TRAVEL

Home & Away with Robert Walshe

Home and Away Extra

All overseas visitors to Cuba must have a travel insurance policy in place with suffi cient cover for medical evacuation by air, the Cuban government has said. The rule applies to all visitors from overseas and Cubans living abroad, and is designed to make sure holidaymakers have adequate medical cover before arriving on the island.Anyone entering the country will be expected to present a copy of their insurance documents on arrival, showing that they have a policy in place which covers the full duration of the trip and includes medical evacuation by air. Guoman Hotels, the deluxe collection of inspirational landmark properties in central London, has opened the fi rst of two striking fi ve-star properties in China. Opening May 29th, Guoman Shanghai will be the fi rst to launch under the brand in Asia followed by Beijing. www.guoman.com

LivingA large number of countries around the world reported posi-tive results in the fi rst months of 2010. Of the 77 destinations reporting data for this period, 60 showed positive fi gures, of which 24 posted double-digit growth. These countries include: Esto-nia, Israel, Hong Kong (China), Macao

(China), Japan, Taiwan (pr. of China), Indonesia, Singapore, Vi-etnam, Guam, India, Nepal,

Sri Lanka, US Virgin Islands, Nicaragua, Ecuador, Kenya, Seychelles, Morocco, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. International tourism is steadily gaining mo-mentum. International tourist ar-rivals grew by 7% in the fi rst two months of 2010 and growth was particularly strong in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Holiday HotspotTel Aviv is Israel’s largest city.

This vibrant metropolis is situ-ated on the Mediterranean Sea. Translated from the Hebrew name Tel Aviv means Spring Hill in English. The city was founded in 1909, when Jews in the nearby Arab town of Jaffa decided to create a Jewish garden suburb along the beach just a few miles away. Many Israeli buildings are infl uenced by the Bauhaus archi-tectural movement. Tel Aviv’s architects went on a building spree, and by the early 1940’s the city had one of the world’s larg-est concentrations of buildings designed in international style. UNESCO recently added the “White City” historic district to its World Heritage List of places with outstanding cultural and historic signifi cance. In addition to a number of historical muse-ums, Tel Aviv also has a vibrant arts community. The Museum of Art specializes in modern work and has collections devoted to artists like Chagall and Matisse. If you like to go shopping, there are lots of places in Tel Aviv where you can look for great bargains. Shenkin Street is one of the trendiest, most happening streets, full of cafes and small designer shops. This popular area is also where the local art

s community gather to sell their crafts. and the experience will give you the perfect insight into the weekend spirit of this charismatic city. I must also suggest a stroll down Carmel mar-ket. Here you get a taste of real life Israel, as locals go about their shopping surrounded by the most amazing, sights, sounds and tastes. There are several public beaches in the city that are eas-ily accessed by a short walk downtown and Tel Aviv port, recently reno-vated remains popular all week long. The Crowne Plaza Hotel is located on the seafront promenade and is only moments away from entertainment cen-tres, shopping, business and nightlife districts. The weekend technically begins on Thursday night and by 5 pm Friday many people have spent at least part of their fi rst full weekend day shop-ping for food. Celebrity chefs are now home-grown, and food pro-fessionals from abroad come to marvel at a culture where fresh vegetables reign supreme. Is-raeli cooks have found access to greater and more global in-fluences now and: non-kosher cheeses, sushi and even shell-fi sh, which is not eaten by those who follow kosher dietary laws are widely available. You’ll want to try kosher food by the way no matter what your religious con-victions are. I found it inventive and largely vegetarian. For so-phisticated dining, try Kimmel Restaurant which is a culinary triumph and Dixie for a more cas-ual but equally tasty experience. Nearby Jaffa is an exotic mix of Arab and Jewish culture. The old city is best approached by foot, and the centre is dominated by the clock tower and the regular fl ea markets are eye catching. About thirty minutes drive from Tel Aviv is the Caesarea National Park one of the countries most impressive archaeological sites. The former playground of King Herod is worth exploring and

