Blog Marco - Travel

Why do you participate in Outdoor activites?

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:34:18 -0700

Why do you participate in Outdoor activites?

I like to participate in outdoor activities because...

I feel more in touch with myself then
It helps me to relieve stress and refocus
It’s an escape from routine & gives a sense of freedom
It gives my family bonding experiences and an opportunity to grow closer
I enjoy facing the challenges that outdoor activities pose
It’s an opportunity for me to enjoy some time to myself
I enjoy competing against myself more than competing against others
I really enjoy socialising and meeting new people
I feel I share a common bond with others who participate
I enjoy competing against others more than competing against myself
I crave excitement and to get an adrenaline rush
I enjoy exploring places and having new experiences
Of the “natural high” and feeling good
I enjoy experiencing nature and it’s beauty
I’m motivated to test my skills and push myself

Airport X-Rays Coming to Get You!

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 18:59:55 -0700

Teaser:
Airport X-Rays Coming to Get You! Dear Oh Dear... Security Just Gets Tighter And Tighter...

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I remember this being reported some time ago: about scanning machines which can "see" underneath clothing. And now, they've been installed at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York (JFK). "For now, the scans will also be voluntary. Flyers selected for a secondary screening after passing through the metal detectors will have the option of stepping into the wave scanner, rather than undergoing a physical pat-down." I would rather get the pat down instead of having to step into this machine. Who knows what the long term effects are of having been exposed to these waves? Also what about people's privacy? Personally I've been used to pat-downs. While traveling in the Philippines, for years they have already been patting down everyone at the airport (I remember being searched at least four times before I stepped into the aircraft) and they also pat down people when you enter in any of their shopping centres or their public trains (Yep, you get patted down and your belongings looked at before you enter a train station.

Best Seats in Economy Class

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 12:14:55 -0700

Its no secret - everybody knows which seats on the airplane are the best seats. It's first class, then business class then there's coach aka economy class. Most of us have to travel economy class. Again - its no secret which seats are the best seats in economy class - the exit rows and bulkhead (the front) seats are the bes because they offer the most leg room. Aisle seats are great too (Have you watched those comedies when someone had to get up over people just to go to the bathroom?).

But no. There are other best seats in economy class. So if it isn't the bulkhead, the exit row or aisle seats, which are they? In every plane its different because of the different configurations for different carriers.

Delayed Flight? Invoice Them

Thu, 20 Mar 2008 20:38:47 -0700

Won't it be cool if passengers can invoice the airlines for being late? Well it may become a reality for Australians under new laws proposed by the Government. Foreign airlines will have to pay up to $8000 a person for delayed flights, $1800 for lost luggage and $180,000 compensation for injury or death in a plane crash.

The changes, introduced to Parliament by the Transport Minister, Anthony Albanese, yesterday, would bring Australia into line with signatories to the Montreal Convention, an agreement between 86 countries.

"The new scheme makes it easier for Australians to seek fair and timely protection," Mr Albanese said.

Under the old system, a passenger who lost their luggage would have to prove the carrier was at fault. If Australia ratifies the convention, the same passenger would receive up to $1800, no questions asked.

"So for your thousand-dollar bag you'd get your money back straightaway, no ifs or buts from the airline," a spokesman for the minister said. "It reverses the onus. If the bag is worth more than the threshold, it would be the airline that would have to prove it was not at fault."

Crosswind Airplane Landings

Fri, 31 Aug 2007 22:27:34 -0700

How exciting. Have a watch of these crazy crosswind airplane landings. I wonder if you were a passenger on these planes would you have noticed the plane wasn't landing straight?

Japan Airlines Boeing 747 crosswind landing Hong Kong. Filmed from the checkerboard used for the approach into Kai Tak. Overshoots and then lines it up just to get caught in the wind...again. Unedited. You can hear another enthusiast in the background with a scanner.

Korean 747 Extreme Landing. A Korean Airlines 747 performing an extreme crosswind landing at the infamous Kai Tak airport of Hong Kong. The aircraft busted several tires.

Crosswind Landing Testing. This is a pretty cool video of a 777 & 747 SP landing in a cross winds down in Brazil. This little item shows the Boeing factory determining the demonstrated crosswind landing limits on the 777 and the 747SP. The engineers make educated guesses, but then the test crews have to go actually prove the numbers. They sneak off to Brazil to do these tests at a certain remote BAF airbase famous for its continual atrocious crosswinds... Should the gear sideloads be excessive and fold one up, there is nobody there to take nasty pix for the Airbus guys to wave around in the press...

It Travelled Right Through Airport Security!

Wed, 30 May 2007 15:00:59 -0700

Teaser:
This package of liquids, toiletries travelled right through airport security

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This package travelled right through airport security in Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) last Monday when I was travelling back to Sydney. All the tight security measures like this and like x-raying shoes and this small amount of liquid gets through... It contains a used toothpaste tube with about 10-15mL left, two containers containing moisturiser and gel, two sample packs of lotion about 5mL each and a 15mL lotion bottle as well as my toothbrush. I normally pack this in my checked baggage but I guess I forgot that I placed it in my hand carry temporarily so I could brush my teeth at the airport.

With new airport regulations you cannot bring many liquids into the aircraft with you. From memory, you can bring in a 1L clear plastic bag with small containers not exceeding 100mL but the containers cannot be half-empty. There are special conditions for baby foods, etc...

Back in February, when I travelled from Manila, Philippines back home I forgot to pack a liquid bottle of insect repellent in my checked baggage. They confiscated the bottle off me.

