TedFind » Travel

A Time-Honored Gift Children Love

admin — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 21:21:55 +0000

     The gift-giving season is approaching. It can be difficult for absent relatives to remember the last gift they sent to their grandchild, nephew, or niece. A creative way to maintain the gift list and to deepen relationships is to give a book series, one book at a time. That grandchild, nephew, or niece will anticipate each addition to the series with excitement. Too, it will eliminate giving the same gift two years in a row. If the child is too young to specify a coveted book series, begin with a classic book series, such as Beatrice Potter’s Tales of Peter Rabbit. Traditional tales assist absent relatives to bridge the miles between themselves and their special grandchild, nephew, or niece.
    Giving a child a book series opens dialogue between absent relatives and their loved ones. A good way to start a conversation with a child is to read the same books they read. Many Charter-school parents read the literature selections their children read each semester. It creates an opportunity for parents to deepen their relationship with their children and it broadens family dinner conversations. Absent grandparents as well as aunts and uncles can participate in the conversation by giving their grandchild, nephew, or niece a book series.
   A grandchild may enjoy a fashionable gift such as can be found at such sites as http://www.fashionrocks.com/ , but lasting gifts are interactive gifts. Giving a child a book series causes them to anticipate each new interaction with their absent relatives. Homeschool mothers are known to give their sons and daughters fewer juicy couture accessories and more books. These mothers give their children at least one book a year from a series they either read as a child or researched online. The Narnia Series, Nancy Drew, or the Hardy Boys are a few age-appropriate series. Sometimes family children’s books are stored for years. Dusting these inherited volumes off can save money for visits and add to the delight a child feels as they open gifts from an absent relative.
    Simple gifts are often the gifts that are remembered with fondness. This gift-giving season there are several affordable options for absent relatives to choose from. One of these options is a book series. Book series, given one book at a time, heighten the dialogue possibilities grandparents, as well as aunts and uncles, crave. Angel Tree notes the difference a simple gift, such as a book, can make in a child’s life. Absent relatives can experience the same success an Angel Tree parent feels by giving a gift that bridges the miles.

A Time-Honored Gift Children Love is a post from: TedFind

Las Vegas Dogs

admin — Sun, 17 Apr 2011 05:00:00 +0000

The attraction to Las Vegas is a rather consistent one. For a few generations, it has been a kind of unofficial center for fun, bringing adults, and children, to the city. There is a lot to enjoy in Las Vegas , with appealing things that are perhaps legendary. The lights from the casinos are just the beginning, although for many visitors, this is also where it all happens. Anyone who has spent a long evening at a poker table, and has had that uncanny experience of leaving when it’s starting to get light outside, has a deeper understanding for what the city is about.

However, these attractions, although they may be the be-all and end-all of Las Vegas, are geared toward adults, and there is much more to be seen. In fact, the city’s fun can’t be limited to people. There is something of everything in the world in the city, and it’s no surprise that there’s even something for dogs. Dog shows can draw people from all over the world, bringing their canine travelers with them. It might be a little harder to gauge the satisfaction of the dogs, when humans are capable of talking about their fun weekends when they get back home, but who knows what the dogs might say. It probably stays in Vegas with them, too.

Las Vegas Dogs is a post from: TedFind

What to Ask About Visitor Insurance

admin — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 05:00:00 +0000

If you are planning to go overseas anytime in the near future, you need to make sure that purchasing visitors insurance is near the top of your planning list. Few things are more important than your health.

When you talk with an insurance agent about travel insurance, you want to make sure that the policy includes a medical component. If it doesn’t ask if you can purchase a separate health policy. Many insurance companies offer comprehensive policies that include health care along with other types of travel-related coverage.

Check to see if the company offers generic health insurance or if they have plans for specific types of travel. Most will have standard policies for students, workers, leisure travelers , and for special workers like sailors. Ask if the policy will cover your specific circumstances. This may include the need for maternity care, coverage for your children, or treatment for preexisting conditions. If you are going on a long trip, you’ll want to ask about access to preventative check ups and possibly dental or mental health coverage.

Make sure you understand what is and isn’t covered by the policy before you purchase it. Knowing which countries honor the insurance is of vital importance. You should also find out about provisions for medical evacuation and treatment needed for severe accidents or illnesses. You also want to make sure that you will be able to reach your insurer no matter what country, time zone, or language is involved.

Asking these questions and doing this research will help you choose the best visitor insurance for your upcoming trip.

