Louise Heal

E-Book Review: 25 Travel Blogging Secrets

2011-06-02T13:56:00.000+01:00

If you’re starting out in travel cyber-media, it’s the $6million question: Just how do you make money from travel blogging? (Actually, forget $6million, $6,000 would be good).

Fortunately, the established travel blogger Vago Damitio (http://www.vagobond.com) has put together his “25 Travel Blogging Secrets (How to Make Money & Blog Successfully)”, to help you on our way.

Any travel blogger starting out will play a number of roles: Traveller, Writer, Editor, Site Designer AND Sales & Marketing executive. Without ever saying so explicitly, Damitio takes the reader through these various roles, classified as General Tips, Content, Promotion and Making Money.

The advice is eminently practical, with good examples attached of what works (and what doesn’t). Purists will undoubtedly find things to criticise: buying your own “followers” to bump up your Web stats? Hiring other writers to rewrite (or even write) your articles? But the blogosphere is a real place, with real issues that have to be dealt with if you want to be successful.

There are a few notable omissions from the list. E.g., no mention is made of the rapidly changing technology. What worked with RSS feeds 3 years ago won’t work in a world dominated by Apps and digital readers.

This book will need updating as time and technology move on. But it can be summed up in 3 words: Focus (know your market), Persistence (don’t join the blog graveyard) and Professionalism (look like you mean business).

Now just get on with it!

La Boqueria - Barcelona

2011-04-26T20:16:00.000+01:00

We didn't exactly time our visit to La Boqueria perfectly. Let me explain: it was nearly lunchtime. It had been a while since breakfast, we were both starting to feel peckish and then we hit upon Barcelona's premier food market.

They named the market after a Saint? That's taking food seriously...

As a fully-paid up omnivore, I find any kind of food market interesting (at worst) or tantalising (at best). La Boqueria is all of these things although, if you're vegetarian, you may care to skip some of the sections!

The seafood is, of course, fabulous. We were there in March and the selection of seafood and fish was overwhelming. According to local Barcelonins, it is even better over Christmas and New Year. But still, it was impressive:


I'll have the cooked prawns. No wait, the raw ones! No, oysters! No, mussels, razor clams...Oh, you choose for me!

Can we take lobsters as hand luggage? What, not live ones?

Salted Cod (Bacalao/Bacalaos) is a classic Spanish & Portuguese fish

Now for cold meats: those plates of ham and sausage that appear in every tapas bar in Barcelona come from somewhere, and it's a fair bet that many of them come from here. As somebody once asked me: "Care for some more pig?"

Ham, Ham and Ham

Hot or cold. Grilled or fried. Spicy or garlic-flavoured...

Whatever flavouring you need for your meat, it's a fair bet you can get it here

And don't forget the 5-a-day

La Boqueria delights in the sweet end of things too. We restrained ourselves from these, instead delving into a few fruit 'n' nut mixes. But, oh boy, check this out:

Diet, what diet?

La Boqueria also does a great line in bars and restaurants. It's not a place for a full meal, rather for a tapas selection of whatever-takes-your-fancy or whatever the chef is doing today. The chalk blackboard menus are testimony to the changing selection. Get there early, or your favourite may have gone!

A few words of warning: keep an eye on your belongings (pickpockets are common) and ask the price of food and drink before ordering, or you could be in for a nasty shock when the bill arrives! But take your time to look around, don't be afraid to ask questions and savour every mouthful!

So we'll start with Jamon and Gambas. Oh, and Patatas Bravas. Then maybe an Helado for dessert?

Buon Appetito!

This blogpost is part of the Blogsherpa Blog Carnival #23. This Blog Carnival is hosted by Kiran Keswani of Indian Bazaars. Thanks for hosting Kiran!

Football's Not Coming Home

2010-06-29T22:16:00.002+01:00

So England are out of the World Cup. On the bright side, there were no penalty shoot-outs and nobody cried.

So what now for us England fans? If you're in London and want to carry on with the multi-national, global theme, then this summer offers quite a few opportunities to do just that.

So let's kick off with...

Brazil

Festival Brazil is a month-long festival at the Southbank Centre, bringing contemporary Brazilian culture to London.. It runs from June 11th to July 18th and these are a few of the highlights:

Youth Orchestra of Bahia (July 7th, 7.30pm). From the same stable as the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra, this is their first visit to London. Conducted by Ricardo Castro, the programme for the evening is "Music from the Americas" and includes Gershwin and Bernstein.

