Tagged With "Amazon Local"
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Re: Carnival opens 'social impact' program to all
A good question, and one open to discussion. we can be sure of Carnival's motivation, and sure that the local government has not done these things. But how to assess whether it is a good thing is more complicated, I think.
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Re: Maybe Canada was right on closing parks
Police add black dye to a clear Blue Lake in Buxton England to deter visitors. This is why we dont give guns to our Local Police. If you went into that Lake the cold would kill you anyway.
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Re: Tips to help with packing no matter where you are going
Adding to Mac's point. A big turning point for us was when we started packing for 7 days, no matter how much longer the trip. Usually we have a washer in the apartments we rent, but when not, there's always a laundromat nearby, and usually one that will wash and fold while we tour. We don't often enough change locations to want to keep everything packed (and anyway, I'm a compulsive unpacker) so some of the tools are less useful to us...but I do remind everyone that shoes are actually...
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Re: JetBlue to be first with free WiFi on all flights
Excellent idea! Kudos to JetBlue for its foresight.
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Re: July in France: More than Bastille Day
Great photo of the lavender field. I remember all the years living in Germany, seemed there were weekly fests going on in our village or in one of the neighboring villages. Any excuse for outdoor music and to gather with current and new friends to drink local wines and beers along with plentiful grilled meats. I truly miss that part of European living. Fests all year long and never a rain date ... they just put up tents and partied in the rain. Photo of my wife Diane with two musicians at a...
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Re: Limone, Lake Garda, Italy
"Only to be found in the Mediterranean..." Not really. Meyer lemons are native to China and have been grown in the US since 1908. I can find them just about anytime in my ordinary local supermarket in California. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meyer_lemon
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Re: Notes and Noticings from the road
Actually, I think the banks have a fairly minimal (as small as I can make it) impact on my currency transactions, in part because I never deal with exchanges; I use bank ATMs. That way, the exchange takes place not on my account, but as an interbank transaction at the base rate banks use with each other. I used to use my ATM card from Citibank, but eventually they began charging a 3% foreign exchange fee even on withdrawals. At that point, I opened an account with Charles Schwab, a brokerage...
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Re: Top Tips and Advice for Travel to Malta & Gozo
"Tropical Paradise" is stretching it a bit - Malta is nowhere near the tropics and, whilst it has a mild climate, it is far from tropical. However, having been there, I concur that it is well worth a visit. We rented a local flat for a week and found the bus services quite good (and thus did not rent a car). Rabbit dishes seem to be ubiquitous on restaurant menus and we found many of them very good - although it is probably true to say that I am more fond of rabbit than my wife.
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Re: Why I Travel
My early travels in the US were all done with maps. I've been lost many times. So I bought the American Maps for my UK TomTom Sat Nav. Best thing I've done in years ! I love taking roads that aren't tourist routes - and getting lost - now. Explore the back woods and the one horse towns. Explore where the rich folks live and the poor. Taking photo's of local characters. Folks that have worse teeth than the Brits ! Show me the tourist route and I'll go the other way !
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day: Jan. 16, 2014: Liverpool Victoria Gallery
My favourite time to visit attractions is May-June-July. Before the little monsters are released on school vacation. Liverpool has hundreds of things to do - no exaggeration ! Here's 128 to go on with http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/A...seyside_England.html Liverpool makes a good hub for visiting nearby Chester with its 2,000 year old Roman Walls and Tudor Buildings. The River Dee and North Wales. All using local public transport - mostly trains. You can get a flight, Liverpool - Dublin from...
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Jan. 4, 2014: Frutta Fresca, Roma
I love walking through markets - the smells, the colours and the rare fruits that don't make it to the Supermarkets! And sometimes the samples of local cheese ! I could spend all day there.
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Re: Where in the World is Gumbo? # 9
Well, nothing "Thais" us together like a good puzzle! But alas, this one did not last to the weekend. WorkerBee, our puzzle champion started homing in by e-mail on Wednesday, with an inspired but wrong guess: Once again Gumbo is taking time to visit a church. This church is made of wood on a base of stone. The location is near Barsana (Birsana) in Maramures county, Romania. By Thursday, he had continued his research, and last night he was back with another e-mail, and he had nailed it. On...
