"Vacation Posting Contest"

As usual, the best ideas come from you guys, the FF members. A tip of the hat to Big Al for suggesting a Travel forum. And he didn't stop there he suggested the idea of a Vacation Posting Contest. Big Al further suggested: Winner would be chosen by the "membership at large" at the end of 2008 and awarded a token prize as
"Best 2008 travel Vacationer " .

2009 would be the start of another years contest .

I like the idea. How about you guys?

Well ... I'm all for it !!! I love traveling to new places and we can share our vacation fun spots with others incase they want to travel there some day .

I will supply the first trophy for 2008 Vacation contest . It will be a little handy travel item that I will pick out soon and post .

Ok ' I'll start this show since I can't participate in the contest .

A few years back my wife and I took our son , his best friend and our two daughters to the Bahamas for two weeks as a graduation present .

My wifes family is an old family there and at one time owned 70% of New Providence Island where Nassau is located .She grew up there and knows the fun great areas to go .

We do not care for Nassau as it is too commercialized and touristy for us . We flew directly into the Exuma Island Chain and landed in Georgetown Bahamas . WE rented a place on the beach , away from town about 3 miles . We had rented a 25' Boston Whaler to run around in and went exploring to a new place each day . The water is incredible . The tropical fish are amazing .

The boys headed for the "little bamboo outside bar" for drinks each evening . Legal drinking age is 18 . Its a little far down the Exuma island chain and they were hoping to meet other kids (Girls) their own age on Spring break . I joined in with them a couple times and a good time was had by all .We had rented a old rusty chevy pickup and since everyone drives on the wrong side of the road down there , my wife did the driving with the girls up front as the boys and me rode in the back . The boys were not feeling any pain and sang the whole way home . I think I even joined in a few times . The town put on a couple of barbeques and the food was excellent . We did some diving for fresh lobster and conch . Karen,my wife , knew many of the locals and fresh bake goods were delivered to the house each moring by the local bakery lady . Its called "Mamas Bakery" and she bakes all these amazing goodies and sells them in town to the sail boaters passing through . Since she lived just up the road we had her stop by for fresh 1st dibs on all the goodies . I gained 5 pounds on that trip . If your into Tarpon fishing this use to be a hot place .Maybe it still is .
It has grown considerably since we were there last , but our good friends now own a large tour /Island sightseeing business there and we may be headed back down later this year to party !!!

Great idea Big Al. I'm in.

OK ,I'm in a good mood so let's sweeten up this "2008 Best Vacation " prize award a little .
Hows 3 free nights at my Furnished Vacation cabin rental in Bocas Del Toro , Panama sound ??!!!
You take care of your own travel cost and the 2 person furnished cabin is on me . Hows that sound for a grand prize for the "Best Vacation Posting" ?????


The winner is going to return home with a lifetime of memories and a camera full of great Pictures .!!!!!!

Sweet

Very sweet Al. Somehow that comes across as much more than a 'token' prize. Thanks Buddy.
But ... I do not think you should be left out of the competition. I'll come up with a token prize for you should you win. We'll need as many entries as possible.

Help me out here, but here is how I see it working. Anyone can post details about their vacation. Pictures will be required to be taken seriously. We'll pic the top 10 entries (maybe 15 if we have enough good ones) and have a poll to see what the top 3 are. Then we'll have a poll to select the winner. All members of FF will be able to vote on both phases of the competition.

Any details I left out?

Doc said:

Very sweet Al. Somehow that comes across as much more than a 'token' prize. Thanks Buddy.
But ... I do not think you should be left out of the competition. I'll come up with a token prize for you should you win. We'll need as many entries as possible.

Help me out here, but here is how I see it working. Anyone can post details about their vacation. Pictures will be required to be taken seriously. We'll pic the top 10 entries (maybe 15 if we have enough good ones) and have a poll to see what the top 3 are. Then we'll have a poll to select the winner. All members of FF will be able to vote on both phases of the competition.

Any details I left out?

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Nope ! I think you just about covered the rules very well . I will come up with a alternate Grand prize incase the winner chooses not to come to Panama .

Folks who plan to post ,..... to be taken "really seriously" we need photos included in your post . As they say "A picture is worth a thousand words" .

