Self catering holidays in Var France

Var a French département in the region Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur in Provence, in southeast France, is a delightful place to visit. Toulon is the largest city and administrative capital of the Var.

Other important towns in the Var include Fréjus, Saint-Raphael, Draguignan, Brignoles, Hyères and the famous seaside resort of Saint Tropez. Var is named after the river Var which used to run along its boundary before the boundary was changed.

If you are planning to visit Var and traveling on a budget, it is probably a good idea to go for self catering holiday, more specifically self catering holiday to Var as eating out is expensive and can be a big drain on the pocket.

If you are looking for fun thing to do, try looking at fun things to do in Côte d'Azur

Are you a fan of sexy Brigitte Bardot? You may be interested to know that it was mainly through her that made St. Tropez and made this town a favorite place for holidaying for the rich and famous. So if you like rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous, head for St. Tropez.ol.

Missing girl. Please help

This video was sent to me by a good Facebook friend from Australia via the Facebook social network. It is a desperate cry for help from a father who now do not know where his very much loved daughter, Savannah-Jade, is.



Here are some photos of his missing daughter, Savannah-Jade:



If you have any information which can help Savannah-Jade to be found, here is how her desperate dad can be contacted:



Below is the actual video from which you can get more details. Please help a desperate father find his missing daughter by forwarding this to as many people as possible:

Penny Wong: The first Asian-born member of the Australian Cabinet

Photo of Penny Wong is property of penrithsustainabilityunit

Penny Wong is the current Australian Minister for Climate Change and Water who went to Bali for the international climate change talks with current Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to Bali for the international climate change talks. It had been reported that Penny Wong was the Chair Person of the United Nations Working Group for the final negotiations in the final days of December's United Nations Climate Change Conference at Bali. Was it a positive or negative development for the environment I don't know but the previous Australian Prime Ministe, John Winston Howard, was closely aligned with George Bush of the United States of America who had been a big, frustrating stumbling block to the progress of the Climate Change negotiations. However, with the change of government with Kevin Rudd leading the Australian government, Australia had reversed its previous stance towards the environment and is now all for environmental issues. So I supposed Penny Wong must have played a positive role at international climate change talks at Bali recently.

Background of Penny Wong

The first Asian-born member of the Australian Cabinet, Penny Wong, was born in Kota Kinabalu who migrated to Australia at the age of eight with her Australian mother after her divorce from her Malaysian Chinese Hakka father. That make us kind of kinsmen as I am also of Hakka ancestry.

Penny Wong's eductional background and career path

Pwnny Wong studied Arts/Law at the University of Adelaide and worked part time for the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union while still a student. Penny Wong was an active activist during student days and was the National Executive of the National Union of Students. She joined the Australian Labor Party in 1988 and acted as a delegate to the party's state convention the following year.

She graduated in 1992 and continued working for CFMEU (Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union) as an industrial officer. Penny Wong was admitted to the Australian Bar and began her law practice and also worked as a legal officer with the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union.

When the Labor Party won the Australian election in November 2007, Penny Wong was appointed Minister for Climate Change and Water. She thus became the first Asian-born member of the Australian Cabinet.

Friend at Sunshine Coast, Queensland and other interesting places in Queensland and New South Wales

Online Friend from Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia

I have made a very good online friend from Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia. He even contributed to my Digital Candlelight Vigil:

Candlelight Vigil for the cancer victims

It will be real nice to make a trip to Queensland so that we can meet face-to-face. But Queensland is a big place, and it will be a sheer waste not to visit other interesting places in Queensland.

Burleigh Heads, Queesnsland

Photo of Burlington Heads is property of Allan Lee

Burleigh Heads is an outskirt region of the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia between the Pacific Ocean to the east, Miami (Queensland) to the north (Miami, Queensland is a suburb of the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia located along the Gold Coast Highway 7 kilometre south of Surfers Paradise and 17 kilometer north of the border between Queensland and New South Wales at Coolangatta/Tweed Heads), Burleigh Waters (Burleigh Waters is another suburb in Gold Coast, Queensland), West Burleigh (less well know suburb of Gold Coast) to the west and Tallebudgera (another suburb of Gold Coast) to the south. Burleigh Heads may be divided into tow regions, the northernmost region is a coastal strip from the Gold Coast Highway to the Brakes Crescent and the southern region next to the business district of Burleigh Heads clumped around the headland of Burleigh Heads and the national park.

