Teach English Around the World and Be Paid To Travel

Most anyone who speaks English well can be trained to “Teach English As A Foreign Language” through the well known TEFL organization.  TEFL Certification courses are offered all across the globe and usually require a 4 week commitment to study the course curriculum and do a bit of practice teaching.  This international program enjoys wide appeal to recent college graduates, retiring teachers, and in fact, any adult who has an adventurous spirit and the desire to share themselves and the English language with other cultures.

We’ve found one TEFL certification program that condenses the study course to two weeks, and throws in a whole lot of fun while they’re at it.  The World TEFL School is currently offering a two week TEFL course on the “Full Moon Party” island of Koh Phangan, Thailand. Read more

Where To Pick Your Own Apples, Pumpkins, Peaches and Don’t Forget the Christmas Tree

It’s harvest time again all across the country.  Farmer’s fields are bursting with juicy ripe fruits and everyone is anxious to bring in the bounty before the first hard frost.  It’s almost your solemn duty to rally the kids (or borrow a few if you have to), throw on an old pair of sneakers and head out to a farm to pick some crisp tart apples, and a bulbous pumpkin or two for Halloween carving.

You’ll want to begin your hunt for a local ‘Pick Your Own’ farm at PickYourOwn.org.  This is a no-nonsense, no frills site, that’s bursting with great info.  They offer directories of pick your own farms all across the United States, and pumpkin patches, corn mazes and Christmas tree farms as well; all conveniently sorted by State.  You’ll be able to do a search for Apple, Corn, and Tomato, festivals in your area, and determine “What’s In Season”  so you can track your favorite crop.  But the big surprise and bonus to this site are the abundant recipes for using that freshly picked produce.  From jams to butters to chutneys to pies, the directions are all here.  And they’ll even tell you “How much do I have to pick” to produce enough of your homemade goodies to use for holiday gifts.  Add in tips for picking the fruit and complete directions for canning, and you have one great site for taking advantage of this fall’s harvest.  Yummmmm!

Online Travel Auctions That Benefit Charities

Travel well while doing good! We all know about Priceline, Hotwire and Luxury Link, where you bid for travel arrangements, but here’s a different angle on these traditional travel auctions.  Several online  auction sites offer top notch travel experiences for the benefit of charity. It sort of reminds me of attending a local charity auction to benefit the food pantry where folks have donated services, tickets and stays at their luxury vacation property.  You are likely to find all sorts of opportunities that wouldn’t ordinarily be offered to the public.  Here are just a few examples of terrific charity travel auctions we’ve found:

Bidding For Good – This site is choc-o-block full of great travel and entertainment experiences.  Take for instance an auction item we found to benefit the Perkins School For The Blind – a “Chance of a Lifetime opportunity to be a Celtics Ball Boy or Ball Girl”, that starts at $500.  Or how about 50,000 frequent flyer miles currently bid at $450?  Golfers would jump at the chance to play a round  during the 2009 Masters Tournament in South Carolina to benefit Muscular Dystrophy.  There are tons of great offers on this site. Read more

Never Loose A Phone Number or Directions Again!

You know the drill… you need to jot down directions, the name of a great new restaurant, or the email address of the interesting person you just met while waiting in line.  So you drag out a crumpled piece of paper and probably with your lipstick scribble down the all important information.  Of course you’ll later toss that rumpled piece of paper in the trash without ever realizing an important note was written on it.

Here’s a great new gadget that will capture every note you make, or audio you want to record, and makes it available for download onto your computer.  The Live Scribe Pen is a must for business travelers attending conferences.  You’ll be able to take notes and record the presentation material at the same time.  For the international traveler, Live Scribe can even translate for you.  Check them out at LiveScribe.com and put this on the gift list for all your gadget loving friends.  Priced around $150 your techie family members will love it.

Ultimate Vacation Weekend For You and Your Gorgeous Dog

Just be sure to bring along your sense of humor!!

If you’d rather spend time with your dog than most of the people you know…  have we got a vacation destination for you! The canine friendly folks at luxury Paws Up Wilderness Resort in Greenough Montana are hosting their annual “Wine and Bitch”Weekend from November 14-18, 2008.  Billed as the ‘The Last Best Place’, Paws Up Resort is a hauntingly beautiful panorama of elegant, rustic, country living at it’s pinnacle.  And you and your dog are invited!

This cheeky weekend celebration is designed to give guests and their canine buddies the time of their lives romping through the wilderness.  Events feature fashion shows, a doggie parade, hand-made doggie treats, spa treatments, and of course lots of fine wine and ‘tail chasing’.  With tongue firmly pressed in your cheek, read all about the festivities at Wine and Bitch.com.

