Impact Fusion

It’s a city that has everything you want, and a lot of things you never expected in a city, either.  The fascinating mix of the urban and the natural here is just the beginning, where a beach in the middle of the desert stands as a testament to the possibilities of surrealism outside of painting.  It’s also so very elegant, and has been a magnet for the rich and famous for a number of years now, which is part of the reason for its astounding growth.  Or perhaps it’s the other way around, where the celebrities come because it’s growing so quickly.  Whatever the reason, there are some fantastic scenes to be part of here, and if you’re staying in five-star Dubai hotels, you can pretty much choose your own adventure.  Hiding out from the world has never been more fun, with amazing amenities that are better than home.

Better than most homes, that is, and the taste for luxury here is very high, with a large capacity for enjoying the moments as they pass by.  It’s also an elegant place to go to get in tune with some of the most interesting new cultural trends.  At one time, Dubai was a place where you could see some excellent examples of what people were into these days, and now you can see the latest fashions the day before they become fashionable.  It’s a formidable evolution, to become the edge itself, but Dubai also has a splendid sense for appealing to the popular tastes, just in case the edge is a little too far for you. Musically, the stylings of Abri have the stuff that dreams are made on.

The group formed in 2005, with members who are from the U.K. and from Dubai’s multicultural urban center, and they’re a mix of musical tastes.  You can hear jazz, soul, and r&b in their catchy sound, and the influences all come together in a spectacular tightness.  There is definitely some Fela Kuti in here, along with Marvin Gaye, and the Beatles.  They’ve been winning awards from all over the globe since they released their first album in 2007, and have another one in the works.  Abri is a band to watch, and something to make your hot nights spectacularly hot.

Singapore is a cultural exploration, an urban scene that’s made up of many different traditions and perspectives, and it’s always shifting, and it’s always more interesting than it was just a moment ago.  Which is to say, it grows in fascinating the more time you spend here, but for travelers who are setting foot in Singapore for the first time, it’s still a pretty spectacular place.  The mix of urban energies is very intense and exhilarating, but rarely overwhelming, because it’s one of the most livable places in the world.  There’s a bit of everything here, finance, cuisine, theatre, and a lot of culture, and even more pop culture.

What makes it particularly attractive for visitors looking for time in a splendid place with splendid comforts is the enormous variety of luxury.  Singapore hotels offer tremendously hip and fashionable lodgings, meeting the style of the city state right in your hotel room, and there are plenty of amazing amenities to make your time here exquisite.  And you’ll love the sense of energy you get from a good night’s sleep, so that you can enjoy all the exciting things in Singapore.  It’s true that pop culture is hot in the world right now, and it’s becoming very popular among the cultures of the world, and in Singapore this is very true.  There are some kinds more popular than others, the popper pop culture, and part of this should be K Pop.

This is pop from South Korea, and there is a lot of it in Singapore, enough to make its own subculture in pop culture almost.  In an effort to bring nations together, Singapore held a K Pop Festival last year, and it won’t be the last, because it was a very exciting smash hit.  One of the most spectacular performances was by the Wonder Girls, who always put on a great show, but in a place where they’re well-received already, it’s even more fabulous.  Their excellent song Irony is never lacking in the very thing it speaks of, and that’s enough to get anyone looking closely at how meaning gets created in the world, in sub or pop or global cultures.

Before there was an Ibiza night club going off like they are today, there was the Ibiza of the 60s and 70s. Known as being quite the hippy town of Spain, Ibiza attracted all the big artists, musician, writers and poets of the day. Some of the many notables who visited the island from the 1960s to today are on along list. One of the interesting photos I came across in my research was of Nancy Maniscalco Miracle, who was Marilyn Monroe’s daughter. So much as been said about Marilyn but not much about her daughter. Then there were visits from Orson Welles, Lord Sydney Ling, David Carradine, and Julio Iglesias.

