And no, they're not "staying with friends instead" or "sleeping on trains" (though both of those do work, and work quite well).
Instead, you may want to turn to two websites that have made their reputation elsewhere but are now plunging full speed ahead into the travel sphere.
Living Social
The first, LivingSocial is a major "group buying site", which originally was more likely to trade in laser hair removal treatments and ballroom dancing classes than hotels. But according to a piece in yesterday's USA Today the company's "Escapes" section, launched a little over four months ago, is growing at a rapid clip by specializing in "near-cations". What does that new bit of slang mean? Hotel deals within easy driving distance of the user's home. Considering that American's are taking shorter and shorter vacations, concentrating on drive-to destinations seems like a savvy strategy to me. Many deals attach amenities such as spa visits, meals or activities. As an example, USA Today cites a 50% off deal at a hotel in Gaitlinburg, TN which also throws in a hiking guide, hiking canes and a lunch for two.
To get the new program off the ground, the company is promising that if you purchase an "escape" and get three friends to also bite, you'll get a free escape in the future.
Overstock.com
One of the biggest names on the web, Overstock.com made its mark by selling mass market, department-store items that had been remaindered. It will take the same approach with hotels on its Overstock Vacations site eschewing the boutique properties (which it will leave that to Jetsetter, Vacationist and the other luxe players in this already crowded field) and instead concentrating on big name brands such as Marriott and Crowne Plaza.
Are the deals here good? Frankly, it's hard to tell. Nowhere is the published rate listed on the site, nor does Overstock deign to say what percentage its rates are off the usual rate. As well, prices are listed per person rather than per room, a move that will confuse many users.
Of the two, LivingSocial seems to be offering the better service of the two, but both are quite new and will evolve. I'll keep my eye on them both.
With double Bachelor of Arts degrees and a TEFL certificate in hand, Roni Weiss has ventured far afield from his native state of Washington. Between teaching gigs, he makes a point to travel the surrounding regions, has visited 70 countries and is not even close to being finished. He’s also delivered pizzas – maybe he’s [...]
Looks like I got it wrong last week when I wrote that two quirky, new hotel sites had debuted. Actually three had. The one I missed is the most eccentric of the pack.
Its called Hotel Haiku, and yes, just three, pearl-like lines of text are used to describe each hotel. These are supplemented by one photo of the hotel and, for those prose-preferrers, a link to the hotel's website (where presumably users can learn actual details of the hotel's amenities, location, price and more). Brevity rules.
I would quote you one or two of the poems--heck, it wouldn't take long--but as I write this, the site is closed to visitors. That's right, it closes at night and on Sundays. In speaking with the website Tnooz, the founder Gerri Rayner explained the hours as being an "attempt to annoy and scupper the content scrapers, copyists and AirBNB." Well, okay then.
Thanks to Tnooz for posting word of this idiosyncratic site.
May it find hotels/ That will appeal to the crowds/ Who sleep on journeys
After a good night?s sleep and knowing you have a nice day of moving from A to B to C ahead of you, it is always nice getting up early. Well, actually, it is never really nice to have to get out of bed before sun-up, but even so we all woke up in a pretty sunny mood, probably helped by the fact that we had already packed the night before and did not, like on so many other occasions, have to hastily jump into the shower, get dressed, pack, jump in the car, leave, and go back again at least four times for forgotten things. All the while rushing a mobile breakfast usually composed of cold (or too hot!) coffee, a banana and some sweets.
Instead, we managed to have a leisurely breakfast of toast, marmalade, eggs, coffee, freshly picked fruit, juices and more coffee. So leisurely indeed that we of course left one hour late and Jairo had to drive like a maniac to get us to Neiva airport just on time to find out our flight was one hour delayed. The ride itself was actually quite relaxed, the kids slept most of the way, as did Karin, and Jairo and I exchanged small talk. Jairo drives a Kia 7-seater van of American proportions, and the ride was smooth as silk up till the final 20 minutes when we tried to make our way through a Neiva in the last phase of the San Juan & San Pedro festivities.With men on horses everywhere, most of them too drunk to even stand up, let alone ride a horse through dense city traffic, buses with tourists from all parts coming in for the final fiesta and clogging all main arteries of the town.
