Guerrillas in the Mist
August 31, 2008 | Written by Cindy Lou Dale
I crawled like a leopard after the still clenched fist ahead of me and received the signal to rise slowly to my knees. As I began to lift myself up, a copper collared snake slithered across my splayed hands. I stifled a scream by sinking my teeth into the quilted collar of my jacket.
At the prospect of being educated by African game rangers in a tropical rain forest, with the added promise of an experience I would... [Read more]
Great White Diving
August 30, 2008 | Written by Sarit Reizin
A rough boat ride from South Africa’s town of Kleinbaai brought me into stormy open sea next to a small island with a fur seal colony. Crammed into a steel cage like sardines in a can with a few other brave souls, I submerged to see great white sharks.
To my surprise, I wasn’t scared when the first shark showed up. There was no “TA-NA-NA-NA, TA-NA-NA-NA” playing in my head, nor was there... [Read more]
Camping in Tanzania and Kenya
August 29, 2008 | Written by ITKT Media Partner
A typical day on our camping safari was a wake-up call at 5am - not that we really needed the cheery “Good morning, Africa’s calling” from our leader, as the sounds of Africa rang all around us in squawking harmony and heralded the exciting day ahead.
Within no time we had packed our tents and eaten breakfast, and then the flapping would begin! You learn quickly that as much as putting up your... [Read more]
Rough Guides Announces $6,000 Trip Giveaway
August 28, 2008 | Written by ITKT Media Partner
Big news: Rough Guides is giving away a two-week trip for two to Thailand (airfare included) worth $6,000 to help ring in the publication of our big Fall ‘08 book, Ultimate Adventures: A Rough Guide to Adventure Travel. The trip has been put together by one of the world’s coolest, most attentive travel agencies, Imaginative Traveler.
Packed with variety and activities, the lucky twosome chosen will go elephant... [Read more]
Japan Launches Spanish Site
August 27, 2008 | Written by ITKT Media Partner
Great minds think alike. ITKT created out Spanish language section to help the 800 million native Spanish speakers explore travel. Glad to see Japan saw the importance of this step.
Editor ITKT
JNTO LAUNCHED SPANISH WEBSITE FOR THE HISPANIC MARKET IN THE US
New York, August 26 – Following the launch of the Portuguese website, JNTO has introduced a new version in Spanish on August 15, 2008. As part... [Read more]
Dublin Art Fair 2008
August 26, 2008 | Written by ITKT Media Partner
Dublin Art Fair kicks off September 11th - 14th, 2008
Dublin Art Fair 2008 welcomes established art collectors, new buyers looking to own their first piece, or those who simply want to immerse themselves in the best of the world’s 20th and 21st Century art. An exclusive invite-only preview evening will be held on Thursday 11th September, with Friday 12th, Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th open to the general public.
Dublin... [Read more]
Hike for Mike: a Book Reivew
August 25, 2008 | Written by Srinidhi RV Lakhanigam
A Hike for Mike: An Uplifting Adventure Across the Sierra Nevada for Depression Awareness by Jeff Alt; Dreams Shared Publications; Price: $14.95; 198 pp.
