Do your knees quake at the thought of swinging across the jungle canopy suspended from a steel thread? If so, zip-lining may not be for you. But if you are into a fun exhilarating adventure, then be sure to book a zip-lining adventure in a place like Belize or St. Lucia. But take some precautions first.
Moonrise over the Amazon
If you are looking for a truly memorable adventure, an awe-inspiring vacation, then set your sights on Brazil and the Amazon River.
At first glance, the dirty brown Amazon is confusing, but once you get into a small wooden boat or canoe, and head off down one of its tributaries, it will all come clear.
Yes, drugs. And the accompanying side effects.
It’s not possible to travel to many countries today without first getting topped up with a variety of inoculations and prescription drugs. Take Brazil, for instance. Getting the plane ticket or the cruise ship ticket is the easy part. Then it’s time to roll up your sleeve. The sleeve on your needle arm, that is.
Read on . . .
Long gone are the days of simply buying a ticket and hopping on a plane; travel today is a much more precise science, especially if you are planning a trip into the Amazon, or other parts of Brazil.
When budgeting for a trip into Brazil, be prepared for all the extra fees you will encounter, fees that have nothing to do with your flight or your accommodations. Like the cost of getting a Brazilian tourist visa.
You may be living in a country that is exempt from needing a Brazilian visa, but if you are Canadian, Australian, or American, you must apply. (Citizens from countries like Germany, France, and Italy do not require a Brazilian visa.)
In addition, no matter what country you hail from, Brazil (especially the Amazonian area) is disease-carrying mosquito territory, and you must prepare. That means getting vaccinated for Yellow Fever, as well as Hepatitis A and B.
Read on . . .
My husband and I celebrated our 21st wedding anniversary yesterday. Our formal plans had us dining at a very cool eatery called “The Bootlegger Italian Bistro,” in South Las Vegas. We had eaten there when we first arrived in Vegas and thought it would be a nice place, with its classic old gangster ambience, to have our anniversary dinner.
But our plans changed. Vegas has a way of doing that to plans. So, we cancelled our reservations in favor of another place. And we are so glad we did. We had one of our best times yet in Las Vegas.
Read on . . .
This is a typical sight from an Alberta highway. A quiet little pond, so innocuous, so charming. But many countries, many lands have similar vistas – sights which look perfectly safe, including those sights in some of the more questionable areas of the world like Egypt and Africa.
How can a traveler know if a decision to explore a new world is a smart decision?
Luckily, there are many web sites that can help you make an informed decision. Some even have links to other travel tools (like currency conversion charts) that make travel to a foreign land a whole lot easier.
Read on . . .
There’s “adventurous” travel and then there is “dangerous” travel. Since neither my husband nor I are members of the CIA, nor are we navy seals, we have placed limitations on our travel experiences. Those limitations recently affected one of our travel decisions: an end-of-summer trip to Belize.
Having reviewed a recent Canadian foreign affairs travel report, we have decided that Belize is not the place for us – at least not this year.
Read on . . .
I love my province, and I love our two biggest cities: Edmonton and Calgary. But I hate the traffic congestion. Monday, I went to Calgary for a Photoshop seminar. Arriving at 5 PM was my first mistake; my second mistake was staying on the Deerfoot Trail.
The drive was perfectly normal. 3 hours from the west side of Edmonton to the edge of Calgary. What happened after that was, in a word, ridiculous.
Read this if you want some good advice when traveling to Calgary.
Malaria?
It’s a word I have heard, but I never really spent much time thinking about it. That is until I began researching Belize (I am tripping there end of August).
I thought Malaria was prevalent only in far away countries like Africa and India, not the Americas. But I was wrong. Malaria is also common in South and Central America.
Yikes, I thought, what do I do? Read on . . .
Guns, knives, hand grenades, alligators, and bottles of water — these things will be confiscated if you try to take them through American airport security. But what currently is allowed in your carry-on luggage?
Since the terrorist attacks of 9-11, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has changed its mind repeatedly on what is and what is not allowed onto a plane. Nail clippers, once taboo, are now okay. But what about foods? Can you take your lunch onto the plane? What about lithium batteries? A camcorder? What about a tube of face moisturizer?
The answer is “Yes,” to some things, and “No,” to others. If you are still unsure, here’s a quick checklist of some of the most common items allowed and those disallowed in airport security.
Read on . . .
