Watch Iceland’s Volcanic Ash Spread Via Satellite
April 16, 2010 by Anil P.
Filed under Pictures and Video
You may be wondering how volcanic ash from Iceland erupting from underneath the Eyjafjallajokull glacier could be shutting down airports across northern Europe. Here’s 18 hours of satellite footage from April 14-15, 2010 that shows just how much ash is being produced and spread over European skies.
Thousands of flights have already been canceled due to this second eruption of the volcano. Apparently volcanic ash, which being mostly invisible to the naked eye from the ground in Europe, can disrupt jet engines. Scientists aren’t sure how long the eruptions will last but the last time in 1821, the volcano was active for over a year.
The Changing Face Of Berlin’s Immigrant District, Kreuzberg
Kreuzberg is a section of Berlin located in the center of the city and is well known for it’s large immigrant population. The German relationship with it’s immigrant populations – especially the large number of Turks in Germany – is a complex one to say the least. For years Kreuzberg has been the focus and reflection of how choppy the integration of these communities has been.
From One World To The Next
Hopping off the Kreuzberg metro station from any other part of Berlin you are thrust into a cosmopolitan world that instantly looks and feels different. There are international restaurants, cafes, and stands everywhere (the food is excellent by the way). Kreuzberg is a colorful place in a country where monotone shades seem to dominate the architecture. The harmony isn’t completely on-key but there are small signs all around that on some levels the cultures here are learning to share a part of themselves with each other.
Blends On A Small Scale
You’ll find Germans ordering doner kebabs in Turkish with local vendors, cafes creating unique tastes between Indian and German foods, along side Japanese markets. Where there are small signs of integration there are also stark differences that are make for an interesting look at the changing face of Kreuzberg. I recall seeing a young punk rocker girl of 15 or so, covered in tattoos and piercings drinking a beer; a moment later an elderly lady in a headscarf sits directly across from her. The looks the two exchanged was priceless – both in complete shock at the sight of one another – it’s a picture I really wish I could have caputred. On so many levels that is Kreuzberg.
Not Completely German, Berlin, But Kreuzberg
Kreuzberg has it’s fair share of problems, including having one of the highest rates of poverty in Germany. Despite the differences between its communities both past and ongoing, Kreuzberg has something I haven’t seen in any other part of Berlin or Germany. The communities here may fall into the categories of German, Turkish, Russian, or otherwise, but they’re all a part of Kreuzberg. That culture that transcends national titles, a unique mixture that defines its inhabitants, and may be slowly bringing them together.
[photo by: CDrewing (Kreuzberg sign)]
How To Choose The Right Bank Before Going Overseas To Save Time And Avoid Fees
When budgeting for your next trip or vacation the focus is typically on the road ahead. Yet there are many expenses back home like bank fees that can add up and others like fraud protection that can be tough to do anything about when you’re out traveling the world. Before you set off on your next international trip be sure to check up on few key points with your bank and come up with your own financial protection strategy.
Start With What You’ve Got
You’ve mostly likely got a checking account with at least one bank so begin by finding out what they offer. You want to get these key points – which you can probably find online – but since you have easy access to a phone or the local branch, try calling or stopping by. Don’t waste your time hunting through legal jargon or confusing policies, talk to someone at the bank directly.
- ATM Fees – They vary and you should find out the exact fees overseas. Some banks will also reimburse you for some of the fees you incur, be sure to ask.
- Service (or Foreign Transaction) Charges – Creepy little fees that can appear on your statement when you use your debit or credit card abroad. There are a few accounts at various banks that don’t charge these so make this a part of your comparison shopping.
- Transfer Fees – It’s not a good idea to travel with a single bank account on hand because if that account it compromised or locked by the bank (due to suspicious activity like being used overseas!) you could wind up in a heap of anxiety and trouble. There are plenty of banks that won’t charge for the first few hundred, or any transactions for that matter.
- Time-Based Fees – Monthly, annual, or otherwise you don’t want time-based fees with your bank account.
Now you should have a pretty good idea of what you’re working with and what areas need improvement in terms of fees and charges for your simple travel budget.
Shop Around
Ideally you don’t want to pay any bank fees when you’re traveling so shop around. You might not be able to find a bank that reimburses you for all ATM fees, doesn’t have a foreign transaction charge, and allows unlimited transfers but you can mix and match.
- Look Big – International banks give you more flexibility overseas and have arrangements with other banks that often mean less ATM fees.
- Online Banks – Banks like ING Direct don’t have physical branches and all transactions are done online. While it’s tough to deposit a check it’s very easy to just about everything else through a web browser.
