51 Rue de Montmorency:
What might look like an unassuming restaurant is actually the oldest house in Paris and dates back to 1407. Yet what really makes this address fascinating is that the house once belonged to Nicholas Flamel, a manuscript-seller who would later become famous for his alchemy work in relation to the legendary Philosopher’s Stone. This was a substance reputedly able to turn everyday metals into precious silver and gold; it was also believed it could make a man immortal. While Flamel died in 1418, many believe he and his wife Pernelle succeeded in their quest for immortality; rumour has Flamel’s grave was later found empty, and that both Nicholas and Pernelle are still alive today. Either way, Flamel lives on in history, not least for his generosity of character. He spent much of his money on helping those less fortunate, rebuilding churches and funding hospices.

The Saint-Jacques Tower:
Standing tall amongst the shops and hotels of Paris’ 4th arrondissement is the Saint-Jacques Tower, the only remaining section of the 16th century Church of Saint-Jacques-de-la-Boucherie. Decoration seen on the tower reflects the status and wealth of its many patrons, many of whom were wholesale butchers over at Les Halles market. The church was demolished following the French revolution, yet the beautiful gothic tower still remains. Modern renovations saw the ancient, and originally unstable, bell-tower reconstructed in 2009 and today it is generally admired as a rather grand stand-alone monument. Interestingly, one of the church’s other patrons was none other than Nicholas Flamel. He was reportedly buried beneath the church before its demolition… but whether he remains there depends on one’s belief in the Philosopher’s Stone.

Los Angeles was formerly a part of Mexico. During the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, it was bought from Mexico and became part of the United States. Los Angeles is often referred to as LA, and is the center of entertainment, business, culture, international trade, fashion and education. It is the third richest city in the country. The city hosted two Summer Olympics in the years 1932 and 1984. The region has a Mediterranean climate, with bright sunshine, which is the reason why movie studios were set up there in the first place.

Enjoy your Los Angeles holidays with some great holiday packages. Hand over the logistics of arranging your tour to your travel guides. Have a great time, savoring the sights, sounds and tastes of this enchanting city.

Enjoy a 5 night accommodation at the Beverly Wilshire, a Four Seasons 5 Star Hotel. Stay in Deluxe Rooms and enjoy a bonus free night. Go for the Hollywood Trolley Tour during your visit to the city. The hotel is located in the very heart of Beverly Hills, home to the rich and famous in America. The famous Rodeo Drive shopping centers are located close by.

Or stay at the Crowne Plaza in Beverly Hills for 5 nights. Enjoy the freedom to travel as you please in Double Decker busses with your own bus pass. Enjoy a bonus free night at this luxury hotel which has an in-house restaurant, a fitness center, an outdoor heated pool and spa, and a business center for business guests.

You can choose to stay for 7 nights in a standard room at the Hyatt Regency Newport Beach, a 4 Star hotel. The hotel allows kids under the age of 17 to stay free with their parents. The superior service and the spacious guest rooms will make your stay enjoyable and truly memorable.

Located in the downtown district of LA, the JW Marriott is a 5 Star hotel that offers personal service with a deluxe comfort level for every guest. Enjoy your Los Angeles holidays in any one of these world class hotels and literally have the time of your life in America’s most entertaining city.

Saadian Tombs
These dramatic tombs were only discovered in the last century, despite dating back from the 16^th century. Now lovingly restored, these beautifully decorated tombs have distinct historic significance in housing the tombs of about sixty members of the Saadi Dynasty.

Koutoubia Mosque
Koutoubia is Marrakech’s largest mosque and its 221 foot tower, or minaret, is one of the most distinctive aspects of the city’s skyline. It’s impressive from the outside and you can’t miss it from the rooftop restaurants enjoyed during Marrakech holidays. But make sure you take the time to check out Koutoubia Mosque’s interior with its copper globes and traditional style.

Majorelle Gardens
The Majorelle Gardens really are the ultimate retreat from the hustle of Marrakech life. It’s almost impossible to think you’re in one of the world’s busiest cities in the calming greenery of these lush gardens, created by a painter in the 19th century. Make sure you visit the gallery and museum inside the unique blue building.

Ben Youssef Madrassa
Say hello to Marrakech’s answer to Oxford University. Ben Youssef Madrassa is an ancient Islamic college which, despite no longer being in use as a place of learning, has been preserved beautifully. The Madrassa is a feat of architecture and you can’t fail to be blown away by its beautiful carvings, quaint dormitory cells and huge courtyard. It is definitely one of the thinking man’s main Marrakech holiday attractions.