In the 70′s the artist and musicians showed up for some local humanitarian causes.Performer Terry Thomas put on a show to raise money for the broke circus company so they could make it back to the  main land. It turned it to quite the event including Graham Coughtry and the old Axel Blazcejak, Arthur Keinberger, Terry Thomas, Nigel Davenport and Antonio Vellanueva. Many would visit the hippy market and lounge around in the sun on the white beaches. You could see the young hippy mothers carrying their young babies around their bodies. They would take motorcycle rides around the island. Lady Adriana and her young child, Sydney, hanging out in the local bar. Sydney went on to become quite the known multi artist.

This was surly the island of freedom and joy. Many Bohemians, Artists, Musicians, Writers and film makers lived and visited here for inspiration and kindred friendship. They would meet at the local bars and cafes, mainly bars, to chat with each other and grown and swell with new ideas of projects to come. The Ibiza of today, is still trying to inspire freedom and joy. Now it has morphed from an organic, feet in the sand hippy town to a more dense groove and light show extravaganza. Not to be missed.

Mauritius is nothing like Scotland. We drove through miles and miles of sugar cane fields with a warm tropical breeze blowing in the car and the sun shining, it became obvious that we couldn’t be further away from Scotland. The sea was turquoise blue and calm and there were these mesmerizing barrel waves crashing on the reef.

We managed to find one of the five star hotels Mauritius offers its tourist and it certainly lived up to its five stars. We were greeted with a nice cold face towel and there was the smell of jasmine and orange wafting about. We could also smell food cooking in the restaurants kitchen, smells of curry. This made us salivate and head straight for the restaurant to get some breakfast as our bags were being taken to our room. It was so easy to see why people arrive and never leave the comforts of their hotel until it’s time to head to the airport. But, we didn’t fall for that lure.

Our hotel was alongside other hotels and a sugar cane estate. We rented bikes and we covered quite a bit of ground all along the winding coastal road. But, to see more of the island, we opted to hire a car for a few days.

We learned the the main population of the island is Indian Hindu, with a smattering of Creole, a bit of French and some African. This place is very relaxing and friendly. The women wear colourful Saris to do their everyday business, while saga music plays in the background from the roadside stalls. The major attraction for us was the Wildlife Park. A portion of the park is run by a couple from Zimbabwe. They operate the ‘walk with the lions’ experience. We took an hour long walk with lions! We expected this to be watered down or not what it was touted to be, but it was one of the best experiences in my entire life. The guide took us into the bush where we waited as he collected the lions from their enclosure. We stood there glued to the ground, it was one of those moments where you feel really alive, especially when two cats stalk towards you with the guide. Even though the cats have been raised in captivity, there still wild animals. We got to pet them and hang out with them. We strolled along at the same pace of the lions and waited with them while they took a short nap in the sun. We spent the whole time pinching ourselves just to make sure this was real.

It’s one of the most fascinating cities in the world, in one of the most fascinating countries.  Delhi has been a magnetic pull for some of India’s most intelligent and creative people, and it continues to attract an amazing variety of artists and scholars.  There are also many financiers, scientists, and educators, and people from all walks of life.  It has an entirely original rhythm that is impossible to describe, and impossible to forget once you’ve been here.  The city itself is eternal, having been inhabited continually for centuries, yet always changing, and always in the middle of an evolution into something else.  For an intelligent choice in accommodations in New Delhi, four-star hotels are a fantastic option.

They offer a more reasonable price for lodgings without sacrificing the luxury.  You’ll enjoy waking up to sumptuous decor and a splendid sense of hospitality, refreshing your days before you head out to have more adventures on the town.  There is so much to see and do here, and the multitude of people can attest to.  If you have a love of contemporary art, make sure to visit the India Habitat Centre, where the Experimental Art Gallery offers some fantastic new work from local and international artists.