- Earn Interest – ING Direct checking accounts earn a competitive interest rate as do their savings accounts. The same goes for HSBC, and with both banks transfers from your savings to checking are instant, which is good if you happen to go over budget. They also offer a small bonus (around $25) when your friends sign up.
- Hours of Operation – Changing timezones (keep track with FoxClocks) and finding free wi-fi can make calling difficult, keep this in mind.
When you’re calling around, but sure to let the person on the phone know that you’ll be traveling and how much – especially if you’re taking an RTW. Get set up with two solid checking accounts in case one becomes unavailable for any reason and don’t keep all of your eggs money in one basket.
Plan Ahead – Test The Accounts
It’s frustrating to see a little fee appear that wasn’t supposed to when you’re at home, but it’s much more so when you’re traveling. Set up your accounts early and test them out with one or two transactions on your next international trip. It’s also a good idea to let the bank know ahead of time you’ll be traveling – they might decide to lock your account if the card is suddenly used in another country.
Make Your Money Work For You
Bank accounts can help you earn a bit of unconventional money for your travels.
- Sign-Up Bonuses – Find a great account or program? Share it with your friends or family members who might be traveling with you. Usually both sides get a little bit of cash for the sign up so you can put those $10 to good use.
- Earn Miles – Chris Guillebeau guarantees you’ll earn at least 1 free airplane ticket by reading his eBook Frequent Flyer Master. (Use Award Wallet to track your mileage programs better.)
- Paypal Debit Card – They offer 1% cash back on all transactions, you can use money in your account directly, and is one of the few to offer two-factor authentication. (What that means for security.)
- Nomadic Matt’s Secrets To Successful World Travel – This eBook I’ve reviewed has a lot of good information about handling your finances when traveling for an extended period of time.
What Services, Banks, Or Money Hacks Do You Use?
The biggest obstacle to choosing the right bank, or banks, for your travels is the hassle upfront of calling and digging through information about the fees, restrictions, and everything else. It’s a good idea to connect with other travelers to find out what they’ve learned and share some of your own favorite accounts and bank offerings. Leave your favorites and best advice in the comments below – what banks, credit cards, and financial services do you use?
[photos by: alancleaver_2000 (piggy bank), genvessel (woman on lookout) , AJU_Photography (20 dollar bills)]
4 Types Of Travel Lists That Won’t Help You Very Much
Lists are a good way to absorb information quickly online but tend to be more useful the more specific the topic is. Often though, they can be too subjective to provide too much useful information. I’ve written a number of lists myself but some make better headlines than they do articles. It is even difficult to generalize about lists so I don’t want to knock what I haven’t read but there are some things you just can’t quantify easily.
1. The Friendliest Places
There is no friendliest place really since friendliness is culturally relative. How we perceive friendliness is based on our own cultural background – take for example smiling. The smiles in Thailand can mean so many things whereas in the Middle East a straight face is the default. Often foreigners visiting the US comment on how nice people are since they typically ask, “how are you?”
2. The Best Places In The World To Visit
These types of lists tend to work well when you know the author or are familiar with their work. It’s also interesting to read the best places in a very specific town or city since they usually cover the highlights many travelers are looking for. Simply reading that a place is the best without something added (like the best surfing, best trekking) doesn’t help you much as a traveler.
3. The Worst Places To Visit In The World
Any given trip is a series of moments in a given time at a given place. While it’s OK to hate some places, chances are if you were to visit somewhere more than once you wouldn’t hate it each time.
4. The Most Dangerous Places To Visit
Again, you can say the most dangerous parts of a city based on crime rate, or include war zones – but national borders (or otherwise) don’t magically segregate violence which is one reason travel warnings shouldn’t stop you from visiting most places. It’s also why you’ve got to decipher State Department travel warnings.
Look For Logic and Specifics
Lists appeal to us for many reasons but they don’t do you much good unless they’re based on or contain specifics, logic, or quantifiable information. Ask yourself, what criteria was used to create the list? Also, remember that information changes slowly over time so be sure to update your reality and the mesofacts you come across in all of the lists you read. Even more subjective lists like those described above can be useful, particularly on travel blogs, where they tend to generate good discussions with good information about the topic at hand.
Lists can be useful of course – there are bests and worsts, top 10s, and “mosts” we all get out of the places we visit – but much like the lists themselves, they’re hard to see without getting sight of the bigger picture.
[photos by: Mr Huevo (smiling child), JPhillipson (thumbs up), Elephant wearing striped pants (stop sign), Express Monorail (witch)]
