Just a quick run down of the property and you will get the picture what a great place this is to stay at. Remember, it is a resort, so everything you need is right here including coffee shops, a grocery store, other shopping, restaurants, bars, a spa, gym, golf, a long beautiful walking and jogging trail and 3 pools to splash in after a day of recreation and fun.

The rooms at Shingle Creek are first class with top of the line furniture, granite vanities, plus bedding, a 36″ widescreen television and more. We had a beautiful view of the golf course, tennis courts and lake from our 4th floor room. There are 14 floors in the resort and rooms range from the standard size hotel room, although quite luxurious to 3 presidential suites of 1,770 square feet.

Yes, this a nice hotel, but don’t forget when you are at a resort, everything is expensive. It costs $10 to get into the gym, $10 a day for internet access and an 18.25% gratuity is added to every restaurant bill you get and that includes bars as well. I made the mistake of essentially giving out a 33% tip for 2 glasses of wine at one of the bars we stopped in at. No big deal, you’re on vacation right, but just be aware of the costs at a resort like this so you know what you are spending your money on. Since my wife was at the Smart Marriages Conference we did get $10 length of stay internet access and 25% off in one of the restaurants, so the costs overall weren’t too outrageous.

We only go to stay one night because my wife was actually attending the end of the Smart Marriages Conference and went to a 1 hour training on Sunday and an all day workshop on Monday. We were able to spend most of the day together on Sunday and on Monday I pretty much spent the day by myself except for meeting Jean for lunch.

I actually had fun hanging out at the pool in the morning and then blogging and doing a little work in the afternoon while sitting in the hotel lobby. I did go to the pool bar and order a Headwaters Margarita (the hotel’s signature margarita) which was, let’s just say, pow-er-ful. Even after putting about another half cup of ice in it, it still had quite a kick. Unfortunately I didn’t stay out at the pool bar because I couldn’t access the internet from there. I could get on the hotel network, but no access to the net, bummer, I was getting into being outside in the warm breeze.

Overall the short 2 day stay a the Shingle Creek Resort in Orlando was relaxing and a lot of fun, I’m sure you will enjoy your stay here. A little tip on making online reservations, prices for the standard hotel rooms vary quite a bit, all the way from $200 a night to only $89 a night. However, you have to poke around a lot to get the $89 and $95 rooms and they’re only available Friday and Saturday nights I believe. Of course, if you have to make reservations for a specific date you will just be at the mercy of their somewhat hard to understand pricing system, but if you have a choice of dates choose a 2 night stay starting on Friday that’s priced at $95 instead of $190. Your room prices won’t show up until you pick the dates of your stay, so like I previously stated, just poke around a bit and see what you can find.

Enjoy your stay at the Rosen Shingle Creek resort.

Others come to the Gatlinburg TN resort area because they simply love the feel of this incredible vacation spot. Even though this area gets millions of visitors every year, it has a distinctly small town feel amongst its many shops, restaurants and entertainment venues. Many vacationers, including myself, spend time just cruising the streets of Gatlinburg venturing in shops, watching taffy and other candies be made and sipping a cup of coffee enjoying a relaxing vacation.

Of course, to enjoy either the scenery of the Smokies or the relaxing atmosphere of the downtown Gatlinburg area, you have to start planning now for your late spring or summer vacation. One of the best ways to enjoy this area is to rent a Galinburg cabin and experience this fun resort from your own private getaway instead of staying in a small hotel room. There are thousands of cabin rentals in and around this area ranging from 1 bedroom honeymoon cabins to giant 10 bedroom lodge like cabins for large church groups or family reunions.

Don’t miss out on a great opportunity to spend your next vacation in an incredible Gatlinburg Tennessee cabin rental. it is an experience and wonderful vacation you won’t soon forget. Start your planning today by looking around our vacation blog and cabin rentals website.

