Following the Equator

links for 2009-10-30

• EF Tours Reality Travel Show in Season Two
  Want to see what it's really like to be on an EF Tours European trip, live and practically in person?
  (tags: EF-tours educational-travel educational-tours student-travel LifeOnTour Spain video)
• A Tour to Remember
  (tags: EF-tours educational-travel educational-tours student-travel Hungary Poland CzechRepublic Germany highschool SouthCarolina)
• Students Travel through Europe with EF Tours
  (tags: EF-tours video)
• ef tour photos - Raffi Aashil
  (tags: EF-tours photos CostaRica France Paris EiffelTower)

So that's what Clint Eastwood sounds like

The first movie my wife ever saw in the original English version was The Bridges of Madison County. She was quite taken with the experience of hearing Clint Eastwood's real voice for the first time; until that point, she'd only heard Clint dubbed into Spanish, by a Spanish actor who probably also dubbed Arnold Schwarzenegger and Tom Hanks.  

More movies would bring her more revelations: Jack Nicholson's real voice, Robert De Niro's real voice, and the real voices of a host of other Americans, right on down to Steve Urkel (American TV shows were dubbed into Spanish, too). For her, there was no comparing the English voice to the Spanish dubbing: The real English was far superior and far more satisfying. 

links for 2009-10-26

• Teacher and traveler has shown students the world
  Bonnie Bishop — who has accompanied students on more than 40 EF tours — retired from teaching Spanish in June, but she’s not quite ready to hang up her traveling hat.
  (tags: EF-tours educational-travel educational-tours student-travel travel Massachusetts highschool GoAheadTours)
• Adams, Jefferson hit the road in England
  Retracing the patriots' 1786 tour of England. The itinerary they devised offers as fine an introduction to England as any offered by modern tour companies.
  (tags: England travel history Jefferson Adams)
• London's Tube will have (some) air conditioning next summer
  (tags: travel London England subway)
• International Halloween Parties
  (tags: Halloween travel Thailand Ireland holidays)

links for 2009-10-21

• Splitting the Earth
  Yesterday was the 125th anniversary of the day the world decided to officially designate Greenwich, England, as longitude 0° 0' 00" (the line known as the Greenwich Prime Meridian).
  (tags: England longitude imaginary-lines)
• Top ten things not to forget on a trip
  (tags: travel tips packing)
• Road trip: By way of Ireland, Scotland, Wales and London
  (tags: EF-tours educational-travel educational-tours student-travel UnitedKingdom Ireland Scotland Wales England London Kansas announcement 2010)

Fundraising suggestions on Facebook

We have a lot of fundraising suggestions at eftours.com/fundraising, including tips on getting started, sponsorships and grants, community and school events, product sales, ideas for individuals and guides, webinars and other resources.

There's also an ongoing fundraising discussion on EF Tours' Facebook fan page. Join the more than 13,000 other fans, and click on the Discussions tab to participate.

links for 2009-10-15

• HCC plans to take Europe by storm - Strathmore Standard
  “There’s a certain ‘wow’ factor to a European trip and we wanted some of that,”
  (tags: EF-tours educational-travel educational-tours student-travel Europe Paris France Rome Italy announcement 2010 Canada)
• Australia Bound
  “It’s getting out of your comfort zone where you need to think on your feet, problem solve and be responsible. It is also a spring board for college.”
  (tags: EF-tours educational-travel educational-tours student-travel Australia announcement 2010 Kansas)
• Schools take a global view | Whitman-Hanson Express
  “I have enjoyed working with EF as they are very student centered and have provided my students with trips that they will remember for the rest of their lives.”
  (tags: EF-tours educational-travel educational-tours student-travel highschool Spain Massachusetts)

