Saturday, March 24th

We have arrived in the hot, wet city of Bangkok. This is our first trip to Thailand(泰国). All the different smells make us want to try the food. We are going to eat something special for dinner tonight. The hotel we are staying in is cheap, and very clean. We plan to stay here for a few days, visit some places in the city, and then travel to Chiang Mai in the North.

Tuesday, March 27th

Bangkok is wonderful and surprising! The places are interesting. We visited the famous market which was on water, and saw a lot of fruits and vegetables. Everything is so colorful, and we have taken hundreds of photos already! Later today we will leave for Chiang Mai. We will take the train north, stay in Chiang Mai for two days, and then catch a bus to Chiang Rai.

Friday, March 30th

Our trip to Chiang Rai was long and boring. We visited a small village in the mountains. The village people here love the quiet life-no computers or phones. They are the kindest people I have ever met. They always smile and say "hello". Kathy and I can only speak a few words of Thai, so smiling is the best way to show our kindness. I feel good here and hope to be able to come back next year.

If you want to fully enjoy your vacation, then you’d better check the Durban City Tours! This is actually one of the best choices in South Africa today.

There is nothing more relaxing than to think about it that there is a place to go and relax, right? City life is stressful, but you can escape this situation and be in the place where there is noting but fun. Here in Durban you will get to see all the amazing tourist attractions. If you love animals and want to see some elephants wandering around the streets, then Durban is the place to go. You can even get to ride one if you want!

Here you will also get to taste all the delicious South African food. You can choose from Italian cooking to its native dishes. Durban is a great place to tour with your friends and family. You will learn a lot about its history through the landmarks you will see down the streets. Tourists and even the local villagers just can’t get enough of these treats!

However, it is important that you make the necessary arrangements. There are actually lots of tour guides that will help you as you make your journey along the streets of Durban. But if you prefer the best tour guides here in Durban, then you’d better settle for the Street Scene Tours. Their staff are all well-trained and professional. They will certainly make your stay here an unforgettable one. No wonder tourists prefer the Street Scene Tours when it comes to Durban City Tours.

D

In the hit film The Bucket List, Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman meet in hospital in California after they have been diagnosed with cancer. Between them they cook up a “bucket list”—a to­do list of all they want to do before they kick_the_bucket. The movie makes you wonder what would be on your bucket list. So letˈs pack up some and see what it would cost to go out and have a little fun.

THE PYRAMIDS, GIZA, EGYPT

On to the pyramids, surely on anyoneˈs bucket list. Exotik Tours can take you there on a variety of trips, including their popular Egypt Express which includes three nights in Cairo and a three­night Nile Cruise (乘船游览). From $1,384, including four­and five­star accommodation, 12 meals and a ton of sightseeing.

www.exotiktours.com　416－646－3347

TAJ MAHAL, AGRA, INDIA

One of the worldˈs most fascinating images, Indiaˈs Taj Mahal makes even Nicholson and Freeman look calm. Torontoˈs Goway Travel has many suggestions for India, including a three­day independent visit to Agra. Stay at the attractive Oberoi AmarVilas overlooking the Taj.Include two breakfasts, touring and airport transfer from $1,420.

www.gowaytravel.com　416－322－1034

THE GREAT WALL, CHINA

If the Great Wall of China is on your bucket list, check into Tour East Holidayˈs four­day Amazing Beijing Tour for $580 per person, four­star accommodation, sightseeing including the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, breakfasts and two lunches, transportation and guide.

www.toureastholidays.com　416－929－0888

THE HIMALAYAS, NEPAL

And on to the Himalayas. Talk about something truly majestic (壮丽的). See the top of the world on GAP Adventuresˈ Everest Adventure tour, a 15­day exploration including Everest Base Camp, teahouse lodge stays, and walking through Sherpa villages. Incredibly affordable at just $665 plus local payment of $250. GAP Adventures warns that this is a physically demanding trip.

www.gapadventures.com　416－260－0999

B

    Taking the dog to the beach on a hot summerˈs day is a great way to relax. But not all beaches are dog friendly. So if youˈre looking to take your dog to the coast this summer, hereˈs a few of the countryˈs most dog-friendly beaches.