Riads
If you’re looking for accommodation with a difference, a stay in a Riad is perfect. They emit palace-like calm and grandeur. Adventurous travellers looking for the real Marrakech will appreciate the serenity of these fantastic buildings, which are tucked down backstreets away from the busy city. There’s a riad to suit every budget – from luxury accommodation with hammams and elegant sunbathing terraces, to modest rustic buildings.

After all, insurance covers medical costs, trip cancellation, and stolen property. I like using the Good2go travel checklist before I go away. Using that list, I make sure I can make sure that I am bringing everything I need to on vacation with me. The list is pretty comprehensive. It’s a great planning tool. It helps me remember what I need to bring and to check that I am covered for fees or problems while overseas.

Good2go is an Australian based company so many of their tips and advice are for Australia travelers. Their check list is a very helpful tool but especially more helpful if you are an Aussie. However, the point of a travel checklist is very important. You want to be prepared and organized before you go away. You don’t want to find out your ATM card doesn’t work overseas or you are facing $5 dollar surcharges every time you use it. Proper planning leads to safe and secure travel and lots of peace of mind before you go. Getting organized is a must.

Between a proper check list and getting travel insurance, you can know you have everything covered and planned for so while you are away you can focus on what is really important- having fun. After all, you shouldn’t have to worry on a vacation, you should just have to relax.

Dating back to 1420, the palace served for nearly 500 years, from the Ming dynasty to the end of the Qing dynasty, as the home of emperors and their entourages. It is a mammoth 7,800,000 sq ft, consisting of 980 buildings, with close to 9,000 rooms and is a classic example of imperial Chinese architecture. It was awarded UNESCO World Heritage status in 1987 and the organisation lists it as the largest collection of preserved ancient wooden structures in the world. The palace also houses a collection of nearly 1 million pieces of art, spanning 5,000 years of Chinese history. Its name is derived from the fact that no-one could enter or leave the palace grounds without the emperor’s permission.

Visitor Information
Open daily all year.
April 1st-October 31st – 8.30-17.00
40 rmb
Last Entry at 16:10
Tickets sold until 16:00
November 1st—March 31 – 8:30—16:30
60 rmb
Last Entry at 15:40
Tickets sold until 15:30

Concessions are available, as are audio guides and English-speaking tour guides.
The Forbidden City is in the centre of Beijing and is accessed via the Gate of Heavenly Peace in Tiananmen Square. Staying in a hotel near Tiananmen Square is recommended to enable you to access most tourist sites easily.
Highlights

The entrance gates – the Gate of Great Harmony and the Meridian Gate (the formal entrance) are both stunning.
The Outer Court – dominated by huge ceremonial halls where the emperors conducted their business. The Hall of Preserving Harmony is the most impressive.

The Inner Court – a series of smaller buildings and gardens where the emperor and his family lived and only they, his concubines and eunuchs were permitted entry to. A pair of beautiful bronze lions flank the entrance, beyond which are stunning palaces and exquisite gardens.

Conservation Efforts
The palace ceased to be the political centre of China in 1912 with the forced abdication of Pui, the last emperor of China, and the Palace Museum was established in the grounds in 1925. The Forbidden City now receives more visitors than any other site in China – 7 million by Government calculations.  The site is currently undergoing a massive 16 year renovation which will restore all buildings to their pre-1912 state.
Given its central location, the Forbidden City is easily accessible from all hotels in Beijing and really should not be missed.

Hong Kong means ‘fragrant harbour’ and is a place that has a really interesting mixture of influences. It is a unique destination that has taken something from places as diverse as Vietnam, Britain, China, and more, and proclaims itself to be ‘Asia’s World City’.
Hong Kong has one of the world’s best airports so travelling to this area is easy. Many people take time here for a stopover when they’re travelling deeper into the Orient, and it’s a place that is well worth visiting if you can handle the crowds. Travelling within Hong Kong means you’ll see people. This is one city where you just can’t help it. With a population of over 7,000,000 the streets can be quite crowded at times.

Having said that, if you’ve the money for it, ‘The Peak’ is the tallest point on the island, and is where many business tycoons and foreign diplomats enjoy excellent views of the harbour and where some of the most expensive houses are, as well as one or two good hotels. If you can’t afford to stay up here, you can still enjoy a trip on the Peak Tram and then take a short walk at the top to escape the crowds and look out over the harbour.

