Archivo de la etiqueta: travel

Viajes largos en avión, cómo hacerlos soportables

No todos podemos tener esto

Una vez un amigo que acababa de terminar el Camino de Santiago le preguntaron como pudo realizarlo de un tirón, el nos miró y dijo:”Psicología y piernas”.  Yo parafraseandolo cuando me preguntan que hago para que un viaje de varias horas me sea soportable respondo: “Psicología y nalgas”.

La actitud como muchas cosas en la vida es fundamental para realizar esfuerzos, para ser constantes. Cuanto más para un recorrido largo en avión. Sin embargo no todo es tener la actitud adecuada, evidentemente siempre está el recurso de disponer de una cartera abultada e ir en unos de esos asientos de primera, que se reclinan hasta que te quedas totalmente horizontal. Pero como este no es el caso de los lectores de mi blog tengo que decirles que no desesperen. Que hay algunos “trucos” que nos permiten mejorar la calidad de nuestro viaje.

El primero, y gran descubrimiento, es la web de Seatguru. Nos dice de acuerdo con la información recabada por los usuarios de cuales son las mejores compañías y asientos. Incluso si tenemos pensado realizar un viaje nos dice todas las compañías aéreas que realizan ese trayecto y nos la clasifica en una escala que va de 1 a 5 de acuerdo de peor a mejor calidad de los asientos. E incluso dispones de un mapa de los asientos para que cuando vayas a facturar te puedas pedir los mejores o lo que es más importante evitar aquellos sitios que pueden destrozarte tu espalda y el viaje.

Segundo si tu viaje va a tener escalas, y estas van a ser largas te recomiendos acceder a un servicio como los que se ofrecen  por internet para acceder a las salas vip de los aeropuertos en tránsito o algunas tarjetas de crédito que te ofrecen acceder a esas mismas salas simplemente por ser titular de ellas. La ventaja de tener unos sillones cómodos, incluso algunas salas con una zona para echar la siesta, poder refrescarte y relajarte hará que te encuentres en mejores condiciones para afrontar la siguiente etapa de tu viaje.

Tercero si tu viaje es punto a punto, sin escalas intermedias y eres de los que eres capaz de organizarte solo con el equipaje de mano, llevalo contigo. Sin embargo si el viaje tiene varias escalas en la que el equipaje lo recuperas al finalizar el trayecto te recomiendo que sólo lleves de mano lo imprescindible, como documentación de viaje, medicación que se pueda necesitar y lo que necesites para tu entretenimiento.

Cuarto si tienes una tarjeta de viajero frecuente, ver si es posible que realizes un upgrade de clase para poder acceder a unos asientos de mejor categoría. A veces no tenemos puntos para pagar un billete completo con los puntos; sin embargo nos llevamos la agradable sorpresa que podemos acceder a una clase superior con los puntos que tenemos acumulados y que muchas veces no sabemos que utilidad darles.

Y por último y no por ello menos importante, durante el viaje no olvides de hidratarte. Por regla general la tripulación de cabina en el espacio entre comidas suele disponer de un servicio de bebidad en la cola del avión para la clase turista, en donde encontrarás agua, bebidas no alcoholicas a tu disposición. Y por supuesto no te olvides de levantarte regularmente para estirar las piernas y hacer ejercicios en tu butaca para mejorar la circulación sanguínea.

In the search of the fifth taste (little treasures series)

(Version en Castellano)

When starting a trip, usually the sense that you use more is the sight. We are looking forward to everything that surrounds us, and only when we relax and allow ourselves, we realize that sensory stimuli reach the new place for more channels than the visual.

We believe that a stimulating place to be an exotic destination, with cultures totally different from ours … But one of the most challenging for my senses are not across the planet, but much closer.

I’ve been lucky enough to get to the place we talked about the Mar. I think is not the same reach Naples by a conveyance that allows you to contemplate its spectacular bay, with Vesuvius on the horizon cut and Capri to other side.

