US citizens are asked to pay 138 USD for the right of entry. Although the fee is collected once during the lifetime of your passport, this isn’t a visa, and it isn’t clear how it is tracked by Argentinean authorities. Meanwhile, Canadians will be the hardest hit, since they have to forfeit seventy US dollars each time they disembark in Argentina. Australians are bilked for 100 USD. The amounts can be paid in US currency or the equivalent in Argentinean pesos. Note that this new tax is in addition to the departure tax you have to pay upon leaving. If you have dual Argentinean citizenship, then you’re exempt from paying the new tax.

The explanation given by the government for this new policy is that it’s an act of reciprocity for the costly and complicated process imposed on their own citizens when they apply for a visa to one of the three countries. Brazil was one of the first to impose reciprocity several years ago, although I should point-out that what you get is a real via, good for five years. It’s absolutely true that Argentineans are discriminated against by several economically rich countries, and the fees they’re charged for their application isn’t refunded if it’s refused. I agree this is unjust, but on the other hand, before the 2001 economic meltdown in Argentina, visas weren’t required of them – this changed when the flow of illegal immigrants from Argentina became an exodus of millions.

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The real concern here isn’t whether this policy is justified, but what effect it will have on the already battered economy, where tourism is one of the most important sources of growth and foreign income. If you read the postings on this subject in online forums, you get a definite sense that the sector will take a big hit, judging from the virulent reactions of would be travelers to Argentina. If an American family of four was planning to go to Buenos Aires for a once in a lifetime vacation, they might reconsider upon discovering that their tab just went up by 552 dollars.

This tax will also have a negative impact on neighboring countries, particularly Uruguay. Many combine their visit to Uruguay with Argentina, typically landing in Buenos Aires, then traveling by Buquebus to Colonia or Montevideo. If you’re a Canadian, are you going to visit any neighboring countries knowing that you’ll be tagged for yet another 70 dollars upon returning to Argentina? The same problem arises for Canadians living in Argentina who have to renew their 3 month tourist visa, typically by crossing over to Uruguay for a brief visit. That, my friends is at least 280 dollars a year!

Currently, the tax is only collected in Ezeiza airport (Buenos Aires), probably because they haven’t fully worked-out the logistics of collecting the fees country-wide, but their plan is to extend it to all entry points, be it by land, air or water. The Kirchner administration predicts it will collect forty million dollars a year from this tax, but that is probably very optimistic in view of the dampening effect it will have. More importantly, the tourism industry will lose ten times that, thus making it a net tax revenue loss.

The Kirchners are almost guaranteed to be voted-out in the next presidential elections, so we can only hope that the next government repeals this law.

Tom Germain is a Canadian who in 2001 decided he wasn’t going to put up with any more winters and moved to Mexico. He never looked back and moved around the world every couple years, making his home in Argentina, the Canary Islands, Mauritius, and now Colombia. In his 2 blogs, Permatourist ( http://www.permatourist.com ) and Ocolombia ( http://www.ocolombia.com ) he tells of his experiences and offers invaluable tips on how you can live the life of a “permatourist”.

The founding father of Colombia Tours and travel company Colombiantravels.com Santiago Duarte believes in building a tourism industry that respects local regulations, values and customs and this philosophy runs deeply through the fundamental essence of the company and well informed and knowledgeable staff.

With an office in Sydney, Australia and a local office in Bogota, Colombia, the goal and ambition of the company is to organise memorable Colombia vacations while at the same time helping to preserve sensitive areas, beautiful national parks, and ancient well worn roads long forgotten, but waiting to be discovered by the modern equivalent of the Spanish conquistadors; all in a country with the richest and most diverse culture and traditions on Earth.

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There are many guide books for travellers visiting Colombia, but there isn’t anything which betters a vast library of local knowledge, held not in between book covers, but in the heads of a strong network of local guides who have the benefit of having been born, raised and still live in the country of their birth, Colombia, and like Santiago, the founding father of Colombiantours.com, have a passion for their country, and love nothing better than divulging the best kept secrets of one of the most wonderful countries on Earth.

Long sweeping beaches rolling on to the horizon welcome sun and surf lovers from all four corners of the world, but Colombia has so much more to offer the traveller; from the high peaks of the Northern mountains of the Andes, the longest chain of mountains in the world and the boundary of the famous ‘ring of fire’ which circles the Pacific ocean, to dark, deep and almost impenetrable jungle unvisited in places for maybe hundreds of years.

What is there waiting for the next visitor to Colombia?

The answers to that question is traditional villages which remain largely unchanged from the early days of the influx of Spanish invaders, where traditional crafts and industry is still practiced, and where the traveller can pick up some REAL hand crafted gifts to bring home for friends and family.

Long forgotten, overgrown roads and tracks which once served important places, of which they have all but disappeared from trace, but are still remembered by many local people passed down in traditional stories and histories of local tradition.

Visit the website, http://www.colombiantravels.com today, and Colombia Tours will whisk you off to an old and ancient land with expert guides to help get the most from your next Colombia vacation.

More Colombia + “travel Story” Articles

Introduction

1. Double standards in the European Union:

1.1 Big Sharks bullies Fish

1.2 UN vs Israel

1.3 International law

2. US double standards:

2.1 Double standards at home and abroad

2.2 American exceptionalism and common criticism

Bibliography

Introduction

One of the Noam Chomsky’s books is opened with a well-known story told by St. Augustine about a pirate captured by Alexander the Great who asked him: “How dare you molest the sea?” The pirate in return, relied: “How dare y o u molest the whole world? Because I do it with a little ship only, I am called a thief; you doing the same thing with the great navy are called an Emperor”.

Since the time this story took place a lot of time has passed. Yet the double standards are still applied to the same actions taken by different people. The term double standard, coined in 1912, refers to any set of principles containing different provisions for one group of people than for another, typically without a good reason for having said difference. A double standard may take the form of an instance in which certain applications (often of a word or phrase) are perceived as acceptable to be used by one group of people, but are considered unacceptable–taboo–when used by another group.

A double standard, thus, can be described as a sort of biased, morally unfair suspension (toward a certain group) of the principle that all are equal in their freedoms. Such double standards are seen as unjustified because they violate a basic maxim of modern legal jurisprudence: that all parties should stand equal before the law. Double standards also violate the principle of justice known as impartiality, which is based on the assumption that the same standards should be applied to all people, without regard to subjective bias or favoritism based on social class, rank, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation or other distinction. A double standard violates this principle by holding different people accountable according to different standards. The proverb “life is not fair” is often invoked in order to mollify concerns over double standards.

The term can be applied to politics as well. The Emperors and the Pirates still exist, they still “molest the sea” and as well as many years ago their actions are treated in different ways.

1. Double standards in the European Union: Big Sharks bullies Fish

Sometimes in the press there spring up the statements that Brussels bullies smaller member states but is often feeble towards the big ones

EU bossiness from far away Belgium will be easy to endure by comparison. But “corruption” is a complaint which dogs the new EU Bulgaria (Romania too), so it is no surprise to hear today that Brussels is threatening to suspend financial aid and retain travel restrictions on work-seekers unless Sofia does more to crack down on organised crime and other forms of corruption. The promised reforms of the judiciary are also bogged down.

Bulgaria is the EU’s poorest member which is counting on 7bn worth of euros ( ?5bn-plus) to aid structural reform over the next five years, though a major road project linking the Black Sea coast to Serbia collapsed last month, according to the FT. The socialist-led government faces a no-confidence motion today.

So it’s not hard to feel a bit sorry for the poor Bulgarians as they grapple with modernisation, evidently less well placed than several other recent EU entrants from the ex-Soviet bloc.

Doubly so, I think, because the EU admonition reflects a recurring habit whereby the European commission bullies smaller member states – but rarely the big ones.

Do you remember the fuss made when Jorg Haider’s far right Freedom party – always dubbed neo-nazi in media-speak – made serious gains in the Austrian elections and nearly joined the coalition in Vienna in 2000?

Fourteen member states, admittedly not the EU formally, piled in to condemn Austrians, as if Haider had burned down the Reichstag.

The Portuguese and the Irish have been hammered over breaches of the eurozone’s debt rules. The Danes and Irish were bullied over the “wrong” referendum results – and President Sarko was in Dublin the other day arm-twisting over the latest “No” to the Lisbon treaty.

Yet I’m stuck to remember the last time the French or German governments got threatened from Brussels – a city occupied many times by French and German armies – or the Italians got seriously hammered over its own corruption.

That has certainly eaten up a lot of EU aid south of Rome: you can see it in those half-finished motorways which come to an abrupt end (no more cash) in the middle of some Sicilian field.

