ART: San Francisco

San Francisco is a city to be experienced, with or without flowers in your hair. Sitting on the tip of San Francisco Peninsula in North California, the city is the focus of the famous Bay Area. Recognize the silhouette of the famous Golden Gate and fall in love at once with the view of the shimmering waters, the skyline and the beautiful Golden Gate Park with its conservatory and botanical gardens.

The rolling hills, dipping streets and trolley of San Francisco are all familiar from the movies and so was China Town. Be prepared for the old world charm and friendliness of this lovely city, its wonderful laid back attitude that belies the serious academic and high tech business world it supports. Cosmopolitan to the hilt, just wandering through its different neighborhoods transported you to different parts of the world.

The architecture is a blend of Victorian and modern and typifies the city’s general laissez faire attitude. Everyone can do their own thing and find their own space here. No wonder it was the home of the Beat movement in the 1950s, the Mecca of hippies in the sixties and the prevailing gay capital.

South Beach, the Bay Area, the Bernal Height, Alcatraz and Fisherman's Wharf are legendary and diverse attractions of San Francisco. Make a visit to Nob Hill to pay homage to the hundreds of novels that have featured this upper crust neighborhood.

Alcatraz Island which can be reached by a ferry has the first US lighthouse and fort on the west coast. It is also the site of the infamous penitentiary from where almost no one has ever escaped. It is also significant in the history of American Indians who occupied the island for one and a half years in1969 claiming the unoccupied island as their own territory. The American Indians return to Alcatraz each year to pay homage to the veterans of the 1969 Occupation of All Indian Tribes, to reaffirm their struggle and to draw attention to their demand for self determination. In addition to a host of exhibitions that are held through the year, Alcatraz is home to exquisite gardens, tide pools where water birds nest. The views of the bay area are incomparable.

Fisherman’s Wharf is the historic waterfront area of San Francisco with the most delightful seafood restaurants. It also offers some fantastic shopping. The young and young at heart should not miss the Aquarium of the Bay or Pier 39. Take a bay cruise under Golden Bridge and watched the playful sea lions. The place is alive at all times of the day with street performers, live music and dancing.

A selection of San Francisco holiday apartments on Holiday Velvet:

» S.F Anza Suite: San Francisco holiday apartment, sleeps 4, from $100
» Mississipi St. rent: San Francisco holiday villa, sleeps 8, from $200
» Affordable Duplex: San Francisco holiday apartment, sleeps 3, from $100

ART: Florida Beaches

The first thought that comes to mind when anyone thinks of Florida is its sunny beaches with pristine sands. Hardly surprising when there are nearly nine hundred miles of beaches! One could, start at Jacksonville Beach on the Atlantic Ocean and go down to Fort Lauderdale and Miami to the tip of the peninsula and St Augustine. Then one could go up again on the other coast to Panama Beach, South Walton and Pensacola on the Gulf of Mexico.

Everyone probably has a few favorites, probably because of the memories associated with the vacation. How does one pick the best? That really depends on what are one’s interests and priorities. There are family friendly beaches like Daytona where kids can have a ball in the perfectly safe waters. Daytona in the right season offers the fascinating opportunity to watch the hatching and emerging of the baby sea turtles from the eggs of the endangered sea turtles that nest there. The journey of the young ones from the shore to the water is fascinating and fraught with danger from predatory birds.

Places like Sunny Isles Beach have playground equipment for young children in beachfront state parks along the shore. Many beaches have attractions close to the shores that adults would enjoy like the glamorous Miami Beach. Still others are unspoiled by modern distractions and facilities like some of the beaches in Martin County, north of Palm Beach. The natural beaches, all on barrier islands, have nothing but sand and sea, perfect for quiet relaxing vacation. There is not a high-rise in sight.

Perhaps one of the most romantic places to be in Florida is St. Augustine at the very tip of the peninsula. Here you can watch the sun rise over the horizon of the Atlantic Ocean in the early hours of the day and as the evening comes to an end you can see the golden ball dip into the Gulf of Mexico. It is hard to decide which is more beautiful- the golden dawn at sunrise or the rosy dusk at sunset!

North Beach at Fort De Soto Park is a favorite – it has something for everybody. Made up of five interconnected islands off the southern tip of the Pinellas peninsula, it offers miles of sand, great fishing, canoeing, kayaking, bird-watching, biking and walking trails. There is even a historic fort nearby.

