Cultural Travel Tips

Literary Holidays

To go on holiday is quite enough for many people. Once you get to that mid-point in the year, having been working flat out for some months, it is more than enough to get away from it all and spend some time by a swimming pool. Others, however, will enjoy the chance to go and do something that they have not had the opportunity to do for some time. Cultural trips are something that can be considered a niche market – you either enjoy it or you do not. They are, however, growing more popular than ever, and holiday makers will look to the books on their shelves before the brochures at the travel agency when it comes to planning a holiday.

The world does not view literature as something that as borders. There are great writers from many countries, and their influences, muses and their childhood haunts are greatly varied. Whoever your favourite writer is, there is a tour to be made in their honour. Their original writings may not even have been in English – some of the finest writers in the world are only available through the wonders of translation. This makes it all the better to take a little literary tour in their honour – you can enjoy the wonders of another country while witnessing what influenced your heroes. If it so happens that your favourite writer grew up 25 kilometres away from where you live, then you can at least make a cheap day trip out of the experience.

For the Canadian bibliophile, it is possible to travel and see the old haunts of arguably Canada’s greatest living fiction author Margaret Atwood, author of The Handmaid’s Tale among other books. A varied childhood took Margaret from her birthplace in Ottawa to the wilder areas of Northern Quebec and back again, before heading on to Sault Sainte Marie and Toronto, where she read English. She has taught in many universities in Canada and beyond as a professor of English. For any budding writer, to see the sights that sparked such creativity into life can surely never be a bad thing.

For those who wish to spread their wings a little more, there are options just beyond the borders of Canada – some people will invariably wish to follow in the footsteps of the great travelogue authors like Jack Kerouac or Hunter S Thompson. Others will be keen to see the sights that influenced the likes of F Scott Fitzgerald, James Ellroy and Edgar Allen Poe, to whose work Baltimore has become an almost permanent monument.

Further south, in the Hispanic area of Central and South America there are many reminders of the great work of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Isabel Allende and Carlos Fuentes. Elsewhere in the world there have been amazing writers in so many nations – Ireland has Oscar Wilde, George Bernard Shaw and WB Yeats, England has William Shakespeare, Geoffrey Chaucer and very many others. France and Spain have had wonders which need no introduction, and the Africa of Senghor and Fanon among others will capture the imagination of any lover of great literature.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Travelnowsimply.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to ahmeddawn.com site. This article originally published on the above website on June 26, 2009.

Swine Flu And International Travel

Swine Flu and How it Will Affect Travel

There are some stories that cause you to immediately recalibrate the way you look at things, that change your realities in a quite profound way. In the midst of the current global financial crisis, it was always going to take a big story to drag attention away from the turmoil in the markets. The great misfortune is that the story which has done this has turned out to be another bad news story – and one with more very real human casualties. The outbreak of swine flu which arose in Mexico has become a global issue very quickly. It is still far more pronounced in Mexico than anywhere else, but it is something that nations are having to take account of, wherever they are in the world.

The fact that the virus originated in Mexico is, for a start, a hammer blow to the people of Mexico. Most importantly it has had a genuine human cost, for its victims and for the bereaved and concerned families. From the point of view of travel it has already had a major effect, as the popular Spring Break tradition of heading South from the US to the beaches of Cancun and further afield has been given a miss by many students this year. However big or small the actual risk is, there is a perception of risk, and that is enough to make a significant number of people change their plans. Meanwhile, travel the other way can lead to difficulties depending on where your destination is. Depending on the government response to the epidemic, you may face a period of quarantine in the country where you land.

As of now, there are very few prescribed steps being demanded by governments as to whether you should go to Mexico. The decision lies with the individual, although some governments have warned their national citizens against non-essential travel to destinations in Mexico. The World Health Organization has responded that it does not see a need to place any restrictions, and the facts as they stand are that at the moment, deaths from the syndrome are in the double figures worldwide. Any deaths count as too many, of course. But if you have plans to go to Mexico, there is little reason to cancel forthwith. Steps are constantly being taken to prevent its spread and treat its symptoms.

This is a rare case, and in its relative infancy compared to any similar cases. On balance, we still have a bit to find out – but there is little to be gained from closing ranks in our home countries. Mexico is currently experiencing a difficult time as a result of an outbreak that could not be foreseen and there is no reason why this should be exacerbated. By all means check several news sources for specific information on the state of play in the region where you are planning to visit. But do not let it get out of hand – hysteria helps no-one.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Travelnowsimply.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to Ahmed Dawn Dot Com site. This article originally published on the above website on May 22, 2009.

Why It's Great To Travel

Why We Should Travel

Ask a hundred people what they would do if they became a millionaire overnight, and at least half of them will include among their imaginary spending plans “a nice holiday somewhere hot”. Some will be able to take or leave the hot weather, but in the main the holiday will play an important part. We love our holidays, as they allow us to recharge our batteries and have a good time away from work concerns and other stresses. While some people will choose to take their holidays at home, there are enough of us who simply insist that a holiday must involve travel. Why is this? Well, there are a few reasons.

1. A change of scenery – With the best will in the world, spending a holiday at home gives too many reminders of work. Waking up in your own bed makes it all too easy to get the irrational fear that you are late for work. Sitting watching TV in your own living room gives way too much of a feeling of a surreptitious sick day – you spend too much time wondering if work is going to call and ask you to come in. Let’s see them do that if you are a few hundred miles away – or further. On a holiday abroad – or even just in a different state – you get the chance to unwind completely in a different setting. That change of scene can make a huge difference to your ability to relax.

