I'm slacking off

So, it's been awhile since I've written, updated, filled in my 0.5 readers =P

Our 2 year wedding anniversary trip went without a hitch. We finally made up our minds and ended up going on a 5 day cruise to Cabo San Lucas! It was wonderful. We flew into San Diego (it was either drive 4-5 hours or fly for 50 minutes..hm, such a tough decision!) and grab the bus for a 10 minute ride to the marina. Our flight was relatively early so we decided to take a stroll along the water to one of my favorite little spots in San Diego – Seaport Village! I’ve been going here since I was a little kid, so taking a walk there with the hubby was real nice.

Seaport Village

Embarkment!

We finally boarded the boat (ha, more like massive ship) at around noon time and were able to get into our room at around 1pm. The ship is huge and beautiful! We walked around and checked out the 3 dining areas, the huge theater/auditorium, the casino, the gym/spa, as well as everything outside such as the 3 pools/jacuzzi’s, the cool swirling slide into the pool, the mini golf area and the volleyball/basketball netted areas. Sweet! We knew we’d have a blast!
Everyone was super excited to get going. We left from San Diego and spend the rest of the evening and night floating our way down to Mexico. I ended up getting a bit sea sick, but some Dramamine and sleep took care of that quick.

The Lido deck w/San Diego in the back

Mini golf!

On Day 2 and 3, we were in Cabo San Lucas..it was hot and humid there (not horrible, though) and we were docked at the marina. It was gorgeous, felt like we had stepped into a postcard. We decided to explore the town a bit, and check out the flea market where you can haggle for anything =) We bought some knickknacks and then made it out to the ocean. The water was splendid – so nice and warm with nice little waves. It was awesome. We wanted to just relax and take it easy, so not paid adventures for us. Maybe next time we’ll go snorkeling or parasailing.

Cabo's Marina

Crazy clouds, but super warm water!

On Day 4, we had a full day at sea. We got to enjoy lying out in the hot sun on the top deck of the boat. It was so interesting to just lay there but see the water and land go by! Crazy feeling. We ended up seeing a few shows throughout the trip and I played a BUNCH of bingo (I’m an old lady, I know!) This night, however, there was a tropical storm somewhere far down in the pacific, so the waters were quite choppy. I ended up getting quite sea sick this night (as did the cruise workers as well!) so it was an early night for me.

Pure relaxation! My favorite photo!

The next day, we were back in San Diego – sad to say goodbye to the ship! We walked across the street to the Amtrak station, hopped onto a train and headed towards Orange County. We ended up renting a car (a PT Cruiser convertible!) and were able to visit my family (mom, grandma, cousin and my aunt who was visiting from Poland). We stayed at my friend Erick’s (better known as Delam) house and got to go to Disneyland with him!! That following Sunday, we boarded our flight from the OC to Phoenix and were hope by 6pm…and went straight to bed!
It was SUCH a great vacation – so laid back and done exactly how we wanted. I would HIGHLY recommend going on a cruise…they are much cheaper than you expect…and are perfect for couples, friends or even couples with children (we saw a BUNCH of kids from infants to teenagers!)

Disneyland, halloween-themed!

Now to plan the NEXT trip =) Central CALI for NY’s!

Oh the possibilities

Now that I started writing again about traveling, I realized how many places the hubby and I have to yet to go - all before Christmas! Boy, we love to get around. I don’t foresee us every really being stuck to one area…what’s the fun in that? But any who, in the middle of my researching today, I realized that not only do we have our little Bahamas adventure ahead of us, but we still need to visit several different states!

So, we have our 4 day cruise w/weekend in Florida coming up. Great! However, I just realized that the cruise doesn’t take off until Monday afternoon. That leaves us with basically the entire weekend of doing nothing. We can’t waste that! Would YOU waste precious vacation time? I didn’t think so =)

I was thinking of keeping us busy by visiting my sister, her hubby and their new BABY in Virginia!!!!! You’d think that with this not-so-great economy that the airline tickets would be on the downfall. Definitely not! After plugging in some dates, Orbitz told me that 2 tickets from here to Virginia for a weekend alone would be around 800 total while tickets from here to Orlando are about 400 total.

