fastjet takes off, achieving a 78% load factor on first day

FastJet.com

African low cost airline fastjet commenced commercial flight operations yesterday, with its first aircraft flying passengers from Dar es Salaam to Mwanza, and Dar es Salaam to Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Eight sectors were flown, carrying more than 900 paying passengers and achieving an average booked load factor of 78%. Three of the eight sectors flown exceeded a load factor of 90%.

Future demand for seats on these two initial routes is currently far outstripping supply. Additional flights to these destinations are already being considered, and the Company also intends to expand its route network regionally over the coming weeks as the fleet grows to three Airbus A319s.

Commenting on the success of the first day, fastjet Chief Executive Ed Winter said: “fastjet is delighted to see how the people of Tanzania are embracing the Low Cost Carrier model. Yesterday was a huge success and a great way to start operations. 

“We are pleased to see reservations and bookings continuing to grow. The demand for this type of air travel has far exceeded the Company’s expectations.

“Yesterday’s passengers ranged from business people through to many first time flyers who were using fastjet as an economic alternative to conventional bus transport. Clearly, as predicted, our low cost model is stimulating a whole new market of people to fly,” Winter added.

Travel That Makes a Difference

Volunteer teaches classes to childrens

Traveling to Bali, it’s easy to get blinded by beautiful landscape, wild nightlife and the island’s spiritual side. After all, those aspects are what draw millions of tourists to Bali each year. But, despite its bright and luxurious facade, the island does have humble roots. 

To explore this, many travelers turn to CouchSurfing Indonesia — the national branch of a global hospitality network that connects travelers to local homestays. The network teamed up with local organization Komunitas Anak Alam (Nature’s Children Community) to hold a charity event at a school in Blandingan village in Kintamani as part of the CouchSurfing Indonesia Festival 2012. 

The annual festival is a chance for CouchSurfing members to come together from all over Indonesia. This year’s theme was Nacula — Nature Creates Culture and Adventure — and the festival included a series of events, including hikes, photography workshops and volunteer activities. 

Volunteers started out with a drive from the south of Bali to Songan village in Kintamani, located in the highland area in the northern part of east Bali. Spending more than two hours on the road was tiring, but volunteers were rewarded with views of Bali landscapes: the south’s white sandy beaches and turquoise sea, Ubud’s lush paddies and rocky hills in Kintamani. 

Songan is a small, rural village nestled at the foot of Mount Batur. While volcanic activity has resulted in incredibly fertile soil suitable for growing tomatoes and onions, it also gave birth to the lucrative — and destructive — sand mining industry in the area, evident in the heavy quarry trucks rumbling up the narrow, winding road. 

Songan, along with about 15 other villages in Kintamani’s Mount Batur caldera, was recently accepted as part of the Global Geoparks Network by Unesco for the region’s volcanic activity and distinctive vegetation. 

After parking at the Ulun Danu Temple in Songan, the comfortable leg of the journey ended. From here, volunteers continued on their way in pick-up trucks along a bumpy, meandering path to Blandingan village, which is located 45 minutes up a dusty and dry road. 

Many locals walked vigorously up the hill, clouded in dust, unlike the face-masked volunteers in the truck. Most locals can’t afford the luxury of such transportation — a one-way ride to Blandingan costs Rp 100,000 ($10), money that’s usually reserved for more essential items. 

In late morning, the pick-ups finally reached the final destination: SD Blandingan, the only elementary school in the village. Class is dismissed at noon at SD Blandingan, as many teachers have other part-time jobs to help make ends meet, and the students, even those in first grade, often spend the afternoon helping their parents tend the farm or cattle. 

Without wasting time, each of the eight volunteers from CouchSurfers proceeded to their designated post, related to their individual passions. A traveling doctor from Canada performed free medical check-ups, while the photographers in the group conducted a photography class. I was teaching what I think I know best — writing. We hoped this would be a welcome change from the school curriculum, which emphasizes the sciences but not the arts. Students selected the classes they wanted to participate in, and mine filled with enthusiastic students wanting to learn how to write a story. 

