Located in South Mumbai is the Majestic Rajabai Clock Tower. South Mumbai is the precinct of Mumbai University in Fort Campus. It is located near the High Court. The Tower is an amazing structure decorated with oriental figures. it was designed by Sir Gilbert Scott, and English architect, back in the late 1800s. I was inspired by the Big Ben Clock of London but built with a different flair. It reaches heights of 280 feet and it took about 9 years to construct. The project becan in 1869 and was finished in 1878.

It was a successful broker, Premchand Roychand, who financed the entire cost of building. Premchand Roychand is also the man who founded the Bombay Stock Exchange. The tower was named after the mother of the financier, Rajabai. She was blind and was a deep follower of Jainism. The clock rang out across the city and Rajabai never had to ask someone for the time. She was able to eat her dinner before evening, at the time required for her to follow her religious practices.

The clock is a beautiful blend of Venetian and Gothic styles of design and it was constructed out of Kurla stone which was a local buff colored stone. Back in the day, the tower used to play the songs Rule Britannia which means God Save the King and A Handel Symphony. All together there were 16 songs that would play in rotation of four tunes a day. Now a days, the clock only plays one tune, Big Ben, (and it chimes out every fifteen minutes. So to get a glimpse of this tower, get out of the hotels. India, Mumbai itself has many, and head over to the now, university library located inside the clock tower building and see the stain glass windows cast the brilliant colors throughout the room.

Drastic climate changes have an effect not only on the engine of your car, but on the tires as well.  There are many things that you can do on your own to lessen the impacts that extreme heat has on your vehicle, which will ensure to keep you and your family safe when the hot summer season roles around.  One standard that people in hot climates stick to is to have a few gallons of water in your car at all times.  This may save you should your car overheat in the middle of no where, and will safe you as a person, should that car break down in the middle of a road trip.

Before you set out on family vacations, in any season, it is wise to inspect your vehicle, to assess whether or not it may be time to buy new tires, get a tune up or an oil change.  On long trips made in hot weather, take a look at your tires every one hundred miles or so.  The pressure will increase due the raised temperatures outside, and the due to the friction between the tires and the road.  If your tire is too hot to touch, this is a good time to find a rest stop and stretch your legs while the tires cool down.   A hot tire may blow out, or even catch on fire.

Along with the extra water, it is good to have some coolant stored in the trunk.  Check the overflow receptacle for the coolant, as this will allow you to keep an eye on it even when the engine is hot.  Be careful when checking any aspect of a heated car engine.  Do not ever remove the radiator cap until your car cools down, as this can cause serious burns from the hot liquid and the steam, which will seriously shoot out of a hot radiator.  Once you are able to touch the cap with your bare hand, it will most likely be safe to remove it, but stand back non the less, just to be safe.  Consistent inspection will keep you on the road, and will keep you safe and headed toward that vacation spot.

When traveling in Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur is a necessary stop, and for many people, there is never any need to look further, because it feels so much like home.  There is a spectacular variety of cultures and customs to be seen in Kuala Lumpur.  Hotels and restaurants can offer a taste of the variety, where the visual splendor and culinary delights speak of many cultures at once.  There are also times and histories that get crossed here, where old world sensibilities come face to face with the absolutely modern, and traditions meet up with a deep love for innovation.  The sense of the new is profound here as well, with the Petrona Towers serving as a visual reference point for KL’s love for the newest and the largest.  It’s a city of multiple contradictions, and it can be enormously charming when the contradictions start to make sense.

Life here is hard to describe, but it’s certainly very sweet.  There is a tendency toward the modern and the speed of technology, but this is always overwhelmed by a natural rhythm which speaks to slowness and easy relaxation.  It’s a lovely way to get lost in a day, and if the call of the urban heartbeat gets to you, and you want to hear more of the modified sounds of nature, keep an eye peeled for some of the experiments of the local artist Irman Hilmi.

He plays with the local art rock group, klphq, or the Post-Harmonic Quintet, playing rowdy and profound shows in the city.  The sound is definitely on the experimental side, as they modify sound electronically through digital loops, pedals, and synthesizers to make a noise that is utterly urban and also very pleasing.  These kids aren’t kids any more, and have a magnificent sound.  There are also drums, and a visual artist in the mix, to make for an experience that is new and very exciting.  Irman Hilmi also spends time DJ’ing under the name Spacebar, and the sounds here are also radical experiments with what a couple guitars and a few loops can do.  He’s a very exciting artist, involved with multiple projects, and is an exciting force to watch.

The question remains, just what can you not find to do on the small Hawaiian island of Lana’i, in a world of big island vacations? Many travelers come to the island in search of outdoor adventure in a serene setting, and there is much to be found in this arena.  However, for those wanting a bit of a more relaxing holiday, this is found here too.  There are many Lana’i travel deals which include weeks spent at resorts.

Resorts with spas, hot tubs, and massage therapists…three elements which will relieve stress for months following such a sojourn.  The spas are small and have a great connection with customers as a result.  Massages are given in the middle of tropical Hawaiian gardens with the sound of waterfalls in the background.  No CDs of ‘nature music’, this is the real thing.  For those who find relaxation on the golf course, there are many on the island that will accommodate.  To hear and smell the ocean while setting up on Par 5?…what could be better?  The weather is so accommodating, for most always it will be a great day during your big island travel.

