It's all about thoughts

The story about the tiny frogs

2008-03-30T23:06:00.000-07:00

There once was a bunch of tiny frogs,...
...who arranged a running competition.

The goal was to reach the top of a very high tower.

A big crowd had gathered around the tower to see the race and cheer on the contestants...

The race began...

Honestly
No one in crowd really believed that, the tiny frogs would really reach the top of the tower...

You heard statements such as : "Oh, WAY too difficult!! They will NEVER make it to the top."

or

"Not a chance that they will succeed . The tower is too high!".

The tiny frogs began collapsing. one by one...

...Except for those who in a fresh tempo were climbing higher and higher...

The crowd continued to yell "It is too difficult!!! No one will make it!"

More tiny frogs got tired and gave up...

But ONE continued higher and higher and higher...

This one wouldn't gave up!

At the end everyone else had given up climbing the tower.

Except for the one tiny frog who after a big effort was the only one who reached the top!

THEN all of the other tiny frogs naturally wanted to know how this one frog managed to do it?

A contestant asked the tiny frog how the one who succeeded had found the strength to reach the goal?

It turned out...

That the winner was

DEAF!!!

The wisdom of this story is "Never listen to other people's tendencies to be negative or pessimistic...

...cause, they take your most wonderful dreams and wishes away from you. The ones you have in your heart!"

Always think of the power which words have.

Because everything you hear and read will affect your actions!

Therefore...

ALWAYS be...

POSITIVE

And above all:

Be DEAF when people tell YOU that YOU can not fulfill YOUR dreams!

Always think:

I can do this!

Tips to Find the Cheapest Airfare

2007-08-21T08:13:00.000-07:00

by: James Tutten

Everyone wants to save money when they're booking flights for their upcoming trip. Here are several ways to find cheap airfare that you might not have considered.

Often the best seats and the best discounts are given to those who book their flights months or weeks in advance. But sometimes it is not possible to book a flight in advance, because a trip may be last minute. When that is the case, you have to get a little more creative to get discounted tickets at good rates.

There are several ways to get around the high cost of flying and take advantage of discounted tickets. Sometimes taking a flight during the week can save you a quite a bit of money. Tuesday and Wednesday are often the cheapest days to book a flight. Weekend days can also be cheaper, such as Saturdays, depending on your destination. International and domestic flights vary as to which days are less expensive, so ask about the cheapest days to fly on when you call about booking your flight.

Many people realize that airfare may be cheaper on certain days of the week, or during different times of year, depending on the destination. But many people don't realize how important the time of day can be. The time of your flight can make a large difference in the amount of money that you pay for your plane ticket.

In most cases, only the day of the trip is important to the traveler. Vacations can often be scheduled around the cheapest flights available. Business people typically travel the day before rather than the day of a business meeting. Taking the time of your flight into consideration can save you a lot of money on your plane tickets without causing you any frustration or scheduling issues.

Some of the cheapest flights are in the late night and early morning hours, between midnight and four o’clock in the morning on what are called red-eye flights. Most people are sleeping during these times, and do not want to take a flight in the middle of the night. You can usually find cheap or discounted flights during these off peak travel times. The best rule of thumb is to find the latest flight available, or the earliest flight available. These flights will have the cheapest airfare..

If your vacation itinerary is not dependent on arrival time or you are crossing several time zones, take a late night flight and arrive during the day when checking into a hotel will be much easier. If your business meeting isn’t until the afternoon, take an early morning flight, and take a short nap at the hotel to freshen up before the meeting. In most cases, late night or early morning flights will not interfere with your plans.

Remember that to find the cheapest airfare, you may need to fly on off peak days, or off peak times. Be creative, and enjoy cheap airfare.

About The Author

James Tutten is a professional photographer and graphic artist. He and his wife Terri are passionate about travel, and share their adventures at http://www.travelingtuttens.com For budget travel tips, and to see some award winning photography of their world adventures be sure to visit http://www.travelingtuttens.com

Canadain Immigration Documents (part 2)

2007-08-21T08:12:00.002-07:00

by: Alex Berezovsky

Submit you Application

Before September 1st 2006, the Canadian immigration process was much more difficult. The way it worked was that you had to send your application forms to the Visa Office WITH all your supporting documents attached!

Sounds simple???

Well, trust me: it wasn’t! Normally it takes a couple of months to get all your documents together. Just imagine what would happen if the Pass-Mark was 67 when you began gathering your documents and it changed to75 two months later!

However, after September 2006 the process was simplified. Now, if you meet the Pass-Mark (first section), you only have to send a Simplified Application Form to the Visa Office.

The Visa Officer responsible for reviewing your file will evaluate your application. A few months later, if he or she considers that you are eligible for the Canadian visa, you will be asked for all the supporting documentation.

But here is the best part: If the Pass-Mark changes, your application will no longer be affected!

If the Pass-Mark changes for example, from 67 to 75 points, your application would be evaluated with a 67 points Pass-Mark if your application was received before the date of the changes.

Based on my experience, I can tell you that the Simplified Application

Form will make your process MUCH easier!

Bottom line: It has never been so easy to apply for the Canadian

Permanent Residence Visa!

But remember, gathering your documents to the Visa Office is a very important part of the process. The way in which you organize and present the information will have a great impact on the final decision. So, even if the application process has been simplified, you will have to gather your supporting documents the right way. But don’t worry; in the third section of the book I will explain exactly how to prepare your documentation.

Now, let me explain how to send your Simplified Application FORM. First of all, you have to download the forms, save them in your computer and print several copies of each form.

To send your application to the Visa Office, you must follow these steps:

Download Application for Permanent Residence (IMM 0008SW) – The purpose of this form is to let the Canadian Government know about yourself. This form is crucial during the process, since the Visa Officer will have a general idea of who you are, what your academic and work experience background are, and several other important factors about yourself. I strongly recommend printing out several copies of the form just in case you have to fill them out again if you make any mistakes.

Also, in case you need more space to answer the questions, I recommend using additional sheets of paper. If so, you must add Indicate your name, the form’s title and the number or letter of the question you are answering to the separate sheet of paper. Also, if any of the questions does not apply to your particular situation, you must answer “N/A”, which means Not Applicable.

Download Use Of A Representative Form (IMM 5476)- If you decide to hire an immigration representative, you will also have to complete this form. Remember, you can also apply independently (you don’t HAVE TO hire an immigration consultant or lawyer). However, if you still decide to hire one, send this form attached to your Permanent Residence application.

Paying the Fees

When you apply for Permanent Residence under Skilled Worker scheme, you have to pay the following fees:

a) Legal fees (only if you decide to hire an Immigration Representative)

b) Application Fee (not refundable) Right to Permanent Residence Fee

a) Legal fees

As mentioned previously, the legal fees refer to the amount that you have to pay the Immigration Representative in exchange for his / her services. Normally, the fees are two / three times the Government fees and sometimes they can be paid in separate payments. Many Immigration Representatives offer a 100% Money Back guarantee, in case your visa is not approved.

b) Application fee (non refundable)

The Application fee must be paid for the principal applicant and his accompanying family members (spouse, common-law partner, and dependant children). This fee is not refundable, and it should be paid when you apply.

c) Right to Permanent Residence Fee

You do not have to pay this fee until you receive a request from the Visa Office. This fee must be paid for the principal applicant and accompanying spouse (or common law partner). It can be paid while the application is being processed. The Right to Permanent Residence Fee is refundable if the application is cancelled, if the visa is not issued or if the visa is not used. At the time this guide was published, the Right to Permanent Residence Fee was $490 (Canadian dollars).

In addition to these fees, you will have to pay the fees for your medical examination (and your dependants’), police certificates and the language tests (if applicable). I recommend using a MONEY ORDER to pay your fees. You should send the money order attached to your application.

Sending Your Application

Before sending your applications and payment to the Visa Office, I strongly recommend making several copies of each document that you will include in the envelope. In case something happens, it will always be better to have copies of the documents you sent.

About The Author

Alex Berezovsky is founder of a successful Canadian Immigration website, and author of the now-famous book Step-by-Step Canadian Immigration. A book that helps potential immigrants apply for Canadian visa on their own. For more information, go to: http://www.stepbystepimmigrationcanada.com/inside2.html

Louisville Waterfront Park In Kentucky - A Great Vacation And Travel Destination

2007-08-21T08:12:00.001-07:00

by: Robert Benjamin

The Louisville Waterfront Park in Kentucky is a beautiful patch of green in a very urban atmosphere. The park is located in an area where there are a lot of scrap yards, sand and gravel plants, old rail beds, petroleum and asphalt terminals, and an interstate highway that makes it practically impossible to publicly access the river. The Waterfront Park worked to connect the city and the river again and it has returned to a beautiful place where the community can gather and enjoy a beautiful space. The park offers a 12 acre Great Lawn that slopes smoothly down to the river and it is a great place for families to get together and picnic, play, or do anything else. The Lawn is also a fun gathering place to watch fireworks, play football games, listen to concerts, fly a kite, or just hanging out with friends catching some rays and listening to the river gurgle by.

The Belle of Louisville steamboat lives permanently at the wharf and it also has enough space for visiting riverboats and other boaters in and out of the area. At the festival plaza there are water hook ups and built in utilities so it is easy for festivals, fairs, concerts, and other fun activities. There are even pools of water that run down to the river and water cannons that shoot to the pools. There is a fountain at the entry called Dancing Waters that is a lot of fun to jump in on a hot day to cool off. There is a great place for kids to play including picnic areas, hills and meadows, and even tree groves.

Waterfront Park has a second phase that will consist of 30 acres and is currently under construction. When it is completed it will offer residents and tourists and even bigger oasis in the middle of the concrete jungle. If you happen to be in Kentucky in the Louisville area and want a great day of fun and relaxation that doesn't cost a lot then you should definitely check out the Louisville Waterfront Park.

There is a website that has great information on USA Vacations and Unique Travel Spots Listed State By State and Season, the website is called: Seasonal Vacation Spots, and can be found at this url:

http://www.seasonalvacationspots.com

By Robert W. Benjamin

Copyright © 2007

You may publish this article in your ezine, newsletter, or on your web site as long as it is reprinted in its entirety and without modification except for formatting needs or grammar corrections.

About The Author

Robert W. Benjamin has been in the software business on the internet for over 6 years, and has been producing low-cost software for the past 25+ years.

Get a Credit Card or Fast Cash Loan!
http://www.rb59.com

Hello From Orlando: Golf In Orlando - Playing Links-style At The Royal St. Cloud - Unpretentious Golf At Its Best

2007-08-21T08:09:00.000-07:00

by: Susanne Pacher

For a real links-style golf experience we discovered the Royal St. Cloud Golf Links, located in St. Cloud, about 25 minutes southeast of the Orlando airport or the Disney area. The Royal St. Cloud Links greet you with a rolling layout of links-style fairways, punctuated by classic links bunkers that feature names such as Hell, Spectacles, Devil's Pocket and Hoofprint. True to its link heritage, every club in the bag will be utilized as the terrain is naturally varied.

Unlike other Orlando golf courses, the Royal St. Cloud is free of any residential developments and offers a pure golf experience. The design features four sets of tees and from the blue tee offers a championship length of 7,111 yards and a 74.6 rating, all on flawless fairways and silky-smooth Tifeagle greens.

Its motto, as printed above the entrance to the club house is "Original Golf Played Here", and indeed the Royal St. Cloud features original style golf at its unpretentious best. I had a chance to talk to Bill Filson, the Director of Golf and since 2002 co-owner of this facility.

Bill has an extensive teaching background. He has personally studied under some of the top-ranked teaching professionals and brings 12 years of teaching experience that featured beginners to PGA tour professionals. Bill has consistently been a top-ranked PGA Professional. The Royal St. Cloud's teaching staff is complemented by Dave Rummels who brings 17 years of valuable PGA Tour experience with him and can share advice from the “Tour” with the students. Associate Professional, Doug Holloway, has 16 years coaching experience.

At the Royal St. Cloud Golf Links the commitment to teaching the game of golf commitment includes state-of-the art video equipment and even a teaching tent for inclement weather. Lessons, programs, and clinics are offered for every skill level and requirement. Bill explained that they run very reasonably priced children's clinics at $7.00 per clinic and the club has 120 members in their junior program. Ladies can also learn the sport without embarrassment in a relaxed, comfortable environment. And with every family membership at the club kids play for free.

Bill prides himself on offering one of the greatest values in golf in the Orlando area. For the 2005-2006 season rates vary from $46 to $48 from November 1 to January 10, and $64 from January 11 to April 30, 2006. Discounted tee time rates are available after 11 am or 12 pm respectively, 7 days/week. Bill went on to say that the fees at the Royal St. Cloud are always reasonable, and that he aims not to oversell his course, but to exceed the visitors' expectations.

In addition, he offers a very unique proposition: a 100% money-back guarantee with no conditions if you didn't enjoy your playing experience at the Royal St. Clouds. He said in the almost three years since he has run this course only 2 people ever asked for a refund; a phenomenal achievement, considering that several tens of thousands of rounds are played here every year.

One of the very unique features of this course is the handcrafted stonework which is evident in four bridges found throughout the course that have been hand-built by one individual brick by brick. Bill said that some of the bridges are even a little bit crooked, just to give them more character. The most famous stone bridge can be found on the 5th hole and many of the British visitors to this golf course come here specifically for this unique feature.

Bill explained that his golf course serves a value-based market that is composed of local residents, snowbirds escaping the cold northern winters, and British golfers, a very loyal crowd who refer this facility to many of their friends back home.

The Royal St. Cloud Golf Links have been rated as one of the Top 5 Most Underrated Golf Courses in the Orlando area and they have hosted the 2004 and 2005 British Junior Amateur. With its wide-open fairways the course looks deceptively simple, however, I experienced very quickly the unique challenges offered by the Royal St. Cloud. Traditional links golf is played on the ground, unfortunately I still managed to find water several times, despite the generously open fairways.

The other feature I really enjoyed were a number of the ponds on the back nine of the course that were playing host to a variety of local wildlife and water birds. I particularly enjoyed watching a very rare specimen of wood stork stalking the edges of a pond for food, and a crane standing upright with stretched out wings. The course had a very relaxed, casual and friendly feel to it and we enjoyed a tasty hot dog after our game on the beautiful patio outside the clubhouse as a way to cap off a very enjoyable golf experience on a gorgeous day.

Driving Directions from the Disney Area:
Royal St. Cloud Golf Links is an easy 25 miles from the Disney area.
(25-35 minute approximate drive time)
* Take Osceola Parkway to the Florida Turnpike
* Take Exit 244 to Hwy 192, turn left.
* Go 4.6 miles to Vermont Ave, turn right.
* Take Vermont 2.1 miles to Creek Woods Road, take a left.
* Go only .7 miles to Michigan Ave, take a right directly into the Golf Club.

Statistics
Par 72 Yards Rating Slope
Blue 7111 74.6 128
Gold 6680 72.2 125
Green 6083 69.2 115
Citrus 5531 66.6 111

For more information please visit Royal St. Cloud Golf website or call them at (407) 891-7010.

This entire article including photos is located at http://www.travelandtransitions.com/stories_photos/orlando_royal_stcloud_golf.htm

About The Author

Susanne Pacher is the publisher of http://www.travelandtransitions.com, a web portal for unconventional travel & cross-cultural connections. Check out our brand new http://www.travelandtransitions.com/ebooks.html FREE ebooks about travel.

Amsterdam - Enjoy Treasures Of Art And History In A Bicycle Ride

2007-08-21T08:05:00.000-07:00

by: Laurent Fabier

The early days

Amsterdam was founded as a fishing village around the thirteenth century. During the 14th, but especially the 15th century, Amsterdam underwent a rapid development, which laid the foundation for the Golden Age, when the city became the staple market of the world. The year 1672 was a year of disaster for the Dutch Republic with the French and English attacking simultaneously. Nevertheless, Amsterdam managed to consolidate its prosperity during the period 1672-1795 and managed to retain its position as the financial center of Europe. During the French occupation (1795-1813), Amsterdam suffered badly from the economic recession, a state of affairs reflected by the stagnation of the demographic development. The period 1813-1940 is marked by economic recovery and, from 1870 onwards, by expansion and a rapid population growth, as result of the Industrial Revolution which triggered off a New Golden Age. Shortly before the First World War the city began expanding and new suburbs were built, but in 1940 Germans installed a Nazi civilian government in Amsterdam that cooperated in the persecution of Jews, throwing again the country in misery.

Any time can be the best time to visit Amsterdam. The peak of the tourist season is around Easter and July-August, when the weather is the finest. Weather, however, is never really extreme, and if you're one of the growing numbers who favor off-season travel, you'll find the city every bit as attractive during these months. Not only are airlines, hotels, and restaurants cheaper and less crowded during this time, but there are also some very appealing events going on. Winters are rarely extremely cold, and sheltering in the cosy pubs will give you a chance to meet “real” Dutch. The cultural season is in full swing between September and May.

Streets breathing history and culture

Amsterdam has a broad spectrum of recreational and cultural sights that range from fascinating old buildings, but of all this mosaic, museums are the main tourist attraction. Everyone knows the Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum and Stedelijk Museum, but there is much, much more.

The pinnacle of sophistication and home to the three major and most important museums in Amsterdam is the Museum quarter (Museumplein), an art lover’s paradise which boasts the Rijksmuseum, the Stedelijk Museum of Modern Art and the Van Gogh Museum. Without doubt, any culture vulture will be in their element in this recently renovated quarter. Also, in amongst the stylish hotels and cafés, lays the majestic Concertgebouw, renowned the world over for its breathtaking acoustics and locally, for its free lunch time classical concerts. The Museum quarter is arguably the cultural hub of the city, offering a kaleidoscope of activities and attractions. A stroll down the exclusive P.C. Hooftstraat, Pieter Cornelisz or Van Baerlestraat will take the you into some of the world’s most chic couture houses.

If you seek the natural beauties of Amsterdam, this botanical garden will surely reveal them to you - Amsterdam’s Hortus has from way back been known as “the town’s pride and joy”, an oasis of peace and beauty at the very centre of the bustling city. Established in 1638 as a herb garden for Amsterdam’s doctors and pharmacists, the garden is almost 400 years old and it has more than 6000 plants, some of them really unique, as 2000 years old agave cactus. The Museum of Life (“Museum van het Leven”) will tell you the history of life on Earth by very attractive means, and after visiting the zoo, the Geological Museum, the Zoological Museum, the Plant Houses, the Aquarium or the Planetarium are ready to reveal you ancient secrets.

As for the events you should not miss if you get to Amsterdam this summer, the 10th annual edition of the “Comedytrain International Festival” features the very finest in English language stand-up comedy, for six weeks in July and August. With the likes of Adam Hills (Australia), Eddie Bannon (Ireland), Adam Bloom (UK), Paul Provenza (US) and Ron Vaudry (Canada), you will leave Toomler in stitches, guaranteed. Beginning with the 11 of August, for five days, special locations in the heart of Amsterdam form the backdrop for more than 80 classical concerts, as the “Grachtenfestival” catches the public attention. The concerts can be enjoyed in houses and gardens of hospitable local inhabitants and in concert halls, historic buildings, museums and out of doors in the area around Prinsengracht.

A hippie heaven

And because shopping is one of the tourists favorite ways of discovering the city, you will find that there are several “shopping corridors” in the city and each one has it’s own charms and specialties. The first one is Nieuwedijk-Kalverstraat, a 1km pedestrian area full of shops, with no traffic other than a constant stream of tourists, students, scholars, excursionists and locals. On the other side of the square you will enter the Kalverstraat, the place where all mainstream brand names have one or more stores. In addition to this, flower markets, bicycles, restaurants, everywhere. If you like a little more luxury, the Pieter Cornelisz Hooftstraat is where you can do some serious damage to your credit card. As the evening falls, Amsterdam starts to sparkle, especially on the nice spring and summer days. While all cinemas and theaters are busy, city clubs, cafés and restaurants are full of joyful, friendly crowd. Between dips into artistic and historical treasures, be sure to take time out to absorb the freewheeling spirit of Europe's most vibrant city.

Laurent Fabier is well known as a partner editor for online hotel reservation services like PlaniGo, economic and marketing sites. His experience ranges from important contributions in written media to news and online travel magazines

About The Author

Laurent Fabier is well known as a partner editor for online hotel reservation services like PlaniGo (http://www.planigo.com/destinations.html) , economic and marketing sites. His experience ranges from important contributions in written media to news and online travel magazines (http://www.magvoyage.com).

Hello From Orlando: Golf In Orlando - The Links-style International Course At Championsgate

2007-08-21T07:23:00.000-07:00

by: Susanne Pacher

Several days after attending the Father-Son-Challenge at ChampionsGate we actually got out and played the International Course ourselves. It was an exciting experience to play a championship golf course just shortly after a major tournament, when it was still in tournament condition with just a few extra degrees of difficulty. The open wind-swept design features a multitude of bunkers and a variety of water hazards, and with a difficulty rating of 76.3, one of the highest ratings in the state, we were duly humbled by the challenges that this course threw at us.

ChampionsGate is an impressive facility with 36 holes designed by famous golf legend Greg Norman. What sets ChampionsGate apart is that its International layout and the National course have totally different designs. The hard, fast fairways of the International course are reminiscent of the great old Scottish and Irish links, while the more modern American-style National course winds through citrus groves and stands of pines, emphasizing challenging shot-making choices and a range of memorable par-3s.

Golfers who want to improve their game can do so at the world-famous David Leadbetter Golf Academy which offers two or three-day mini-schools or retreats, private sessions or David's "Beginner to Winner" program. David Leadbetter even offers video lessons via the Internet, providing access to his teaching expertise to golf students all over the world. The Callaway practice facility consists of an expansive practice area, putting green and short game area and is always complimentary with a round of golf.

As you come off exit 58 on the I-4, ChampionsGate greets you right away with imposing gates. The road takes you past the luxurious Omni Orlando Resort and Spa which has been welcoming resort golfers since 2004 in 730 premier rooms, including 25 guest suites. In conjunction with the Omni Resort, ChampionsGate now offers an upscale resort golf experience, complete with a European-style spa, state-of-the-art conference facilities and a 15-acre tropically landscaped recreational area featuring an 850 ft "lazy river". The Champions 9 Golf Experience, the resort's lighted 9-hole, par 3 golf course, adds to the recreational opportunities.

The resort will be complemented by a master-planned community including villas and condominiums. The 59-unit phase 1 of the Villas is set to open in the summer of 2006, which will be followed by groundbreaking for the 110 units of Phase 2.

The 30,000 square foot clubhouse at ChampionsGate with its enormous wrap-around veranda features a panoramic view of both golf courses and a unique menu that is split right down the middle, featuring international cuisine on the left, and American fare on the right. ChampionsGate specializes in hospitality and customer service, and last year the club hosted more than 340 business or charity outings. After our challenging round we enjoyed a tasty lunch and were joined by Alan Findley, the General Manager of ChampionsGate, who gave us a better overview of this facility.

Alan is particularly proud of hosting the Father-Son-Challenge, a nationally televised golf event that features many present and past legends of golf, including Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Vijay Singh, to mention just a few. The Father-Son-Challenge is a veritable "Walking Hall of Fame". What makes this tournament really special is its relaxed family atmosphere and the opportunity to see different generations of golf icons playing with their sons, daughters and even grandchildren. It's an opportunity to see these famous golf legends from a human side and we indeed enjoyed watching Vijay Singh relax with a cup of coffee on the 18th hole, awaiting the arrival of his son Qass, hoping for a great final score.

In our conversation Alan also indicated that at the David Leadbetter Academy you never know what golf celebrity you are going to run into. Michelle Wie is a famous Leadbetter student, Charles Howell III was practicing while we were there, and Greg Norman helicoptered in for a lesson last week. Alan also pointed out Michelle Wie's favourite spot in the clubhouse: the table right in front of the big screen TV.

Alan also made us aware of the unique wildlife inhabiting this golf course: two American bald eagles have made the course their permanent home, and on any given day you could see whooping cranes, gannets, alligators or armadillos. For a special glimpse of ChampionsGate's atmosphere come here at the end of the day, when you could see bald eagles perched on a tree in the sunset right in front of the clubhouse, while listening to a Scottish bagpiper, a feature Allen himself has introduced to the club.

Driving Directions:

ChampionsGate is located 10 Minutes from Disney World at Exit 58 on Interstate 4, just minutes away from International Drive and area attractions.

Statistics for ChampionsGate International
Par 72 Yards Rating Slope
Black 7363 76.8 143
Blue 6792 74.1 137
White (M) 6239 71.5 132
White (L) 6239 75.7 134

Statistics for ChampionsGate National
Par 72 Yards Rating Slope
Black 7128 75.2 138
Blue 6427 71.9 133
White (M) 5937 69.1 124
White (L) 5937 74.7 125

For more information please visit the ChampionsGate website or call them at (407) 787-GOLF (4653) or toll free at 1-888-558-9301.

This entire article including photos is located at http://www.travelandtransitions.com/stories_photos/orlando_champions_gate_golf.htm

About The Author

30 years in Themed Entertainment : Blooloop talks to Nick Farmer

2007-08-21T07:21:00.000-07:00

by: Charles Read

In November 2007, Nick Farmer will become the first European President of the TEA (formerly the Themed Entertainment Association), a post to which he was unanimously elected. Farmer has 30 years experience of working for theme parks, amusement parks, aquariums, zoos, science centres and other leisure destinations. He advises clients on park, story and brand development and new attraction planning in Europe and Scandinavia. Blooloop talked to him about his 30 year career in the themed entertainment industry and ambitions for his presidency.

Early Career

Farmer started his career in marketing with Palitoy, makers of Action Man, Tiny Tears dolls and Star Wars toys. He then formed his own production display company, Farmer Studios, in 1976 which rapidly expanded to offer full design, production and installation services. 4 years ago, having become increasingly frustrated that the growth of the company meant that his time was spent on management, administration and cash flow rather than design and creativity, Farmer disbanded the production company and established Farmer Attraction Development.

By reorganising and developing a team of freelancers which can be gathered together as needed for projects, Farmer has created a more efficient business model with a lower fixed cost base. This flexibility allows the company to weather the seasonality of the industry, as well as reducing project costs. He is now free to concentrate on attraction concept development, production and consultancy.

Farmer’s core business involves drawing on his experience in the industry to create and develop attractions. Most of his business is in Europe and Scandinavia and reflects the current state of the European market, with few new parks opening and most work revolving around existing parks by either reworking existing rides or enhancing new standard rides. He particularly enjoys the challenge of working with established venues to develop attractions which will change the direction and the public’s perception of the park.

Recent Projects

Farmer worked on seven new rides and several other attractions for the 2007 season.

Recent projects include:

* Gröna Lund in Stockholm. Farmer developed the name, graphic identity and station design for Kvasten, their new suspended coaster. Kvasten is playing a major park in repositioning Gröna Lund within the Swedish leisure market.

* Bewilderwood in Norfolk. Farmer provided consultancy to the 50 acre family “curious treehouse adventure” which opened to such acclaim in May 2007. His contribution was to enhance the original concept and to provide “a layer of storytelling engagement on top of the basic attraction to deliver a much richer experience and a highly marketable attraction”

* Earth Explorer in Ostend. Farmer developed a concept using a standard drop ride to create an educational experience which takes children on a flight around the solar system. In this case Farmer produced a custom video show to integrate with the basic ride, so children have fun at the same time as leaning about space.

In addition to his consultancy business, Farmer is a non-executive director of Wicksteed Park Ltd, Kettering, one of the UK’s oldest leisure parks. This gives him the additional benefit of an operator’s perspective. He finds this useful for an appreciation that “operators battle with budgets just as much as suppliers”.

Industry Trends

In terms of demographics, the market has now finally realised the long heralded aging population is finally here and Farmer is working with parks to help ensure new attractions are designed to cater for grand parents and grand children. In his own business for attractions aimed primarily at small children he will usually try to “add a layer of entertainment”, often humour, that will appeal to adults too.

Geographically, he believes that there is still growth available in Europe, although this is largely through updating of existing parks and attractions rather than new projects. In his own business, of the fourteen projects he has worked on this year only one has been a completely new enterprise. As far as industry expansion into India and China is concerned, while these markets are growing at an incredible pace, those entering will need “nerves of steel”. Farmer recommends the fellowship to be gained by membership of the TEA, as many members are already operating in these regions. Discussion amongst fellow members can often be very helpful when dealing with such critical issues as contracts, terms of payment and business ethics in these regions.

The TEA

Farmer was effusive about his experience of TEA membership saying that it had been an “incredible thing” and had expanded his network within the industry enormously. The TEA (formerly the Themed Entertainment Association) is an international non-profit organization, founded in 1991, dedicated to connecting around 6,500 creative specialists in nearly 500 firms in 39 different countries. Farmer has been a TEA member in Europe since the association established its European Division in 1998, and has served three years as European President. He is currently in his second term on the International Board and has been a Vice-President for the past five years.

Around 80% of TEA members are based in the US. However Farmer, despite not working in the States, feels that he has learned a great deal from US operators and creative suppliers. “Our members in the US have been the driving force behind so many key developments in our industry,” he says. ”Our own European industry has benefited enormously from the work of these pioneers”

“The TEA exposes you to the world’s brightest people and most exciting ideas, helping to develop your own creative thinking and good business practice.”

Farmer hopes to develop two key aspects of TEA membership. The first is to expand membership within architectural and digital production disciplines to better reflect the wide range of skills and creativity now found in project teams. The second is to expand the TEA’s horizons by bringing in members from around the world; there are positive benefits of membership where-ever creatives are based.

He sees his tenure as the TEA’s first European president as “a great opportunity to confirm to the world that the TEA is a truly international association”.

About The Author

Charles Read runs http://Blooloop.com, the dedicated web site for the World's Amusement Park, Theme Park, FEC and Waterpark Industries providing the Industry's key decision makers with the very latest headlines, major developments, technologies, designs and equipment.

New York Moving Company Eases Your Burden

2007-08-21T07:20:00.000-07:00

by: Claudia White

As they say, the only constant thing in life is change! And the people who go places are the ones who keep moving. Keeping this simple philosophy in mind, an individual or a family may face many such situations in life where they have to relocate to a new destination due to job change or personal reasons. Relocation is never an easy task and accompanying the excitement and fear of a new place is the tension of transferring your precious belongings and assets safely. If you are residing in or around New York, this problem can be competently solved by a New York Moving Company. Hiring the professional services of a New York Moving Company can ensure a hassle-free relocation for you and your family.

The cost of hiring professional movers may be a concern that prevents some people from opting for this service. The cost of service depends on the actual distance covered in miles for the relocation of your belongings. However a careful research about the New York Moving Company that you finally hire will enable you to keep the cost within your relocation budget. A reputed company will ensure that there are no hidden costs or charges involved in the transaction. And the amount that is charged for such services by a good, competent New York Moving Company will be very competitive and suitably justify the service that you get from the vendors.

The services offered by New York Moving Company covers the entire task of packing from your present location, loading, storing, transporting, unloading, unpacking and setting up the belongings at the new location. If transportation involves traveling by air, sea or roads and clearance from customs, the New York Moving Company also takes care of the paperwork involved. Most professional vendors from a New York Moving Company will pay a visit to the location to do take a note of the requirements of the customer. In case of fragile belongings the packaging needs to be carefully handled. The New York Moving Company ensures customized services to each of its esteemed customers and customized packing for all the goods.

Enlisting the services of a New York Moving Company ensures that you are well acquainted with the laws of the state where you are moving, regarding transfer laws of assets like automobiles. This prevents any last minute hassles regarding transfers of personal possessions. Also having a professional New York Moving Company taking care of all your responsibility for the personal stuff leaves you free to deal with other aspects of relocation such as the emotional stress of leaving behind familiar people and location, taking care of financial aspects like an account transfer and many such other last minute activities. The selection of a moving company can also be facilitated by references from friends and family who have already availed of the services of the company.

Hence, once you have located a reliable and trustworthy New York Moving Company for your relocation needs you can simply concentrate on the experience and thrill of making a new beginning.

About The Author

Claudia White works is proficient in chalking out different ways that can make the process of relocation easier. For more information on corporate relocation,Corporate company relocation,New York moving company log on to http://www.a1firstclass.com

Rafting On the New River in West Virginia - A Great Vacation and Travel Destination

2007-08-21T07:17:00.000-07:00

by: Robert Benjamin

Now, let’s talk about a great vacation for an adventure lover. Anyone who loves to have a good time in the great outdoors would really love to raft the New River in Fayetteville, West Virginia. There are many other activities like rock climbing, bungee jumping, camping, hiking, and more in and around the area, but whitewater rafting is one of the most popular.

The New and Gauley Rivers really are big and powerful, sometimes more powerful than others, and each have their own benefits and drawbacks for rafters. There are certain times of the year when the rivers are calmer than others and other times when the rafting is downright dangerous. Knowing when these seasons are and your rafting skill level is important to determine when to schedule your vacation. Also, the age of all rafters should be taken into consideration as well. There are rafting experiences that are mild, exciting, world class, and extreme. The minimum age for the mild rafting is six years, 12 years for the exciting, 16 years for the world class, and 18 years for the extreme rafting.