While many people flock to this resort area for skiing and Lake Tahoe snowboarding at some of the resorts such as Squaw Valley, the many resorts and lodges that have popped up also contain endless entertainment for visitors, including shows, concerts, shopping, and many first class golf courses that you can visit during the summer months.

Lake Tahoe Entertainment is a very broad category, and getting to stay in one of the hotels in the area will likely be the most enjoyable part of your experience. There are dozens of hotels to choose from all over the area, including both the North and South sides of the lake. Each one has its own amenities and entertainment, which will give you plenty of options to choose from when you need a Lake Tahoe hotel for your vacation.

You can find plenty of resorts and luxury Lake Tahoe hotels on the north side, but if you want the best in entertainment, you need to head to the south side of the lake in Nevada. Here you will find Marriott hotels to marvel those in bigger cities, a handful of casinos which double as hotels, providing endless entertainment and things to do including shows and gambling, as well as buffets, dinner theatres and many other features.

At Squaw Valley, you’ll also find many lodges and resorts that offer Lake Tahoe entertainment at its best. Depending on where you choose to stay, you might have different choices as to the activities that you can experience when it comes to outdoor activities. However, whether you stay on the north or south shore, most experiences are within an hour’s drive, making seeing everything easy no matter which hotel or casino you stay in during your vacation.

Lake Tahoe entertainment begins with the outdoor activities and family fun, which is why people come in the first place. However, it ends with the thing that many people don’t think about- all of the hotels, resorts, and casinos around the lake that provide lodging, and some of the best entertainment that you can find. Whether you’re looking for a good dinner show at a Tahoe restaurant, a casino to gamble in after a day on the slopes, or just a nice winter lodge where you can sit in a common room and enjoy movies or games with fellow travelers, there is something for everyone among the hotels and the Tahoe entertainment scene.

For example, if you’re going to hike a smooth trail or a relatively simple path through a park, trail walking shoes can provide adequate support and comfort. These are designed to be comfortable, but don’t offer nearly as much support as other boots that are designed for rough terrain and uneven ground. Therefore, if you’re going to go off the beaten path and hike through the rocky terrain on your own, you’ll want to buy a pair of hiking boots that is more supportive for your journey.

You should find boots that have cushioned soles for comfort, sturdy bottoms for keeping rocks and sticks from hurting the bottom of your feet, and ankle support that will help you to keep from twisting your ankle on the uneven terrain.

There are boots that you can buy for the most rugged types of hiking, as well. These generally offer an aggressive tread, which is great for any weather and terrain, along with waterproof material and a higher rise over the ankle to give you total foot stability and protection on your journey. If you are going to be climbing, you should consider a supportive pair of hiking boots that are designed to accommodate climbing accessories.

Ultimately, the location of your hike will determine the type of boot that you need. For example, you wouldn’t wear the same hiking boots to hike through the Grand Canyon that you would wear to walk a path in Yellowstone National Park and visit Old Faithful Inn, and so on. There are many great hiking locations all over the country, and each has its own terrain. The Smoky Mountains are great for hiking in a mild terrain country, while the Rockies might be more enjoyable if you want to hike in a high altitude setting. You can find many hiking trails and parks around the country, no matter where you go. From the hills of Southern Ohio to the valleys of the Southwest U.S., there is a hiking trip for everyone, and there is a hiking boot for every journey.

Last night Jean and I were walking around Camden Maine checking out the harbor, the schooners, the scenery and the shops and we happened across Paolina’s Way down a side street. You should explore as much as you can when on vacation because we just thought we were crossing from one street down to the harbor front and walking through an alleyway when we found the restaurant.

Little did we know that it is a good thing to make reservations if you plan on dining at Paolina’s Way because even thought it is out of the way and not on Main Street in Camden, apparently everyone knows about it, and for good reason, it is incredible. It suited our love of healthy food and desire to help the local economy just fine. The only thing they serve in their restaurant that isn’t local is sugar from Florida, organic balsamic vinegar from California, organic olive oil from the Mediterranean and of course wine from various places around the world, but everything else is locally bought from their seafood, to their produce, to their flour.

