Vacations / Holidays

[Callipygian]

ah-chie said:

I actually like walking or taking public transit and I love getting lost on holiday (it's the best way to meet people actually). ;D

I couldn't agree more! I love traveling. I used to travel a lot on business, and I loved the opportunity to explore new cities. I used to go regularly to Dallas, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Chicago, and many other cities. I enjoy it whether it's business or vacation.

As for driving in other countries, my husband and I had a hilarious time driving around Aruba. Since we are not Dutch, we couldn't read any of the traffic signs, and as "dumb Americans" we are not well versed in metrics. We drove like maniacs probably violating every traffic law. After all, when you're on vacation, you're protected by the magic "vacation spell" that says nothing bad can happen to you when driving a rental car.

[caseOrange]

Callipygian said:

After all, when you're on vacation, you're protected by the magic "vacation spell" that says nothing bad can happen to you when driving a rental car.

Unless you're in Florida, where the motto is: "Go on vacation, leave on probation". ;D

[Callipygian]

caseOrange said:

Unless you're in Florida, where the motto is: "Go on vacation, leave on probation". ;D

;D ;D That's hilarious! I've never heard that one before.

[caseOrange]

Callipygian said:

;D ;D That's hilarious! I've never heard that one before.

i used to work with a bunch of people from the Pensacola area and they're the ones that told me that. i guess they should know.

[MHall]

I'm an American who has travelled quite a bit, mostly in the U.S. and Europe.

In Europe I've seen England, Norway, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Italy, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovak Republic, Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Macedonia, Greece, and Turkey. In some places I've stayed for a month or more, and now I've lived in Slovenia for close to two years.

In (Athens) Greece, one of my two bags was missing after left it with the baggage check of my hotel. I told the manager. She got the main manager. He accused me of lying. I calmly tried to explain that I was not saying THEY did anything... I was simply stating the fact that my bag was missing. He again said I was lying and started loudly pounding his fists on the table and screaming and behaving like an animal. I don't know about in Greece, but in America, this is considered inappropriate behavior for a hotel manager. In America, no one can do this anywhere unless they wish to kill or be killed. I contacted the police, wishing to file a report on my missing bag, and they took me to the police station along with the female manager. I couldn't tell what she was saying in Greek to the police, but when I would speak in English she would tell them I was lying, when again, I was only stating exactly what happened. The police said I could either file a charge that the hotel staff stole my luggage (which I never thought) or else they could do nothing. This wasn't the only bad experience I had with Greeks, so I don't share the opinions of the Greek-lovers in this thread, and I saw a lot more than just Athens.

For best vacations...

#1...California: Fly into San Francisco, rent a car, and drive down the coast (route 1) to San Diego, with stops at Hearst Castle, Santa Barbara, Hollywood, and Hermosa/Manhattan Beach. Remember that it will be bloody cold along the coast even in (or especially in) summer! Best time is probably early October, but any time other than late-November to March should be fine.

#2... Central Europe: Fly into Munich, get rail pass and go via train Munich -> Prague -> Vienna -> Budapest -> Ljubljana -> Venice -> Salzburg -> Munich airport. (I haven't looked at a rail map to see if this actually makes sense.) The "must see's" are Budapest, Prague, and Salzburg. Timing is difficult because of temperature, but I suggest either middle June or any time in September. Early June can still be bloody cold, but late June can be hot!

I'm still looking for "that perfect beach." It seems impossible to find a combination of fine sand, warm water, comfortable air temperature, affordable prices, safety, quiet, no stinging jellyfish, and no mosquitos. Hermosa Beach (LA) has a nice night life and vast beach but has cold water and is not cheap. Cabo San Lucas has dangerous water currents. Aruba and Hawaii have astronomical prices. In Croatia, the beaches are made from anything BUT sand. The south coast of Turkey is "Deutchland", and there you had better like eating bratwurst, while the west coast of Turkey has mosquitos. And Greece has... Greeks. (Sorry, ducking.)

[caseOrange]

MHall said:

In (Athens) Greece, one of my two bags was missing after left it with the baggage check of my hotel. I told the manager. She got the main manager. He accused me of lying. I calmly tried to explain that I was not saying THEY did anything... I was simply stating the fact that my bag was missing. He again said I was lying and started loudly pounding his fists on the table and screaming and behaving like an animal. I don't know about in Greece, but in America, this is considered inappropriate behavior for a hotel manager. In America, no one can do this anywhere unless they wish to kill or be killed. I contacted the police, wishing to file a report on my missing bag, and they took me to the police station along with the female manager. I couldn't tell what she was saying in Greek to the police, but when I would speak in English she would tell them I was lying, when again, I was only stating exactly what happened. The police said I could either file a charge that the hotel staff stole my luggage (which I never thought) or else they could do nothing. This wasn't the only bad experience I had with Greeks, so I don't share the opinions of the Greek-lovers in this thread, and I saw a lot more than just Athens.

Sounds like New Orleans...

MHall said:

I'm still looking for "that perfect beach." It seems impossible to find a combination of fine sand, warm water, comfortable air temperature, affordable prices, safety, quiet, no stinging jellyfish, and no mosquitos.

Asking a lot there...

[Callipygian]

MHall said:

And Greece has... Greeks. (Sorry, ducking.)

No ducking necessary. You had a bad experience there. Did the hotel give you a ticket or receipt for your bags whereby you could prove that you had checked in two bags? I take it they didn't.

And if you ever do discover the perfect beach, let me know...I would love to go there. I thought the water in Aruba was nice (warm with that beautiful blue/green color) but high cost aside, there were too many rocks on the beach. The water on the California coast is always cold, and the sand isn't that nice. I've tried beaches up and down that coast. The beach on Margarita Island off the coast of Venezuela is not very pretty, and the water can get rough. I liked the beach in the Bahamas, but it's cost prohibitive. The beach I liked the most was on one of those tiny little islands in the Caribbean that was owned by Royal Caribbean cruise lines, and they took us there for a day while on a cruise. But again, that's cost prohibitive, and you can't stay on the island.

There must be a travel book somewhere, or a show on the Travel Channel that covers this subject. I'll have to to investigate.

[Ouiser]

MHall said:

I'm still looking for "that perfect beach." It seems impossible to find a combination of fine sand, warm water, comfortable air temperature, affordable prices, safety, quiet, no stinging jellyfish, and no mosquitos.

We found a fantastic beach on Hawaii's big island, near Kona. It's secluded, there were two other people there, and the water was brackish because a freshwater stream ran into it. There were sea turtles in the little bay that we snorkelled with. The only negatives are it's a bit rocky in places and a pain in the butt to find. Staying in Kona, Hawaii isn't that expensive. We stayed in a small, decent condo across from the beach for $500 a week.