Wednesday, January 2, 2008
EASTER BREAK OR TOUR DESTINATION REPORT
Create a report with the following information: How would you get to this destination? (Cite methods of transport, prices, etc.) What is there to see and do when you get there? Tell us a little about the history and culture, etc., of the place. Feel free to use photos, maps, etc. Cite all your sources (use at least three). Be sure to proofread!! Include links to relevant Websites. Since I can't link to PowerPoints from this blog, please e-mail it to me and I'll forward it to everyone in the group.
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An Easter Break Getaway to Athens, Greece
A great website for everything you want to know about Athens is www.greece-athens.com. This website has maps, hotels, restaurants, art galleries, photo galleries, beaches, and much more. It is important to check out pictures and things to do in Athens to make sure it is the right place for you. According to www.greece-athens.com, “the sun is shining over Athens all year round. The climate is one of the best in Europe, with mild winters and very hot summers, ideal for tourism” (Athens). Sounds pretty great right? Well, it is. Athens is full of rich history and culture, glorious art and food, and scenic views.
Once you have decided that Athens is the place for you, it is time to plan how to get there. Since we are in Oxford, the best place to fly from would be London. Flights from London to Athens can be found on Easyjet.com or Cheapflights.com. Our vacation starts Wednesday after class, but it is best to book the flight for Thursday to avoid be rushed and running into problems, and to have the whole day free for travel. Looking on Easyjet.com, flights from London to Athens from March 20th, to the 24th are 289 British pounds which converts to roughly 578 dollars. This is a very high price, but it is February, and the March weekend is Easter weekend, so it is understandable that the price would be so high, but it just may be worth it.
When looking for a place to stay in Athens, you have several choices depending on the price you want to pay and the quality of place you want to stay. Athens has many fine hotels, but for the college student traveler, a cheap hotel or hostel is the way to go. Lodging in Greece is fairly reasonable wherever you go, if you do enough digging. One such cheap hotel is Hotel Fivos. According to a booking website, http://www.holiday-in-athens.com/, “Hotel Fivos is situated right in the very heart of Athens making it the perfect base from which to explore this amazing city! It's easy to reach us; in fact Monastiraki metro station is only 50m from our door” (Hotel).
March is the low season at the hotel, and double rooms start at 56 Euros a night. This would be roughly 84 dollars and therefore only 42 dollars a person if you are traveling with a friend. There are also discount booking websites on the internet that will more than likely have better deals, it just takes a little searching.
The hotel description mentioned the Monastiraki. The Monastiraki, according to anthensinfoguide.com, “is an old part of Athens which nestles under the ancient Acropolis. Monastiraki Square is the hub of life around here and the main street leading off takes one to narrow streets with a thousand artifacts to buy and sell” (Monastiraki). Being close to the Monastiraki and the Acropolis would be a great location in Athens.
Athens has shopping, history, places to stay that are affordable, and travel costs will be well worth it. Visit Athens, Greece over Easter break!
Sources
Athens City Guide Copyright 2002-2006 www.greece-athens.com/>
easyJet.com Copyright 1997-2008 www.easyjet.com>
Hotel Fivos Athens Copyright 2006 www.holiday-in-athens.com/athens/hotel-fivos-athens.html>
“Monastiraki” Athens Info Guide Copyright 2004-2008 www.athensinfoguide.com/wtsmonastiraki.htm
Stonehenge is one of the greatest and oldest mysteries of the world today. The stone circle is thought to have built in several construction phases over a period of at least 3000 years. Artifacts such as Roman coins, pottery, and two skeletons suggest that the site was used, but none of these things offers insight into what it was actually used for. The most popular theories for its usage are astronomical observation, and religious reasons. As for the techniques used for moving the giant stones to where they are now, there are hundreds of theories including everything from sheer manpower to supernatural intervention.
Because of curious visitors in the 19th century, a number of stones had fallen or were leaning by the beginning of the 20th century. Using antique maps and drawings, the stones were righted and replaced in their original places during three phases of conservation work. Due to major erosion, the stones were roped off to visitors in 1977. Instead of being able to touch the stones, visitors walk around the monument. However, special booking can be made to access the stones, and they are also completely open for the summer and winter solstice and the spring and autumn equinox.
