My Mental Vacation

Voluntourism

I learned a new word this week - voluntourism. Apparently I'm not the only one who enjoys taking a trip for the purpose of volunteering. I've gone to Mexico three times to serve on Lions in Sight eye clinic teams. As a matter of fact, my husband and I go together, and it is such a rewarding experience.

I really enjoy meeting people on these trips. The hosts give you their best, and they treat us like family. We get to see life from their perspective, much more so than if we were tourists. We visit places that tourists are unlikely to see.

The first clinic I did was in Cabo San Lucas, but we never once set foot on the beach. Basically, go about a mile or so north of the tourist zone, and you will see extreme poverty. We set up a clinic in an empty warehouse. They brought people to us from the desert by the busload. The docs would do the exams, and the technicians (us) would dispense the eyeglasses.

The second one was in a place called Union de Tula, in Jalisco. This clinic was a little different... the patients had a little money. The local Lions had to charge about $5 US for each patient, to cover the expenses of the clinic. A great deal, by our standards... $5 and you get an eye exam and at least one pair of glasses. But for some people in Mexico, an extra $5 takes months to earn, and when the choice is to feed your family or to get glasses, guess where that $5 goes. Very sad.

The third clinic that we did in January was the best yet. We were in the Yucatan in a place called Valladolid, which is between Cancun and Merida. I actually worked without a translator, even though my Spanish is pretty awful. Customs would not let us bring in the doctor's bag with the examining equipment until late in the day, so finding the right pair of glasses involved a lot of trial and error. The Mayan people were so nice... very open and friendly. I made friends with one little girl. 

We were in Valladolid during a special festival, and at 10:00 PM, all the women put on their traditional Mayan dresses with their special brand of embroidery. They go out dancing, without the men... all generations of women. They seemed like they enjoy it, and look forward to it. I never did figure out what the festival was all about.

We Ship to Lake Tahoe

I was driving in Palo Alto / Menlo Park today, and spotted a funny sign in the window of a Mattress Discounters store. It was large, plain-text sign that said "We ship to Lake Tahoe" - at a very busy intersection on El Camino. Hmm... What does that say about the neighborhood market demographics? "We have tons of customers with second homes in Lake Tahoe who are shopping for beds. Advertising especially to them is the best way to increase our sales."

Or maybe the point is something else... if they ship to Lake Tahoe, they'll probably ship anywhere between Palo Alto and Lake Tahoe, or anywhere just as far as Lake Tahoe. Or maybe they ONLY ship to Lake Tahoe, so don't even bother asking if they ship anywhere else!

Enquiring minds want to know, so I went to this website to find out... Not helpful... apparently, they don't have a store in Palo Alto... or Menlo Park... or even CALIFORNIA! The directory came up empty. Or else the database is broken. Thinking there might be more than one chain of the same name, I Googled it. This led me to Yelp, and a review from jc c that said: "DO NOT SHOP HERE, unless you are feeling especially masochistic. You will 1. Deal with slimy salesfolks 2. Pay too much 3. Have poor service.  If I could give 20 negative stars, I would."

I wonder if the sign caught anyone's attention besides mine. Probably not... but it only takes one, and then you have a blog post, and it is probably going to automatically get posted on my Facebook page, and I'll bet somebody there tweets about it. If it wasn't for the intriguiging, oddball sign, I would have never looked them up, and would have never seen the Yelp review.

This demonstrates why companies need to monitor their online reputation diligently. Somebody please tell Mattress Discounters that they really need some marketing/web help. I'd be happy to provide a consultation.

More on Kauai Chickens and Tourism

I wrote something a while back about the chickens running loose all over the island of Kauai in Hawaii. I actually enjoyed them... they added some local color to the vacation, which I always enjoy. I thought they added to the charm of the island. Apparently, they are having a negative effect on the tourism industry. I actually liked waking up to the morning crowing. I guess I'm in the minority.

