Beach Rental Tips

Some great tips from my experiences as a vacationer, vacation rental owner, and vacation rental manager on getting the right beach rental over on our Oceanside CA and San Diego area blog.

Cape Town South Africa New Year's Mother Daughter Trip

I must be the luckiest mom to hit this planet.  I have two teenage daughters. Usually teenage daughters want little to do with their moms; but my older one is far too smart for that. Not only did she get us to agree to allow her to volunteer in Botswana once, but twice, she also "invited" me to join her in Cape Town South Africa for a week before her second trip (because she knew we wouldn't allow her to go alone). Hence started my first trip to the African continent for New Year's 2010 and my birthday (solidly middle aged).

First, I have always been enamored with stories of the explorers headed to India on the spice route and of Darwin coming the other direction. To me the Cape of Good Hope at the tip of the African continent is one of the most exotic locations in the world. When I was 16 I NEVER dreamed of going to Hawaii, never mind Cape Town. My dreams went no further than Southern California as a small town New Hampshire girl.  My daughters, however, view Disneyland as a routine activity, so their dreams go to Africa, India, Australia, and Europe of course.
As a first time visitor to the African continent, regardless of the tourist information that I read, I had a stereotypical view of "Africa" - read: safari's,  Zulu wars of the movies, and the infamous criminals praying on tourists.  WRONG!

Cape Town South Africa is a cosmopolitan city, in many ways no different than any other that I've visited, and of course in more ways unique. With prudence and reasonable but not fearful caution, Cape Town is a city, and the Cape Peninsula/Western Cape of South Africa, one to be enjoyed: by more mother/daughter travel teams.

I'm looking forward to more posts and sharing our favorite sites, tips, and photos. 

Tip for today:
Fish Hoek in False Bay is close enough, but a world away. Stay with Solveig and Peter at their guest house: Sunny Cove Manor and be sure to eat their hearty breakfast each day to save time and Rands by skipping a meal. We stayed for a week in the owner's "family flat" as the regular guest house rooms were full, and it cost about $900 USD. Moreover, our hostess helped us to make reservations, arranged for a local rental car when they were sold out all over the city, and our host set up a private visit to Masipumelele, a black township. Our hostess told us the best routes, and safe atms!

Vacation Mamma Where You been?

Whew,
I need more vacation, more mamma, less work...If you want to see what I've been doing that keeps me from writing (not so much from travel), check out my company: BETTER Vacation Rentals. We've managed to grow even in this economy, launch a new web site, add properties, and still get BETTER at satisfying our guests and owners. Top it off with a family and company move 40 miles south...and a year flies by.

Where have I been exploring? Sequoia NP CA, Athens Greece, Temecula CA, Canyon de Chelly AZ, Painted Forest National Park AZ, Five Islands ME, Cape Cod MA, Washington DC, San Diego CA , and my new home town of Encinitas / Cardiff CA. Next up: Cape Town South Africa.

Promise more trip info to come...until then.

Cancel my Flight: I want to be in Georgetown ME on July 11, 2009

Doggone it! The Georgetown Maine annual auction at the Five Islands Station is on July 11 this year...and of course that's when I'm due to fly home from almost 3 weeks at our great waterfront cottage just a few minutes down North End Road. This auction was my first experience with a live auction and I look forward to it every year. Mainers have lots of interesting stuff in their barns and it ends up at this auction... My list of buys include:
-a gas grill with a rodent nest that ended up at the transfer station
- a rabbit hutch we drove home 3000 miles - our bunny loved it but we looked like the Beverly Hillbillies for sure
- a collection of Harry Potter books on tape that have given my daughter hours of enjoyment
- some antique linens that probably saw many ladies play bridge, and now grace my bunco tables
- a wicker settee that looked cute but flaked paint and lasted a few seasons
- a custom name paint job for our boat that my husband never had done (I wonder if it expires?)
- a Hopper print that graces our cottage wall whose frame is worth more than I paid, but is matted in a slightly odd way
- a limited edition lighthouse serving tray from Georgetown Pottery

I'm small time at this auction...I'll never forget the year that the Moorings B&B was furnishing their place - they spent thousands...or all of the original artwork...and the dinghies, canoes, and even a sailboat now and then.

All proceeds benefit the Geoergetown Maine VOLUNTEER fire department who have saved many at Reid State Park. You can always count on some great live lobster packages, or just visit one of our in the rough lobster joints after the auction. Maine governors and officials have been known to auctioneer as well!

Where: Just left off 127 on Five Islands Road.
When: July 11 9 am.

Get there early to preview the merchandise or get the best of the White Elephant and bake sale. Buy a few chances for the Georgetown Working League's one of a kind quilt. To donate items (not stoves, fridges, washers, a/c, used mattresses) call David Knauber at 207-371-2020. Deadline is just a few days before the auction - so clean out the barn now!