Yes, I know, realpolitik requires a realistic approach to French breaches of European law or takeover rules – when did you last trying buying a French utility company? – over which there is a long list of charges dating back many years.

In Britain we not only take these rules rather literally, we gold-plate them in their domestic enactment. Health n’ Safety is not something you will spot too much of in a French country market this summer.

Come to think of it, when Jean-Marie Le Pen got into the French presidential run-off against Chirac – a pretty disgraceful development – there was an embarrassed official silence.

In short, if Brussels is often feeble towards the EU big boys, wagging its stern, bureaucratic and pompous finger at the little boys looks like double standards.

1.2 UN vs Israel

The relationship between Europe and Israel is complex, tense, and historically loaded. A growing gap has developed between their political outlooks. European political actions can continue to cause Israel so many problems and harms that these in the longer run may increasingly dominate all other aspects of the relationship.

One strong gauge of Europe’s negative political attitude toward Israel is its voting record in the United Nations. Another is the frequent condemnations of Israel from Brussels. A third is the financing the EU has provided for a variety of activities directed against Israel. France has been in the forefront of many European anti-Israeli initiatives.

The mood created by the political leaders of European countries toward Israeli government officials often permeates their societies. Their discriminatory attitudes are enhanced by many media, NGOs, and some churches. These factors together help build an anti-Israeli atmosphere in large parts of European society, which is expressed in opinion polls. This is often accompanied by anti-Semitic positions.

The relationship between Europe and Israel is complex, tense, and historically loaded. An increasing gap has developed between their political outlooks. At the same time, relations in areas such as trade, science, culture, and sport have continued to expand over the decades and have only been affected by the political divergences to some extent.

It is frequently claimed that when assessing European-Israeli relations, one has to attempt to establish an average of the interactions in the various fields. To consider this a balanced approach is mistaken. European political actions can continue to cause Israel so many problems and harms that these in the longer run may increasingly dominate all other aspects of the relationship.

The European Union (EU) consists of twenty-five states with a population of 460 million covering a territory of about 3.9 million square kilometers. Israel is a small country – covering a territory far less than one-hundredth of the EU’s size – with a population of six million, partly surrounded by mortal enemies. Europe and Israel are not comparable entities. In view of the imbalance in power, populations, and geographic size of the two areas, an analysis must focus primarily on the much larger European side.

When looking for telling pointers in such a complex relationship, often a useful shortcut is to identify extreme attitudes. In turbulent times these become indicators of how Europe’s attitude toward Israel may evolve if the world political situation deteriorates.

Analyzing extreme European attitudes is meaningful for another reason as well. It was against the Jews that Europe reached its absolute low of barbarian behavior in the twentieth century. Although Europe’s current worldview is very remote from that of the 1930s, still there are several disquieting similarities with the demonizing of the Jews – mainly by Germans but also by others – before the Second World War. The focus of the defamation has shifted from the individual Jew to Israel, the Jewish state.

In the 1930s there were many Jews who closed their eyes, not wanting to see the signs of the times. In a large universe of events one can always find some positive pointers. Looking for those, while the power of Germany’s Hitler regime was increasing, one could have cited the fact that in 1936 for the first time a Jew, the socialist Leon Blum, became prime minister of France. In 1939, Lodewijk Visser was appointed the first Jewish president of the Dutch Supreme Court.

These events could have been interpreted as signals of a greater acceptance of Jews even in the highest positions in various European countries. These, however, were irrelevant in the broad framework of the overall deterioration of the Jews’ status in Europe.

Bayefsky stresses the relationship between anti-Israeli bias and the European desire to avoid condemning world anti-Semitism, which mainly means its high Muslim and Arab component.

One example of this occurred at the 2003 General Assembly. The issue arose of including the word “anti-Semitism” in a resolution on religious intolerance in a preamble. Ireland, which had been the lead state on the subject of religious intolerance for many years, was determined to keep mention of anti-Semitism out.

So Israel decided that it would move an amendment to add it from the floor. The Irish were unnerved. Irish Foreign Minister Brian Cowen and Israel’s Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom made a deal that Israel would withdraw its threatened amendment to the resolution on religious intolerance. In exchange Ireland would introduce for the first time in UN history a resolution on anti-Semitism.

Israel was delighted by the prospect. The Irish delegation sat on the third committee, waited for the resolution on religious intolerance to pass through the committee without the mention of anti-Semitism. Then they withdrew their promised resolution on anti-Semitism. Their excuse was the lack of consensus. Among others, Ireland went to the Iranians for their support. They afterwards claimed that they were surprised at the opposition. To sum it up: there was no resolution on anti-Semitism.

The mood created by the political leaders of European countries toward Israeli government officials often permeates their societies. The EU’s mindset and discriminatory attitude toward Israel is also manifested by various European ambassadors. It is unlikely that some of their statements would be tolerated concerning any other democratic country.

One of the most publicized scandals involved the former French ambassador to the UK, the late Daniel Bernard. At the dinner table in the home of then Daily Telegraph owner Lord Black, he said Israel was a “shitty little country” that had triggered the international security crisis. Bernard’s remark was typical of the new anti-Semitism, in which Israel has taken the place of the Jews as the scapegoat for the world’s evil.

Black’s wife, journalist Barbara Amiel who is Jewish, quoted her guest without giving his name or the country he represented in a Daily Telegraph column. It did not take long until other papers revealed who Israel’s undiplomatic detractor was.

Bernard’s subsequent reaction gave even clearer insight into his mindset. Initially the press secretary at the French embassy said that the ambassador did not remember if he had used those words. Thereafter Bernard insisted that what he had said had been thoroughly distorted. It was reported that he – rather than addressing his own anti-Semitism – was outraged “that a private discussion found its way into the media.” Zvi Shtauber, former Israeli ambassador to the UK, relates that Bernard came to the Israeli embassy afterward to apologize though publicly he had denied that he would do so.

The foregoing describes Europe’s double standards toward Israel and what they have caused. One has to assess as well what should have separated Israel and Europe objectively. Only a few indicative remarks can be made.

To do so one has to define Europe’s characteristics, policies, and worldviews. For Israeli strategy expert Yehezkel Dror, Europe is characterized by its focus on citizens’ welfare and neglect of security risks. It is busy with current issues but does not devote adequate attention to the long-term future.

For Trigano, the EU’s ambitions mainly create associations with the Napoleonic Empire because of its bureaucratic political character. He points out that every empire needs an enemy, and Europe defines itself in opposition to the policies of the nationalist American state.

Andrei Markovits, a political scientist at the University of Michigan, says: “Nobody knows what it means to be a European. It is unclear what Greeks and Swedes have in common. But one important characteristic they share is their not being American.” He also observes that anti-Americanism and anti-Semitism are the only major icons shared by the European extreme Left and Right, including neo- Nazis.

The rejection of its proposed constitution by the populations of France and The Netherlands in spring 2005 has created some uncertainty about the direction the European Union may take. It is telling mainly in regard to the EU’s worldview that many observers consider that a crisis in a democratic entity such as the EU may be advantageous for another democracy, Israel. This author summed it up by saying: “While past EU policies have been heavily biased against Israel, as it enters a period of disarray, EU policies may become less threatening to Israel.”

1.3 International Law
The International Court of Justice

The United Nations plays an important role in the establishment of international law. Israel is confronted with many new issues where international law falls dramatically short in meeting reality. In this area as well, Israel has become an indicator of the failures of Western society.

Yehuda Blum, a former Israeli ambassador to the UN, says that some fields of international law have greatly assisted society at large. He mentions as examples the law of diplomatic relations, the Law of the Sea, and the Law of Treaties. Blum adds:

One field where international law has failed in recent years is where it relates to the use of force. Its main weakness concerns the law of war, belligerent occupation, and so forth. Since these are usually acute problems, they highlight contemporary international law’s weakness.

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Another major failure of international law is to cope with the recent international terrorism. International law is premised on the existence of states, which are bound by its norms. In this particular case, we are confronted with a different phenomenon: armed groups perpetrating many crimes without any state taking responsibility for their actions.

There is often no possibility to hold any particular state accountable for these actions. Al-Qaeda is like an octopus, which has spread its tentacles all over the world. It was headquartered in Afghanistan where it has been disposed of. International law has been unable to develop the necessary adjustments to this novel situation.

Blum adds that for many decades the Europeans have been unwilling to confront the new reality of terrorism. “It started with hijacking of planes and the kidnapping of their passengers in 1969. At that time because it was an El Al airliner, there was little concern among the Europeans about the outcome.” He adds that Israel has been at odds with Europe on matters concerning international law for several decades. “I think that the major sticking point in our relationship with the Europeans is their lack of ability or willingness to understand the perils of the current situation.”

