The most remarkable Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco was completed after more than four years of construction at the cost of $35 million. It is a visitor’s attraction well recognized around the world. Golden Gate Bridge opened to vehicular traffic on May 28, 1937 at twelve o’clock noon, ahead of schedule and under budge, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt pressed a wire key in the White House announcing the event.

Golden Gate Bridge design repeats an Art Deco Theme. Wide and vertical ribbing on the horizontal tower stimulating accents the sun’s light on this bridge. The tower, which support the Golden Gate Bridge’s suspension cables are same at the top that at the base, highlighting the tower height of 500 feet above the roadway.

The Marine Headlands side of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge is an amazing place to take snaps such as July 4th fireworks photo and watch freighter and sailboats cruises under the bridge. You would take pleasure in viewing that stretches from Golden Gate Park and outstanding Twin Peaks to “The Bay Bridge” and beyond. Linking San Francisco with Marin County the Golden Gate Bridge is a 1.7 mile-long suspension bridge, which could be crossed by car, on bicycles or on foot.

The Golden Gate Bridge's 4,200 foot long main delay period was a world record, which stood for about 27 years. The bridge's two towers rise 746 feet creating them 191 feet taller than the Washington Monument. The five lane bridge crosses Golden Gate Strait that is also about 400 feet, or 130 meters, deep.

The Brooklyn Bridge took 54 years to complete earlier during 1883 and intended by wire rope copyright holder John A. Roebling, was the first well-known suspension bridge. It helped to define and put in fame to New York City in much the similar way, which the Golden Gate Bridge has for San Francisco.

After you view the snap of Golden Gate Bridge, you might desire to visit San Francisco city and take a real tour to Golden Gate Bridge. You can save money by booking your tickets online. Many tours sell out a week or more in advance, especially during the busy summer season, so be sure to book ahead.

The most vital San Francisco shuttle tours attraction is Golden Gate Bridge. Take a walk across this outstanding bridge. It features wonderful views of the deep sea, city, mountains, and amazing islands. On another side of the passage there is a vista point. Do not stop there, walk ahead and to the left under the thruway, or you could further take a walk under the Golden Gate Bridge, mount on the hill, and get to the most stunning view of the bridge. Moving forward you would get to Hawk Hill with even more impressive views.

The next San Francisco tours attraction is Coit Tower. Climb a top the Telegraph Hill and feel the top most view of the city. This is an exclusive experience. The area around is recognized as North Beach. Get to Columbus Avenue and take pleasure in the safe nightlife region with a lot of huge Italian restaurants and excellent shops, bars, and other clubs, especially at the junction with Broadway Street.

Most tourists visit fisherman’s Wharf extends between Pier 39 and Ghirardelli Square. It has a lot of memento shops, third class hotels, loud attractions, and inexpensive "museums". It is a very noisy place. But! It was and it is yet now an actual fisherman’s wharf! Do not stick to nibbled trails look further around. You would find most adventures places, views, and excitements.

As Columbus Avenue is at the middle of Italian culture, Valencia Street is the artistic center of Mission district. A lot of huge Spanish hotels and clubs are available there. The region has its own immense feeling. Here you can find the little spot in the area around Mission de Asis. Following are some of the places you should surely visit to get more actual and complete picture of San Francisco society life: Ocean Beach and close to Cliff House, China Town, Yerba Buena Gardens, Castro Street.

During a year there are many huge city events: Chinese New Year, Love Parade, and other smaller, less famous, but never the less attractive events as well. This is possibly the greatest city attraction - vulcanizing educational life. Do not miss chance to meet the city inhabitants, so varied, so extraordinary.

This is the time of year when we all hop into our cars and head for scenic overlooks, family reunions, and the beloved campsites with the family. Okay, I hope some of you do, I prefer a book festival with a hotel and room service, dang prima dona publishers.

At any rate...what do you do when you are traveling to promote your books? I know for some of you it is truly difficult to visit a multitude of bookstores with your kids and spouse in tow yelling, "Are we going to stop at another bookstore?"

Well, let's get creative! Traveling is a wonderful opportunity for promoting outside your comfort zone, and you won't have to even talk to people if you don't want to. Consider all the places you could promote your book.

Rest area bathrooms: You simply carry a stack of specially designed bookmarks or post cards that have your cover on it, with a bold header that says "Please Take me!" You stick them on top of toilet paper holders, under the corner of a mirror above the sink, shoot, tape it to the paper towel dispenser.

