Travel Ideas for Everyone

On this page I will be posting travel ideas to places all over the world and withing Canada. From road trips, to beach vacations, to exploring the unknown, there will be post to entice the little traveller in everyone.

[alannahskot]

Stolen items

You never expect it to happen to you, but yet people are ruthless, break and enter and steal your valuables. This just yet another story of rural thefts in central Alberta.

Last March we had our new property broken into late one night, it had likely been scouted out since the robbers knew we weren’t living there yet. They first broke into the house and stole everything they could find, including the uninstalled dishwasher, flooring etc. As they were leaving, they decided to peek into the window of our shop and saw where we were storing many of our items as we were trying to clear out our old property. And that is when they saw the massive 525lb gun safe. Which was not at all filled with guns, but rather corvette paperwork, documentation that shows the history of each car, and is only valuable to my family, the car owners, all 16 binders. Unfortunately they were unable to open the safe on site (broke two crow bars) and so then they did everything they could to load it up and drive off with it. This included unloading the dishwasher and starting the tractor to load the safe.

We are not the only ones affected by these crimes, however I would love nothing more than for the documents to be returned to the vehicles. The paper work means nothing to anyone else, and hopefully it wasn’t just burned as the safe was opened.

If this paperwork reappeared it would be the best Christmas miracle ever.

[studentlifenetwork]

It’s back! Canada’s Luckiest Student 2 is now live at http://luckie.st/CLS2TWO.

Do you know a Canadian student who could use $20,000 for school and a bunch of awesome prizes? Please share this!

[alannahskot]

Outing Racism

The internet has generated a basis for people around the world to communicate and interact with one another, and while some people put out their personal information and are honest about whom they are, others go anonymous and hide behind a wall. This allows them to do and say as they please without getting caught, or at least without getting ratted out easily. Anonymity has grown to be a bad thing, it went from allowing people to not give out personal information as a preference, to hiding criminals who go online to target individuals and bully them. Anything from racist slurs, to death messages and sexual posts and comments is what the internet has become. While some of these criminals may have been dealt with by police, other web users have taken it into their own hands to point out these offenders, which is some cases may be the right things to do but in others not so much. Outing racists allows these internet criminals to get the justice they deserve and give their victims some peace of mind, and it should continue because otherwise it will keep growing and we do not want to give these offenders anymore satisfaction of putting people down.

For those of us who only use specific websites and do not venture awa,y we may not come into contact with racism very much, I know that until I looked deeper I was unaware of how much discrimination really goes on out in the internet world. Most of us have probably heard of Amanda Todd and how she was bullied to the point where she committed suicide, and it is a harsh reality but she is not the only teen to have been driven to the edge to do this. Another girl by the name of Kylie Kylem was also bullied to the point where she was about to attempt suicide but some other teens saw her tweets and helped her and convinced her that she did have people out here in the world who care about her. Stories like this are heart breaking, bullying is bad enough face to face but now that bullies can hide behind a screen has amplified the area to be even bigger and easier to target individuals. And not only do they target teens but there are people out there who target other ethnicities such as the President Barrack Obama, they say he looks like a monkey and put down him and his race over twitter using that horrible “N” word. It’s amazing to think that while most of us believe that we have come so far from being two different groups of people to becoming integrated, yet there are communities out there who wish that never happened, and are putting society two steps back rather than moving forward and living in peace.

While these actions obviously need to be stopped there is only so much that actual law enforcement can do so now other internet users are taking things into their own hands, and not just by using site moderators but actually discovering who hides behind these anonymous accounts and informing the rest of the community. There is an actual Tumblr page designated to putting out the racist’s information to the rest of the world so they can get justice. This page posts pictures, and screenshots of some their racist tweets so people know who they are. With Tumblr being so popular this seems like a great method to out racist teens as their peers are more than likely to see it, and potentially do something about it.  Also now one of Reddits biggest trolls, Michael Brutsch, was identified and is going to get prosecuted for his actions on Reddit. What he has done is revolting, he had pages of pictures of young girls secretly taken by users and posted for everyone to see. Users actions have appeared to be relatively successful seeing as they have gone out of their way to hack accounts and discover that users behind these horrible posts discriminating women and races, but it’s sad that in reality it will probably never entirely disappear.

