(not necessarily in that order)
We’re taking a few days off in Guerneville and I’m feeling super grateful for the beautiful Airbnb we found — an entire cottage, quiet and cozy.
So, as I sat at my computer wondering what to write about, I happened to glance up and there it was: today’s blog!
LIFE IS GOOD.
‘Nuff said.
As much as we enjoyed our short stay in Guerneville, it’s always great to be home once again.
And thank goodness we changed our minds about going to LA! The three and a half hour drive to Guerneville and back was more than enough for us, thank you very much.
Our first full day of vacation started off with some challenges from fellow Airbnb guests. We were eventually able to move to a different suite of rooms but it ate up pretty much our whole morning.
But then we had a delicious lunch, followed by a visit to the Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve, which was just what the doctor ordered!
It’s been way too long since I was in the sacred presence of redwood trees. What a blessing.
Yep, we’re in Guerneville for a few days of rest and relaxation.
Looking forward to time spent by the Russian River; walking through the redwoods; and visiting the coast.
Sleeping in. Late lunch on Stearns Wharf, while enjoying the sunshine and view of the ocean. Leisurely walking through Old Town Santa Barbara. Browsing through Cost Plus World Market.
Ah, yes! This is what I need from a vacation.
On top of everything else, I’m feeling especially grateful for an Airbnb in which both windows face onto nothing but greenery.
We were finally able to get the car’s tires rotated and the trunk emptied of cardboard recycling.
The Alisal Fire is 50% contained and word is that the air quality in Santa Barbara is not too bad.
Various music ministry details have fallen into place.
So, we’re all systems GO to leave on vacation tomorrow.
Yay!
This is a photo of the sweet Airbnb cottage in Santa Barbara that we’ve rented for five nights starting this Sunday.
Except we just learned there’s a fire about 26 miles from Santa Barbara, which could very likely affect the air quality!
What a bummer to drive all that way and not be able to spend as much time as we want outside. On the other hand, I really don’t want to cancel our vacation!
Ergo, prayers sent and fingers crossed!
One’s approach to taking a vacation is different when you and your spouse hail from different continents.
Starting in 2004, at least 90% of our “vacations” have been international flights to visit family and friends. And of course, between the long flight and time spent trying to see everybody, those trips usually aren’t all that relaxing,
The other 10% of our vacations have been occasional jaunts, usually after an especially intense period of work or activity. Like the 3-4 nights in Ashland after the Oratorio one year.
The longest purely vacation time we’ve ever spent was 5 nights in Rimini (Italy) in 2005 — no commitments, no obligations, no people we had to see. Of course, it was super crowded but still relaxing.
Since we weren’t able to go to Europe again this year, we’ve known we needed to schedule in a real break of some sort, but week after week was passing by without us making any decisions. Until we realized that if we didn’t book something immediately the holiday season would be upon us and we would miss our window of opportunity!
So, I’m happy to report that after much searching, we found what looks like a lovely and surprisingly affordable spot in Santa Barbara, where we’ll spend 5 nights next month. And now that it’s booked we can’t wait to go!
Ramesha and I are agreed that this was one of our best vacations ever. So, it seems wise to make note of what worked, in order to remember it for next time.
Being near the main drag of Carmel allowed us to park at the hotel and then not touch the car again until the morning we left. We walked to restaurants; we walked to pick up groceries; we walked to parks; and we walked to the beach. I had slacked off on walking during my last challenge, but these three days more than made up for it!
On our first full day we arrived back at our room pooped out from lots of walking and ready for a nap…only to realize that some new hotel guests had arrived in the room directly above us and they were really noisy! Heavy footsteps, loud laughter, banging doors type noisy.
It was bad enough in the afternoon but our intuition told us they were there to party and we weren’t eager to be woken up in the wee hours of the morning. So, we asked to move to a different room! It was a little annoying having to pack everything up and then unpack it again, but we were soooo glad we did! And we realized that in future we should always ask for an upstairs room.
We loved having very little on our agenda. We did virtually no sightseeing and oriented our “schedule” around eating delicious meals whenever we were good and ready.
We got plenty of rest, getting to bed early and not being in a rush to get up and go.
Adding to all that was the natural charm and beauty of Carmel — uniquely quaint buildings; flowers blooming everywhere; stunning artwork in every other shop; the beautiful white sand beach; and some of the nicest, most genuinely friendly restaurant people we’ve ever encountered.
All in all, it was a perfect vacation!
I had hoped to catch up on a number of things today, but I guess my psyche really was on vacation because I wasn’t able to accomplish much of anything!
My challenge is to be okay with being non-productive.
This is what makes a “staycation” a little tricky; when we’re in our usual environment it’s hard not to fall into our usual behaviors and expectations. However, opportunities to really rest are also needed.