Two Types of International Law

International lawyer Meir Rosenne, former Israeli ambassador to the United States and France, expresses an even stronger opinion: “There are two types of international law. One is applied to Israel, the other to all other states. This comes to the fore when one looks at the way Israel is treated in international institutions.”

He observes:

One finds this attitude also in many aspects of customary practice. In 2004 at the Athens Olympics the International Olympic Committee did not commemorate the murder of the eleven Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics. A private ceremony of the Israeli ambassador to Greece in Athens was all there was. The president of the Olympic Committee attended, but not the Olympic Committee as such. And this was their attitude despite what happened on September 11, 2001.

Rosenne mentions as a typical example of international law’s double standards the 2004 International Court of Justice advisory opinion on the Israeli security fence. “In its judgment the Hague court decided that the inherent right of self-defense is enforced only if one is confronted by a state. If this were true, that would mean that whatever the United States undertakes against Al-Qaeda is illegal. This cannot be considered self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter because Al-Qaeda is not a state.”

2. US double standards at home and abroad

2.1 Double standards at home and abroad

The Bush administration is attempting to soothe the Turkish government’s apoplectic reaction to the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s label of “genocide” on Turkey’s slaughter of 1.5 million Armenians, which occurred almost a century ago. The administration fears that an enraged Turkish ally, already threatening to invade northern Iraq in order to suppress armed Turkish Kurd rebels seeking refuge there, will also cut off U.S. access to Turkish air bases and roads used to re-supply U.S. forces in Iraq. The administration essentially wants to allow the Turks to continue to deny a historical fact that preceded even the existence of the current Turkish system of government.

Similarly, the United States has never been too enthusiastic about criticizing Japan’s denial of having used Chinese and South Korean women as sex slaves (so-called “comfort women”) during World War II. More generally, the United States never really says too much when the current Japanese government regularly tries to whitewash in school textbooks the atrocious conduct of the Imperial Japanese regime before and during World War II. Again, a principal ally who does not face up to important historical facts is not reproved.

Yet the administration is still repeatedly bringing up Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s December, 2005 denial of the historical fact of the Jewish holocaust at the hands of the Nazis. That’s because the U.S. government chooses to get along a lot less with the Iranian government (than it does with the governments of Turkey and Japan); because Israel, Iran’s nemesis, is a U.S. ally; and because the administration can win points with its domestic Israeli lobby.

In the same vein, the administration is supposed to be supporting the expansion of democracy overseas–that’s why the United States invaded Iraq, right?–but does so only in less friendly countries, not close allies. The United States has pressured weaker Arab countries near Israel to hold elections and make democratic reforms, for example, among the Palestinians and Lebanese, but it has not pressured Israel to remove the second-class citizenship of the Arab population living within its borders. The administration has aided opposition forces in Iran, even though the groups don’t want the support, while making only half-hearted attempts to democratize its autocratic allies in Pakistan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia. Of course, the United States doesn’t really need to coddle despotic regimes just to win their lukewarm support for the “war on terror,” their promise not to attack Israel, or their agreement to pump oil which their own economic interest would cause them to sell on the world market anyway. But neither does it need to meddle in the internal affairs of adversaries, such as Syria and Iran.

But if the United States were to have the same standard for all countries–both friend and foe–and join the international community in identifying and strongly condemning all documented cases of genocide, other war crimes, and repressive behavior by all countries, then perhaps there would be a chance that history might not be repeated.

First though, the United States needs to clean up its own act. Other countries may have acted terribly in the past, but U.S. citizens should not be blinded to the sins of their own government. Since World War II, in terms of numbers of military adventures, the United States has been the most aggressive country in the world. And many such interventions cannot be blamed on the need to combat international communism. Even after the United States’ major foe–the Soviet Union–collapsed, the U.S. expanded its informal empire and stepped up military activities across the globe. The United States bombed Serbia and Kosovo; invaded Panama, Afghanistan, and Iraq (twice); and intervened in Somalia, Haiti, and Bosnia. Furthermore, the United States has kidnapped people and illegally rendered them to secret prisons in countries where torture is perpetrated, or simply had the CIA or U.S. military do the honors. These prisoners have been denied both the rights of prisoners of war and the rights of the accused that the U.S. Constitution guarantees–for example, their right to challenge detention using a writ of Habeas Corpus. It’s likely that a substantial portion of these inmates are innocent.

If the United States is going to criticize other countries’ behavior, both historical and current, it should eliminate the double standard at home and abroad, and clean up its own act first.

2.2American exceptionalism and common criticism

American exceptionalism is the theory that the United States occupies a special niche among the nations of the worldin terms of its national credo, historical evolution, political and religious institutions and unique origins. The roots of the belief are attributed to Alexis de Tocqueville, who claimed that the then-50-year-old United States held a special place among nations, because it was a country of immigrants and the first modern democracy.

The theory of American exceptionalism has a number of opponents, especially from the Left, who argue that the belief is “self-serving and jingoistic” (see slavery, civil rights and social welfare issues, “Western betrayal”, and the failure to aid Jews fleeing the Nazis), that it is based on a myth, and that “[t]here is a growing refusal to accept” the idea of exceptionalism both nationally and internationally.

Criticism of United States foreign policy encompasses a wide range of sentiments about its actions and policies over time.

· Support of dictatorships. The US has been criticized for supporting dictatorships with economic assistance and military hardware. Particular dictatorships have included Musharraf of Pakistan, the Shah of Iran, Museveni of Uganda, the Saudi Royal family, Maoist regimes in China,warlords in Somalia, President Museveni of Uganda.

· Opposition to independent nationalism. The US has been criticized by Noam Chomsky for opposing nationalist movements in foreign countries, including social reform.

· Interference in internal affairs. The United States was criticized for manipulating the internal affairs of foreign nations, including Guatemala, Chile, Cuba, Colombia, various countries in Africa including Uganda.

· Support of Israel. The US has been accused of condoning actions by Israel against Palestinians.

· Democracy promotion. Some critics argue that America’s policy of advocating democracy may be ineffective and even counterproductive. In World On Fire, Yale professor Amy Chua suggested that promotion of democracy in developing countries is not always a good idea since it may result in breeding ethnic hatred and global instability. Zbigniew Brzezinski declared that “[t]he coming to power of Hamas is a very good example of excessive pressure for democratization” and argued that George W. Bush’s attempts to use democracy as an instrument against terrorism were risky and dangerous. Analyst Jessica Tuchman Mathews of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace agreed that imposing democracy “from scratch” was unwise, and didn’t work. Realist critics such as George F. Kennan argued U.S. responsibility is only to protect its own citizens and that Washington should deal with other governments on that basis alone; they criticize president Woodrow Wilson’s emphasis on democratization and nation-building although it wasn’t mentioned in Wilson’s Fourteen Points, and the failure of the League of Nations to enforce international will regarding Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Imperial Japan in the 1930s. Realist critics attacked the idealism of Wilson as being ill-suited for weak states created at the Paris Peace Conference. Others, however, criticize the U.S. Senate’s decision not to join the League of Nations which was based on isolationist public sentiment as being one cause for the organization’s ineffectiveness.

· Imperialism. According to Newsweek reporter Fareed Zakaria, the Washington establishment has “gotten comfortable with the exercise of American hegemony and treats compromise as treason and negotiations as appeasement” and added “This is not foreign policy; it’s imperial policy.” Allies were critical of a unilateral sensibility to US foreign policy, and showed displeasure by voting against the US in the United Nations in 2001.

· Hypocrisy. The US has been criticized for making statements supporting peace and respecting national sovereignty, but military actions such as in Grenada, fomenting a civil war in Colombia to break off Panama, and Iraq run counter to its assertions. The US has advocated free trade but protects local industries with import tariffs on foreign goods such as lumber and agricultural products. The US has advocated concern for human rights but refused to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The US has publicly stated that it is opposed to torture, but has been criticized for condoning it in the School of the Americas. The US has advocated a respect for national sovereignty but supports internal guerrilla movements and paramilitary organizations, such as the Contras in Nicaragua.The US has been criticized for voicing concern about narcotics production in countries such as Bolivia and Venezuela but doesn’t follow through on cutting certain bilateral aid programs. The US has been criticized for not maintaining a consistent policy; it has been accused of denouncing human rights abuses in China while supporting rights violations by Israel. However, some defenders argue that a policy of rhetoric while doing things counter to the rhetoric was necessary in the sense of realpolitik and helped secure victory against the dangers of tyranny and totalitarianism. Another agrees.

