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RELAX Magazine/Issue One
Vacation 101
By: Ruth Carlson
Remember when you were a kid and you anticipated vacation for what seemed like forever and the day finally arrived? You woke up at the crack of dawn, your dad piled the suitcases on top of the station wagon, and you took off for the beach.
Blackberries were just a fruit, email hadn’t been invented and the closest thing to a cell phone was two cans with string attached. Fast forward to 2005 where Silicon Valley workers take their office with them on vacation…if they take time off at all.
We’ve all heard that the U.S. lags behind the rest of the world in vacation time, but did you know we’re second from the bottom? According to Hewitt Associates, the country with the most vacation days is Denmark with 31, followed closely by Austria and Finland at 30 days. France and Norway with 25 days, Germany at 24 days, Belgium, Ireland, the U.K., the Netherlands and Switzerland each at 20 days, Australia at 20 days and New Zealand with 15 days. The U.S. worker receives 10 vacation days a year. Only Mexico is worse with 6 days. And unlike these nations, U.S. companies legally do not have to offer vacation time.
Even more disturbing is the number of workers who don’t take holidays. According to a 2003 survey by Management Recruiters International (MRI) over half of the executives surveyed weren't planning to use their vacation time. Instead, these execs were choosing to stay at the office and tackle their increased workloads… courtesy of corporate downsizing.
In today’s climate of increased outsourcing and job insecurity, it's not surprising that many people think they can’t afford the “luxury” of a vacation. What they should be thinking is that time off can jumpstart a career. A new surrounding gives you a chance to unwind, gain new perspectives and return to work energized with creative input.
It used to be cool to say you were too busy to leave the office. The new status symbol is the ability to take time off. If you can get away from it all, you must have it together. But most of us don’t know how to relax. A summer 2002 survey of 1000 Americans by the Gallup organization found that the majority of people return from vacation more tired then when we left. Fortunately there is help. Just follow this 12-step vacation program and repeat after me: vacation is good for business!
1. Take that vacation and don’t let “emergencies” stop you.
2. Don’t stay at work till midnight the night before to get all your work done-spread it out weeks in advance.
3. Don’t pack the night before. Put your open suitcase in your bedroom and when you think about something you’ll need on vacation, drop it in. You can always edit later. Do pack relaxation products like Bucky, a u shaped pillow filled with buckwheat that’s serves as a neck rest while driving or flying.
4. Your laptop is not an appendage of your body. You will survive without it.
5. Leave a message on voice mail directing callers to your colleagues.
6. I know it seems like a member of your family, but your cell phone is not human and it will survive without you.
7. Nix the conference calls on vacation!
8. No fair making trips to businesses in the area so you can write off the trip.
9. Sleep until you wake up naturally. Wake up calls and alarm clocks are not allowed on holiday.
10. I know you’re used to organizing every minute of your day, but don’t do it on vacation. Walk out your door with no idea of what you are going to do, except have fun.
11. Don't leave contact information with the office. They will survive.
12. Go to Santa Barbara.
Why Santa Barbara?
Because it feels like you’re in a remote Mediterranean village even though it’s just a few hours away and you can drive there, avoiding the hassles of airport security and plane delays.
Because Santa Barbara has made relaxing an art form with outside dining, bikes on the promenade, pristine beaches and outdoor activities.
Unfortunately the secret is out on this paradise, nicknamed the American Riviera. With the success of the movie “Sideways’’ tourists are threatening to overrun this beach town. Not to worry--there is a hidden Santa Barbara with boutiques, restaurants and wineries that most tourists never find.
Where to stay:
There’s no sense staying in Santa Barbara if you can’t be near the beach, and it doesn’t have to cost a fortune. Here are a few affordable, fashionable spots off the beaten path.
The funky Tropicana Inn has had a total makeover. Now the Los Brisas Hotel, it’s just two blocks from the beach and the pier. Be sure and book the penthouse—the money you’ll save using the full kitchen will make it worthwhile.
With it’s round driveway and turquoise awnings, the Santa Barbara Inn is reminiscent of a 1950’s motel. Home of Michel Richard’s famed CITRONELLE Restaurant, you can spend hours sitting on your deck watching the action on East Beach.
The University of California Santa Barbara faculty club has six guest rooms overlooking the lagoon. The accommodations are spartan but the ocean is a short troll away, and the rates are the cheapest in town. It is located in Goleta though, so Santa Barbara downtown is a ten-minute drive away.
If money is not object, but relaxation is, book the Bacara Resort and Spa. A favorite of today’s movie stars, it has an old Hollywood glamour. Be sure and book a couple’s hot stone or seaweed massage in a private cabana overlooking the ocean.
Afterward dine at Miro, a restaurant named after the artist Jean Miro, and order the dinner paired with a different wine for each course. With bike and kayak rentals onsite
you may never leave, except to go shopping.
Shopping
State Street, the main drag in Santa Barbara, is a must see for serious shoppers, but avoid the chains--you can shop at Pier 1 at home! Instead visit unique local boutiques like Wendy Foster, where you’ll find stylish beach wear and casual chic. She and her husband Pierre Lafond, who owns the Pierre Lafond delis on State Street and the Santa Barbara winery, are a Santa Barbara success story.
If you’ve lusted after the colorful Nino Parruca pottery displayed in high-end stores, but freaked at the price, you are in for a treat. The Italian Pottery Outlet is the only U.S. importer of Parruca which it sells at a discount. I don’t need tell you that saving money is very therapeutic. The shop sells dishware, vases, tables, artwork, garden and a small selection of jewelry. They hold a huge warehouse sale few time year-a good excuse to visit Santa Barbara again. If you’re handy, ask if the owners if they have any seconds in the back. With superglue and some paint, you might be able to repair a broken masterpiece.
