I have posted on several occasions about the Cheese Rolling races at Cooper's Hill, Gloucestershire in the UK but I am sad to say that the people that took over the organizing of this outrages event on the British sporting calender, have suddenly announced that this year's event has been cancelled.
According to their press release:
"The attendance at the event has far outgrown the location where it has traditionally been held for several hundred years: last year more than 15,000 people tried to attend (according to official estimates) which is more than three times the capacity of the site."
Only in Britain. Never mind the people that are travelling from around the world to participate.
You can read strong reactions to this announcement here. They suggest that anyone looking for a Cheese Rolling adrenalin rush might try the other side of the country where it has become an annual May Day (actually the first Monday in May) event in Stilton, Cambridgeshire.
Don't miss the chance of winning your dream adventure holiday in this stunning Adventure Holiday Competition being run by GAP Adventures. You need to register with them here. Register straight away, it is free and you can then choose up to three countries, your must do activities, tour highlights, preferred transport and accommodation. Tips for winning your Dream Adventure Holiday
Have a clear idea of where you want to go
Tie in the destination with something mind-blowing that you want to do while your there.
Come up with a really standout tour title.
Write a brief description of your tour by imagening that you are there, describe the highlights and cultural experiences. Summarise what makes it the Dream Adventure Holiday of a lifetime
Its Big Garden Birdwatch time again. The world's biggest wildlife survey gets underway again this weekend, 30 to 31 January, 2010.
Almost everyone in the UK with an interest in birds, will be participating by spending just one hour over this weekend, counting the birds in their garden or local park. The Big Garden Birdwatch provides easy to use identification charts and counting sheets on their website and if you are not already registered with them, simply visit their site and sign up for free.
The Big Garden Birdwatch is the world's biggest bird survey and it is great fun. By taking part you help the RSPB learn more about UK garden birds and how they are faring across the country.
Burns Night, Monday January 25 is just a few days away and once again people around the world will be celebrating Scotland's national poet, Robert Burns and piping in the Haggis to receive the time honoured address:
Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o the puddin'-race.
Aboon them a' ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye wordy of a grace
As lang's my arm.
Followed by much feasting, dancing, whisky and Burns poetry.
This year St. Patrick's Festival runs from 13th March to 17th March, with the Festival Parade held on Wednesday March 17th 2010 at 12 noon (subject to licensing.) The parade takes about 90 mins to complete the parade route.
St.Patrick's Day is one of those very special days around the world, but nowhere in the world is it more special than in Ireland, where it all started. As always, Dublin, will again be high on party fever as Ireland's greatest annual celebration takes over for the spectacular five day festival.
Join in the best party in Dublin; jump to this link if you want to keep up to date with what's happening in Dublin.
Co-operative Travel in the Uk, has some spectacular offers for Summer Holidays 2010, because they know everyone loves a great deal!
As seen on UK TV, they are offering as much as a massive 20% off some Summer 2010 bookings when you book between 29th December 2009 and 31st March 2010 for summer holiday departures; that is departures between 1st May 2010 and 31st October 2010. But there's more - yes, I know it's a cliché but I couldn't resist it because customers making summer holiday bookings can also take advantage of other great deals being run by The Co-operative Travel:
2 weeks for the price of 1
Low deposits
Free child places
Save up to £200 for a family of 4
Get great offers for interesting summer holidays in Turkey, Spain, Greece and the Greek Islands, Potugal, Egypt, Cyprus and the Canaries. And that's just a few of the popular destinations that you can choose from. Don't miss out on the very best early booking saving.
Use this link to jump to The Co-operative Travel and ensure that you get the very best service and available offers; they will know that we sent you.
Check out details with the Co-operative Travel before making a booking but remember that popular summer holidays and the best deals are already being booked up, so use the link above to reserve your special holiday for 2010 now.
The Chinese New Year will soon be upon us. In 2010 it falls on Sunday 14 February (St Valentine's Day) and is the Chinese Year of the Tiger.
A colourful, cultural celebration, Chinese New Year is nowdays celebrated around the world with a festival that traditionally lasts 15 days. In London, celebrations have become a major highlight of the event calendar, thanks particularly to the efforts of the London Chinatown Chinese Association. London celebrations for the Chinese New Year, take place place in Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square and, of course, Chinatown.
Second only to the famous Venice Carnival, the magic of the Viareggio Carnival in Tuscany, attracts more than a million spectators every year. Visitors come from around the world to marvel at the great parades, where giant floats featuring extraordinary sculptures in papier-maché, some of which weigh 40 tons, depict popular celebrities and public figures.
The parades take place in a 2 km circuit around the seaside avenues of Viareggio and includes masked folk musicians and performers. There are five parades, taking place throughout the month of February, during which time there is also a big entertainment programme. One of Italy's favourite sporting events takes place as part of the Viareggio Carnival entertainment programme, a youth football tournament known as the Torneo di Viareggio (Coppa Carnevale).