Located in the county of Wiltshire near Salisbury, this destination is not difficult or expensive to get to from Oxford. The Waterloo Station in London has trains that go to Salisbury. The journey takes about and hour and a half. Once in Salisbury, taxis or local busses are needed for the rest of the journey, about 9.5 miles. The Victoria Coach Station is located in the center of London. The bus ride is about 2 hours to Amesbury, and from there, you can either walk the rest of the way, about 2 miles, or catch a bus or taxi.
A return ticket from Waterloo Station from March 20th to the 23rd would cost 34.50 pounds, or about 69.00 dollars. The Shaw County Hotel and Restaurant has expensive, but very nice rooms. A Double room starts at 80 pounds. Three nights stay in this first class hotel would come to 240 pounds, or about 480 dollars. I would allow about 100-150 dollars for additional travel, food, and shopping. The final trip total would be about $699.00.
Although prices are high, this trip provides a chance to see a monument that has been around for thousands of years. How the stones got there and what their function is may never be known, but they are there, and I might as well go out there and experience them.
I sent a powerpoint presentation to Professor Mengelkoch on Venice, Italy.
This presentation gave directions on how to get to and from Oxford/London Airports and Venice/Venice Airoprts. It also showed a range of hotels and hostels, ranging in price from 25 Euros up to 300 Euros per night. Another thing I elaborated on was the culture and history of Venice. What to expect when you get there and some local attractions you may want ot visit. It also listed a lot of websites you can visit. If you would like a copy of this, you can either email Prof. Mengelkoch or myself and I would be happy to share. My email address is jason.rogers@bemidjistate.edu
The inspiration to go to Ireland for Easter break came from viewing the recent movie, P.S. I Love You. Although I didn’t like the movie itself very much, the scenery and atmosphere of Ireland roped me in. The budget for essential costs for my four-day vacation is about $700. This takes care of the airfare, rental car, and accommodations; but excludes gasoline, food, and entertainment.
I booked this trip with Chris Zempel, Emily Schubert, and Carl Buchberger. Our Itinerary is as follows: After classes on Wednesday, March 19th we will take a bus from Oxford to London. My flight will be departing at 7:45 from London. We will arrive in Dublin an hour and a half later. As far as accommodations go in Dublin, we will be staying at the Marriott hotel the 19th through the 22nd. On the 22nd we will take a rental car from Dublin to Galway (on the west coast of Ireland). From there we will stay a night at a hotel named Forester, which is about $130 USD per person. On the 23rd we are planning on exploring all day and staying up very late at night and driving back to Dublin, from where we will catch an early morning flight of 6:40 a.m. We will arrive back in London at approximately 8:00 a.m. We will then take a bus back to Oxford.
The price per person for three nights at the Marriott in Dublin was around $300 USD. The car rental figures to be about $60 USD per person. Our hotel reservations were much more expensive than staying in hostels, but we decided that we would rather splurge for hotels with better quality and better locations (all of our hotels are in the heart of the cities.)
Dublin is rich with history, beautiful scenery, sporting events, incredible architecture, good shopping, and a very active nightlife. As far as places to go and things to see, it seems that Ireland has more to offer than one can possibly take advantage of. Our plan as a group is to take a short walking tour the morning we first arrive to get a feel for the city. Places located in Dublin I am interested in seeing are the River Liffey and Christ Cathedral.
One place I really want to go while I’m in Ireland (Dublin to be more exact) is Wicklow County. I am a movie lover and this county is where King Arthur, Braveheart, and P.S. I Love You were all shot. I think that it would be wonderful to see the familiarity of the scenes and would just be a great experience altogether. The sights in Wicklow I most look forward to seeing are Glendalough Valley, Killruddery House and Gardens,
Galway is nicknamed as “Ireland’s Cultural Heart.” (http://www.clifdenchamber.ie/links.aspx) We will be spending two days and one night in this town. According to websites on the city, it’s a very easy city to navigate through on foot. Sites in town include a medieval church and museum. The Galway river tour also sparks my interest.
Although there are all of these sights I’m profoundly interested in, I think that the consensus for our group is that we just want to explore and soak in things, not overstretch and overbook ourselves. We want to enjoy this vacation and take in the cities as much as possible.
