Gypsy Mom Ready to roll – NOW

My beautiful friend is speaking at a conference in Australia this week and I’ve had so much fun looking through her facebook pictures and reading about all of their fun adventures. One of the things they did is tot ake a day trip into the Blue Mountains. I’m not sure who her tour guide was or what company she used, but she said they had an excellen time. I started researching a Trip to Blue Mountains and oh my goodness. Her photos are beautiful, but the website was soooooo amazing. I can just imagine what the air would smell like, and what it would feel like to be halfway around the globe and hanging out with koala bears and exploring the world that way. I like that this company keeps their group size small, because when there are too many people on a tour you tend to feel a bit rushed from the crowd control. So what about you, have you ever toured the Blue Mountains? I know Vermont has the Green Mountains and doesn’t New Hampshire have White Mountains? I wonder if any place calls itself Orange Mountains. Utah should, they could get away with that.

I was looking into the possibility of taking a road trip to NYC and then flying to London for a week but honestly, the idea of paying for airport parking in NYC really creeped me out. Someone said it was going to be $35 a day, cna you imagine. I do’t pay that much for rent at my house, you know! I cant imagine paying that much for a parking space that probaby isn’t even covered, so instead of parking safely in my garage, the car would be exposed to the wind and dust and rain and whatever other elements New York City has in the air. Yuck. It could be like acid rain on my door handles when I go to open the car up again after the trip.
So I started to look at other options, like renting a car for the road trip end of it. My car doesn’t get very good gas mileage and when I look at the possibility of renting something with better mileage, the cost does offset the rental a bit, which is nice. I also like the idea of not putting wear and tear on my car. But I really do enjoy driving my car, so I kept on researching and finally I found a new lot for long term parking jfk and I figured I’ll just bring a tarp for my car to keep it safe and covered while it’s parked. The lot is secure and as long as I protect the car from environmental damage, i can get the best of both worlds. I don’t have to pay a fortune for my week of parking and I get to enjy all the comforts of my own vehicle on the road trip. Whew – disaster averted!

OK, so Costa Rica is diverse, there are mountains, plateau villages, beaches and all sorts of different landscapes and lifestyles.  I’ve been researching a trip to Costa Rica for a while now, ever since my husband mentioned that he’s always wanted to go.  Crazy, to be with someone for over 20 years and they NEVER mention it until his flirty facebook friend lives in Costa Rica, but whatever… I have a friend who has been like everywhere BUT Costa Rica, I have an online friend who lives there and offered up her guest room and so now I’m just trying to make sure I get there before my husband does. So mature, right?  I’m looking at May and I have a few friends I’ve been talking to about sharing the adventure with me.  I think we’ve settled upon a company for Jaco Condo Rentals because my friend lives in them ountains, so we’ll do a few days at a beach condo and then travel up to the mountains for a few more days.  Right now it’s looking like a week long trip, but I’m trying to figure out how I can make it two weeks because I just can’t imagine exploring everything in just a 1 week timeframe. I mean, they have some of the most awesome ancient ruins and I’ve always wanted to hike there.  I guess we’ll see

The world is an amazing place, isn’t it?  One day I could be sitting on the couch browsing through tour books of Italy, the next day I could be writing about RV resorts in Tennessee and the next day I could be looking at companies that offer travelers the opportunity to sail Croatia.  If all the exotic opportunities, can you imagine?  Now, disregard the fact that the website I linked to has a lot of spelling errors. I think the company might be based out of Croatia and they speak another language, sometimes that happens. Or maybe they hired a writer that doesn’t know how to spell.  Who knows. The point is just that sailing in Croatia looks like so much fun.  If you read their description it just sends your imagination reeling to old-fashioned fishing villages along the Mediterranean Sea. It says there are over a thousand little islands along the coast, it looks like absolute heaven.  So how long would you go for?  I imagine a month would do the trick for me.  I’ve never sailed before, have you?  I wonder if most people just hire a crew. I imagine I’d want to hire a chef, too. Or maybe it would be more fun to BE the chef… Can you imagine.. pulling into port, visiting the market, telling your staff how you want everything chopped and then walking right into the kitchen filled with delicious ingredients and just whipping up an amazing dish, with local wine from ancient vineyards… oh yeah… sailing Croatia is now officially on my list of “Things to do before I die.”  what about you? Have you ever been sailing before? Have you visited the Mediterranean? Tell me more, you know i love these stories!

I know Tony Robbins isn’t an idiot, I mean… look at him he’s a gazillionaire and he teaches everyone else how to be awesome. I just always wondered why he was always all nuts over Fiji. I mean, yeah.. I bet it’s beautiful, I mean… it’s a tropical island, right? Actually it’s several islands but that’s beside the point. Why would he fly all the way around the world to relax? I mean… wouldn’t the 2 days of flying kinda undo any relaxing that might have occurred? For me it would, anyhow. But then I started writing about these Fiji all inclusive resorts and OH MY GODDDDDDD- wow… this is a paradise like no other. I’m thinking I’d like to get married again just so we can enjoy a Fiji honeymoon package. I know a lot of people get married there, in fact I’m thinking one of my step brothers might have had a Fiji weddings . We should have gone. Either way, I am now totally shopping for Fiji vacation packages because I have moved Fiji off of my “WTF is up with this place” list over to the “Dear God I MUST explore this place before I die” list. Oh yeah… it’s THAT good. And I strongly urge you to take a stroll away from the resorts and meet some of the locals. From what I’ve been reading, it will really be worth your while. Really and truly. So have you been to Fiji? where did you stay? How much did you pay for the entire trip? How did the expenses break down? And finally; what was your most memorable Fiji moment? I really must know.

We were thinking of visiting Cape Cod and I am so excited to have found a company that specializes in Cape Cod rentals pet friendly facilities. I mean, Can you imagine going all the way across the country without your dog? Finding facilities that are pet friendly can be so difficult, that’s one reason we wanted the V trip because then we wouldn’t have to worry about those sweet little puppies feeling scared, overwhelmed, intimidated or nervous around strangers. You know how small dogs can be yappy and neurotic sometimes. Who wants to listen to that, right?

One thing to consider when you’re making reservations for your travel with pets is the size, weight and breed of your dogs. Even pet-friendly accommodations sometimes have weight limits and even restrict certain breeds. Can you imagine arriving to discover that your dog is on their blacklist, that would suck, right? Be honest and up-front with the staff when you reserve, in case there are any questions later on.

Also, if you have allergies to other people’s pets you might want to consider bringing some Benadryl or your steam cleaner with you in case the previous guests had an animal you’re going to react to. That would ruin a vacation really fast, wouldn’t it?

Anyway, traveling with pets is a fun way to bring the family closer together, just be sure you know what you’re getting into before you head out the door. But most of all, HAVE FUN.