Travel 2010 versus Travel in 1990.

Travel as we know it has been changed forever.

It’s changed so much of the last 20 years or so, that it’s barely recognisable from the beast of 1990.

And 1990 wasn’t THAT long ago (it’s in my living memory)!  Most of these changes are thanks to the internet!

I think the Internet is the biggest revolution since the printing press, especially when it comes to Travel.

So I’ve come up with a list of what Travel was like in 1990, compared to now in 2010, via a number of scenarios.

The Travel 2010 ones are so different!

Here they are!

Flights

1990: I’ll work and save up for an international flight.

2010: I’ll burn some frequent flyer points for an international flight.

Travel Insurance

1990: If you can’t afford Travel Insurance, you can’t afford to travel.

2010: If you can’t afford the snowboarding portion of your Travel Insurance, you can’t afford to travel.

Communications

1990: I hope can find a decent public phone box so I can call home.

2010: I hope I can find a place with decent WiFi so I can Skype home.

Accommodation

1990: I’ll call ahead and book a bed.

2010: I’ll Twitter the @hostel so they can save me a bed.

Travel Gadgets

1990: Should I get a portable clothes line or a Swiss army knife?

2010: Should I get a PC or a Mac?

Catching a taxi from the Airport

1990: My Lonely Planet guidebook (i.e. hardcopy) says that I should ignore touts in the baggage area.

2010: My Lonely Planet iPhone App tells me I should ignore touts in the baggage area.

Accessing Money

1990: I can’t stand taking all of these Traveller’s cheques with me.

2010: I can’t stand taking all of these plastic cards to take money out of the wall.

Making New Travel Friends

1990: I’ll call you when I get home.

2010: I’ll Facebook you when I’m in the Internet Cafe next.

Documenting the trip

1990: I’ll take a diary and write down what I did each day.

2010: I’ll take my laptop and post about the trip each day, including photos and video and send everything to Facebook and Twitter.

Showing Images about the Trip back home

1990: Come around for a slide night and we’ll show you through the photos we could afford to be developed

2010: Come around for a slide night, and I’ll hook the laptop up to the plasma screen and only show you 2000 digital photos!

Yeah, this comparison of Travel 2010 versus 1990 is only funny because it’s true!

Enjoy your Travels in 2010!

Today we have a guest post about Travelling Insurance from this crazy character called Bryant from Travelling Insurance.org.

Whilst I might be a little bit crazy, personally, I always to take out Travelling Insurance whenever I go overseas.

But it’s usually of the Tight Arse variety and I wonder if I’d actually get any money back if I made a claim.

I’ve come across people personally who have been injured on the road – like the lady who stuck her foot down a puddle of piping hot mud at the Gunung Papandayan volcano, near Bandung in Indonesia.

Anyway, here is Bryant’s Guest Post!

First of all we want to thank Anthony for letting us guest post. He is a friend, a traveler, and a tart.

There is a lot to be said about being protected when you travel. You never know what will happen.

Here are some crazy cases when traveling might go wrong.

And why you should be prepared for the worst.



Antartica seems safe

There is an old wives tale that states “Besides the weather, Antarctica is the safest place in the world”.

That is a farce. The penguins in Antarctica can reach up to 11ft tall and carry a wallop.

True Story: One of our travel guides Norm, went down on an expedition to climb Antarctica’s Vinson Massif. It is not particularly awe-inspiring in its height.

A humpbacked hunk of granite that rises to 16,860 ft.  The Mountain itself was not the problem.

As he was stationed with a team off the coast, he saw a group of penguins. Approached by one of the furry tuxedo’s, he was presented with a smack and peck he will never forget.

As the crew laughed and told the story we only wish we had a camera to record the travesty.



The Sodding English

Another story comes from backpackers in Europe.  Sounds fun right?  Until you are mugged by the “bloody english”. Another one of our travelers found himself backpacking from London through Lisbon to Bristol on the West side.

First off I should note, there has been an explosion of hostels in Lisbon for the past year and a half and the quality of the hostels has been extraordinary.  Instead of making it to Lisbon in a day, Eric decides to stay off the road against an old cottage.

This happened to be a frequent gang hangout. He was mugged along with his friend. Watch, passport, and pack stolen.