Celtic tribes arrived on Ireland between 600-150 B.C. Norsemen invaded the country between 700 B.C.E.-1014 C.E. The English invaded in the 1100’s and led to rebellions and oppression. In 1916, An Easter Monday Rebellion started years of warfare that led to Ireland’s independence from the UK for 26/32 of the counties in Ireland. The country is full of historic stories of oppression and battles. (www.cia.gov).
Sources:
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ei.html
http://www.clifdenchamber.ie/links.aspx
http://www.discoverireland.com
Marseille
Bretanne Ostberg
Spring Break trip
My spring break destination is going to be Marseille, in the south of France. My friend Whitney and I will depart from the London airport on March 20th at 6:40am and return March 24th at 6:50am. Our plane tickets cost $250 for the round trip and our hotel cost is $206 a person. We will be staying at the Citea Marseille Hotel.
Marseille is the second largest city in France, behind Paris. It is France’s largest commercial port, and therefore known for its fresh seafood dishes. Marseille was founded in 600 BC by Greeks as a trading port. It fell into the hands of Frankish kings in the mid 500s AD. Emperor Charlemagne and the Carolingian dynasty gave Marseille civic power, and it remained a major French trading port until the medieval period. During the 18th century the port’s defences improved and Marseille became the leading French military port in the Mediteranian. The town was bombed in 1940 by German and Italian forces during World War II.
Things to do and see are not hard to find in the historical city of Marseille. The prison made famous by the author Alexander Dumas, the Château d'If, is just a ferry ride away for about eight euros. This historic prison is located a few miles off shore on a small island only a few miles in diameter. Château Pastré is a 19th century farmhouse which serves as a museum for ceramic art from the Neolithic period. Plage du Prado and Plage de la Corniche are both beautiful beaches that can be reached by hourly busses. Jardin de la Colline Puget is a beautiful garden that can be visited, which dates back to the 19th century. Centre de la Vieille Charité is a museum that used to act as a refuge for orphans and the homeless in the 17th century. It now holds the Museum Mediterranean Archeology and the museum of African, Oceanic and American Indian Art.
Sources
10 Best (1998). Marseille Historic Sites. Retrieved 5 March 2008 from http://www.10best.com/Marseille/Sights_&_Activities/Historic_Sites/index.html
Collins, Russ (1994). Marseille History. Retrieved 4 March 2008 from Beyond: http://www.beyond.fr/villages/marshistory.html
Dachene, Roger and Contrucci, Jean (2000). Marseille. Retrieved 4 March 2008 from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marseille
Hotel-Rates.com (2006). Citea Marseille in Marseille France. Retrieved 4 March 2008 from Hotel-Rates.com: http://www.hotel-rates.com/france/marseille/citea-marseille.html
Porter, Darwin (1999). Beaches. Retrieved 4 March 2008 from Frommer\'s: http://www.frommers.com/destinations/marseille/0151020389.html
My presentation that I sent to Professor Mengelkoch was on Portsmouth, United Kingdom. The presentation contained information on the departure from London Waterloo to the arrival in Portsmouth. I provided information on the prices of the train ride and also bus fairs to and from the train station. In Portsmouth they only have one hostel listed that I found, but had a few different hotels to choose from. For my trip I decided to stay in the hostel because the prices of the hotels were over my budget. Some information on the history and culture of Portsmouth was included in the middle of my presentation. The two last slides in my presentation list a few places that I would like to see in my stay in Portsmouth. But those are just a few of the many you can find in the website that I posted. I listed a few different websites that I got my information from in my presentation. If any of you would like those you can email me or otherwise I have sent my presentation to Prof. Mengelkoch and she will be sending them out to everyone.
emily.wallin@mnsu.edu
The destination place I did my presentation on was through my "magic number," which is 9 by the way. In the presentation is information on the British Canal Systems. I wrote a brief history on how they were used when they first began and during the Industrial Revolution. I also discussed the different leisure activities a person can do with the canals. Such as taking a boat ride, fishing, cycling, walking, or visiting the several pubs that line the banks. I gave a few websites that can be very helpful on different activities. Even a website you can purchase a fishing license right online. I could not find any prices but I'm assuming it isn't very much. You can take a boat ride through the thousands of miles of canals by getting on right in Oxford, which is considered the best canal ride anyway. It would be an easy way to travel to Scotland if anyone is heading north during spring break. But because of this presentation, I myself plan to take a day to travel the canals of Great Britain.
