December 2010 Blog Posts (95)

A must-read for anyone celebrating Christmas in Paris this year!

http://www.girlsguidetoparis.com/archives/scrooges-guide-to-christmas-in-paris-part-i/

http://www.girlsguidetoparis.com/archives/scrooges-guide-to-christmas-in-paris-part-ii/

Guatemala’s largest lake, Lago Izabal, is located in an isolated, stunningly beautiful, forested section of the country, which has only recently been discovered by…

One of the highlights of my trip down to El Salvador was linking with youth who were empowered by their communities to create self-sustainable methods of supporting themselves and/or their activism. I traveled around El Salvador as an adult adviser to the high-school Youth Delegation of the River Road Unitarian Universalists (which included fifteen youth and three adults). Almost every community we visited had cooperative style businesses and non-profits, hence, the youth in these…

The online travel guide tripwolf is looking for the best tripwolf travel photo of 2010. The photo should capture the "spirit of traveling," and can be anything from a caravan in the Sahara, exotic animals in the wildness or of you while exploring the deep unknown at any place in the world.

The prize is a goodybag including eg a silk sleepingbag, a travel-slackline, … and:…

     You would think that for $131 I could get a decent-looking visa stamp in my passport. Alas, no. Did you know there is a Syrian consulate in Newport Beach, California? I can’t think of a more unlikely diplomatic post. When I think of Orange County, I don’t think of a dusty, less-than-prosperous Middle…

In October I sent 515 images to ScanCafe. I have two three-ring binders of very organized negatives and slide film, mostly of travel from nearly a decade ago that I want to save forever. Honestly? Most of the pictures are complete garbage, and that’s…

Enjoy winter in #Netherlands in Magical Maastricht http://exm.nr/f3ZOum or cruise along the city's historical canals during Winter Magic Amsterdam …

I've had the pleasure of visiting a number of Christmas markets in Europe.  Here are some of my favorites for families.

http://bit.ly/fXSIOZ

Yes, it's true. We are entering the final leg of our time here on Kauai. We wanted to take a moment to write about a few more of the most note-worthy experiences we've had as we prepare to jet back to our home-base, Seattle.

The best bath ever (and a few other things).

In addition to the beaches and…

Do you also find that the lead up to Christmas Day becomes crazy? I think that the situation in the Southern Hemisphere is far worse - not only do they have the risk of getting sunburnt, but everything happens at once. I think that Christmas is "designed" for those in Europe. How much different is it in France?

http://thefrenchway.wordpress.com/2010/12/16/christmas-in-france/

 …

The Konfidentiel and Le Citizen boutique hotels, new museums and exhibitions, plus shopping, spas, and holiday happenings...

http://www.girlsguidetoparis.com/archives/new-in-paris-december-edition/

I love the New York Times' "36 Hours in [city]" series - it's informative, interesting, and gives someone unfamiliar with the area a general idea about what to see or do. With their recent article about Seoul, I found myself agreeing with a couple parts - and disagreeing with others. My only criticism is that their itineraries are... well,…

"I read recently that more than half of the annual oyster consumption in France takes place during the last week of the year, between Christmas and New Year’s..."

http://www.girlsguidetoparis.com/archives/huitrerie-regis/

I realize that a great deal of Travel Blog Exchange readers are independent travelers, but for those travel agents out there, I have some important news to share - you can rent out vacation rentals travel agents and actually make money without breaking your head!

I know, I…

One of the many travel bloggers I follow recently posted a thoughtful piece on how much he hates Los Angeles. The point of the entry was not "why I hate L.A." but rather "why DO I hate L.A.?" Why does anyone "hate" a place where they have never lived, or possibly never even been? I could apply this just as easily to why some people "hate" certain public figures like Oprah or Michael Moore. How can you…

I recently took part in the easyJet 15 Hour Blogger Challenge. My secret destination was Paris. Now there's a Facebook poll to select the Top Traveller out of the 4 participating bloggers. You can vote here but you need to be logged into Facebook and like the easyJet page:

http://apps.facebook.com/my-polls/poll-9873

Anyone can vote but UK residents will be entered in a prize draw to win a 2 night short break for…