Robyn's Wanderings

From Bermuda to......

We have to say: “Welcome Back!” to our wanderer Emily Ross. She’s been busy getting back into school so….we can cut her slack! 

I’m so glad she touched this topic….Bermudians around the world. For such a small island, we manage to get around…..the world. Emily we’re happy to have you back!

I am a disgrace. Apologies, bloggers. I should stop get off of http://kimjongillookingatthings.tumblr.com/ and type my blog that I’ve been planning for weeks.

Wherever you go, you will find a Bermudian. Or someone who knows a Bermudian. Or someone who’s been to Bermuda. Used to work in Bermuda. Their brother married a Bermudian. They like the rum.

We are everywhere. Bristol (where I’m studying at the moment) is overrun with Bermudians. I’ll never forget that day in first year where I ran into three Bermudians in the space of 20 minutes – one in the library, one outside the library and one in the gym (which is next to the library). We all have stories like that – you’re on holiday, escaping the rock…and BAM. Bermudian.

For an island filled with 64,000 Bermudians, we can be found all around the world

Even studying in Hong Kong, another Bermudian (a very good friend from high school) also was on exchange there at the same time!

In the middle of Times Square in New York, we ran into my mother’s violin student.

In a mall in Hong Kong, a friend’s parents (who used to live in Bermuda) happened to stroll past and spot us in line for the movie theatre.

In Johannesburg airport, of all places!

In the middle of Waterloo Station in London I ran into a family from home who were going to see Rebecca Faulkenberry (another Bermudian, of course!) in a West End show! The friend I was with was not only amazed that out of all the people in London we ran into some Bermudians I knew, but also that we were name-dropping other Bermudians!

Bermuda's beautiful hibiscus!

So I asked my readers: Where have you unexpectedly run into a Bermudian whilst travelling?

Jenny 

- In London, outside of the Palladium

- In malls in Toronto

- ‘Sitting on Primrose Hill last summer, a man came up to me with a cassava assuming my friends and I wouldn’t know what it was and I was all like “that’s a cassava.” And it turns out after some chat and bafflement that he was Bermudian’

- ‘On my birthday in New Zealand I ran into this guy who’d spent like four summers in Bermuda and knew all of the people who I hang out with…And he was like really close with my brother back in the day.’

Sarah

- On the stairs at South Kensington tube station

- When a Bermudian friend visited ‘we went to a nightclub near my house and when she was holding out her ID some guy behind us in the queue shouted “BERMUDA BERMUUUUUDAAAA”. Turns out he used to work over there.’

- ‘My brother James was running the Chicago marathon in his Bermuda vest and some girl screamed “WOOOOOOO BERMUDA! I’M A BERMUDIAN!” and they high fived as he ran past.’

- ‘My mum ran into some Bermudians in a Pyramid in Egypt.’

Bermuda's sunset!

Chelsea P

-  In a hospital room in Baltimore

Paige

                – ‘I was serving a woman in the cafe in Highgate woods, and at the end of her meal she saw my surname on the bill and asked me if I knew Paige Hallett, to which I replied, “quite well, actually” [She is Paige Hallett] and we had a nice little chat; apparently she spends half her year in Bermuda and the other in London, and she knows my sister quite well.’

                – ‘Have had quite a few Bermudian kids in the cafe. One little boy even dared to tell me that MSA was better than BHS! Needless to say he got a very pathetic scoop of ice cream that day.’

                – ‘In accent and dialect classes in LIPA [The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts] I found a Bermudian accent recording on IDEA (an accent database) and played it for the class…Imagine my surprise when I actually listened to the recording. Halfway through the recording I yelled, “THAT’S DEVAUNE!”

Adrienne

                - In a market in Florence – ‘Turned out she lived right by the villa we were renting!’

Nicholas L

                – ‘In La Paz, Bolivia whilst mountain biking down death road.’

Euan

                - Llunenberg, Canada in a shopping mall. ‘He may have been the only other living person in that town, it was empty.’

Miriam

                -‘One of my favourite customers in the underground, and some random Bermudians I didn’t actually know but got talking to on a bus in New York…’

Nadia

                – ‘Coming out of a chocolate shop in Berne, Switzerland and bumped into one of my sister’s former classmates. It’s the timing that astounds me. We had only stopped to have lunch and to keep on travelling to Beaune in France.’

                – ‘Another time was in that venerated establishment, Mickey-D’s, in the wee hours of the morning in Leicester Square, London – when the guy in front of me ordered his meal there was no mistaking the accent. I hadn’t been home in ages at that point and it was music to my ears. We chatted briefly. It was very amusing because he was gobsmacked I recognised the accent as I sounded English to him.’

Fishing in Bermuda, but they could be in.......

Robyn

                – ‘In a bar on the side of a mountain in Zermatt, Switzerland! And, to top it off, she was a colleague!’

Chelsea M

                – ‘In the Vatican!’

                – ‘Tube stations in London, of course.’

Jack

                - In JJB Sports in Manchester

                -Disneyland!

Karriem

- Eaton Centre in Toronto

- In a Guelph nightclub and at a Guelph bus station – ‘That was super random, being that I only went to Guelph once.’