I have no clue what my magic number is so I am just going to elaborate on my Easter break trip to Ireland. We planned a trip to Dublin and Galway, flying out from London on Wednesday and coming back to Oxford on Monday. The trip should cost each of us $700 and over the course of the trip we are planning on seeing the Guiness Brewery, the Cliffs of Moher, the National Museum, Temple Bar District, many castles, and hopefully meet some great people! The first few nights will be spent in Dublin, then we are renting a car to drive to the west coast (I'm excited to drive on the opposite side of the ride with a 5 speed!) for a couple of days before heading back to Dublin to fly out so we can make it back for classes on Tuesday. I would recommend, by the way, to reserve flights as soon as possible. We could have had our flight costs, $136.00 round trip, be less than half had we booked even a week earlier. A lesson learned for the next trip I plan! Much of what we planned, the flight, the car, the hotels, etc...was made possible for the prices we got because of Emily and the Travel Chalet here in Bemidji.
My family had a foreign exchange student for the 2006-07 school year so when I got to choose my destination for Easter break I didn't even think twice about going to Stockholm, Sweden to see Jakob and his family to have a similar experience. I bought my plane ticket on Ryanair.com and it cost $138.00. I will fly out of London on Thursday the 20th at 8:30 am and I will arrive in Stockholm at 11:40 am where Jakob and his family will greet me at the airport so I don't have to worry about transportation which is nice. Also, I will be staying at there lake house for the duration of break. However, not everyone has a family to pick them up and stay with so I found some websites that helped a lot with pricing, accommodations, and popular sites.
If you decide to travel to Sweden from England you can go either by plane, ferry, or train. Once you arrive, you have many transportation choices including trains, motorways, or the rail network. Tickets or "coupons" for each of these can be purchased at information centers or airports. Another option is buying the Stockholmskortet, or "Stockholm card" for about $42.00 which allows free public transportation from Stockholm to surrounding areas, free admission to certain museums, and free parking for 24 hours. A cheaper version of the card called the SL tourist card just provides free transportation throughout Stockholm for $15.27. The official currency of Sweden is called the "krona" and there are foreign exchange station located at the airports and information centers of Stockholm. However, major credit cards are accepted at banks, hotels, many stores, taxis, and airports.
Although Sweden has the largest population of the Nordic countries,it is a relatively large land mass with a small population compared to other European countries. It has forests, lakes, and coastlines similar to northern California. Southern Sweden is consisted of mostly plains, and northern Sweden is heavily wooded.
I will be staying in Stockholm, which has a population of 1,873,000 which leaves me with a city of many choices when it comes to touring. Many of the hotels are left with single rooms during the weekends and holidays so rates are lowered. The average cost for a room for one adult is $65.00 per night and this includes breakfast in the morning. Sites include: many boat tours including two hours under the bridges of Stockholm, tons of museums of architecture, music,and art, botanical gardens, butterfly house, Drottningholm Palace,and Stockholm Royal Palace. The nightlife is considered one of the classiest and sophisticated in the world.
Sources:
http://www.sweden.se
http://www.destination-stockholm.com
http://www.visitsweden.com/VSTemplates/Page____40578.aspx
When I found out that we were able to travel anywhere we wanted to over Easter break, my first thought was Ireland and my last thought was Ireland. I have wanted to visit Ireland ever since I was a young lad. My mom’s side of the family is from Ireland, and to be able to visit a place of one of my origins would be magnificent.
Ireland is not only home to leprechauns and clover fields, but also to a vast history of famous writers, bands (including Celtic music), and large castles. Ireland is split into two parts, Northern Ireland, which is governed by the British, and central Ireland, which is the most stable governmentally. Northern Ireland has been in a civil war for centuries, and it doesn’t seem to be ending any time soon, which leads me to want to visit the central part of Ireland.
