With interest rates for 20-year Treasury bonds reaching upwards of 5.2%, is this a good time to invest in long-term bonds? I already own some 20- and 30-year Treasuries that I bought after COVID when yields were around 4.7%. My plan is to hold them to maturity unless their value increases significantly before then.

I realize nobody has a crystal ball, but I am curious how others are thinking about current yields. Based on historic data, 5%+ on long-duration Treasuries seems fairly attractive compared to what we have seen over the 15 years. On the other hand, the biggest risk to buying now is that rates continue to move higher, which would push bond prices lower (like the bonds that I currently hold).

For those who are well versed in Bonds and follow the Treasury market more closely, do you view current long-term yields as attractive enough to start locking in for 20-30 years?

I am wondering whether I am underestimating the risk that today's yields could look low a few years from now.

Interested to hear how others are approaching this.

Hello,

I have been using my Amex Platinum card to pay for my Google Fi service each month. Recently, my phone broke, and I am trying to take advantage of the Amex mobile phone protection benefit to cover the repair costs.

As part of the claim process, the insurance company is requesting proof that my monthly Google Fi payments have been made using my Platinum card. I downloaded my Google Fi statements, but they only show invoice details, such as service charges, taxes, and fees, and do not include payment information.

Does anyone know how I can obtain billing statements or records that specifically show the payment method and payment details? I've already contacted Google Fi support but haven't received a response yet.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Hello,

Yesterday I was trying to book a flight from Guatemala City (GUA) to Flores (FRS) on the TAG Airlines website. I entered all my passenger details, selected seats, and made it all the way to the payment page. Unfortunately, I got pulled into a work call and the session expired before I completed the payment.

A couple of hours later, I tried to book the same flight again, but the website kept giving me an error saying that a booking already existed for the same passenger on that flight. Since I had never entered my credit card details or completed payment, I assumed it was some temporary system issue.

I waited until this morning and was finally able to make a new booking. This time I completed the payment successfully, and I can see the charge on my credit card. However, it's now been several hours, and I still have not received a confirmation email.

The good news is that I saved/printed the confirmation page after payment, so I do have the booking reference information. I have also checked my spam/junk folders and don't see anything from TAG Airlines.

Has anyone here had a similar experience with TAG Airlines?

• Do confirmation emails sometimes take several hours to arrive?
• Were your tickets issued successfully even without receiving the email right away?
• Did you have to contact customer service to get your itinerary resent?

Would appreciate any suggestions, advice, or personal experiences. Thanks in advance!

We have a 10:30 AM flight departing from Guatemala City airport and are trying to decide whether to stay in Guatemala City the night before or remain in Antigua and take private transportation early that morning.

We would be willing to leave Antigua as early as 4:30 or 5:00 AM if necessary, and we plan to pre-book a private transfer.

For those with local experience, are there any circumstances (traffic, road closures, accidents, weather, etc.) that could make the trip from Antigua take multiple hours that early in the morning? In your opinion, would staying in Antigua be a reasonable option, or would it be safer to spend the night in Guatemala City before the flight?

Thanks for any advice!

Hello,

We are travelling to Guatemala in early October and understand that it is the tail end of the rainy season. We would be looking at doing the Acatenango hike sometime between October 5 and October 10.

Our current itinerary is:

• 2 nights in Tikal/Flores
• 4 nights in Lake Atitlán
• 3 nights in Antigua
• 1 final night in Guatemala City before our flight

If we decide to include Acatenango, I will probably need to either move one night from Atitlán to Antigua or potentially skip Tikal altogether.

In addition to Acatenango, we would also like to spend time in Antigua itself — relaxing, enjoying the food scene, visiting coffee farms, and generally taking things at a slower pace.

My dilemma is whether it is worth gambling on weather conditions and scheduling extra time in Antigua specifically for the Acatenango hike (or perhaps a 4x4 trip if the hike conditions are poor). For those who have visited in early October:

• How likely is it to get decent volcano eruption views after dark during that time of year?
• Is it worth building flexibility into the itinerary for Acatenango, or would you prioritize keeping the current split between Tikal, Atitlán, and Antigua?
• If you have done Acatenango in October, how was your experience?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Hello,

We are travelling to Guatemala in early October and understand that it is the tail end of the rainy season. We would be looking at doing the Acatenango hike sometime between October 5 and October 10.

Our current itinerary is:

• 2 nights in Tikal/Flores
• 4 nights in Lake Atitlán
• 3 nights in Antigua
• 1 final night in Guatemala City before our flight

If we decide to include Acatenango, I will probably need to either move one night from Atitlán to Antigua or potentially skip Tikal altogether.