Today's Wall Street Journal has a story about the chicken problem on the island, which goes into much more depth than I did as a tourist. The article says, "Kauai, the oldest of the Hawaiian islands, is called the garden isle for its lush vegetation. Now people are calling it the chicken isle because it is overrun by roosters, hens and little chicks. Most of the birds are believed to be descendants of former fighting cocks unleashed during a devastating hurricane more than a decade ago. The birds now forage at outdoor food courts and ruin sugar cane and corn crops. They wake islanders -- and tourists -- with predawn crowing."

Read the whole thing here.

Mini-Breaks are a Great Bargain Now

Everyone knows that the economy is tough right now, but if I don't get out of town, I'll usually never leave my desk (unless it is to go to a meeting.) I've been busy lately, and all three of my loyal readers will remember that this is nothing new.

Tony decided it was time for a mini-break, which made me shudder because both income taxes and property taxes are due. Let's just say it is a lot of money, and leave it at that. So... not a good time to go spending money.

We made time for a quick getaway; just one night, and close to home. Napa is usually pretty expensive on the weekends, but tourism must be pretty slow. We reserved a room at the Silverado Country Club again, and this time it is only $99 a night. We splurged and got the junior suite. This is one of my favorite places in the Napa Valley because it is convenient to the Bay Area and very reasonably priced. I like the fresh fruit in the morning, too.

Now if we can just get through the weekend without spending a fortune on wine, we'll be all set!

I Love Points!

With all the current economic uncertainty, I'm so glad I bank points for travel. You just never know when you'll need them, and for someone like me who lives to travel, they sure come in handy.

We're planning another trip to China in the fall, and I just figured out that I have enough Amex and Starwood points to cover the hotel stay in Beijing. Happy news, indeed! Terra cotta army, here I come!

Spring Fever

Today marks the vernal equinox. Sunny weather here in the Bay Area, and spring is once again in the air.

I'm sitting at my desk, and I keep getting drawn to the outdoors. From my window, I can see the trees turning green and the first buds appearing on the vines covering the back fence. The dog next door is barking at everyone who walks past on the creek path, and he totally drowns out the sound of the birds.

All this distraction. I've got piles of stuff all over my desk, and I just want to sweep it away, and get outside for a while. But no... I've got projects to finish and taxes to prep for.

The other official sign of spring - income taxes! (Groan...)  Maybe I'll give myself a reward when I get them done!

Down Mexico Way

I like Mexico, and especially love the ocean there. We took a cruise a couple of weeks ago and got to spend four days at sea. The sea days were just what I needed to get away from the phone and the Internet, and it worked.

A couple of high points: Sail and snorkel in Zihuatanejo on the Picante catamaran. FUN! We had a great time on Captain Tony's ship, and would love to return to Zihuatanejo.

We found a great restaurant in Acapulco called El Olvido. Great view and really good food. Our cabbie suggested it, and deservedly got a really nice tip.

More later!

Calgon, Take Me Away!

That is probably one of the most memorable taglines of all time. I'm sure many people are like me.... you get stuck at your desk or your job working too hard, or your stress level is high for whatever reason. Then you just start yearning to escape from it all and take a vacation... off to some tropical locale... sunshine, umbrella drinks, and a summer lust novel.

"Calgon, take me away" has all of the qualities of a good tagline. People directly relate to the message, they remember it, and it becomes adopted as part of the vernacular. There is an entire generation of people now who don't even know that Calgon is a water softener. But check it out on Wikipedia... the phrase was translated in many languages, and was mentioned in books, songs, and films.

Even if I don't say it out loud, I often hear that phrase in my head whenever I'm ready for a vacation.

And speaking of umbrella drinks, one of my clients makes The Perfect Puree to give fresh fruit flavor to artisan cocktails and beverages. Check 'em out!

A Change of Scenery

Sometimes, a little change of scenery can really recharge your batteries.