One of the most exciting shows by an international artist recently was Red Strings Through My Hands, by Swiss artist Nesa Gschwend.  She’s lived all over, and was the co-founder of the performance group PanOptikum in Berlin.  For the past few years, she has been doing a lot of fascinating solo work, and this stay in New Delhi was part of a residency.  It’s not her first time in India.  She’s been traveling here since the 90s, and had another residency in Bangalore in 2006.  This show is a profound enactment of solidarity with the women of India through an intricate play with the strings of saris, ritually representing a spiritual condition, and made some profound movements into the local and global consciousness.

I suppose I should tell you about the land down under. I could tell you about being kidnapped by the Aboriginals and forced to shave my head and sing in a tribute band, or how the guy next to me in the ocean waters had his leg ripped off by a great white shark. Maybe I’ll tell you how I wandered into the outback for weeks on end, almost starved to death until I broke down and ate poisonous snakes, wallabies and indigenous plants. Or, how I found the stingray the killed Steve Irwin and I cut its tail off, and made a fortune selling it on Ebay.

Okay now for some true stories, the accommodation Sydney, Australia where I’m booked is on the umpteenth floor and overlooks a freshwater beach, not too far from Manly. That last part about finding Steve Irwin’s killer stingray, was of course an exaggeration, but I would’ve like to have killed that bugger. Steve’s passion for the environment and especially here, where mining interests and logging have been operating unchecked for decades, he fought hard to keep what untouched forests and pristine outback lands, untouched and pristine. He was instrumental in making the public aware of the devastation. Steve was a good bloke. I hope his legacy will not be for not.

I didn’t know this guy, Peter Brock, but he was also big here in Australia. He was killed in vintage car charity race. He was a professional driver, and this crash was just as bizarre as Steve Irwin’s death. All I can say, is at least these two men died doing what they love to do. What more can a person ask? Especially these manly men of Australia.  I wish more American men were as manly as these Aussie men. Then, when I head back to the States, my mouth will be watering at every man I look at. Yes, while here in Australia, I’ve had to have my mouth sewn shut, I was drooling way too much, I was becoming a public nuisance. Maybe I can bring all the Aussie males back with me. I wonder if they like women with their mouths sewn up?

Every country has some degree of diversity in culture, class, and traditions, but India seems to have a magnificent feast of variety, in all of its major cities.  There are fantastic mixes of people here, making it one of the most fascinating places in the world for artists and writers.  The interested tourists can usually find something to draw them in here, as well.  For those who love to watch people, this is probably the best place in the world to do that.  One could very easily lose many afternoons to the diversions of watching the crowds go by.  There are plenty of actual attractions, too, and something here for everyone.  The days can fill up very quickly, and it’s a pleasure to lose your nights for the romance of the scene after dark.

There are plenty of excellent restaurants in every city and town, and many exciting sights, including ancient temples, ruins, and interesting historical buildings that speak to the past in a way that only history can.  For accommodations, there are plenty of choices for lodging in India.  Five star hotels offer the height of luxury with local twists to make a lovely experience become something absolutely exquisite.  Every city offers something spectacular, and it’s always interesting to see what they might have in terms of art, food, and history.  It’s also fun to find out about the local ghost stories, because India, like most places, is full of them.  The case of Swarnlata Mishra might not count as a ghost story technically, but it has much the same effect.

She is currently a botanist, living in Bhopal with her husband and sons.  She leads a normal life, and also has very distinct memories of three of her previous incarnations.  Her memories are so distinct, in fact, that she has been the subject of scientific studies, and her story is one of the favorite tales of collectors of the paranormal in contemporary times.  The memory of her first incarnation came to her when she was riding with her parents through the town of Katni, and she remembered her previous life there.  She began giving her parents a long and detailed account of the house, her family, and her brother.  Her parents did not believe her, because she was only three years old, but she persisted with these stories until they decided to investigate, and discovered that she was absolutely correct on every detail.  Later on, she would spontaneously speak in Bengali and do Bengali dances, although she had not been exposed to Bengali since her previous incarnation.  There are many incredible stories like this here, and many more that you might hear if you start looking.

