Archive for October 25, 2008
International Adventure Travel Ideas
October 25, 2008, 1:57 amInternational adventure travel: Safaris, balloon tours, swimming with dolphins, bicycling down volcanos, trekking in the Himalayas, Walmart on Christmas Eve – the list is almost endless. This will not be a comprehensive listing of all the adventure opportunities out there. Instead, here is just enough to whet your appetite.
My Own International Adventure Travel
Long before hitchhiking across the country at sixteen-years-old, I had a taste for adventure. At fourteen, a friend and I bicycled 300 miles in a few days during one summer. At seventeen, I went international with my adventuring, hitchhiking from Michigan to half-way across Mexico. Over forty now, I no longer put out my thumb – not very often, anyhow – but I still love to travel.
More recently, my international adventure travel took me to Ecuador. While there I climbed to the furthest point from the center of the Earth. Everest is highest above sea level, but due to the Earth’s bulge at the equator, the peak of Mount Chimborazo, at 20,600 feet, is farther from from the center of our planet. The top is all snow, ice, and glaciers.
My guide didn’t speak English, and thought I was a mountaineer. I had once used an ice axe and crampons to go forty feet up a sledding hill, in Michigan. The rest of the story is on the website, but you can get information and a guide by talking to almost any hotel manager in Riobamba, Ecuador.
Go On A Jungle Book Safari
In southern Nepal, In the Royal Chitwan National Park, you can see tigers, leopards, rhinos, and sloth-bears. And where better to see them from than the back of a large elephant? The tours are lead by naturalists and park rangers. Stay in the comfortable Safari Lodge and take daily tours into the jungle.
Take A Mongolian Horseback Trek
Travel with one of the great nomadic and horse-based cultures of the world. The trips take you beyond tourist routes, and you can customize your trek to fit your schedule and budget. These tours are run from an office in Mongolia, and they provides experienced guides that are multi-lingual.
Go Rock Climbing In Rio
Want an outdoor adventure and city nightlife? Try a rock climbing tour in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. You’ll find routes for all skill levels in the Sugar Loaf, Urca, Corcovado and Pedra da Gavea mountains. Tours include bilingual instructors, equipment rentals, and transportation, and start at under $100 per person.
Swim With Dolphins In The Croatian Sea
Escape from the cold this winter, to the Cres-Loinj group of islands, which is known for it’s mild climate. Mali Loinj on the island of Loinj is known for its health resort, but recently, the area is becoming famous for the bottle-nosed dolphins that have made their homes in the clear and clean waters of the Cres-Loinj group of islands. Mingle with them by boat or in your swimsuit.
Climb Mount Kinabalu
Mt. Kinabalu (4101m) is the king of the Borneo sub-continent. It rises 3000 feet higher than other mountains in the area; far above the jungle. It attracts international climbers of all skill levels, who scramble, climb and trek in its unique jungle-alpine enviroment. Kinabalu is in a world heritage site that boasts a wide variety of plants and animals. Experienced guides will take you trekking, or take you to the top.
About The Author
Steve Gillman hit the road at sixteen, and traveled the U.S. and Mexico alone at 17. Now 40, he travels with his wife Ana, whom he met in Ecuador. For more on international adventure, and to read their stories, tips and travel information, visit: http://www.EverythingAboutTravel.com.
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(posted in the Hall Of Travel category)
Cruise Ship Illness
October 25, 2008, 12:43 amEvery year hundreds of people get sick on cruise ships. The cruise ship illness that scares most people is the one associated with the norwalk virus.
Why? Because the norwalk virus causes diarrhea and vomiting for about 2 to 3 days….not a fun-filled experience.
What you need to know about this illnes is that it also occurs on land. Actually about 23 million Americans are affected by a norwalk type virus every year. Norwalk type illnesses are reportedly only second to the common cold.
The reason you hear about it on the cruise ships is because the cruise lines have to report an outbreak if more than 3% of the passengers become affected. And, of course, when they do, it makes news.
You can get the norwalk virus from hand to mouth activity or from contaminated food.
As you probably know, the cruise lines are doing everything to make sure their food is not contaminated and their passengers don’t get sick. Sick passengers and bad news will kill their business.
So you don’t have to worry about the food. That’s pretty much handled. However, you do have to worry about getting infected from already sick or infected passengers.
See, if an infected passenger touches a handrail, for instance, and you touch it afterward, you are now potentially infected. If you then touch your mouth, or eat hand-held food before washing your hand, you’ll then actually get infected.
Any surface other people touch can be an infection source for you.
This does not only apply on cruise ships, but back home on land in any public place. Door handles, elevator buttons, chairs, tables, hand shakes, etc., all can be sources of infection. So before you touch food or your mouth, always wash your hands.
It can be tough following this rule on a curise ship where there is so much activity going on and you may not always be close to a sink and soap. So one thing you can do is always carry a small bottle of Purell Hand Sanitizer with you. Use it before touching any food or your mouth.
If you follow this rule of always washing or sanitizing your hands before touching food or your mouth, you should avoid getting ill.
To learn more about cruise ship illness, the norwalk virus, or staying well on your cruise, you can visit the Center for Disease Control’s website at http://www.cdc.gov/travel/cruiships.htm
About the author:
The author, Reginald Niles, is the owner of The Discount Cruise Advisor which shows you how to get the best cruise discounts, how to stay within your vacation budget, and what mistakes to avoid when buying a discount cruise. You can visit The Discount Cruise Advisor at http://www.the-discount-cruise-advisor.comand learn how to figure your total cruise cost at http://www.the-discount-cruise-advisor.com/totalcruisecost.html
Also:
Get a free copy of our Cruise Cost Table to help in figuring out your total cruise cost at http://www.the-discount-cruise-advisor.com/totalcosttable.html
Learn how to prepare for your cruise at http://www.the-discount-cruise-advisor.com/prepareforcruise.html
Learn about alternate ways to get cheap cruises, like at auctions, at http://www.the-discount-cruise-advisor.com/cheapcruises.html
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(posted in the Hall Of Travel category)
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