Recollections from Guatemala
The boys from the orphanage are running ahead of us, zig-zagging their way up the steep incline. All of us—19 EF staffers on a service tour in Guatemala over Thanksgiving—are huffing and puffing, sweating profusely. A couple of people who wore sandals are struggling. We stare incredulously at the barbed wire fence before us. We Read more…
Go, Canada!
Canadians must take their Monopoly pretty seriously. So serious, in fact, that Montreal might become the new Boardwalk. In the worldwide online voting for Monopoly’s upcoming Here & Now: The World Edition, Montreal has surged ahead of Paris for the top spot on the new Monopoly board. Montreal (4.8 percent) is easily outpacing Paris (3.5 Read more…
What constitutes “visiting” a country?
How many countries have you been to? How do you keep score? What actually counts as a “visit”? Interesting questions that travelers love to debate. If you have a layover in an airport, does that count? If your bus stops to refuel as you’re traveling across Europe, does that count? Do you have to have Read more…
Rule 240 clarified
Rule 240 seems to get a lot of people’s attention. Why not? Getting better service from the airlines affects all travelers. But the rule is a little confusing and does raise a lot of questions, as we pointed out yesterday. In fact, I didn’t explain it perfectly in the original post, which I have since Read more…
Teaching with Twitter
There are more social-networking sites than we can name. There’s Facebook and MySpace, Flickr and LinkedIn, Pownce and Twitter. But what are they? And what good are they? Sites like those can be incredible wastes of time for students and adults alive, or they can be incredible opportunities to connect with new people and exchange Read more…
Remember Rule 240
Frustrated at a flight cancellation? Hopelessly stranded at the airport? Feel like you have no recourse? Well, you may be in luck, if you know about Rule 240. Rule 240 is an oft-quoted but sometimes misunderstood rule in the airline industry. Basically, it states that if your flight is delayed or canceled by anything other Read more…
More passport info
Getting a U.S. passport for the first time (or even renewing an expired one) can seem like a giant hurdle as you plan your educational tour. Last year’s changes in the law created a huge backlog in processing passports at the U.S. State Department—and a lot of headaches and worries about passports in general. Fortunately, Read more…
Travel Tidbits: One long walk
How much does it cost to travel from Bristol, England, to Porbandar, India? If you’re Mark Boyle, the answer (hopefully) is nothing. The catch is that Boyle is walking—yes, walking—from his British hometown to Gandhi’s birthplace without any money. The 28-year-old former businessman (pictured at left) began the 9,000-mile “pilgrimage” last Wednesday and plans to Read more…
Global Citizen Awards
Do you know any outstanding global citizens? Do you know any high school sophomores or juniors who can write compelling essays? Do those students want to travel the world this summer? Then nominate them for EF’s Global Citizen Awards contest. Each student must write an essay (not to exceed 1,500 words) on the following topic: Read more…
Travel Tribune: Global awareness
Want to meet an EF Group Leader who incorporates global awareness into her curriculum? Want to read about how global awareness fits into 21st century skills? Looking for some additional educational resources from PBS? Or how about some great packing tips from a seasoned pro? Then check out the newly released February issue of the Read more…
