Balkan Tours and Travels

Archive for December, 2008

The success of Slumdog Millionaire has suddenly brought the poor into prominence. The origin of the word slumdog goes to two words, “slum-dweller” and “underdog”. The movie of a Mumbai slum-dweller striking it rich has struck gold on the box office world wide. As someone so appropriately and succinctly said, “Nothing succeeds like success”. Here too, the word slumdog has become a magnet for success.

The world wide web is a true representation of the human psyche. The word was non-existent a few months back and today happens to be the most sought after. All of a sudden there is a rush for slumdog related domain names and business ventures. The domain name slumdogtours and slumdogtravels have already been taken; try some different combination if you want a share in the slumdog pie. I am into the profession of maps and GIS; will there be slumdog maps and may be slumdog GIS. But be sure to send a Slumdog Greeting Card to your loved ones on some slumdog occasion, say the slumdog Valentine’s Day.

The movie has spawned interest in the slums, the underprivileged of the modern world. The countries like Mexico, Brazil, India and many other third world countries which witnessed lopsided economic growth in the last two decades has magnified the rich-poor divide. The IT, BPO, KPO or finance guys are spending more than the annual earnings of a slumdog family in a single day or even on a single meal. So don’t you think the world financial crisis was to happen, if not now then tomorrow. How can economies sustain such plundering of resources by few?

The well known Mumbai slums of Dharavi made famous by the art movies like Ardh Satya, Bhumika in the eighties now have an icon status in the world. The Google Trends suddenly shows multifold increase in searches related to Dharavi, Slums, Mumbai slums, slumdog, slum travels and so on. Mumbai is replete with many Slumdog tours and travel companies. Many tour and travel companies have already developed special slum visit packages for the Westerns intending to travel to Indian slums. May be these tours and travels to the slums will add some money to the deserving pockets too. The tourism has a new chapter, the slum tourism. Be part of it to give to someone who needs it the most.

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When sudden downpours occur, such as a recent Saturday and Sunday when over 4″ of rain fell in NYC, City sewers frequently back up. Property owners can be left with inches or feet of waste-water in their basements. As an example, on a recent weekend property owners across New York City were left with just such a sewer condition.

After the fact certain SAFETY PRECAUTIONS must be taken. First of all never enter into a condition when there is any chance of electric current. Serious injury or death can result from wandering into water where electric current is flowing. Secondly, water can make a pilot light go out for a gas appliance, thereby resulting in a dangerous gas condition. Always call your public utility gas provider: National Grid or Con Edison, or a licensed professional.

What can you do after taking safety precautions?

After a City sewer back-up: Frequently the sole cause of the sewer back up is the City sewer being “surcharged” (backed up). After the rain dissipates, the City sewer flows normally again and the water in a basement will dissipate as well. No sewer cleaning or repair work will be needed in this case. A wet/dry vacuum and a dehumidifier may be all you need. If you still have an issue with sewer run off, always call a licensed professional.

Precautions to take: Certain preventive measures can be taken to prevent a City sewer from backing up into your basement:

* Make sure sewer trap plugs are fit tightly on the sewer trap. Replace old ill-fitting sewer trap plugs with fit-all plugs. Fit-all plugs can be purchased from any plumbing supply or hardware store for less than $10.00 each.

* If the house sewer is solely for sanitary use (not for any rain water flow) a back-water check valve can be installed in front (the street side) to the house trap. This work must be performed by a Licensed Master Plumbing firm.

* If the house sewer in question is also for storm water (rain water) flow and there are plumbing fixtures in the basement (such as a toilet, shower, or a sink) backwater check valves can be installed for individual plumbing fixtures.

What is a backwater check valve? A backwater check valve is a self-operating valve that only allows for water flow in one direction. If properly maintained it will prevent water from flowing in the opposite direction thereby preventing backups from a City sewer. A backwater check valve should be cleaned every 6 months to a year, a task easily performed by a non-professional by removing a few screws. No special tools or skills are required for maintenance on a backwater check valve.