Also do not think you cannot win because you went on a camping trip in your own area and did not travel to some far away exotic place .

The game is to make us want to put your vacation area on our travel plans list . Be truthful and keep the facts as close to realistic as possible .

You can post more than one vacation you have taken through the years .

COME ON !!! We have all taken that one vacation that just shines above the others . Lets hear about it !!! You can't win if you don't post !!!

Dumb Question........ Does the first year of the contest include other years or does it have to happen in 2008?

mbsieg said:

Dumb Question........ Does the first year of the contest include other years or does it have to happen in 2008?

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Mike . It can be about any vacation you have taken in the past .

Heres my Best Vacation story :
Way back in the early 1990’s when my wife and I were still dating and engaged to be married she came home from work one day and told me to pack a bag with clothing suitable for hot humid weather and make sure I included a couple of swim suits and make arrangements to be gone for 3 weeks . I had no idea where I was going .

We got on the plane in San Francisco and I had still no idea of my final destination . WE flew directly to Miami Beach and I was told to sit down in the lounge and wait for my next departure Flight .

From there we flew to Nassau Bahamas . I thought I have it all figured out that we were there to visit friends and relax on the beach . Little did I know .

After a week there I was getting quite bored and thinking “What am I going to do for 2 more weeks ??!!??

Karen came walking in the house with her girlfriend and told me I should pack a bag with my swim trucks and a change or two of clothing . I asked why and she told me I would find out in the morning .

Morning came and we headed down to the local marina . I was admiring the nice looking boats when she suddenly stopped and said to climb aboard .

It was a beautiful 45’ Chris Craft yacht ,set up for some serious off shore fishing . The captain met us and introduced me to the 1st mate and chef on board . He told the 1st mate to “let go the lines and cast off as he fired up the engines . I just stood around with my mouth open while my future wife grinned at me and the chef handed me a drink . There was my future wife , Myself and the crew on board . That was it . 3 crew and 2 guest .

We stopped to attach a 22” Boston Whaler to the stern and headed out of port .

Karen had informed the Captain when she had made arrangements that we would be catching most of our meals and not to overstock the refrigerator with main food items .

We headed 35 miles due east to the Exuma chain of islands . They are beautiful and mostly untouched .There are over 100 islands in that group .

We spent the next week dropping anchor in another little cove on a different island each night .We dove for lobster and conch every day , swam and took more pictures of tropical fish than you can imagine . They would swim up and eat crackers out of my hand . Hundreds at a time . I swam with Sharks and Dolphins ,

We visited and swam into the underground cave from the James Bond Movie “Thunder Ball” . What a incredible cave . The little Boston Whaler was used to make short sightseeing trip .

I fed the iguanas on Allen’s Cay and laughed my head off when Bill the 1st mate , had his big toe bitten by one , about 3 feet long . Iguanas have lousy eyesight and will snap at shadows or anything that moves near them .They don’t hurt you but they still have pretty good jaws and can clamp down hard . Bill was dancing around , holding his foot and threating to have fresh iguana for dinner that night ..


The last two days we went to the Ocean side for some serious fishing . My arms ached from catching fish which included 59 Mahi Mahi ( a blunt nose Dolphin fish , not the “flipper” type) , 1 -800 lb shark , numerous smaller sharks , and many more types of fish . We brought back 220 pounds of filleted Mahi Mahi . As I would pull one in the 1st mate would take it and hand me another pole with fish on . I finally said “NO More”.


That trip, the chef taught me how to cook a Conch from the juice of a fresh lime . Him and I dove many times for our nightly dinners .

One night as the 1 mate was filleting out the fish he threw all the carcasses overboard in a shallow cove we were spending the night at.
The Capt. turned off all the outside lights on the ship and had us wait in the flying bridge . About 30 minutes later he turned back on all the flood lights and lit up the whole area of the water for about 30 yards in all directions . You cannot believe the number of huge sharks that were feeding .There must have been 30 or more . Some as big a 12 or 14 feet long ! By morning every fish carcass was gone .

Rocking to sleep every night was quite an experience .

On our last night Karen and I had spent the day exploring deserted islands , swimming ,skin diving and taking pictures .

