Travel Guides - Traveling Thru History

Things to Do in Indonesia

Erin — Sat, 23 May 2020 07:34:03 +0000

Looking for things to do on your next trip to Indonesia? Check out the activities recommended by travel bloggers for the best things to do in Indonesia. #TBIN

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Flying Standby to China

Erin — Tue, 03 Mar 2020 23:58:03 +0000

Recently I had the opportunity to fly standby to China. I'd never done an international standby flight before and it was definitely a different experience. A little stressful at times, but totally worth it. #TBIN

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GUEST POST: Top 7 Heritage Hotels in India

Erin — Tue, 25 Feb 2020 09:34:48 +0000

When selecting the perfect hotel for your stay in India, there are many places to choose from. If you prefer a more historic setting, heritage hotels are your best bet. Rohit Agarwal breaks down the top 7 heritage hotels from all around India to help travelers decide which will best meet their needs. #TBIN

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Visiting Bath

Erin — Mon, 10 Sep 2018 08:20:26 +0000

Bath was designated by UNESCO in 1987 and is the only city in the UK to be declared a World Heritage site. Once a Roman spa town called Aquae Sullis, the Romans built baths and a temple on the surrounding hills, turning Bath into the elegant retreat it still is today. Located about an hour and a half from London, Bath has a variety of fascinating sites that span early Roman times to late Georgian. The juxtaposition of such different styles of architecture nestled in a valley surrounded by rolling green hills really makes Bath unique. Walking the streets of Bath is like taking a step back in time to the beautiful Georgian period of elegance and innovation with sprinklings of different eras mixed in. THE ROMAN BATHS If the architecture doesn’t do it for you, consider the Roman Baths. The first shrine at the site of the hot springs was built by Celts and was dedicated to the goddess Sulis, whom the Romans identified with Minerva. When the Romans took over the site and built a temple sometime between 60–70 AD, they dedicated the temple to both Sulis and Minerva in hopes of appeasing both populations. Over the next 300 years, the bathing complex was gradually built up until the Roman civilization went into decline and eventually left Bath in 407 AD. A scant population continued to live in the city, but over time the walls and grand buildings fell. The Saxons claimed Bath in 577 AD and turned it into a fortified city. Around that time, the original temple was destroyed. Flooding and silt deposits covered the temple ruins and the original springs. The temple surrounding the baths was eventually built over, to remain in obscurity until 1880 when they were rediscovered. New buildings were built over different portions of the springs during the following centuries. The 12th and 16th centuries saw the addition of King’s Bath and Queen’s Bath, though the current building over the springs is from the 18th century. The temple ruins have been incorporated into the current building design, allowing visitors the opportunity to visit the actual baths used in Roman times, view the temple ruins, and sip the mineral-rich thermal waters. If you desire to try out those waters, you can also enjoy luxurious relaxation in a more modern thermal spa in the city. JANE AUSTEN For those literature-minded visitors, Bath was home to Jane Austen from 1801-1806. Visit where she lived, check out the Jane Austen Centre, and take a walk on streets she would have ambled down. One of Jane Austen’s residences in Bath was No 4 Sydney Place, where she lived for three years. While it is now a private residence, visitors may take a photo of the front where a sign is seen designating it as a residence of a famous former occupant. Jane also lived with her mother and sister at 25 Gay Street for around 1-1.5 years, though the Jane Austen Centre is not there, either. It is in a similar apartment down the street at 40 Gay Street. BATH ABBEY Another famous site in Bath that shouldn’t be missed is Bath Abbey. Bath Abbey was founded in the 7th century and has been modified and rebuilt over the centuries. The fan vaulted ceiling was added in the 1530s and restored to the original style during the late 1860s. One of the unique attributes of this ceiling is that along with being visually stunning, this particular architectural component serves a functional purpose. The fan element is used as a method of distributing the weight of the roof to the support columns and providing structural