In addition to Acatenango, we would also like to spend time in Antigua itself — relaxing, enjoying the food scene, visiting coffee farms, and generally taking things at a slower pace.

My dilemma is whether it is worth gambling on weather conditions and scheduling extra time in Antigua specifically for the Acatenango hike (or perhaps a 4x4 trip if the hike conditions are poor). For those who have visited in early October:

• How likely is it to get decent volcano eruption views after dark during that time of year?
• Is it worth building flexibility into the itinerary for Acatenango, or would you prioritize keeping the current split between Tikal, Atitlán, and Antigua?
• If you have done Acatenango in October, how was your experience?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

How much does a private boat trip cost from San Juan to Jaibalito after 6 PM? What would be a reasonable price to settle on before we begin the trip?

Hello,

We are two adults visiting Guatemala in early October and are planning to spend 4–5 nights at Lake Atitlán. We are looking for a place with great volcano views, a calmer atmosphere, and easy opportunities to relax. Our ideal trip would involve wandering around town, window shopping a bit, enjoying good food, going on a hike, and taking things slow.

If weather permits, we would also love to kayak on the lake and hike Indian Nose for sunrise. We are aware that October is still part of the rainy season, so we are not sure how realistic those activities are that time of year.

We are having a hard time deciding between Santa Cruz la Laguna, Jaibalito, and Tzununa as our base. Any suggestions/recommendations for which of these three towns to pick? Which town has the best balance of scenery, food options, and a relaxed vibe? Are any of them significantly easier or harder to get around from during the rainy season?

I also read that the public boats stop running around 5:00–5:30 PM. Is that generally true? If so, how do people travel between towns after that? For example, if we are staying in Jaibalito and want to travel to Santa Cruz la Laguna for dinner? Are tuk-tuks available?

Finally, are there any other hikes, activities, tours, restaurants, or hidden gems around the lake that you would recommend for a first-time visitor?

Thanks in advance for any advice! Looking forward to hearing your experiences. 😊

Hello,

We are visiting Guatemala in early October and currently have Tikal, Antigua, and Lake Atitlán covered in our itinerary. We might have 1–2 extra days at the end of the trip and are trying to decide whether it's worth adding El Paredón or if we would be better off spending more time in Antigua or around Atitlán.

A few questions for those who have been there during the rainy season:

• How is El Paredón in early October?
• Does the weather/rain significantly impact the experience that time of year?
• Is it worth the travel time if we only have 1–2 days available?
• If you had to choose, would you add El Paredón or spend the extra time exploring Antigua and Lake Atitlán more deeply?

For context, we are interested in a mix of nature, culture, and relaxation, but are not surfers.

Thanks for any advice!

Hi everyone,

We are visiting Guatemala in early October and are trying to finalize our Tikal plans.

We land in Guatemala City at 5:15 AM and are planning to take the 9:30 AM flight to Flores the same day. Our main goals are to visit Tikal National Park and Yaxhá. We generally enjoy exploring at our own pace, so we are debating whether to rent a 4x4 or simply join tours.

I am hoping for some advice from those who have visited during the shoulder/rainy season.

Questions

1. Best time to visit Tikal in October?
   • Is it better to visit in the morning or afternoon/evening?
   • If we don't take a tour, can we independently visit Tikal for sunrise, or is a guide/tour required for entry at that hour?
2. Where should we stay?
   • We are considering Jungle Lodge Hotel and Tikal Inn. Is one significantly better than the other?
   • Should I stay in the national park or in Flores?
3. Getting to the ruins
   • If we stay at Jungle Lodge or Tikal Inn and do not rent a vehicle, can we simply walk to the archaeological site entrance and main ruins area?
4. How much time is needed?
   • Are 1.5 days enough for Yaxhá and Tikal?
   • Since we are visiting in October, would it be smarter to add an extra day in case of heavy rain?

Current plan

Day 1

• Arrive in Flores around 10:30 AM
• Reach hotel and freshen up by approximately 12:30 PM
• Visit Yaxhá in the afternoon

Day 2

• Sunrise at Tikal
• Explore Tikal through the morning
• Lunch
• Return to Guatemala City on an evening flight

Alternative

• Stay another night in Tikal/Flores and fly back to Guatemala City early on Day 3.

