Cap Cana, Our new favorite spot

Hailed as the world's greatest new destination, Cap Cana is now the most important tourist and real estate development in the Caribbean today. The site was founded by international investors and strategic partners such as Ritz-Carlton, Jack Nicklaus, Donald Trump, among many others. The primary focus was to develop the area as the new up and coming destination for luxury, five-star hotels, an array of impeccable amenities all coupled with the breathtaking scenery of the Caribbean.  We truly loved everything about this place, as we liked the secluded feel you got, versus being in touristy Punta Cana (we can only imagine).

Cap Cana is located in the Eastern region of the Dominican Republic, approximately 15 minutes from Punta Cana, an already popular destination among tourists worldwide. However, Cap Cana is setting its sights in the "luxurious tourism" department.

Rich in Five-Star accommodations, the region includes the Secrets Sanctuary Cap Cana resort. We spent a week in this extraordinary resort, and it is fair to say that paradise can be at your doorstep in this incredible locale. We couldn't believe our eyes, and we cannot wait to come back.  Upon arrival, beautiful brick pathways, fountains, palm trees and gardens welcome you inside magnificent spaces inspired by the island’s rich Spanish Colonial style.

*For your pleasure, the resort boasts 175 elegant suites and villas within an adults-only atmosphere, all including separate living areas, elegant tile & marble bathrooms, flat screen TVs, high-speed Internet access, and a mini bar stocked daily with soft drinks, bottled water, juice and beer.

*The exclusive Unlimited-Luxury® privileges brings the All-Inclusive appeal to this resort, with premium meals at 6 gourmet restaurants, premium brand beverages, 24-Hour Room Service, and so much more.

*There are also fun activities just minutes away. Local points of interest include: Saona Island, Santo Domingo, Catalina Island, La Romana, and Higuey. Also, Juanillo Beach stretches on for what seems like miles of white-sand beaches lined with neverending palm trees, perfect fo a wide variety of beach and water activities.

Currently, Cap Cana is home to the Punta Espada Golf Course, designed by Jack Nicklaus and operated by Troon Golf; headquarters to the PGA Tours Champion’s Tour since 2008 and listed by Golfweek as the number one course in the Caribbean and Mexico. Its second golf course, “Las Iguanas” is 70% complete, and is due to open by the end this year. Cap Cana’s Marina is fully operational, and has boat slips available for yachts up to 150 feet, surrounded by elegant shops and gourmet restaurants.

The Big Debate: "Tourist" vs. "Traveler"

I find this topic quite funny actually... So many people like to call themselves "travelers" instead of "tourists", but quite honestly, I find those people to be the snootie types.  I do hate obnoxious tourists as much as the next guy, but let's face it: we're all tourists in one way, shape or form.  When I'm abroad, I do try to blend in, I don't particularly like to stand on a street with a huge map, camera around my neck, and talking loudly and obnoxiously, so yes, that can be the stereotype of a "tourist" and those that gather around the "tourist traps."  They say if you take a walk down the Hollywood boulevard, and talk to people gathering around the Stars on the sidewalk, you will not come across one fellow LA resident - they're all tourists. You could say that about most popular sights, the Eiffel Tower, the Taj Mahal, the Sidney Opera House - but to be quite frank, that's what traveling is all about. 

However, there are certain places that are so extraordinary that we forgive them for being horded by the masses. You could say that about the Pyramids of Giza (I CANNOT wait to go in January), and you could most certainly say that about the places I stated earlier even.  Everyone HAS to experience them, and so it's "forgivable." But it's all silly and artificial, in my opinion.  The same thing can be said about your own town.  So many times you take a place for granted, you live your day to day life there, but you never take the time to truly appreciate it.  Often times it takes a friend to come visit you, and you decide you want to go the "tourist" route in your own city to show your friend the area and voila! You learn so much... and you gain a newfound appreciation all of a sudden... sometimes it's important to go the "tourist" route, and that's actually my favorite thing to do when I go to Puerto Rico now.  Living in Puerto Rico, you take for granted your sorroundings, the beach, the mountains, the rainforest - I mean, Puerto Rico has so much to offer (more on this later! I can't wait to write this blog...) and it wasn't until I brought Jesse, where we experienced Puerto Rico "the touristy way" and now it's my favorite thing to do when I go back to visit...

