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	<title>Travel Blog - Hotels,Cruises,Vacations</title>
	<link>http://mybesttravelrates.com</link>
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		<title>Rebuilding the Hermione, La Fayette’s Freedom Frigate in Rochefort, France</title>
		<description><![CDATA[ The Partially Built Hermione in Rochefort, France Copyright LandLopers All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized use prohibited. ]]></description>
		<link>http://mybesttravelrates.com/rebuilding-the-hermione-la-fayette%e2%80%99s-freedom-frigate-in-rochefort-france</link>
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		<title>Video Of The Day: Muralists Change The Face Of Baltimore Neighborhood</title>
		<description><![CDATA[ Filed under: North America , United States , Video Over the past two months a group of 20 muralists from around the world have been coming together to revamp vacant walls in a Baltimore neighborhood. Although not currently well trodden by visitors, the neighborhood is full of theaters and art galleries and was recently dubbed the Station North Arts &#38; Entertainment District in hopes that it would become the new cultural heart of Baltimore. The ambitious mural project, Open Walls Baltimore , is already sparking national dialogue and will hopefully enliven public spaces enough that visitors are attracted to the area. Artists leaving their mark on the neighborhood have come from faraway places such as Buenos Aires , Montreal , Capetown , and Kiev , as well as several homegrown muralists from Baltimore and nearby New York City . The video above gives an idea of the spirit of the project, which is being curated by street artist Gaia. All of the murals should be completed by this Friday, May 25, when a celebration will take place throughout the district. Baltimore has a long history of promoting public art. Outside of Open Walls Baltimore, there are two- and three-story murals painted on more than 100 buildings throughout the city. Of course, Baltimore isn't the only city known for its murals - to view a sampling of a wide range of public art check out the Mural Locator , a self-funded website working to chart amazing murals throughout the world. So far, more than 500 murals have been mapped since the website began in 2010. Video Of The Day: Muralists Change The Face Of Baltimore Neighborhood originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 21 May 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink &#160;&#124;&#160; Email this &#160;&#124;&#160; Comments ]]></description>
		<link>http://mybesttravelrates.com/video-of-the-day-muralists-change-the-face-of-baltimore-neighborhood</link>
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		<title>Location-Based Smartphone App Makes Travel More Social</title>
		<description><![CDATA[ Filed under: Hiking , Learning , Business , Hotels and Accommodations , Airlines , Transportation , Airports , Budget Travel , Internet Tools , News There are many smartphone apps that exist to make travel more social . These apps allow you to find travel buddies, see who will be at your accommodations and even stay in people's homes for free. However, there is a new app on the market called Zamp that is helping travelers to discover who's nearby and connect with them in real time. The app is a location-based service that travelers can use to share and receive tips, arrange meet-ups and coordinate transportation. For example, through their airport check-in, users can see who's on their flight, send messages and plan trip details like taxis and tours. There is also a fun feature that tracks users' travel stats, like miles traveled, most frequented routes and preferred airlines. And to help service providers, Zamp allows for immediate user feedback to be given. While this may not sound new, Zamp places an emphasis on making travel more social. Continue reading Location-Based Smartphone App Makes Travel More Social Location-Based Smartphone App Makes Travel More Social originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 21 May 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read &#160;&#124;&#160; Permalink &#160;&#124;&#160; Email this &#160;&#124;&#160; Comments ]]></description>
		<link>http://mybesttravelrates.com/location-based-smartphone-app-makes-travel-more-social</link>
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		<title>Commercial Space Travel Set Back But Not Discouraged</title>
