USVI-On-Line

I worked in San Francisco last week and I got a lot of good pictures. If you're interested, you can find them here:
http://www.pbase.com/thegripps/sf_work

"Good pictures"???

Great pictures!!! San Francisco is a favorite city; who doesn't like it? You captured the flavor very,very well. I hope that your time spent there was much more fun than work.

My son lived on the corner of Pine and Taylor just steps from Grace Cathedral. I have a "thing" for labyrinths and love seeing those at Grace again. Your pictures brought smiles to my morning... thanks!

Thanks lprof! I did have the prime spot for taking pictures of the city, that's for sure! LOVED Grace Cathedral! I'm taking my husband back someday soon so we can have a weekend all to ourselves! He will love it!

Great pics Margo! I LOVED them all as usual. I liked the stained glass pic the most though.

Great pictures, Margo. What a fantasic hotel. The tables were very beautiful set, and I have never seen something like this Tonga room.

But I cannot find out what was going on there, and why you participated.

Linne

Hi Linne - The company I work for (well, for another week, at least) is what is called an "Incentive Travel Company". We design, plan and accompany groups of people who have won a trip for having high sales or good performance at the company they work for. We took 700 people to San Francisco.... approximately 450 winners and their spouses or guests. We went to San Francisco 2 days early to get everything at the hotel set up and ready, and the guests arrived and stayed for 3 days. During the 3 days, they had business meetings, award banquets and some free time to see San Francisco. The winners & guests have a fabulous time, us "worker bees" are up and at it about 7:30 each morning and we don't get many breaks, usually working through lunch. We usually get "off work" about 8:00 or 9:00 pm. They are very long days, but we do it knowing we will work long hours and we get paid very well for that week.

Unfortunately my boss has decided to retire and I will be officially unemployed on Sept. 1st. No complaints, though, I've had the opportunity to travel quite a bit to places I might not otherwise have gone.

The Tonga Room was on the Travel Channel recently as one of the most unique bars in the US. Very cool.

Sorry your boss is retiring from a very exhausting but successful career, I'm sure. Too bad you aren't buying it! I'd be the first in line to apply! I loved selling travel and did almost all FIT's and some incentive, but not at the large scale you are doing. Part of me always traveled with my clients.

Although I have to admit, after selling travel I have a bit of a fear traveling. It's almost like I know all that can go wrong and the legal angles. Sad, I know. It's a bit like the more you know the more fear your have of the things that are out of your control and hope that your clients can do Perfection.

Terry - I like being a "worker bee" rather than "in charge." Just tell me what to do and set me free and I'll work my butt off, but I would go crazy if I had to do all the negotiating between the client and the hotels and venues, caterers, etc. This last program to San Francisco had the potential for disaster as when we signed the contract with the hotel in 2007 there were supposed to be 500 participants, but in the ensuing 2 yrs. the client increased it to 700 and because of that we had to go back to square one on plans.. now we were 200 short on banquets, rooms, transfers, etc. Nope, I don't want that stress on me!

I think I'll join SITE (Society of Incentive and Travel Executives) and go to the meetings just to stay in the loop. As an industry it's more "who you know" to get hired in it. I'm setting up shop at home as a Virtual Assistant, so it'll be interesting to try to weave that into the group travel industry.

Margo, you just keep getting better and better with the ol' Brownie. Thanks for sharing.

Awww.. thanks JT!

Great pictures. I would love to go to San Francisco someday.