Among Burleigh Heads attractions are Burleigh Beach which is a north-east facing beach is well protected by the point to the south and giving one of the best swimming, body boarding and surfing beaches on the Gold Coast. Nature lovers will enjoy the David Fleay Wildlife Park which is home to many native animals living in conditions similar to their natural habitats, Mount Cougal - Springbrook National Park featuring spectacular waterfalls and luxuriant rainforest, the David Fleay Wildlife Park where you can see unusual native animals and the Burleigh Head National Park 81 km southeast of Brisbane.

Art lovers will have the Peter Jeffery Graphic Design, Dalozzo Galleries, "Picture This", featuring a large array of original artworks, a boutique Art Gallery, Homewares and Picture Framing store, and the Corporate Art Centre with a variety of design. The ladies will love Robina Town Centre, a shopping center with dining, fashion, home wares, food and leisure retailers, and the Niecon Plaza Shopping Center located within walking distance from the beach less than 5 minutes from Surfers Paradise, Conrad Jupiter's, Pacific Fair and the Phoenician.

Shop for the heavily discounted last minute deals in accommodation at Burleigh Heads Hotels.

I understand that the above website have been revamped and a directory section has been added which makes it far easier to drill down and search for heavily discounted last minute accommodation in Australia. I checked and found last minute accommodation search. Perhaps this is what they were referring to.

Coolangatta, Queensland

Coolgangatta is ocated in the southernmost part of the Gold Coast, Queensland. Coolgangatta is border town between Queensland and New South Wales which included a customs office, boatshed and government wharf. The Wintersun Festival is held in June in Coolangatta bringing back a two-week 1950s and 1960s nostalgic festival with free entertainment and attractions, including hot rods, restored cars and revival bands playing music of the era.

Online accommodation booking is available at Coolangatta Hotels.

Manly, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

The photo of Manly beach is property of Beau Wade

Manly is a suburb of Brisbane, Australia about 16 kilometre east of the state capital of Queensland, Brisbane. Moreton Bay lies to the east of Manly. Manly has well sheltered coastal location and thus has become a popular location for boating. There are a number of boating clubs in Manly including the Brisbane Sailing Club which is now known as the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron.

Among the attractions of Manly are the Quarantine Station with its maze of historic buildings, North Fort Manly which have tunnels, fortifications and the artillery museum together with a magnificent views of Sydney and its Harbour, Oceanworld Manly
with dangerous Aussies and amazing marine life like sharks, giant stingrays, turtles, deadly snakes, spiders, crocodiles and other reptiles, Want to dive with the great fearsome sharks. Try it at SHARK DIVE XTREME at Oceanworld. Let your family see how brave you are.

Heavily discounted last minute deals for accommodation at Manly available at Manly Hotels.

Byron Bay, New South Wales

Byron Bay is a town in the state of New South Wales neighboring Queensland on the eastern most point of the mainland of Australia about 600 kilometre north of Sydney and 140 kilometre south of Brisbane.

Byron Bay boasts of several beaches good for surfing. Bayron Bay is also popular for sky diving and whale watching as well as for its wildlife. Byron Bay is the meeting place of temperate and tropical waters which makes it an ideal place for scuba diving and snorkeling, particularly at Julian Rocks, now part of the Cape Byron Marine Park.

Byron Bay host events such as the Byron Underwater Festival, yoga retreats, pagan gatherings, music festivals including the Byron Bay Film Festival, East Coast Blues and Roots Music Festival at Easter and Splendour in the Grass and the Byron Bay Writers Festival.

For convenient online accommodation booking, surf over to Byron Bay Hotels

Australia and the rest of the world

If you are looking for accommodation in Australia, try Australia vacation rentals. At time of publishing, only Queensland and Sydney are listed. By the time you read this, it may show more locations. Anyway, that site is not only for vacationers looking for accommodation, but also for property owners to list their properties, so Australian vacation rental owners, here is your chance. Just click on at the top right corner and the rest is self explanatory.

