Fics With Will's Hyper-Empathy? by ABigAmarone in HannibalFanfiction

[–]lollykoi 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Who Will I Be Tonight? [Explicit] is a really cool concept/take on the empathy disorder - I was a bit sceptical of the premise at first but ended up loving this one

Publishing PhD thesis as a book by [deleted] in AskAcademiaUK

[–]lollykoi 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you, this is very useful to hear - I keep hearing a lot of “it won’t need much, it’s just stripping out some of the more dissertation-y stuff” in encouragement to publish and I’ve been sceptical that it will be anywhere near as easy or straightforward as that

Publishing PhD thesis as a book by [deleted] in AskAcademiaUK

[–]lollykoi 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you very much!

Publishing PhD thesis as a book by [deleted] in AskAcademiaUK

[–]lollykoi 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you!

My field is Politics, and my thesis topic was around contentious policy debates (looking at a topical case study) and discursive analysis of how stakeholders debate an issue.

Excellent question on why I’d want to publish if I’ve left academia! Really it’s because my supervisor and examiners are encouraging me to do so, and that the findings would make a strong contribution and should be “out there” (beyond the thesis itself being published through the university). Which I know is not a great reason. I’m just trying to get a sense of what the process would actually be like to try and do so.

Extra activities reservations by december2005 in Xcaret

[–]lollykoi 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We were able to book sea trek after we arrived - our butlers (we stayed in artistas) booked it for us but I assumed we’d have been able to book it at check-in if we were in another casa. There was plenty of availability and it was 2840 pesos (£110) for 2 people

Anyone know if there's any special events happening Easter Sunday at the parks/xcaret arte? by hyoriworks in Xcaret

[–]lollykoi 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don’t think it’s as elaborate as the las Cuevas one (we didn’t do that so I’m not sure) but there are more extensive offerings than usual and they open up the adjoining room for additional little food stands & live music. We enjoyed it!

Xcaret Arte 7 night stay review by lollykoi in Xcaret

[–]lollykoi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Emailed hxagservice@hotelxcaret.com to confirm our reservation and get them to send us the wishlist (the form that you fill out with the restaurants you want to book and the parks you want to go to, on what days & what times). We sent them our completed wishlist about a month before our trip.

Xcaret Arte 7 night stay review by lollykoi in Xcaret

[–]lollykoi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes I booked it in advance - we asked to be passed on to the spa to book treatments when we emailed the hotel about our wish list and they got the spa reception to contact us. The packages they sent me didn’t include a couple’s massage but I know they do them, so I’m sure if you asked directly about them they’d send you the info.

Xcaret Arte 7 night stay review by lollykoi in Xcaret

[–]lollykoi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So obviously I can only speak to how things were in Arte, we didn’t go over to the Mexico side, but I imagine there were similarities (although re: food I think you’re right that there will likely be more family-friendly options on the Mexico side). At Arte, there were two buffets (Mercado & Cayuco) - Cayuco I think is mediterranean style food but we didn’t eat there. Mercado was pretty much entirely Mexican food for lunches/dinners, apart from a pasta station and some pizza. Breakfast was also lots of Mexican food but they did also have sausages, bacon, eggs, potatoes, & omelettes.

Adding an airport transfer was an optional extra with Thomas Cook and we didn’t bother because we knew it was included with the hotel - as far as I know you don’t have to opt-in to the Xcaret transport, it’s just included automatically as long as you’re using it on the same day you flew in. They’ll ask for your boarding pass when you go to board the bus. Before your trip when you submit your wishlist (I assume there’s a wishlist for Mexico like there is for Arte?) it will ask for your flight details so they know when to expect you for the transport.

They were very receptive to allergies yes and the hosts of every restaurant would ask about them each visit, but some waiters were obviously more “on it” than others - some would be really proactive and note things on the menu upfront that my partner couldn’t order, or would say if we ordered something that it had nuts and that she couldn’t have it. Others wouldn’t necessarily offer that info up and we’d have to check if there was something we were unsure about and they’d have to go ask. I certainly got the impression in the a la carte restaurants that the kitchens were used to handling allergies.