What to Ask About Visitor Insurance is a post from: TedFind

Harvey Butchart and a Life in the Grand Canyon

admin — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 01:10:00 +0000

The desert southwest is a place that’s known for attracting a wide range of rather interesting individuals. People have been drawn to the area for literally thousands of years, and the one thing they all have in common is a kind of ruggedness of character. It’s not impossible to survive in the desert, but it does take work. That’s certainly been the case with a certain Harvey Butchart . Born to missionaries in China in 1907, he moved to Flagstaff to start teaching math at what is now Northern Arizona University, in 1945. From that time up until 1987, he was hiking the canyon.

For all of those miles, there would be no way anyone could keep up with him, or even have a trace amount of the views that he was privy to. A Grand Canyon helicopter tour might be the closest anyone could come to seeing the canyon the way he did, because it would take a bird’s eye, or another 40 years in his footsteps. His footsteps were remarkable, not only because they demonstrated the lifelong fascination with the place, but also demonstrated a remarkable simplicity and focus. He never wore hiking boots, opting instead for department store work shoes, and would also take along amounts of water that others would consider dangerously low. His was a life of adventure, and his vision helped to make the place what it is today.

Harvey Butchart and a Life in the Grand Canyon is a post from: TedFind

Halloween Outside Vancouver

admin — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 01:10:00 +0000

Burnaby Village Museum provides a unique look into British Columbia’s history. Located just 20 minutes from downtown Vancouver, the museum offers exhibits, recreations, and activities that both inform and entertain. This fall, the museum will host Halloween Hysteria October 28-30. The Museum is home to a fully restored 1912 C.W. Parker Carousel . While the Carousel is included in admission to the museum, many visitors come just for a ride.

The main attraction at the museum is the living village, a 10 acre recreation of a tram stop community circa 1920s. Whether you’re staying in a Vancouver hotel or a longtime resident of the area, you’ll enjoy strolling through replicas of shops, homes, and businesses are populated by townsfolk in period costumes who provide demonstrations of life in the early 20th century. Some of the more popular recreations are the General Store, the print shop, the blacksmith and the garden at the farmhouse. There are also heritage buildings on the site, including a bank, a tram station, and a period garage. Visitors can stop at the ice cream parlour for light meals or snacks. The museum also offers hands on workshops in blacksmithing and educational programs as well as walking tours of cemeteries, lakes, and places of worship.

During the Halloween celebration, the museum will offer a haunted village filled with trolls, gravediggers, undertakers, and witches. Entrance to the event includes treat-or-tricking and unlimited carousel rides. Halloween Hysteria runs from 6 – 9 pm on October 28th, 29th, and 30th.

Halloween Outside Vancouver is a post from: TedFind

Tampa owes its humble beginnings to Ybor

admin — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 01:10:00 +0000

Tampa’s Native Americans and Seminole War soldiers, to Cuban cigar-rollers and today’s multi-national population, this great city’s cultural makeup has benefited from its rich diversity. Tampa’s stage fare spans a rainbow bridge of complexities from high-brow opera to festive street fairs.

Beginning in 1885, when Don Vicente Martinez Ybor, a Cuban cigar factory owner fled the political unrest of Cuba to establish his cigar empire Tampa; Ybor’s factories prospered and attracted Cubans, Spanish, Italians, Germans and Jewish immigrants to come work in his factories and later open up their own businesses such as a Tampa hotel or restaurant.

Ybor City was declared a National Historic Landmark District of Tampa in 1991 and is now considered very lively Latin Quarter attracting visitors to eat, drink and dance at the best nightclubs in all of Tampa.

Tampa Bay has a restaurant and hotel scene as diverse as the cultures that settled here, and that’s all due to Ybor’s vision to start his own business and raise his family. Ybor City is known for many things, but when visiting make sure to stop off at The Columbia restaurant , which is the oldest restaurant in the State of Florida and is the largest Spanish-Cuban restaurant in the world.

Tampa owes its humble beginnings to Ybor is a post from: TedFind

Atlanta has the Best Inexpensive Restaurants for Visitors on a Budget

admin — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 01:10:00 +0000

Atlanta offers several restaurants for tourists who are on a budget. Listed below are only a handful of restaurant that are within walking distance to several budget hotels and a few high-end hotels Atlanta offers its visitors.

