REFLECTION

            in digital applications this year I learned a lot. Weather it be from blogging. Or doing extensive projects that took hours to put together it really was a great class. I Believe that it will help me through out college and the rest of my life because I wont have any questions on how to use a certain program because I already know how to use it. The two big takeaways that I had in this class were probably the video story telling project. and the website project. 

            The video storytelling project showed me something that I never knew how to do before and that was taking pictures turning it into a video and then narrating it. This will potentially help me as a sports management major enter the workforce with prior knowledge because there is a lot of videos that people do for sports teams from high school all the way to semi-pro to professional level teams. Weather it be highlight reels or player introductions there is someone putting the videos together and putting them out there for people to see.

            The next take away was the web page project. I never knew how to make a web page from scratch before. And really once I figured it out it was very fun and not hard at all. This project will help me as a sports management major in the work force because if I am working with a sports team they may want me to make a fan page or edit or make them a new team page and this will have shown me how to do that so I am prepared for the future and in the rest of my journey through college.the fan page i made https://sites.google.com/site/nickypolancolacrosse/

            In all and all this class was extremely informative and fun and I actually really enjoyed it. I kind of wish I could have gotten more time in it so that I could have learned just a little bit more but it was great and I learned a lot. This class will help me for the rest of my life weather it be in school, or personal life or even my own personal stuff it will help me do what I need to do. 

Final Reflection

Being an a accountant major I will have to use all most of the tools that i have learned in this class. Whether it be Excel or PowerPoint i will use these two tools to help me become a better accountant. Also knowing how to use Word will benefit me when I have to type up reports later and in the near future. I also enjoyed the group project we all worked on. I gained experience on how to work with a Team outside of school and come together to create a presentation. Out of that project we also practiced presenting our material which a lot of people struggle with. Public speaking was something i struggled with so every little presentation counts. All the technology was very helpful. I also liked the fact that we created a story book and uploaded it to YouTube. While i did this assignment I learned how to dub my voice into a movie and also learned how to create a show out of pictures and videos that meant a lot to me. This project was very enjoyable and i had a lot of fun doing it. Digital Apps has defiantly taught me a ton of material in a short time. I would recommend this class to anyone who has not taken it. Thank you Professor Fleury Lawson for teaching me all you can.

A place that I have been to and I enjoyed so much is Miami, Florida. I went there for spring break when I was in 8th grade and I had so much fun. I stayed with my cousin and uncle while I was there. We did the usual almost every day. We would wake up go out fishing then go out and play baseball. The best part of this vacation was going to the Florida Marlins baseball game and I got to meet Hanley Ramierez, Robert Andino, and Cameron Maybin. My uncle is best friends with Robert Andino so we were able to hang out with him and Cameron Maybin for the rest of the day. I am also a big Miami Hurricanes fan so when I went to Miami I got to go to a Miami Hurricanes spring practice, and then got tickets for a Miami Hurricane Baseball game and after the game I met Yonder Alonso who was a future #1 draft pick by the Cincinatti Reds. I went to south beach and I had so much fun. When we go fishing we always caught a peacock bass and they are so beautiful and that was the first ever fish that I've ever caught. The memories that i had there are amazing.  That was the best vacation I've ever been on and i can't wait for one day to go back to Miami.

Las Vegas

Las Vegas

Sure, you've heard that what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas but did you know Las Vegas is the largest city in the US state of Nevada? Nicknames Sin City and the Entertainment Capital of the World. The city has mega-casino hotels, that is decorated with a fantasy-like atmosphere. When you're ready to go bar hopping or test your gambling habit, plenty of fun will await you. Las Vegas also has luxurious spas, museums, pools, and buffets.

The first thing I would need to do, is to find a flight from Boston to Las Vegas.

If I was to depart on 11/21 at 11:00am and return 11/23 at 11:00am my round trip cost would be:



My next step would be to find a hotel I would like to stay at for the two days.