A Woman's Eye on Brazil (July 9th, 7pm). Ana Maria Goncalves, Patricia Melo and Maria Valéria discuss Brazil and their work.

Sócrates: Futebol and Brazil (July 18th, 5pm). Sócrates is a former captain of the Brazil football team who is now a major cultural commentator. Maybe he'll be giving his views on another World Cup Winning performance?

Skylon Caipirinha Cocktail Masterclass (July 12th, 6.30pm). If all that literature and music sounds like too much hard work, just join "Master Mixologist" Zoran Peric to learn the secrets of the perfect Brazilian cocktail. Includes 2 drinks per person. Hic.

Get Rid of Me - Win a 6-month RTW trip for 2!

2010-06-17T22:33:00.000+01:00

Those crazy folk over at On-The-Go Tours have launched the World's First Unpopularity Contest. Yes, you read that correctly.

All YOU have to do is "confess your sins" and tell the world why it deserves to be rid of you (and a significant other) for a (longish) while.

So is this the trip of a lifetime? Well, at 6 months and 18 countries, it could well be. You'll be going to China, Egypt, India, Jordan, (overland) Kenya to South Africa, Morocco, Nepal, Russia (including the Trans-Siberian), and Turkey.

(I think that's alphabetical order rather than actual order of travel).

All flights and visa costs are taken care of, along with reasonable spending money.

Full details and prizes are at Get Rid of Me.

If you win, fine. I'm really, really pleased for you. Honest. I just don't want to hear about it when you get back.

If you win, I will be as bad-tempered as this camel. And that's a promise.

You can have your own photo just like this. I won't care, I already have one.

Getting in on the Act - Singing Along for England

2010-06-14T18:46:00.000+01:00

The current bone of contention in England (OK, apart from the major occurrence of butterfingers) is that there is NO official World Cup England Song.

Most Official England Songs are beyond horrendous. Here's an example from 20 years ago:

Nevertheless, a few people have tried to put this 2010 omission right. The News of the World newspaper (misnomer if ever there was one) was in Trafalgar Square on Saturday, drumming up support for their single Cabanga (by Joe Public United):

Are all lions called Leo? That could get complicated...

And what better to get us all in the mood than a quick conga round the back of Nelson's column and past the National Gallery?

Leo leads the Conga round the square

But the NOTW has competition. James Corden and Dizzee Rascal have recorded a re-work of a Tears for Fears song: 'Shout for England':

The NOTW didn't read the small print: if it's a #1 single you want, it's Simon Cowell you need. And guess what? "Shout for England" was #1 yesterday.

Never mind, eh Leo?

The Beautiful Game

2010-06-07T19:31:00.001+01:00

The World Cup is all about preparation. A successful tournament boils down to more than the performances on the pitch. And I’m not talking about the players. Here in London, the general population has been gearing up for months:

Need a new TV? No problem. Toshiba will sell you a new flat-screen, with the added incentive that you get it free if England win the World Cup!

Planning a footie party? Then drop into Tesco, the “Official Supermarket” of the World Cup, who have a multitude of offers on BBQ food, beer and South African wine.

Pizza Express, the darling of the English middle class, is in on the act too. 2-for-1 pizzas, whether it’s for football-and-pizza-take-out or no-football-eat-in.

If you’re more of a saver than a spender, fear not:

Nationwide, the major England sponsor, are offering a 4-Year Football Bond, with a 0.5% bonus if England win in South Africa

So welcome to London. For the month or so, all Englishmen (and many women) will forego rational thought. Our British reserve and our stiff upper lip will desert us. We will rediscover patriotism, talk to strangers on the Tube and blub like babies whether Wayne Rooney scores or sees red.

The FIFA 2010 Football World Cup has teams from 32 countries. And London is most definitely the definition of a global city. So I’m going to put away my England underpants in 2010 and focus my attentions on the smaller, less well-represented nations:

Where in London can Paraguayans watch Roque Santa Cruz and eat tapas?

Where is London’s biggest Korean community?

Can you eat Ghanaian food and watch them at football at the same time?

Will Slovenia, Slovakia or Serbia make it through the group stages?

It'll be a blast!

As long as we don't go out on penalties. Again.

