Our life is a journey and we don’t know where the next day will take us. There seem to be no boundaries in today’s world. Now, flying or driving thousands of miles for business and for pleasure seems like taking a local bus. There is nothing unusual in working in New York, flying every weekend to Boston to see the family, going on vacation to Australia, traveling for business to Portugal, and attending the best friend’s wedding in Costa Rica… And the best part about it is that we always have a choice. We are not bound to live in the same area all our life unless we want to. If we leave and at some point realize it’s not working, it’s nice to know that we can always go back to a place where we belong and it does not have to be our birthplace. It can be a city where someone is waiting for us, a place where we have an exciting job, or a small town that makes us feel good for no reason.

Traveling is the salt of life, a way to see new people, to be exposed to new cultures and a different lifestyle; a source of new emotions and an escape from everyday routine. Traveling is about wisdom, better understanding of ourselves and others, and gaining valuable life experience.

We are all different and our travel style is a reflection of our personality. Some prefer comfortable cruise ships and five star hotels, while others take cycling or yachting tours around the world. Some holidaymakers are looking for company, fun, and entertainment in a bright and noisy Las Vegas and others are dreaming of a silent retreat somewhere in a perfectly serene oceanfront location.

Travel market is constantly developing and has numerous options to cater to any taste or budget.

If you are into sports and adventure and you think your everyday life needs to be spiced up with excitement, go on one of the cycling or hiking tours. You can use the services of numerous tour operators who offer customized packages to book a cycling tour to a faraway destination or, if you on a budget, have a local tour organized by yourself. Cycling tours in Europe will become an unforgettable adventure. Get absorbed by warm lavish light-bathed towns and landscapes of French Provence. Inhale the scent of wild thyme; take pictures of lavender juxtaposed with an ocean of lovely sunflowers undulating with the tender caress of the breeze. Even if you have never painted before, take a brush and try to capture vast barren rock outcroppings of the most astonishing shades of pink and terra-cotta of Côte d’Azur. Enjoy incredible rocky valleys, blue glacial lakes, secluded mountain villages, and a latticework of scenery snaking roads of Corsica. Admire the soaring mountains, high alpine meadows, deep blue lakes reflecting the snow-covered peaks in Switzerland. You will get home suntanned, in great shape, and bursting with thrilling memories making everyone around jealous.

Those who love comfort and luxury may like to a leisure style Fiji vacation. Each Fiji island has its own distinct identity. Around every bend in Fiji’s abundant rainforests you’ll discover cascading waterfalls and beautiful swimming holes adorned with verdant jungle vegetation and sweet-smelling flowers. In Fiji you can truly live your fantasies- snorkel in the aquamarine waters teaming with a myriad of tropical fish of every possible color, exotic coral formations beyond your wildest imagination, or just enjoy an invigorating stroll along the serene sandy beaches in absolute privacy. Fiji is a paradise. It’s a dream come true and a first-rate destination for honeymooners.

If you are looking for a combination of luxury and adventure, pick a trip to the Carnival in Venice. Travel back in time to the magic of centuries past and take part in this impressive show in the company of actors, acrobats, mimes, musicians, and dancers. Attend Venezia Romantica at the Danieli Hotel-an extravagant costume ball with stunning dinner, music, and dancing. Indulge in the libations of the Carnival and then treat your ears and heart to the Baroque Venetian Music Concert at San Vidal Church. That’s just the delicious topping on the splendid multi-layered cake. You’re in Italy, so every second is filled with romance and passion. The spectacular art, the luxurious architecture, the historic wonders and your presence at an unforgettable performance at Teatro La Fenice-it’s all on your glorious “to do” list.

Those above are just a few samples of endless travel options and the world is yours to discover. However, you can be adventurous even staying in your area. Did you ever look at your hometown as a tourist? Are there any places you have always wanted to see and never did? Are there any activities you have always wanted to try and have been afraid of? It is not much of an investment to buy a bicycle, rollerblades, or skis and it will pay off with hours of fun in the open air. Do something new every day, take risks and life will sparkles with different colours. Dancing, painting or just meditating - it is up to you what you decide to do. Expand your horizons and your life will become brighter and richer…

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On Saturday May 10th, Bape will be releasing their Spring and Summer collection of tees, sneakers and other goods. The new designs feature vivid colors and a variety of floral and plaid patterns.