Nicholas H

                – At the Olympics in Greece

                – At the Commonwealth Games in Italy

                – In a variety of pubs in Manchester, Edinburgh

Ben

                – At an optician’s in London

                – At a pub in Euston

                – ‘There’s one in my uni course in the year below me. I didn’t realise until a guy from the course came down to Bermuda and I recognised him…and thus discovered a fellow Bermudian law student at Kings.’

Kyle

                – In the Topman shop at Westfield

Rebecca

                – UB40 concert in Southampton

Matthew

                – Eaton Centre and Yonge Street in Toronto.

                – University of Toronto campus

                – In the crowd at a parade in Toronto

Johnny

                – In the Ramada Hotel in Atlanta. ‘Doorman, slight accent, called him out on it.’

The end of the harvest. It must be time for.....Thanksgiving!

“What do you do for Thanksgiving?”

“Well, I’m from Bermuda.”

“Oh, so what do you do in Bermuda for Thanksgiving?”

I gave up.

Tomorrow, Americans will be sitting around their living rooms eating turkey and talking about what they are thankful for.

It’s a yearly tradition for the United States that comes complete with the Macy’s Day parade in New York City and pumpkin pie.

But what I have found, is that many Americans forget is that not everyone celebrates Thanksgiving, hence the intro question, or that not everyone celebrates the holiday at the end of November.

For those who are not American…do you know where it started? According to the History Channel, the Plymouth colonists and the Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast. In 1863, the celebration became the first national holiday thanks to President Abraham Lincoln and was to be held each November.

Now, it is celebrated with sweet corn, turkey, sweet potatoes, apple pie and gravy (not all in that order!) and even the largest parade, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade completed with balloon animals.

America’s Northern neighbour? Canadians? Well, their Thanksgiving happens on the second Monday of October and recognizes the end of the harvest season.

Like the Americans, Canadians also enjoy turkey and all of the Fall vegetables they can find with their families. This has been carrying-on since 1957 when Canadian Parliament declared: “A Day of General Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed – to be observed on the 2nd Monday in October.”

One of the best know celebrations in Canada during this time of year? The Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest is an annual nine-day festival that is based on the German Oktoberfest. It starts the Monday before Canadian Thanksgiving and runs until the Saturday in the twin cities of Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.

There are an estimated 750,000 to 1,000,000 people every year! And a few even stay to see the largest Thanksgiving parade in Canada in the same place!

Bermuda? Well, we do not really have a thanksgiving per se. I suppose the closest we have to one time of the year where everyone comes together is Cup Match.

According to CURE’s publication, “Emancipation Day – A Day for Reconciliation & Reflection”, Cup Match was born from friendly cricket matches and celebrations to mark emancipation from slavery. In 1902, the cricket celebrations became even more official when the east and west ends of the island raised funds for a trophy to award at the end of the matches.

Take a swim in Bermuda over Cup Match

In 1947, Cup Match transformed again with the Thursday and Friday closest to August 1 officially named Emancipation day and Somers Day respectively. Emancipation Day to mark the end of slavery in Bermuda and Somers Day to remember Admiral Sir George Somers who colonized Bermuda in 1609. Now, Cup Match is filled with commemoration ceremonies, cricket, but also boating, beaches and definitely parties! Thankful? I think so, but let me know if you agree in the comments section below.

Sure we Bermudians, Americans and Canadians have held our traditions for a while, but there are other countries that have created their own type of Thanksgiving.

In Grenada, for example, a day of Thanksgiving is observed on October 25 and marks the anniversary of the 1983 Operation Urgent Fury, a US led military invasion of the Caribbean island. Grenada consists of about 100,000 people and sits about 100 miles above Venezuela. It also became independent from Britain in 1974, however, in 1979 the Leftist New Jewel Movement seized power and in 1983 an internal struggle ended with the revolutionary Prime Minister Maurice Bishop being deposed and murdered.

The invasion on October 25th, 1983 also had troops from Jamaica and the Regional Security System to help! The government was then headed by Governor-General Paul Scoon until elections were held.

Is that thanksgiving? Well, perhaps not like the Americans envision it, but in Grenada ceremonies are held during this time to give thanks, so I think it fits.

Dan pobjede i domovinske zahvalnosti i dan hrvatskih branitelja or Victor and Homeland Thanksgiving Day and the Day of Croatian Defenders, if you must know in English. Yes, Croatia has its own Thanksgiving too.

It is a public holiday and is held as a memorial to the War of Independence. It is also held on August 5, annually.

Why?

Well, on that date in 1995, the Croatian Army secured the city of Knin, which essentially ended the Republic of Serbian Krajina, a self-proclaimed Serb entity in Croatia.

Because of the reason for the day, it only makes sense that most of the celebrations are centred in Knin where there are festivities from Mass and wreaths laid in honor of those who died in the war as well as, parades and concerts.

On that day, the Croatian flag is also lifted on the Knin fortress (just in case anyone is confused as to who that day is about)!

Celebrating around the world!

Other countries tend to also have a “Thanksgiving” around the end of their harvest seasons. In China? This is called the August Moon Festival and is held on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month. But instead of Apple Pie, there are mooncakes, which are made with sweet bean-paste filling and golden brown flaky skin.