Naples overwhelms you sensually, not let a break. Is southern Italy and therefore is a place full of archetypes, where suddenly you see represented Italy in the films of Fellini with clothes hanging on ropes that go from side to side of the street.

In Naples is prohibited relax, traffic rules have been broken, both by pedestrians and vehicles, crossing a busy street can become an adventure, passing vehicles behind and in front of the pedestrian, the advantage of this short opportunities, giving brief respite from traffic, to advance to the destination, which is in oposite side of the street, vehicles moving in the opposite direction down the street and suddenly throughout this morass, you come to a street where no traffic seems to be an atmosphere of village and not that of the second largest city in Italy.

Naples and just so not only stimulates the eye but the ear, but here we really want to talk about the taste and possibly think that I want to mention pizza, of which Naples is the birth place, giving the name of the famous Pizza Margarita on in honor of the Queen of the same name as its composition carries the colors of the Italian flag. Red by tomato, mozzarella white, and green basil. But for me the most special moment of the day is when you get close to the Via Toledo to the Galleria Umberto I.

Español: Fachada de la Galería Umberto I, Nápoles
Galleria Umberto I

Many people remember a similar one in Milan. Around mid-afternoon, the entry that is close to this street forms a tail that begins in a small bakery, “Sfogliatella Mary”. This is one of the places on the planet where you can discover the fifth taste, which the Japanese call umami. That feeling you get when you take a bath in hot water after a stressful day or when you try something exquisite and your throat get a aaaahhh!! characteristic. To feel the fifth taste it is best at this time of the evening, with my favorite pastry of Naples, the sfogliatella freshly made. Feel the crisp crust on contact with your teeth, and gradually feel the noise that makes the bite, feeling the warm custard caresses your palate, while notes feel vanilla, powdered sugar mixing with the taste of puff and feel that this aaahhh! out of your throat.

Sfogliatella Santarosa
Sfogliatella Santarosa (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As you can see traveling is not just seeing new places but feel new things.

How to get a ticket for the best price on the Ryanair website (Part One)

96 Leather Passport Airline Ticket Holder
96 Leather Passport Airline Ticket Holder (Photo credit: ExecGifts)

(Version en español)

Actually the title should not be that, but how to get the cheapest ticket for a plane flight. It must be said that Ryanair are experts in selling tickets for flights when in fact sometimes they are not.

The first thing, every ticket buyer you should do is calculate the real value of the cost, since leaving the door of his house until the point at which to stay. The reason we say this is that many of the Ryanair destination airports are not actually located in the geographical area they describe. For example if you go to London the destination airport  Luton or Stanstead may be, with which the connections to central London public transport can be scarce and expensive compared to other area airports. Also if you check luggage calculates the franchise with a traditional company, and you may find that once you add in all the additional fees for Ryanair, the ticket is more expensive than if you go with a company that is not low cost. And this is not about that either choice is bad, but you get the most for the money you pay.

So the first step should be to make a sounder than it costs you the flight path from zero up to the place where the bed will be the place of destination, for me you would with the following

Cost of transportation to the airport. (In case that flights departing from different airports)
Ticket Cost (discussing the baggage allowance, costing bill, get boarding or seat reservation)
The size of hand luggage
Average waiting time for checked baggage on arrival
Time and cost of getting to your accommodation

The cost of transport to the airport is usually easily obtainable based on previous experience. Concerning the cost of the ticket for the extra baggage we can get at this link

As an example a ticket with Ryanair from Stansted to Madrid to baggage allowance of 20 kg and reservation priority boarding, in addition to the charge for credit card sale € 179.50. If you use the shuttle service the amount is € 195.60 with journey time to central London in 75 minutes. The cheaper one is a traditional airline ticket from Madrid to Heathrow for an amount of € 219.08 and the cost of the Heathrow Express ticket for 40.00 € with a duration of 15 minutes to central London. That is 195.60 against 259.08 and an additional trip in the most economical two hours longer to transport.