I would go to Hotels.com and put in all my information for the trip:

Many fabulous hotels in Las Vegas will come up, such as:

While in Las Vegas, there are plenty of things to do such as:

• Attractions
• Shopping
• Nightlife
• Pools
• Spas
• Golf
• Vegas Tours
• Outdoor Recreation
• Casinos
• Show
• Dining

Chateau Nightclub & Garden

Chateau Nightclub & Gardens features a high energy nightclub and outdoor gardens with views of the Las Vegas Strip. The club has two stories, an iron staircase leads guests to the nightclubs second floor. A dance floor features vaulted ceilings, chandeliers and an elevated DJ booth. Chateau's Outdoor Gardens enhance the experience for nightlife in Las Vegas. As it overlooks the Las Vegas Strip, and also has over sized cabanas. Also, the Chateau has a set of glass elevators that takes guests up to the Chateau Garden.







http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNp_Q534d5w&feature=fvwrel

Dream Destination

If I could choose anywhere in the world to vacation to I would without a doubt choose the beautiful island of Bora Bora! It would definitely be amazing to vacation there.

I have never heard of Bora Bora until a "Keeping Up With The Kardashians" episode that I saw a few years ago. The family vacationed there on a gorgeous private spot. The beaches look absolutely beautiful and the water looks so crystal clear. When I look up Bora Bora, every picture that I have seen of it looks as if it could be on a post card.

Bora Bora is and island that is located about 160 miles northwest of Tahiti. It is said to be arguably "the most beautiful island on the planet." When I was researching a little bit more about Bora Bora, I read many facts. One particular fact that the population on  the island is about 4,650 people. I also researched that the climate on the island is considered to be tropical and can be divided into the wet season and the dry season. This is great information to know when you are going to plan a trip there! The "wet season" is between the months of April and November, and they usually get 3/4ths of rainfall in these months. If i'm going on a vacation I definitely do not want it to be spoiled from the rain so I would most likely choose to vacation in the month of December.  The vacation package that I found for  a week in December is for a resort called the "Bora Bora Pearl Beach Resort and Spa."

 

 

  This resort is a 'tranquil paradise'. It offers an amazing view and everyone stays in bungalows. The island offers many exciting things to do such as restaurants, fresh water swimming pool, a spa, mini golf and many many more activities. This would be a dream destination for me but I would have to save up a lot of money first! For a weeks stay in the month of December the cost of flight and a hotel is $4,258 per person. I live in Dudley, Ma so I would be flying out of Boston because that would be the easiest for me and flight accommodations. I assume that depending on what month that you are traveling most prices will vary depending on weather conditions and if it is a popular time to travel. I think that December would be a popular time for tourists because it is a dry season for the island so there most likely would not be any rain.

     On the 'Top 10 Summer Vacation Spots' Bora Bora is at # 2. After all of the pictures and information about Bora Bora that I found, I can really see why! If I were to vacation there I think that I would just want to relax and never leave the resort because of everything that it has to offer. Although, I would really love to scuba dive because they are said to have some of the prettiest fish living in the island. I have heard that scuba diving is one of the most popular and most exciting activities to do on an island. Bora Bora was the 'Travelers Choice 2012 Winner' for destinations around the world. It was rated with 5 stars because it's a small island but it has so much to offer. I really hope that someday I get to visit Bora Bora because I think I would have an amazing time! I need to start saving now. Below is a video of Bora Bora that was seen on 'Travel TV'. It shows the beautiful island and some of what it offers.

BAHAMAS

Juan Fernandez

Professor Lawson

Digital apps

Dream Destination

            If I could go anywhere as a dream vacation I would go to the Bahamas’s. The reason I would go to the Bahamas’s over anywhere else, to relax and relieve stress, is because I know someone who has vacationed there before. That person told me all about it, and recommended that I go and try it out for myself. He explained to me all of the fun things he did and what the vacation did for him in the long run. He told me that going on vacation with his significant other, to a place as wonderful as the Bahamas, helped bring them together even more than normal.

            For my own planned trip, I plan on going to the Bahamas on a cruise for 2 nights. The cruise will depart from Miami Florida. The cost of the cruise is speculated to be just about 200 dollars. To attend this cruise I would drive up to Florida a couple of days before and stay at my aunt’s house, and then just have her drop me off the morning before departure.