While outing racists can be a good thing not everyone realizes how bad the outcome can be. While that Tumblr page has brought attention to specific prejudice bullies those are all just kids who are underage. Now they have the potential to be labeled forever by their wrongdoings and perhaps even get bullied and harassed for what they have done. This may not be the fairest thing because they have a life ahead of them and while they should get punished for what they did, they should not get penalized for the rest of their lives for it as it is a long time to be frowned upon by your peers. And releasing a minors contact information and where they live is almost a crime in itself as well, not to mention that teens brains are not fully developed so while posting these nasty comments they may not realize the consequences that can arise and how wrong their posts really are.  So in a way by identifying these teens the hacker is committing an offense equally as bad, and while they may deserve it, it really is not fair, because while their racist comments disappear into the internet, their names and offenses will carry on with them forever.

While we believe we have come so far in society through integration, women’s rights and anti-bullying procedures, the internet takes us two steps back. By hiding users behind a username it has opened up a whole new world where people can do as they want and say what they believe because the chances of being caught are very small. However thanks to hackers this issue is diminishing as these offenders true identity is getting released to the world so they can get prosecuted by their peers. While this may not be fair for teens who have to live with the consequences for the rest of their life and whom may not know better, it may be the best thing to do because it will stop others from making the same mistakes and save individuals from being put down and thinking poorly of themselves to the point where they believe they should not live anymore because no one should ever feel that way. Outing racists needs to continue if there is any hope of stopping or minimizing these internet crimes.

[alannahskot]

American West Coast Road Trip

So I haven’t had a post about what I really want to talk about for a while, but now I am taking this opportunity to write about one of my most desired trips to do before I die, which is to do a road trip down the United States west coast. Starting in Seattle you then go to  Olympic National Park, Portland, then along the Oregon Coast to Crater Lake, then on to Redwood National Park, through to Napa Valley, on to San Francisco, to Monterey, down the Pacific Coast Highway to Los Angeles, then finally finishing in San Diego.

While I have been to Los Angeles and San Diego I find them both worthwhile cities to revisit because there is a lot to see and do that you cannot possibly cover in one trip, or at least I wasn’t able too. Last time in San Diego I went to the San Diego Zoo, Sea World and the Wildlife Park which was probably the best part, as all the animals had acres and areas of land to roam and graze whereas I found the zoo to contain the animals in too small of areas for my liking. And then Sea World of course was also very cool with all the marine animal exhibits that we land locked residents do not get to see very often. It was unfortunate that I did not have the time to go to Legoland while there also because having been to the Legoland in Denmark and knowing how great that experience I would highly recommend visiting the one in San Diego because the Lego structures are incredible!

I have been to Los Angeles twice now and still look forward to heading back again one day, while there I have seen Venice Beach, the Chinese Grauman Theatre, toured the stars homes (always my favorite) walked down Rodeo Drive, went to Universal Studios, and Warner Brothers which was probably one of the best tours I have ever been on! At Warner brothers we hopped onto a trolley and our tour guide took us to the area where many of our favorite shows are and have been filmed, these included Friends, Dukes of Hazzard and Pretty Little Liars. After we went on to see the area where many famous movie cars are kept, this included the van from Scooby Doo, the Bat Mobile, and the orange Charger from Dukes of Hazzard. The final excitement of the tour was when they took us into a set and it turns out to me the set where The Big Bang Theory is filmed and on our way there we past Ellen DeGeneres’s office. Throughout the tour it was just unreal to think of all the huge names which had walked and performed in the same place that you were. Los Angeles is also home to Disney land however I have not been there yet although maybe next time. Oh and while in Los Angeles be sure to visit Santa Monica and walk the famous pier which contains a small theme park, souvenir shops and a restaurant, that in its own can easily soak up an afternoon. These are just a few of the things to do while in this city so be sure to read up on what the city has to offer so you can make your trip memorable and exciting according to how you want it to be.

As to everywhere else that this road trip entail I have not been to any of them. However the American Road Trip Company has some beautiful pictures and a full itinerary of things to see and do while conquering this journey. And while on the coast be sure to walk down a few piers because they are always relaxing and provide a great ending to a busy day of traveling or touring while on your special vacation.

