Posted by admin on Jan 18, 2012 in
General This museum situated on the north side of Trafalgar Square is on the “must see” list for many visitors to London.
The Beginning
The National Gallery was agreed to build by the House of Commons in 1831 so that people in Britain enjoy visiting to see its art collection, and opened to the public in 1838. Trafalgar Square was chosen as a location to build this new art museum because it was easy to access from the West End where the Upper Class live and for the poor from the East End.
Collections
The National Gallery owns over 2,300 fabulous Western European masterpieces from the mid-13th century through to early 20th century. Artists on display include Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Titian, Holbein, Velazquez, El Greco, Murillo, Hogarth, Canaletto, Gainsborough, Monet, and Van Gogh. The attached building to the main building, the Sainsbury Wing, contains works by painters from 1250 to 1500, such as Giotto and Jan van Eyck.
Free 60 min. guided Tour is available everyday. If you are a first time visitor and do not know which artworks you should see, this might be an excellent opportunity to explore the gallery.
Address: Trafalgar Square, London WC2N 5DN
Phone: +44 (0)20 7747 2885
Tube: Charing Cross, Embankment
Bus: 3, 6, 12, 13, 15, 23, 24, 29, 88, 139, 159, 176, 453
Open: Sat-Thu 10-18, Fri 10-21
Admission: Free (A charge is made for special exhibitions)
Website: http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/
Tea Time
Restaurant and cafes in the gallery
There are three places for eating and drinking in the National Gallery. Two of them, The National Dining Rooms and The National Caf, are operated by Peyton and Byrne. The former in the Sainsbury Wing serves great Classic Afternoon Tea. You can choose your favourite from more than 20 tea and coffee.
Caf in the Crypt
You will find this caf in the basement of St Martin in the Field, located right next to the National Gallery. This place was a crypt with brick vaulted ceiling and pillars, and now the tables and chairs stand on gravestones floor.
Posted by admin on Jan 18, 2012 in
General Tips on Arranging a Trip to Georgia
Travel throughout Georgia armed with valuable information
Are looking for a new place to go to? Are you tired of the mundane and seeing the same thing over again? Maybe you want to try something different. Well, there is a destination just right for you. It’s Georgia. Georgia is a small country that is located south of Russia and has recently been in the news because of a brief war with Russia last year.
However, don’t let the war scare you. The war only lasted five days and everything now is peaceful and safe. Furthermore, the Georgian government makes it very easy for American and European tourists to visit the country which has many magical wonders and ancient places to visit. Georgia has many churches and castles that date back to the 6th Century. The Georgian people also are very hospitable and willing to help you find your way.
How to get to Georgia
Georgia is that it is a small country and there are no direct flights from US cities to Tbilisi, which is the city that you are most likely to fly into as it is capital of the country.
Most flights into Georgia are from Europe or Turkey and fly during the night, so when you arrive in Tbilisi you may want to have an extra day to rest. There are several ways to get from the United States to Georgia and the most common routes are listed below.
1. United Airlines and Lufthansa are the easiest route to Georgia from the United States. Both airlines are members of the Star Alliance and operate each other’s flights. You can fly either Lufthansa or United from Chicago, New York, or Los Angeles to Munich. You will fly out of the United States in either the early afternoon or in the evening and you will arrive in Munich at different times.
The United flights arrive in the morning and the Lufthansa flights arrive in Munich in the early afternoon the next day. You will have a long layover in Munich, then at 9:30 p.m. Munich time, the Lufthansa flight for Tbilisi flies out and arrives in Tbilisi at 3:00 a.m. the next morning.
The flights from Chicago or New York to Munich average about eight to nine hours and the flight from Los Angeles to Munich average about 10 to 12 hours. The flight from Munich to Tbilisi averages about three to four hours.
2. Austrian Airlines flies out of both Chicago and New York to Vienna. These flights last about eight to nine hours. The connecting flight from Vienna to Tbilisi leaves around 10 in the evening and arrives in Tbilisi at 4:00 a.m. the next morning.
