Landlocked!

I live in the Midwest.  There are some great things about living here ... seasons, friendly people, low cost of living (comparatively speaking, anyway), rolling hills, and good food.  But there are some truly claustrophobic things about it, too. 

I LOVE the smell, sight, sound, and feel of the ocean.  LOVE it.  The first time I saw it, at age 14, I was hooked.  I don't know exactly what it is about the ocean, but there's just something about it that draws me.

Now, we do have some beautiful lakes here.  Lake Michigan has been called an inland sea; if you read the history of the shipwrecks of the great lakes, you'll find that the Great Lakes have as much fatal power to overwhelm even the largest cargo ships as the oceans do.  We don't get hurricanes here ... we get their remnants ... but we do get lake effect snow. 

Also, there's nothing quite like the sound of a loon calling over a northern Wisconsin or Minnesota lake as the sun sets on a warm July night and fireflies flicker over the water to make you love the Midwest.  There really are some great reasons to live here.  But about this time of year, I start to feel ... well ... stuck.  Spring comes and goes in Chicagoland in April.  We can have an 80 degree day on Monday followed by snow on Tuesday.  The ground is soggy, the skies are either a brilliant blue or an iron gray.  On the warmer days, when I can jump on my bike or grab the dogs and head out for the river trail, it's not so bad.  But when it is cold, rainy, and dreary ... as it is this weekend ... my soul longs for the sea.

I've visited many places with different climates at many different times of the year.  My favorites all have one thing in common.  They have the ocean ... or a sea ... attached to them.  Here's my top ten thirteen (who has a top thirteen?  ME!) favorite places to visit:

Top Thirteen Vacation Locations:

13.  Grand Turk

12.  Galveston, TX

11.  Cozumel, Mexico

10.  San Juan Islands, Washington State

9.   San Diego, CA

8.   Monterey, CA

7.   Oregon Coast

6.   Victoria, Vancouver Island, B.C. Canada

5.   Dingle Peninsula, Ireland ... this would be higher on my list if it were easier to get to!

4.   Marathon Key, Florida

3.   North Shore, Oahu, Hawaii ... the other side of the island is okay, too, but I love the untamed side

2.  Maui, Hawaii ... my favorite spot is Kaanapali Beach, but I like Wailea, too.

1.   Saint Thomas, U.S.V.I.

I'm sure it's strange to have a top 13.  I just couldn't narrow down to 10.  Good thing I haven't made it to the Baltic, the Mediterranean, or the far South Pacific or this could have been a lot longer.  On future posts, I'll give you a rundown of why I like each of these locations, family friendly or romantic "things to do" in each location, favorite places to stay and eat when I'm there, and share a few funny stories and favorite pictures. 

In the meantime, I'm lighting my 'ocean' scented candle, praying for the sun to come out and warm this place up so I can enjoy the water I do have access to, and dreaming of the ocean.