There is rafting all year round, but clothing requirements are very different depending on the weather. In the winter wetsuits should be worn, the summer a t-shirt or bathing suit is fine, and the spring and fall you should wear synthetic fabrics and wool socks to keep your feet warm. Don’t wear cotton if it’s cold because it will make you colder. Remember that no matter whether it is raining or the sun is shining rafting will go on. You will get wet anyway so it doesn’t matter! Never take anything with you rafting that can’t get wet, because it will for sure!

Prices for rafting the New and Gauley Rivers depends on when you raft. Weekday prices are cheaper than weekends and certain seasons, as well as rivers, are more expensive than others. Rafting trips come with all necessary gear, although your clothes, shoes, sunglasses, sunscreen, and hats are your own responsibility. Package trips that include showers, cabins, camping, and breakfast may also be purchased.

The best time to go if you don’t like being cold is during the summer months. Of course, if you really like a challenge then you might like the fall or spring when the rapids are bigger and faster and provide a more challenging trip. It really is up to you! One thing is for sure and that is when you raft the New or Gauley Rivers, or both, you will have an experience of a lifetime.

There is a website that has great information on USA Vacations and Unique Travel Spots Listed State By State and Season, the website is called: Seasonal Vacation Spots, and can be found at this url:

http://www.seasonalvacationspots.com

By Robert W. Benjamin

Copyright © 2007

You may publish this article in your ezine, newsletter, or on your web site as long as it is reprinted in its entirety and without modification except for formatting needs or grammar corrections.

About The Author

Robert W. Benjamin has been in the software business on the internet for over 5 years, and has been producing low-cost software for the past 25 years. He first released products on the AMIGA and C64 computer systems in the late 1970's-80's.

RB59.COM Software
http://www.rb59.com/software

Cheap Airline Ticket -- Best 10 Tips on How to Buy Discounted Flight Tickets

2007-08-21T07:07:00.000-07:00

by: George Alarcon

Everyone who travels wants to save as much as possible when flying. Why would you want to pay the regular going cost when you can get flight tickets cheaper? I have provided a few clever ways of saving yourself a ton of money on your next air trip.

1) Book online instead of offline; you'll save money from the paper processing fee.

2) Clear out your cookies. Why? Many travel websites use the cookies to log when you search for a particular route and will quote you higher when you return to that site to search again.

3) Many airline websites update their airfare shortly after midnight. A little research about the route you are looking will help you get the best airfares before they are sold.

4) Stay less than 30 days. Most airfare tariffs have a month's limitation stay restriction. If you require more time, you will pay a higher priced ticket.

5) If you are traveling with a child under 2 year of age, your child is qualified to travel for free. Buying a separate seat for your child is really expensive.

6) Be ready and open to have different departure and return dates. Mark "anytime" in the search window.

7) Buy flight tickets during the off-season periods; flight tickets are usually cheaper.

8) Buy flight tickets in advance; you can save a lot.

9) Buy from an air courier service; these are companies that will buy your luggage space in exchange for lower-priced tickets.

10) If you fly a lot, join a frequent flyer program; such a program offers long-term discounts.

About The Author

George Alarcon

Read a review on My Airfare Secrets at http://www.cheapairfare.vg/my_airfare_secrets_review.html to learn many insightful tricks written by a former travel agent. He teaches you how to save up to 75% on airline tickets, and how a family member can even fly for free!

Publishers: You can reprint this article with resource.

Travel Photography: National Parks In The Usa

2007-08-21T07:06:00.002-07:00

by: Sharon Elrod

Photographers, amateur and professional alike, can turn a summer road trip into an exciting and challenging photo opportunity. Scenic national parks throughout the continental United States provide wildlife and landscape vistas not found anywhere else. In addition, if you’re really looking carefully, the wonders of nature can be found on most roads and highways.

Opportunity abounds for great pictures in Glacier National Park, for example. This area was formed by glaciers and remains in its primitive condition for the most part. Only one road crosses the Park. Bears, wolves, bighorn sheep, mountain goats, deer, elk and moose are the larger carnivores who call this Park home. Various habitats provide conditions for a variety of plant and animal life, thus creating a unique environment not equaled anywhere else in the country.

Late June and July offers opportunity for a spectacular wild flower display that will thrill photographers. Some short roads (more like trails) lead to trail heads that one can traverse to find the fields of flowers throughout the park. Some perimeter roads also provide this opportunity. Autumn brings the blazing colors that mark the beauty of nature’s changing seasons. And photographers love blazing color.

Early morning shots of wildlife grazing are available for early risers. Traveling Going-To-The-Sun Road (the one that crosses the park) and taking some of the offshoot roads leads you to grazing areas. There is also opportunity for pictures that combine wildlife and wildflowers, an especially staggering display of nature’s beauty.

Other photo ops in national parkland include Bryce Canyon, also formed by glaciers and the Grand Staircase in Escalante, New Mexico. Arizona and Utah offer Monument Valley and its grand rock formations that were formed by wind and water erosion. Yellowstone National Park will be a national favorite for many years to come.

Our national parks are among the most spectacular in the world.

About The Author

Sharon Elrod is a copywriter for http://www.mandarichmediagroup.com.

Hello From Orlando - Golf's Ultimate Theme Park

2007-08-21T07:06:00.001-07:00

by: Susanne Pacher

My husband loves playing golf and I am myself am pretty decent at the sport. So it was a given that we would be playing a few rounds in Orlando. We had a chance to sample a number of golf courses first-hand and got a personal appreciation of the great number and variety of golf courses in the Orlando area.

I had a chance to talk with Mike Jamison from Golf Orlando to get a better overview of the extensive golf facilities that the Orlando area has to offer.

1. Orlando is not only the world's No. 1 vacation destination, but it is also called "Golf's Ultimate Theme Park". Please tell us more about that.

Isn’t it interesting how sometimes the most obvious answer to a tough question is sitting right before your eyes, yet it takes you days, months, even years to see it?

Officials of the marketing co-op GolfOrlando realized that recently when they finally nailed the perfect marketing tag line for their 25-course organization.

For years the group had wrestled with various themes that might set Orlando apart from its competition in the golf destination wars. Then one day a member asked a question – “What is Orlando known for?”

The obvious answer? Theme parks. Orlando is the world’s No. 1 vacation destination, and the incredible collection of theme parks plays the leading role.

It was at that moment that the perfect theme line crystallized – “GolfOrlando – Golf’s Ultimate Theme Park.”

It is a nice fit not only because of the foundation of Orlando’s vacation pitch – theme parks - but also because it reflects the incredible diversity of the Central Florida golf landscape. Golf in Orlando provides its own type of outdoor adventure.

2. Please tell us about the types of golf courses that are available in the Orlando area.

Looking for a taste of the U.K.? How about Royal St. Cloud, where every hole transfers you to the fabled courses of the British Isles, and where the 2004 and 2005 British Junior Amateur was conducted? Try a couple of very popular Ron Garl designs for a Scottish touch. Eagle Creek, located near the Orlando International Airport, offers open, rolling fairways, large, undulating greens and those dangerous revetted bunkers that dot the landscape in Scotland. Eagle Creek was recently ranked among the top 10 new courses of the decade in Florida by Golf Travel & Leisure, and is the first par 73 course in Orlando and the first to use Mini Verde greens.

On the north side of Orlando is Timacuan Golf & Country Club, ranked as high as No. 14 in Florida by one statewide publication. Its front side offers up a true taste of Scotland, while the back 9 takes on a more Carolinas low Country feel. Hole 2, a long water-dominated par 4, was recently named the 2nd most difficult hole in Central Florida by an area publication. Timacuan is a locals’ favorite.

A very similar routing by Arnold Palmer awaits you on the south side of town. The Legends at Orange Lake opened in 1998 and features a Scottish style front nine (The Links) and a tree-lined back nine (The Pines). The feature holes are the 610-yard 4th on the Links nine and the 432-yard 13th, called the Island Oak.

In need of drama? How about Diamond Players Club in Clermont, where the elevation changes are so spectacular that the track is often referred to as “Florida’s mountain course.” You’ll need to buckle up when tackling Mystic Dunes’ green complexes. They offer up slopes that drop as much as 10 feet, and you might find an elephant’s trunk poking out of a few serious mounds. Also, several of the fairways feature whiskey barrel bunkers as guideposts. This Gary Koch-designed course personifies the word “adventure,” as does Highlands Reserve, a roller coaster-like golf experience with elevation changes of 120 feet and dramatic scenery. Further south on Highway 27 is Steve Smyers’ Southern Dunes, another course that features elevation change uncommon in Central Florida. Combined with the abundance and creativity of the bunkering, it is easy to understand while Southern Dunes is ranked among the To 100 Modern Day Courses” by Golfweek.

Excitement? Falcon’s Fire by Rees Jones has a couple of thrillers, especially its cape hole, the par 4 13th. This one dares you to bite off more than you can chew, and while it is tempting to rip a big tee shot toward the green, the money play is to safely land your ball into the slender fairway utilizing a more forgiving angle and a fairway wood.

If you are a traditionalist, the options are boundless. Shingle Creek is the newest of the traditional Florida layouts, bordered by dense oaks and pines in a backdrop along historic Shingle Creek. Location is another benefit as it rests near the major tourist areas. Harmony is a Johnny Miller design that falls into this category. Its’ strength lies in the greens complexes that feature angular bunkering creating a variety of challenging pin placements. Ridgewood Lakes provides a beautiful cruise through the hardwoods off Highway 27, and tops off the journey with an awesome finishing hole.

How about a stroll though nature? Stonegate Golf Club, designed by Ron Garl, rests upon 3,300 acres of pristine wetlands, woodlands and 100-year-old oak hammocks, and places the emphasis on the short game. Mike Dasher’s North Shore looks as if it should be located deep in the country as it sits comfortably amidst lush surroundings, yet it is conveniently located seven miles from Orlando International Airport. Diamondback, a Joe Lee design located in Haines City, was carved from 240 acres of virgin forest and offers dramatically rolling fairways bordered by dense trees, pristine natural wetlands, and well-positioned water hazards.

If convenience is important, MetroWest could be the perfect choice, as it is located near Universal Studios and the International Drive tourist section. It is a Robert Trent Jones Jr. masterpiece that features wide fairways and challenging approach shots. Nearby just off International Drive next to Sea World is Grande Pines, a recently renovated Smyers design that features a number of outstanding risk/reward holes. Celebration Golf Club, located near Walt Disney World, was designed by father Robert Trent Jones Sr. and son Robert Trent Jones Jr. and places emphasis on approach shots.

Is notoriety important to you? ChampionGate’s two courses play host annually to the Office Depot Father/Son Classic, a favorite among dozens of PGA and Senior PGA Tour players. Orange County National has twice hosted the PGA Tour Qualifying School Finals on its two tracks, Panther Lake and Crooked Cat, They offer diverse tests that are good enough to challenge and determine tomorrow’s professional stars.

Some folks enjoy walking out their hotel door straight to the first tee. Orlando offers several choices for stay-and-play buffs, including Hawk’s Landing. Attached to the spectacular Marriott World Center, Hawk’s Landing recently underwent a complete renovation by Robert Cupp. It has water on 15 of the 18 holes and it features its own version of “Amen Corner” – holes 12, 13 and 14.

That small taste gives you an idea of the diversity available through GolfOrlando, truly “Golf’s Ultimate Theme Park.”

3. Please inform us about the golf practice facilities and the teaching professionals that are available in the Orlando area.

Some of the game's most respected teachers - David Leadbetter, Mike Bender, Rina Ritson, Bill Madonna, Brad Brewer and Fred Griffin to name a few - do their magic in Central Florida.

Orlando is home to some of the nation's finest practice facilities. The Faldo Institute and Orange County National offer more than just practice tees and greens. The landing areas on their driving ranges resemble true targets and hazards that are found on courses. Tremendous short-game practice areas help better players fine-tune that key part of their games. But the crowning jewel in Orlando are the courses. From top to bottom, Orlando offers the best quality golf of any destination in the world. Nearly every exit off I-4 leads directly to a memorable golf experience, regardless of which side of Orlando you are on.

4. Some of the Orlando area golf courses have achieved top ratings from various golf publications. Please tell us more about that.

Orange County National, host of the 2003 & 2005 PGA TOUR Q-School Finals, was the recipient of Golf Digest's 4 1/2 Stars for 2000 to 2005. Southern Dunes is rated among the top 100 contemporary courses in America by Golfweek. Orange County National's Panther Lake is rated 4 1/2 stars by Golf Digest. Award-winning Southern Dunes was voted "Top 100 courses in America" by Golfweek 1997 - 2001. Celebration Golf Club was rated 4 1/2 stars and in the top three in Central Florida for service and in the top two for course conditioning by Golf Digest's "Best Places to Play" 2004 - 2005.

Diamondback Golf Club was recently awarded four stars by Golf Digest's "Places To Play". Victoria Hills Golf Cub open end in 2002, and was recently named by Golf Magazine as a "Top 10 You Can Play." Royal St. Cloud Golf Links was rated in the Top 5 Most Underrated Golf Courses in the Orlando area and hosted the 2004 and 2005 British Junior Amateur. Eagle Creek Golf Club was recently named among the Top 10 New Courses since 2000 by Travel & Leisure Magazine.

5. What major golfing events are held in the Orlando area?

The region hosts its share of major competitions – two PGA Tour stops annually (the Bay Hill Invitational in March, hosted by Arnold Palmer; and the Disney Classic at Walt Disney World in October), one LPGA Tour tournament, the PGA Tour Qualifying School Finals, the Buick Scramble National Finals, The Office Depot Father/Son, and a variety of mini tours. A

6. Please tell us about some of the famous golf architects that have put their mark on Orlando golf courses.

The group’s 25 layouts boast the names of a majority of the world’s leading architects – Tom Fazio, Rees and Robert Trent Jones, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman, Ron Garl, Steve Smyers.

7. What about affordable golf in Orlando?

8. Who are some of the famous golf professionals who have made the Orlando area their home?

Tiger Woods, Ernie Els, Annika Sorenstam, Sergio Garcia, Se Ri Pak, Arnold Palmer, Jim Thorpe, Chris Di Marco, Mark O'Meara, Scott Hoch, Nick Faldo, John Cook, Stuart Appleby, Charles Howell III and dozens of others have planted their roots in Central Florida. There is a reason for that, beyond tax implications.

9. In addition to golf, what else does the Orlando area have to offer?

Let’s face it – no region in the country does adventure as well and with as much diversity as Orlando, the world’s No. 1 vacation destination. Theme parks, theme parks and more theme parks. Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea World, Kennedy Space Center and others have created the face that smiles upon the vacationing world from Central Florida.

The nightlife and restaurants rival those of any other region in the country. Tourists gather at various pockets around Orlando – Universal City Walk, Pleasure Island and International Drive among them. But if you want a feel for how the locals entertain themselves, take a trip to Winter Park Village on the north side of town, where terrific restaurants and clubs will fill your tummy and your night.

10. What about the weather year-round? What about getting to Orlando?

The weather is conducive to golf year-round. Average high daytime temperatures range from 72 in January to 89 in July. Golf can be played and practiced 365 days a year, many of those days featuring clear blue skies, lazy breezes and cool, comfortable nights.

Another significant reason is the ease of travel. Orlando International Airport welcomes direct flights from most major airports around this country and the world. And it is quite simple to drive to Orlando from in or out of state, thanks to a well-planned series of major highways.

11. What accommodation options do golfers have in Orlando?

12. Please tell us a bit more about the golf vacation packages that are offered in Orlando.

13. Some key golf organizations make Orlando their home, please tell us more about that.

The one and only television network devoted 100% to the sport - The Golf Channel - is based in Orlando. Golfweek, a leading trade publication, moved to Orlando about 11 years ago. Meadowbrook Golf, one of the largest golf course management companies, is located here, as is the industry's leading golf travel company, Golfpac. The industry's only media/ business networking organization, the International Network of Golf, is also based in Orlando.

Thank you, Mike, for providing a great practical overview of Orlando as a first-rate golf destination.

This entire article including photos is located at http://www.travelandtransitions.com/stories_photos/orlando_golf.htm

About The Author

Costa Rica Vacation Package, And Why You Should Take One

2007-08-21T07:05:00.001-07:00

by: Peter R Stewart

A Costa Rica Vacation Package is something to be thought about very carefully, even if you have never considered Costa Rica before as a vacation destination.

Apart from the fact that Costa Rica is both exotic and tropical, the fact that it is a dream destination for a lot of people ought to make you check it out, because it could be just the right thing to do to book a Costa Rica Tour package this year.

There are good reasons for this not the least of which is that Costa Rica is one of the most naturally beautiful places you could ever wish to visit. A tiny South American country has got everything you need for the ultimate in getaway holidays.

When you consider the variety of sights to see and places to go, including fiery volcanoes, lush green tropical jungle with lots of unusual and exotic plants, animals and birds. This is not to ignore the beautiful beaches lining the Pacific coast.

A Costa Rica Vacation package can include any or all of these things, and then there is the huge variety of places to stay with accommodation to suit every budget.

Be a little careful and don’t arrive during the high season between December and April hoping to find a good hotel. You need your Costa Rica vacation package in place before you arrive.

Private lodges, all inclusive resorts, expensive hotels especially in remote areas should always be reserved in advanced to avoid any problems at all times.

If however you are looking for a luxury vacationcosta rica then the Golfo de Papagayo is gret. This part of Costa Rica is where the most expensive hotel in Costa Rica is, and that is the Four Seasons.

If you want something within your budget, then you could do worse than go to the Nicoya Peninsula. There are fantastic beaches here, and all types of accommodation and prices.

To find lower prices on your Costa Rica Vacation Package try the rainy season between April and November. The weather will still be pretty good just interspersed with short sharp rain showers, so you can save yourself quite a bit of money. One thing to beware of is the mandatory sales and tourism tax of 16.39% on everything!!

Nevertheless a Costa Rica Vacation Package can be very good value for money

About The Author

Peter Stewart writes exclusively for http://www.in-kenyasafari.com as well as http://www.worldwidevacationspots.com and he has in depth knowledge of the places he writes about

Guide to Spains Costa del Sol

2007-08-21T07:04:00.000-07:00

by: Robert Griggs

Spains costa del sol(Coast of Sun) is situated in the south of the country and experiences around 320 days of sunshine every year. This is why it has become in recent years one of the most popular holiday destinations for the British as well as other europeans including the Germans and the French.

The costa del sol has a host of towns a cities to explore such as its capital Malaga, Torremolinos, Benalmadena, Mijas, Marbella and Estepona to name a few.

The costa del sol is a fantastic holiday resort for people of all ages. If you have children then there are lots of places to visit such as Selwo Marina in Benalmadena which has a variety of sealife to see including sea lions, dolphins, flamingos and penguins.

Or if you are visiting Fuengirola the zoo there is a must. Located pretty much within the hustle and bustle of the town it has a great number of different animals from all over the world to see and is great for the kids.

If golf is your thing then the costa del sol is perfect for you as its one of the worlds golfing mecca´s. There are around 50 courses to choose from and most are of a very high standard. A particularly nice course is Santana Golf Course in La Cala and is well worth 18 holes. Bare in mind though if you do play golf in Spain try and avoid July and August as although the green fee´s will be a lot less than the rest of the year, it can get very hot and is not ideal for playing any sport.

If it is nightlife that you are after then the costa del sol is definetely a good choice. With literally hundreds of bars and clubs to tickle your fancy you will be spoilt for choice on where to spend your evenings.

On the other hand if all the above sounds like just a bit too much activity for you, why not settle for a nice spot of sand on one of the many fine beaches that there are on offer. Lay your towel down, chill out and feel that warm sun on your body.

The great thing about the costa del sol is that there is something for everyone.

About The Author

Robert Griggs lives on the costa del sol and is the owner of a holiday rentals website. He is also the maintainer of a self catering Spain website which has lots of information on holidaying and living in Spain.

The Art of Buying Travel Luggage

2007-08-21T07:03:00.002-07:00

by: Catherine Olivia

Not all luggage is created equal. There is a wide variety of prices and quality between manufacturers. Before you purchase luggage you should consider what your actual luggage usage will be. There is no need for you to purchase the most expensive luggage if you only travel once or twice a year or if you never plan to fly.

Most people probably remember the old Samsonite commercial with gorillas throwing the luggage around their cage. While this was hilarious it was close to the truth. Checked luggage takes a beating.

If you never plan to fly you don't need super expensive luggage. Of course, we'd never recommend buying the cheapest either. You will still need luggage that will hold up under some abuse.

We'd also recommend you pay close attention to how luggage is priced. Most manufacturers highly over inflate the price of their luggage then bring the prices down claiming they are on sale or are deeply discounted. Don't believe this. This is what the jewelry industry does. When you're looking at luggage always start with the final price.

One thing you'll find is hundreds of different brands of luggage. From the expensive high end Ricardo luggage which has a built in digital scale, to lesser priced American Flyer luggage and many in between. Some luggage manufacturers try to reach a young audience with their styles and patterns. JanSport luggage does this. Some companies make children's luggage with smaller sizes and adorable prints. Liz Claiborne luggage is sophisticated and stylish for the fashionable woman traveler.

You're lucky if your luggage is only beat up and not lost. What about lost airline luggage? Do you have any idea what happens to it? Did you know that you can buy articles from lost airline luggage?

Were you aware that if you don't want to both with your luggage at all when you travel you can use a luggage delivery service? It isn't cheap, but you can have your luggage picked up from your home and have it waiting for you at your destination. Again, be aware of prices. Some have up front pricing. Some are a bit more difficult to figure out. Some charge extra for Saturday delivery and add pick up and fuel surcharges to the price. Make sure that you are fully aware of all charges when it comes to a luggage delivery service, and be aware that they generally quote one-way prices only.

The choice of luggage can make or break your vacation. The last thing you need to have happen is to have a zipper break, or a seam split or have a handle break as you're walking out the door to the airport. Experts will say don't overload your suitcase. This causes undue stress on zippers and seams. Examine your suitcase when you take it off the airline carousel. Check it to make sure there has been no damage done to your luggage. If there is obvious damage done to your luggage immediately take it to the airline customer service center to report it.

About The Author

Catherine Olivia owns and operates http://www.total-luggage.com Travel Luggage Reviews And Ratings

Things to Look for on Your State Map

2007-08-21T07:03:00.001-07:00

by: Rajesh Karavadia

If you are student of geography, history, or economics, your professors might have always reminded you to have a map on hand. A map can show you where certain roads lead, and how modern or well built these roads are. A map can show you which areas are the most densely populated, and which areas have more lands or animals than people.

A map can show you where some countries end, where others begin, and even why some boundaries are still being fought over. All these things are readily applicable to a world map, so why should you have a state map on hand?

As many religion buffs will tell you, God is in the details, and this simply means that looking at individual details can be as enriching and exciting as looking at the larger, general picture. A state map can show you details about your state, and other states in the Union, along with a lot of information that you can tie into your studies as a future geographer, historian, chronicler, or economist.

In fact, knowledge of geography is essential to so many different fields, that having a map nowadays is essential to anyone’s studies! Scientists use it to plot the routes of certain animals; ecologists use it to see how weather patterns can affect certain locations; politicians use it to determine how they should rule their territories; and even musicians use it to guide them on their tours!

A state map can help you do all this and more. With individual maps of all states tied in with a general map of the United States, you can understand why some states have more people than others; why some states rely on agriculture for their livelihood while others rely heavily on industries; and why some states have problems with water, food, or uncontrollable illegal immigration. All you need to do is to find state maps that are integrated with statistics, or state maps that specialize in certain factors that affect state economics, politics, and budget.

If you are interested in traveling cross country and taking your car through a variety of roads and curious stops, look for a book of state maps that show where different highways go, and where you can stop for a bite, fun, amusement, or a night’s rest. Such state maps should show, with the help of color codes and legends, which roads are highways and which are back roads, which roads are still being repaired or built, or which roads might be closed when weather conditions grow a bit harsh and rough.

If you are traveling cross country, but you do not have a car, then you might want to buy a book of state maps that show the routes of major bus or train lines. You can get such maps at truck, train, or bus stops. Having such a map can allow you to have a bit of fun. Some bus lines stop at major tourist locations, so if you want to feel what life is like on the open road without worrying if you will fall asleep at the wheel, then take a bus or train across America and stare out the window as the country speeds past your eyes.

You might also want to look for a book or collection of state maps that have information on state statistics, such as the major crops that are being produced, the number of people and the locations of certain ethnic groups, and even the state budget for different important aspects of economics and politics. Such statistics can help you understand why some states are more modern-looking than others, or why some states specialize in certain foods or crops.

Be sure to look for detailed state maps that show the different districts you can visit, so that you can be familiar with municipalities or cities that might be significant to your field of study or interest.

No matter where you are going, and no matter what you are studying, state maps can help you understand geography, economics, and history better. With all this information on hand, you can find your schoolwork easier to do, your lessons more exciting to learn, and your travels more interesting as you know exactly where you want to go.

About The Author

Rajesh Karavadia is the author and webmaster of http://www.worlddatamaps.com, an informative website about Maps. Different types of Maps are discussed including information on world map and map of africa

Hello From Ottawa - A Brisk Morning Walk To Parliament Hill

2007-08-21T07:02:00.002-07:00

by: Susanne Pacher

One of the interesting features of Ottawa is its architecture and Ottawa has many heritage sites. Parliament Hill with its historical neo-Gothic buildings was an area I wanted to discover in more detail.

Friday night, just after we arrived in town I was able to snap a few pictures, just before the sun went down. Saturday morning I got up and out by 7:30 am and it was a crisp morning, with perfect blue sky. It was definitely on the cold side, not a good idea to venture out without a hat or a thick scarf. So it was going to be a bad hair day again, but who cares….

I started off with the area immediately in front of the Lord Elgin Hotel, which includes the National Arts Center, the Government Conference Centre (the former Union Station, Ottawa's main railway terminal), the War Memorial and the Chateau Laurier.

Then I marched up to Parliament Hill from where you have an absolutely perfect view over to Hull and the Gatineau Hills. I admired the sculptures “ Women are Persons” (referring to women being recognized as their own human beings), and took a number of pictures and video clips of the Parliament Buildings.

Parliament Hill is the seat of Canada's Government and consists of the Centre Block, the West Block and the East Block. The Senate and the House of Commons are also located here. Free tours are generally available every day, except my own discovery was a little bit too early to take the tour.

Incidentally Canada's Parliament Buildings have an interesting history. Lower Canada (today's Quebec) and Upper Canada (today's Ontario) joined together to form the Province of Canada in 1841. The seat of government alternated for many years until Queen Victoria was asked to select a permanent capital in 1857.

To the surprise of many, the Queen selected the rough lumber town of Ottawa instead of the established cities of Toronto, Montreal, Quebec City or Kingston. One of the reasons was that Ottawa was close to both provinces and located at a safe distance from the American border.

The Parliament Buildings were built between 1859 and 1866 (not including the Library and the Tower). One year after they were finished, Confederation occurred and the buildings were immediately selected to house the government for the newly created Dominion of Canada.

The main building of the government buildings is called Centre Block and it is instantly recognizable with its trademark Peace Tower. Visitors can watch the House of Commons and the Senate from the visitor galleries, and free tours are also available. A tour to the top of the Peace Tower rewards you with a great view all over Ottawa. Canada's war dead are honoured inside the Memorial Chamber.

The Library of Parliament Building - the only part of the original Centre Block that survived the desastrous fire of 1916 - is currently undergoing restoration work to bring it back to its former glory.

The historic East Block has not changed much since the days of Confederation. The offices of Canada's first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, have been restored and are available to visit on a public tour.

The West Block is not accessible to the public as it houses the offices of the members of parliament.

The Peace Tower is Ottawa's trademark and its name is a commemoration of Canada’s commitment to peace. The Memorial Chamber is located on the third floor of the Tower, and it honours Canadians who have died in armed conflicts since Confederation. The Peace Tower also holds an observation area and the Carillon which contains 53 bells weighing anywhere from less than 5 kg to more than 10 tons.

The Centre Block was affected by a large fire in 1916. Canada began rebuilding it while still fighting in the First World War. The new structure, designed in the Modern Gothic Revival style by John Pearson and Jean Omer Marchand, was completed by 1922. The Peace Tower was finished later in 1927.

In the summer Parliament Hill offers up a unique ceremony: every day at 10 am the Changing of the Guard takes place, and this year the ceremony will be held every day from June 24 to August 26 of 2006.

Parliament Hill with its big open square lends itself naturally as a meeting and entertainment venue. The Canada Day celebrations are held here and they include free concerts, spectacular fireworks, a flight demonstration by the Snowbirds (Canada's precision aerobatic team), and you'll only have to put up with short speeches by Canadian politicians.

Another event coming up for 2006 is a free sound and light show called "Canada: the Spirit of a Country", which will be performed on a daily basis after dark between July 5 and September 10, 2006. Images will be projected onto the Parliament Buildings. Obviously Parliament Hill is not just a boring place for politicians, it is an entertainment venue and meeting place for people from Ottawa, for folks from the rest of the country and for international tourists alike.

After my discovery of the Parliament Buildings I walked further west to have a look at the Supreme Court of Canada and the other surrounding buildings. What really fascinated me where the huge plumes of steam that come out of the smokestacks, I don’t recall seeing the same types of formations in Toronto. One person explained to me that the air in Ottawa is calmer as compared to Toronto where we always have wind blowing in from the lake which actually would disperse these clouds of smoke. An interesting sight....

This crisp morning walk was the perfect introduction to Ottawa and a good way to burn off calories from last night's carlory-rich evening at Fat Tuesday's. After a rather hearty breakfast at the Lord Elgin Hotel, we set off to begin our day of skating on the Rideau Canal Skateway, the main reason we had come to Ottawa.

This entire article including photos is located at http://www.travelandtransitions.com/stories_photos/ottawa_parliament_hill.htm

About The Author

Turkey - Guide to a Yacht Charter

2007-08-21T07:02:00.001-07:00

by: D. Browall

Turkey is the only country in the world that can be found in two continents. 97 percent of it is in Asia and the remaining 3 percent is in Europe. The Asian part of the country is made up of Asia Minor and European region comprises the eastern portion of Thrace. The two areas are bordered and separated by Dardanelles, Sea of Marmara, and Bosporus. Through this distinctive division, a sailing charter Turkey is easy to find.

Turkey is very rich in culture and tradition. Its history is very eventful and dynamic, but full of rage, conflict, and wars. It was managed by many empires. During the ancient times, particularly in 1800 BC, most of the country was inhabited by the Hittites. In 8th century BC, the Greeks occupied the country. After two centuries (6th century BC), Turkey became part of the Persian Empire. However, the Persians did not last long. Soon after, it was invaded by Rome in 395 AD and was managed as a province. Still, the country was invaded by the Ottoman Turks in the 13th century AD.

Cruising a sailing yacht in Turkey means sailing along the many gulfs and bays of the much indented Turkish coast. It is also a journey back in time, with a plethora of archaeological sites, castles and temples that catches its importance in ancient and medieval times.

The Turkish coastline is usually separated into three different cruising areas:

-The Lycian Coast: a wild and rugged landscape with an grandiose display of mountains, cliffs and ravines.

-The Carian Coast: this is the most popular cruising area and includes the two largest yacht charter bases; Bodrum and Marmaris.

-The Ionian Coast: a coastline starting in Izmir in the north and reach all the way to Bodrum in the south. Here you will find the best climate in the whole of Turkey and a lot of culture.

The coast of Lycia is an ideal place for cruising. This place has many ports and harbors. The coastline of Lycia can reach as far as Gocek. The portion of the so-called "East Lycian Coast" covers Antalya, Kas, and Fethiye. These places are ideal for cruising because of its several attractions such as its coves, beaches, cliffs, and mountains. However, these areas are sometimes regarded by many ancient sailors as a dangerous sailing ground because of its tempered waters. Nevertheless, all its harbors are safe and protected.

One of the country's most attractive tourist activities is sailing along its calm, relaxing, and stunning sea waters. In particular, most tourist sailors go to the coasts of the Mediterranean and the Aegean. Aside from yachting, Turkey can also offer its historical and archaeological sites. You can find a handful of the country's ancient architectures in Istanbul (the largest and the former capital city). You can visit the world-famous Hagia Sophia, Sultan Ahmed Mosque, Pera Palas, Grand Bazaar, Galata Tower, and the Dolmabahce Palace. If you are not into prehistoric buildings, you can have a stay at Istanbul's modern shopping malls, which are among the largest shopping centers in the world.

About The Author

For more info on yacht charter Turkey visit D. Browall's website http://www.sboats.com - The Ultimate Guide to a Sailing Holiday.

