Following the Equator

Around the World: Arrival in Agra

It was a long journey, but Matt Borrello and his mother, Lucille, arrived today in India on their around-the-world trip with EF.

Matt and his mom flew from Cairo to Istanbul to Delhi. After a few hours' rest, they rode several hours to Agra, where they will visit the Taj Mahal at sunrise tomorrow.

Hear Matt's initial impressions of India:

Check back tomorrow to hear what Matt says about the Taj Mahal. For more about their trip, read our original post and follow along with our interactive map.

Around the World: Departing Cairo

Matt Borrello and his mother, Lucille, have completed the first leg of their around-the-world journey with EF.

Matt called this morning from the Cairo airport, reflecting on their stay in Egypt. Here's what he said about the pyramids, the Cairo Museum and the wonderful people:

They are now flying to New Delhi (via Istanbul, Turkey), and Matt will check in from India.

To follow along at Following the Equator, check back soon or subscribe via an RSS reader or email (in the sidebar on the right). You also can read our original post and see our interactive map.

Around the World: Pyramids and Sphinx

On the first day of sightseeing of their around-the-world trip with EF, Matt Borrello and his mother, Lucille, braved the Egyptian heat to enter the pyramids, see the Sphinx and visit Memphis.

Hear Matt's take on the tombs, the temps and tomorrow's itinerary:

Keep following along as Matt calls in to Following the Equator.
For more details about his trip, check out our original post and
our interactive map.

Photo: Sam and Ian via Flickr

Around the World: Matt arrives in Egypt

Matt Borrello and his mother, Lucille, arrived safely today in Cairo, Egypt, for the first stop on their 18-day, around-the-world trip with EF Educational Tours.

Matt's first observation of Cairo was about the "unbelievable" traffic. He called this morning with this update:

Matt heads to the pyramids tomorrow, so stay tuned for more updates. For more details on Matt's trip, read our original post and check out our interactive map.

Around the World in 18 Days

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The Great Pyramid of Giza, the Taj Mahal, the Great Barrier Reef and the Great Wall of China.

Matt Borrello had dreamed of visiting one or two of the world's great wonders at some point. Now, he's going to see all four over the next three weeks. He embarks Sunday on an around-the-world trip, traveling to Cairo, Egypt; New Delhi, Agra and Jaipur, India; Cairns, Australia; and Beijing, China.

Matt, a regional sales manager with EF Educational Tours, was the lucky winner of an internal EF contest to travel around the world in 18 days.

Eiffel Tower turns blue

If you're visiting Paris in the next two months, the Eiffel Tower will look a little different at night. It'll look a little blue.

Starting Monday night, the Eiffel Tower will turn blue every night to commemorate France's six-month presidency of the Council of the European Union, which begins July 1.

Each night, instead of the normal orangish-yellow lighting, the Eiffel Tower will be colored blue with yellow stars to resemble the European Union flag. There are more details about the lighting and the EU from The Paris Traveler.

The Eiffel Tower also was lit blue (see photo above) on May 9, 2006, in honor of the 20th celebration of Europe Day.

And, no, this is not a hoax. 

Photo: 0h via Flickr

U.K. begins offering foreign currency ATMs

Looking for euros in London? Here's a new, easier way to get them.

Britain's Post Office is testing 13 ATMs that dispense euros and U.S. dollars. The trial is aimed at cutting down long lines at the Post Office, and if the test is successful, foreign currency ATMs could be introduced across the United Kingdom.

This is particularly useful for student travelers who are visiting London (where the pound is the currency of choice) before traveling to other parts of Europe (where the euro rules).

The Times Online also reports, "Some airports already have euro/dollar exchange machines and Marks & Spencer introduced foreign currency ATMs at 21 stores in January, while HSBC is bringing them in at railway stations and shopping malls."

While exchange rates might be higher at airport machines, the Post Office ATM rates are the same as at the counters—without the wait.

Photo: William Spaetzel via Flickr

Park Guell in Barcelona

EF Group Leader Jeremy Van Hof, whom we profiled back in March, writes the best group leader blog that we've come across.

Jeremy, an English and newspaper teacher at DeWitt High School in DeWitt, Mich., is prepping his students for their EF tour this summer to Italy and Spain. His blog does a great job of providing not only tour-specific information to his travelers but also interesting insights about their destinations: Rome, Florence, Barcelona and Madrid.

In the past week, Jeremy started a series of posts called "What We'll See" to "detail some of the amazing things that we'll see on this trip." Today, Jeremy posted this video about architect Antoni Gaudí's famed Park Guell in Barcelona:

If you have a blog for your own EF group that you'd like to share, we'd love to know about it. You can post it in comments below or just email me.

Travel Tip: Tower of London

The London Traveler, our favorite blog devoted to the famed English capital, recently shared a great tip for visitors to the Tower of London. Andrea Kirkby, who writes the blog, suggests arriving early to witness a little-known formality:

" … If you  turn up nice and early, you can see the ceremonial unlocking of the Tower at 9 o’clock in the morning. The keys are brought by the duty Yeoman Warder with a military escort. It’s not the Changing of the Guard, but it’s a nice understated ceremony."

For more from The London Traveler, check out a previous post about Visiting the Tower of London.

Photo: rudolf_schuba via Flickr

New book on Twain's travel literature

Our blog's inspirational hero, Mark Twain, has always been the premier champion of travel.

Few writers have expressed the essence and importance of traveling as clearly and as compellingly as Twain. And few people have had the perspective to observe the world with such keen insight.

Now, a new book turns the tables on Twain's travels, examining his own writing. The book— titled Mark Twain's Travel Literature: The Odyssey of a Mind
by English professor Harold H. Hellwig—provides an analysis of the travel themes that Twain used in his classic works, including Following the Equator.