Dr. Stephen P. Leatherman, affectionately known as Dr. Beach, picks the top ten beaches in the country every year based on a number of environmental factors. His top choice for 2006 is Florida’s Caladesi Island State Park with its three 3 miles of nature trail, sailing and fishing opportunities. One of the few natural islands along the Gulf Coast, Caladesi´s white sands is accessible only by boat. There are miles of kayaking through mangroves.

Here a sample of Florida holiday villas and Florida apartments on Holiday Velvet:

» Mi Casa e su Casa: Florida apartment, up to 8 people, from $600
» Gulf Coast FL Beach: Florida villa, up to 6 people, from $185
» My Paradise Home: Florida villa, up to 6 people, from $100

ART: Los Angeles

Los Angeles - the City of Angels, where a million dreams come true or are shattered! Los Angeles in South California draws people to it like a magnet. It offers Californian sunshine, plenty of entertainment for kids, thriving business and it is the home of showbiz. Many people firmly believe that Los Angeles is the place to live - well if not live at least visit.

A difficult city to move around in without car, it might be worthwhile to take some of the attractive tours offered around the city. It is a large city divided into many sections such as Malibu, Manhattan Beach, Venice Beach, South Bay and many more including starry Hollywood.

The old part of city, the conjurer of dreams, is best visited on foot and you can follow the path of the legends of yore when you do so. Take a guided tour to places whose names you have heard so often; Sunset Strip, Melrose Avenue and Graumanns’s Chinese Theater. Standing on the Walk of Fame is almost as thrilling as seeing the celebrities who had their own stars on the world famous pavement.

Downtown Hollywood is a disappointment and is just another suburb, definitely not spilling over with film stars! As they say Hollywood is a state of mind and the chance of getting a little stardust is greater in Beverly Hills, where they live or work. Take a drive past Beverly Hills and a visit the Universal Studios and who know’s who you might see.

The visit to Universal Studio is an education in itself. You can watch behind the scenes of several TV shows and movies and expriencing the effort that goes into each scene on the set makes you realize why this is a multi-million dollar industry.

When you earn the kind of money that the stars do, you need some place to spend it so Rodeo Drive, which was immortalized in the movie Pretty Woman, offers three blocks of the most exclusive and expensive shopping in the world.

Six Flags Magic Mountain and Disneyland Resort are both must do’s on the list of all young at hearts. Disneyland Park is home to eight different areas from Mickey’s Toon town to Main Street USA. The interactive games, parades and rides all add up to a day of fun and nostalgia where fairy tales almost come true.

The perfect romantic way to round off a day’s excitement is to take a night boat cruise. Sip champagne and dance under the stars after a superb meal – Los Angeles truly is magical.

Here is a sample of Los Angeles apartments on Holiday Velvet:

» Webster8: Los Angeles apartment, sleeps 3, from $1500
» Venice Place: Los Angeles villa, sleeps 2, from $180

ART: A Trip to Las Vegas

Why would anyone visit Las Vegas? For more reasons than you could think of or even imagine. The fastest growing city in the US, three hundred days of sunshine, world class golf courses and other sports facilities, excellent museums including a Guggenheim and oh - of course, I almost forgot – the Las Vegas Strip! The most impulsive reason to visit Las Vegas is to get married at one of its innumerable chapels!

South Nevada is booming and more people than ever before are relocating to the Las Vegas area. This is no desert but a thriving community, surrounded by scenic mountains. It has grown into a retirement destination that rivals Florida, with favorable taxes and no hurricanes! It is not just retirees or second home investors but people seeking to live in a place with good weather, reasonable cost of living and a good education system. The golf is a bonus!

Las Vegas Strip and off strip areas known as downtown are witnessing a stunning revival. Beautiful master planned communities, many with their own casinos and entertainment have developed around the city and luxurious mile-high condos and condo-hotels dot the Strip. The luxurious life style offered at any of the Las Vegas villas is to be seen to be believed. Getting around is not a hassle either. The city has great public transport with the monorail and two bus systems that get you to any part of the city quickly and efficiently.

No other city in the world can rival the glitter of the neon lit Las Vegas Strip with its larger than life casinos and entertainment centers. Las Vegas is like some TV reality show. There’s no need travel around the world – every famous landmark has been replicated here, probably with greater detail than the original. From slot machines to roulette you can take your pick for a little flutter or a night of gambling. If Lady Luck favors you, they throw in a luxury suite for a night or more!