            While at the Bahamas I plan on clearing my head, and forgetting about the outside world. When I get there I will be staying at a one bedroom oceanfront suite. While on this vacation I plan on trying all things I’ve always wanted to try. For example, I would try windsurfing and sailing. I heard it was challenging, and that just fueled my need for doing it. 

my dream St. Thomas

There is one place that I have been and where I want to be. That place as Zach Brown says is “knee deep in the water some where got the blue sky breeze and it don’t seem fair only worry in the world is the tide gonna reach my chair” that’s right I want to be in paradise, more specifically the beautiful island of St. Thomas. St. Thomas Bahamas is my favorite place to be in the entire world. I will be discussing why it I where I want to be, the financial cost, and why it truly is paradise.

             St Thomas is where I want to live someday because it is truly paradise.  The weather is always nice. The water is always warm. Also the people are some of the nicest that you will ever meet. Because of its close proximity to the equator the weather never changes it is always bright and warm even in the deep months of the winter.  My dream is to live in a mansion there someday and just be a beach bum and hang out and have fun.

            The next reason I want to live there and just be there all the time is because the cost of living is fairly inexpensive. The total cost of a three to four bedroom house is an low two thousand five hundred to six thousand dollars. Also since it is apart of the USVI (united states virgin islands) there are all the benefits of living in the U.S. but still separate from the U.S.A.with much lower costs of living. 

            St. Thomas usvi is truly paradise and I want to live there someday because of its  pure beauty, friendly people and cheap cost of living. It is one hundred percent my favorite place to be in the entire world and I am shore that I want be there as much as possible for the rest of my life. 

Vacationing in Aruba

I have always dreamed of vacationing in Aruba. Every year during the summer my family and I either go to Cape Cod for a week, or we go down to Florida to visit some family. Those are affordable trips for my parents, lately my mother and I have been seriously discussing about going Aruba this summer. As I have been researching the trip, it has come to my attention how immensely expensive this trip is going to be. I did not find one hotel that wasn’t under 200 dollars for each night, and also I couldn’t find a reasonable priced flight. For one adult ticket from Logan airport in Boston, MA to Aruba it would cost you $667, just for one! The trip itself is very expensive, so I would be completely content just sitting on the beach and enjoying the resort for a couple days. It wouldn’t matter to me if we went and did anything, just being there would be amazing. If I were to go to Aruba I would stay at Holiday Inn resort Los Cabos. It has a beautiful view from the room and it is right near the beach, which are two selling factors of the place. 4 nights with air fair it starts anywhere from $789. Rates are much higher in the summer than they would be during the school year. I really like flying on jet blue, that’s what I always have flown on, even when it was called delta. I like flying with that airline because of how each individual seat has its own television. In Aruba there are plenty of things to do, you can rent jet skis, paddleboats, wave runners, banana boats, etc. There are plenty of cafes and shops to walk around and eat. There are national parks to go visit and tour. You can go learn about the culture, there’s the option of going to the international music festival. At night they have dances on the boardwalk and also fun carnivals. One day I hope ill be able to go here, and enjoy everything this place has to offer, I hear its beautiful and I would love to experience everything it has to offer. Not even that, just to be able to spend time with my mom, on in such a beautiful place, on a wonderful beach would be a blessing. 

Seth Drouin

For a holiday vacation, I would love to travel to the Bahamas and stay at the Atlantis Hotel.  My sister stayed there, and she came back telling me how much she had.  It is kind of expensive to stay there for an entire week.  Of course, keep in mind how much awesome activities you would be doing, however, it said on the website that a night there is roughly $200.

This is the Atlantis Price Website: Atlantis Nightly Price

However, another huge factor to take into consideration is the amount for the flight.  The flight would cost a lot too.  I would most likely catch the flight in my home state capital of Hartford.  This website gives some estimates on how much it would cost for the trip there and back: Flight Prices

There are so many activities that you can do while at the Bahamas.  First and foremost, I would get a stereotypical back massage.  I feel like whenever somebody thinks of the Bahamas, they think of massages.  Here's a cool video I found on massages in the Bahamas:

In this video, it demonstrates Thai massaging.  It is interesting because there are many different kinds of massages that can be done, and can focus on different muscle groups and certain kinds of stresses that are in your life. 

