Click here if you missed the first carnival, or read more about the carnival and how to submit your travel articles. All linkbacks appreciated.

There are enough entries to merit making this a two-week affair from now on, so the next one will be mid-August.

** = my personal favorites

Travel Planning/Philosophy

• Amanda prepares for a big trip and posts her thoughts on Planning at She Has Moxie.
• Yehuda Berlinger ponders The Reasons Why We Travel – Read Before You Go posted at Yehuda. **
• Mike explains Why I Travel: Television Made Me Do It! posted at Vagabondish. **
• Jason Antic announces Our Big, Big Roadtrip Across America is Coming Soon! and provides an introduction to couch surfing posted at We Go to Cool Places.
• Roger Carr writes about volunteer tourism in Make Your Vacation Memorable This Year posted at Everyday Giving Blog.
• Host Bee shares her pre-departure checklist in Preparing for Vacation posted at Busy Bee Lifestyle. **
• Edith Yeung asks What is your Dream? and recounts a trip to Machu Picchu posted at Edith Yeung.Com: Dream. Think. Act.
• Eric Daams presents Why Getting Ripped Off is Alright when traveling posted at From the swivellin’ chair….

Flying

• Steve Madsen reviews British Airways – World Traveller Plus (yep, long-haul flights are a bummer) posted at Exit Row Seat.
• Mary Jo Manzanares asks So You Want to be a Flight Attendant? posted at Fly Away Cafe. **
• Stingy Student presents Costliest mistake about the cost of missing a flight posted at Stingy Students.

Travel Savings

• Millionaire Mommy Next Door offers 10 Ways to Save on Travel Expenses posted at Millionaire Mommy Next Door.
• Jimson Lee presents Traveling Overseas and Saving Money on International Calls posted at Speedendurance.com. **

Asia/Pacific Articles

• Lubna Kably writes about Little Tibet in South India posted at The Writer’s Cyberslate.
• John Hill presents Koh Samui on a Shoestring posted at Universe Of Success.
• Fellow Kiwi Kara-Leah Masina reveals Why I love New Zealand/Aotearoa, Land of the long white cloud posted at Be Conscious Now.
• John Hill has an Adventure in Cambodia posted at Universe Of Success.

Europe/UK Articles

• Paul Dwerryhouse offers advice for anyone traveling to Amsterdam on a budget posted at Last Carriage. **
• Michelle Brown helps with a London Layover: What to do with 8 Hours in London posted at Inspired Diversions.
• Kate Baggott reviews a Frankfurt eatery at A Child-Friendly Restaurant for Grown Ups posted at Babylune.
• Travelrat visits Exbury Garden Railway posted at Travelrat’s Travels.

US Articles

• Jon takes a segway tour in Tour DC in Style…Segway Style! posted at The DC Traveler.
• Sheila explains 3 Ways to Have a Luxurious Hawaii Vacation on the Cheap and See An Unforgettable Sunrise at the Peak of a Volcano posted at GoVisitHawaii.com. **
• Mike takes The Niagara Wine Trail posted at Days That End in Y.
• Veteran Military Wife reviews Kennedy Space Center and the NEW Shuttle Launch Experience posted at Life Lessons of a Military Wife. **
• Seafarer presents Big Country: The Kansas Flint Hills posted at Family Travel.
• Cade Krueger presents A Trip To Leavenworth posted at Small Business Opportunity.

Other

• Daniel checks out apps in the handy Facebook for Travelers posted at TheLostGlobe. **
• And… Michael presents A Letter In Your Back Pocket: Your Key To The Developing World posted at Traveling Stories Magazine.

I got to San Francisco airport at 2pm to find it had been canceled altogether.

“Oh, that flight’s been canceled,” announced the man who I was trying to give my check-in luggage to. “You’ll have to change your flight at the ticket machine.”

The ticket machine said that no flight would be available until tomorrow. “But I have to fly today,” I told the machine, realizing I was talking to a machine but struggling to follow my own advice on this blog by remaining Zen and avoiding Airport Rage.

Then a lady shouted, “Anyone with a canceled flight should line up at Desk 16!” Trouble was, the line didn’t move. There was a long queue and one person at the counter who couldn’t do anything.

People were getting angry. Some seemed to have Tourette’s. They all complained to each other how inconvenient all this was and how their situation was more pressing than everyone else’s. “I have to be there,” they said simply.

Soon the cellphones came out. “Agent! Yes! I want to talk to a person!” they cried to the United answer service. “I have to be there,” some said simply. Some made it on to other airlines and flights, and passed on details like betters with inside tips. “Try Delta… I made the 6.15.”

Other people got disconnected and transfered to other operators who were confused. There were some tears. Those who made it to the front counter were raising their voices to dangerous levels.

Luckily I made it to another airline, but my ticket looked strange, like it had been booked at the last minute. I was treated with deep suspicion. Mysterious symbols were scrawled on my ticket in red. I was told to wait behind a fence. My laptop was swabbed and I was ordered to step into the Explosives Check Machine, which hissed air at me.

