How long and where are you going for your summer vacay?

My summer vacation is coming late this year - October - Tanzania and Zanzibar. It's 12 days in all.

We're driving to France this weekend though and have a weekend in Milan in August and a long weekend in Dorset in England in August.

Beautyyyyy

I'm off to the Northwest Territories (Yellowknife) it's the END OF THE HIGHWAY

Also Kelowna, BC and Canmore, Alberta and stops along the way.

But you probably already know that. I'm way too excited.

Also I have weekend trips planned to Toronto (again), Rhode Island and the 1000 Islands.

I'll never tire of hearing it - I love it that you are so excited by these things. I tell anyone that will listen about my upcoming trip to Tanzania!

Whats the 1000 Islands?

*mwah* thanks Paula dahling... *long drag off of a long cigarette holder behind a floppy hat that's obscuring one eye*

Well...I found nothing on wikitravel

Official site: http://www.visit1000islands.com/

But here's the reviews of the place it's bee you tee full: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Revi...y_New_York.html

Oh yes, and all these weekend trips will be on my motocyclette!

Fun places everyone!

We (kids too) are going to Toronto in just over a week. DH has a conference there.

DH and I will do a couple of nights in Vegas in July (another conference).

Then the kids and I will go to Paris and we will live in an apartment for 3 wks. I am SOOO excited about this trip. DH will come over for the week in the middle to do some business. While he's there we're going to pop over to Brussels probably just overnight.

That's all we have planned right now...but we always seem to fill up our summer with trips, 'cause it's just too bloody hot here to stick around.

Oooh Paris, are you going to Euro Disney?

Where in Paris are you living???

Yeah and I am SO SAD we have to miss each other in Toronto... maybe I can ask for a day off...for a good cause.

I don't think we're doing Disney this time (we went there the first time when we took the kids)...but you never know.

We're staying in the 11th arrondissement right at the border of the 3rd (Marais...my favorite part of Paris!). It is also right by the canal and Oberkampf. We will be in a 2 bedroom apartment in a 19th century bldg. The kids have their own room with bunkbeds...yeehaw! We have never explored the 11th before, so I'm looking forward to that.

I am also looking forward to shopping at the open air market and the Monoprix, the boulangerie, charcuterie, etc, and cooking at "home". And working on my French...lol.

Awesommmmme, that'll be exciting. I will read all about it I hope!

Don't you worry...I'll write all about it.

How cool! I love Paris, I would love to take Alex there! I don't have one planned unfortunately, Alex is on vacation with his Daddy in the States now, for 3 weeks! I hate the bloody time difference! I never get to talk to them! But apart from that, may be the thing in Thailand!

Bloody Brits spend their lives on holiday! The USA must be the meanest country on earth for holiday time, usually at best 10 working days a year (two weeks, including weekends).

We are taking a 10-day driving trip to Yellowstone National Park. It will include Mt. Rushmore, Devil's Tower (featured in Close Encounters of the Third Kind), Little Big Horn Battlefield (Custer's Last Stand), Grand Tetons National Park (literally translated from the Spanish as Big Tits National Park), Salt Lake City and Rocky Mountains National Park. There will be a blog someday.

That's so awesome, Martin. I'm planning on doing something like that in 2010 on my motocyclette!

Tell us more about your motocyclette. I'm honestly thinking of buying something like that. It sounds like a Vespa or a scooter, but if you plan to go as far as the Wild, Wild West on it, it must be a bit bigger.

Hahaha motocyclette is just French for motorcycle...I just think that motorcycle doesn't really fit me, so I say "motocyclette" to give it some style.

I have a Suzuki Marauder:

Wow! Easy Rider! Do you have black leather studded jackets and all that stuff?

Very nice!
Is that the outside of your house Louise? Its cute...

Ahhhhh! Tell me... Tanzania sounds amazing, that is exactly where I want to go. Any room in your suitcase for a little one? hehe

Well I was going to go on holiday to Yemen and Oman in October but the security situation in Yemen has gone to S*$# so I had to change my plans. So I'm going to Sri Lanka instead!!!

Oh and I'm going to Denmark next weekend

Ooh! I think I'll move back to England. As stated earlier, Brits seem to spend half their lives on holiday!

I wish mate! I've been away to Prague for 3 days so far this year. We may get a reasonable amount of holiday but I can't afford to go anywhere! It's too expensive to live in this country!!