Luckily there was a cop 20 minutes diwn the road that took off after the “buggers” and was able to get their passport and pack back.

Unfortunately no watch. That mugger was due back for supper.

Hunting in Alaska

Oh so you think the States might be safer than good ole England.

Think again.

When traveling in Alaska there is a 60% chance you will be eaten by a grizzly bear.  It is not traveling estimations – it is fact.

Bears are aggressive and love picnic food. It is important to note that bears are not only in Alaska, but India, Europe, and Canada.

They are everywhere, just waiting for the unprepared backpacker to come along and steal your Twinkies and Cliff bars.

We have had many encounters in bears that have all ended luckily in only a missing arm.

Summary

It is better to be safe than sorry.

Travelers, it is smart to know what you are up against. Delayed flights, lost baggage, and food poisoning is just the beginning.

It is a good idea to be prepared with friends, mace, and travel insurance. Grizzly bears, Penguins, Orcas, and Englishmen are just the beginning of what to expect.

Bryant is a writer for Travelling Insurance and is an advocate of global medical insurance because he hates bears.

Today’s dodgy travel article is about my Top 5 Travel Movie Funnies.

Since I’ve already done features on my Top 5 Funny Travel Books and Top 5 Funny Travel Songs, it was time to focus on the inspiration that is the Travel Movie.

Travel Movies don’t have to be about courageous tales of conquering one’s comfort zones and seeing how the world works.  Often, a Travel Movie can be a funny road trip that goes horribly wrong, or just a complete piss take of life today.

Ironically, if you’re laughing at something, chances are that’s way too close to the truth!

Anyway, I’ve compiled a list of my Top 5 Funny Travel Movies that are ‘Piss In Your Pants’ Funny!

Here they are!

Funny Travel Movie Number One – Team America World Police

The entire movie is hilarious from start to finish.  Basically, the movie is a parody about the War on Terror – and no one is spared. I think the main reason this movie is hilarious is that puppets are used as the main characters, rather than real life actors.

There’s lots of laugh out load jokes, that one sometimes misses the subtle ones.

For example, the opening shot has the camera panning across a model version of Paris.  The very first shot goes past a Parisian coffee shop, titled ‘La Cafe Merde’, which literally translates into ‘The Shit Cafe’ in English.

I also love how all of the travel cliches, such as the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triumph and Lourve are systematically destroyed in the cause of saving the world from terror.  The same also happens for all of the travel cliches in Egypt.

The Team America World Police soundtrack is full of original, funny songs which are worth listening to their own.  My favourite song is the theme, titled ‘America, F**k Yeah!’.

Favourite Quote/Scene - The sex scene between two awkardly moving puppets.  So wrong, but yet so funny.

Funny Travel Movie Number Two – Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle

This movie combines the ’stoner’ theme and the ‘road trip’ theme together.  Harold and Kumar smoke some dope which causes a severe case of the munchies.

They have a craving for the burgers at White Castle, and spend the entire night getting into trouble trying to find the nearest store.  This movie is definitely about the adventure, not the destination!

Favourite Quote/Scene – When Harold is in prison with a another guy.  The other guy says ‘Look at me. I’m fat, black, can’t dance, and I have two gay fathers. People have been messing with me my whole life. I learned a long time ago there’s no sense getting all riled up every time a bunch of idiots give you a hard time. In the end, the universe tends to unfold as it should. Plus I have a really large penis. That keeps me happy.’

Funny Travel Movie Number Three – Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Borat’s character is played by British comedian, Sascha Baron Cohen.

Borat is a reporter from Kazakhstan who goes abroad to the ‘U S and A’ to learn about how Americans can help Kazakh culture.  People actually believe he is a reporter, and you do see some true (and often) scary parts of the American landscape that are fished out by Borat’s socially inept (and usually unacceptable) behaviour.

Borat’s butchered English and bushy mustache adds to his crazy character, who is often involved in some cringe worthy moments.

I’m surprised Cohen wasn’t killed during the making of this movie.  Even the out takes on the DVD version could have made the movie itself.

If you’re really keen, you can also buy Borat’s infamous Lime Green Mankini.  Actually, there is also an offshoot book titled BORAT: Touristic Guidings to Minor Nation of U.S. and A. and Touristic Guidings to Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan which is quite funny as well.