Random Musings

2010-05-13T11:45:00.002+01:00

Twitter

India has a new Twitterer: Sachin Tendulkar, the legendary Indian cricketer. In a country where cricket heroes are akin to Gods, Tendulkar could lay a good claim to being the hero of the Gods. He was running at tens of thousands of followers within hours.

Find him at sachin_rt.

Indian Idol

I caught a few moments of the opening rounds of Indian Idol and identified the ‘baddie’ judge straight away, despite not understanding a word of it. I did notice that the contestants bend down and touch the feet of the judges if they get through.

Now don’t give Simon Cowell any ideas.

Death Penalty

The sole surviving Mumbai bomber was sentenced to death last week. The night before the sentencing, a particularly vocal political debate took place on TV here. A pro-death penalty participant uttered the immortal words (paraphrased):

“The reason that the situation in Northern Ireland went on for so long and was so difficult to solve was that they do not have the death penalty!”

Funny, I’d have been hard pushed to mention one thing that could have made the Troubles worse…until now.

Politics

On reflection, perhaps Kerala wasn’t the best place to come to escape the UK general election.

This is one of the most highly politicised places on earth: Communism and Marxism sit quite happily alongside Hinduism and various branches of Christianity.

I have fielded questions on political parties and on coalition governments. And, on one train journey:

“Could you please explain to me why your country has a Queen?”

Politics, Kerala-Style

And Finally...

I'm heading back home tomorrow (4.30am taxi! Noooo....!) so this is the last of my posts from this trip.

Thanks for reading, hope to do some more soon!

Sari Central

2010-05-13T11:36:00.000+01:00

To the Jayalakshmi department store in Ernakulam, over the water from Fort Cochin. This glass and teak extravaganza advertises itself as THE place to buy wedding saris.

On the top floor (Rs 2000 and over), a family group sits in front of a runway while shop girls unravel bolts of cloth and spread it over themselves. Another girl runs around offering cups of frothy coffee.

The aftermath of choosing a wedding sari

It is all a whirl: green, pink, red, gold and more cloth than I have seen in my life. The effect is not unlike Aladdin's Cave after a few strong G&Ts (I imagine).

Eventually a suspicious and scary assistant approaches me and asks “Are you here to buy a sari?”
I confess that I am not and retreat to the safety of the lower floors.

Even the display models look scary

Bazaar Road

2010-05-13T11:26:00.000+01:00

If you’re interested in spices, head to Bazaar Road in Kochi. Running from Fort Cochin to Mattancherry, this 1.5km stretch of road is where Kerala’s commodities come to be sold.

Not sure about the drugs, but the rest makes sense

The northern (Fort Cochin) end of the road is dominated by decaying 17th and 18th Century Dutch and Portuguese mansions. In true Keralan style, many are now stylish guesthouses or awaiting renovation.

You’ll soon come into Bazaar Road proper: a narrow section of road filled with tiny open-fronted shops advertising wholesale, retail or commission sales. The trade here is mainly edible: tea, spices, dried fruit, garlic and cashew nuts feature heavily. (You’ll also find rubber, if that floats your boat).

Cashews are from Kollam - just a short backwater trip away

The ‘hole-in-the-wall’ shops selling a variety of goods out of glass jars are usually the best bet. Best to avoid the shrink-wrapped strips aimed squarely at tourists and choose your own.

Fennel, Star Anise, Black Pepper, Mustard Seeds and, er...

The southern (Mattancherry) end of the road tapers into Jew Town and the Palace. Be warned: this is prime tourist area, with touts outside every shop. Even the rickshaw drivers are in on the act: try to get a ride back to Fort Cochin and you’ll be burdened with the “Just one shop…” act before they’ve turned the engine on.

Now that would mean something completely different in Soho

Let's Get Together

2010-05-10T09:23:00.000+01:00

It was early evening in Fort Cochin. The fish-sellers (“You buy, we cook”) were setting up stall along the seaside walkway. Drivers parked white Suzuki Marutis along the pavements, mopeds whizzed by and families streamed towards the ice-cream sellers.

But on Comrade Abu Square, the focus was on an earnest young man with a bushy beard and long black hair, who sat on a platform and shouted too loudly into a microphone. Eventually, he took a bow and left the platform to a small ripple of applause. Next to the stage, a man flicked a switch and the music began.

Bob Marley was playing on the stereo.

