Month: October 2024

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Is Travel Insurance Really Worth the Money?

With all of the additional fees and taxes that added to all of our travel bookings and purchases. Do we really want to spend the extra money on a travel insurance policy?

So what exactly is travel insurance?

Travel Insurance Trip Cancellation or interruption insurance protects you if your trip is canceled or delayed because of some unforeseen event, such as the financial failure of the cruise line, airline, or travel agency; bad weather; illness; or death.

Medical Coverage – Can supplement your existing health coverage and may include coverage for emergency care. This may be helpful when you’re traveling abroad, since some health insurance providers do not cover you while traveling overseas, or they may provide only limited coverage. If you were on a cruise ship for example, and had to be evacuated off the ship because of a medical emergency, there are coverages that would protect you from the cost of the air ambulance.

Baggage Insurance – Reimburses you if you luggage is lost or delayed.So, is travel insurance is worth the money? Take these things into consideration before you decide one way or another.

* If your trip were canceled or the tour operator went out of business, could you afford to lose the money you paid for the trip?

* If you fell ill while vacationing in a foreign country, would your health insurance cover you? If not, could you afford to pay for your medical expenses?

* If your luggage were lost, could you afford to purchase everything you would need to continue your trip?

With the cost of most travel polices being so nominal, I personally feel that having peace of mind while on my trip is well worth the cost spent on the policy. Insurance providers provide free quotes and you can usually find coverages starting at $30 refers to various types of specialized insurance coverage you can buy to protect yourself against the many risks you may face as a traveler. There are many types of travel insurance – coverages, costs and terms differ with every policy and carrier.

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Uncover the Outdoor Adventurer in You

As a young person you were fascinated by the articles in National Geographic magazine and you yearned to be like the individuals in the articles. Even now, as you are older, you enjoy watching Discovery channel and Animal Planet and secretly wish you were one of the characters in the show, taking part in an outdoor adventure. Despite these desires you never seem to have the outdoor adventures you yearn for.

Limited finances, pressures of work, family responsibilities are the reasons you give yourself for not being able to explore the outdoors. None of these should be reasons to prevent you from uncovering the outdoor adventurer that lies within you. Instead of seeking the big adventure you can have a series of small outdoor adventures that will fulfill the yearning for adventure

The question some may ask is where and how do I experience these smaller adventures. The opportunity for an outdoor adventure exists in every location. Every locality usually has a local hiking club and the majority of these clubs are usually happy to have non-members along for a small fee. In addition to hiking clubs there is sometimes a local field naturalist club that organises field trips that non-members can participate in. Hiking is a good way to experience nature and at the same time provide the body with valuable exercise. Some people may think that the years of sitting in front of the television will prevent them from undertaking the rigors of a strenuous hike. Most hiking clubs rate their hikes with a scale ranging from Easy to Challenging. You can start with the easy hikes and over time build to the challenging hikes.

Many hikes are day hikes so you can take one day out of your weekend to be an outdoor enthusiast and still have time for your family responsibilities. An advantage of participating with a hiking club is the safety and security of being with an organised group that knows the trails, thus preventing you from getting lost.

Another great way to experience the outdoors is kayaking. When the term kayaking is used, many immediately think of fast rushing water , navigating large boulders and the heart stopping adrenaline rush of white water kayaking. Kayaking is not however only white water, there are many slow moving rivers, large lakes and sheltered bays where a pleasurable morning or afternoon can be spent paddling. In most areas where there is a sizable body of water, local kayak shops or outfitters can be found. These kayak shops will often have boats available for rental and sometimes organize kayaking expeditions on weekends.

Some individuals are scared of kayaks because they have never used them. Learning the basics of kayaking is however very simple and can be done with a few minutes of instruction. Once the basics have been learned and equipped with a personal flotation device (life jacket) an entire realm of nature viewing is opened up along streams, in ponds and in sheltered bays.

An overnight or weekend camping trip is yet another opportunity for the outdoor enthusiast to awaken that adventurous spirit. You may think that camping requires having plenty of camping equipment, but that is not applicable in every situation. A very good article, Surviving Camping Equipment Overload – How to Manage on a Small Budget, can be found at the Outdoors Trinidad web site. A camping trip is also an opportunity to have other family members participate in your outdoor adventure.

Another opportunity for having family members participate in outdoor activities is a cycling trip. This can be a weekend trip or just a day spent cycling along country roads. One of the great things about a family cycling outing is that you proceed at your own pace. If an interesting bird or animal is seen you can stop to observe and then resume your ride.

So go ahead and organize your mini adventures and uncover the outdoor adventurer in you.

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10 Tips for Writing Better Poetry

Have you ever had trouble with writing great poetry? Are you looking to develop your craft, and become better at what you write? These ten tips can help you on the road to getting the results you want.

Tip #1.) Remember, everyone is different. Your poetry, or creative work will be different from everyone else’s. Don’t be too critical with your work, and try to avoid comparing yourself.

Tip #2.) Be honest with yourself. Do you have the ability to write great poetry? Some people are just born creative. It is completely OK to not be the next Shakespeare. If you need help in determining this, grab a buddy that you know will be honest with you, or a group of buddies.

Tip #3.) Now that see where you stand, you can hone the style that YOU have, and not styles that others have. You can develop your own hooks or styles that uniquely sets you apart from others. Say you have a way you like to express certain words. You can write that way. You could misspell words to make it edgy. Whatever you can come up with to set you apart, and not be another follower, will help you be better. Different is always better in my opinion.

Tip#4.) Write about what you are able to write about. Some people hit the bull’s-eye with writing fiction, while others are pros at non-fiction. Some people are born with left brains, and some with right brains. Yes, I do believe you can pump your right brain up with some practice, but I’d say: STICK WITH YOUR STRENGTHS! If you are left brained, figure out what left brained people are best at writing, then do that.

Tip#5.) If you are attempting to be more creative, and you have determined you have a creative mind, now we can start doing things that help to bring your creative side out more. Practice coming up with scenarios, start dreaming. Get your head in the clouds a little bit. Write down short stories, or whatever you can to get in your groove.

Tip#6.) Modify existing styles of poetry, or create your own structures of poetry. You could mix styles too!

Tip#7.) Join an online poetry website that has classes, or a body that can critique your work. I’d be careful with this one though. Yes, on one hand, people can give you great tips, however, realize that they are speaking to you from their perspective as well, and may not like your style. Some people, and some styles just do not mix well. If you get a bad review, look at their work. You may not like theirs!

Tip#8.) I’m really big on finding, and working on strengths. If you can tell a story with your poetry, do that. If you are good at teaching, maybe an informative poem might be a good idea to write. There are all different types out there, anywhere from Christian to poems from aliens from Mars. (I bet if I looked that up online, I’d probably find it LOL.) Find your niche.

Tip#9.) Find yourself an environment conductive to the style of poetry you are writing. If you are wanting to write a peaceful piece, go somewhere you can get in the zone, and become peaceful. Prepare yourself for your piece, and get in optimal surroundings.

Tip#10.) If all of these tips didn’t help flush things out, and steer you in the right direction, keep searching for ways to improve your craft from any other source you can. Talk with friends, teachers, look online and do all you can to grow. Attend seminars, and practice, practice, practice! You can do it!!