Poll on the economy: Americans gloomier, for now

"As people on Wall Street and Main Street hold their breath to see if a federal bailout of the nation's financial institutions will work, Americans are starting to speak — not whisper — the word "depression." In a sign that anxiety is growing, 33% of 1,011 adults surveyed...

For Laid Off Bankers and the Rest of Us: 'Holidays that won't break the bank'

Rather than rush into the next job, assignment or client's assignment taking a week or two off to clear your head might be the best idea you might come up with. The cash flow position is not what it used to be.Here comes, Benji Lanyado, The Guardian's budget travel expert...

How Much is Too Much? Where is the Value in Attending Conferences?

After exploring for a while the  Consumed to Thrifty thread, I thought it could be useful to see how this applies to picking which conferences and events are worth attending, what their value proposition is. Have you felt at times like your time and money would have been...

What's better, the Food or the View? Auberge du Gros Bill in my native Morbih...

This restaurant, Auberge du Gros Bill on Pointe du Bile (Penestin) in my native Morbihan opens for business from March to November.' Lisa Kelly made my mouth water with Plate With A View: Auberge du Gros Bill, Brittany, France (The Independent, August 16)... What was on her...

TravelMuse: Beyond the Good Looks...A Plethora of Ideas

What struck me first when I landed on TravelMuse was the site good looks.As their name hints, they want to give you some travel inspiration.Beyond the good looks, there is a plethora of ideas... Since the Beijing Olympics are about to start, they currently offer a number a...

Ha Noi Vietnam

Hanoi is the elegant capital city of Vietnam sprawling its way along the Red River banks. There are many lakes, parks and leafy quarters which make the city just freshly green all year round. Ha Noi was first built in 1010 by King Ly Thai To who checked and found out that...

Tomatoes lead me to the European Prehistoric Center and Tautavel

How did it happen?A couple of days ago, Grillman and Luna went to the market in their corner of France near Perpignan (in the Agly River area) and picked some Tomatoes and peppers, green beans and aubergines, made a meal out of it and happened to quote my Beefheart Tomatoes...

Travel, Don't Tour and Please, Slow Down: Eco Friendly Vacation Tips

A new magazine on the racks, Green Guide has a very timely story in its second issue Going for Green: Eco-Friendly Family Vacations by Kathy Shorr.Her most sensible tip is Travel, don't tour as she reminds us "Vacations give us a chance to do something our daily lives don't:...

4 Bucks for a Wine Flight, In South Africa (Where Dollar Rules)

London might be the place where a Martini equals $25 (if you eat in a high end place)...Don't lose hope if the greenback is your currency.Stan Sesser (Wall Street Journal) comforts us with the thought that 4 bucks gets you a wine flight in Wijnhuis Restaurant in Stellenbosch,...

Crisis hits the Beach, $200,000 Hamptons Summer Rental still available!

Investment bankers and Hedge Funds honchos are suffering.Some of them are ditching their beach properties in The Hamptons, prices on trophy homes are coming down and many 'new poor' are rethinking their plans for the summer.A six bedroom ocean front home offered for the...

Europe for Less...No Summertime Blues...From Consumed to Thrifty #2

We are not talking about being cheap for the sake of being cheap here, more like stretching your dollar over Europe without leaving ugly marks all over the scene.Call it down shifting if you will.Tim Leffel comes up with money saving strategies that can work in Germany, Italy...

Recession Proofing! From Consumed to Thrifty? European Vacations

As the word 'recession' is in the air, are we gonna be recessed and depressed or will it call us to act.By acting, I mean rethinking the way we live.Our lives revolve (in the US at least) around consumption...you are what you buy...I can commiserate about the value of the...

Walk the walk...Tea Ceremony Maybe? Tokyo Sighseeing Tours by Foot

Rather than hop on a bus and zap through a city in an hour and hanging out only with tourists, a walking tour of any place beats it.You get the feel of the city, its smells, aromas, colors, sounds all at once. You might go into sensory overload but it is better than an...