An Aitutaki Honeymoon At The Pacific Resort Aitutaki

2007-08-21T07:01:00.001-07:00

by: Peter R Stewart

An Aitutaki Honeymoon, is the best of Cook Island Honeymoon destinations. The Pacific Resort Aitutaki is one of the few luxury small hotels on Aitutaki, and is absolutely ideal spot for a Cook Island Aitutaki honeymoon. Aitutaki is the most beautiful part of the Cook Islands, and is a remote paradise, almost untouched by the 21st century.

The Pacific Resort Aitutaki is a fairly typical Polynesian hideaway with beach front bungalows, suites, villas, and a restaurant where you will eat top class Polynesian cuisine. This means fresh seafood caught daily and fruit from the garden at the hotel.

There are a number of things to do, and sunbathing and snorkelling in crystal clear warm water over the reef right by the hotel comes top of the list. The reef is inhabited by thousands of brightly coloured fish. This is a great place to relax in luxury and isolation after the pressures of a wedding.

The Pacific Resort Aitutaki is over 250 kms north of Rarotonga, and you can get there in 40 minutes by plane, and is the only full-service luxury resort in the Cook Islands. It is on an island atoll, and lies in one of the world’s largest lagoons. This is paradise, a secret hideaway, which is why an Aitutaki honeymoon can’t be beaten.

When you arrive at Aitutaki on your Cook Island honeymoon you’ll be met and given a flower necklace, driven the short distance to the hotel, and greeted in person by the manager.

Choose a beachfront suite, which is in a self contained thatched unit.

They are a very good size, airconditioned, furnished in dark wood, with one wall a sliding window opening onto a veranda, then you are a few steps to the powder white sand beach next to a sea that is an unbelievable blue/turquoise/green colour.

There is a large comfortable bed, TV, DVD player, and stereo system.

A huge bathroom contains a large shower, and his and hers basins, and a door leading to an outside shower as well.

The Pacific resort is very clean, well maintained, the staff are very friendly and helpful.

Meals are taken in the restaurant which overlooks the small pool, mind you who needs a pool when you have a beach to end all beaches outside!! The views of the lagoon, and the reef are almost beyond description, sufficient to say they more than justify choosing an Aitutaki honeymoon!!

The sheer isolation of the Pacific resort means that food is very dependent on local produce, which really means chicken, goat, and fish. The chef does introduce as much variety as possible, but you don’t come to such a beautifully isolated and unspoilt part of the world for the food. It’s worth eating out and the reception staff are always willing and able to help.

Aitutataki is one of the most beautiful places in the world. The Pacific Resort is a fantastic Aitutaki Honeymoon choice. This is by South Pacific standards probably the top small luxury hotel.

About The Author

Peter Stewart writes exclusively for http://www.in-kenyasafari.com as well as http://www.worldwidevacationspots.com and he has in depth knowledge of the places he writes about

Purchasing Insurance For Travel Tours Abroad

2007-08-21T07:00:00.000-07:00

by: Jerry K. Blackburn

To purchase or not to purchase travel insurance, that is the question. If you have done some research or talked to a travel agent, you might have been told that insurance is absolutely necessary. After all, you have put a lot of money into airfare and booking your hotel. But does that mean you need to spend more on insurance?

Travel insurance was created to make sure your money is refunded should something go wrong at the last second. This includes many circumstances that would prevent you from traveling, like illness or a flight being canceled due to inclimate weather. If your plans are put on hold, at least you will get your money back. But there are ways this insurance can help you while you are on vacation as well.

When taking travel tours abroad, check and see if your normal health insurance will cover you in a foreign country. Often, plans either do not cover you, or are just not accepted abroad. Should this be the case for you, then invest in travel insurance. This way, you are sure to be covered if you need medical attention while on vacation.

Unfortunately, travelers these days need to be aware of terrorism when they travel abroad. Should terrorist activity occur where you are about to vacation, your airline is not necessarily required to refund the cost of your ticket. However, if you have travel insurance, you will be covered.

Flight cancellation is another eventuality covered by travel insurance. Any number of things could prevent you from leaving the ground. You might have scheduled your vacation during the worst snow storm in twenty years, or maybe you airline just goes out of business. Travel insurance protects the money you have invested in your ticket. Perhaps circumstances in your life prevent you from taking advantage of vacation deals. Should somebody in your family die or become ill, you can cancel your plans without penalty. Whatever may happen to prevent you from leaving, you are covered.

If you loose your luggage, you will also be covered by travel insurance. Usually, the baggage is returned by the airline; though, sometimes, it is simply misplaced and never found. Or, your luggage might be returned with items missing. Travel insurance gives you the money to replace anything that can’t be found so you can enjoy your trip as planned.

When deciding on a specific insurance company, it is a good idea to research your options before choosing. Different plans work best for specific vacations. Perhaps you are not buying a plane ticket, but taking a cruise. If you travel often for business or pleasure, you can even purchase a policy that covers you for extended periods of time. These plans save you the hassle of buying a policy for each individual trip. Ask questions before you make a final decision to be sure that you are getting all the coverage you need. You wouldn’t want to insure yourself, only to find that your particular vacation disaster is not covered under your policy.

About The Author

Jerry Blackburn continually pens newsletters on stories about Spain and spanish culture. Sharing his passion in detailed writings such as http://www.alicante-spain.com/spain-tips/jobs.html ,the reviewer established his capability on topics like Jobs in Spain.

Hello From Ottawa - Skating On The Rideau Canal - Officially The World's Largest Skating Rink

2007-08-21T06:59:00.001-07:00

by: Susanne Pacher

There is no denying it: Ottawa is known is one of the coldest capitals in the world (only as far as temperatures are concerned though). But does that mean you stay at home during the winter and mope? Absolutely not! Ottawa has turned a potential liability into a key asset and really shows us how to celebrate winter.

First there is Winterlude, Ottawa’s winter festival, which is being held this year from February 3 to 19, 2006. Winterlude is apparently attended by more than 650,000 winter revellers and encompasses a myriad of events: concerts, special events, culinary demonstrations, restaurant festivals and the list goes on. Skating on the Rideau Skateway, at almost 8 km the world’s largest icerink., was our main reason for coming to Ottawa. Indeed we had travelled to Ottawa about 3 years ago and due to warm weather Winterlude was a total washout for us that year (I guess the appropriate term for that event would be "Waterlude").

But our earlier experience didn't deter us, so this year Theresa and I decided to come back and pray for better weather so we would indeed be able to check out this phenomenal skating and entertainment venue for ourselves.

Incidentally, the Rideau Canal Skateway has been recognized by the Guiness Book of World Records as the world's largest naturally frozen ice rink. The skateway is 7.8 kilometers long and takes you from the Rideau Bridge all the way to Dow's Lake.

We got going early just around 10 am on an absolutely perfect winter day, but even at that time, the skateway was packed, and the walkthrough over the frozen ice from Confederation Park to the skateway entrance on the other side of the river was chock full with people in a long lineup.

We laced up our skates and put our boots in our backbacks which would give us the flexibility to get off the ice at any time and continue our explorations on foot. Or if we got too tired, we could even hop on the "Sno-Bus" which connects Dow's Lake with Confederation Park during the entire Winterlude Festival for the low fee of $2.50 (more information on the OC Transpo site) .

But, apparently we didn't need a Sno-Bus, we skated our way down on this wonderful natural ice surface all the way to the lake and didn't even need to rest. On this gorgeous day with crystal blue skies and perfect winter weather and amazingly no winds, skating on the Rideau was a phenomenal experience. We could indeed not have picked a better day to explore the Rideau Canal on skates.

At different intervals along the way there were a variety of rest areas, food concessions and special entertainment or information areas. Well represented of course is a famous Ottawa trademark: the Beavertails concession booths which sell freshly made warm pastry, sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon. The perfect snack and energy source on a cold winter's day.

At the Via Rail Concord Station Rest Area an exhibit shed light on Ottawa's railroad history. Apparently many years ago, trains would arrive in downtown Ottawa right next to the Rideau Canal. At Fifth Avenue, young sports fans were enjoying the Canadian Tire JUMPStart Activity Centre where they were jumping through the air on a trampoline system and putting their hockey skills to the test.

At Pig Island a special area with teepees was set up to get a taste of Aboriginal traditions, culture and cuisine. In addition the area featured a loggers' exhibit, a snowshoe-making workshop and aboriginal songs and drumming.

Once arrived at Dow's Lake I went on to explore the 26th Annual Bed Race, a fundraising event which proved to be an absolutely hilarious experience, for a good cause no less. The Bed Race is organized by the Ottawa Kiwanis Club and the proceeds, close to $50,000 will go towards the Children's Read-A-Thon.

A young hockey star tests his skills at the Canadian Tire JumpStart Activity Centre

But I had more to cover, so I started skating back towards the downtown and by this time the skateway had filled up quite a bit. It seemed like young and old, the whole family was out. Parents were pulling their children on little sleds, or even pushing them in all-terrain baby carriages. Everybody was having a ton of fun.

On the way back one person struck my attention: a young lady on red skates with red gloves and a red scarf was skating down the canal, juggling, apparently just having a ball of a time. I approached her to find out a bit about her. She introduced herself as Sylvie, and shared with me that she is part of a juggling family and that juggling is in her blood. She said that juggling is her life, and although she doesn't drive the fanciest car, she is happy because she gets to do what she loves.

After all this skating I got really hungry, so I took off my skates and simply headed up to the Rideau Centre, one of Ottawa’s biggest shopping centres. It is located right next to the Canal and was positively packed on this day. The Rideau Centre offered a welcome opportunity to warm up and catch a nice lunch in its food court.

Obviously I love outdoor activities as well as urban exploring, and skating on the Rideau Canal through downtown Ottawa combines both activities perfectly. I got a brief taste of this special winter activity, and one thing is for sure: I'll be back!!!

This entire article including photos is located at http://www.travelandtransitions.com/stories_photos/ottawa_skating_rideau.htm

About The Author

Hitting the road safely when backpacking across the United Kingdom

2007-08-21T06:58:00.000-07:00

by: Andy Burrows

An excellent road and rail network and a highly eclectic selection of landscapes and scenery combine with good accommodation infrastructure to provide idyllic conditions for pursuing a nomadic lifestyle.

The Youth Hostel Association (YHA) of England and Wales is the most established organisation offering backpacker accommodation in the UK. More than 200 establishments are operated under its watchful eye, all offering a minimum standard of accommodation as well as assistance in local sightseeing plans and travel arrangements. Privately owned and operated hostels are also common and can be found across the length of the nation.

Compared with hostels in some EU countries, those in the UK may seem a little on the expensive side. Relative to overnight accommodation prices within the nation however, they are cheap. Standards vary but most offer rooms and facilities that are functional and clean at the very least. Single, twin, double and triple rooms as well as dorms and family rooms are invariably available at most hostels, ensuring travellers of all kinds are catered for.

Of all the viable backpacker routes and destinations in the UK, Wales and its coastal regions offer some of the most ideal holiday conditions. With a wealth of private establishments and more than 40 YHA operated hostels across Wales, as well as some lovely local scenery and interesting visitor sites, it’s not difficult to see why Wales has become a favourite with travellers. Towns such as Conway, Bangor, Brecon, Newport and Anglesey offer YHA hostels and are among the more popular backpacker destinations.

While the YHA network does not extend to Scotland, this should not preclude backpackers from holidaying here. Independent accommodation options are plentiful and can be found in some of the country’s most scenic towns and cities. You’ll find hostel choices in the likes of Armadale and Ullapool in the northwest, Aviemore and Loch Ness in the northeast, Glasgow and Kendoon in the southwest and Melrose and Edinburgh in the southeast.

The nature of backpacking means there are inherent risks to both the well-being of the traveller and his/her personal possessions. Most travellers enjoy a holiday without incident and this is due largely to common sense and taking sensible measures to reduce risks. By taking precautions, you can minimise the effects of any unfortunate episodes.

While holiday insurance is unable to protect you against mishaps, it is a useful measure which can soften the blow in the event of accident, illness or theft. A comprehensive travel insurance policy will provide you with an essential safety net, meaning you can rest easy on your travels. Knowing that medical expenses will be taken care of and that cash and valuable items are covered, you can set about the business of really enjoying your holiday.

A variety of companies specialise in holiday insurance, but few tailor their policies specifically to meet the needs of those undertaking backpacking holidays. For an insurance policy designed specifically with backpackers in mind, visit travel-insurance-discounts.com

About The Author

Backpacking is Andy Burrow’s favourite way of spending his holiday. Andy advises pre-booking comprehensive backpacking insurance online with: http://www.travel-insurance-discounts.com/adventure_travel_insurance.htm/ and http://www.vayago.com/

Home Away From Home: Benefits Of Condos Over Hotels And Rv’s

2007-08-21T06:57:00.000-07:00

by: Clinton Douglas IV

Most parents of school-age children are forced to confine their family vacations to summer months, Christmas holiday and Spring break. Other families can choose to take their vacations at any time that is appropriate to their personal preferences.

When people consider their vacation or weekend getaways, few understand the true range of options they really do have available to them. Many people think their only options for lodging on vacation is limited to: hotels, motels, cabins, RV’s, travel trailers, and tents. But the truth is that there are a few more options that most people never even consider.

Condominiums, also referred to as Condos, are another great lodging option to consider. But, just speaking the word Condo brings to mind for many the concept of Time Share Condos. Of course, that is one option with a Condo, but we are going to look at the other options as well.

Condominium Residency Arrangements

A condominium, very literally, is very similar to an apartment. It is a fully self-contained living arrangement, with a living area, bedrooms, private balconies, and a full kitchen; and most condos contain all of the amenities, including big screen televisions, DVD players, high-speed Internet access, and other creature comforts we generally have in our homes, such as washers and dryers. Many condos also have hot tubs or Jacuzzis in the apartments.

Condos are basically full apartments, located in areas of prime real estate, such as Las Vegas on the Strip, or many other locations around the world on beachfront property. Condos generally provide additional benefits such as swimming pools, weight rooms, restaurants, and other high-value goodies.

We are going to look at four types of Condo purchase arrangements in this section.

1. Condominium Ownership – Condo ownership costs include the purchase price of the apartment and yearly fees to cover maintenance costs.

2. Condominium Timeshares – With a timeshare, the basic concept is that more people can afford them, because the cost of ownership is split among several owners on a per week basis. When someone buys a timeshare, they are buying a 1/52nd ownership of the Condo for a specific, pre-designated calendar week. With a timeshare, one is entitled to take over the property beginning on a specific calendar date, and they must vacate the property at the end of the week.

3. Condominium Rentals – Instead of timesharing a condo, many people opt to rent a condo, which frequently requires a purchase of a specific weekly period, although many condos provide flexibility so that you can decide which week you would like to rent. Some condo owners will allow individuals to rent by the day, but those have a much lower availability, than the condos that rent by the week. More on this later in this article.

4. The Dreaded Seminar Timeshare – Some companies are so desperate to find people to listen to their sales message that they are willing to put prospects up in a timeshare condo for the weekend or week, so long as the person(s) agrees to attend a specific number of sales presentations during their stay.

Benefits of Condos Over Hotels

The greatest benefit of condominiums over hotels is two-fold.

First, condos are fully self-contained, providing kitchens, spacious living and all of the luxuries of home to their guests. Many also provide high-speed Internet and data access to their business-class guests. For many folks, the full kitchen is the greatest advantage of a condo, in that, they will not have to eat nearly every meal in a restaurant, enabling the vacationer to spend his or her money on attractions rather than on restaurant foods.

The second greatest benefit for condominiums is three-fold: location, location, and location. Condos are generally located on some of the best prime real estate properties in the world. For example, City Center in Las Vegas is located on the Strip between the Bellagio Hotel and Casino and the New York, New York Hotel and Casino. Beachfront condos exist in nearly every major beach destination in the world. Condos are available in San Francisco, Chicago, NYC, Atlanta and Miami, just to name a few metropolitan locations. And locations are not restricted to U.S. destinations; in fact, condos are available in nearly every travel destination of the world.

Benefits of Condos Over RV’s and Travel Trailers

RV’s are nice, but considering the cost of fuel these days, they are seldom a great option for most travelers. A friend of mine recently priced a RV for a planned family vacation, and he found the cost for eight days would easily exceed one thousand dollars, plus mileage over 200 miles, plus fuel. At eight miles per gallon, his planned trip of 500 miles one-way would have easily translated into 125 gallons of gasoline and more than $400, just in fuel costs, at current fuel prices.

Sure, the RV is still more spacious than a car during a long road trip, but for the cost, renting a Cadillac for the trip might just make more sense. Given the claustrophobic nature of his wife, he felt that train or airplane might make more sense for his roundtrip transportation needs.

Transportation costs aside, the travel trailer and RV are both generally a bit confining in the space considerations. Certainly, the RV beats the travel trailer hands down in this department, most of the time, but when you consider the stress of stuffing a family of five with three young children into a RV, there is never enough space available for the sanity of the parents.

Benefits Over the Great Outdoors

With smaller travel trailers, travelers are still stuck with cooking outdoors. Sure, the travel trailer might be easier than the tent to set up, but travel trailers usually have small kitchens, if they even have a kitchen at all. Cooking outdoors for a family is more of a challenge than many in today’s world want to consider.

The limited amount of refrigerated storage is another area that is usually greatly strained with the use of the average travel trailer or tent camping experience. Going into the woods with a ice chest is fine for an afternoon trip, but once that trip expands beyond the life of the ice in the chest, then food options drop off considerably. This is the greatest cause of stress for people planning such trips. They always need to manage how they can maximize their food store, within very limited-size refrigerated storage containers.

In today’s modern world, it is frequently impossible to escape the reliance we have come to have for modern technology. This leads to a need for power supplies that can accompany the traveler, to keep them plugged into their gadgets. Tents and small travel trailers do not accommodate this need in many instances.

The Purpose of Vacations Is Rest and Relaxation, Which Is Sometimes Lost

For many of us, the purpose of a vacation is rest and relaxation. But, as we have seen above, the challenges of taking long trips can sometimes produce more stress than relaxation.

Another friend told me that he was very much relieved when his parents decided not to take any more summer vacations “for the family.” He said that by the end of the first day, every member of his family was ready to strangle the other. By the end of day two of their six-day traveling vacations, everyone wanted to go home, but his dad was stubborn to a fault. His family had tried nearly all of the above options: tents, travel trailers, RV’s, hotels and motels.

Even today, twenty years later, he cannot fathom a family vacation like his parents took, without his blood pressure going up. A few years back, he had tried the condominium rental route, and he has never looked back.

He told me that for him and his young family, the only vacation choice they will ever take advantage of is the condo rentals. He said the money he saves by not going to restaurants, generally covers the extra costs of the condominium. He said the enjoyment that he and his family experience, is far greater than what it would be if they forced themselves to live in a hotel room for a week. He said the extra goodies that the condos generally provide help him to give his family a much more rounded and robust experience. He says the added space and convenience of the condo experience permits him and his wife to relax more during their out-of-state vacations.

Making a Great Vacation Even Better

I am in the business of providing wholesale travel packages to the consumer market. I got into this business myself, because I love to travel with my family. Because I am able to save so much money on my own travel, it enables me to take my family on more trips and vacations than I had previously thought I could do.

The one thing I love most about my job is that I can give others the power to do as I do. I set my friend up with a discount condo card package, and now he is able to get his condominium rentals for much less than he was previously able to do. Depending on his trip destinations, he was generally paying $650 to $2500 for one week in his choice destination.

When I was able to hook him up with the discount condo card package, he paid one small upfront fee to my company of $250 for the condo card. On one trip, he stayed in a five-star condo resort and was able to get the condo for a week at just about 25% of what it would have cost him to rent it at retail cost. On another trip, he was able to stay in a beachfront condo for one week, and it only cost him the taxes that were due on the condo for his one-week stay, a whopping $199.

All told, my friend has so far taken two one-week vacations, and between plane tickets and condo costs, he has only spent about half of what he spent on his previous trip, the one he took before I set him up to take advantage of the travel packages I sell.

The Greatest Reward

The greatest reward for me in what I do, is knowing how I am able to help people get more out of life for less money than what they would spend on their own, without my help.

In conclusion, let me ask you two very important questions. First, how much did you spend on your last family vacation or weekend getaway? And secondly, how much are you going to have to spend on your next family vacation or weekend getaway?

About The Author

Clinton Douglas, IV is the Travel Guru. He has turned his passion for travel into a business that permits others to take advantage of the savings that he can help them get on their own travel destinations. Learn more by watching this video http://www.vasrue.com/dt/t/Isnare070507.php.

How To Have A Great Chicago Shopping Experience

2007-08-21T06:56:00.002-07:00

by: R. Charles Williams

Want to find the latest pair of fashionable Lucky Brand Jeans? Looking for a kitschy Chicago souvenir? Hoping to find that perfect sexy piece of La Perla lingerie or a pair of authentic Ferragamo shoes? Or maybe you are simply in the city to enjoy the ambience of big city shopping and are curious about those one-of-a-kind deals that come with perusing the various Chicago boutiques and State Street retailers.

Whatever the reason, you've definitely made the right decision to visit Chicago, a world-class destination for shopping. The city's "Magnificent Mile" area boasts of diverse retailers, four multi-level malls anchored by classic department stores such as Bloomingdales and Nordstrom, exceptional dining experiences, and extraordinary hotel accommodations. "Oak and Rush" streets feature a refreshing mixture of couture shops and high-end boutiques with prestigious brand names like Kate and Jack Spade, Jimmy Choo, Prada, and Hermes (just to name a few!). Not to be outdone, the center of Chicago neighborhoods, "State Street", offers various specialty retailers for those shoppers looking for a bit more affordable shopping experience.

There are many other shopping excursions to venture out on while you are in Chicago. Don't just stay downtown. Live a little and take a quick taxi ride or El ride into one of the many Chicago neighborhoods and shop with the locals. If you are a hip designer conscious shopper who absolutely adores trendy, vintage, and/or alternative digs, then the Bucktown and Wicker Park boutique circuit is a must do! Casa de Soul, Eurotrash, Scoop NYC, and The Silver Room are just a few of the stops along the way. Lakeview has its shopping highlights as well. Gramaphone Records carries vinyl copies of rare and imported dance, rap, and various commercial records. Century Shopping Center is your typical mall that went through a recent renovation in 1999, however, the best feature is its fine arts theater that shows various independent films on seven screens. Boystown (which is East Lakeview) primarily caters to gay men and the area features many themed shops. Oh, and if you're in for a day trip, Chicago (well suburban Schaumburg and Boilingbrook) has two IKEA locations!

Chicago shopping has a lot to offer! Unfortunately, you just can't do it all in one day. In an effort to have a more pleasurable experience, please take in consideration the following:

1. How many dedicated shopping days do you have?
2. What is your shopping objective?
3. What is your shopping budget?
4. Are you going solo or are you shopping with friends, family, or even children?
5. Transportation? Parking is not cheap even if you do find a meter! Public transportation or taxi, if your budget allows, is better for the serious shopper.
6. Where is your hotel located?
7. Eating out or packing a lunch?
8. You absolutely must have comfortable shoes! There will be a lot of walking involved.

So, hit the sidewalks, be brave, fight those crowds, and find what you're looking for…right in Chicago.

About The Author

RC Williams is a freelance writer and editor. She has a Masters in Communication from Ohio University. RC is a music fanatic and is passionate about writing, reading, arts and entertainment, and of course, shopping!

Search key Chicago shopping areas from the Magnificent Mile to State Street http://www.mypersonalcityshopper.com

French Polynesia, Where It Is, And What It's Like

2007-08-21T06:56:00.001-07:00

by: Peter R Stewart

Many people consider French Polynesia to be the most beautiful, and even the most romantic place on earth. It is better known as Tahiti. They are in fact many islands, which are in fact several groups of volcanic peaks and atolls that are spread over hundreds of miles of ocean. Each of the islands has its own characteristics, from the broad lagoon of Rangiroa to the bustling market place of Papeete.

Taken together the islands of Tahiti are the most beautiful in the world, with their spectacular mountain peaks, lush vegetation, beautiful turquoise clear waters.

French Polynesia comprises coral archipelago and volcanic archipelagos.

TheVolcanic islands of French Polynesia, can be split up into groups. The Society Islands are Tahiti, Moorea, Bora Bora, Huahine, Tahaa and Raiatea.

The Society Islands themselves split into a Windward Group consisting of Tahiti, Moorea, Tetiaro, and the Leeward Group consisting of Huahine, Raietea, Tahaa, Maupiti and Bora Bora.

Each island is physically similar being dominated by tall volcanic peaks , surrounded by a coral reef, which shelters a lagoon, which in turn is bordered by incredible white sand beaches.

The volcanic Marquesas archipelago, is made up of 9 major islands of volcanic origin without a coral reef. They are located nearly 900 miles from Tahiti, but here you will find spectacular mountains dropping straight into a blue-turquoise sea, deserted beaches, quiet lagoons, and brilliantly coloured tropical rainforest. Untouched beauty, and a thin veneer of civilization lives here The main island is Nuku Hive on which the administrative capital, Taiohae, is located. The other inhabited islands are Hive Oa, Ua Pou, Ua Huka. Fatu Hiva and Tabueta

The Tuamotu Atolls are quite a contrast to the high peaks of the Society Islands. Tuamotu comprises 78 coral atolls, half of which are uninhabited. They are all green rings of coral reef surrounding a turquoise lagoon, scattered over several hundreds of miles of the eastern Pacific Ocean. The highest points on an atoll rarely reach 30 feet above sea level and are covered with lush vegetation and tightly packed coconut groves. These ring-shaped islands can be huge and Rangiroa , 46 miles across, Fakarava , 38 miles across are two examples.

These interior lagoons have the most incredibly clear bright turquoise water, and they all have one or two narrow openings to the ocean outside, which allows the tide to rush in bringing the nutrients. This means incredible snorkelling or diving in these openings known as passes. Most of the villages quite inevitably are situated here, and this is where you can get an idea of what life is like for people who live on the Tuamotu atolls. It is in these interior lagoons that the famed black pearl can be farmed.

French Polynesia is always thought to be an extremely safe place to visit, with beautiful tranquil people with a permanent smile. The people are of course a mixture of many races but the Polynesians love to laugh, and sing, so you cannot fail to leave these islands with a different attitude.

It is a long way from Europe to French Polynesia, but only a little over two hours from Hawaii, and is almost equidistant from Australia and the West coast of the USA, but breaking your journey in either Los Angeles or in Australia or New Zealand makes the next part of the trip relatively short.

Visit French Polynesia, make it a priority

About The Author

Peter Stewart writes exclusively for http://www.in-kenyasafari.com as well as http://www.worldwidevacationspots.com and he has in depth knowledge of the places he writes about

7 Top Camping Safety Tips

2007-08-21T06:55:00.000-07:00

by: Shari Hearn

No doubt about it, camping can be fun. But, if you don't pay attention to safety, your fun camping outing can turn into the camping trip from Hell. What are some of the most important camping safety tips you should know?

1. Plan Ahead. Do your research. Make sure the campground you've chosen is a safe one. Make sure there are no current fire dangers. Check out the weather. Any health alerts in the area, such as dangerous bacteria count in the water, or outbreak of any rodent-carrying viruses?

2. Pack the Emergency Kit. Be prepared for cuts, bee stings and allergic reactions. Bring antihistamines, antiseptic, bug sprays and insect repellents, pain relievers, bandages, sunscreen and if possible, a snake-bite kit.

An emergency kit should also include the following items: Whistle, flashlight, compass, a small Swiss Army knife, razor blades, tweezers, magnifying glass, sterilized water packets for cleaning wounds, emergency blanket, thermometer, cold pack, and a mirror. A mirror can be helpful when signaling for help. Some people also use a CD. If you can afford them, a pair of night-vision goggles can also be a help in an emergency.

3. Arrive at the Campsite Early. Arriving early, with ample daylight, allows you to examine the entire campsite and set up while there's still light. Be on the lookout for sharp objects, broken glass, huge ant beds, branches, poison ivy, hazardous terrain and bees.

4. Build your Tent on a Safe Spot. Make sure your tent is flame-resistant and keep it at a safe distance from the campfire. Try to pitch your tent on elevated land so it doesn't flood in case of rain. In order to keep the bugs out, make sure you close your tent immediately upon entering and leaving.

5. Go Over Safety Issues with Family Members. Make sure family members are aware of poisonous plants in the area. Be sure the children understand that they should never drink from any stream or river, regardless of how clean it may look. Finally, issue each member of your family a whistle for emergency use only.

6. Be Fire Safe. Make sure there are no current fire restrictions before building any fire, and don't build a fire if there are strong winds. When you do build a fire, keep it in the fire ring, and make sure there are no flammable items near the fire. Do not use heating devices or candles inside the tent.

Never leave your campfire unattended, and keep the area clear of leaves and twigs. Before going to bed, make sure the campfire is property put out by drowning it with water.

7. Be Aware of Wild Animals. Be sure to familiarize yourself and your family with safety concerning wild animals. Wild animals have acute senses of smell. Make sure you keep your campsite clean and free of food or garbage which might attract them. It is best to store all food, garbage and strong-smelling items (such as soap or toothpaste) in bear-resistant containers or your vehicle. Keep your sleeping bag and tent completely free of food and food odors, and set up your cooking and eating area at least 100 yards from your tent. Do not go to sleep in the same clothing you cooked in, as even the cooking smells can attract bears and other wild animals.

While it may seem like attention to safety takes the fun out of camping, in reality it helps ensure that your camping vacation is a fun time for the whole family. And, isn't having fun the point of camping?

About The Author

Shari Hearn is a writer and creator of several travel sites, http://www.boating-vacation.com http://www.rv-camping.net and http://www.topvacationspots.net

Avoid Sickness In Paradise: Prevent Jet Lag

2007-08-21T06:54:00.002-07:00

by: Vince J. Paxton

One of the worst parts of air travel is handling jet lag. Jet lag is basically your body’s inability to adjust to the destination’s time as it passes through multiple time zones. For the inexperienced traveler (and some experienced ones) it can put a cramp in your business or holiday plans especially if your trip is only a few days.

The main symptoms of jet lag are fatigue and tiredness. This can be accompanied by headaches, dizziness, muscle soreness, a feeling of sickness and odd eating patterns. Being tired while on your holiday, especially if you’re planning on doing a lot of sightseeing or physical activity can make if difficult to have an enjoyable time.

To prevent jet lag you have to start before your trip. Ensure you are relaxed and stress free before you leave for the airport. Don’t drink caffeinated drinks and while alcohol may relax you it also dehydrates which can contribute to jet lag. Also consider doing some light exercise such as yoga or running but nothing that will make your muscles sore. Exercising aids your body’s sleep patterns.

Once on your flight, try to make yourself as comfortable as possible. Consider accessories that will help you such as neck pillows and eye masks. Take off your shoes and get pillows and blankets before the plane takes off. Since dehydration contributes to jet lag, bring a large bottle of water. Drink lots of water even if you don’t feel thirsty.

After take off, set your watch to the destination time. The rule of thumb is to sleep if it’s bed time at your destination and stay awake (or just take a small nap) if not. If you need to sleep consider taking a light sleep aid and if you’re worried about missing the meal service then just let the cabin crew know to wake you. Again, avoid consuming alcohol. It may help you sleep but in the long run it will make jet lag worse. If you feel like a drink then just have one and drink extra water to keep hydrated. If you’re awake, get out of your seat and do some simple stretches to reduce muscle tension.

Some travelers swear by Melatonin pills to prevent jet lag. Tests show that your body’s clock is influenced by the hormone Melatonin. It is secreted when your body is exposed to a lack of light so when it’s dark it’s like a natural sleeping pill. You can force this hormone by taking Melatonin pills which can be purchased over the counter at most drug stores.

Once you arrive at your destination adjust to the time as soon as possible. If you are tired in the middle of the day don’t crash but take a small nap and then get to bed early. Sleeping during the middle of the day and staying awake at night will only prolong jet lag.

If you use these preventative tips you will arrive at your destination rested with minimal jet lag and ready to enjoy your trip.

About The Author

Vince Paxton continually pens informative papers on areas dealing with Benidorm and Costa Blanca. You can have a look at his work over at http://www.alicante-spain.com and many different sources for Alicante knowledge.

Top Southern California Beaches

2007-08-21T06:54:00.001-07:00

by: Shari Hearn

You cannot visit Southern California without stopping at one of its many wonderful beaches and dipping your toes in the Pacific Ocean. However, if you have a limited time on your visit and can only visit one beach, you may have a difficult time choosing. Which Southern California beach should top your list? Well, it depends on what you're looking for:

Surfing:

Huntington Beach: With over 50 surfing competitions held each year in Huntington Beach, plus a Surfing Walk of Fame, Surfers' Hall of Fame and International Surfing Museum, Huntington Beach, or "Surf City" as some call it, is the place you'll want to visit to surf and watch surfers in action. Forget your surfboard or boogie board? No problem, you can also rent one in Huntington Beach. You'll want to visit the pier at Huntington City Beach where you can watch the surfers as well as take in the views, which include Catalina Island, 22 miles away (check out the pay scopes for closer views).