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Re: Newgrange; Ireland’s ancient Passage Tomb
Perceptions of time ! Interesting subject. You do get a little blasé about History when you're surrounded by it. This is my local Church. It's nearly a thousand years old and still in regular use !
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Re: Newgrange; Ireland’s ancient Passage Tomb
Walking the "Walls" that enclose the City - maybe 3 miles around - is a local ritual ! At frequent intervals there are Pubs to stop at. The idea being that you stop at each one , have a drink and proceed to the next. Its only the hardened drinkers who complete the circuit. A friend from Anna Maria Island, Florida sent his daughter to stay with us for a while. Same age as my daughter and they got along like a house on fire ! So when we arrived in Chester I told her our day was walking around...
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Re: Laughter Set in Stone: Fun with Statues
Well, here's another I would have included in the original post—except I didn't remember I had it! Unintentionally ironic or not...it speaks up for a local guy in an unusual way!
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Re: Budget Way to Use a Cell Phone and VOIP in Europe
Sounds like a real money-saver, at home in the U.S. but it might not suit all travelers abroad. Since the phone uses the Sprint network (CDMA) you couldn't just add a local SIM in Europe where GSM is used. That would mean it would only work on wi-fi in Europe, and you might find it inconvenient to not be able to make or get calls when you were away from it.
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Re: A Visit to Ireland: Part 1) An overview of the Country and its People
To say that Ireland is typically wet and cold is true of Winter. The Summers are often pleasant and warm but when you get to the West Coast then the wind blows in of a cold Atlantic Ocean. But the weather can change 4 times a day - so there's something there to please everyone. Ireland has wonderful fresh food. Fresh from the sea and farm. Try a locally produced Vintage Cheddar Cheese or an 18 year old Jamesons Whiskey. Soda bread is a local speciality. But stay away from the home made...
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Re: A Visit to Ireland: Part 1) An overview of the Country and its People
When I go to my local Pub in Liverpool I'll have a choice of Beers. Heineken Dutch Lager - San Miguel Spanish - Carlsberg Danish - Stella Belgian - Fosters Australian - Sagres Portuguese. Plus many local brews. Old Speckled Hen, Bishops Finger and my favourite Newcastle Brown Ale. Served in a Pint - 20 ounce - Bottle. With a half pint glass. It keeps cooler in the bottle ! Liquid Toffee ! Not a light Beer. Lots of Flavour and quite potent. I've found bars around Ocean City Maryland who serve...
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Nov 14, 2013 : Guinness Storehouse, Dublin, Ireland
That's a cool photo, Ottoman! Reminds me of the bartender at my local pub. His smile is even bigger if you leave him a nice tip.
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Re: Capital of Culture Series: Liverpool
No, not thinking of mills and chimneys, necessarily--note my very pre-Industrial Revolution examples--but certainly industrial, and by the nature of sizable cities with people living in close quarters and with the side-products of their industry, an argument can be made for dirty. It's not a slam...it's just the condition of cities that are alive. Here's a quotation, by the way, from the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health: The industrial revolution in England had by the beginning...
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Re: Do you Like these Hotel Tipping Tips ?
Before I retired, I traveled quite a bit on business, both inside the U.S. and abroad. I still travel frequently to racing and club events, but almost all are in the U.S. or Canada. That said, here’s my take on tipping: Restaurants – According to the sources I checked, in the U.S. the Federal minimum wage for tipped employees is $2.13. Most states have set higher amounts, but food service workers are still generally paid much lower wages that other ‘minimum wage’ employees. Unless the...
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Re: Put Stuttgart on Your Travel List
Many European towns have a Central Square where concerts and displays by local groups entertain us. Is Stuttgart like this ? Does it have Art Galleries that survived the war years ? Stuttgart isn't one of the places you associate with tourists in Germany but you've given us a taster. Thanks Rob !
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Re: A Birthday Message from the Gumbo Gurus
Here's a piece of cake for you, Portmoresby. E-enjoy it! Or, if you prefer, some ice cream!
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Re: Shipping Container as Your Next Hotel Room or Apartment ?!