· Undermining of human rights. President Bush has been criticized for neglecting democracy and human rights by focusing exclusively on an effort to fight terrorism. The US was criticized for alleged prisoner abuse at Guantanamo Bay, Abu Ghraib in Iraq, secret CIA prisons in eastern Europe, according to Amnesty International. In response, the US government claimed incidents of abuse were isolated incidents which did not reflect U.S. policy.

· American exceptionalism. There is a sense in which America sometimes sees itself as qualitatively different from other countries and therefore cannot be judged by the same standard as other countries; this sense is sometimes termed American exceptionalism. A writer in Time Magazine in 1971 described American exceptionalism as “an almost mystical sense that America had a mission to spread freedom and democracy everywhere.” American exceptionalism is sometimes linked with hypocrisy; for example, the US keeps a huge stockpile of nuclear weapons while urging other nations not to get them, and justifies that it can make an exception to a policy of non-proliferation. When the United States didn’t support an environmental treaty made by many nations in Kyoto or treaties made concerning the Geneva Convention, then critics saw American exceptionalism as counterproductive.

· Arrogance. Some critics have thought the United States became arrogant, particularly after its victory in World War II. Critics such as Andrew Bacevich call on America to have a foreign policy “rooted in humility and realism.” Foreign policy experts such as Zbigniew Brzezinski counsel a policy of self-restraint and not pressing every advantage, and listening to other nations. A government official called the US policy in Iraq “arrogant and stupid,” according to one report.

· Excessive militarism. In the 1960s, Martin Luther King Jr. criticized excessive U.S. spending on military projects. and suggested a linkage between its foreign policy abroad and racism at home. Even in 1971, a Time Magazine essayist wondered why there were 375 major foreign military bases around the world with 3,000 lesser military facilities and concluded “there is no question that the U.S. today has too many troops scattered about in too many places.” In a 2010 defense report, Cordesman criticized out-of-control military spending. Expenditures to fight the War on Terror are vast and seem limitless. The Iraq war was expensive and continues to be a severe drain on U.S. finances. Bacevich thinks the U.S. has a tendency to resort to military means to try to solve diplomatic problems. The Vietnam War was a costly, decade-long military engagement which ended in defeat, and the mainstream view today is that the entire war was a mistake. The dollar cost was 1 billion, or 8 billion in 2009 dollars. Similarly, the second Iraq war is viewed by many as being a mistake, since there were no weapons of mass destruction found, and the war continues today.

· International law violations. Some critics assert the US doesn’t always follow international law. For example, some critics assert the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq was not a proper response to an imminent threat, but an act of aggression which violated international law. For example, Benjamin Ferencz, a chief prosecutor of Nazi war crimes at Nuremberg said George W. Bush should be tried for war crimes along with Saddam Hussein for starting aggressive wars–Saddam for his 1990 attack on Kuwait and Bush for his 2003 invasion of Iraq. Critics point out that the United Nations Charter, ratified by the U.S., prohibits members from using force against fellow members except against imminent attack or pursuant to an explicit Security Council authorization. A professor of international law asserted there was no authorization from the UN Security Council which made the invasion “a crime against the peace.” However, US defenders argue there was such an authorization according to UN Security Council Resolution 1441.

· Commitment to foreign aid. Some critics charge that U.S. government aid should be higher given the high levels of Gross domestic product. They claim other countries give more money on a per capita basis, including both government and charitable contributions. By one index which ranked charitable giving as a percentage of GDP, the U.S. ranked 21 of 22 OECD countries by giving 0.17% of GDP to overseas aid, and compared the U.S. to Sweden which gave 1.03% of its GDP, according to different estimates. The U.S. pledged 0.7% of GDP at a global conference in Mexico. According to one estimate, U.S. overseas aid fell 16% from 2005 to 2006. However, since the US grants tax breaks to nonprofits, it subsidizes relief efforts abroad, although other nations also subsidize charitable activity abroad. Most foreign aid (79%) came not from government sources but from private foundations, corporations, voluntary organizations, universities, religious organizations and individuals. According to the Index of Global Philanthropy, the United States is the top donor in absolute amounts.

· Environmental policy. The Kyoto Protocol treaty was an effort by many nations to tackle environmental problems, but the U.S. was criticized for failing to support this effort in 1997.The U.S. has been criticized for failure to support the 1997 Kyoto Protocol.

Critics charge that savvy dictators such as Uganda’s president Yoweri Museveni have manipulated U.S. foreign policy by appealing to its need to fight terrorism. Others suggest U.S. should adopt a policy of realpolitik and work with any type of government who can be helpful.

· Other criticisms. The U.S. has been criticized for its historical treatment of native Americans. For example, the treatment of Cherokee Indians in the Trail of Tears in which hundreds of Indians died in a forced evacuation from their homes in the southeastern area, along with massacres, displacement of lands, swindles, and breaking treaties. It has been criticized for the war with Mexico in the 1840s which some see as a theft of land. It was the first and only nation to use a nuclear bomb in wartime. It failed to admit Jews fleeing persecution from Europe at the beginning of World War II, as well as immoral policy for the Vietnam War.

· Lack of vision. Brzezinski criticized the Clinton presidency as having a foreign policy which lacked “discipline and passion” and subjected the U.S. to “eight years of drift.” The short-term election cycle coupled with the inability to stick with long term decisions motivates presidents to focus on acts which will appease the citizenry and avoid difficult long-term choices.

· Presidency is over-burdened. Presidents have not only foreign policy responsibilities, but sizeable domestic duties too. In addition, the presidency is the head of a political party. As a result, it is tough for one person to manage disparate tasks, in one view. Critics suggest Reagan was overburdened, which prevented him from doing a good job of oversight regarding the Iran-Contra affair. Brzezinski suggested in Foreign Affairs that President Obama is similarly overburdened. Some suggest a need for permanent non-partisan advisers.

· Dollars drive foreign policy. There are indications that decisions to go to war in Iraq were motivated by oil interests; for example, a British newspaper The Independent reported that the “Bush administration is heavily involved in writing Iraq’s oil law” which would “allow Western oil companies contracts of up to 30 years to pump oil out of Iraq, and the profits would be tax-free.” Whether motivated by oil or not, U.S. policy appears to much of the Arab world to have been motivated by oil. Some critics assert the U.S. decision to build the Panama Canal was motivated largely by business interests despite claims that it’s motivated to “spread democracy” and “end oppression.” Andrew Bacevich suggests policy is directed by “wealthy individuals and institutions.” Some critics say U.S. foreign policy does reflect the will of the people, but blames the people for having a “consumerist mentality” which causes problems. In 1893, a decision to back a plot to overthrow the rulership of Hawaii by president Harrison was motivated by business interests in an effort to prevent a proposed tariff increase on sugar; Hawaii became a state afterwards. There was speculation that the Spanish-American War in 1898 between the U.S. and Spain was motivated by business interests in Cuba.

· Presidents may lack experience. Since the constitution requires no prior experience in diplomacy, government, or military service, it is possible to elect presidents with scant foreign policy experience. Clearly the record of past presidents confirms this, and that presidents who have had extensive diplomatic, military, and foreign policy experience have been the exception, not the rule. In recent years, presidents had relatively more experience in such tasks as peanut farming, acting and governing governorships than in international affairs. It has been debated whether voters are sufficiently skillful to assess the foreign policy potential of presidential candidates, since foreign policy experience is only one of a long list of attributes in which voters tend to select candidates. The second Bush was criticized for inexperience in the Washington Post for being “not versed in international relations and not too much interested.”

· Presidency has too much authority. In contrast to criticisms that presidential attention is divided into competing tasks, some critics charge that presidents have too much power, and that there is the potential for tyranny or fascism. Some presidents circumvented the national security decision-making process. Critics such as Dana D. Nelson of Vanderbilt in her book Bad for Democracy and columnist David Sirotaand Texas law professor Sanford Levinsonsee a danger in too much executive authority.

· Difficulty removing an incompetent president. Since the only way to remove an incompetent president is with the rather difficult policy of impeachment, it is possible for a marginally competent or incompetent president to stay in office for four to eight years and cause great mischief. In recent years, there has been great attention to this issue given the presidency of George W. Bush, but there have been questions raised about the competency of Jimmy Carter in his handling of the Iran hostage crisis. Ironically, a president who was arguably the most skillful in foreign policy, Richard M. Nixon, was impeached, but for offenses linked with domestic politics.