We were lucky Jairo has actually lived here for 20 years before moving to San Agustin and he knows the place like the back of his hand. He skilfully manoeuvred the large van through the hectic chaos of cars, trucks, buses and horses, taking lots of little back roads I would never have taken if my life had depended on it. Jairo actually got us to the airport within the minimum of 45 minutes before take-off, all the time reassuring us we would still have time to have lunch before our flight. He helped us unload our 3 heavy bags, 2 backpacks, 2 laptop bags, one baby-bed, and an explosion of toys, colouring artefacts and all the other paraphernalia one tends to hoist along when traveling with kids. Of course he turned out to be right; our plane was delayed (?as always happens?, he said before smiling and saying his goodbyes) and we actually managed to have a local version of steak, which was amazingly nice and tender considering it was airport grub, before we got on the turboprop back to Bogota.
Here, everything went easy, apart from the fact that Noa and I went for a second round of coffee for Karin and me and we almost missed our connection, again? Luckily the lady behind the counter remembered us from the week before and we jumped on the bus as it was making its way to the plane. I have actually come to like our way of traveling; there is always something completely off in our planning and we usually get into trouble or completely lose our way, in the process running into all kinds of nice and interesting people and places. I can imagine though that anybody traveling with us would go completely bonkers.
We arrived in Pereira about 2 hours behind schedule (not our fault, the second flight was simply delayed) and after Karin had had a nice fight with the car rental people about the fact that we were not prepared to pay a four-day rent for what actually turned out to be a 3-day trip, we were finally on the road around 6pm. Darkness set in and yet another of those things you always tell other people not to do happened; driving after dark in a new country. But I?ve gotten used to that as well; we?ve made our way through the depths of night in Lima, in Peru?s southern Andean regions, straight through Sao Paulo, in the upper north of Brazil, and in various parts of Patagonia, usually without GPS devices, and always getting lost before finding our way back again. Up till now nothing deadly has happened to us.
Same thing in Colombia, and I can add that at least in this part of Colombia the roads are perfect, mostly well-lit and with clear signals showing the way to where one wants to go. Sometimes there are so many signs that it will make you dizzy, but then there is always a nice neighbour (in our case usually a gas station employee) that will happily show you where to make the next turn. We made it from Pereira to our new hotel, a very nice and typical coffee-farm-hotel named Combia, in about one hour, despite the dark and a very limited map to go by. Colombia is good Fly-Drive Territory, if you can manage the Spanish language and are not afraid to ask your way around.
After a long day we hit our beds almost instantly and slept like the little babies some of us still are, waking up 8 hours later to a new day in a new land?
Armenia and surroundings
The Coffee Triangle, as this part of Colombia is called, is a lush and fertile area with a mild, benign climate, good for producing some of the best coffee in the world. Funny thing is that it is quite difficult to actually find a good cappuccino, or even an espresso, as most people are not really used to drinking ?fancy? coffee and usually just take a ?tinto?; black filter coffee, thinned with hot water and sugared up to hurt your teeth. Some come with milk and both taste like sweet hot coloured water, nothing like Juan Valdes makes you believe people enjoy over here. So, when the owner of the hotel came to us and asked us to please leave any suggestion we could think of, I could hardly keep my mouth shut.
After a simple but hearty breakfast we got into our car and started driving back to Armenia and right behind it found a sign saying ?canopy??
During our last trip in Brazil my daughter Edie had already shown great interest in rappelling, as well as in huge natural water slides, and other such things that make me super-scared something might happen to her. As a matter of fact I lately find myself projecting many of my childhood fears on my daughters, as they begin to discover the fun parts of our numerous trips. As a teenager I decided that I would not let fear hold me back from doing anything, and I spent several years crusading against my fears of things like heights, failing in general and being publicly ridiculed. I went for a 65m bungee jump that almost killed me, set up a travel company in Peru without any prior experience, and even tried speaking in public. The last, to my shame, is really not my forte...
