20 Questions Tuesday: 141 - Vacations

When someone goes on a vacation for more than 4 days it is difficult for that person to not make things about, compare things to, and generally focus on his vacation. Therefore, today’s 20 Questions Tuesday is about vacations.

Thanks this week go to: lsig, Dr Clean, Belsum, John P, Capt McArmypants, Nadolny, and Zinger Zapper. Onto the questions:

1. True or False: The Go-Go's "Vacation" is the best vacation song ever.
True

2. Why is it that work and home maintenance problems always seem to hit critical mass during vacation, so you have even worse problems to deal with when you get back?
It is the way that co-workers and neighbors get back at you for having “fun.” Those 2 groups are a petty lot.

3. Are vacations with young children really vacations? Which is preferable, vacation with kids or without?
Yes, they are really vacations, but they take more effort and planning. I think both vacations with kids and without kids are necessary, so at different times they are both preferable.

4. My husband likes to totally relax during vacations, whereas I see them as opportunities to see and do different things from what is normally available, as much as possible. Where do you fall on the activity/no activity spectrum of vacations?
I lean more towards the “do different things” on the spectrum, but I would say that I am pretty much in the middle of the road for those extremes

5. “Are we there yet?”
Not much further now…

6. What is your definition of a successful vacation?
If fun was had.

7. Should you come back from vacation tanned, rested and ready or worn out from your adventures?
Yes.

8. Where would you go in the world if you had $10k and two weeks?
Hmmm… 10K and 14 days? Can one travel for less than $725 a day?

9. Do you do laundry while you’re on vacation or pack enough to wear something clean each day you’re gone?
This time we planned to do some laundry. It was okay-ish-ly effective, since we were out of country for 8 days laundry seemed the best avenue.

10. Do you prefer to sight-see or try to live like a local?
Since we have recently been traveling with food allergic kids there is a certain amount of living locally that we are forced to do. But we also like to catch the attractions as well.

11. How many days does it take you to recover once you get home?
I will let you know when I have.

12. Staycation: obnoxious or good idea?
Staycations are a good idea if you can truly remove yourself from the typical. If you still answer emails and the like, are you really vacating your everyday life?

13. Are people that bring their pets with them nuts?
Certifiably.

14. Any preference of the Vacation movie series: Vacation, European Vacation, Christmas Vacation, or Vegas Vacation?
I am partial to Christmas Vacation.

15. Why do we go on vacation and Europeans go on Holiday? Happy Hols!
I am not sure, but the Canadians still refer to the experience as Holiday as well.

16. Any memorable childhood vacations?
Only three that I can really think of. The first was when I was 10 we went to Colorado. The second was when I was 12 and my soccer team went to the Bobby Charlton School of Soccer Football. The third was when I was 13 and we went to Disney World.

17. What do you do or treat yourself to on vacation that you normally don't otherwise?
Hookers and blow.

18. What is the ideal amount of time for a vacation?
6 days

19. Do you dread going back to work the morning of work, the night before or last day of vacation while returning home?
I think you may have forgotten THAT I AM UNEMPLOYED, YOU INSENITIVE JERK!!!

20. What would be your ideal vacation family spot? What would be your ideal vacation spot when it is just you and Wifey? What would be your ideal get away for a weekend "bachelor" type vacation?
The mountains but within 30 minutes of some civilization for food allergy reasons. The mountains but within 30 minutes of some civilization for amenity reasons. The mountains but within 30 minutes of some civilization for convenience reasons.
+++++++++BONUS 2 QUESTIONS+++++++++

21. Have you ever had so much fun on vacation that you've had to destroy the photographic evidence so your children would never know (for both you and Wifey)?
Until we had a digital camera, we really did not take many pics on vacation… so no. What kind of vacations were you going on?

22. Are you a trip taker (itinerary planned) or vacationer (relaxing and fun by the seat of your pants)?
Wifey and I both tend to be very fluid with our vacations with only loose itineraries that we think about. We have a loose outline that is not binding in any way, shape, or form.


To Recap:
Okay, that is going to be it about the vacation
Here is Little Man on his 6th birthday

At Rissers Beach

Okay, THAT was the last thing about the vacation
Listening to Ballad of the Beaconsfield Miners by the Foo Fighters

Vacation

The problem with posting to my blog in the evening is that I am rather burnt out by the time I get around to typing anything. All day long ideas float through my head about what I should post about, but they flit though my consciousness like a good metaphor that you cannot remember. (How is that for meta-metaphoring?)

Anywho… I am back in good old Central Ohio and happily sleeping in my own bed. The place that the fam stayed was a nice place, but, truth be told, the beds were meant to be slept on for only 3 days in a row. Everything after 3 seemed to cause mighty back aches in myself and Wifey.

This being a Monday, I feel I should invoke a number of “things” to mention to my 3 loyal readers since I have been doing “3 Things” and “4 Things” posts on Mondays for a while, but I have decided to askew that tradition and just give a quick wrap-up on the vacation that was.

The family and I went to the South Coast of Nova Scotia and stayed just east of picturesque Mahone Bay at Oak Island Resort. For the first 4 days or so, Wifey was earning the money while I school-marmed the kids. This school-marming included going to multiple grocery stores in search of allergen free foods and keeping the kids in general good spirits until Wifey could release her shackles of employed obligation and join the family on our Nova Scotian “Holiday.”