Tennis too, is widely popular on the island.  Most resorts and hotels offer lessons with the pros, and sponsor mixers, wherein people play tennis in a party atmosphere.  Water aerobics are offered in the pools and in the ocean itself, and water aerobics is so much better than standard classes.  It’ fun, you are in the sun, and the impact on the body is greatly reduced when doing “step one, step two…now whirl your arms” when you are surrounding by smiling people in a swimming pool.  There are many gardens located throughout the island, and almost every hotel lobby is filled with paintings and artwork.  What more could one ask?  For those wanting a bit more of adventure while relaxing, there are deep sea fishing tours, snorkeling excursions and scuba diving.  There is much to find in the way of adventure combined with relaxation on the island of Lana’i.

We flew in from Sydney airport and went to our luxury hotels melbourne straight away, because I was anxious to “meet” the city.  From the air, you can see it doesn’t have any skyscrapers, but row upon row of little Victorian houses, enough I imagine to hold the 3.5 million population.  You can see the Yarra River, too, among all the gardens and parks.  Melbourne is certainly a very different place than Sydney.

There are absolutely places I loved here: Brunswick Street for its shops and cafes; the Royal Botanical Gardens, just as a place to enjoy the day.
I loved walking beside the Yarra river, just walking down the city streets to take in this environment was fun.  Other places…  The Great Ocean Road, The Phillip Island, The Twelve Apostles, this stack of rocks seventy meters tall.  Our guide showed us a great way to make billy tea, and then introduced us to another Australian favorite — some spread called vegemite. I can’t say I liked it.  I had an Australian friend tell me that he didn’t know any Americans who liked the flavor.  I guess it’s an acquired taste!

It was extremely windy the day I went out to the Great Ocean Road and that actually made it hard to stand, but I managed to snap a picture of the Twelve Apostles, and on Phillip Island, I had a chance to see penguins returning.  They were really funny.  The next time I go to the island, I’ll have to check out the Koala Conservation Centre.

All in all, I really liked my time in Melbourne, which was only a few days.  Just enough to get in some of the major sights, like St. Patrick and St. Paul’s Cathedrals and Queen Victoria’s Garden.

I was not going to take no for an answer. I realize our financial situation is not as good as it has been in the past, but I did not want to give up our annual visit to New York City. We would normally go first class all the way but this year is just in not in our budget to do so. But I am not believing for a minute that we couldn’t make it some how.

Well cheap hotel New York saved the day. With going from our usual midtown five star hotel to one that is much less expensive the savings was enough for us to be able to pull off a trip just within this years budget.

Our usual trip would be staying at a five star hotel, eating wherever we liked, catching some shows on and off Broadway and pretty much anything else we wanted to do. I think we will have fun though. On our budget we will be forced to be creative, do some things that are more out of the way and less trendy. I actually think and hope to be getting a more authentic view and flavor for what living in New York City is like. Our previous trips have always been centered on our luxury hotel, upscale eating and shopping and Broadway plays in the best seats.

Well change is good and I am not going to let this change get me down. With the availability of reliable public transportation we will be able to get to anywhere we want to go. With all the many neighborhoods that are off the well-beaten tourist path we will find interesting adventures around every corner. I hope to meet local people whom actually live and work in New York City, maybe make a friend and end up having a personal contact there. I sure we can find a lot of fun and interesting things to do with out having to spend a fortune.

When traveling to Sydney, five star hotels are plentiful and affordable.  Many of them are situated in areas of the city that are ripe with activity and filled with many sights to see.  The artistic world in this cosmopolitan city is flourishing, and one such contributor is an artist that really does a bit of everything, she expresses herself through a variety of mediums and will be performing in the cities throughout the country through the end of January 2010.  Her name is Fiona Foley and she is one of the cities most significant and influential artists working today.

Foley is known for diverse and innovative artistic endeavours that have spanned the last twenty years and include works in photography, sculpture, painting, mixed media and installation pieces.  She focuses on the ongoing history of colonial Australia with themes that range from culture to identity and language, politics and ownership.   The Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney has teamed up with the Art Museum of the University of Queensland to present the show which will be published once the show closes.

Through January the exhibit will run at the museum in Sydney, and will then run at the museum in Brisbane from April 2 through May of 2010.  Foley grew up in Queensland and received her education in art in Sydney.  She then studied for a time in London at the Saint Martins School of Arts.  Her works reflect the world as she sees it through the roots and the vision of where she is from.  She has stated that in her studies this was not something that was encouraged, as indigenous art was not at the time considered fine art.

She did absorb what she was taught regarding the techniques of the European traditions, however she simply used what she wanted to add to her own style and techniques.  She is active in social causes and was a founding member of an artists’ cooperative in Sydney.  Whether you are in Sydney in the month ahead, or in Brisbane in the months of April and May, every attempt should made to see her show.  She exemplifies the entirety of the culture of the country and the beliefs of the people of Australia.