At 5 o:clock, on a Friday evening in 2001 many people gathered together to inaugurate an incredible building, designed by Norman Foster, in the English city of Newcastle.  More than fifteen thousand people attended the performances and events that celebrated the the Sage Gateshead opening.  This center for musical performance, education and conferences is about to celebrate its five year anniversary, or birthday.  This is located just outside of Newcastle, on the southern bank of the River Tyne.  The entire development is the Gateshead Quays, and includes the Millennium Bridge as well as the contemporary center for the arts, the Baltic Gallery.

There are three amphitheaters located within the Sage, the largest venue seating seventeen hundred, one that seats four hundred and a smaller hall used for rehearsal space and performances.  These three halls were the main focus of the design, and the rest of the building was constructed around the halls, in order to ensure the maximum potential for the acoustics.  The largest of the halls was designed after the Viennese hall, Musikverein.  The panels of the ceiling and the curtains may be move accordingly, to affect the structure of the sound and to cater to any form of music, be it rock or be it symphony.

The Sage is open during the day, to the public and the tourists coming from their Newcastle hotel of choice.  One may witness not only the spectacular performances during the evening, but can sit in on rehearsals, workshops and sound checks.  The building was designed to create an informal atmosphere, in the best possible way to really hear the sounds.  The center offers daily classes and workshops as well.  There are also five pubs and a cafe located within.  The facility also has a library on the grounds, also open to the public, which contains books and magazines that cover every aspect of music and the music business, as well as a library of recorded albums and CDs with listening stations throughout.  The birthday celebration will run through December 18 to the 20th, and is a must for music lovers in the city during the month of December.

So it’s a birthday, anniversary or even nearing Christmas time. And you are so tired of buying the same old gifts. How many times can you really buy dad a bottle of cologne? And does Mom really want more candles? Probably not. Gift giving is something that can be an extravagant or as ordinary as you want. But what if you want to give someone something they would never dream of buying for themselves? Here are some great ideas of how you can surprise someone special in your life with a gift they would never expect!

Travel: Buying someone a trip is giving them a gift of an experience. Think about doing an impromptu weekend. You can get great deals at the last minute on travel web sites such as Expedia, Travelocity and Priceline. The nice thing is that they do packages, so you can just pay one price and not have to worry about the rest.

Hot tub: If you are looking for a gift for someone in your life that could use a little relaxation, consider buying them a hot tub. There are great sites on the internet, including the website of Steven Barbarich, choosehottubsdirect.com that can help you make this gift become a reality at a great price. A hot tub is great for athletes and couples too!

Something they won’t buy for themselves: Does your wife always talk about wishing she could work out at home instead of going to the gym? Why not consider buying her an exercise machine as a gift. Now, I don’t recommend this for a birthday, but if your wife will not take the gift as some kind of insult it would be great around Christmas time. This or anything you can think of that someone would not buy for them always makes a great gift.

Birders can find new exciting species to observe even in the midst of the largest cities. For example, where I booked a room at a New York Cheap Hotel, Central Park is home to more than 150 species of birds throughout the entire year. I was fortunate enough to pack the right equipment to help me with my birding project.

I’m a recreational birder, so I only needed a few basic birding supplies in order to find birds on my trip. I brought binoculars, a compact, portable pair which helped me easily observe birds no matter where I was. A field guide tucked into my field jacket. A notebook so I could take quick notes on all the species I observed so I can compare and do a positive identification. I found a simple digital camera to be valuable for capturing birding observations quickly and easily so the species could be identified later on without interrupting any other plans I had. I could’ve brought more extensive equipment, like a multiple guides, a fully-equipped field bag or a spotting scope, but they really weren’t necessary for my casual birding vacation.