Here is a wonderful video from roleck0666 which captures the spirit and fun of Carnevale di Viareggio.
This year, the Activity Holidays Guide is delighted to be offering the opportunity to sail the warm waters of the Tuscan coastline on-board your own private luxury yacht. Go to our Sail In Italy page for more information or to make a booking inquiry.
Parades for Viareggio Carnival 2010 take place 31 January, 7,14,16 and 21 February 2010.
Whistler Blackcomb, Canada, hosts the 2010 Winter Olympic Games and I thought that you might like to see this vid, courtesy of Whistler Outfitters, while we still have plenty of the white stuff to play in.
Turtles, Rivers and Mountains is a 15-day Hands On Adventure trip to Costa Rica, running end of March through July 2010. You can get up close to leatherback and green turtles that inhabit the Costa Rican Caribbean coastline. Staying in Tortuguero National Park, participants join in with the Pacuare Reserve turtle conservation project, where they have the opportunity to take part in turtle beach patrols, nest protection and measuring and tagging leatherback and green turtles
The Hands On Adventures, organised by The Adventure Company, allow travellers to participate in a conservation or community project for two or three days during their holiday but this trip also provides families with the opportunity to explore the rainforests, hike in Gandoca Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge and experience white water rafting and hiking around the giant rumbling Arenal Volcano.
For full details of the Turtles, Rivers & Mountains Family Holiday, and to reserve your place, click here.
Anyone booking a Summer 2010 holiday with Co-operative Travel now, will be able to take advantage of the very best early booking savings. Early booking offers which include free child places, low deposits and early discounts on brochured holidays.
They tell me that these deals will not be around for long and the best hotels, top quality villas, stunning self-catering apartments and amiable Greek pensions are quickly booked by discerning travellers with an eye for a bargain. So get in quick and take a look at the 2010 holiday offers now.
Every ten years since 1634, a remarkable event occurs in the Alpine town of Oberammergau, Germany; the whole community is involved in staging a six hour long passion play. So long is the play that a meal is served during its intermission.
Thousands of visitors flock to Oberammergau, to attend one of the performances during the summer months and hotel - ticket packages are available. Next year's play runs from May 15 until October 3, 2010, after which the play will not be staged again until May 2020.
Tomorrow is Earth Day, Wednesday 22 April, when over a billion people in 180 nations around the world, will be focusing on taking action to protect our environment. Organizers are looking for a billion commitments to do something green, actually doing something rather than just thinking about the problem. The Earth Day commitments form part of a year long initiative tagged "The Green Generation", which leads up to the 40th anniversary of Earth Day in 2010.
Read more about the Green Generation on the Earth Day blog.
It is not too soon to be planning your trip to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. 2010 Destination Planner has been set up to provide comprehensive travel planning information on British Columbia's Olympic Host Cities: Vancouver, Whistler and Richmond, together with nearby communities.
The site offers up-to-date information on accommodation availability, transportation and Olympic Arts Festivals' events, which will feature Canada's indigenous people, its cultural diversity, natural beauty and spectacular cities.
Organizers are busy making sure that there is enough accommodation available for everyone to have somewhere to stay, including a homestay program, with a homestay registry planned to be launched this month. Private homeowners are also using rent2010.net to advertise accommodation but prices are already sky high.
Virgin Galactic has unveilled WhiteKnight Two, at the Civilian Aerospace Test Center in the Mojave desert, California, USA. WhiteKnight Two has been designed to take adventurous tourists into suborbital space and will be ready for its first passengers in 2010. Apparently 200 adventurers have already signed up for WhiteKnight Two's maiden flight, including the Branson family. If you want to join them, expect to pay around $200,000 for a return ticket.
Russia may stop selling seats to tourists on its spacecraft starting in 2010 because of the planned expansion of the permanent crew of the International Space Station from three to six, meaning that Russia would have fewer extra seats available for tourists on its Soyuz spacecraft.
There is also a feeling that the space station should not become a holiday destination and that in the future space tourism should only be offered by private companies. Read a full report in the Earth Times.
South Africa, Botswana and Namibia have agreed regional co-operation in tourism, with the aim of avoiding long queues and unnecessary detours for visitors travelling in the region, as a result of the 2010 soccer world cup. To this end, a Tourist Access Facility, located on the South Africa and Namibia border, in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park has just been opened and this will enable tourists to take a short cut across the border at Mata Mata, without having to leave the park. Information from SABC News.
Organizers are looking for a billion commitments to do something green, actually doing something rather than just thinking about the problem. The Earth Day commitments form part of a year long initiative tagged "The Green Generation", which leads up to the 40th anniversary of Earth Day in 2010.
