Thailand

Thailand

            Who hasn’t heard of Thailand? Thailand is such a popular Asian country and when I think of Thailand I think of the food stands  in Bangkok at night with vendors waving fans at themselves to  make the heat a little less irritating, but the people who live there are used to it. There is so much to do when visiting Thailand, you can go to the temples, go to the food stands any time of the day and take boat river rides. In Thailand they speak Thai and use the currency Baht.

 (temple 

Wat Benchamabophit  Photo  Darko Pevec.)

            There are thousands of Temples in Thailand visiting every single one in a short period of time would be very difficult so visit the most popular ones. One temple is  Wat Chedi Luang in  Chiang Mai, Thailand One of the best times to see this  is during the wian tian ceremony  that takes place in June one of the main Buddhist festival days, so many tourist come here to visit (Stig Albeck).  Wat Benchamabophit the marble temple is located in Bangkok it is the most visited temple Thialands capital, its style is Thai but inspiration from European neo-classicism can also be seen. The lovely proportions of this temple make it one of the most beautiful  (Stig Albeck).  Wat Mahathat is another and it is located in the historic Sukothai’s Royal City. It is the oldest building in the area. Visiting these beautiful places is an eye opener you see the hard dedication to these temples.

 

One day I was watching Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations and he was visiting Thailand and he showed the food stands Bangkok, the amount of food that was being sold is unexplainable. The Thai papaya salad looked so amazing, what it is a dish that combines sour lime, hot chili, salty, savoryfish sauce, sweetness added by palm sugar and lastly the papaya. Most people eat the papaya salad with a small cup of tea. Another dish is Khao man gai (chicken and rice) served mostly during the daytime he chicken is gently boiled until it is tender then the water is used in boiling the rice. This means that khao man gai – apart from being delicious – its high in cholesterol. Served with a chicken broth and delicious sweet and spicy sauces, it’s the perfect midday snack (Stig Albeck). I can’t imagine drinking soup in the heat of Thailand but when I see Thai soup I have to drink it, my favorite is  Thai Pumpkin Soup with Shrimp & Cucumber sounds kind of odd but it is very delicious when I have it here in the States, I can’t imagine how good it is in Thailand.

 

Take a boat trip on the Chao Phraya River, in Thai it means “the river of the Kings”.  Not only can you use it to see the city of Bangkok but you can use it as a “bus” to get from one point to another. There are boats you can chose from like the really nice fancy ones or the not so fancy but neither will cost you more than $8 US dollars or even less that is amazing for a boat ride. In Thailand they  have many large and small rivers, the small rivers they use as rice paddies.

I hope to go to Thailand one day and see all cultural aspects this country has to offer. This country takes in so many tourists you’ll never feel alone. From what I have seen and read the people of Thailand are very respectful and caring. That’s the kind of hospitality I want when going to another country because that’s what I would give to a traveler from another country when here in the United States.

Work Cited

Stig Albeck. Thailand: Travel to Thailand. 2008. Print.

Brazil

            When I think of Brazil I always think of nice beaches, very populated the Amazon and soccer. My dream is to go to Brazil and experience the full culture of the beautiful country. There is so much to do in Brazil from surfing on the gorgeous beaches to visiting the popular Cristo Redentor (Statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil).

 

            Brazil is a country in South America the biggest and most populated the main language is Brazilian Portuguese, if you know Spanish it will sound a little similar but im sure many people there speak English so I wouldn’t be a problem.  The currency they use is the Brazilian Real  $1 is 2 Brazilian Real . The capital of Brazil Brasilia is now modern populated city, I know that many people from other countries are moving to Brasilia because of their economy which is doing very well and also because it’s a place for modern business, take a trip there  eat all the foods like Feijoada a pork stew served with rice and a bowl of beans. In Brazil you’ll find beans everywhere, as to coffee. Coffee is a very popular drink almost everyone drinks it but isn’t it here in America as well? Who hasn’t seen a picture of Ipenema Beach in Rio de Janiero, the people walking on the white sand having a cold drink while looking out on the beach with the view of the cliffs, who wouldn’t want to have that view? In Rio (as in all of Brazil) there are Churrasco restaurants everywhere. Churrasco is cooked meet on the grill, I have been to a couple of Churrasco restaurants and they are amazingly good but to eat in a restaurant  in Brazil how amazing would that be with a beach view. In Brazil you won’t need a car everything is close by or take a taxi the traffic there is crazy.

 

            If you’re the adventurous type take a trip to the Rainforest Amazon. I still remember in Elementary school learning about the Amazon and thinking “Wow that’s so cool, what beautiful nature I want to go there”. It might be a little expensive to take a trip to the Amazon but it would be so worth it to take a boat ride on the Amazon River and hiking in the Rainforest to see mother nature in front of you, not many people can say they have been to the Amazon, wouldn’t you like to be one of them?  