So on Wednesday afternoon with a full compliment of Family we went to Lunenburg (or Lunenverg as Little Man liked to call it) for dinner. Between that Wednesday afternoon and Sunday Morning we went to a small little beach with a friend’s kids (some of the pics from last post), the Ovens (sea caves), 2 hours of Splash Bomb with TheMikeStand and his kids (the final score was something like kids = 40 and dads = bunny, needless to say the kids won the 24th Oak Island Urn), a birthday trip for Little Man (who is now 6) on the Historic LeHave Cable Ferry, some time at Rissers Beach, and some hanging out the fam we saw on Thursday. In a word, it was awesome.

To recap:
Had a great time, but glad to be back home
Gone for 8 days and there were only 2 voicemails on the home phone
1 was a paid political announcement
We are just not that popular
Only 2 voicemails on my cell phone
1 was from my mom
I am just not that popular
20 Questions Tuesday is back tomorrow
Listening to the near constant hum of the baby monitor

E.R.

Little Man cut the top part of his ear today... We are pretty sure it was doing something that he shouldn't have because he is rather tight lipped about what happened. Anyway... after 8 hours in urgent care and an ER (he somehow nicked the cartilidge) we are back home safe and sound. He is 3 stitches heavier and we are extremely tired.

To recap:
Little Man cuts his ear so no Digital Thursday for you
Listening to everyone get ready for bed
Still no job
We will be in Nova Scotia next week
So, don't expect much posting next week
I will try to do a bit of photoblogging though
Have a great weekend everyone
We are leaving on a jet plane Saturday morning

The Great White North

Horseshoe Falls

It is like a freaky alternate reality. Things are similar… but not the same. You know those dreams where everything seems real, but everything is just a little off? The dreams where everyone is going about their daily business acting perfectly normal, but everyone is wearing either golf shoes or bowling shoes. The dreams where the color red is blue and blue is orange. Yeah… those dreams.

This weekend was like being in one of those dreams all weekend long. “Why?” you ask. You are quite nosy, but I will answer anyway. This weekend Wifey and I visited a land called Canada. Don’t worry all you USians out there; we went to one of the most American-ish of places in Canada so the Canadian culture wouldn’t overwhelm us. We went to Niagara Falls pretty much on a whim. Little Man stayed home with his Mimma and they both ran each other ragged. I am pretty sure that they both were asleep by 8:30 last night.

As everyone knows, the US side of Niagara Falls is crappy so we decided to go to the Canadian side. The differences were subtle but eerily palpable. The pavement markings are similar but different. The signage whilst driving on the QEW was a bit odd to we US-ers in the car. The repetition of all announcements en Français also added an air of otherness. Avec six ans de Français sous ma ceinture, Je suis joyeux que tout les announcements sont an Anglais aussi parce que, ma Français, c’est terrible.


Anyway… Wifey and I had a grand time. We left Columbus Friday evening at 6 and got to our Hotel at 12:45 AM. That includes a leisurely dinner and going through customs. Saturday we did the Maid of the Mists boat-ride and got up close and personal with the Horseshoe Falls.
Maid of the Mists

The power and size of the falls is pretty awe inducing. On the boat we were getting soaked next to some Scots and some French. While on the boat I heard some Korean, Japanese, Dutch, French, German, and some Slavic language that I could not place (let’s call that one Polish). It really is amazing how multi-cultural the world is when you actual brush up against so many cultures in one small spot.

We walked around a whole bunch looking at the tourist trap that is Niagara Falls. The best way to describe the touristy parts of the area to people familiar with rural US life is that the area was one big county fair without all the deep fried batter. Frankly the place needed some funnel cakes. You hear that Canada? One prescription of funnel cakes to Niagara Falls stat! Anyway there were 3 fair-like haunted houses and an amazing amount of gaud and glitz. There was so much gaud and glitz that one might call the place gaudy and glitzy. There were multiple arcades and t-shirt vendors. Seriously, if there were more food on a stick places and glowing crap for sale I would have been wondering where the livestock competition was.

Wifey and me at The Four Brothers Italian restaurant
(I'm the one in blue)

Now the glitz and gaud associated with the tourist area was the exact opposite of the gloom and general rundown-ness of the “downtown business district.” Wifey and I are a bit odd in our travels. We enjoy looking behind the veneer of places to see if the place is truly what it is portraying or if it is only a façade. For example, London England is what it acts like. It is a cosmopolitan world class city that has a vibrant and sustained community and economy. Reno, Nevada is where people go to gamble. Turns out that Niagara Falls acts like a state/county fair, but the fun is only masking an economically depressed area that seems a bit sad.

So, wax museums and craptastic haunted houses aside, the weekend was most definitely Canadariffic!

To recap
Some Pics to be posted sometime tonight
They still reside on the camera
Wifey liked it there sooo much she bought some Canadian Pride socks
(I have been informed that there will never be pictures of the socks)
Little Man was happy to see us
We were happy to see him
Mimma was REALLY happy to see us
The exchange rate is not that favourable for US-ers right now
Everything used to be on sale for us
Bruschetta has been benchmarked… BENCHMARKED I SAY!
Tomorrow’s 20 questions shall revolve around the topic of Canada
I need a nap
Still
Everyone does realize that it is a mere 8 days to the Blogaversary
And it is a 3rd Blogaversary to boot
Do I get any presents?