Favourite Quote/Scene -the naked wrestling scene between Borat and his hairy obese mate, Azamat, which spills into a hotel elevator and finally, a real life conference.   I couldn’t sleep for days after watching this.

Funny Travel Movie Number Four – Flying High (also known as Airplane!)

An oldie, but a goodie.  Flying High hit the big time and was one of the funniest spoof movies of all time.  Anything that could possibly go wrong with a plane did in this movie.

I think every single line was a joke.  Leslie Nielson was spectacular as the dry witted, stony faced lead that made a literal joke out of everything.

For example, ‘Surely you can’t be serious’.

‘I am serious, but don’t call me Shirley…’

Favourite Quote/Scene - ‘The shit is really going to hit the fan.’ The next scene shows a literal interpretation of that very quote.

Funny Travel Movie Number Five – The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert

Three drag queens buy a bus, name it Priscilla, and travel around the socially conservative Australian Outback in all sorts of glamourous frocks, performing their cabaret shows, and meeting all sorts of strange characters.

This movie is a great example of the quirky Australian humour that is injected into many of the movies that come out of the Land Down Under.

That’s all you need to know!

Favourite Quote/Scene: The Ping Pong Ball scene.  Not recommended for young children.

There you go, there are my Top 5 Travel Movie Funnies.

What are yours?  Leave a comment and let everyone know!

Lonely Planet needs no introduction.

Ever since the 1970’s, when Tony and Maureen Wheeler founded the company, they’ve been producing Travel Guide Books for ages that truckloads of people use. 

I have a few battered copies of their guidebooks hanging around the place.

Anyway, I’ve had a chat to one of their people recently, and they asked me nicely to send out some info about their Traveller’s Pulse program – so here it is!

Basically, Lonely Planet wants to know what you think about current travel trends, and even the future of travel. 

You’ll even score some free stuff if selected for the Traveller’s Pulse.

Here is the original announcement Lonely Planet wanted me to pass on:

Calling all travellers!

Lonely Planet invites you to join our Travellers’ Pulse Panel!

Our panel is a discussion forum where we engage travellers and listen to what you have to say about travel – where to go, how to plan, and other creative travel ideas. We’ve always got interesting topics up for you to comment on, like our current survey on what you’re looking for when you take a trip to a theme park.

Joining the panel is free and if you’re accepted to be a panelist, we’ll send you a free Lonely Planet 2010 calendar as a gift to welcome you on board! Not only will you get to talk about travel, but we regularly run promotions exclusively for panelists where you can win prizes like Lonely Planet products and Amazon gift cards.

If you’d like to join this panel (numbers are limited) all you need to do is click the link below and take a short survey to register. We’ll look at your responses and depending on your age, travel experience and country of residence you might be one of the people we’re looking for! The type of people we need on the panel changes from time to time, so if you aren’t suitable for our panel this time we may contact you to participate in future.

Click on the Lonely Planet Traveller’s Pulse Survey!

Thanks again!

Regards,

The Lonely Planet Travellers’ Pulse team

There you go – stay tuned for more Funny Travel stuff next week!

Gap Travel, or Gap Year Travel is something I’ve never done, and hence, have no idea about.

Actually, I think taking any time off to go travelling is great.

But I’ve got a guest post here from Sasha Peakall from On UR Way Travel (@onurwaytravel on Twitter) which gives plenty of reasons why you should go travelling through your Gap Year – that is, after you finish school but before you go onto further education.

Sasha’s site is dedicated to young first time & seasoned travellers, especially Gap Travel.

So here it is – I’m Getting A Life…I’m Taking A Gap Year.

Many would say that a Gap Year is a lazy person’s excuse not to get a life. I would say that a Gap Year is a damn good excuse to escape your country, see the world and do all those crazy things you had always dreamed of doing like riding a bicycle across Siberia or simply holding up the Leaning Tower of Pisa.  And lets face it that building needs all the support it can get!

If right now you’re sitting in your cubicle staring at that tropical island wallpaper tempting you like a sirens call to a tropical bongo beat then get off your seat, quit your job and book a flight. Stop making excuses! Stop day dreaming and get out there and experience the real thing! Do that Gap Travel!