My roommate for Eurospring, Jason Rogers agreed that Ireland would be beautiful to see, so we got to planning. We both didn’t know a lot about Ireland so some research was involved. How would we get there? Where was the best place to stay? Was being in a central area a must, or could we be away from city life for a while? What was there to visit, and what did we want to visit while we were there?
I first thought that taking a ferry over would be a lot of fun and something a little different than flying and taking a bus or something. I found a site that gave us prices and times for the ferry to go across from Holyhead to Dublin. But times were very sketchy, and so were the prices, which were 46 euro per person. We were also warned of frequent ferry worker strikes, so we decided that flying was the way to go.
Jason booked our flights as soon as he could. Our first time looking for flights we found tickets for .02 euro, but those soon ran out, and Jason forgot to book them, so we payed about 80 euro a piece for a round trip flight from London to Dublin and back. We have bus tickets to get from Oxford to London airport, and I found a site that shows bus times from Dublin airport that takes us directly to out hostel.
The hostel I found to stay in is called the Four Courts Hostel located in downtown Dublin. One of the coolest features of the hostel is that it is located right next to the oldest pub in Dublin: The Brazen Head.
Most of our time will be spent in Dublin visiting some of the sites around there, but the one thing we both really want to do was visit the west coast of Ireland. The west coast has beautiful cliffs and the green fields and stone bridges everyone thinks of when they think of Ireland. Jason booked us a bus/train tour on Good Friday. We take a tour of several different cities in Ireland including Limerick, we get to go and visit a famous castle, and our favorite part is going to the Cliffs of Mohr. That night we get to ride a train back to Dublin. The rest of our weekend will be spent at the pubs, visiting locals and maybe, just maybe finding the end to a rainbow.
Sources:
http://www.hosteldublin.com
http://www.hostelworld.com
http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-city/Ireland/Cliffs%20of%20Mohr/tpod.html
http://www.webshots.com/explains/travel/cliffs-of-mohr.html
http://www.visitdublin.com/
I emailed the powerpoint which Aly & I created pertaining to our Easter break trip some time ago. However, to elaborate to my fellow travelers what we'll be doing, my trip roomie & myself chose to try to capture as much of northern Europe as we could during our Easter break. Aly & I will be travelling to both Edinburgh, Scotland as well as Dublin, Ireland over our break.
After classes on Wednesday, Aly and I will be boarding the bus to London. We have flight arrangements made to fly out of Heathrow to Edinburgh early Wednesday evening. In Edinburgh, we have reservations at a quaint hostel located directly across the street from the Edinburgh Castle located at Castle Rock. We will be spending the evening of Wednesday, all of Thursday, and the early part of Friday in Edinburgh. From here, we shall depart for glorious Dublin.
Leaving Friday afternoon, we will be flying from Edinburgh to Dublin, Ireland. Our first night in Dublin shall be spent at the Abraham Hostel in Dublin, convienently located in the Temple Bar area of Dublin (near the bohemian night life of the city). Continuing our stay, Aly & I will be spending Saturday & Sunday evenings at the Four Courts Hostel a mere couple of blocks from our fist Hostel's location.
Come Monday afternoon, we shall board our final plane and journey back to London. Catching a bus from London to Oxford, Aly & I will be wrapping up our Easter break.
If anyone is interested in knowing the specific plans of what we intend to do in both Edinburgh and Dublin, I would be happy to forward our powerpoint to you. Aly & I spent a good deal of time doing some rather intense research on both the areas we plan to visit, but also discounts available to tourists in the areas. I'd be happy to furnish information about these findings to anyone who is interested.
I completed my assignment and emailed it to Lousie if you have any questions or would like me to email the powerpoint to you let me know my email is: Samantha.Rich@st.bemidjistate.edu
Here is what my assignment looked like without all of the pictures and fancy powerpoint stuff:
Orvieto, Italy
An Amazing Easter Holiday
By
Samantha Rich
Location, History, and Culture
•One of the most fascinating things about visiting Orvieto is its location. Orvieto is actually built 1,033 feet up, on the top of an old volcano. No matter where you look from the edge of the city you are to be amazed with sweeping views of the countryside, sure to take your breath away.
•The mountain itself was first inhabited in the 9th Century B.C. by the Etruscan civilization who’s caves still swarm throughout mountain the city stands upon.