3. Turkish Airlines flies out of both Chicago and New York to either Istanbul or Ankara. From there is a flight to Tbilisi also.
These are the most reliable routes to Georgia from the United States and your luggage can be checked through to your final destination, Tbilisi.
What to do, when you arrive at Tbilisi International Airport
When you arrive at Tbilisi International Airport, you will find that the border people are very friendly and are more than willing to help you through the few formalities there are required to enter Georgia. Upon arrival, you will find that passport control is just a stone’s throw away from the jet way where you come off the plane.
If you are a citizen of the United States, Israel, member nations of the EU, Switzerland, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, you are not required to apply for a visa to enter Georgia. If you live in the United States on a green card and are a citizen of another country other than the above-mentioned countries, you might need to apply for a visa.
Applying for a visa in Georgia is not difficult at all. In fact you can apply right at the airport. You should have some passport photos available and visa fees are not expensive.
When crossing the border control at the airport, you will be required to have your passport ready and the border officer will have you look into a face scanning camera and stamp your passport and you then can go on to baggage claim.
Posted by admin on Jan 18, 2012 in
General For the discriminating consumer, nothing gives them a better option for all travel and leisure related information than a magazine travel and leisure magazine subscription. With a travel and leisure magazine subscription you can always be constantly aware of all the exciting places to travel and relax worldwide. You will also be given opportunities to save on all travel related costs. A travel and leisure magazine subscription will also save you a significant amount on the costs of your favorite travel and leisure magazines. Plus, you’ll have the added convenience of having your favorite travel and leisure magazines delivered right to your front door.
Travel magazines make an excellent gift choice for all those hard to buy people with cultivated tastes. It is a gift idea than will keep on giving every time that person opens their mailbox and finds the informative and entertaining travel and leisure magazine they’ve been waiting to read. So let someone you care about know how you feel about them by ordering a travel and leisure magazine subscription for them and you might as well order yourself one, because you do not want to be left out of all the information, discounts, reviews and travel tips available in a travel and magazine.
A leisure and travel magazine subscription will be a valuable resource if you are planning a business trip or vacation excursion anywhere in the world. It will have informative articles, features and reviews about the travel and leisure industry. But better still, is will have money saving tips and discounts on a variety of travel related products. Anything from discounts on transportation, whether by airplane, train, cruise ship or car, you’ll save money by having a travel and leisure magazine subscription. You will read fascinating articles about hot travel spots in every corner of the globe. You will read from travel industry professionals about a variety of subjects that could be used to ensure that your business trip or next vacation is safe and fun.
With a leisure and travel magazine subscription, you will know the world’s best travel, will be aware of the best restaurants, hotels, resorts, and cruises. You will be aware of some of the best food and best shopping from Paris to Singapore. Readers with travel and leisure magazine subscriptions will be informed about hot vacation travel deals and get insider tips for traveling that will save them money and allow them to get the best out of their trip.
A lot of people love to travel, but not many know how to travel smartly. Or they may not be aware of the superb deals that can be had simply by knowing about it, Being informed about travel deals on hotels, airfare and sight-seeing tours can vastly increase the success of any business trip or pleasure vacation. With all the great deals you will discover by having a travel magazine subscription, you will be able to travel a lot more frequently and at a fraction of the costs you used to spend on traveling.
Posted by admin on Jan 18, 2012 in
General Exploring a foreign land has always been a tough task especially when a land is as diverse as the colors spectrum. But when a cultural extravaganza is enhanced by royal comfort then there is hardly anything left for travelers to ask for. As an endeavor to provide visitors a world class comfort during their India tours, Indian railways launched its first luxury train, Palace on Wheels in 1982 as a joint venture with Rajasthan tourism development corporation.
Since its inception, this lavish train has proved its mettle in tourism industry at international level. It has been rated as fourth best luxury train all across the globe.
Palace on Wheels train is appointed with modern day facilities wrapped in sumptuousness of bygone times. It helps you to explore rustic lanes of Rajasthan as it traverses on a route covering the most famous places.
