Caribbean Cruises: Great choice for a vacation-Here's why

When you're planning a vacation, consider a Caribbean cruise. The advantages are definite: the Caribbean is an easy destination to reach, and with its tropical climate of perpetual summer, its picturesque islands, and its wild diversity of cultures, there are few places in the world that can offer as much as the Caribbean.

From North America, most Caribbean cruises start in south Florida, a logical place, as there are several ports capable of accommodating the largest cruise ships, and the state is very close to the Caribbean. In fact, for some cruise lines, Caribbean cruises will include South Florida and the Bahamas Islands, even though these areas are technically outside the Caribbean Sea. They are close to it, however, and share the same climate and much of the same attitude.

You'll want to check with your cruise line, to see what Caribbean cruise packages are available. The Caribbean is a large area, stretching some 2000 miles from Mexico in the northwest to the island of Barbados in the east, and most cruise packages will only cover part of the total area. Some common cruise options are the Eastern Caribbean, covering the Lesser Antilles and Puerto Rico, the Southern Caribbean, covering the Dutch Antilles and the adjacent areas of South America, and the Western Caribbean, covering southeastern Mexico, Central America, and Jamaica.

Each of these areas has its own set of attractions. Younger travelers, especially honeymooners, are frequently drawn to the party atmosphere of Jamaica, or Cozumel, Mexico. Many older cruise-goers particularly enjoy the relaxed culture of the small islands of the Eastern Caribbean. Whatever your preference, make sure that you try the shore excursions offered on your Caribbean cruise : they're the best way to get the full feel of the area, and an unforgettable experience.

Whichever part of the Caribbean you choose to cruise, make sure that you pack your passport. You'll be crossing a lot of international boundaries, and while the cruise line will help you with customs clearance, it's always wise to keep your travel documents with you.

Brian James is the President of All Aboard Cruises Corp Caribbean Cruises

Hilton Head Vacation Rentals

Hospitable to all of our visitors, rental agencies on Hilton Head Island will take care of all your vacation needs, both foreseen and unanticipated. Renting an apartment, condo, villa or home is easy with the friendly assistance of more than one hundred agencies. Whatever is your chosen activity, nearby is a clean, affordable Hilton Head rental property.

Luxurious homes sit along the greens of 19 first class golf courses in Hilton Head Island. Villas are within walking distance to 260 tennis courts. And for the nature lover, many properties overlook wildlife-inhabited lagoons, serene yacht marinas, and, of course, 12 miles of private and public beaches.

As the second largest island on the East Coast and with a tropical climate averaging 70 degrees year round, Hilton Head Island is a premier resort destination, attracting visitors from around the world. Should you be flying into Hilton Head Island, there are available car rentals. For a romantic evening or an exciting night, bar-hopping and clubbing, rent a stretch limousine or Hummer to ride in style. Transportation around Hilton Head Island is necessary as there are numerous plantations, shopping plazas, restaurants, and bars to see, dotted all over the island.

Hilton Head Island is a great vacation spot for families. Whether you have forgotten something in your travels or simply couldn’t fit everything into your van or SUV, you can rent cribs, furniture, and more for your children’s needs. It’s a great way to save space in your car, and to prevent damage or loss to your own belongings.

If adventure and fun are what you seek, Hilton Head Island has almost every water and land sport you can squeeze into your vacation. Kayaks, jet skis, fishing, sail, and speed boats, yachts and more, are available to rent and shove off into the multitude of lush tributaries, untamed sounds, and the alluring sea. It’s not surprising to see dolphins or schools of hammerheads and sand sharks. Alligators, turtles, and countless species of birds inhabit the lagoons and deciduous flora, neatly cropped around the island. Surfing, kite surfing, and parasailing have recently grown in popularity for the thrill-seeker.