First on our list is ‘The Varsity’, also known by locals as the Big V. It is located in downtown Atlanta and is right next to the 1996 Olympic Torch. The Varsity actually has 6 locations, but this one at 61 N. Avenue, which is conveniently located to many downtown attractions and hotels. The Varsity is a greasy food joint serving the classic hamburgers, fries, hot dogs and Frozen Orange. It has kept its doors open since the 1920s, and is the world’s largest drive-in, there are still carhops who will deliver your food if you opt to not get out of your car.

For great inexpensive Mexican foods with a Cuban twist, check out La Fonda Latina. Located next to Fellini’s, this is the best inexpensive pizza joint. La Fonda’s fish tacos and a huge margarita to wash it down with is a favorite amongst the locals. Fellini’s, is much like Starbucks: one on every corner, serves pizza by the slice with any topping you can think of. Both places are located at the 2800 block of Peachtree.

‘Six Feet Under’ , is not as morbid as it sounds; this seafood restaurant is located next to the Oakland Cemetery and serves the best seafood dishes in town. You can order shrimp to oysters to mussels to clams to crabs at a very reasonable price. It’s best to sit up on the restaurants roof to get a great view of the serene surroundings while you eat the freshest seafood cuisine.

Atlanta has the Best Inexpensive Restaurants for Visitors on a Budget is a post from: TedFind

Miami Digital Libraries

admin — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 01:10:00 +0000

Miami is a city that tries not to sleep, but when it does, it sleeps very deeply, and with a kind of reckless abandon. That’s one of the great things about urban environments with so much night life, and so much beach. The ones who understand the time and place in Miami like to do everything with gusto, and that includes staying out late, and sleeping in. So it attracts a great party crowd, coming to enjoy a Miami hotel and get in touch with the latest and greatest in world music.

It also attracts a fair number of people with more erudite pursuits, and academics, intellectuals, and artists who are interested in Cuban culture can find a wealth of information here. There are the neighborhoods, and the local culture, but one resource that should not be missed is the Digital collection at the University of Miami Library .

Their Cuban Heritage Collection is extensive, and contains some esoteric works along with some of the more well-known researchable areas of Cuban culture. One can find a wonderful archive on the work of Lydia Cabrera , whose anthropological work on Lucumi culture is extensive, and still unparalleled. Likewise, one can also find some of the archival materials of the great, itinerant artist Leandro Soto , whose paintings and performances have moved both physically and metaphorically through multiple worlds.

Miami Digital Libraries is a post from: TedFind

Jazz in Honolulu

admin — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 01:10:00 +0000

Honolulu is famous for a lot of things. When it comes to a prime spot for the world’s travelers, its claims to fame are the lovely beaches, the exciting night life in the rich urban center, and the luxury Honolulu hotels that keep people coming back year after year. It’s also got quite a claim to fame for the music. The mix of popular sounds from the mainland with the traditional Hawaiian beats made for hundreds of radio hits, and lots of famous local musicians.

There are, in fact, a number of rather famous vocalists and musicians that have made a name for themselves on the islands. There are also those who have started life here, and gone on to perform in other places. One of these is Gabe Baltazar , a jazz saxophonist of Filipino descent, whose life has been a series of accomplishments in the music world.

His greatest claim to fame, surely, was his work with Stan Kenton . Their work was some of the most innovative in the history of jazz. Looking at a list of their concerts, and the trajectories of their travels, is a vital who’s who of the jazz world. They played with everybody, and knew everybody, and changed the face of the music forever.

Jazz in Honolulu is a post from: TedFind

Global Insurance for Students, International Citizens and Other Travelers

admin — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 01:10:00 +0000

Global health insurance is becoming much more popular and well known across the world, and the benefits it provides are perfect for many families and individuals. There are greater options for health insurance coverage and policy structures now than there have been ever before and as the options diversify so do individual preferences. In addition, the changing nature of insurance and policy coverage is also causing a new attention toward specific needs. The idea that one insurance fits all is no longer the accepted norm and policies can be built to accommodate your lifestyle and health needs.

One of the great aspects of global health coverage is that it can be easily structured to provide insurance for people on extended trips. If you are going to be out of the country for a few months or even up to a year it is essential that you have proper health insurance while you’re away especially if your family will be with you. In addition, international citizenship is becoming more common and having homes in different countries and/or frequently traveling across international lines is a regular lifestyle for many people. For these, as well as other individuals, a global insurance policy is an extreme benefit and is probably the most logical and even simple choice. This can apply to students who are studying abroad , extended trips or frequent travelers for any reason. There are various policies available and an qualified consultant will make sure that your coverage is tailored for your specific plans and needs.

Global Insurance for Students, International Citizens and Other Travelers is a post from: TedFind