First Word

The Destination Unknown this week was to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, a place that is special to my fiance and I since he proposed to me on the upper deck. The aquarium is constantly changing with new exhibits added to keep it fresh. The baby sea-turtle display (see picture) was all new. I thought the turtle was cute, and I had to follow him around the aquarium a bit before I could snap off this shot. The aquarium now charges $39 for each adult and $24.95 for children. It's a great place for kids and adults alike to stroll through at a leisurely pace and check out the displays. Stacked in three layers, you see everything from the sea-bird preservation enclosure to penguins of all of all types, and of course the adorable sea otters. In the spring you enjoy seeing the babies. Sweet, itty-bitty sandpipers run around the bird enclosure. This year the most captivating exhibit was the octopus display. The octopus was suctioned to the glass, and that made quite a sight. After an after...

Slate showers with cobblestone shower pans were part of the eco-friendly design. Rating: ****1/2 The recently remodeled Hotel Paradox in Santa Cruz, CA is a major winner. Before I get into the review, I want to say that overall I've always found the city of Santa Cruz to be slightly grungy and prefer Capitola just a few miles up the road. Santa Cruz has a rundown quality that can't quite match up to its sister coastal cities like Capitola, Monterey or Carmel. At the same time, it offers a fun shopping area in the downtown and is center to many activities. Wanting to try something different than tried-and-true favorites, I spotted Hotel Paradox online on Expedia that had a great offer for $180 a night, which is not the standard rate, which is closer to $250 to $450 per night. Taking the last-minute offer, I booked a room based on the room pictures that showed an enticing, clean and well-decorated room. The gamble paid off. The redone 1950's-style hotel had been reno...

When your room sucks, leave! We ended up playing games at Squaw Valley. Let me qualify my little review of this grimy hotel. First, I do believe you get what you pay for. However, if I pay $60 then I feel I invited a fleabag hotel experience. If I pay $110 my feelings change in proportion to the dollars invested. Most hotels that charge over $100 usually offer a decent experience. I (unfortunately) booked my room at the Quality Inn on south shore Lake Tahoe (3838 Lake Tahoe Blvd, South Lake Tahoe) via Hotels.com (which is not good because they don't have a good cancellation policy). The exterior looked fine, and the rooms appeared nice. Upon arrival, I was still satisfied. The exterior looked good. The lobby was nice with a granite fireplace. All good. Then we went to our room. Uh-oh! The rooms were not remodeled or updated and the wallpaper looked circa 1980. Dated wallpaper isn't a problem unless it's smudged in dirt. Okay, and then the bedspreads were also dingy a...