I had stumbled across the festival of the Bob Marley Cultural Collective that morning. Comrade Abu Square was lined with neat rows of red plastic chairs. One table labelled ‘Official’ and one labelled ‘Press’ faced a raised platform. Here, the young man stood and preached, while 6 delegates sat behind him and nodded seriously. The audience consisted of a few dozen curious passers-by.

As the whole talk was in Malayalam, I could only catch a few phrases:

“BOB MARLEY….REGGAE….BOB MARLEY…BOB MARLEY!”

Stir it up

A number of photos and posters displayed Bob Marley in familiar poses: head back, laughing, oversize hat on dreadlocks.

A quick perusal of the Hindu newspaper revealed the schedule for the festival. Aware that I would miss the seminar “Cultural Resistance at the Time of Globalization”, I decided to leave and return for the music at 5pm.

By 5pm, the red plastic chairs were strewn across the square. The audience now consisted of tired tourists or elderly people looking for a seat. A man approached me looking for donations, and I asked him what this was all about.

“We are celebrating Bob Marley and his fight for the underclass against the oppressors. Because, you know, the black power!”

He clenched his fist at this last part and I caught a faint whiff of alcohol on his breath.

“Against the whites, man! We are fighting against capitalism and for Marxism. We are carrying on in the fight to no longer be downtrodden!”

“So why did you choose Bob Marley?” I asked.

“Because, you know, he did it through music”.

And so I, a white woman from a capitalist country, handed over a donation so that I could stop oppressing people.

The music was still going, but nobody seemed to be enjoying it.

Buffalo Soldier

Messing About on the River

2010-05-10T09:17:00.000+01:00

Backwater cruises are everywhere in Kerala. From the government tourist office to your guesthouse, everybody will try to sell you a trip on a converted rice barge.

But if you’d like to see the backwaters in a more low-key way, then a trip in a traditional wooden canoe might be just the ticket. Travelling almost at water level, you’ll get off the main rivers into a network of narrow canals and see village life close up.

Gliding along at water level

Canoe trips last from 1 hour to 1 day (6-7 hours, including stops for snacks and sightseeing). They’re cheaper than houseboat stays, and with no engine they’re more eco-friendly. For a small canoe, 4 adults would be a comfortable maximum.

The villagers in the backwaters make their livings from a mixture of subsistence farming, coir-rope making, fishing and boat-building. You will undoubtedly be taken to a rope-making demonstration – this is where the ropes for Keralan fishing nets are made.

Many canals are only a few feet wide and a few feet deep. On my trip, the canopy of palm trees was so thick and the water so still that I felt like the canoe was skimming over green silk.

We stopped to watch a lady making a coir rope. Walking backwards from a spinning wheel, she wove shredded coconut husks into a rope. She said she could make up to 400m of rope a day like this, most of which ended up as coir mats.

Making ropes - the hard way

Then we glided past fish farms, strung over with blue nets to keep the birds off. 3 fishermen paddled past us in their canoe, calling out to villagers as they went. The tap-tap of hammer and nails indicated that boat-builders were at work.

Fisherman takes quick ciggy break

We stopped for a snack in another village. A mother poured chai for us while her daughter giggled at me. A few photos later and it was time to head back. Ducking under the palm branches that criss-cross the narrow canals, we went back onto the main river.

The canal network is well-maintained: expect to see stone-reinforced banks, dredging machines and concrete bridges.

Or, as my guide put it when I asked him:

“Canals are the same as highways here”

I couldn’t have put it better myself.

Paddling through the canals

Where: The Kettunad backwaters between Kollam, Allappuzha and Kochi
When: Year-round (weather permitting during monsoon)
How much: Expect to pay Rs150-200 per hour
Don’t Forget: Water, Sunblock, Hat (there is no shade on the canoes). Small change for tips and snacks
Good to know: Many villagers here live at subsistence level. Any purchases you make or gifts for children are much appreciated.

Anjengo Fort

2010-05-06T13:39:00.017+01:00

Anjengo Fort doesn’t look like much these days: a blackened square stone structure that is 4m tall and 50m square at the most.

Anjengo Fort

But in the late 17th Century, Anjengo Fort was the Trump Towers of its day, at least as far as the English were concerned. It was the Honourable Company’s first permanent post on the Malabar Coast.

The entrance gate and garden

Back then, Kerala was divided into self-governing kingdoms. Acquiring a part of the lucrative spice trade meant doing deals with local rulers. And the spice trade was the reason that the Europeans were here.