Another reason to go to Huntington Beach is that all three of their beaches (Huntington City Beach, Huntington State Beach and Bolsa Chica State Beach) have concrete fire rings which allow you to have nightly bonfires and cookouts.

Swami's Beach: Located in Encinitas below Seacliff Roadside Park, Swami's Beach is also a great place to watch the surfers, as it is considered one of the best surfing spots along the San Diego County coastline.

Sunbathing and Relaxing:

Zuma/Point Dume: Of course, you can sit in the sand and relax at all the beaches in Southern California, but Point Dume and Zuma beaches, approximately 19 miles west of Malibu on Pacific Coast Highway, are the beaches to go to escape the crowded Los Angeles beaches. When driving west on PCH you'll come to Point Dume first, then Zuma. Point Dume is a little quieter than Zuma, so if you want to lie in the sand and sleep, or read a good book, Point Dume is it. Of course, just because Point Dume and Zuma beaches are great for relaxing, that's not all there is to do. Some consider Zuma beach one of the finest surfing beaches as well.

People Watching:

Venice City Beach: Want a quirky beach experience? Then you'll have to visit Venice Beach, at the end of Washington Street in Venice. There you'll find skaters, performers and those you're not quite sure if they're performing or not. On any given weekend you can be treated to musicians, acrobats, mimes, magicians and other assorted entertainers. You'll also find restaurants and all sorts of shops along Ocean Front Walk, as well as Muscle Beach, where you can find bodybuilders pumping iron. If you like crowds, you'll love Venice Beach on the weekend.

Fun Out of the Water:

Santa Monica State Beach: If you get tired of sunbathing or playing in the ocean, Santa Monica State Beach is great because you have Pacific Park at Santa Monica Pier with rides, games and restaurants. You have to really try hard to be bored at Santa Monica State Beach. Rides include a carousel, roller coaster, bumper cars, motion simulator and a nine-story Ferris wheel with spectacular views. You can also roller blade and ride bikes on the bike bath along the beach.

These are just a sampling of the great beach experiences you can have in Southern California. Just remember to bring and apply your sunscreen, drink plenty of water throughout the day, and enjoy your visit.

About The Author

Shari Hearn is a writer and creator of http://www.topvacationspots.net - http://www.boating-vacation.com and http://www.rv-camping.net

White Water Rafting On The Arkansas River, A Colorado Adventure, A Family Affair

2007-08-21T06:53:00.000-07:00

by: Donald Pyle

Picture this. It’s the 3rd week in June, it’s 10:30 AM, and our party of six and our guide shove off into the cool waters of the Arkansas River Bighorn Sheep Canyon. The 15 minute ride from the office to the departure point was light-hearted and filled with anticipation. The guides added to the excitement with their friendly banter.

After the guides unload the rafts from the bus top and the trailer and the rafts are put into the water, the group gathers around at the river’s edge. Casey, our guide, runs through the safety rules and the worse-case emergency situations with the final question, “So, are you scared yet? Good! Then let’s go.”

Within the next 2 to 3 minutes we practice our left back paddle, right paddle, and all paddle 3 commands. By the end of the rafting trip two hours later, we are just beginning to feel like a team that can respond to our guide’s commands and ride victoriously through the river’s challenges – any challenge. We might at this point be a little over confident. As first-time rafters, we may not know the subtle differences between class II-III rapids and those farther down the river through the Royal Gorge.

Somehow, from our beginning skill level of zero, we manage to ride the rapids, maneuver successfully around the rocks jutting up in the middle of the river (most of them!) and around the rocks that the current drives us toward, and with Casey’s expertise and adventurous spirit we ride down a few rapids backwards.

With some gentle persuasion after I have been well washed with a few soaking rapids, he obliges my request and we meet the next rapid’s challenges with the opposite side of the raft, for my wife’s benefit. She has stayed all too dry up to this point.

How can I describe it? We point the raft straight toward the rapids. “All paddle!” Casey shouts. We all paddle forward. As we hit the first rapid, the front of the raft hardly takes any water. We seem to skim over the troughs formed by the rapids, from top to top. Sometimes as I stroke forward with the paddle to pull it back, I pull air. Only the trough is below us. I can’t reach the water. Then the next wave crashes into the raft, soaking us all, the two leaders in front gasping a breath through the streaming water. From someone in the raft erupts a shout, “Yeah! Wow! What a ride!” And we’re through that set of rapids.

During the more quiet moments, some of the younger boys in one of our neighboring rafts jump in for a swim. We take some pictures, and trade stories, fully enjoying one of nature’s challenging forces, fully enjoying our newly-found unity and purpose as a river rafting team. Seldom in my life has the sky seemed more blue, the water more inviting, or the adventure more satisfying. The two-hour trip is all too short, and I loathe getting out of the river and back on the bus. I am ready to do the Royal Gorge and its class IV-V rapids!

RIVERRUNNERS can host your entire family (8 years of age and older) for an exhilarating, unforgettable rafting excursion on the Arkansas River through Big Horn Sheep Canyon. Now during early summer is an ideal time, but don’t write off late summer thinking the water level will be too low. For the family the entire summer is a great time. RIVERRUNNERS offers a variety of half day or full day trips from easy to demanding even for the experienced rafter. In addition to Royal Gorge and Bighorn Sheep Canyon, the company offers trips through Browns Canyon, the Numbers, and Pine Creek. Their Utah based ADRIFT ADVENTURES offers daily, 4-day and 5-day rafting vacations through the Yampa River Canyon, Green River, Lodor Canyon, and Dinosaur National Monument. Indeed, there is a trip and an adventure for everyone.

The staff is experienced, requiring 100 hours of rafting experience before being allowed to guide a raft. The equipment is kept in excellent repair, and the company’s attention to detail, including each participant’s personal needs and limitations, is admirable. We thoroughly enjoyed our trip with RIVERRUNNERS, and our next full-day rafting trip, including the Royal Gorge and class V rapids, will be with them. Get ready Casey, because we’re requesting you for our guide.

For additional information to help you plan your vacation to Canon City, follow this link: http://www.cedarviewtravelresources.com/articles/index.php?article=whitewater2

About The Author

Donald Pyle is a husband, father, and grandpa with 36 years’ experience in education and interpersonal relations. Donald also specializes in helping others develop the strategies and skills that are necessary to grow and expand home-based and networking businesses. Donald currently authors articles on travel (with emphasis on outdoor family trips) and on developing home-based businesses.

For further travel tips and hints that relate directly to this article, check the article section at http://www.cedarviewtravelresources.com or go directly to the article: http://www.cedarviewtravelresources.com/articles/index.php?article=whitewater2 Business URL: http://www.CedarViewTravelResources.com

Mount Whitney or Bust

2007-08-21T06:52:00.001-07:00

by: Ken Hornbrook

- My first camping trip in the Sierra -

In 1952 I was 19 and had previously made only one overnight backpack camping trip to North Fork campground in Santa Anita Canyon with the Boy Scouts. I did have a little hiking experience under my belt and had hiked Mt. Wilson and a couple of other local peaks, but I was certainly not in great condition or ready for what the next couple of days would bring. But I was young.

We met up, my friends from PCC -- Peter Stephens, John Way, Ken Nichols -- and myself and left Pasadena about 8 p.m. Friday evening in Peter's old paneled truck. Eventually Mojave with its infamous Whites Restaurant appeared and we stopped for dinner. About 11:30 p.m. we arrived at Whitney Portal, put our old sleeping bags on the ground making a makeshift campground out of a little space next to the truck, and tried to get some shuteye.

I had no tent, stove, or prepared food-- only snacks and a can of Dintymoor Stew. For sleeping I had borrowed an old, worn-out WWII sleeping bag. I strapped all this on a string backpack I had made while in the Boy Scouts.

Saturday morning we all had a bit to eat, got our backpacks and other camping gear together, and after a late start finally began hiking up the Mount Whitney trail.. By the time we reached Muir Lake it was late afternoon and the group slowed down and began to spread out. I was ahead and forged on. By the time I reached Consultation Lake, none of the rest of the group was in sight. I later found out they had all camped at Muir Lake. I proceeded on up the famous 96 switchbacks, hoping to get a better view and see the rest of my friends.

I finally stopped long after dark and spent Saturday night at Trail Crest, right on the trail. At 13,333 there isn`t anything but rocks and those rocks not very comfortable, particularly with no pad to sleep on. Some time during the night there was a partial eclipse of the moon off in the southwest. I awoke Sunday to people stepping over me and complaining about my blocking the trail. Had some cold granola for breakfast and then headed on up to the trail. The hike from Trail Crest to the summit was spectacular, with views of the whole of the Sierra spread out to the west, and the Owens Valley and then the Inyo Mountains to the east. Telescope Peak in Death Valley was clearly visible. This part of the hike would have been fairly easy except for the thin air which made oxygen difficult to come by.

Once at the summit I signed the log book and enjoyed the view and all the awesome scenery. After waiting a couple of hours for my friends I started to worry and so headed down the trail and finally met up with them about halfway down the switchbacks

Got back to Whitney Portal about noon and got a little rest. My friends finally straggled in about 6 p.m. and we headed for home, tired but very satisfied.

Author: Ken Hornbrook
http://www.outdoorcampingcenter.com

About The Author

Ken Hornbrook
http://www.inspirationalphotoimages.com/

A nature-lover and backpacker, I have found inspiration and delight in the beauty of nature. I have traveled throughout the west, from southern California to Colorado, to Alaska and Canada, photographing some of the most beautiful natural scenery in the world.

The World’s Largest Valentine

2007-08-21T06:51:00.000-07:00

by: Sandra Wilson

The World’s Largest Valentine has nothing to do with chocolates, flowers or a romantic dinner. Although these are traditional elements of Cupid’s Day, this particular Valentine gets the prize reserved for The Top. Maybe, even, Over The Top.

Here are some clues:

1. It is 350 years old
2. It was built by a man for the woman he loved.
3. It took twenty two years and 20,000 men to complete.
4. It is twenty four stories high.
5. It sits on a marble platform larger than a football field’s length squared.
6. It is adorned with semiprecious jewels
7. It is located in Agra, India.

Yes, the Taj Mahal is the World’s Largest Valentine.

In the 1600’s, Shah Jahan lost Mumtaz Mahal during the birth of their fourteenth child and his grief for his beloved wife of nineteen years was deep and real. During the mourning period he forbade color, dancing and even perfume in his sophisticated and ostentatious court.

Shah Jahan could have kept his feelings for Mumtaz locked in his heart. He could have abdicated. He could have replaced her with another queen. He did none of these. Instead, he boldly designed and had erected a mausoleum in her honor. It became known as Mumtaz’s Palace which, in Hindi, is Mumtaz’s Mahal, easily shortened to Taj Mahal.

This “building by Tiffany’s” reflects the flow, the grace, and the beauty of Mumtaz Mahal. He used the very sky behind the mausoleum as an active and ever-changing backdrop for his masterpiece. Clouds, sunshine, and rain reflect varying light and color on the Taj Mahal’s white marble.

With deep feelings for Mumtaz, a well developed architectural ability, and his position as Emperor of a large and almost unimaginably wealthy empire, Shah Jahan was uniquely equipped with the essentials to create what has become his gift to the world. Never before had this particular combination been present.

It took wealth most of us cannot imagine to have created a 24-story building covered with thick marble slabs, inlaid with artistically shaped precious stones, and abundant with lush carvings of plants and growing flowers. The Taj Mahal is protected by four 145-foot minarets located at the corners of its marble platform which itself is set between two identical buildings of red sandstone. It boasts waterways which symmetrically dissect its lavish gardens and the entire complex is walled and finished with a massive gate and forecourt.

No wonder it took more than two decades to finish.

But it was finished and it stands today as a monument to the love between a man and a woman.

It is the World’s Largest Valentine.

It is the Taj Mahal.

About The Author

TAJ, by Sandra Wilson, is a historical fiction that reveals the Who, What, Why, Where, and When of the Taj Mahal. For more information, visit http://www.taj-womanandwonder.com.

Six Mistakes To Avoid At The Taj Mahal

2007-08-21T06:50:00.002-07:00

by: Sandra Wilson

Most of your visit to India’s most-famous attraction is natural and inspiring. If it is your first visit, however, it is easy to make the following mistakes

Mistake 1: Make your visit too short.

Buses have been known to allow as little as half an hour to “see” the Taj Mahal, which is hardly time to walk the length of the reflecting pool. If this is your bus’s timetable, consider finding another. Allow a minimum of two hours to fully savor the “poem in marble.”

Mistake 2: Arrive with no prior knowledge of the Taj Mahal.

The Taj Mahal is a mausoleum and not a palace; it was created by a Mughal king in honor of his wife who died giving birth to their fourteenth child, and it is covered in real marble. There is much more to the story that will enhance your enjoyment of what you will see and feel. Do yourself a favor and enjoy some reading and research beforehand; the more you know, the richer your experience. Guidebooks, such as Eyewitness, are helpful.

Mistake 3: Remain with your guide or group during your entire visit.

After hearing what they have to tell you, leave them and wander to a secluded spot so you can gaze at this wonder of marital love on your own. Carve out time for solitude. Sit on a bench and contemplate the grace, balance, and beauty of Shah Jahan’s creation.

Mistake 4: Limit your visit to the Taj Mahal to only one time of the day.

Throughout daylight, the marble dome reflects sunshine with hues of pink, orange and white. Clouds and rain add additional interest. In Agra, the sky provides a backdrop for the double dome of the Taj Mahal. See as many of these variations as you can. Count yourself blessed if you are able to see the Taj Mahal in the moonlight.

Mistake 5: Become frustrated with the guides and photographers.

It is a popular business to impart information and produce a lasting memory for you at the Taj Mahal. Guides will ask if you want them to tell you about their country’s most famous attraction. Photographers will want to snap shots of you during your visit. Most of them are citizens of the country you are visiting. If you have made plans that exclude your need for their services, refuse with firm courtesy. Your desire for personal viewing time needs to be balanced with their need to work.

Mistake 6: Don’t take any—or enough--pictures.

The Taj Mahal is the single most photographed place in India. You can add to this distinction with your own images. Unless you are certain you will return shortly, visually record your favorite sights while within the walls of the Taj complex. Are you drawn to the walkway? The row of shoes outside the entrance? The black and white pattern of the platform? The inlaid prayer rugs in the mosque? Whatever they are, record details as touchstones for remembered pleasure

>From the moment you enter through the gate and stroll along the dazzling, rectangular reflecting pool, the lovely mausoleum will draw you to its marble steps. Slipping off your shoes, you will pass into a softly lit interior, and circle two richly inlaid caskets beneath a great domed ceiling. The carvings on the walls, the spectacular dome, and the harmony of all the details are there for you to admire.

The truth of the matter is you could actually make all the mistakes above and still be touched by the Taj Mahal. It is a sight undiminished by expectations.

About The Author

Sandra Wilson’s historical fiction, reveals the Who, What, Why, When and Where of the Taj Mahal. Go to http://www.taj-womanandwonder.com for more information on this highly researched novel.

Brace Yourself for the Divine Experience of Marrakech Travel

2007-08-21T06:50:00.001-07:00

by: Rcon Pascua

Ever dreamt of seeing the land of God? Then, start preparing for your Marrakech travel adventures because this medieval-looking place is not only the second largest city but is also the commercial hub of the Kingdom of Morocco. Deriving its name from the Tamazight word "Mur akuch," Marrakech literally means the "land of God." But in going beyond this simple etymology, your Marrakech travel will also prove that this Moroccan city is undoubtedly a place where a deity truly exists. The many stunning sights, the rich culture, and the creative and useful crafts are just some of the grandest things to claim that Marrakech is indeed, a city blessed by the Supreme Being.

Knowing that this imperial city will allow you to see the wonderful creations of the Almighty, you'll surely want to make the most out of your Marrakech travel. Don't miss a single blessing by planning ahead for this divine experience of a lifetime. So dear mortals, brace yourselves for a glorious Marrakech vacation because here are some of the things you have to bear in mind:

1. Check out the Marrakech weather update.

Weather is one of the most important things to consider in arranging a Marrakech travel. While traveling is unquestionably an outdoor activity, you can't tell for sure when the Supreme Being will let His place experience some shower. So when preparing for your Marrakech tour, you also have to deal with matters concerning the physical environment, that is, if you don't want to take souvenir photographs in a rainy setting. Go ahead--heed the warning signs. Know the temperature and humidity for the day through on-line Marrakech weather guides or TV news updates.

2. Be informed about the Marrakech transportation.

Traveling by foot won't make your Marrakech travel as exhilarating as expected. So, might as well take a ride and enjoy your journey in and around the city. Tourist attractions in Marrakech are not located in a single area, which means you definitely have to look for a faster and more convenient way to reach your destination. When going to Northern Morocco, the train is one of the cheapest and fastest modes of transportation. You can find the train station in Marrakech at Hassan II Avenue and go on trips to equally splendid cities of Fez, Rabat, Tangier, and Casablanca. Aside from the train system, there are also buses called the CTM couches to take you anywhere you want to go.

3. Familiarize yourself with the banking system and the currency of Marrakech.

You may claim that the best things in life are free. But still, you need to get in touch with the reality of spending money to enjoy your Marrakech travel at its best. You have to check out the exchange rate in Morocco through online currency converters and know where the banks are located so you will not have a hard time withdrawing for additional money. Banks with ATM services are usually found along the Rue Moulay Ismail Street.

4. Try to learn the basics of the Marrakech language.

Knowing by heart some Arabic words can help you enjoy your Marrakech travel more. Arabic is the official Moroccan language, and it will be easy for you to communicate with people in Marrakech if you know how to express yourself through their language. Aside from this, people in Marrakech also find tourists who try to speak their language not only friendly but also very respectful.

5. Do a little research about the popular crafts in Marrakech.

Marrakech is a shopping paradise filled with many wonderful crafts. So please, don't end your Marrakech travel without getting some of these souvenir items. Find delight in buying some fine jewelry also known as "Souk Siyyaghin" or in choosing the perfect Marrakech carpet called "Souk Zrabia" as an exquisite piece of home accessory.

These simple preparations can promise you an exciting Marrakech travel, so you can simply relax and completely enjoy this Moroccan land of God.

About The Author

Rcon Franchesca Pascua is an in-house writer for the online media company Intelligraph Corporation. She enjoys traveling to exotic destinations and writing about her Morocco travel adventures. For more information on Marrakech travel, visit http://www.morocco-emotions.com

Bahamas Golf Vacation: Enjoy uninterrupted hours of golfing

2007-08-21T06:49:00.000-07:00

by: Suzane Gray

If you have worked hard, earned some time off and need a vacation to reenergize yourself then a Bahamas Golf Vacation is the best way to regain your sanity. Golf is a very popular game in Bahamas so they offer exotic vacation with excitement of golf. This great combination doubles your enjoyment as it relaxes both your mind and body. The beautiful islands offer vacations for every budget. Even those with little to spare can make their way to the beautiful land of golf and beaches by finding a Bahamas golf vacation.

Along with golf, Bahamas golf vacation also offers you wide variety of activities such as swimming with the dolphins, thrilling water sports, deep sea fishing and some of the best beaches in the world. You will get all luxuries and facilities that make a vacation complete and enjoyable. The Bahamas golf vacation package will take you to the islands considered one of the most beautiful in the Bahamas with high cliff, densely-forested foothills, deserted exotic sand beaches and green golf grounds. In addition to Bahamas golf vacation rentals, the Internet also offers many website deals in organizing vacations. Bahamas golf vacation often have last-minute vacation deals that offer spontaneous golf lovers a lower-price airline ticket so that they may not miss a chance to visit the land of golf and exotic pink and white beaches.

An even better vacation in the Bahamas option would be to select a cheap Bahamas golf vacation package. You can enjoy not only the affordable airfare with this package but also exciting golf along with the finest hotel accommodations and additional facilities. Unless you have had prior experience with a vacation in the Bahamas, the assistance from a travel agent or Bahamas golf Vacation organizer would help to get rid of many of the unknown burdens by booking everything yourself. They can also provide insight into some of the more popular attractions so that you may not miss a single moment to grab the view this beautiful island.

Plan your vacations to Bahamas with Bahamas golf vacation packages and enjoy your vacation to the fullest without putting an extra burden on your pocket. Now you don’t need to be hard pressed to beat the amenities found with a golf vacation in the Bahamas because Bahamas golf vacation packages offer you a wide range of facility to make your vacations memorable with golf. If you are planning to leave immediately or planning a vacation month in advance it is always a good idea to purchase golf vacation package on-season so that your vacation may not spoil because of bad climate. The Bahamas is no longer a vacation destination only for the well-to-do now it’s in the reach of every person who wants the full utilization of their hard earned money and precious time. Thanks to Bahamas golf vacation operators who provide cheap deals to suit any budget.

A vacation in Bahamas could be just the thing to ease your hectic life. So take a break….. Enjoy a golf vacation in Bahamas: A tropical paradise, and ease your hectic life.

About The Author

Suzane Gray has been offering Bahama travel and vacation packages advice for quite some time.To find bahamas golf vacation, grand bahamas island,cheap bahamas vacation package that best suits your needs, visit http://www.gobahama.com

Caravan Awnings � A Way to Improve Your Holiday

2007-08-21T06:48:00.000-07:00

by: Keith Driscoll

Introduction

Caravan awnings emerge in a broad range of shapes and sizes, with styles on hand to suit any classification of caravan or budget. Caravan Awnings give holidaymakers the chance to expand the accommodation and storage space of their caravan on demand. Caravan awnings are made of many materials, the most common being either polyester or acrylic. A caravan awning will immediately add style and area to any caravan.

Accommodation

You will find exceptional caravan holiday accommodation throughout the UK, competitive prices, quality service and simple to use sites. You can find details of holiday lodges, camp sites, caravans and other UK accommodation on the Www.

Awnings

Awning features such as the 'Easy-Setup', 'Simple-PowerGrip' and 'Easy-Lock' are common to all awnings and porch awnings. Innumerable awnings can be bought with an aluminium or steel frame to maintain stability. Awnings can give holidaymakers the chance to increase the accommodation and storage space of their caravan on demand. Made from waterproof breathable cotton with PVC splash strips, awnings can feature many windows, heavyweight zips and easy to attach frames.

Another plus from installing an awning on a vehicle is that the awnings makes a nice focal point outside the camper where people can sit and watch the world go by. The awning forms what essentially is a makeshift patio at which the family can meet. Protected by their makeshift patio awnings can allow you to be at ease and take in the surroundings.

Family

Family camping and caravanning holidays are a low cost way of having a comprehensive holiday. Remember if you rent your caravan holiday home you will comprise the time you and your family have to use it, so think clearly about you priorities, owning your own gives much more freedom. You'll also be impressed with your holiday home's sheer practicality and inventive use of area, with every attention given to simple family living. Invest in family leisure time with your own luxury caravan holiday home.

Holiday

Caravan holidays have improved considerably since the inauguration of the caravan awning and porch awning. The popularity of tented camping holidays has declined dramatically, and the caravan has become the social accommodation for flexible vacations. Once you've tried a static caravan holiday, you could find yourself converted, like a lot other holiday makers before you. People often shy away from static caravan holidays, worried about lack of area or facilities, but anyone who has stayed in a static caravan recently will explain you that it's an affordable, spacious and comfortable way to spend your holiday. Compared to hotel rooms for a family, or the cost of a self catering holiday cottage, static caravans are surprisingly affordable and accomplished amount for your hard earned.

Conclusion

Whether you need an extra bedroom, a sun-trap for those summer nights, or somewhere to keep the mountain bikes on your summer holiday, a caravan awning may be what you require.

About The Author

Kevin Phillips and Keith Driscoll, both run a number of sites to supply information on many issues. Caravan Holidays & Awning Advice http://www.caravanparksnclubs.co.uk

The Cuisine Of French Polynesia

2007-08-21T06:45:00.000-07:00

by: Peter R Stewart

Tahiti or French Polynesian food is known throughout the world because of its exotic fruits, fresh fish and vegetables which are prepared with a strong French influence underlying the Tahitian ingredients. Restaurants in French Polynesia are from a wide variety of backgrounds including and inevitably French and Tahitian, but also Chinese, Vietnamese, and Italian.

The sauces served in these restaurants often features sauces which contain home grown vanilla beans

However to taste the absolutely genuine Tahiti Food you need to find a way of sampling the Ahima’a otherwise known at Tahiti’s underground oven. It is usually prepared on a Sunday morning, or for a special celebration.

Firstly the oven is preheated with a wood fire, then the wood is placed in levels one on top of the other all criss-crossed. The porous volcanic rock is scattered over the wood until it is completely covered.. When the fire goes out, the rocks are leveled and the food placed on top wrapped in woven baskets of coconut leaves. Fish, pork, chicken and vegetables are prepared in this way. Banana leaves are then laid over the top, plus many layers of leaves from the purao tree to cover the ahima’a completely. Finally earth is shoveled on top so no heat can escape and the food is grilled, braised and steamed for 3-4 hours. The Polynesian food is spread out on a table cloth of palm fronds or banana leaves. You will eat with your fingers off traditional wood plates, dipping juicy pieces of roast pork, fish, breadfruit, taro, and other goodies in coconut cream sauce.

The celebrations are normally concluded with Polynesian dancing.

Other things to look out for are as follows.

Poisson cru (ia ota) which is the national dish of Tahiti and Her Islands. This quite divine snack consists of raw fish and diced vegetables marinated with lime juice and soaked in coconut milk.

Chevrettes are another popular Tahitian dish, and they are tasty freshwater shrimp

No amura’a (meal) is complete without a rich dessert inspired by the islands.

The ultimate Tahitian dessert is Poe, a sweet pudding made of taro root flavored with banana, vanilla, papaya or pumpkin and topped with a rich coconut-milk sauce.

Stop by the roulettes or rolling restaurants, are colourful, electrically lit vans that offer the best inexpensive dining in Papeete. Both locals and visitors can dine on a variety of dishes from roast pork and pizzas to chow mein and flaming crêpes.

About The Author

Peter Stewart writes exclusively for http://www.in-kenyasafari.com as well as http://www.worldwidevacationspots.com and he has in depth knowledge of the places he writes about

Travel To French Polynesia, Getting Around And Climate

2007-08-21T06:44:00.002-07:00

by: Peter R Stewart

You can get to French Polynesia reasonably easily from most parts of the world. It appears inaccessible but that is simply the distances involved, and the length of the flight particularly if you are coming from Europe or the eastern Seaboard of the USA.

Airlines such Qantas, Air New Zealand, Air France, Hawaiian Air, all fly into Papeete to Faa Airport.

In terms of getting around the scattered island of French Polynesia, there are two ways, and that is by boat or by air.

Air Tahiti flies from Papeete to 42 airstrips in French Polynesia.

There are a number of inter island boats which run regularly between the main island groups, and this is an incredible way of getting around this part of the South Pacific. There are huge catamarans that run between Tahiti and Moorea, but of course with the pressures of modern life and the probability that your vacation will be two weeks only, then flying is the most likely option for most people.

On the other hand French Polynesia is probably a once in a lifetime vacation, and you will have been flying for around 24 hours if you have come from Europe, so at least a month would still not be long enough to see and do everything!! It would however give you the chance to travel around a little by boat.

On land in Tahiti and the more developed islands there is a local bus service which is cheap cheerful and pretty reliable. A much more expensive option are taxis, and you can rent cars scooters, and bicycles to explore the island you are on. Finally you can hire 4x4’s to explore inland.

The big question about any vacation destination is the weather, what is it like, and when is it best to go?

French Polynesia has warm tropical weather all twelve months of the year. The climate is sunny and pleasant. You need to realise that as the islands of French Polynesia are south of the Equator, the seasons are reversed compared to Europe.

There are effectively two seasons, the first from November through to May when the weather is warm and somewhat humid with the daily temperatures averaging about 85 degrees Fahrenheit. It is at this time that most of the rainfall occurs, but it’s still sunny, and there is a refreshing breeze. Between June and October it is drier and cooler, with a daily average temperature of about 82 degrees. The average sea temperature is in the low 80’s and it rarely gets lower than 70 degrees at night.

It may take you a lot of flying time, but if ever a place was worth the effort it is French Polynesia

About The Author

Peter Stewart writes exclusively for http://www.in-kenyasafari.com as well as http://www.worldwidevacationspots.com and he has in depth knowledge of the places he writes about

French Polynesia As A Vacation Destination

2007-08-21T06:44:00.001-07:00

by: Peter R Stewart

When you go to French Polynesia you will find a lot of different types of accommodation from world class, world famous resorts to small comfortable inns, and plenty of Bed and Breakfast places.

A lot depends on how you want to experience French Polynesia, and you must decide this before booking anything.

You will also need to bear in mind that in the more remote outer islands your hotel is bound to be the main focus of your activities.

Your choices will include beautiful thatched roof bungalows on stilts over an incredible blue lagoon, or located in a tropical garden setting amongst hibiscus and bougainvillea, right next to a beautiful white sand palm fringed beach, on the edge of a crystal clear lagoon. If you want to experience genuine Tahitian accommodation, then this is what you need to choose.

Everyone is different, so you may just want to relax on a white sand beach, even swim in the incredible cleat turquoise blue waters of a lagoon, stretch out in a hammock gently swaying in the breeze, or hike up an ancient volcano, then all this is possible in French Polynesia.

Tahiti offers an incredible opportunity to just relax or explore

The choices open to you are vast. Everything from dolphin encounters, shark feeding, deep sea fishing, snorkelling, surfing, windsurfing, water skiing, outrigger canoing, para sailing. French Polynesia is a prime target for divers, so as you can imagine the snorkeling is pretty good too!!

In addition, hiking, golf, helicopter rides, horseback riding, and tennis are available to do. One of the great activities is walking and climbing the ancient mountain volcanic peaks. Many of the islands have hiring facilities for 4x4 wheel drive vehicles.

There is absolutely masses to do in French Polynesia apart from anything else you just need to sit and gaze in wonder at the sheer beauty of the place

About The Author

Peter Stewart writes exclusively for http://www.in-kenyasafari.com as well as http://www.worldwidevacationspots.com and he has in depth knowledge of the places he writes about

What Makes Costa Blanca Capture Your Heart?

2007-08-21T06:43:00.000-07:00

by: Lee Smith

For anyone that wants to enjoy some fun and sun in Spain, the Costa Blanca region that is close to the Mediterranean Sea would be the best place to visit. Costa Blanca is a part of the Alicante Province that begins with the little town known as Denia and ends up at Torrevieja, which is another popular tourist destination. Costa Blanca or ‘white coast' has some very splendid beaches that both residents as also the many tourists come to enjoy.

On a visit to Costa Blanca you might want to check out a few important and well liked holiday spots where you can unwind on the beaches including Altea, Javea, Moraira as well as Benidorm, Torrevieja and Guardamar. And, there are many wonderful villas that serve as ideal accommodation and are a favorite among tourists with something of special interest in each one. To reach Javea that lies about ninety kilometers from Alicante on the east coast of Iberia and a hundred kilometers from Valencia, you can take a plane and land at one of the international airports in either of these two cities. Or, if you are planning to drive down, then you can travel the A-7 from any part of Europe.

Javea is particularly exciting and well worth visiting having some of the best mountains including the peak of Montgo along with many wondrous landscapes and of course the excellent beaches. Such is the attraction that Costa Blanca holds for tourists that millions of them converge here to enjoy the beautiful beaches every year, especially the towns of Denia and Javea. You would also find Elche another attractive hot spot and this place is known as the palm capital of the world.

Traveling the entire Costa Blanca is possible using the Carretera National Highway that follows the coast and provide you with the opportunity to also stop and take a break at the many small villages along the way. Among the more tourist oriented places, you would like the entertainment park known as Terra Mitica that is situated at Benidorm and there are also the bays of Altea as well as a place called Calpe. There are also the smaller towns that are very attractive and among them you should check out Villajoyosa that is close to Benidorm and to its south having an old town and plenty of yummy chocolates as well.

Anyone that wants to enjoy a good round of golf in these parts would love the Costa Blanca golf resorts of which there are many and you can locate individual ones by studying the maps that are available at the Airport or in downtown Alicante. Perhaps the most beautiful aspect of the Costa Blanca would no doubt emanate from the sea villages. Costa Blanca is also a place where tourists are tempted by the more than two hundred kilometers of coastline and rather unsurprisingly the tourist industry here is well developed and Costa Blanca is a hot favorite for many British and also German tourists and many other nationalities including the sun-starved Scandinavians that flock here for the ample warmth and plenty of sunshine that is available here.

About The Author

Lee Smith writes about Costa Blanca, A Paradise in Spain
http://www.lovealicante.com

Getting Around The Las Vegas Strip

2007-08-21T06:41:00.002-07:00

by: Mike McDougall

The Las Vegas Strip is an approximately 4 mile stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard that runs from Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino at the southern end to the Stratosphere Las Vegas Hotel and Casino in the North. The Strip is one of the most famous and most valuable stretches of real estate in the world, and is the heart of the city that is known as the gaming capital of the world.