Hong Kong has many excellent tourist attractions and being a reasonably small island, they’re all fairly close together making it possible to see most in one holiday here. Hong Kong National geopark is one place worth seeing. This 5,000 hectare area features 8 geosites including the Northeast New Territories Sedimentary Rock Region and Sai Kung Volcanic Rock Region. Victoria harbour is amazing in its own right, but for something a bit more spectacular, the nightly Symphony of Lights Show across the harbour front buildings is very much worth seeing.

Hong Kong has many ancient Chinese temples. Some are Buddhist, some Taoist, and some belong to other religions, but all are very interesting to see, and many of these incense filled temples are quite inspiring too. Side by side with these temples are colonial buildings from when Britain ruled the region, and modern glass and steel skyscrapers flung high up into the sky. This wonderful mixture of old and new exist happily side by side and make Hong Kong one of the most interesting and culturally inspiring places in the world to visit.

Easy as pie
These days, it’s easy to get online travel insurance. Since most people would book an air, bus or train ticket over the Internet using a credit card, often getting travel insurance is as simple as checking a box next to your order. Often travel insurance is included in the price of your ticket as well. The best way to decide whether you need anything is to take a look at the fine print on your ticket. Travel insurance should cover you for lost or stolen baggage, delays and cancellations, missed flights, accidents and even death. Almost always, some sort of basic insurance is included with every travel ticket you purchase.

Valuable items
Goods such as musical instruments, sports equipment, computers, DVD players and other expensive items such as jewellery and even cash should always be insured. You can go on the Internet and take out online travel insurance for most of these things as well with a few clicks following some links from the place where you bought your travel ticket.

Double up
Some people like to take out more than one insurance policy to cover themselves and this is also a very good idea. Insurance doesn’t really cost a lot, just a few dollars for some basic coverage, so if you take out two policies then you can even get back twice as much as you normally would from compensation.

Get a quote
Finding an online travel insurance company is a daunting prospect, but you just need to compare a few prices to make your initial decision. Many Internet travel insurance agencies have a handy website where you can select your departure point, your destination, the time of the year and day and the number of adults or children who will be travelling. Then by just clicking a button you can get a quick quote which will help you narrow down the companies you want to deal with.

Time to Decide
After you’ve got your quote, then it’s time to compare the prices and services. Generally, you want to go for one company that covers a lot of possible misfortunes for a good price, but especially with insurance, it’s not always good to put all your eggs in one basket so you might be best off taking out your policy from a few different providers.

The two largest and busiest of the islands are Tenerife and Gran Canaria. The interior of each island is mountainous that are sandwiched between lush green areas in the north and larges beaches and resort areas in the south. The mountains are dotted with small villages worth exploring. Gran Canaria has a very European feel and offers lush forests, giant sand dunes, and volcanic craters.

The beaches on Tenerife in particular are some of the world’s prettiest. They vary from the natural black sand of the volcanoes to beaches made from sand either brought in from the Sahara or taken from the nearby seabed. The most popular areas on Tenerife with the busiest beaches are Playa de las Americas and Los Cristanos, both ideal places for Canary Islands holidays.

Holidays in Lanzorate are quite different than the other Canaries. It has a barren and black landscape formed from ancient lava flow. Lanzorate has an eerie sort of beauty. The beaches are made up of the black volcanic sand and the interior of the island resembles the surface of the moon. But this is a very popular island for those who love water sports like windsurfing, kite boarding, and surfing.

The island of LaPalma is considered to be one of the most scenic spots of the world and is often referred to as “La Isla Bonita”. Here you can find a variety of trails that avid nature lovers will love. Because of the Canary Islands’ sub-tropical climate, this island offers a huge array of fascinating and beautiful animal and plant life.

Whether you want the majesty of volcanic cliffs, the beauty of the ocean and beaches, or bustling resorts, and a vibrant nightlife, Canary Islands holidays can provide all of this. You can fly into one of the larger islands and take a ferry to visit the others. Accommodation choices run from 5-star luxury resorts to small hotels designed for those on a budget. You can also experience the Canaries via the ports of call on a Canary Island cruise.

You can find heritage sites all over the world. From South America to Asia, these marvels of civilization were not unique to any one culture. The Incas built Machu Picchu, the Cambodians built Angkor Wat, and neolithic man built Stonehenge. Many of these sites cover huge areas of land and are very impressive to see. When visiting these historical and unique sites, be sure to spend a lot of time there and take a guided tour. There is a lot of history in each of these areas and the mistake most travelers make is that they spend only a day at many of these sites. While some of these sites can be done in a day, the larger sites demand more time and should be seen over a period of two to three days.

