Portugal

Portugal
A country located in the southwestern Europe on the Iberian peninsula. bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east. Capital city is Lisbon and the official language is Portuguese with a population of 10,707,924.
My husband and I visited Portugal last September 2009, sorry for my readers this post is too late as I’ve been so busy for many things, I will try my best to keep this blog updated.
We we’re in Porto the country’s second largest city, have seen the interesting places in the whole city.
Its nice also to have a walk in the city and you’ll see the nice old buildings and to the river you can choose to have a cruise along the Douro river.
Right next to Porto, We visited also in Vila Nova de Gaia, there where the Port wine is blended and aged and where you can taste the different varieties.
After Porto, we went to the mountains, to visit the son of my husband, and while on our way, I enjoy the wonderful views from out the mountains.

HOLLAND

This is my husband's country so, i have to explore also in this country of tulips flowers, the windmills, the woodenshoes,water and dikes.

A country in northwestern Europe,capital city is Amsterdam and the official language is Dutch with a population of 16,500 million.

Queen Beatrix succeeded her mother as Queen of the Netherlands in 1980. From that date, Her Majesty formed part of the government. The Queen was married to Prince Claus. They had three sons: Prince Willem-Alexander, Prince Friso and Prince Constantijn. The eldest, Prince Willem-Alexander – the Prince of Orange – will succeed her.

Dutch make the land out of the sea, and there is a saying that: the sea is thier best friend but also their greatest enemy.

They are also great in high tech country in transportation,sea-toweling and constructing worldwide big water works.

And of course there are many boats (also sailing boats), We tried once with a cousin of my husband,it was so windy and the boat was shaking and makes me dizzy and makes me uncomfortable, i feel sorry, instead i had to enjoy.

What about woonboot,where the people living aboard.

Caravan- a little house behind the car, when you go to vacation with a caravan you dont need a hotel.

the camper- traveling with a combination of a car and a house.
Bike- biking to the city? its great and fun! no need a parking fee.

We live in the North part of Holland on a ship (25m) which is renovated for a comfortable life.

COSTARICA

Costarica is a country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the east and south, the Pacific Ocean to the west and south and the Caribbean Sea to the east.

Costarica translates literally as "Rich Coast" with a population of 4,509,290.
Capital city is SanJose and the official language is Spanish and 5% can speak and understand english and the rest only spanish.

We stay in Costarica during summer, we have also a house there.

Costarica in generally, the best time to visit Costa Rica is the dry season from December through April, which locals refer to as verano (summer). Dry season does not mean it does not rain; it just rains less (so perhaps should be called the ‘drier season’). Costa Rican schools are closed from December to February, when beach towns are busy, especially on weekends. Lodgings during Semana Santa are usually booked months ahead.
In May begins the rainy season, or invierno (winter) as it’s known locally. The tourism ministry has come up with the more attractive denomination of ‘green season’. The early months of the rainy season are actually a wonderful time to travel to Costa Rica: you can avoid the tourist bustle and lodging is slightly cheaper. During this time, however, rivers start to swell and dirt roads get muddy, making travel more challenging. Some more remote roads may not be accessible to public transportation, so always ask locally before setting out. Bring your umbrella and a little patience.

I am posting also some photos when we went to Manuel Antonio for Mangrove forest tour, we really had a great time! bringing some palm nuts to give to the monkeys and had seen many more animals in the forest. The nature and the beach is just fantastic!

United Kingdom

An island country located in the northwestern coast of continental Europe with a population of 61,612,300.

London is the capital city.

I visited only very short time in London and Manchester city, the old castle and the city of Manchester stadium since they are the wealthiest football club in the world.

ITALY

Italy is located in the southern part of Europe with two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Official language is Italian with 60,045,068 population.

I visited only in island of sardegna, and i stay at the Fortevillage hotel.

What a great hotel, fronting the sea with all those nice flowers and trees around!
Sardegna is the second largest island in the Mediterranean and is formed by a series of mountainous massifs, hills and narrow highlands. The coasts are jagged and rocky, interspersed with marvelous beaches of very fine sand and countless inlets. The seaside landscapes, especially on the Costa Smeralda, are among the most beautiful in the world. Numerous small, enchanting islets are scattered in front of the coasts.Cities: Cagliari is the capital of Sardinia, ruled by a special statute. Other provinces are Sassari, Nuoro, Oristano, Carbonia-Iglesias, Olbia-Tempio, Medio Campidano, and Ogliastra.

In my next visit together with my husband to Italy im planning to visit Sicily and Tuscany.

FRANCE

Paris is the countries largest city,situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region.

Paris is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, with 45 million tourists every year in the Paris Region, 60% of whom are foreign visitors.

Oh! what a nice old buildings in the town, the old churches, the Louvre and many more!

I visited also the Disneyland,and wanted to visit there again someday,somehow.

CYPRUS

Cyprus is situated in the eastern Mediterranean, south of Turkey, west of Syria, Lebanon, and Israel, east of Greece, and north of Egypt with a total population of 784,301.
It is third largest island, and one of its most popular tourist destinations, attracting over 2.4 million tourists per year.A former British colony, it became an independent republic in 1960 and a member of Europian Union since May 1, 2004.
I stayed in really huge Le Meridien hotel in Limassol, with huge area of swimmingpool, playing area, restaurant and disco house.I was really satisfied with my stay, i meet also 2 filipinas working in that hotel they very nice.
Limasol is the main port and an essential tourist's choice. It is the center of the wine production and also well known for its extensive hotel accommodation in and around the city.
You know what i noticed in the sorroundings? cats! a lot of nice cats, i like cats but I have to take care they have such shap nails! They are just wild cats, you cant touch them.
Religion:
The Greeks are Greek Orthodox Christians which represent 78% of the population while the Turks are Muslims represents 18% of the population and Maronite, Armenian, Apostolic, Latin, and others 4%.
Weather and Climate
Cyprus has a typical Mediterranean climate, warm and rather dry, with rainfall mainly between November and March. In general, the island experiences mild wet winters and dry hot summers which are separated by short autumn and spring seasons. The higher mountain areas are cooler and moister than the rest of the island.
Cyprus LanguagesThe official languages are Greek and Turkish with English often used as a second language and widely understood by both ethnic groups.
Cyprus CurrencyThe official currency in North is Turkish Lira (TL) and the currency in South is Pound (CP) however the English sterling is highly accepted.
Currency in South Cyprus
The legal tender of the South Cyprus is the Euro. Former Cyprus Pound was used until 31 December 2008. Check current exchange rates.
Currency in North Cyprus
The Turkish Lira (TRL - Türk Lirasi) is the current legal tender of Turkey and Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, issued on January 1, 2005. The currency was accompanied with its inflation mostly in 1994; in summer 2001 seven banks failed. At present unit of 1 YTL is equivalent to 1 million old Turkish Lira that was introduced in 1983 (and remains valid until the end of 2005). The Turkish Lira is divisible into 100 new kurus (cents).
Electricity
voltage is supplied at 220/240 volts AC, supplied at 50 Hz. Plugs at 5 amp or 13 amp are generally of British type with 3 pins, but also exist some 2 pinned.
Time:
is two hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT/UTC), and seven hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time (EST). Clocks go forward one hour for summer time at 3 am on the last Sunday in March and back again at 3 am on the last Sunday in October. In South Cyprus a recorded time message can be heard by dialling 193.