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With a lengthy history that is second to few other products,
the growth, spread and use of tobacco throughout the world
has been a major factor in trade since its first being
observed by Europeans in the Americas. As was the case among
the native tribes, the tobacco plant was soon used in a broad
range of applications from patent medicines that claimed
miraculous cures for virtually any ailment to the more familiar
methods of ingestion including chewing, inhalation as snuff
and in smoking. Both in Europe and America the methods of
taking tobacco that were reserved for society’s aristocrats
quickly became often a source of ridicule. Even then, many
thought tobacco, like the potato, to be the work of the devil.

However used, the earlier tobaccos all sprang from American
stock. Initially, there was one variety that was grown by
the North American Indians that was the first to be transported
to England and Portugal and another that was grown by those
from Mexico to South America that was taken to Spain and France.
Later, John Rolfe used the second variety from the seed obtained
from the larger leaved “Spanish” variety to serve as the
foundation for Virginia tobacco growing.

Since that time the spread of tobacco’s influence and ease of
propagation drove the development of many varieties around the
world, each suited to unique climates and the local preferences
for curing, processing and ingestion. As tobacco crossed the
Atlantic from the Americas and was popularized in Spain, England
and France, its spread reached to Germany, Russia and then the
Baltic countries as each region and nationality introduced their
own preferences as well as requirements for cultivation such as
those driven by the climate, the local soil characteristics
and terrain.

Today, most tobaccos may be categorized as either Virginia, Burley,
or Turkish, but all have roots tracing back to the original Nicoteana
Tabacam of Mexico and South America. In fact, the world’s most
popular tobacco which is generally known as Virginia Bright Leaf was
the result of an accident in curing during 1839 White Burley of
today didn’t arrive on the scene until 1864.

While tobacco was introduced into Turkey and Poland around 1585,
its use was sufficient to result in torture and execution throughout
Russia, Turkey, Persia, India and the east. Though cigarettes were
making themselves known in Europe by 1915, it was not until the
Crimean War in 1856 that Turkish, English, French and Italian
soldiers took the popular Turkish tobacco cigarettes home with them.

In truth, the name “Turkish” tobacco is something of a misnomer as
many of the seed stocks of Turkish Tobacco actually originated in
towns in Greece. However, the name was popularized as referring to
those countries that were within the Ottoman Turkish empire,
many of which were long a part of the Soviet Union. Today,
much of the region is referred to as Balkan.

By any name, Turkish tobaccos have long been regarded as among
the world’s finest, adding a richness, spice, and smoothness
that, when properly blended, transports a great Virginia into
a blend in the realm of the sublime. Sadly, the great
Turkish/Balkan tobaccos had virtually disappeared in the
western world, leaving mediocre, lesser grades and varieties
that for decades left smokers associating Turkish blends
with tobaccos that were hot, heavy, harsh, pungent and
loaded with nicotine, all attributes of an inferior product.

In truth, a good Balkan tobacco is incredibly smooth, in fact,
among the smoothest of all tobaccos with a smoke that is at
once low in nicotine and resplendent in the kind of nutty,
spice laden flavor that is indescribably delicious in
flavor, while also a source of pleasant aroma for both the
smoker and those around them.

Today, with an international explosion of interest in
rediscovering quality tobaccos thanks to vastly improved
and inexpensive equipment to produce custom made
cigarettes at very significant savings, great tobaccos
are making a resurgence. This is nowhere more true than
in the realm of Turkish/Balkan tobaccos thanks largely
to the efforts of two visionaries,

Mark Ryan of D&R Tobacco: http://www.cigarettetobacco.com/

and Robert Meszaros of Balkan Prospect http://www.balkanprospect.com/

Due to the efforts of these two, it would appear that
many will very soon be able to once again enjoy the
world’s finest tobaccos in custom made cigarettes using
the blend of their own choosing.