stability. An interesting fact about Bath Abbey is that the stained glass currently in place is not the original. Unfortunately, the original windows from the early 1500s were removed and sold when King Henry VIII began dissolving monasteries in 1539. All stained glass in the Abbey were added in the late 1860s when Bath started becoming a popular tourist destination. PULTENEY BRIDGE Pulteney Bridge over the River Avon is one of the most photographed examples of Georgian architecture in the city and one of only four bridges in the world to have shops across its full span on both sides. Designed by Robert Adam, the bridge took five years to build between 1769-1774. The architecture is classical, with pediments, pilasters and tiny leaded domes at either end. Another claim to fame this bridge boasts is being the scene of Javert’s suicide in the 2012 film version of Les Misérables. THE ROYAL CRESCENT The Royal Crescent is another famous and cherished site to visit in the city. This building is a row of 30 terraced houses laid out in a sweeping crescent shape. Designed by the architect John Wood, the Younger, and built between 1767-1774, it is among the greatest examples of Georgian architecture in the United Kingdom and is a Grade I listed building. Although some changes have been made to the various interiors over the years, the Georgian stone façade remains much as it was when it was first built. I could go on and on about the fascinating things to see in Bath, but there are just too many. There are world-class museums, festivals that draw visitors from all around the world, breathtaking views, beautiful gardens and parks, a variety of art galleries, fantastic eateries, eclectic shops, and plenty of historic marvels. Whatever your interests are, Bath has plenty for visitors and locals to explore. TIPS: Plan to spend at least an entire day in Bath. There are far too many things to see in just a few short hours. If you are interested in architecture, book one (or more) of the many architectural tours operating in the city. Arrive early in the morning to watch the city come alive. Make the trip to Alexandra Park to get the best views over the city. Stop at Sally Lunn’s House to try the most famous local delicacy, the Sally Lunn bun. Visit Green Park Station for locally produced food and artwork. Plan for 2-3 hours at the Roman Baths if you want to read all the signs and view all the displays. Make the trek to the bottom of the Roman Baths for a free sample of the spa water. Take advantage of the many free walking tours that operate around the city. WHEN TO VISIT: Overall, there isn’t really a bad time to visit Bath. In the spring, the flowers are blooming and the weather is relatively calm. May is a good month to visit as temperatures are moderately cool, rainfall is the lowest of the year, days are long, and flowers are in bloom. September is also a good time to visit with warmer temperatures than May and low rainfall, though the days are shorter and there are not as many flowers. WHERE TO STAY: Bath boasts almost 300 places of accommodation, including more than 80 hotels, over 180 bed and breakfasts, and two campsites. WHERE TO EAT: I won’t profess to be foodie enough to recommend which places there to eat are the best. There are over 100 restaurants and over 100 pubs and bars. You will find anything from quaint cafes to cultural dining experiences to locally sourced restaurants to award-winning upscale dining. Whatever your preferences are, you will find something to your liking in Bath. HOW TO GET THERE: Railway. The most direct route is the Great Western Railway from Paddington Station. The train makes five stops and will reach Bath Spa Railway Station in just under an hour and a half. Flying. Bristol Airport. Bristol Airport is located about 20 miles from Bath. Transit from Bristol airport will take about an hour. The Air Decker bus will take you to Bristol Temple Meads Railway Station where you can catch the train to Bath. The Bristol Airport Flyer coach service will take you to Bath with stops along the way. Gatwick Airport. Gatwick Airport is located in South London, approximately 140 miles east of Bath. Transit time varies. You can take a train from the airport to Reading Train Station where you can pick up a train service to Bath. Heathrow Airport. Heathrow Airport is 100 miles east of Bath. Transit from Heathrow will take about 2-2.5 hours. National Express coach service goes direct from the airport to the center of Bath. Sightseeing tours. Many tours make stops in Bath. It should be noted that, depending on the tour, the stop in Bath will be anywhere from 1-3 hours.

