Spain

Spain is more than bullfights, flamenco dancers and crowded beaches. It's a spectacular and diverse country, the north resembling the rolling, green hills of Ireland and the south giving you a taste of Moroccan landscapes and architecture. Its tremendous history is reflected in its prehistoric cave paintings, Moorish palaces, crumbling castles, Roman ruins, Gothic and Renaissance cathedrals as well as some very distinctive modern architecture. The uniqueness of Spain lies in the separate kingdoms which made up the original Spanish nation. These regions remain diverse in their language, culture, cuisine and art. They include: Andaluc韆, Aragon, Asturias, Basque Country, the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands, Cantabria, Castilla La Mancha, Castilla Le髇, Catalonia, Extremadura, Galicia, La Rioja, Madrid, Murcia, Navarra and Valencia. Areas of interest are not limited to each region.

Beaches

Excellent and quiet beaches can be found near Malaga, Huelva and Almer韆 in the south as well as near the coasts of La Manga, Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria and Euskadi. If you do enjoy extremely developed resort towns, there are plenty of crowded beaches on the Costa de la Luz and the Costa del Sol. Interesting is the harbour of Almerimar with cosy bars, just south of El Ejido (Almeria). Very unique architecture can be found in C髍doba, Salamanca, Granada, Toledo, Madrid... The visionary architecture of Antoni Gaud?and the Picasso museum are in Barcelona while Madrid is home to Spain抯 top three art museums.

Countrysides

If you would rather get some fresh air, Spain is filled with opportunities to visit wildlife parks as well as trekking. The Pyrenees, especially around the Arag髇 area, are the best areas for trekking. Andaluc韆 has its Sierra Nevada mountain chain with luxurious skiing resorts near Granada. Ski-sports are possible from November up to May. Between Guadix and Baza (famous horsemarket) one can find cave-dwellings, cave hotels, and beautiful natural parks. North and between these towns still are unexplored desert sceneries, with hamlets not even found on maps! The highway infrastructure in this "wild" part of Andalucia is excellent.

Social culture

Spanish people are very open-hearted and comunicative. You won't have any problems to get to know someone, especially in the big cities like Madrid or Barcelona. It's often said that the Spanish living room is the bar where the people usually spend a lot of time in the mornings and in the evenings.

India

Nearly five thousand years back flourished India's first major civilisation along the Indus River valley. The twin cities of Mohenjodaro and Harappa now in Pakistan were ruled by priests and held the rudiments of Hinduism. These civilisations are known to possess a sophisticated lifestyle, a highly developed sense of aesthetics, an astonishing knowledge of town planning and an undecipherable script language. The Indus civilization at one point of time extended nearly a million square kilometres across the Indus river valley. It existed at the same time as the ancient civilizations of Egypt and Sumer but far outlasted them. Surviving for nearly a thousand years the Indus valley civilisation fell to tectonic upheavals in about 1700BC, which caused a series of floods.

The coming of the Aryans around 1500 BC, gave the final blow to the collapsing Indus Valley civilisation. At the dawn of Vedic ages the Aryans came in from the North and spread through large parts of India bringing with them their culture and religious beliefs. The Four Vedas or the important books of Hinduism were compiled in this period.

Hong Kong, China

On-the-boil Hong Kong will bowl you over.Hong Kong has the big city specials like smog, odour, 14 million elbows and an insane love of clatter. But it's also efficient, hushed and peaceful: the transport network is excellent, the shopping centres are sublime, and the temples and quiet corners of parks are contemplative oases.

The best thing about being in Hong Kong is getting flummoxed and fired by the confluences and contradictions of a Chinese city with multi-Asian and Western elements. It's about savouring new tastes, weaving through a human gridlock and humming some dumb Cantopop tune while slurping your noodles.

When To Go
Weatherwise, October, November and most of December are the best months to visit Hong Kong; the skies are clear and the sun shines. The June to August heat/rain combo might push your endurance but there's a lot of sunshine and, after all, it's summer. Hotels tend to offer substantial discounts outside the high seasons of March-April and October-November. Travel can be difficult during Chinese New Year in late January/early February.

Weather
Many prefer to visit Hong Kong during November and December when there are pleasant breezes, plenty of sunshine and comfortable temperatures. January and February are OK times to visit, but the temperature can drop to below 10°C (50°F). Warmer temperatures make March and April pleasant months to go, but in May the air becomes uncomfortably sticky and humid. Typhoons hit Hong Kong most years between about May and September, though the city is so well prepared it would need to be a very big storm to disrupt your travel too much.

Activitiescy
cling
There are plenty of bike paths in the New Territories, and it's easy to rent a bike, especially around Tolo Harbour. The bike paths can get crowded on weekends.

hiking
Hong Kong is an excellent place for hiking: try Country Parks, Lantau Island and the MacLehose Trail in the New Territories. Try and plan your trip away from the crowded weekends.

swimming
There are good beaches everywhere except Kowloon and the north side of Hong Kong Island - the best ones are on the Outlying Islands. Make sure you swim at a patrolled beach.

Shopping
Shopping in Hong Kong goes way beyond buying stuff you need: it's a social activity, a favourite recreation, an after-hours release. Clothing, jewellery and electronics are the city's strong suits - all of them can be made to order, whether it's an Armani-copy ensemble, a pair of earrings or a PC.