•The city was owned by the Papal State and used this support to grow and prosper throughout the entire Medieval Period. The developmental peak of the city was during the 13th Centry when the General Council of 400 people elected their ‘Captain of the People’, an extremely interesting political figure and time.
•It was during this booming time that all of the amazing palaces and cathedrals were built. The most famous cathedral, what the city is known for, the Duomo di Orvieto, started construction in 1263.
Traveling to Orvieto
•The way I would recommend to get to Orvieto would be to take the Eurorail from London on March 19th directly into Orvieto requiring 2 train changes. The roundtrip ticket cost is $543 for the almost 18 hour ride, however with sleeping cars available you could easily rest during your trip.
•The cost of a cheaper hotel, in a good location, that also serves breakfast, for the entire stay is $314.52 with taxes included.
•To fly from London on March 20 and into Perugia, Italy with two flight changes (non-stop is not available) and fly back March 24 was a roundtrip cost of $1809 for the 6 hour flight. However, because there is no airport in Orvieto you would now have to take a ferry from Perugia to the connect to the train to get to Orvieto. I would not consider this advisable and it would be far more expensive in the end.
Once You’re There
•Now that you’ve arrived at Orvieto there are many fascinating things to see and do. Upon entering the city you may first want to take pictures of the ‘city gates’ that you will travel through. Note the amazing views of the countryside ‘patchwork’ below.
Places to Go, Things to See
-Most of these things are free to the public-
•The famous, architectural beauty, the Cathedral Duomo Di Orvieto built in 1263!
•Pozzo di San Patrizio (St. Patrick’s Well) built in 1527 based on a design by Antonio da Sangallo il Giovane (cost about $4.75).
•Palace of People Captain (12th Century) where as the name implies, the historic meetings of the People’s Council took place as well as the election of the ‘Captain of the People’.
•The Underground City in the cave systems erected during the Etruscan period (cost about $8.50 with tour guide, $5.50 for students).
•Torre del Moro is a beautiful tower you can climb to the top of and see the cities amazing views (cost about $4.00).
•Palace of the Seven (12th Century)
•Saint Andrew's Church (12th Century),
•Saint Domenic's Church (12th Century),
•Saint Giovenale's Church (11th Century),
•Mancinelli Theatre (1866)
•Soliano Palace (1262) which inside you will find:
–Museum of the Opera del Duomo
–Museum of Modern Art
References
•http://www.expedia.com
•http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Orvieto+(Umbria),+Italy&sa=X&oi=map&ct=title
•http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orvieto
•http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Europe/Italy/Umbria/Orvieto-146962/Things_To_Do-Orvieto-BR-1.html
•http://www.xe.com/ucc/convert.cgi
•http://goeurope.about.com/library/phot/bl_orvieto_5.htm
•http://www.bellaumbria.net/Orvieto/home_eng.htm
•http://travel.yahoo.com/p-travelguide-486172-orvieto_vacations-i
John Sobieck
Tour Destination
I saw a trailer for a movie called “In Bruges” some time ago and I figured “why not?”.
From what I gather, Bruges seems to be the Venice of Belgium, as it is loaded with
canals. Bruges is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which means it has been deemed
an area of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common heritage of humanity.
What this means for someone visiting Bruges is that there is a lot to see there in the way
of architecture (in the form of many intact medieval buildings) and artwork such as
Michelangelo’s “Madonna and Child” which is believed to be his only sculpture to have
left Italy within his lifetime, as well as many collections of what are allegedly quite
creepy religious paintings scattered about the city. According to the Rail Europe website,
a second class round-trip train ticket to Bruges from London over Easter Break comes to
about $310USD. I looked into getting a Eurail pass and it is pretty much the same price to
get a pass that would include the countries I would have to use a train in. Having traveled
a fair amount in my life, I can say that paying hundreds of dollars to stay in a hotel is
wholly ridiculous. Perhaps if one were traveling on business. For anything else, I’d say
hostels are the only way. So you may have to share your room with a few strangers. Good.
I’ve met a few weird ones in my travels but I’m glad I was able to meet every one of
them. It’s not scary. You won’t get hurt. A quick search on hostels.com reveals that there
are many hostels in excellent parts of the city that can be had for as little as 15$ US per
night, nearly all of which offer maps that list bus routes to all the places you’d want to go.