Anjengo was part of the Kingdom of Attingal – ruled by a Queen. Her name was Aswati Tirunal Umayamma, but she went by the common name of the Pepper Queen.

In June 1694, the Pepper Queen signed the Grant of Anjengo:

I give unto the English Company

All the pepper in my country

That they may contract and pay for it at the price currant

This grant also gave the Honourable Company the right to build a fortified stone structure in Anjengo and to raise a flag. Anjengo came to a bloody (and somewhat self-inflicted) end in 1721, but more on that later.

I wandered around the fort alone, hoping for some indication of the people who once lived here. But there is little here now: a flag pole that hasn’t seen any flags in years, a garden in the centre, a disused well. There is a tombstone with the inscription “Here Lyes Deborah Iyers”.

The flagpole (really quite a big deal at the time)

The well and caretaker

But like I said, it doesn’t look like much these days.

One Caste, One Religion, One God

2010-05-06T13:32:00.000+01:00

A Hindu temple that is open to anybody is a bit unusual in Kerala. Finding one with a picture of Jesus, a picture of Buddha and an Islamic script is, well, unique.

But then Nanoo Swami’s philosophy of “One Caste, One Religion, One God” must have had Hindus throughout Kerala choking on their morning chai when he first expounded it at the end of the 19th Century.

(To put this in context: at the time, even the approach roads to Hindu temples were off-limits to the lower castes).

Born into the (low) Ezhava caste in 1854, Nanoo Swami left his family in his 20s to seek enlightenment. In 1888, he consecrated his first temple (presumably leaving the Brahmin priests swooning in horror). Many more followed: all were open to anybody and some had mirrors instead of shrines, to show that “God lay inside every person”.

Sivagiri Hill, where Nanoo Swami based himself for the last 20 years of his life, is 3km inland from Varkala. Open to anybody, there is a small display of the Swami’s few possessions, and pictures of him meeting with the great and good (notably Gandhi).

For more information, visit http://www.sivagiri.org/

The man himself

Jesus hangin' with the Lord Buddha

Varkala

2010-05-05T12:11:00.000+01:00

Varkala, like Kovalam, is almost devoid of tourists. Those that are here fall pretty much into two categories. There are the leather-skinned old hands, eking out the last of the sunshine before heading to the mountains when the monsoon hits. Then there are the pale-skinned first-timers, who are wondering where everybody is.

The beach here is set dramatically below a red cliff face. Tourists swim and sunbathe at the northern end, while the southern end is left to the Hindu pilgrims. They come here from the Janardhana Swamy Temple with the ashes of their loved ones and float them out to sea.

Varkala Cliffs and Beach: Pilgrims to the left, Tourists to the right

Later on, I visited the temple. To my untrained eye, it seemed unremarkable. With one exception: a tree shrine with hundreds of little plastic dolls hanging from it. Women prayed in front of it and put coins into the devotional box. It was, I have to say, a tad spooky.

Entrance to the temple: why is it ALWAYS at the top of a long flight of steps?

The Hanging Doll tree. Yikes.

Fishing Village or Container Port?

2010-05-05T11:59:00.011+01:00

Vizhinjam is a village about 3km south of Kovalam beach. It is home to about 10,000 people, most of them involved in the fishing trade (with the poverty that that implies).

On the northern side of the harbour is the Muslim settlement with a mosque and school. On the other side is the Catholic part of the village with the Our Lady of Good Voyage Church. The two halves exist in an uneasy state of tolerance that occasionally breaks out into riots.

The Muslim area of Vizhinjam

Our Lady of Good Voyage church (Mary and Jesus in the boat on the roof!)

For somewhere this small, Vizhinjam has featured rather prominently in the national press over the past few years.

And the reason? Well, Vizhinjam’s harbour is large, deep (24m) and extremely accessible. And therefore rather desirable when it came to looking at sites for a new container harbour. If/when the project goes ahead, it will bring much-needed investment: new roads, rail links and new jobs.

Discussions have rumbled on for years, but the smart money says that work will begin this year, shortly before the Kerala assembly elections in May 2011. 'twas ever thus.

The Fishing Market

Chatting about the container port?

Kovalam Scenes

2010-05-05T11:44:00.000+01:00

The fruit-sellers grabbed me on the Kovalam strip. I knew I was going to get fleeced the moment I sat down (NEVER sit down). Once they started telling me how special I was, I realised I was a total goner. I blame the heat.