I loved the design of the South African Student Housing.It was pretty cool. I hope someone can post their own photos of them on TG. As for the hotel, I'm guessing that would go good in places were there is only a seasonal demand . I imagine local laws might get in the way. I'd try it though if the price is right
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Re: AAA Premier a Good Idea for Budget Travelers
AAA seems to choose their contracted towing services very well. I have always had good luck with them. I used the coverage when I had a break down with a rental car in a small town. The rental car company suggested that I call AAA for towing to their office in a nearby larger town to exchange the car. The rental car company had a contract with the same towing company that was under contract to AAA in that area. So that was very easy. If the tow goes over the 200 miles, they charge something...
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Re: The Candy Church, Lamèque Island, New Brunswick
A beautiful small church. I'm pretty sure you won't read about it in a travel guide, but which a local like Vivie would know about. Thanks for bringing it to our attention!
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Re: A Rambler in Strasbourg
Alsace was our favorite destination for relaxing, taking the Rue de Vin for picnics, and enjoying the cuisine and slow pace of life. Colorful timber houses and festivals added to the richness of this region. A couple of our photos. My wife Diane with a local policeman, the cathedral and a canal.
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Re: Kyoto Tells Tourists What Not To Do
It is one of those real-life bad jokes. I find particularly humorous the rules about when and how to take photographs. Anyone who's stumbled upon a group of Japanese tourists know that they'll fight for the best shot if they have to! Guess the rules apply to foreign guests, not local residents.
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Re: Exploring Namibia – Part 2
A colorful and very captivating travel story. Everything from land formations, cuisine, architecture, and wildlife. It wasn't lost on me while engaged in your story on the remoteness of your explorations. Disaster could have befallen you anywhere and no cell towers, but you explained how you were well prepared and took great precautions. Very well written and photographed. Did you have many photos of the local people and their native architecture after colonialism?
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Re: Exploring Namibia – Part 2
Thank you very much for your comment, George. There certainly were times - after we had not encountered another vehicle or a building for ages - when our thoughts turned to what might happen if our car suddenly broke down. We found the local people very cheerful and most helpful. With older people the conversations inevitably turned to the bad old days of apartheid. Some of the stories were very disturbing indeed. As to modern buildings, we did not find much beyond the usual 'shopping mall'...
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Re: Back to Oaxaca: Hoofing It, El Picacho & Teotitlan
Another interesting item from the OLL newsletter regarding the weaving village of Teotitlan: TOUR: ARCHEOLOGICAL RUINS in TEOTITLAN Presented by Dr. Robert Markens Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas—sede Oaxaca Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México THURSDAY, JANUARY 11 / 9 AM-4 PM MX$350 (M) MX$400 (NM) Local archeologist Dr. Robert Markens will lead a tour of the archeological ruins located in the ancient village of Teotitlan del Valle, world-famous for its woven textiles. This...
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Re: Prague's Jewish Quarter: An Emotional and Educational Journey
I also visited the Old Jewish Cemetery during my first road trip to Prague shortly after the Soviets departed. I stayed with a local family in their spare room where I learned some of their customs and foods. Many of the historical sites were still not available for viewing at that time, but fortunately Marilyn provided some exquisite photos and historical context.
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Re: Nepalese Sherpas building Norway trails
Good news; I certainly struggled with paths in Lofoten in summertime, mainly because most local access is in winter by skidoo. Even waterside trails are non existent as everyone uses boats for fishing ! Norway has a spike in hillwalking accidents in springtime among hikers desperate to get out in the hills; surely this will help them too.
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Re: Airbnb an election issue in Amsterdam
I'm not sure how it can be said with any degree of certainty that data "scraped" from the site indicate anything close to real data other than, for instance, general availability, rather than which days a property is actually booked. Hosts, including me, block days (weeks, months) when the accommodation is used by family & friends or when they, like me, travel out of town. I'm not disputing that rules are broken but suspect it makes better news not bothering to dig through information to...
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Re: The Difference between Tourists and Travelers
Interesting thoughts on a constantly recycled debate. I certainly tried to prise the tourist out of the people in the groups I led, but not all were willing victims. Part of it surely is the time allocated to holidays - the tourist tries to see as much as possible in that time, but a traveller would be as happy poking around local markets - it's TOO easy to get sight-sore !