I think the problem with "touristy" is that it's just a general term for anything relating to "out-of-towners", and with that, it can also carry much negativity. So you know what? I do take tons of touristy pictures when I'm on vacation and I'm proud of it. :) So the lesson here is that being a tourist is not a bad thing.  The truly important thing is that you're immersing yourself in another culture, and the bottom line is that there are sights in this Earth that are a necessity to see, and I applaud any traveler, tourist, or obnoxious American (the stereotypical kind only, no offense to anyone!) who came all this way to see the sights, and to see another part of the world.  Bon Voyage!

“Tourists don’t know where they’ve been, travelers don’t know where they’re going.”
- Paul Theroux

My best attempt at a "touristy" picture :) (Us in Cozumel, Mexico)

**Sidenote: For a great read, read "The Ugly American", it's a great book - albeit about foreign policy but it's a perfect read regarding those stereotypes!

What Happens in Vegas...

...Stays in Vegas... We've all heard it.

For as long as I can remember (prior to going of course) I had the biggest pre-conceived notions of the land known as Sin City, and I never really had the urge to go.  It just didn't appeal to me and simply put, I just wasn't into it.  Jesse shared this opinion too...so we always felt that we could "wait" to go to Vegas, as it certainly wasn't in our top priority list of places to go.  So how did I end up going? Well, it began as follows:

I took a giant leap of faith in this city.  I wanted to surprise Jesse for his birthday, and our 3 year anniversary was coming up that month. Why not kill two birds with one stone? Well three birds actually, as my "urge to get away" was starting to creep in as it so often does when I haven't gone on vacation in a while.  So I started to look into a weekend get-away.  Our vacation time wasn't much and I needed to find a destination within the confinements of the continental U.S of A... so the questions began and this is where the tough decision crept in.  Where can I go in the time span of a weekend, so that we're able to do and get as much in, within such a short time period? I had heard that Vegas was a perfect weekend get-away as there were nonstop flights from Milwaukee, the prices were enticing in July (summer is HOT in Las Vegas, and who wants to be in 110 degree weather in the middle of a desert!?) and quite frankly it just seemed the best option.  NYC came in as a close second, but Jesse has already been there... and I needed to go somewhere NEW (it's my philosophy!). So, my decision was made & with all these factors pointing to Vegas, I threw the dice and crossed my fingers... Jesse knew nothing of this and I already knew how Jesse felt about Vegas...so I was definitely gambling.

While this was SUPPOSED to be a surprise (I wanted to do the whole works - pack his bags, tell him to free up that weekend and have no plans made, and come 5 o'clock on Friday we'd be driving to the airport without his knowledge of it whatsoever)... but who are we kidding, Can I really keep that a secret? Well, not exactly.  I managed... for about 3 weeks. As the time grew nearer, I grew antsier and the surprise just went out the window :). (Hey, it's the thought that counts right?!)  But his reaction was favorable - now we were in business! :)

We arrived in Vegas late Friday night (after taking a nonstop flight from Milwaukee) and we immediately took a taxi to the infamous Strip. Our hotel was the great Caesars Palace.  We were upgraded to a room in the Forum Tower and wow were we pleasantly surprised (the surprise factor came from reading mostly negative reviews of Caesars - read my earlier Blog on "Reviews" for more on that).  But to be quite honest, we fell instantly in love with Vegas, it's "vibe."  In my opinion, what's so great about Vegas is the environment, this is what makes this city shine!  You can't wait to wear your best dress, your best heels (and your feet will be hurting badly afterwards, trust me!), and eat great food at the incredible array of world renowned restaurants. You almost can't help it, it's just THE thing to do! It's exactly that which drew us in, and every minute was an absolute surprise and marvel! We were so wrong, this whole time...

