seen in photos, Oia. Oia, pronounced EE-AH is located within the northwestern tip of the Santorini island. This coastal town looks like a painting with the beautiful white architecture with hints of blue, it is the perfect contrast to the deep blue Aaegan Sea. Located within Oia are several unique hotels with infinity pools overlooking the sea, restaurants with amazing Mediterranean food, homes and churches. You can climb homes and stand on tops of the roofs to take the most amazing photos.
Check some of my photos out below:
After our morning trip to Oia, we took a visit to the beach at Santorini Wet Stories, located just outside of Emporio. This area is filled with beach bars, and it's the perfect place to layout beach side with food and beverage service. The average meal cost was roughly 22 euros to include an entree and cocktail.
For dinner, I decided to stay local. Within Thira, there are many restaurants within the town center, that have extremely affordable dinners. My housemates and I found a great small restaurant that had the best lamb I have ever tasted with two pitchers of rose, I paid 13 euros!
Check out one of my dinners on the left.
DAY 4- SANTORINI
I ended my trip the way anyone would want to end their trip, on a boat. We used Sunset Oia service to rent out two catamarans. This is a MUST do experience, there is nothing like seeing the inhabited and uninhabited islands from sea while having an amazing time with your friends. Be sure to have your proper cocktails, and negotiate food for the boat ride.
The two catamarans sailed and partied together at sea for a little over five hours.
All in all, Greece has to be my favorite trip, and one of the places I am adamant about returning to soon.
Check out the images below from my trip!
Want to visit Greece?! Let me know down in the below comments!
The Ugly Truth: The Other Side of Hotel Life
Hospitality is more than a front desk. After working in hotels for several years, there are two sides to it. There is the amazing side that includes employee discounts, awesome food and events, and then there is the other side, what I like to call the ugly side.
SIDE NOTE: When I tell people I work for hotels, they normally follow up with "Oh really?! That's what's up! So what hotel company? Marriott?" I respond, and then before I can finish my sentence, they say "Oh so you the hotel plug then?! Can I get a discount?"
My normal answer is typically "no", because hotel employee discounts are a privilege, and we're supposed to be selective about who we give it out to, in the event something bad happens, the employee could get the benefit taken away or worse-- fired.
But that's not what I wanted to you all to know. I probably just needed to get that off my chest (lol).
I think we often try to focus on the positive aspects of hotels without realizing it can rear it's ugly little head. I have seen hotels close down with no warning, get sold and people lose their jobs or go through a brand conversion and never tell their overnight guests.
I want to talk about, how to know when it is time to leave. Below are four signs I use to know when it's time for a change of career scenery when you're at the TOP of your game:
1. No Room For Growth So, you've been at your job for some time now, and your reviews have been great with your department head, and you express your desire for more, and...nothing happens. You follow up with your department head, and they do one of two things: give you the run around or come up with a reason as to why you're not ready. If you have been performing well and reviews have been "above and beyond" style ratings, this doesn't add up. It's happened to me. My suggestion? LEAVE. Run, honestly. Ok, I am being a bit dramatic, but kind of serious. The last thing you want is to work and be loyal to a company who isn't investing in to you and providing room for growth.
2. Lack of Career Advocacy I am a firm believer in career advocates. Now, it's important to note that this is not the same thing as a mentor. Professor Renée Dye gave a speech at the University of Michigan a few years ago and she said:
"A mentor can be a friend, a coworker or a therapist who will help you think through what you need to navigate your career more effectively. An advocate is someone who is going to create opportunities for you."
When I joined my first hotel, I was terrified because we were in desperate need of a renovation, we were up for sale and my director and mentor left the hotel. Six months into my new job after college, and I didn't know what to do. I was lucky enough to have an amazing General Manager, Shannon, who essentially told me to run like hell and find a new job.
Then I met my new department head, and new career advocate. She was seasoned in the hotel game, tough but fair, and a straight shooter. After realizing that, I almost immediately made my case on why I deserved a promotion and to be moved. In my heart, I knew it wasn't time for me to leave just yet (although I had been actively interviewing and had an offer letter for another hotel company....we'll talk about the art of negotiations later). A few weeks later I moved to Northern Virginia, to start brand new job within the company, with a substantial pay increase.
