Santa Monica Pier was the first place to stop. We arrived here by mistake, having taken the wrong turn from a very long day driving on the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) from San Francisco. But, we thought it a great mistake. We went to have a look around, walking along the pier and along 3rd street, which was this pedestrian shopping mall. We even walked to Venice beach, and then headed back to Santa Monica Pier to see if we could find a place to stay , this area was really nice. We managed to negotiate a discount for our room, which my husband is brilliant at doing. It really isn’t hard, all he does is ask, and if they say no, he’ll keep asking until the reservation clerk gives him a discount just to get him off the phone.

With our hotel set, we found a bike rental place and once again, my husband negotiated for a discount. Off we went, it was nice to be bicycling instead of sitting in our car watching all the beautiful sites go by. We only biked around for 30 miles, which took the better part of two hours (one hour each way). The weather couldn’t be more grand and the bike path never veered from the beach. We travelled through Santa Monica beach, Venich beach, Marina Del Rey, LAX!, El Segundo, and Manhattan Beach. All very beautiful and so relaxing. Miles and miles of golden sand with an occasional life guard tower, volley ball courts and public restrooms. Marina Del Rey did take a slight detour inland, but then goes right back to the beach. We parked our bikes at Venice for lunch. Venice was a great place to be entertained by all the street performers.

It was dark by the time we made it back to the bike rental shop, but the Santa Monica Ferris Wheel at the end of the Pier was our guiding light.. Santa Monica is definitely a touristy spot, but what area by a beach isn’t?

Everything is bigger in Texas as they say and in Amarillo Texas there is a big handful of things to do and see. Caprock Canyons State Park one of the secret hidden areas in the Panhandle, is a small park that is out of the way of most other buildings, it isn’t really known by either natives or visitors. There are breath taking views of mountains, canyons, waterways, and native flora and fauna. Caprock Canyon State Park is a great place to capture some fantastic photography as well by incorporating the vast landscape and bright sky in the shots.

Wonderland Park is another attraction known for being big fun. It is one of Texas’ largest privately owned amusement parks with more than 25 rides and 32 attractions, including miniature golf, arcades, bumper cars, Big Splash log flume, Fantastic Journey spook house, and Shoot the Chute water ride amongst others.

Emerald Zoo is wildly popular among locals and tourist as well. Fairy tales form the theme for the exhibits at this clean and pleasant children’s zoo, featuring mostly animals native to the Panhandle such raccoons, rabbits, foxes, barnyard animals and birds. Children will have a blast spending a day at the zoo and learning about their favorite interesting animals. There are exhibits that give the children a close up look at different species of animals and the attendants encourage the kids to ask questions and participate in the presentations.

The Harrington House is somewhat interesting to check out. This 1914 neo classical house reflects highly skilled materials and workmanship, as well as fine French and English furniture, porcelain, crystal, silver, carpets, and fine paintings. In order to have the energy see these sights in their entirety you will need to be well rested . As they say everything is bigger in Texas.

Allowing people to live up to their full potential is one of the most generous gifts one can offer. It opens up plenty of doors to opportunity in the world, and makes for interesting perspectives on the day to day experience of living. There are many necessary skills that will help a group or an entire company to move forward, and developing leadership is the first of these to master, because it opens up the doors for everything else. As a group trying to compete in the 21st century, having all the advantages is necessary to make a subtle yet ostentatious beginning, and from here, everything is possible.

Sometimes it seems as though one of the best lessons we have to learn is that things haven’t changed very much, and this is perhaps even more true in the business world. New developments and theories come around constantly, challenging expectations and making people rethink the way they do things. These are natural stages toward building new ways of making the business paradigms work, and keep things in dynamic motion . It’s also necessary, then, to look at the growth and the lessons learned, and sometimes to go back to the beginning, and find what worked in the original design of things.

The skills to move forward are necessary as a means of survival in the every day, but the ability to mine what’s good from the past is a thing of leadership, and together, these make up a peculiarly synergistic balance. Every paradigm comes to be because of a long line of successes as well as failures, both of which are necessary in the development of the evolution of successful structures. Business structures are based in real lives, where conscious minds take great care to construct the kind of world they want to see. Being able to meet this with innovation and enthusiasm is key to a solid future.

Are you aware there is a little village in Missouri with the name of Florida that happens to be famous? Every year, people from all over the world travel there to pay homage to the remarkable, adored native author Samuel Langhorne Clemens, aka Mark Twain , who wrote “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” and “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” in addition to numerous other books, articles and stories. In 1835, Twain was born in Florida in a two-room frame cabin which has been preserved and is on display at the Mark Twain Birthplace Memorial Museum. Exhibits at the museum portray his interesting life and many of his works, including first editions and a handwritten manuscript of Tom Sawyer. In honor of Twain, a red granite monument has been erected on the cabin’s original site.

In 1960, the museum and a research library became part of the Mark Twain Birthplace State Historic Site . Today, a nearly 3,000 acre park surrounds the site where you can picnic, hike and camp. Mark Twain Lake provides visitors with Tom’s and Huck’s favorite activities: swimming and fishing. Be sure to book a nice place to stay, perhaps in one of Missouri’s small towns like Anniston. Hotels are available in other nearby locations as well.

When Mark Twain was a little boy, his family moved to Hannibal, Missouri, located on the Mississippi River. It was his life there that inspired his stories about Tom and Huck. His home on Hill Street, a few blocks from the west bank of the river, has been preserved as the Mark Twain Boyhood Home and Museum. The home is a National Historic Landmark. Seven other buildings are maintained as part of the museum where, for almost two hours, you can live in the world Twain created for his famous characters. Picket fence whitewashing, anyone?