For footloose and fancy free outdoor enthusiasts trekking/hiking through inaccessible wilderness is the ultimate way to explore the world’s hidden wonders in its most pristine form. Walking through tangles of green forest, traversing hill and dales, fording every... [Read more]
The Guam Micronesia Island Fair
August 25, 2008 | Written by ITKT Media Partner
Guam Preparing for the Biggest Cultural Event of the Year
(Thursday, August 21, 2008; Tumon, Guam) Guam’s largest cultural fair, hosted by the Guam Visitors Bureau, is being planned with an eye to this year’s theme, Celebrating Our Seafaring Traditions. The Guam Micronesia Island Fair, in its 21st year, is a celebration of the island cultures, arts, and performances of the entire Micronesia region. Seafaring... [Read more]
From Jarira to Hendrix in Morocco
August 25, 2008 | Written by ITKT Media Partner
In Morocco you can enjoy a good scrubbing local hammam style, sip on a hearty harira soup after sunset and discover the fishing town and windswept beaches that inspired the guitar legend himself, Jimi Hendrix…
In Morocco you can enjoy a good scrubbing local hammam style, sip on a hearty harira soup after sunset and discover the fishing town and windswept beaches that inspired the guitar legend himself, Jimi Hendrix.... [Read more]
Dune Bashing in Dubai
August 24, 2008 | Written by Srinidhi RV Lakhanigam
Dune Bashing in Dubai – adventure for the spirited
It looked, for a moment, like a mirage gone mad. There on the rolling sand dunes were scores of misshapen four-wheelers racing up and down, kicking up clouds of sand as they went. The first thought that leapt to my mind was that a pack of daredevil circus stuntmen had been let loose in the desert. Nope. This wasn’t a mirage. I was 30 minutes out of Dubai and... [Read more]
My Last Day in South America
August 22, 2008 | Written by Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo
On my last day in South America, I wake up to the calm sound of rain falling atop the metal roof. Two days before I was tanning on a cushioned lounge chair along the water of Mancora Beach, Peru my mind dizzied, almost drunk, on sun and relaxation. But now I am in Quito, Ecuador on a rainy morning and my mind is dizzying from the prospect of leaving this great continent.
As the rain taps, I work to fall back asleep,... [Read more]
Go Walkabout Africa
August 21, 2008 | Written by Sarit Reizin
The first one to discourage me from going to Africa was Korney Chukovsky. His quirky Soviet whimsy warned little children, by way of a nursery rhyme, about its mean sharks, gorillas, and crocs whose main objective was to beat and bite them. Only Barmaley, a fat, bloodthirsty bandit was worse, and he too was roaming the treacherous continent, ready to catch, fry, and eat any stray toddlers.
Fear is a simple and efficient... [Read more]
I’m in Africa!
August 20, 2008 | Written by Sarit Reizin
Flat-top mountains, red with rocky Mohawks. Hills with boulder rims just below round bold tops that remind me of Catholic monks’ heads. Blond grass on burnt-sienna fields rich with iron. Brilliant blue skies with pinches of stark-white clouds. I am in Africa.
You’d think a twenty seven-hour flight, with a layover in Abu Dhabi, would suck me dry of excitement, but no. Falling asleep was made extremely... [Read more]
Sins in Saigon
August 18, 2008 | Written by Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo
It began to drizzle when the toothless motorbike man asked to take me home. It was about midday and I had wondered around the city most of the morning finding my way to Reunification Palace, a white square building no more than 7 stories with a retro 1950’s kind-of feel.
A child of the eighties I had a fascination with the Vietnam War, and I couldn’t leave Saigon without finding the places that lit my mind in... [Read more]
WOWed at the World of Wearable Art
August 18, 2008 | Written by ITKT Media Partner
Fashion and art collude collide in Wellington, New Zealand, this September to conjure up in a whimsical, mood-altering dazzling visual exhibition and performance some have best described as “Mardi Gras meets Haute Couture.” - while others see Le Cirque du Soleil on tour with “Alice in Wonderland.” An annual competition and awards show that attracts designers, media, and art aficionados from around... [Read more]
Mamma Mia! Discount in Santorini
August 18, 2008 | Written by ITKT Media Partner
Astra in Santorini Offers 25% Savings in October
Santorini, GREECE, August 18, 2007 – One of the leading boutique properties in Santorini – that iconic Greek island all over movie screens this summer and glimpsed in Mamma Mia* – is offering a fall special for the first time ever. Through October 31, Astra is providing guests who stay for three nights, a fourth night free – a 25 percent savings off the regular... [Read more]
The Happiest Place on Earth
August 17, 2008 | Written by Devin Galaudet
Parking was $12. Admission for my daughter and I was $130. I suppose this would be a good beginning to a story about avoiding Disneyland, but it’s not.
