A few years ago I visited the Ice Hotel in Quebec with a group of travel writers then a couple of nights later I spent the night there with two other writers (the two experience can not be compared). The day we toured the property we sipped cranberry vodka out of ice glasses, slid down the ice slide (which works best in ski pants, which luckily I was wearing) and toured various rooms in this hotel created from ice and snow.

One of my favorite memories was goofing off with my friend Ramsey Qubein. At one point we tried to get a photo of me jumping in the air, hair flying, in one of the hotel’s hall.

It didn’t work.

The camera kept trying to focus…so after a dozen tries we gave up.

But we did pull off a silly video…It certainly didn’t go viral but we both still laugh when we think of it.

One of my favorite things to do on vacation is sit on my hotel balcony and drink coffee in the morning. For some reason I remember doing this at the Hilton Waterfront Beach Resort  in Huntington Beach, California several years ago. I can still feel the balmy air and the stillness of the beach. I recall observing a man combing the beach with a metal detector and joggers made their way down the beach’s sidewalk.

I had my computer in my lap as I tapped out an article while my children and husband slept soundly inside. The air was peaceful. 

It was a pleasant moment. I also recall thinking, in a few hours this scene will change drastically. I was right.

A year ago this month was the last time I saw my Grandma Louise. I flew out to California where she was living while my dad was driving from Colorado. My dad picked me up from the Oakland Airport and we spent our days reminiscing, laughing and even made it out to dinner twice, even though she knew it would wear her out – and it did. But she loved every minute.

We drank wine at the Italian restaurant…

And we laughed really hard when the burrito I ordered at the Mexican join was delivered. I didn’t know it was large enough to feed an army…

Leaving was the hardest. I knew it was probably the last time I would see her. And it was. She died this past March.

This was our last photo together. Three generations.

During the planning of our 2010 two-week road trip out east Jeff came across a fun roadside attraction: The Cross Island Chapel in Oneida, NY. The tiny church sits on a wooden platform in a pond and can only be reached by boat.  You will probably guess from the green water we were visiting on a warm August day.

The claim is it’s the World’s Smallest Church. A nearby sign has some information including that it was built in 1989, the floor area is 51 inches by 81 inches (28.68 sq. ft) and it seats two people. That’s pretty small!

We couldn’t resist having fun with the camera…

Our little girl picked flowers…

Roadside attractions are always a nice break from the car – no matter how big or small.

Provodenciales, Turks and Caicos is one of my favorite places. There’s not one stoplight on the island! I visited during early December in 2008 which meant there were plenty of beach chairs to choose from, so I was certainly spoiled. In addition to the white sand beaches and turquoise water of postcard perfect Grace Bay, a highlight of the trip was the sunset sail my group took. It was a beautiful evening, but what really accentuated the sunset were the moody storm clouds in the distance. You can see the intense colors in the following photos.

We saw a rainbow…

This one always wows people.

The sunset…

I’ve found myself sifting through old photos lately and feeling a bit nostalgic. Snapshots are one of the best ways to recall travel memories and so I’ve decided to start a regular Travel Memory series which will highlight photos of the good, the bad and the funny of my personal adventures.

The first in my travel series is one of the more recent stops on Arizona’s Route 66. You may not know that Arizona has the longest remaining continuous stretch of Route 66 and there are a number of fantastic roadside attractions still standing/open for business, including this one.

Never did I think I’d find myself standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona. But I did…at the official Standing’ on the Corner Park. The corner was obviously inspired by the classic Eagles song Take it Easy.

Notice the painted Standin’ on the Corner-themed mural in the background. The red truck looks to be reflecting a truck on the road. Well guess what…

There’s is a red flatbed Ford!

Occasionally, we can recall that one moment in life that piques a curiosity for a subject. For me, an interest in lighthouses was inspired by one of my favorite childhood movies, Pete’s Dragon. I first saw the movie in the late 70′s and by the time I was in my early 20′s it was no surprise I favored flying into coastal airports, such as Boston, hoping to catch a view of the lighthouses scattered along the shoreline. Today, my fascination has yet to wane. During my travels, if there is a lighthouse in the area I often make an effort to snap a shot. Below are some from recent years:

North Point Lighthouse – Milwaukee, Wisconsin (the only lighthouse I’ve climbed)

Southport Lighthouse, aka Old Kenosha Light. Kenosha, Wisconsin North Pier Lighthouse – Kenosha, WisconsinPoint Cabrillo Lighthouse  – Mendocino, California

Sentinel Island Light – Sentinel Island, Alaska (northern end of Favorite Channel, twenty-five miles northwest of Juneau).

Facebook has two faces: personal and business. But I’ve always had a hard time distinguishing the two for my personal/professional use. Almost everyone likes – or loves – to travel but not everyone wants to hear about my son’s hockey game or that my daughter went rock climbing for the first time. I know many people who won’t accept friend request from people they haven’t met in person, but I also know people who befriend everyone who asks – after all, networking is what social media is about. So what’s a freelancer to do?