The flight left three hours later, but I could still make my transfer in LA. However, upon arrival I encountered a two-hour check-in queue. There were two staff to check in hundreds of people on two Air New Zealand flights, although they had devoted three staff for the Business Class lines. People’s Tourette’s sprang up again. “This is a SHIT service!” blustered the man in front of me. I hung my head, ashamed of my national airline and dog tired of airport gloom.

Somehow we shuffled forward one by one, then ran like athletes and made it onto the flight. We took off at 10pm Sunday night, Monday lasted 30 seconds as we crossed time zones heading west, and we landed at 6am Tuesday, stiff-legged and lugging our cases out into the crisp, early morning sunshine. Free again.

What’s just as interesting is the article has elicited many replies from people with their own ‘don’t go’ tips. The commenters suggest we avoid:

• Heathrow and Gatwick Airports
• Renting a buggy in Brazil
• Visiting Africa
• Wearing bling in Saigon
• Flying in the US unless you have to
• Cardiff
• Bucharest
• Dodgy public toilets
• Food poisoning in awkward places
• Vienna
• Pisa
• Athens
• Dunedin, New Zealand
• ..and many more. Read the whole article.

The question is, how much do you take other people’s tips into account? I’ve visited places based on recommendations and been disappointed (eg. I was a little underwhelmed by Montreal, which is pretty, but so are other places).

The fact is, such advice can be a godsend or it could prevent you from having an amazing experience because you didn’t find out for yourself. If I really wanted to see a place, my excitement may be curbed a little by a bad review but I wouldn’t let it stop me.

What about you?

If you’ve been on a plane more than once, chances are your luggage has been ‘misplaced’ at some point.

In the grand scheme of things, lost luggage is not a tragedy. But after a butt-numbing 20 hours in a plane (New Zealand to the UK, for example), you’re desperate for a shower and change of clothes. Not to mention exiting Heathrow as quickly as possible, and not filling out Lost Luggage forms while weeping into your itinerary.

Luggage goes missing for a variety of reasons: the airline misplaces it, someone mistakes it for their bag, or it falls off a trolley or luggage belt. Generally you won’t have to wait too long to get it back.

Preventing Lost Luggage Stress

• Buy a distinctive suitcase. I have pink. No one touches it. My black one used to go walkabout all the time…
• Don’t over-pack or check in luggage that is broken or worn. Check for loose straps etc that could get snagged on things.
• Label your luggage. Clear contact details. Put stickers all over it.
• Avoid checking in luggage if possible. If it’s a short trip, consider a carry-on bag only. Skip the queues.
• Hold onto your checked luggage ID tag. It’s usually a sticker on your ticket/boarding pass.
• Have travel insurance.
• Don’t pack precious items. Carry them!
• When picking up your luggage, hover near the beginning of the carousel. Sometimes bags fall off. Sometimes people let them.

When Your Luggage is Lost…

• Don’t panic. Most luggage turns up within 24 hours. Report the loss to the airline at the baggage terminal immediately, before you leave the airport. Fill in the forms with clear contact details and a clear description of the lost bag and its contents.
• If your luggage is damaged, most airlines will compensate you. Follow the process above.

Related Reading

• Lost luggage airline stats. It’s really not too bad. But to prevent any kind of delay or damage, I still recommend my tips above.

I come from New Zealand, and I think most people who’ve been there would agree it’s one of the most beautiful places in the world.

(Image courtesy of TravelWizard.com)

But for me, one of the unexpected beautiful places was the town of Bled, in Slovenia. I was there in 2004, and took the photo below.

It doesn’t really do the place justice. You can see the church on an island in the middle of a huge lake, which is surrounded by the Julian Alps and has an old castle perched overlooking the scene. The colors changed every day, depending on the weather, and it was so peaceful and romantic.

Where’s the most beautiful place you’ve seen?

It hit me the first time I left New Zealand properly (as in, packed up and moved away for my first OE) when I arrived in Bangkok. Bangkok is smoggy, hot, hectic, basically very foreign if you’re from the country where Hobbiton was set.

So I hid in my room a lot; I ventured out occasionally but the newness of it all wasn’t enticing at first, it was just overwhelming.

Culture Shock can range from mild to severe. I’ve known it to cause people to abandon trips entirely, or just have a miserable time. It’s a valid condition when in a very different situation, but there are ways to overcome it without running away.

• Research your destination in advance. What will the temperature be? What dress standards do people there have? What is considered respectful/disrespectful? How is the economy and the political situation?
• Learn a few words of the language. I always bang on about this but understanding a few snippets can make all the difference between getting by and feeling completely lost and helpless.
• Look around you. Venture out to explore (not down dark alleyways at midnight, but you know what I mean). The feeling will wear off as you sense the beauty and/or excitement of this new place.
• Change your attitude. The people around you are not all the same; they are individuals, like you. What can you learn from them?
• Lighten up. Get swept along by it all, don’t resist. Have an adventure. Get rid of the picture in your head.
• Make yourself more comfortable. Culture Shock can stem from physical discomfort. If in a hot climate, drink plenty of bottled water. Carry a fan. Buy lighter clothes. Eat regularly, even if you have no appetite.