In the South of India, they celebrate the Pongal harvest festival, which is named after a sweet rice dish and takes places on January 14th and lasts for three days. The celebrations vary by days and regions, but neighbours generally come together to feast and give thanks to a hearty harvest.

As you travel the world, these thanking festivals can be seen in their variations, but generally focus on food and recognizing family, friends and gratefulness.

Is Cup Match our version? You tell me on my website www.robynswanderings.com and return for next week’s column: being thankful I could travel and learn ten very important lessons.

Until next week I say: Do videnja.

Green Beer will be everywhere!

Tomorrow in Enterprise, Alabama one person of Irish decent will march from the town’s court house to the Boll Weevil museum (don’t ask) and back carrying a pot of gold and reciting limericks.

No, this is not some new form of torture.

Nope, I promise. Apparently in 1993, the people of Enterprise (with Irish heritage, anyway) actually chose to start this.

What’s this? It’s only the smallest, annual St. Patrick’s Day parade – one person of Irish heritage in the town actually compete to be part (the only part) of it.

At least their parade only lasts about 10 minutes! Want to see some pics? Visit here.

Ahhhh St. Patrick’s Day.

Which brings me to Rock Fever this week: where and what is St. Patrick’s Day and why do people celebrate it around the world?

Well let’s start with Ireland. For those who live in Ireland tomorrow is a National Holiday celebrated with everything from parades to people piled high in the pub.

But they’re not alone (that does not include those calling-in sick! That is NOT a National Holiday). Ireland is joined by Montserrat. Yep, outside of Ireland this Caribbean island is the only other place to call St. Patrick’s Day a National Holiday and celebrates with a week of festivities that include a Freedom hike, a kite festival, and church services.

Yes, church services. While many believe St. Patrick’s Day is a celebration for green beer, the day did actually have a saintly birth. Yes, the day recognizes St. Patrick, the Patron Saint of Ireland, who converted Irish pagans to christianity in the 5th Century a.d.

St. Patrick

Patrick, however, was originally from Britain (his parents, Calpurnius and Conchessa, were Roman citizens living in either Scotland or Wales, depending on his stories). When he was about 16 he was captured by Irish raiders and was imprisoned in Ireland for six years. After six years he claimed to have heard the voice of God telling him to leave Ireland. He escaped, marched 200 miles, jumped on a boat, returned to Britain, entered the Church, trained and returned to Ireland.

To help convert the Irish to Christianity, legend has it that St. Patrick used the native shamrock to represent the Holy Trinity and incorporated other Irish symbols such as the bonfire (the Irish had used these to honour their gods) and the Sun. To celebrate his accomplishments, St. Patrick’s Day was born on the day of his death, March 17th.

While it may have started with religious connotation and still has some, it has also evolved into a general celebration of everything green, shamrock and gold. Oh, yeah and Irish too. And while Alabama might have the smallest St. Patrick’s Day parade to recognize this saint, New York is home to the largest! Of course! Who knows how to celebrate a person or an event like New Yorkers? No one.

The first parade in New York was on March 17th, 1762, 14 years before the Declaration of Independence. It now starts on 44th street and marches up 5th Avenue, past St. Patrick’s Cathedral at 50th Street and the finishes at the Metropolitan Museum at 83rd Street. The celebrations in Boston (one of the “most Irish cities” according to them) are no slouch either with a parade in South Boston (among other events) on Sunday!

Canadians are also not far behind in their celebration of St. Patrick’s Day. No, indeed in Montreal, they started in 1759 with celebratory dinners (far more civilized) and meandered up to an annual parade on March 17th, 1824.

Of course on the other side of Canada, Vancouver will be hosting an entire fest to overlap St. Patrick’s Day this year! Yes, from March 16 to the 20, this city will be the focus of some 60 plus concerts, festivals and workshops based on the Celtic culture. The St. Patrick’s parade, though? Well that won’t be until Sunday! So you’ve got time to jump from Montreal to Vancouver if the Irish spirit grips you!

That still won’t be enough time to get you to Australia, however. In Sydney St. Patrick’s day has been celebrated since March 17, 1810 when the then governor, Lachlan Macquarie, declared the official day of celebration for the Irish and those of Irish heritage. Now, more than 200 years since it started, the city is host to the second largest parade in the world (after New York’s of course).

In Brisbane, however, I’m afraid we’ve already missed their parade which is held on the Saturday BEFORE St. Patrick’s Day (go figure). Instead tomorrow will be celebrated with all-day music and “hearty” irish food at the Celtic Koala Club. Sounds like a plan to me.

So where else is St. Patrick’s Day celebrated? I mean besides every Irish pub around the world? How about Dubai!

Yes, in Dubai there is actually an Irish Village (I mean why wouldn’t there be, really?) and starting from tomorrow the Village will host two days of celebration with food and drink. Who knew? Well maybe the people who were invited to the Dubai Irish Society Ball. Yep. One Irish village is not enough for Dubai….there are two and tomorrow (Friday) there will be Ball at the Dubai Marina.

