Atlanta Award Ceremony

2009 Awards Ceremony!

Travelistas Win 3rd Place!!!

We raised over $20,106 for United Way!!!

Thanks to all of our supporters Danielle was a Gold Contributer, and as

 mentioned before Daniela raised over $900 and won 3rd Place!!!

3RD PLACE FINISH FOR THE TRAVELISTAS!!!

The NonRev Challenge award ceremony was Friday in Atlanta. Our team WON 3rd place in the photo category, completing 87 photos and scoring 757 points.  Daniela won the 3rd place for United Way pledges and raised a total of $970! She is looking forward to the lunch with Richard Anderson the CEO :)

Thank you again for your support, we are very excited!  We will be sure to post a few final pictures from the ceremony and adventures soon!

THANK YOU!

A special thanks to everyone who supported our team throughout the challenge. The awards ceremony will be held this Friday, November 20th in Atlanta, and we will be sure to let you know if the Travelistas receive any awards...Here are a few more of our group pictures to enjoy!

With a Pilot named Carl!

With a cat larger than a dog!

Slip 'n' Slide - Sprinkler Dance - Bobbing for Apples - Frying an egg!

Travelistas Swan Lake Premiere On Broadway!

PROGRAMME

1. PASO DOBLE "Ze German Check Point Charlie"

Bonnie Koprucki

2. QUICK STEP "Utah to Arizona"

Megan Buchner

3. WALTZ "Gondola In Venice"

Daniela Chell

4. JIVE "Alive from Paris MonCherie"

Cindy Brown

5. ARGENTINE TANGO "12 Hours in Buenos Aires"

Danielle Zitzer

NEW YORK, NEW YORK

Start spreading the news

We're leaving today

We want to be a part of it 
New York, New York

These vagabond shoes

They are longing to stray

Right through the very heart of it

New York, New York

That's right ladies and gentleman, the challenge finale, the final Travelistas performance. Weekend #9, we were certainly a part of it in NEW YORK, NEW YORK!!! What a wonderful time as a team wearing our tutu's in Time Square, reading on the steps of the New York Public Library, and eating exquisite candies in front of Dylan's Candy Store. Fortunately, we found some of New York's finest police officers who were quite photogenic! It was a great last dance in our vagabond shoes, a "can-can" of sorts as a team, we have had a blast traveling!  The Non-Rev Challenge has taken us on so many extraordinary adventures...stay tuned, when Nov. 20th rolls around we will share with you the winners of the challenge awards, we found out there is some REALLY STIFF competition out there!

If we can make it there

We'll make it anywhere

It's up to you 

New York, New York

-Frank Sinatra

New Yorks Finest

SPOOKY TREAT BAKE SALE

Hello all! As a final effort to raise money for United Way the Travelistas will be hosting a Halloween bake sale. Come join us for some sweets! 

Friday, October 30th
MSP Building A Atrium
(Opposite the Cafeteria)
7am - Till we run out!

All Proceeds go to United Way!

***WE WILL ALSO BE COLLECTING OLD CELL PHONES TO DONATE TO A WOMEN'S SHELTER, PLEASE BRING ANY THAT YOU OR YOUR FAMILY CAN SPARE ANY***

Finally found Gregory the Giraffe!!!

We were estatic when we happened upon this VERY tall Giraffe. We asked the sales clerk if it was 3 feet tall and she said, "Are you two crazy??? It is almost 5 feet tall!"  Such nice animals Peter the Penguin, Darin the Doggy and Teddy the Turtle joined us for a picture as well :)

The shortest trip to Canada Eh!

BON VOYAGE

Félicitations...We are so proud of our very own Mademoiselle Cindy! A weekend in Paris proved to be quite the adventure, lots of "thinking" involved...fortunately it was also point profitable for the Travelistas!!! 

Delicious Weekend Fun!

Another successful weekend for the Travelistas! Here we are enjoying a cherry at the Cherry Spoon sculpture. We met a squirrel on this day also but he wasn't quite as cooperative as the little fellow that Cindy met in Pennsylvania. Another highlight from the weekend involved a short but sweet trip to Canada! Time is flying by we can’t believe we only have 2 more weekends of travel left!

If you are reading this, you may be wondering where we are off to this weekend, well not only is it going to be a suprise to you...it will be a huge suprise when we all reunite on Monday as well. Lots of ideas and lots of airport delays, wish us luck!

Another Mohawk!

We got a crazy fair hair mohawk, a ray of sunshine mohawk and now......a BABY MOHAWK!  Too Cute!

Mid-air on a Trampoline

A special thanks to "coach" Jim for his patience, encouragement and this great shot...This picture may quite possible rank among the most difficult shots on the list :)

Las Ramblas

Although these great shots are not on the official list of photos for our scavenger hunt...my accomplis Anne and I couldn't help ourselves. Here we are enjoying Las Ramblas. A little Spanish lesson from the photo experience:
gárgola = gargoyle!

The Mohawk Presents Itself Again!