2. A change of culture – The old saying goes “When in Rome, do as the Romans do”. Many people have had their own hilarious interpretations of this phrase in times gone past, many involving lions and Christians and almost all thinking they were the first person to make the joke. The key point about the original saying is that when you holiday somewhere different, to get the full benefit of it you should attempt to experience the things that locals do as a matter of course. The huge number of cultures in this world makes it interesting, and seeing things from a different perspective is never a bad thing.

3. A change of cuisine – We all know what we like, and many of us would go further, saying that we “like what we know”. While there is some truth to the suggestion that we all deal better with things that we are used to, the enjoyment of a holiday is often greatly increased by sampling the local cuisine. Of course, cuisine has become diverse even in single countries – most of us will have heard the possibly apocryphal story of a young boy holidaying in Italy, tugging on his mother’s sleeve and saying “Hey Mom, look! They have pizzas in Italy, too!” – but there is nothing like eating food made the way it was meant to be made, by people who have been eating it for years.

These are just three reasons, and undoubtedly you will have some of your own – feel free to share those, because people are like nations – we each appreciate different things.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Travelnowsimply.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to AhmedDawn.com site. This article originally published on the above website on May 1, 2009.

Global Travel Made Simple

Welcome to Global Travel Section

This is the new global travel section from award-winning Canadian author A Dawn. It will focus on just about anything and everything to do with travel. As the title suggests, it aims to focus on traveling simply, as well as safely, to a range of popular destinations as well as a few which are off the beaten track. 

There is an old saying that it is better to travel hopefully than to arrive. And, while you understand what Robert Louis Stevenson was getting at when he said it (and what the Taoists were getting at when they said “the journey is the reward”) it is not necessarily accurate. Sure, there is a real enjoyment in the anticipation when you are traveling to somewhere you really want to go, but is the anticipation really better than the arrival and the experience when you are there? That surely depends on how artfully the holiday was sold to you. There are many of us who feel that although Stevenson and the Taoists were entitled to their opinion, the arrival and the holiday are the best bits.

Traveling is something that many of us have a real thirst for. The Germans have a word for it: wanderlust. It is a desire to journey, to explore, to experience something of the world away from your home. Not everybody has it. Some call it “itchy feet”, which seems somehow disparaging. Wanting to travel does not mean that one does not love their home – it just means that we want to visit other places too, and see how people do things in another environment. Is it better there? Not necessarily, but it is interesting, and brings a bit of variety to life. You can never have too much variety, surely?

Of course, both the journey and the holiday can sometimes fail to live up to expectations. As much as we enjoy a break from the norm, sometimes that break can come at the expense of things which we value highly or have simply come to expect. Holidays are mis-sold by people who misunderstand your requirements, or they are rated highly by someone whose taste differs from you. There are pitfalls for even the most experienced traveler because, when it comes down to it, we do not have omniscience and sometimes that “charmingly dilapidated” holiday cottage is actually just derelict. Sometimes “local character” is actually a high crime rate. But as often as not, it can just be a matter of taste.

Whatever one is looking for in a holiday, there will be countless Travel Now Simply1places that compete to offer you the ideal break for your needs. If you want to go skiing, for example, there are countless mountain ranges filled with ski resorts. Will you go to the one that is close to home? Will you go to the one with the global reputation for perfect snow and excellent après-ski? Will you go to the less-heralded, less expensive resort that is off the beaten track but has excellent write-ups wherever you look? There are a lot of choices to make.

Choices like these will be covered on this site. As the title suggests, Travel Now Simply aims to give you tips on how you can take a trip wherever you want to go, at short notice and with a minimum of extra considerations. After all, you go on holiday to relax, so you do not want to add unnecessary stress to the issue. We will feature tips on where to go, what to do while there, how to save money and how to travel safely – and much more besides. Whether you find it better to travel in hope, or to arrive, you will find plenty here to satisfy your wanderlust.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Travelnowsimply.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to Ahmed Dawn Dot Com site. In the future, I plan to write more travel articles on this site . This article originally published on the above website on April 27, 2009.

The Best Android Flight and Trip Tracking Travel Apps

My Top Favourite Free Android Flight and Trip Tracking Travel Apps

 

First Published: Mar 18, 2012 EntrepreneurJourney.com

Travelling will never be the like the old days due to what technology brought us on our smart phones or tablets via hi-tech apps. Just 3 years ago, I could not have possibly imagined that just forwarding my trip confirmation email to these app email addresses can perform magic instantaneously on my android devices and all the travel itinerary and detailed hotel information will be organized day by day. Today, I will discuss my top 5 favourite travel apps you should try to make your next travel smooth and hassle free. 

WorldMate by WorldMate - A very popular mobile travel app. Free version has lots of features which can not be found on some other paid version apps. Among all other app websites, only on WorldMate’s website did I find the Check-In button that lets you check in from home and receive a boarding pass before leaving home. WorldMate does have a paid version for other platforms, but not for Android. However, I would not buy a paid version for a $10 annual fee when I can buy other paid apps for a one time $5 or $10 only. 

TripIt by TripIt Inc. - Tripit is another travel organizer app that shows all your trip details in one place, including flights, hotels, cruises, restaurants, concerts, etc. Many other travel apps uses TripIt or have the ability to sync with TripIt. So having a TripIt account gives you the advantage of sending your travel details to other apps without sending a confirmation email to each of them again. 

Kayak Flight Hotel Car Search by Kayak - Kayak is an all-in-one app that lets you search hotels, flights, setup price alerts, etc. and at the same time you can track your flights. The only thing I can complain about with Kayak is that it takes up more space on your device as it is more than just a flight tracker. 

FlightTrack by Mobiata - When it comes to flight tracking, FlightTrack does the job very well. However, there is no free version. The basic version costs $4.99 and it does not offer to sync with Tripit or anything else - you need to enter your flight information manually. The pro version costs $9.99 and has the ability to sync with TripIt. Its major disadvantage is that it can only track flights - nothing else.