I had a client meeting in Napa on Friday afternoon, and Tony had the day off. So, he drove up there with me, and we stayed the night. While I was working, he had checked us into the Silverado Resort and scouted out a great tapas restaurant for dinner.

Silverado is a really great value in the pricey Napa Valley. We were upgraded to a one-bedroom fireplace suite, right on the golf course. It is an older, less-touristy resort, east of the Silverado Trail, and very nice, and convenient to downtown Napa and the wineries. Dinner was at ZuZu in Napa, and the tapas were delicious - especially the paella.

Saturday morning, we had a great breakfast at the Cafe Sarafornia in Calistoga, which apparently got its name from something a drunken pioneer said back in the 1800's. We stopped at Chateau Montelena, whose Chardonnay is famous for winning the 1976 Judgement of Paris wine competition in its class. (See the movie "Bottleshock" for the story.) The wine is still very good, and I found the Cabs to be even better than the Chardonnay. Interesting wine club program... to get the Reserve Cabernet at half the retail price, you need to pay for it two years before it is released. Since Parker hasn't rated the wine below 90 in 15 years, I guess buying futures isn't much of a gamble.

Believe it or not, we were back at home by 3:00 Saturday.

Got three months off?

My brother Chuck, who sells vacation travel through his company, OntheWayTravel.net, has a special offer right now that sounds really intriguing.

He's got this world cruise package with one of the Cunard "queen" ships. Basically, you sail around the world, docking in exotic ports all over the globe. The itinerary is just amazing, and the price is better than you can currently find on the web. (That's his special deal.)

 ...if only I had three months off!

No carrying bags, unpacking, and packing up again... no airports or connecting flights... no changing hotels and tipping porters... No paying for every meal and getting the exorbitant credit card bills later...

Sound like fun? Call him. My seat is available.

Chickens at Bali Hai

We spent a few days relaxing on the island of Kauai over the Thanksgiving break. It is by far the prettiest of the four Hawaiian islands that I have visited. Kauai is the site seen in many movies, including Bali Hai, Jurassic Park, and Indiana Jones. My favorite spot was Ha'ena Beach, where I had a lovely nap while listening to the 25' waves crashing onto the shore.

I think I have learned the meaning of "free range" chicken. On Kauai, the chickens seem to run wild, and they were everywhere! We stopped at a beach one day, and accidentally spilled some granola on the ground. Wow... there must have been 20 chickens begging Tony for food.

Our hotel room had a little lanai area outside our bedroom, and we slept with the door open. In the morning, "our" rooster would climb up on the patio furniture and crow until we woke up. In real life, that would drive me nuts, but a vacation suspends reality, so we enjoyed it.

At the north shore, there were very few tourists... no waiting in lines, no waiting for a table to eat, no sky-high prices. There are direct flights from SFO, so it was an easy trip to make, too.

Will Austerity Marketing Reach Celebrity Chefs?

Our recent trip to Las Vegas shined a light on marketing in the food and restaurant industry. Our hotel and its sister property had restaurants created by Emeril Lagasse, Mario Batali, Charlie Trotter, Wolfgang Puck, Thomas Keller, and many more celebrity chefs. These are all high-concept places, and they all featured stylish decor and menus that match the theme. And great food, of course. For prices that seem almost obsene, given October's Wall Street meltdown. (But yes, we did partake, and we really enjoyed it.)

Today's "name" chef has a chain of restaurants, a series of cookbooks, his/her own television show, web properties, their own wine labels, cooking equipment, just to touch the tip of the iceberg. In a place like Las Vegas, it seems like every hotel boasts their own celebrity chef's as part of their own marketing.

All the way up the food chain (sorry), companies are going to the bank with profits resulting from the talents of their chefs. I'm not quite sure how this trend became so firmly established, but I wonder what will happy to Las Vegas with such a high concentration of top restaurants in a tourist-supported city. With tourism, and dining out in general, dropping off because of the economy, will our celebrity chefs and restaurants lower prices or close their doors, or will they adopt creative "austerity" marketing programs to bring in customers and get them through the coming months?