links for 2009-10-13

• 36 Hours in Berlin - NYTimes.com
  (tags: Berlin Germany travel 36hours)
• New travel inspiration: AFAR magazine
  New travel magazine focuses on "experiential travel that helps people experience every destination as local residents do."
  (tags: travel magazine)
• Paris: The Eiffel Tower turns 120 (and shares some beauty tips)
  How has the Eiffel Tower managed to look so good after standing around for 120 years?
  (tags: Paris France EiffelTower landmark)
• Terra Cotta Warriors at the National Geographic
  In November 2009, National Geographic Museum will host Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China’s First Emperor, an exhibition featuring treasures from the tomb complex including 15 life-size figures, weapons, armor, coins, and more.
  (tags: China terracottawarriors washington dc museum natgeo)

links for 2009-10-12

• Enter the darkness at London's Tate Modern
  The latest exhibit at the Tate Modern museum in London is a giant steel box. This giant box is about 42 feet tall, 33 feet wide, and 98 feet long. And inside this giant steel box it is pitch black.
  (tags: art exhibit London England Tate)
• China in The Big Picture
  Associated Press photographer Elizabeth Dalziel is based in Beijing, and has been documenting the people, places and events in China for the past several years, giving the world at large a glimpse into this region through her lens.
  (tags: China Beijing photos travel)
• Historic St. Petersburg skyline threatened by giant skyscraper
  Residents of St. Petersburg are protesting plans to build a giant skyscraper that they say will ruin the city's historic skyline.
  (tags: Russia StPetersburg skyline buildings travel)

Focus On: Spanish schoolkids and libraries

I write this from Utrera, Spain, a city of about 50,000 just outside of Seville. I am sitting in Utrera’s public library (above) during after-school hours, and just about every table is occupied. Books and notebooks are open; pens are writing. There’s chatter for sure, but it’s quiet; there’s only the occasional "shhh!"

But I’m struck by my fellow library-goers: They’re young—middle and high schoolers. Some are studious, some are quietly giggling or gossiping, and some are undoubtedly trying to strike the right tone of cool as they walk amid the tables. They all seem to share one thing: They want to be here, in the public library, after a full school day.

A few weeks back, I cobbled together a list of fun differences between the American and European high school experiences, but missed this one: Kids in Spain flock to their local public libraries most days after school. This is different.

links for 2009-10-08

• Spring Break overseas can help students
  “I have done four EF tours in the past, and I like that they really teach you something instead of just showing you buildings or where things are,” Fredeking said.
  (tags: EF-tours educational-travel educational-tours student-travel college-travel college Ireland London England WestVirginia announcement 2010)
• McDonald's to move in next to Louvre
  McDonald's is celebrating its thirtieth anniversary in France by opening a new location in the Carrousel du Louvre.
  (tags: Louvre art museum food restaurant Paris France)
• Egypt in a rift with the Louvre over stolen artifacts
  The head of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities took a bold move in his on going struggle to get foreign museums to return antiquities taken from that country illegally.
  (tags: art museum Louvre Paris France Egypt artifacts)
• Season 2 of EF Tours' Life on Tour debuts
  Thinking of traveling with students? Wondering what it is like? Need help recruiting? EF Tours, one of the country's top travel companies for educational student travel, has the answer!
  (tags: EF-tours educational-travel educational-tours student-travel LifeOnTour video Teen.com Spain Morocco)

links for 2009-10-07

• Holy Cross High School heads to Europe on an educational adventure!
  Students at Holy Cross High School to discover the magic of Rome, Paris and London on an EF educational tour
  (tags: EF-tours educational-travel educational-tours student-travel travel highschool Rome Italy Paris France London England Kentucky announcement 2010)

Costa Rica keepsake

EF Group Leader Chad Brannon — one of this blog's good friends — recently shared with us a poster from his EF tour to Costa Rica this summer.

One of the fathers on the tour took more than 2,000 photos and created a cool poster collage of favorite photos.

Lots of wonderful images of wildlife, volcanoes and beaches. Chad reports that his students' favorite parts of the tour were Tortuguero National Park and the zip line, of course.

The poster is also a great example of a tour keepsake. What do you or your travelers do to preserve and share their tour memories?