Last week I met my friend Teri for coffee. We love to brainstorm together and I always leave our get-togethers rejuvenated and inspired. As we discussed our careers, the topic of Facebook came up and how social media fits in. Teri explained that she started a Facebook fan page in addition to her personal profile which she recently revamped. I admit that when FB first came out with fan pages as an option, the term “fan” turned me off – at least for individuals. Sure it seemed appropriate for businesses and celebrities but not for random people – and we do have one for TheVacationGals.com now. As we chatted I realized how wise she was to choose this avenue. A fan page can focus on one topic without blurring the work and too-much-personal-info lines. And so, I launched my own Fan page – Beth Blair Travels – to focus on my career and travels and other interesting topics and I don’t have to bore people with my personal life.

I’m really excited to be building my page and adding photos and blog posts links that are fun to share. Please bear with me as my page evolves. If you have any advice or tips I’m all ears! In the meantime, I’d appreciate a “like” and let me know if I can do the same for you.

Happy Travels!

A few months ago I lay huddled against the onslaught of what had been an awful winter – the snow was really piling up and getting to work was a daily challenge. In this weather induced downturn I decided to break free and get out and bask in the sun. I have been to a lot of sunny weather destinations, but this time wanted to go a bit further afield – so I decided to book a holiday in Majorca. This week long trip was amazing, and allowed me to survive the winter.

Getting there for someone living in North America. Majorca is a long way away: this beautiful holiday spot is in the Balearic Islands which lie in the Mediterranean off the eastern coast of Spain. I was thrilled to find that the trip was surprisingly cheap – airfare from my home in Toronto, Canada to Frankfurt in Germany was a bargain, as was the puddle jumper flight which took me to the island itself. Surely one of the best things about Europe is its constellation of cheap airlines.

Where to Stay. I’ve always thought that a beach side retreat is only as good as your hotel: the nature of these holidays is that you will spend a huge amount of time there, so you might as well pick a nice one. I ended up staying at the Palma Nova hotel which was close to the beach and good value. I am a bit of a neat freak so I was very pleased to find that the rooms were nice and clean. The hotel also had a serene feeling, and I was able to relax by the pool without being disturbed by some of the noisy travelers that sometimes come to this part of the world.

A Week of Fun and Relaxation. Majorca is one of the most popular spots for European travelers and I definitely encountered my fair share of Brits and Germans, yet for the most part it was quite quiet. Indeed, the island doesn’t get really busy until the summer, thanks to the colder temperatures during the winter months. That said, it was still quite warm during my stay and I had no problem relaxing on the beach. I was also able to set aside some time for some good walking and cycling: I did one great walk in the beautiful Serra de Tramuntana mountain chain where I got to see the true beauty of the Mediterranean. I also was able to rent a road bike and go for a nice long cycle to work off all of my holiday meals. In many ways Majorca was the perfect introduction to the Mediterranean for me: it was cheap, convenient to get to and allowed me to see the unique beauty of this part of the world. My only complaint would be the weather: it was certainly warm enough, but I could have gone for couple extra degrees to really thaw out after my freezing winter.

This is a sponsored guest post.

There is no doubt 2010 flew by. My family was still settling into our new home in Minnesota learning tidbits like setting the humidity to high forms ice around windows and doors and it is possible to get stuck on the driveway on a sheet of ice (that would be me – I had to text Jeff to tell him I was stranded). The best part was summer. Every morning we woke and ran to our bedroom window to see what new colors arrived in our yard overnight. We visited the farmer’s market and grilled every chance we had. We found heaven.

As usual, we had quite a bit of travel highlights. It was during 2010 our kids became reacquainted with Mickey and Minne and other Disney characters during our trip to Orlando. It was cold and rainy but the kids didn’t care. I learned to ski in Park City, Utah during a girlfriend getaway with my Vacation Gals friends Kara and Jen. Then, in June my mother and I spent almost two weeks exploring Alaska with the rest of the Princess Cruises #FollowMeAtSea gang. We made memories, new friends and had some of the most exhilarating experiences of our lives.

In August my family was featured in Woman’s Day magazine for their travel column A Woman’s Day in…Minneapolis. Back in May may we had a photo shoot for the feature in our front yard – the neighbors were oh, so curious. In the meantime, I worked with the editors as we pulled together a list of my favorite attractions and eateries in the area. The experience was great fun.

At the end of August we took a two-week road trip to the East Coast to meet my eldest step-son in New York and see him off to college. Along the way we stopped at Niagara Falls, indulged in Buffalo wings and enjoyed time in Lake Placid. The kids saw the Statue of Liberty for the first time, we ate Philly cheesesteaks, stopped by the Liberty Bell, and saw the PBS Sprout Sunny Side Up Show filmed live. The kids were in awe that they got to meet the stars Chica and Dennisha. Next, we spent time in the Sweetest Place on Earth, Hershey, Pennsylvania. It’s no surprise the kids are still asking to return.

School started two days after we returned from our trip so we quickly fell back in the swing of school routine. In October I was asked to sit on the Minneapolis-St. Paul Social Media Breakfast panel talking travel and tourism and in November I had the wonderful opportunity to present at the I_Blog Conference in Iowa on the subject of writing. Throughout the year I continued my (second) journey with Weight Watchers and as of today have lost 25 pounds – the cherry on top.

Overall, I’d say 2010 was a thrilling year and I look forward to seeing what 2011 brings.

Happy New Year to all of my old and new friends. I’m honored to have each of you in my life.