It will get thrown away, you say! Maybe, but not until at least one or two people look at it, and another has to physically pick it up to toss it. I am 99% certain the person throwing it away will read it first. Maybe even be interested enough to stick it in their pocket instead to look at it later. People who travel in packs almost always have at least one reader in the group--the passenger! Don't let them get away!

Fast Food restaurants: Whether you drive thru or eat in, you should hand a card or bookmark to the cashier or server. Again, they will look at it, and if you have put a clear message on it, it will do the work for you. "Not a reader? Give me to a friend who is!" Most people will, younger people might actually think of their old and decrepit 40-50 year old parents who sit on the couch reading after dinner.

Campsites: Holy cow. This could be a gold mine of opportunity. You have people out in the middle of nowhere, with kids running around willy-nilly, who are looking for ways to occupy their time. You simply send one of your kids over with a card or bookmark to tell the new temporary neighbors, "Hey my dad is an author and he has some of his books for sale." They will graciously take the card and look at it. No one wants to be rude. Now, at this point, chances are the wife is a fishing, hunting, or hiking widow and will be in the market for something to do and someone to talk to. She will come to you and ask about your book and then you hook into buying it, or at the very least ask her to tell a friend about your book. Viola!

Hotels:

For those of you who prefer the comforts, as I do, don't let the chance to make those FREE continental breakfasts work for you. When you go down for breakfast take a small stack of books, a small tabletop poster, and a pen. You set yourself up in the middle of the room (I suggest in the direct line of the television screen) and see what happens. If you are really bold, set a post card on each table and see if anyone notices. Keep an eye on those cleaning folks, or let them know you are a touring author and are putting out a couple pieces of promo materials. If you end up selling a bunch of books you might consider taking that last book and signing it to the housekeeper who did not throw away your materials. Nice gesture and well worth the investment.

You could even ask the hotel manager if you could do an impromptu book signing in the lobby. You might invest in a box of cookies and some soda and they might let you put a sign up announcing the time. What hotel manager would not like to offer their guests an added bonus that they didn't have to do anything for?

The bottom line is to let the materials do the work for you. Don't be embarrassed to put that note on the front asking them to pass it along.

Don't miss a chance to claim at least some of your vacation expenses for business. Just be sure to log what you are doing and try to visit at least one store or library.

San Francisco’s bay area and wildlife attractions offer great family entertainment where every body would enjoy. San Francisco has two great nature attractions to select from, The Aquarium of the Bay and Zoos at San Francisco. A person who loves nature must not miss out these superb activities. Children and parents would surely value witnessing the diversity of species offered at both these attractions.

Bay Aquarium is a comparatively new attraction been opened during 1996 with few additions made during 2001. It is placed at Fisherman’s Wharf; the aquarium features one million gallons of sea life comprising sharks and stingrays. The tour of the aquarium is broken into four parts:

• Discover the bay
• Touch the bay
• Below the bay
• Save the bay

Meet leisure of coastal California at Touch the Bay. Enjoy the touch pools where you are buoyant to act together and touch strike rays, leopard sharks and also other tide pool animals. Truly an exclusive and own experience, Touch the Bay is a number one for the visitors.

The San Francisco Zoo is Northern California's biggest zoological park and also the conservation center “Join zoomanity” at the San Francisco Zoo and do take part in various wildlife experiences. The zoo explains zoomanity as a "state coming from the optimistic and reverential connection of humans to the animal world." A relationship and superior understanding of wildlife is surely what the zoo is just all about. Set nearby to the amazing ocean, the zoo's over 250 species stay in these natural surroundings on the zoos open grounds.

Nearly 1,000 mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and other invertebrates are available the San Francisco zoo home. You must see displays comprise the lately opened African Savanna, the superb Lip man Family Lemur Forest and mind blowing Gorilla World. The Feline Conservation Center is actually one more tourist’s preferred place with its wooded haven and breeding ability working to protect the endangered snow leopard and as well the other wild cats. Children would surely want to visit the zoo's 6-acre Children's Zoo with the chance for parents and children to cooperate with different animals. A visit to the Family Farm section of the park would permit the complete family to feel sheep, goats, horses and also few other farm animals.

The Aquarium of the Bay and San Francisco Zoo are actually the best amusing attractions the whole family could take pleasure in. The ideal escape from touristy marketable destinations and the busy San Francisco streets, these attractions are huge kid friendly activities parents would also want to experience.