I'll bet we see some of both results.

Tranquility

I spent a morning at the Canyon Ranch spa at the Palazzo Hotel in Las Vegas. What a beautiful, tranquil place amid all the noise.

I only experienced the women's side of the spa (darn!) Everything was gorgeous... beautiful tile and woods, lighting, decor, color... Rather than bore you by repeating this again and again, suffice it to say this only once. It was a restful, peaceful refuge. Ditto throughout.

Tropical rainstorm showers... a Finnish sauna (hot!), a steam room, an herbal sauna/steam room with nice little marble cubicles for privacy. A whirlpool tub for soaking... an igloo to cool down. I could go on and on.

Oh.... and my massage was excellent, too. If you like deep tissue work, ask for Brittany. My back was killing me when I got there, but I left feeling much better. Wish I could afford to do this all the time, but I'm glad I had the opportunity to splurge just this once.

Walt's on Wall Street!

I'm doing it again... I really shouldn't work on the weekends, but I really do get a lot done then. Writing is easier, because I have fewer interruptions. Today, I'm finalizing a number of KCS client pieces that need those last little touches before they go to print.

Recently, PATCA's President, Walt Maclay, was quoted in the Wall Street Journal! Yep! If that ain't credibility, I don't know what is. Go Walt! You made us all look good.

I got invited to speak at a PATCA meeting again, sometime after the first of the year. The idea is to share ideas about social networking with the members, many of whom are engineers, not marketers or in creative professions. I'm a member, though, and there are a number of us non-technies in the bunch. All of us are professional consultants, and some of us have built great companies of our own.

Although many of the PATCA members were involved in the birth and early years of computer and internet technologies, the latest Web 2.0 evolution with its social facets hasn't yet been widely adopted by this group. Hmmm... We're all interested in hearing about it, but uncertain about how it could become part of our lifestyle.

That will be my job to explain, I think. We're always looking for ways to win new clients, or to get referrals. That's a by-product of being in the right place at the right time, which is often difficult when you are busy doing "real work." But, we all have a need to connect with other people... that's one of the main reasons we joined PATCA. New technologies allow us to stay connected, while, at the same time, giving us the freedom to get away from our desks. Who knows? If we get some sort of network going, maybe a quick tweet will be all that is needed to hear about a great next gig.

I've been working too hard!

Consultants have busy periods and dry spells. The past couple of months have been full of new and interesting projects and clients. I love working hard, and will burn the midnight oil when needed, but when it goes on for more than two weeks straight, I need a break.

I had a birthday a couple of weeks ago, and my husband engineered a getaway in the middle of the week that was just the break I needed. He reserved a room in San Francisco for the night, and made me quit work at 5:00. We had martinis at sunset at the Top of the Mark, which is the epitome of 1940's elegance.

We went over to to the new Yoshi's in SF, and had a really great sushi dinner. The food was amazing!  Yoshi's nightclub was fun, too... a great place to hear live jazz. We heard a new guitarist from Africa, who was awesome, but I'm afraid I can't remember his name.

The next day, we had breakfast in the City, and then drove home so I could get to work. Tony took the whole day off, which is somehow unfair, given that it was MY birthday! But, hey... what can I say... No complaints; it was a grand time and a memorable birthday.

Love Those Free Trips!

We weren't planning on going back to Las Vegas again this year, but the Palazzo is comping a suite for us for few days in October. Can't pass that up, eh?

I'd like to think that this invitation was a result of that post I wrote a while back, in which I mentioned all of the luxurious features of the hotel, and also the shabbiness of the toilet paper. But I checked my blog stats, and nobody reads this thing, so that can't be it.

More likely, they noticed that I got addicted to this one silly slot machine on our last trip. Seriously addicted. See, I'm not a big gambler. I'll usually just play the slot machines for a little while, until I've gone through my allowance. Not the last trip...