		<description><![CDATA[ Filed under: North America , United States , Transportation Commercial space travel , well on its way to replacing traditional space exploration, took a step back Saturday, aborting a mission to the International Space Station (ISS). Just a little step back though - the launch is set to try again early Tuesday after swapping out a faulty part. SpaceX scrubbed Saturday's mission less than a second before liftoff after high temperatures were detected in one of the rocket's engines. After Tuesday's re-launch, SpaceX will fly its Dragon capsule to the ISS to test sensors and propulsion systems, both of which have never before operated in space. If all systems are go, the unmanned capsule will practice docking at the ISS. Saturday's scrubbed launch is a good example of why America's space program is headed in this "commercial" direction. Hours after the scrub, SpaceX had the solution to the problem in place and had moved on to planning for Tuesday's re-launch. Run the old NASA way, detailed systems engineering, computer simulations and time-consuming analysis would have taken much longer and cost much more. Continue reading Commercial Space Travel Set Back But Not Discouraged Commercial Space Travel Set Back But Not Discouraged originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 21 May 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Read &#160;&#124;&#160; Permalink &#160;&#124;&#160; Email this &#160;&#124;&#160; Comments ]]></description>
		<link>http://mybesttravelrates.com/commercial-space-travel-set-back-but-not-discouraged</link>
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		<title>Iconic Road Trips: An Unforgettable Trip Down The West Coast</title>
		<description><![CDATA[ The days I spent driving down U.S. Route 101 in Oregon through Highway 1 in California were some of the best days of my life. Admittedly, I was malleable for the molding. I had just gone through a breakup and was getting ready to start a summer-long tour alongside the ex. I decided to take a detour on my way from New York to California , where the tour began. I drove across the country to Seattle and then down to Portland . I went west from Portland until I hit the Pacific and then I drove south and didn't stop driving south until I hit San Diego . I pulled over at just about every lookout and inhaled the fresh scent of pine. Hardly developed at all, the journey down the 101 and the 1 is dotted with plenty of scenic lookouts. Continue reading Iconic Road Trips: An Unforgettable Trip Down The West Coast Iconic Road Trips: An Unforgettable Trip Down The West Coast originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 21 May 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink &#160;&#124;&#160; Email this &#160;&#124;&#160; Comments ]]></description>
		<link>http://mybesttravelrates.com/iconic-road-trips-an-unforgettable-trip-down-the-west-coast</link>
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		<title>Adventures In Italian Wi-Fi: Tips For Getting Online In Italy And Beyond</title>
		<description><![CDATA[ Filed under: Europe , Italy , Internet Tools It's 45 degrees outside with a light rain and 40 mph winds and my wife is sitting in a doorway, huddled by her computer, teeth chattering, using a sketchy Wi-Fi signal a block from the Adriatic Sea in Polignano-A-Mare, Italy. My fingers are already numb from typing in the biting cold for two hours before she assumed command of our makeshift office, located right underneath a modem. If you have the luxury of disconnecting from work while traveling and all you need to do is send and receive the occasional email, you'll be just fine in Italy. But if you're like us, and have to work while there and need a good, relatively fast Internet connection, you're probably in for some of the same adventures we encountered. Over the course of a five-week trip, mostly in small to medium sized cities all over Italy, staying in hotels and vacation rental apartments, we spent countless hours trying to make the most of tepid or non-existent connections. In unseasonably chilly Polignano-A-Mare, we realized the only true hotspot we had access to was in the doorway of the reception area for an apartment we rented; in Spoleto we had to sit literally in our windowsill to get a connection; in Parma I had to set up shop right on the front desk of the hotel; and in Lecce, we used an outdoor courtyard behind our apartment. What follows are some of the lessons we learned trying to get online in Italy. Continue reading Adventures In Italian Wi-Fi: Tips For Getting Online In Italy And Beyond Adventures In Italian Wi-Fi: Tips For Getting Online In Italy And Beyond originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 21 May 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink &#160;&#124;&#160; Email this &#160;&#124;&#160; Comments ]]></description>
		<link>http://mybesttravelrates.com/adventures-in-italian-wi-fi-tips-for-getting-online-in-italy-and-beyond</link>
