So where are you going on your honeymoon?

That’s right, kids. We’ve been engaged for all of 19 days, and people are already asking about the honeymoon. Is that normal? I really have no idea. Maybe I shouldn’t judge, though, since it’s gotten us thinking about where to go.

Here’s the deal: neither the FI nor I are ocean-beach people. We’re big fans of lakes, don’t get us wrong, but the ocean just doesn’t do it for us. And though we started dating during the summer, it’s not our favorite season– we’re much bigger fans of fall and winter.

Here’s the cue for the “against the grain” motion. Take one hand in front of you, palm up. Take your other hand and rub it against the first perpendicularly. Like your fingers are the grain, and you’re going against it, get it?

At least we’re together on this one. When we first started talking about the honeymoon (who am I kidding, it was the morning after we got engaged when we were washing the dishes from our pancakes at the water pump near the campsite), the FI declared that we should take the “moon” part seriously. As in, take a month-long trip. I was totally there with him. And we agreed on the not-beach destination.

Hey, I can see the eyeball-rolling and head-shaking through the screen. A month is a long (expensive) trip to take. We get it. But we’re seriously considering a two-week trip. To the Alps.

If we could time-travel shortly after the wedding, we’d reverse time a little bit and go to Oktoberfest in Munich. Alas, we’re about 3 weeks late to the party. But we still want to go to Munich. And other parts of Germany. And Austria. And Switzerland. And maybe Northern Italy. And anywhere else in that region that has mountains.

Ok, now I can hear you saying “Who the hell goes to Germany for their honeymoon?! If you’re going to Europe, you go to Paris or various parts of (more central-to-southern) Italy. Duhhhhhhh.”

And I hear you. But we’re against-the-grain like that. So right now we’re looking at options like this one (Jewels of Alpine Europe) and this one (Best of Central Europe: Germany, Switzerland, and Austria).

The price tags are a little steep on these ah-maaaaaaaazing trips, but we think they’re probably worth it after all the hustle and bustle of wedding planning.

We’re also considering a tour of the British Isles, including Great Britain, Ireland, and Scotland. A friend of ours’s mom lives in the Cambridge/Oxford area and loves to have company, so we might take him up on his mother’s hospitality. The same company with the awesome Alps-centric trips has British Isles trips, too.

Anyone want to weigh in and tell us we’re crazy for our honeymoon ideas? Or have any suggestions for places that might be comparable but less expensive? Or have a secret source for cheap vacations? I want to hear ‘em!

Cheap thrills

Not those kinds.

I’m talking about good, cheap ways to entertain yourself. Music, movies, and other fun things to do. I’m not so good with coming up with free thrills, but there you have it.

Check out this post over at My Dollar Plan extolling the virtues of redbox. I don’t have a Netflix account myself, though I’ve been thinking about it, but I can tell you that I am a HUGE redbox fan. The fact that it’s at the Stop & Shop near me that also houses my bank and a Starbucks makes it a no-brainer for us. I just signed up here for e-mail and text alerts with coupons for free movies on Mondays. Why not have Movie Mondays, where you get a free movie, make a pizza together with this recipe from BrokeAssGourmet, and ease into your workweek? Better yet, pair said pizza with a home-brewed beer. I’ll get into that later.

For those of us in the Boston area, we have the luck to be near Newbury Comics. Their tagline, “for a wicked good time,” totally fits. The beauty of Newbury Comics is that not only do they have all the best music available in the CD or vinyl format (I still like having something physical for my music… call me crazy), but they also have tons of movies and TV series on DVD, fun gifts, and comics (though not really my cup of tea). Best of all, Newbury Comics also pays cash for used CDs and DVDs, allowing you to cash in the stuff you’re not using anymore. They then turn around and sell the highest-quality used goods for steep discounts, allowing those of us who haven’t quite gotten around to buying Season 3 of CSI just yet for a whole lot cheaper than new.

Brew your own beer. Sure, it requires a little bit of startup cash for all the brewing equipment, but once you’re good to go, you just have to buy ingredients. The BF got me the starter kit for Christmas, so I was good there, but I had to pick up a brewpot myself, which was a little steep. We kept our beer bottles for a few months in anticipation of our first batch, then we were able to wash them all and recycle them for our own beer. I can’t vouch for the quality of the beer itself, since it depends on a LOT of factors (as I’ve recenly found out), but there are a ton of people out there doing it successfully. Just look at Jim Koch– one day, he’s brewing beer in his kitchen, the next he’s the founder and CEO of the largest American brewery (Sam Adams– and I know it’s by far not the most-drunk beer in America, but it’s still an American company, unlike Bud and Coors, thankyouverymuch). I go to the Beer & Wine Hobby Shop in Woburn, MA for all my goods. It’s a local store, the personnel are very knowledgeable and helpful, and they have just about everything you need. My next kit, a Summer Honey Wheat, cost about $50 total. It makes roughly 5 gallons of beer, translating to 50 bottles, so I will have my own beer for $1 a bottle. Most microbreweries charge in the neighborhood of $8 per six-pack around here, so it’s a deal. Plus, it’s tons of fun and a great conversation starter.

One of the things I really enjoy to do, and savor the fact that it’s free, is go to the beach at night during the summer. There’s rarely anyone else there, the moon is shining high in the sky, and it’s the perfect time to relax, chat, and just enjoy the evening. My favorite spot is Singing Beach in Manchester-by-the-Sea. Normally, it’s resident-only parking near the beach and very few parking spots for non-residents, but after sunset, you can park in the top lot for free. Some beaches don’t allow people to be there after dark, so keep an eye out for posted signs.