If you are looking for accommodation for your holidays in any part of the world, Goin2travel vacation rentals will probably be able to find something suitable for you.

If you are looking for a peaceful place for a holiday and yet near to world famous theme parks, consider Kissimmee, Florida, United States. Kissimmee is a peaceful town with a few resorts, museums and art galleries, but perhaps will appeal more to nature lovers for there are some interesting wetlands and some may be interested in finding out how the Kissimmee River was restored. However, its main attraction may be its nearness to Orlando, the world capital of theme parks where Walt Disney World Resort, Epcot, Universal Studios, etc., are located. Orlando is an easy drive from Kissimmee and in fact there are hotels here that offers shuttle bus services to the resorts in Orlando. Plus you probably can get cheaper accommodation here than in Orlando. For accommodations, try Kissimmee vacation rentals.

Australians are beach lovers, and for that, they may want to check out Panama City Beach which have over 27 miles of beautiful white sandy beach and crystal clear emerald ocean great for swimming, snorkeling and scuba diving. You may also be interested in skiing, parasailing, diving or fishing.

Panama City Beach lay claim to the title of "Seafood Capital of the World" and you can actually find a wide array of seafood restaurants in Panama City Beach where you can enjoy fresh seafood newly harvested from the ocean.

Other attractions in Panama City Beach includes theme parks. Shipwreck Island is the largest water park around. From Panama City Beach, you can also join cruises of every kind, enjoy the beautiful scenery visit the Zoo World Zoological and Botanical Park which features a wide variety of animals, including rare and endangered species.

Remember to book your accommodation at Panama City beach vacation homes.

Another interesting place to visit in the Florida Panhandle is Fort Myers Beach. This place is for family vacation and for nature and beach lovers. This is a place where you can escape the crowd. If you love watching loggerhead turtles laying eggs, visit Lovers Key State Park during the nesting season (Spring and Summer). The park is also home to bottlenose dolphins, West Indian manatees, marsh rabbits, roseate spoonbills, and bald eagles. Matanzas Pass Preserve is an interesting wetland eco-systems containing one of the last maritime oak hammocks in the area. You can hike through 1.25 miles of trails that wind through the canopies of mangroves and the oak hammock while enjoying a view of the Estero Bay and watch the plentiful wildlife including dolphins, manatees, herons, egrets, pelicans and snowbirds, and also the native plants.

An interesting place to visit, but which is accessible by boat only, is the Mound Key, constructed with shells left by the Caloosa Indians over 1,000 years ago. Or visit the Thomas Edison and Henry Ford winter homes for a glimpse into the life of these 2 great personalities. Or take a stroll on the Fort Myers Beach Pier, which reaches about 600 feet into the gulf. Cast a line here and get a catch you can take a photograph with to boast about at home.

For accommodation, chose and book yours online via Fort Myers Beach vacation rentals.

Cheap Travel Insurance for Australian Travellers

Some think that a very large part of Australia is desert and dangerous. But really the Australian Outback is not all desert or as dangerous as some think. My own nephew drove through the desert alone from Melbourne to Canberra, a driving distance of 660km and driving time of approximately 7 hours. He got my sister all worried, but she couldn't do anything. Well he survived the trip.

Some may be scared of poisonous snakes and spiders, but some seasoned outback travellers says it is not all that dangerous. Anyway, if you are worried, there is always air travel. There are regional airlines like Skywest Airlines (serving Western Australia), Regional Express (serving South Australia and a few neighbouring towns), Air Link (New South Wales), Brindabella Airlines (between Canberra and Newcastle plus Albury and Australia-wide charter service), MacAir Airlines (Queensland), Maroomba Airlines (Western Australia), Sharp Airlines (Victoria), Skippers (Western Australia), Skytrans Airlines (Queensland airline, including air charter), AirNorth (Northern Territories), Eastern Australia Airlines (New South Wales), Sunstate (Queensland), Regional Link (Northern Territory), Tasair (Tasmania) and Virgin Blues (throughout Australia plus New Zealand, Fiji, Samoa, Vanuatu, Tonga and Cook Islands).