Luckily, or should I say thankfully, we got the last non reserved table for the evening when we walked in. The place is small, but quaint and the food is absolutely delicious. We ordered a Mediterranean pizza and we had thought about ordering a salad, but as you can see from the picture below, the salad comes on the pizza. We’ve never had a pizza like that before and it was surprisingly different. Normally when we make our usual pizza on Saturday nights, we make a salad to go with it, but this salad was served right on top of the pizza.

If you are down Camden way some time make sure you stop in at Paolina’s way and get a pizza or their special lasagna. Just make sure that if it’s the weekend or a holiday to make reservations.

Camden, Rockport and Rockland Miane are separate towns nestled along Penobscot Bay. So when you stay or vacation here it’s like you are really in all three towns. They are all three one after the other on the map and chances are that if you are staying in one, by days end you will have gone through all three. That is unless you stay in your Maine vacation rental the whole time you are here.

We are actually staying in Rockland at The Ledges By The Bay and it is a very nice place. The rooms are the standard hotel room size, but the location is the big plus for me. We have a beautiful view of Penobscot Bay right off of our balcony and when you add wireless Internet access and a nice wide screen tv in the mix, it’s perfect for enjoying the rest of our Maine vacation.

The weather was perfect yesterday as you can see from the photo at the top and the one below. The one at the top is an overall view of the harbor and this one below is a bit closer view of the schooners that you can hitch a ride out in the bay on an excursion.

Today is supposed to be overcast and rainy all day as a cold front moves in and we can see that’s going to be the case as we look out our hotel room. Since yesterday was so nice we walked around Camden, got a coffee and talked with some of the local schooner captains, but since today will probably not bring out the sun, we’ll spend the day at some indoor activities such as the Farnsworth Art Museum where you can see a collection of Wyeth paintings amongst the work of many other artists. The weather is supposed to be better tomorrow with almost zero chance of rain and blue sky all day. More outdoor activities will be planned for the blue sky day.

Yesterday morning while staying at the camp on Sebec Lake in Maine, we were graced with a beautiful sunrise as you can see from the pictures. The first day and a half here had been fairly wet and finally the sun came through on the morning of the 11th and gave us some incredible colors. I was able to walk out on the dock and get these photos and I got them just in time because about 5 minutes after the pics were taken the clouds rolled in and we got an overcast sky for most of the rest of the day. It was also a good thing I got them on Sunday morning as well because later that day, Jean’s brother took the dock out of the lake and that ended the taking of pictures from out in the water.

I didn’t know this, but here in Maine you can’t leave a dock in the water because it can get damaged or destroyed by the ice that forms on all lakes in the winter. And we’re taking about serious ice here. Sebec Lake is about half a mile across and it gets 3 feet of ice in it, not something you want to leave your dock in. Consequently, most docks are portable and are on some knd of wheels and can be dragged out of the water. I didn’t know I was going to get an education while on vacation here.

Anyway, enjoy the pictures of a Maine sunrise.

I’m still trying to get use to calling the place we’re staying a camp, even though in my mind it is a Maine cabin. When Jean first told me she used to go to her Maine camp with her family, I thought they owned a campground. That wasn’t the case, it was a cabin in the woods that they called a camp. Our first three nights here in Maine will be spent at Jean’s brother’s camp on Sebec Lake which is about 35 miles north of Bangor. The picture above is from the road leading to our cabin, camp or whatever you want to call it.

When we first drove up and got out of the car we were immediately struck by the smell of the fresh Maine woods. I’m not sure exactly what the smell is, but it is somewhat like sandalwood and a mix of cedar with just a hint of sweetness. That’s interesting because sandalwood doesn’t grow around here, it’s from the Middle East, none the less, it sure smells like it.

