Stuck at work this summer while your colleagues post pictures from some country you’ve never heard of? Are your friends bronzing by the pool while you work on your monitor tan? Don’t let some jerk have all the fun! Even the score with Opera Software’s tips for the perfect summer fake-cation – not vacation.
Get away, just not too far.
The first step towards a perfect fake-cation is your setting. Try a local hotel, B&B, tent or treehouse. It doesn’t matter where you go, just don’t sleep at home. Not only will you feel like you’re away, but someone else will make your bed (don’t lie — I know you don’t make it every morning). Try Airbnb or Craigslist to find the perfect home-away-from-home for a week.
Learn another language, or screw up trying.
While your buddies humiliate themselves with some outdated phrasebook, why not immerse yourself the geeky way? Switch the language setting on your browser. You can learn the word for “tab” in Russian and some sites will serve local content depending on your language. Amazing, right? Most importantly, we just saved you at least 20 minutes of work while you try to “fix” it after your boss busts you.
Radio — it’s not just for taxi cabs anymore.
With the power of your smartphone, you can unleash a world of streaming radio apps. How exciting! Just tune in to some distant broadcast and close your eyes. You’ll be in Mumbai or Madrid in no time at all — and without the traffic of either. TuneIn lets you sample stations from all over the world.
Museums.
Before the internet, people sometimes went to buildings, called museums, to learn about science, history and art, and to ponder the human condition. Now, we have cat videos on YouTube to enlighten us. Unplug and visit your local museum. You might be amazed at what you’ll discover. Anyway, back to Buttermilk…
Backyard vs. Las Vegas.
Who needs to luxuriate in the expansive pools at resorts around the world? Not you, especially when armed with an inflatable swimming pool and a standard-issue garden hose.
You’re on vacation — surf like it.
Everyone else uses the Opera Mini mobile browser to cut down on data roaming costs when they’re traveling, but you can still use it in your own backyard. “But, why should I,” you ask? It’s faster, for one. It’s packed with smart features, so you get more out of your time online and back to the real world. You know, the one where you are trapped in a cubicle.
Set an out-of-office auto-reply.
Nothing says “get off my back” better than a curt out-of-office email. If your boss questions you about it, just blame the IT department. If you don’t have an IT department, blame your software. Soon, everyone will leave you alone to enjoy the perfect fake-cation.
Don’t let another summer go by without any “you” time. Let someone else spend all their money in a credit-card-fueled spree of excess, while you cheat your way to a summer fake-cation. We approve.
For more tips and tricks for traveling with the Opera browser, visit opera.com/travel. Opera Mini is available as a free download from your favorite app store or m.opera.com.