You will not get out of here without buying this pineapple (and I didn't)

It’s hard to criticise people who travel 20km by bus every day to sell fruit on a beach, or even who sleep on the beach every night and only go home once a month. Could I begrudge them the (relatively) small sum of money that I handed over?

Like the fishermen, I suspect the fruit sellers will always be here. It is, after all, only the tourists who change.

Au revoir to the fishermen of Kovalam

Same God Outside

2010-05-03T15:52:00.000+01:00

I am not a Hindu. So the Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram is off limits to me.

Which I do not

The Puttan Malika Palace next door, however, is only too pleased to take my money: Rs 25 for entrance, Rs20 for my camera (“No photos inside. Outside only”). Entrance to the palace is as part of a tour, so 40 of us remove our shoes and follow a tour guide inside.

It quickly becomes apparent that this is less a guided tour than an attempt to shepherd us round the palace in world-record time.

“See here – statues of Kathakali characters. You understand madam?” (The last part is directed at me. I nod).

The statues pass in a blur of colour.

“Please come inside next room. Painting of British resident presenting to Rajah from Queen Victoria”.

There is a description next to the painting. We are not permitted time to read it. I can’t even catch a name.

“See here: howdah, palanquin. For carrying of Rajah. Bohemian crystal glass throne from Czechoslovakia” (I manage to note down the green velvet upholstery).

“Here in case we have sundial. It will fire every morning at 7am. You know Isaac Newton, the French, Confucius?”

I grab a quick glance at the sundial as we whirl through to another room.

“Careful of step please. Silence, 2m 70cm gun here. Captured from Dutch in 1741. Now we go upstairs”. The gun is indeed long, but there is no time to ‘wow’ over it.

Upstairs we go. I take a tissue from my bag and mop my brow. Other people do likewise.

“Inside study room please. Look at ceiling” We look at the ceiling.

“Please come inside Madam”.

The study room is an octagonal internal room, lined with empty bookcases. It seems more like a cell.

A man approaches the guide and whispers something to him.

“Please to come in here. Sit here please and wait while I take these very urgent people”. He hurries off with 4 of the men.

We have entered a room marked ‘Dancing Hall’. We sit obediently on tables around the walls and wait.

People begin to drift off. A party of young girls go back the way we’ve come to look at some oil paintings. A group of men go back downstairs.

The guide returns and pretends not to notice that half the group has vanished.

“Women’s room here with view of temple. Also secret passageway into temple. Non-Hindus not allowed in temple madam. But no problem: same God outside as inside”

I barely have time to ponder this before we are off again, almost at a jog. We pass more oil paintings (“All by English painters. Royal family: Rajah, Queen, Princesses”).

We go back downstairs and emerge, blinking, into the sunlight. I check my watch. The tour has barely taken 25 minutes and there were 20 or so rooms (I lost count somewhere between the giant gun and the secret passageway).

“OK to take photos now”. There is very little to photograph. Eyes roll and people move away. I take a few shots and a young man takes photos of his friends.

Puttan Malika means "Palace of Horses". We barely had time to observe these carvings.

But the guide has not finished. He rushes up to the young man: “No photo! Need camera ticket!”

The young man smirks. I don’t need to speak Malayalam to understand his response.

“Ah” he says. “But this isn’t a camera. It’s a mobile phone”.

The guide blusters before walking off. We all smile at each other and chalk up a small victory over the God of Petty Officialdom.

Outside the temple. Just cute really ;)

Sunday at the Beach #3 - Evening

2010-05-03T15:41:00.000+01:00

Everybody gathers on the beach to watch the sunset. It is low season, so there are plenty of empty seats on the balcony of a restaurant. In high season, I would have to book a day in advance to get this view.

Fishing boats are going out to sea from all along the coast. The boats still on the beach are being used by tourists: to lean on, shelter under, dry clothes on. The day is nearly over and children are being coaxed out of the water (ice cream appears to be the lure).

Uses for a fishing boat

The stewards are still blowing their whistles, but with less enthusiasm now. Young men are coming out of the water, drying themselves off and discreetly removing shorts from under towels.

The lighthouse lights up at 6pm and the light begins to rotate. The fishing boats light up too and twinkle on the sea. The sound of the engines mixes with the noise of the waves. The smell of wood smoke grows stronger again and the crows are still here, still hopeful and still scavenging.

