It all sounded so good in the ad ...

We are away at a rented cottage for a week's vacation with the kid.  It's been a long time since we all vacationed together and we're having a great time.    And thank goodness we're having such a good time, because if we weren't, there would be lots to complain about with our accommodation.

Like a lot of people, we found our cottage online, through what we have known to be a reputable website.  The website made clear the cottages aren't on the water, but across from the lake.  There is a nice beach and the water is great for swimming.  There's a heated pool, wifi available in the office, satellite tv in every cottage, all the mod cons - all we had to bring were our clothes and food.

Sort of.  As it turns out, the lake is across the road and you get to the beach by walking through trees on a mulch path, until you hit the many, many stairs that take you down to a deck above the waterline.  There is a tiny strip of grass and sand that could, if you use your imagination, be considered a beach.  After you walk over many small rocks at the edge of the water, you get to the mud-and-rock bottomed lake, where you'd better swim if you don't like mud oozing between your toes and underwater plants grabbing at your legs. 

The rest is all true enough as well - I'm sure the pool has a heater but I'm not sure the heater is being used.  There's no one on site through the week, so there's also a lovely accumulation of bugs - dead and alive - floating on the top.  The wifi in the office works - sometimes.  The satellite tv works - sometimes.  Mod cons?  Well, you guess at how modern they are.

But you know what?  It doesn't really matter all that much.  We are together as a family, we are having a good time anyway and we'll have lots of stories from this place.   This place is really giving us a break from the ordinary.