Without proper planning, tourism can cause problems. For example, too many tourists can crowd public places that are also enjoyed by the inhabitants（居民）of a country. If tourists create too much traffic, the inhabitants become annoyed and unhappy. They begin to dislike tourists and to treat them impolitely. They forget how much tourism can help the country’s economy(经济). It is important to think about the people of a destination country and how tourism affects tourists. Tourism should also advance the well-being (health and happiness) of local inhabitants.

Too much tourism can be a problem. If tourism grows too quickly, people must leave other jobs to work in the tourism industry. This means that other parts of the country’s economy can suffer.

On the other hand, if there is not enough tourism, people can lose jobs. Business can also lose money. It costs a great deal of money to build large hotels, airports, air terminals, first-class roads, and other support facilities（设施） needed by tourist attractions. For example, a major international-class tourism hotel can cost as much as 50 thousand dollars per room to build. If this room is not used most of the time, the owners of the hotel lose money.

Building a hotel is just a beginning. There must be many facilities as well, including roads to get to the hotel, electricity ,sewers (阴沟) to handle waste, and water. All of these support facilities cost money. If they are not used because there are not enough tourists, jobs and money are lost.

There have been a lot of castles built in Britain over the centuries. They range from the more famous and better preserved castles such as Windsor Castle and the Tower of London, to those less famous and a little less well looked after, such as a personal favourite of mine Peveril Castle, that can be found in the village of Castleton in Derbyshire.

Although the Romans brought stone working skills with them to Britain when they invaded (入侵) and built stone forts(堡垒) across the country, the Anglo-Saxon people, who settled in what is now England after the Romans left, largely dismissed their style of building in favour of wooden structures. It is not until the Norman conquest of 1066 that castles in the truest sense of the word began to appear in Britain, when they were built as places of refuge（避难所）for what was an invading force, a strategy used again in later centuries during England’s invasions of Wales and Scotland.

Some of the best castles to visit in Britain are built on the borderlands where England meets with Wales or Scotland, a memento (纪念品) of the English——Norman expansionist policy of the middle age. These are some of the most remarkable looking castles to be found in the country, dominating the landscapes they inhabit（栖息）.

Entry to most of the castles run by English Heritage, Historic Scotland and Cadw is reasonably priced, but if you are intending to visit lots of castles it might be worth your while joining one of the heritage groups, which one would depend on which area you will be in. It is worth bearing in mind that if you join any of these three groups you will be able to get half priced entry into any of the properties run by the other two. Needless to say not all castles are run by heritage (遗产) trusts, some of the better preserved are still in use and are either owned privately or by the State, many of these are still open to visitors, but they may be a bit more expensive.

Further information on the heritage trusts mentioned earlier, including the properties they run, you can click the following websites:

www. cadw. wales. gov. uk           www. historic-scotland. gov. uk

www engLish-heritage. org. uk        www. nationaltrust. org. uk

  The Isle of Wight is a small island off the south coast of England. It is one of the most popular holiday destinations (预定地点；目的地) in Britain；in 1980 about 8, 000, 000 people stayed there and another    6, 000, 000 went thereon“daytrips”.

      Not many foreign tourists know about the island. Most of the visitors are British people who go there for their summer holidays. The Isle of Wight is only 23 miles long and 13 miles from north to south, but the towns and villages are all very different, and they offer a good many holidays. It is also one of the hottest places in Britain.

      It is very simple to get to the island from London. Trains leave London every hour during the summer. Two and a half hours later, you arrive at Portsmouth, where you walk 50 meters to the ferry (渡口). Half an hour after that, you are standing on the island. A return fare from London to the Isle of Wight will cost about￡10.

B

Southwest of the Philippines is the third largest island in the world, Borneo. Sabeh is in the northeast and is one of the few remaining tropical wildernesses. A land of thick jungles, tall mountains and empty beaches. For nearly a hundred years, Sabeh was known as British North Borneo but in 1963 became part of Malaysia. It has since developed into one of the hottest destinations in Asia.