The end of a long day at the beach

Sunday at the Beach #2 - Afternoon

2010-05-03T15:36:00.001+01:00

In early afternoon, I walk back along the beach. A crowd has gathered around a pushcart and people are walking away with orange and red ice lollies in the shapes of rockets.

The umbrellas and loungers are busy. They are for sun protection and resting, not for sunbathing. There are also boogie boards for hire. People are munching on snacks. The black crows still look hopeful.

The surf is now crowded with people. There are a few sari-clad women and a few girls in shorts and tops, but it is mainly the men who bathe in the sea. Everybody is clothed. There is shouting and cheering, jumping and diving. There is also whistling, from the beach stewards in their blue uniforms. This can be a dangerous beach, so the signs tell us.

Vizhinjam Lighthouse

I climb to the top of the lighthouse. The last part is up a ladder. A young girl is coaxed up by her father (pulling from above) and her mother (pushing from below). With bare feet and sweating hands I don’t feel altogether comfortable myself.

From the top I can see the waves falling on the beach and there seems to be an undercurrent there. Maybe the stewards have a point.

From the Lighthouse

Sunday at the Beach #1 - Morning

2010-05-03T15:33:00.000+01:00

Lighthouse Beach before the crowds

Not yet 7.30am and this is a working beach. There are a few tourists around: families with energetic young children who wake early, that sort of thing. They pose for photographs with the lighthouse in the background or have a quick paddle in the sea.

Otherwise the beach belongs to the fishermen. They are pulling in a net. This is a slow, arduous process. There must be 40 men on 2 ropes, heaving and coiling. Stepping back and forward, arm over arm. I can count 5 men in the water: black heads bobbing on the blue sea, disappearing under the waves when they break.

A gentle breeze wafts in off the sea, rustles through the palm trees and mingles with the smell of wood smoke from last night’s tandoori oven. The fishermen chant in time with the waves and the black crows stand in hopeful groups, waiting for what they can scavenge. Stray dogs run down the sand, across the ropes and into the water. They have no interest in fish.

Pulling in the catch

Coiling the rope

The sun is still rising behind us but it is already hot. The beach vendors are setting out umbrellas and sun loungers. Soon the fishermen will finish work and the tourists and day-trippers will arrive.

Afar.com - Social Network Travel Website

2010-03-22T19:12:00.001Z

Afar.com ("Covering Experiential Travel & International Culture") are seeking participants for the beta of their new social network site (launchdate later in 2010).

Click on the link if you're interested - first come, first served!

Travellers' Tales Festival: Discount at Destinations London

2010-02-04T23:16:00.000Z

If you're thinking about going to the Travellers' Tales Festival from Feb 19th-21st in London, you might want to pop along to Destinations London at Earls Court this weekend.

There's a £25 discount available if you buy your Festival tickets at the Travellers' Tales Stand, AP12.

Lonely Planet Travellers' Pulse Panel - Call for Panelists

2010-01-29T17:54:00.005Z

Lonely Planet are recruiting panelists for their Travellers' Pulse Panel. Basically, you get to dicuss travel with other travel fanatics (i.e. what you do already) and maybe win some prizes!

Interested? Click on the link below to register.

Calling all travellers!

Lonely Planet invites you to join our Travellers’ Pulse Panel!

Our panel is a discussion forum where we engage travellers and listen to what you have to say about travel – where to go, how to plan, and other creative travel ideas. We’ve always got interesting topics up for you to comment on, like our current survey on what you’re looking for when you take a trip to a theme park.

Joining the panel is free and if you’re accepted to be a panelist, we’ll send you a free Lonely Planet 2010 calendar as a gift to welcome you on board! Not only will you get to talk about travel, but we regularly run promotions exclusively for panelists where you can win prizes like Lonely Planet products and Amazon gift cards.

If you’d like to join this panel (numbers are limited) all you need to do is click the link below and take a short survey to register. We’ll look at your responses and depending on your age, travel experience and country of residence you might be one of the people we’re looking for! The type of people we need on the panel changes from time to time, so if you aren’t suitable for our panel this time we may contact you to participate in future.

https://www.travellerspulse.com/R.aspx?a=56&Source=BLOG

Thanks again!

Regards,

The Lonely Planet Travellers’ Pulse team

What's On in London - Travel Shows

2010-01-26T19:30:00.043Z

It may be Awards Season in Hollywood, but here in London the Travel Show Season is about to kick off. So if you're in the mood for hanging out with other travellers, getting inspiration for that next trip or just seeing what's out there, read on.