Unfortunately, other celebrations that usually attract Irish politicians will be muted and may not exist this year thanks to economic woes and concerns over political protests. While 22 Irish representatives traveled around the world last year for fancy Balls hosted in everywhere from Russia to China, only nine will this year, according to Global Post. And parades that normally took place in these two countries will also be muted or cancelled (no marching in Shanghai this year) to ensure they do not become a chance to fight the government.

One Irish Government official, however, will definitely be traveling: the Irish Taoiseach (prime minister). He will be heading to the White House in Washington, D.C. where he will be received in an annual lunch hosted by the speaker of the U.S. House and is attended by the president and senior members of the House and Senate. In fact, the Irish Taoiseach is the only head of Government given an automatic access to the White House on one day of the year – May 17. Maybe they can talk about Ireland’s economy over some green beer?

Which brings us to next week’s column and what could be worse than an economy already struggling? One that has been wiped-out by earthquakes and tsunami waves. Poor Japan has suffered and yet visiting might not be the right move. What’s the best way to help? Find out next week.

Until then, Slán go fóill.

Wandering the streets of Buenos Aires

“Robyn, I don’t know if I can come to Buenos Aires.”

“What! Why not?”

“They say there are street protests by students often and there are pickpockets. My mom is worried.”

“Uh, Rachel you live in New York City. Seriously?”

The absurdity must have hit home; Rachel met me in Buenos Aires. And not a minute too soon. I had been traveling for almost a year around the world last year and I was tired. I wanted a friendly face.

I couldn’t believe the United States’ Government had almost gotten in the way. I’ll be the first to admit it: I never check travel advisories. They seem like a waste of time. Unfortunately my friend, and travel buddy, Rachel wasn’t quite so reckless and nearly ruined her trip! We both survived. We actually even saw a protest (it was a bunch of students with a sheet, monitored by Police and controlled through the streets).

Which got me to thinking this week, as I watched Egypt erupt into flames, Tunisia turn upside down and foreigners flee for the first flight, how do you know travel is safe?

Well I suppose my Rock Fever column in The Royal Gazette this week starts with an obvious one: you don’t know. Each time you board that plane you don’t know if you’ll land. When you sail away into the sunset, how are you sure you’ll come back? You don’t.

Which is why you have to head to two which is: plan for what you can control. Get your vaccinations, bring

Be careful with the water when visiting Egypt (and there are no protests!)

your hand sanitizer and check whether you can eat raw food and drink water in your destination! At least if you can keep yourself healthy you’ll be better prepared for anything that might come your way.

Of course, you could check three: the United States’ Government travel advisories at: http://travel.state.gov/travel. On their website you can check the country you are going to travel to and see what the American’s worry about.

I’m afraid they worry about a lot. That’s why my tip four is to take that website with a good dose of perspective. Look at Rachel? New York was the centre of one of the most internationally, transformational terrorist attacks in the last decade or even two and a NewYorker is worried about some pick pockets in Buenos Aires?

What I’m saying for tip five, then, is not to let these advisories advise you against travel to “exotic” places. We don’t think for two minutes about boarding a plane to go to New York, but to head to Malaysia?

Well in Malaysia (and anywhere outside of Bermuda, of course) my tip six would be to adhere to the warnings and advisories of your bank! Tell them where you are going (even if you don’t tell anyone else!) or face losing the use of your credit cards. Or in my case, know which countries are entirely blocked by your bank. Yes, the entirety of Malaysia is blocked for ATM use by Bank of Butterfield clients, apparently. In Malaysia I spent my trip visiting banks to withdraw on my credit card. The trip could have been a lot less safe if I hadn’t had a travel buddy with me to provide cash until I could get to a bank (it was a holiday when I arrived).

Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia!

I’m lucky my Malaysia emergency proved to be easy enough to resolve when I knew why my ATM card was being declined. What’s not easy to resolve are major clashes in countries. Which is my tip seven and make sure you check the news for the country you are going to visit or where you are!

Sound obvious? Well I’ll be the first to say I didn’t think about it while navigating the world. When I was in Chandigarh, India it was my mother who was thousands of miles away, mind you, who told me there were violent clashes between Hindus and Muslims miles from me. Luckily they were far enough away from Chandigarh, which was perfectly calm and quiet. I boarded the bus to Delhi and, as you know, I made it.

Of course my mom was worried, but tip eight is a reason I don’t always check the news and the advisories: clashes and protests are never (almost) as bad as the lines in a newspaper or the screen explain it. Well unless the country has literally shut-down internet and countries are evacuating their citizens. Then I might worry. But more often than not the problems are in a particular area of the country. Not in that area? Worry slightly less.

And tip nine is, unfortunately for women: take extra precaution wherever you are. Don’t go out at night on your own; an innocent walk in Cusco, Peru could turn into a drive-by bum grab even with male travel buddies there! Imagine if I’d been on my own?! Leave a bag (light enough so you can move it in an emergency and heavy enough so you hear it move if an uninvited guest arrives) in front of your locked, hotel room door. Want more ideas? Visit my post on female travelers or Wanderlust and Lipstick!

La Cholita wrestling in La Paz, Bolivia: Bolivian women in skirts and braids wrestle with their foes!