Bangkok’s history dates back to the year 1782 when it was established by the first monarch of the Chakri dynasty. It is the heart and soul of Thailand. The city is the center of spiritual, commercial, cultural, and educational activities. Spanning an area of more than 1500 square kilometers, it houses more than 10 million people

Bangkok has grown to become an exciting and enchanting city. Bangkok is a city, which offers you the best of both the worlds – the urban life on one hand and the world of cultural ambience on the other hand. It is the perfect combination of the archaic and the modernized world. The cosmopolitan or the urban life is experienced if one walks down the streets of the Bangkok city. At night time, the city comes alive with dazzling lights, sizzling food, range of spicy restaurants, dancing festivals, and bustling market places at every nook and corner.

The cultural and the spiritual air is sensed when one enters the numerous Buddhist temples in the city. The burnished image of the Buddha, the saffron-clad monks, and the resounding silence of the temples immediately bring a sense of peace to mind and a feeling of timelessness.

Sailing through the Venice of the East canals and Chao Phraya River, the River of Kings, one can catch a glimpse of the old Bangkok and savor its traditional way of life as well. Since this city was never colonized, its culture and heritage is still untouched and pure. Therein lies the unstated beauty of Bangkok.

Like most people I sang in front of the mirror with a hairbrush as a microphone and always harboured that dream of being a popstar. And, like most people, I couldn’t, and still can’t sing a note. My singing is reserved for the shower nowadays and I believed there it would stay. That was, however, until I heard about singing holidays.

Singing vacations give holidaymakers the chance to tune up their voice while enjoying a break, usually at a luxurious country house (with no neighbours to hear your attempts at Whitney or Mariah).

The break features tuition from top singing teachers and you can choose exactly what type of singing you want to perfect.

Try a jazz singing holiday for instance. You can usually bring your own favourite songs and with the help of the experts turn them into a show-stopping performance.

Or go for a musical break where you will learn how to put on your very own stage show and perform the masterpiece at the end of your stay.

Most singing holiday providers also feature seasonal breaks. A Christmas music break gives guests the opportunity to carol sing like a professional and learn different vocal arrangements to some classic Christmas songs.

Singing holidays are also great social occasions. After learning to sing together and performing as a group you get the chance to relax with a meal and a few drinks and get to know your fellow budding singers.

The Morris Island Lighthouse is one of two lighthouses in Charleston, SC. Since it is located only about 300 yards off the north end of Folly Beach, the lighthouse has become somewhat of a symbol for Folly Beach and even James Island. The Morris Island Lighthouse has received a lot of attention recently because the island it sits on has shifted dramatically.

When the lighthouse was built in 1876, fifteen buildings surrounded it on Morris Island for the keeper and his family. And, most people don’t know that it was painted with black and white stripes after the Bodie Lighthouse in North Carolina’s Outer Banks. Problems began in 1889 when jetties were built to improve the channel leading into the Charleston Harbor. These jetties changed the currents around the channel, threatening Morris Island with erosion. Due to this erosion, some of the buildings surrounding the lighthouse were moved to a safer area, and the light was automated in 1938.

By 1962 the Morris Island lighthouse was decommissioned and replaced with the lighthouse on Sullivan’s Island. When the United States Coast Guard announced that it was going to tear down the lighthouse, Charleston residents collected a petition to save it.

The Morris Island Lighthouse passed through the hands of several private owners from 1965 to 1999, when an organization called Save the Light purchased it for $75,000. Save the Light has raised over $700,000 to preserve the Morris Island Lighthouse. What began as a grass-roots campaign is now a three-hundred-member organization with money and support coming from people as far away as Italy. Save the Light plans to work with the Army Corps of Engineers to preserve the lighthouse.

Although they are a long way off the 2012 Olympic Games will be upon us before we know it. Those that are planning on making the trip to the London 2012 Olympic Games know all to well, from past Olympic Games, that many people leave it to the last minute and end up having to stay in Hotels out of the city because everything is fully booked. When that happens, you can be sure that you will end up with nothing but problems; a long traveling distance to get to the daily events; and you will also fail to experience the buzz that will be present around London at the time when the event is on.

Lodging 2012 London Olympic Games

Lodging is one option for the 2012 Olympic Games; however it certainly has its disadvantages as well as advantages. On the up side you may be able to stay in a place right next to the city; however lodging usually suggests renting a room on a short term basis from a house that is not usually meant for playing the role of a hotel but has the hospitality not experienced in a hotel. For those reasons your accommodation may be relatively primitive in comparison to other facilities expect in a hotel. On the upside you will be able to live with people who really know the city, and as such they will be able to introduce you to the culture and the essence where you are staying.