· President may be incompetent. The presidency of George W. Bush has been attacked by numerous critics from both parties as being particularly incompetent, short-sighted, unthinking, and partisan. Bush’s decision to launch the second Iraq War was criticized extensively; writer John Le Carre criticized it as a “hare-brained adventure.” He was also criticized for advocating a policy of exporting democracy. Brzezinski described Bush’s foreign policy as “a historical failure.” Bush was criticized for being too secret regarding foreign policy and having a cabal subvert the proper foreign policy bureaucracy. Other presidents, too, were criticized. The foreign policy of George H. W. Bush was lackluster, and while he was a “superb crisis manager,” he “missed the opportunity to leave a lasting imprint on U.S. foreign policy because he was not a strategic visionary,” according to Brzezinski. He stopped the first Iraq War too soon without finishing the task of capturing Saddam Hussein. Foreign policy expert Henry Kissinger criticized Jimmy Carter for numerous foreign policy mistakes including a decision to admit the ailing Shah of Iran into the United States for medical treatment, as well as a bungled military mission to try to rescue the hostages in Teheran. Carter waffled from being “both too tough and too soft at the same time.”

· Congress excluded from foreign policy. Critic Robert McMahon thinks Congress has been excluded from foreign policy decision making, and that this is detrimental. Other writers suggest a need for greater Congressional participation.

· Lack of control over foreign policy. During the early 1800s, general Andrew Jackson exceeded his authority on numerous times and attacked American Indian tribes as well as invaded the Spanish territory of Florida without official government permission. Jackson was not reprimanded or punished for exceeding his authority. Some accounts blame newspaper journalism called yellow journalism for whipping up virulent pro-war sentiment to help instigate the Spanish-American War. Some critics suggest foreign policy is manipulated by lobbies, such as the pro-Israel lobby, although there is disagreement about the influence of such lobbies. Nevertheless, Brzezinski wants stricter anti-lobbying laws.

· Alienating allies. There is evidence that many U.S. allies have been alienated by a unilateral approach. Allies signaled dissatisfaction with U.S. policy in a vote at the U.N. Brzezinski counsels listening to allies and exercising self-restraint.

· U.S. foreign policy manipulated by external forces. A Washington Post reporter wrote that “several less-than-democratic African leaders have skillfully played the anti-terrorism card to earn a relationship with the United States that has helped keep them in power” and suggested, in effect, that foreign dictators could manipulate U.S. policy for their own benefit. It is possible for foreign governments to channel money through PACs to buy influence in Congress.

· Ineffective public relations. One report suggests that news source Al-jazeera routinely paints the U.S. as evil throughout the Mideast. Other critics have faulted the U.S. public relations effort.As a result of faulty policy and lackluster public relations, the U.S. has a severe image problem in the Mideast, according to Anthony Cordesman. Analyst Mathews said that it appears to much of the Arab world that we went to war in Iraq for oil, whether we did or not. In a 2007 poll by BBC News asking which countries are seen as having a “negative influence in the world,” the survey found that Israel, Iran, United States and North Korea had the most negative influence, while nations such as Canada, Japan and the European Union had the most positive influence.

· Ineffective prosecution of war. Amy Chua thinks the Iraq war has been managed inefficiently, with wasteful spending. One estimate is that the second Iraq War along with the so-called War on Terror cost 1 billion, or 7 billion in 2009 dollars. Boston University professor Andrew Bacevich has criticized American profligacy and squandering its wealth. There have been historical criticisms of U.S. warmaking capability; in the War of 1812, the U.S. was unable to conquer Canada despite several attempts and having superior resources; the U.S. Capitol was burned and the settlement ending the war did not bring any major concessions from the British.

· Problem areas festering. Critics point to a list of countries or regions where continuing foreign policy problems continue to present problems. These areas include South America, including Ecuador, Venezuela, Bolivia, Uruguay, and Brazil. There are difficulties with Central American nations such as Honduras. Iraq has continuing troubles. Iran, as well, presents problems with nuclear proliferation. Pakistan is unstable, there is active conflict in Afghanistan. The Mideast in general continues to fester, although relations with India are improving. Policy towards Russia remains uncertain. China presents an economic challenge. There are difficulties in other regions too. In addition, there are problems not confined to particular regions, but regarding new technologies. Cyberspace is a constantly changing technological area with foreign policy repercussions. Climate change is an unresolved foreign policy issue, particularly depending on whether nations can agree to work together to limit possible future risks.

· Ineffective strategy to fight terrorism. Critic Cordesman criticized U.S. strategy to combat terrorism as not having enough emphasis on getting Islamic republics to fight terrorism themselves. Sometimes visitors have been misidentified as “terrorists.” Mathews suggests the risk of nuclear terrorism remains unprevented.

· Historical instances of ineffective policies. Generally during the nineteenth century, and in early parts of the twentieth century, the U.S. pursued a policy of isolationism and generally avoided entanglements with European powers. After World War I, Time Magazine writer John L. Steele thought the U.S. tried to return to an isolationist stance, but that this was unproductive. He wrote: “The anti-internationalist movement reached a peak of influence in the years just before World War II.” But Steele questioned whether this policy was effective; regardless, isolationism ended quickly after the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. Analysts have wondered whether the U.S. pursued the correct strategy with Japan before World War II; by denying Japan access to precious raw materials, it is possible that U.S. policy triggered the surprise attack and, as a result, the U.S. had to fight a two-front war in both the Far East as well as Europe during World War II. While it may be the case that the Mideast is a difficult region with no easy solutions to avoiding conflict, since this volatile region is at the junction of three continents; still, many analysts think U.S. policy could have been improved substantially. The U.S. waffled; there was no vision; presidents kept changing policy. Public opinion in different regions of the world thinks that, to some extent, the 9/11 attacks were an outgrowth of substandard U.S. policy towards the region. The Vietnam War was a decade-long mistake.

Bibliography

1. “Europe and Hizbullah,” Jerusalem Post, 15 February 2005. 
2. Manfred Gerstenfeld, interview with Dore Gold, “Europe’s Consistent Anti-Israeli Bias at the United Nations,” Post-Holocaust and Anti-Semitism, No. 34, 1 July 2005.

3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_American_foreign_policy

4.http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/blog/2008/jul/23/michaelwhitespoliticalblog207

5. http://www.independent.org/newsroom/article.asp?id=2053

6. http://www.jcpa.org/phas/phas-gerstenfeld-1-f05.htm

Related Guatemala + “travel Blog” Articles

The first has to do with how the readers find your article or page. They see it in the table of contents of a magazine, but online, people find articles using search engines. A man types in “hiking in yellowstone,” for example. Perhaps your web page is about exactly that. But if it’s titled “My Weekend Wilderness Walk,” he’ll probably never find what you wrote. You have to optimize your writing for the keywords that people are using when they search online – a whole topic in itself.

This is true whether you’re building a page, or writing an article for free distribution. But for the latter there are still other necessities. People not only have to find what you’ve written, but they also have to take the next step: visit your website. Otherwise you get little value from distributing your articles.

Whether submitting your article to an online directory, then, or to another website, you need to include a working link to your own site. You also need to give the reader a reason to click it. The link will normally be in the “author’s resource box” at the end of the article, sometimes titled, “About the Author.” This is where you get to “advertise.”

A good article is not enough. You have to sell the reader on visiting your site, because even the best travel writing may not do this for you. How do you do this then? In the resource box.

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If you have a free ebook, you might say: “Click here for the free ebook, ’10 Tips For Traveling To Spain.’” You have to at least make the web site sound interesting, perhaps with a tease like, “Discover the insider secrets of getting cheap plane tickets at…” Of course good writing alone may build your reputation, but for maximum value you need to get that click through to the site.

Advantages Of Online Travel Writing

The examples above are not about selling your articles, because that isn’t the way to make travel writing pay on the internet – a big difference from the print world. You may be able to sell your articles to some sites, but the pay is generally poor. This is why writing online is normally all about promoting your website and/or products.

How do you make money then? Here is a typical scenario: I write an article on traveling to Mexico, and submit it to fifteen article directories, where it’s taken and used on other websites as well. Eventually it’s in forty places online. In the resource box at the end of the article, readers are promised something valuable or interesting if they click that link and visit my website. On the site they can buy my ebook, click on the ads which I get paid for, or visit the companies who pay me a commission when I send a buyer to them. Here are four advantages of putting your travel writing online:

1. No need to sell your writing. You never have to find a magazine or newspaper to buy your articles, and no editor can reject your writing. Build a website and sell your own ebooks, or sell ad space, or link to affiliate products, and you can start making money in a few weeks.

2. Small investment. There is no need to even spend money sending out your manuscripts. You can start making money with your travel writing this week by creating a free blog where you post tips and promote affiliate products – no investment required. Starting a website is inexpensive as well.

3. Online articles are short. Internet attention spans aren’t very long, and directories want shorter articles for fast loading of pages. Your articles will usually be between 400 and 1000 words for these reasons. At that length, you can probably write a few good ones tonight.