Qantas In-Flight Service

Tue, 29 May 2007 15:00:34 -0700

Qantas in-flight service simply sucks. Well, its average to put it fairly compared to other international airlines. I wrote about the standard of service about a month ago here. And a survey by Choice magazine (as reported by SMH) of its 4000 subscribers corroborates that fact.

So why do I say Qantas service sucks? Well it doesn't really suck that much... but compared to other airlines, their service and the system they use in serving people is definitely lacking.

I really do hope someone from Qantas reads this blog entry. So that they can improve their services. But Qantas isn't at all bad - they really do have good crew - and you wouldn't have a soaring share price, high profitability and record numbers flying with the airline if it were that bad. All I'm saying Qantas needs improvement here and there.

Michael Mijatov, secretary of the Flight Attendants Association of Australian, International division, has said that "...we believe this is not due to poor service or poor attitude on behalf of the cabin crew but to inadequate numbers of cabin crew on the aircraft. The service procedures laid down by airlines are not matched by adequate crew numbers on the aircraft."

Why Travel?

Wed, 09 May 2007 15:58:20 -0700

Why do people travel? People travel to escape, to escape reality: to escape their jobs, to escape problems, to escape the rigours and stresses of daily life. People travel to London to see the Queen, to see the important historical artefacts, to see great photos and paintings, to see a musical. People travel to Paris to find romance, to see Mona Lisa, to watch Moulin Rouge, to see the Eiffel Tower or the Gargoyles from Notre Dame. People come to Sydney to visit our wonderful beaches, to watch Opera, to witness our beautiful harbour. People come to Fatima, Portugal to find their spiritual peace. People visit Greece to see the ancient ruins at Athens, Olympia and Delphi. And what do people come back to? The same reality, the same job, the same problems, the same stresses.

Travel

Wed, 09 May 2007 15:48:31 -0700

Instead of posting my travel photography on this blog, I've begun a new section on my new blog specifically for my travel photography. Reason for change? Now that I have a specific blog for my photography, I can have all my photos located there and my other random thoughts, ideas and facts here.

Dubbed In French

Tue, 24 Apr 2007 02:33:37 -0700

I love watching foreign TV. And I’m not talking about late night SBS. (In Australia, SBS has a reputation for showing foreign films with gratuitous nudity and sex). In England I was able to watch American shows in the morning - there's a channel there that broadcasts repeats of sitcoms and American dramas in the mornings; strange for me because in Australia, public TV usually withholds those programs for primetime. In France, everything American was dubbed in French. Movies are dubbed and TV shows are dubbed. 7th Heaven was dubbed in French - which made Lucy even more sexier with her French accent. There was CSI Miami which was renamed to Crime Specialists. Even Lizzy McGuire was French! I watched a bit of Serendipity (renamed to Un Amour a New York) and also watched the concept shows in their French format: Who Wants to be a Millionaire, Wheel of Fortune and 1 contre 100 (1 vs. 100).

Qantas Business Class Again

Thu, 19 Apr 2007 23:51:17 -0700

Teaser:
Business Class Food Yummy - Service Left a Bad Taste

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I wrote about Qantas business class food before and I also raved about the service the flight attendants provided. I went to the Philippines in January and I was again seated in Business class... Food was of a good standard - I ordered the Poached Snapper which tasted good. The service from the flight attendants weren't up to standard. I think it was the impending Qantas takeover. But then a month later when I travelled back (in economy class) I found the crew to be totally different and offered a very good service to travellers.

In Paris!

Mon, 16 Apr 2007 04:17:22 -0700

We're in Paris! Here's a family portrait I took last night at Trocadero with the Eiffel Tower in the background. Went around to the usual tourist locations: went up Eiffel tower, went to see Mona Lisa at the Louvre, went up Notre Dame to see the Gargoyles, walked along the Sienne River and watched Moulin Rouge. We'll be in Lourdes by tonight!

Equalise!

Sat, 23 Dec 2006 15:50:10 -0800

That practice of equalising the air pressure in your ears using the technique where you forcibly exhale with closed lips and pinched nose is called the Valsalva Maneuver. This action forces air into the middle ear if the Eustachian tube is open. Normally, people simply swallow to equalise pressure, but in cases where you can't do so such as scuba diving... that's what you do.

Too Hot To Fly

Fri, 22 Dec 2006 17:48:22 -0800

Useless Fact #982437: Planes can't fly when it is too hot. It has been reported that airplanes in Nevada, USA and in Mexico had been grounded in the past because outdoor ambient temperatures were not conducive of a successful flight. Increasing temperatures decrease the density of air so the plane's strict safety and performance requirements are not met. So it is possible for ground staff to ground a flight because it simply is too hot to fly.

British Pollute the Planet by Over Travelling

Fri, 03 Nov 2006 20:12:25 -0800

The British are polluting our planet by over travelling...

The combination of a booming economy, a multicultural society, the advent of aggressive, low-cost airlines such as Ryanair and easyJet and Britons' desire to escape their wintry island has made them perhaps the most eager flyers, per capita, on Earth.

In 1970 32 million people used British airports. In 2004 the figure was 216m; by 2030 it is projected to be 470m. Britain not only hosts more flights than any other European country but a fifth of all international flights pass through the United Kingdom. With 70,000 employees, Heathrow is the world's busiest airport. -- SMH

... end result? More pollution. And guess what the population of Britain is? Only 60 million... so according to the 2004 figure, each Briton took about 3.6 flights in that year...