I knew when to spot birds effectively which increased my chances of finding a new or unusual species during my vacation. The very early morning hours, before any business activity begins, is one of the best times to observe birds feeding and preening after a long night. Later in the afternoon is another feeding time and taking an hour or two for casual birding was a welcome break from my structured vacation itinerary. Plus, putting in a few extra hours into my schedule helped too, like while at the beach, I not only built sand castles, I observed gulls and other shore birds. At the zoo, I visited the aviary and I contacted a birding organization prior to travelling to get tips on the best hot spots.  All of this made my birding a pleasure.

I took a different kind of tour of Singapore, more like a history lesson. But, a history lesson I enjoyed. My girlfriend and I are cat lovers and this informational tour was geared for us. After we unpacked at our room in one of Singapore Luxury Hotels, we got busy with the learning.

Singapore originally was known as Temasek or the Sea Town, but it was renamed Singapura (Lion City) after a visiting Sumatran Prince, which my girlfriend and I envisioned as very handsome and charming, glimpsed what he thought was a lion, but most likely a tiger, in 1299. Then in the 1800′s, Singapore underwent a period of intense economic growth and was declared a freeport. Today, it’s one of the busiest ports in the entire world and attracts many tourists, such as my girlfriend and me.

As cat enthusiast, we found Singapore is more associated with the Singapura cat rather than the lion or tiger. Although,we thought it probably would be easier to find a lion on Singapore than to find a Singapura. Like that handsome Sumatran Prince when he glimpsed a cat that it must not have been a Singapura nor a lion. But, the island does have a rich history fo feline mascots. There’s Singa, a rather funny happy little lion. Singa is the mascot for the annual Courtesy Campaign; an event that brings Singaporeans together in an ongoing drive to improve their everyday courtesies which will help Singapore be the most welcoming place on earth. The Singa wears a hard-hat and appears on roadwork signs apologizing for any inconvenience while a car drives past the construction site.

Merlion is the oldest mascot in Singapore. Merlion is a lion-headed fish! It guards the river mouth at Merlion Park. The Singapore Tourist Promotional Board also uses the emblem as a seal fo approval on reputable stores. But, my girlfriends favorite was the ‘Kucinta, the Love Cat of Singapore’. Kucinta is better known as the Singapura or as the islanders say: the River Cart or the less attractive name ‘The Drain Cat’. I will let my girlfriend enjoy her Kucinta. But, for me I adore all of them.

Have you ever wondered what there is to do on the Balearic Island of Ibiza? Well, if that’s the case, then it’s obvious you’ve never been there. There are a great many natural and human created activities, attractions and events throughout the island that make it an ideal vacation destination, and for some the perfect residential location. There is a diverse and thriving club scene, many historical ruins and cultural landmarks to keep all visitors to the island happy and occupied. The beaches are world known and beautiful, and offer plenty of water sport options as well as a simple and relaxing afternoon or beautiful sunset dinner. Many people have a favorite Ibiza town hotel that they return to every year.

One of the favorite water sports on Ibiza, as well as with most of the rest of the world is surfing. Surfers come from all genders, backgrounds and cultures and many of them share a love for the environment, and particularly the earth’s waters. It is ironic that most surf boards are constructed from toxic substances, though it is also why many surfers are turning to more ecologically friendly boards. Greenlight is a company that is devoted to these surfboards and surfing supplies. Most of their boards are created from bamboo, recyclable foam and resin epoxy.

Bamboo is one of the most renewable and sustainable wood products. The company is a pioneer in creating these high quality boards with innovative technology. The bamboo glassing fabric also requires 25% less product and creates less waste. The surface of these boards can be glassed to an extent that prevents or greatly reduces the need for wax. Part of their mission is to include a service that allows surfers to shape their own, which contributes to a greater satisfaction in the waters. Many instructional videos are available for this purpose. This cutting edge company is just one of many that are working toward creating a more sustainable world with less pollution and toxic waste. It’s great to know that a popular recreational, as well as professional, activity is contributing to the greater good of the world.