 

 

Take a walk on the coble stone stay for carnival dance Samba it is never a bad time to go to Brazil the tropical weather will never disappoint you. I know I’ll be visiting Brazil one day and I’ll fall in love. 

What Sources can I use?

For my final analysis paper there are only a few sources I'm thinking I can use since my topic is Traveling I can't really use an academic website because I'm not sure that would give me too much information on traveling but the two sources I am thinking of using are an Encyclopedia and Travel books or a traveling website.

Using an Encyclopedia can help me with the history of the country of choice I'm writing about . The use of an official (if that exists) travel book or website can help me grateful because my whole blog is just on traveling. Although I think I'll need some help choosing these  sources. 

New York City "The Concrete Jungle"

Have you ever been to New York?  Well I have been there a couple of times and every time I go there I fall in love with the city more and more.  This summer my family and close family friends took a weekend trip to New York, the amount of fun we had is unexplainable. In New York there is also a lot to see from Ground Zero, Statue of Liberty, Empire State building, China Town, Little Italy and of course the very international famous Times Square.

We were there for only two days and a half and we got to visit many places in such a few amount of days.  If you’re in China town in you’re in for a treat so much cheap shopping and food. There are so many little shops and stands where people sell clothes, jewelry and accessories. Everywhere you turn your head there are Chinese restaurants my favorite thing to eat there are steamed chicken dumplings.  Everyone wants to see the Statue of Liberty upclose and you can for about $75 or above( I believe) or you can take a free ride for about 15 minutes on the Staten Island Ferry from New York to Staten Island and pass real close to the Statute of Liberty my family and I went on it and it was fun , although  the lines are sometimes long it’s a nice ride to go on.  Little Italy is a little town close to China Town so if you’re in either place take a walk and you get to go to those places. Little Italy is all Italian restaurants all the food looks amazing  I have been to one and there is always a long line for all of them but its fun to go and experience but I recommended going to any restaurant . Another interesting thing to do is visit the Brooklyn Bridge " A wide wood-plank pedestrian walkway is elevated above the traffic, making it a relatively peaceful, and popular, walk. It’s a great vantage point from which to contemplate the New York skyline and the East River." a perfect way to describe it such a fast pacing place yet peaceful environment when I visited.  Whenever in New York you have to go visit Times Square doesn’t matter day or night everyone should go and visit! I like going to Times Square at night because of all of the lights there the experience is that much better, it is always packed with people no matter the time of day they don’t call it the city that never sleeps for nothing.  When in New York don’t forget your “I heart NY” shirt I know I didn’t!

New York is a very diverse place, you see so many people from different countries touring there is nice to see that. I love going and if I had the chance of moving there I so would, I know I would have so much fun.

Work Cited

New York City Attractions: Brooklyn Bridge. http:/.nytimes.com. December 8th 2010. September 12th 2012.

DC right in our backyard

This week I wanted to talk about traveling but to a place near all of us.  Traveling doesn’t just mean you have to go somewhere foreign abroad, there are little towns or hotspots around us where we can take a day trip and have fun. We all live somewhat close to Washington DC and when I go there I always have something fun to do, there is always something going on from festivals to just walking around the National Mall taking pictures like a tourist.

My best friend and I love going to down town DC we have a lot of fun, from taking pictures to sitting down and eat lunch in front of the Washington Monument. When I mention to people that I love going to DC people look at me weird and ask “Why?” well the answer I always give them is “Because its fun and there is so much to go and see!”. 

There are so many museums to go to in DC most of them are free to get into so that’s always good! One of my favorites is the National Museum of the American Indians. Last year in December my family came from Texas to visit and we took them there, they had so much fun looking and reading about all the displays shown. You get to see everything from political, social and cultural history.  Another popular museum is the Holocaust Memorial Museum where people learn and see everything that happened during the Holocaust. Sometimes the museum has Holocaust survival speakers to talk about how it was and how they survived during those terrible times.  In DC they have a variety of museums for everyones likes.