It is most important that we protect these UNESCO sites in our travels. Many of them are thousands of years old and were left to be reclaimed by the elements for centuries. Restoration projects are often not enough to fix them and modern tourism can take its toll on these sites. Remember to visit these sites in a sustainable way. They are a gift from our past and should be kept for the future.

More than teaching us about the past, these sites are a source of pride for the local population. All of these sites were important for religious, economic, and cultural reasons. Local populations can and should be proud of the achievements of their ancestors. Additionally, the local population benefits from the tourism provided. Tourism brings in lots of revenue to many of these communities and without that revenue it would be impossible to fund the conservation and preservation efforts at many of these locations. Travel not only for your enjoyment but also to help do your part.

When you travel to these sites, make sure you participate in only sustainable tourism and make sure that you leave only footprints so that other generations can travel there and be amazed just as you were. These historic sites belong to us all. Be sure to make sure your tour operators make sure they leave only footsteps, don’t leave any trash around, and contribute to the well being of each historical site.

This blog highlights many of the world’s historical sites. We are always adding more. All of these UNESCO sites are some of the greatest in the world and should be cared and conserved so they can be viewed by travelers and people for centuries to come. Hopefully the information here will help add to your travel holiday planning and your general knowledge of historic sites.

Most of the interesting places to visit within Bangkok are near to the river, so one good way to avoid the city’s road traffic is to travel by express boat along the river from place to place. If you choose a hotel that’s near to either the river or a railway system, you should be able to travel comfortably around the city without worrying about traffic issues.

The Grand Palace (Phra Borom Maha Ratcha Wang), is a building complex that is made up of a number of temples, residences, and other structures. Building began on it in 1782 during the reign of king Rama I when he moved Thailand’s capital from Thonburi to Bangkok. Within the Grand Palace you’ll find:

• Outer Court – this is where the government administration was housed including things such as the army and the treasury.
• Temple of the Emerald Buddha – a purpose built temple to house an image of Buddha carved from a large piece of jasper. The temple isn’t home to any monks, instead this was designed more as a personal chapel for the royal family.
• Central Court – this is where the king’s actual residence is.
• Temple of the Emerald Buddha Museum – various artefacts associated with the Emerald Buddha and the Grand Palace are displayed here. There are many cannons and other items from the royal armoury around the outside of the museum as well.

Wat Arun (Temple of the Dawn) on the east bank of the Chaophrayan river is a temple that pre-dates Bangkok being the capital of the country. It looks most spectacular in the early morning when it gets the sunlight and reflected sunlight from the river shining on it. A number of festivals take place here through the year.

The Jim Thompson House Museum is one of Bangkok’s hidden treasures. Although mentioned in the guidebooks it’s rarely visited as tour buses can’t access the narrow alley where it is. It’s worth the trouble to visit it though as these six houses were ‘collected’ and reconstructed in the 1960’s and although modern conveniences such as electricity and indoor plumbing were incorporated they’re very traditional in many ways.

Lumpini Park is Bangkok’s oldest and best known park with two large lakes, jogging trails, muscle beach areas where you can lift weights, a library, and places where people can play chess in the open. It is a great place to visit to see some of modern Bangkok in motion.

Touring the canals by boat is a great way to cool off in the evening, after you’ve spent the day visiting all the various temples and other places of interest. Most riverside hotels rent out boats, or you can arrange for one at the pier by the River City shopping complex. Normally you pay by the hour, and booking a two hour tour will give you a great chance to get a flavor of canal life.
Grand Palace Visitor Information
The Grand Palace is open every day from 8:30 to 3:30 and admission is 350 Baht. While the Temple of the Emerald Buddha and Grand Palace grounds are open every day when not being used for state functions, the audience halls in the Grand Palace are closed on weekends. You can only gain entrance to see the magnificent thrones on weekdays. The Royal Pantheon in Temple of the Emerald Buddha is only open one day a year, on 6 April.

Visitors should note that there is a strict dress code for visiting the Grand Palace. The Temple of the Emerald Buddha is Thailand’s most sacred site and so visitors must be appropriately dressed before going in. Men must wear long pants and shirts with sleeves. Socksmust be worn with all open toe footwear. Women must be dressed modestly, so no revealing clothing. You can get clothes at the front gate if you are dressed unsuitably.

Grand Palace Conservation Efforts

The Palace gets an average of 7000 visitors per day and yet remains immaculately preserved.  This is largely due to the fact that for many hundreds of years it remained the residence of the Royal House of Chakri who continually supported the preservation and restoration of the site.  The museum within the site holds all the information of restoration of the Grand Palace throughout the years.