You’ve spent all that time working out and getting into shape. You must be exhausted! It’s the perfect time for a vacation. There are vacation options for any style and to suit any pocketbook. Give me a five-star hotel in a fancy resort. But my buddy prefers a small tent and a backpack full of camping gear. (Eeew! Bugs!) Let’s take a look at some of the choices.
Maybe you’re on a tight budget. (Maybe you spent too much for that gym membership!) Or you may have a crazy schedule at work, and you can’t take too many days off, but you’d still like some R&R. There’s a perfect solution, and even a new word to describe it: staycation. Instead of going away, you stay right at home and do fun vacation things nearby. These day trips can be as much fun as a fancy vacation. Consider a trip to the art museum, or attend a concert. Pack up the kids, pack the car, and head to the beach for a day of sun, sand, and surf. Places like New York City have ferries you can ride for free. These boats will make you feel like you’re on a fancy cruise—well, a fancy cruise without waiters and fancy meals . . . ha! (In New York City, the ferry to Staten Island gives you a spectacular view of the Statue of Liberty, and it’s free!) Feeling seasick? Go to a nearby park where you can enjoy a nature hike through the woods. (Watch out for the skunks.) Many local parks have wilderness trails with signs that identify trees, plants, and animals you may see along your walk. For a day that’s a bit more expensive, you might try a kid-friendly place like the zoo, an amusement park, or a water park. Don’t forget the sunscreen!
ALAN: You have a sunburn, Lia. I think you enjoyed your vacation a little too much.
LIA: Actually, we just stayed home. We took day trips, and we discovered places we didn’t even know about right in the neighborhood. We even visited the zoo. It was great fun!
ALAN: Wow! What a great idea. I finished painting the house. It was not great fun.
LIA: I printed out some new recipes and cooked some interesting ethnic meals, too. After we cleaned up, we walked around the neighborhood and chatted with the neighbors. And one day we traveled to the beach and practiced our beach volleyball skills. I think that’s my new favorite sport. The whole week really was a fun staycation.
| Tip 1 |
Watch out for hidden extras you may not have thought about. You may have to pay to park your car or pay to go on the beach in some places. |
| Tip 2 |
Depending on how “‘wild”’ your wilderness trail is, you may have to keep an eye open for critters and bugs (eeew!). And we don’t even want to think about snakes. AAAACKKKK! |
| Tip 3 |
If there’s a fun attraction near where you live, look into a season pass. This will allow you to go as many times as you want all year. It’s usually a pretty good deal. |
(Not Very) Fun Fact!
If your dog gets sprayed by a skunk (eeew!), giving the dog a bath in tomato juice may remove the odor.
Pronunciation Pointer
Remember that the -ed ending of the simple past tense can be pronounced three different ways:
After a voiced sound (you can feel the vibration of your vocal cords), or in verbs ending in a vowel, it’s pronounced d (like dog).
Examples: called = calld; involved = involvd
After a voiceless sound (no vibration), it’s pronounced t (like top).
Examples: picked = pickt; stepped = stept
After a verb ending with the letter d or t, we hear the syllable id.
Examples: granted = grant id; started = start id; needed = need id
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VOCABULARY
buddy: friend
critter: fun word for small animals
day trips: short trips that last about — you guessed it — a day
deal: bargain, a good price
ferry: a medium-size or large boat that just goes short hops, back and forth from one place to another
give me: I prefer
hidden extras: expenses that aren’t included in the main cost
keep an eye open: be alert
kid-friendly: designed to appeal to kids
odor: a bad smell
pack up the kids: gather the kids and their stuff
R&R: Rest and Relaxation; a vacation
skunk: a small black animal with a white stripe that makes a terrible odor when it’s frightened
spectacular: wonderful
staycation: term for a vacation when you stay at home and do local things
suit any pocketbook: be a cost you can afford
sunburn: Ouch! It’s that redness of the skin from being in the sun too long
sunscreen: lotion to protect skin from the sun
surf: waves and sea; the beach
tight budget: not a lot of money to spare
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