The Strip is ever changing and growing. Recently non-gaming properties in the form of tall condominium towers have been spouting up in between and behind the casino-hotels. Of course casinos are also being built, with most seemingly designed to outdo prior properties. Also, while new properties are being developed existing properties are evolving and improving in an attempt to remain competitive.

This non-stop growth can occasionally cause headaches for people trying to drive from place to place on the Strip. Closed lanes, closed side roads, and traffic from construction vehicles cause this already busy road to become difficult to traverse. Las Vegas has tried to keep up with increased traffic by adding pedestrian walkways, a monorail, more buses, and improved alternative side roads as alternatives to tourists simply driving down the Strip. By keeping a few tips in mind a visitor can save time and frustration when traveling around the Strip.

One way to get around is to walk from one property to another. Just keep in mind that Las Vegas is brutally hot in the summer, with normal daily highs over 100 degrees, and the nights from late fall until mid spring may be surprisingly cool. Also, while casino security and the cops do an excellent job of keeping as safe as possible, you need to keep your own security in mind, especially in areas that aren't near a casino. The north end of the Strip past the Wynn, especially, has areas that are not near any casinos. Also, some of the side streets are less safe after dark than the Strip is.

The monorail is useful is some cases. It is located on the east side of the Strip, and is excellent for going to the Convention Center and the hotels on the east side. The monorail stations are MGM Grand, Bally's/Paris, Flamingo/Caesars, Harrah's/Imperial Palace, The Convention Center, and the Sahara. Buses run 24 hours a day up and down the Strip, and a Trolley (really another type of bus, not a San Francisco style trolley) zigzags from Strip hotels to off Strip hotels. Taxis are everywhere, all day long, and are another alternative way to get around the Strip.

If you want to drive you should try to become familiar with the side streets that run parallel to the Strip. On the west the streets to learn are Frank Sinatra Drive and Industrial Road, and on the east the Roads to know are Koval Lane, Sand Avenue, and Paradise Road. These roads will lead you to the back entrances for most of the Strip hotels and are almost always easier to get around on, although Paradise Road can be slow when a very large convention is in town.

Planning ahead and consulting http://www.lasvegasstripmap.info can save you time and frustration, and help you to better enjoy your Las Vegas vacation.

About The Author

Mike McDougall has lived and worked in Las Vegas for 20 years, and business interests have made it mandatory that he drive on the Las Vegas Strip at least once a week for those 20 years. His web site, http://www.lasvegasstripmap.info/, has been created in an attempt to help tourists to better understand how to get around the Las Vegas Strip.

Langkawi: Heaven of Ecotourism and Travel Adventure

2007-08-21T06:41:00.001-07:00

by: Khairul Syahir

Langkawi situated just off the northwestern coast of Peninsular Malaysia comprises a group of 104 tropical islands during the low tides and 99 Island during the high tides. The main island Langkawi, is 47. 848 Hectare followed by Pulau Dayang Bunting and Pulau Tuba while some of the others appear to be mere dots in the emerald green ocean when viewed from the air.

In Langkawi a nature adventure had a true-blue naturalist as their guide. The guide’s name is Irshad Mobarak. Dubbed the Jungle-wallah (Jungle-fellow) of Langkawi (http://www.junglewallah.com), he is perfect for the job as he possesses vast knowledge about Langkawi’s wildlife, gleaned from years of trekking and observation of its jungles, mangroves and wildlife.

Some people think the beauty of Langkawi lies in its pristine beaches. Others like the duty-free shopping. But Irshad and his team of naturalists at Natural History Tours (http://www.wildlangkawi.com) reckon that the edge Langkawi has over places like Bali and Phuket is its jungle and wildlife.

As such Irshad and his team have been actively involved in preserving Langkawi’s natural environment. His social-responsible company provides real ecotourism experiences such as nature walks, birdwatching, jungle-trekking and mangrove tours in kayaks or motorized boats without the “gimmicks” activities involve.

His pet peeve is the eagle-feeding sessions at the mangrove swamps of the Kilim River. While it is quite a sight to see dozens of white-bellied sea eagles and brahminy kites circling in the sky and swooping down on their food, Irshad feels it’s bad for the birds.

“What you’re doing is habituating the eagles to take food from humans when they usually feed on fish. Now they are given chicken guts, and these are from farm-bred chickens fed with antibiotics and hormones, making it unhealthy. It may affect their bone development and the integrity of the shells of their eggs.” Irshad said contaminated feed could kill a lot of birds, as each feeding attracts between 50 to 100 birds.

Not only is Irshad fully acquainted with information on the wildlife in Langkawi, he is also great at handling children. His “young explorer club” is a hit for student’s summer program in Malaysia and tourists traveling with their children. “The trick is not to bore them to death. You can be much more informative with adults, but with children, you need to make it more experiential. They need to touch and smell and conduct experiments.”

Irshad, who’s especially love birds, said Langkawi has recorded 190 species of birds, including brown winged kingfisher, black hooded oriole and mountain hawk eagle. The mountain hawk eagle which can be identified by its very pronounced crest with two feathers can only be found in Langkawi and Irshad has recorded 3 different individual here.

The relatively small and cut-off habitat of an island like Langkawi allows for many of its flora and fauna to evolve into unique species over thousands of years. But it also possessed a danger of Habitat-fragmentations. One of Irshad ongoing project is planting figs trees closer to the road so the canopy on either side of the road will meet and become close enough for animals to cross over. “This is one way to counter the negative effects of habitat fragmentations and we hope to see the results in 10 years,” Irshad said. Visitor can also get involve in this program by purchasing trees and plant it during their visit to Langkawi (http://www.treesfornature.com)

Who is the Jungle-Wallah of Langkawi?

In the 80s, the Negri Sembilan-born Irshad was a decathlete and rugby player employed by a major bank institution. He worked for five years with the bank in Kuala Lumpur, only to discover the corporate world was simply not his cup of tea.

The turning point in his life came during a vacation in Tioman Island between 1981 and 1982. He realized that what he really wanted was to be closer to nature.

“So I quit my job, traveled and bummed around for a couple of years,” said Irshad, and then he found Langkawi. The island’s beauty and mystique inspired him to embark on his own study of its ecosystems.

“I saw the potential for nature-related work. I got a job as recreation manager at Datai and at the same time was involved in conservation work,” he said. Soon, a new position was created for him, that of a Resident-naturalist. And today, after 19 years, he is so well-versed in the subject, he is considered an expert. He has trained many individual who is now employed by other hotels as their own Resident-naturalist and some of them work as independent nature guides.

Irshad considered himself very lucky because his work, his hobby and his passion are all fused into one. He also believes that taking care of the natural environment is an integral part of being a steward of the Earth. He is recently won DiGi Amazing Malaysians Award 2007, an award for Malaysians who were nominated by the public for their passion and dedication in heritage conservation.

About The Author

Khairul Syahir writes for commercial, informational and educational purposes and has written articles on various topics.
http://www.treesfornature.com
http://www.wildlangkawi.com
http://www.junglewallah.com

The Flora & Fauna Of French Polynesia

2007-08-21T06:40:00.000-07:00

by: Peter R Stewart

French Polynesia is thought of as a real floral paradise, because of the huge number of species due to the diversity of the climate and physical conditions of islands and atolls. There are nearly one thousand native species augmented by the hundreds of species imported by Europeans during the last few centuries.

Polynesian people wear at least one flower behind the ear, or stuck in their hair. They frequently wear a crown of flowers and a garland as well around their neck, called the “Tiare Tahiti” the Tahitian Gardenia, which is snowy white in colour. This is the threaded and plaited garland you may well be given on arrival at Papeete, entwined with the “Maire”, a fern which symbolises Tahiti.

In addition the following flowers are very popular and can be used on garlands, and flower arrangements. The Hibiscus, the Helconias, red ginger and red torch ginger, flamingo flowers, paper flowers, and of course the many orchid varieties. Finally the Temple flower which is actually a little tree.

Additional flowering plants of course includes bougainvillea, oleander, frangipani, pointsettia, and many others.

The mountainous volcanic islands are densely covered in vegetation, dominated by Coconut Palms. There are a number of other interesting trees including the famous ‘Mutiny on the Bounty’ breadfruit. In additionpapaya, banana, grapefruit, avocado, orange, mandarin, lime and lemon abound, which accounts for the huge amount of fruit that appears at meal times.

The Fauna of French Polynesia in the main is underwater, where the coral, constructed by living creatures is a multitude of colours, from bright yellow to deep purple and reds, taking in neon green and turquoise. The biggest accumulation of fauna is in the lagoons, and not the ocean outside the reefs.

What you will find in the lagoons at night are tiger-sharks, but Gray sharks are very common and Manta rays and giant turtles are not uncommon at all. The richest area is the passes where the tide rushes in and out, and the number of fish who spend all their lives living in the lagoons make snorkelling here very attractive.

All in all the huge variety of flora and fauna are what makes French Polynesia the simply beautiful place it is.

About The Author

Peter Stewart writes exclusively for http://www.in-kenyasafari.com as well as http://www.worldwidevacationspots.com and he has in depth knowledge of the places he writes about

Holiday Travel With Family Fun

2007-08-21T06:39:00.002-07:00

by: Jerry K. Blackburn

Family holidays can be fun and exciting for all ages. Here are some pointers for finding the best holiday for your family.

First you need to determine the common interests of the family. Ask your children what they would like to see and what they’re studying in school. If you have very young children then usually you will know better than them but try to get them involved. Think of you and your spouse as well; what may be great fun for the kids may be boring and annoying for the adults. Pick somewhere that all of you will enjoy or a destination that gives you the opportunity for quiet time. While kids tend to be unrealistic, you can usually accommodate their interest. For example, if they want to take an African safari you could visit the immense animal park in San Diego, California.

Theme parks are fun for the kids and offer entertainment for adults as well. Disneyworld in Orlando, Florida includes the Magic Kingdom, Epcot Center, Universal Studios and MGM Studios. There are luxury hotels located right inside the park and a monorail takes visitors to different parts of the park so there’s no need to drive. The park is not the only attraction; there are other nearby attractions including the Kennedy Space Center, Coco Beach and Sea World.

A trip through the historic east coast is another fun holiday that the kids and adults are sure to enjoy. The east coast has beautiful mountains and beaches and contains most of the United States’ history. Attractions are close to each other compared to the rest of the U.S. so a road trip is the best way to travel with the family to this part of the country. Historic sights include George Washington’s home in Virginia and the Arlington Cemetery. The Smithsonian Museums in Washington, D.C. are free and there is something to interest everyone. There is the Space and Aeronautics Museum that children really enjoy with life size replicas and actual aircraft showing the history of flight. Washington also contains the U.S. political buildings such as the White House and the Pentagon.

Southern California offers many sights and is especially warm and pleasant in the late fall and early spring when most of the country is cold. Los Angeles is the film industry capitol of the world. You can visit Universal Studios theme park and Disneyland. You may even be able to catch the taping of a television show. San Diego which is just about two hours south of Los Angeles is a beautiful mid size city and has many tourist options. The San Diego Zoo is world renowned and Sea World is a must see for wildlife enthusiast. If you have young children then be sure to visit Legoland which has rides and even replicas of famous sights made entirely out of Legos.

Family holidays can be fun for the entire family. It’s important to find a holiday that will interest the kids as well as the adults.

About The Author

Jerry Blackburn is publishing mainly for http://www.alicante-spain.com , a website with topics around Benidorm and Costablanca. You can see his articles over at http://www.alicante-spain.com/costa-blanca.html and other sources for Costa Blanca knowledge.

French Polynesia Some Helpful Facts For The Visitor

2007-08-21T06:39:00.001-07:00

by: Peter R Stewart

Tahiti is south of the Equator, mid way between Los Angeles California, and Sydney Australia. It is in the same time zone as Hawaii.

The main languages spoken through French Polynesia are Tahitian and French.

You will find in the hotels and restaurants that English is spoken, however the local people do appreciate it when their guests at least make an attempt to learn a few of their words. They are very willing to teach anyone who is willing to learn, and they will do it with lots of smiles and big laughs.

In terms of entry requirements to French Polynesia, every visitor must have a return airline ticket to their home country or at least two more following destinations. In addition if required they must show evidence of sufficient funds to support themselves in French Polynesia.

For most visitors, who are tourists, you will need a passport that has six months to run, except US, Canadian, Australian, and New Zealanders where three months is sufficient.

The only exceptions to this, where visas are obligatory are tourists from Israel, Brazil, Venezuela, and Panama. In some other cases visas are required for stays of over one month, and in other cases over three months. To be safe you should make enquiries from your travel agent, or the French Consular office in your country. Always bear in mind that entry requirements are subject to change without notice, and it is the passenger’s responsibility to make sure that all documents needed are complete and current.

There are few health requirements for French Polynesia, and it is not a malaria area, but you should ensure your vaccination program is up to date, ensuring you visit your doctor at least five weeks before travelling. You are strongly advised to take out comprehensive travel insurance before leaving home.There are some outbreaks of dengue fever in Tahiti, so don’t travel without Deet, or some other mosquito repellent, and cover up at dawn and dusk.

The Law in French Polynesia is French law, so be aware that it is a criminal offence if you fail to offer assistance to a person in danger. This includes motor accidents, and any other occasion when a person is in danger, except if you would endanger yourself by offering assistance. If guilty you could be fined or be given a suspended prison sentence.

You must carry your passport at all times.

There are no sales taxes or hidden service charges in French Polynesia.

The currency is the Pacific French Franc[CFP], but bring traveller’s cheques rather than cash. Amex, Mastercard, and Visa are all accepted at all major establishments.

Finally prepare yourself for high costs as French Polynesia is 30 to 50% more expensive than most of the rest of the South Pacific

About The Author

Peter Stewart writes exclusively for http://www.in-kenyasafari.com as well as http://www.worldwidevacationspots.com and he has in depth knowledge of the places he writes about

Hello From Sicily: A Hike To Castelmola And A Taste Of Sicily

2007-08-21T06:38:00.000-07:00

by: Susanne Pacher

A rainy morning had provided a great opportunity to get the owners of my hotel a bit better. After my interview with the Sciglio family I took a leisurely stroll through Taormina and headed back to the Babilonia Language School to use the Internet and get ready for an excursion at 4 pm. Along the way I met the owner and director of the School, Alessandro Adorno, and I had an opportunity to get to him a little better.

Alessandro originally hails from Catania and went to a high school that specialized in business and foreign languages. He realized he liked languages, but did not want to study literature so he went to Florence to study interpretation studies in English and French. During his last year of university he worked in an Italian language school called ABC School in Florence – Tuscany is a very popular destination for language study travel.

After university he faced a very critical turning point as to whether he would stay in Florence or move back to Sicily. The event that changed his future was a vacation to Sicily that he went on with the director of this language school who said “Why don’t you start a school right here in Taormina?”

After some back and forth, Alessandro decided to give language teaching in Taormina a shot and found a location at a local guesthouse called Pensione Svizzera. Lessons were taught in the terrace garden and language students would have their accommodation there as well. On a trip back to Florence Alessandro printed 60,000 stickers which he put on ABC School’s brochure to promote his new school in Taormina. During the first year of 1992 he had 12 to 18 students for the whole summer. Today there are at least 12 new students starting a course every Monday.

Despite initial challenges Alessandro decided he wanted to continue, he was stubborn and finally found a new location for his school – Babilonia’s current location in the Via del Ginnasio. As any new entrepreneur he was a jack of all trades at the beginning: he handled the teaching, answered the phone, played secretary, and was responsible for marketing, PR and cleaning.

As a result of distributing his brochures to various foreign consulates and Italian departments at different universities he was able to attract a bigger clientele. All the extra revenue went into advertising and Alessandro attributes his success to one secret: don’t try to get rich immediately, simply be happy with your job.

Today the Babilonia language students come from all over the world and various European travel agencies sell language study trips to his school in Taormina while American students are mostly approached through academic organizations.

Promoting Taormina as a language study destination was originally a bit difficult since there was a wide-spread perception that Sicily was closely associated with crime and the mafia. Contrary to widely held notions, students that have completed his program can indeed attest that Taormina and Sicily in general are very safe travel areas. I certainly was looking forward to learning Italian in this beautiful town.

4 pm rolled around and my scheduled excursion was about to begin: Peppe Celano is Babilonia’s social activities coordinator and he had planned a hike to the mountain-top village of Castelmola. Nine language students from countries such as Sweden, Germany, Austria, England, Norway and Canada were waiting in front of the school until Peppe, an athletic Italian teacher and former sprinter, started to take us on our hike. Off we started on the tiny narrow streets of Taormina that continued to climb up the mountain. We passed by many restaurants, souvenir shops and other local retailers until we reached the highest part of town.

>From there on we went on the Via dei Cruci, a steep path that takes you up past different Stations of the Cross to a small church called Madonna Della Rocca, whose interior is carved into the rock, from where we had an absolutely gorgeous view over Taormina and the coastal area in front of it. The next higher mountain holds the ruins of an ancient Saracen Castle which proudly overlooks the area from its promontory. Unfortunately the weather was a bit hazy, but I can only imagine what this view must be like on a gorgeous clear day of sunshine; the view of Taormina from up here was truly breathtaking.

After a brief rest we continued our hike to the next higher mountain top which would be Castelmola. Peppe continued to explain the local plant life to us, and in spring time there were certainly many beautiful flowers and shrubs in bloom. About another 40 minutes later we arrived in the old hill-top town of Castelmola. This town was originally named “Mola” which means “millstone”. It was not until 1862 when the name was changed to its current version. This town has a long history: after being founded in the 8th century B.C. it was destroyed by Dionisio I of Siracusa in 392 B.C. After its rebuilding in 350 B.C. it was later conquered by the Romans, around 900 A.D. by the Arabs and in 1078 by the Normans. Virtually every civilization that came through Sicily left its mark in this tiny mountain town.

Because the castle was closed we took a stroll through town. We went straight to the main piazza which features the Church of San Giorgio, built in the 17th century. Next to this church on the Piazza Duomo is a famous bar, called the Bar Turrisi. When we inquired why this bar is so famous Peppe took us inside, and the exhibits and objects on display throughout the three levels of this establishment are indeed very unique. Most noteworthy of all is a wooden sculpture of a man with a very prominent, how shall we say, male member. Similar themes populate the establishment from top to bottom.

After the novelty value of Bar Turrisi we visited a smaller church and started to make our way through the narrow alleyways towards a path that opened up another gorgeous view over the coastal area. I approached Peppe to get a bit of a better understanding of the area. Upon my inquiry he gave me a brief overview of local history and the origin of the famous mafia.

He explained that at the end of the Spanish rule, the Italian aristocracy owned major agricultural estates called “latifundios” throughout Sicily. The administrators of these country estates subsequently developed into the mafia, particularly given the absence of organized state power and organization. Political and economic circumstances have always shaped the face of the mafia.

Even today Sicily faces an unemployment rate of about 18% which gives rise to some criminal activity. Taormina itself is a rather unique economic environment since its 10,000 local residents are eclipsed by about 80,000 tourists in the peak summer months. A simple apartment of 50 square meters (600 sf) will cost at least 500 to 600 Euros. So Taormina’s popularity with tourists has created a special economic environment.

I was also interested in finding out whether a town as beautiful as this has become a magnet for foreign residents as so many coastal areas in Southern Spain and France have become. Peppe indicated that this phenomenon has not touched Sicily or even most of Italy as of yet, most of the foreign real estate investors have focused on buying properties in Tuscany.

After about a 40 minute climb back to town we had reached Taormina again and were ready for dinner. Babilonia regularly arranges culinary experiences for its students, and tonight we were to meet at a local bar called “Bistro”, run by a brother and sister team. Again, an entire rainbow of mostly central and northern European language students was assembled and we received a smorgasbord of Sicilian tastes with a variety of local cheeses, salami, and tomatoes. For dessert we enjoyed a sweet treat made of ricotta, sprinkled with chocolate and nuts. Wine was flowing and great conversations were had. A scrumptious ending to an action packed day.

The excitement will continue since tomorrow we'll go on an excursion to the ancient town of Siracusa.

This entire article including photos is located at http://www.travelandtransitions.com/stories_photos/sicily_castelmola.htm

About The Author

Susanne Pacher is the publisher of http://www.travelandtransitions.com, a web portal for unconventional travel & cross-cultural connections. Check out our brand new FREE ebooks about travel.

Hello From Sicily - An Excursion Into Antiquity: Siracusa

2007-08-21T06:37:00.002-07:00

by: Susanne Pacher

Finally, my first day of beautiful weather in Sicily, a perfect day for an out-of-town excursion. I started my day with a nourishing breakfast on the terrace of Hotel Villa Nettuno and I have to say of all the places I have traveled to, the view from this terrace and the garden itself must be one of the most beautiful vistas I have ever enjoyed anywhere. Maria Sciglio, who is in her 80s, takes such amazing care of this garden which is a virtual sub-tropical paradise. I was savoring every minute of my morning meal which included a fresh croissant, coffee, tea or hot chocolate, and a fresh Italian bun with jams and honey.

I was certainly ready to take on the day and began my 7-minute stroll to the Babilonia Language School. The Piazza Corvaja was already starting to fill up with people and the beauty of Taormina in the gorgeous blue sunshine was dazzling my eyes. Bright and early at eight am thirteen people were waiting in front of the school, and our activities coordinator Peppe walked just a few steps east to a local car rental to pick up two rented vehicles: a minibus and a small car. Our little Fiat Panda was rather cozy for five people, but that’s definitely something you need to get used to. Most things in Europe, including cars, a just a bit smaller than in North America.

We enjoyed a pleasant ride, exchanging stories from Switzerland, Germany, Holland and Canada, and about two and a half hours later we arrived at the Neapolis Archaeological Zone in Siracusa, or Syracuse as it is known in English. For almost 3000 years Syracuse has been a major economic center and has been inhabited since prehistoric times. The Corynthians founded this Greek city and it holds some of the best-preserved Greek archeological treasures in the world.

We got out of our vehicles and I noticed right away that this place was going to be rather crowded; not surprisingly, since a lot of people would make an excursion to a major archaeological sites on a beautiful Saturday morning.

The entrance free to the archaeological complex was covered by the Babilonia excursion and in we walked through the turnstiles. Our first archaeological sight were the so-called Latomie, which are ancient stone quarries that provided the stone for many of the Greek monuments. At various times they were also used as prisons. The most impressive man-made cave in this area is the so-called Orrechio di Dionisio (“Ear of Dionysius”), which, as legend has it, allowed the local tyrant Dionysius to hear the whispers of the prisoners that were held in its depth. The shape of the cave is indeed faintly reminiscent of an ear and when the wind was blowing in the right direction during theatrical performances, a choir positioned in the cave could be heard in the Greek amphitheater on the other side of the rock.

Another adjacent cave, the Grotta dei Cordari (Grotto of the Rope makers) is not publicly accessible right now due to falling rocks, but it was used until recently for rope making. We then walked over to the Greek Theater which was designed in the 5th century B.C. Many of the great ancient Greek playwrights wrote and staged their plays in this amazing setting.

Peppe explained that the ancient Greeks always built their theaters in stunning natural environments. Greek theaters were generally built as a semicircle into a mountain with a gorgeous view of a mountain range (Mount Etna for example, in Taormina), or the sea. Greek dramas would be performed in the late afternoon so the performance would coincide with the sunset. Of all the ancient civilizations that had invaded Sicily, Peppe explained that the Greeks had the greatest appreciation for nature.

Many of the original stones of the Greek Theater were taken at the order of Emperor Charles V in the 1500s in order to build the walls around Ortygia, an island that forms part of downtown Siracusa. Every year in the months of May / June a theater festival is held in Siracusa’s Greek Theater that features Greek Tragedies as part of the Teatro Greco di Siracusa. This year’s festival theater is scheduled for May 10 to June 25, 2007. Surrounding the Greek Theater are rocks with cavities that were used for grain storage as well as burial sites.

We passed by the “Altar of Hieron II”: a sacrificial site where 400 bulls were sacrificed at one time. In addition to ancient Greek treasures, this archaeological zone also holds Roman ruins: the Roman Amphitheater was used for beastly fights. Peppe explained that these were not professional gladiators, but rather slaves that were being made to fight wild animals, mostly dogs. In antiquity Sicily was often used as a prison site, and prisoners were also often used in these spectacles. The underground holding areas and corridors for the animals and the gladiators can still be clearly seen.

After our visit to this extensive archaeological zone we got into our vehicles and drove downtown. We parked our car on the Piazza della Posta next the waterfront and two minutes away we had a chance to explore the local market. All the local delicacies were awaiting, from all different kinds of fish to squid to shellfish to local vegetables and fruits. The displays were definitely a feast for the eyes, (for the nose not so much, at least the fishy part…).

>From there we strolled past the Temple of Apollo on the Piazza Pancali, which provides the entrance to the island of Ortygia. This ancient temple, dating back to the 6th century B.C., was discovered in 1860 in the old Spanish army barracks. Through narrow streets with many Baroque buildings we arrived at the Piazza Duomo which features Syracuse’s cathedral, dedicated to Santa Lucia.

An imposing building with a beautifully detailed façade, this building impresses not just because of its size, but because of the ancient interior Greek columns that used to form part of a monument dedicated to Athena. Peppe pointed out that some of the columns are standing at a slight angle as the result of a major earthquake.

These columns also date back to the 6th century B.C. and are some of the most well-preserved ancient Greek columns in the world. The Duomo evolved from being a temple to becoming a Christian Church, at one point it became a Muslim mosque and today’s incarnation is a stunning example of Sicilian Baroque architecture.

After all these explorations it was definitely time for lunch and Peppe guided us to a local restaurant, located in a beautiful courtyard off a small street that served simple local fish and pasta dishes. Vines were hanging down on us from trellises and the shade provided by the surrounding walls provided a welcome opportunity to cool off on this warm spring day.

Appropriately strengthened our group headed out again and after passing through the old Arab Gate we explored an area called Lungomare Ortigia which features a beautiful piazza that faces out onto the waterfront. The Fonte Aretusa, a fountain that has been providing spring water since ancient times, faces the Porto Grande or Grand Harbour. The view across the water and down the waterfront promenade is simply precious.

This was a perfect time for some Sicilian gelato and off I went to grab a cone of delicious “nocciola” (hazelnut) and refreshing “limone” gelato. We strolled along the waterfront promenade and then headed into the old town again to walk in the shady narrow streets that are adorned by a myriad of unique balconies. We passed by Siracusa’s opera house which has actually been abandoned since the 1960s and was in disrepair. Despite its baroque beauty, Siracusa’s downtown streets and alleyways had a bit of a deserted feel to them.

We headed back to our vehicles and drove into the countryside just outside Siracusa. Our final destination for the day was the “Castello Eurialo”, an ancient Greek fortification built on a hilltop in 402 B.C. by Dionysius the Elder. It featured two moats and a tower to protect the town of Syracuse and in its bowels it holds an amazingly well-preserved series of tunnels. The view from the castle is splendid, and to the north you can see one of the largest petroleum-processing areas in all of Southern Italy. Ancient history and modern history can coexist quite nicely in Sicily.

After a really full day we started our trek back to Taormina, and sure enough, half an hour outside of town the skies started clouding over and it started to drizzle. After this long day of discoveries I was rather tired and had a quick meal in a local pizzeria, ready for another day of exploration.

This entire article including photos is located at http://www.travelandtransitions.com/stories_photos/sicily_siracusa.htm

About The Author

Susanne Pacher is the publisher of http://www.travelandtransitions.com, a web portal for unconventional travel & cross-cultural connections. Check out our brand new FREE ebooks about travel.

Hello From Sicily: Arrival In Taormina And First Impressions

2007-08-21T06:37:00.001-07:00

by: Susanne Pacher

So my latest travel adventure has just begun: three weeks in Sicily to get to know this beautiful historic island and to learn Italian in another cultural immersion experiment. My regular readers will know that I love to learn languages and in the last couple of years I have a chance to study Spanish in Havana and in two different language schools in colonial Cuernavaca, Mexico, all wonderful experiences. In the meantime my Spanish has become pretty presentable and I thought I would expand my linguistic and travel horizon a little bit and add Italian to the menu.

My brother and sister-in-law, both of whom live in Austria, regularly travel to Italy and just simply rave about this country, and I thought that it’s been a long time since I traveled to “Il Belpaese”, so it was time to venture forth and explore this beautiful country. I had seen a bit of northern Italy, but what I really wanted to explore was Southern Italy, and over the last couple of months I had been reading travel books for a variety of travel regions south of Naples.

What I settled on was Sicily – I love islands, and for millennia Sicily has been at the confluence of many cultures. This was sure going to be an interesting place. So yesterday, after an extremely hectic day at work my husband finally took me to the airport in the early afternoon and I got off without a hitch on my flight with Alitalia to Milan. Ever the astute traveler, I had cashed in some Airmiles to get a free return flight to Sicily, an excellent way to keep travel costs down.

At the airport I had a nice chat with a young Italian engineer who regularly travels to Toronto to look after client projects. He was telling me about the long working hours at his company in Milan, and I realized that not everywhere in Italy does “dolce far niente” (the “sweet doing nothing”) reign supreme. Despite the laid back atmosphere that the tourists are seeking, Italy of course is a modern industrialized nation, with the same economic pressures every other Western nation faces.

After a brief touchdown in Milan and another landing in Rome I was finally on the third and last leg of my trip to Catania, the second largest city in Sicily, after the capital, Palermo. All the formalities were quick and my suitcase arrived in no time, and just outside the airport I hopped into a bus that would bring me directly to Taormina, the destination for the first eight days of my 21 day trip.

Taormina is one of Sicily’s most popular and beautiful travel destinations. Perched on a mountain called Monte Tauro high above the Mediterranean, Taormina has been a popular vacation spot for over 100 years now. Its recorded history dates back to the fourth century before Christ. Naxos, a town close to Taormina on the seafront, was founded even earlier in 735 B.C. and is the oldest Greek settlement in Sicily.

I had read so much about Taormina, and several of my friends had already been there and all agreed it was a beautiful place - a definite must-see during a visit of Sicily. Well, when I got there the weather was starting to cloud over, and I checked in at my abode for the next eight days. Hotel Villa Nettuno is a two-star hotel located on the north side of Taormina with a beautiful view of the Mediterranean. I dropped off my luggage and started to stroll into town to look for the Italian language school where I would be studying Italian next week.

After a relaxing walk up Via Pirandello, past a variety one street vendors and several restaurants, I walked through the Gate of Messina past the large open space in front of historic Palazzo Corvaja, through a number of narrow winding side streets, and dodged a variety of Vespa riders who navigated the narrow passageways between the homes. Just seven or eight minutes after I left I had reached my destination, the Babilonia Language School, and met Angela, the school’s accommodation coordinator. She showed me around and gave me a variety of useful local tips. I was also able to use the schools computers free of charge to access the Internet and found out about the excursions that the school was offering in the next few days.

The school’s location is great, on the southern edge of town, overlooking some clay tennis court with, what I was told, a beautiful view of Mount Aetna and the Mediterranean coastline. At the moment the famous volcano was completely shrouded in an increasingly dark set of clouds. The schools rooftop computer room and terrace provide a beautiful place for the students to gather. After Angela gave me a tour throughout the entire facility it was time to head out and satiate my growling stomach. I found a little corner café called “Mambar” where I had a seat and enjoyed a foccaccia sandwich with cheese. From my comfortable spot on the outdoor terrace I was watching a variety of miniature delivery vans backing in an out of the narrow alleyway, all the while admiring their driving skills.

But now the nice weather had ended and the sluices of heaven opened up. I kept sitting on the terrace because fortunately a large awning was keeping the patrons dry, but huge drops of water kept pelting the pavement. I started a conversation with a retired German lady from Hamburg who has traveled to this area numerous times. She and her husband used to go to Tuscany many times until they decided to explore Sicily. So they loaded their car onto the train and traveled this way to Northern Italy from there they embarked on a driving vacation to Sicily. Unfortunately her husband had passed away recently and due to her poor eyesight she is unable to drive any longer, so this year she flew to Sicily. This conversation illustrated to me that even advanced age and failing eyesight can’t keep a real travel enthusiast at home, and this woman in her late seventies was still nurturing her quest for adventure.

Jetlag was catching up with me, and I started my stroll back to the hotel. On the way I stopped at an ice cream stand and chatted a bit with Claude, the owner. At 1.25 Euros, his ice cream was not just delicious, but also very affordable, and Sicilian ice cream is a real treat. Claude added that he would feel guilty if he charged more than his usual price. He said he’s never going to get rich as an ice cream vendor, but he definitely loves his job and enjoys interacting with the locals and the tourists.

Well, my first day in Italy was a success, I had arrived safe and sound with all my luggage intact, found my way to Taormina, liked me hotel and hooked up with the school the will be my second home all through next week. I can’t wait to start my discoveries…

This entire article including photos is located at http://www.travelandtransitions.com/stories_photos/sicily_taormina.htm

About The Author

Susanne Pacher is the publisher of http://www.travelandtransitions.com, a web portal for unconventional travel & cross-cultural connections. Check out our brand new FREE ebooks about travel.