And don't forget the international airlines including its own Quantas Airways. Then there are chartered flight operators like Airnorth (charter services throughout the Northern Territory, the Kimberley region of Western Australia and throughout South East Asia), Alliance Airlines, Corporate Air, and Sunshine Express Airlines (Queensland and New South Wales).

And of course Australians are not that provincial as to neglect international travel for vacations as well as for business. Whatever it is, if you travel, it is always wise to get travel insurance for your protection. If you are on a budget, you can look for cheap travel insurance where you can compare, buy online and save. They say they are recommended by Lonely Planet and they cover travellers from over 150 countries including Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada and the UK. And they say you can claim online even when you are still away. If you are a frequent traveller, you should look for Multi-trip Travel Insurance which cover multiple trips within a year. Backers mostly travel for a long time, often for months and to it is not unusual for them to travel to remote places. They thus have different needs and should look for Backpacker Travel Insurance. For skiing (snow skiing) enthusiasts, there are special Skiing & Snow Travel Insurance. The site also cover for the needs of senior citizens, long term travellers, students and those travelling for adventures.

Adelaide Festivals

South Australia`s capital city is Adelaide which is the fifth largest city of Australia. It is located beside the Southern Ocean and its location was first chosen because of its closeness to the Torrens River. It is a pleasant city with wide boulevards, large public squares and is surrounded by parkland. Since it is the administrative and commercial center of South Australia, the government and financial offices are here and they are mainly located in the city center in the North Terrace boulevard, King William Street and in the metropolitan area. It host many festivals and is famous for its arts and sports and wine. It can be considered a cultural city.

Festivals

The Adelaide Festival of Arts

The Adelaide Festival of Arts is a biannual event held in March (Autumn) every "even" year (meaning years like 2006, 2008, 2010...). It is an internationally renowned event and one of the world's greatest celebrations of the arts. The last one in 2006 had over 100 performances with about 30% of them sold out. Over 900 artists with nearly 30% international artists participated. Plan your visit to Adelaide for the next festival which will be from 29 February to 16 March 2008.

The Adelaide Festival of Ideas

The Adelaide Festival of Ideas is also a biannual event held over 4 nights and 3 days, attracting well known thinkers of different disciplines from around the world to exchange ideas. There will be forums, lectures and dialogues focusing on sharing of ideas, innovative thinking and intellectual debate which are mainly free to the public. The festival is held in many venues along the North Terrace boulevard.

This years Adelaide Festival of Ideas was from 5-8 July 2007 which mean you just missed it and you want to attend the next one you will have to wait another 2 years.

South Australian Living Artists Festival

The South Australian Living Artists Festival this year will be held between 3 to 19 August 2007 at the Adelaide Central Business District. More than 1400 artists from South Australia will present a range of exhibitions, displays and installations of their art to the public. It will be spread across 300 venues and visitors will get the opportunity to meet artists and see them at work.

The Adelaide Writers' Week

The Adelaide Writers' Week is Adelaide`s week long literal festival and bring together well known local and international writers and is a great opportunity for readers to meet their favourite writers. The Writers` Week in 2006 attracted an estimated 100,000 plus attendees. There will also be a book tent selling books. The next Adelaide Writers' Week will be held from 2-7 March 2008.

There are many other places of interest worth visiting in Adelaide and many events worth attending. I will blog about them next time or you can use the search box above (tick "Web" to search for them). But if you do plan on visiting Adelaide for its renowned festivals or for other reasons, do book your accommodation ahead of your arrival. If you are on a budget, try Cheap Hotels in Adelaide. Most festivals are held in or near the town center, so getting a Adelaide City hotel may be a good idea. You may even want to try their Last Minutes Deals. In all cases they offer a Lowest Rate Guarantee which promises that if you find a rate lower than the best available Cheaperthanhotels.com Internet rate on another web site for the same hotel/accommodation, on the same dates and inform them within 24 hours of booking your room(s) with us, they will honour that rate for the night(s) for which the lower rate was found and refund you the difference.