Travel for Pennies

After almost three years of commuting between Ampang and Sri Petaling and staying in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia Hotels , Sam and Jenette decided that it would be practical for them to move in together. They saw each other every day. The commute everyday was well over 50 kilometers of driving every day. So, moving in together was one way to save money. Both Sam and Jenette were at the age of 22, so they weren’t even considering or entertaining the thoughts of marriage. For one thing Jenette was still a student and Sam just started a new job.

But a year ago, both decided, after much discussion, it was the right time to move in together. Now, both the parents of Sam and Jenette voiced their concerns about them moving in together, but since Sam and Jenette were adults, the parents really had no say in the matter. Jennette is the youngest of four siblings, so her mother didn’t have too much trouble letting go, plus Jenette often goes home to spend time with her family. Sam, on the other hand, knows that his father does not approve of a lifestyle where there is no commitment. Sam though, did not ask for permission from his father, but did assure him that his decision was an informed decision.

It’s not unusual for young people in a relationship to co-habit before marriage, that’s even if marriage is on the table. In big cities such as Kuala Lumpur, people are not likely to frown upon co-habitation without marriage, nor make a judgement. Muslim couples who live together, however, risk being brought forward to the religious authorities if they are caught living together. As for Sam and Jenette, they do not have to face any social stigmas because they both are not Muslims or come from a religious community which controls every aspect of ones life. Couples choose to live together for various reasons. Some people would rather avoid the complications of a legally-binding relationship and others simply do not believe in the institution of marriage.

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Tags: kuala lumpur, Kuala lumpur hotels, Kuala lumpur malaysia hotels, malaysi

Bangalore is an incredible Indian city located in the southeastern part of Karnataka. It is the third most populous city in India and it dates back to 900 CE. It has an interesting and diverse history, which contributes to its current cultural atmosphere and society. There are many entertainment and arts attractions that draw in numerous tourists each year. They are enticed by the many landmarks and historic architectural aspects of the city as much as they are to the contemporary cultural scene. Bangalore also offers great dining options and there are Bangalore restaurants that serve cuisine from around the world. Some of the more popular restaurants are Maiya’s, The Tapas Lounge, which recently opened and India Coffee House, which is another new establishment.

Maiya’s is located in Jayanagar, the heart of traditional Bangalore, and is known for its south Indian specialties. It is vegetarian and moderately priced to accommodate most budgets. Some of the more popular dishes are the sambhar, sandige, payasa and chutney. However the absolute top menu items are masala dosa and rava idli. Tapas Lounge is located on Dickenson Road and is a more expensive and finer dining experience for those who feel like making a special evening out of their dinner. It is perfect for important romantic dates, such as anniversaries and engagements as well as for those occasions one just needs to treat themselves to the extraordinary.

India Coffee House is the perfect spot for a quick snack, cup of coffee or tea and a moment to relax in an otherwise busy afternoon. Various India pasties are offered to accompany a nice cup of coffee. It is located in the Bridge Gardens on Church Street and was just opened in May of 2009. This is actually its second incarnation and it was greatly missed during its renovation. There was a large number of regulars that were present for the Coffee House’s grand opening. Some of the old wall hangings have returned to decorate the interior, while new glass panels have been added.

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Tags: bangalore, Bangalore restaurants, coffee

World travelers looking for the perfect five-star hotel in Dubai will probably not come to an agreement, since there are so many to choose from, but the discussion will certainly be interesting. Whether the preference is for top-class room service, glorious accommodations, new world design that is sleek and elegant, old world hospitality that can’t be beat, or an ambience that is charming and can’t be described with any justice, there are many considerations, and all of them can be met here.

Because Dubai has become such a hot location for world travelers, with celebrities flocking here for the beaches, the shopping, and the vibrant cultural scene, there are many ways to find helpful hints and inside scoops on what to see and do here. Sometimes the basic flow of life gets overlooked, but it’s necessary to know how to do certain things, such as mail a letter. The most important thing to keep in mind is that Dubai post offices typically close on Fridays and holidays. There are some exceptions to this, with the airport being one place that is always open. Aside from this consideration, the post offices are plentiful, and should be easy to find.

The Emirates Post, the official agency in charge of mail, is a rather fascinating organization. They issue new stamps to commemorate important anniversaries in the UAE, and also sponsor a letter-writing competition. The letter-writing competition is open to young people here, where they can write on a pre-determined topic, and then the entries are evaluated and judged, This past year’s topic concerned decent working conditions for human laborers. This year’s Arabic school winner was Naha Al Nuaimi, with Shamsa Al Shaghal, Nada Ali, Mohammed Khalid, Amal Mohammed, Ras Al Khaimah, Asra Al Hamli, Aknan Osama, Yaman Sameer, Fatma Al Shahumi and Maitha Al Nuaimi, who also placed highly in the competition.