The kids were clearly excited for the lesson, their faces lit up with smiles and eyes sparkling with curiosity. I pulled out a copy of Bobo magazine — a popular kids magazine that many Indonesians grow up with. Or so I thought. In fact, none of the kids had ever seen the magazine before. This came as quite a shock to me, and I was reminded that things we take for granted are sometimes a luxury to others. 

The students, who ranged from grades one through six, crafted stories about their daily adventures — what they normally do after school or on the weekends. I was expecting tales that resembled my own childhood: playing with friends and family or having fun with hobbies. 

I was surprised, but fascinated, with their stories, which were so different from my own. Many of the kids walk home from school on an uphill mountain path, as this is the only elementary school in the area. They trek through hilly forests and dusty rock paths — even encounter the occasional snake. 

When they reach home, their day is not yet over. The kids often help their parents find grass to feed the family’s cows or tend the farm until sunset. The tough chores to be done also come with possible dangers — one of the boys even showed me an open wound on his knee, resulting from a mishap with a sickle. 

I guided the 50 students in writing down their adventures, then turning the writing into illustrated stories. Many students displayed impressive talent, and it seemed like drawing came as naturally as breathing to them. The stories were then bundled together into a book called “The Adventures of Blandingan Kids.” 

Soon, my pity toward these children turned to admiration for their bravery and work ethic, which was more developed than in any of the city kids I’d met. 

As the class ended, students left, waving and smiling, and asking if I would still be there for class tomorrow. Deeply touched by the progress they made, I decided to stay the night and offer a second workshop the next day. 

There is no hotel in Blandingan, so we camped in the teacher’s room at the school. The accommodation was sufficient, but the lack of clean water in the village posed the real challenge. Although Blandingan is located close to Lake Batur, where fresh water is abundant, the lack of facilities makes it difficult to pump the water uphill to the villagers. Health and sanitation problems result from the dirty water, and many of the residents suffer from skin and respiratory infections. 

While the government should certainly step up, travelers can also make a difference by giving back — volunteering, building schools or water pumps, or even developing recycling programs. 

That’s why Komunitas Anak Alam connects responsible travelers to volunteer opportunities in Blandingan and other villages in Kintamani. It also collects donations for books and school uniforms, runs nutrition programs and provides scholarships to keep kids in school. 

Let’s not only travel, but instead, let’s share, inspire and make the world a better place. 

More information on opportunities to volunteer with or support Komunitas Anak Alam can be found at komunitasanakalam.org.

Urban Grasshoppers Sing Louder

Roadside males boost mating calls, study says.

Urban grasshoppers are changing their tune.

According to a new paper in Functional Ecology, males that dwell by busy roads boost the bass of their courtship songs to be heard above traffic.

Previous research has shown that human-made sounds affect the calls of birds, whales, and frogs. This study is the first to show that insects aren't immune.

Ecologist Ulrike Lampe and her colleagues at Bielefeld University in Germany rounded up 188 male bow-winged grasshoppers (Chorthippus biguttulus)—half from quiet places, half from roadside spots—and exposed them to a female grasshopper. When the road warriors "sang" their two-second-long courtship song by rubbing their hindlegs against their front wings, they turned up the volume on the lower frequencies.

Their country cousins did not. Lampe says the bass boost helps males be heard over the din of traffic, which could be disturbing the species' call-and-response mating rites. The fact that these males sang loudly in a quiet lab environment, she adds, suggests that the change is "not a spontaneous behavioral adaptation to noise" but a long-term effect.

(See "Suicide Grasshoppers Brainwashed by Parasite Worms.")

Grasshopper Music

Lampe doesn't know if other insect species are evolving similarly. But she suspects that other types of human-made noise—from places like construction sites, airports, and train stations—would have a similar effect on grasshoppers.

Bow-winged grasshoppers are found throughout northern and central Europe. They vary in size (from 1.5 to 2 centimeters) and color (from green and brown to red and purple). Males "sing" by rubbing their hind legs against their front wings, producing a broadband signal. Most of their song occurs in a range the human ear can't hear. (See bug pictures.)