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		<title>The Last Pyramids Of Egypt</title>
		<description><![CDATA[ Filed under: Arts and Culture , History , Learning , Africa , Egypt , Middle East They just don't make pyramids like they used to. The pyramids of Egypt have fascinated people ever since they were built. The Step Pyramid at Saqqara started things off around 2650 B.C. Later came the iconic pyramids of Giza. What's often forgotten, however, is that pyramid construction continued for more than a thousand years and there are at least 138 built to house the remains of pharaohs and queens. More are still being discovered. Last year, satellite imagery revealed seventeen previously unknown pyramids . The later pyramids of Egypt tend to be overlooked, and it's easy to see why considering the sad state of most of them. Just take a look at this photo of the pyramid of Senusret II (ruled 1895-1878 B.C.) and photographed by Jon Bodsworth . Like a lot of later pyramids, it was made of mud bricks instead of stone blocks to save money, and that's why it's a giant sad lump today - an interesting lump, though. The interior tunnels are still intact and archaeologists discovered the nearby village where the workmen lived. Contrary to popular belief, slaves didn't construct the pyramids. Actually, it was trained craftsmen and farmers who didn't have any other work to do when their fields were underwater during the annual flooding of the Nile. Senusret II was part of the 12th Dynasty, a high point in Egyptian power and civilization. It's strange then that pyramids were in decline. You can see several of these pyramids at Dahsur, not far from Saqqara and an easy day trip from Cairo. One is the Black Pyramid of Amenemhat III (ruled 1842-1797 B.C.). It started to collapse almost immediately so he had to build a second one at the Faiyum Oasis near a giant temple to the crocodile god Sobek. This site reopened last year . Gallery: The Last Pyramids of Egypt Continue reading The Last Pyramids Of Egypt The Last Pyramids Of Egypt originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 21 May 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink &#160;&#124;&#160; Email this &#160;&#124;&#160; Comments ]]></description>
		<link>http://mybesttravelrates.com/the-last-pyramids-of-egypt</link>
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		<title>Vagabond Tales: An Introduction To Possum Punting</title>
		<description><![CDATA[ Filed under: History , Stories , Oceania , New Zealand , Camping If you want to anger a New Zealand local ask them if their accent is from somewhere in Australia . While this is sure to elicit a stern yet polite correction, if you REALLY want to enrage a New Zealand local ask them what they think about possums. Strangely enough, the two annoyances are intertwined as New Zealand actually places the blame for the possums firmly on Australia . Why? Because the non-native possums are Australian, not Kiwi, and many New Zealanders would simply prefer to see them exist solely in the country from whence they came. Officially known as the Australian Brushtail Possum, the noxious pest was introduced to New Zealand in 1837 in an effort to kick-start the fur industry. All this managed to do, however, was allow the possums to populate with reckless abandon and quickly spread to over 95 percent of the country. Whereas in Australia the possum has a litany of natural predators to keep their numbers in check, New Zealand lacks any form of land predator to naturally stem the flow of hyper-population. Flower gardens, native birds and farmers' crops have never been the same ever since. Even the cows in New Zealand are at odds with the possums, thanks to the possum's innate ability to spread bovine tuberculosis and cripple New Zealand's lucrative dairy industry. So how much do the Kiwis actually hate the possums? Enough that a local school recently held a possum-throwing contest , which unsurprisingly sparked outrage amongst the nation's animal rights activists. Shooting possums is a right of passage for children growing up in rural New Zealand, and I've personally witnessed drivers swerve cars towards possums in an effort to strike them as they attempt to cross a road. I simply cannot make this statement in any plainer terms: people in New Zealand simply hate the possums. Continue reading Vagabond Tales: An Introduction To Possum Punting Vagabond Tales: An Introduction To Possum Punting originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 21 May 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink &#160;&#124;&#160; Email this &#160;&#124;&#160; Comments ]]></description>
		<link>http://mybesttravelrates.com/vagabond-tales-an-introduction-to-possum-punting</link>
