SUMMER VACATION

Wow.  Summer vacation time.  I love summer primarily because I love the heat.  I know "It's not the heat, it's the stupidity".  But I love hot summer nights and long lazy summer days.  I guess that's why I like super-chill vacations.  To be really 'super-chill' there should be no more than one day of travel.  If air travel is involved, 'non-stop' is imperative.  If traveling by car, one night in a side of the road motel is fun.  But one night only.  My summer vacations are not spent at resorts or in hotels.  Cabins, beach shack ( not cottage owned by a hotel.  And not fancy!), staying with friends or relatives, or sleeping in a tent or boat. I like low key.  LOW KEY.  So the location needs to be a bit left of center to weed out all the crowds and poseurs.

I have wanted to go to Nova Scotia in August for ages.  Haven't made it yet, but I know someday I will.  It fulfills all my vacation criteria.  One huge criteria is a lack of Euro trash and Ameri trash in Armani linen pants and Gucci loafers.  Almost guaranteed they won't be here. YAY.

Perfectly adorable!

I have done a fair amount of camping and I really love it.  I love the lack of modern day convenience.  It's nice to know you are living the way man has lived for thousands of years: waking up with the sun.  The critters make tons of noise when they wake up and if that doesn't rouse you, the sun hitting your tent will (gets hot very fast).

Yosemite

I have yet to experience what in my book is the grandaddy of all camping trips: Yosemite National Park.  To wake up in your tent, walk out sleepy eyed and needing to pee ( what else would get you out of your sleeping bag?), and seeing this kind of out of control, gorgeous, natural wonder... that would be  so, so great.

If that water were any glassier, it would be glass

Avalon Bay, Catalina Island

One place I have been and love but have never even spent the night, let alone a week is Catalina Island.  It's just so romantic and rustic and old California... most of the Island is a nature preserve and the ferry ride over is not at all glamorous so you weed out almost all of the LA crowd.  Whew!

It's got everything a vacation spot could be.  After the last ferry leaves, you've got a very quiet, very exquisitely beautiful island all to yourself.  You and the locals.  And people in hotels.  But, still, my kind of place.  It speaks to my heart  ; )

So, leaving North America, I would not head for Capri, Mykonos, the French Riviera... not me ( way too many Gucci loafers).  I would head for Bruges, Belgium.  I've wanted to go there since I saw that movie 'In Bruges'.  It seems like a nice summer destination.  I'm guessing you could rent a house nearby in a quiet country setting... I don't know for sure.  I will have to look into it.  But it is really beautiful.

Bruges is beautiful even on a grey day

Another beautiful European spot that I would like to check out in the summer time is Lake Geneva.
Some kind of summer rental on the lake... again, haven't looked into it but it's just so gorgeous.

That boat is calling me !  And so is this foggy inlet.  Plus, you are safely vacationing in Switzerland.  Not some horrible banana republic where you have to pray you don't need medical help or efficiency of any kind.  This lake is run like a Swiss clock!  Things happen in an orderly fashion.  Which means you have a worry free vacation.  And let's not forget the chocolate.

So, I don't know.  Just a few ideas to dream about.  Who knows, maybe I will just hop into the family truckster and head for Wally World : )