Furthermore, I would totally go swimming with dolphins.  I have always dreamed of swimming with them. They seem so playful, and it is stuff they do in movies, so I am assuming it would be fun.  I remember watching MaryKate and Ashley with my sister one time, and the episode was where they go to the Bahamas and go swimming with the dolphins.  This is a type of video I hope to film if I end up visiting the Bahamas:

Another activity that I feel is one of the most important things you can do while at the Bahamas is to take in the scenery of the beach, sand, sky colors, etc.  There are so many beautiful colors, and the whole point of visiting the island for me at least would be to get away from all the stresses that exist in college life.  Here are a couple of relaxing pictures taken of the Bahamas. I think they are so calming to the mind:

In conclusion, the Bahamas would be an amazing place to visit.  I wouldn't want to go by myself. Going with my family or friends would be the only possible way for me to enjoy all of the water slides, dolphins, and relaxing scenery.  I know someday I will visit the Bahamas.  In the meantime, I'll just keep dreaming.
: )

-Seth Drouin

My dream destination, Alaska

My dream destination is to go to Alaska.  One of my true loves is to go fishing. There is no match to the adrenaline-like feeling of reeling in a monster fish. I love fishing so much that I always watch fishing shows on TV every Sunday morning and a fair amount of them are based out of Alaska.  However, fishing is not the only aspect of Alaska that I am attracted to there is also the brisk weather and true beauty of the landscape. Living in New England has made me a lover of cold weather.  My personality is more outdoors-like rather than an inside kind of person meaning I prefer to do something with more than just my hands in front of a television set. After browsing the internet, I found a man named Rudy who wrote,” Rudy’s fishing blog” from when he went fishing in Alaska at blogspot.com.  Rainbow trout is one of the most common fish caught in Alaska.  Another one of my favorite activities I like to do outdoors is go hiking, nothing feels better than the fresh forest air deep inside my lungs. In Alaska the landscape is more than accommodating for hiking in the deep forests. After browsing various travel sites looking for cheap plane tickets to Alaska and cheap hotels to stay at, I found that a round trip ticket from Boston Massachusetts to Anchorage Alaska would cost $570. In addition to the cheap plane tickets, I found that a hotel in the downtown Anchorage  plaza would range anywhere from $95 to $108 per night depending on which hotel you choose to stay at.  This information can be found on kayak.com. For a college student in my current monetary situation, this is a quite plausible trip to take. I would recommend anyone like me who is dying to go to Alaska for the trip of a lifetime to do the kind of research that I did and follow up on your dream vacation. I myself have put the trip on my bucket list and plan on traveling there before I graduate from Nichols College.

 

Jamaica!

If I were able to pick anywhere in the world for my dream destination, I would have to choose Jamaica. I don’t know what it is about that place, but I’ve just wanted to go there my whole life. Just seeing pictures online and from movies and just hearing about other people go there really sparked my interest.

There are lots of things that can be done while in Jamaica. One thing that sounds incredible is the Seven Mile Beach in Negril. It is said that pirates once haunted this beach, but now it is just inhabited by people looking to relax in the sun along with some pesky salesmen. But, as long as you know how to push them aside, they wouldn't really be much of a problem.

Another amazing place to go in Jamaica would have to be Blue Hole Mineral Spring that is also located in Negril. There is a resort located around a mineral spring that you can either jump in, or climb down into. The hole itself is more than 25 feet below the earth and the water is pure and crystal clear. Also, after you're done jumping yourself, you can watch locals dive from platforms that rest in the trees above the mineral spring hole. The platforms can reach as high as 60 feet in the air! The area around also has a lot of beautiful flowers and well-kept grounds. There are also other things to do around the mineral spring, but that is just the most exciting part.

To take a vacation there, it definitely isn't going to be like going somewhere close. But for the hotel, it is about $142 per night at a four star hotel that is right on the beach. That's not a bad deal at all for a four star hotel. For a flight there both ways is about $576. That's not as bad either, so it's not too expensive of a vacation. The only thing I would have to bring is extra money to go shopping for me and family and friends of course.

