At the end of my delicious lunch at La Rotonde, the Art Deco restaurant at the Radisson Blu Alcron Hotel, my personal tour guide for my walking tour of Prague came to pick me up. Petra Bedlasova is a historian, artist and photographer, and she is also one of the expert guides for Prague Walks, one of Pragues most well-known tour guiding companies.Just steps from the hotel we entered one of the local landmarks just off Wenceslas Square: the...more
Many backpacking lovers often self assume that planning a trip to their favorite destination is a hard task that involves lots of labor and pain! These reluctant to take initiative steps guys daily visit their dream places in their dreams and remain discouraged on how to take the first step to initiate their travelling plan. A traveling preparation process undoubtedly is a stressful process but for those who don't have access to...more
After the rain and drizzle of our first day in San Francisco, day two of our adventure began more promisingly: bright sunshine greeted us as we made our way by public bus to Washington Square, the heart of San Francisco's Italian-flavoured North Beach neighbourhood. We set off to meet Tom Medin, who runs Local Tastes of the City Tours, who was going to take us around this neighbourhood and introduce us to all sorts of interesting culinary treats.As we started walking, Tom gave us a bit of an overview of San Franciscos history of its early beginnings in the 1770s when the Spanish established a small fort and a mission that was named after San Francis of Assisi. After Mexico broke away from Spain in 1821 California became part of Mexico and finally part of the United States in 1846. In 1849 finally things really started to take off with the Gold Rush, when San Francisco became the gateway to frontier opportunities for tens of thousands of prospectors in search of gold. The San Franciscos 49ers football team is named after these heady days. Within one year, from 1848 to 1849, the population exploded from 1000 residents to 25,000!All sorts of entrepreneurs sought their fortune here,...more
Our last day in San Francisco welcome us with bright blue skies and brilliant sunshine. In the morning we had already hopped on one of the citys moving landmarks and experienced a ride in the open-air cable cars that make this city such a favourite destination. Then we spent about three hours exploring the infamous Island of Alcatraz, famous for...more
San Francisco a dream destination for so many people across the worldWell, in February of 2008 I finally had to opportunity to revisit San Francisco, one of my favourite cities in all of North America. In just a bit more than four days I had a chance to sample so many of the things that this fascinating city has to offer. Here are just a few...more
After our interesting introduction to local history as part of the Victorian Homes Walking Tour we had to switch hotels for one night and grabbed our overnight bags to move to The Handlery Union Square Hotel in downtown Geary Street, just next to Union Square. It was now late afternoon, it was drizzling and the streets downtown were packed with revelers participating in the Chinese New Years Celebrations.We settled into our elegant suite, and I then located Karen Dominguez from the hotels marketing department to find out a little more about this venerable institution. The Handlery is family owned and operated, and in 2008 the Handlery family is celebrating 80 years of hotel ownership and operation in California.Composed of two earlier hotels, The Handlery today is an upscale hotel that is located right in the heart of San Francisco, just minutes away from the cable cars, the theatres, the Museum of Modern Art, the Financial District and the Moscone Convention Center. Union Square, the 2.6 acre large plaza, is just steps away and features a variety of upscale boutiques, souvenir shops, art galleries and salons. The entire area is a mecca for shoppers and features department stores...more
A long and harsh winter can take the wind out of you and just make you feel like you want to get away. And what a long winter it has been: Toronto has experienced one of the harshest winters in a long time, with near-record snow accumulation. I knew...more
It is always wise to have a travel guide when you go on vacation. They can provide an overview of the most important thing you need to know about your holiday destination. One of the best investments you can do before a trip is a...more
A big storm was forecast for our second day in San Francisco, but so far we had been lucky. Our culinary tour through the North Beach area had gone off without a hitch. Even the sun peeked out here and there. Local food and culture expert Tom Medin...more
If you're looking to save money on air travel, this is the time to strike. Because of the economy, because it's in such a slump, many people are choosing not to travel this holiday weekend. They are choosing instead to stay home and they're finding...more
For decades, Native American miners have worked the mines of the Colorado Plateau. These miners were drilling for a powdery yellow ore that we've all heard of - uranium. This uranium, mined by thousands of Native Americans over the years, became a...more
A comfortable and pleasant trip to Barcelona hugely depends on your decision to hire a car rental company. You must understand that your decision to hire a particular car rental company is an irreversible decision and if you make a...more