GESSELL + LEE: EXPAT LIFESTYLE & FAMILY TRAVEL

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Bratislava – Eurotrip got it (mostly) wrong

Bratislava. If you’ve seen Eurotrip then you’ve probably got a certain image in your head of what it looks like. Heck you probably took one look at that movie and decided that it’s never worth going to. Well, I wouldn’t dismiss it that easily. While it was never high on…

Michelle Cunningham July 1, 2015 BloggingBABYMOON, BRATISLAVA, SLOVAKIA Read more >

Galway & the Aran Islands

So for our last few days in Ireland we took a bus up to Galway. That was to be our point of departure to head to the Aran Islands. The bus trip was pretty uneventful and we made it to our B&B with no issues. That night we…

Michelle Cunningham June 8, 2015 BloggingARAN ISLANDS, GALWAY, IRELAND Read more >

Kissing the Blarney Stone & other things Irish

So today began with another bus ride with Paddywagon Tours. Originally we were going to do the Ring of Kerry. However, since I didn’t physically feel up to another 12 hour day, we switched to the local Cork area tour. And so after breakfast we headed off to Blarney Castle.…

Michelle Cunningham May 28, 2015 BloggingBLARNEY STONE, IRELAND Read more >

Easter Weekend in Antwerp

So as the title says, we went for a long weekend in Antwerp, Belgium. How neat is it that access to another country is just a short train ride away? We left early Saturday morning and arrived at Antwerp’s Central Station . (It was voted one of the top five in…

Michelle Cunningham April 21, 2015 BloggingANTWERP, BELGIUM Read more >

Romantic Anniversary Weekend in Ghent and Bruges

So for our wedding anniversary, Lee and I took Megabus down to Ghent. (FYI, you’ll have to take a local bus into town from their drop off point. And you’ll need to bring cash with you to pay for the local bus. As of the time we travelled, there was…

Michelle Cunningham April 2, 2015 BloggingANNIVERSARY IN GHENT, BELGIUM, BRUGGE Read more >

Carnival in Den Bosch

Not far away in the south of the Netherlands is a town called Den Bosch. During Carnival the city changes its name to “Oeteldonk.” Lee and I took a train down to check out the parade and see what the festivities were all about. Here are a few pictures! Our…

Michelle Cunningham March 27, 2015 BloggingCarnival, Den Bosch, netherlands Read more >

Charles Dickens Festival in Deventer Netherlands

In the eastern part of the Netherlands, about an hour and a half from Amsterdam lies the city of Deventer. During December, the population of the town nearly triples during their annual Charles Dickens Festival. Deventer yearly hosts three events worth noting. Deventer op stelten July (140,000 visitors) Europes…

Michelle Cunningham January 13, 2015 BloggingCharles Dickens Festival, Deventer, netherlands Read more >

Best Kept Secret in Tsjechië

Janské Láznê is a ski resort and spa town located in the Czech Republic in the Hradec Králove Region. It has a population of about 850 and is best known for hosting the 1925 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships and the 1937 Workers’ Winter Olympiad. It is near the other…

Michelle Cunningham December 31, 2014 BloggingCZECH REPUBLIC, JANSKE LAZNE, WINTERSPORTS Read more >

Quiet retreat near the heart of Prague

For our wintersport holiday we headed back to where else but one of our current favorite travel destinations, the Czech Republic (Tsjechië). We touched down in Prague late on a Monday night. And that lead to us picking a hotel convient to get to with public transportation from the airport.…

Michelle Cunningham December 28, 2014 BloggingADALBERT ECO HOTEL, CZECH REPUBLIC, PRAGUE Read more >

Düsseldorf Christmas Market

So Lee and I hopped on a bus and headed to Düsseldorf for the day. Just a short 3 hour bus ride with 70 of our closest friends. Just kidding, it was a Groupon deal. We didn’t know anyone on the trip. But, how could we pass on such an…

Michelle Cunningham December 20, 2014 BloggingDUSSELDORF CHRISTMAS MARKET, GERMANY Read more >

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The temple for monkeys is beautiful like a palace

Galtaji Temple is one of the tourist attractions of the pink Jaipur city in India. This is the home of naughty monkeys, not afraid of humans.

About 10 km from Jaipur city, Rajasthan state, western India, Galtaji temple in Khania-Balaji town is a famous pilgrimage place for Hindus. This area has many large and small temples. Here, the natural stream flowing down from the top of the hill is one of the attractions for tourists.

Water from this stream flows down 7 pools of water. Pilgrims who come here will bathe in sacred water. This famous temple is said to be the place of worshiping Hanuman, also known as the Sun God. Made of pink sandstone, the temple is as beautiful as a palace.

Galtaji is also known as the Monkey Temple. Visitors to the temple will often see monkeys roam freely in the area. Located on the top of Aravalli hill, the temple possesses sweeping views of Jaipur city. Surrounding is an attractive landscape with green vegetation. You will also find small shrines dedicated to the gods Rama and Krishna nearby.