Something I'd like to take the time to note is location.  I had heard it from others, but it wasn't until I experienced it for myself, how important the hotel you choose really is! Location is key... We loved Caesars' location (next to the Bellagio, across from Paris and Planet Hollywood).  It just seems as though you've got the best of the best right there.  Further down the strip you'll find The Venetian, Treasure Island, The Mirage which wouldn't be a bad spot either.  What I DO consider as "further away" hotels would be The MGM, Excalibur, NY NY, Luxor, etc.  Furthermore, while the Palms is extremely popular, it's important to note that it is NOT on the strip - just further down, and not within walking distance to too much - so a cab is certainly needed.  There is a tram however, that does connect some of the hotels further down the strip, but again... Caesars was just CENTRAL so a great option.  But Hello?! If the movie "The Hangover" tells you anything worth noting is that it's THE place to be and Caesar most certainly did NOT live there, people! :) Oh Zach...

We walked the entire strip in the scolding hot weather, but what I did learn is that summer is NOT necessarily something that should stop you from going if you're fearing the heat (We went at the end of July!). Aside from purely walking up and down the strip and maybe laying poolside (Caesar's 5 pools are amazing! Go early, as they fill up FAST), you're really not outside much at all.  Many hotels do connect and the hotels themselves are so large that most of the time you are spending it exploring them INDOORS and in the air conditioning. 

One of the highlights of our Vegas strip was dinner at Mesa Grill.  This is Bobby Flay's restaurant, and Jesse and I absolutely LOVED the food.  It was amazing... and I highly recommend eating here if you're a foodie. Mesa Grill is inside Caesar's Palace and for a complete review of the restaurant check out my TripAdvisor review. (http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g45963-d515192-r35935238-Mesa_Grill_at_Caesars_Palace-Las_Vegas_Nevada.html)

Vegas = Casino haven, right? Ocean's Eleven surely taught us that.  Jesse and I hit the slots after dinner, and drinks are free (and plentiful) while you're at the casinos: The more you drink, the more you gamble. Great logic.

As far as the nightlife, that's WHAT Vegas is all about! Hot clubs, hot people, hot outfits a "wild" time, right!?!

Well, after losing our money (we're not big gamblers, it wasn't much!) :) we got a VIP table for just the two of us in the Red Room at PURE.  We figured we'd go all out... We were there to celebrate after all! What a night that turned out to be... it was such a cool experience, and one we will never forget. Another BIG highlight for us that night: DMX was performing and he and his "entourage" were partying right next to us all night! We had an entire bottle to ourselves with unlimited mixers, and well...we can just say that the flight back home at 6am the next morning wasn't too pleasant (it was miserable actually as we had an entire ginormous bottle of Grey Goose to ourselves and you can only imagine how we felt just a mere few hours later boarding our plane...). :)

So Vegas, I really had you all wrong! And we will be back shortly.  Our opinion was forever changed that weekend and most importantly, what that weekend taught me: Pre-conceived notions on a destination should be thrown out the door until you go and see it for yourself!

Culebra, Puerto Rico

Having been to one of the top 10 beaches in the world today & repeatedly throughout the years, where do I begin with Culebra? It's a small (very small) island off the east coast of Puerto Rico, about an hour and a half ferry ride from the mainland.  While it is still considered Puerto Rico and is a part of PR in its entirety, we felt as though we were in a different place altogether.  I don't know if it's the lack of "mainland" Puerto Rico influence, but somehow, driving our jeep through the streets looking for food and groceries, we felt as though perhaps we were in somewhere else.  A slightly archaic, untouched world - yet amazing. And the beaches? WOW. That's all I have to say about the beaches of Culebra... absolute paradise. The sand was the perfect white-powdered sand that is so soft on your feet you feel as though you're laying on a blanket. To date Flamenco Beach is the best beach I have seen in my travels thus far. The water was crystal clear light blue and perfect for swimming and sunbathing.  Essentially you feel as though you're swimming in a giant salt water pool...truly. I had the best 4 days in this small island and I can't wait to go back.

I'll begin with the ferry ride from Fajardo to Culebra. WHAT A NIGHTMARE (but the end result was so worth it!). The crowds were anxious and they had us in a room like a flock of geese, or what is a more appropriate term? A herd of cow? Idk :)... Nonetheless, everyone was pushing and shoving each other while standing in line, trying to get ahead in line and the wait was excruciating.  We had heard that the earliest you could buy tickets for the ferry was 3am (and that they only sold them at pre-determined times).  To give you a little background, Jesse and I landed in Puerto Rico at around 9pm that night... Drove down to Ponce to my dad's house, which is about an hour and 15 minutes of a drive from the north to the south.  We arrived tired.. but ready to go.  We went to bed for a few hours, only to wake up at 1am to leave for Fajardo, the eastern side of the island (another 2 hour drive from Ponce).  When we got there finally, at precisely 3am, we then found out that we weren't able to buy tickets yet - the ticket counter was closed (even though ticket sales were supposed to start at 3am).  We were ready for an all-nighter though, we brought chairs and just 'camped' it!