Visit A Bathing Ape to see the complete Spring and Summer line.

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1. What to buy

Popular things to buy here are carpets, daggers, jewelry, aprons and hats, all of which can be found in the famous Barkhor Street. The vendors on the street outside the Holiday Inn have basically the same range, but in smaller quantities and at higher prices. Besides this, plenty of department stores line the Yuthok Lu, selling more routine articles. Those interested with Chinese herbal medicines also have the chance here to pick up some potions rarely seen in other Chinese cities.

- Dagger

Tibetan daggers are seen as indispensable part of the ordinary Tibetan’s basic paraphernalia. Not just used as a tool for cutting meat and protecting themselves, the dagger is also a critical fashion accessory. This is especially true of daggers that may be carried by Tibetan women. These tend to be more decorative and delicate. Based on the materials used and the level of craftsmanship in the making of the dagger, prices can range from a few RMB to several thousand. Actually, daggers from Shigatse are particularly famous and are characterized by hard to imitate intricately designed silver sheaths.

- Jewelry

There are numerous varieties of jewelry and ornaments in Tibet, including pearl, agate, jade containers and golden-silver products, etc. Generally, it is more graceful in ancient style. You could get them in some used-goods market of Barkhor Square or some special shops for tourists. They have all the decorations you could wish for, which can be pulled on the neck, adorned the wrist, hung on the ears, or some daggers embellished the waist, and all of them are exquisite and decorative; while for those ornaments bigger than others, you could hang them in your rooms or some public locations, thus it would bring you a kind of special environment.

2.Where to Buy

- Shopping in Lhasa

Barkhor is the best shopping market in Lhasa. Tourist can find lots of odd and fascinating stuff, for religious and secular uses. Small shops and stalls on the street sell a variety of items like prayers flags, Buddha figures, conch-shell trumpets, rosaries, amulets, fur hats, horse bells, bridles, copper teapots, wooden bowl, inlaid knives and jewelry inlaid with turquoise and other gems. However, attention shall be paid to the quality of the jewelry since many items are coarse. Exotic Tibetan opera masks and costumes are interesting items to buy. Bright and beautiful homespun Tibetan rugs and Tibetan khaddar are also popular souvenirs. Tourists can easily find things which are of individuality and appeal to them. The most interesting thing to shop in Barkhor is that you can bargain with local people and may buy nice things in a lower price. Just cut the price by 50 percent!

Shopping along the street accompanied by hundreds of pilgrims prostrating will be a thrilling experience. Tibet carpet and tent can be bought at Lhasa Carpet Factory and Lhasa Tent and Banner Factory respectively.

Department stores, mostly on Yuthok Lu and for everyday requirement, are becoming usual in Lhasa. Lhasa Department Store (General Department Store), on the west end of Yuthok Lu, is the largest and famous one in Lhasa. It sells handicrafts as well as practical items, such as cotton clothing, mugs, canned food, towels and toothpaste and other stuff tourist may need to buy before they move to other remote towns. Supermarkets can also be found in Lhasa.

There are three Xinhua book stores in Lhasa, one on Yuthok Lu, another on east Barkhor and the other on Beijing Zhong Lu, west of Tibet Hotel. They sell maps of Lhasa, Tibetan primers, Tibetan-Chinese dictionaries, and Chinese and Tibetan books. A bookshop carrying Tibetan literature is on north Barkhor.

- Shopping in Shigatse
The best place to go shopping in Shigatse is the market opposite the Tenzin Hotel. There is the usual array of jewelry, antiques and religious objects on display here. However, the market is much smaller than the one in the Barkhor in Lhasa. What is the same here are the shrewd vendors hanging around, hunting for potential buyers. So be prepared to bargain!!