Hello From Sicily – Presenting: The Sciglio Family – 55 Years Of Hotel Ownership In Taormina

2007-08-21T06:36:00.000-07:00

by: Susanne Pacher

I really enjoyed my location at Hotel Villa Nettuno, this 13-room family run hotel on the north side of Taormina. Since it was a rainy day today anyway, I decided to find out a bit more about this hardworking family who have dedicated their lives towards making foreign travelers feel welcome in Taormina. So I sat down with Vincenzo and Salvatore, the father and son team that together with Maria, Salvatore’s mother, runs Hotel Villa Nettuno. Naturally the interview was conducted in Italian, and I sometimes had to use my dictionary plus my hands and feet to get my point across.

Vincenzo took me over to some family photos in the living room and started to explain the family’s long-standing history to me. Vincenzo, himself in his eighties, explained that his great grandfather born in 1833 while his grandfather was born in 1867. The villa came into being circa 1850 and originally consisted of only 4 rooms. In 1887 Vincenzo’s grandfather initiated an expansion and added a 4-room addition above the original rooms.

The white stone surrounding the windows and doors was imported from Siracusa and Vincenzo’s grandfather was an expert stone carver. Incidentally, he also carved the door surrounds for Taormina’s famous Grand Hotel Timeo, Taormina’s only five-star hotel. A coat of arms above the entrance says “Principe del giglio”, which effectively means Prince of the fleyr-de-lys. So there is obviously some noble ancestry in the Sciglio famly.

Then in the early 1900s the villa was rented for 25 years to an American artist by the name of Clifford Putnam who created a series of walkways and steps in the steeply sloping garden of the villa. Vincenzo himself was born in 1924 and even at 83 years of age, he is still going strong, with not even a thought of retiring.

When I asked him about slowing down he shrugs and says “What would I do?”. Obviously his life is so intricately interwoven with this hotel that he cannot even fathom an existence without it. He certainly doesn’t mind the hard work. The same goes for Maria, who is up every morning at 6 am to start preparing the breakfast. In addition she also looks after the garden, which is a veritable multi-coloured paradise of subtropical shrubs and flowers.

In 1952 finally Vincenzo and Maria decided to create a terrace outside the house and to add on a third level, providing a total of 13 guest rooms for Hotel Villa Nettuno. Ten of these rooms are double rooms while three are single. Vincenzo goes on to explain that Maria always used to handle the cooking since the hotel used to offer three meals a day. Today Hotel Villa Nettuno offers breakfast only.

A major renovation of the property happened in 1971 when each of the guest rooms was equipped with its own bathroom. Salvatore, the son, has an accounting background which comes in handy with helping to run the hotel. He is in charge of all the reservations and the Internet communications with the clients. Salvatore indicates that most of their clients are European and include people from France, Germany, Belgium, Sweden and Ireland. Customers from the United States and Canada also frequent Hotel Villa Nettuno, primarily due to a listing in one of Arthur Frommer’s tourist guide books. The property keeps the family really busy expect for the months of November to January when things slow down considerably.

The three family members have a little bit of outside help: one lady comes in to help with breakfast, another young gentleman helps with the heavy work in the garden, one maid looks after the rooms while another helper takes care of the ironing and the laundry. Running a hotel involves a lot of demanding work, not just to look after the rooms, but the garden of Hotel Villa Nettuno also needs a lot of attention.

I was also curious about how the hotel business has changed over the years and Salvatore explained that the business has become more difficult. Years ago people used to stay longer, often a week, or two or longer while today’s tourists on the go will usually only stay two to three days. Salvatore added that many of them rent a car and complete a tour of the island, so naturally they stay a shorter period of time in each destination. Regulations have also become tougher and Italy has implemented tough standards in terms of hygiene and health standards.

Interestingly, in 1960s Taormina was more of a summer destination, and hotels tended to be closed in the winter. Today it is almost the opposite where people particularly enjoy coming here all the way from February to October. Particularly spring and fall are enjoyable seasons while summer temperatures are rather hot, typically in the 28 to 32 degree Celsius range. Italian tourists usually come for two weeks in August. Most of Hotel Villa Nettuno’s clients fall into the age range of 40 to 60. Salvatore added that the younger crowd likes to stay in Giardini Naxos where all the dance clubs are.

When asked what they do for relaxation, Vincenzo indicated that one family member must always be at the hotel, so that makes leisure time a bit difficult. However, he disclosed that for relaxation, his family owns a little house about 10 km from Castelmola, a village perched on a mountain crest just outside of Taormina. This property is a former hayloft with two rooms and a black stone floor. Vincenzo built a wood oven so he would be able to cook there and he refers to the property as very “rustico”. After all these renovations now there is room for 10 beds. He explains that his house looks like a “presepe”, and after my failed attempts to understand what he was saying I caved in and looked it up in a dictionary: it looks like a nativity scene.

Vincenzo said he would invite me to come to see his weekend house in the mountains and I was just hoping that there would be enough time with my busy plans and the Sciglio’s demanding work schedule at Hotel Villa Nettuno. Either way it was great to have met such a nice hardworking Sicilian family who has been in the hospitality business for 55 years.

This entire article including photos is located at http://www.travelandtransitions.com/stories_photos/hotel_villa_nettuno_taormina.htm

About The Author

Susanne Pacher is the publisher of http://www.travelandtransitions.com, a web portal for unconventional travel & cross-cultural connections. Check out our brand new FREE ebooks about travel.

Your Guide To Wining And Dining In Bangkok

2007-08-21T06:35:00.000-07:00

by: Andy Burrows

A food haven with countless awesome eateries to choose from, Bangkok is a city of restaurants aplenty, featuring all kinds of food. Whether you want to whoop it up hi-so style and dine alfresco while gasping at breathtaking views of the city, chow down on the best steak in a Bangkok restaurant or sip authentic hot green tea and taste your first piece of fresh sushi, this exciting city has it all to keep hungry tourists happy. Still not sure where to start? Here’s the lowdown on some of Bangkok’s favourite places to eat.

If dining on a rooftop overlooking jaw-dropping views of the sparkling Chao Phraya River and the glamorously lit city of Bangkok sounds like your perfect idea of a good dinner, make sure you visit some of these hip and happening places. Dine among jetsetters and rich kids at the world-renowned Sirocco (tel: +66 2 624 9999) on the 64th floor of the Bangkok’s landmark State Tower on Silom road, where you can enjoy a choice of scrumptious Mediterranean and international dishes and an extensive list of drinks.

Another noteworthy venue to check out is the equally famous Bangkok restaurant Vertigo (tel: +66 2 679 1200) located on the 61st floor of Banyan Tree Hotel on Sathorn road. Vertigo is also home to the Moon Bar, where you can find a number of imported wines, whiskies and tasty cocktails.

Thai culinary delights are, of course, not to be missed once you are in Thailand. Bangkok is home to many good Thai restaurants serving tangy, authentic Thai food. Certainly, you can find a wide range of quick Thai dishes everywhere along the street, but if you wish to experience royal Thai cuisine amid an elegant atmosphere with Thai classical music in the background, there are a few places worth visiting.

Baan Khanitha (tel: +66 2 675 4200) features outstanding and authentic Thai dishes with unique flair, while Blue Elephant Cooking School & Restaurant (tel: +66 2 673 9353) boasts exquisite interior and wonderfully well-prepared and decorated Thai dishes. The Blue Bar also offers a wide range of drinks to finish off your evening in style.

Not only known for local cuisine, Bangkok restaurants are also famed for many other Asian fares including Chinese, Japanese and Indian. Tsu (tel: +66 2 656 7700) at JW Marriott Hotel and Keyaki at the Pan Pacific Hotel (tel: +66 2 632 9000) are among the noteworthy Japanese places with authentic Japanese dishes, while Mei Jiang at the Peninsula Hotel (tel: +66 2 861 2888), China House at the Oriental Hotel (tel: +66 2 659 9000) and Bai Yun at the Banyan Tree Hotel (tel: +66 2 679 1200) are worth a try if you are up for top-notch, authentic Chinese cuisine with impeccable services.

For piquant tikka and samosas, Indus on Sukhumvit 26 (tel: +66 2 258 4900) and Royal Indian in the old town (tel: +66 2 221 6565) are expert at creating zesty Indian dishes with a spicy kick, while Rang Mahal at Rembrandt Hotel (tel: +66 2 261 7100) and Tandoor at Holiday Inn Hotel (tel: +66 2 238 4300) showcase divine Indian grub with live Indian music.

Although you may be able find a plenty of palatable steaks back in your country, Bangkok is the hub of some of the most famous steakhouses in the region. The one and only five-star rated steakhouse in Bangkok can’t be any place else but the expensive yet truly satisfying New York Steakhouse at JW Marriot Hotel (tel: +66 2 656 7700), with a variety of mouthwatering imported steaks and appetising side dishes.

Great American Rib (tel: +66 2 258 5942) is also second-to-none when it comes to good steaks. Open-air with a country styled atmosphere, cowgirl waitresses and super-sized dishes of ribs, this Texas influenced eatery is perfect for a family get-together dinner. The ribs are so yummy and huge that you can generously share them with your Uncle Sam and Aunt Wendy if you like.

European cuisines in Bangkok have gained a huge popularity among locals, ex-pats and tourists alike. While Italian restaurants seem to be appearing on every corner across the city, there is only a handful that is really worthwhile. Try the 11-year-old Gianni Ristorante (tel: +66 2 252 1619) for their home-styled, authentic Italian dishes or Biscotti (tel: +66 2 255 5443) at the Four Seasons Hotel, boasting not only chic design but also nice risotto and gnocchi. Pizza aficionados will find Scoozi Pizzeria (tel: +66 2 391 5113) and Bella Napoli (tel: +66 2 259 0405) particularly interesting for their good-valued pizzas and pastas.

Good French restaurants can mostly be found at large hotels, including Bangkok’s old favourite, Le Normandie at the Oriental Bangkok Hotel (tel: +66 2 659 9000). An exception is Le Vendôme (tel: +66 2 662 0530) on Sukhumvit 31, serving refined French food with a creative twist. Bei Otto (tel: +66 2 262 0892) is still known to be the best German restaurant in town, oozing an authentic and captivating feel of the old Deutschland.

Party animals can also find a magnificent array of street vendors along Sukhumvit road selling chicken, beef and pork BBQ into the early hours, while kebabs on soi Nana (Sukhumvit soi 4) are the best in town, boasting kicking homemade sauce. These snacks are ideal after a late night out at a Bangkok bar or pub.

Bangkok is brimming with good eateries and simply irresistible food. It’s is definitely one of the best places in the world to pig on good food. Besides dodgy hanky-panky business and other things, food is definitely one of the top reasons to visit Bangkok.

About The Author

Andy Burrows recommends Thai cuisine as he thinks it is the world’s tastiest and healthiest; for an introduction to Thai food he advises; http://www.1stopbangkok.com/hospitality/restaurants/ and http://www.1stopbangkok.com/hospitality/bars/

MySpace: A Viable Marketing Tool?

2007-08-21T04:36:00.001-07:00

by: Denise Wakeman

MySpace is not only for teenagers and musicians. MySpace is also making a buzz among Internet marketers. At the invitation of Internet marketing guru Marlon Sanders, I set up a profile to see what the buzz is all about.

Marlon calls it "...a 'secret' networking method the people on the inside are using."

Being the active experimenter that I am, once I got started, I couldn't stay away from MySpace, setting up my profile, posting on my blog, adding events to the public calendar. As I poked around, I thought about how this networking space could work for professionals as a business tool.

It's pretty easy to set up a profile and it's free. If you're using it as a business tool, be professional about the information you reveal. Remember MySpace is ultimately a SOCIAL tool and many people use it to hook up for dates and relationships. If that's not your intent, keep your content business-oriented.

What I noticed in looking at random profiles is that most are sloppy and incomplete. A lot have no information about the person and no photo. What's the point? My sense is that a lot of profiles get set up and then abandoned, much like blogs.

So can you use it as a marketing tool for your business?

My guess is yes, if you're very strategic about how you go about it.

Use your "About Me" section to talk about your business, products and services. Make sure you have active hyperlinks that lead to your primary website, blog and products. It's a good idea to have a basic knowledge of HTML so you can add images and clickable links.

Use the blog module to write about your business and events.

Send "bulletins" through the MySpace system to all your "friends" about your product launches, press releases, events, etc.

Join MySpace groups that represent your target audience. Participate in discussions and send bulletins to everyone in the group. No spamming!

Post your events on the public calendar

As you add new friends, welcome them and you'll be on your way to building a community.

A way to approach this from a business angle is to think of your "friends" as possible joint venture partners and potential business opportunities. And, as we like to say, it's another line in the fishing pond for attracting prospects, building your list and your network.

So, is it worth trying out? That's only for you to know. If you like trying new things, if you like testing new systems, then give it try.

About The Author

Denise Wakeman

For leading edge Internet Marketing tips go to http://www.biztipsblog.com. And, subscribe to my ezine Savvy eBiz Tips at http://www.savvyebiztips.com. To learn more about social media tools, go to http://www.buildabetterblog.com. Denise Wakeman is an Internet Marketing expert and founding member of The Blog Squad.

Branding on Myspace.Com

2007-08-21T04:34:00.000-07:00

by: Michelle Edelman

On myspace today, a banner appears:

NYC Fashion Week, Spring 2007 Collections. From the runway to backstage, get your fashion fix here.

In this “noncommercial” social network, a full one-third of the homepage real estate is now promotional material. What gives?

What gives is that myspace.com has successfully evolved from a micro blogosphere to a mass medium. Branding can and should be done on myspace, but it’s not classical “branding” like you’d learn about at a desk at Wharton. This is dynamic branding.

Let me explain. When someone such as myself writes traditional advertising, we think of what single thing we want to say to our target audiences so that, given a certain number of paid impressions, that idea sinks into the collective populace and starts to produce sales. We think of an image that will rest in people’s minds as compelling and representative of the brand, like the iconic Coke bottle or the still images from iTunes.

When we look to extend brands on myspace, it’s a whole different ball game. Our brands should not look to create a single impression for many, but a myriad of relationships and images for the people who will befriend us. We need to speak in a different language… shorthanded language. The language of friendship is briefer, more intimate, and it constantly changes. It can have typos, for gosh sake! It’s not the pristine world of the print ad. That’s why some brands, like Walmart, have failed in myspace: by throwing their .com microsite content into myspace, Walmart is saying, “We don’t want to know ya. We just want to sell ya.”

Another big difference is in measuring what you’re going to get from presence on myspace. You are putting your brand out there not to be the biggest and the best among target audiences you can select from media tools, but to garner relevance among people that choose you. This idea of relevance seems like a big risk to marketers. In fact, Rob Frankel calls myspace a branding failure for this reason. Is it a failure, or simply another medium whose terms we must learn to understand and embrace in order to succeed? A brand could benefit by having more consumers who know them more intimately. Maybe brand loyalty is going to make a terrific comeback due to myspace!

A third topic that stupefies marketers is the notion of “going where the money is.” If myspace is full of people who are still primarily students, why bother with them? Shouldn’t you go where the money is, instead? Problem with this logic is that not only are kids more monetarily endowed nowadays, they’re the adults of the future. They’ll work at your company and be in the market for the stuff you sell. Befriend them early and they’ll remember you later.

At NYCA, many of us have created our own myspace accounts so we can start to really understand the people who swear by it. We know this may end up being the way to grow some of our clients’ businesses, and we’re looking for inspired ideas from the source itself.

Branding on myspace? Btr gt used 2 it, frnd.

About The Author

Michelle Edelman is vice president/director of planning at NYCA, a full-service marketing agency that grows businesses with inspired ideas. NYCA has grown business for clients like TaylorMade Golf, San Diego Convention and Visitors Bureau, Rossa Putters, Maxfli Golf, ViewSonic Corp., The San Diego Union-Tribune, SignOnSanDiego.com, The EastLake Company, Kyocera Wireless, DIRECTV, Penta Water, National City Mile of Cars, AutoAnything, First Dental Health, TaylorMade Performance Labs, and others. To find out how NYCA can grow your business, log on to http://www.nyca.com

Why MySpace.com is So Popular for Connecting with People

2007-08-21T04:33:00.000-07:00

by: Rod Davis

MySpace.com is a powerful web site which helps people connect with others who have similar interests in topics such as music, film, geographic location, and relationships.

This type of site is known as a social networking web site. There are other similar sites that have been popular in the past such as Friendster and Classmates.com, but MySpace.com has definitely become the leader in social networking sites, boasting a member list of over 100,000,000 people as of August 6, 2006. According to the owner of MySpace.com, located in NewsCorp of Hollywood California, it is growing at a rate of 500,000 new members every week.

Everyone from small town bands and rap artists to large film makers are using MySpace.com to connect with its large database of members and to provide more information about Pop culture.

MySpace has received some criticisms regarding the age of its users. Teenagers as young as 14 can register for a Myspace account. Although their profiles are automatically private, this has been the source of some controversy about allowing users this young to interact with others on the web.

Myspace does have other restrictions for users under the age of 18, but there are still possibilities that make many concerned parents and organizations uncomfortable.

How Does it Work

Myspace allows you to create an account using some basic information such as name and email address. You are not required to give up any personal information.

Once you have an account you can network with the millions of other members who have Myspace accounts. You can also search for people who have similar interests and then interact with them using special Myspace features such as blogs, chat and the add a friend to your page feature.

How to Signup

To singup for a MySpace.com account, just go to the signup link on their home page or visit Myspace.com for the link.

Once you signup, you can log into your account and build a web page using a simple menu and a step by step process. You can easily change the look and feel to reflect your profile using graphics from sites that offer free MySpace.com layouts.

You can also add photos, music, and videos to your profile that will attract others who are interested in the same things, which makes it ideal for up and coming bands and artists.

Finding Groups, Friends, and Relationships

You can also search the network using browse, keyword searches or by groups. Once you start to find people you want to meet, you can invite them to your network. In some cases, their friends see you and may also invite you to their network. Your network of friends can grow literally by being invited to one person’s network.

Why is it so Popular

As more and more people go online, more people are seeking to meet others with the same interests. Web site networks that facilitate this type of communication have historically done very well on the Internet.

It is very easy to open a Myspace.com account and find tons of people and groups who have all of the latest news on various topics, especially music and film, which are staples of pop culture.

It is also free to join MySpace.com, which makes it even more attractive to the general public and gives it the power to easily compete with fee based interest and relationship sites that have been around for years.

As the online community gets larger, more people are looking for easy ways to connect with others without having to pay a lot of money or without having to spend hours of time searching different web sites. As a result, MySpace has become the popular place of choice to instantly connect with other individuals and groups of people.

About The Author

Rod Davis is a web researcher who writes weekly articles on Popular Online Media and Unique Information found on the web. You can learn more about popular online media at http://110thstreet.com where you can get interesting articles, guides and information.

How to Pimp Your MySpace Profile

2007-08-21T04:32:00.000-07:00

by: George Levy

As someone who spends an obscene amount of time researching, playing and "working" on MySpace [and loving every minute of it I might add... ;-) ] I have made myself into an expert and an authority on the process of customizing or "pimping" profiles as my countless thousands on MySpace will vouch for me.

Before going deep on HOW to pimp MySpace, I'd first like to address WHY one should pimp his or her MySpace profile.

There are really two answers to this question...

The first is my expert opinion as a marketing specialist - "branding and differentiation."

As MySpace continues to grow at a frantic pace (there are currently over 108 million profiles on MySpace and growing at about 26,000 new ones daily) - it becomes increasingly difficult for an individual or an online business seeking to establish a presence on MySpace to "stand out from the crowd." A well pimped out profile allows for a unique user experience that separates and differentiates a profile from the millions of other "plain-vanilla", non-pimped profiles.

A customized profile allows for using corporate colors and logos as well as controlling the end-user experience to be consistent with one's overall brand identity.

Ok... having said that.

My second answer is more personal - simply "Because it looks cool and because you can."

So... having cleared that up.

The process of "pimping" or decorating and customizing a MySpace profile is part art/part science and consists of several key steps which should be addressed sequentially if you want to have a truly great looking profile.

In order, you must:

1. Choose the kind of look you are going for.

What will your profile be about? Is it about you? Is it for a business? Is there a specific atmosphere that you want your profile to have? You must be clear on what you want to portray and design in your profile prior to making any customizations.

This will help you save a lot of time and needless aggravation

2. Determine if you'll use a Pre-Made layout or create your own.

There are thousands of pre-made layouts available on the Internet. One need only to search in the search engines for the keywords "MySpace Layouts" to find page after page of web sites that offer pre-designed layouts for you to choose.

Another alternative, and my personal preference, is to design and develop your own profile look. By customizing your profile look and feel, you not only avoid the risk of using the exact same layout that somebody else is using but you also prevent any problems you may have with any copyrighted images in your layout that the original creator may not have secured and which may result in your profile being shut down by MySpace.

Should you choose instead to pimp your profile yourself, you will need to have a tool called a "MySpace Profile Editor" that will allow you to change most aspects of your profile including background images, colors, borders, fonts and a great number of other customizable options. You can do a search for "MySpace Profile Editor" to find one you can use.

Like in all software, there's the good, the bad and the ugly in profile editors and being tired of just finding "the bad", I personally chose to custom develop my very own easy to use, top of the line profile editor.

3. Customize your Contact table.

MySpace also allows you to customize a section of your profile called your "Contact Table." This is the small table underneath your default picture where you can select to Add as a Friend, Send a Message, Rate a Picture and other actions.

Once again, you can search on the web for "Pre-Made Contact Tables" that you can download and install but just like with pre-me profile layouts, you run into the same issues of not having a truly original profile and any potential copyright infringement issues.

My recommendation is, if you can develop your own contact table, by all means do so.

The general consensus on MySpace is that a profile is never truly pimped unless it has a custom table to go along with it...

So make sure that when you pimp your profile you choose a good looking contact table to go along with it.

4. Apply "hide codes" and "tweaks."

There are many other codes and so-called "hides and tweaks" that you can apply to your profile to make it hide specific information and change the look of many different elements including how pictures are displayed, if you want to center your profile and the order and number of how your friends are displayed. You can also apply effects to blur and reverse your images, add graphics that seem to "fall from the sky" and a great number of other options to embellish your profile.

In conclusion, pimping your MySpace profile is a very personal process and making your "Space" or profile be truly unique requires a combination of skills, patience and the willingness to try different things. Remember, in customizing your MySpace profile, there are no wrong answers and anything you create is yours to keep or discard (do overs are perfectly acceptable in MySpace... Unless of course you break any of MySpace's terms of service which can be accessed through a link at the bottom of every page on MySpace.)

Make sure you enjoy the process and don't be afraid to try new things - after all... it is YOUR MySpace profile, make it truly a reflection of who you are!

About The Author

George Levy is an internationally recognized Internet marketing expert responsible for helping all types and sizes of businesses use the Internet to sell over $100 million dollars in the United States, Canada and 14 countries across Latin America. He is also commonly known as "His Mastership" on MySpace and is part of a select group of MySpace users commonly acknowledged as "Legends" and "VIPs" with thousands of friends worldwide and hundreds more added daily.

George is the expert author of the Internet Salesmanship newsletter and blog as well as the creator of best selling "MySpace Mastership" program with all the tools and video instructions necessary to Pimp your MySpace profile, make thousands of friends and become a well known celebrity on MySpace.

To find out more about George Levy, you may visit his blog at http://www.georgelevy.com and visit MySpace Mastership to receive his 5 day Free email course on achieving Mastership of MySpace at:

http://www.myspacemastership.com

MySpace Layouts – Ease Of Use

2007-08-21T04:31:00.001-07:00

by: Magalie Noel Dresse

MySpace has become, by far, one of the most popular social interactive sites on the Internet. Now, people from all over are registering with the service and creating profiles and pages to display their talents, skills, and any personal information they wish to share about themselves with others. It has also become a popular place for people to meet, chat, and share opinions and ideas. Something that adds to its popularity is the ease with which profiles and pages can be created.

In the early days of the public’s use of the Internet, many people who created their own web pages had to learn the HTML, or Hyper Text Markup Language code that is necessary to create a site. While this is one of the easiest programming languages to learn, it does take time and understanding of what is happening on the screen and in the computer. It does, however, give users full control over what goes on their pages and how that information is displayed, and is still preferred by many business owners and serious web developers whose sites are designed to attract customers and sell products or services. As with everything else, the pace of the world wide web has increased, and so have the lives of many people. Now, it seems everyone is looking for the immediate solution, and MySpace has helped to provide just that.

For those wanting to create a personal page, or just wanting to add information about their band, films, or other talents to the social interaction, MySpace is equipped with the tools and features to do just that. There are many layouts from which to choose, and, perhaps the best part is, that it isn’t necessary to actually the HTML code in order to create a page.

While many web building sites have been established over the past several years that make creating a web site quick and easy, few are as thorough and web-friendly as the MySpace site. Add to that the advantages that having many people see and access each site everyday, and it makes MySpace the obvious solution.

There are many ways to create a profile and various features that can be added to it once it is established. There are many fonts and colors to choose from, and several ways of arranging text, graphics, and other items on each page. MySpace also allows users to modify their pages. Although JavaScript is not allowed, HTML and XHTML, along with CSS can be used to change the vast majority of the profile to the preference of the user.

Users also have the option of adding embedded music into the site so that users will hear a particular song when they first enter the profile. This is done by a service called MySpace Music, which allows bands to post songs onto their respective profiles. Here, videos, and any other related content can be added as long as it is allowed. It’s all about true customization, and MySpace is that at its finest.

About The Author

Magalie Noel Dresse is the Webmaster of http://www.mypsace.org which offers myspace layouts for free

Safety Tips for MySpace Users

2007-08-21T04:30:00.000-07:00

by: Brad Franklin

There are some very positive things about using MySpace. People can connect, express themselves and make new friends. Unfortunately, MySpace can also be a dangerous place to be.

People who use MySpace may be publicly embarrassed or even worse may put themselves in danger. If you or your children plan to use MySpace or already doing so there a few tips that may come in handy.

Always remember that everything shared on MySpace is out there for everyone to see. This means that you are sharing private information with people who pose no threat and also with those who could prove to be dangerous.

If there are things you don’t want everyone to know, do not post them on MySpace. Also, think twice before you give out your phone number, home or business address, specific whereabouts or IM screen names.

You may not want to give out information that tells people where you will be at a certain time. It’s great to be able to tell your friends where to meet but just remember that this information will be going out to everyone who has access to MySpace.

There may be times when you read things on MySpace that are inappropriate or contain harassing comments or hate speech. Do not hesitate to report these kinds of things. You can discuss the inappropriate materials with an adult and then report them to either MySpace or the authorities.

These safety tips should help keep you and other MySpace users a little safer when you use the site.

About The Author

Brad Franklin - Editor, WebSafeKid.Com

Learn more about internet safety at http://www.websafekid.com. Informative articles about Internet predators protect parents, kids, and teens.

Protect Yourself On MySpace

2007-08-21T04:29:00.000-07:00

by: Brad Franklin

If you like to use MySpace or any other social networking site on the internet, you are probably aware of how much fun they can be. But even though you can meet a lot of nice people that does not mean that you should not be watching out for people who want to prey on you.

When you are using social networking sites online you will definitely need to exercise extra caution. Remember, anybody can join these sites and start talking with anybody else who is participating. This means that these people can make up fake profiles, use fake information, and put up pictures of people that are not even them. This can be very deceptive, and quite dangerous if you fall into one of these traps.

The best way to avoid problems when using sites like this is to make sure you are aware of what is going on around you. Keep track of who is messaging you, and what they are saying. Also, while you are keeping this log, make sure that you know exactly which people keep asking to meet you in person. Even though this may not mean anything, if somebody wants to meet you in person, you should be very skeptical.

Overall, social networking sites definitely have their place on the internet. But just like anything else, there are risks and dangers involved. By being aware of what is going on, and keeping your eyes opened, you will be able to avoid any problems that may arise.

About The Author

Brad Franklin-Editor, WebSafeKid.Com
http://www.websafekid.com is designed to help parents, kids and teens with internet safety, and learn how to protect their privacy and security online and to teach responsible internet use.

Generating Traffic To Your Myspace Website

2007-08-21T04:22:00.000-07:00

by: David Riewe

MySpace is an exciting online community where members can make new friends, reconnect with old friends, network or even find potential romantic partners. While there are some MySpace members who join the community simply for the ability to stay in touch with their old friends and are not looking to make new friends. These members may keep their websites private to not allow other users to view their personal information and may not spend a great deal of time visiting public websites of other members. However, most MySpace members are interested in making a great deal of friends online and are always looking to generate more traffic to their website.

Create an Interesting MySpace Website

One of the simplest ways MySpace members can generate increased traffic to their website is to create a website which is both aesthetically appealing and interesting to others. The aesthetic appeal of a website can greatly influence the amount of repeat traffic a MySpace website receives. For example members who use garish colors and fonts which are too small or otherwise difficult to read may not receive repeat traffic even if the content of their website is very interesting and engaging. This is because other members may lose interest in the website quickly.

The other part of an excellent website design is interesting and intriguing content. A website which is aesthetically appealing may entice visitors to peruse the content but if it is simply not interesting and engaging the visitors are not likely to spend much time on the website and are also not likely to return. However, MySpace members who fill their website with exciting content are likely to keep visitors interested. When visitors are interested in the content they are likely to return and also to encourage others to visit the website as well.

Visit Members’ Websites

Another way to generate increased traffic to your MySpace website is by visiting the websites of other members. You can use the search feature to find other members who share your interests. By visiting their websites you will get a better idea of whether or not you are interested in being friends with these members. When you encounter other members you might be interested in meeting you can sent them an email or instant message commenting on their website and asking to be added to their network of friends. You can also suggest they visit your website as well. Those who make an effort to meet other members are likely to increase their own web site traffic.

Invite Friends to Your MySpace Website

Finally, MySpace members can generate additional traffic to their website by inviting others to visit them. They can speak directly to friends and family members and encourage them to view their website. Also, those who participate in other online communities such as message boards may include a link to their MySpace website in their signature so those who want to learn more about them can visit their MySpace profile.

MySpace also has an invite feature which enables members to send messages to others to encourage them to start a MySpace account. Members who have friends or family members who do not belong to the MySpace community can send them one of these invitations to encourage them to participate. The invitation can include a link to the members MySpace website to give the others an idea of what MySpace really is.

About The Author

David Riewe is the webmaster of http://www.daves-inforama.com and http://www.daves-inforama.com/myspace.

Why Becoming A Myspace Whore Can Make You Money

2007-08-21T04:20:00.000-07:00

by: Ej Abram

Ok, it’s not exactly flattering to be called a whore, but who cares when you’re making money, right?

Before you send me hate mail or report me to the local authorities, let me explain myself a bit further.

The term that I’m referring to is “myspace whore”. If you haven’t heard it than I really do apologize for exposing you to such an inappropriate phrase, but if you know anything about Myspace.com, then you know that that quote is thrown around like tator tots in a food fight. However, the definition of myspace whore isn’t as bad as it sounds. Basically, it refers to a member who has an enormous list of “friends” most of whom he or she has no personal relation with. In other words it means someone who likes to network with as many people as they can. Whether it be for their own reasons or what we’re going to be talking about...to make money.

You see, unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past couple of years, you probably know that Myspace has become the supernova of online social networking sites. Boasting an 80 million registered user database, Myspace has surpassed Google, MSN and AOL with its 38.4 million U.S. visitors this past year.

So what does that all mean to the internet marketer...everything!

Imagine advertising your product or an affiliate’s product to 80 million potential customers. Imagine breaking that 80 million down by demographic region, age, sex, ethnic background, relationship status, hair color...get the picture. I don’t know of many other places that can produce such a huge number of targeted traffic for absolutely zero dollars, and there are plenty of channels by which to advertise.

• Blogs
• Forums
• Bulletins
• Newsletters
• Classifieds
• Friends
• Groups

Like I said before, not bad for a website that can generate all that traffic for free!

I think the toughest part of your endeavor is going to be

About The Author

Ej Abram is an expert in online marketing and advertising with three years of experience. If you would like to learn more about making money with your myspace account then visit http://www.myspaceincomestream.com

Play Free Myspace Games

2007-08-21T04:19:00.002-07:00

by: Paul Pzelf

Myspace.com has become a success story like no other in the history of the Net. Side by side with its success it has been instrumental for the creation of some brilliant websites which provide support and content to the myspace page. One such excellent website is redpython.com. You will find on this webpage the links of the most popular and latest games on the Net.

It is true that myspace.com is spreading like wildfire totally encompassing the globe roping in youngsters from all over the world. It is also true that myspace games page is self sufficient in many ways, i.e. it provides links and helps you to be as creative as you would like to be. Even so, web pages like redpython.com are exceptionally useful when it comes to entertainment upgradation. Instead of limiting yourself to the games posted on the myspace games page, you can use the redpython.com as the source and pepper your myspace page with the latest and most popular games on the Net.