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Tags: Dubai, Dubai hotels, five star hotel in Dubai, post office

This summer many will be traveling to the Big Apple, and staying in the top New York hotels, to enjoy some of the many activities, festivals and shows that the city has to offer. Many of them, as in the River to River Festival are offered free of charge. One of the performers is non other than the legendary son of Brooklyn, Arlo Guthrie. Arlo is the son of Woody Guthrie, a well loved singer-song writer, and Marjorie Guthrie who had been a dancer in the, also legendary, Martha Graham Dance Company. He was born on Coney Island, in 1947 and grew up in a world surrounded by the arts, musicians and dancers, such as Leadbelly, Pete Seeger and Sonny Terry to name just a few. It is said that the man was born with a harmonica in one hand and a guitar in the other. When he was just thirteen years old, he performed for the first time on stage and quickly became a pivotal player in the folk music explosion of the 1960s. He became a regular performer at the Gaslight, the Bitter End and Gerdes Folk City. He experienced the changes in the music scene, going from the ballad singers such as Mississippi John Hurt to the songs and lyrics of Bob Dylan, Phil Ochs and Jim Croce.

In 1967, a film staring Guthrie, and one that told a story of his life, accompanied by his music secured his fame. The film was called “Alice’s Restaurant“. This became such an anthem during the 60′s for social activism and a higher level of consciousness, that in subsequent years, he has been known to leave it off his set list, depending on the current state of the world, and the wars that the United States is involved in at any given time. While he has never had a ‘hit’ per se, due to the length of his songs or the controversial nature of some of the lyrics, he has become a legend in the US as well as throughout Asia, Africa and Australia. He plays a variety of instruments and is a prolific and intense story-teller through his music. Guthrie will be performing in New York, at the festival this summer, and it is well worth the price of admission…wait, it’s free…this is a man who those that love music of any genre, should not miss the opportunity to see live.

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Tags: Alice's restaurant, Arlo Guthrie, Coney Island, Music, New York, top new york hotels, Woody Guthrie

New York is a big city, located on a very small island, many travel to Manhattan in search of seeing … the big things. The Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, “The Phantom of the Opera”, and the Brooklyn Bridge, to name just a few. What may get missed along the way, are the ‘small things’ that have given this city so much character. The small New York boutique hotel, or the tine pub in the West Village, the White Horse Tavern, or the living room of a Greenwich apartment in the 70′s. In these small venues, grand things happen. History happens. In 1973 a college professor opened his apartment to the poets and the playwrights of the Village. And now, thirty six years later, that small group has become world renown, respected in the arts community for the quality of works, by new artists, and their dedication to serving the artists of the community, and ensuring that their work gets seen. Miguel Algarin, is the professor, and the Nuyorican Poets Cafe is his brain-child.

Throughout the years, lesser known artists, with talents just as grand, have been under-represented and under-seen. The purpose of the Cafe is to give a venue to those that are not in the mainstream culture and media spotlight. This company nurtures the artists, provides them with the space, and gives to the general public, the art that spurs and inspires those that are in the spotlight. Through music, poetry, art, dance and theater, Algarin and his company are exposing those in the audience to the beginnings of sometimes not just careers, but of movements as well. And as to be expected, this theater on East 3rd Street has garnered more than thirty Audelco Awards and received the coveted award throughout theater companies in New York, the OBIE Award.

For those spending time in the City, stop by any Thursday night for the Latin Jam session, the Jazz show that has been the ‘Critics Choice’ of the NY Press for the past 6 years. Or check out the Fifth Night series, a program that has resulted in the production of more than forty films in the last 15 years. Regular open mic nights have provided the venue for musicians, actors and storytellers, and is becoming the night to see hot new talent. Comedy sketch brings humor to the day to day grind, or offers up to travels that sardonic wit so characteristic of the city. This is a must see destination when visiting the Big Apple. A small theater, on an island of big theaters.

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Tags: Empire State Building, hotels new york, New York, new york boutique hotel, Nuyorican Poets cafe

I became fully educated about all types of auto racing when I attended Manila’s International Auto Show . I was just tagging along with my husband has he got to satisfy not only his love of cars, but his business obligations as an automotive engineer which brought us to Manila. I was thinking when we arrived and checked into our Hotel Manila Philippines, that I’d just hang around the pool while my husband went off to the Auto Show. But, after much prodding from my husband, saying that I’ll really enjoy myself and maybe, just maybe catch the same auto fever that he has had ever since he was a boy, I caved in.