"We can distinguish between the extremes, though," says Lampe. "If we have one grasshopper that produces songs with very high frequencies and one that produces songs with [roughly] 1 kilohertz lower frequencies, we can hear the difference."

60 Seconds To Stress-Less Holiday Travel

The holidays are already upon us and for many people that means trains, planes and automobiles, as a means of traveling to see friends, family or just getting out of dodge. One of the companions that often travels with us that we'd rather not be there is stress and anxiety. The holidays are stressful enough for many of us, but tack on travel and it amps it up that much more.

One of the things that can help us shift out of our stress and anxiety is to become present, get outside of our heads and widen our perspective. I'm fortunate enough to have worked with a number of people who struggle with stress and anxiety around travelling and in the work some true wisdom comes from them that I now get to share with you.

Here's a one-minute tip that comes from a new release called Mindfulness Meditations for the Anxious Traveler: Quick Exercises to Calm Your Mind. You can use this anywhere and anytime while traveling to begin neutralizing the stress and stepping into what really matters.

Be an Ambassador of Compassion

"When sitting on a plane (or substitute your mode of transportation), see the 'choice point' by considering all the other people on the plane who are also struggling with being an anxious traveler. Remember, up to 40 percent of people struggle with some form of anxiety about traveling. Be an ambassador of compassion, connecting with your heart and saying;

May you feel safe and protected.

May you be at ease.

May you be free from fear.

May you be happy."

The fact is stress around travelling is more prevalent than we usually imagine. Just practice this as an experiment over and again without expectation and see what you notice. Even holding that phrase in your mind can be helpful in getting out of your own head and back into your life.

What would life be like in the days, weeks and months ahead if more people practiced being The Ambassador of Compassion during this high travel season?

We might not only reduce stress, but bring the joy back to traveling.

As always, please share your thoughts, stories and questions below. Your interaction creates a living wisdom for us all to benefit from.

Venice flooding: Tourists swim as Italian city drowns

Venice under water while tourists enjoy.

On Nov. 12, reports about Venice came flooding in that the Italian city is now 70 percent underwater. While this may seem like a deterrent to tourism, many enjoy the water action and have taken to swimming in the sauce made by the rain that has gone on for three days.

Yes, despite the inconvenience and distraction in Venice, Reuters was quick to point out that in St. Marks Square, "Tourists in swimming [suits] sat at café tables under the water,"

This particular drowning is one for the history books, being called "the sixth-worst flood in the city since 1872."

Although the news of all the most recent flooding in Italy may be trending worldwide for its destruction and cause of death, it is hardly an unusual phenomenon during the winter months in this island paradise.

In fact, Los Angeles resident Paul Jackson remembers when he visited Venice via a Crystal Cruises cruise ship back in 1998, enjoying the same situation but to a lesser degree than what is happening today.

"The city was amazing," says Jackson. "St. Marks had about a foot of water to trudge through but we had a blast in out knee high rubber boots supplied to us by the ship's personnel. We shopped in boutiques where we were warmly welcomed even though the water was up to our calves. Still, we made the most of it, asking for and getting bargains left and right while shopkeepers put on very happy faces."

And so, with that said by this Angeleno, there is more than one upside to the situation in Venice with its flooding and its tourists swimming in the residue. Travel sure can take a turn for the unexpected but that's what sojourning is all about, right? Right.

Los Angeles residents who want to visit Venice when it floods or when it doesn't should contact their travel agents for details.

Tourism Flanders is announced as premier partner at World Travel Market

Flanders has been confirmed as the Premier Partner at World Travel Market (WTM) in London for 2013 and 2014. This will ensure that Flanders will feature as a "guest region" at WTM for the next two years, at one of the most important tourism exhibitions in Europe.

Flemish Minister for Tourism, Geert Bourgeois said: "I am delighted with the exclusive co-operation agreement which has just been signed by Tourism Flanders and the organisers of WTM, Reed Exhibitions. This provides an ideal position to present "2014-2018 the Great War Centenary" to the attention of the travel industry. With this agreement we will also look forward to promoting a greater awareness of Flanders and Brussels as a tourism destination." 