We showed up with a backpack full of food, sunscreen, and more cash. A locker to put all this stuff costs another $10. My kid and I planned to stay from 8AM to 10PM — past her bedtime. We ended up staying a little longer. It would be easy to take a shot... [Read more]
Trujillo, A Welcome Change of Plans
August 16, 2008 | Written by Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo
The plan was to leave Lima early and spend the better part of the week soaking up sun on the sandy beaches of Mancora. The rumor is Mancora is a warm surfer´s paradise, and after spending most of the past five weeks in freezing temperatures I felt that I deserved a little sun.
But as it goes with the best plans, when I got to the bus station I found that I had missed the 3PM bus to Mancora (18 hours) by fifteen... [Read more]
Qantas, One of the World’s Best Airlines
August 15, 2008 | Written by ITKT Media Partner
I haven’t been on Qantas for a few years, but did fly from LAX round-trip to New Zealand (business class there and first class returning) in 2005. Without question both great, comfortable flights and one of only two flight I remember coming home after a long-haul feeling good, the other was SAS out of Denmark. That reminds me, I think it is time for ITKT Awards.
Devin
Editor ITKT
LOS ANGELES, 12... [Read more]
Week 5: The Best Week Ever pt.4
August 14, 2008 | Written by Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo
Thursday- I find myself in an honest to goodness desert oasis. Huacachina is a tiny village that surrounds an even tinier lagoon in the middle of grand desert dunes. I sit at the edge of the lagoon under a palm tree and watch Peruvian children sled down the sands and bounce around in the mud colored water. The travel books call this destination one of the gringo stops, but it seems Peruvians and foreigners alike come to... [Read more]
Getting Down and Dirty
August 14, 2008 | Written by Sarit Reizin
Pockets full of dynamite and coca leaves, looking like a construction worker who is about to rob a train, in a hard hat and a bandana over my face, I went down the dark narrow shaft.
The silver mines of Bolivia’s Potosi, the highest large town in the world (over 4,000m), were claustrophobic and dusty. They swerved on and on, disappearing in the dark. Fixed to the ceilings were rubber tubes carrying 
... [Read more]
Life in Durbar Square, Kathmandu
August 13, 2008 | Written by Carolyn Bonello
My first impressions of Kathmandu were nothing to write home about. Scenes of suicidal drivers hysterically tooting loud horns, buffalos crossing the road and open sewers reeking of stale urine did very little to impress me, as I sat speechless in a rattling tuk tuk, swerving its way through the crowded, chaotic labyrinths of Thamel, Kathmandu.
Even more shocking was the bus station. I was horrified at the scene... [Read more]
Week 5: The Best Week Ever pt.3
August 13, 2008 | Written by Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo
Wednesday- After a long day of waiting in a dust bowl city and being fed nothing but crap from Nazca´s best salesmen, on an empty stomach, I finally fasten my seat belt in a four man plane. The pilot starts the propellers and informs myself and the other two passengers that we will see the mysterious figures at the tip of his wing. As we roll down the runway I begin to wonder what possessed me to do such a thing, but... [Read more]
Strangers in the Night
August 13, 2008 | Written by Sarit Reizin
On a lonely Bolivian intersection, the streets as wide and empty as an abandoned landing strip, we collided like two freight trains in the night. Midnight, and nobody here knew each other. Two dozen people in total, no one even thought of stopping when the groups combined and began mixing like magical ingredients in a witch’s cauldron. We kept walking, I hoped I was not the only one who didn’t know were we were... [Read more]
Week 5: The Best Week Ever pt.2
August 12, 2008 | Written by Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo
Tuesday - I eat my last Cuzco meal in the markets of San Pedro. The nourishing lentils and rice warms my belly and remind me of home, Peruvian comfort food. I stroll along cobble stone streets one last time to take it all in, stopping in the Plaza de Armas to watch a street mine take a break to sit close and chat with his girl. I make a lazy sketch of the Cathedral that is surrounded by blue sky and the brown hills. On... [Read more]
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