Jetsettersblog

SWAKOPMUND, NAMIBIA – Over the towering blood-orange sand dunes of the Namib Desert in Sossusvlei, Namibia visitors silently float in a hot air balloon.

The magnificent landscape below seems other-worldly and gives riders the impression that they are drifting over the Moon, not the Earth. Balloon safaris in the Namib, arranged by Abenteuer Afrika Safaris, are made for lovers as nothing is more romantic than floating together through the sky. 

They’re also ideal for families because they offer a safe, once-in-a-lifetime experience that parents can share with their children and they’re picture-perfect for photographers of all skill-levels because they offer some of the world’s most awe-inspiring sights. The Namib is very much a living-desert.

Click photo for DVD - Under its sands lives an unseen world and with only a splash of water, this world comes to the surface almost immediately, sprouting greenery and flowers. Sightings of Oryx Antelope, Springbok, Ostrich, and Jackal running below are not uncommon either. The outer peacefulness of the Namibian landscape will evoke inner peace in all who witness its majesty.

The balloons take flight before the sun rises, so that as the light of day makes its way into the eastern sky, the sand dunes illuminate in gold and the immensity of the Namib Desert is revealed. When the balloon safari is completed, the balloon is lowered into one of the great sand dune valleys where the ballooners are greeted with a full champagne breakfast that has been pre-laid on a beautifully appointed table, complete with crisp white table cloths. Balloon safaris are weather permitting; however, given the Namib’s consistently temperate weather, rides are rarely rescheduled.

The typical ride lasts for an hour.

For more information of hot air balloon safaris and Abenteuer Afrika Safaris, please visit: http://www.abenteuerafrika.com/  The balloon safari rate is $367, based on the exchange rate between the Namibian Dollar and the US Dollar as of 1/18/2007.

Namib Desert and Shipwrecks Scenic Flight Take a scenic flight over the contrasting Namib desert and the coastline of the Atlantic Ocean, dotted with shipwrecks. Get a bird’s eye view of the Walvis Bay lagoon, the salt pans and the Sandwich harbor, famous for its countless number of birds.

Finance Ministers, Central Bank chiefs and government officials recently discussed the fast tracking of another key area in the drive towards full regional integration in East Africa, a common currency. Plans have been on the drawing board for a while now but were expected to take shape later rather than sooner. However, as the single sky administration is now becoming a reality and the protocols on freedom of movement of labour are coming nearer too, so is apparently the single currency being fast tracked.

The joining of Rwanda and Burundi will create an even bigger domestic market and the use of one currency across all of East Africa will be hugely beneficial for commerce and tourism.

African Adventure Atlas Our comprehensive atlas features detailed history maps photos and highlights of each region as well as chapters on adventure activities and tourism.

Please Click Photos -  As the National Botanic Garden of Wales celebrates its sixth anniversary this year (2006), the visitor attraction has unveiled plans for a new tropical glasshouse to be built for the Double Walled Garden, scheduled to open in March 2007. The $950,000 project will complement the unique design of the garden, and will house plants including orchids, bromeliads, gingers, palms and bananas.

New York based architect John Belle is designing the garden’s new Tropical Glasshouse. Belle was born in Wales, and moved to New York in 1959 where he has worked on prestigious architectural projects including Grand Central Terminal, the New York Botanic Garden. His latest work for the National Botanic Garden of Wales sees a return to his roots.

In addition, a new iconic structure – the Belle Tower – will be built in the Double Walled Garden in 2006, which will provide visitors with views of the tropical glasshouse during construction.

The garden’s existing Great Glasshouse, designed by Sir Norman Foster, has received many accolades and was recently named the “Number One Modern Wonder of Wales” by the country’s national newspaper.