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Myanmar Travel Guide

Erin — Mon, 22 Feb 2016 09:58:39 +0000

Years ago, people would have hardly ever considered Myanmar when listing off dream destinations, but since the country has opened itself up to the world, it has become more and more popular as a tourist destination. We really didn’t know what to expect when we went there, so I decided to share what I’ve learned to help other people prepare for their trip. Overall, Myanmar is a really great country. It’s not as developed as the Western world, but it’s still such a fantastic place to visit. As long as you’re prepared for some of the nuances of a less-developed country with a vastly different culture, you will have a wonderful time there. BEFORE YOU GO VISA – You will need a visa to get into Myanmar. A standard single-entry tourist visa costs USD $50, is valid for 90 days and allows a trip length of 28 days. Business visas cost USD $70, are valid for 90 days and allow a trip length of 70 days. Recently Myanmar began accepting online applications for evisas. The evisa application and list of countries who are allowed to apply online can be found here. BRING EXTRA OF ANY NECESSITIES – whether it be something you NEED or something you just prefer, bring extra because finding medical items or comfort/convenience items is not always easy and will sometimes be impossible. If there is an item you MUST have or something you just won’t be happy without, bring a spare just in case. MONEY CURRENCY – The local currency is called kyat (pronounced similar to ‘chat’) and since 2012, the government is pushing for that to be used more than USD. Even so, you will still find places that will accept USD. ATMS & CREDIT CARDS – Myanmar is slowly starting to accept credit cards, but it is not widespread. ATMs are plentiful and some larger business are starting to take credit cards, but still be prepared to pay cash since most smaller shops and street vendors won’t take credit cards. MAKE SURE USD IS PRISTINE – The government won’t allow shopkeepers to trade bills with tears, smudges, creases or any type of imperfection, so the vendors will, in turn, not accept anything except a bill in perfect condition. I took all of our USD and ironed them before going on the trip and that took care of the creases and folds. Also, make sure none of your bills are older than 2006. BRING HARD CASE FOR MONEY – In order to keep your bills in mint condition, be sure to bring a flat wallet or hard case to keep the bills flat and unbent. BILL DENOMINATIONS – For exchanging at local exchange shops, you’ll want larger bills. Those get the best exchange rates. Still bring smaller bills, though, to use for tips and purchases at small shops or eateries. WHILE YOU ARE THERE DON’T DRINK THE WATER! – The water in Myanmar is not suitable for drinking. Water bottles are roughly USD .20, so it’s not too bad to have to buy water. Plus, the three hotels we stayed in were really good about giving us extra water when we left for the day, so be sure to ask your hotel for a bottle or two before heading out. LIMITED INTERNET AND CELL SERVICE – There is no public wifi in Myanmar, so if you need cell or internet service, pick up a SIM card. SIM cards are available at the airport and train stations. If you go to Bagan, you won’t have service even if you buy a local SIM card. The infrastructure of the country is still developing, so only the major cities have semi-reliable cell service. We survived 5 days only having insanely slow wifi in hotel lobbies and not having cell service at all when we were in Bagan, so it’s not hard to get by without it. REMOVE SHOES (AND SOMETIMES SOCKS) AT RELIGIOUS SITES – This is just how it is, no way around it. If you try to wear your shoes, you will be asked to either leave or go back and take your shoes off. This is a pretty big one and some people will get quite offended if you don’t respect their culture and remove your shoes before entering temples and shrines. HAGGLING IS EXPECTED – Unless you are in an actual store with posted prices, the vendors will negotiate with you. Some will drop the price quite a bit and others will only drop it a little. The higher a quantity you buy, the bigger the discount will be. Also, the more friendly and companionable you are, the more willing most of the vendors will be to lower the price. If you’re at a tourist spot and the vendor won’t negotiate, there’s most likely another vendor with similar items nearby. POWER GOES OUT PERIODICALLY – This happened to us every day we were there. Sometimes it was in the afternoon and sometimes in the evening. It was a little disconcerting to have the power go off while I was taking a shower. You may want to bring a flashlight. Sometimes the power only went off for less than a minute and sometimes it was close to 10 minutes. INSIST ON RECEIVING CHANGE IN THE SAME CURRENCY YOU PAID WITH – Since the government is pushing for the exclusive use of kyat, this may not be an issue for much longer, but it still is at the moment. If you pay in USD, make sure you are given USD in change. If they give you kyat instead of USD, you will end up being shorted. US POWER PLUGS – Every hotel we stayed at in Myanmar had US power outlets, so if you are from the US, you don’t need an adapter. If you are not from the US, bring a US-type power adapter. RELIGIOUS SITE DRESS CODE – when you visit any of the temples or religious sites, you will need to wear a shirt with sleeves (cap sleeves are