Hello everyone! I am planning to visit Norway in January/February (which of these months is better for seeing Northern lights?) and I am unsure how many days to spend in each place. I would be flying from Munich to Tromso, and then to Svalbard, Svalbard to Oslo. How many days would you recommend in Tromso and Svalbard? And if I should just pick one of these instead of both? Thanks a lot!
On my visit to Angkor Wat in 2024, as I was completing the temple tour, a group of three men politely asked me if I can take a picture of them. I took it gladly, but many things caught my attention within the first few seconds. Firstly, what they had placed in my hand was not a phone or a digital camera, but a film camera which I hadn’t seen in almost 2 decades. They said they were only clicking one picture in one place.
Secondly, all three of them were wearing the same clothes and I thought that was rather nice that they were coordinated.
Thirdly, one of them was incredibly handsome!! I couldn’t stop looking at him, but all we exchanged was where we were traveling to next and how the camera was impressive. I wish I had pursued further. I know they were traveling around Asia and were headed to Laos next.
Date: Feb 19th, 2024
Location: Angkor Wat main temple, exit area near the shops.
P.S: if at all this reaches the right person, I would truly thank the internet stars!
I have a Canon Rebel T6i camera and I am looking to upgrade the lens. I bought the EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 IS but it didn’t work as great as I expected. Looking for something that zooms in closer, sharper image and video quality. I travel a lot so want to capture better content. Budget - $1000
Hi folks! I recently made my account public on IG. I used to share only content related posts and would get a lot of questions from followers asking for details and itinerar. I thought I might as well reach more people and help them with travel advice, itinerary and recommendation.
I only post about travel, but not the usual influencer style or hooks. I did try that on trial reels but in vain. I researched a little and cleared my previous cache, search history, content preferences, engaged with other travel content creators before and after posting, mark what my interests are etc. I barely have any reach and views. Can anyone help share advice on how to better my reach? Thanks a lot in advance.
Hi everyone!
If anyone has had an experience with changing itinerary a bit after Schengen visa approval (particularly from Czech Republic), I would like your advice.
I see that some of the hotels, domestic flights and trains are much cheaper now so I would like to cancel my original bookings and make new ones. Who doesn‘t like saving money, right? Is this acceptable? I read somewhere that this could cause issues. TIA!
I recently had a Visa appointment at Czech Republic consulate in LA and wanted to share my experience if anyone is looking for information.
Bio: Immigrant in the US, currently on Visa/AP.
My itinerary: Czech (main destination), Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia
My main motive is to visit Eastern Europe, but also chose Czech as the main destination because securing a visa slot was way easier than other countries. All I had to do was send an email to the consulate.
I had all the documents prepared as per the consular website, and was at the consulate 30 minutes in advance which I am glad I was. I have never been under this much scrutiny, and I felt like I was being interrogated in a court. Here are some of the questions that were asked:
Why do you want to visit CP? Name all the places you will be visiting in Prague - I had the itinerary printed, but blanked out when asked for names. I knew I was visiting Prague Castle, Museums, but completely blanked out on the names. (In my defense, I couldn't pronounce a few names, and I took the help of online blogs and ChatGPT to help me plan the trip)
I am currently unemployed (out of choice) so I can travel more. In spite of showing my bank statements, they asked me for a sponsorship form signed by my partner. This is totally acceptable, except it wasn't in the list of documents on the website. But more than that, the interviewer kept asking me again and again why I don't work and if I am "simply" at home doing nothing. I felt that was uncalled for.
Since this is a multi-country trip, I had to present all the domestic travel proof too. I had placeholders for some, but it wasn't acceptable. I had to make bookings on spot and provide proof that the flights have in fact been booked. I wanted to change the itinerary slightly (not the places, but the travel dates because of cheaper flights on certain days), now I am not sure I can do that because apparently Czech is VERY strict about the final itinerary. I wonder if I can at least cancel the high priced refundable tickets and book the cheaper tickets on the same flight.
I had travel/medical insurance from AXA. This is where I take insurance from for all my international travels, so I did the same. I had to choose a main country as destination for which I chose Czech, and the insurance said that it'll cover all the countries during the trip. But the consulate did not accept this and wanted an Insurance letter that has the word "Schengen" in it. Apparently you need to search for "AXA Schengen travel" and not just AZA insurance. I had to buy a new one on spot, and now talk to customer service to see if I can cancel the previously bought insurance.
I understand the scrutiny they need to perform, but times like these makes me feel rather sh*tty for being an immigrant from a country whose passport is ranked so low. We have to endure everything they make us, silently. I know some people will say visa is a privilege, not a right, but drilling you as though you are unacceptable in their country is not how it should be. Especially when I have proven that I have a house here, my dogs here, and my husband has a high paying job in the US.
This is all for information basis only. If anyone has dealt with anything similar, please share you experience. What was it like at the interview? Did the visa get approved? Did you make any changes to the itinerary after visa was approved?
PS: All said and done, the interviewer must be commended for being accommodating and patient with me as I redid a few bookings, went to a nearby store and printed the new set of documents. I am sure other consulates would have asked me come back another day, or downright rejected my visa.
Long read ahead: We recently went to Kenya, and booked the entire trip through a travel agent. We booked a luxurious camp called Olkupelia, in Masai Mara for 3 nights and were incredibly happy with it. The room, the service, the attention to detail! On the second day, I received a call from the Manager of the camp asking for a request. Apparently, they had overbooked and she was now requesting me to move to another camp, because the other party was a big one and they couldn’t be separated. She said that they are booking us a room in a higher end camp and will take care of the extra charges. Although a bit hesitant and sad, I agreed to it. The next day when we went to the other camp- Ilkeliani, it was nothing like they had advertised. Although it comes up as a luxury camp, the rooms were very small, and old, the bathrooms were horribly designed and it certainly didn’t feel like an upgrade. It was a huge disappointment. Even the staff weren‘t as warm and welcoming as the first camp. I immediately called up the manager to express my disappointment, and that we had paid for three nights at their camp, but this was such a let down and wasn’t worth that much money. She now was saying she never said that it would be an upgrade! And that she can’t do anything about it. No monetary compensation, absolutely nothing although I probably saved her a** and her job. I was so disgruntled at this point but I wouldn’t budge. I kept pushing her and finally agreed on a deal that she should let me stay free for two nights at her camp the next time I visit. She agreed verbally but I wanted to a written confirmation because who knows how long she’ll be at her job, and later can easily deny it. She has since ghosted me and my travel agent who is also trying to follow up.
TLDR: Sometimes it’s just not worth being a good person!!
Hello folks! We have a trip coming up in two weeks to go to Kenya and Uganda. We are immigrants living in the US so cannot risk not being denied entry back. SO we cancelled the Uganda part and are now traveling only to Kenya. However, the Gorilla trekking permits that we had earlier secured through the travel agency are non-refundable. Has anyone dealt with this? Were you able to get a refund or at least get a credit to use in the future. Any information will be helpful. TIA!
Has anyone gotten children's books printed in bulk at a local San Diego printing company? I'd love to know more if so. TIA!