How could I resist, especially since he promised that if I came along with him, he would treat me to a fantastic dinner afterwards. When we arrived at the Auto Show, I suddenly became invisible to my husband. The call of the new and beautiful cars made him only see ‘car’ and deaf to hearing me asking ‘where are you going?’ This didn’t upset me, I expected it. But, then,I too became swept of my feet by another aspect of the automobile. Auto Racing . The Auto Show was loaded with fine specimens. I found cars build for Rally Racing, a race that takes place on public roads with modified production especially built for road cars. Modern rallying originated in Europe in the early 20th century. This unique motor sport distinguishes itself by running not in a Formula 1 style circuit, but in a point-to-point format where the driver and the co-driver rally to a set of points, leaving in regular intervals from start points.

What I really fell in love with were the cars built for Drift Racing. Drifting refers to the difference in slip angle between the front and rear tires of a car. When the rear wheels are slipping at a greater angle than the front wheels, the car is drifting, or more commonly known as over-steering. The rear end of the car appears to chase the front end around a turn, while the front tires control the actual direction of the car. I really really would like to try Drifting.

I was also educated, by a very excited young man, about Stock car Racing, which is mainly found in the United States. Formula racing, Sprint Racing, even Midget Racing: a very small race car and a very high power-to-weight ratio race car. Despite the name, Midget race cars are fully capable of being driven by an average-sized driver. The last racing car is saw brought back memories when I was in High School, Drag Racing cars. As a teenage, I participated in these type of races with my own car. But the cars I saw at the Auto Show far exceeded anything I experienced back-in-the-day.

As I was drooling, my husband tapped me on the shoulder and gave me a smile of recognition; I had become what he was always hoping for in a wife, a car enthusiast.

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Tags: cars, hotel manila phillipines, hotels in Manila, Manila auto show

When on the lookout for the world’s most luxurious boutique hotel, Cape Town needs to go on the list. Considered to be one of the most gorgeous places in the world, this South African city is connected to some of the most stunning natural resources on the planet. A coastal city with amazing beaches, it is also extremely cosmopolitan, with a long history of contact with all parts of the world. There are multiple African languages spoken here, and a good number of European tongues as well. There is a rich and vibrant night life, and amazing tours through the day, enough to keep anyone busy and relaxed all at once. One of the most important sites here is the infamous Robben Island, which held world leader Nelson Mandela prisoner for many years.

It is a place of great complexity and great contradiction. There is perhaps no other western doctor more capable of addressing contradiction than the Swiss Psychoanalyst Carl Gustav Jung. His ideas of the psyche have a lovely complexity, but one of the more juicy notions in his body of work is the thought that opposites not only attract, but are actually twins. As in the Yin and Yang symbol of Eastern philosophy, each thing contains the seed of its opposite. This idea is particularly interesting here, and a curious traveler might be amused or stunned to find themselves visiting the C.G. Jung Centre here in Cape Town . The centre is deeply entwined with the history of its founder, Dr. Vera Buhrmann. Born in Cape Town, she did her doctoral work in London, looking at the complexity of mother-daughter relationships. She has practiced in Cape Town since then, but her work took a very curious turn when she started to become more aware of the local population she was part of. As in many stories like hers, examining the complexity of the here and now is often more illuminating than the there and then, she became a student of the traditions of the local !Xhosa peoples.

This turn toward studying traditional healing practices dovetailed very elegantly with her previous work as a Jungian analyst, and it began to feed her practice until it opened it up. Now that is has grown into a much larger entity, the Centre is located in a unique position, that is both past and present. An interesting mix of European thought with some traditional African sensibility makes the C.G. Jung Centre a place worthy of a visit, and some deep contemplation.

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Tags: boutique hotel cape town, Cape Town, cape town hotel, Cape town hotels, Carl Jung, CG jung center, South Africa

My mother, travelling in Spain, sent me a postcard from a Ibiza Town Hotel where she was staying. What she wrote on the backside made my heart drop; she lost her lucky boots. This is a significant loss for my mothers trek through some treacherous hiking trails. Those boots were her only connection with my dad who died 3 months ago in a tragic airplane crash in the Cantabrian Mountains in Spain. Her only connection, really. Those were the boots she wore when she first met him along a hiking path she and her then fiance‘.