You can choose from a huge library of games – as many as 2300 free games – to post on your page to make the stay of your friends and invitees as relaxing and entertaining as you want. There are new games added every week, so you will never run out of stock or feel that you need to repeat any game. Not only redpython.com has excellent choice of games, it also chooses only games which have passed their stringent quality tests. You will not find any broken links or un-uploadable links on this page because there are continuous quality controls checks which assure that whatever is showcased on Red Python is of the highest quality.

This is why millions chose this website as their source for online games. In spite of having such a huge library (2300 free games ready to be linked, downloaded or played at the click of the mouse) the redpython.com is extremely easy to navigate and you can find the game you want in matters of seconds.

The myspace games on your myspace page will be highly enriched once you link yourself to redpython.com. Check out the many links that are posted on the site and add it to your myspace games page. Your friends will love you all the more for it. You will feel good about your page because it is loaded with the latest games and the most popular ones too.

In order to have an exceptional myspace page, you will need to have a good amount of interesting information and entertainment so your visitors can enjoy their stop over and recommend your page to others. There is nothing more inviting that the listing of the latest games available on the Net right there on your myspace games page – ready to be played with, ready to be enjoyed. All your friend and visitors will appreciate your collection and definitely recommend this site to other games enthusiasts. You will get all that and much more from redpython.com. Stay in touch!

About The Author

Paul Pzelf works for http://redpython.com - Myspace Games Myspace Codes - a website which provides 2300 Myspace Games. Play free online games for and add them to your MySpace, Xanga, Friendster profile, orkut, blogs etc.

What Is MySpace - Part 1

2007-08-21T04:19:00.001-07:00

by: Magalie Noel Dresse

MySpace has become one of the most popular sites on the Net; in fact, it is the third most used of all its kind. It was established as a social networking website that offers an interactive, user-submitted network of friends, personal profiles, blogs, Internet groups, photos, music, videos, and more. Now, more and more people are logging on, registering, and setting up web pages of their own. It also provides users the opportunity to share their stories, skills, and information with others in ways that allow many people to see it at one time, and feedback to be given. MySpace also features an internal search engine and an internal E-mail system.

Headquartered in Santa Monica, CA, with its parent company located in New York City, New York, the services offered by MySpace have gradually gained more popularity than similar sites. It has now achieved nearly 80 percent of visits to online social networking websites.

MySpace has even become an increasingly influential part of contemporary popular culture, and is growing to greater proportions everyday. Its wide range of pre-made templates allows users to build elaborate websites with fun graphics and intricate layouts without actually knowing the HTML code. Music, photos, and videos can also be added, which is why many bands and music artists choose to make MySpace their social home.

The company is owned by News Corporation and currently includes a staff of over 300 employees. It does not disclose revenues or profits separately from News Corporation. MySpace saw its 100 millionth account created on August 9, 2006. The number of account is only continuing to grow.

Reportedly, the MySpace site attracts new registrants at a rate of 2300 per day, which is much higher than other sites offering similar services. On there, you will find sites with information ranging from personal hobbies to professional skills. It is popular among students and businessmen alike, and this isn’t expected to change any time soon.

In addition to providing a place for independent musicians to upload their photos, bios, and music, many independent film makers and up and coming comedians are setting up pages where other users can download their movies and comedy routines, as well as find information on movie viewings and performances. These songs, movies, and routines are set up on each individual’s profile, but can also be embedded into other profiles which make them interconnected. This adds to the appeal of MySpace for those who are looking for a platform on which to promote their artistic creations.

The process for setting up a profile is quite simple. Users must first register. This involves establishing a user name and password, and entering in personal information such as your name, E-mail address, and other relevant items. Once you are registered, you may begin setting up your profile. This can include your personal information, your hobbies, your profession and skills, and anything else you want other users to see. It is easy to create and edit, and you are given a wide variety of layouts and options from which to choose. Finding free layouts on the web is quite easy. Sites like http://www.mypsace.org offer free premade myspace layouts, glitters, pictures and a lot more to personalize your profile. Once you have done this, you are well on your way to gaining friends, possible additional business, and enjoying all that MySpace has to offer.

About The Author

Magalie Noel Dresse is the Webmaster of http://www.mypsace.org which offers myspace layouts for free

My Life Would Be Carefree, If It Wasn't For MySpace

2007-08-21T04:18:00.000-07:00

by: Timothy Ward

Recently after years and years of heartaches, letdowns, and countless Saturdays nights spent stumbling half-drunk around dark bars in a vain attempt to find love, I decided that it was time to grow up. I had finally had enough of my party-all-the-time lifestyle. It was time to get serious and start thinking about the important issues in life. I needed to decide where I was going in life, what my plan was for the future. I needed to realize who my true friends were, who liked me for me and not for my generous nature after a few beers. I needed to figure out who I was. I needed to get in touch with the real me. I needed to come up with a cool username for my Myspace account.

Yes, in the mist of freeing my life from all negativity and letting go of bad habits that I had acquired years ago, I stumbled across this website called Myspace.com. Everyone had been talking about it but I had no idea what it was. I consider myself pretty online savvy so I had to find out more about this Myspace. After a few minutes looking the site over I decided that it was probably a cool place to meet people and since I didn't go to the bar much anymore I needed somewhere to use my pickup lines. Of course now I was using these lines to find Miss Right, a soulmate, not Miss Right Now, who was, typically, not around for quite as long.

My favorite MySpace feature? It's FREE! It would cost me no money whatsoever. See Mom, I was becoming more responsible already.

After hours of deliberation I decided that 'poetskinny' was a great username that fit me perfectly seeing as I am skinny and I like to pretend to write poetry. The username I really wanted was 'drunkinpublic696969' but surprisingly that was already taken. So was 'pooperscooper08'. Don't ask.

Now it was time to find old friends and send them friend requests and find new people and ask them if they wanted be 'friends' with a total stranger. I love the world wide web! I felt a little funny sending people who had been my friends for years 'friend requests' but I guess that's the way it's done on MySpace. While doing this I got my first feeling of apprehension but I swept it aside as stomach pains. Sometimes those Gorditas just don't go down like they should. Or come out like they should for that matter.

For about 2 weeks I was in MySpace heaven. Everyday I was making new friends and finding old friends. I had more friends that the cheerleader with the nice rack in high school. I felt popular, suave, and in control. The picture I uploaded caught my good side and the goatee I was sporting was a nice touch. Woman I didn't know started sending me friend requests from all over the country. This was the life. Everyday I checked my account to see how many friends I had now. Things were going great, MySpace had my vote. MySpace in 2008! MySpace in 2008! And then tragedy struck.

One afternoon while performing my normal MySpace ritual, inviting hot girls to be my friend and checking to see how many friends I now had, I realized that the number of my friends had shrunk instead of grown. That meant one of two things: Either MySpace was broken or SOMEONE HAD DELETED ME AS A FRIEND! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

I frantically searched through my friends list to see if I could find a face that was missing. The only problem with this was that most of the people on MySpace use fake names and most of them have weird pictures that technically aren't them instead of pictures of their actual faces. When I added them as friends I knew who 'jellyrollkid' and 'tummystickzkilla' were but now I had no earthly idea. There was no way for me to find out who had deleted me as a friend so that I could rectify the situation. I felt like the nerdy kid in school who everyone gives the silent treatment and he has no clue why. I didn't sleep well that night.

A little time has passed now and I'm a little more hip to the MySpace world. I know now that instead of telling someone to their face or over the phone that you have a problem with them, the adult thing to do is to delete them as a friend on MySpace.

I've also learned that if someone breaks up with you the adult thing to do is to visit their MySpace page everyday and send nasty emails to anyone of the opposite sex that leaves them any comments.

Recently I've also learned that if someone sends you a message on MySpace and you don't reply to it they can go into their sent messages folder and see if you have read it or not, and if you have then they are well within their rights to call you at home and use dirty words when you answer the phone.

Another piece of info I'd like to share: People are very sensitive about where you place them on your friend list. If you don't put someone in your 'Top Friends' section and they think they should be there they will jokingly ask you 'Why the $$&**#^@&* not! and then they will go into a 15 minute lecture on how you've known them longer than so-n-so and how they are definitely a better friend than HER. Do not be surprised if the tires on your cars are mysteriously low on air the next morning.

Truthfully, I do enjoy my MySpace account despite all the drama. It gives me something to do everyday and I feel important typing in my password. It also let's me keep in touch with a lot of old friends who live in different states now who I don't like well enough to waste anytime minutes on. So all and all I guess I can see why everyone is always talking about MySpace. I guess it still gets my vote. As long as it stays free...

Oh yeah, I finally figured out who deleted me as a friend that first time: It was Tom!

About The Author

Timothy Ward is a humor writer and webmaster who desperately needs your help in becoming a household name. You can help by subscribing to his humor column at http://timothyward.netfirms.com or by visiting his latest website http://LakeCityFreeAds.com-or you can name 2.5 of your children after him. Thanks.

MySpace Layout Pimper

2007-08-21T04:17:00.000-07:00

by: Jonathan Peroni

Myspace.com is the definitive social networking website. It gives you space to create your personalized profile. This calls for innovative designs that allow you to differentiate your space from those of others. This will allow a user to attract more people to his/her space and increase their network. That is in effect the objective of the site. Myspace layout pimper makes available key resources that allow you to design your page.

Myspace layout pimper is the definitive online resource for layouts, graphics, codes, generators, tricks and tweaks that can be used in Myspace. With the Myspace pimper you can pimp your space on Myspace.com. There are various sites that give you the requisite tools to customize your page on Myspace. As more and more users register themselves on Myspace, the need for personalization of personal pages manifests itself. With Myspace layout pimper you can create magic on the pages allotted to you. You will get pre made layout, contact tables, innovative graphic and much more under what is called the Myspace layout pimper.

These pimpers also enable you to edit the background on Myspace.com. The areas that you can make changes to are the MySpace HTML Code, MySpace Music Video Codes, MySpace HTML codes and various other things. Moreover the background codes and colors can also be changed.

There will definitely be a question in your mind regarding the inculcation of the Myspace layout pimper in the site itself. Well the great thing is that you have an easy user interface and user-friendly navigation bar. All you have to do is go to the options button, click on it and then click on the ‘Generate Pimped Layout’ button. When this is done you click on the ‘Copy Pimped Layout button’. Once you are logged in MySpace account click on the button labeled ‘Edit My Profile’. You then go on to the next page, and click on the link titled ‘Edit’, which is found to the right of ‘About Me’. The last stage of the process is by clicking inside the box on the edit page for About Me. Finally, you right click and select your MySpace profile and then save it.

The above process might seem a little complicated when you read it, but it is very easy when you get right down to it. As more and more users create their layout on MySpace, differentiation assumes a lot of importance. This is why Myspace layout pimpers are fast gaining in the popularity charts. It also helps that Myspace.com is one of the most popular sites in America, and the world. The range of choices afforded by MySapce layout pimpers is varied and comprehensive. The choices are elegant, beautiful, and at times shocking. But all said and done, they are the definitive choice for those who want some degree of uniqueness as far as personal MySpace.com is concerned.

MySpace layout pimper no longer gives you tools for enhancing your space but it has slowly and surely emerged as a distinct necessity. So, if you want to be a unique identity on MySpace then use the MySpace layout pimper.

About The Author

Jonathan Peroni is a self admitted MySpace Junkie who has been able to parlay this addiction into a profitable direct marketing technique. Jonath is availiable for consultation at: http://www.MySpaceCompanions.com.

Parenting Teenagers - Your Teenager And Myspace

2007-08-21T04:16:00.002-07:00

by: Christina Botto

The MySpace phenomenon began in 2003, when an Internet visionary and UCLA graduate named Tom Anderson reclaimed the moribund http://myspace.com domain. Prior to Anderson’s initiative, http://myspace.com was a file sharing forum. The original Web site had to be disbanded in 2001 due to a poor ROI and lack of general consumer interest.

Anderson's vision of MySpace as a place where kids could network and form their own communities manifested in a huge way. In 2005, MySpace’s parent company was purchased for nearly $600 million – since then, the network has only increased in size.

MySpace Today

MySpace supports a number of media, including videos and images, and is especially popular with teenagers, who use MySpace for several reasons.

They can connect with friends from school after class and share gossip and funny videos, pictures and sites from around the Internet. They also can meet other teens with similar interests or potential friends within geographic proximity. Finally, teens can check out prospective dates. In many ways, MySpace has replaced traditional dating sites, such as http://match.com and http://nerve.com.

What parents of teenagers can do

A MySpace page reveals a tremendous amount of information about your teen’s personality and interests. By looking at your teen's MySpace page, parents will get to know how their teen acts and interacts with his peers. It will give you a chance to comment on your teenager's creativity or to catch potential problems your teen might be facing.

While MySpace is generally safe and PG rated, your teen should be on the lookout for predators who prowl the Internet with fake profiles. In many ways, MySpace is a mixed blessing for teens. It provides new ways to interact with peers and experience media, but it also opens teens up to dangers, such as Internet addiction and predators.

MySpace can be a forum for so-called cyber bullying, in which feuds at school carry over to the online realm. Your teenager also might spend too much time online meeting virtual friends while falling behind on his or her homework. Given the vulnerability your teenager faces by sharing his or her experiences and opinions with others, parents need to be aware and talk with their teen about potential dangers they might expose themselves to on MySpace and the Internet in general.

About The Author

Christina Botto has been involved with helping parents and teenagers resolve complicated issues for more than 14 years, observing and developing parenting strategies. Her dedication to helping parents inspired her to write her book, 'Help Me With My Teenager! A Step-by-step Guide for Parents that Works.' Christina continues to help parents and their teens through her website http://www.helpwithteenagers.com

Advanced Uses For Myspace

2007-08-21T04:16:00.001-07:00

by: David Riewe

MySpace members can generate a website quickly through templates. These templates enable users to create a generic website in very little time. For those who are just interested in making new friends or keeping in touch with old friends, this may be all the member needs. However, those who want to offer more on their website or those who simply want to create a more detailed website may require some more advanced knowledge to achieve the desired effects.

Adding Background Music in MySpace

The majority of websites on the Internet do not have background music. This may lead many novice MySpace members to believe adding music to the background is a difficult process but it really isn’t. In fact MySpace makes it incredibly simple for members to add music to their profiles. The steps to add music to a MySpace profile are as follows:

* Log into your MySpace account
* While logged in visit this web address: http://music.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=music
* Listen to the music available and select a suitable song for your profile
* Click on the link that says “Add” below the song title
* The music is then automatically added to your profile

It is important to note that users can only add one song at a time to their profile. Clicking the “Add” link on a second song will result in the original song being replaced on the profile by the new song. Songs can be removed from a profile at any time by going to the “Edit profile” section of your account and entering the “Profile songs” subcategory. Here you have the option to remove your chosen song.

Adding Videos to MySpace

Adding videos to MySpace is also not as difficult as it seems. Even those with no HTML skills can add videos produced by other members or even their own videos to their MySpace profile. The steps to add a video to your MySpace profile are as follows:

* Log into your MySpace Account
* From your MySpace homepage, click on the “Add/Change Videos” link
* You are then taken to another webpage where you can either search through a database of previously uploaded videos or upload your own video
* To search the database, click on the search videos button and browse through the available videos
* After watching a video you can add the video to your profile in a couple of ways. First you can click on the “Add to my profile” button or you can copy the source code provided and paste this code into the desired location on your profile.

Alternately you can add your own videos to your MySpace profile by first uploading them to MySpace and then adding them to your profile. When uploading a video care should be taken to ensure the video does not violate the terms of service.

Creating Interactive Features on MySpace

Creating interactive features on MySpace is a bit more involved. Members can create features which allow visitor interaction but these features require more extensive HTML knowledge. The best way to acquire the information necessary to design these types of features is to research the subject of HTML code in books or on the Internet. However, if you find a feature on another MySpace website you would like to include in your own profile you can contact the member and ask them how to add this feature.

About The Author

David Riewe is the webmaster of http://www.daves-inforama.com and http://www.daves-inforama.com/myspace.

What Is MySpace.com - Part 2

2007-08-21T04:14:00.000-07:00

by: Magalie Noel Dresse

MySpace.com has become one of the most popular sites on the Internet. People from all over the globe are signing up and posting both personal and professional information in numbers unparalleled by other sites of its kind.

In 1998, the domain myspace.com was registered to a San Francisco-based online storage and file sharing firm. Then, registration was free and users were able to obtain a small disk quota which gradually increased if they referred new members to the website. However, due to slow service and a lack of revenue, the original site was shut down and its users’ information sold in 2001.

Then, in 2003, the current service we now know of as MySpace.com was founded by Tom Anderson. Several media companies, including News Corporation, have since bought into this business venture, which is proving to be very successful in both the unique services it offers all in one place and its fast-growing client base.

News Corporation is the parent company of Fox Broadcasting, who, in January of 2006, announced plans to launch a UK version of MySpace.com in a bid to tap into the music scene of the UK. This came to pass.

There are many benefits and features offered on myspace, and it serves as an outlet for many artistic individuals who are working independently to get the word out about their special talents or products. This includes: musicians, filmmakers, and comedians. Many independent artists of these genres work very hard to capture the attention of fans from all over the globe, and the MySpace.com site has afforded them the opportunity to do just that.

The first thing a user must do when setting up a MySpace.com site is to register. This is free, and involves entering your name, E-mail address, creating a user name, and entering a password. Once this is done, you can start building you’re MySpace.com profile so that others may view your information. Whether you are a professional wishing to spread the word about your product or service, or simply want a place for people to view your personal information and learn more about who you are, MySpace.com has something for you.

Building a profile can be as simple or complicated as you desire. The interface is set up, however, to enable users to build even the most complex pages quickly and easily without knowing HTML. There are many layouts from which to choose, and others can be downloaded from various other sites like Myspsace.net or PopDarts.com. It is even possible to choose one from another profile already created on the MySpace.com site using a "layout snatcher" like the one used in http://www.mypsace.org/Layout_Stealer

Once you have chosen your layout and customized your page, you can begin entering your information. It is possible to not only post biographical information, but music, photos, and videos can also be uploaded to the site so that others may view them.

Since 2003, MySpace.com has become one of the most widely used social interactive sites on the Internet, drawing a multitude of users each day. More and more people are signing up to view and create web pages, and to chat with others who share the same interests. It is also a good way to get to know others from other locations, and can help promote an Internet unity never before achieved.

About The Author

Magalie Noel Dresse is the Webmaster of http://www.mypsace.org which offers myspace layouts for free.

Are You Using Myspace?

2007-08-21T04:13:00.000-07:00

by: Donald Nelson

The Internet is developing at a fast pace. In the last few years blogs and then social book-marking became a rage, and to confess to you honestly I still haven’t gotten the hang of how to use either of these two for marketing purposes. However, I am not such an old geezer after all, because I really am into Myspace.com.

Myspace.com is a tremendously interactive medium which is most frequented by teenagers who like to share their photos and exchange messages with each other, and with pop music bands, who set up online presences that attract thousands of new listeners. In the last year Myspace has become one of the most visited web destinations around. (Alexa currently ranks it as the sixth most visited site.).

If you are not a teenager and you are not the lead singer in a rock band, is there any chance that Myspace could be useful to you? Large businesses such as Jack in the Box, Nike and Walmart have Myspace.com presences, all kinds of advocacy organizations have Myspace profiles, and even local real estate firms are opening up sites on Myspace. This is in a sign that there must be something in it for a wide variety of businesses and organizations.

So, how does it work and how could it be useful to a business or organization? Basically, you have to go to Myspace.com and open up an account. If you are indeed a musical group or artist then you should be sure to open up a music or band profile. There are also distinct accounts for comedians and filmmakers. If you need a specific type of profile then go to Myspace music, film or comedy and click on the artists sign up, otherwise just open up a new account at Myspace.com .

Once you have your profile set up. You can add an “about me” section, put up photos, and post blog messages. The Myspace blog is quite effective, and posts are quickly picked up by the Technorati blog search engine. You can also display your favorite song. If you have a basic knowledge of html you can modify your Myspace site and make it quite distinctive. You can also use online editors such as those found at www.Myspacetoolbox.com

The key to Myspace as a marketing tool is the Friends section. A “friend” is another Myspace user who has agreed to accept your request to be in contact with him or her. By building up a large list of friends you are effectively building up a large mailing list, and as marketers are quick to point out, “the money is in the list.”

You can build up a targeted list of friends by making searches on Myspace for specific keywords, or by browsing using all kinds of demographic criteria: age, marital status, zip code etc.

Once you get a list of friends, you can send bulletins and messages or make comments on your friend’s website. You can’t make a comment on another Myspace website unless you are already a friend, and I think this is the key factor that makes Myspace so interactive. Every time you make a comment on another Myspace website you are in effect making a link back to your site. Every time you are becoming a “friend” of another Myspace user, you are making a link back to your Myspace site.

Build up your links and you will get traffic. Build up your mailing list and you can advertise your events and offerings. Make a profile that is interesting and informative and you will build up your online credibility. It sounds like a winning formula to me.

Can it be effective for your business purposes? I can’t answer that question, you will have to try it and see if it works for you. One more thing, it is a lot of fun, and can be addictive.

About The Author

Donald Nelson is a web developer, author and social worker. His firm http://A1-Optimization.com provides affordable search engine optimization and website promotion services. You can read more articles like this one or sign up for a web promotion tips newsletter at http://www.a1-optimization.com.

Myspace A Space For (Business-) Friends?

2007-08-21T04:12:00.000-07:00

by: Christian Kameir

There is no question that MySpace can be a great methog to promote a business. MySpace is intended to be a non-commercial website by nature but there is a different between blatant commercialization and mentioning a product or service you offer and providing a link as a useful resource to visitors of your website. This article will take a look at the opportunities to promote a business on MySpace by providing information on determining whether or not your method of business promotion is permitted on MySpace and information on how to promote your business without being accused of spamming MySpace.

Review the Terms of Service Carefully

The terms of service provided by MySpace can provide the greatest insight into whether or not there are ways to promote your business through MySpace. Members of MySpace are asked to review the terms of service before becoming a member. Each member should carefully read through this entire agreement to come to a better understanding of which types of activities are allowed on MySpace as well as which types of activities are prohibited.

One of the stipulations of the MySpace reads as follows, “Non-commercial Use by Members. The MySpace Services are for the personal use of Members only and may not be used in connection with any commercial endeavors except those that are specifically endorsed or approved by http://MySpace.com. Illegal and/or unauthorized use of the MySpace Services, including collecting usernames and/or email addresses of Members by electronic or other means for the purpose of sending unsolicited email or unauthorized framing of or linking to the MySpace Website is prohibited. Commercial advertisements, affiliate links, and other forms of solicitation may be removed from Member profiles without notice and may result in termination of Membership privileges. Appropriate legal action will be taken for any illegal or unauthorized use of the MySpace Services.”

This section of the terms of service stipulates that MySpace is created for non-commercial use unless http://Myspace.com has approved the use of a member’s website for commercial purposes. Therefore care should be taken when designing a MySpace website to ensure the website will not be deemed to be a commercial website by MySpace administrators.

When In Doubt, Ask Questions

Those who are unsure of whether or not their MySpace website, as they have designed it, will be considered a commercial website should consult with MySpace administrators. This step is not necessary unless the member is concerned their content will be perceived as being commercial. Reviewing the terms of use agreement can provide a great deal of information but some users may still be concerned with the possibility that their website will be penalized if the administrators deem it to be commercial in nature.

Contacting MySpace is a fairly simple process. Members can use the, “Contact MySpace” link from the http://MySpace.com homepage. The contact page enables members to select a subject and a subtopic and submit this information. Once this is done MySpace provides some preliminary information which may be relevant. If this information is not useful to the member they can email a detailed request to MySpace.

Avoid Spamming at All Costs

If you determine there is an opportunity for you to promote your business through MySpace, care should be taken to ensure the promotion does not cross the line into spam. Spamming is taken very seriously by the MySpace administrators and it may result in links or content being deleted or the privileges of membership may be revoked when a member is found to be guilty of spamming.

Links to your ecommerce website integrated into your MySpace website isn’t considered spamming. Depending on how it is used it may not even be considered advertising, and therefore prohibited, by MySpace administrators. However, visiting other MySpace websites and placing a link to your ecommerce website on each website you visit would be considered spam. These individuals may or may not be interested in the website you provide but even if they are interested sending these links to numerous websites unsolicited is often considered to be spam.

About The Author

Christian Kameir is CEO of the San Diego's Internet marketing company Colizer Inc. Colizer focusses on online success for small and medium size businesses that were typically using the yellow pages for advertising.

http://www.colizer.com

Successful Myspace Strategies

2007-08-21T04:11:00.000-07:00

by: Dave Lloyd

Using MySpace effectively

Social networking is a phenomenon that seems recent on the internet with sites likie ecademy, linkedin, ryze, openbc, orkut, craigslist, friendster, and of course myspace. But the nature of networking with others has been around for thousands of years as individuals gathered in communities and expanded their base of friends. It's through the technology advancements, though, that worldwide networking with people you choose is being made easier every day.

The website MySpace is a community that has arisen in the last few years as a result of a need in the marketplace for an easy to use, customizable, fluid, multimedia rich, and fun place to hang out. Preteens, teens, and college age students have flocked to MySpace in droves, with the intent of creating a space for themselves on the web, expanding their network for social purposes, and being entertained along the way.

The MySpace platform is now used by tens of thousands of young adults daily, has a high ranking in sites like Alexa, and has retained a very loyalty effect, meaning that users frequently come back to the platform to add to their sites and connect or reconnect with those who also gather there.

One of the most useful features of MySpace is the ability to add in skins and overlays to add flavor to your site. There are many individuals and websites out there that enable easy customization of this online community. Along with visual customization of your site, it's also useful to include audio. This audio can be in the form of a message you leave for visitors or by adding in clips from your favorite music. Another great way to add flavor to your site is through the addition of content that reflects your personality, interests, thoughts, and basic views on the world. And by searching for users with similar interests and developing a connection with them, you can expand your networking.

In order to develop a connection with those you network with, it's best to keep in mind how to add value to the relationship you have with them. In other words, how can you benefit them or their site? Perhaps you know of someone they should meet and you want to make an introuction, or you know of other music similar to what they've posted on their site, or you have a perspective on some content they've included. It's through these sharings that you could not only increase the quantity of networking, but also the quality of networking that you're doing.

The skills in networking that young adults gain by using a site like MySpace are ones that will stay with them their whole life, enabling them eventually to maybe meet a mate, develop a fulfilling career, or establish lifelong friends.

By keeping in mind the principles of customizing content and developing a unique persona, focusing on adding value to relationships established online through speaking to what benefits them, and networking with a long-term view in mind for creating connecxtioins both with those you have a lot in common with and those you may not at first glance, the investment of time and effort you put into MySpace can pay off for the future as well.

About The Author

Dave Lloyd has created an online guide to MySpace and social networking at http://www.socialnetworkingsecrets.com.

Getting Started On MySpace

2007-08-21T04:10:00.000-07:00

by: David Hobson

MySpace is an online community which offers members the tools they need to create a website for other members of the community to view. MySpace also hosts these websites and provides search features which enables visitors to find information about particular members or members who have certain hobbies.

Opening a MySpace Account

The process of opening a MySpace account is fairly simple and takes place almost instantly. Members who wish to join the online community only have to provide some basic information and agree to the terms of service to be granted membership. The basic information which is required to request membership is a full name, a valid email address and a password containing alpha and numeric characters. After supplying this information and checking a box which states you agree to the terms of service your application process is complete. You are then sent an email with a welcome letter and a link which will activate your account. You only need to click on this link and enter your email address and password to activate your account.

Understanding the Terms of Service

Reading and agreeing to the terms of service is required for membership to the MySpace community but members should review these terms regularly and should be sure they understand all of the terms. This is important because violation of these terms could result in the member’s account being deleted or legal action being taken against the individual. Some of the highlights of the terms of service are:

* Members must be at least 14 years of age and must report their age accurately.
* Members are responsible for keeping their password secret and reporting suspected cases of others using their password.
* Commercial use of MySpace is prohibited unless prior authorization from MySpace is received.
* Users must not publish any copyrighted materials on their website without permission.
* Members may not post content which is prohibited by the terms of service.

Designing a MySpace Website

The process of designing a MySpace website is one of the most exciting parts of membership for many. It is also one of the most complicated part of the membership. However, it is not incredibly difficult and even those with limited HTML or other design skills can create a great website.

MySpace members have a great deal of control over the appearance and content of their website. They are only limited by their own design skills. The homepage for your MySpace account features the following links:

* Edit Profile
* Account Settings
* Add/Edit Photos
* Add/Change Videos
* Manage Calendar
* Manage Blog
* Manage Address Book

The “Edit Profile” section is the one which allows members to add the bulk of the content to their profile. This section is broken down into subcategories such as interests & personality, name, basic info, background & lifestyle, schools, companies, networking and profile songs. Some of these subcategories, such as the interests & personality section, contain titles with text boxes where members can add text and HTML code to modify the appearance of their website. During the design process, members can preview either individual sections or the entire profile. Other sections, such as the background and lifestyle section, have a series of questions where members can supply answers with pull down menus or radial buttons. These features make it easy for members to supply basic information about themselves in a quick and easy fashion. They only have to answer the questions and MySpace integrates the answers into the design of the website.

About The Author

David Hobson
http://www.myspacelowdown.com

A Background On MySpace Users

2007-08-21T04:09:00.000-07:00

by: Zinn Jeremiah

A perception still exists that MySpace is a website for kids. And this perception isn't entirely inaccurate: the specific numbers may not be available for general consideration, but a cursory look at the MySpace site -- the advertisements, a sampling of profiles -- indicates that the age range of MySpace users trends young. But trending young isn't the same as exclusively young.

There are certainly adult MySpace users. How many adult users? MySpace alone may know what the demographics of MySpace users are -- information that would certainly be used for advertising -- but the model for MySpace isn't inherently juvenile. MySpace, at its core, is a social network. Socializing is just for kids? Of course not.

Most MySpace users are younger, but there are adult MySpace users too. Let's take a guess and presume the division between MySpace users is seventy percent to thirty percent, favoring younger users. On its face, thirty percent may or may not be a considerable percentage. Thirty percent is considerable, however, when talking about MySpace users, because there are so many MySpace users to begin with.

On a typical MySpace profile, MySpace states there are -- rounding out -- one hundred ninety million users in the MySpace network. When trying to determine how many adults use MySpace, assuming thirty percent of MySpace users are adults, you get twenty-five million, rounded, from one hundred ninety million. Using this formula estimate, twenty-five million of MySpace users are adults.

MySpace claims there are one hundred ninety million users in their network. This number is certainly an overestimate. Why? The standard indication of a MySpace user is the presence of a MySpace home page, something MySpace refers to as a profile. It's not at all uncommon, however, for MySpace users to create more than one profile: one user creates several profiles in some instances. So while there may be one hundred ninety million MySpace profiles, each of those profiles does not indicate a unique MySpace user.

Even if one accepts that not every MySpace profile indicates a unique MySpace user -- a safe assumption -- it's still not difficult to estimate how many actual MySpace users there are. Say that, on average, each MySpace user actually creates two profiles: this may be a slightly low estimate, but it's not unreasonable. If each MySpace user creates two profiles, then there are actually ninety-five million unique MySpace users, not one hundred ninety million.

Regardless of how the number of unique MySpace users is actually estimated, the final number will be considerable. This has clear implications: MySpace is a great networking opportunity, whether the networking be social in nature, or professional.

About The Author

Zinn Jeremiah writes freelance, on a variety of subjects. You can access additional articles by Zinn at http://www.hubonline.biz/website-content.htm . Visit http://www.hubonline.biz/juice-your-profile.htm for MySpace resources.

Myspace Design Features

2007-08-21T04:08:00.000-07:00

by: David Riewe

Creating a MySpace website may seem overly complicated to those who have never done any HTML design in the past but it is really quite simple. Members who have advanced HTML knowledge can obviously incorporate more advanced features into their design but even those with no HTML knowledge may be able to create an attractive and functional MySpace website. This is possible because much of the design can be done through the use of templates. This article will focus on some of the most basic design features of MySpace to give beginners a basic understanding of the features they can incorporate into a new MySpace website and the types of changes which can be made to an existing website. This article will include information on changing the background, importing images, adding music to the website and posting quizzes for other users.

Adding or Changing the Background

The background color of a MySpace website is very important because it is one of the first things visitors notice when the website loads. If the background is garish and makes the website difficult to read, visitors may exit the page quickly. Conversely if the background is appealing it may make the entire website more appealing.

Basic HTML knowledge is required to add colors or background graphics to a MySpace profile. To add colors or background graphics go to the “Edit profile” section after logging into your account. Next enter the necessary code into the appropriate section. To get the background to appear on your profile you should include the code in the “About me” section of your account. If you are unsure of the code that is needed, there is a wealth of information available online for those who are learning HTML.