A hairstyle in which the scalp is shaved except for an upright strip of hair that runs across the crown of the head from the forehead to the nape of the neck.

Winter Wonderland in October

There is absolutely something wrong with the fact that it looks like this outside of the office today. Never do I recall another Minnesota day where the leaves were changing and the snow was falling at the very same time. It was another decent weekend for the Travelistas! A few trips to note, Cindy found 51°10’N / 115°34’W to be a great adventure and Danielle thoroughly enjoyed Barcelona! As for the other three, they spent their weekend taking a winter nap - bunch of bears!

Interested in what awaits the TRAVELISTAS???

It's weekend #6! *Miss Daniela and her photographer Dimitar are hearing wedding bells.  Cindy took her parka out of storage for a visit to caribou country.  Danielle just packed up her flamenco dress for a fiesta in Spain.  Megan is headed to Canada to try and get rid of her memories of Coyotes.  We’re not so sure about Bon…she still has her Oktoberfest hat on* We wish all followers a very pleasent weekend, we know ours will be "point profitable"!!!

Koala or Kanga???

It seems quite possible that "the foreigner" as we affectionately call her  got a little confused or possibly lost in translation. I just sent her an email requesting her picture with a Kanga from Australia to post. We specifically instructed her to get a picture with a Kanga while there but she just forwarded me this darling picture with a Koala. I sure hope she got the other photo too!    *FYI-Daniela’s from Bulgaria*

A Whirlwind Weekend

Danielle and Daniela had quite the photo adventure. Roaming around the Alamo, riding a mechanical bull (thanks to Marcus for escorting them thru a barn filled with cowboys YEE-HA), and singing “Pretty Woman” karaoke style all in a few hours! After a 2 hour nap, it was on to the Quincy market for some clam chowder…and on to meet the team in Chicago...they even scored a few unexpected points along the way!

Bonnie headed to the mountains of Colorado to take a snap shot at the Garden of the Gods and she was even back in time to meet up with the rest of the team to run around The Windy City.

Collision with a Coyote

Megan ran into a roadblock of sorts...a coyote to be exact...when trying to get her photo at the Grand Canyon. Luckily, she made it home safely with a great picture – wish we could say the same about the rental car…and the poor coyote.

The Windy City

Cindy used her street smarts to help the team race around Chicago and score points! Even with the masses of Cubs fans standing in the way, the team scored big.

LET LUCK BE ON OUR SIDE

It's the most beautiful day Minneapolis has seen in weeks!  Oh wait…check out the airport weather "48 and rainy"…190 minute delays!!! Yikes, say a prayer...light a candle...Our plans are BIG and FleXiBLe for this weekend, but we're going to need all the luck we can get!  Megan’s afternoon flight seemed hopeless but she somehow made it on...cross your fingers that we are blessed with such luck.  

***Stay tuned for an update on Monday***

Enjoy the rain drops Minnesota...the Travelistas are outa here!

Bonnies Back!

Leave it to Bonnie to return from Germany with a bunch of points! Not only did she get her Oktoberfest pics but she visited the Varsity on her way thru Atlanta and she ran a race...Literally!

Afternoon Adventure

Adding to our array of adventures, Megan and Daniela headed off yesterday for a little afternoon excursion. They visited St. Louis to create a human arch in front of the Gateway Arch! It took 2 non camera savvy sightseers, and one confident tourist to lie on the ground to get the perfect shot, but we now have it! Way to go ladies!!!

Travelista's weekend of Turbulant Trips!

This weekend was yet another adventure for the Travelistas, with ups and downs...we racked up some points but hit a few unexpected turbulence along the way.  We are going to have to hit it hard in the next 5 weeks!!!  Cindy experienced some bumps trying to head out on on a flight to Colorado Springs...but Bonnie on the other hand was on a mission to meet a man in Lederhosen, Germany welcomed her and we welcomed the big points she brought home!  Megan had a fun filled weekend enjoying a bratwurst with sauerkraut while celebrating at Oktoberfest.  Daniela sure fooled spectators this weekend when she dressed up like Abe Lincoln to snap a photo at Mount Rushmore.  Danielle breezed through Buenos Aires posing like Eva Peron and completed yet another destination for the Travelistas! 

Weekend #4 Preview!

Bonnie and Megan are getting their lederhosen packed for an Oktoberfest adventure. Daniela is getting a makeover for her trip to Mount Rushmore. The snow in Colorado will be no match for Cindy – we are from Minnesota – don’t ya know! Danielle is resting her eyes and taking it EZE before her next big trip. Buen Viaje!!!