An alternative is to go to the Tibet Gang-Gyen Carpet Factory on Qomolangma Lu, several minutes’ walk from the entrance of Tashilunpo (open weekdays). Here, you will be given the chance to see how carpets are made. Of course, the real reason tourists are allowed in here, is to be encouraged to buy something! Prices range from between RMB200 to RMB3000. The factory even arranges shipping!

Source: http://en.tibettour.com.cn/Shopping/menu.asp

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Elevation extremes
Tibet, averaging more than 4,000 meters above sea level, forms the main part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and is well known as the “roof of the world.” The Himalayas, ranging from east to west on the southern edge of the Tibet Plateau, run for 2,400 kilometers with an elevation of more than 6,000 meters. Mount Qomolangma is the world’s highest peak with an elevation of 8848.13 meters. The Yarlungzangbo Gorge, at a depth of 5,382 meters, is the world’s deepest gorge.

Natural resources: Minerals
There are more than 90 known mineral types in Tibet, reserves of 26 of which have been proved while 11 of them rank among the top five in the quantity of reserves in China. The minerals include chromite, lithium, copper, gypsum, boron, magnesite, barite, arsenic, mica, peat, kaolin, salt, natural soda, mirabilite, sulphur, phosphorus, potassium, diatomaceous earth, iceland spar, corundum, rock quartz and agate.

Energy
Tibet is rich in water, geothermal, solar and wind energy. It produces approximately 200 million kilowatts of natural hydro-energy annually, about 30 percent of the nation’s total. It has 354.8 billion cubic meters of surface water resources, 13.5 percent of the nation’s total; and 330 billion cubic meters of glacial water resources. Tibet has about 56. 59 million kilowatts exploitable hydro-energy resources, 15 percent of the nation’s total. Tibet also leads China in geothermal energy. The Yangbajain geothermal field in Damxung County, Lhasa, is China’s largest high temperature steam geothermal field, and also one of the largest geothermal fields in the world.

Plants
Tibet is like a giant plant kingdom, with more than 5,000 species of high-grade plants. It is also one of China’s largest forest areas, preserving intact primeval forests. Almost all the main plant species from the tropical to the frigid zones of the northern hemisphere are found here. Forestry reserves exceed 2.08 billion cubic meters and the forest coverage rate is 9.84 percent. Common species include Himalayan pine, alpine larch, Pinus Yunnanensis, Pinus armandis, Himalayan spruce, Himalayan fir, hard-stemmed long bract fir, hemlock, Monterey Larix potaniniis, Tibetan larch, Tibetan cypress and Chinese juniper. There are about 926,000 hectares of pine forest in Tibet. Two species, Tibetan longleaf pine and Tibetan lacebark pine, are included in the listing of tree species under state protection. There are more than 1,000 wild plants used for medicine, 400 of which are medicinal herbs most often used. Particularly well known medicine plants include Chinese caterpillar fungus, Fritillaria Thunbergii, Rhizoma Picrorhizae, rhubarb, Rhizoma Gastrodiae, pseudo-ginseng, Codonopsis Pilosula, Radix Gentiane Macrophyllae, Radix Salviae Miltiorrhizae, glossy ganoderma, and Caulis Spatholobi. In addition, there are over 200 known species of fungi, including famous edible fungi songrong, hedgehog hydnum, zhangzi fungus, mush rooms, black fungi, tremellas and yellow fungi. Fungi for medical use include tuckahoes, songganlan, stone-like omphalias.

Animals
There are 142 species of mammals in Tibet, 473 species of birds, 49 species of reptiles, 44 species of amphibians, 64 species of fish and more than 2,300 species of insects. Wild animals include Cercopithecus, Assamese macaque, rhesus monkey, muntjak, head-haired deer, wild cattle, red-spotted antelopes, serows, leopards, clouded leopards, black bears, wild cats, weasels, little pandas, red deer, river deer, whitelipped deer, wild yaks, Tibetan antelopes, wild donkeys, argalis, Mongolian gazelles, foxes, wolves, Iynxes, brown bears, jackals, blue sheep, and snow leopards. The Tibetan antelope, wild yak, wild donkey and argali are all rare species particular to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and are under state protection. The white-lipped deer, found only in China, is of particular rarity. The black-necked crane and the Tibetan pheasant are under first-grade state protection.

