Niagara Falls Hotel Packages

Posted on by

Since Niagara Falls may be viewed from its New York or Canadian border, guests are offered twice as many travel opportunities in visiting the falls. Tourists may opt between visiting New York or Canada, but both locations offer strategic views and attractive activities that will serve as the highlight of your trip. Travel companies and tour groups offer extensive tour and accommodation packages for those who intend to visit Niagara Falls.

Niagara Falls hotel packages come in different varieties that may be custom designed to fit the needs of the clients. Planning a Niagara Falls vacation, including how to get there, where to stay and what places to visit may all be included in one of these packages for one reasonable price. Furthermore, these hotel packages may be booked securely online or through trusted travel guides and services.

Bigger hotel chains situated in Niagara Falls often offer hotel packages and are well-trusted for their excellent service and facilities. Newer hotels that are still making their marks in the Niagara Falls hotel industry may provide a cheaper alternative in coming up with hotel packages that include all possible services from ticket booking, accommodations, and visitor activities for the traveler’s convenience.

Still, if these Niagara Falls hotel packages do not appeal to your interest or if you have other hotels in mind, contacting your trusted and reliable travel agent to arrange special hotel packages with your demands in mind may be the best option. Remember that hotel packages are quite attractively because of the many added bonuses that they provide. Aside from the convenience that comes with pre-booking hotel packages, one can also choose which places to visit and what hotel to stay in while in Niagara. Depending on the hotel, the traveler may be able to choose which room to stay in, the meals that will be included, and mode of transportation while in Niagara Falls. Taking advantage of a Niagara Falls hotel package may actually cost less if planned and booked in coordination with certified travel agencies.

Fat Busting Foods That Help Burn Fat

Posted on by

Being overweight is not fun or healthy. As more and more people become obese or overweight we are taken a better look at some of the foods we eat. Foods are both the cause and can be the cure for your weight problems. The obvious eating of the wrong foods and the larger quantities can cause serious and even fatal consequences when your weight continues to increase.

Everyone who is looking to lose weight is looking for the magic pill or the magic fat burning food that makes losing weight easy and simple. Unfortunately the pills that are sold over the counter are very often useless. If they were as powerful as they claim they would be given out under a doctor’s supervision. The pills that are given out under doctor care are powerful with many side effects that make the using of these drugs as a last resort.

The food we eat is what will help you lose weight. A well balanced diet and an exercise program will start to shed the excess pounds almost immediately. The key to any diet is the foods we eat and the amount we eat. Even good foods eaten in the wrong amounts can hurt you.

There are a few foods that may surprise you when it comes to losing weight that are beneficial. Milk is a fat burning food. Milk contains calcium which is a metabolic trigger. It tells your body to start using more energy to fuel the digestive tract.

Another food group that is healthy in the correct amounts is foods with whole grains. Whole grains are a good source of complex carbs, which are broken down into sugar at a very slow rate and fiber which the body will spend energy to digest but the body cannot digest fiber. The fiber also acts like a digestive tract cleaner for your body.

Peppers such as Habanero’s, which are extremely hot, have a chemical called capsaicin which provides the heat and boosts the metabolism. This would include other peppers such as jalapenos and cayenne. Studies have found people on average burn 1000 more calories a day when they include these peppers in their meals.

Green Tea is another food that has certain chemicals that cause the brain and the nervous system to work harder and longer which means you burn more calories without adding calories to you intake. Green Tea has all the benefits of a fat busting food without any side effects from caffeine or other such drugs.

There are many more fat busting foods that you can blend into you daily diet without adding calories. The key to losing weight is to keep the body burning fat while decreasing the amount of calories you take in. This does not mean you starve yourself just learn to eat the correct fat burning foods.

Why Greece Is an Ideal Tourist Destination

Posted on by

One of the most visited holiday destination, with mild temperate climate, azure water, sandy beaches, cozy island getaways, and with ancient history and a legacy of rich culture, Greece is the favorite tourist destination for travelers of the world. The historical ruins are architectural marvel, showcasing feats of engineering from times when no modern implements were available.

Greece is also a popular destination for honeymooners. There are numerous honeymoon resorts dotting the country, mainly around the islands. The ambiance in these resorts has a romantic touch to it that attracts honeymooners.