And finally tip ten, after scaring the daylights out of you, is: don’t let any country intimidate you from visiting it. Some countries will be poorer. Some will have infrastructure that could use some help. All countries will have a tour that can help you navigate pitfalls that could arise and provide you with tour guides with local insight. That is, if you’re worried about doing it on your own. Just don’t let that stop you from experiencing cultures, food, landscapes and languages that include women with plaits wrestling in Bolivia or the crackling of a glacier in Chile.

Of course if you’re Bermudian or a resident you will be facing questions when you visit these new places, right? You said….you promised you would try somewhere new! Well when you do you’ll want to take with you my travel cheat sheet in next week’s column and of course visit here for your daily dose of travel tips and tales!

Skiing!

Yep it’s true! You can ski in Vail, Colorado for $14.21 a day! It’s true. Yep. Ok so maybe it’s lunch with a drink and dessert, but it’s not a stretch at Bermuda prices.

It’s the latest deal from Brenda Warwick, our CTravel ski expert! For just $199 you can ski for a week in Vail during the second snowiest month of the year ….. April! Imagine flying through the powder of the top ski vacation destination for the price of lunch in Bermuda!

This crazy deal also covers the period of spring break! Yep, from April 10th until April 24th, Vail is offering great deals on ski lifts.

Not only can  you ski for $14 a day, but you can also experience the parties! I mean really….isn’t apres ski the best part of the day??!

Well make sure you book the ski pass through Brenda Warwick who can also help you find the right resort for your ski trip!

Are you worried about how much it is going to cost you to fly to Colorado? You’re right from Bermuda, traveling further than the East Coast can get costly as well as tricky with combining flights!

Have no fear CTravel is here for you too! Book your vacation by January 13th and you will be able to fly to Denver, Colorado for $372!  From Denver, public transportation is easy, cheap and frequent to Vail so this is perfect!

Ok so these reduced prices are mid-week and depends on your carrier, but if you contact an agent at CTravel you know they’re going to find the best deal for you! And without you having to stress or spend hours negotiating those airline sites (expedia, hotwire, etc…) which have now dropped American Airlines.

Chicago by Sam Strangeways

Or perhaps you’re looking for some more deals?! Well good thing CTravel has some amazing Seat Sales on right now!

Even better? They match Valentine’s Day! Yep, book your tickets to Chicago for just $272 and fly between February 16 and May 24th!

Of course this depends on the carrier you book through and the days of the week you travel so check out prices on quickertix.com and prepare to spoil your loved one for Valentine’s Day.

And read Sam Strangeways’ account (it’s linked to her photo on the left) of her visit to Chicago for tips on where to eat, sleep and enjoy this windy city!

Of course check back here tomorrow for more adventures in Vermont (my latest destination) and enjoy your Thursday! Your CTravel Thursday!

Fancy doing it on a cruise? Well you’ve got one more day to book a trip that includes, not just some of the best jazz artists, but also the Caribbean. What could be better?

How about the 2011 artist lineup? David Sanborn, Alonzo Bodden, Simone, and so many more that you can visit here. And then again there are the countries! Nassau, San Juan, St. Maarten and Half Moon Cay. Then of course there is the price! For nine days sail through the Caribbean, listen to the soothing sounds of Jazz and do it all for just $2,599 if you book with CTravel. But remember you only have one more day so visit their website or their offices on Queen Street for more information. While you’re there you might want to also ask about their special deal just for Bermudians. Bermudians who want to visit New York. That includes staying in the luxurious Fitzpatrick Hotel in New York Fitzpatrick hotel for just $199 a night. That will also include the use of their health club, special offer coupons and it is available from Thursday to Sunday! Why not treat yourself after Christmas for a little vacation? And even better when you book through CTravel then you can also book your theatre tickets! Well not just theatre tickets, but discount tickets for the any event you’re interested in seeing while you visit the Big Apple. Check out what is available here. And finally as a little bonus. A trip that is fun and out there for you….how about experiencing the haunting images of Vietnam or the beautiful ones of Cambodia Experience a vivid world of monks in saffron robes, rice paddies, floating markets & ancient temples with a private guided tour. Visit Hanoi, which is a lively mix past & present, the limestone karsts of Halong Bay, culturally decadent Hue, charming old Hoi An & Ho Chi Minh City before voyaging to Cambodia to explore the ancient temple complex of Angkor Wat. Enjoy an overnight cruise on Halong Bay, water puppet show, Tai Chi, cooking class, cycling, river cruises, hot air balloon ride, elephants & more. Featuring a great mix of 4 & 5 star hotels, private guide, driver & internal flights, this tour promises to be the trip of a lifetime. For 14 days it will cost you just $3,794 per person! How crazy is that? I know how crazy it is because I’ve traveled through that part of the world. It’s a trip that is priceless but with a visit to the helpful staff of CTravel you can also visit the stunning countries of South East Asia. All the best on your vacation choices!

Fancy doing it on a cruise? Well you’ve got one more day to book a trip that includes, not just some of the best jazz artists, but also the Caribbean. What could be better?