4. You get to work from anywhere in the world. I’ve written articles while in a hotel room in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado and in an internet cafe in Ecuador. You can even put new pages on your website from any computer connected to the internet, wherever you are.

One benefit which is common to travel writing online or off, is the tax deductions you get. Your vacations can become deductible expenses (talk to your accountant). In fact, if you start a free blog with the aim of making money, you’re in business.

If you are planning to some adventurous tour in a span of few days or a week as well as your in dire requirement of a travel reservations! You surely do not wish to cram the tour. Thus, you’ll want to do the necessary and proper planning to avoid yourself from facing those reservations problem at the end minute. Last time problem of reservation irritates a lot when you actually a travel man. Nowadays you will mark that a strict competition is popping up in the travel field as well as there is strong rivalry among adventure travel websites in order to seek the attention of first time travelers who are going on a adventure trip or travel aficionados.

This battle among websites is very beneficial to adventure travelers, since travelers get more choices and are offered ample selection and tour packages to choose from. These websites provide reliable services and discount tour packages at the end time. Through a modest Internet research, one can now set their things easily as well as can indulge in services and economical fares. this automotive blog reviews help you find the best travel.

There are unusual adventure travel sites. They have information content of their own. Among them there is Adventure’s World that emphasizes mostly on South American areas such as Venezuela, Peru and Costa Rica, as well as the Caribbean. A directory of adventurous travel content posted there via Washington Post. Apart from this, Walkabouts informs audience about travel and interactive journeys. In the meantime, many websites not only provide commercial sites, but also offers information for self-determining adventure travelers.

In Costa Rica, you’ll find the vibe less’crazy’ and more’chilled’. Tons of scollege students are opting for a Costa Rica Spring Break nowadays, and it is not too difficult to see why when you look at what this tropical heaven has to offer!

Unlike places such as Florida and Cancun, is not so densely packed either vis crowds or resort buildings, which is good in 2 different ways. First it means that you do not have to spend your vacation waiting in line for one thing or another! Second, there’s definitely a more relaxed, intimate feel about the place. And thirdly, the indisputable fact that it’s less built up means that it has not become such a visitor trap, so everything is truly decently priced. You can enjoy a great breakvacation for a small fraction of the cost of other major Spring Break locations , both vis accommodation and food and drinks.

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And the atmosphere actually is glorious. There’s a great beach scene in Costa Rica, with lots of spectacular tropical beaches to choose between. For college crowds, the best ones to go for are on the Pacific coast instead of the Caribbean – this is where you’ll find more bars, clubs, party venues and the like. Some areas offer tiny reggae clubs and very unique music venues, while others ( especially near San Jos ) contain plenty of sophisticated dives, buzzing beach bars, and preferred party scenes. The atmosphere at Costa Rica Spring Break is intimate and laid back, with much the same vibe as a home party with a crowd of good buddies – ideal for those that wish to get to know new students and have some fun rather than just get lost in the huge crowds elsewhere.

For a Spring Beak journey seekers. Costa Rica offers rappelling, ziplining, horseback riding and whitewater rafting. Hike to the Arenal Volcano and see the lava flow. You can choose among a spread of activities to fill your days. Why not try surfing or go on a canoe tour through an estuary. If you need something less demanding go on a snorkeling trip and see all the georgeous Pacific ocean has to give.

You can eat out actually cheaply during your break in Costa Rica, with everything from vegetarian options to local cuisine to traditional northern US food available. Even those on the tightest of budgets should be able to make their cash last during SpringBreak in Costa Rica! And there’s no scarcity of things to do, either, with Costa Rica having some of the most popular surfing spots around, and a lot of other everyday beach activities going on at every point. You can dive right into the action, or laze on the beach working on your tan and preparing for another night of partying – whatever your idea of a perfect Spring Break, Costa Rica can supply it.

What you just learned about Costa Rica Spring Break is just the beginning. To learn more about Spring Break check out the #1 site on the internet, Spring Break Nation where you will find pictures, videos, blogs, stories and more of your favorite Spring Break Destinations.

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Over the years Colombia has become one of the best medical tourism destinations for all types of cosmetic surgery procedures. The reasons being strengthening of Dollar, Euro and Pound against Colombian Peso which is turning the large number people from USA and Europe into the medical travelers for cosmetic surgery. The second reason is that due to the huge numbers of surgeries performed in Colombia, the Colombian doctors and nurses are highly trained, fully practiced and experienced to ensure that their medical skills and knowledge meet the international standards.

“The board-certified surgeons and doctors we have chosen for our company have been carefully screened by our consultants, owners, and business colleagues through a highly competitive, rigorous and laborious process. An extensive background check was conducted into the history of their medical practice and educational accomplishments, as well as recognized lifetime awards. We have carefully selected top-rated and board certified surgeons based on the information stated above, in addition to the satisfaction of previous patients, the respect and admiration from peers in their profession, and documentation provided by cosmetic surgery boards in Colombia. Our clients have made our surgeons very popular and we have been getting lots of new clients due to their recommendations and word- of- mouth marketing of our experienced surgeons,” informed Anthony Giudice, Cosmetic Harmony Sales Supervisor.

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A substantial increase in inflow of medical travelers to Colombia, has led the Colombian government to invest significant resources in promoting a safe and tourist friendly environment. Lonely Planet, a well known international travel guide, picked Colombia as one of their top ten world travel destinations for 2006.

Cosmetic Harmony receives hundreds of clients every year for various procedures and packages like liposuction, breast augmentation, mommy makeover, cosmetic dentistry, hair transplant, and tummy tuck etc.

About Cosmetic Harmony:

Cosmetic Harmony specializes in complete cosmetic surgery packages, including cosmetic procedures, travel, accommodations, transportation to medical appointments, a bilingual personal assistant and medications.Cosmetic Harmony uses only FDA-approved materials.

For more information on Cosmetic Harmony’s Procedures, Informative articles, Press Releases and Exciting Offers visit Cosmetic Harmony’s Blog:

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Contact:

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305.726.0527

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Oh, that’s right – you’re leaving Mum behind, and she’s worried that you’ll never come back. And all your friends keep asking you to let them know about your adventures. How are you going to keep everyone updated?

You may be escaping the country for a well-earned vacation, but you’ll probably still need to send word back home. Here are 6 options for keeping in contact when travelling, no matter if you’re a iWhiz or you have trouble finding the on-switch on a computer.

…low-tech options for staying in contact while travelling Get confused working a microwave? These are for you…

1) Postcards
Ahhh, postcards; the classic option. Who really needs more than a couple of sentences to say that you’re still alive and wishing that the recipient was there? You should be able to find postcards all over the place on your travels, but you can always take some with you just in case. If you’re really organized, you can even pre-fill the addresses.

Another option is to get a couple of your travel photos printed as a postcard alternative – try taking the memory card of your digital camera to a printing shop, and then scribble a message and a sending address on the back with a postage stamp!

Remember that in most places it costs more to send something in an envelope; postcards are your cheapest option.

2) Pay phones/Call centres
A long time ago in a galaxy far away, people used landlines to talk to each other. Believe it or not, this still happens and you shouldn’t have too much trouble finding a payphone.

To get the best possible deal with land line calls, you should probably buy an international calling-card. Post offices, call centres or even your hotel will sell cards that give you a better rate when phoning home.

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…medium-tech options for staying in contact while travelling You’re not afraid of a couple of gadgets. Bring it on!

3) Cell phones
Most of us know how to work a cell phone these days, and probably have our own. You’ve got a couple of options for using it abroad; get an international talk plan from your current network provider, or pick up a SIM card in your destination country.

If you go down the talk-plan route, be wary of excessive call fees, and find out if you can get a tariff that allows you to call a limited selection of numbers for cheap. Also check out other network providers – now might be a good time to switch for a better deal.

To get a calling plan in your destination country, you’ll have much cheaper options for calls within the country that you’re visiting, and quite possibly when calling home. You can even use your current cell phone in some cases, but most likely you’ll need to get it unblocked. Ask your tour operator for advice on this, or any local vacation friends that you make.

Either way, text messaging will cost you a lot less than calls, so get those thumbs warmed up and practise communicating in 140 characters!

4) Email
If you don’t have an email account already, it’s easy and free to open one with companies like Hotmail, Yahoo or Gmail; a Google search will give you the link to get started.

Gather email addresses from friends and family to get your mailing list ready and send them all a test message before you leave to check that all the addresses work.

If you really want to make life easier for yourself, try making a group on your email program to avoid typing all the addresses in every time; the program help files should provide instructions on how to do this.

…high-tech options for staying in contact while travelling You’re reading this on the internet after running a search for it – these options should be no problem!