Rented accommodation 2012 London Olympic Games

Rented accommodation is one great way to experience the 2012 London Olympic Games. Many people prefer the relaxed nature of living in a home, rather than a hotel, and they also like being able to go to sleep when they like, eat when they like and come home whenever it pleases them. With this option the price may be expensive considering how busy London will be at that time, however it will not be as expensive as a hotel and certainly more enjoyable experiencing a home from home lifestyle..

Guest house London 2012 Olympic Games

Staying at a Guest House for the London Olympic Games could be a great option for you to explore. It is almost certain that all of the available Guest House Accommodation will be used up pretty soon, however getting in early is one way of ensuring that you manage to get your Guest House accommodation at the best price.

Hotel London 2012 Olympic Games

Hotels are going to be more expensive during the London Olympic Games than they are at any other time of the year. That is why, unless you have a large budget, you should be considering other forms of accommodation. However if you have the money, and you enjoy being served hand on foot, then this is the best option for you. If you book now then you might be able to take advantage of early bird offers.

Tourism to Panama is expected $2.8 billion annually in revenues by 2016, according to the latest figures from the World Travel and Tourism Council, bringing with it a wealth of jobs and foreign investment.

The 2006 Travel and Tourism Economic Research report by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) estimates last year’s visitors to Panama left behind more than $1.3 billion on everything from transport to accommodation, restaurants and other travel-related services.

This represents nearly 14 per cent of total exports, a figure which the WTTC estimates will grow to almost 17 per cent in ten years.

The number of tourists has also grown, going from one million in 2005 to 1.2 million in 2006.

“Tourism has grown a great deal over the last 10 years,” admits Jaime Campuzano, President of the Panama Chamber of Tourism. In fact, arrivals to the Tocumen International Airport have grown by 80 per cent in the last decade, with cruise ship and land arrivals showing similar increases.

Despite the encouraging growth, the Chamber has been working closely with the Panamanian government to open the country up to serious tourism, capitalizing on the burgeoning Central American industry.

This year marks the start of a five-year, $39.5 million publicity campaign to market Panama as a tourist destination, aimed primarily at North and Latin American markets.

“This is the first time in our history we have launched such an aggressive campaign, with an assured budget,” says Mr Campuzano.

The coming year will also see the release of the long-awaited National Tourism Plan, an ambitious outline of the strategy for developing the industry through to 2020.

“We have been working with the government to determine zones of tourism interest, areas for development, and different tourism products and strategies,” says Mr Campuzano. “This is an important step which will begin in 2007.”

Travel and tourism is seen as one of the big contributors to the country’s economy, bringing with it not only direct revenues, but also stimulating foreign investment.

This last is two-fold, explains Mr Campuzano; not only does tourism stimulate the development of the interior of Panama, with the construction of hotels, resorts, eco-tourist attractions and the like, but many of the tourists themselves return to invest in land and properties.

“Tourism produces a doubly positive effect, because they come as tourists, and later come back as investors, or to live permanently,” points out Mr Campuzano.

“Real estate has grown,” he adds. “North Americans and Europeans are coming to invest in real estate, many baby boomers are buying land, farms, properties.”

Nearly $2.8 billion in economic activity was generated by travel and tourism in Panama last year, according to the WTTC report, which is expected to nearly double by 2016, at $5.4 billion.

The influx of money for development also means jobs in areas where poverty is most desperate. Nearly 40 per cent of Panamanians, most of them in rural areas, are classified as below the poverty line, and 12 per cent are destitute.

Mr Campuzano is optimistic about the benefits of tourism.

“According to the World Tourism Organization tourism is a proven eradicator of poverty,” he says.

Indeed, tourism accounted for 129,000 jobs in 2006, according to the WTTC, nearly 11 per cent of all employment in the country. By 2016, the industry is expected to account for nearly 12 per cent of employment, or 171,000 jobs.

The challenge lays in making sure Panamanians develop the skills to meet the demand, turning from more traditional trades such as agriculture and cattle-farming to tourism and the service industry.

Toward that end, the government is working with international groups to provide training programs, and encouraging micro and small business loans.

“We see the development with great optimism,” says Mr Campuzano. “We are working with the government and international institutions to train Panamanians in tourism.

“We are opening the first two hotel schools this year, and hoping for more. The universities are also broadening their range of technical training, and the government is investing heavily in the training and formation.”

“The process has started,” he points out, “and in the coming years we will be able to offer more and more qualified personnel to meet the demands of tourism.”