Importing Images

Many members of the MySpace community choose to post their picture on their website. Again the social aspects of the online community encourage this action because people who engage in online friendships often want to see what their new friends look like. Including pictures is the easiest way to let others know what you look like.

MySpace members are asked to upload a photo of themselves when they first sign up. This step can be skipped and done later. Photos which are uploaded to MySpace must be .gif or .jpg files. Additionally they must be smaller than 600k. The filename for photos should also not contain spaces or characters other than numbers or letters.

Adding Music to the Website

The addition of music to a MySpace website is a very common practice. This is used both by bands who want to promote their music as well as by individuals who want to let others know what type of music they like. The process of adding music to a MySpace website is incredibly easy. Members can visit the following web address to listen to music from MySpace artists: http://music.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=music. If the artist has granted permission for others to use the music, there will be a button that says “Add” next to the song. Clicking on this link, when you are logged into this account, will automatically add the music to the background of your MySpace website. You are only able to add one song at once to your profile but you can change the music as often as you like by adding a new song. If you already have one song and add another, the second song will replace the original song on your profile.

Posting Quizzes on the Website

Many MySpace members include fun personality quizzes on their website and publish their quiz results. These quizzes give visitors more information about the member. The members may also post a link to this quiz so other members can take the quiz and post their results in the comments page. Different types of personality quizzes can be found on the Internet and many of these quizzes give you the code necessary to add this quiz to your MySpace website or another websites. You can copy and paste the code into the “Interests” section of your MySpace profile.

About The Author

David Riewe is the webmaster of http://www.daves-inforama.com and http://www.daves-inforama.com/myspace.

The MySpace Phenomenon

2007-08-21T04:07:00.002-07:00

by: David Hobson

These days it seems like anyone who is anyone is on MySpace. In a short time MySpace has literally exploded from just a few members to millions of members around the world. This astounding phenomenon has made MySpace one of the most popular websites around and a virtual necessity for those who want to make friends through an online community or find old friends with whom they have lost contact. It has become one of the first places many Internet users turn when they want to learn more about someone in particular or make new friends.

A few years ago the term, “Google it” became synonymous for the practice of using a search engine to find more information about a particular person or subject. Internet users were using the term “Google it” even when they were using different search engines because the name Google had been branded so well it became somewhat of a generic term for search engine. MySpace is well on its way to becoming the brand synonymous with online communities. Although there are other websites which offer similar services, MySpace is quickly becoming the most dominant one.

Who is On MySpace?

The answer to this question is just about everyone. While this answer is not nearly true it is also very appropriate. It is not nearly true because in terms of factual evidence, despite the large number of MySpace members, there are still many more people in the world who do not participate in the MySpace online community. However, an answer of everyone to this question is also fitting because individuals from different cultures around the world and different age groups are all using MySpace.

Unlike online message boards and discussion forums where members are usually somewhat similar and share a particular interest, there are members who are vastly different in the MySpace community. MySpace members represent just about all nationalities, sexual orientations, financial levels, occupations, political beliefs, religions and other variables. While it is true that members who are vastly different may not be interacting to a tremendous extent on MySpace there is certainly representation from all walks of life on MySpace.

MySpace Lurkers

We have already discussed the extent of members on MySpace but the MySpace community is really much larger than the membership of the website. It is important to note that members’ websites are viewable to the public unless they are specifically designated as private websites. This means many members’ websites can be viewed by those who do not join MySpace. These individuals are known as lurkers and they effectively increase the size of the community by an immeasurable number.

Lurkers may be completely harmless individuals who are just looking to read about others but who have no interest in sharing their own personal information or they can be predators. The latter is more serious because these lurkers can use the information they find on MySpace to stalk or otherwise harass members of their own community. Many members of MySpace include both pictures and their hometown on their MySpace profile. This information can be used, by unscrupulous predators, to gather more information about the individual. For this reason care should always be used when posting information on MySpace.

Why Aren’t You on MySpace?

If you aren’t on MySpace, many of your friends may wonder why especially if they use this community. In fact many members of MySpace join simply as a way to have fun and keep in touch with their friends and relatives. However, there are number of reasons some individuals may not join MySpace. For many time constraints is a significant factor which leads them to avoid joining MySpace. MySpace can become somewhat addicting with members spending increasing amounts of time updating their website or searching for new friends in the community.

Others may not participate in MySpace because they find some websites in the community to be offensive. There are guidelines regarding the types of materials which can be posted on MySpace but there is always the potential for questionable materials to escape the attention of the MySpace administrators. There is also the possibility that members will be offended by content that is permissible.

About The Author

David Hobson
http://www.myspacelowdown.com

MySpace Predators - How to Help Kids Avoid Them

2007-08-21T04:07:00.001-07:00

by: Scott Hendison

When it comes to the latest and greatest on the internet, the new rage is MySpace. This is a site where people from all over the world can connect with each other via the web. As opposed to an instant messaging program, MySpace allows the user to post pictures as well as detailed information.

But just like anything else on the internet, MySpace comes along with safety problems as well. No matter how many people try to stop internet predators they keep showing up time and time again. And this is especially true when it comes to MySpace.

The best way to avoid MySpace predators is by never getting too involved with anybody until you know exactly what they are about. In other words, don’t give anybody your contact information unless you know for 100% positive that they are trustworthy. Remember, if nobody has your contact information they can never get a hold of you. And to take this a step further, if somebody is harassing you through the MySpace site, contact the administrators right away and turn them onto the problem. If this gets you nowhere and you feel in danger, there is nothing wrong with contacting your local police department.

Overall, avoid MySpace predators is not something that should be hard to do. Even though MySpace is different than other forms of internet communication, you should still be able to use the same basic knowledge to avoid any problems. Keep your contact information confidential, and you should be able to have a great time on MySpace.

About The Author

Scott Hendison - Editor, WebSafeKid.Com

http://www.websafekid.com is designed to help parents, kids and teens with internet safety, and learn how to protect their privacy and security online and to teach responsible internet use.

Social Networking - The Next Great Marketing Medium?

2007-08-21T04:06:00.000-07:00

by: Rob Sullivan

There has been a virtual explosion of social networking sites in the past couple of years. Even the big players like Google, Yahoo and MSN are getting into it.

With so much interest in how social networks work, one begins to wonder if there is marketing potential within these social networks?

I’ve been watching social networking for some time now. In fact I’m a member of various social networking sites including MySpace and LinkedIn just to name two.

I joined partly because I wanted to see what they were, but more importantly to see what impact social networking would have on SEM in the coming years.

I’ve been a member of various services for some time and the reach these sites have is incredible.

For example, from my LinkedIn network of seven people I have an expanded network of over 12,600 people.

Imagine that - I’m only a click or two away from close to 13,000 other people who share my similar interests ranging from what I like to watch on TV to work I could provide to them.

Through my connections and their connections, I’m connected to people ranging from the American Cancer Society, to Sun Microsystems to the University of Texas to Google.

But what marketing opportunities are there for Social Networking?

Well, let’s look at MySpace.

MySpace is one of the top sites on the Web today. It racked up 9.4 billion page-views in August 2005 (more than Google) and new users are signing up at a mind-boggling rate of 3.5 million a month.

MySpace is typical of where today’s 18-30 year old goes to manage their digital life. It allows users to post photos of themselves and their friends, create a blog, list their favorite bands, view and share videos, suggest things to do and lists a set of people they consider friends. It is on this “Friends List” where most of the opportunities lie.

All thirty million plus users of MySpace have a friend’s page that lists people that person considers their friend. This is a list of people that they are interested in talking to and about, as well as hearing from on a regular basis. Once you add someone as your friend they can send you emails, comment on your photos, read your blogs, as well as leave messages that you can then share with others. This is an opportunity for instant feedback about you.

The ability to add friends to your page is key for marketing to MySpace users. According to Courtney Holt, head of new media and strategic marketing at Interscope Records, “This generation is growing up without having ever watched programmed media.” “They don’t think in terms of the album, and they don’t think in terms of a TV schedule. They think in terms of TiVo, P2P, AOL, and of course MySpace.”

You can see how this could grow.

Let’s say you create a MySpace account to talk about your product or service. You blog about it and search for others that may share your interests.

You then invite them to be your friend. When they become a friend you start your “soft sell” pitching your product to them.

As they grow to appreciate it, they start blogging and sharing it. Soon hundreds or even thousand of people are talking about you and your product or service.

Don’t think this will work?

Let me give you some examples. There are many bands who have gotten their start on MySpace. Simply by hosting some of their music online and blogging about themselves they developed a following. Soon they had record deals and contracts lined up.

Of course to use services like MySpace you need to have something this target market needs. If you don’t then you probably shouldn’t put too much effort into MySpace.

But that doesn’t mean other social networking opportunities should be overlooked. As I mentioned above, LinkedIn is more of a professional introduction service. If your product or service fits here then by all means explore it further.

And there are others as well. Services such as Yahoo!s MyWeb, Flickr, del.icio.us and more.

So if you’ve ever wondered what other online opportunities could be out there, consider social networking. It could be the next great online marketing channel.

About The Author

Rob Sullivan is a SEO Consultant and Writer for Textlinkbrokers.com. Textlinkbrokers is the trusted leader in building long term rankings through safe and effective link building. Please provide a link directly to Textlinkbrokers when syndicating this article.

Myspace.com - What Parents Need To Know

2007-08-21T04:05:00.000-07:00

by: Don Schnure

MySpace is a website that was designed for social networking. While it is intended for individuals 18 years of age and older, the truth is that the majority (at least at this point) of people with MySpace profiles are those under 18. Teenagers in particular have flocked to MySpace are predominately responsible for it’s success.

However there is a downside here. Often, talk of teen sex, drug use and other situations adult situations many parents would prefer their children to read about or be exposed too. What shocks parents the most is to find that their children post their own comments and experiences on without any regard to the repercussions of such self exposure.

One of the most common problems with teenagers (and younger children as well) is their inability to connect what they do today, to their life in the future. It's extremely difficult for teens to see that there are often consequences to their actions or pictures that they post on MySpace and other similar social networking sites.

But for many parents, the largest concern is that the 'profiles' kids create for themselves are not always used for the innocent purposes that the children intend. The internet allows individuals to pretend to be anyone they want. This anonymity becomes a problem when it's used to sexual predators and other dangerous individuals that use MySpace in order to find potential victims. Teenagers are especially vulnerable when it comes to society and peer pressure. This is the age during which many children think that they are invulnerable and will live forever.

But the fact is that it's those types of thoughts that forces teenagers in particular to be the most vulnerable.

Social networking sites like MySpace.com can be used that does in fact help friends to stay connected and help fulfill the socialization issues teens go through, but the fact is that they are also used in a more sinister manner by those internet predators that use sites like MySpace as a hunting ground. In May of 2007 MySpace.com officials confirmed over 30,000 registered sex offenders had they own profiles on MySpace. And many of these indivuduals are pretending to be teens themselves in an effort to 'groom' an unsuspecting child for later molestation or worse.

When parents understand more about MySpace and what opportunities there are through MySpace, the good and the bad, it is easier to understand how to protect children and teenagers from dangers and threats that they may end up facing. The sad truth is that sometimes websites are not as harmless as parents innocently believe them to be. This is problem is made worse because teenagers do not fully explain the type of sites they visit and in the way that they hide their social networking activities because they know that their parents would disapprove.

Instead, children may just tell their parents that they do not understand 'social networking', and blow off their parents concern. But by being proactive, staying informed and staying on top of their teen's online activity, parents are more likely to be able to keep their children safe.

Of course there are dangers on the Internet, and there will always be. The trick for parents is learning how to adopt your child to using the internet in academic and social ways without putting themselves in any type of real and immediate danger.

About The Author

A long time Internet safety for children advocate, Don Schnure is president and CEO of Parental Control Products, LLC, the makers of http://www.teenchatdecoder.com and http://www.pctattletale.com

Marketing with My Space: An Interview

2007-08-21T04:04:00.000-07:00

by: Jinger Jarrett

Matthew Sherborne started marketing on the internet in 1998 with his first website devoted to his commercial diving business. Matthew accumulated real-life knowledge of using low-cost advertising techniques and continually searched for new and innovative marketing methods. Through all of his research looking for the perfect system of promotion, he's discovered the most successful method has always been word of mouth advertising. With that knowledge he's been an enthusiastic supporter of searching and utilizing viral marketing techniques.

Since selling his diving service business in 2002 he's traveled from San Diego to Hawaii and finally to the San Francisco Bay area. Working a variety of labor intensive jobs, above and below ground and water, he decided in early 2005 to put 100 percent of his effort into internet marketing.

Since that time he's focused exclusively on the most effective low-cost marketing techniques to boost his online business. He now offers the very same techniques that's made him successful and yielded incredible results. Matthew has a passion for marketing and it shows as he shares today's most radically effective promotional techniques.

Matthew will take you behind the scenes to show you exactly how he makes his lucrative income and how he markets his own business online. With his "nothing held back" philosophy you can expect to get all of the inside secrets and sales boosting tactics to use on your very own online business.

Question: I read your ebook, "MySpace Cash Machine", and it is excellent. How did you get started marketing on My Space, and how did you find all of the techniques for marketing on My Space?

Answer: I got started marketing on My Space quite by accident in late 2005, in fact if not for a musician friend of mine, I would have missed it entirely.

He sent me to his My Space profile and told me how he was receiving some great exposure to his website from linking there. I'd heard in the media that My Space was literally exploding in popularity and that was enough for me to take the opportunity seriously enough to learn more. I discovered not only was My Space fast becoming the most popular website online, it held the potential to reach millions of people for free.

After some research I found that the most commented on and popular profiles were the ones that focused entirely on one subject and did so enthusiastically. Then I carefully studied what others were doing on their My Space profiles in regards to sending bulletins, comments and setting up profiles. My ultimate goal was to uncover exactly how they were making money.

I then replicated the successful money-making techniques by fine tuning my profile and website offer. By targeting one specific high-paying niche, it maximized results and brought more income. I then looked for other high interest topics within My Space and started experimenting with a variety of niche topics with different themed profiles designed to funnel people to websites exactly suited to their wants.

Question: Why do you think My Space is such an effective place to market your business? Why would you recommend My Space?

Answer: For starters, My Space currently has more than an 80 percent market share over all social networking websites. This accounts for a total number of profiles in excess of 100 million and My Space is currently ranked the 5th most visited website on the planet. As you can imagine the sheer number of people on My Space makes it an extremely attractive place to find hungry customers.

Coupled with the fact that My Space allows you to customize your own webpage with HTML code and CSS to give it any kind of look you want and link to outside sources is irresistible. Imagine the potential of having a popular profile centered around a lucrative keyword and linking it to your own Adsense monetized website or sales page.

Once you've got a popular profile it becomes an incredible opportunity just waiting for you to plug in to it. Through the use of groups, forums, messages, events, comments, blogs, videos and classified advertising you have a multitude of ways to reach people interested in your products and turn them into your customers.

You can use My Space to get targeted customers for virtually any product you have to offer and you can grow your opt-in lists to continue the selling process. The best part is, you can use My Space to tap in to the most powerful kind of marketing ever known, word of mouth.

Question: What marketing technique do you find to be the most effective, and how do you use it? Would you tell us one or two of your best marketing tips?

Answer: As a marketer, the most important key to remember is that your My Space profile is created to attract viewers to your website. To do this, you must determine the most remarkable aspect of your product and turn that into your own persuasive story. Your whole profile must reflect your unique story and be structured so that it not only appeals to your target audience but compels them to find out more.

Your My Space picture is often the first thing that people see; make sure you have one that stands out. The best pictures stir up an emotion in its viewer. A good rule of thumb is to select pictures that are relevant to your product and audience. My favorite strategy is to use a movable gif that is a little larger than the average and captures the viewer's attention.

You'll want to spend time selecting a strong headline for your profile since it will appear next to your picture. It will also be visible from comments you leave on other profiles and on the My Space search function. It's important that you use proper search engine optimization techniques in your headline and throughout your profile's content. The headline should reflect your overall strategy with important keywords.

Leveraging the efforts of many is key to building a profitable My Space marketing business. One of the best ways to market your offer on My Space after you've established your profile is through the use of groups. You have the opportunity to start a group on virtually any topic you want. When you start a group you have control over who can join and its content. To get your group started send a bulletin to everyone on your friends list. Once you've got a loyal following to your group, people will gladly share the information with others.

If you want to send viewers to a specific offer, sending bulletins to your My Space profile's friends list will get you instant results. You can use bulletins to offer something of perceived value to gain the acceptance of friends and have them become outspoken advocates for your product.

Commenting on popular profiles will get people coming to check you out. People on My Space love to share things with each other. If you have a unique video, funny picture or contest, you can post it on popular profiles and really spread your message. Once the word is out, its potential to spread is limitless.

Question: What trends do you see in marketing on My Space? What do you see in the future of My Space?

Answer: My Space has grown so fast due in large part to its success facilitating direct person to person interaction. Whether it's sharing pictures, videos or content, people are moving away from disruptive media sources and embracing those that involve user generated content. You can expect to see more consumer created media begin to appear on profiles and anticipate more people willing to share it.

In the near future people will not only research a particular product, but go to My Space to learn about the product's creator. Building relationships and connecting with others of like mind is what My Space is all about . For savvy marketers, this means allowing the consumer to feel like they have a direct connection with you.

Marketers who expose others to non interruptive sources of information will have the greatest success, as quality content becomes the accepted norm. Competition will intensify among traditional advertisers as the ad dollars spent on social networks approaches the billions. With its massive success My Space will branch out to being viewed via cell phones and expand to other countries like China and Japan.

Most importantly, successful online marketing will transform to become continually viral. Instead of buying a product based on brand alone, consumers will seek out and follow the recommendations of others. Marketers who have framed their message to be extraordinary will benefit from having it shared and heard worldwide.

Question: What projects are you currently working on, and where do you plan to take your business from here?

Answer: My future is focused primarily on helping other small business owners strategically place themselves in their market to stand out among the corporations without spending a fortune. The objective is to build resources that bridge the gap between consumers and marketers and generate customers who become outspoken supporters.

I plan on taking my business forward by concentrating on the most effective new forms of media. You'll hear a whole lot more of me as I venture into online video, audio products and viral promotions. My business plan incorporates a series of interconnected products all pursuing the goal of pushing the marketing boundaries to new limits.

About The Author

Jinger Jarrett is the author of the book, "Internet Marketing for Free: The GUIDE (on Amazon). Get your free ebook download at http://www.askjingernow.com Matthew Sherborne is the author of the ebook, My Space Cash Machine: http://www.cashmachinebook.com/ Get your free ecourse now.

Evading Censorship: Using a Proxy to Visit MySpace

2007-08-21T04:03:00.000-07:00

by: John Dwine

Many school classrooms primarily use computers and the ‘net to gather and save information. More and more colleges are offering entire learning environments via a web-based medium where no physical classroom is even necessary. Employers are also following suite and using the Internet as a mass communication tool for employers to interact electronically with one another with little cost. With this significant increase in the ‘net’s usefulness, there has come about stronger laws governing exactly what content is distributed.

One such very popular proxy (http://www.proxymy.com) has become notoriously popular for allowing students to access MySpace (a popular social networking website) from their school internet connection. Not only do proxies such as ProxyMy.com allow access to MySpace from school and colleges, but they are also almost necessary to use in the work environment. Employers are able to browse and track every single website their employees visits at work. An anonymous web based proxy can ensure privacy when surfing the web.

Access to otherwise filtered websites, and securing browsing privacy are two great benefits of a CGI based anonymizer proxy. Another great benefit, not to be overlooked, is also the security offered when browsing the net through a proxy. As great of an educational tool the internet has become, it is also a nefarious medium for advertisers to distribute all sorts of unwanted advertisement including: spam, pop ups, viruses, and predominantly spyware.

A CGI proxy allows anyone using it to block cookies that track browsing habits for these ads to ensure your computer’s safety, privacy, and right to browse the internet as it was meant to be seen: An uncensored medium.

About The Author

John Dwine is a freelance author noted for topics such as: computer security, anonymity, internet privacy, and censorship free web browsing.

Is MySpace a Good Space?

2007-08-21T04:02:00.000-07:00

by: Brad Franklin

There are more than 100 million people who are members of MySpace. This number continues to grow and the majority of people who have memberships at MySpace are young people.

Teens and young adults post all kinds of information on MySpace. Most of this information is very personal and can be dangerous. Young members of MySpace often do not realize that there are people using MySpace who are not honest about their intentions. There are predators who lure teens and young adults into relationships that are extremely risky and unsafe.

Many young people love being part of MySpace. They feel it is the perfect place to post their photos, profiles and blogs. The younger members of MySpace think it is safe and don’t think anything bad will happen to them.

If you are a parent who has a child who uses the Internet there are some things you can do to keep you kids safer. Even if you don’t know much about the Internet you can still lower the risks for your kids when they are using online services.

Your son or daughter will have online aliases. Find out what these are. Do not be afraid to restrict online use to the times when a parent is home. It is also a good idea to have the computer located in a place where it can be monitored. If the computer is in a higher traffic area you can pop in often and see what’s going on.

Talk to your kids about your concerns and come up with some family rules. Discuss the instances where predators have used the Internet to abduct and assault kids.

MySpace may be a good space if kids know the dangers and have parents who know what to look for.

About The Author

Brad Franklin
http://www.websafekid.com is designed to help parents, kids and teens with internet safety, and learn how to protect their privacy and security online and to teach responsible internet use.

Great Daytrips From Dublin - Ireland

2007-08-21T03:42:00.000-07:00

by: Andy Burrows

This warm and hospitable city has it all; culture, shopping and an electrifying nightlife. However, it is worth checking out Dublin’s hinterland by indulging yourself in a daytrip from Dublin.

Finding somewhere to stay couldn’t be easier. There is an array of hotels, hostels, guesthouses and bed and breakfasts to choose from to suit any budget. With your base in Dublin arranged, it is time to choose your daytrip from Dublin. You could hire a car or make use of the public transport options.

If you not wish to hire a car than using public transport in and around the city is by far the smartest way to travel. With high volumes of traffic throughout the day, driving here can be frustrating and chaotic. So why not let the DART (train), the bus or the LUAS (light rail transport) do all the work, at reasonable expense.

Taking a double-decker tour bus to the south coast and gardens is a fantastic daytrip from Dublin. The bus makes its way through the seaside suburb of Dun Laoghaire, past a picturesque promenade and a beautiful marina. Sandycove and the infamous James Joyce Tower awaits day-trippers before the bus heads inland, climbing the Wicklow Mountains and offering breathtaking views of this rugged terrain.

Cameras at the ready as you make your way through the town of Enniskerry, a sleepy picture-perfect town of a time gone by. Finally, you will arrive at Powerscourt estate. The grounds of this estate have been used for movies such as Braveheart and are quite simply breathtaking. The Japanese and Italian gardens of the estate offer the perfect place to relax and wile away the afternoon.

Taking the north line DART to the last stop brings you to Howth. This charming fishing village is the starting point for a walk up to Howth Head. Following the signs marked ‘Summit’ will take you on a scenic trek over the cliffs to Howth Head. From here, you can admire the stunning views across the city of Dublin and Ireland’s Eye bird sanctuary. On your return to Howth, you will have worked up an appetite and where better to enjoy a portion of fish and chips than at a fishing village. The fish alone is a reason for making the daytrip from Dublin.

Ever wanted to know what it would be like to be Irish? Well now you can find out for yourself thanks to a family-run farm about an hour north of Dublin. This great daytrip from Dublin comprises of live music, hearty meals and a day full of Irish activities. These include learning to play the bodhrán (Irish drum), language lessons in Gaeilge (Irish) and indulging your competitive side in the Irish sport of hurling.

At the end of the day, you will be fed until bursting with traditional Irish fair accompanied by music and local dancing known as a céilí. There are public buses from Dublin’s Central Bus Station (Busuras) to Kells every 30 minutes and you can arrange a pick up from the bus station if you let them know your arrival time.

With a superb daytrip from Dublin behind you, all that there is left to do is sit back and enjoy a pint of black velvet and have a great night’s craic.

About The Author

Travel websites reviewer and Ireland connoisseur Andy Burrows is in love with the city of Dublin. He truly enjoys driving around the city’s surroundings. For virtual travel planning he advises: http://www.self-catering.co.uk/ and http://www.hirecars.com/

Great Daytrips From Cape Town – South Africa

2007-08-21T03:39:00.001-07:00

by: Andy Burrows

Cape Town is a modern city that combines both old and new, which is reflected in the city’s architecture, culture, history and people. With a large table-shaped mountain serving as a backdrop, Cape Town is set on a peninsula where the Indian and Atlantic oceans meet. There are a lot of great daytrips in Cape Town, offering something for everyone.

Visitors must get involved in the daytrips from Cape Town to fully experience this city. There are so many things to do, ranging from water activities like scuba diving and snorkelling, to sightseeing and appreciating the city’s natural charm. Close to the city centre, the beaches of Cape Town are among the most beautiful in the world. Magically positioned between mountain and sea, the beach stretch from False Bay to the Atlantic coast is ideal for sun lovers and water sports fans.

Just 10 minutes from Cape Town are Clifton and Camps Bay, both of which are perfect for swimming and sunbathing. There is lots of surfing spots, as well as great areas to fish, scuba dive and board sail. The Atlantic coast can be quite cool for some. A short drive away is False Bay, where there are warm waters at Mulzenberg, Kalk Bay or Simonstown. For those who enjoy sunbathing among nature, Sandy Bay natural reserve is a nudist beach. All of Cape Town’s beaches offer free entry, with the exception of Boulders Beach in False Bay.

There are many activities to choose from when planning Cape Town daytrips. Daytrips are best done with hire car, though it is not crucial to have one. The most enjoyable trip is discovering the splendour of Table Mountain by cableway. The most identifying landmark of Cape Town, Table Mountain is a World Heritage site. Its peak is at 1086m above sea level and can be accessed by cable car.

As visitors enjoy refreshments at the restaurant, they will be in awe of the 360-degree view of Cape Town. The mountain is covered with wild flowers and also the famous silver tree. It is a joy for hikers to experience Table Mountain, with different walking trails marked by difficulty.

The most important historical site in South Africa, Robben Island is definitely worth a day visit. First used by the Dutch East India Company as a refreshment port, it then became a leper colony and asylum. After that, the army gained control of the island, after which it came under the Department of Correctional Services in 1960. Later a renowned prison for those considered hazardous to the former government, its most famous occupant was former president Nelson Mandela, who stayed here for 27 years. Guided tours of the museum and prison are available to a limited number of visitors per day.

You can travel to the Cape winelands by taking a scenic drive through vineyards, mountain ranges and Dutch homesteads. The historic town of Stellenbosch is worth a visit, especially if you participate in the wine cellar tours and tastings. Stop by Paarl and enjoy the Fairview wine estate for wine and cheese tasting.

There are seasonal Seal Island boat trips available along the Atlantic seaboard and at Hout Bay, as well as a coastal drive through Constantia Nek and Ouu Kaapse Weg to Cape Point, where the two oceans meet. The Good Hope Nature Reserve is located close by and offers a handsome selection of birds, plants and animals. From here, take a look at Simonstown and the large penguin colony at Boulder’s Beach. Lastly, stop by the famous Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens to unwind.

There are seasonal events in Cape Town as well. Between June and November, whale watching is available and should not be missed. The whales make their journey from the Antarctic to the Cape and Hermanus coasts. At Walker Bay, they even come as close as 50 metres from the shore. You can visit the Harbour Museum in Hermanus during your trip as well. To get back to Cape Town, take the beautiful ‘Riviera of the Cape’ coast drive through Gordon’s Bay.

If you are visiting Cape Town during September and October, take yourself two hours away from the city through the amazing shift from desert to lush flowers. During these months, native flowers cover the whole ground.

Cape Town has abundance of things to do and places to see. Whether you’re drawn to water, sand or greenery, you can find it here. Treat yourself to one of the world’s most beautiful tourist attractions and enjoy a unique array of personal experiences.

About The Author

Andy Burrows has seen it all, the outstanding beauty of Cape Town and many other South African destinations. He strongly advises: http://www.comparecarrentals.com/ and http://www.comparecarrentals.co.uk/

Great Daytrips From Bordeaux - France

2007-08-21T03:36:00.000-07:00

by: Andy Burrows

Mention Bordeaux to anyone and they automatically think of high quality wine. The region of Bordeaux has been making fine wines for centuries and has become internationally renowned thanks to the efforts of the city of Bordeaux and its trade routes.

Although known primarily for its wine, the city is full of history and has some of the best architecture in France. Recently UNESCO added three of Bordeaux’s religious shrines to its World Heritage site list. These are the Saint-Seurin, Saint André and the Saint- Michel cathedrals. Before the excellent wine slightly obscures your vision, make sure you check out all the city has to offer.

Wine connoisseurs and culture junkies alike will be amazed with what the surrounding areas have to offer. Basing yourself in the city and venturing into the peripheral areas for daytrips from Bordeaux is easily the best way to really get to know and love this beautiful southwestern corner of France.

Firstly, let’s talk wine! Before jumping feet first into the Bordeaux wine experience, why not take a daytrip to Maison de Vin de Bordeaux and gain the knowledge needed to fully make the most of your wine adventure. At the Maison, you will be given an introduction into the many grape varieties and discover how the climate and soils of the region influences the taste of the grapes.

Learn how the masters find the perfect equilibrium and harmony through the making and ageing of their wines. Everyone’s favourite part of the day is the finale, the tasting! See how different techniques can help you to describe what you’re tasting. Now you’ll be ready to give those TV wine buffs a run for their money.

For a great daytrip from Bordeaux, take the infamous Fortified Towns road to discover a fascinating wine route. Sandwiched between the Garonne and Dordogne rivers, this region is by far the largest and most diverse in Bordeaux. Here you’ll find fruity, lively reds; clarets and rosés; crisp and young whites; and sweet whites.

The area is littered with wineries open for tasting and because you’re in Bordeaux, you can be sure the quality is second to none. Found a wine you like? Take advantage of the amazing prices by buying direct from the winery where you find your favourite drop.

Need to burn off some calories from last night’s over indulgence? Hiring a bike and cycling to the Dune du Pyla makes a great daytrip from Bordeaux. The journey takes about 2 hours and covers a distance of 30 miles (50kms), as you meander through fragrant pine forests on your way to the dunes and the ocean. At three miles (five kilometres) long, the Dune du Pyla sits wonderfully between the sea and the forests. Don’t forget your camera!

The Bassin d’Arcachon is a mecca for locals and tourists who love seafood, in particular oysters. The place to see and be seen in this area is Cap Ferret beach. Taking a daytrip here from Bordeaux will revitalise your senses. The seafront location, the glorious food and the unparalleled views will send your mind into overload.

Taking a daytrip from Bordeaux will really let you experience French life and culture that little bit more. The region is like its wine; the more you drink, the more you want!

About The Author

Travel website reviewer Andy Burrows loves Bordeaux and the surrounding wine-making region. His recommendation for the most convenient online service: http://www.comparecarrentals.com/ and http://www.comparecarrentals.co.uk/

Travel To Machu Picchu

2007-08-21T03:35:00.000-07:00

by: Alexander Quiroz

One of the most visited sites in the world today by travelers is Machu Picchu. It is located in Cuzco, Peru in the high Andes Mountains. It is approximately 724 miles away from Lima, the Peruvian capital. A typical trip by land on a bus takes about 20 hours. One could also take a flight and arrive there in a heartbeat of one hour. The starting point usually begins in Lima.

The ruins sit surrounded by the Andes Mountains at about 11,024 feet above sea level. The name Machu Picchu literally means “old peak”, translated from the Quechua language. It was discovered by Hiram Bingham on July 24, 1911 while he was in charge of a Yale University expedition. It was in this landscape that the Incas built Machu Picchu at the end of the fourteenth century.

The climate is mild, warm and damp. It has a year round average temperature of 55F during the day. There are typically two seasons, a rainy season which lasts from November to March and dry season, which lasts from April to October. Most travelers prefer to travel to the site during the dry season.

Personal Travel Experience

I had the pleasure of visiting Machu Picchu 22 years ago around this time when I was a small child. I was accompanied by my mother. The scenery was beautiful and breathtaking. We took a train from the city of Cuzco and it took us just a few hours to get to Machu Picchu. Then we had to take a small bus up the trail all the way to the top. Nowadays, there are two ways to connect from Cuzco. One is a Tourist Train, which only operates in the high season. The trip takes four hours and returns in the evening. Then there is also the Autovagon, a tourist service that takes three hours to get to the site with an evening return trip as well. Both leave in the early morning hours.

We highly recommend you to put Machu Picchu, Peru as one of your top travel destinations to visit in the near future. The experience will be unforgettable.

UPDATE: On July 7th in Lisbon, Portugal, Machu Picchu was voted in as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World.

About The Author

Alexander Quiroz is Peruvian American and Founder of http://AssistMeOnline.com, a great place to get answers to Travel questions and more.