Hotels in Greece
Visitors coming to Greece for business and leisure prefer hotels. The impeccable service and warm reception have led hotels to curve a niche for themselves. The hotels are classified either as Luxury, A, B or C or they are rated as five, four, three, three, two or one star hotels. One will also come across classifications as Hotels in Athens, Hotels in Ionian Islands, Hotels in Dodecanese Islands, Hotels in Northern Greece, and Hotels in Central Greece. There are also hotels to found in other regions of Greece, like Northern Aegean Islands, Saronic Gulf Islands, Sporades Islands and Evia, and Cyclades Islands.

Greece island packages available for tourists take into account all types of preferences that cater to different wishes and needs of clients. These packages come with different types and class of accommodation and also with or without car rental for different Greek islands. Visitors can select their choice of package that is both affordable and flexible and can enjoy the beauties that Greece has to offer to the world.

The Greece island packages provide tailor-made holidays, and include flexibility on flight and boat tickets, selection of accommodation and transfers, in addition to tailor-made arrangements and encompass travel, transfers and accommodation to give you the peace of mind.

Greek Beeches
The beaches of Greece are among the most popular tourist attractions for visitors, with over thousands travelers visiting every year. These beaches are well-known for their scenic beauty and cool atmosphere. The coastal regions have around 404 beaches that are under the supervision of the government. The blue water of the beaches is home to all kinds of water sports. The best time to come at these beaches is from October to November. The sand in this period remains relatively cooler while the water remains transparent. Some of the noted beaches found in Greece include the Beaches in Santorini Island, Crete Beaches, Cyclades Beaches, Dodecanese Beaches, Ionian Beaches, Saronic Beaches, and Sporades Beaches.

Greek Entertainment
There are lots of amusement and entertainment to be found in Greece. The entertainment industry here is an exciting mix of tradition and modernity. The theaters, cinemas and concerts showcase the rich civilization of Greece. The amphitheatres stages play in an open boundary and are watched by audience seated at a higher level.

Athens, the capital city has some of the best clubs in Greece. There are numerous bars, cafes and clubs to be found across the country, and is a major industry. Many of these bars are located in idyllic surrounding that tourist find ideal to unwind after sightseeing. For musical lovers, there are different musical clubs, scattered across the capital city.

Food lovers would find the restaurants and taverns a gourmet’s delight. The cuisines at these eateries give a rich and authentic Greek cuisine flavor and taste. These taverns also serve cuisines of India, mid-eastern and China.

The “Gimme” Culture of Tanzania: Why Giving Handouts is Not the Way Forward

Posted on by

The other day I had a client write me to thank me for helping her plan her safari, she had a wonderful experience. “But”, she wrote, “I would have loved to have been informed to bring pencils and candy for all the children I saw along the way…I felt bad I didn’t have a lot to give the kids”. I cringed. Hmmm…I wondered. How am I going to tackle this one? It seemed to me that she, like so many other well-meaning tourists, had fallen victim to the “gimme” culture.

“Gimme” is short for “give me” and if you are a visitor to Tanzania, you will hear this abridged phrase a lot. It is usually followed by pipi (candy), pencili (pencil), peni (pen), or my personal favorite: my money (as in “gimme my money”). When you are a tourist it is very, very easy to fall for this. For anyone, the first trip to Africa is an incredibly eye-opening and sometimes heart-wrenching experience. Imagine the scene: you’re driving along the road into the vast unknown en-route to the Serengeti. All around you are stunning panoramas of wide open spaces dotted with tiny Maasai villages along the road. You stop to take a photo. Shoe-less, ashen-faced children in threadbare clothes emerge from their dilapidated homesteads running excitedly to the road beaming with smiles, their arms outreached. A baby follows in tow, waddling as quick as she can in her tattered little party dress, snot running down her face…she is the cutest little thing you’ve ever seen. This is when they get you. Their spindly little arms reach into the car, searching for something, anything…and a little chorus of “gimme” echoes around you. You pity them, desperately search your purse and find 2 pens, a pack of gum, and some coins all of which you gladly hand over to the incredibly appreciative children. Sigh. You wonder to yourself how they possibly live like this with so little. You drive on with the satisfaction that you are a Good Samaritan.