5) Blogging
Blogging is an alternative to email. Instead of sending a message to someone, you post stories, photos and videos on a unique page on the internet and your friends and family can visit it to see what you’re up to.

Here are the simplest options to get a travel blog set up. All these options are free. If you’d like to be handed a travel blogging program on a plate, try websites like Matador.com or Travelblog.org.

If you’d rather choose a more personal looking blog but don’t feel like writing an essay every time you post, Tumblr is an attractive, simple option for short posting. If you’d like the whole shebang for longer posting in an easy to setup format, try Blogger.

6) Skype
You want to make free calls to anyone anywhere in the world. So what’s stopping you?

Skype is a revolutionary program that allows users to make calls over the internet completely free between computers, or very cheaply to landlines or cell phones internationally. You’ll find the program installed in most computers in Internet cafes around the globe.

You can register for a free account on the website www.skype.com but to be able to make completely free calls the person that you want to contact must have a computer with the program installed as well. Clear, simple instructions are on Skype’s website to help get you started.

What do you think is the best way to stay in touch with friends and family from abroad? What are your experiences with these options? Are there any options missing from this list?

More Peru + “travel Blog” Articles

Ever wondered on how to visit different places or at least find some time to get to experience a place with a different culture and great history? If you are an adventurer in life constantly thriving and craving for a fun, loving and happy place to live, you might as well try to get out of your crib and  visit a place for a year or two. Denmark offers you great experiences that will satisfy you.

Denmark is a great place to stay and visit. There a hundred or even thousands of reasons why you want to go to Denmark.  There are a lot of Blog articles and know how on the places you want to visit in Denmark. They describe great landscapes, terrific beaches and coasts, Wonderful people and good food. You will enjoy it. If you search the images on Google, just by typing the word “Denmark” you’ll know what you want. You will know that it is a great place to stay. You can also see many articles about their visit to Denmark, and to how much they enjoy Denmark. But how do you get there?

If you envy the photos and blogs about visiting Denmark, why not go there yourself? There are some complicated steps in going to Denmark and a lot of people constantly fail to go there because of this. What I want to share is a defined set of steps of how to get there. First of all, your travel documents should be present. Focus on Your Denmark Visa and the Denmark Visa requirements so You’ll know what to prepare for.

Your Denmark Visa

Your Denmark Visa is very essential in getting in Denmark. Whether you are a tourist for the weekends or planning to stay for more than 3 months for the full experience, studying, looking for work, you need them. Your travel documents are of great relevance and always try to give it importance. Try to spend some time reading this article so you won’t have to miss out on anything. Preferably, go and check out the requirements and query on your local immigration and consulates for your Denmark Visa requirements.

What are the Types of Denmark Visas for me to apply and what are the provisions?

There is only one type of Visa in general but the issuance may be for different terms and rules for its usage and functions. Please read on below for the details of each types of use/purpose. This are only for the Short terms stays as I am assuming that you are going on your first trip to Denmark.

Cultural Visa
 

These are typically easier to produce. Business summits or organizational summits fall on this category. Only needed are the proper documentation of the events that you will participate on. You are also required to produce confirmation of your visit for documentation.

Business Visa
 

This is done for strong interests in Commerce. There may be company ties that give you an upper hand for your approval. You are however subject to Denmark’s assessment and labor regulations. You may be rejected if your application does not comply with the standards needed.

Additional requirements may be required from you, most specific will be proof of business, permits and financial reports from your company or for you type of business. Specific roles and descriptions should be given on each applicant when travelling in company groups. During the Visit, You are required to produce a confirmation from the visited party in Denmark. These are for documentation purposes for your next visits.

Private and Tourist Visits
 

Nations that require A Denmark Visa for their visit are subdivided into categories depending on how they are weighted by the Danish Government. They may be assigned to The Asylum, Immigration or the tourist group. The Danish government has already made researches on the volume of applicants coming in to Denmark so it is a god categorization.

Each of the categories has a different set of rules required. The set of rules are also dependent on the documentation of your application. Always send out accurate and clear documents. Process and correct the any mistakes on any documents in advance. The Documents for your application are meticulously checked. Any uncertainties will not be tolerated and will only prolong the processing periods.

Asylum category
 

Denmark Visas are only awarded if they can provide documents supporting the purpose of reunification of relatives, in laws, siblings, children and Parents connected to persons already having a stable residence in Denmark.

Immigration category
 

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There are ways for this type of Visa, one is you have to have direct relationships with visited party in Denmark (stable residence); two awards to whoever you want to visit. There are of course documents on the persons you are visiting. You need to provide documents relating to your relationships with a Danish citizen or to family members already living in Denmark.

Tourist category
 

This is the best Private and Tourist category. You can be awarded a Visa for tourist visits only. There are no required documents for the visited party. You might want to check out if your country falls on this category.

Denmark Visa Requirements differ for different Nationals

Denmark offers different packages for your Visa. Your Denmark Visa requirements are specialized for every country depending on their ties and history with your nation. There is a list of countries that are automatically allowed to enter without a visa while some have more requirements to do.

The basics list is that Americans, British and EU nationals don’t have to do more on their travel documents for the entering Denmark. But you might as well check them out.   The best thing to do is to get out of your sit and visit your local consulate. You still have requirements to do before entering Denmark.

If you are not American, British or a national of any EU, try to do more specifics. There a requirements this may be hard to get or to produce if you are not ready. Check out your Denmark Visa requirements as early as possible.

 
If your are a citizen of the following Countries, You are FREE to enter Denmark WITHOUT a Denmark Visa

Andorra   Venezuela   Vatican City State   Uruguay   United States   United Kingdom   Switzerland Sweden   St. Christoffer and Nevis   Spain   South Korea   Slovenia   Slovakia   Singapore   Seychelles       San Marino    Salvador       Romania   Portugal   Poland   Paraguay   Panama   Norway   Nicaragua   New Zealand    Netherlands   Monaco   Mexico   Mauritius   Malta   Malaysia   Luxembourg   Lithuania   Liechtenstein   Latvia   Japan   Italy   Israel   Ireland   Iceland   Hungary    Honduras   Guatemala   Greece Germany   France   Finland   Estonia   Czech Republic   Cyprus   Croatia    Costa Rica   Chile   Canada   Bulgaria   Brunei Darussalam   Brazil   Belgium   Bahamas   Austria   Australia   Argentina  Antigua and Barbuda

The countries mentioned above have maintained a good relationship to the Danish Government, giving them extra privileges for their visits in Denmark.

 
This is a list of the countries MUST have Denmark Visa for the Visit:

Afghanistan  Zimbabwe  Zambia  Yemen  Vietnam  Vanuatu  Uzbekistan  United Arab Emirates  Uganda  Tuvalu  Turkmenistan  Trinidad and Tobago  Tonga  Togo  Timor-Leste  Tanzania  St. Lucia  St. Vincent  Grenadines Sudan  Suriname   Swaziland  Syria  Taiwan  Tajikistan  Sri Lanka  South Africa  Somalia  Sao  omé and Principe  Saudi Arabia  Senegal  Sierra Leone  Solomon Islands  Samoa  Rwanda  Qatar  Papua New Guinea  Palau  Oman  Northern Marianas  North Korea  Nigeria  Niger  Nepal  Micronesia  Moldova  Mongolia  Mozambique  Namibia  Nauru  Mauritania  Marshall Islands  Mali  Maldives  Malawi   Madagascar  Macedonia   Libya   Liberia  Lesotho  Lebanon  Laos  Kyrgyzstan  Jamaica  Jordan  Kenya  Kiribati   Kuwait  Ivory Coast  Iraq  Iran  Indonesia  Djibouti  Dominica  Dominican Republic  Ecuador  Equatorial Guinea  Eritrea  Ethiopia  Haiti  Guyana  Guinea-Bissau  Guinea  Grenada  Ghana  Georgia  Gambia   Gabon  Fiji  Democratic Republic of Congo  Cuba  Azerbaijan  Bahrain  Bangladesh  Barbados  Belarus  Belize  Benin  Bhutan  Botswana  Burkina Faso  Burma (Myanmar)  Burundi  Congo  Comoros   Colombia  Chad  Central African Republic  Cape Verde  Cameroon  Cambodia  Armenia  Angola  Algeria 

This set of countries has special provisions, they are not  required to have Denmark Visas if they have special or service passports or visiting for diplomatic purposes:

Bolivia  India  Pakistan Morocco Philippines  Thailand  Egypt China and Turkey Albania Bosnia-Herzegovina Kazakhstan Montenegro Peru Russia Serbia Tunisia Ukraine

There is a special consideration for China, if they have a British National Overseas passport, or if they have a Hong Kong Passport.

