With all the attention on Iceland due to the volcanic ash cloud, they’ve created a new tourism site to promote Iceland to the rest of the world. The video is genius really, and ticks all the boxes – young, attractive people, beautiful nature scenes, extreme sports, bustling nightlife and lots of people having fun. Hard not to want to visit! See the full site at inspiredbyiceland.com
I’m currently spending a couple of days relaxing in the Bay Area after attending the Cloud Connect conference. Usually I’d write about places I’ve been and sights I’ve seen, but I thought for a change I’d blog about the hotel I am staying in – Hotel Avante in Mountain View. I got my stay here through the cheap hotel site hotwire, for a very reasonable $59 (39GBP) a night. One of the things about Hotwire is you get cheap prices but you don’t find out the hotel until after you book (by area) – so I would never have known about this place – but boy am I glad I did. It’s probably the best hotel I’ve ever stayed in!
I bought a fresh coconut and enjoyed the juice, something I hadn’t done since my last trip to Malaysia in 2004. One trader beckoned me over and starting bargaining with me; he literally wanted the shirt off my back – as it was a genuine Premiership Southampton shirt.
Back in May last year we picked up a Communauto car and did a day trip down into New England. We went down the western side of the massive Lake Champlain through New York State and back up the eastern side through Vermont.
We headed south over the border on Interstate 97 and stopped at a tourist information centre soon after where were able to pick up some useful maps and leaflets. We drove further south and were treated to impressive views of the Adirondack mountains towering overhead, which we plan to visit someday as well as the nearby Lake Placid. We had planned to stop first in Plattsburgh (which incidentally is supposed to be a good location for cheap flights across the USA, as many of the budget airlines don’t fly to Canada).
Unfortunately not long after we got over the border the heavens opened, so rather than stop we continued south along the 9 and more minor roads by the edge of the lake (which is technically a very large river).
We saw some beautiful houses on the waterfront. As we have seen in most places in North America, waterfront access is often difficult as it tends to be private land – unlike the UK where rights of way and footpaths exist by most lakes and rivers. One house had a beautiful little summer house on stilts on the water with a hammock looking out onto the lake – it made you wish you lived there!