Faux Vacations

I have an obsession. I love to travel to exotic locations. I love to go on travel websites and search for the best deals on the best flights & hotels. The only problem is...I can't afford it. These are my dream vacations.

My latest obsession in Sharm El Sheik in Egypt. It's one of the best diving spots in the world. It's located on the southern tip of the Sinai peninsula on the Red Sea. It's paradise and I want to go there. I haven't figured out how I'd fly to Sharm El Sheik - because if you're going all that way, you might as well do the Grand Tour of Cairo, then the Nile cruise to Aswan. And since we're in the region, I should probably visit Jordan {I've never been there}. Amman would be lovely, but I've got to visit Petra and Madaba too. Ohhh! And we'd have to visit Israel too. Adair has never been there before, so I'd like to show him my favourite places on earth {Jerusalem, Tel Dan, the Dead Sea}. You can now see how this trip would be out of reach for poor new parents like us.

This photo is of the Four Seasons Resort in Sharm El Sheik. This is where I'd stay while I learn to dive in the Red Sea.

This is the unbelievable Petra, an ancient city carved out of rock in Jordan. Once a enormously wealthy trading post, the traditional Bedouin people still make homes from the rocky crevaces in the region.

So this is how I spend a lot of time - creating travel itineraries that I'll never go on. Apart from Egypt and the Middle East, I've also planned trips to New Zealand {with a stop over in Fiji of course!}, a cruise around the Horn {South America}, a hiking trip to Machu Picchu in Peru, as well as a jungle adventure to Belize - complete with zip-lining, hiking, horseback riding, caving, tubing, and Mayan ruin tours.

Doesn't this sound more fun than hanging out at home. I guess we just have to win the lottery - but you gotta play to win and we don't play. So until then, we'll survive with "staycations", which in this economy is the hottest trend in travel. On a staycation, you don't just sit at home, you can discover new places around your home or even pick up a new hobby or skill - like cooking! Maybe I should work on that. I do need to learn to cook - remember my cupcake disaster?