All right, I'll stay here. I got to Cancun for 3 days this year, so we are about equal.

Seconded! I got the train from Bath to London the other day and it was £87 return, with a young persons railcard (33% off)... its outrageous. I could either a) live off that for a months, or b ) get return flights to eastern europe or something... and they want people to use public transport, meh!

Nope, I have a baby blue jacket...



No, that's the house where I bought it from. I have a little condo in the south end of the city, I'm not that rich to own a house like that, haha.

87 quid for a return ticket from Bath to London? Christopher Columbus! That's criminal. I can fly from South Florida to New York for US$ 178.00. It must be cheaper to drive.

Yep, hop on in

We're going on safari - we've hired ourselves a private guide and we're going to Arusha, Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti, then Lake Manyara - I'm so excited

After that we are going to Zanzibar for a few days - prolly spend time snorkelling, going into Stonetown and if we have time going to the small jungle area to see monkeys.

Its for my 40th and we have a few days off when we get back - and John has a surpise for me he said, so I don't know what it is yet, but I have that to look forward to as well!!!!!

Well kinda, but you can't really drive in London unless you pay the congestion charge, and then its hard to park, and there's so much traffic. Plus there was a fuel strike in Bath last week and nowhere had any petrol so I was screwed!

Ohhhhhhhhh sounds amazing! I love Africa so much... like the sky at night is unreal, its just so pure.

Are you going to Kilimanjaro?

Yes, I'm looking forward to seeing the stars again without light pollution - awesome!!

No not Kilimanjaro this time - the main thing for me about this trip is the safari, I can't wait till we see our first lion on the trip - so majestic!!

By the way are you planning on writing up your recent trip?

I honestly never realised this till recently - that in USA you get so few days!!!

Here in good ole blighty I get 25 days annual leave, plus 104 days in weekends, plus 8 days bank holidays!!!

There has to be some plus to living somewhere where it rains more than the sun shines

I wouldn't say it's cheaper to drive. 1 US gallon = $8.96!!!!

It is on a motorcycle!

I agree! Yes I was pretty shocked to hear how rough it is in the States with regards to holiday time etc. Sucks so bad... we are pretty spoilt in the UK for that! At my last job in the UK I was the same I had 25 days annual leave, all the weekend and public holidays off and up to 15 days sick leave per annum. PLus the salary wasn't half bad for a Personal Assistant and we got company shares as a gift once too! I am sure they still do that, but I got it the oince whie I was there! It was for ITV in London.

Where is it that much a gallon?

On a separate issue:
I'm totally jealous of European holiday time off! It sucks here in the states. It's all part of that "American work ethic" thing, I guess.

When I first arrived here I was shocked when on my first job interview I was offered no holiday time at all. Strictly speaking, the United States does not have national holidays (i.e. days where all employees in the U.S. receive a day free from work and all business is halted). In the U.S., most retail businesses close on Thanksgiving and Christmas, but remain open on all other holidays. Private businesses often observe only the "big six" holidays (New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas). The generally accepted two-week vacation is given to employees literally out of the goodness of the boss's heart.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_holida...e_United_States

Everywhere in the UK, and that's being generous. Diesel is the equivalent of $10.49!

Whose personal assistant were you?

I worked for the Head of Legal and the Director of Knowledge Management, his job was basically to keep the firm running smoothly and to handle company business i.e. mergers etc. we also had to re-organise the firm after a big merger with another TV company and we held a lot of meetings with the television governing body etc.
Plus the Legal guy he done all the contracts for series sponsors, like at the beginning of a show, it would say and .... is sponsored by whoever! We would do these contracts!

Now you are personal assistant to Alex!

Ha ha yes absolutely! Except he doesn't have me getting his dry cleaning quite yet... I am sure give it time!

Yah, 10 more years maybe...

Summer vacation????

Vacation????

i don't understand the question.

Vacation. That's North American for holiday. Where are you going for your summer hols?

LOL, I am sensing a little hint of sarcasm here, I assume you haven't had one for about 10 years give or take! You've been working your butt off...

Mind you I would rather be stuck in Thailand having not had a holiday than say, London or New York and not had one...

I am doing some weekends away in the UAE, like Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Fujeriah (even though it will be 45deg cel.) and a long weekend in Salalah, Oman to escape the heat (Kareef season (mosoon season0.

Are you going to Bahrain? I would really recommend it?