Word for the Travel Wise (11/12/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

It’s a quiet day around my way and quite peaceful to say the least. Not a whole lot to report, so I’m making my word selection based on my mood. It’s not exactly the word for peaceful, but I’m sure you’ll enjoy trying to find ways to use this one while in the P.I.

Today’s word is a Tagalog word used in the Philippines:

kapayapaán – peace

Tagalog is one of the major languages in Central Philippines and part of the Austronesian language family. For some reason I was surprised by the number of free GOOD resources available to prospective Tagalog student. Wikipedia has great background info on the lingo as well as related languages, Bikol, Hiligaynon, Waray-Waray, and Cebuano. Mongabay pretty much covers all the really good, up and running links to sites that help teach Tagalog, after checking out a few I’ll do the favor of pointing the best out. The first is an interactive language and Filipino culture resource site tools are provided for both teachers and students. A pretty intense breakdown on local slang and how it is derived can be found here. Travel Lang has word and phrase generator that spits out all the basic words you’d use while visiting.

Past Filipino/Tagalog words: taon, kalye, alak, masarap, sayaw

Word for the Travel Wise (11/10/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

I assume now that Turkmenistan has a fairytale like theme park, that there will be many a visitor busting down the doors to ride the rides. Visitors shall be greeted by characters of Turkmen folklore and the Ferris wheel will follow designs of Turkmen jewelry. Let’s say it’ll be much like a Disneyland with very foreign twist. Check out the USA Today article for more details and remember to use this word when trying to score a place to rest after your day of play.

Today’s word is a Turkmen word used in Turkmenistan:

myhmanhana – hotel, guest house

Turkmen is the national language of Turkmenistan with some 3,430,000 speakers within the country and 3,000,000 throughout parts of Iran, Afghanistan and Turkey. The language is more closely related to Crimean Tatar and Salar and less closely related to Turkish and Azerbaijani. Wiki has good background info including additional learning links. If you’ve some knowledge of the lingo already visit this tmchat forum to learn by hanging out and chatting with other members. Same rule applies if you’re going to stop by this Dersat Turkmens page which says you can learn and has samples, tests and conversation, but it’s difficult to understand without basic skills in place. Transparent.com has Turkmen language software and LP’s Central Asia phrasebook has only a small section of Turkmen.

Past Turkmen words: näche

GADLING’S TAKE FIVE: Week of November 5

by Adrienne Wilson on

It’s weekly recap time. Grab a P&J sandwich, chill out, read and relax.

5. Finally! A Cool Looking Sleep Mask:
Personally, sleeping masks cramp my style and bug the heck out of my eyes. However, I know there are many who enjoy keeping unwanted light from their lids as they rest and for you I direct you back to this potential travel gear or stocking stuffer you might wish to get for yourself or someone you know.

4. Moscow: Now Open 24 Hours:
Those who dislike the idea of city shops closing at early hours and lack of nightlife in big areas can leap with joy to learn that Moscow is changing things up these days. No more retreating to your hotel room at 9 PM for drinks. They are bending the curfew it seems so you can stay out late.

3. Forget Flying for Cheap: Have Them Pay You to Fly:
Get paid to fly? Is this too good to be true? Maybe. Maybe not. You decide.

2. Spider Pepper:
Sadly this isn’t a recipe for making black pepper from tarantula, but it does provide some interesting info on how spiders and peppers defend themselves in sort of the same way.

1. The Real Borat?:
Borat, Borat, Borat… It seems this Borat stuff is all I’m hearing about and I still haven’t gotten in theaters to see the flick. In any case there are mixed emotions about the comedian, especially from Mahir Cagri who seems to be completely sure that he was the inspiration for Borat. He had been doing similar comedy acts in Turkey before Sascha Baron Cohen came along. Who knows?

Photo Tips

by Erik Olsen on

If there’s one thing most every person brings with them when they travel these days, it’s a digital camera. Sure, there are some oddball holdouts, people who still use film, but most of us have not just graduated to digital, but to mega-mega-pixel video.

Of course, that being said, how many people with these fabulous, no-brainer new cameras actually know how to use them? If you take a trip around Flickr (excepting the Gadling Flickr site, of course, which features prodigious talents ;-)) you see that there are a LOT of amateur shooters out there, people who just pint and shoot without much concern for composition or depth of field .that’s fine. Shoot and be happy. I’m all for it. But if you want the best pics possible, the fact is you have to work at it. All of which brings me to a couple of sites that might help you take better pictures.

First of all, Photosecrets offers tips for all sorts of travel photogs from how to get the beset shots to how to get your pictures into the hands of stock photo sites, a potentially lucrative avenue, though one that is very competitive.

Here is a brief list from about.com with links to tips like how to turn day into night and how to use Photoshop (a no-no with many mags and newspapers, tho)

Photographytips offers articles on how to understand light and how to make the best use of your flash…something many people do NOT do.

Finally, if you want to shoot like a master, you should heed the advice of the masters, and there is no better resource for shooting great photos than National Geographic. Nat Geo has put together a superb site helping you learn the techniques that Nat Geo photographers have employed to craft some of the most memorable photos of all time.

And if you are interested in taking a trip with the explicit purpose of learning how to shoot, take a look at this piece over at Frommer’s which offers a list of trips and companies that take people on photo safaris. Heading out with actual travel photographers who know what they’re doing is a great way to get some real experience with your camera.

Happy shooting!

Word for the Travel Wise (11/09/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

Just days after Thanksgiving when most of us will be sitting around regretting taking down that extra turkey leg or mom’s mac n cheese, a good handful of people will be up early and at the starting line for the 2006 Bangkok marathon. On November 26 they will run pass the Grand Palace, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, the National Museum and the Chao Phraya River. The race starts as early as 2 AM as it will be pretty hot and humid as the day goes on I’m sure. I know it’s a little far in advance, but round of sound for anyone so up early hitting the pavement. We’ll be rooting for you, full bellies and all!

Today’s word is a Thai word used in Thailand:

wîng – run

Learning Thai dot com is a great starting point for some basic Thai words and referrals to additional resources. For a brief history of the language, Thai alphabet, and pronunciation guide go to Omniglot. (A pretty clean and simple site with good details.) Another good source would be the Pimsleur language audio CD’s. I used these to prepare for my trip and they worked great! Before making the purchase look into your local library. There are several libraries carrying these audio CD’s and many more.

Past Thai words: hàat sai, wan sao, sawatdee khrab, dang, pák