How about the 2011 artist lineup? David Sanborn, Alonzo Bodden, Simone, and so many more that you can visit here. And then again there are the countries! Nassau, San Juan, St. Maarten and Half Moon Cay. Then of course there is the price! For nine days sail through the Caribbean, listen to the soothing sounds of Jazz and do it all for just $2,599 if you book with CTravel. But remember you only have one more day so visit their website or their offices on Queen Street for more information. While you’re there you might want to also ask about their special deal just for Bermudians. Bermudians who want to visit New York. That includes staying in the luxurious Fitzpatrick Hotel in New York Fitzpatrick hotel for just $199 a night. That will also include the use of their health club, special offer coupons and it is available from Thursday to Sunday! Why not treat yourself after Christmas for a little vacation? And even better when you book through CTravel then you can also book your theatre tickets! Well not just theatre tickets, but discount tickets for the any event you’re interested in seeing while you visit the Big Apple. Check out what is available here. And finally as a little bonus. A trip that is fun and out there for you….how about experiencing the haunting images of Vietnam or the beautiful ones of Cambodia Experience a vivid world of monks in saffron robes, rice paddies, floating markets & ancient temples with a private guided tour. Visit Hanoi, which is a lively mix past & present, the limestone karsts of Halong Bay, culturally decadent Hue, charming old Hoi An & Ho Chi Minh City before voyaging to Cambodia to explore the ancient temple complex of Angkor Wat. Enjoy an overnight cruise on Halong Bay, water puppet show, Tai Chi, cooking class, cycling, river cruises, hot air balloon ride, elephants & more. Featuring a great mix of 4 & 5 star hotels, private guide, driver & internal flights, this tour promises to be the trip of a lifetime. For 14 days it will cost you just $3,794 per person! How crazy is that? I know how crazy it is because I’ve traveled through that part of the world. It’s a trip that is priceless but with a visit to the helpful staff of CTravel you can also visit the stunning countries of South East Asia. All the best on your vacation choices!

Fireworks over the Charles' Bridge in Prague!

Kielbasa? Check. Champagne? Check? A bridge that was not destroyed in WWII? Check. Thousands of people from Italy, France, China, and the USA? Check? Fireworks? At midnight.

I was knee-deep in freezing temperatures, but that’s ok. I could work with the frost. It was nothing a couple of glasses of gluwein and a lot of jumping, couldn’t fix.

As I found myself at the beginning of my trip around the world celebrating in Prague the welcoming of 2009, I realized I was glad I chose this spot. With the Christmas Market still doling out the famous sausage dish (kielbasa) and hot wine, coupled with the thousands of tourists in the Czech Capital there was a sense of unity among nations.

Well, unity until we all tried to head for the Charles’ Bridge. This structure survived WWII and just about survives the onslaught of tourists and Czech’s alike every New Years; it’s the best place to watch the fireworks. On the way everyone jumps into the shops on the corner to grab their champagne, absinthe, or the Czech liquor, Fernet.

Then the count-down begins. Five, Cinque, Cinq….Four, Quatro, Quatre…..three, tre, tre, Two, duo, due….One, uno, une!

But not everyone enjoys their New Years on a bridge. Of course I have never been in New York for New Year’s Eve but, as everyone knows, they drop a ball…in Times’ Square of course!

Sure the New Yorkers drop a ball, but that’s nothing compared to our onion in St. George’s, right?

Neither of those, I’m afraid, touch on the interesting New Years tradition in Peru, however. In this South American country, they dress-up a doll (yes I know machismo is gone for a night) in old clothes and then burn it.

Talk about cleaning your closet! To ensure there are replacements, markets spring-up catering to everything you need. New clothes not an option? Then at least new underwear is!

But, of course, yellow underwear is the only colour you want if you need happiness and luck (good thing that’s my favourite colour!) or red if you want love or green for, of course, money.

Red, green and….white? Well those colours will have you wishing: “Buon Capodanno!” That’s what I heard in Florence as I celebrated a New Year before starting my semester of studying in these Renaissance-lined streets. Of course the greeting came with the crescendo of bottles crashing onto these streets (perhaps a hangover from the Southern tradition of throwing your old things out of the window showing that you were ready for the new).

We didn’t dodge the bottles until after a massive fiesta! La Festa di San Silvestro to be exact. For my experience it was based on sea food and fish.

Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Italy!

Perhaps that was because I was up North and the Italians I was celebrating with were from the coast (sailors actually). In other parts of Italy the feast is based on lentils and pork! Of course once you indulge in these feasts only the Italians know how to work it off. That requires cracking a spumante or prosecco and finding a club to dance and then waiting for the new born sun.

A ray of light is exactly what you might think you see if you celebrate the new year in India. Parties have themes – colour codes or unique dress codes – filled with food and even the lighting of bonfires and the burning of crackers. Of course if you visit the tourist and hippie mecca of Goa (a province on India’s West coast) then raves are all the…rave!

Heading back for Silvester, or the feast of St. Silverster is the name of New Year’s Eve in Germany. Who was Silvester? Well, he was a pope who lived in the fourth century and apparently healed leprosy and baptized the Roman Emporer, Constantine the Great among other things. Fair enough. I guess he should get a celebration. In Berlin, however, the world-famous bash Brandenburger Tor is held and at midnight everyone wishes everyone else “Gutes Nue Jahr”. The next day, there is, of course, the need to know what is coming in the next year so the Germans enjoy Bleigiessen. A tradition, it requires dropping molten lead into cold water. Shaped like a heart or a ring? A wedding is in your future.