And here I was thinking it was a resort where all us girls could get a little tipsy on vintage wine and gripe about all that annoys us.  Oh well, I guess that wouldn’t play in this beautiful setting where nature is so sublime, who could complain?

Break Out Your Movie Star Smile For This Great Photo Idea

Every now and then I read about a new travel service that stops me in my tracks and gives me that “WOW- why hasn’t anyone thought of THAT before” moment.  Here’s the latest great idea from a photographer in New York City.

New York City Photoshoot offers to snap your professional picture all around the city, capturing spectacular photos of you (and a loved one we’re assuming) at famous city locations.  Imagine giving your honey a dramatic kiss in Times Square and having it captured by a professional photographer and packaged into a keepsake photo album.  The company offers three different packages with as many as 100 professional photos on a CD-Rom taken during a 2 hour photoshoot for $495.   So if you’re looking for a dramatic way to celebrate a big event – a photoshoot in NY City might just make a unforgettable impression!

Now, for those of you who won’t be able to travel to New York, I bet you could arrange something similar with a professional photographer in your area (or at your destination).  Click on over to the Professional Photographers Association, click the ‘Consumers’ tab and then ‘Find A Photographer’.  This is a great way to capture your excitement of being in a new city, touring famous sites.  Forget about worrying if you’ve chopped off someone’s head or held the camera steady.  And I don’t know about you….but I hardly ever get in the pictures, because I’m always taking them!!!  A perfect solution.

Sandals Goes Mainstream With A New Budget-Minded Resort Brand

Yippeeee, Sandals Corporation has announced the creation of a new resort brand targeted at budget minded travelers.  We’ve all seen the glossy Sandals  brochures filled with smiling vacationers frolicking on powdery white sand beaches bordered by colorful resorts properties.  Your smile may have wavered however when you priced the cost of a vacation at one of their all inclusive upscale resorts.  Take heart fellow sun lovers, the newly launched Grand Pineapple Beach Resorts may be just what you’ve been hoping for.

Located on two of the most popular Caribbean islands, you will find a Grand Pineapple Beach Resort in calypso loving Negril, Jamaica and in scintillating Antigua.  Both properties feature Sandals’ signature all inclusive attention to detail atmosphere, but at 35 – 55% less than Sandals (for couples), Beaches for families or the luxe Royal Plantation Collection brand.  Check them out and enjoy your next Sandals’ vacation at a fraction of the cost of their other resorts properties.

Fall Is The Perfect Season To Stay In A Tree House Hotel

Ever since you were a kid clambering up to your private tree house (whether attached to a swing set, or hand crafted by your Dad), the appeal of living among the rustling tree tops has been compelling.  (Or was it the visions of imaginative carefree living we all saw in Swiss Family Robinson?)  As the leaves begin to turn from green to gold across North America, realize your fantasy by booking a stay in one of the countries unique and inspiring Tree House Hotels:

Eureka Springs, Arkansas – Treehouse Cottages
Idyllwild, California – Idyllwild Treehouse Cabin (between LA and San Diego)
Litchfield, Connecticut – Winvian (From homepage click on ‘Cottages’)
Hana, Maui, Hawaii – Tree Houses of Hana
Ozarks, Missouri – River of Life Farm
Mount Rainer, Washington – Cedar Creek Treehouse
Snowden, Washington – Lothlorien Woods

And if a little climbing doesn’t scare you off, take to the mountain tops in one of the thousands of Western Mountain Lookout Towers – perched high above the tree tops with 360 degree panoramic views.  Don’t forget the binoculars!!

Free Print and Go Discount Coupon For Top London Attractions

If you’re planning to jet off to Britain sometime soon, don’t go without a visit to this terrific website: DiscountBritain.net. Discount Britain offers travelers London sightseeing discounts of 20% on attractions such as St. Paul’s Cathedral, Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, the London Bridge Experience, London Zoo and over 100 more attractions. The coupon will also earn you a 20% discount on popular restaurants all around London.

Best of all, it’s really a simple process – there’s no cost, no registration, no red tape. Simply print out one ‘Smart Coupon’ (equipped with a bar code), and then swipe it at participating attractions and restaurants to get a 20% discount for up to 6 people traveling together. Visit DiscountBritain for links and descriptions of all the attractions and restaurants participating in the program. And don’t miss their great discounts for hotels and London theatre tickets as well. What’s better than a free program to save you lots of sightseeing dollars (or is that pounds)?!!