Still I thought I had it nicely worked out and that I had managed to kick myself into being a cool guy, not afraid to take on a challenge or two and free of unnecessary internal blockades. The opposite isn?t true, but I must say I am having a hard time not panicking a little each time Edie climbs a tree or Noa dances around on a plastic chair. My wife Karin and I have discussed this often. She was raised with a no-fear policy and skied black slopes and beyond before she could speak a full sentence, so she understandably has some issues with my ?all of a sudden? somewhat conservative nature. She feels, and rightly so, that we should not project our fears onto our children and should let them discover their own boundaries. I agree with her, of course. So, when we saw the sign and Karin looked at me with that inquisitive look of hers, I said: ?what the hell?, and made a sharp left.
14 speed-flights between towering trees and hulking bamboo ladders later we were back where mother earth prefers to have us and I was soaked. With adrenaline still screaming through my veins and hair standing out in all directions, the next group of that went up for their first climb looked at me with some puzzlement. I could not care less; I was alive! Karin, Edie and Noa had had the time of their lives and the kids would keep asking us for days in advance when we could go and ?fly? again.
Here we go with the next installment of my Northern Brazil adventure!
Pipa
The next day we left for Pipa, close to the town of Natal and some 450 km to the north of Olinda. After driving in the wrong direction again (and this time in broad day light) we thought it might come in handy to have a map of some sort. We had packed hastily for this trip (as we usually do) and some things had sadly been left behind. After several stops at gas stations, supermarkets, and other places where one might expect to be able to buy a map, we finally found one at a local pharmacy where, as it turned out, everybody buys their maps. At least that was the fact in Olinda (at the end of this journey, we stumbled upon the ?Giua Cuatro Rodas?, an excellent guidebook, with all kinds of tips, directions and hotel options in the country, along with an excellent road map; so we?re all set for our next trip!). Now it became a lot easier to find our way and within no-time we entered the famous BR101 highway. The BR101 is undergoing many repairs these days, so long stretches are ?en obras? (under construction), which means our trip took a little longer than expected and we arrived to Pipa after dark, yet again. Another thing we quickly came to realize is that even though we were visiting a neighboring country of our beautifully southern hemispheric Argentina, we had come quite close to the equator, and the sun here sets at 6.30pm sharp, something to take into account if you are planning a full-day?s drive.
Pipa turned out to be amazing. Lovely beaches circled by high cliffs, lagoons, Atlantic forest and dolphins. Pipa has cobbled streets and good surfing beaches, in addition to a lake full of manatees (in neighboring Tibau do Sul). It is an old hippy colony and was recently discovered by Brazil?s traveling youth. Even though the town can get a bit crowded at night it remains a beautiful little spot to relax and enjoy nature.
We spent our days here walking along one of the beaches, spotting dolphins from a small speedboat, and eating? The place was called Panela do Barro and we went back three times. Located in the heart of town, sitting on the cliff, overlooking Pipa?s central beach, their seafood Moqueca is a feast. The ways various African, Portuguese and indigenous ingredients, and cooking methods have merged through the centuries to create this wondrous dish I cannot describe, but man it was good! I really need to get that recipe, or better still, find me a good Brazilian restaurant in town? It can be said though; food in Brazil is GOOD!
Porto Galinhas
From Pipa we moved on to Porto Galinhas, which was not really worth visiting. Supposedly home to the best beach in Brazil, the town changed from a fishing village into the playground of Brazil?s rich and famous and later became a popular vacation spot for domestic travelers. The town has a questionable history as the ?chicken port?, so called by the Portuguese during the time when the English started getting bossy and imposing their power to try and force the Portuguese to abolish slavery - just as the rest of the world had done before. On paper, Porto Galinhas was a port where poultry and other livestock arrived from Europe, but that was only to deceive the British; what actually came off the boats was slave trade business as usual, and it would go on like that for many more years. Today Porto Galinhas does not have too much to offer to the discerning traveler. We relaxed in one of the huge resorts there for a couple of days, but were happy to move on.
Praia do Forte
Praia do Forte on the other hand was a very nice surprise. We stayed in the Tivoli Eco-Resort, which is a pleasure in itself, and explored the surrounding area from there.