The main attraction here are the orang-utans. Orang-utan means “man of the forest.” They can be shy creatures so the best chance of seeing them is in the areas where they are fed. Many of these apes(猩猩) have returned to the wild but there’s not enough forest or fruit to support them so the foundations put out food to help them survive. Orang-utans used to spread across South Asia but are now only found here and in Sumatra. Orphaned orang-utans or those that have been kept as pets are brought here so they can learn to look after themselves. Eventually they’ll be released back into the wild. Direct contact between visitors and the apes is actively discouraged. They don’t want the orang-utans to become domesticated(驯养).

The coastal area is very flat so one of the most convenient ways to explore is by bicycle. You’ll need to start early in the morning to avoid the heat. Almost every town in Borneo has its own church and mosque(清真寺). By no means are all the religious buildings ancient. Even in the most remote areas, you’ll find impressive modern architecture. In the evening, there are varied cultural shows to provide entertainment. You can try some traditional bamboo dancing and bravely leave your ankle at the mercy of the locals.

The highlight of any trip to Borneo has to be the mountain Kinabalu. You need to allow two full days to conquer the mountain. If you don’t want to climb the peak, there are plenty of fascinating jungle walks around the lower and more gentle slopes.

With its wild vegetation, jungle animals and huge mountains, Borneo is indeed a land full of adventure.

C

     When you visit America, you will see the word Motel on signs and notice boards. It is made up of “motor” and “hotel” and it is really a hotel for people who arrive by car (however, you don’t need a car to stay at one). You have to pay when you arrive for your room, which usually has a bath. Meals are not provided, but there will certainly be a cafeteria (自助餐馆). Americans eat a lot of salads and sandwiches. Along the main roads there are a lot of motels. Each tries to offer more than next. Some provide television in every bedroom; others have swimming pools; and so on. Motels are especially useful when you are in the country, far from a town or city. You will also find them in the big National Parks.

     In these great National Parks, you may meet guests you don’t expect to see. An American friend told me a little story. In the middle of a moonless night she heard strange noises outside her motel window in the Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. Thinking it might be a thief, she jumped out of bed, opened the door and crept towards a dark shadow. As she got close, she saw the thief. She was dreadfully frightened: it wasn’t a human thief — it was a big black bear. The bear was turning over some empty tins with its paw, looking for tasty bits of food. My friend decided to leave that particular thief alone!

    There are also, of course, places called “rooming houses”,  where they receive lodgers (房客). You will see such signs as Tourists or Rooms Rent, and you could try one of these. A word of warning — looking for a room in New York during the tourist season is like looking for gold on the moon!　

D

For six hours we shot through the landscape of the Karoo desert in South Africa . Just rocks and sand and the baking sun. Knowing our journey was ending ,Daniel and I just wanted to remember all we had seen and done. He used a camera, I used words. I had already finished three notebooks and was into the fourth, a beautiful leather notebook I’d bought in a market in Mozambique.

Southern Africa was full of stories and visions. We were almost drunk on sensations. The roaring of the water at Victoria Falls, the impossible silence of the Okavango Delta in Botswana  .And then the other things :dogs in the streets, whole families in Soweto living in one room, a kilometer from clean water.

As we drove towards the setting sun ,a quietness fell over us. The road was empty—we hadn’t seen another car for hours. And as I drove, something caught my eye, something moving next to me. I glanced in the mirror of the car; I glanced sideways to the right ,and that was when I saw them .Next to us, by the side of the road ,thirty, forty wild horses were racing the car, a cloud of dust rising behind them—brown, muscular horses almost close enough to touch them ,to smell their hot breath. I didn’t know how long they had been there next to us.

I shouted to Daniel: “Look!” ,but he was in a deep sleep, his camera lying useless by his feet.

They raced the car for a few seconds ,then disappeared far behind us, a memory of heroic forms in the red landscape. When Daniel woke up an hour later I told him what had happened.

“Wild horses?” he said .“Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“I tried .But they were gone after a few seconds.”

“Are you sure you didn’t dream it?”

“You were the one who was sleeping!”

“Typical,” he said. “The best photos are the ones we never take.”

We checked into a dusty hotel and slept the sleep of the dead.