What does the Denmark Visa give you?

The Denmark Visa only entitles you a right to stay on a short period. This period should only cover 3 months per 6 months. No permit to work or stay longer than the specified time. Other special provisions will be given for special reasons.

An additional Benefit is that you are entitled for the same rights on Schengen registered Countries. Also take note that people with Schengen visa are entitled with the same rights to stay in Denmark.

Your Visa Requirements  

The general Denmark Visa requirements are your respective National passport, Photos of passport size, an invitation or a reference from a Danish national of which you are connected to, you should also include their Danish National Identification numbers for ease of your application.

Do not however try to book any terms of travel without you Denmark Visa being approved. Your Denmark Visa applications may require additional documents regarding your information. It may also take a while. Applications mat take One and a half to 3 months to process. You also need to get some cash ready as there are processing fees required.

Your Denmark Visa is a precious part of your travel documents; only provide applications from good sources and apply with the best references for it. There are too many Hoaxes that will prolong your application and will render you additional costs rather than paying only for the said amount. Please apply for your Denmark Visa on registered sites which already has a good reputation in cases that you cannot process them alone.

  FAQ’s on Denmark Visa Requirements  

1.     Do I need to register if I am a national of an EU registered Country

Yes. You can obtain the registration card from the Danish state adiminstration. You can also seek employment if your country is a member of EU, although there may be some provisions and rules for getting professionally paid.

2.     How can I attain of a Denmark Visa if I am from a country outside Europe?

There are several types of ways to be awarded a Denmark Visa. Everything is dependent on your purpose and on your documentation. The documentation is the most important Denmark Visa requirement. If you cannot prove your reason for visiting Denmark, then they will not accept your application. There are countries that are given awards only for tourist purposes and you should take a look in your country’s standing on the Denmark visa categories.

3.     Can I seek employment in Denmark with my short term Visa?

No. You should consider applying for a Work permit first. If by any chance you are rejected then you should continue to apply again. All it takes is hard work and perseverance. You should remember that, in order to get an employment permit faster, get a job offer first then everything can be smooth from there on.

4.     What is the Schengen Visa’s worth for my travels in Denmark?

It is of equal worth to a Denmark Visa. The Schengen agreement was done for the purpose of free travel among member countries. Your Schengen Visa is very important.

5.     How can I extend my stay in Denmark?

If your Visa was awarded for the duration of less than 3 months, you can always apply for an extended stay. The extension can be approved if the original purpose of your visit remains. Your stay can also be extended to 3 more months for family reasons or spouse visits. Special considerations are also given to some circumstances not listed in their categories, emergency situations as such.

6.     I have intentions of studying in Denmark, What type of Visa should I get?

The first thing you need to do is get qualified and accepted by an Educational institution id Denmark first. Considerations for your study in Denmark are given, provided that you can support your financial capability with documents. You should also apply first in your home country’s local Danish consulate for the rules. The Danish government issues residency permits for education purposes and you may be awarded part time job permits during the duration of your stay.

7.     Will the Danish Government revoke my Visa or my residency permit? At what instances?

Yes. There are instances that the Danish Visa or residency permits are revoked by the Danish Government. If you do not comply with the EU regulations or have handed false information on any of your supporting documents, you are bound for revocation of permits.

Retiring Singles has been set up as a forum for bringing expatriate single boomers together.  Whether for romance, travel, or investment it is designed to show you the best places overseas to live.   It doesn’t matter if you are a male or female singleton, the site  can show you places with affordable healthcare, reasonable costs of living and a climate that suits you!  This doesn’t mean that we are looking to return to that familiar state of coupledom; but it would be nice to meet other single, like-minded expats.

The site has been designed mostly, but not exclusively, for those born between 1946 and 1964….many 40 to 60 year olds are retiring early, some just want to get away before it’s too late! 

A rising number of baby boomers are single due to factors such as divorce, the greater independence of women, including higher workforce participation than in previous generations, and the failure of second and third marriages. Widowed spouses also form part of this group.

Over 50′s single men and single women are a growing population and all the articles on relocating overseas involve couples. Women are just as concerned about safety, the availability of good healthcare, and social groups as men, but it is also more difficult at this age to meet up with and develop friendships when you are alone, particularly when moving abroad.

The website was created because there was a gap in the market for this type of resource.  Women, particularly, who end up alone after a divorce often end up with children – and raising them takes precedence over everything, including a social life.  Once they have flown the coop, the parent is able to make some decisions about his or her own future, including the possibilities of retiring, traveling, living or investing overseas, or even just spending some time in a more tranquil environment.

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I have read many articles about possible ‘escape to’ locations, travelled singly to Italy and Croatia, researching the beautiful properties overlooking ocean and mountains.  I went to Costa Rica and Panama on two separate occasions with small groups of three to four people, who co-incidentally turned out to be single too.  We had a good time exploring, discovering and wondering; trying to decide where is the right place, what is the right price, when would be the right time?  As we got to know each other better it became apparent to me, that having a like-minded partner would make all the difference to the task of making these decisions.  Most of us need someone to share our dreams and joys!!  How much fun would it really be for me lying down on my hammock – sipping on my piña-colada – on the gorgeous terrace – of my fabulous condo, house or villa, overlooking the spectacular beaches and ocean! ALONE? ?

This new ‘meeting’ concept is to bring together a single man, a single woman, romance, marriage, travel and group partnerships.  Members are able to request their “desired destinations” and their “desired partners” and all other preferences they request.   Included with free membership is a forum for open discussion between members regarding their experiences in the various countries visited, either by group property tours (organized by the various property developers and their agents) or individually.  Also, the best travel and accommodation deals for the singles to take advantage of, will be highlighted.  We’re fed up with ‘singleton’ surcharges!

The events, tours and seminars will be posted on the site by country and dates.  Members of Retired Singles will be able to cut their costs and not feel alone in  the enormous task of making all important decisions of overseas property purchase.  Members of retiringsinglesoverseas.com have the opportunity to meet up with their perfect like-minded partner/s – those who also have the desire to purchase property, invest or retire in Panama, Costa Rica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Spain, Dubai, Bulgaria, Croatia and many, many more destinations.  And don’t forget the possibilities of falling in love again!

Members have their very own gallery within their profile where they can post pictures of travelling experiences, upload travel videos, music, their own events, post articles, and blogs and more. 

There are so many beautiful properties to purchase in laid back, happy, smiley “live-your-life” countries, without all the red tape, rules and regulations we seem to face today and at affordable prices.  Places to live with true freedom and we will be planning events all over the world for members of Retiringsingles.com and Retiringsinglesoverseas.com.

If you don’t want to live overseas – you may have a home in Florida, Dubai, Spain, United Kingdom, Panama, Costa Rica or anywhere…. and maybe your perfect partner lives in another place and dreams of living where you are!  Well, you have a tremendous opportunity to find that special person.

Romance is in the forefront of this site, but certainly not exclusively. You may be a female looking for a female travel/investment partner (you don’t have to be ‘gay’). Perhaps you’re a male looking for a male travel/investment partner (you don’t have to be ‘gay’).  This site is for single boomer women and men that are interested in the adventure of living overseas, travelling overseas, property purchasing overseas and matching like-minded women and men – here you will find  the resources you need in order to accomplish your goals.

For more information, visit Retiring Singles at www.retiringsingles.com

Preview of Cadkinsca’s blog at TravelPod. Read the full blog here: www.travelpod.com This blog preview was made by TravelPod using the TripAdvisor™ TripWow slideshow creator. Entry from: Matagalpa, Nicaragua Entry Title: “Selva Negra Coffee Plantation” Entry: “From the original banana republic to an actual coffee (among other things) plantation. I had read good things about the the Selva Negra (which translated to “Black Forest”) Coffee Planation and Mountain Resort. In fact, that it was Nicaragua´s most famous resort, and that it was not that far off the bus route to Managua, Nicaragua, from Teguz. So I flew back to Teguz on the 15-seat plane with the luggage in the cabin with us, managed to catch the bus to Managua although the connection was tight, and (with help) got off at some town a bit better than a wide spot on the road that I was told was the closest spot to the resort. Well, not quite. Matagalpa is closer, but the bus did not go there, so I would have to got off the bus, taken another bus to Matagalpa, and then a cab to the plantation. I opted for a direct cab at the added cost of about . It was well worth it. After a trip to the ATM to get Nicaraguan “cordobas,” although everyone calls them pesos, a 40 minute cab took me blessedly uphill to lush rain forest (some called it cloud forest, which it appeared to me to be) at around 4000 feet above sea level. I never found out how many acres the estate, resort and mountain trails covered but it was big. The …