Now, we want to fly to Florida for our Cruise – Florida and Virginia just happens to not be THAT far away from each other. So, to keep the schedule fun and busy, here’s what I got:

Legend: PHX – Phoenix, AZ / ORF – Norfolk, VA / MCO - Orlando, FL

Friday (9/25): PHX – ORF
Monday (9/28): ORF – MCO
Sunday (10/4): MCO – PHX

Total: 635.00

Hm, not bad for multi-destinations, huh? Funny how in just one day I come up with different itineraries…I just can’t seem to sit still.

What’s worse, is we return on 10/04 (Sunday) work all week and then have a wedding in COLORADO that weekend! Oh boy!

And then we want to go to Michigan for Thanksgiving weekend.

I guess that’s why they call us “The Weekend Warriors”
=)

It's been awhile

Wow, I don't remember the last time I was on here. Boy, I need to get on the ball!

As far as traveling in concerned, we haven't been able to do much. HOWEVER, I do PLENTLY of traveling research in my spare time; I hunt down travel deal sites such as travelocity, travelzoo and even budget travel: real deals. I'm constantly scavengerhunting through various forum posts to find the newest, coolest thing to do...and I wiki it. I'm a huge wiki-er. (yes, it is now an official word - according to me).

With the our 2 year wedding anniversary in the near future (less than a month away!), I have thrown myself head first into finding something to do. We have a weeks worth of vacation time, and we intend on using it. With careful planning, here is what we might do:

1. Fly to Orlando (hello all day flying!) from Phoenix, spend the night somewhere.
2. Drive/taxi/bus our way down to Port Canaveral (or as I have been saying it in my head: Port Carnival - don't ask me why)
3. Get onto a really big pretty boat =) and cruise for 4 days to the BAHAMAS - yippee!
4. Get off the pretty boat on Friday
5. Buss our way BACK to Orlando and visit whatever we want until Sunday =)

Options for the weekend include, but not limited to: Disneyworld (whee!), Universal Studios, other theme parks and/or waterparks.

Anything else we can do?

Because traveling is something that the hubby and I thoroughly enjoy, we look forward to the times we can actually do it. It is unfortunate that money is SUCH an necessary evil....it is literally the only thing hindering us from going anywhere...and it's putting a damper on me being able to write about our experiences =(

As I once asked: Where do I sign up for free money?! *sigh*

So, until further notice, I will be hunting for great cruise deals and flights...(no, we have not BOOKED yet, but I'm pretending we have....we will shorlty)

Tootles!

Venecian Vampire

Ever since I was a little girl, I have had a weird fascination with .... vampires. Although I have not read every single book known to man written about them, or even movies made about them, I still am drawn to them. I remember seeing a documentary about Dracula when I was little; I remember sitting in awe, mistified by the concept and the possible facts leading up to their potential existence. The idea of vampires and what they were all about captured my attention so intensly, that my normal ADD self sat completely still.  

And so I sit here today, reading my daily (and I do mean daily) CNN dose of reality, when I come across a new forensic find - a perfectly preserved female skull, with a brick lodged into her mouth. 

What fascinates me the most, is that anthropologist have said that this skull( from the 16th century Venice) is the classic example of how actual burials of believed "vampires" was executed.  The lodging of the brick in the mouth was to prevent said vampires from feasting on any more victims. 

When I imagine how life would have been like in the 16th century, in gothic Venice, I automatically get a sense of darkness,  mysterious dark shadows running quickly along the walls of buildings, diving effortlessly into the canals, the City of Water and into the depths of what makes Venice so spectacular now.   

I can imagine that during that time, when the "Black Death" occured, the heavily Roman Catholic region was in shambles trying to figure out why God would kill off a third of their people and came up with a simple answer: He didn't and wouldn't.  The culprit? Vampires. And so the "common" practic of stopping a vampire from feasting on the plague victims began - and we are now able to actually see evidence of such practices. Simply amazing. 

