Beach Tips

Everyone knows that when you head to the beach, especially in a tropical location, that you need to remember the sunscreen. Tropical sun will burn you much more quickly and easily than the sun you are used to if you live in North America. The suns rays are much more direct here; it has nothing to do with the temperature.

You probably also know to take water so you don't become dehydrated. Here are a couple of tricks I use to keep the water cold. First off, I buy a few bottles of water, not just one. I freeze all of them except one per person. You can then throw them all in the cooler, the frozen ones keep the non frozen one cold, and as the day goes on, the frozen ones melt, giving you cold water. This method keeps me supplied with cold drinking water all day long, whether I am on the beach or taking a drive in the car. If you are taking snacks this will keep them cold also. I have also taken ziplock bags and filled them with ice to keep things cold in a cooler. Besides providing me with more drinking water during the day, this method also allows me to put things together in a cooler where I don't have to worry about the ice melting and making a soggy mess of things in the cooler.

Another thing I like to do which a lot of people don't know about or don't use, is taking a sheet along to the beach. It can be used in several ways. I like to use it to lay on instead of a beach towel. When you are in a tropical location you don't really need a towel to dry off on, the sun does it pretty quickly and you don't get cold waiting to dry. The advantages of a sheet over a towel is that when you pick the sheet up off of the beach, the sand shakes right off, unlike a towel where the sand stays stuck in the fibers. It is also larger than a beach towel, giving space for more people. But my favorite reason is how small of a space that sheet takes up compared to two beachtowels. When I go to the beach I don't want to be a pack mule getting there, but I do want to have all of the necessities.

Do you take baby powder to the beach with you? It works really well for making the sand unstick from your body. I don't mind sand being stuck to me while I am on the beach playing, but when it is time to get back into the car I like to desand. If you sprinkle a little baby powder onto the sand before brushing the sand comes right off.

So, do you like to travel but hate to pay for it? Did you know there are ways to let others pay for your travel? Not that you won't work for it, because you will, but still, someone else is paying. The process I am talking about is mystery shopping. A lot of people think that all mystery shopping is a scam, but that is just not true. Mystery shopping is an actual business, and they will pay you for shoppong, dining, traveling, watching movies, changing the oil in your car, getting a haircut and myriad other activities. You do have to work for your product and it does take time and effort. After all, this is a business and there is no such thing as a free lunch. You are not considered an employee, you are an independent contractor and as such you will have to keep track of your own expenses and pay and report accordingly to Uncle Sam, but truthfully there is not much to report as far as wages, as most of these are reimbursement and a very little amount of pay, but still, travel on someone else's dime? Sign me up!

Timeshare Presentation

Have you ever done a timeshare presentation? You know, go in and listen to a salesperson talk about how wonderful their product is, and then try to sell you a timeshare for 20,000 or 40,000 or more? Lots of people do this while they are on vacation, because it only takes a couple of hours and they will give you money for it. Sometimes it is only $50, or sometimes it is $200. It can be a visa card or it can be coupons that can only be spent in certain places.
I tend to do these presentations, partly for the money and partly for information I get from them. As much as I love vacations, it is a good idea for me to know the different timeshare offers that are out there. I already own a timeshare and I am very pleased with it, but I know there are others out there that I may be interested in. If you have a hard time saying "no", you should probably avoid these, but if you are ok with telling a salesman, thanks for the info but no thanks, this is an ok way to gather information and pick up some vacation bucks at the same time.

Do you use your iphone?

Do you use your iphone while traveling? I use my extensively. I don't have to buy maps or bring a garmin with me, although I have to say that Garmins are very nice to have. My iphone won't give me verbal directions, but over the years of traveling I have become fairly good at navigating, so if I have a map I can find my way. I like the fact that you can get a general overview of the area, or zoom it in enough to get street names in tiny little towns. Although, with this trip to Florida I have noticed that my iphone is not keeping up very good. It takes a while to home in on my location, and when I move my blue dot does not always move with me.
The other thing I use my iphone for when traveling is for making motel reservations. I have a couple of hotel apps on there that will help me find something wherever I am. But a word of caution here, you should take time to read the reviews and maybe even do a drive by of the motel if possible before booking. It may save you from ending up in a skanky hotel like we got ourselves into last night. Not so skanky that I preferred to sleep in the car, and you couldn't really tell from the outside; I haven't gone back to read the reviews to see if that would have helped or not. Sometimes, despite every thing you do, you end up in a place you really wish you weren't. I itch this morning and I hope it is just my imagination.
Here's to bug free motel stays!