For the savvy world traveler, each hotel in Bali, Indonesia offers a heady combination of hospitality and luxury, all in the comfort of one of the most lovely places on the planet.  Bali has beaches that absolutely live up to their reputation, and the nightlife here is very lively.  There are plenty of options for family fun, too, with excellent tours, sights, and restaurants that serve heavenly food.  Bali is a fascinating mix of cultures and traditions, with elements of Buddhism and Hinduism having worked their way in from China and India.  There are many local performances, too, with excellent works of dance and theatre.  Often, the theatrical and dance forms are mixed, to make fascinating and extremely complex works that are spectacular.  For most tourists, it is very easy to get accustomed to life on the island, and it’s difficult to leave!

Beach culture is a world of its own, where the concerns for tomorrow or yesterday tend to wash away to give way to the immediate present.  In Bali, this can certainly be the case, and the love of the sea is very high.  This love finds itself expressed in visual art, music, and film.  So much film, in fact, that there is a festival entirely dedicated to surf films.  The Ombak Bali International Surf Film Festival is in its second year, and is a four-day festival to present the best surf films from around the world.

The focus is on local film, but there are certainly movies from around the world that represent the best of this interesting genre.  The intention of the Ombak Bali Festival is to provide a forum where the films can be seen and discussed in one place.  It promotes dialogue between filmmaker and audience, and is especially designed to give new filmmakers a place where their work can be seen.  There is also a focus on disseminating interest in the environmental concerns that so many of the films express, and deepening love for the sea.  The films are incredibly beautiful, often very funny, and always fascinating, revealing complex social issues that draw the characters to the ocean, for one reason or another.

In the development of world accommodations, 5-star hotels are a very recent phenomenon.  The notion of hospitality is ancient, of course, and people have been traveling since people started walking.  There are mentions of different kinds of lodging throughout history, in plays as well as fiction, which suggest that wanderlust is really nothing new.  The notion of international standards that could designate a hotel as 5-star, however, does speak to our time.  Our hotels are extremely contemporary, then, but there are certain touches of the ancient qualities of earlier lodgings, especially when it comes to hospitality.  The sense of luxury here is really rather royal as well, where guests are treated to very personal service, with access to meals and guest services 24-hours a day.  No matter what the location, the same excellence applies, where only the highest standards are demonstrated.

It’s fascinating to look at the history of lodging, and to find examples of luxury from other centuries.  The idea of luxury itself can cover a very wide spectrum.  In most places, and in most times, it was reserved for the aristocracy, and the royal treatment was always reserved for royalty.  There are moments in time, though, when luxury is seen as something that should be accessible to all people, or under a benevolent king, something everyone deserved.  This idea isn’t very deep in our past, either.  In fact, just last century, the motel was the latest rage.  The world’s first motel was The Milestone in San Luis Obispo, in California in the U.S.

The word motel is, of course, a contraction of motor and hotel.  The idea behind the motel was that it could be a place where people could stop while traveling, and stay close to their cars.  This is what Arthur Hieneman was considering when he built the Milestone, and he imagined that the love affair with the automobile in North America would make his new idea very popular.  Setting it between Los Angeles and San Francisco, he was also counting on the potentially high volume of travelers between these two cities.  It was priced for the upper middle class, at $1.25 a night for two rooms and a private garage, and intended to keep travelers sleeping safe with their cars also locked up for the night.  The idea obviously had spectacular merits, but the timing was off as the Great Depression would make it impossible for the next decade.

Today we decided to take a road trip out of Dubai and headed off to the East Coast. Our first stop was Fujairah National Dairy Farm at Dibba. It was a hot day, about 37 degrees Celsius if you can believe that. We walked around the farm a bit and spotted a few birds, but not as many as we hoped. One of the guest staying at the Five Star Hotel Dubai where we were staying recommend this place for birding. Ha, I don’t think so!

So, back to the car to rehydrate and cool down. We then drove into Dibba to take a quick look around before we headed down the coast. Not much interested us at Dibba, so we continued on and had lunch at a resort to escape the heat of the day. I think I actually got 2nd degree burns on my feet. I was walking around in sandals across the hot sand of the beach. Hot, hot, hot!  But, we didn’t give up our road trip, young and stupid, I guess. We headed on south towards Fujairah where we stopped at the famous Al Qurrayah. We wondered around there for a while, but the heat was still rising, so we figured we had had enough birding for one day and decide to see some culture.