I saw this machine called the Reels of Dublin. Now, I'm a good Irish girl, so had to throw in a couple of quarters. I won something right away. Probably 50 cents or a dollar. But the machine started playing an Irish jig! Reminded me of when I was four and used to dance the jig on my uncle's bar. (That's a story for another day.)

I kept winning, and I kept getting extra spins. The whole time, the machine is playing this wild Irish music. It was almost embarrasing! People were staring at me bopping on my bar stool, but I didn't care. I was up 200%, 300%, 500%! I think I played this game for about four hours, and I walked away with several hundred dollars. Not bad, based on my initial $20 investment. And the next day, I did it again!

See... even though I don't usually gamble, I got taken in by the marketing... the packaging, the music, the come-on! I should have known better, but I was having a blast! That's great marketing. One-to-one. Direct-and-personal. Fun.

A Great Place to Stay in Carmel

Tony and I just celebrated our first wedding anniversary and spent a lovely weekend at the Highlands Inn in Carmel. What a great place! The location is awesome... miles away from the throngs of weekend shoppers on Ocean Ave, and just a bit farther south than beautiful Point Lobos State Park.  Awesome views, which you can enjoy from your suite, your deck, the fire pit, or one of the hot tubs.

We are big partiers (hah!) We arrived Friday night, ordered room service, and watched the opening ceremony of the Olympics on television. But we loved it. The food was excellent. (How often do you get cioppino from room service?) We lit a fire, popped open a bottle of wine, and just relaxed. Over the next couple of days, we went wine tasting, had some great meals, and hiked at Point Lobos.

Best discovery: Nico's resaurant in Carmel  Charming staff, and great food. Nico caught us outside looking at the menu, and he said, "Come in and try the crab ravioli in champagne sauce. I promise you will love it." So, we tried it, and he was right.

Old favorite: Passionfish in Pacific Grove. We love the food. 'Nuff said.

Don't miss: Point Lobos State Reserve provides what I think are some of the prettiest coastline views in the Carmel area, and the trails are well-groomed and fairly easy to walk.

No longer a secret: We've been visiting Parsonage winery since the tasting room was in the garage at the Parson family house in the Carmel Valley. They are now in their second or third tasting room on the main road, and this is the first one they have to themselves. The wines still have their signature touch, but the tasting room experience is now like any other winery in the area.

Is Camping Considered a Vacation?

I will be the first person to admit that camping is not my top choice for a vacation. I'm basically a wimp when it comes to getting dirty and sleeping on the ground. But, my husband, the Eagle Scout and forestry major, loves it, so what's a girl to do?

We just spent a few days up at Plumas Eureka State Park, which is an absolutely beautiful area in the Sierras. Easy to find... Just take highway 80 to Truckee, take a left, go 50 miles north, and there you are - right in the middle of the forest.

Jamison Creek runs through the camp, and I saw a young boy catch a huge fish in it. Six inches, easy! He was so excited about it, but didn't have a clue what to do with the fish once he had caught it. Very funny! Luckily, his dad came to the rescue and turned it into dinner.

I wanted to work with my new camera, so I took a lot of pictures. I'll post them soon. The park is built on the site of an old silver mine, and there is a museum on site, along with a working blacksmith shop.

The campground now requires reservations in advance, which can be made online. Most of the sites were full, but it was lovely, and we still had privacy. Good showers, with hot water. No electricity, though, so my hairdryer was useless. Oh well...

Union City Day at the A's

My friend Maria at Webbmar posted this on her blog, and so I'm doing it, too. After all, I'm the President of this nonprofit, so I guess I'd better start promoting our stuff!

Here's what she wrote:

Are you ready for a fun filled day with friends and family AND the Oakland A's? The Union City 50th Anniversary committee has help put this fun even together scheduled for Sunday, August 17. Catch the Game at the ballpark and join us for tailgate BBQ sponsored by Texas Roadhouse! Bring your friend and entire family.  You will be helping out the fundraising efforts of the UC 50th Anniversary Group!