Website: www.gardenofwales.org.uk

Making Gardens: A Celebration of Gardens and Gardening in England and Wales from the National Gardens Scheme, A Celebration of Gardens and Gardening in England ‘A lavishly illustrated book, packed with description, insight and advice from Britain’s sharpest and most expert horticultural writers.’ SUNDAY TELEGRAPH MAGAZINE Celebrity contributors include internationally renowned gardeners such as Alan Titchmarsh, Beth Chatto, Anthony Noel, Christopher Lloyd, Dan Pearson, Roy Strong, John Brookes, Penelope Hobhouse, David Stevens and Rosemary Verey. Royalties go to good causes e.g. Macmillan Cancer Relief, Help the Hospices, Marie Curie Cancer Care and the National Trust. The only official companion to NGS’s LITTLE YELLOW BOOK, Gardening / Horticulture ; gardens (descriptions, history etc) ; garden design & planning, Making Gardens: A Celebration of Gardens and Gardening in England and Wales from the National Gardens Scheme

Click photo left for Culloden Battlefield DVD –

New visitor center planned at Culloden Battlefield in Scotland

A new visitor and interpretation center will open this fall close to the site of the last battle fought on British soil. The story of the Battle of Culloden — the last stand of Bonnie Prince Charlie and his Jacobite army against the Government troops led by the Duke of Cumberland – will be told at the Culloden Visitor Centre, opening in September 2007. The battle, on April 16, 1746, was over in less than an hour and effectively ended Jacobite hopes of restoring the exiled Stuart dynasty to the British throne.

There will be a reworking of the battlefield interpretation and the new center is being positioned to minimize its impact on the battlefield, returning it as closely as possible to its state on the eve of April 16. Archaeologists have been working with a research team to redefine the positions of Government and Jacobite lines. The project is being led by the National Trust for Scotland, guardian of the site, situated near Inverness.

Edinburgh Pass The Edinburgh Pass, it your passport to explore Edinburgh, allowing you to see and save more. The Edinburgh Pass lets you visit as many attractions as you wish from museums, art exhibitions, fine dining and shopping. Using this electronic smart card is a quick and hassle-free way to see the best of Edinburgh.Every card comes with a FREE guidebook with helpful information on the establishments associated with the card, as well as area maps – BOOK NOW!

Click photos for Wales DVDs  -  Businesses and organizations are leading the way in helping Wales to become a top eco-friendly destination. From negotiating Wales’ rolling hills in an efficient diesel car to dining on fresher produce, there’s an array of options to the eco-friendly visitor:

Owned and operated by a collective of three farming families, Cwmni Gwynt Teg wind farm opened in January 2003 in Moel Moelogan in the Conwy Valley. The first community-owned project of its kind, the farm enjoys overwhelming local support, and the final phase of the project, named Ail Wynt, is in the process of completion. The existing project at Moel Moelogan comprises of two turbines, each capable of producing 1,300 kilowatts of electricity per hour. The output of three turbines is equal to the requirement of 2,500 homes, or all the farms, homes and villages in the Bro Garmon area, as well as Llanrwst, Betws-y-Coed and Trefriw. Website: http://www.ailwynt.co.uk/

Even over the airwaves, Wales leads the way in helping the environment. Wales’ own eco-friendly radio station, Preseli FM, uses the mast on the Preseli Hills to broadcast 24 hours a day to north Pembrokeshire and west Carmarthenshire. Wales’ first eco-friendly radio station broadcasts via a hilltop transmitter powered by wind and solar energy. The station broadcasts bilingually on 106.7. Website: http://www.preselifm.co.uk/

Cut out the middleman and enjoy your own service at Organig Parc, a series of North Wales holiday cottages with a unique blend of eco-friendly design and five-star luxury on an organic farm in the heart of the Llŷn Peninsula. A working organic cattle and sheep farm, Organig Parc has its own mountain, river valley, lake, spring, ancient church, and more than 300 acres of organic farmland, including free organic rainbow trout fishing for guests. Website: http://www.organigparc.co.uk/

For farm-fresh quality, visit Dyfi View, an organic bed and breakfast four minutes from the quaint market town of Machynlleth. Delicious organic breakfasts are made with local produce mostly from the Dyfi Valley and are served in an elegant dining room overlooking the panorama of the Dyfi Valley and Snowdonia National Park. All diets are catered for with vegetarian and vegan a specialty, and Wales’ Centre for Alternative Technology and Ynys Hir RSPB Nature Reserve is a mere two miles away. Website: http://www.dyfiguest.co.uk/

