Carnival of Cities – September 23, 2009

Start of Route 66

I’m honored to host this September 23, 2009 edition of the Carnival of Cities, set up originally by millipede Sheila Scarborough on her Bootsn All Family Travel Logue blog in 2007. I say millipede, because Sheila doesn’t confine herself to just one blog, do read my interview with her.

The last edition was hosted at Wandering Educators and the next edition will be hosted at another blog of Sheila, Sheila’s Guide to the Good Stuff

The rules for this Carnival of Cities clearly state that the posts have to reflect just one city or one town of any importance. So unfortunately I had to delete a couple of submissions that did not comply. Sorry guys and girls.

A question to all of you:

Do you know in which city I took this Merry Go Round photo?

Merry-Go-Round-_MG_1109

Conclusion

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of
carnival of cities using our carnival submission form.
Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: carnival of cities, and blog carnival.

Update:
The Carnival site is giving problems. I’m on the verge of burying it in my Internet Graveyard category. However Sheila is still going on and strongly so. For the moment I’ve changed the intro photo and will see.

Last edited by GJE on March 11, 2012 at 4:14 pm

The Hague – City of Peace killing Free Speach?

The-Hague---International-City-of-Conflict

Last week an anti terrorism squad lifted the director of the The Hague Todays Art festival from his bed with brutal violence and force. The reason was the posters the Todays Art Festival organization had spread over the town, just before the Dutch Queen addressing Dutch Parliament for the opening of the Dutch Parliamentary Year and just after remembering 09/11. I can understand that the Dutch anti terrorism persons are a bit itchy, especially after the 2009 Queens day attack by just another moron, but this action is a bit (to say the least) far fetched.

Todays-Art-2009-Poster-Conflict

Here you see the Peace Palace against a lot of smoke.

A bit suggestive poster, yes off course, but that’s what art is about sometimes…get people thinking about their situation. A poster in blue….a bit suggestive no more than that. How worked up can you get when you claim that such poster invites terrorists to copy the outcome…..

Todays-Art-2009-Poster-Conflict-Town-Hall

Here you see a crater and some damage of the The Hague Town Hall.

This action of the Dutch police makes me think the repression by governments, their agencies and the politicians is going way too far again and we may need another 60ies movement to make people aware of the idiocies of repression. Luckily the director refused to take the posters down

This year’s Todays Art festival has as theme Conflict.

On Twitter they are known as @TodaysArt. I’m asking my readers for a bit support for them. Getting lifted from your bed and being interrogated by an anti terrorism squad is not nothing, if your only aim is to give the city a nice festival.

I’m looking forward to this fifth edition. Last year I enjoyed myself tremendously.

Sydney International Food Festival advertised with Flag Food

Brasil Food Flag at SIFF
Brasil Food flag at SIFF

The Sydney International Food Festival (SIFF) is advertised with flag food, from which I picked some really creative ones:

Korea-Foodflag-SIFF

Korea Food flag at SIFF
Greece-Food-Flag-at-SIFF

Greece Food flag at SIFF

Via Toxel.

Modrian Cake at the Moma

Mondrian Cake at the Moma

Not published much lately here due to some travel and a very busy hotel. Ah and you might find this blog unaccessible in the coming 24 hours as my hosting company decided to change server. I’m looking forward to it as I hope some glitches are evened out after the change.

Resuming with this nice photo of a Dutch painter Piet Mondrian inspired cake served at Moma and posted by managing Inhabitat editor Mike Chino on Twitpic.

Love this, as Piet Mondrian is tied very much into my The Hague where our museum of modern art has many of his paintings.

Travel Counsellors – The Future of Travel Agents: Working From Home!

Travel-Counsellors-Logo

Coincidentally I got into contact with Bianca Maoua of the Dutch Branch of Travel Counsellors. A thriving franchise that is branching out despite the travel agent walk or kick out all over the world.

It was a very nice first encounter and I do believe this is the future alternative for the High Street Travel Agent.

Off course I’m biased, because I’m so used to the home working travel agent already: In my former life I worked 24/7 and had to change travel itineraries the very last moment (usually between 10 PM and 2.30AM). We then used a lady whose name I’ve forgotten sadly, but who was located in LA and worked there from home and from an office and helped us with airline leg scheduling and Hotel reservations when all Travel Agents here in The Netherlands were closed. This was in the late 80ies and early 90ies, way before Internet, but she had acces to GDS and could work with it and, more importantly knew how to trick the system…the now not permitted reverse your leg trip and so. Later I used a guy wo could tweak the same GDS with … just an embryonal PC…

About Travel Counsellors

Founded : 1994 by Chairman David Speakman

200 staff are located at the company’s Headquarters in the UK headquarters in Bolton. 40 more in overseas offices.

Over 1,000 home based self employed agents, located throughout the UK along with Ireland, the Netherlands, the US, Germany, South Africa and Australia. Further overseas expansion is planned. 83% of the agents are women, 77% have children, 71% are aged between 31 and 50 with an average of 19 years experience. Before joining Travel Counsellors 60% were either managers, deputy mangers or owners of high street / retail travel agencies

The company’s turnover has increased from its 1993 level of £510,000 to £245m for the financial year ending October 31 2008.

What they sell:
Packages represent 20% of total sales, including traditional package holidays from the (UK) big four. Tailor made holidays are about two thirds (65%) of our business, booked either with specialist tour operators or dynamically packaged using our own award winning Phenix system. The remaining 15% consists of cruise and business travel bookings.

Impressive! Even if you are net savvy they can save you tremendous time! They claim their Phenix system makes them better informed than any customer shopping on the internet….

I do permit myself a comment: Their site needs loads of more content! Syndication perhaps?

And a question: Are there genuine travel agent review sites out there?