Ah, Summer

August has begun. This is when I start to get into the "Summer Funk." All I want to do is lay on a beach in the warm sun, enjoying the warm awesomeness of the summer. Instead, I am stuck in a dreary office with no windows. It is probably the worst possible way to spend the summer. Being an adult sucks.

However, I am taking a vacation this year! I don't usually take a week-long vacation because my family rarely goes anywhere. (Not by choice, mind you.) We aren't going away this year but we are doing a bunch of things in the area that we have been wanting to hit.

1. Camelbeach

Camelbeach is a pretty awesome waterpark that we try to go to every year. My daughter, who isn't big on amusement parks, loves this place. The best part is that they have specials on 4-packs of tickets. Since there are only three of us in the family, my daughter gets to bring one of her friends. After all, hanging out with your parents is laaaame.

2. Da Vinci Science Center

The Da Vinci Science Center is a sort-of hands-on museum type thing. It is aimed at getting kids interested in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) programs. While my daughter isn't a huge science nut, she is involved in her school's branch of the Technology Student Association so things like this help her both in the classroom and in clubs. And it's fun!

3. Lehigh Valley Zoo

Since we live in the Philadelphia area, we have been to the Philadelphia Zoo many times. However, we have never been to the Lehigh Valley Zoo, which isn't particularly far from our house. Everyone in my family loves animals (heck, my sister is getting married at a local zoo in September!) so it should be a great trip.

These are the main pieces of our vacation. (No, I'm not going to say "staycation." That is a terrible word.) We will probably find a couple of other places to visit and maybe we'll even spend a day relaxing by the pool. I really do love summer. Now if only I could get rid of the desk job....

The Ride

Going back to my trip to New York City for a moment, the final thing we did in the city before we left was take a bus tour called The Ride. This is the infamous "sideways bus." Yes, the seats on this particular bus are situated so that all of the passengers have a window view. Instead of facing forward, the seats face the one huge window on the right side of the bus. The seats are set up stadium-style so the top row is higher than the bottom row and everyone has a good view of what is going on outside. The Ride has two tour hosts - Jackie and Scott. It is obvious that both of them have had improv training of some sort. Both of them were absolutely hysterical as they poked fun at the passengers and the people walking past on the street. In this case, the tour operators really do make the attraction much more fun and enjoyable.

It's a little difficult to explain The Ride if you have never been on it. It is a tour so you do get to see some of the touristy things in New York. You get some basic information on Grand Central Terminal and the Chrysler Building and some other notable places. What sets it apart from other city tours is the sidewalk entertainment. There are a couple of stops where entertainers, dressed as regular people on the street, perform for you. For example, a man in a UPS-type uniform sets his package aside to do some breakdancing for us. Since he is right there on the street, there are regular people walking past him. Not only are the performers awesome to watch, it's also funny to watch the reactions of the people trying to get someplace.

The Ride is on the expensive side of things. It costs $59.00 per person for an approximately 75 minute tour. (Note: The box office is located at Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum. It can be difficult to find but once you get to the museum, it is literally right there.) However, I do think that it is worth the price. All three of us spent the entire ride with smiles on our faces. I would love to do it again the next time I am in New York City.

Virginia Beach, VA

I spent last week in Virginia with my family. One of the places we stopped by was Virginia Beach. It was a fairly short trip from our hotel in Newport News, even though there seemed to be a ton of traffic. Luckily, it was a nice day so we didn't mind it.

Virginia Beach doesn't rank very high on our list of favorite beaches. My husband had read that there was a boardwalk and he was really looking forward to it. In his mind, a boardwalk means shops and arcades and fun things to do. In Virginia Beach, a boardwalk means an area not covered in sand for you to walk with a few benches for old men to smoke their montecristo cigars. The shops were a block away from the beach and, while we did manage to find one arcade, there wasn't a lot to do.

We ended up only staying for about 3 hours. That included trying to find a decent parking spot that didn't cost an arm and a leg (I believe we paid $15 for 'all day' parking), eating lunch, and playing in the arcade. We did stop in a few shops but they were typical beach stores. Virginia Beach was a nice town (with an anti-bad behavior policy) but I would rather go to Ocean City, MD instead.

Game review: Mystery Stories: Island of Hope

Mystery Stories: Island of Hope is a hidden object game based on a Caribbean vacation. Natives claim a missing casket is from a curse while you, Michelle, think otherwise. You set out to prove your claim. For the most part, this is a typical hidden object game. However, there are a few things to change it up. In some levels, only one object will be shown to you. You have 30 seconds to find this object before the list moves onto the next object. I think this is the best way to challenge someone who plays a lot of hidden object games.

Another change is that some levels have audio clues. While I can understand why someone would want to make an audio hidden object game, I prefer to play games without their sounds as I listen to my own songs. So, in order to play these levels, I need to shut off my audio and turn the sounds back on in the game. It's not a ton of work but it would have been nice to have been warned of this beforehand.

As much as the audio level annoyed me, I found the rest of the game to be quite enjoyable. This is a wonderful game for the more experienced hidden object player. Unfortunately, this means that someone who doesn't play these games a lot may find this too difficult. Play at your own risk.