beach [beech] -noun
1. an expanse of sand or pebbles along a shore.
2. the part of the shore of an ocean, sea, large river, lake, etc., washed by the tide or waves.

source: http://dictionary.reference.com/dic?q=beach

Pay close attention to def 2 Mrs. Katia... I agree with Ms. Mac since I as well grew up on a Great Lake and enjoyed many summers at the beach.

Dear Justin,
Whilst I cannot BUT agree INTELLECTUALLY with your definition of a "beach", my Australian side simply feels sorry for you. Ah well. Until you come and see for yourself, I'll just have to shake my head and smile apologetically.
Love
Katia

Dear Katia,

As a fellow Michigander, I can attest to the fact we have beaches along the Great Lakes. Poor, poor salt water people have yet to experience soft sand without creepy crawly things and fresh clean water that is gentle to your skin and hair.(please disregard any toxic waste leaking into said pristine waters from industrial over development to damn near the beach!).

Best Regards,

No jelly fish/shark bit-less,

GG

Dearest Katia,

I heartily agree with Y-O-U since I too come from the SALT WATER/OCEANY state of California.

But we have lakes here too. When at the lake, I refer to houses on the lame-o lake beach as "lakeside." Makes sense, huh?

I pity the Lakesiders too...no salt water spray, jelly fish, sea weed, sharks, giant waves or danger to enhance the swimming experience.

Hmmm...maybe we should introduce pirnahas into the Great Lakes? Make things a little more interesting?

The strip of dirt next to lake Tahoe is definitely a beach :-), so Kyliemac gets this one. However, the lack of big waves definitely makes it lame :P.

About travel agents, the one time I would utilize the services of one would be when my trip was complicated - which is what happens when I visit India. And guess what, the commission they take is not much more (sometimes even less) than the websites.

And of course, the office uses a travel agent :).

And speaking of that, I am leaving for Pisa tomorrow evening. yay!!

You can always take the "onward" part of a return trip and skip the "return" part of it. However, you cannot skip the "onward" part of the return ticket. It automatically cancels your return trip.

It happened to me in the US, and it happened to me in France too :-(.

About using half of the tickets: if you don't take the first part, then they cancel the return part, and then they can resell your seat and make more money, which is really what it's all about in the end.