Buy tickets online at Union City 50th NOW!!  You might be a lucky prize winner!  Come one, come all!  Meet your neighbors, spend some quality time with your family, and kids get to run around the bases after the game.

The pros are better at being quiet.

I read something today on Seth Godin's awesome blog today. The post was entitled "Silence is a Virtue."

Godin said, "Nothing at all is actually the biggest difference between professional and amateur marketers. The pros are better at being quiet."

There you have it. Rather than posting something inane, I have been pretty quiet lately. Happy to say that I can now blame that on being a pro! I'll come up with something soon.

Cruisin' Along

Hey... we're working on a fundraiser for the Lions Club, which has me spending a lot of time looking at cruise options. This is actually going to be a pretty inexpensive vacation, and the big bonus is we won't have to buy gas.

Mexico... I've been there many times, and always visit the "true" Mexico. I've actually never been to the tourist areas and beach towns, except for one morning in Cabo at the tail end of a clinic trip. This cruise we're looking at includes a stay overnight in Acapulco, so people can actually enjoy the nightlife.

Not that I really want to watch drunks hanging upside down and guzzling tequila by the gallon or anything... but that's beside the point. One of the big downsides of a cruise is that 4:00 PM curfew when you have to be back on the boat. I like to get out to nice restaurants, watch a sunset, take my time... That stay overnight could be pretty darn cool. Stay tuned, and I'll let you know.

Vacation is a State of Mind

I took a vacation for the long holiday weekend, with no airports, no parking hassles, no exorbitant tourist prices. We stayed home. I just didn't work, and that made it a great vacation.

Yep. You read it here first. Helen Kennedy did not work. The "feel" was similar to the trip when Tony and I rented a house on the Big Island for a while, and my laptop was out for repairs. On that trip, I couldn't work, but the effect was the same. I felt a little bit disconnected, but I got over it.

This will sound terribly boring to my vast audience of readers (I think there are two...) We did some leisurely shopping. Finally found some furniture for our house, which we bought almost two years ago. We drove over to the Ferry Building to buy some excellent organic food for dinner, then we came home and had a fabulous dinner, just the two of us. One evening, we just popped into the bar at Massimo's and had cocktails and appetizers. Relaxed and informal. Movies On Demand at home. No pressure. No expectations.

I guess a vacation is a state of mind brought on by the deliberate act of "not working."

Work Comes First, Sometimes

I haven't written in a while, but I've got a darn good excuse. I've been working a lot. Business is good. Busy! 

As consultants, we take the business when we can get it. To me, that is one of the most challenging aspects of being self employed: managing the workload without a) burning out, b) falling behind, or c) interrupting the sales process to deliver work, and then winding up with nothing on the horizon when a big project is completed.

I've been taking active steps to change this. The first thing I did was to incorporate. Yep. I'm now an LLC. I've got two clients on retainer now, and I'm working on establishing other quality partnerships. The goal is to better manage the ups and downs. All that should give me more time to travel, and more time to think about it.

My niece is coming from Texas with her family. I always like it when she visits. Her kids have never seen tall trees and mountains, so I've suggested we meet up in Tahoe and rent a house for a few days. I'm happy! I get to plan real travel, and will hopefully get to a place that I really love. North shore is my favorite. The pace is slower, and there are fewer tourists. I'll let you know what I figure out.

Did you notice that this post was a shameless plug for my marketing consulting business? Yep. I got that web ad into my blog, inserted a link, and there it is! Your turn. Go click on it!

Voluntourism

I learned a new word this week - voluntourism. Apparently I'm not the only one who enjoys taking a trip for the purpose of volunteering. I've gone to Mexico three times to serve on Lions in Sight eye clinic teams. As a matter of fact, my husband and I go together, and it is such a rewarding experience.

I really enjoy meeting people on these trips. The hosts give you their best, and they treat us like family. We get to see life from their perspective, much more so than if we were tourists. We visit places that tourists are unlikely to see.

