Word for the Travel Wise (10/29/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

Culture in Iceland? Of course there is culture in Iceland and tons of it! Check out the country events guide if you don’t believe me and to point your attention to one that especially caught my eye look for the African Souvenirs in Iceland Exhibition taking place until 12, November 2006. Could be a pretty cool cultural event to check out, otherwise being in Iceland should be a cultural experience in its own.

Today’s word is an Icelandic word used in Iceland:

menning – culture

Háskóli Íslands, one of the universities offers an excellent free starter course to learning Icelandic. Pictures, text, and audio for sample conversations are included. European Youth Portal points out other sources of study within the country and distance learning. I’ve met several speakers with My Language Exchange. Lastly, check out the BBC for a few easy phrases to help get you around the town.

Past Icelandic words: söngkona/söngvari, himnaríki, velkomin, dýrt

Iceland: The Most Perfect Country?

by Neil Woodburn on

I can never say enough great things about Iceland.

I keep gleaming little facts and various bits of information about the people and the beauty of the country.

I’m not the only one.

A very long, detailed article in Saturday’s Independent seems to have taken all the very best and most interesting facts about Iceland and presented them as Exhibit A. In fact, the article has so much information about the country that the writer has had to resort to bullet points to communicate the most salient and impressive ones…. Most books purchased per capita, a prison population of 118, 24-hours of sunlight in the summer, 11th highest life expectancy rate, no armed forces… The list goes on and on.

I’m beginning to think that Iceland just might be the perfect society. Take a moment to read the John Carlin article and you’ll undoubtedly agree–unless, of course, you have a problem with long dark winters…

Free Trip to Iceland

by Neil Woodburn on

We here at Gadling really dig the magazine, Budget Travel. We also dig their website, BudgetTravelOnline.com. But what we really, really dig is when the Budget Travel website gives away a free trip.

This is exactly what they’re doing right now.

And it isn’t just any old ho-hum, “Within the Continental United States” trip. Nope. This trip is to one of my favorite places on this planet: Iceland. And it’s for two people.

So, what do you need to do to win?

Well, do you have an email address? A zip code?

Congratualtions! You qualify. Simply click here and supply your email address and zip code (and agree to receive a free Budget Travel newsletter) and you might soon find yourself basking in the joys of Reykjavik.

How easy is that?!?!

Marathon Tours

by Adrienne Wilson on

Only 17 days remain between now and the moment in which I’ll run my first 26.2 mile full marathon in Detroit. Am I excited? Heck yeah, you bet I am. And you probably wouldn’t believe me if I told you this, but I despise running. I hate the high impact and grueling feeling it has on my knees. Don’t get me wrong I enjoy the sense of community and spirit amongst runners, the feeling of achievement and most certainly the opportunity to go places, but it’s so hard for me to remain mentally positive when my body is wondering why I’m pushing it the way I am. Anyhow, what I’m trying to say is if you’re in Detroit or Windsor on October 29, come out and cheer me on! I’ll need the support.

Moving right along now that I’ve managed to squeeze my own shameless promotion into the plug, I suppose I should point running loving individuals or people who may want to get into the sport to this Marathon Tours site. First off, if you’re truly a marathon fanatic you’re probably already aware of this site, but even then I encourage you to check it out and start planning some serious marathon trips. Perhaps you’ve exhausted some of your options, favorite races, scenic routes or whatever. Why not run Antarctica or Dubai? To be quite honest it’s destinations like these and doing some so crazy that may keep into all this running jazz. Seriously, how cool would that be? Marathon Tours makes it easier if you’re looking to head abroad and check out the local scene in places like Iceland, Jamaica, Stockholm, Kenya and Australia. With all the other prep going into the race I’d imagine their services to be a huge load off one’s plate.

Get Inspired – Walk Across a Country

by Adrienne Wilson on

The best way to see anything and everything while traveling is by foot. Not a single person I know can dispute that point either. Buildings, people and market stalls all become rainbow like blurs when traveling by car and even when we’re off cruising the land by bike we still don’t pick up half of what we see when going by foot. Nothing escapes your sight. I had the chance of a lifetime to walk across America earlier this year and it has left me wanting to walk the span of several other destinations. In this Travel + Leisure piece, George Butterfield interviews Shane Mitchell about a recent walk across the island nation of Iceland and how he got inspired to pick up and go. Iceland has always been on my top places to visit list and from the brief Q&A I think I’ve heard enough to want to do it by foot as well. If you’re in need of a little inspiration to do anything, not just walk across the planet, do check out this small read and perhaps you’ll be ready to take your first baby step into the wilderness.