The temple’s architecture stands out with its walls, columns, and arches, which are exquisitely painted and decorated. During the Makar Sakranti festival, the temple attracts large numbers of devotees to visit and soak in the holy water. The Galtaji Temple was built in the 18th century.

Visitors can reach the temple from 2 routes. The first way is easier, you can rent a taxi or a car to move to the temple. Another option is a pedestrian route. On this road, tourists will admire the beautiful natural scenery. In addition, the nearby Sisodia Rani Ka Bagh temple is also an attractive destination with a palace-like appearance.

Galtaji Temple is open from 5 to 21 hours for visitors to visit on all days of the week. The temple does not charge entrance fees from visitors but you can donate an amount according to your wishes when visiting this mecca. Mid January is the ideal time to plan vacations in Jaipur.

The ideal time to visit the temple is around sunset. At this time, the temple was decorated with golden light and monkeys began to appear more freely, playing freely in the grounds. You can also see the romantic panorama of Jaipur at this time from the top of the hill.

Michelle Cunningham December 29, 2020 Travel around the world, Travel with kidsJaipur city, naughty monkeys, temple for monkeys Read more >

The ‘Batman’ city exists in real life

The city of Batman has such a name not inspired by the comic book superhero, but from a river.

For most visitors, Batman can only recall a single image: a superhero with a belt full of weapons, and living in Gotham City. But if you ask a Turkish, Batman certainly reminds them of many other things: a river, a city or even a province. And none of that is related to or inspired by DC Comics’ comic characters.

Batman city – capital of Batman province – is located in Anatolia region, southeastern Turkey. It is located on a plateau near the confluence of the Batman and Tigris rivers. Originally, Batman was a small village called Iluh with a population of about 3,000 people. Then, in the 1940s, it was discovered that the oil field around Iluh, and the place was growing rapidly. The population exploded over the next few decades. In 1957, the village changed its name to Batman, after the name of the nearby river.

The River Batman was formerly known as the Kalat, meaning “bride” in the Syrian language of the people living in the area. Later, the name of the river was translated into Greek as Nymphius and was given that name until the 18th century. No one knows when the name Batman was born. Perhaps from the 19th century, it is likely that the name Batman first appeared in international literary works.

The ancients believed that Batman was a shortened word for Bati Raman – the name of a nearby mountain. Bati means west in Turkish, Raman is “the joy of the Kurdish” or “god”. Besides, Batman was also a very popular weight measurement unit in the Ottoman era.

Batman City has been well known since 2008, when the city government announced to the media that it would sue Warner Bros and Christopher Nolan – producer and director of the Batman superhero series The Dark Knight. There is only one Batman in the world, and it belongs to Turkey. They assert that the filmmakers were wrong by not consulting with the owners and that the US producers used the city name without prior notice. This threat of litigation, however, went nowhere, as the Batman comic first appeared in 1939, long before the city started using the name.

According to the experience of the tourists who have visited the city, there are not too many things for you to explore and enjoy. The outskirts of the city have some Roman ruins, but these works are rated blurred compared to other monuments that visitors can find in Turkey.

Due to its proximity to the Iraqi border, the city is home to a large Kurdish population. This is the ideal place for visitors to learn about Kurdish culture if you want to know more about Iraq. The people of Batman are extremely open when it comes to Kurdish issues. This is the only place where you can find this atmosphere, as this topic is still taboo with Turkey in general amid a sensitive political context.

And like many other cities in the country, Batman is not a hot spot to party. It is very difficult for you to find pubs here. One of the famous restaurants is Labor Women, where you can enjoy tea, breakfast and donations to support disadvantaged women in difficult circumstances.

One of the easiest ways to get to the city is to use one of Turkish Airlines’ daily nonstop flights from Istanbul’s Atatürk Airport. Alternatively, you can also fly low-cost Pegasus Airways from Sabiha Göçken Airport, on the Bosphorous Strait located in the Asian part of Istanbul.

Michelle Cunningham December 6, 2020 Travel around the worldAnatolia region, Batman city, Gotham City Read more >

Visiting the Titanic wreck for $ 125,000

Tickets for the Titanic wreck are on sale for expeditions from May to September 2021.

Six dives, carried out by ocean exploration company OceanGate Expeditions, arriving at the ship’s sink in 1912. A unique, and seemingly unaffected, experience by Covid-19, costing $ 125,000.

$ 125,000 includes the 90 minutes of a 5-person submarine to get off where the Titanic sank, and rest in a private cabin on an eight-day cruise from Canada.

The tour includes a 90-minute submarine seat with 5-person capacity to get off where the Titanic sank, and a private cabin rest on an 8-day cruise from Canada.