I happen to be broke, so whether I’ll take the trip or not is still in the air, but I hope I’ll be
able to wing it.
http://www.raileurope.com/us/rail/point_to_point/results.htm?cobrand=public&fn=fsReq
uest&c=USD&itemId=-1&r=1&F0=London&T0=Bruges&m0=3&d0=19&t0=afternoon
&m1=3&d1=22&t1=afternoon&nA=1&nC=0&nY=0&nS=0&s=Search
http://www.hostels.com/en/be.bg.html?source=googleadwordshostelscom
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruges
http://www.eurail.com
As I have e-mailed my presentation to Professior Mengelkoch I will leave you all a short overview.
My break is to Salzburg. I have decided to take the train to our destination. I have found many hotels all ranging from price and how they are arranged, from the traditional hotel to more of a dorm style. I also have many tourist things planned. I have also looked into different resturants.
I have also looked into some fun facts on the country. Like the weather, population, major industries, the history, and elevation.
I plan to stay in England for Easter break and go to London as much as I can, as well as Liverpool. However, I was assigned the Lake District to do my research on, and this is what I found.
Lake District is England’s largest national park. Within it is Scafell Pike - its highest mountain, Wastwater - its deepest lake, and prosperous communities like Keswick and Bowness-on-Windermere. People have been using the area for at least 10,000 years.
Many of the Lake District names still used today originate from early times for example: dale (valley), gill (gorge), beck (stream), tarn (lake) and thwaite (clearing). Once trees had been cleared, charcoal was made and then used as a fuel to make iron in Furness, copper in Borrowdale and Coniston and lead in Glenridding.
The building of the railways from the 1840s onwards had a dramatic impact on the Lake District. Almost overnight it was within the reach of most of England, bringing prosperity to industry and a period of investment in property.
A few travellers had been visiting the Lake District for many years. It was fashionable in artistic circles to admire the picturesque scenery. But now anyone who could buy a rail ticket could come.
There are many things to do in Lake District, like rent or hire different kinds of boats, such as row boats, sail boats, or electric boats; picnic; go canoeing or kayaking, and hiking. You can also check out the many playgrounds and gardens for kids and families to enjoy.
There are several different and simple ways to get to Lake District from Oxford. One would first have to take the bus to London. Once in London, the trains of The West Coast mainline runs to the east of the Lake District, connecting Oxenholme, Penrith and Carlisle with London and Glasgow. A direct train runs from Manchester to Windermere. Local trains call at Kendal, Staveley and Windermere. There is also route following the Cumbrian coastline. Towns and villages such as Ambleside, Windermere, Coniston and Keswick are linked by bus, with extra services in the summer.
If one has a car, then the average journey time from London and the south east is about five hours. It takes about one and half hour from Manchester and two hours from York.
The M6 runs to the east of the Lake District National Park:
Take Junction 36 and then A590 for the southern end of the Lake District
Take Junction 40 and the A66 or A592 for the northern end of the Lake District
Once at the Lake District, there are number of different hotels ranging in prices to stay at from Shepherds Hotel at £ 50, to The Castle Inn Hotel at £ 78.
http://www.lake-district.gov.uk/index.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_District
http://www.booking.com/region/gb/lake-district.en.html?label=osm_region1437_en;aid=304264
My presentaion was on Wales, UK and was sent to Professor Louise Menglekoch. It provides information on certain cities in Wales (Cardiff and Swansea). My powerpoint contains Train fare from London to Cardiff, Hostel/Hotels, Castles and Museums to see, plus the great Nightlife Wales has to offer. Everything you need to know about this trip is in my powerpoint. Overall it's a beautiful place to go and one that I'm sure anyone could enjoy!
Sites to see:
www.visitcardiff.com/
www.swansea.gov.uk/
www.redtag.ca/travel-guide/Cardiff/
www.welshwales.co.uk/index1.htm
www.britainexpress.com/wales/cardiff/index.htm
Amsterdam offers many modes of transportation between itself and other major European cities. Jet2.com and EasyJet are cited as two of the lower cost methods to fly internationally in Europe. There are also the traditional carriers should the low-cost carriers be booked. NorthWest Airlines, a partner of KLM, the national carrier for the Netherlands, offers worldwide connecting flights. Other methods of travel to and from Amsterdam include the train, which most depart from and arrive to the Amsterdam Centraal Station, bus, which the biggest line is Eurolines, and by car. Travel guides suggest traveling around the city by foot or bike, as most of the native population does (of the 750,000 inhabitants, 600,000 own a bike).