The Tamar Project (TAMAR being short for Tartaruga Marinha, Portuguese for Sea Turtle) is definitely worth a visit. The story of marine conservation in Brazil coincides with the creation of the TAMAR Program. Seventeen years ago the Federal Government, in tune with international demand and increasing environmental awareness in Brazilian society, began to adopt measures aimed at marine protection. In the beginning of the 1980s, the Brazilian Institute of Forestry Development (IBDF), created the TAMAR Program with the objective of protecting sea turtles in Brazil. The work started in Bahia (Praia do Forte), Esp�rito Santo (Comboios) and Sergipe (Piramb�), and was then extended nationwide. The project focused on the identification of different species, their main nesting sites, their reproduction period, and the main socio-economic problems related to the exploitation of sea turtles by the coastal residents. Technical staff spent two years traveling along the Brazilian coastline gathering information. In 1982 and 1986, SUDEPE (the Fishing Development Agency) passed regulations prohibiting the capture of all species of turtle.
From April through November one can also go out to sea to spot Humpback Whales, something that I would love to do. Unfortunately, we arrived off-season this time, but I will certainly go back one day to see these wondrous creatures.
Lencois
From Praia do Forte we decided to escape Carnaval (absolutely a great party, but a little too much with two small kids) and head for Lencois, some 450 km inland. Until 1996 this was the wild, wild, west where some 80,000 people tried their luck at discovering diamonds. Lawlessness ruled and the area was notoriously unsafe and environmentally irresponsible. Come the mid 90?s the Federal Government decided enough was enough and diamond mining in Lencois was made illegal. The area almost immediately shifted to tourism for its income, and today Lencois, and the few towns surrounding it, are the heart of the Chapada Diamantina National Park. This is a beautiful area of natural springs, waterfalls, weird rock formations, quaint little towns and large underground cave-systems that can all be visited from Lencois.
We found all ranges of accommodation in the village, but relatively few people seem to know about it, or make the decision to go there, so the whole place is very calm and tranquil. Lencois is also a place where all races seem to be living together in perfect balance (from what we saw at least) and it is throughout a very safe and pleasant place to be. We walked through the outskirts of town after dark with our two small children without ever having the feeling that we should start being careful. We have been around the block a bit in this continent, so our antennae are attuned, but here we felt perfectly at ease. Talks with locals confirmed this feeling; Lencois is one of the safest places to travel. Combine this with a great surrounding area for hiking and sight-seeing and you have one fantastic destination to add to your list of Brazil must-sees.
Happy trails,
Bart
Ps I just had a look at our webpage and came across this aptly named package to Northern Brazil visiting Salvador, Lencois and Praia do Forte - Salvador and the Beauty of Bahia
An urgent appeal to all fellow travelers. It has recently come to my attention that the Peruvian Government and a number of large multinationals are planning to reduce the size of one of the country?s key national parks by 200, 000 hectares. If the proposed bill ? soon to be deliberated by the Peruvian Congress ? gets passed, concessions will be granted to a number of gas companies in the BahuajaSoneneNational Park. As surreal as such a plan may seem, pressure from large wayward conglomerates has led the Peruvian Government to make some very poor decisions in the past, and it is not inconceivable that such a bill could be passed.
Located in the South Eastern department of Madre de Dios, Bahuaja Sonene (sometimes called the TambopataCandomoPark) has historically been off limits to everyone. It is perhaps one of the most biologically diverse areas on the planet, and is home to a number of endemic and endangered wildlife. The park is also home to an area of Amazonian savannah, the sole of its kind and unique to the area. Recently, members of an indigenous group, thought to be the Mascho Piro, were spotted living north of the park. This sighting makes the existence of indigenous groups living inside the secluded park extremely likely.
Not only it seems will this project endanger the extraordinary flora and fauna found in the reserve (much of which remains undiscovered), but it also seriously risks destroying an already endangered culture and threatening the health of members of indigenous groups who are still believed to be fatally susceptible to such maladies as the common cold.