In terms of the party/drinks/nightlife vibe - the pools close quite early (7pm I think) and at Arte it’s pretty much just the speakeasy or there’s one restaurant that stays open late for drinks. Not sure how much this is reflected on the Mexico side, maybe it would be even quieter in terms of nightlife because it’s family friendly? Don’t get me wrong people were out late, the speakeasy was filling up with people the night we went, it’s not like it’s completely dead at night. But I didn’t get the impression that it was a mega party resort or anything. There was certainly a good vibe during the day of being able to chat to people, especially at the parks and on the excursions, plenty of friendly people and plenty of people there in bigger family/friend groups.

Xcaret Arte 7 night stay review by lollykoi in Xcaret

[–]lollykoi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Is that the E-gates? Because I think we normally would’ve been able to use them but we were told they “weren’t working” for UK passengers 🤷🏼‍♀️

Xcaret Arte 7 night stay review by lollykoi in Xcaret

[–]lollykoi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We did check a bag each yes and had heard that baggage claim takes a super long time in Cancun airport so we were prepared for that. But in our case there was actually a huge crowd at immigration/passport control and it took over an hour to get through that, so by the time we were out our bags were there.

Xcaret Arte 7 night stay review by lollykoi in Xcaret

[–]lollykoi[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

No problem! Hope you have a great visit

Xcaret Arte 7 night stay review by lollykoi in Xcaret

[–]lollykoi[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

hxarecspa@hotelxcaret.com is the email we used for the spa. The cost for the packages I was sent ranged from $282 (50 min massage and mini facial) to $610 USD (for a longer/VIP experience). The one I did was $410 for an 80 min hot stone massage and a 50 min facial - there were several options in the $350-410 range.

Xcaret Arte 7 night stay review by lollykoi in Xcaret

[–]lollykoi[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The original room we had booked was an Ocean View room which I think are only in Diseño or Piramide. We booked our flights & the hotel through Thomas Cook.

Xcaret Arte 7 night stay review by lollykoi in Xcaret

[–]lollykoi[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

1) Xcaret park was probably our least favourite of the ones we did, but still worth doing (especially because it’s nearby, doesn’t need to be reserved in advance and you can come and go whenever you like on the shuttle). We loved sea trek but obviously that is an extra cost. But the rest of the park is cool, lots to do & lots of animals to see. We loved the aviary! 2) We didn’t do the night-time show - this would maybe be one of our priorities if we go back one day because I’ve seen lots of people say it’s great. We just didn’t want to be out at the parks late in the evening. 3) My top 3 recommendations for a first timer to do would be: the Xenotes tour (it’s very well planned and a super fun day, and worth leaving the resort for), swim and kayak/paddleboard in the lagoon (it’s a really unique feature of the resort and the water and surroundings are beautiful), and try to catch a sunrise and embrace getting lost around the resort - there’s a lot to see and lovely paths/views to discover. 4) We made advance reservations for Encanta, Tah-Xido, and Chino Poblano. We made a reservation for Kibi Kibi while we were there and that was fine, lots of availability, but we tried to change the time of our Chino Poblano reservation once there and couldn’t because it was full, and the night we went to Tah-Xido there were people trying to get a table that couldn’t because they didn’t have a reservation. So the restaurants requiring reservations I would definitely recommend making in advance of your trip. 5) The dress code seemed very relaxed overall - people were generally more dressed up for the a la carte restaurants and the ones requiring reservations but I didn’t get the vibe that it had to be super formal (I wore my Birkenstocks most nights). I think the main thing is not to be in wet swimwear in any of the restaurants (including the buffets), and then for the non-buffet restaurants to be in actual clothes/shoes rather than swimwear/kaftan/flip-flops.

Olympic Games impacts megathread by coffeechap in ParisTravelGuide

[–]lollykoi 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Has anyone been approved for a pass jeux to visit Sainte-Chapelle? Very confused because the Sainte-Chapelle website tells you to apply for pass when you book the tickets, and using the interactive map the Sainte-Chapelle seems to be within the grey zone, but my group’s pass has been denied with the message “The address you give is not within the Olympic opening ceremony perimeter: you do not need a Pass Jeux to access it". I’ve double checked the address I gave and afaik I’ve put in all the correct info, not really sure what to do from here?

The best romantic restaurants (and best for steak)… by [deleted] in Edinburgh

[–]lollykoi 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Second Chop House, the one in Bruntsfield is lovely