More than 48,000 international tourism professionals visit WTM annually. WTM 2011 facilitated a massive £1,653 million in business deals for travel and tourism exhibitors over the four days. Furthermore, WTM is the most important trade fair in the world for English speaking markets and Commonwealth countries. 

Each year, WTM focuses on one specific country or region to promote its "Premier Partnership". Last year, Abu Dhabi had this opportunity.

"We are very proud to become the new Premier Partner at WTM for the next two editions. As Britain and the Commonwealth are the most important foreign target groups for the remembrance of The Great War Centenary, it is strategically very beneficial for Tourism Flanders to be able to deploy such a large promotional tool via this partnership, over the next couple of years at WTM," Bourgeonis added. 

Tourism Flanders will use its position as the Premier Partner primarily to bring "2014-2018, The Great War Centenary" to attention in its association with the international travel industry. There will be a particular focus on the English speaking markets and the Commonwealth countries to promote this project.  

The new partnership also provides a unique opportunity for Tourism Flanders to strategically brand itself at Excel during WTM in 2013 and 2014. Opportunities include the decoration and branding of several spaces at the Excel hall in line with its international marketing branding strategy. A clear emphasis on "2014-2018 the Great War Centenary" will be visible throughout. Examples include a "poppy pathway", created using the image of 51 square metres of imaged tiles from the main entrance hall to the main Flanders stand.  

Reed Travel Exhibitions Director World Travel Market, Simon Press said: "I am delighted to welcome Flanders as WTM's Premier Partner for the next two events in 2013 and 2014.  

WTM is the event where the industry conducts its business, making it ideal for Flanders to promote its Great War Centenary. All at WTM look forward to helping Flanders achieve its objectives over the next two years." 

Britain lifts Indian Kashmir travel warning

NEW DEHLI: Britain has lifted its advisory against travelling to some parts of Indian Kashmir in the latest sign of the scenic region’s revival as a tourism destination.

Famed for its houseboats on placid lakes, clean air and mountain scenery, Kashmir was a popular international get-away until an armed insurgency against rule from New Delhi erupted in 1989.

“We no longer advise against travel to Jammu and Srinagar, nor against travel on the Jammu to Srinagar highway,” the British High Commission said in an update on its website posted Tuesday.

Srinagar is Kashmir’s summer capital and home to the famous Dal Lake, while Jammu serves as the winter capital.

Muslim-majority Kashmir, set in the foothills of the Himalayas, is divided between India and Pakistan along the heavily-militarised Line of Control border.

It was plagued by violence for decades as local militants fought for the region to become independent or part of Pakistan, but unrest has fallen sharply in recent years and domestic Indian tourism has boomed.

“The improvements in the security situation has led us to lift the advisory against UK citizens travelling to both cities, Jammu and Kashmir,” British High Commissioner James Bevan said.

Bevan said the decision to lift the warning would boost foreign tourism and benefit the local economy.

Britain, which first issued a Kashmir travel advisory in 1995, still advises against travel to other parts of the region except for Ladakh.

The United States strongly recommends its citizens avoid travel to Kashmir.

Luxury travel firm opens Dubai HQ

The Travel Attaché, a premier luxury travel specialist, has launched its Dubai headquarters, the first in a series of offices to be unveiled across the Middle East and Asia by 2015.

Working with over 200,000 of the globe’s leading suppliers, The Travel Attaché enjoys access to the world’s most desirable properties and offers a diverse portfolio of sumptuous hotels, villas, chalets, yachts, cruises and private jets, a statement said.

In addition, the independent consultant presents a unique experiential offering, a first for the region, with tailor-made experiences ranging from kite skiing in Antarctica to private viewings of the Northern Lights.

Founded by a panel of industry experts with over 50 years combined experience across the travel, tourism and hospitality sectors, The Travel Attaché is run by a team of connoisseurs who each enjoy individual acclaim as leaders in their field.