Dream Destination, Miami

            My favorite vacation place where I have been going to for the past couple of years is Miami, Key Biscayne to be exact. Key Biscayne is literally 5-10 minutes down the road from South Beach, which isn’t bad at all and plus it’s a nice drive. It’s more secluded from the city and you don’t hear all the noise and partying.  My aunt and uncle have a place in key Biscayne and it is one of my favorite places to go.

            I usually go with my mom, sister, aunt and uncle, my cousin and her husband. As long as my mom, sister and I are able to get plane tickets, then we don’t have to pay for really anything while we are there. Each year, we plan on going sometime in the middle of January and we usually leave on a Friday morning and come back either on a Tuesday or Wednesday.  We’re not there for a long time but it’s nice to go down for a couple of days, enjoy the nice weather, eat delicious food, see your family and have a good time. There is nothing really better than that.

            While we are there, we go to different restaurants in Miami, go to the beach and pool, shop and go basically where we want.  Last year, I went to Miami ink, which was awesome and I ran in the Tropical 5k race with my brother, mom, cousin and her husband. It was a cool experience to have but I wish I train some more before doing it.  Even though the race was in the morning, the weather was humid, the air was dense and after I finished, I thought my head was going to explode.  I couldn’t believe how many people were in the race and all the people who I thought I was going to beat, beat me. That goes to show that you cannot underestimate anyone whether how old or young they are. 

            Maybe this year we will run in the race again and hopefully I will be faster. Like I said before, going to Miami is one of my favorite places to go and I recommend anyone to go there and enjoy it as much as I do. South Beach doesn’t disappoint and I look forward to going there again.

My dream destination

          

If there is any place in the world that I dream of visiting the most, it is definitely Hawaii. Everybody is drawn to Hawaii because of its warm weather, and beautiful landscape, but there is an additional reason why I am so eager to visit; the care-free and relaxed nature of it. Everybody in Hawaii (both the residents and visitors) is just so friendly and care-free. At least that is what portrayed in the movies. It's almost as if obligations do not exist in Hawaii, and if they do, your only obligations are to have a good time and relax!

Obviously, a trip to Hawaii does not just happen on its own! It takes planning that may be long and tedious. It can also be expressive between the cost of flight, food, hotels, and other accommodations. Flights to this destination can be very expensive! Most of the flights start at around $650! I would probably want to land in Honolulu, and once I arrived, I would want to know that I have a place to stay. The average cost of hotels is around $200 a night. I feel that if I had around $7 thousand to spend, it would be a solid vacation.

Once I got there, I wouldn’t want to do a lot of touring. I would be completely content with just lying on the beach all day and soaking up the care-free atmosphere! However, I might try to get a professional surfing lesson. That is something that I have always wanted to do.

This is a trip that I would want to take with my girlfriend when we are a little bit older. I wouldn’t want there to be any age restrictions on what we can do. I would just want to enjoy our time in paradise and have a blast while doing it!

I feel like a trip like this can go either way in terms of expenses. It can be extremely expensive if the party wants to go and experience everything on the island, but if the party just wants to relax, and enjoy themselves, I feel like this could be a beautiful and relativelyinexpensive destination to vacation to!

 

Puerto Rico

 PONCE, PUERTO RICO

I have been to Ponce Puerto Rico 4 times in my life. All the times I have been has been during December break in high school. On the right is the first fire house in Ponce. This is in the center of town and a cool fact about this is it lights up at night. Ponce is a little over an hour outside of San Juan which is the capital of Puerto Rico. The reason why me and my family vacationed here so many times is because it was an awesome experience every time we went. It was always warm weather and it did not rain as much in Ponce. Every time we went to Ponce it would always be raining in San Juan.

                                                                                        
    This is a picture of one of the pools at the hotel that we stayed at every year we went there Here is the link to the hotel website that we stayed at Hilton golf casino resort. The resort we stayed at had 2 pools, a golf course, a casino, and a bunch of other things for families to have a good time during there stay here.