WEEKEND #3 RECAP

*Desperately trying to get a picture of the Peabody ducks on parade, Megan threw herself in front of the ducks (and the thousands of spectators) and Brandon was able to get the perfect shot!  *Triple D on the Triple 7: Daniela, Danielle and their photographer & coach Dimitar needed all the coffee they could get for their non-stop non-revving this weekend. After a brief visit to the original Starbucks in Seattle to get their caffeine fix, they got a workout in Hawaii hiking Diamond Head, even flight cancellations didn’t keep them away from racking up points for the team!  *Cindy didn’t have a chance to jet set this weekend but did spend some quality time with her planner!  *We all thought Bonnie would be resting up after sewing all week, but we were wrong. She squeezed in enough time to run a race (between sewing hundreds of pajamas and manning her booth at the craft show). It was a wonderful weekend for the Travelistas!

From the desk of Captain Megan

* Cindy “squirrel whisperer” Brown, had the squirrels eating out of the palm of her hand for this challenge! The squirrel was no match for the Travelistas!

* Megan was channeling her inner “Rocky Balboa” while running up the steps he made famous in Philadelphia.
* It turns out you can fly to Guatemala and back in one weekend!! Just ask Danielle - she raced around the city in 25 hours and somehow found time to stop for a photo op in a Tuk Tuk.
* After missing for several days Daniela made a safe return from the Outback! I am sure she will have tons of stories to tell about the Opera House and the beautiful scenery in Australia. Luckily she got some rest in a lie-flat bed on her way back to MSP.
* Bonnie “baking machine” Koprucki already has her oven pre-heating for the bake sale coming up on Friday. Let’s see if building A can handle all of the brownies and Bundt cake!!

Labor Day Weekend

Well the long weekend surely served us right! For those of you who voted on our little pole it certainly was fun seeing your guesses. Bonnie didn’t take an underwater shot but did get a picture in a canoe! Megan searched and searched…but Carl was no where to be found. Megan spent a lot of time strategically planning our next few weekends and an afternoon of photo shoots. Cindy was our “top point earner” this week out on the West Coast. Way to go Cindy, we’re so happy you really met Elvis! Daniela is still MIA so we sure hope she is racking up the points, or at least coming back to work so we’re not short a player. Finally, I crashed 2 weddings but was too shy to ask for a picture, I must have a familiar face, and people really thought I was a long lost cousin. I, like Cindy, was on the west coast with some great friends who memorized the photo list they are so competitive. I was going thru TSA security and next thing I know I am posing next to a lady with a Mohawk, which my friend stopped. This weekend travel plans are continuously changing since Mr. Obama decided to pay us Minnesotans a visit. Seriously is he that important that they need to stop all air control in MSP??? We are going to have some trouble with connections. Cross your fingers!

READY TO JET SET

The challenge is beginning tomorrow September 4th and we thought it might be fun for you to guess where we’re off to. In order to not allow teams that have “years over us” to sabotage us, we have decided not to reveal where we have traveled until we return. There are far too many travelers in this competition that have many years of seniority on challengers like myself so it only seems logical and more aggressive to surprise you with where we’ve been. All our bags are packed and we’re ready to go…We're leaving on a jet plane!

We’ll see you when you least expect it!
Travelistas

MEET THE TEAM

Bonnie is a "lifer" at NWA, she has worked in various departments and cities and traveled extensively to ski and enjoy Hawaii one of her favorite destinations. Bonnie will be in charge of our travel calendar, since she already has the craziest and most detailed calendar we have ever seen. In a sense we are taking advantage of the skill. She brings experience "27 years" of non-rev travel and energy to our team, and she is looking forward to her trip to Germany! Watch out low seniority people, Bonnie will always be at the top of the list!!!

Cindy is our head trip leader because prior to her 4 years at NWA she worked for an agency planning excursions. Cindy will play a crucial part in organizing every step once our planes hit the ground; she brings exceptional organization to the team. Her favorite destination is Cape Town, and she describes it like a mixture of San Fran, Halifax and Vancouver. She is looking forward to utilizing her strategic trip planning experience to take us to the top in this competition.

Daniela is our craziest team member and always accompanied by her even crazier husband. They travel so much that they rent their house out on the weekends since they are never home. Daniela is a master at non-rev and Dimitar is the rental car expert, from sports car to 15 passenger van these two can get you to any destination. Daniela favorite destination is any place she hasn't been yet! She is looking forward to Australia and running around Italy!

Megan is our team Captain and will keep everything under control; she will make sure each and every point is accounted for. Megan is adventurous and always up for a new challenge. Like Daniela, Megan is often accompanied by her competitive boyfriend Brandon who may be the best photographer we know. One of their favorite destinations is Cancun, Mexico…unfortunately it’s not on the list; we’re hoping she’ll like St. Martin just as much, and we know she is looking forward to a trip to Europe!

Danielle (me) what can I say I am passionate about travel and I love winning. When asked to join this team of wild women on a challenge of a life time that involved prizes, I didn’t have to be asked twice. I only bring a little over a year of NWA experience to the team but I am unattached and anticipate the next several weeks will be quite an adventure. My favorite place to travel is Spain, and I am looking forward to Barcelona!

I hope you enjoy following along with our adventure!

NON-REV CHALLENGE BLOG SPOT

http://nonrevchallenge.blogspot.com/