200,000 hectares. I know it just seems like a figure, but let?s put it into perspective. Comparatively speaking, we?re talking about an area of land about the same size as Luxembourg, just a little smaller than Rhode Island. This isn?t just a few football fields ? it is an enormous tract of untouched land. And not just any land either. We?re talking about what is probably the most biologically diverse environment on the planet ? and in one fowl swoop, a group of backward greedy institutions would have this reduced by an area the size of a small country.
In a time when global warning is the most prevalent threat to the continued survival of us all, it seems that there are people out there determined to destroy this beautiful planet even further. The destruction of this beautiful park for financial gain ? or any other gain for that matter ? simply cannot be allowed. An appeal needs to be made to the Peruvian Government as soon as possible. They need to know just how atrocious and devastating this proposed bill will be, and they need to know the extent of the opposition towards it, so that when the bill gets deliberated, the right choices can be made. Currently there is petition online at http://www.salvemoscandamo.com/. I urge everyone to take a minute or two to sign this and get their voices heard. I would also encourage people to oppose the US-Peru Free Trade agreement which will give large US multinationals free reign to plunder the country?s many natural treasures. A petition against the agreement can be signed here - Democracy in Action.If anyone has any further information on this issue, and knows of ways which could help us unite against this bill being passed, please let us know.
With an education in accounting, management and international business, Alex Hoskinson discovered doing tax returns for a large company was – simply put – dreadful. It was his turning point to follow up on recommendations to teach English in foreign countries. He chose Hungary. The descriptions of his experiences are genuinely enlightening, plus you get [...]
Their grandfather called them the ‘Gold Dust Twins’ when they were younger. Unclear of the meaning then, Evan and Mike (first cousins, by the way) discovered later on that it meant “two people working together productively”. With that definition in mind, both have quit their jobs and are now curing their wanderlust side by side. [...]
Would you join the Ray LaHood fan club I'm considering starting?
The crusading head of the US Department of Transportation recently made another sally in the battle for truth, justice and the American way. No, really. The DOT has fined American Airlines $90,000 for using deceptive practices to persuade passengers to give up their seats on overbooked planes.
Its a long overdue move. The agency contends, rightly, that giving out vouchers for being bumped, without disclosing all of the hassles and fees associated with the vouchers, is an unethical business practice.
So what have been those fees and hassles? The inability to use the vouchers to book online; the necessity of mailing in the vouchers three weeks prior to travel; and fees as high as $30 to use the darn things. In effect, American has been getting passengers to help them out of sticky overbooking situations, and then making it very, very difficult for them to collect on their promised rewards.
Let's hope that this move scares the other airlines straight. Right now, there are far, far too many hidden fees associated with air travel.
Last minute holidays are one of the best ways of getting a bargain holiday. The resorts and flights are the same, it's just that the price you pay is lower!
Be flexible about where you want to go. The more flexible you are the better your chances of getting a bargain holiday. Have a shortlist of say 5 places you'd like to visit, and start looking at those holidays first.
Use a reputable holiday booking site like OnTheBeach.com. They find loads of last minute cheap holidays and make it easy to find your dream bargain get away.
Book outside of peak times. Summer holidays, easter holidays and Christmas are always the busiest time, and the most expensive. The further from these dates you book, the better the bargain you'll get.
Use different airports. Smaller regional airports often have lots of unsold holidays/flights, so they come up as the cheapest. It might only take an extra hour to travel to a different airport to get the bargain holiday.
Be flexible with your dates. If you have to travel on certain dates you'll limit the flights you can take. The more flexible you are, the more bargain holidays that will be available to you.
5 Best Places to Visit for Last Minute Holidays
Greece - Thousands of Islands, endless sunshine and turquoise waters. It's no wonder that Greece has become the top bargain holiday destination.
Egypt - Escape to the North African Culture, with sunshine, warm Arabian seas, great value shopping and lots and lots of culture. As well as the fantastic beach resorts such as Sharm El Sheikh, you can take day trips to the Pyramids of Giza, Luxor and other great sites.
Spain - The original European holiday resort still holds its own. Islands such as Ibiza, Menorca, Lanzarotte and Tenerife offer fantastic holidays, with sun, sea and Sangria!
Cyprus - This beautiful islands offers fantastic sunshine, food, drink and culture. Many bargains are to be had here.