       
 My Dad being a frequent flyer on Delta me and my family basically went on the trip for free. My Dad also had a lot of hotel points at the Hilton so by the 4th time going there we only had to pay for one night out of eight nights in the hotel. We also got free breakfast in the morning because we new people who worked at the hotel and were nice enough to give us free breakfast during our stay. If we did not have the frequent flyer miles and the hotel points the rough cost of the trip during Christmas break would be around $1,000 round trip for one person. The hotel cost would be about $200 a night depending on were you stay in the hotel. That's the cost without food. The hotel has breakfast in the morning every day but it is $20 a person for a buffet. If we did not get these accommodations then we would not be able to afford this trip. I am very lucky to be able to go on this trip for so many years and I hope to live here someday. Delta Air lines
Here is a video of what the Hotel I stayed at is all about. Next to the hotel are condos that are very nice and are right on the water. These condos go for about $600,000. I hope to live in one of these condos when I get older. Also they are right next to a golf course to that most of the locals who live there are members of. Watch this video to see what the Hotel is all about.

Japan

One place where I have recently been and I will always want to go back is the Rocky Mountains. The Rocky Mountains are beautiful especially in the summer. My family and I went to Colorado for the summer in 2009.

It was a family trip that everyone on my mom’s side took. We went out to Colorado for my cousin’s and my uncle’s birthdays. It was a great experience. We took a day trip to the Rocky Mountains with everyone. It was incredible. The mountains were astonishing. Everything was so beautiful. We took our cars up Mount Evans. We stopped at many different stops including a lake called Summit Lake. It was beautiful. I loved seeing all the wildlife there and seeing the mountains. It was a just a beautiful site.

Even in the summer there was still snow on the mountains. I loved going to Colorado, but if I could go anywhere in the world it would be Japan.

My grandmother was born in Japan and I have always wanted to go there. My grandmother was born in Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa-ken. I have no idea where that is but I know she misses it. When I go I would like to go all over. I especially want to go to Tokyo. I would just travel all over Japan if I could go. Also I want to go see Mt. Fuji in Japan. There are so many things to do in Japan and I would want to do all of them. I would definitely take my family and my grandmother with me so they can show me around. My grandmother would be able to translate for us so it would make life easier. One thing I would be excited about is to eat real, authentic Japanese food. I love that kind of food and to eat it in Japan would be amazing.

A flight would cost approximately $1270.00 and the flight itself would take 22 hours. It would be a long time and a lot of money but it would definitely be worth it to go where your grandmother was born and where you still have family. A lot of people think I am weird to go to Japan but I have always wanted to go. It is a dream to go to Japan.

Hawaii ! Hawaii ! Hawaii !

Hawaii ! Hawaii ! Hawaii !

If I had the opportunity to go anywhere for a vacation, I would go to the tropical state of Hawaii. The image I get from online photos and television is that Hawaii is a very tropical place to just enjoy the sun and have a good time. Although there are many places to go that are probably just like it, I have always been craving the opportunity to go there. 

When traveling to Hawaii I have realized that it is an expensive journey but if given the money and time I would love to go. Traveling to Hawaii from Massachusetts would cost about $1100 round trip on a plane varying slightly depending on the airline. Along with the plane ticket cost it would also cost anywhere from $160-$500 per night for a hotel depending on how nice you want it to be. When traveling although it would be nice to only have to spend money on the flight and hotel, there is also the expenses for food and activities that have to be counted it as well. In Hawaii the average person spends about $200 per day for food and attractions. If I were to go there I sure would want to enjoy my time and get the best out of it. 

Vacations are nice to go on with family or friends and create a great atmosphere to really bond and have a good time.

 

When in  Hawaii you have the chance to:

• Go to one of their famous beaches
• Go Surfing
• Go on a catamaran
• Explore the volcanoes
• Rent a sailboat
• Take a tour in a helicopter

 There are so many things to do in Hawaii and so many attractions that don't even cost a lot of money. If you want to stay on budget you can still have a great time and enjoy the tropical weather.

The opportunity to relax and get away from my daily life and travel to Hawaii would be a dream come true for me. I have been to a few tropical places such as the Caribbean islands and Bermuda but would still love the chance to go to Hawaii. The thought of being somewhere so nice and tropical and still being in the US is unbelievable.