Weekend In Branson

The hubs and I made the three and a half hour drive to Branson, Missouri for a little get-a-way. It's hard to describe Branson... Kitschy, hoaxy, touristy... but it manages to be all of those things in such a delightful way!

We lucked out with a hotel promotion that got us two nights in the Radisson for $99. As if that wasn't enough to get excited about, we were given a free upgrade to a top floor suite after finding a couple of beetles in our booked room. Apparently this time of year Branson has a problem with beetles - gross, right? But if that's the price to pay for a huge suite with a king size sleep number bed, I can deal!

Thursday I got my history fix at Table Rock Dam, which has a visitor center with great displays about the settling and developing of the Midwest, and the hubs got his good food and cigar fix at Waxy O'Shea's, a restaurant and pub in Branson Landing. 

Friday we toured Bass Pro's resort on Table Rock Lake, Big Cedar Lodge, and then spent the afternoon fishing! We didn't catch a thing, which is apparently referred to as getting "skunked," but by the end of the day I was touching stink bait and wading in the river barefoot despite the slimy rocks, so I'd call it a successful first attempt!

That evening we mini golfed at Pirate's Cove. That has got to be the cleanest, most well kept mini golf course I've ever been to! Neither of us are very good players, but we had a great time goofing off in the pirate ship and taking silly photos all over the course. 

And Away We Go

Today is the big day that I've been planning for and greatly anticipating since December... I am headed to Jamaica for Erin's wedding! I can hardly believe her big day is right around the corner and am giddy with excitement to be a part of it.

I purchased a three spray tan package on Groupon for Ooh La La salon on Van Ness and used the first one a month ago before Erin's bachelorette in Vegas. I wasn't entirely thrilled with the results, but considering the discount I got by purchasing on Groupon it was acceptable. I also scheduled a tan for what should have been last night, knowing I'd want a little glow to start off my trip. Last night I got home from work, did the whole shower and scrub routine, drove all the way across the city... and the shop was closed. Oh my! I left a voicemail with the salon asking what happened, since last week I received automated confirmations via both email and voicemail. All they had to say was "Oh sorry, I didn't see it on the schedule" and offered to have me go in today instead. I was furious! I leave today! Pale, oh so pale, I leave today! No offer of compensation or discounted services in the future, just an "Oh, sorry." *Sigh*

I may not be airbrushed, but packed and prepared I am! 

Here are a few things that are easy to forget when you're going abroad:

- Let your bank know you will be out of the country 

- Find out if there are fees for using your ATM or credit card abroad

- Make sure your passport isn't within six months of expiration 

- Keep all your reservation confirmation numbers handy

- Don't assume your hotel will have a power/outlet converter. Bring one.

- And of course, leave room in your suitcase for souvenir shopping!

Whitewater Rafting

Whitewater rafting has been on my bucket list for years, so when I made my summer must-do list, I was sure to include it! My sister, two of her girlfriends and I booked a day trip through Whitewater Adventures recently. Being newbies, we decided a cheap, easy rafting trip would be the best way to get our feet wet.

My sister did all of the communicating with Whitewater Adventures prior to the trip, and her experience wasn't ideal. The woman on the other end of the phone was generally rude and uninformative, and we didn't have any say in which wave of rafters we would be with. On the day of, we arrived at the stated start time, which turned out to be an hour before our wave was bussed up to the starting point along Upper Cache Creek. The raft we were given wasn't self-bailing, so every time we got through a rough patch of white water we had to make our way to the side of the river to hop out and flip our raft to empty the water (easier said than done!). The dry sacks holding our lunches leaked so our food got wet, although we weren't all that enthusiastic about the uncut rolls and slimy lunch meat anyway. 

On the last and biggest rapid, referred to by Whitewater Adventures as "The Mother," my sister fell out of the boat and went through it on her bum. She hit every boulder on the way down and came out at the bottom pretty banged up and with a potentially fractured shin. A couple of other rafters helped me pull her out of the river, but after letting her rest for a few minutes we had to put her back in the boat and finish out the last mile. When we got to the end, the two staff members collecting rafts and gear didn't seem in any way concerned that my sister was injured and weren't the least bit apologetic for having no first aid supplies on hand.

On the upside, Upper Cache Creek is beautiful! And we got the best upper body workout of our lives! The experience certainly didn't inspire me to pick up whitewater rafting as a regular hobby, but I'm really glad I gave it a try. 

If you were going to book a rafting trip with Whitewater Adventures, I'd recommend doing their weekend trip rather than the one day trip. The company seemed really more geared toward those who participated in the two-day/ two-night adventure, which included camping, a movie night under the stars, a dance party at the campsite, and two days of rafting. Those of us who were there for the one day rafting trip were just an afterthought to the staff.

Here's a list of things I strongly recommend you bring:

- A small bucket to aid in bailing your raft

- Shin guards and a helmet... I'm not kidding

- Water shoes

- A dry sack and a carabiner to attach it to the boat

- A first aid kit

- Don't bring a cooler in your boat even if they allow it

 

Summer to-do List

I'm a big fan of lists. All kinds of lists. I make lists of things I can't forget to do each day. I make lists of things I need to buy and errands I need to run. My favorite sort of list are goal lists, like the bucket list I've been keeping since high school and reoccurring to-do lists for by year or season.

Here's the list I've already been getting a jump start on for this summer!

1- Bling out my old bikinis instead of buying new ones

2- Finally work up the courage to scuba dive during my Jamaica vacation

3- Fit back into my college jeans!

4- Sail on the Bay. Already bought a Living Social deal for it, just need to book a date.

5- Hit up every bottomless bunch on 7x7's list

6- Donate my collection of bridesmaid dresses. They depress me.

7- Go camping. I haven't been in three years and that's just silly.

8- Do a wine country day tour. The tourist kind, not the locals only kind.

9- Horseback riding. I probably haven't been since grade school!

10- Go white water rafting. Can you believe this will be a first for me?

Marin Headlands

Marin is full of great little trails, some of which weave right down to the ocean. My favorite is the Tennessee Valley Trail, just shy of four miles round trip. Half way out the trail splits for a while, a beautiful but narrow path on the left leading you on a flatter route, and a wider more steep path to the right better suited for bikes and horses. The two paths reconnect before reaching a pebbly cove where I like to sit and watch the waves for a while before heading back. To the right of the beach there is a foot path zigzagging up the hillside that leads to an incredible view of the cove. 

I don't get across the Golden Gate Bridge as often as I'd like (hello $6 bridge tolls!) but as I've told you before, Grand View Park, which is just blocks from my house, is a great spot to run stairs and get a 360 view of the city.