I’m going to be mean for this post. All you get is a link, and you probably won’t even be able to take this vacation, but I only found out about it a few minutes ago or I would have given you more warning, and told you to check with your Serenity agent. Here’s the link:

http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2010/09jul_solareclipse/

Yes, that’s a NASA link. Yes, it’s the South Pacific. No, it’s not about a telescope or the space station. But here’s the first paragraph.

July 9, 2010: It’s every vacationer’s dream: You stretch out on a white sandy beach for a luxurious nap under the South Pacific sun. The caw of distant gulls wafts across the warm sea breeze while palm fronds rustle gently overhead. You take it all in through half-closed eyes.

Could Paradise get any better? This weekend it will.

Click the link to find out what would make it better.

Lots of good vacation places in the Caribbean, yessiree. You don’t even have to be on land—cruise ships offer a sumptuous and relaxing way to spend a week or two. But the Caribbean has to stop somewhere. So head south until you reach the northernmost point in South America. It’s a little peninsula in Columbia called La Guajira. Here’s the tipmost tip of it.

Cape of sails

Not exactly covered with hotels, is it? In fact the whole area is pretty much desert, and it gets mountainous as you go inland. The Wayúu people inhabit the area. Their lifestyle remains pretty much unchanged since they successfully fought off the invading Spanish back in the 1500′s. They are generally disinclined to encourage a lot of development, although the main source of income in the area is royalties from a coal mine. Lately there has been some talk of putting up some wind-powered electrical generation to help supply all of Columbia, bolstering the country’s rather undependable hydropower. It’s windy there, and wind power would certainly have less impact than exploiting the considerable mineral wealth of the area.

So what does all this have to do with vacations? It’s a popular ecotourism destination. Ecotourism is generally educational, low impact, and volunteerism-oriented. The main attractions are usually the exotic and usually delicate environment, and local culture. A large chunk of land (62,000) acres is a national park, and one of the highest mountain peaks in Columbia is there.

Serenity’s specialty is luxury vacations at a savings, but give your agent a call. See what they can do for you. It might be a vacation that changes your life.

This is about two places you can stay in the part of WV described in the last post, about the Green Bank telescope.

The first place I learned about courtesy of a friend who like to ride a motorcycle. He rode his BMW to attend a rally of antique BMW motorcycles. He raved about how wonderful the roads are, and about one of the best placed to eat, a restaurant called Hutte’s, in the town of Helvetia. It seats only 48, so call ahead to make a reservation. All good stuff. However, he stayed at a place whose name and town shall remain unmentioned. (Unless you’re a motorcyclist headed for the area. Write me or send a note in the comments, and I’ll tell all.)

Anyway, the rate was only $35 a night. How can you go wrong with that? Well, for starters, the water pressure left a lot to be desired. My friend said it reminded him of being in boot camp in the Marines, only without the DI yelling at him. The TV was so old it didn’t have a remote, and he could get only three stations. He noticed a sign on the wall apologizing for the stains on the sheets—he was relieved to learn the stains were caused by the high iron content in the water. And no cell phone reception. At least the bed and bathroom were clean.

Then there’s Snowshoe Mountain resort. The town is named after the place. The resort must have a hundred separate buildings, from cabins to what look like huge apartments. They offer skiing, trail rides, bike and ATV races, events, restaurants, package deals, gift cards, lessons, spa, golf, you name it. And it’s all up on the top of a mountain and the view is spectacular. I haven’t been there, but somehow I don’t think you get a shower that produces only drips. Here’s one of their publicity photos:

They call this the Backcountry Hut. It's a restaurant.

I’m pretty sure a Serenity agent can fix you up with a good price if you’d like to stay here. I’m not so sure about that other place.

Recently we looked at the seacoast town of Bogia, in Papua New Guinea. Today it’s Manarola, Italy. Here’s the picture I saw that piqued my interest in the place:

stone bridges, multi-storey buildings, telephone, sailboats (click to enlarge)

Manarola is famous for its local wine, called Sciacchetra. Commercial fishing thrives there, and the town seems to be named after a mill wheel. A famous tourist attraction is a walking trail named, loosely translated, Lover’s Lane.  This town and its neighbors have become increasingly popular in recent years (ahem, one of Serenity’s agents will be happy to fix you up with a place to stay); I suppose it’s one of those things where a place becomes The Place to visit, like the Riveria used to be. (I read a good ad for the Riveria a couple years back. It said, “The Riveria was in before the word “in” was in.)

Here’s a shot of Bogia. You can see the volcano I wrote about in the background:

Thatched huts

Both towns have been around a looong time. Both towns are full of friendly people eager to show hospitality to tourists. Both are peaceful, relaxing places to live and visit. Here’s the philosophical question: Why is Bogia so primitive, and Manarola not?

Not far away, relatively speaking, a native Papua New Guinean asked anthropologist Jared Diamond essentially that question, and it led to the book Guns, Germs, and Steel, which is Diamond’s answer to the question of why some places became technologically advanced and some didn’t. It’s a fascinating read. Bring it with you on your next vacation.

I happen to know a little German, and I’ve seen a map or two of Germany. I don’t associate Germany with islands, much less touristy ones. Well, Germany has an island, and it’s almost entirely a tourist spot. Or botanical garden. And it’s in a lake.

Map of the place.

Enough mystery. It’s the Island of Mainau, and it’s in Lake Constance in southern Germany, Bavaria, to be exact. Here’s one of a million of so pictures of this beautiful place:

Zillions of types of flowers and trees grow all over the island, some even more manicured than this, some more-or-less wild

If you like plants, you will love the island. Its collection includes exotic plants from all over, even a Sequoia. The gardens and parks contain an odd mixture of modern sculpture and traditional architecture.

The island bobbled around during the past century or two as the private property (and castle) of several royal and semi-royal families, until 1991 when the current owner set up a foundation to run the place. It’s so popular an attraction that the traffic on the mainland highways can get quite backed up. Rather like the highway to “the shore” in Delaware on weekends.

I’m not aware of any places to stay on the island itself, but the whole area is popular for tourism and you won’t have any trouble finding accommodations, especially if you talk to one of Serenity’s agents.

So. Tell us about an island you like. Know of any in Germany?