Welcome to Delhi and New Delhi India. Hotels are nestled in to the many busy streets of this 8th largest city in the world. Eighth largest in population anyway. If your new to the area you may be interested in learning the difference of Delhi and New Delhi. Delhi includes the large old city and some of the urban area around. It was originally named after the first king of the Mauryan dynasty, Dhillu who built the start of this big place back around 50 BC. At least most believe he named it after himself. Archaeologists say that there were inhabitants to this area even before King Dhillu but he was the first to call it home with a name. With the Yamuna River the natural fixture of Delhi, trade industries have been going strong since the 6th century BC. It is the sit of many ancient monuments with lots of archaeological remains.

New Delhi came about when the British gained control of many areas of India in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was George V that decided he was going to move back to Delhi in 1911 and created a new Capital City. New Delhi was built adjoining the south side of the old city. New Delhi became the capital of the city in 1947 when India became independent again from the British rule. Since then this capital city has turned into the seat of government with many important federal buildings one of which is the Parliament of India.

When you visit this area be prepared for the crazy hustle of the streets. This is unlike many other places. If you need personal space you may not find it in the city. Take a taxi to get around it will be well worth the little bit of fare you have to pay. Otherwise, enjoy the rich history this city has waiting for you.

New York City is one of the most popular cities in the United States and most of the country’s residents have an interest in visiting it at one point in their lives. Even if they don’t they are certainly aware of its significance and some of its major attractions and cultural icons. Even some of the contemporary commercial buildings, such as Trump Tower, have become major cultural icons. New York is nothing if not iconic and it tends to do everything like it does its skyscrapers, big and larger than life. That is one of the reasons many people choose to visit it and also why accessing a New York City car hire company can greatly benefit them and assist their stay.

The subway is pretty reliable and is a popular form of transportation for many people, however it can be somewhat confusing and intimidating for visitors who are not that familiar with the city or with the subway system. In addition, catching a cab during prime evening hours can be extremely difficult and create long waits on street corners. This is time that could be better spent in a great club or restaurant. In addition it can cause stress levels to rise when it’s difficult to find a cab and you need to be at a Broadway show by curtain time or have reservations at a great establishment.

It follows that having a comfortable and reliable car at one’s service can make all the difference in navigating this great city. It is also convenient for crossing the bridge and visiting Brooklyn for an afternoon as some of the best Chinese restaurants can be found there. Each of the five boroughs of New York offers unique performance and cultural elements and touring all of them during one’s visit makes the experience that much more complete. When deciding to do this, or even attending a performance across the bridge, having car service available becomes extremely important.

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania is the capitol of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Harrisburg sits along the Allegheny River in central Pennsylvania. Native American tribes have settled the area since 3000 BC. Early European settlers write of meeting with the Susquehanna Indians as early as the early 1600’s. It was in 1785 that John Harris Jr. Laid out the plans for a new town on his father’s land, which he called Harrisburg. In 1791 Harrisburg was officially incorporated and in 1812 Harrisburg was named the capitol of Pennsylvania.

Harrisburg today is a beautiful city with a rich history going back to before the founding of the United States. The Susquehanna River cuts a wide path through the city. Although very wide the Susquehanna is a fairly shallow river, there are many small islands dotted across the river with tress on them. This gives the Susquehanna a unique appearance and adding to the beauty of the landscapes. Lush gardens all around both public and private. The parks are lined, as are the streets with large old oak and maple trees. Stroll an established Harrisburg neighborhood some summer afternoon and enjoy the beauty of the carefully manicured gardens, trees and lawns.

I love viewing Harrisburg from across the river especially at night. The city’s skyline shimmers in the waters of the river that is at least a mile wide here. Because the city is built up on the higher ground across the river and up the rolling hills the view is particularly pretty and well worth the drive across the river.

When staying I recommend a Harrisburg hotels in the historic downtown area. With an abundance of restaurants, bars and clubs, parks, gardens and museums all in a historic setting it only makes sense to stay in the hub of tings.