Then there’s the Cute Kiosk—the kind of store you expect in this funky beach town. Lucy, a young college graduate took over a tiny kiosk the city couldn’t rent and sells her handmade purses, scarves, pins, hair clips and t-shirts in the space located on the corner of Anacapa and State Street.
Wine tasting
You can’t visit Santa Barbara without sampling wine, but nobody wants to drink in the Santa Ynez mountains and then drive. Luckily there are a few wineries in town, where you walk back to your hotel.
The Santa Barbara winery, owned by legendary local Pierre Lafond, has a small tasting room just off State Street on Anacapa Street. You will want to buy the wines for the pretty labels alone but luckily the wine lives up to the art. They make a unique red called Beaujour, a Beaujolais style zinfandel and the Sauvignon Blanc is also a big seller.
Jaffurs, a family owned winery, has a cavern-like tasting room that is refreshingly cool on a hot day. They specialize in Rhône varietals, but also offer a sparkling wine. You have to pay a fee to taste the wine but the offerings are quite extensive and the staff is knowledgeable.
Dining
For breakfast or lunch, the locals’ hang out at “Our Daily Bread.” The low fat muffins are so good you’ll want to take some home. It’s located on Adobe Square near the Santa Barbara presidio, the new place to nosh.
Down the street, a cute young couple opened a cheese shop. C’est cheese has a great assortment of cream and hard cheeses from around the world, perfect for a picnic.
You’ll have to wait in line, but it’s worth it, for the Palace Grill. Located in Santa Barbara's charming Old Town district, the Palace Grill features authentic Louisiana specialties like New Orleans Bar-Be-Que Shrimp. While you’re digging into your Cajun dinner don’t be surprised when the waiter hands you lyrics. Guests are expected to sing for their supper. When “It’s a Wonderful Life,” blares from the speakers, the diners sing along. It’s a crazy, fun spot that also happens to have great food.
Entertainment
If the world were fair, the movie Sideways would be playing at the Arlington Theater. Instead it’s at the Granada. Yet it doesn’t really matter what movie is playing at the Arlington, the theater is the main attraction. Built in 1931, it has been beautifully restored. You’ll feel like you are in tiny Spanish town. The theater is flanked on both sides by Spanish faux villas while lanterns; windows and staircases adorn both walls. The ceiling is filled with twinkling stars so you feel as though you are watching a film in an outside courtyard. Just before the movie begins, an organ rises from the floor and a musician plays theme music. It’s a magical experience and it costs the same as a movie in a boring, generic Cineplex.
Located on the wharf, the Maritime Museum is so much fun you won’t realize you’re learning something. Right now it features two surfing exhibits. George Greenough: Beyond Surfing is the first retrospective on this surfing innovator. Surf Film celebrates the 40th anniversary of the movie Endless Summer, often called "the definitive surf movie."
Relaxing
The best things in Santa Barbara, as in life, are free. Take off your shoes and walk barefoot in the white sand, scan the horizon for whales or bike along the promenade with purple mountains as your backdrop.
If you’re a member of any other yacht club, you can sip wine at the Santa Barbara Yacht Club on the edge of the pier. Not a yachtie? Pretend you’re the skipper on a sailboat sunset cruise. Many boats offer sunset cruises or whale watching tours. A boat ride out to the Channel Islands offers you the best chance to spot blue, humpback and gray whales as well as the black and white orcas.
Check out 101 free events on the Santa Barbara Convention and Visitor’s Bureau website. The average price of a home in America’s Riviera hit the million-dollar mark a year ago but it still maintains small town traditions like the annual Solstice Parade. This 30-year-old tradition is a homegrown affair.
Locals park their beach chairs along State Street two nights before the event to nab the best spot. Tourists wandering among the colorful mayhem scream to be heard above the steel drums, "What's the point of this parade?” There isn't one. There are no prizes, just a good time. Put this in your blackberry: Saturday, June 25, 2005, the Summer Solstice Parade and another vacation for you.
Details
Arlington Theatre
Santa Barbara, CA
1317 State Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101 (map)
805.963.9503
Bacara
8301 Hollister Avenue
Santa Barbara, CA 93117
Phone: 877-422-4245
Email: info@bacararesort.com
Web Site: www.bacararesort.com
Bucky pillows
www.Bucky.com
C’est cheese
825 Santa Barbara Street
Wendy Foster
833 State St.,
Santa Barbara, CA 93101
805-565-1505
Italian Pottery Outlet
19 Helena Street
Santa Barbara, CA
805-564-7655.
Jaffurs Wine Cellars
819 E Montecito St
Santa Barbara, CA 93103
Phone: 805-962-7003
Business Hours: Friday-Sunday 12-4 + appt
Email: info@jaffurswine.com
Web Site: www.jaffurswine.com
Los Brisas Hotel
(805) 966-2219
223 Castillo St
Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Palace Grill
8 East Cota Street,
Our Daily Bread
831 Santa Barbara Street,
Santa Barbara
(805) 966-3894
Santa Barbara Convention & Visitor’s Bureau
1601 Anacapa Street
Santa Barbara, CA 93101-1909
(805) 966-9222
www.santabarbaraCA.com
Santa Barbara Inn
1-800-231-0431
901 East Cabrillo Boulevard
Santa Barbara, CA 93103
Santa Barbara Maritime Museum
www. Sbmm.org
113 Harbor Way Suite 190
(805) 962-8404
Santa Barbara Winery
202 Anacapa Street
Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Phone: 800-225-3633
Business Hours: M-SU 10am-5pm
Email: wine@sbwinery.com
Web Site: www.sbwinery.com
University of California, Santa Barbara
Phone: (805) 893-3096
Email: the.club@faculty-club.ucsb.edu
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