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Re: June 23, 2017: The Shortest River in the World!
A few times on road trips to Italy from my US Army base in Augsburg Germany, we stayed a few days at Lake Garda. Just a beautiful place to relax and enjoy the many local wines ... our favorite was Bardolino. Each time we stayed at a small family run pension in a lakefront room in the town of Sirmione which is perched on small sliver of a peninsula jutting out into the southern portion of the lake. Owners were very friendly and engaging. We enjoyed walking the old town and having a delicious...
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Re: The Museums of Astoria Oregon
It's amazing how many interesting, and often small, local museums there are. It's too easy to only notice the big ones with the big names! Keep these coming!
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Re: A Culinary Adventure in Portugal
The shrimp and cheese have my mouth watering. What local wines did you especially enjoy?
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Re: Grizzly Paw Brewery and Restaurant, Canmore, Alberta
Close, Rob, but not quite. The Beer guy was frequenting the local pizza joint. But he was ready for some Grizzly Paw, which everyone in town serves.
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Re: Cruising California's 17 Mile Drive
Breathtakingly expensive if I recall. I'm surprised that you are allowed to take photos without paying into the local coffers! :-)
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Re: Following the European Beer Trail: Oktoberfest to Sorrento
Thanks! I enjoyed this...and hope that Sorrento's beer makes it here to the U.S. I'm going to contact our local importers to see if there's a chance!
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Feb 11, 2015: Fruit of the Vine
We have a lot of different state and local laws, so, as they say, Your Mileage May Vary. Since New York is a significant wine-producer, it may be a bit easier here, and in summer there are several wine producers sampling at our local Greenmarket
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Re: Weymouth's tribute to the brave.
During WW1, before conscription was announced, young men were encouraged to join by local dignitaries and celebrities. Hundreds of Regiments of Infantry were formed with names such as the Liverpool Pals and the Bolton Pals - all made up of men from the same town. Many regiments were completely lost to combat in France. Small towns had lost all their young men to war and were left with no one coming home. Regiments after 1916 were drawn from several towns and cities.
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Re: Iquitos Jungle Tour
Thanks, what an incredible tour. Even has a Gumbo favorite,a Gustave Eiffel building! https://www.travelgumbo.com/blo...with-the-tour-eiffel
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Re: Iquitos Jungle Tour
I was going to ask about the different face paints.What were the differences between single ,married and looking, or could you tell?
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Re: Iquitos Jungle Tour
Originally Posted by Travel Rob: I was going to ask about the different face paints.What were the differences between single ,married and looking, or could you tell? The one I have in the photo is married (this was to avoid confusion, I was there with my boyfriend but we're not really married). The one for single was a lot simpler, just a streak on each cheek as I remember it, but I didn't get to see the one for 'looking' as no one in our group was!!
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, June 17, 2014: Cobble Stone Square in Aix-en-Provence
Aix is a favorite with us, even though we've spent only limited time there...but long enough to have posted a Picture of the Day featuring the local market , not far from the scene of your picture...it's really a great walking town.
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Re: Gumbo’s Pic of the Day, March 20, 2015: The Cerne Giant
Perhaps we had a local UFO group over a thousand years ago. This is another feature best viewed from the sky. Recent archaeological radar of the surrounding soil found - beneath his left hand - there was a cloak and a severed head. But good taste has allowed this to erode away.
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Re: Memphis, Tennessee 3) The rest of the city
Thanks for your comment, Mimiadventures! Good food, great music, nice people -- always something great to return to. I really didn't get into the great local food very much, but Memphis is reknowned for its "soul" style cooking and, of course, its BBQ.
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Re: AirBnB vs New York. Update
As a frequent Airbnb renter (about 16 times) I obviously think it's a valuable thing and want it to succeed. I also think that there's room for reasonable regulation that's sensitive to local needs, and that a reasonable compromise can be found. Let's take the case of New York City...there is a real shortage of affordable housing. While it's not caused by Airbnb, but rather by a series of market issues that I won't rehearse here, it's reasonable for the city/state to ban short-term rentals...