Lake Hopatcong; A Vacation Paradise

Just when I thought I experienced the best in New Jersey’s resort destinations at the Jersey Shore, a friend suggested I visit the Lakeland area in Morris County, in particular Lake Hopatcong. This is New Jersey’s largest lake and actually is located in two counties Morris and Sussex . The towns of Roxbury, Mount Arlington, Jefferson and Hopatcong border the lake. Each of these towns although distinct in ambience, has real estate properties in common. There are beautiful homes that are affordable where many of the employees of the resort areas reside. Also available are very upscale homes overlooking the lake. Many New Jersey residents are purchasing vacation homes in these lakefront towns. The vacation homeowners use these as their summer/fall retreat and the rest of the year subsidize their income by using the property as a rental.

Lake Hopatcong offers camping, water sports, fine dining, some of the best fishing in New Jersey much more. On Sunday mornings there are sailboat regattas. Regattas are a very exciting event to witness, especially when the lake wind kicks up!

Water skiing! Lake Hopatcong is like glass in the early morning. This is the place to be for water skiing, Lake Hopatcong has many coves, which offer wonderful water skiing conditions. If you have never water-skied before, there are water ski instructors for the novice or for the beginner who wants to become an expert.

Every type of recreational boating is welcome, whether it be speed, sail or pleasure boats. And yes Patio boats are also welcome, the "party barge" is alive and well on Lake Hopatcong.

For those who really enjoy the great outdoors, there are two public beach areas and Mahlon Dickerson Reservation for camping. Many New Jersey vacationers take advantage of these accommodations and use the local marinas boat rentals got their water sports activities.

California Is Sunshine And Fun

Sunshine and fun is what California in USA is all about. This Pacific Ocean bathed state was one of the last to be incorporated into the union, but soon became one of the first on the list for travel and holiday entertainment. It shone bright with so many stars when Hollywood opened its gates. And talking about gates, was known for its innovative methods in construction when it built the Golden Gate Bridge. And it was Walt Disney's choice when he decided to build the happiest place on earth, creating Disneyland. It is easy to travel up and down the whhhole Califonia coastline with a fantastic car rental from any of the airport locations, visiting museums, natural parks and other theme parks, making your California dream come true.

Los Angeles Radiates with Excitement

Los Angeles, LA or as some call it ' The City of Angels' is saturated with all kinds of entertainment. What firstly calls the visitors attention is anything that has to do with Hollywood and its stars. The first stop is usually Hollywood Boulevard to the Walk of fame where you can see whose hand and footprints have a likeness to yours while visiting the Kodak Theatre, famous for the Oscar celebrations. And if your are lucky, you might share a fitting room with someone famous as you go shopping on Rodeo Drive in the Beverly Hills neighbourhood, at Santa Monica Square or on Hollywood Drive. From Muholland Drive you can click away at the famous 'Hollywood' sign which is a symbol known to everyone all over the world. All this excitement and its has not even cost you a penny!

Not too far outside of LA, in Anaheim, you can find the 'Happiest Place on Earth' which everyone knows is Disneyland. I went there thinking that I would be trailing around after my children while they lived the dream of their lives, but I can assure you that I was more thrilled and enthused than my kids. I relived childhood adventures that I thought had long passed with my buddies Mickey and Minnie and shared new ones with my family. The price of $86 for adults and $76 for kids over 9 years of age with transport from our hotel was well worth it. I have been told that Disney world is better, but only seeing is believing. Many friends of mine have even opted for buying apartments in the Los Angeles area so that when they spend their holidays there, they do not have to worry about lodgings. One dream spot is in the Palisades, a small town residential area not far from Sunset Boulevard and only a stone's throw from the impressive three mile run cliffs that stop the Pacific from entering.

Crossing California to San Francisco

But if you really want to get a good grip on California, then let's go down to the Pacific Ocean and over to the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. One thing is to stand at a distance and admire its greatness but the best is to be part of it. There are bike ride tours over the bridge which first take you along the Bay Trail past various interesting points and then over the 1.7 mile long bridge. But San Francisco woud not be complete without a visit to the Island of Alcatraz and its piercing prison and museum filled with tingling history. Everything about California makes you tingle!