We visited the Fujairah Fort, which currently is being redeveloped, so we couldn’t get in. Someone there told us to check out Al Hayl Fort, it’s not as old, but they said it was still interesting. So we did go and check it out. It’s well preserved and it was amazing how the updrafts caused by the rifle holes kept the inside of the fort cool, even though it was 43 degrees outside. We went up little stairwells to go from one floor to another. It turned out to not be a bad place to visit.

Our final stop was at Khor Kalba, which is south of Fujairah and we spotted the Collared Kingfisher. A rare find indeed! We decided to turn back around when the sun set and head back to Dubai and take a nice swim in the refreshing cool pool. Next time, we decided to come to Dubai in the cooler months, it’s way too hot in the summer to do anything of interest outdoors.

There are so many things to do in Barcelona it’s difficult for a tourist to find time to do them all, and had even greater difficulty deciding what to see and do, since they are all fantastic. It’s even a special experience spending the day in one of the city’s numerous parks, some of which also have museums and cultural centers. In addition to the standard entertainment venues and cultural aspects the city offers, there are numerous festivals that are celebrated throughout the year and they also attract many tourists who fill the Barcelona boutique hotels.

Whatever the reason for visiting Barcelona, and however one’s day may be filled, experiencing the nightlife and club scene is always a great way to wind down or even party all night. There are bars and clubs to suit all interests, personalities, persuasions, ages and genders. It’s difficult to get more diverse than that. 23 Robadors is well known to residents, and is considered to be a true find when tourists open its old doors on the rickety old street. It is an informal club with exposed brick walls and timber beams on the ceiling. It features light jazz on Wednesdays and Flamenco on Sundays.

Aire is a sexual orientation open bar. It is part of the gay disco chain venues known as Arena, though this bar is low key and there is a diverse mix of patrons. It is generally accepted to be a lesbian dance bar, though everyone is welcome and everyone comes. The Baja Beach Club is an intriguing and lively club, featuring go go dancers from both sexes. It blasts dance music and is considered to be a great place for meeting people. It overlooks the beach, which enhances its ambiance, and also attracts the beach crowd. Daguiri is an interesting bar, and generally full of travelers, whether they be general life travelers or tourists. It offers good food and a nice patio to enjoy a drink on a warm summer evening.

According to a 2006 study American workers give back 1.6 million years of vacation time to their employer each year.  And also per 2006 findings, about a quarter of workers in America do not receive paid vacation time.

Comparatively, American workers work two weeks longer than those in Japan and two months longer than Germans, who are reported to sometimes get up to 15 weeks of paid vacation a year.

On average, Europeans get about four weeks of vacation each year.  Only workers in Mexico receive less vacation time than Americans. The country with the most vacation time is Denmark, with 31 days of vacation time.

What is it about Americans and the American worker? Well in corporate environments it’s all a matter of competitiveness. If the top companies only offer one to two weeks of paid vacation time, then certainly companies in that same field will offer the same amount for a similar job or position in that field.

Here’s the thing, Americans are complete workaholics and it’s only getting worse. Most Americans simply can’t relax because they are always tied to their work via their cell phone, blackberry, or I phone. Most people can’t let work lie while they are on vacation and especially with technology these days.

It’s about time that Americans reclaimed their vacation time. Take a trip to Hawaii for goodness sake. But studies show that most Americans feel guilty asking for vacation time so they use their sick time to take personal days or if they have personal obligations.

The American mentality is work hard and play hard. And the output of America compared to Europe is staggering. The Gross Domestic Product of Europe has been grown 2.4 percent in the past five years compared with 5 percent in the United States, and European nations have been looking into changing its vacation policies.

But there is no doubt the American worker needs to chill out too every once in awhile. So take that vacation time, book Lanai vacation packages, and rest and relax people!