Common Unconvincing Excuses not to undertake Gap Travel

#1 How on earth can I take a Gap Year, I have too many responsibilities, I couldn’t possibly pack up my life in a backpack for a year!

Reply: First things first stop being so dramatic, your life will not fall to pieces, you will adapt and realise that you have been missing out on freedom for all these years. Secondly if you are one of those people who strangely crave responsibility then Gap Travel can feed this crave, just getting to the airport in time to check in and buy up the whole duty free lounge is a huge responsibility!

#2 I’m too poor, what’s the point of Gap Travel if I can’t afford to fund my nights of partying mayhem so that I have enough money leftover for somewhere to sleep that doesn’t resemble an alleyway!

Reply: Having money is a good start so maybe actually get a job! Do what ever you can to save up as much as possible, work two jobs, stop renting movies and download them illegally instead (or maybe not because that would be illegal). If you’re a talented juggler get a busking licence and make a few coins on the side, if you can’t juggle to save your life and end up injuring yourself in the process then maybe you should look for a new talent or a legit job.

#3 But I have to go to Uni. I can’t take a Gap Year.

Reply: No you don’t. Uni can be deferred for a year and they will keep your place for the next year. Do you really want to spend another few years committed to having no life and studying when you could have a break exploring the world on your Gap Travel. Plus when you start uni everyone else will be jealous because you went to Oktoberfest!

#4 I’m afraid if I leave my job I won’t be able to get as good a job when I get back from Gap Travel.

Reply: Don’t be stupid, if you’re good at what you do you will be able to pick up another job after one, two or five years travelling. What employer wouldn’t want someone as worldly as you!

Decisions Decisions

So, you have thrown your crap excuses out the window and decided to take the Gap Year plunge but you don’t have enough money to see you through the year. A great option to fund your Gap Travel is to do a working holiday.

Who ever thought of putting working and holiday together must have been mad right? It seems to defeat the purpose if you have to work. However there are a lot of advantages of working in another country and earning money in the local currency. Much of the expenses of Gap Travel is not getting much bang for your buck because the exchange rates put simply are crap! If you earn and spend in the local currency then your money will stretch a lot further.

If you don’t find working and holiday in the same sentence distasteful then there are many Working Holiday Maker Visa Schemes which allow you stay and work between one and two years depending on the country. All you need is a small pool of cash behind you and a skeleton free closet.

Big 4 Working Holiday Jobs for Gap Travel

Work in a UK Pub

Working in a UK Pub is extremely popular among Gap Yearers. The allure of getting fat off free pub meals and enjoying the endless supply of free joyful drinks bought for you by your regular customers is too much to resist. Although the pay is quite low, averaging ₤6 an hour, often your accommodation will be free or quite cheap leaving you enough money to jet set across the pond and explore the magnificence of Europe.

Teaching English

Teaching English is fast becoming a very lucrative working holiday option for a Gap Travel Year. With English becoming the world language (as if the English need another ego boost) English Teachers are highly sought after and well paid. You don’t need a degree in teaching to get an English teaching job although a TEFL Certificate (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) is often preferred. As long as you’re a fluent English speaker and willing to be the funny foreign teacher dancing around in front of the class like a circus monkey then you will find of lots of jobs, particularly in Asia during your Gap Travel Year.

Seasonal Work

Seasonal Work is the perfect job for someone with chronic itchy feet with most jobs being short-term, lasting no more than 3 months. Most seasonal work is found at ski resorts and summer resorts in major tourist areas. For the common Gap Year Traveller, most of this work involves serving overpriced food to people with more money than you could ever dream of and scrubbing toilets or changing sheets with those ‘I don’t want to know what that is’ stain. If you have some kind of sporting talent like skiing or rock-climbing then you may be spared of such dodgy Gap Year jobs.

Volunteering

Volunteering is not well paid. In fact it’s not paid at all. Volunteering is all about giving your time for free and really getting to know a culture by helping its people. It’s also a great way to pick up some local dance moves to take to the international club scene and learn some new vocabulary that can be used in all sorts of heated situations.

So what are you waiting for? Stop staring at your tropical wallpaper and go to the real beach!

For more info, you can also read The Complete Guide to the Gap Year: The Best Things to Do Between High School and College.

Do some Gap Travel!