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India is the land which is blessed with a number of attractive destinations and natural beauty which attracts tourist from all over the globe. There are many tour operators and service that offer aim at making India tour & travel and itineraries that are suitable and interesting. India tour and Travel is one of the most sought after and famous tour packages, which take you to the lap of Mother of Nature. There are rejuvenating qualities such as soothes the skin, relaxes muscles refreshes, the soul etc. During the trip tourist can find the birds singing, verdant vistas echoing folklores, refreshing winds blowing, the foggy blue open sky appears to be meeting the earth at prospect, Assam represents good beauty on Earth etc. With this tour package, tourist can explore the region with a detailed tour encompassing all the sunglasses of Assam. There are some of the highlights that visitor should not miss while touring Assam.

Tea gardens: This is one of the most famous and sought after tea estates of Assam which are virtually flat and create tea which is named “black tea”. One of the most productive tea producing areas in the globe, Assam creates tea that is most famous for its body, bright color, malty flavor, briskness, etc. to visit here, tourist can see the entire process of preparation of tea. Starting from picking the fresh leaves of tea to its processing in the factories your East India tour

Kaziranga National Park: It is located both sides of River Brahmaputra and aziranga National Park which is the site comprising world’s two-third people of Great One- horned Rhinoceroses. This is chosen a World Heritage Site by UNESCO the park which is one of the most beautiful and charming with wide green plants and is home to huge breeding populations of water buffalo, elephants, and swamp deer and other.

Kamakhya temple: India Tour Packages are provided this Temple. There are a number of temples that tourist can explore like A shakti (consecrated to Goddess Durga) temple, Kamakhya temple, Kamakhya temple, and many others. Kamakhya temple is one of the most famous temples of Assam. It is an important pilgrimage site of Hindus.

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The latest development in technology and the introduction of travel and tourism course in India has fulfilled the desire of billions of people to explore the world. This has resulted in a booming demand of tours and travel professionals in diverse service sectors. India itself is one of the favored destinations of many people for it having heritage of one of the oldest civilizations and for its aura and cultural diversity. The long-term career opportunities in the travel & tourism industry have always been strong whereas the short-term outlook is strong enough to ensure a secure career. A career in travel and tourism deserves to be opted for its diverse job profiles in various sectors including travel agencies, Airlines, and many other governmental organizations dealing with tourism.

The present advancement in universities and colleges has led to many courses in this field such as a Bachelors Degree course in Airlines, Tourism & Hospital Management, Bachelor of Tourism Administration, BTM (Hons), PGD in Tourism and Travel, and many other quality courses. Career aspirants who desire to pursue a career in Tourism can have the options from public as well as private sector. The public sector can offer you jobs at various levels in state tourism board or the central tourism department. There are few other courses as well that can enable you to earn a lucrative job in the tours and travel industry. These are listed below:

• Bachelor of Tourism Studies
• PG Diploma Course in Tourism Studies
• PG Program in Travel and Tourism
• M.A. in Tourism Management
• Master of Tourism Management

And the institutes offering these courses are as follows:

• Indian Institute of tourism and Travel Management
• Tezpur University, Assam
• Andhra University, Andhra
• Indira Gandhi National Open University, etc.

The eligibility criteria for taking admission in bachelors course is to clear your higher secondary education while PG course requires you to carry a graduation degree and a maximum age of not more than 28 years. The duration of the course depends on the level of course such as 6 months, I year and 3 years. Selection process passes through an entrance test held by the institute itself. In order to clear these entrance exams, the candidate is advised to brush-up his/her knowledge with reference to history, culture, geography, and places of tourist attraction in India. Some institutes also provide you the option of Distance Learning courses in Tourism and Travel management at degree levels, certificate level, PG Diploma level, and PG degree level, etc. These distance learning institutes may include Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), Karnataka Open State University, Kota Open University, and many more.

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