Chairman Mishal Kanoo, deputy chairman of the Kanoo Group, is joined by vice chairman Gaurav Sinha, Founder and managing director of Insignia, the Middle East’s first luxury branding and brand marketing agency; Liam Wholey, chief executive officer, formerly CEO for elite concierge service Quintessentially Group’s Middle East & Africa division; and managing director Jeremy Sutton, founder and former managing director of Quintessentially Travel.

The announcement comes the day the World Travel Market opens in London, a reflection of the company’s international outlook.

“Our decision to create The Travel Attaché is reflective of the region’s growing need and desire for an exceptional travel proposition,” said Wholey.

“The Middle East remains one of the most dynamic parts of the world with a rapidly progressive consumer base and we are excited at the prospect of redefining levels of service and expertise in the leisure and business booking sectors.

“With our unique offering, we are confident that we can deliver unforgettable experiences in a seamless and sophisticated manner and redefine the region’s perception of travel,” he added.

Tourism: Hawaii’s blessing and curse

Hawaii is a beautiful, serene and ideal spot for many USD students to visit, but an imperative question arises: are we welcomed guests? 

For many years prior to the influx of a tourist based economy, indigenous Hawaiians flourished without being dependent on revenues derived from tourism. In order for USD students to see tourism from the islanders’ perspective, we must first analyze the history behind the development of Hawaii as a tourist economy. 

Before its addition to the United States, Hawaii was subjected to imperialism, which is an exploitation of people, resources and land. After the United States illegally overthrew the Queen Liliuokalani in 1893, we claimed ownership of the island in 1894. 

The overthrow of Hawaii completely changed its economy from one which was self-sufficient to one that was a hostage economy. According to “Hawaiian Journey” by Joseph G. Mullins, prior to tourist exploitation, Hawaii’s economy relied on pineapple and sugar production, yet in recent years the profits derived from such production account for only a fraction of the island’s economic sustainability. 

The amount of tourism on the island per year brings forth the vast majority of the island’s revenue, yet Hawaii cannot sustain such a tremendous amount number of tourists, creating a severe dilemma. In order for sustainability of the island to exist into the future, then tourism must be reduced to a quantity that is less than it is today. 

One can see the beautiful pictures of resorts and beaches in Hawaii, but may not comprehend the state of economic distress Hawaiians are in. People are not typically made aware of the amount of homeless people who have jobs, but receive such low wages from their work that they cannot afford a home. People don’t see how so much tourism can be insulting to the indigenous people of the island. 

Yes, hulas and luaus are fun for many visitors to Hawaii, but they are also sacred to the people of the land and reserve a higher meaning and appreciation. Even at USD, the luau could come off as offensive to some Hawaiian students. 

After interviewing Keanu Gututala, a Hawaiian student and native to the island, he said, “I was extremely disappointed because it made people culturally blind to what a luau actually represents in Hawaii. There was no aspect of the luau that actually represented a true luau.” 

I saw this with the food and music. At a recent USD event, the DJ played rap and mainstream music as opposed to the genre of music that is true to the island. The food was sushi and pulled pork which you would not find at a real luau. 

This is an exact example of the misconception some possess of true Hawaiian culture at our school. 

As previously stated, tourism does bring in most of Hawaii’s revenue, so it is not all bad. 

In a sense, Hawaii could not last in the long run without it, yet one might want to consider the idea proposed by Haunani-Kay Trask, author of “Lovely Hula Hands: Corporate Tourism and the Prostitution of Hawaiian Culture”, in which a quota on the amount of tourists allowed in Hawaii per year is established. 

Often, travelers see an inauthentic Hawaiian culture that has been expressed at our school. It is a cultural ruination in the sense that those who get exposed to the culture of the land exist only to lure tourists in to earn money. 

At this point in time there are actually fewer native Hawaiians living on their land than tourists and foreigners. Most of those natives that do live on the land are not receiving all this money for the use of their culture, and are receiving little money for other people’s perception of the Hawaiian culture. On any given day there are at least 148,750 tourists present on the island. USD students often talk about visiting the island, whether it is for vacation or school. 

No matter what purpose, any student at this school who ends up going should take some time to think about the true identity of Hawaii’s people and the reason why Hawaii is a tourist economy today.