Cruising: Fun & Affordable

Treasure Hunting in England

?by: Steve Rice

I have been interested in Metal Detecting since around 1983 when my Mum and Dad introduced me to the hobby. They had been detecting for a couple of years on beaches around the Uk only at holiday time, and it often helped get a few pounds together to help pay for the holiday spends.

On the holiday in 1983 my Mum and Dad had taken Myself and Brother on a holiday to France. Each night we’d go down the beach with 2 detectors between 4 of us and gladly pick up the days droppings. This usually went to pay for our meals and drinks later the same night. On one particular night I was getting rather bored and actually took a rest on the sand whilst the others continued detecting. Whilst sitting in the sand I started sifting with my hands and out popped a 24 carat gold necklace. I was hooked. As soon as we got back to the UK we enquired about our local club and joined straight away.

It is now over 21 years since I joined my local club and I have also been Vice Chairman and Chairman. I have made some lovely finds. These range from Celtic and Roman Coins and Brooches, Old English Silver and Gold Coind going back hundreds of years and lots of Jewellry. I will update you on some of the finds in future articles.I’m also a member of the National Council of Metal Detecting and have had articles printed in the press and been on Radio.

In October 2004 I created treasurehunting.tv This website has grown from strength to strength in the six months it has been on the net. It now averages in excess of 100,000 unique hits a month. It has probably the most concise directory of over 400 Metal Detecting Websites. It also has live News Feeds in relation to Treasure Hunting. Add to this the Forum and the dozens of Metal Detecting stories the site is something I’m proud of. I’m also in the midst of creating a Hoard Database which will have articles and photos of Hoards found whilst Treasure Hunting.

So next time your walking in the hills of England and you see a guy walking along with a Metal Detector pop over and have achat. It might just be me. And if you’d like to have alook at some of the finds why not visit me on my website.

Cruising: Fun & Affordable

?by: Thomas Schoonover

Many people pass up going on a cruise for their vacation because of the myth that it is pricey. However, cruising has become a fun and economical way to vacation for young and old alike. It could be considered a downright bargain compared to staying at a resort, hotel, or private villa.

Cruising isn’t bound to any particular age group either. There are fun activities for all ages aboard a ship, catering to small kids, their parents, singles, middle-aged groups to elderly grandparents. However, a cruise that is longer than a week or that has destination ports further north will typically have an older crowd.

The first thing people think of when cruising is mentioned is of course food. A person on a cruise is typically assigned a dining room, dinner time and specific table companions to sit with for the duration of the cruise. There they are treated to amazing culinary delights and fine wines. If it is a week long cruise there will be probably be one or two formal nights where people dress in suits and cocktail dresses.

There are more choices on where to dine than the dining room. Many ships have smaller bistro-like restaurants, buffets many times during the day, snack bars, in-cabin service and many now have 24- hour pizzerias on board. Included in the price of the cruise are usually fruit juices, coffee, hot chocolate, water and teas. A slight downfall for cruising is soft-drinks and alcoholic beverages are at extra cost.

After eating all of the food that a cruise has to offer there are numerous activities, physical and social to do. Most cruises have fully equipped gyms and exercise classes. Many even have rock walls, rollerblade tracks, and jogging runs. There are always people playing games of volleyball, basketball and on a warmer cruise they have the ability to work off the calories by taking a swim.

There is more fun to be had aboard a cruise than just eating and exercising. As previously mentioned there are usually many pools. Some pools even have water slides. Days and nights can be spent gambling in casinos, drinking at the numerous bars and lounges, attending one of the Las Vegas-like shows, shopping, or sitting in the video and book libraries or reading rooms.

Pampering oneself can also be a part of the cruising experience. Most shipboard spas rival spas on land. There are many options for obtaining facials, manicure, pedicures, hair salon treatments and massages. Appointments go fast so they must be booked early. Usually free are the steam rooms, saunas and hot tubs.

Unless it is a cruise to nowhere, the ship will be stopping at exciting ports of call. If the ship is docked cruisers can just walk off the gangway. ff the ship is too big, motorized launches, called tenders, are used as ferries to get cruisers ashore. Each ship has organized excursions at each port of call that are available for sign up for before landing at the destination. They range in price from cheap to high-priced depending on the type of activity desired. They can be a day at the beach to horseback riding, jeep excursions, shopping trips to nighttime clubbing. If a cruiser isn’t interested in hanging out with a group from the ship they have the ability to always opt to explore the port of call on their own.

As shown in this article, cruising is a great way to like a vacation. Along with its affordability, it is extremely exciting with many fun activities available to enjoy.