Visit Llangybi Organics, two organic farms and an eco-friendly cottage 10 minutes from the popular St Cybi’s well. Aiming for freshness, the farms offer field-grown vegetables, soft fruits (mostly raspberries) and small orchards, which include apples, pears and plums trees. The farm also actively helps protect and encourage wildlife, some of which reside on the farm. Website: http://www.murcrusto.eclipse.co.uk/

To learn more about all things environmental, visit Wales’ Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT) in Machynlleth. Open to the public since 1975, the center helps people “keep it green” all year long with residential courses on how to shrink your ecological footprint, give your life a sustainable makeover and learn how green your garden really is. For those dedicated to green living, the center offers hands-on learning courses on making your own biodiesel, building your own wind turbine and building with bales of straw. The center has earned worldwide recognition as a leader in presenting practical solutions to environmental problems in a fun and informative way, and its visitor center has a range of interactive displays on wind, water and solar power, green transport, energy efficiency, ecological building and organic growing. Nearby, award-winning green B&B’s serve homegrown, organic vegetarian food. Website: http://www.cat.org.uk/

Eco-friendly guesthouses are a hit in Wales – and for good reason. Not the hippie havens most expect them to be, they provide visitors with an environmentally-friendly way to tour the country. Sandwiched between the rocky buttresses of the Moelwyn mountains and the shore of Tanygrisiau reservoir, Bryn Elltyd guest house is one such guesthouse, with rooms built with timber and glass and a modest appearance that deceives the eye. Under the colorful turf roof could be a spacious bedroom or a sauna. The walls and roof were insulated with sheep’s wool. Solar collectors and water reservoirs power the house as visitors dine on locally-grown organic fare. Website: http://www.accommodation-snowdonia.com/

The UK House of Lords just gave the go-ahead for the £110 million ($217 million) development of Bluestone, an eco holiday park in Pembrokeshire in West Wales, where the bluestone was quarried by ancients for Stonehenge. The park will feature a subtropical water world and a snow center, designed by Alfred McAlpine, who took part in the green Eden Project in Cornwall. In the spirit of the green theme, the park will have its own biomass energy plant for electricity and heat. Website: http://www.bluestonewales.com/

Brecon Beacons National Park has a wealth of eco-friendly accommodation to help visitors “Stay Somewhere Green.” More than 40 businesses have received the “Green Dragon” award for energy efficiency and the park has produced a guide to help businesses reduce their negative impact on the environment. With farm cottages and B&B’s to choose from, staying in one of the greenest destinations in the country is easy. Website: http://www.breconbeacons.org/

South West England and South Wales (OS Travel Map – Road S., Sheet 7) (3Rev ed) – Ordnance Survey ISBN: 031923083X Published: Feb 2005 Format: Paperback South West England and South Wales (OS Travel Map – Road S., Sheet 7) (3Rev ed)

In the latest national census, more than 30 million Americans considered themselves to be of British descent. Do you? Even senator and presidential hopeful Hillary Rodham Clinton can trace her ancestry back to the same part of north-east England that first president of the country George Washington was born. Descended from a family of coalminers in County Durham, Clinton’s great-grandfather immigrated to Scranton, Pennsylvania in 1881 in search of work. Clinton’s maiden name of Rodham, which also occurs as Roddam, originates in Northumberland and was brought to the United States by her great-grandfather, a coalminer in search of work, in 1881. 

If Senator Clinton was to re-visit Durham today, she would find a historic university city with both its cathedral and castle designated World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. Durham Cathedral is one of the finest examples of Norman architecture in the world, and the city’s cobbled streets and specialist shops make for great exploration for modern visitors. Other towns and cities across Britain boast centuries-old churches, cathedrals and stately homes connected with early settlers to America, including many in the eastern counties of England connected with Jamestown, Virginia.