Another Vacationer Discovers Vacation Rentals Apartments in NYC!

Summer of 2006 I took my girls to Manhattan and rented an amazing flat in midtown Manhattan for far less than a hotel, and with far better flavor and our own back yard. I'm pleased to see the following article as others discover the joys of vacation rentals in urban settings. In fact I stayed at a rental in the Belltown District of Seattle for just 3 nights last month while looking at colleges with my high school junior, and an Central Athens Apartment 2 weeks ago while accompanying my husband on a business trip to Athens Greece. Vacation rentals are no longer just for beach stays, golf getaways, and ski vacations. Check out the full article at:

Catholic Online - Travel: "Manhattan walk-up let us feel like native New Yorkers
By Joan Chrissos
3/16/2009

McClatchy Newspapers (www.mctdirect.com)
McClatchy Newspapers (MCT) - I was at the point of canceling our New York City family vacation.

I had scoured travel Web sites, checked my American Express deals, talked to New York friends about bed & breakfasts _ yet couldn't find a place to stay in the Big Apple that was reasonably priced and could accommodate seven people, or two families traveling together.

Then a friend told me about Vacation Rental By Owner, or VRBO.com.

Thus began my journey into renting a New York apartment for four nights. By scrolling through VRBO.com and Googling 'New York City vacation rentals,' I discovered a cottage industry of New Yorkers who rent out apartments to travelers _ often for less or comparable rates to a New York hotel room, plus all the comforts of home, including a kitchen and washer-and-dryer.

A caveat, however: Know your neighborhoods. One listing was for a 'Beautiful Upper West Side 4-5 Bedroom, 2 baths,' with hardwood floors, floor-to-ceiling windows and a photo of a lush tree-lined street. The catch: The apartment was on West 171st Street, about 71 blocks north of the neighborhood most people would call the Upper West Side.

As we wanted to be near the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Central Park and a few subway st"

Scott Harrison Story & Charity Water

Currently in Athens Greece, I came across this story while taking a break instead of my afternoon siesta. It moved me. Read it if you like.

Scott Harrison Story & Charity Water: "Scott Harrison Story & Charity Water


Just more than two years ago I left the streets of New York City for the shores of West Africa. I'd made my living for years in the big Apple promoting top nightclubs and fashion events, for the most part living selfishly, thoughtlessly. Unhappy, I desperately needed a change in my life."

Expired Passport and a Ticket to Greece in 8 Hours!*$@

For 48 hours I worked diligently to get ready for a trip to Athens Greece this week. As a mom and business owner it's not a simple task to go away anywhere, never mind a this far away. I emailed the itineraries, the medical releases, called the schools, notified my clients, and arranged for everything...everything but one minor detail!

At 11:24 am the day of my trip, I ducked into my home from the garage office to use the facilities, as I ran quickly, my husband called out "it's important come here." I ignored him like any good wife of many years, and strolled over a few minutes later. He shows me my passport that expired in May and says "do you have another? I've searched and can't find it." I didn't see the telltale hole punches in the passport that they give to expired ones, and my heart sunk. "No - I don't - Oh my God!" No panic, just amazing disappointment and functionality ensued. I knew what had to be done, and thanked my lucky stars that we were flying out of LAX. My husband knew what had to be done as well, and contacted the US Passport agency - fortunately LA is one of the 6 regional centers that can do passports quickly (but they didn't say in hours).

Did I mention I hadn't started to pack for my trip to Athens? Nor had I showered! Gone to the bank? Had new passport photos taken? Post office? Picked up my boots that needed a new zipper or returned my overdue library books or movie? Yes, we did all these things, and kissed our youngest daughter goodbye, and by 1:30 pm were on the road for a 2 pm passport appointment a mere 70 miles away...we have never been such fools! What were we thinking?

I walked in to the US Passport office at 2:45 pm on a Friday afternoon. They close at 3 pm. I have never encountered nicer people in a government office. They were helpful and compassionate. Apparently it usually takes 2-3 hours to get a passport in person. I had mine before 4 pm!!! By 5 pm I was comfortably settled in the Admiral's Club at LAX courtesy of my husband's status as platinum (international flights, the club is complimentary), and paid my upcoming bills online... By 8 pm after a little delay...we were eastward bound.

My advice for booking international travel:

1. Check your passport
2. Check your passport
3. Check your passport
4. When you realize your passport is expired, do not pass go, just go get it.
5. Remember to pack your medicine and glasses in your carry on luggage! Where the heck did I leave that bag of stuff? The kitchen table maybe?

See my next post for more on Greece, and hopefully getting medications while in Greece (waiting for Monday).