You are not. For people like me who actually live here, you are only adding fuel to a fire that is burning out of control and encouraging a nation-wide epidemic. What you do not see is that this happens every single day, day in and day out, to every single tourist – and they get them almost every time. Tanzania is most certainly a “developing country” that is in need of a lot, a fact that becomes evident to all who enter. When you are on safari for a couple of weeks, to hand out a few pens and a couple shillings here and there seems a harmless gesture that is easy to accommodate and appears to make a difference. When you live here, however, you begin to see a different picture all together.

It is only through living here that you have the unique opportunity to see the genuine Africa and the real problems that these resilient people face. You see corrupt police officers every day who pull you over because of the color of your skin. They eyeball your car and then make no haste in blatantly asking you for a bribe. Children are taught by their parents that white skin is equal to a free meal or a zawadi (present) so nearly every child you pass on the street asks you openly for one. Mothers approach your car window while stopped and use their rheumy-eyed children to try and cajole money out of you. A friendly old man makes small talk with you and you actually begin to think him different, but ends his friendly decoy by telling you that his wife is sick and could you please give him some money for her? When you’re here for a few weeks it doesn’t bother you so much -but when you live here, trust me, it bothers you a LOT. If you can tell me what long-term positive outcome could possibly spawn from perpetuating this methodology by succumbing to it, I’ll buy you dinner.

It might be interesting to know that Tanzania (as a whole) has received loads upon loads of aid from other governments and organizations in the form of money, grants, donations, and write-offs. This is from where “gimme” culture has evolved. But where is it all going? I can tell you as someone who lives here that it isn’t going where they say it is – and that is a fact. Tanzania was a lucky winner in April of 2001 when creditors wrote off $2 billion, the largest write off in Africa so far, to reduce the country’s debt by over 40 per cent. They said that it created free public primary school and educated 50% more students than the previous year. I worked in a public primary school. There were 60 students to one teacher, we had no books whatsoever, students were not given pens and pencils and we ran out of chalk for several weeks. School was almost called off for a week because there was no money for the morning porridge (this is $10 – I donated it and school resumed) and teachers had not received their government paychecks for over 2 months. Some just didn’t bother to come to work. So what good did that write-off really do? It simply took the responsibility off the government. And when a government has no real accountability, it can do what it likes.

“But I just handed out some pens!” you exclaim in your defense, “I mean, it is not that big of a deal!” But it is. This behavior, while it seems relatively harmless, slowly breeds generations of Tanzanians who are seeking a “quick fix” and looking for the easy way out. Put it this way, if you had a child who constantly lamented “gimme, gimme, gimme” and you continually obliged that child, what effect would that have on the child? He or she would become spoiled. It is no different here. Do you give money and pens to the homeless that lurk in the streets of your own neighborhood? Most likely you do not. In fact you probably mutter something like “get a job” to that individual – or at least you think it. Why? Because you don’t want to perpetuate the beggar culture in your neighborhood. Well, I beg of you – please do not do it in mine either.

If you do want to help, do not dial the 1-800 numbers on your TV, do not adopt a child for $.10 a day or send plastic toys, and for god’s sake do not hand out pens, gum, or money. What you can do is find a legitimate Non Governmental Organization (NGO) – there are many, but make sure you research them – that is working with local communities on sustainable agricultural projects, or a foreign run school aimed at offering affordable, decent education to children who have no access to it. Donate to projects aimed at educating Tanzanians about the importance of preserving National Parks and Wildlife or computer technology or business administration. Sponsor a venture that is dedicated to empowering rural women by teaching them a trade which they can turn into a lucrative business. There are things you can do to help, but it does not include giving hand-outs. You will have to work harder than that.

Interested in helping? Tropical Trails Safari Company is also the proud sponsor of the Arusha Children’s Trust here in Arusha, Tanzania. The trust is an NGO set up in Arusha in December 1999 to support underprivileged children in the Arusha and Rift Valley regions of Tanzania.

The Arusha Children’s Trust is about education, health, environmental awareness and the preservation of traditional cultures. It provides educational materials, teachers salaries, classroom furniture, sports equipment and improves school buildings.

In 2002 it built and furnished a community centre in a Masai village outside Arusha which hosts a kindergarten for 4 to 6 year olds, an outreach health clinic for disabled children, women’s groups and workshops for the whole community. It provides the educational materials for the centre and the children with a hot breakfast every day.

The Arusha Children’s trust relies on donations and fundraising to finance its projects.

It believes that education is the key to a better future for the children it helps.

For more information contact the ARUSHA CHILDRENS TRUST