I don't know how many people watch Anthony Bourdain on the Travel Channel, but I highly recommend his show for several reasons. One is his sense of adventure and sense of humor. He is willing to try anything at least once on camera and is very open minded. His show, called No Reservations, is on Monday evenings and takes you to places all over the world- from Europe to Asia, to Africa and South America. If you are a fan of travel and food, I highly recommend his show.
The reason I bring this up here is because of his most recent episode last night - it was about Saudi Arabia. Travel Channel ran a contest for its viewers to submit their request that Bourdain travel to a country they choose. The winner was a Saudi-American woman who wanted to show Bourdain what the real Saudi Arabia is like. It was a really great episode and I think is a must watch for anyone who has questions about traveling there and you kind of want to see it first. I know we at Caravan-Serai Tours can tell you how great a time you will have on any one of our tours, but for many, it takes more than that to get them to actually want to go.
There is another reason this show really impressed me. The winner, Danya, really helped to demonstrate what her life is like in Saudi Arabia. I recommend not only trying to find and watch an encore presentation of the episode, but to also read all the blogs and diaries of the crew, Anthony Bourdain, and to learn more about Danya. Here are the links to the Travel Channel's websites:
Crew Blog:
http://no-reservations-crew-blog.travelchannel.com/2008/07/under-the-abbaya-female-produc.html
Anthony Bourdain's main page: http://www.travelchannel.com/TV_Shows/Anthony_Bourdain?idLink=abc6513412eb7110VgnVCM100000698b3a0a____
Meet Danya: http://www.travelchannel.com/TV_Shows/Anthony_Bourdain/ci.Meet_Danya_Alhamrani.show?vgnextfmt=show
Enjoy!
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Monday, July 14, 2008
Questions people always ask
At Caravan-Serai Tours we get a lot of questions about our tours and the region we go to. One of the questions we get a lot of is "how safe is it over there?". I know the first time I traveled to the Middle East (I went to Syria for 2 months about 10 years ago) I had a lot of people ask me why I would do such a thing and wasn't I scared? The short answer was that I found the region extremely fascinating and I was not scared because I had learned enough to know that there really was no danger in me going to Syria. I could have been in more danger visiting New York City or Washington, DC, or some other major US city. The hazards that we face here at home on the highway, walking down the sidewalk, being out alone after dark in certain neighborhoods, etc... are as prevelant or worse than what you might face anywhere else in the world. And in countries like Syria, you are actually very safe - just be careful crossing a busy street! The crime rate is very low in Syria and at no time did I ever feel threatened. Our past clients also remark on how safe they felt during their travels - visit our website at http://www.caravan-serai.com/ and click on "Testamonials".
Just about any country in the world has places considered unsafe, places to avoid due to crime, gangs, drugs, etc, just as we do here in the US. But know that at Caravan-Serai Tours, we are up to date on any issues that might affect a country we are to visit or have clients visiting, we have the ability to reroute your tour to avoid any problems should they develop, and we are in constant communication with our in-country coordinators and our clients during the tour. Your safety is of utmost importance to us.
The bottom line is, if you worry too much about what can happen to you when you travel, pretty soon you won't even want to leave your house! Travel is an adventure and a great experience that should be embraced, not shied away from because you are worried something might happen. Get out and see the world- it's amazing!
Just about any country in the world has places considered unsafe, places to avoid due to crime, gangs, drugs, etc, just as we do here in the US. But know that at Caravan-Serai Tours, we are up to date on any issues that might affect a country we are to visit or have clients visiting, we have the ability to reroute your tour to avoid any problems should they develop, and we are in constant communication with our in-country coordinators and our clients during the tour. Your safety is of utmost importance to us.
The bottom line is, if you worry too much about what can happen to you when you travel, pretty soon you won't even want to leave your house! Travel is an adventure and a great experience that should be embraced, not shied away from because you are worried something might happen. Get out and see the world- it's amazing!
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Wow! Time is really flying by!
Time has just flown by this year. It seems like it was only a few weeks ago that we began planning our group tour to Iran for September. Now the tour is less than 2 months away. Pretty soon we will be sending off the passports for everyone to get their visas. We always get lots of questions about traveling to Iran, and I know that anyone who has gone there on a Caravan-Serai Tour has been amazed and deeply impressed by what they found there. The people are very welcoming and happy to talk to visiting Americans. The sights there are amazing, too. The Persian culture goes back over 5,000 years and the Iranian people are very proud of this. There is a lot to learn, see, and do in Iran and I hope that if you ever have any questions about traveling there you will call Caravan-Serai Tours at 800-451-8097. We are planning another group tour there in May 2009, but you can also have a private tour arranged for you as well.
When traveling to Iran there are some things to keep in mind. It is a dry country- no alcohol allowed. Follow a very conservative dress code (long loose pants or skirts for women and pants for men - no shorts, loose shirts or tunics with mid length sleeves or longer, or you can purchase a manteau - the Iranian cover that looks like a loose overcoat), especially for women and be sure to always have a scarf to cover you head. No prosletizing (not sure if I spelled that right!) - which means no preaching other religions or distributing literature about other religions. Saudi Arabia is very similar in these restrictions, but for both countries, these don't interfer with your ability to enjoy the sights and activities available on our tours.
My part in these tours is to help flesh out the final itineraries, write the brochures, help with registrations and other tour administration. I will be helping to get the visa applications completed and obtaining the visas, and putting together final documents for the group. Once in while I even get to go with one of the groups!
This is just the start of our Caravan-Serai Blogs. Soon you will be able to read posts from us while we are on a tour, with the first being Iran. I hope you will enjoy this blog!
Brenda
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