[alannahskot]

Online Identity

Identity is a difficult concept to wrap your finger around when discussing internet identities, because the internet hides the face behind the post. People can use any screen name and picture they want, there is no rules to use their own name.  Reasons why people do this vary, some people do not want people to know who they really are, while others just don’t want to put out any personal information while blogging because you never know who may use your information against you. However in order to attain credibility, the blogger generally needs to express their true identity because otherwise they will not gain their followers trust if that is what they are after.

 It is quite easy to lie about an identity, just the other day while watching TV there was a show called Catfish that came one and it turned out to be very interesting. The man who they were filming had an ongoing relationship with a girl for 4 years, however they had never met. So the producers got them to meet and the women was quite surprised to see this man, while she was very happy, she quickly noticed that the man who was standing in front of her did not look the same as the one in the online pictures. It turns out he did not want to use his own pictures because he was afraid of what she would think, so instead he used his cousins photos, and not only did he do this but he also used a different name on the site. Needless to say the women was shocked, but in the end very forgiving, even though in the mean time she had been sending him money to help pay bills! I can’t even imagine sending money to someone I didn’t personally meet. Reasons why people do this can vary, and depending on the website and its safety can alter people decisions as to what name and picture they use, but when you have a 4 year relationship, one would think you would tell your significant other your true identity a little sooner.

Personally on all the websites I use, I find that they are reliable and safe so I do use my actual name and pictures, because I want people to know who I am, and in general the sites that require an identification are social media sites that I share with my friends, so I would be called out pretty fast if I didn’t use a proper picture or my name. I think on trustworthy sites it is safe for people to use their real name and perhaps a photo of themselves, however this is just one person’s opinion, I think I may be a little to trustworthy sometimes but in my case I generally do not use a lot of websites where I put out valuable information about myself, and if something does happen to go wrong, I would only have myself to blame.

[alannahskot]

Popular Media

                Trends come and go, and depending on their popularity will determine how long they stay around. These days’ trends such instagram, facebook, twitter and other social media are all very popular and powerful and transferring memes. Memes are virally-transmitted cultural symbols or social ideas, and they are generally very funny and are set out to be relatable. And most recently popular memes relate with grumpy cat, informative duck, drunk baby, futurama fry and many others. But what drags people to looking through hundreds of these at a time? Well, most memes are comical and often have to do with popular culture icons which people know about, and often travel through those social media sites by users sharing or posting them. Memes are very popular and do not seem to be fading away any time soon as they capture so much attention from viewers and then get past from one to another like wildfire. I personally enjoy memes and will look at them on facebook, instagram, and most of all on the chive. Memes used to be spread by word of mouth but as technology has moved forward they have gone from the news paper to televison and now the internets and as easy as it is to look at them it is just as easy to make them as well.

[alannahskot]

My Trip to Atlanta, Chattanooga, and Nashville!

While some people go to Mexico or somewhere warm for reading week break, this year I travelled to the United States. Flying into Atlanta, Georgia was very exciting, except I had hoped it would be warmer. Although I did not do much the first night the following morning we went to the Georgia Aquarium which was absolutely incredible, the main exhibit had four Whale Sharks, so that should give you a good idea of how big the aquarium really is. Other exhibits consisted of freshwater, tropics, frogs and artic which is where the penguins and Beluga whales are held. Directly across the park from the Aquarium is the World of Coca-Cola museum, in here you go through a series of different rooms which takes you through the history of coke and then in the end you get to taste test all the flavors of Coca-Cola from around the world, and of course original Cola and Fanta were my two favorite as they always are.

Day two was really the main reason for going on this holiday as it was my Christmas present; today we were going to Covington, Georgia where The Vampire Diaries is filmed! Unfortunately I would not get the chance to meet the cast because it was a holiday there but there was a commercial getting filmed so that was interesting. While there I went on a tour where they took us to all the different places and houses where scenes from the show have been filmed which was very cool to step where my favorite actors have walked and see all the mansions in Covington.