Tourism resources
Tibet has continually developed and exploited its unique tourism resources, both human and natural. The region currently has four tourist areas of Lhasa, the west, southwest and south.
The Lhasa tourist area includes Lhasa, Yangbajain, Damxung, Gyangze, Zetang, Xigaze and Yamzhoyum Co Lake. Lhasa itself is not only Tibet’s political, economic, cultural and transportation center, but also the center of Tibetan Buddhism. Major tourist sites include the Jokhang Temple, Ramoche Temple, Potala Palace, Barkhor Bazaar, Norbulingka Palace and three great monasteries of Ganden, Drepung and Sera. The Jokhang Temple, the Potala and Norbulingka palaces and Ganden, Drepung and Sera monasteries are key cultural relics under state-level protection.
Western Tibet is Ngari Prefecture, the so-called “rooftop atop the world’s rooftop”. The area draws visitors because of its great religious significance. Many tourists and pilgrims from Nepal and India come into Tibet through the Burang port of entry to visit the area’s sacred mountains and lakes.
The southwest Tibet tourist district is a place for mountaineers, many of whom are Nepalese who come to Tibet through the Zhamu entry/exit port to enjoy the mountain scenery or do some climbing.
In southern Tibet, centered around Nyingchi, one can pass through the four seasons of the year in a single day. There are snow-capped mountains, dense primeval forests, surging rivers and azalea-covered mountainsides. This beautiful scenery is easy to enjoy given the pleasantly humid and mild climate.
New tourist routes and specialty tours have been added in recent years. New routes are Lhasa-Nyingschi-Shannan-Lhasa (eastern circle line) and Lhasa-Xigaze-Ngari-Xigaze (western circle line). Specialty tours include exploration by automobile, trekking and scientific investigation tours. Other special events include the Shoton Theatrical Festival in Lhasa, the Qangtam Horseracing Festival in the North Tibet Plateau and the Yarlung Culture and Arts Festival in Shannan.

Environment and current issues
Tibet has thinner air, more sunlight, lower temperatures and less precipitation than other areas in China. The air contains only 150-170 grams oxygen per cubic meter, 62-65.4 percent that of plain areas.
The degree of industrial and other pollution in Tibet is comparatively light. No major instance of environmental pollution has ever occurred and there is no acid rain. Whenever a construction project with potential environmental effects is begun, there is an evaluation of environmental impact. This system also requires that pollution control facilities be designed, constructed and completed at the same time as the main project in question. Some former sources of pollution have been brought under control. The smoke prevention and dust removal rate for fuel combustion waste gases is 80 percent in the region. Urban construction is reasonably planned and afforestation is stressed. The “green rate” in Lhasa is 17.6 percent, supplying an average 12 square meters of green space per person.
In recent years, technical and research departments have completed a number of investigations into the sources of industrial pollution in Tibet and regional wild plant and animal resources. Environmental supervision and monitoring stations have been established in Lhasa, Xigaze and Qamdo. Investigations indicate that Tibet’s environment is currently in good shape. The air and water are essentially unpolluted. Environmental radiation is within normal limits and no manmade radioactive pollution is present.

Enforcement of environmental protection laws
The government of Tibet Autonomous Region has consistently stressed the implementation of the nation’s fundamental policy that natural resources be rationally utilized so as to protect the environment, conscientiously realizing coordinated planning and carrying out economic, urban and rural, and environmental construction.
In recent years, the Standing Committee of the Tibet Autonomous Regional People’s Congress and the regional government have issued a series of regional laws and administrative regulations geared to environmental protection, including the “Tibet Autonomous Region Environmental Protection Ordinance,” “Tibet Autonomous Region Forest Protection Ordinance,” “Interim Provisions for Grassland Management in the Tibet Autonomous Region,” “Tibet Autonomous Region People’s Government Proclamation on the Protection of Aquatic Resources” and “Tibet Autonomous Region Administrative Procedures for Environmental Protection in Construction Projects.” There are 20 regulations governing the protection of wild animals.
The government of the Tibet Autonomous Region established an environment protection agency in 1975 and an environment protection committee in 1990. Environmental protection laws and regulations concern forests, wild plants and animals, species preservation, ecological agriculture and animal husbandry, headwaters, natural and man-made sites deserving of protection for scenic or cultural and historic reasons, valuable geological landforms, and mountains. For many years hard work has gone to preventing forest fires and planting more trees.