The House Pursuit

What a fun and stressful ride. Who would have ever thought how much “what ifs” could actually keep you up at night thinking?  What an exhilarating experience to find the “perfect home” after searching around and around.  The dear hubby and I finally found a house we could see ourselves calling *home*

 – It’s perfect in that unperfected kind of way.  

Although we have no high hopes in reaching the end of this “happy tunnel” we are anxious to see what rebuttal we will receive.  We want to see if our offer is “good enough” or if it needs some tweaking, and we are even ready to walk away if it comes to that. There is no need to get head over heels in love with these four walls, nor is there any reason to dive into the deep end and have a house and no life.  There is a happy median and it is attainable and we are ready for it, even if that means that this “perfect house” will be someone else’s perfect beginning. 

We love the little challenges that this home (or another in the future) may bring, and we are like children with our stretch out, itching to help, to hold that hammer or paint brush.  We jump at the opportunity to make ideas become reality.   We go to bed with ideas of color schemes and bathroom revamps; we see ourselves content, with family and friends, making memory after memory in our first home.  And now, with a potential “maybe” in the future, we wait patiently – well, as patiently as we can with knowledge that this learning experience will not hinder any future thoughts of doing it all over again.

Fingers crossed, prayers to be said, things to be learned – an offer extended will not be seen as pointless if refused, but merely as a suggestion that just doesn’t suit the other’s needs, and on we will go to the next opportunity. 

Salut.

Attention all flyers – this just in: ME!

So, for all of you who are constant visitors of the Cloud Express Way, you are more than likely familiar with the magazine-like catalog that is found in front of each seat, on practically any plane.  It’s that “thing” you find yourself flipping through a few times during your flight.   It somehow makes it into your hands a few times, even after you have looked at it front to back.  It contains products that make you go “why would ANYONE want that” or “Oh, that’s cool!” and it even contains funny pictures of individuals doing the silliest of things. 

Yes, you are thinking correctly – I am talking about Sky Mall.  It’s an ingenious way to sell products to individuals of every race, color, or economic status.  It contains anything and everything that anyone could want….even portable water dumbbells for every fitness guru traveling to remote and exotic areas.  

Trust me – they’re pretty cool when you think about it – take a look. http://www.skymall.com/shopping/onlinecatalog.htm?caturl=cf_pn_96.jsp

Oh yeah – and if you take a closer look, you’ll see someone kind of familiar – ME! =)

 Now, I don’t think it’s the best photo of me BUT I can’t really complain – I can now officially add “semi-model” to my resume =-) And since I still have aspirations to become a print model, I say this is a fairly good start.

Go ahead, take a peek – it will make you chuckle =) Let me know what you think!!

Reminiscence

When I think of moving, I think of starting a new “life” with new beginnings that don’t have a date of expiration.  I think of an open road that has many unnamed side streets - all waiting to be traveled on.  I see an open field with countless amounts of obstacles that I am able to choose from. But most importantly, I see a mini rear view mirror ahead of me, which allows me to gaze into my past.  By looking back on where I have been and done, I am able to see where I want to go, what memories I want to hold onto, what little nothings I want to remember. 

From being a person who couldn’t imagine living anywhere but the state I grew up in, I have completely altered my ways of thinking and therefore, living.   

A quote by T.S. Eliot sums up my way of thinking: “The journey not the arrival matters”

Touché - Everyone is so focused on the end result nowadays, that the journey is hardly a matter of importance.  But how are we to appreciate the final ending when we have no recollection of how we got there?  Can the grand finale be truly appreciated when the journey itself seems as if it was a far and distant idea and not an actual experience?  I have come to appreciate all the little things in life that are quick to be ignored – I relish in small details so that they can be a permanent dweller in my memories.  I don’t take dramatic situations to heart because in the end, they are not life or death, but merely good stories to tell during a dull tête-à-tête.