It is strikingly quiet here in the Maine woods. You don’t hear the sounds of civilization such as cars, planes, mowers, blowers and the constant hum of activity associated with everyday life. It is so quiet when we were standing on the dock here that stretches out onto Sebec Lake, for a moment we heard a rustling in the air we didn’t recognize. It was the sound of the flapping of ducks wings as they cut through the crisp 47 degree evening air.

I missed this next sound because I went to get the camera back up at the camp, but Jean got to see a flock of ducks taking off and watched as they skimmed thought the water and took flight. As ducks reach flying speed their wings tips come in contact with the surface of the water as they flap. In the still air, Jean could hear the sound of wing tips dipping in and out of the chilly water. These are not the normal sounds of a busy world.

We also don’t have a TV, internet access (I’m writing this post on my Mac in TextEdit) or cell service and it gets dark here around 6:30 in the evening. So what do you do with yourself in the evening? You read for a couple of hours and go to bed at 8:30. Consequently after seven and a half hours of sleep guess what, it’s only 4:00 am and you are wide awake. So, I’m writing this post around 4:30 in the morning with a hot cup of tea enjoying the flickering flames of the gas stove across the room. I can’t think of a better way to relax, can you?

One of our first stops after getting here in Bangor Maine was to go shopping for groceries at Hannaford, the largest grocery chain in town. It was another piece of evidence towards my conclusion that Maine is just masquerading as a state. My suspicion is that Maine is secretly another country. The true evidence is in the picture above.

What you are looking at above is a photo of the produce section in Hannaford and it is huge. Let me spell that for you, h-u-g-e!  It is unlike any produce section in any store I have ever seen in Florida. Jean and I eat a mostly raw vegan diet (80% or so) and we were in heaven. We used to shop at Wild Oats in Melbourne until that closed and now shop at Paradise in Palm Bay and the produce section in this store, just the produce section, is as large as Wild Oats and twice as large as Paradise. We’re talking twice as large as the entire store.

There is almost every kind of produce you can imagine here and we came all the way to Maine to find it. Not only does the Hannaford produce section feature stuff we simply can’t find in Florida, it has the freshest fruits and vegetables that look they came right from the garden behind the store. Just a quick look around and we found about 6 different kinds of lettuce, 11 different kinds of mushrooms, a huge organic section and an assortment of veggies that we will need to get out our produce encyclopedia to figure out exactly what they were.

This is all pretty amazing because Bangor Maine is not anywhere near the size of Melbourne or Palm Bay in population, yet at first glance, they have completely blown us away in shopping for quality produce. Another thing that we found kind of interesting is that when you walk into the main entrance at Hannaford, you walk right into the produce section. It’s not like most grocery stores in Florida where the produce is hidden in the back, you simply cannot avoid it, walk in the door and here you are, you are going to go through produce whether you like it or not. Hmm, that sounds like a pretty good start to a better healthcare system, doesn’t it?

The Maine vacation adventure is just beginning.

If you have never been in to this area is it nothing less than classic Maine. The last time we were here we stayed at Megunticook Campground which is right on the ocean and about half way between Rockland and Rockport. We spent our days walking through the shops of Camden and Rockland, getting coffee and sitting on benches at Camden Harbor watching lobsters being boiled and sold right out of the steaming hot stock pots. It was quite enjoyable and we are certainly looking forward to it again.

While in Rockport Maine one of the most famous cultural attractions is the Farnsworth Art Museum which boasts the Wyeth Center featuring the incredible works of 3 members of the Wyeth family including N.C., Andrew and James. It is truly amazing what artistic talent one family produced, so you sure don’t want to miss this exhibit.

The first part of our vacation will be spent in Bangor and then we will be off to Rockport for 4 nights staying at The Ledges By The Bay in an oceanview room. Look for more updates and pictures of our adventure on the vacation rentals blog here beginning sometime after October 9th. Jean has talked about getting up to Acadia National Park, but I don’t know if we’re going to make it as we do have a pretty busy schedule and yes, we do hope to have some time to relax.