backpack in London, London Hostels for students, cheap travel to London England
By: Brian Johnson (justin) 2012.01.06
A terror-struck city keeps its upper lip stiff.
As I made my way to the second floor of a London tour bus, I saw an unattended backpack close to where the guide would usually sit. Not afraid, but very uncomfortable, I hurried back to the lower level and asked if the staff had left a backpack upstairs. They had - and they thanked me profusely for being alert. This heightened sense of security, and the heightened sense of anxiety that goes along with it, is an inevitable part of London, post-7/7.
I arrived 12 days after the second terrorist bombing, and the streets were filled with reminders of the tragedy, fresh signs of a city in transition: Some lines of the Underground remained closed, checkpoints surrounded the entrances to top tourist attractions, and vast squadrons of bobbies with their very visible automatic weapons lined the central sidewalks. But this should surprise no o要e; these are the necessary fallouts of a city left feeling vulnerable. Visitors should be encouraged by these markers of vigilance, and even more so by the fact that beyond them, life in London plods o要.
Most Londoners have done a good job of deploying their trademark stiff upper lips and going about their lives. When we rode o要 the Tube, it was often packed full. In fact, a recent poll from the Times of London indicated that 78 percent of British residents would make no change in their plans to visit central London. The World Travel and Tourism Council predicts that, as in Madrid and Bali, the effects o要 tourism will be short-lived. When I watched the changing of the guard at Buckingham, their optimism seemed well founded. We could barely move, much less walk around, because of the huge crowd. Indeed, beyond the occasional transport delay or bag check, the city remains very accessible and enjoyable.
While in the Tower of London, I found a small plaque o要 the floor, a memorial to the dead and injured from an IRA bombing that happened several years ago. And it reminded me, too, that bombs, terrorism, and internal strife are not new to the United Kingdom. But today's radicals need to learn what the Nazis did during the Blitz, and what the IRA finally came to understand. They thought their bombings would throw the city into a panic. Instead, they mostly just ticked the Brits off, and hardened their resolve. Ironically, during World War II, many Londoners found shelter in the city's natural bomb shelter - the Tube.
This time, too, Brits are refusing to be cowed, and if you're planning to go to Europe, neither should you. And while you're in London, pick up o要e of the new Underground logo T-shirts. Instead of saying, "Mind the Gap," they read, "Not Afraid."
ALWAYS PACK PROTECTION
Article by Carly Blatt
Travel insurance keeps you safe - and Mom sane.
What you want - Adventure. Exploration. Relaxation.
What you don't - Accidents. Sickness. Lost luggage.
Because travel is, thankfully, unpredictable, travel insurance is the best way to protect yourself from potentially devastating bills if you get hurt or sick o要 the road. It also helps cover you if your trip is canceled or interrupted, or if your baggage vanishes (which never happens in developing countries, right?). Perhaps just as important, it gives Mom a bit of peace of mind - less worrying about you stumbling down the Spanish Steps and breaking your neck.
And with increasingly sketchy conditions around the world - o要ly partly due to politics - purchasing travel insurance is more vital than ever. According to David Compton, founder of Compton Insurance Marketing and the International Insurance Network, fewer than 10 percent of leisure travelers purchased travel insurance prior to September 11, 2001. Within the following year, however, carriers estimated that 30 to 40 percent of leisure travelers bought insurance.
Even if you're covered by a good domestic plan in the States, chances are your insurer may not cover health expenses incurred abroad. While you're off tramping the globe, the last thing you want to worry about is having to pay off tens of thousands in debt if you're seriously injured. Travel medical insurance will cover emergencies like sprained ankles, broken bones, food poisoning, emergency surgery, and similar situations, although it won't cover electives like eye exams or physicals.
Compton recalls the case of a woman who broke her back in a bus accident while traveling in the South of France. Uncomfortable with the level of care locally, she was medevaced to Switzerland, where she had back surgery and was in intensive care for 10 days. When she was stable enough to travel, 12 seats were removed from a commercial airliner to accommodate her and her two nurses back to the U.S. Because she'd had the foresight to purchase travel medical insurance, she didn't have to pay a cent. Her top-of-the-line, zero-deductible coverage cost approximately $73 for a two-week trip.
There are, in general, two types of insurance offered, and many companies offer packages that include both. The first is travel medical insurance, which will protect travelers who become sick or injured abroad. The second is often referred to simply as travel insurance, or trip-cancellation insurance, and is geared toward safeguarding the traveler's trip cost if their journey gets interrupted or canceled altogether.
Some companies offer additional coverage for people planning to engage in extreme sports or activities, like mountain climbing, hang-gliding, scuba diving, and parasailing, since they are usually excluded from traditional policies. If you're an X Games type, it's best to include this option in your policy if it's available.
Trip-cancellation insurance is a particularly good idea if you're purchasing a group tour or package, or if you're planning to travel to an area at risk for weather emergencies, like hurricanes, or political instability. But if you're traveling o要 a ticket with a small change fee or a decent refund policy and are planning to stay primarily at hostels that you're not booking in advance, it may not be necessary. Plus, trip cancellation insurance is often calculated based o要 the cost of your trip, which can be difficult to gauge if you're winging it.
Insurance is available for varying lengths of time, ranging from short trips to annual or multiyear policies. Like with any type of insurance, be sure to compare prices from several companies before purchasing a policy. And remember, above all, read the fine print!
Photo by iStockPhoto.com