fine) and longer shorts. It is offensive for you to go to their religious sites or enter their temples wearing anything that shows your shoulders or knees (men and women). Some places have cover-ups that you can purchase that are lightweight and have very pretty designs or you could bring something lightweight to throw on before going inside. SUPER DUSTY AND SMOKY – No matter where we went, it was either dusty or smoky. Or both. The locals burn weeds and other things, so you’ll smell a lot of smoke along with all the dust from it being so dry there. The rural areas are the worse, though you’ll still find the smoke and dust in the cities sometimes. If you have asthma or a breathing condition, bring an extra inhaler and/or whatever else you need to manage your condition. Face masks are a good idea, too. We wore ours several times when the dust got really bad. WEATHER – Myanmar has three seasons: hot, not too hot and hot & rainy. The best times to visit are between November and February. Those are the coolest months. We were there at the end of January and it was hot, but not too bad. Rainy season goes from May to October and the super hot time of year is March through May. COSTS FOOD – Food is so cheap there. Tourist hotspots will cost you a several dollars for a meal, but if you go to the smaller restaurants or street vendors, you can get a meal for $1-2. Bottled water is about .20 per bottle. HOTELS – Hotels vary. We got a cheap hotel in Yangon for $25 and it was okay, but the entire place reeked of cigarette smoke. We looked around town and found a place for $40 a night that was really nice and didn’t smell bad at all. In Bagan, we paid $25 a night and were happy with our hotel. It wasn’t anything fancy, but it was comfortable and the staff was really nice. TAXIS – Taxis are pretty cheap. Some use meters and some don’t, but it shouldn’t cost more than $3 to cross the entire town. If the taxi doesn’t want to use a meter, don’t agree to pay more than $3 or 3700 kyat. SOUVENIRS – It depends on the site and the vendor. Some will charge less than $1 for some items while another vendor will charge $1-2 for the same item. Sand paintings are really cool (factory-made) and cost anywhere from $8-16, though if you buy several they’ll give you a discount. BUSES – You can ask your hotel to book a bus for you and arrange for you to be picked up from the hotel or somewhere nearby. Buses that the locals ride are adequate for short distances, but for the longer-distance trips, you’ll want to splurge for the ‘VIP’ bus. That can vary from $15-20 for a 12-hour trip, but it’s worth it. The ‘VIP’ bus comes with reclining seats, televisions, blankets, AC and complimentary meals. FYI MOST SOUVENIR PAINTINGS ARE FACTORY-MADE, NOT HANDMADE – Vendors like to tell people all the paintings are hand-made, but you will find the same ones at every temple. The ones that really are hand-made will be the ones that are unique and the ones where you can see the artists painting them. PAY FOR PICTURES – One of the things we found in Myanmar was that many people who you photograph will ask for money afterwards, even if you ask for permission before. We didn’t understand this at first and a lady yelled at us when we started walking away. Once we figured out what she was upset about, we gave her some money and she was happy. Not everyone will ask for money after you take a photo, but it does happen, especially in more touristy areas. SOMEONE WATCHES YOUR SHOES, THEY EXPECT YOU TO BUY SOMETHING – When visiting temples, it is required for you to take your shoes off. Sometimes vendors will offer to watch your shoes and when you come back, they’ll insist you purchase something since they watched your shoes and kept them safe. SOMEONE GUIDES YOU SOMEWHERE, THEY WILL EXPECT YOU TO BUY/PAY/DONATE – Periodically, someone will offer to show you something ‘really cool’ at whatever tourist place you are currently at and then take you to see it. Vendors want you to purchase something from them. Kids or teens will then try to get you to donate for their schooling or some ‘official’ charity thing that they have a form for. Random adults just want you to pay them for their service. If you have money to spare, go for it. If you are on a tighter budget, it’s best to just decline their offer and say you want to look around on your own. NO NON-SMOKING ROOMS IN THE CHEAP HOTELS – Myanmar doesn’t quite have the same bad view of smoking as the US does. Even though we reserved a non-smoking room in Yangon, we ended up with a heavily smoked in room and the front desk said all their rooms smelled like that when we went to inquire about changing rooms. We found the same response at all the cheaper hotels we contacted. It wasn’t until we contacted some of the mid-range hotels that we were able to find a true non-smoking room. If you absolutely require a non-smoking room, be sure to verify with the hotel that they do indeed have non-smoking rooms. TIPS BRING WET WIPES – the floors in public buildings can be quite dirty, so if you’re in a place where you have to also take your socks off, you will probably want to wipe your feet off before putting your socks and shoes back on. Plus, it’s really hot and dusty there and the wet wipes can be a periodic refresher during the day. WEAR EASILY REMOVED SHOES OR STURDY SANDALS – Pretty much every temple you go to will require you to remove your shoes before entering, so if you plan on going...

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