After we showered ,back on board that evening , I came up from our room and there was Karen and the crew standing on the stern deck in front of a Birthday Cake that the chef had prepared while Karen kept me busy all day .

Someone handed me a tropical drink and they all sang “Happy Birthday” to me . I had completely forgotten it was my birthday ,May 2nd !


When we return to Nassua the next day we delivered 150 pounds of fish to friends and to the two Ladies and their families who had helped take care of Karen when she was a little girl growing up in Nassau .

That was my best trip I ever took ,because it was a total surprize .Karen had made all the reservations and knew the Capt and Chef very well from living and growing up in the Bahamas . The chef had retired and moved to the states but flew back down just to cook for her . That was some of the best food I ever had !!! I remember asking the Chef, Jerry , on the first night why the crew did not eat with us since we sat at this big table having dinner and there was plenty of room .
He looked at me , grinned and asked me if "I usually had the waitess sit down to eat when I went out to dinner at a restauart in the states" .

Somewhere we have the pictures and I will dig them out and post them here soon .

Wow, BigAl, now how is anyone else going to ever match that vacation..How awesome..

Pigtails said:

Wow, BigAl, now how is anyone else going to ever match that vacation..How awesome..

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LOL ,
Pigtails, I can't be in the contest . So anyone can win . I did not post that vacation story to impress anyone . It was just a great vacation and one of the best I ever had . Anyone could do the same thing with a sail boat too .

Many of the FF members live in beautiful areas and don't need to go anywhere to enjoy themselves or have a incredible experience . You are a perfect example of that !

OK. So here are my pics from South Carolina. Basically they are all of the runt since I was behind the camera. I did throw in one of the beach houses and one of the VERY tired runt at the airport on the way home.

Looks like you had some fun. The best runts are tired runts. They always look like angels when they are sleeping.

Awwwwwwwwwww a little red haired runt!!
Isn't she? lol
Too cute Rback!!
looks like fun to me!!

Beach houses, those look nice and cozy. Cute daugher. Looks like she was having fun!

rback33 said:

OK. So here are my pics from South Carolina. Basically they are all of the runt since I was behind the camera. I did throw in one of the beach houses and one of the VERY tired runt at the airport on the way home.

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Is it just me, or has the Atlantic ocean become a lot narrower lately?

DaveNay said:

Is it just me, or has the Atlantic ocean become a lot narrower lately?

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Global warming

pirate_girl said:

Awwwwwwwwwww a little red haired runt!!
Isn't she? lol
Too cute Rback!!
looks like fun to me!!

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Naw... she's a brunette.... with killer blue eyes... dating years will NOT be fun... it was a great time





Oh and PG.... you can come hang out on the beach with me anyday...

I don't think so.

Travel photos from any year? Ok.
2007 was fun, but not likely interesting to anybody else - we went to a family wedding in SC (but we did get to Charleston, and out to those beautiful beaches!) and went to Sedona/Grand Canyon, and Yosemite. Then my wife went with her sister on a Steps of Apostle Paul trip, to Greece, Turkey, and Rome.

Probably our most photogenic trip was India, November 2004. Younger Daughter was at University of Delhi for her semester abroad, June through December 2004. In November we went to visit her and to see some of India. We traveled on our own most of three weeks but got a tourist guide for Jaipur and to visit the Taj Mahal. Daughter did an excellent job explaining things when we were with her in Delhi and when we went to Varanasi.

My India pictures are in 20 sets. I can't imagine anyone viewing more than one or two sets at a sitting, but I love every picture. India is endlessly fascinating.

Here are some of the sets.

On each page, the links to other India sets are at the bottom of the left column below the thumbnails. You should hit (f11), Show Full Screen, if you are reading on a small monitor or laptop since the captions are below the photos.


Ghats in Veranasi
I took several sets of photos in Varanasi, the holy city on the Ganges. This is a major pilgrimage destination because Buddha preached his first sermon nearby, and is perhaps most famous among Westerners for the waterfront cremations on the Ghats (riverfront stairs).