the multimedia interpretation is the best I have experienced an-ywhere. The amphitheatre, also restored and based in the park regularly hosts international concerts. Nearby the Dan Caesa-rea hotel enjoys a country-estate ambiance and it also boasts the countries leading golf course. Superstar Holidays is an Israel holiday specialist and wholly owned subsidiary of EL AL Is-rael Airlines. Their most popular tour is the Discover Israel Tour – which encompasses the most popular historical, archaeologi-cal, cultural and coastal sites in Israel. The tour can be tailored to individual requirements, with a choice of durations – 7, 10 or 14 nights. EL AL Israel Airlines op-erate 11 fl ights from Heathrow or 6 from London Luton Airport and can also tailor-make holidays to include flights from regional departure points throughout Ireland and the UK. . www.super-star.co.uk www.elal.co.uk www.thinkisrael.co.uk

Weekly Best BuySunway Travel are offering ex-

ceptional value deals to Algarve and leading the charge is the

5* Hilton Vilamoura from Only €799 per person saving up to €300. The property is one of the best 5* hotels in the resort of Vi-lamoura. www.sunway.ie If you are looking for a fun-fi lled June Bank Holiday Weekend getaway why not visit Trabolgan Holiday Village in East Cork! Book the

comfy Chestnut Accommodation for the four nights June Bank Holiday Weekend at Trabolgan Holiday Village and pay just €34 per person per night! www.trabo-lgan.com Falcon Holidays are of-fering the following late deals this month including Costa del Sol, departing Belfast Int., 23rd May, Fuengirola Beach Apartments, 7 nights, self catering, 2 sharing from £298pp. Bulgaria, depart-ing Belfast Int., 24th May, Polyusi Hotel, 7 nights, bed & breakfast, 2 sharing from £239pp. Turkey, Marmaris, departing Belfast Int., 24th May, Sayar Apartments, 7 nights, self catering, 2 sharing from £253pp and Gran Canaria, departing Belfast Int., 26th May, Altair Apartments, 7 nights, self catering, 2 sharing from £290pp. www.falconholidays.co.uk

Robert Walshe is a freelance contributor / broadcaster and is guest travel writer for River Media newspaper titles across the island of Ireland

Pet’s Corner...with Kathleen Murray: Animal Behavioural Therapist

with Kathleen Murray

Why are dogs given away by their owners?WHO are the people that aban-don or give up on their pet? They are normal everyday people that don’t know how to raise a dog properly, they are normal people whose cir-cumstances have changed and they don’t know what else to do, they are normal people who got a dog for the wrong reasons and now they can’t cope etc. etc.... but the dog is always the loser.

The dog age group that causes the most problems for their owners is the 8 months to 2 years age group.

That is because these dogs are in their adolescence (teen-age stage) and are going

through their normal behav-iour for their age. The problem that the owners experience is that they didn’t put the accept-able behaviour ground rules in place when the dog was much younger so that this stage would pass over normally and not become a big issue.

The dog is now bigger and faster and certainly not the cute pup that it once was. This is not the fault of the dog. This is the fault of the owner. If the dog had been controlled more and taught manners earlier then this stage would be no more than the dog just testing the waters. Its a stage where young dogs chance their arm

to see how far they can get, that’s all and all you have to do (if you already have a good relationship with your dog) is to hold the fort till it passes over. It doesn’t last long. Just stay in charge. Be the leader. It’s all about respect. You need to respect your dog and your dog will respect you. There’s no need to give up on a dog, no matter what age it is. The problem can always be fi xed.

Another reason why people give their dog away is because their dog wasn’t neutered and has produced pups that are now to expensive to keep.

This, also, is not the fault of the dog yet the dog once again

is paying the price. Do you want one dog or ten dogs?. Its a choice you make not an ac-cident that happens to you. If the dog you have doesn’t meet your expectations then you didn’t do your homework very well before you took it on.

There is no perfect dog but you can make any dog a good companion for you. The last thing someone should do is to give up on a dog and then go out and get another one. If you could make nothing out of the fi rst one then you are just infl icting a sentence onto an-other dog because you haven’t changed. The dog is never the problem.

with Robert Walshe

ily accessed by a short walk downtown and Tel Aviv port, recently reno-

■ The Carmel Market Tel Aviv.

with Robert Walshewith Robert WalsheLivingLiving

■ Cesarea Old City Israel.

Living

■ Jaffa Old City , Tel Aviv.j