My mother had managed to nicely twist her ankle at a tricky part of the trail. Her fiance’ was supported her the best he could one hop at a time as they headed back down the trail when they came upon my dad. He too, apparently, has twisted his ankle at the same spot as my mother and only made it as far as he did all on his own. He and my mother laughed at their misfortune as her then Fiance’ left them together while he went to find a mountain rescue unit. Before he left he built them a crude lean-to in case he didn’t make it back until morning. Her then Fiance’ at that time did not know that leaving them together was the biggest mistake of his life. For my mother and my father fell instantly in love that day and night spent on that hiking trail and never looked back.

The postcard doesn’t mention how she lost the Lucky Boots or if she still planned to hike to the site where my dad’s plane crashed. I could email her, but I decided that this was not my journey, nor my trip to make. It was only my mothers hike; her way to show just how much she loved my dad. It was also her way to grieve. I just hope she does make the treacherous hike through the Cantabrians to the crash site and pitches a lean-to and spends the night, sprained ankle or not, lucky boots or not.

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Tags: hotels in ibiza, ibiza hotels, ibiza town hotel

I first encounter David at Hotel Chennai India . He was at the check out counter and I noticed he had no luggage. I couldn’t help but make a comment to him about him having no luggage must means he’s off to the near by Ashram for a month’s meditation retreat. He politely smiled and corrected me, saying my assumption is close, but that he’s always traveled lite due to having no possessions. This intrigued me to no end, so I ask him if he could wait for me to check out and ask him a few questions. He said he said yes and that he had questions for me about my reference to an Ashram.

Apparently, this possessionless man had no idea what an Ashram was, so I proceeded to tell him about the one with which I was about to stay at for a month. He then proceeded to tell me that back in America, after his divorce and all the horrific fighting that went on over he and his wife’s possessions that one night he had an Epiphany. This awakening moment made David become aware of how stupid it was to fight and hate over ‘stuff’. He ended up firing his divorce lawyer and ended up giving his now ex-wife everything. David said it was the most freeing sensation he’s ever had. So, from then on he’s been virtually possessionless of about 15 years. Very impressive I thought, but there was something about him I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

When he asked if he could join me at the Ashram, I told him that I don’t see any reason why not, after all, he was a handsome man and single. Plus, it would be interesting to spend a whole month with him and find out what he truly is all about; find out what it is that I can’t pinpoint about him, something illusive. It didn’t take long, about 2 weeks into the Ashram retreat and listening to him boast everyone about how he has no possessions, I came to realize that David’s prize possession was his ego. He almost appeared to condemn the rest of us who hold on to our possession. I still stay in touch with him, but it’s hard when he owns nothing but pride.

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Tags: chennai hotel, hotel channai india, india hotel

The beautiful Balearic Island of Majorca has many intriguing aspects of Spanish cultural heritage and history. Today, it is a major tourist destination and is primarily known for its fabulous beaches and views of the Mediterranean. The island is also rich in the arts and entertainment and is great in its visitor accommodations. The inviting atmosphere of Majorca greats guests immediately as they enter their 5 star hotel Majorca , though this is actually just the starting point for a great experience. It makes a vacation to this and other Spanish Islands richer when an understanding of its history and cultural significance is incorporated into the journey.

It is interesting to note that Majorca was a stronghold for the Nationalist party during the Spanish Civil War. In August 1936 it was the place of the amphibious landing of the Republican party whose intent was to reclaim the island from the Nationalists. The Republican army greatly outnumbered their opponents and was able to drive 12 kilometers into the island’s mainland. The Nationalists, however, were supported by Italy’s Fascist government and their air power was stronger than the Republicans. Ultimately, this struggle became known as the Battle of Majorca, and the Nationalists were able to drive the Republicans completely from the island. During the rest of the war, Majorca was used as a strong Nationalist base for the Navy and air force.

The 1950s saw a tremendous rise in interest from tourists, and the island became a strong travel destination for visitors from foreign countries. This contributed to major changes in the sociological make up of the island and also to a huge growth period of the city of Parma. It brought with it, heavy migrations of workers from inland Spain and a major transition of the sociological construct of the island. Tourism in Parma increased substantially during this time and in 1960 Majorca had 500,000 visitors. This increased to 6,739,700 by 1997. Through the latter half of the 20th century, tourism continued to grow at increasing rates. Last year over 22 million guests arrived on the island through the Son Sant Joan Airport, while 1.5 million reached the island by sea.

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Tags: 5 star hotels majorca, majorca, majorca hotels, spain, spain travel, spanish civil war