Turkey - Outside the EU, and with plenty to offer the bargain hunter. Turkey has loads of great price holidays now. Combines with great food and shopping, why not give it a try for something new and different?
Last minute holidays are a great way of getting away for less. Experience the same holidays as others, just pay a lot less for it!
For maximum holiday value, always go self-catering, shop at the supermarkets and enjoy yourselves!
For more holidays of every type, visit OnTheBeach.com
It’s a lovely day in Juneau. We’re down here visiting our state legislators in Juneau. We took advantage of Alaska Airlines‘ Constituent Fare, which offers a 30 percent discount on qualifying fares. It trimmed about $140 off of my ticket. Stop in to visit your representative or senator and talk about YOUR issues. It could [...]
It’s a lovely day in Juneau. We’re down here visiting our state legislators in Juneau. We took advantage of Alaska Airlines‘ Constituent Fare, which offers a 30 percent discount on qualifying fares. It trimmed about $140 off of my ticket. Stop in to visit your representative or senator and talk about YOUR issues. It could [...]
Some years ago, a friend told Vicki Hatfield, “Don’t wait for when… Sometimes, when never comes.” Months later her friend passed away. But, Vicki embraced the advise and has been traveling ever since. That comment led to one of her inspirations, “I love the memories I have when I return home that I can wrap [...]
It has been a while since we last met; I have been rather busy lately? (Yes, with the CRISIS.) Grrrr, what a gloomy word.There?s truth to it for sure and things are changing as we speak, but some of this ?crisis? is also inflated by the media to such a towering extent that sometimes I open the newspapers and feel the world has come to a full standstill and there is no way back or forth. There basically seems to be no other remedy than hide in our cellars and hope for a miracle to get us out of this mess. (Or that is what the media want us to believe because they are actually making money of this...)
I want to share with you two thoughts that I think are relevant in times like these. One is about the phenomena known as the ?self-fulfilling prophecy? and the other is about the real face of this crisis.
The Self-fulfilling Prophecy of the Argentine Economy
Here in Argentina the local economy has developed a pretty strange tendency; it crashes around every 7 years, like really hard, then rapidly recovers, returns to pre-crash levels in no-time, overheats in a blink and then falls flat on its face before anyone notices (well, most people at least), only to roll over and begin the same process again. It seems we are following a somewhat biblical routine here, which has now become commonplace in Argentine society. So much has this jittery economic movement taken place in the hearts and minds of most Argentines that pre-crash capital flights caused by those fearing the next hit basically cause it to happen. The circle has become complete and everyone?s worst fears come true over and over again because hardly anyone here still believes that things could go any differently. The idea of economic stability is simply not logged into people?s minds here and therefore nobody will give that thought and -thus that potential reality- a chance. I will not go into the theories about this actually being a controlled economic movement; anyone who has been here for more than a week can come to their own conclusions. What I want to say is this: if you allow yourself to give away control over your life to your biggest fears, they will eventually take over and that what you dread the most will become your reality. It is as simple as that.
The Real Face of the Crisis
As you can see on our sites, we are a proud ASTA (American Society of Travel Agents) member and yesterday I read an interesting article in ASTA?s Smartbrief, based on a lecture given by World Leisure Partners? Chairman and CEO Adam Aron that I want to share with you. To me his speech was:
�Inspiring, because it confirmed my belief that in times like these, when the going gets tough, it is positive, pro-activeness that will pull you through. These are challenging times, sure, but when did anyone decide that a good challenge should be backed away from? I mean, these are the times we can really prove ourselves, focus on doing our absolute best and showing ourselves and the outside world what we are; a company with vision, a team with heart, a continent with passion, a place to recharge your batteries.
�Relieving, because after having read so much negative, sad and sorry stories about banks sliding, companies going bankrupt, people being laid off by the thousands and international travel bookings going down (which is of course the only thing that really interests us here!), for a moment I almost believed them, the commercial journalists that will prey on anything that smells like ?crisis? these days, as that seems to be the only thing anyone wants to read about. To my great dismay, because even though I am reading about it as much as I can myself, I am constantly looking for positive signals, stuff I can use to help navigate our little company through the so-called storm. The mainstream media, however, seem to want us to wallow in distress for a little while longer. That is why it was a relief to read Mr. Aron?s take on things.
