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9296540865?profile=originalIf you like spiritual quests, you will enjoy the stories in Song of India: Tales of travel and transformation. The book is a collection of 10 tales about my attempt to recover from grief, understand the essence of yoga and rediscover the joy of living by traveling, studying yoga and volunteering in India.

 

“India always changes people, and I have been no exception,”author Ruth Prawer-Jhabvala wrote, and I agree. Before I left for India on the first trip, I had experienced a series of devastating

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Puerto Madryn, Argentina Vacation Essentials

9008595875?profile=original Oceanside Diining on the Beach

 

By Roy Heale

 

Located at the heart of one of Argentina's most popular eco-tourism destinations is the port city of Puerto Madryn. From this central point eco-tours depart daily for whale watching, visits to the sea lion colonies, the penguin settlements, wildlife parks, dolphin watching, and much more of the local wildlife. The region is a popular breeding ground for many species and has been recognized as a World Natural Heritage Site since 1999. The clear blue wa

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The Future of Travel Agents

 

I said it before, this is a two subject question. On one hand, travel agents, home based travel agents, travel agency owners are probably at least 70% over the age of 40. That means, we have been around the block. In 2001 , I had a company called Ticket Planet, that was to go public, and would have been a mini Expedia. Well, my Wall Street backers bought the company and luckily ,but barely, I came out ok. I evolved from going to an office in downtown San Francisco, with 50 people, to working fr

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Six-Star Hotels? Don't Believe It

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From NMT Images

So far no international classification for hotels exists,but that hasn’t stopped ambitious hotel marketers from slapping any number of stars, diamonds, cacti on their properties and touting them as 5 or 6 or even 7 star properties,whatever that may mean in real service and amenities.

 

I think the ratings inflation trend began with the Xanadu-  frenzy in Dubai, especially with the luxury hotel, Burj Al Arab (Tower of the Arabs), built on an artificial island and billed as a 7-Star s

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The Negril Experience, Jamaica


                                                            NEGRIL SUNSET

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Negril has always had a free-spirited reputation, so its no surprise that the famous Seven Mile Beach is a magnet for topless -- and sometimes nude -- sunbathing. You can catch a glimpse of extra flesh almost anywhere along this strand, but especially around the Hedonism II and Breezes Grand (formerly Grande Lido Negril) resorts, each of which has its own nude beaches.

SUMMARY ~ I would definitely entertain going back to th

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Sparkling Champagne Meets Lively Paris

images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRNUpl-GKCX1YyDTDWYJEw8m5ZZIJm0_-UIY05ac0dXz_zG-V1SWine appreciation has reached new heights in Paris, producing a region prolific in wine bars, champagne tasting workshops at prestigious Parisian wine merchants, and other popular champagne-related activities.

Hervé Rousseau opened the Flûte l’Étoile in Paris after testing his restaurant concept in the New York with two Flûte bars. His recipe includes a lounge atmosphere that gives guest a VIP welcome, great finger foods, exciting and diverse venues and both charitable and educational events.
Cust
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Queen's Day 2011 in Amsterdam

HM Queen Juliana of the Netherlands and HRH Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, Prince of Lippe-BiesterfeldImagine an annual celebration so anticipated that one million visitors are willing to travel from all across Europe and join the 750,000 locals for the world's largest street party. For more than fifty years, the annual Queen's Day (Dutch: Koninginnedag) celebration has been enjoyed throughout the Netherlands on April 30th, but none rival Amsterdam's.

Queen Juliana, the queen for whom the party-turned-carnival recognizes, was actually born January 31st, however weather during the season has neve
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Ladybugs in Yosemite

 Many of the smaller Natural Wonders of the Yosemite are are missed by the average tourist and Ladybugs are a great example.. These orange beetles hibernate each Winter at the base of trees in certain areas protected by bark and pine needles. There can be hundreds and even thousands hibernating together and they are pretty well concealed. During the Springtime swarms of orange beetles fill the air as they wake up and fly away.

Yosemite Audio Adventures are filled with fun facts about the natural

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Traveler Tips and Advice for Lost Luggage

With more than 20 million pieces of luggage going missing every year around the world there’s a possibility that this could happen to any one of us. Whilst there’s nothing that we can do to prevent it happening to us, if the worst should happen here is some advice on what you can do and what your rights are.

Did you know?
When any piece of checked-in luggage goes missing it is the responsibility of the airline you are travelling with. Therefore, when it becomes apparent that your luggage has gone

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Goa Holidays and Nightlife

Partying at Beaches
Goa Beaches are quite different from those found in other parts of the country. The difference lies in the way people love to party at Goa beaches. Arjuna Beach and many others have night clubs, bars and other venues that are highly admired for the Goa nightlife entertainment. By choosing a Goa package tour, you will find yourself in the mood of partying all the time.