Adventure Travel Live

"A one-stop shop for anyone planning an off-the-beaten-track travel adventure"

Where: Royal Horticultural Halls, Victoria, London

When: Fri Jan 29th - Sun Jan 31st

Prices: £6 in advance/£10 on the door (under 16s go free)

After an absence in 2009, Adventure Travel is back with a new home, new sponsors and a new programme. Highlights include:

An exhibition of winning images from the Travel Photographer of the Year competition
Over 60 free talks, with travel luminaries such as Lonely Planet, Rough Guides, Nomad Travel and STA Travel.
On Sun 31st, Simon Calder's Travel Clinic on LBC 97.3 will be coming LIVE from Adventure Travel

The emphasis is on off-the-beaten track travel with a good mix of tour operators, gear manufacturers and publishers. So can Adventure Travel put itself back on the map in 2010?

For the tired exhibitors and the foot-sore visitors, it's only 4 sleeps from Adventure Travel until the next show:

Destinations London

"Where in the world do you want to go next...?"

Where: Earls Court, London
When: Thurs Feb 4th - Sun Feb 7th
Prices: £10 in advance (£5 late-night Thurs after 5pm)/£12 on the door (under 12s go free)

The matriarch of the travel show clan, Destinations pulls them through the doors every year. The format and the show itself are comfortably predictable, but no less interesting for it.

Destinations is divided into 8 "zones" (7 geographical, plus 1 for Adventure Travel). It's worth getting a map (thoughtfully provided by The Times, who sponsor the show) and sitting down with a cup of coffee to work out where you want to go and who you'd like to see.

Here's a snapshot of what's on:

Wanderlust's Travel Photographer of the Year exhibition
Meet the Experts theatre. Talks range from Going Solo to Travel Writing to Career Breaks to Sustainable Travel to "In conversation with..." chats with adventurers and explorers.
World Entertainment Stage with performances from around the world

(Helpful hint: talks are VERY popular, so get to the theatre early to avoid disappointment)

It's a big show, so allow a decent amount of time. Late night Thurs can be fun, but by Sun pm everybody is usually a bit tired...

Destinations moves to Birmingham on March 5-7th.

If that's whetted your appetite, then you'll want to come along to the 2nd Annual Travellers Tales Festival at the Royal Geographical Society in London on Feb 19th-21st. Come back soon for more details on this!

Mexican Hot Sauce...Made in Devon

2010-01-16T14:07:00.000Z

There are plenty of Mexican eating joints in London, but Wahaca is in a slightly different league. For a start, it's so cool that they don't take reservations. You just turn up and wait in line (outside, on the stairs or on a bench downstairs) until a table becomes available. We visited on a cold January Friday, so opted to go for early eats (5.30pm) and avoid the queues.

Wahaca is the brainchild of Masterchef winner Thomasina Miers, who wanted to bring the tastes and flavours of Mexico to London.The restaurant styles itself as "market-style" with the ingredients all sourced as locally and ethically as possible.

The menu is notable for its Street Food section, with smaller dishes for sharing. There are also soups, salads and Platos Fuertes (bigger plates). As first-timers, we went for the Wahaca (Street Food) Selection:

3 Pork Pibil Tacos
3 Seasonal Vegetable Tacos
2 Huitlacoche Quesadillas
2 Herring Tostadas
2 Chicken Taquitos
Green rice and black beans

Beer 'n' dips

Chicken Taquitos

Or was this the chicken taquitos?

The portions of each are small (think tapas-sized Tacos) but plenty for 2 reasonable hungry people.

If Tequila floats your boat, there are 12 different ones on the menu ("25ml servings. Try sipping not shooting"). For the tamer diner, there are also beers, cocktails and soft drinks.

If you're still hungry, or fancy something sweet, then the Churros y chocolate is the top-listed dessert: mexican doughnuts with chocolate sauce. Or there's vanilla ice-cream with homemade caramel sauce.

Strictly sweet. Strictly Delicious. Strictly Unnecessary

A word of warning: when we went to leave just after 7pm, the queue of hopeful diners exceeded 50 people. Although they looked very happy cradling their drinks (and willing people to finish up and leave), this is probably not a place to go if you're in a hurry and it's late.

That said, Wahaca could well become my new favourite Mexican restaurant!

Devon has quite the climate for chilli-growing