About bette
Who Am I?
I’m a lover of animals, healthy living, creative outlets, compassionate, peaceful people and of course, travel.
I’m also somewhat of a nomad. I’ve lived in eight states and four countries (so far.) For now, I’m loving life in the beautiful Pacific Northwest (with my guy and my borzoi) where every day feels like vacation. Still, eternal wanderlust tugs at my soul.
How I Became the Vacation Maven
Some number of years back, this nomad set down roots in the beautiful city of Wenatchee, WA to combine households with my late partner who longed to retire in the valley close to family and friends.
There wasn’t enough demand to support my dog training business full time so I took up a position as a rural mail carrier which I thought would be the perfect complement a few days a week.
Staffing issues became continually harder for the Post Office once the pandemic hit and I found myself working 6 or 7 long days a week.
Despite Andrew’s daily reminders that “tomorrow is never promised,” I allowed myself to trudge off to a thankless job, day in and day out, until one day I woke up… and he did not.
I was devastated.
Eventually, I resolved to stop wasting my days in a zombie-like trance.
It was then that I decided to leverage my passion for travel and cultural exploration to help others avoid the pain and guilt I had suffered because of letting my work rule my life and steal my time.
Now, I devote more quality time to my family, friends, pets and my guy, Michael, while also working to put people just like you on vacation with their own loved ones, affordably.
Some of My Own Favorite Places
Oh, gosh! What places don’t I love to explore?! Here’s just a sampling of sparkly memories…
- A tiny, quaint Japanese ryokan (inn) with tatami-matted rooms where guests wore yukata robes to dinner and bathed in a natural onsen (hot spring).
- The beach at dusk on Cape Cod, MA where luminescent jellyfish painted the water with an ethereal glow.
- Could anything be more Christmassy than Gluwein (hot mulled wine) served from stalls at a Bavarian Christkindlmarkt? If Germany seems a bit far to travel for the experience, may I suggest the annual event in the Bavarian-themed town Leavenworth, WA?
- Floating in the crisp groundwater at the bottom of a cenote (natural pit) in Mexico, gazing up at the azure sky framed by the opening Mother Nature carved through the expanse of limestone draped with vines.
- Watching elephants of all ages frolic in the river at an “elephant orphanage” in Sri Lanka. Yes, elephants frolic. And yes, I may have kissed one right on the trunk.
- Celebrating the arrival of a new year against the backdrop of the golden-pink rays of the rising sun on a New Zealand beach.
- Meandering solemnly with the ghosts through the breathtaking ruins of Pompeii.
- Witnessing hundreds of tiny sea turtles scramble from their sanctuaried nests across the beach towards the crashing expanse of ocean under the moonlit sky in Cancun.
There are many more visions eager to spill out onto this page, but I’m going to hold them back and get right to helping you create your own brilliant vacation memories.
Copyright © 2023 Bette the Vacation Maven - All Rights Reserved.
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