3. Hotel is Up for Sale Technically, a hotel can be sold any day, any hour for the right price. Now the example I gave above, I would've normally told anyone to run ESPECIALLY when senior leadership is throwing in the towel. Each case is different, as was mine, but keep your eyes peeled open if your property converts brands, ownership groups and/or management companies. If you sit anywhere in management, this could, and likely will affect your job.
4. Culture: When the Vibe Ain't Right At my first job, I was the only black woman, and the only person who was barely legal to drink. So, needless to say it was kind of awkward. The office was mainly silent, and when they did talk, they talked about things that we're not relatable to me, like kids and hip replacements (deadass tho, hip replacements) while I was barely awake because I had to work at 8am, and I still slept and partied like I was in college. Needless to say, this environment wasn't a fit for me, and every hotel job won't be the perfect fit, sometimes you got to take some small Ls in the short term when you're playing the long game.
Have any other trigger warnings you think I missed or want to share your own story? Comment below, and remember...
How to Survive Big Group Trips
It seems like the latest travel trend is to travel in large groups and wearing matching outfits. That all seems cool, but how do you really survive going to a foreign country with a bunch of people? I have been on huge group trips of 150 and smaller group trips where it was just five of us. In all of my group trips, we came back with a mix of unforgettable memories, hazy nights, early mornings and the best food we can find.
So whether you're planning a group trip, or interested in going on one soon...this one's for you!
There are a couple of questions you need to answer when you're planning to help you survive the trip:
1. What are your destination priorities?
There are several different types of travelers-- there's the one person who wants to pack eight sites in one day, there's the one who goes with the flow, the one who just want's to lay out and sleep and the one who has to get their flicks off. As a group, identify what's most important to everyone and find the synergies between the variety of input to pick places to see on your vacation and build your overall itinerary.
2. Where the bag at?
Money can get really funny with people, so it's easier to get this out the way early and discuss budgets. Some people don't mind a splurge, and some need to iron out the hard expenses early to prepare. I think it's important to travel responsibly when it comes to money. It's one thing to have it, but another thing to waste it. Always consider the destination you're traveling to when putting together your budget. Travel expenses in Mexico differ from travel expenses in Milan, or Santorini.
3. what's on your plate?
Food is a huge part of immersing yourself in the culture. Find out early what your group is into, allergies, etc. and plan around that. Pick a few must-eat places and leave room for the hole in the wall food spots you'll run in to that has amazing food. Lastly, bring cash-- nothing is worse then the awkward moment of splitting the check. We all dread it when we're going to a large brunch or birthday dinner where someone becomes an accountant and pulls out their calculator to split the check with eight different credit cards. Avoid this when you're traveling by bringing cash and keeping yourself on a budget.
4. solo time
When you're constantly around a ton of people, planning some alone time is key. People have different eating habits, sleeping habits and energy levels differ, so know that it is okay to duck off and do you. It helps to break off in smaller groups or by yourself to do your own thing, even if it's just a nap. I've been on group trips where the turn up started with shots at the airport and being lit on the plane to the moment we land. It can get intense. Make time for you!
I hope these few tips helped you out for planning or you can at least relate. Love ya'll!
Check out some photos below from group trips I've been on.
How I Got Started... A story about why I love hospitality...
By Emily Egan
I wish I had a cooler story about how I got into the hospitality trade. As a kid, my family did a fair amount of driving up and down the East Coast to visit family members. We usually stayed at budget motels but on occasion we’d stay at a nice hotel. I can remember running around the hotel with my siblings – sneaking into large, empty ballrooms with giant chandeliers, checking out the amenities and just taking in the largeness of it all. I thought hotels were magical.
In college, I took a marketing class and loved learning the ‘behind the scenes’ of how brands could market their product for someone to want to buy it. I found my first job (on Craigslist!) after college as an event coordinator at a small but chic restaurant group in New York. I assisted the event planner with planning large private events at the restaurants, promoted our food at festivals and generally was an advocate for the brand. So, I was where I wanted to be – NYC: check; Event planning; check but life has a funny way about changing things for you.