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		<title>Encountering Monet At The Musee d&#8217;Orsay</title>
		<description><![CDATA[ Filed under: Arts and Culture , Europe , France Reading Gadling's marvelous Museum Month posts has reminded me of a trip I made two decades ago to Paris. I had fallen in love with that exhilarating city in the mid-1970s, when I lived there for two successive summers, first after my junior year in college and then after graduation. I returned in 1988 to celebrate the city, and as part of that celebration, I wanted to write an essay about the poignancy and power of the artworks I had discovered at the Louvre, the Musee Rodin, the Musee de Cluny, the Petit Palais, the Musee d'Orsay, and many other museums and galleries. First I thought I would write about all the showplaces for art that I liked in Paris, but I quickly realized that I couldn't possibly do justice to so many places in a compact piece. I had to focus. I considered describing my favorite three museums, then just one museum, then three rooms in that museum, then three favorite pieces of art there. But though I narrowed my focus more and more, every one of these subjects still seemed too broad. Finally I decided to focus on one painting in one museum, my favorite painting in all of Paris. I installed myself near that painting for about an hour, and scribbled in my journal. I have that journal before me now. Here's what I wrote. Continue reading Encountering Monet At The Musee d'Orsay Encountering Monet At The Musee d'Orsay originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 21 May 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink &#160;&#124;&#160; Email this &#160;&#124;&#160; Comments ]]></description>
		<link>http://mybesttravelrates.com/encountering-monet-at-the-musee-dorsay</link>
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		<title>Svalbard: The World&#8217;s Northernmost Inhabited Place*</title>
		<description><![CDATA[ Filed under: Europe , Norway For bragging rights, few places can match the Norwegian Arctic territory of Svalbard . It's far north. Really, really far north. How far, you ask? The northernmost piece of Alaska is at a latitude of 71 degrees north; Longyearbyen, the capital of Svalbard, can be found at 78 degrees north. After years, possibly decades of looking at Svalbard on maps, pricing flights, and perusing websites, I finally visited the territory in late April. I felt as if I was shooting into the unknown, despite my advance research and my knowledge of the territory's tourist infrastructure. I felt a bolt of uncertainty as the plane landed, in a snowstorm no less, and then a sense of wonder as I spied enormous mountains. It was more beautiful than I'd imagined, and far quieter. The silence was a constant presence. Even the abrasive sound of a snowmobile didn't really disturb it, not for more than a few seconds. Administered by Norway since 1925, Svalbard has around 2,500 residents. Most live in Longyearbyen, a little valley town with a cultural and retail infrastructure typical of far larger towns: a mall, a well-stocked supermarket, an Arctic Museum, a cultural center, hotels, restaurants and bars. During my visit in late April, all were pretty lively, tourists more rare than residents. Though a Norwegian territory, Svalbard does not belong to Norway proper. Before boarding flights from Oslo or Troms&#248;-and after disembarking on return to the mainland-passengers have to go through passport control. The territory is governed under the terms of the Svalbard Treaty, which allows citizens of all signatory nations to commercially exploit the land and waters around and take employment in the territory. This explains the existence of Russian mining towns in Svalbard - Pyramiden (closed in 1998) and Barentsburg, which had 380 inhabitants at last count. As befits a place commercially open to the world, Svalbard is a rather diverse place. While most residents are Norwegian, the territory is impressively international, with tourists adding to the linguistic melee. During a short midday stroll in the center of town, I heard Norwegian, Swedish, Tagalog, Swiss German, German, English, Thai, Portuguese, French, Flemish and Polish. Gallery: Svalbard: The World's Northernmost Inhabited Place Continue reading Svalbard: The World's Northernmost Inhabited Place* Svalbard: The World's Northernmost Inhabited Place* originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 21 May 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink &#160;&#124;&#160; Email this &#160;&#124;&#160; Comments ]]></description>
		<link>http://mybesttravelrates.com/svalbard-the-worlds-northernmost-inhabited-place</link>
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