For those who have done a similar itinerary, would you recommend 1 night or 2 nights in the Tikal area?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

We are travelling to Guatemala in early October and expect to be in the Antigua area sometime between October 6–10. We are considering the Acatenango hike, but we understand that early October is still part of the rainy season (or at least the shoulder season), so we're wondering whether it makes sense to include it in our plans.

Our main concern is the weather. If we book the hike and the day turns out to be very cloudy, rainy, or foggy, what typically happens? Do tour operators cancel hikes in poor weather conditions, or do they usually operate regardless of visibility? Have any travelers had experiences with rescheduling due to weather?

We only have about 9 nights in Guatemala, and our itinerary already includes Flores/Tikal, Antigua, and Lake Atitlán, so we will have plenty to see and do even if we skip Acatenango. At the same time, we don't want to miss one of Guatemala's highlights if the chances of decent views are still reasonable.

For anyone who has visited or hiked Acatenango in early October, what was your experience? Were the views worth it, or were clouds and rain a major issue? Would you recommend keeping some flexibility in our itinerary and deciding based on the forecast once we're in Antigua?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

Hello,

We are travelling to Guatemala in early October and will be landing in Guatemala City at around 6:00 AM. Tikal is one of our must-see destinations, and I was thinking it might make sense to visit Flores/Tikal first and then spend the rest of our trip closer to Guatemala City (Antigua and Lake Atitlán).

To avoid making multiple trips back and forth to Guatemala City airport, would it be reasonable to fly to Flores on the same day we arrive internationally?

Our flight options from Guatemala City to Flores are:

• 8:50 AM
• 12:50 PM
• 4:10 PM
• 6:00 PM

The 8:50 AM flight seems a bit risky since we would still need to clear immigration, customs, collect luggage, and possibly re-check bags. Has anyone done a connection like this recently? How much time would you recommend allowing between an international arrival and a domestic flight at Guatemala City airport?

The airlines available seem to be Avianca and TAG. Does anyone have experience with either airline on the Guatemala City–Flores route? TAG is almost twice the price of Avianca, but the afternoon flights are operated by TAG.

If we decide to book Avianca, we will have to take the 6:00 PM flight. In that case, would it be practical and worthwhile to spend a few hours sightseeing in Guatemala City during the day before heading back to the airport? If so, which areas would you recommend for first-time visitors with luggage considerations in mind?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

Hello,

I currently have a U.S. driver’s license issued by the state of Washington and will be renting a car for a couple of days in the south of France.

I contacted the rental company (Alamo), and they told me that a U.S. driver’s license should be sufficient. However, when I searched online, I found mixed information. Some sources mention that an International Driving Permit (IDP) may be required in France.

Has anyone here recently traveled from the U.S. and rented a car in France? Did you need an IDP, or was your state-issued license enough?

I would really appreciate hearing about your firsthand experience.

Thanks!

Edit: Thanks for all your responses. I have decided to get IDP as it a legal requirement (although rental companies don't seem to care).

Hi everyone,

We are two adults traveling relatively light (one checked bag, one carry-on, and two small backpacks total), and I am trying to decide the best way to get from Nice Airport to the city center.

Google Maps is giving me two main options:

1. Route 12+ Bus from Aéroport / Promenade to Congrès / Promenade : ~22 minutes. Stops just a block from our hotel (very convenient)
2. Tram to Grand Arénas + Tram Line 3 to Jean Médecin: ~35 minutes total. Requires about a 10–12 minute walk afterward

The bus option looks more appealing since it’s faster and drops us much closer to where we are staying. That said, I have a couple of questions:

Is it practical to take the 12+ bus with luggage? We don’t have much, but I am not sure how crowded it typically is or if there’s space to keep bags without getting in the way of locals.

Is there any designated luggage space on these buses, or would we just keep bags near our seats? Can tickets for the bus be purchased via the Lignes d’Azur app, or is it better to buy them another way?

We definitely want to be considerate of regular commuters and avoid causing inconvenience, so any advice from locals or recent travelers would be much appreciated.

Thank you.

Edit: We will land in Terminal T1. Arriving in the morning around 9 AM.

Hi everyone,

We are two adults traveling relatively light (one checked bag, one carry-on, and two small backpacks total), and I am trying to decide the best way to get from Nice Airport to the city center.

Google Maps is giving me two main options:

1. Route 12+ Bus from Aéroport / Promenade to Congrès / Promenade : ~22 minutes. Stops just a block from our hotel (very convenient)
2. Tram to Grand Arénas + Tram Line 3 to Jean Médecin: ~35 minutes total. Requires about a 10–12 minute walk afterward

The bus option looks more appealing since it’s faster and drops us much closer to where we are staying. That said, I have a couple of questions:

Is it practical to take the 12+ bus with luggage? We don’t have much, but I am not sure how crowded it typically is or if there’s space to keep bags without getting in the way of locals.