Jama Masjid, the Grand Mosque of Delhi
We went Friday afternoon (Muslim Sabbath) and waited for afternoon prayers to conclude before we were allowed to enter. While we waited we noticed that India Army security outside looked very alert. After we got back to the hotel we realized we had visited simultaneous with Arafat's tumultuous funeral in Ramalla, that was broadcast live all day. No wonder those soldiers looked intense. (Muslims were rulers in India but now are a minority, after most were forced out to Pakistan and Bangladesh, former regions of India, 60 years ago).

Modern Delhi. An upscale crafts market, and a downtown general market.

Other photo sets cover road trips, the Taj Mahal, Jaipur, and our layover in Hong Kong. I'm in a couple of sets, not the ones listed above.

Enjoy!

Ok...I'm not sure this will qualify but you have to understand that "Taking vacations" has never really been something I've done. Typically I've incorporated little adventures into the places I've been to for other reasons....Here's what I mean...

During my radio days (1992) I had the opportunity to be one of the hosts for Charlie Daniels "Volunteer Jam". It was held at the Starwood Amphitheatre just outside of Nashville. The show had been on hiatus for a few years and was being ressurrected. I was there for three days and had a little time to take in some of the sights. One of the places I went to was the Country Music Hall Of Fame. Across from the museum were a row of shops with a rustic/western sort of facade. The shed roof with rough sawn board and batton siding, hitching posts etc. The shops had merchandise representing different artists. There was a Hank Jr. shop and a Randy Travis shop and so on. So, after the trip to the museum we decided to pop on over to check out the shops. At the end of the walk way, on a stool was a fella playin his guitar for tips. he was pretty good too.

So, after a look in the stores we strolled down the end of the porch where the guy was playin and we listened for a while. Another fella came up and said a few words to the guy on the stool, who in turn handed him his guitar. The second guy gets to playin. WOW...this fella is real good. When he was done we chatted a minute and I gave him my card and told him if he ever puts together a CD to send it my way that I would be happy to give it some air time. * I was the Program Director and Operations Mgr for a country formatted station in Fla at the time.

Now, what happened over the following 6 months is what makes this "Vacation" so special so just hang on.

Back at the show....it was fabulous. I got to hang with a bunch of country music artists and got to introduce Joe Diffy and a few others. Shared stories and stuff.

I'm back home now. it's about a month +/- and I get this compilation CD in the mail. It's got a couple of songs by that guy I was tellin you about. One of the things I liked to do was to showcase unknowns that were trying to break into the biz, so to speak. Compilation CD's typically have a couple of songs by say five different people. Made it more cost effective for Indie labels to get exposure for their artists. Anyway, acouple of months later I get another CD....different company though. Kind of a step up from the last one. This same guy is on it with new music that's even better than the last. So I give it a whirl. Gets good response from the listeners.

A couple of months later I get another CD. This time it's a single from one of the major labels promoting a new artist. Low and behold it's this same guy. Again the music is better than before.....and so begins the trek down the path to country music stardom.

Who was that masked man you ask.....


None other than





Needless to say it made for a killer memory of that "Vacation" to Nashville.

Wow , Great Story !
Keep em coming folks ! I just returned from Panama and let me tell you ,"I had a kick in the ass good time" .

Why am I telling you this ?? Because if you want to have a chance to win this contest and spent a few days in a rain forest/ island retreat ,you need you share them stories too !
I'll get some more pictures posted of the grand prize when I get back to my home computer and can download them .

DaveNay said:

Is it just me, or has the Atlantic ocean become a lot narrower lately?

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I knew it was getting mighty dry in Florida, but I never dreamed it was that bad!!

Bump !

Com on people !!! Can't win if you don't post .

Wait!!!!! I missed this somehow! I read it a month ago or so and I never really said anything! Hmmmm.....
welll I havent been on a vacation in years. About 7 to be percise. Plus I doubt I can beat anyones story here. (plus I cant afford to take off of work OR fly to Panama.
But we need more folks to write up your experiences!!!

Big Al has a great offer!

I gotta go back and read the offer again... At the time I never dreamed I could go, but it MIGHT be feasible by middle of next year.. AND I have another mini-vacation coming up this next month...

AND at current prices... the wifey and I can get there for about $1200 TOTAL... if only I could book today....

I don't go on holidays (vacations to you) as I go to vehicle rallies and lately to Folk Festivals, it is not much fun going places on your own. Do rallies count??

You bet it does !!!!Post away!!