Goa Carnival and Festivals
If you choose one of the Goa carnivals tours, you can witness the real festive spirit

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by Marcia R. Levin

pic-blog-post-usa-nc-asheville-skyline.jpg?w=300When you’ve lived most of your life in flat South Florida as I have, even driving over a moderately steep bridge can get you going. But if you are really drawn to high spots, I’ve found fewer more absolutely exhilarating than the wonderful green mountains and wooded hills of western North Carolina, and that’s one reason I’m constantly drawn back.

There are plenty of reasons why Asheville and the surrounding country have been getting such attention of late as a destination and

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Monuments in India

There are wondrous tours available in India that will take people to visit some historic and allow them to do things that they may never have done before. One of the most common travel tours is a visit to the Golden Triangle Tour. Travel India and visit the Golden Triangle, which would allow visitors the chance to see exotic and beautiful places to visit in India such as New Delhi, Agra, and Jaipur. Excursion trips will take people to Fatehpur Sikri and American Fort. While touring India, all tr

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Winter in Yosemite Valley

Yosemite Valley is open year around and Winter has it's own challenges and rewards. The pics give you an idea of the incredible beauty here in Yosemite National Park but the temperature on the Valley floor remained a constant 32 degrees so most of the walkways are frozen solid. The hike up to Bridalveil Falls was downright comical. The frozen path proved incredibly challenging to walk on but it did create a fun and entertaining  comradery with the other visitors. Those of us that reached the upp
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Taj Mahal Tours in Agra

With three heritage monuments -The Taj Mahal, Fatehpur Sikri & Red Fort, Agra is one of the important destinations of the World Tourism charts. It is not just a decadent city of graveyards and stones, but it is a vivacious centre of Culture, Art and Spiritual philosophies that have enriched mankind and fashioned human contemplations over centuries.

Agra is well-known for handicrafts products such as Inlay work on Marble, Leather work, Footwear, Brass wear, Carpets, Jewelry, Zari and Embroidery wo

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Rennsteig - Germany's Oldest Hiking Trail

(I've always suspected people can be funny. This post is my most popular in terms of hits, as per Google Analytics. Can you spot why and tell me? It's a genuine mystery to me.)

 

The Rennsteig along the ridge of the Thuringian Forest in central Germany – in the south of what used to be the German Democratic Republic – prides itself on being the oldest hiking trail in Germany.

Gut Runst!

It is also the only trail which – as the official literature insists – has its own form of hiking etiquette: while

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From NMT Images

Americans Lack  Geographic Literacy: Can’t Find New York on a Map

It’s not a reassuring picture.

The 2006 Roper Public Affairs-National Geographic Literacy Study revealed that Americans between the ages of 18-24 have a poor grasp of “geographic skills and knowledge,” meaning they know less about the world than most young adults their age living in other countries.

Granted, the  study is four plus years old, and conceivably results would be different if the test were given today. No u

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Covering All the Bases in Taiwan

by Victor Block

9008592701?profile=originalIt’s true that not long after arriving in Taipei I found myself stewing in traffic jams as maddening as any back home in the United States. And yes, locals lined up at the same fast-food restaurants and wore pretty much the same clothes. At times I felt I could’ve been in a Chinatown in any western city.

And yet…both here in the go-go capital of Taiwan and in its countryside, I also discovered an abundance of sites reflecting a rich history and culture stretching back five millen

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by José Balido

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Just a little more than eight weeks to go till pre-Lenten Carnaval time, and if you’re thinking of a warm getaway to the biggest par-tay in the Latin world, Rio de Janeiro’s is always a rip-roaring crowd-pleaser — but it’s also massively mobbed, pretty pricey, and these days, to say the least, just a wee bit overcommercialized. For a taste of this annual revelry that’s both more affordable and closer to its folkloric roots (so much so that it’s on UNESCO’s World Heritage list), c

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Napa Revival Well Underway

Downtown Napa used to be a sleepy place, with working-class roots that set it apart (some might say pleasantly so) from its increasingly chic and expensive "up valley" neighbors: Yountville and St. Helena. But these days Napa is turning into every bit the wine country destination. With about $700 million in public and private investment flowing into downtown, Napa is abuzz with more than a dozen new restaurants, several luxury hotels, wine tasting rooms, a refurbished theater and opera house, a
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Nepal plans to attract around 200,000 sexual minorities including Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersexes
(LGBTI) during the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 (NTY-2011). The Blue Diamond Society

(BDS), an organization representing sexual minorities in the country, has said

that it aims to bring 200,000 i.e. 20 percent such tourists of the total one

million tourists in the NTY-2011. Nepal aims to host one million tourists this

year.
 
Already gay tourists are responding favorably to the holiday andt

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