Is there any designated luggage space on these buses, or would we just keep bags near our seats? Can tickets for the bus be purchased via the Lignes d’Azur app, or is it better to buy them another way?

We definitely want to be considerate of regular commuters and avoid causing inconvenience, so any advice from locals or recent travelers would be much appreciated.

Thank you.

Edit: We land in Terminal T1

Bonjour everyone,

We are traveling to Paris soon and are a bit overwhelmed trying to figure out where to eat. There are so many highly rated places that it’s hard to separate what’s genuinely great from what’s gotten popular due to social media.

We are more budget conscious and focused on simple, high quality everyday food. We especially love breakfasts and desserts (can splurge for good desserts), so we are trying to narrow down:

• Good bakeries/pastries/ice cream
• Solid sandwiches
• Genuinely Macarons that don't cost an arm and a leg

The challenge is that when I search things like “best macarons in Paris,” the same handful of places come up again and again, many of which seem driven by social media hype (or they were popular at one point but not so great anymore). I don’t always see much input from locals, and I suspect a lot of these spots are in tourist-heavy areas where visitors make up most of the clientele.

I would love to find those neighborhood boulangeries or small shops that Parisians actually go to. Places that may not be “famous” but are consistently excellent. I am sure truly great places eventually become popular, but sometimes that popularity seems to change the experience.

How does one personally search for good food spots in Paris beyond the usual online hype? Are there local blogs, French review sites, or specific strategies you recommend? And of course, if anyone is willing to share, I would appreciate any recommendations for:

• Bakeries and pâtisseries
• Casual lunch spots/sandwich shops
• Good (but not overhyped) macarons

Thank you so much in advance! 😊

I was on 9 mg for about 40 days, but I started feeling like its effectiveness was wearing off, so I increased my dose to 25 mg two days ago. Since then, I have noticed that I am feeling hungrier and having more cravings.

I usually take my Wegovy pill at 8 AM. On 9 mg, I wouldn’t feel hungry until around 3 or 4 PM, and one high-protein meal, one high fiber snack, and some diet soda would keep me full for the rest of the day. In the mornings, a couple of cups of coffee and some water were enough to keep me satisfied.

Now, on 25 mg, I am getting hungry as early as 10 or 11 AM. Has anyone else experienced this? Would it make sense to consider going back to 9 mg?

Hello,

We are a group traveling together to Paris and are planning to purchase Navigo Semaine (weekly) passes. Each of us intends to load the pass onto our own smartphones.

We wanted to check whether it is possible to activate multiple Navigo Semaine passes using a single local phone number/account, or if each pass requires a separate phone number (i.e., a unique numbers for each phone).

If anyone has recent experience using the Navigo app for a group setup like this, we would really appreciate your guidance.

Thank you in advance.

Hello everyone,

Our group of 9 is planning to buy the Orange Travel eSIM for France so we can each have a local number during our trip. In addition to France, we are also traveling to Belgium, the Netherlands, and Iceland.

I understand there are plenty of data-only eSIM options available, but we specifically want a plan with a local French number so we can easily call or text each other, as well as contact friends locally in France.

I had a couple of questions and was hoping to hear from anyone who has used the Orange Travel eSIM:

1. Does the Orange Travel eSIM work outside France?
2. Orange plans only offer 4G data unless you go for the higher-tier (100GB+) plans. For those who used it:
   • Is 4G sufficient for everyday usage (maps, messaging, streaming, etc.)?
   • Did you notice any speed or reliability issues due to being 4G only?
3. How was the connectivity overall, both in France and while roaming?
4. Are there other eSIM providers that offer local number + 5G data?

Would really appreciate any firsthand experiences or recommendations, especially since we are managing connectivity for a relatively large group.

Thanks in advance.

Hello,

Based on what I have read online and in the terms, I understand that the entertainment credits are issued on a monthly basis rather than per statement cycle.

I previously had a Peacock subscription that was billed on the 20th of each month. I canceled it last month and switched to YouTube Premium, which was billed on the 14th of this month. However, I did not receive a credit, so I contacted Amex.

The customer service representative told me that because the YouTube charge on the 14th falls within the same statement period as last month’s Peacock charge, I would not be eligible for a credit.

This has left me confused — are the credits issued per calendar month or per statement cycle?

Thanks.