�Reassuring as it put me back in the driver?s seat of my reality, where I almost thought I had no control anymore, almost felt as if we were going to slide like everybody else and would need a miracle to be saved? BS my friends, really, and pardon my French, but we are in charge of our lives, or our work, of our reality and there are tons and tons of things we can do to take this situation and make it work for us.
Let me give you a short excerpt of what Mr. Aron said: (here goes the condensed version of the text I just sent you)
In this era of 24/7 news cycles, the current bad economic news gets magnified.
"Doom and gloom," said Aron, is what the media lives for -- so expect them to wallow in it as long as they can.
"The media will tell you that this recession will be the worst and the longest because things are different now and unlike other times, this time the doom and gloom is permanent."
He added: "In every recession that I have seen, that is always what the media says...but we always get out of it."
And they also say the boom times will never end, added Aron, recalling how a few years ago a Wall Street Journal article waxed optimistic that the business cycle had been eliminated because economists had figured it out.
There is a reason for business cycles, said Aron.
"Think about your own businesses. In the good times, we all get a little sloppy and take on more risk and don't watch pennies quite as closely as we are now."
Businesses hire more people than they really need, take risks they should not be taking and take on new costs that aren't justified.
"What happens is that fat, inefficiency, waste and risk creep into the system, because millions of businesses are doing this at the same time."
Eventually, the economy can't sustain the inefficiencies and outsized risks and "so it crashes," said Aron.
"Usually, there is a catalyst of some sort and clearly [in this cycle] the banks were lending money to people who should not have had such loans. Companies were leveraged way too much and individuals were taking on too much debt and the weight of all that crashed the system in a big way -- and quickly."
Aron recalled that last May and June everything was fine, but come September, "Armageddon was around the corner."
And just as in boom times, the actions of millions of businesses cutting costs to adjust to the downturn and consumers cutting back on spending all at the same time, threw the economy into recession.
Then at some "mystical point" after millions and millions of businesses and individuals have cut waste and costs, the economy "rises from the ashes."
The remarkable thing is that there is a simple explanation for the business cycle but you cannot predict how or when it will turn upward, said Aron.
But there have been benefits in the recent difficult times and a major one is the drop in the price of oil.
"Think of what a boon that is to the economy. Think how beneficial that is for consumers who were being stretched in July."
Aron did have a forecast: "As sure as we're sitting here, two years from now things will be rosy again" because downturns are usually six to 24 months long and good times three to six years.
Nice eh? A different and most definitely more realistic view, more pragmatic, more my way at least.
I hope I have managed to give you an idea of how I see this: we make our own reality and are capable to turn things in any direction we damn well please. Our brain is not much more than a (highly sophisticated; ok!) muscle which we train to send our body certain stimuli that make us walk, for example. Or sit behind a keyboard and write a piece of text and throw it online. Or read it. And when we read that piece of text (written by someone else for whatever reason) we have a free choice to take that information for granted or to reflect on it and make a proper decision on how it is we want to experience it, and what we want to do with it. And that in the end will greatly influence the way we live our lives? So my message to you today is this: Why don?t you put the paper aside today and get out there, play with your kids, score some goals, make some friends, have some fun, do some dancing in the rain (and look how the US Dollar is slowly gaining strength against the Argentine Peso and plan your next trip here! J).Two years from now this will all be behind us and things will be going boringly well again.For now let?s look at this crisis and make the best of it!
After my last brief trip to Brazil, I decided I had to go back and explore some more. So, last month I did just that - this time around I had a whole month, plus a car full of kids! Here is Part 1 of my latest Brazil adventure.
Brazil (http://www.cat-travel.com/brazil/information) is a truly developing country. There is a constant buzz about it that cannot be denied. You only need to drive along one of its main highways, such as the BR101, to realize that. Trucks, trucks and more trucks, and they?re all over the place! As we tried to get from Recife to Olinda it was still ok, but when driving north to the beautiful coastal town of Pipa it was a mad house. Unbelievable amounts of trucks, carrying anything from sugar cane to cars, entire bridges and other unidentifiable loads transported from A to B in huge bulk. I mean, they are going places, you know? This is a country on the move. No wonder they got the first two letters in BRIC?