And each time I have experienced a major move in my life, I re-evaluate myself to make sure my beliefs are still intact.  I get excited about new experiences all while quietly missing old habits and places.   And yet, the more I move around, the more knowledge I gain, the more respect I have towards change.

 It is quite common for one to thoroughly miss the place that they have known for most of their life – actually, it is a surprise when someone doesn’t miss their hometown at some point or another.  But after a week, a month, or even a year, your new place of living is still just that – new. It is a place for you to explore in every possible way. It’s a new place to call “home away from home” which eventually shortens to just “home”. 

For example – after 19 years of constant sunny, beach living I jumped at the idea of change. Without any second thoughts or delays, my life was packed away into 2 suitcases and made their way to the Midwest in the middle of November.  Each day there was so new and exciting; each funny street name or turn continued to spark my curiosity to get lost in cities that should have come with a warning sign. Days turned into months that were accompanied with distinct seasons.

I was mystified by winter – how could something so beautiful cause so much anger in individuals? Never having lived in snow for months on end, I became a child in a snowsuit making my first snowman and snow angel and having my very first snow ball fight at age 19.   Not soon enough came spring – striking, colorful flowers popping up above melting snow; a magnificent sight – new life emerging after countless freezing nights and blizzards.  Right around the corner was summer – hot, sticky, heavy summer, not something I was quite used to.  Lots of nights spent outside, gazing at the stars usually hidden behind blankets of clouds. Lazy days spent at the lake – warm, diminutive waves slapping our legs as we balance our way trying to walk the rocky lake bottom.  And just as promised, beautiful fall arrives bringing cooler weather and gorgeous multicolored foliage, while somehow promoting a sense of longing to be in another person’s arm.  Daily walks often included jumping on neighbor’s leaf piles just to hear the soothing crunch underneath my feet.   The crisp air often brought on burst of energy that led two adults to run around like children, playing a more grownup version of tag, ending with a quick kiss on the cheek and a sincere smile.

And yet during all these experiences, one cannot help to reminisce about their own childhood; how completely different yet ultimately the same it was compared to those of children living in other states.  While busy building my very first snowman, I cannot help to remember that just a few years back I was surfing days before Christmas or wearing shorts around New Years, watering my favorite tree.  Although my new Midwestern home brought me joy, I found myself wanting warm weather and close access to an ocean. 

Let’s fast forward 3 years – newly married, new apartment, two new kittens to add to our new mini family. My husband receives a job offer.  We’re both ecstatic – but there is something weird going on inside me – I find myself NOT wanting to move. After a few years of Midwestern living, I have come to call it home and have accepted all of its ups and downs.  I realize that although my husband has lived there his entire life and wants to experience new options, I have settled down and am saddened to say goodbye to my trustworthy, family-like co-workers.  How strange that I, someone that is usually up for new things, am slightly hesitant to saying YES to a new offer?

Moving on two weeks later, we are on our way to begin our life in the desert.  Literally. Again – new experiences, new challenges, new hopes and dreams and wants all to begin after a short 26 hour non-stop road trip.  It is during this car ride that I begin to understand T.S. Eliot’s logic - “The journey not the arrival matters”. It doesn’t matter where we end up in life, as long as the journey that we take to get there is worth its while.  It doesn’t matter where we end up living, what matters should be how we make the most of our time there. 

After a mere 4 months of living in a new state, I sometimes find myself reminiscing about  my short time in the Midwest, because after being away you realize how much of an impact the little things made on your life.  It is just now that I realize why we hold on so dearly to old memories, to old habits, to old ways of thinking. Perhaps it is human nature, or the lack of confidence, but to some degree, we are all afraid of change whether big or small.  But as soon as we take that leap, we begin to trust our own instincts and our desire to learn and hunger to experience begins to multiply.  It’s time to start enjoying ourselves and appreciating those around us so that we may take pleasure in whatever journey life will take us on, without worrying too much on where we will all end up.