Family roadtrip

When my brother and I were kids, my parents were big on travel. They would routinely rent a driving camper, pack us into it and head across the country. Sometimes it was just us, sometimes we took a set of grandparents or another family, but it was always an adventure. We saw the Grand Canyon this way (twice, actually), camped in Disney's Fort Wilderness, drove through Death Valley - we saw all sorts of things and went all sorts of places. My dad was always willing to make a detour if the location seemed interesting enough.

In fact, I can remember him packing us up on random afternoons and taking us for a drive with the specific idea that we were out to "get lost". Maybe that's where my love for travel comes from?

What's your favorite childhood travel memory?

Vacation Therapy

I'm back from a long weekend with my hubby's family. Long being the operative word. Why does it take an act of congress to get 10 people up, ready and moving in the same direction in the morning? Why does it take so long for a group to make a decision? Why do they move so slowly once that decision is made?

I swear, I need a vacation from my vacation.

It wears me out, all that thinking and discussing and planning. I'm more of a "just do" kinda person. It takes me about 5 seconds to make a decision about something and then act on it, so maybe you can understand why I'm so worn out.

Do you have to destress from your family vacations too or is it just me?

Aloha!

While you're reading this, I'm in Hawaii. Yeah, I know, I kinda suck. LOL And actually, as this is Tuesday, our plans for the day include one of my favorite Hawaiian adventures: an early morning snorkel excursion with Dolphin Discoveries. Last time we were on the big island and went out with them, we saw a lot of awesome wildlife including a hump back whale, plenty of honu (the Hawaiian word for sea turtle), a pod of spinner dolphins and the rather rare whale shark.

Now, don't be alarmed by this guy's size. Yes, he's mammoth, but since he just eats plankton, he's harmless. And pretty curious about humans. (Don't you love how the diver in the photo is pointing to the whale shark? Thanks, dude, we totally missed it otherwise.) The one we encountered put his head against the side of the zodiac and stared up at us like a puppy waiting for treats. The captain of our craft immediately jumped into the water and started filming this 40 foot fish. Amazing! Unfortunately, we did not have our cameras, but this year we have a new waterproof digital so I hope to bring back some great pics.

What else am I doing in Hawaii? Researching a top secret project. But that's all I'm gonna say about that. So far, I've: gotten a henna tattoo, nearly been killed on a golf cart, been ambushed by hungry peacocks, almost fallen off a cliff into the sea trying to take a picture of some fish, seen a wild mongoose with a chip bag on its head and eaten seaweed. And there are still several days left to go.

Where is your favorite spot to vacation?