From there we drove up to Chattanooga, Tennessee where we went and visited Rock city where you can see seven states, Ruby falls, road the incline train, visited a Museum about the battle of Chattanooga, and last but not least went and saw the Tennessee Aquarium which was very good as well and what made it better than the Georgia Aquarium was the fact that is wasn’t busy at all and included lots of freshwater fish that actually reside in Tennessee.

After Chattanooga we went on to Nashville, Tennessee which was absolutely amazing! Other than the fact that I am not 21 yet. The first night there it was pouring rain but we still managed to go down to Broadway which is the main street in Nashville where all of the bars and shops are. We really wanted to go to Tootsies as it is famously known for having country stars come in and perform, but since it was after 7 pm I was unable to go in but fortunately we were able to find another bar where I was allowed (the key is to find a bar that doesn’t allow smoking, then people under 21 can go in). Each Bar has a different live band performing and some even have two or three, one for each floor. And you go in and order drinks or snack and just listen and dance if that is your thing. With spending three days in Nashville we also got to shop, see the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Ryman Auditorium, and we even went to the Grand ole Opry which I highly recommend. The final night there we went on a dinner cruise where the food wasn’t very good but the entertainment was great.  Also while in Nashville we went on a stars homes tours where we saw where stars such as Taylor Swift, Hayden Panettiere, Martina McBride, Dierks Bentley, and others homes, along with many other huge mansions which were absolutely beautiful.

Overall the trip went very well and we all had a lot of fun and I highly recommend Nashville and even Atlanta, and Chattanooga because they all have a lot to offer. We were gone from a Saturday till the following Sunday and we were busy doing things every

[alannahskot]

Travel safe

While we all love to travel and discover new worlds, when in paradise we often lose track on the importance of watching our surroundings, or if perhaps you are a new traveller, you are not necessarily aware of potential threats towards you as a foreigner. From experience I know that different destinations require different precautions but there are simple things you can do to protect yourself before you travel. By no means am I trying to scare anyone out of travelling, I just believe that everyone should be aware, making their trip more enjoyable and safe by travelling smart.

The first big thing  you should look out for is pickpockets, especially in crowds. When on a tour a friend and purposely brought a fake wallet and stuck it in his back pocket before we went to the Eiffel Tower and between the subway and the tower it got stolen, he was in the middle of the group so we have no idea how nobody saw it but the point is that people who pickpocket know what they are doing. However there are very easy ways to protect yourself. For starters wear a money belt, this sits flat against your abdominal section and it is very important that it doesn't bulge, this belt is where you should store money, ID, health care, just anything valuable. Also do not carry a purse  , and preferably use a backpack that has a zipper against your back.

Next, look out for cab drivers who pick you up from the airport and either say they don't know how to get you to your hotel, or say that it is really expensive and that you should find somewhere else because they are just trying to get more money out of you.

Like in our own major cities, everywhere has people who live on the street and beg, but what you need to e aware of is children with cardboard signs for you to try and read while the rest of the clan picks your pockets dry of your valuables.

Also, if possible do not get money out of an atm but rather from an actual bank, my mom made this mistake when we were in mexico, she took $200 cash out of an atm and she got expired money that could no longer be used.

This small list just highlights a few of the main areas but if you want more information the source I used has many more things to be aware of so you can easily make yourself safer.

[alannahskot]

Switzerland at its best!

[alannahskot]

Switzerland

As stated in previous blogs I am an avid traveller, and by far Switzerland was my absolute favorite place that I have ever been. Back in July 2009 I went on a tour to Europe. We Started in England, then on to France, and from there we went to Switzerland, Austria and then Germany. While we were only in Switzerland for two days it was still the best part of the whole trip. We stayed in a little village on a mountain just a little ways outside of Lucerne, which was rested on a beautiful mountain lake which we would go and swim in after a long day. The hotel we stayed in was adorable, the keys to lock the doors were very authentic looking but worked like a charm, the food and services were great, and if you listened closely from your balcony you could hear the cowbells jingle. I really wish I could remember the name of the village and hotel but I was so absorbed by the atmosphere and environment that I wasn't focused on names and signs. While there, during the day we would go down to Lucerne and shop and take tours. In order to get to the one tour we took a ferri across Lake Lucerne to Mount Pilatus where we took a train up the side of the mountain,  admired the views, took pictures and then took a gondola back down to the base, it really made your heart stop at points but that's what makes things exciting, all of this occuring on a gorgeous day with the sun shining and no wind.