There are several other attractions in Vegas and even kids can have fun at the various theme parks, rides and museums. It perhaps has more variety for entertainment than any other place in the world, though most people cannot imagine anything else here other than casinos.

One cannot make a trip to Vegas and not watch any of the entertainment. Go past the famous clubs and you will see the names of top performers blinking in neon signs. The greatest entertainers of the world have performed in Las Vegas and do not be surprised if you spot an Elvis or two!

ART: Vibrant Miami!

Pulsating, vibrant Miami! Its very name conjures images of golden beaches, high fashion, high energy and glamour. Maybe it is the result of the constant media glare on visiting celebrities to this glamorous city or the influence of watching endless reruns of Miami Vice, the attraction of Miami to visitors is probably next only to that of New York and Los Angeles.

South Florida is great region to take a vacation for a multitude of reasons and one of them certainly is Miami, nestling between the Everglades and Atlantic Ocean on Miami River. It is towards the southern tip of the peninsula and practically surrounded by water.

Rent a car on arrival at Miami International Airport as driving is the best way to get around the city. Rental companies offers cars at very competitive rates as public transport in the city is pretty unimpressive. You can also land at Fort Lauderdale which is less crowded and offers cheaper fares and in just twenty minutes you can be in downtown Miami.

A large city divided into several districts each with its unique flavor, Miami is very multicultural. Over sixty percent of the population of Miami is Hispanic and it is not for nothing that Miami is called the Gateway to Latin America and the Capital of the Americas. Cubans, Nicaraguans, Colombians, Venezuelans, Puerto Ricans, Argentineans, Ecuadorians, Brazilians, Dominicans, Haitians, and Mexicans make up the cosmopolitan mix. Castro’s takeover in 1959 brought a change not only to Cuba , it changed Miami forever. A steady influx of refugees from Cuba changed the ethnic composition of the city entirely. Now there is a neighborhood in Miami called Little Havana.

South Beach with its famous beachside promenade lined with Art deco buildings is not actually within Miami, but Miami Beach is just as glamorous. Celebrity spotting is big pastime here. The city is not just about glitzy expensive boutiques and restaurants and scintillating nightlife. You can just as easily have a great Cuban meal for a song and shop at down to earth places.

Home to several major international political and trade events and Awards ceremonies, Miami’s Coconut Grove Expo Center has something going on all the time. Yes Miami is a big business center too!

Despite its image as a playground for adults, kids can have great time here at its several animal parks and science museum and of course enjoy the water sports! The Parrot jungle is a private collection of over two hundred varieties of colorful parrots, parakeets and macaws. Not to be missed is the seaquarium with its extensive collection of marine life including dolphins and whales. The Deering Estate at Cutler is a little known nature park in Miami which hardly a hundred people visit a day. This unspoiled retreat in the heart of the city is a haven with a number of rare plants, tropical hardwood hammocks, and the endangered Rockland pine.

ART: The Bahamas

If you have decided to go on vacation but not sure of destination then you could do a lot worse that looking at the Bahamas. The Bahamas consists of around 700 islands, spread over 100,0000 sq miles. These islands are surrounded by cays (locals pronounce it as “keys”) which are a tropical havens... .

Shining sky blue sea water and white beaches are the heart of the Bahamas. Each island is different from the other in terms of culture, heritage and customs. Nassau and Paradise are the main islands and both these islands have 26 beaches. Pink Sand Beach on Harbor Island is spread over an area of three miles and is famous for the pale pink powder. Eleuthera is renowned for the pineapples and Abaco for sailing. Grand Bahama Island is the main center for tourists. Kayaking, horseback riding, national parks and botanical gardens are the specialty of this island. Acklins and Crooked Island, The Berry Islands, Cat Island, The Bahamas out Islands, The Exuma Islands, and San Salvador are some of the other islands of Bahamas.

The islands of Bahamas not only offer the calm beaches but also many adventure sports for the lovers of adventures. For the lovers of water sports a wide range of adventure water sports awaits you at the Bahamas, like sail boating, canoeing, kayaking, parasailing, scuba diving and deep-sea fishing. Here you can also experience high-speed boating to have a view of some of the deserted beaches and some rare spices. Kite Surfing is another adventure sport on the Bahamas.