What if the date to come over to our search and instead of looking for a more than a month in advance we just fifteen days in advance. There the Ryanair ticket with the same conditions is

English: Ryanair (EI-DWF) Boeing 737-800 aircr...
English: Ryanair (EI-DWF) Boeing 737-800 aircraft, London Stansted Airport, Essex, England, July 2010 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

raised € 261.19. However in some company can get ticket to Heathrow for € 237 plus € 40 for Heathrow Express makes a total of 277 €. And when you consider the two hours of time over which we can have in London, due to time savings in transportation to our final destination, it is not so clear in this case that Ryanair is the most economical option, but if the cheaper.

The main thing is to stop and across to compare all that goes on a journey and not just the price of the plane ticket.

To find the price of a taxi can use a website that allows worldtaximeter type estimate for a custom tour for us to cities around the world, and we can do internet searches using the name of the airport and shuttle bus words to access websites shuttle services between airports and nearby cities. giving information on fares, schedules and travel time

For a next post will give an explanation on the web to buy Ryanair and show our admiration for her as a system of self-purchase by us users.

Are they totally missed the seven wonders of the ancient world? (Small tresaures series)

(Spanish version)

The Seven Wonders of the World, a collection of works of humanity that are at the magnificent man-made in antiquity. Aside from the fact that its classification corresponded Greek centric vision of the world when this classification was developed. It is less clear whether they have been part of the collective imagination. Number one are the Pyramids of Egypt, which is the only of them that remain standing, despite the depredations that have undergone throughout history. The others have disappeared and we have no reference or very few of them.

Statues from Halicarnassus [A630-2146]
Statues from Halicarnassus [A630-2146] (Photo credit: Juan N Only)
The Pyramid of Giza
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus
The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus
The Colossus of Rhodes
The Statue of Zeus at Olympia
The Lighthouse of Alexandria

For example of the Hanging Gardens for years doubted his existence, but modern excavations seem to confirm that they were actually built.

To get an idea of ​​what were sometimes complicated, a representation in a currency of the time, the description of a contemporary author and of course there’s always the boundless imagination of cinema, although typically dedicated to the Pyramids, the Colossus of Rhodes.

But today I would like us to stop at the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus (Halicarnassus was located in what today is known as Bodrum in Turkey). And it was the tomb of Mausolus Satrap (although some sources appears as King). Hence, from the time the graves they had a gorgeous and sumptuous, be known by the name of Mausoleum.

The Mausoleum according to historical references he calculates a height of more than forty meters and endured the invasion of Alexander the Great, the Arabs … but an earthquake destroyed it in 1404. Like almost all the monuments that have fallen by earthquakes in the fifteenth century, and had endured standing over a thousand years is usually the reason was that the marble buildings were secured by metal pins. And a from the invention of modern guns much of that metal was used for artillery armies. Whereupon coming an earthquake and were a “loose stones” crumbling structure.

In 1522 these crumbling stones were used by the Knights of the Order of St. John to repair the Castle of San Pedro de Halicarnassus

Now if we get a composition of the awesomeness that was the Mausoleum from my personal experience, the best place is London. And specifically the British Museum.
Many of you will be missed, but will devote some space to this in more detail later on the reasons for the prominence of the UK and London in particle in this aspect.

Personally I recognize that London has an impressive network of museums, my favorite being the British Museum, even if I know I will be little time, I try to leave a gap in my schedule to visit some room.

For me, if I take the subway, the easiest option is to get off at Totenmham Court Road, at the end of Oxford Street. Up North on Totemham Court Road and take the first right cross and go to the east, and walked about six minutes we find the main entrance of the British Museum.

Horse from Halikarnassos

Our goal in this visit is the Hall 21, who can not imagine his name, because if “Mausuleum of Halicarnassus”. Personally I have fallen in love with a piece of sculpture, the head of a horse that was an embellishment, otherwise leave it to your imagination