While I didn't see a lot of Switzerland the people were all very friendly and in general could speak english very well. I have intentions of going back and potentially living in the country for a couple months just because it left such a good impression on me. The only downside which friends of mine have also mentioned is that Switzerland can be very expensive compared to elsewhere but I say that if you can afford it go, because you will not be dissappointed.

 I have just barely touched on everything that I saw while there but like I previously stated this trip was absolutly amazing and Switzerland really is what made my holiday complete.

[alannahskot]

Travelling, Everyone and Anyone is Capable.

                The Internet allows people to research, communicate, creep people’s Facebook pages on boring nights, tweet their problems, pin interests on a board, hashtag to get more “likes,” and now we converse and express our common interests through blogging. With blogging becoming yet another new fad on the vast internet there are now hundreds of websites designed to allow this to happen. When I was assigned the task to create a blog, I chose Tumblr since my best friend had it, and since I had no idea what I was getting into, at least I would have someone to guide me if I got lost. However now I am up and working and Tumblr seems to run pretty well and instead of blogging being a homework task, perhaps it will be something that I really enjoy doing. That way I can spread my knowledge and interests to those who follow my commentaries.

                While looking through other blogs to get a grasp on what others talk about I noticed that I could really talk about anything and everything. And  while snooping and seeing that people talk about shoes, fashion, food, animals or just anything they want, it was easier for me to see that I could really talk about anything that thoroughly interested me, because not only would that make my assignment easier but it would make it fun and most importantly, real. The worst issue was what would I talk about? I love so many things, such as fishing, snowmobiling, ATV, snowboarding, riding horses and so on. However for the most part this stuff really just appeals to guys, I wanted a topic that would appeal to anyone, and that is when I thought of travelling. I have been to so many places and have so many more places where I want to go, why not base my blog around places to go see around the world.

                 Once I got going and decided to design my blog around my love of travelling I had to think about what to blog about first, and having travelled quite a bit for my age I have a good idea of what is out there and where I still want to go see and do.  With this blog I may sometimes write about my experiences and what was good and bad about each place I visited, while other times I will blog about places I haven’t been, and are on my personal bucket list. While this blog may be an escape for some, and a place for others to get travel ideas my intentions are to reach out to anyone and everyone, from road trips, to beach vacations or travelling Europe I hope anyone can gain inspiration while reading articles posted on this page. I understand that travelling can be very expensive but there can be ways to cut back on cost, or plan fun family trips within the country to places which we forget are in our own backyard. So with saying this, the purposes of this blog are to reach out to anyone because I firmly believe that travelling can not only be fun, but it can teach a person a lot about themselves and just general knowledge, and make a more well-rounded individual out of anyone.

[alannahskot]

Palau Islands, So beautiful!

[alannahskot]

Top Ten Scuba Destinations

It's that time of the year when everyone is looking to get away from the bitter cold, and hit the beach. However once at the beach not everyone is looking to sit around by the poo,l but rather wants to go and explore the near ocean and its beautiful reefs by scuba diving. The top ten destinations are the Blue Hole in Belize, the sunken ships of Coron Island in the Philippines, the shallow reefs of Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean, filled with colorful fish, or the mysteries lurking in the murky waters of Dinah's Beach, Papua New Guinea. Also, Palau islands (look absolutly stunning), Sudanese Red Sea,  Cocos Island, Costa Rica, and Bali, Indonesia,diving the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, and Provo, Turks and Caicos, and Dinah's Beach.

[alannahskot]

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

http://matadornetwork.com/bnt/50-most-inspiring-travel-quotes-of-all-time/#QmfOGRuA4gCR3hSS.99

[alannahskot]

First Blog Post Ever!

Hey! This is my first blog post, so this world is very new to me! I love travelling, horses, and the outdoors. Although I will mainly blog about travelling as I have many places on my checklist to visit, and I love discovering new places to add to that list.