The city of Hannibal embraces its famous son with a plethora of activities every year, but this year is named “The Year of Mark Twain 2010.” Why? It marks the 175th anniversary of Twain’s birth, the 125th anniversary of the publication of his novel about Huck Finn and the 100th anniversary of Twain’s death. On April 21, the actual day in 1910 that Twain died, Hannibal will honor that anniversary with celebrations, programs and events.

This year is the ideal one to visit Florida and Hannibal (aka “America’s Hometown”). Immerse yourself in what was a big part of Twain’s world.

My husband, Joe and I drove down from Austin to San Antonio to take the tour of the Alamo. We had no idea it was the 174th anniversary of the ‘Battle of the Alamo’, where Texas rangers and General Antonio Lopez de Santa Ana and his troops battled it out that fateful day, and we all know about the sorry outcome. So, we were not able to go into the Alamo, because a memorial service was going on. Instead, we spent a few hours walking around and talking to people on the street. Joe talked to some school kids laying on the lush green lawn of a park.

Later, we walked to the Riverwalk and spent a few hours there, exploring all the shops and sites. We didn’t expect to be walking as much as we were, so we stopped into a shoe store and purchased walking shoes, we put our other shoes in the bag, because we left the shoe store with our new shoes on. We didn’t spend much, we only purchased flip-flops, which we both haven’t worn since we were teenagers, but they turned out to be quite comfortable.

We hadn’t planned on spending the night in San Antonio, but we really did want to take the Alamo tour, so we headed to the Market Square, San Antonio’s cheesy tourist trap and asked around if any knew of a place to stay. One shop owner, where I bought this really cool bag that had a picture of Frida Kahlo on it, told us where to find this local hotel . He told us we would be very happy with the accommodations and that’s where he makes reservations for all his visiting relatives. After his recommendation, Joe purchased a couple of Mexican ceramic pieces. I looked at him like ‘what for?’ and he told me (after we exited the shop) that he liked the fact how the shop owner made reservations for his relatives instead of putting them up at his home. I told him that he better not do that when my Mom comes to visit next month! He seemed so disappointed.

In the deserts of Egypt, the Great Pyramid of Giz stands 481 feet tall; in the deserts of Nevada, the Luxor hotel stands 350 feet tall, about 131 feet shorter, than the structure from which it takes its design; however, the Luxor has one thing that the Giza pyramid never had — a spotlight that’s the brightest in the world, shooting a beam straight up into the night at a candle power of 42 billion. It’s not only visible from anywhere in the Las Vegas valley, but it may also be seen at flight level above Los Angeles, 275 miles away. Since the hotel was built in 1991, you know that pilots have little trouble heading in the right direction to Vegas. It’s a beacon that’s become an iconic symbol for Vegas, a city in which you’ll have no problems in discovering an affordable place to stay . It may even be seen from outer space.

The Luxor was designed by Veldon Simpson, a hotel architect; the main building is a 30 story pyramid of black glass. Out front, you’ll pass a huge obelisk and an immense replica of the Great Sphinx of Giza . Trams join the Luxor with other hotels, from which you can travel the length of the Vegas Strip, and take in a number of casinos and shows. However, if you elect to remain at the Luxor, there’s plenty of activity, including casinos, spas, and fine dining (as well as more casual buffets), and entertainment.

Presently, the Luxor is hosting magician Criss Angel’s Believe from Cirque du Soleil, Fantasy, Carrot Top, as well as Menopause The Musical. Many people may have seen Criss Angel on his magic show on cable. At the Luxor, he’s described as a mystifier with a show that combines magic with the performances of Cirque du Soleil. The Fantasy program is the Luxor’s adult show, mixing showgirls, live singing, and comedy. Carrot Top, a prop comedian, also performs. Menopause the Musical engages the talents of Paige O’Hare, who lent her vocal abilities to the role of Belle in Disney’s The Beauty and the Beast. All of these performances are available without ever venturing outside the walls of the pyramid. You won’t have to see the outside of the pyramid again, until you’re ready to take off from McCarran International Airport and see its bright beam launching into space.

The warning was ominous, their predictions dire: a bulletin was issued telling Hawaii and other other islands that a killer wave was heading their way with terrifying force. Luckily, no such thing happened the “massive” waves were only half the predicted size. While it could be possible for the next massive earthquake in the western hemisphere to trigger a tsunami worth fearing for now the Honolulu beaches are once more packed.

Scientists defend the fact that, while the threat was over blown this time, it’s better safe than sorry after the Tsunami that struck Indonesia in 2004. There’s no such thing as being over prepared for the damage. A massive wave could cause to the coastal cities washing away hotels, attractions, and homes much akin to the damage Katrina wrought across cities of the Gulf of Mexico but without the wind damage.

Fifty-three nations and Territories were put on high alert after the 8.8 earthquake in Chile and a resulting tsunami devastated a port city on Robinson Crusoe Island off the coast. The warnings triggered possibly the largest evacuation of Hawaii in decades. There was little damage as waves slightly more than 5 ft high battered the beaches of Maui and Hilo, half the predicted size.

Things where quickly back to normal and tourists and beach lovers once again flooded the beaches for sun and surf as soon as the state of emergency was declared over. For now, the gorgeous beaches of the most popular honeymoon and romantic getaway spot in the United States are safe.