For the land-lubber, 20 miles of leisure paths lead to every area of Hilton Head. Rent a bike for one, two, or four people, or sets of roller blades for your friends and family to enjoy pristine natural surroundings with palmetto trees, Spanish moss and year round blooms. Saddle a horse for a ride through Sea Pines. The most adventurous spirits or those that seek light recreation will find many ways to stay active and have fun. If you arrive without the necessary sports or safety equipment, they are available for rental use.

About the Author: He is an expert writer and insider who's columns appear in numerous papers around the country. He is a Junior Executive with Performance Development Corporation. He can be contact at (843)671-4700 or email at rich@hiltonheadrentals.com | Hilton Head Vacation Rental Management Company -http://www.hiltonheadrentals.com

The Orange Show Monument: A Houston Original

The Orange Show Monument, located in the Heights neighborhood of Houston, uses castaway materials to entertain visitors and pay tribute to creator Jeff McCissack's favorite food, the orange.

Postman Jeff McCissack started work on the monument in 1956 and completed it in 1979, just seven months before his death. Originally, he bought the land adjacent to his house to build a small business on, but later changed his mind for reasons that aren't completely clear.

In 1980, 22 Houston citizens formed a non-profit organization to purchase, preserve and maintain McCissack's monument for the public to be able to continue to enjoy it, and to use as a staging point for a variety of cultural activities.

You can visit the Orange Show Monument every weekend from mid-March to mid-December between 12 and 5 p.m. Weekday hours of 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. are maintained from Labor Day to Memorial Day.

Your first reaction will likely be one of either amusement, amazement, or disbelief when you're greeted by the site of this multi-tiered structure fashioned from a variety of materials including brick, wagon wheels, colored tiles, and any number of any junk items.

Hand-crafted signs greet you at every turn. All of them bear witness to McCissack's belief that hard work, good nutrition, and lots of oranges made for a long and healthy life. Those signs are punctuated by a variety of pieces including animals, people, and familiar characters all crafted from junk.

An amphitheater crafted from, among other things, old tractor seats plays host to a variety of "off the beaten track" cultural events. Other nifty features include a wishing well, a pond, and an oasis.

No good tourist attraction would be complete without a gift shop. And, if you don't get a souvenir there, how are you ever going to explain this place to your friends?

About The Author

Fresh Houston founder Masadio Caliente invites you to visit his one-stop resource for those seeking complete information about Houston: http://www.freshhouston.com/.

Traveling to Europe with your Digital Camera?

The European Vacation Season is fast approaching and naturally you will be taking your digital camera along for the journey. After all your vacations are far and few between and it is nice to look back on those memories as you slave away at your job. However, when you travel with a digital camera, it is a completely different experience from that of traveling with a film camera. This is a lesson that far too many travelers seem to be learning the hard way, especially if you’re traveling to Europe. After a couples years of relying solely on digital for taking photos when I travel, there are things you should consider before you head off on your next trip.

Charging Batteries is one of the biggest stumbling blocks you'll face when you travel. Outlets can be scarce in hotels. On a recent trip to Europe, only one of the five modern hotels I stayed in had more than one outlet available for use when charging up electronics. Charging your battery can be more of a hassle if you're traveling by train: If you take an overnight train in Europe, they don't have power adapters at the seats (certain trains do, but it's not something you can count on). I suggest bringing at least two rechargeable batteries, three if you plan to travel with overnight trains, or don't think you'll be able to charge every night. If your camera uses regular AA batteries, consider yourself lucky-you'll find those everywhere. Scope out the situation in your room when you check in: You should get at least one usable outlet, but don't count on more than that.

Bring your plugs. Some digital cameras typically come with a power brick that can handle international voltages, so you won't need a voltage adapter. However, you will need a power plug adapter to convert a US outlet plug to the local plug. Most of Europe is on the same outlet now-but not all countries accept the general "Europe" plug. Be sure to research what you'll need to jack in, and try to buy it before you leave (try CompUSA, Radio Shack, Rand McNally, or your local luggage store). If you don't have a chance to get what you need Stateside, don't fret: You should have no trouble finding an outlet converter overseas.