For more information about visiting Britain to experience the historic towns and villages your ancestors once frequented, visit www.visitbritain.com/usa  which includes information on tracing your ancestry and links to the tools to help you unearth your true roots. A special “surname profiler” at www.beginyouradventure.co.uk enables you to find out the British connections of your surname.

Exhibition on the life of George Percy and his role in the foundation of Jamestown, May 6 – October 28, 2007

Syon Park, Brentford, Middlesex – exhibition entry included in house and garden admission. 

LONDON (Syon Park) – An exhibition highlighting the role of colonist George Percy in the founding of Jamestown will run from May 6 through October 28, 2007 at Syon House – a stately home located just south-west of central London and close to London Heathrow Airport. Percy, youngest brother of Henry, the 9th Earl of Northumberland, played a significant role in the foundation of Jamestown, sailing to Virginia on the Susan Constant and serving as Virginia governor during the infamous “starving” winter of 1610 when more than half the colonists died.

There will also be a special event at the Syon House on May 7, 2007 featuring early 17th century life. Demonstrations, re-enactments and discussions about the time period will be a part of the event.

Syon House, just south-west of central London, has been the ancestral home of the Percy family for more than 400 years. Syon House is renowned for its 18th century Robert Adam interiors and is set within its own 200 acre parkland, landscaped by “Capability” Brown. The vistas across the Thames-side water meadows, towards the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, are still grazed by cattle and give Syon a unique rural setting so close to the heart of London.

Percy’s portrait is on show in the house, which has ancestral connections with James Smithson, financier of the Smithsonian Institute, and the 2nd Duke of Northumberland, who served in the War of Independence. Syon House is located by Syon Park, on which Pocahontas and John Rolfe once stayed.

The house is open on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Sundays and Public Holidays from March 23 through October 28, 2007 from 11am to 5pm. Admission to the house and gardens is £8 (around $15.50) for adults.

Website: http://www.syonpark.co.uk/

Wyndham Vacation Ownership has acquired the Grand Beach Palace resort (formerly the Renaissance Grand Hotel) located on the northeast side of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands, with plans to convert the property into its flagship Caribbean timeshare resort. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

The beachfront property, which has been vacant for more than two years, will undergo a $40 million renovation, including the conversion of its 290 existing hotel rooms into 143 fully furnished condominium style timeshare units. The resort is expected to welcome its first guests in late 2008 and will operate within Wyndham Vacation Ownership’s FairShare Plus portfolio of resort properties.

“The reopening of this beachfront property on the east end of St. Thomas and the planned multimillion dollar renovation is a significant boon not only for the hospitality industry but for local contractors and development firms that will likely be called into service as this project takes shape,” said U.S. Virgin Islands Governor John deJongh. “We welcome the Wyndham Vacation Ownership brand to the Virgin Islands and look forward to the high level of service presently provided at another Wyndham brand on St. Thomas, The Sugar Bay Resort.”

The newly acquired resort is situated within six hillside and seven poolside buildings that will be converted into a combination of studio, one-, two-, and three bedroom condominium-style units, as well as a select number of presidential suites. Other amenities include two onsite restaurants, a boat dock, a conference area and a nearly 5,000-square-foot beachfront pool overlooking Water Bay Harbor. ‘

The Sonesta Maho Beach & Casino in St. Maarten is rewarding meeting planners with a Bose 3-2-1 home theater system for booking an event at the resort. And if the group travels in 2007, the resort is completing the system with a 42-inch, LCD, high-definition television. “Meetings planners often receive lower rates or added value for the group but nothing just for themselves,” said Brice O’Keeffe, Sonesta’s director of sales and marketing.

The hotel has 16,038 square feet of meeting space and seven additional settings for receptions and dinners. The Bose promotion is valid for groups traveling to the Sonesta Maho Beach & Casino through Dec. 31, 2008. A minimum of 30 rooms for four nights is required. The promotion is valid only on groups originating from the U.S. and based on new business only. It is not combinable with other promotions, and blackout dates may apply.