I am not sure to what extent this busyness has to do with Lula, the current president that has done so much for Brazil?s working classes, and who has truly made a first attempt to bring the country up from a feudal landowners? state to an industrialized nation. I have not been here long, or often enough to make that distinction, and that was one of the reasons we decided to make this trip: to get to know Brazil better, even if only a part of it.
As we do every year, Karin and I took the kids during their school vacation for a one-month inspection trip, and this time we decided to go and explore a part of the North of Brazil. So, at the end of January we flew to Recife and picked up the car we had booked for the trip. We had agreed not to stay in Recife, but drive on to Olinda all in one go. Of course we did not count on one of our connecting GOL flights being late, forcing us to take a later flight on our last stretch of the journey, arriving in Recife close to midnight. The car rental pace was still open, but by that time it was pitch dark outside. Still we had a place booked for us in Olinda and it was only a 30 minute drive away, so we decided to wing it. We immediately set off in the wrong direction, ending up on the Litoral Sul towards Salvador, where we weren?t supposed to be going until well over a week later. There are not that many signs on Brazilian roads (well actually there are lots and lots of them, but most do not seem to have anything to do with traffic), but after a while we figured out we were heading in the wrong direction and eventually found a way to turn around without causing an accident. Then, somehow, we got into the right flow of traffic and it seemed everybody was headed to Olinda. From that moment on we got a better feel of where we were as we crisscrossed the canals and rivers that thread through that part of Recife. The town was founded by the Dutch Prince Maurice (The Dutch settled in this part of Brazil for some 22 years between Portuguese occupations) and he must have been homesick for Amsterdam when he had this part of town designed. All of a sudden we were in Olinda, we drove straight through town, made one more u-turn, drove right past our hotel, hit the brakes hard, avoiding a couple of buses racing by, put the car in reverse and finally made it to our destination.
Olinda
Olinda happens to be the old capital of Brazil, and today it is a world heritage site. The town is a maze of cobbled streets, hills crowned with brilliant white churches, pastel-colored houses, Baroque fountains and graceful squares. It is a nice picturesque place with many beautiful old churches and beautifully maintained colonial houses. Walking through the old town I got the feeling of being warped back in time to the days when sugar cane ruled the world economy.
The beaches close to town aren?t the most attractive, but if you have the time go and see the ones to the north, they are much better.
On our first morning we took the car out for a spin around town to get a feel for the place. We hadn?t quite covered 300 meters when a guy almost threw himself in front of the car, standing up straight, with a commanding hand held high in the air. We kind of took him to be a cop, but he was wearing shorts and a green t-shirt, so that was odd. Against my instincts I brought the car to a halt, and the ?cop? took out what I thought to be his notebook. It was in fact a map of the city, and the guy turned out to be a guide. So our second lesson was that Brazilians can be quite direct and persuasive, and one should not always automatically respond to that. Saying ?nao, obrigado? (no thanks) and walking or driving on will usually do the trick. Unless you are dealing with a real cop of course, in which case it is better to stop and be cooperative. FYI, in Olinda lots of people offer themselves as city guides. Those wearing yellow t-shirts with the words "Guia Mirim" written on the back and laminated ID cards are official guides.
A third thing that comes in handy is some basic understanding of the Portuguese language as many people speak nothing but it. We only encountered extremely friendly people when asking for directions, but most of their well-meant tips and explanations, sadly passed us by, as our Spanish was not of much use either. It was fun to be in that situation again though, where you never really know for sure if you got the gist of a conversation or not. It reminded me of the time in 1997 when we were driving across the Peruvian Andes, speaking only very little Spanish and asking local peasants who only spoke the native Aymara language for directions; that combined with them being used to traveling on foot, and having a profoundly different sense of time, made us agree to ask the same set of directions over and over again until we had met at least three people all pointing in the same direction? We got lost so many times on that trip that the fact, in itself, has stopped worrying me.
