“Do they speak English here?”

This is what I overheard one tourist asking another tourist in a store here…I’m not sure what nationality they were, but they were speaking English.

Think about it, they are in Western Canada (French is only really spoken in Quebec - a province of Canada no where near British Columbia), they must have arrived at an airport, border crossing or cruise terminal where I am sure they were spoken to in English (I have never had anyone speak another language to me) or they are staying somewhere & would have had to speak English and  the only time I ever hear another language is when they are tourists.

Their question does bother me a bit, because who would go travelling to a country without knowing what language they speak!!! Plus everything is in English - the street signs, the menus, the item they were holding! It makes me wonder how they booked their holiday?!

2008 Summer Olympics - Beijing, China

As I was watching TV the other night, I noticed that they have started to advertise the 2008 Summer Olympics… an entire year in advance. Does this seem a little early to you or are they just being smart? Maybe they are trying to plant a seed in our minds to think of going to Beijing in 2008?

After doing a little research, you can actually apply for your tickets to events now & for the next 26 days before a deadline approaches. If you are interested in applying for tickets you can get them at the official website.

Maybe they are advertising just at the right time…

How do you research your next holiday?

I guess that most people these days use the internet for finding the majority of information about their next holiday (I know I do), but there are other ways too such as…

• The old fashioned way of walking into the Retail Travel Agent & having a chat - this is still quite a popular choice, otherwise they wouldn’t be surviving.
• Getting recommendations from friends, co-workers or family members.
• The library - most of the time the travel guides are a little out of date, but they are still helpful.
• Local tourism offices generally have good information for your destination & sometimes they can tell you things that others can’t!

If anyone has any further suggestions, please feel free to leave a comment.

What do you remember most about a holiday?

Is it that gorgeous street that you walked down, a great restaurant or an attraction that you couldn’t believe existed?

Most of the time I remember the best parts like the wonderful & friendly people, the place that I stayed or that amazing meal , but when someone asks me about Los Angeles (California, USA) , the only thing I really remember is watching 2 guys beat up another guy. Luckily I was in a tour bus at the time & I know that the guide was trying to divert our eyes to the other side of the road, but unfortunately that was my impression of L.A. and it has stuck.

Would I love to go back there? Sure, I want to go to back & get a new impression of LA…but I will always have the image of those guys in the back of my mind.

So I ask you…what are the things that you remember most about your holidays?

Tourists have finally reached Victoria BC Canada!

So as winter ends & spring begins, the tourist season starts in Victoria BC Canada. So far there have been days where 5 cruise ships have docked all in one day adding about 11,000 to the population for 1 day, tour buses are jamming up the streets, street performers out in full force, whale watching boats & float planes are busy in the Inner Harbour & you know what…I love it! Feel free to check out more of my photos…

Bored on a ferry trip?

Here are my top ten ways to pass time when on a ferry:

1. Get out the laptop & catch up on much needed emails or watch a movie.
2. Read a newspaper, magazine or book.
3. Sleep
4. Play various card games.
5. Walk the ferry constantly (a good way to get fit??)
6. Sit & Eat
7. Crosswords / Sudoko
8. Listen to music
9. Go through the gift shop with a fine tooth comb
10. People watch

p.s I have just been on the ferry from Vancouver to Victoria, BC, Canada.

New Backpacker Travel Blog

A fellow travel blogger has just launched a new blog all about Backpacker Travel - www.mytravelbackpack.com - and so far it looks like it is going to be an interesting read…

Already there are some great photos from all over the world and a competition to win some travel books… you can read the info here.

Travel Tip #15 - Cash, Traveler’s Cheques or Credit Card???

Which one is better to travel with?

Cash is good because you have it on you and you can pay for cheap items easily and it is always accepted and you never get charged any fees when paying with cash. One thing with cash that is a little annoying is having to change it at the currency exchange which is where you will definitely be charged a conversion fee. If you lose your cash, it is gone and never to be seen again.

Honestly, I can’t remember the last time I knew anyone that traveled with Traveler’s Cheques. From what I hear, you get charged when you buy them and you have to write down all the serial numbers and then you have to change them into cash as you go….blah blah blah – can you tell I’m not a fan??

Credit Cards are one of the best things to have with you when you are traveling. You get good exchange rates and some fees and they are normally less than when you buy foreign currency. If you lose your credit card, you can cancel it straight away and hopefully get a new card organized. You can nearly 100% of the time pay for items by credit card anywhere in the world.

Personally, I like to have a mixture of cash & credit cards, just in case I lose one and then I have the other to fall back on. What do you like to travel with?

Photos from Belgium

Last year when I was living in Amsterdam for a few months, I made a trip down to Belgium and visited Bruges, Antwerp and Brussels. Here are a few pictures I thought you might enjoy…if anyone is thinking of heading to Belgium, make sure you stop in Bruges - it would have to be one of the most beautiful town (city?) I have ever been to.

Bruges 

 

Antwerp

 Brussels (the weather wasn’t great!)

Book feature…

About 10 months ago as I was sitting at my desk in Sydney working at Globus & Cosmos (tour operator), I was approched for an interviewed for a new book that was coming out about Careers in the Travel & Tourism Industry of Australia.  Now I answered the questions and didn’t really think anything of it, until recently when I received a copy of the book and my interview was in there!

The book is called “Career FAQs - Travel & Tourism” and it is written by Sarah James. If you are interested in reading more about the book you can check it out here…