Unlike many major cities in Europe, Amsterdam was spared major bombings during World War II. As such, many historic buildings as well as the road structure has remained unchanged since the 19th century. There are several old houses and warehouses surviving in the city, some as old as the 14th century. There are also bicycle routes that are suggested in order to take in these sites. Additionally, the old trading center of the city, built in the 17th and 18th centuries still survives. Five historic churches still stand in the city, the oldest dating from 1306. Dozens of museums are scattered throughout the city, some of the more interesting ones being the van Gogh museum and the Anne Frank House. There are also several zoos, parks, and other attractions to keep tourists enthralled.
Several companies offer canal cruises which typically take about an hour. There is also a bus or bike or boat rental that allows people to tour the canals on their own. Amsterdam is also known for allowing those who so wish to smoke cannabis in public. There are even places designated to do so with others as they are historically known for this. The largest national holiday is known as Queen's Day, traditionally in celebration of the previous Queen's birthday, which is held on April 30th unless that falls on a Sunday in which case it is help on April 29th. Shopping is an important part of Amsterdam as well with several upscale clothing stores set along the streets near the Central Station. Street markets selling mostly food and clothing also line several streets.
Food in Amsterdam is mostly supplied by Albert Heijn, a national chain with ready to eat meals during the day. There are several Asian restaurants in Amsterdam, having come from Dutch colonial history. Also many restaurants that serve Vegetarian, fish, and Indian cuisine. Amsterdam also boasts several bars, and cafés (which until April 1, 2007 also served alcohol.
The origins of Amsterdam begin in the 13th century, when the site was an important fishing area. Fisherman living along the banks of the Amstel river built a bridge across it which also served also as a dam which sometimes held back the river, thus creating a natural harbor at the mouth of the river. The “Aemstelledamme” (dam on the Amstel) was then created. It wasn't until around 1300 that Amsterdam was granted city rights. However, since 1275, even though Amsterdam wasn't yet part of Holland, was granted an exemption from paying tolls throughout Holland. This changed when Count Willem III inherited the land upon which Amsterdam was built. The Golden Age of Amsterdam began in the late 16th century as Amsterdam grew into a major trading hub, serving as a stop between North America, Indonesia, Brazil, and Africa. The city was the leading financial center of the world at the time (until London took over the title later on). The religious freedoms enjoyed by the Dutch were virtually unknown to the rest of the world and as a result, Amsterdam was a destination for many religious refugees. The 18th and 19th centuries saw a decline in Amsterdam's power. Wars with England and France had been costly for the Dutch Republic. It wasn't until the end of the 19th century that Amsterdam enjoyed a resurgence (this period is sometimes called the second Golden Age). The Industrial Revolution saw a surge of workers migrating into Amsterdam. In the 20th century, the Netherlands remained neutral during WWI, but was occupied by Germany during WWII, which nearly wiped out the Jewish population of the city. Finally, Amsterdam's permitted use of soft drugs made the city a popular destination of the 1960's and 1970's and even up until the present day.
Map of Amsterdam: http://bedandbreakfast.bbnl.nl/map-amsterdam.gif
Aerial photo: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/Amsterdam_airphoto.jpg
One of Amsterdam’s famous windmills: http://www.arrowtours.ie/citybreaks/Pics/AmsterdamWindmill.BMP
One of Amsterdam’s Canals: http://petanqueandpastis.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/31_amsterdam.jpg
Inside Amsterdam’s oldest church: http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2097/1505715553_08610d1f0b_b.jpg
Amsterdam Travel Guide. Retrieved March 10, 2008 from Http://www.wikitravel.org/en/Amsterdam
History of Amsterdam. Retrieved March 10, 2008 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Amsterdam
Official Amsterdam Board of Tourism Site. Retrieved March 10, 2008 from http://www.holland.com/amsterdam/gb/
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