In 2010 brands were just getting into social media and I, being the youngest in the office, was asked to ‘start Twitter for the restaurant.’ I said ‘yes’, momentarily freaked out as I hadn’t learned about social media (for brands) in college and then, for the price of a coffee, met up with a friend to teach me everything about ‘MTs and RTs’ on Twitter (remember those?) Spoiler: I got it and the restaurant was even featured in this 2012 article on Mashable!
From there, I focused on social media for 5 years working for advertising agency and then, I found my job as the Marketing Manager at the Millennium Hilton. The concept of working on property versus in an office environment intrigued me. And honestly, I did enjoy getting to know the bellmen during short breaks in the lobby; I liked running into guests in the elevator and learning about their experience at the hotel.
My favorite aspect of working at the hotel was developing relationships with the other marketing managers from across the country and world. Most of us were one-person teams and wanted to share ideas and resources with other people who had jobs like ours.
Following different hotel Instagram accounts piqued my interest in domestic travel. From road trips in the southwest through American reservations, and visiting the heartland of America—Omaha, Nebraska, I have a new goal to visit 50 states
I love the hospitality industry since it’s such a people-oriented industry. You come together with your coworkers and to create amazing memories and moments for people.
InnReview: Royal Decameron Haiti
Haiti, The Pearl of the Antilles
Being of Haitian decent, traveling to Haiti is always special to me. Be it to visit my parents, who have been living there for years, or for a vacation.
My latest trip to Haiti, I did a little bit of both. I arrived in Port-Au-Prince a day before my friends would arrive. I was greeted by my Mom and Dad who I hadn't seen in almost a year with smiles and hugs. I hadn't been to Haiti in a few years since the tragic earthquake, that my family survived, took place. There were changes within the airport, and driving through the city it looks like what many Caribbean countries look like, where the people were just as beautiful, resilient and filled with energy and hope.
While in Port-Au-Prince, my mother blessed me with goat, plantains and so much more! After my meal, we visited the downtown Port-Au-Prince area, I wanted to see Palais Nationale, what I like to call the Haitian "White House". It was damaged completely during the earth quake, and has plans to be rebuilt. I also wanted to visit the lovely Musée du Panthéon National Haïtien, one of the latest developments in downtown. They have a gorgeous garden and in that garden they have a restaurant that serves culinary art. We also stopped to admire the memorial of Henry Christophe, a former slave of West African descent, and a leader in the Haitian Revolution. He's responsible for several iconic palace constructions, most notable being the Citadelle.
Photo Courtesy of Marriott Port-Au-Prince
Because I am a hotel nerd, I had to see the Marriott Port-Au-Prince. It kind of stands out because of the building height, it's one of the tallest in the area. I didn't get a chance to stay or dine here, although I have heard amazing things about their executive chef. For the moment, indulge in the picture on the right in the mean time. I am certain I will be back!
Finally, it was girl's trip weekend time! My best friend was getting married and we decided to surprise her for her last fling before the ring, with a trip to Haiti. We traveled to La Côte des Arcadins which is about 75-90 mins away from Port-Au-Prince. In the area where Decameron is located, there are a total of five hotels Kaliko Bay, Wahoo Bay, Ouanga Bay, Moulin Sur Mer, and Royal Decameron Indigo Beach Resort & Spa. Together these hotels make up 454 rooms, and provide over 1,000 jobs supporting roughly 9,000 people in the area.
The Resort was nothing short of breathtaking. The arrival experience is a bit rocky because the hotel is some what tucked away behind what appears to be a residential area. But everything after that is incredible, the staff was relatively pleasant. Because I speak fluent Haitian Creole, it helped ease our experience at the resort.
The resort is filled with things to do, sea excursions, spa over looking the ocean, two massive pools, beach bars, an on-sight night club and so much more. I would recommend this place to anyone who wants to experience only an ounce of the best of Haiti.
Check out the images below from my trip!
Want to visit Haiti?! Let me know down in the below comments!