The first clinic I did was in Cabo San Lucas, but we never once set foot on the beach. Basically, go about a mile or so north of the tourist zone, and you will see extreme poverty. We set up a clinic in an empty warehouse. They brought people to us from the desert by the busload. The docs would do the exams, and the technicians (us) would dispense the eyeglasses.

The second one was in a place called Union de Tula, in Jalisco. This clinic was a little different... the patients had a little money. The local Lions had to charge about $5 US for each patient, to cover the expenses of the clinic. A great deal, by our standards... $5 and you get an eye exam and at least one pair of glasses. But for some people in Mexico, an extra $5 takes months to earn, and when the choice is to feed your family or to get glasses, guess where that $5 goes. Very sad.

The third clinic that we did in January was the best yet. We were in the Yucatan in a place called Valladolid, which is between Cancun and Merida. I actually worked without a translator, even though my Spanish is pretty awful. Customs would not let us bring in the doctor's bag with the examining equipment until late in the day, so finding the right pair of glasses involved a lot of trial and error. The Mayan people were so nice... very open and friendly. I made friends with one little girl. 

We were in Valladolid during a special festival, and at 10:00 PM, all the women put on their traditional Mayan dresses with their special brand of embroidery. They go out dancing, without the men... all generations of women. They seemed like they enjoy it, and look forward to it. I never did figure out what the festival was all about.

More Ice Cidre

Last week, I wrote about Canada's ice wine, and I have since heard more about it from Jean Michel. His friend runs Cryo Cidrerie, not the one I originally found. So, here is a plug and a link to the friend of a friend's new website! Jean Michel designed their logo for them, and contributed many hours of tasting the product. A tough job, eh?

Frozen apples... that's something I doubt I'll ever see here in California.

Ice Cider from Canada - Cidre de Glace

I had never heard of it before, but Jean-Michel raved about Ice Cider while he was here from Montreal this week. Apparently, this new wine, made from frozen apples, is all the rage in eastern Canada. I've tasted wine there before, and loved the ice wines from the Niagara region, so I became interested when Jean-Michel recommended Le Face Cachee de la Pomme, a producer near Quebec that he knows well.

So, I Googled, and I found lots of enticing stories about ice cider, including this one in the New York Times. I think I will add this to my list of travel destinations on the list of things to do before I die. Doesn't this excerpt from Marialisa Calta's article the NYT article sound wonderful?

"Although there are producers of ice cider outside of the Eastern Townships, there is a de facto “cider trail” concurrent with the well-marked Route des Vins (wine route), which extends from Bedford, Quebec (about 10 miles north of the Vermont border) on the west, north to Farnham and east to Lac-Brome. At least four ice cider makers and five vineyards are clustered around the towns of Dunham and Frelighsburg, just east of Bedford.

"In the fall, the rolling two-lane roads of the area are lined with yellowing cornstalks, neatly planted rows of grapes and apple orchards advertising “auto-cueillette” (the French equivalent of pick your own). Lumbering farm vehicles occasionally slow travel to a crawl. Small villages — many with beckoning restaurants, boutiques, galleries and bed-and-breakfasts — make for lingering side trips."

Mental vacation over... back to work.

Road Warriors Reunion

Claudia was here from Montreal for a week, and we are going to do some business together! Sounds boring, but you have to know Claudia. She's fun.

I was her client back when we were both pioneers on the web trail. Her company developed some machine translation software, and my company needed a cheap way of translating content for its global employees. We worked together for a few years developing this application, and did a lot of traveling in the process. Funny how traveling together creates bonds between people... indelible memories that always remain associated with a sense of place.

So, this week, we revisited our old adventures, and had a grand time of it. We went to a conference, worked the show, and had many meetings. Tapas at B44, cocktails at the Marriott bat cave, a side trip to Sonoma, and a final stop at Baker Beach to see the Golden Gate Bridge.

