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A wannabe Carmel resident

Sunday, June 29th, 2008

Carmel Point Lobos

I wrote about Carmel for Uptake this week from an “almost local’s perspective.”  My mom and dad have lived there for over twenty years, my husband and I were married in Carmel and I visit often.  I’m what you’d call a “wannabe” local.  Don’t get me wrong; I love my hometown in Contra Costa County, but someday I’d like to live in Carmel-by-the-Sea. 

Home to Clint Eastwood, Dorris Day and Betty White, this picturesque village is frequented by the newlywed and the nearly dead.  It’s a great place to visit with a special someone and with the cost and hassle associated with flying these days, Carmel is an ideal destination for the Bay Area roadtripper. 

 My favorite place to stay was the Cobblestone Inn, formerly owned by Four Sisters Inns.   (Has anyone stayed there since the changing of the guard in April of 2008? ) My new favorite restaurant is Volcano Grill and Mai Tai Bar, located in the more-often-than-not sunny Carmel Valley and owned by local restaurateur Billy Quon.  The outdoor fire pits are a hit with the locals, as are the Mai Tai’s.

I mention Volcano and a host of other things to  see and do in Carmel from a  local’s perspective over on the  UpTake blogUpTake, a new travel search engine, launched in May is quickly gaining a following.  From girlfriend getaways to pet-friendly travel, you can find everything you need to plan a vacation.  Stop on by.

Seven Blogging tips for newbies

Monday, June 23rd, 2008

While I am in no way positioning myself as an expert blogger, I thought it might be helpful to list a few blogging tips for newbies on this site.  I also ran across “Useful Techniques to Optimize Your Blog for The Major Search Engines” by Nick Stamoulis, president of Brick Marketing.  I will be attending the July 18 Blogher conference in San Francisco and look forward to sharing my experiences with you. 
Travel

1               Decide between running a WordPress blog off of your domain name (i.e., www.janedoe.com/blog.)  or setting up a blog at a hosted site.  You have to be ready to get your hands dirty in SEO (search engine optimization) and HTML if you select the first option.

 

2              Get listed on search engines such as Google, Yahoo, Technorati and Stumbleupon

3                Establish a blogroll on your site and ask fellow bloggers to list your blog on their site

4          If you establish a blog, it is best to contribute posts at least 1 x weekly, ideally 3 x week, to have your blog considered for listing on sites such as BlogHer.  If you cannot commit to the upkeep of a blog, perhaps blogging isn’t for you.

5              Comment often on other blog sites to create higher visibility for your blog

6              Offer to guest blog on travel sites that will benefit your exposure

7              Web 2.0 is all about social networking.  Check out Twitter for further visibility of your blog

A southern Oregon river runs through it

Saturday, June 21st, 2008
North Umpqua Oregon's North Umpqua River       photo credit: Marico Fayre The only blackberries you'll find at the Steamboat Inn come from the kitchen in a fresh pie or cobbler.  There is no ... [Continue reading this entry]

Don’t let the sun go down on me

Wednesday, June 11th, 2008
Children cannon ball into the pool as the lazy days of summer approach.  For many, the season equals fun in the sun, while others, such as Rhonda Sparks, focus on protecting kids from the sun's damaging rays*.  Sparks lost her 32-year-old ... [Continue reading this entry]

Technorati here I come

Monday, June 9th, 2008
Who knew that you needed to be web-savy to create a blog?  Anyone can launch a blog these days with the help of WordPress, BlogHer, Yahoo, [Continue reading this entry]

Exploring unique places near and far

Friday, June 6th, 2008
Ephesus Library, Turkey Ephesus Library, Turkey Contra Costa Times article launched 06/06/2008 Heads rolled and blood paved the way when warriors like [Continue reading this entry]