The Holiday .

Lake Tahoe was our destination this Labour day weekend.. To describe the beauty of this majestic place is an arduous and formidable task , nevertheless i shall try ..

Geographically Lake tahoe is located between California and Nevada and is the largest alpine lake in North America ..Its the most popular destination in winter coz of the skiing activities but summer is an equally good bet ..Infact this split personality of being equally intriguing and captivating in both the seasons is what beckoned me to Lake Tahoe ..

Sat morning saw four friends huddled together in the car and heading off to Lake Tahoe finally at 9 am after much deliberation and good intentions of leaving at 4 am, 6 am and then 8 am respectively ..well no ones to blame here , it was after all a vacation ..right ??

It was a 5 to 6 hour drive taking in consideration the weekend rush and traffic but we were ecstatic and nothing could dampen our spirits, not even the traffic.. After all , its not everyday one gets the company of eclectic friends.. so we chatted and argued , cracked horrible PJ's , laughed and then laughed some more ,clicked lots of pics ,chomped on chicken burgers and french fries and eventually managed to reach around 3 pm ..

Lake tahoe adventure had finally begun ..we checked into our resort , the cabin was not so great but the location pretty much made up for it ..a quick change of clothes and we headed for Round hills Beach & Marina ..

This was our first up close look at the Lake tahoe , half a mile long sandy beach , crystal blue water surrounded by mountains on all sides ,the view was absolutely mesmerizing and the air was as crisp and fresh as it could get ...i just sat there sucking in , on the fresh air , soaking the afternoon rays of the sun and admiring the panoramic views ..The natural scenery was truly breathtaking and i thought this was the closest i could get to heaven but i was wrong ..My tryst with Lake tahoe had just begun ...

Day 2 we headed for Emerald Bay and enroute stopped at Inspiration Point Vista , the official viewpoint overlooking the bay ..and jaw dropping views of the lake was what we got from up here and it was almost surreal , I now knew why Mark Twain proclaimed the lake "to be the fairest picture the whole earth affords." It was as if the mountains came to life around this exquisite and pristine loch ..i tried in vain to capture the beauty of it all but the camera lens seemed almost too small and i just stood there gawking from one side to the other taking in the magnificient views . i was completely enraptured and awe-struck..Lake tahoe is truly a nature lover's paradise and i was in love .

A buffet lunch at an Indian restaurant brought me back to my senses and then we hit the Timber Cove Beach...This time of the year is just perfect for water activities but as luck would have it ,the wind was gusty and we had to be content with renting a paddle boat ..and it was soo much fun ..we spent most of the evening alternating between paddling hard and then just letting go feeling the waves rock the boat ever so gently and then every once in a while the waves would playfully splash on us from underneath as if beckoning us to get off the boat and play ..

Soon it was dusk and we headed to Nevada beach for the annual Fireworks extravaganza touted as one of the biggest firework displays in the west coast ...This year Pyro Spectaculars Inc. was putting on the show with Pyrodigital Consultants..It started a couple of mins later than its stipulated time at 8.30 pm but nevertheless it was an absolute feast for the eyes ..with one firework after the other illuminating the night sky in bright beautiful colors ...

The firework display ended half an hr later but the night was not over yet ,we were yet to enjoy the Nevada side of Tahoe ..indulge in some hedonistic revelry..Infact the lit up casinos are what welcome you on crossing the stateline ...Gambling is after all legal in Nevada and so we did our bit ;-) Content to have thrown some money down the slot machines , we left an hr later, albiet little poorer to catch some z's ...

Day 3, Time to head home but not before we took the Heavenly Gondola ride.. The cable car ride whisked us straight up the mountain to a height of some 9000 ft and surely this was the most stupefying view , the spectrum of colors all around seemed to play havoc with my senses .. everything that id seen in the last two days i was experiencing again , an indescribable rush , an indefinable euphoria.. truly this was the icing on the cake..a befitting culmination to our vacation .

But im not done , there's so much unexplored territory , so much to do and enjoy ..i only hope ill get the opportunity again..

Hubby ..are you listening ( ^ _ ^ )