The Savvy Tourist

Lost in the Woods.......

.....like Hansel and Gretel! That's where we were just moments after retrieving my misplaced credit card from the store. You see, we were curious as to how far we actually were from our cabin (you know, as the crow flies) given it felt like we had traveled in a circle to get where we were (are you confused yet?) so we turned on the GPS. That was our first really bad idea. If you have been following the series at all, you will remember that I mentioned we were forewarned that the GPS might not be very accurate in the mountains. They weren't kidding!!! After leaving the store, we made an immediate right turn onto a small country road that looked pleasant enough, but wasn't exactly easy to find on any map we had in the car. The driver (you remember who that is, right?) was confident that the GPS knew exactly where it was going, so off we went. Keep in mind we are also trying to beat the eerie darkness from getting to the cabin before us. We traveled for a few miles, made a few uneventful, seemed like a good idea at the time turns and there you had it....we were officially lost. One of the many things that I think contributed to our situation was that if a road was "unmarked", the driver was pretty sure that was the road we were supposed to take. The other problem was the GPS did not know her right from her left. I will call it a her just because it spoke so sweetly while telling us to turn left to our death all the while highlighting a right turn on the screen so as not to arise any suspicion on her part. This GPS was very confused (or hateful, I'm not sure which). We decided to pull off the road stop in the middle of the road and reset the system by turning it off and turning it back on, allowing it to clear it's head and think about where the heck we were. That didn't really help. The closer it looked like we got to our destination, the more the GPS wanted us to turn around and go the other way. The scariest part for me was that it seemed we were just going higher and higher, yet not really getting anywhere. At one point my sister-in-law had to get out and walk ahead of the car to make sure we could actually drive where we were headed. I think that is about when some of the panic started to set in, or at least that is when we admitted the panic was setting in. I had felt the tension building for awhile now, especially since I was sitting in the back seat with most of it. After a few more times of foolishly going where the GPS suggested, we actually got close to the road the cabin was on. You could see the road from where we were, but you couldn't exactly get to it. If only we had a 4-wheel drive, a pair of bolt cutters and a few pairs of hip waders we would be home free. We didn't have any of those things therefore we were left to stare longingly at the road we wanted to be on, while contemplating going back the way we came, whichever way that was. Good thing those bears were hibernating because our trunk still had our carry out rib dinners from Damon's Grill that were permeating the air around us. Had it been Spring, we would have been followed and eaten for sure. I won't bore you with the twists and turns and nice words that we used to get down the mountain and finally back to our cabin one and a half hours later (some shortcut). Just rest assured we made it, despite ourselves and our helpful little GPS system, and we lived to tell about it....obviously!

After looking at our trek on Google Earth, it became clear to me where we went wrong. It was that first right hand turn when we thought it would be a good idea to take a shortcut. I have included a picture of the area with labels on the Arts and Crafts Community and our cabin. Enjoy finding your way from one to another. You can click on the image for a larger view. Happy Trails!

Getaway to Gatlinburg

Before I was so rudely interrupted by my  Las Vegas adventure, I started to tell you about my travels to Tennessee. Well, lets get back to the hills of Tennessee for a much more relaxing experience.
We arrived in Nashville late due to some unexpected delays on Delta as mentioned in my previous post Delta Disappoints. We were picked up at the airport by my in-laws and spent the night at my sister-in-law's town home in Nashville. We didn't really have time to tour Nashville on this visit, because we had bigger and better things to explore beginning bright and early the next morning.
I was under the impression we were just spending a few nights in a cabin up in the mountains, but by the looks of the packed trunk of my mother-in-law's car we were prepared for a month long pilgrimage. She is the queen of snack food and by God we had it all! We had to take the case of bottled water and stuff individual bottles in the spaces between the chips and canned chili. We had games to play, movies to watch, books to read and enough camera equipment to go on an expedition with. We even managed to get a few clothes and a change of underwear squeezed into the backseat between hubby and me, along with the Tassimo  machine and the laundry detergent. Keep in mind this is a 2 night trip. Despite all the crap we had managed to pack into the car, we were all looking forward to this peaceful outing in the wilderness. Now,when I say wilderness, or cabin, I am afraid many of you may get the wrong idea and think that I am roughing it in a cabin with just a wood burning fireplace for heat and an outhouse with a resident snake. Nope, not me! My mother-in-law rented us a gorgeous 3 story, 3 bedroom, 3 bath log home in the hills of Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. She booked this cabin online with American Patriot Getaways which had many great cabins to choose from. Being the spoiled rotten travelers that we are, we opted for the cabin with the view and the hot tub on the deck. Our cabin was called Smoky Mountain Mist and we were anxiously awaiting our arrival there. Unfortunately, we had about 3 to 4 hours of driving ahead of us first............

Google Wireless Rumors

I don't know what is more interesting...the actual news from Google about their possible emergence into the wireless world, or the rumors about it. I truly believe we hear what we want to hear. As it would appear, a lot of people want to hear that there will be free wireless phones from Google. Therefore, that is one of the biggest rumors circulating. My understanding is that Google is toying with offering a wireless service that will be more economical for anyone who is willing to watch advertisements in return for reduced wireless rates. For some folks, this will be a refreshing change from very expensive cell phone bills, maybe. I live in a total Tivo world. That means I get to fast forward through all advertisements. Since I don't like watching them on my Widescreen HD TV, I probably won't enjoy them on my teeny tiny phone dislay either. But that is just me!! I personally am not big on change in general. We have been with Sprint for almost 10 years despite the love hate relationship I have going on with them. It is easier than changing services and starting a whole new relationship with another service. Everyone I talk to has some sort of complaint about their wireless provider, so why trade one problem for another? I'll just keep the rotten relationship I already have. At least I know what to expect.
My husband is totally fascinated with the new IPhone as is most of the World. Luckily for me, we are still under contract with Sprint and it would require a second mortgage to pay the early release penalty, so again, there will be no change in my wireless relationship anytime in the foreseeable future. Just because I like to keep one foot in the past, doesn't mean anyone else does. This new Google thing will probably take off just like everything else Google does!!