source: http://www.china-travels.net/travel/Xizang.html

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If Charice Pempengo were allowed to compete on American Idol, she’d blow the socks off every competitor. No joke. This 15-year-old Filipina singing sensation is blowing up in the Philippines and Korea with her unbelievable performances of Whitney Houston’s hit, “I Will Always Love You” and Dreamgirls anthem, “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going.”

It’s rumored that she’s in talks with talks with Clive Davis, Chairman and CEO of RCA Music Group to be signed to a record deal. If he’s smart, he won’t pass up on this soon to be international superstar. Don’t believe me? Watch the videos and judge for yourself.

Thanks to reader Andre Pascual for the tip.

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Giorgio Armani has partnered with Mohamed Ali Alabbar of Emaar Hotel & Resorts LLC. to create 10 hotels under the name of Armani Hotels and Resorts. This collection of exclusive hotels, resorts and residences bringing to life Giorgio Armani’s vision of stylish, harmonious environments for living. From the room designs to the carefully selected textiles and fabrics to the impeccable service, every aspect of the Armani hotel experience will bear the Armani personal signature.

The first Armani hotel is set to open in late 2008 as part of the Emaar Properties Burj Dubai development, which will be the world’s tallest residential and commercial development when completed.

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All good stories need a bad guy, an antagonist who sparks the action. For us that bad guy was the mediocre quality of chocolate available in UK stores. So, 15 years ago, co-founders Angus Thirlwell and Peter Harris embarked on a journey to do something about it.

Starting as a mail order catalog business, we began making our brand of exclusive chocolates available to UK consumers for the first time. An award-winning website soon followed and in 2004 the first of many Hotel Chocolat retail stores appeared across the UK. The company and their chocolate have a loyal following all over the world, and have established a presence in the United States to better serve the American chocolate connoisseur.

The combination of authentic, premium ingredients with plenty of imagination and flair is something we’re passionately committed to. And it’s a position that we have strengthened by growing our own cocoa at our historic plantation, Rabot Estate in St Lucia. This exciting step allows us to extend our expertise all the way from the bean to the bar – making a unique connection between you the consumer and the cocoa plantation.

We think that chocolate should be exciting, whether you’re having some quiet me-time, or making someone’s day with a gift. For us, chocolate made with passion and imagination is more than just chocolate – it’s a state of mind, a place, a feeling that can take you on a journey. Where you go is entirely up to you…

The pure Chocolat here

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Now here’s a condo I wouldn’t mind owning. Ranging from a 1,950-square-foot three-bedroom to a 3,180-square-foot four-bedroom penthouse with three terraces, these Metal Shutter Houses operate exactly like the rolling grates of the Chelsea galleries and Korean delis that inspired them.

Shigeru Ban, the Paris-based Japanese architect, designed a mechanically adjustable 20-foot window wall in each unit for jaw dropping views of Manhattan’s West Side. They’re scheduled for completion in fall 2008.

(via CubeMe)

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This dazzling spa sprawls over two floors of Capri’s newest luxury jewel, the KW Marriott Capri Tiberio Palace in Italy’s Blue Isle.

Once inside, you’ll find a unique indoor and outdoor pool furnished with ergonomic sun beds in ankle-deep water. Take a walk upstairs, and be treated with therapeutic massages in Zen-inspired treatment rooms.

Popular treatments include ($78-162): Body Wraps, 4-Hands Massage, Vichy Shower Massage, Thai Massage, Hot Stone Massage, and specific Facial Treatments.

With seven treatment rooms, the TIberio Palace Resort and Spa is the perfect place to relax and rejuvenate your mind and body.

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