After a bit of an uproar at the closing of the "ticket window", they finally opened for those sitting there waiting...  Ok, tickets are purchased (a relief) - NOW we just had to wait until 9am when the ferry was supposed to leave...which is hard to do if you're running on almost no sleep.  But the excitement was enough to keep us awake and going (mostly!). :)

Well... to make a long story short, at about 10am that morning we were finally boarding the ferry and aside from the madness I stated earlier (the crowds, the uproar and the wait), it was just so worth it.  Once we were on the ferry it was smooth sailing and the boat ride to Culebra was great and fairly quick.  You could even see St. Thomas in the distance as you neared Culebra...

Upon arrival we rented a jeep to explore the island with.  We crammed 6 people's bags and bodies into this jeep and off we went!  I think having a means of transportation in this island is crucial, so something to keep in mind! We arrived at our villa and immediately checked out the beach which was fifteen feet away from us... It was incredible. (We rented 2 villas which are considered the best location on the island, as they are right on Flamenco Beach. They are called Culebra Beach Villas) Culebra isn't a place where you find lines of hotels and luxury accomodations so don't expect that... The island is protected by the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources and as a Marine Wildlife Reserve so they intentionally don't want it to become commercialized, which is precisely part of its charm!!! (This explains the archaic, untouched world I mentioned earlier!) In the mornings, since our villa was steps from the water, I'd go for walks on the beach alone, as I was generally the first one up somehow (Excitement, maybe? I can never sleep in while I'm on vacation - what a waste in my opinion you can sleep when you're home!) and it was completely deserted... it was unbelievable.

One of my favorite things that we did by far was the hike off the beaten path to find a beach for snorkeling.  It was hot, and a pretty big hike up hill, but the views were incredible and we came across completely deserted beaches along the way.  We finally found one totally secluded we wanted to try (I believe the beach we found goes by the name of Carlos Rosario Beach) so we set our things down and went in with our marks and snorkels in hand. (The equipment was rented from a store in the small town inland)  The snorkeling was "WOW"... it was unbelievable.  We saw everything down there and the reefs were spectacular and the fish an array of beautiful colors. It even beat the snorkeling we did at the Florida Keys (and we were told that was excellent snorkeling, as it was the third largest barrier reef in the world & it was - but Culebra blew it out of the water).  After spending a few hours snorkeling we decided to go back to Flamenco and sunbathe, as the beach we were in was pretty rocky. 

For dinner we ate the greatest place that had been recommended by http://www.tripadvisor.com/.  I love checking out that website to find out what places are good to go to for dinner, and customer's reviews really help me deciding, if one particular place stands out amongst people.  So as we were driving around the small town looking for a good restaurant,  I remembered a review on a place called "Mamacita's" and how they had huge iguanas laying around and the food was good. After a few wrong turns, we ended up finding the restaurant and went two nights in a row, because it was THAT good! We didn't see any iguanas, but the atmosphere, the music, the food and the pina coladas were amazing. 

To say that the rest of the time was spent with good food, family, beaches and suntans, is a slight understatement. It was an incredibly memorable 4 days and I am still searching for a beach to top this.......;p

Culebra, Puerto Rico made it at #8 to the Top 10 Beaches in the World today by the Traveler's Choice Awards.  For the complete list, please go here:  http://www.tripadvisor.com/TCDestinations-p3345

What's Your Travel Personality?

QUIZZES... Who doesn't love them?! I do... So what kind of a traveler AM I? I'm curious as to these results... I already know I'm a semi control freak when it comes to traveling, I'm always on the "go, go, go" and I usually plan everything out to the tee. Let's see how well this quiz sums this up. (My answers will be highlighted in blue) ENJOY! :)