Travelcreek - Travel Blog

Amsterdam Sex Shows

We went to Amsterdam a while back and enjoyed what this great Dutch city has to offer. We decided to go to a Live Show one afternoon and proceeded to select one from the many on offer in ther Red Light District.

In terms of price, they aren’t particularly cheap. Given that we were on a budget, it was quite an outlay for us and with the added sales pitch that there were actually 2 parts to the show and that a couple of free drinks would be thrown in as part of the deal, we opened our wallets and succumbed to the lure of lust and all that naughty stuff.

The venue wasn’t all that nice, it was kind of a grimmey bar/theatre with a large stage. The drinks, well actually, the half-drinks were sucked back in about 3 minutes due to their size and the show was sort of interesting, a banana featured, and then some guy got on stage and lay on his back while some ugly broad rode the crap out of him.

Anyway, it was interesting but I wouldn’t do it again. If you haven’t seen one and really want to, go for it. It is an eye-opener and will help you decide whether or not it’s worth the money and all the fuss. I’m sure there are much more interesting ones out there than the one we were party to but the price we paid for this one leads me to believe that a “classy” show is gonna cost you an arm and a leg.

If this post offends you, sorry, but it was interesting and worth writing about.

Add comment May 19th, 2007

Learn a Language

Language is always used. It’s one of the best tools in life. Be it French, Spanish, Japanese, German, Turkish, English, Russian or Xhosa. When we communicate orally, we generally use a language unless we just grunt and even then, that could probably constitute a language.

When travelling, languages are always useful. The more you know, the better chance you have of being understood and getting what you are looking for. It’s amazing how many people go abroad on their travels and expect locals to speak their language. You are in their country, the least you could do is at least try and say hello in their language. It’s usually pretty easy in their native tongue. A simple local “hello” will open more doors for you than a brash, “Hey, why don’t you speak my language, look look, I am here, speak my language.

I’ve always tried to learn at least a few basics before going somewhere I don’t speak the language. I speak 3 fluently and can converse and read in 4 more so I enjoy languages. I grew up in a household where 3 different languages could have been spoken at any given time. Before my wife and I went to Istanbul, I forced myself to learn hello, thank you, please, count from 1-10 and a few other useful words in Turkish. It definetely helped, I caught the taxi driver out trying to set his meter to late night tariffs while we were in broad daylight and gave him a piece of my mind in broken Turkish! Felt good.

So why not grow out of that single language mindframe and learn another one? My wife is, she’s busy learning French, good for her. Then Spanish, Italian and Portuguese will come that much easier to her. I’m very proud of her efforts despite the obvious difficulties of learning another language.

So learn another one, go travelling where they speak your newly acquired tool and let that smile on your hosts face make your day brighter.

Add comment April 10th, 2007

Wine Tasting in South Africa

The Cape Winelands of South Africa are beautiful. The wines from the region are also excellent.

While in the winelands areas including Stellenbosch, Paarl, Constantia, Swartland, Durbanville and Franschhoek, a popular activity for both locals and residents is to go for a wine tasting or two at many of the top class wine producers. They are usually open to the public during the week, on Saturdays and some on Sundays. For a small fee, you can taste a few wines, whites, reds, ports, champagne - read Cape Classique, sorry, and decide whether or not you want to purchase a bottle or two from the estate itself. The grounds of the estate are often pristine, with mountain settings and great views. Some also have restaurants where you can enjoy a pleasant meal, a bottle of the estate’s finest and good company.

My wife and I go wine tasting occassionally, I don’t taste though cause I am driving . It’s a lot of fun, a great way to see the beautiful Cape Winelands and savour a glass or two of South Africa’s finest.

Add comment March 20th, 2007

Helicopter flight over the Grand Canyon

We recently went to that crazy and popular city called Las Vegas in the desert of Nevada. It’s a fantastic place really, there’s so much to do there besides gambling it’s mind boggling.

One of them is flying over the spectacular Grand Canyon in a helicopter. There’s enough companies who do it and plenty of resellers selling these tours so look around a bit before you book. But seriously, it’s great. You get to fly around in a chopper which is a blast in itself, see the Hoover Dam, fly over the massive Lake Mead, see the spot where Thelma and Louise rode to oblivion and best of all fly over the canyon carved by the Colorado River and maybe even land in it!

It’s such a cool thing to do and the bragging rights will last you a lifetime! If you go to Vegas, how can you possibly give this a miss!

2 comments February 22nd, 2007

Orange River Canoeing

It’s been a while since I’ve last written here so let’s see if I can still type a little bit…

A couple of years back, my wife and I took a little holiday canoeing down the Orange River in South Africa through the Richtersveld. It was to put it simply, amazing. We had such a good time that I would love to do it again. The river is lovely, it flows nicely in the direction your paddling, the water is just the right temperature, the scenery is great, the river banks are comfortable and the night sky is fascinating. We’d recommend this trip to anybody who wants a bit of adventure in Southern Africa. The thing is, be picky about who you go with because it could ruin your experience. If you want to know which company was rubbish, just ask and I will fill you in on them.

Besides that, bring along your camera, plenty of water, some treats, plenty of sunblock, mosquito repellent and something to cover your upper body with like a rash vest so you don’t burn. You’ll have a great time and don’t sweat it, it’s not hard work at all and anybody, under the age of 80, should do it. If you’re 80 and fit, do it, but at your own peril!

Do it do it do it!

Add comment February 8th, 2007

Racing through the desert to Dakar

One of the coolest races in the world is taking place currently. The Dakar Rallye. It’s a fantastic race with some real tough cookies competing against each other through some of the ruggedest and least forgiving terrain in the world. It’s really worth having a look at the mean machines and racers giving the race a go - www.dakar.com

I use to dream of competing in this race, not sure it will ever happen, but maybe one day, dreams do come true…Now to find the funding…

Add comment January 12th, 2007

Help the Community

This site has been going for a while now, in fact, over 5 years and is still going strong. Thanks to all of those who visit, contribute and make suggestions.

I just wanted to point out that if you happen to come across something inaccurate or incorrect on the site, let us know. If we are wrong then clearly we made a mistake and are spreading disinformation which is unhelpful and that’s exactly what we want to avoid.

That brings me to my next point. A while ago I was trawling search results involving this site and came across an entry by some dude in Spain who said Travelcreek was spreading a load of bullocks about this or that part of Spain. That’s exactly the attitude that will get you nowhere fast. Instead of pointing out the error to us and thus enhancing the site and helping people, he just decided to write a blog entry and be just plain nasty. How useful is that? Not very at all!

So basically, please let us know about our errors that way everyone can enjoy their holiday to the max!

Happy Holidays!

Add comment December 20th, 2006

No blues in Chicago

We were just in Chicago checking out the city. It’s a great place and they do indeed sing the blues there! There are blues nightclubs all over the place. Not forgetting the great architecture and fantastic skyscrapers and all the rest of the fun things there are to do in such a great city.

The best thing to do while you’re there? Go up the John Hancock Center on a clear night to the 96th floor Signature lounge and have a beer or a glass of wine while staring at the city lights. It’s amazing!

Add comment December 3rd, 2006

San Francisco and the Bay

We’ve just added another page! This one is on San Francisco. It’s a great city and California is amazing! We hope you enjoy our little guide and find it useful for a trip to the Bay City.

Later!

Add comment November 18th, 2006

Las Vegas

We just finished our page on Las Vegas. Take a look at our little Guide to Sin City and enjoy your trip!

1 comment November 11th, 2006