Most of our talk was around travel, and the numerous places we had met before. Montreal, Chicago, Orlando, San Francisco... we both love working in the international space. We love the cultural differences, enjoy being either the guest or the host...  Work and travel fit together perfectly in my mind. Hope we can continue this, and work together again.

Reporting from Vegas

We just got back from a few days in Las Vegas, where we stayed in the brand spankin' new Palazzo Hotel. Our suite was fabulous, and I would definitely recommend the accommodations. We were on the 47th floor - looking down on the Wynn next door - and we had a lovely view of the golf course.

The living area was great... an L-shaped sectional, with large coffee table, a dining table, and a desk. The The suites have all the modern amenities... boutique soaps, luxury linens, fluffy robes and slippers, remote control draperies, three TVs and phones, and a multi-function printer/fax/copier machine. Internet access is $9.95 a day.

The hotel is adjacent to its sister property, the Venetian. Between the two hotels, the dining and entertainment options are great. Bouchon - five stars!! Table 10 - four stars. Morel's - three stars.

There were a few kinks that still need to be worked out.

My top priority in the morning is a cup of coffee. Waiting time for room service was one hour. For coffee. ONE HOUR!! I don't mind paying for it, but I would dearly love it if they would just put one of those cute little pots in the room so I can just make my own. 

My other top priority in the morning is the bathroom. It's a tie. My point: If you are going to spend billions of dollars on a luxury hotel, please don't skimp on the toilet paper. Get the good stuff. 'Nuff said.

Some of the shops are open, but many others are still unfinished. The shops were very high-end designer duds. Not very many shoppers, and no "personality"... most of the stores were empty, except for the sales people. I was really put off by all the security guards, often guarding the entrance to a shop. Maybe that had something to do with why people weren't shopping. I'd blame it on the recession, but the Venetian's Grand Canal shops were jam packed.

Monday Morning Distraction

Ah... Monday morning! I get to my desk, ready to work. Then I start clearing out my e-mail from the weekend. When my schedule is packed with meetings, I will just delete them and call them spam. But today, I have time to look at a few, so I will call it work.

But it never fails... I start reading the travel news, and I'm off on another mental vacation. What is it about this topic that hooks me? "A blissful haven of tranquility in Bali..." a "gastronomic weekend in Paris..." "a spa weekend in Cyprus..."

It has only been in the past 10 years that I've really travelled for fun. I did a lot of international business travel, with perhaps one day off. But, I had "moments" that were truly unexpected and fabulous, and as a business traveler, you never really feel like a tourist. You have a purpose for being in a particular place, so you just blend in with the locals. I like that.

So, I read these things, and I know that they are targeted to tourists and not travelers. Yet, I can relate. I've had fabulous French dining experiences. I've spa'd not in Cyprus, but in Switzerland and Montreal. Still...that beach in Bali beckons...

Perhaps I should spend the rest of the morning planning a trip? Hmmm... No... I will spend the rest of the morning kicking my butt into gear so I can pay for the next trip. I'm motivated now! Down to business!

First Post on My Mental Vacation

This is the momentous first posting to my blog, so I should probably explain myself, in case anyone ever reads this. (Hah! Fat chance!)

I'm a marketer, and I know all the good reasons to publish a blog. But to tell you the truth, it is pretty hard to find time to write something about marketing that hasn't been said before by people more famous than me. That said, I asked myself that if I didn't have a blog of my own, how could I possibly speak knowledgeably (and credibly) about them to my clients?

So, here it is. My blog. Ta da!

As I was setting this up, my mind started to wander... it went in the direction it always goes when I have not quite figured out what I want to write. I start thinking about my next trip.

I'm not happy if I don't have a trip planned. If I'm feeling a bit stressed, it makes me feel better to daydream and plan another trip.  I started a part-time travel agency, too, so I can at least get paid for it. Well, OK. You caught me. I did it so I would not feel guilty about digressing. I can now call it "work."

So, that's my mental vacation. And that's the title and purpose of my blog.