Another great article by Donna Hull. Being a 60s Boomer and not starting a family until my mid 30s I yet haven’t had the pleasure of traveling with grandkids. So I appreciate this piece even more. Travel is one of the great pleasures in life so to do so like this could be the ultimate!

In Alaska’s Glacier Bay, a humpback whale jumps out of the water and a seven-year-old girl squeals with delight. “Look, Grandma,” she says, clutching the baby boomer’s hand. Dad stands in the background recording the scene with a digital camera as they all gasp when the behemoth mammal slams back into the sea. Although the photograph will be nice, it won’t replace the experience that’s etched into their minds, a memory that will withstand time and loss.

Multigenerational travel no longer means a beach houses on the coast where Grandma and Grandpa look after the kids as parents take a much-needed break. Today’s families are introducing adventure, culture and exploration into the mix.

Before deciding where to go, families should ask themselves a few questions. What are our interests? How active do we want to be? What are our physical capabilities? How much down time do we need? Is there a family member who requires special consideration?

For the full article click here.

Jetlag is a funny animal. Having been in the travel industry for some years I have been at its mercy dozens of times.

One thing I have noticed that is not often talked about is that jetlag has the opposite effect on people on almost equal basis. That is – some travel better east, and the other half of the population travel better to the west.

Personally I travel better in a westly direction. So for example if I went from Singapore to London I can have a couple of hours sleep if arriving in the morning and then I am ready to go. Head into town for the day and even down to the West End and take in a show. But after a few days in London when I travel back to Singapore or Bangkok I feel terrible, and it may take four or five days to get back into a normal sleep routine.

And now to really throw a spanner in the works. I experience the same ‘out of routine’ disruption if I travel north or south overnight and don’t get any sleep. Say from Sydney to Tokyo, or viceversa.

So is this jetlag? I don’t think so, but nevertheless my day clock has been move right ten hours and I have the same 3-4 day delay in getting back into the correct time zone.

Is it just me? Please feel free to add a comment if you have any experience on this.

This is certainly thought provoking. Alex Jones is one outspoken dude…… the thing is which side is telling the truth? Really opens a can of worms!!

This is the first of several videos….

Here is the Wiki definition of Swine Flu….. I thought there has been enough hype on this subject but as numbers infected around the world increase why not put out some more info. Trust it may be of use to someone.

Swine influenza (also called swine flu, hog flu, and pig flu) is an infection of a host animal by any one of several specific types of microscopic organisms called “swine influenza virus”. A swine influenza virus (SIV) is any strain of the influenza family of viruses that is usually hosted by (is endemic in) pigs.[2] As of 2009, the known SIV strains are the influenza C virus and the subtypes of the influenza A virus known as H1N1, H1N2, H3N1, H3N2, and H2N3. Swine influenza is common in pigs in the midwestern United States (and occasionally in other states), Mexico, Canada, South America, Europe (including the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Italy), Kenya, Mainland China, Taiwan, Japan and other parts of eastern Asia.[2]
Transmission of swine influenza virus from pigs to humans is not common and does not always cause human influenza, often only resulting in the production of antibodies in the blood. The meat of the animal poses no risk of transmitting the virus when properly cooked. If transmission does cause human influenza, it is called zoonotic swine flu. People who work with pigs, especially people with intense exposures, are at increased risk of catching swine flu. In the mid-20th century, identification of influenza subtypes became possible, this allows accurate diagnosis of transmission to humans. Since then, fifty confirmed transmissions have been recorded, Rarely, these strains of swine flu can pass from human to human. In humans, the symptoms of swine flu are similar to those of influenza and of influenza-like illness in general, namely chills, fever, sore throat, muscle pains, severe headache, coughing, weakness and general discomfort.
The 2009 flu outbreak in humans, known as “swine flu”, is due to a new strain of influenza A virus subtype H1N1 that contains genes closely related to swine influenza.[3] The origin of this new strain is unknown. However, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) reports that this strain has not been isolated in pigs.[4] This strain can be transmitted from human to human,[5] and causes the normal symptoms of influenza.[6]
Pigs can become infected with human influenza, and this appears to have happened during the 1918 flu pandemic and the 2009 flu outbreak.

Kayak fishing - what can I say. I live in the middle of a city with a population of over 4million, yet can get out on the water in the middle of it all and watch the commuters rush to work around the foreshore while I pull up a 54cm taylor!

Life is good!

While not in the league of this guy in the video below I always feel better for getting out and having a paddle, even if nothing is caught. Anyway thought this may inspire some of you to give kayak fishing a go…

A sensational result……