While we, in the West, might be celebrating New Years’ Eve in a couple of days, in Cambodia New Year or Chaul Chnam Thmey is not until April 13th or 14th and it is celebrated for three days! Yes, three days. That’s because it represents the end of the harvesting season. Makes sense, no? To celebrate means visiting temples to get blessing from monks and priests while building a sand hill on the temple grounds and decorating it with five religious flags – it represents the Buddha’s five disciples. Each of the three days also have their own significance.

Harvesting is what it’s all about in Korea, China and Vietnam! Only their’s is celebrated at sunset on the day of the second new moon after the winter solstice (that was on December, 21 this year). It’s a three-day celebration too! Heck they know how to party out there. Almost all Koreans, apparently, head back to their hometowns to celebrate. On the eve, or Sut dal kum mum, people clean their homes and light them with colourful halogens. You think our New Years Eve is long? The Koreans don’t sleep! The belief is everyone needs to stay-up to see the new year coming in or….else.

The next day it’s all about eating and spending time with family even including the ancestors. Known as Chesa, a clean room, a table altar is places with food items and on a special paper their names are written. On a special paper called Chi Bang, the names of the ancestors are written. With the rituals done, it’s time to have fun with games and hanging-out.

The only tradition for their friends south, Australia, is a party of course! Beaches, pubs and clubs are all filled with crazy cappers and as soon as church bells ring at midnight loud noises also ring-out! Recovering from this fun, the New Year Day is a public holiday and people spend it with their family and friends. To get an idea of how much fun it is more than 3,00,000 tourists celebrate their New Year in Australia. I suppose that’s a party.

The Matterhorn can provide the background for New Year's Eve!

Of course the best I’ve seen/experienced was in Zermatt, Switzerland! I had the luck of having a friend with a house there. But that’s not where we stayed….well for New Year’s Eve anyway. Instead the party was taken to a five-story restaurant/bar/club in the middle of this traffic-free, mountain ensconced town. The Swiss know how to party.

Of course the next day the party the night before was nothing a little skiing with the backdrop of the Matterhorn mountain couldn’t take care of. Let’s hope I have the same luck this year in Vermont! So wherever you are and whatever you are doing this year, enjoy it! And come back next week for my next Rock Fever column for The Royal Gazette on traveling by book! (those following the blog will have seen it before:)

Nope. Not one! Sorry I know everyone is BIG on Eat, Pray, Love, but I am not a fan. Yes I will be the first and probably only female to say it.

I couldn’t find a book that is so far from the truth of travel if I tried. And god knows I am trying to be closer to the traveling truth with my own. Stay tuned for my book about my navigation of the world last year.

Hint: It is not a pretty bow that is tied by a rich man in Bali.

Anyway, the point of the post today is not to bash a book. No instead it’s to highlight some of my favourites! I love to read and so would any traveler. Do you know how long the bus ride is between Cusco, Peru and Puno, Peru? I didn’t think so.

Well it’s long enough to finish a good book and start a new one! Which is exactly what you could do with my first book:

I raced through The White Tiger and not because it won the Man Booker Award. Nope. Instead I thought this book, published in 2008 as the debut novel by Aravind Adiga, offered a view of India like no other book I have read on the subject. Life is told through the eyes of the main character Balram Halwai. Though clever, Balram is too poor to finish school and takes a job in a tea shop before becoming a driver for the rich in New Delhi. In the city and watching the corruption of his employers Balram realizes that he has to take matters into his own hands! I will leave it at that. You want to visit India without the plane ticket? You want an understanding of the caste system, the conflict between Hindu and Muslim, and the poverty in an interesting narrative? You’ve got your book.

French is Funny!

Ever though the French were funny? No? Well you will after reading A Year in the Merde!

Written by a Brit, Stephen Clarke, it fictionally details another Brit’s (Paul West) attempts to move to Paris for an employer who wants to open tea rooms in the capital. Paul has been recruited by the employer. Ironic, because Paul becomes nothing more than a body in the office.

No one will listen to him when they want to name the British tea rooms: My Tea is Rich. Can you see anyone in Britain drinking in that tea room? Me neither. Want a good laugh at the mannerisms of the French? Enjoy this  book and its sequel: Merde Actually! You will find an amusing trip through France.

New York, New York

You’ve been to New York? Are you sure? Haven’t been to New York? Want another side to this capital city that never sleeps? I ran into this book, Random Family: Love, Drugs, Trouble, and Coming of Age in the Bronx while I was browsing a Barnes and Nobles while living in New York (irony, I know, crazy, right!). Anyway, I was looking for something different. I found it in this first book by Adrian Nicole LeBlanc.

Based in the post-1980′s in New York it focuses on families struggling to survive on a multigenerational level. But this is no Hollywood tale. It will take you through the Bronx, but also through each generations desire not to be the one before. And failing. Seriously, I’ve never read a better book about New York!