In response to Bloomberg, Stockton Rush, president of OceanGate Expeditions, said: “The skeletons are gone, there are no bodies left. You will see the shoes, boots and clothes to visualize the person 100 years ago. How to live, that is so gloomy”.

Rush revealed 36 people have booked, however there are still opportunities for other guests. Lasting 6 to 8 hours, this Titanic expedition diving for the first time in 15 years, expects divers to come here for research purposes, to assess the marine ecosystem and the condition of the ship.

It is widely believed that the wreck of the Titanic, which was discovered by ocean photographer Robert Ballard in 1985, will become an undersea cemetery. Beverley Roberts, descendant of a couple who died on Titanic, said that the ship is a mass grave that no one should be trespassing.

An estimated 200 people have discovered the ship is located 4,000 meters below the sea floor, about 600 km from Newfoundland (Canada). Although lying on the sea floor for decades, the wreck still remains shoes, suitcases, wine bottles or children’s toys. When it was discovered in 1985, the tub of Captain Edward Smith was surprisingly well preserved. However, recent expeditions show that the copper bath has disappeared due to microorganisms that are slowly eating away the wreck.

Michelle Cunningham November 8, 2020 Travel around the worldOceanGate Expeditions, Titanic sank, Titanic wreck Read more >

The tourism industry faces its worst crisis in 70 years

Global tourist arrivals are down 60-80% by the end of this year, according to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

UNWTO and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development consider this to be the deepest crisis facing the international tourism market, since 1950. Its impact varies across regions. Asia and the Pacific are the two regions to recover first.

International tourism is increasingly becoming one of the key global economic sectors, accounting for 7% of international trade. The industry also generates livelihoods (direct and indirect), accounting for 10% of all jobs worldwide.

UNWTO’s latest barometer shows at least one million workers have lost their jobs this year. The pandemic could lead to a 60-80% decrease in tourists compared to 2019, equivalent to a loss of 850 million – 1.1 billion international visitors. The industry is also at risk of losing US $ 910 – 1,200 billion in export revenue from tourism and 100 – 120 million jobs facing many risks. In addition, this influence also risks hindering progress toward the sustainable development goals.

Tourism is one of the industries most severely affected by travel restrictions and disease control. Long travel time constraints and the global financial crisis also threaten travel and make the industry last on the list of recovery.

Tourism forecast for 2021, experts from UNWTO said that this is a year of domestic tourism recovering faster than international. Most expect things to show signs of recovery in the fourth quarter of 2020, but it won’t be until next year that progress will be clearer. Based on experience of previous crises, UNWTO points out that leisure travel, closer visits and associated work are expected to recover faster.

Africa and the Middle East are likely to recover the biggest international tourism this year. America is the place where many experts are least optimistic. Asia and Europe are in the 50-50% index, which is only half of experts seeing a recovery in this market.

Michelle Cunningham October 11, 2020 Travel around the worldInternational tourism, tourism industry, World Tourism Organization Read more >

Cancellation of flight because guests do not wear masks

The airline has not confirmed that the departure schedule is affected due to the passenger not wearing a mask for their children. Meanwhile, the passengers denied this information.

A representative of the WestJet airline said that the flight from Calgary to Toronto on September 8 was canceled due to the failure of the passenger to comply with the crew’s anti-epidemic instructions and refusal to leave the plane. “Due to the increased stress on the plane, the crew felt uncomfortable to continue serving, and the flight was canceled,” the airline spokesman said.

Safwan Choudhry and wife Marium Choudhry were the two passengers involved in the incident. He and his wife are accompanied by two daughters, a three-year-old baby and a 19-month-old baby. Safwan said things were progressing too quickly, and it was the most embarrassing situation they have ever experienced.

Just before takeoff, Safwan said a flight attendant reminded his wife to wear masks for both children. Next, Safwan and his wife agreed, asking the flight attendant for a few minutes to comfort the crying little girl. At this time, the flight attendant called the police on the plane to control the situation.

“We were so desperate that we just wanted to go home immediately, so we said we would comply with their requests. A 19-month-old child knows nothing but crying, when something covers his face and nose, blocking the airway”, said Safwan.

Next, the pilot asked the Safwan couple to leave the cabin, the flight was later delayed and eventually canceled. While many people were upset with his family, many said that the incident was filmed and photographed as evidence.

The Safwans then returned to Toronto on another airline flight on September 9, and arrived home the next day. Safwan said it had not been contacted by WestJet, except for an employee who called to investigate the incident.

At home, Safwan found out that under the law of the Canadian Department of Transport, children under two years old do not need to wear a mask. A WestJet spokesperson denied that they asked two passengers to wear masks for their 19-month-olds, and only reminded the three-year-olds’ regulations.

In a statement, the airline apologized for disrupting passengers’ schedules, but insisted on always put safety standards first and law enforcement of the Department of Transport Canada.

Michelle Cunningham September 13, 2020 Travel around the worldflight attendant, Marium Choudhry, The airline Read more >