Destinations Covered:
Delhi
National capital of India, Delhi holds several attractions for its visitors. Qutub Minar, Humayun’s Tomb and Red Fort are the three world heritage sites this city possesses.
Jaipur
It has an unfathomable charm that acts as a driving force to attract visitors towards it. Mesmerizing palaces, massive forts and magnificent temples are the proud possessions of this city.
Jaisalmer
Jaisalmer is named after its founder Raja Jaisal a Rajput king. Located amid Thar Desert, it stands on a ridge of yellow sandstone composition. Its rhythmic sand dunes are centre of attraction while huge expanse of Indus valley civilization represents its exclusivity. Jaisalmer fort is the most famous attraction of this city.
Jodhpur
Quite popular as Blue City, Jodhpur is located in barren landscape of Thar Desert. It invites thousands of travelers every year towards its great cultural heritage. Mehrangarh Fort, Umaid Bhavan Palace, Jaswant Thada, Balsamand Lake, Mahamandir temple and Kailana Lake are major attractions.
Udaipur
Voted as world best city in 2009 by Travel and Leisure magazine, Udaipur is renowned for its Majestic Rajput-era Palaces. It is undoubtedly one of the most famous cities of the world. Presence of several exotic lakes like Udai Sagar, Lake Pichola, Fatah Sagar Lake, and Swaroop Sagar.
Chittorgarh
It is eminent for its profound history. This gorgeous city is located on banks of Berach River. Most famous attraction is the fort of Chittorgarh located on top of a 180 m high hillock. Rani Padmani Palace, Kalika Mata temple and Rana Kumbha Palace are other famous attractions of this place.
Sawai Madhopur
It is a traditional village that shelters one of the most affluent national parks of this country -Ranthambore National Park. Its thick deciduous forest is famous for Royal Bengal Tiger. This sanctuary inhabits over 300 species of birds.
Bharatpur
Its popularity can be gazed from the fact that it has been included in list of UNESCO world heritage sites. Prime attraction of this city is Keoladeo Ghana National Park that shelters three hundred species of migratory as well as native birds.
Fatehpur Sikri
This UNESCO world heritage city was the first planned Mughal city. Several mosques and monuments are prime attractions famous for their architectural brilliance.
Agra
This city is famous for Taj Mahal -one of the seven wonders of the world. Agra Fort, Akbar Tomb and Jama Masjid are other highlights.
Posted by admin on Jan 18, 2012 in
General Air travel is not considered risky and a luxury anymore, as it was a few decades ago. Times have changed and so is the mentality of people. Today the business travelers and the tourists prefer to travel through airlines to save time and any discomfort. And now-a-days, with so many international airlines in the market the prices have been reduced drastically and airline travel has become affordable for the common man. Some people hesitate to use airlines for their travel purpose because they are not sure of the procedure of booking tickets! Here is a guide to international air ticket booking for all airlines – from US Airways to United Airways.
There are various ways of booking an airline ticket and you have to choose one of them as per your convenience. The first one is to locate a travel website, which helps you to compare the prices and services of various international airlines on one single web page. All you have to do is enter your destination, your departure city, along with the travel dates and number of passengers traveling. Once you enter the details, you will get a list of plausible international airlines you can choose from. It also shows you total amount that you will have to pay for each airline, according to the details entered by you.
Another way of international flight booking is to visit the website of the specific airline. Here also you will be asked for the same details as above and you will be given the options. Here you can also choose your seats. To confirm the booking of tickets, you will have to provide your billing address, payment information and click on ‘buy tickets’ to confirm booking. Before hitting this tab, find out how you will get access to your ticket!
You can also purchase airline tickets directly from the airline that you wish to fly from. Most of the reputed ones such as Cathy Pacific Airlines, United Airlines, US Airways, Air France, Continental Airlines and other such known names, book your tickets over a telephone. All you are asked to do is provide your contact information, travel details (including dates and destination), and credit card details. Once it is done, you are provided with a confirmation number which acts as your ticket!