Of course while in DC you have to eat something! DC provides restaurants from all different countries like Spain, Italy, Brazil and Peru. One place where I have been dying to go is Jaleo a restaurant owned and operated a very famous Spanish chef Jose Andres, I always see him on TV and when he starts cooking I’m so tempted to hop in my car and go eat at his restaurant. It’s a tapas bar restaurant so you know you will be getting a large amount of delicious food. Just out of DC in Arlington there is a little Peruvian Chicken place called “The Chicken Place” their chicken is so good! As soon as you walk in you smell the roasted chicken with fried yucca, its always packed there that just means to show how good the food is.  Another popular place is Georgetown Cupcakes located in the heart of Georgetown. It’s a well known cupcake shop owned by two sisters, they got extremely popular because they started their own show on TLC called DC Cupcakes. Their cupcakes are so delicious, I recommend the red velvet cupcakes they’re so yummy and so cute to look at.  Sometimes if you’re lucky enough you will get to try Latino food from all over Latin America because of the festivals in DC. This upcoming September 23^rd there is going to be the Latino Festival they have food from Argentina, El Salvador, Bolivia, Honduras you name it they will have it. Also stick around for the performances, dance teams from the area perform for everyone to see! I have been to this festival for the past 3 years and its amazingly fun so I do recommend everyone to go and have fun.

Take a day trip to DC one day and see what its like, there is always something fun going on and so many places to go and eat!

 

El Salvador, the mother country

               When I first went to El Salvador I was 10 or 11 years old I didn’t really know what to pack luckily I had my parents to do everything for me but now I am older and that I might go back this year in December  I know what to take and what not to take.  The climate in El Salvador is very tropical  it is never cold its summer weather 100% throughout the year, the only time it isn’t sunny are during the months of June, July and August . The rain is non stop but I would still recommend going during those times.

             
  When I was in El Salvador I wanted to do as many activities I as I could mostly tourist things because I wanted to see what El Salvador  was like other than just being with my parents family I wanted to get out there and explore.  The first thing we did was to go a place in the capital called La Puerta del Diablo “The Devils Gate” sounds like a scary place but by no means is it scary. La Puerta del Diablo  is a beautiful place in San Salvador on to of the mountains looking down on the city, They call it that because when looking down to the city there are two mountains in the way shaped as “doors” or a
gate”. As soon as you get there you can smell the vendors selling tamales, altol, corn on the grill and of course some yummy authentic pupusas. I bought so many little souvenirs like key chains. T-shirts, and some art the people there are so friendly so I recommended people visiting there.

 Another tourist place to visit is Alegria it’s a little village in the Department of Usulutan (also on top of a mountain) that views over the small city of Usulutan and some beautiful gardens. They have a little “zoo” where people can come and see animals like parrots, armadillos and horses. They have a little restaurant that looks over  one of the gardens there and the food is amazing. Another essential percipience "Hiking in the mountains surrounding the former guerilla stronghold of Perquin" (Wescott.123).

 Since its always summer weather the beach is a must! My favorite beach is in the department of La Libertad there they have such a nice beach and a restaurant that’s on the beach and serve amazing sea food. I never though that El Salvador would be a place of surfing but when I was there on the beach I saw so many surfers, not only from El Salvador but from New Zealand, Australia, Hawaii and around the world.  Of course when going to El Salvador you HAVE to eat pupusas they’re the national dish of El Salvador. They are a handmade tortilla stuffed with cheese,  refried beans or cooked pork and you always have to eat them with a side of tomato sauce and curtido  which is a salvadorean cold slaw and the beverage of horhcata (rice water) so yummy! When thinking of what to pack to take to El Salvador only take summer clothes! Shorts, tanks, flip flops and bathing suits that’s really you’ll ever wear because of the climate.

                Since I might go this year in December I want to go to many more places like Decameron Salinitas which is a resort on the beach, I have seen pictures and it looks really relaxing. I love going to El Salvador  and I hope I can go more often.

Works Cited

Westcott, Simon., The Travel Book: A Journey Through every Country in the World. 2004. Print.

The first time traveler like me

Think about traveling to another country and how exciting it would be. When I went to El Salvador for the first time in 2005 I was so excited to visit the place of my parents hometown where they grew up. They always talked about how much they missed it and how the day they would go back to visit would be the best day ever especially traveling as a family. From the moment I set foot on that plane I knew that I was going to want to travel the world.

Knowing that traveling was going to be my blogging topic for the rest of the semester I started to look at other travel/tip blogs and I came across http://www.woltersworld.com/. He was so much information I did not know about when going to another country (he also has a youtube channel so check him out here!). I also started to look at a book I saw in the library called " The Travel Book: A Journey Through Every Country in the World" and you would not believe how big the book is. It talks about 230 countries and gives a little history description of each of the countries. 

I love different cultures and to one day experience that it would be so awesome. So what can I expect when going to another country? For starters the money in other countries will be different, so if you were to travel to Europe you would have to use the Euro or in England the English Pound. Second would the language barrier. Spanish being my first language I can definitely use that to my benefit if I were going to South America (except in Brazil because they speak Portuguese but it sounds a little like Spanish), Mexico, Central America and even Spain. Also know what to pack! You don't want to over pack because you're going to want to bring back some souvenirs for yourself, family and friends!  

I'm going to do as much research to help myself and others out for what to know when traveling!