Number Four is just another uplifting book for you. Ever thought being addicted to drugs was funny? No? Ok well neither did James Frey. Or maybe he did. Anyway, though his book: A Million Little Pieces, was caught in a maelstrom of bad press (did he really do this or not?) it’s a good read. I love first-person narratives. I just do. So sue me. But he doesn’t let it drag and it’s not woe is me.

Why do I include this in my books? Even if Oprah has banned him from her couch? Well because it offers you a chance to travel though the eyes of a drug addict. I can happily say I am not one so why not read a book (as semi-fictional as it is) to get an idea?

Saving the World!

From a man who accomplished nothing to a man who tried to accomplish everything we visit Chechnya. I told you this is a random list of books who will make you travel.

The Man who tried to Save the World was written by journalist Scott Anderson and therefore is a succinct, but descriptive and intriguing novel on the life of Fred Cuny. Dubbed the “Master of Disaster”, Fred was one of the best relief workers there was. Unfortunately in 1995 he decided, against all advice, to return to Chechnya.

Him and a small group attempted to reach a rebel fortress that had been bombarded by Russians. They were never seen again. And you won’t be once you start this book! Gripping and a real life drama, it should definitely be part of your backpack!

Somalia

From the drama of a reported war to the war against women that rarely gets reported, From a Crooked Rib is by no means a new book.

Written in 1968 by Nuruddin Farah (a man) he somehow captures the sad, but real, struggles that women in Somalia face (and other parts of Africa). Ebla, the main character, went through the barbaric ritual of female infibulation, then an arranged marriage all before she ran away.

Unfortunately she is then sold into wedlock where she is raped on the first night of the “marriage”. She becomes disillusioned and yet continues to believe that marriage is the source of love and life. It’s a hard novel to read but an enlightening one on the struggles of women outside of my comfortable home.

From women to male piano tuners, I never said my list was organized. Neither is my book shelf which is what I like. I always get to travel to new places! Why stick with one genre? That would be boring.

So now we’re heading to Burma in colonial times. The Piano Tuner is about, of all things, a piano tuner. I know. Shocking. The reason he’s heading to Burma? Well one of the captains in the British Colonial Army has a piano in the hills. He needs it tuned.

Sounds ridiculous, but I bet it could have happened. In any case, it features the conflict between the British and the Burmese who just want their home back. In the most unique of manners – a piano. Filled with descriptions of jungles and lush food, I most definitely will make Burma a next stop!

Visit Barcelona

From Burma to Barcelona. Shadow of the Wind is the s a 2001 novel by Spanish writer Carlos Ruiz Zafón and it is amazing! I couldn’t put it down! Not once.

Based in post-civil war Spain, the books centres on a young boy Daniel who is exposed to the beauty of books by his father. In the secret Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a library filled to the rafters with old forgotten titles preserved by a secret group of librarians. New initiates (those who know about the library) can pick one book to take with them.

What Daniel finds with his new book, Shadow of the Wind, is a mysterious author and his home city filled with dark corners and unknowns. It will keep you gripped. Just please don’t read Zafon’s second book, The Angel’s Game. It will ruin The Shadow of the Wind!

So there you have it. My reading list if I wanted to travel to somewhere new without ever boarding a plane, sitting in a car or visiting a train. Enjoy!

View of Earth from Above

Looking for a thrill on your next trip, but not sure where to find it? Have you ever traveled at almost 2500 mph? You know, more than three times the speed of sound? Want to take the pressure off? I mean completely off? You know, zero gravity off?

How about traveling like that thousands of miles above earth? Why not head to space with Virgin Galactic?! Yes since 2005 the company founded and headed by Sir Richard Branson has been offering reservations for the $200,000 spots on their spaceships since 2005.

AND DID YOU KNOW?!? Bermuda has it’s very own travel agent to help you book? You guessed it. We do. CTravel. In fact Brenda Warwick at CTravel can help you place your reservation for the FIRST(!!!!) commercial sub-orbital space odyssey.

I mean how cool would that be? For the starting price of $200,000 with refundable deposits starting from $20,000, flying around space could be YOU!

Check out Virgin Galactic’s Website for the history and run-down of what you will experience while you’re above Earth!

Is that a little to extreme for your liking? What about a weekend in New York? Yeah I thought you might like that and luckily CTravel has some great deals that can help you stay without costing you a fortune!

Sound even better? I thought so.

The Fitzpatrick Hotel in New York

For just $199 a night you can stay at the Fitzpatrick hotel in Manhattan!

This beautiful hotel offers the Irish hospitality to Bermudians who book through CTravel.

And their offer even provides you with the use of the gym and gives you special discounts at stores!

Sounds like a deal to me.

But what are you going to do in New York? Well have no fear. At this time of year there is so much to do in New York it is hard to know what is good or bad or even where to get the best tickets.

How about staying local for that? Well did you know that you could also find tickets for Wicked, The Lion King and just about any theatre show or concert you want with CTravel?

Well you can! Check out Keith Prowse’s purchasing site. How about cheap tickets to something in London? Yep you can do that here too! So what are you waiting for?

Plan your trip to New York or to the moon (ok not the moon, but you get it) and visit here tomorrow for your Advent chocolate. What am I talking about?

Well come back tomorrow and find out!