How do I offload my images? For fellow travelers using digicams, this was the number one problem I have heard repeatedly. Many comments from folks traveling for a week or more are: "I'm taking more pictures than I expected to." "I'm not shooting at the best resolution, because I need the room on my memory card." "I'm only halfway through my trip, and I have only 50 shots left." When you travel, odds are you'll take more pictures than you expect to also. A 1 GB card is very useful, and should suffice for low-usage shooters. But for those of us, who can go through a gigabyte or more in a day, not a week? Whether it's because your a high-volume shooter, shooting in RAW format, or a combination of the two. What I discovered is many who had digital SLRs, that had 5 megapixel or more reported they were traveling with a laptop to off load their images. None of these folks were traveling on business, so they didn't need to bring a laptop along. The sad fact is, for now, a laptop remains the most efficient and usable means of off loading images. Epson and Nikon have dedicated handheld units with a hard drive, card reader, and LCD display for copying over and viewing your images. But neither has a full-blown keyboard. If you're first buying a laptop, and intend to travel with it, I suggest going for the smallest one you can. Fujitsu, Panasonic, Sharp, and Sony all have models under four pounds. A laptop provides several additional advantages. For one thing, you can see your pictures on a big screen-to view how you're doing, and if you see any problems you want to correct with your exposure, for example, or if your pictures are being affected by dirt. For another thing, you can properly label your folders, so you know which pictures were taken where. Most newer laptops have integrated memory card readers, but otherwise, you can buy a small external card reader. For the wire-free approach, use a PC Card slot adapter for your memory card; and invest in a 32-bit Cardbus adapter (Delkin and Lexar Media offer these), for speedier transfers. Nothing's worse than coming back to the hotel after a long day of sightseeing, and needing to stay awake another 40 minutes just to off -load two 1 GB cards, at about 20 minutes a pop. If you bring a laptop, I also suggest investing in a portable hard drive. A portable hard drive can serve multiple purposes: It can be a means of backing up your photos on the go; a means of giving you a way to take your photos with you if you have to leave your laptop unattended; and a means of expansion, if you somehow manage to fill up your laptop's built-in hard disk. If you don't want to bring a laptop, and already have an Apple iPod, Belkin sells an attachment for using your iPod with memory cards; or, consider the pricey units from Nikon and Epson. And if you're in a bind, remember you can always buy memory overseas. I was surprised that when I went to Europe, the prices were high, but not so outrageously so that I wouldn't buy another card if I were in a bind. Cards were more readily available, too, than they were when I last traveled through Europe three years ago. Look at it this way: Even if you overpay on the card, you can still reuse it-which beats overpaying for a single use 35mm film cartridge when you were in a bind in years' past.

Be prepared for problems. Things happen when you travel and I've had more things go awry carrying my digital SLR than I have had with my 35mm over the years. Lens paper is always useful to have on hand, but if you have a digital SLR, another supply is absolutely critical: An air blower bulb, to blast out the dust and dirt that will inevitably get trapped inside your camera. I never had problems with my 35mm SLR, but with my digital SLR, I constantly find dirt gets trapped inside, when I change lenses. And there's nothing worse than having a splotch marring your otherwise awesome shots. Finally, remember the philosophy of redundancy. Whether your battery dies and you have no way to charge it, or you run out of space on your memory card(s), and don't want to buy another at a higher-than-usual price, I suggest packing a second camera if you can. A digital point and shoot is a good option but I usually carry a point and shoot 35mm to use if I run into any problems just so I won’t lose any precious pictures.

About The Author

Doug Rogers has worked as a freelance photographer for the past 25 years in various fields of photography. In the past two years he has become an avid and devoted fan of digital and video photography and a life long lover of new technology. For tips on better digital photography and the latest reviews on the newest digital equipment that hits the market, Subscribe to his monthly Newsletter “The ViewFinder” at http://www.best-digital-cameras-review.com.