Best Travel Websites (USA&Europe)

Hey chaps..!! I am just taking a break from my Euro Trip tale to suggest people over in U.S some best travel Websites.  

Dated on April 10^th 2009,

 According to Travel Expert Pauline Frommer, some of the best travel websites recently are

AIRFARE

Momondo.com

Sidestep.com

Mobissimo.com

Kayak.com

Wegolo.com (Inter European cheap Airfares)

Yapta.com is amazing website which will allow you to get your money back if the price got slashed after you bought the ticket. This one almost acts like your personal Travel Assistant.

FLIGHT SCHEDULES

Delaycast.com - This will allow you to see the possibility of you reaching your destination on time, based on the punctual history of the particular airline company.

HOTEL SEARCH

Hotelscombined.com is rated as the best website for Best Hotel Search.

CAR RENTAL

Bnm.com/ breezenet.com searches both the local car rental agencies and also all those multinational car companies where as our conventional priceline.com only searches those multinational agencies. But only advantage you can get through is you can bid the prices. So, often the best price you can get from the breezenet.com can be used to bid 30% low in priceline.com and there are chances that you can get for that price in priceline.com. So, try considering a look up in this Bnm.com.

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION

Hopstop.com gives you the best information regarding the Public Transportation in most of the major cities.

 DINING

Opentable.com gives you a opportunity to check the availability in the restaurants for the date of your arrival there and it gives opportunity for you to reserve and also it sends you a remainder through the email.

TOURIST GUIDE BOOKS

Frommers.com gives almost all of information they have for absolutely free and they often responds to your queries as soon as possible.

BEST DEAL OF THE MONTH

It is meant for the people living in the west coast of U.S and trying to tour Paris. The website named

www.airtahitinui-usa.com offers a round trip to Paris for 589$ including all taxes and charges.

You have to buy before April 15 and fly before May 26.

3. Landed in Europe-The Paradise of World

I passed all those Immigration people easily and checked out my luggage. My friends Kk and Challa are already waiting for me. The whole breeze is smelling different and yeah, it is cold than my place. It is december in paris. So, the temperature is making rounds around zero degrees. We took an RER (err-uh-err is a french pronounciation) which is one hour journey from Airport to Cite Universitaire. RERs are the mode of transport for commuters in and around Paris.

France is a romantic paradise of the world. There is lot of PDA (Public Display of Affection) over there. I watched few couples (French)kissing badly in airport and RERs. My friends are suggesting me to avoid staring at them. But, How can i do that. I rarely saw them on the screens and may be sometimes i was watching any erotic stuff. But, I have never seen people kissing or smooching in live. When that scene is flashing on to my face, very first few times, I am a bit hesitant to even look at them. Even though my parents are not here, I am scared that my mom or dad will beat me, if I see them. I still remember few instances from my childhood, where my dad use to cover my eyes with his hands while watching movie in Movie theaters. Then starts the real struggle, i try my best to watch what is happening on the screen through the gaps of his fingers. I slept for sometime in my friend's room in Maison de L'Inde and Kk promised me that he will show the Eiffel Tower as soon as i step my foot in Paris. So, He planned that evening to roam around and we again left the room at 8PM.

We went to the station to catch an RER and we just waited there for few minutes and every couple in the subway is busy in their usual kissing business. Even i started ignoring them soon because it is everywhere. We went to Eiffel Tower and i think this is the first wonder of world I am going to visit because, i have never even visited TajMahal. My second day is December 31st and i went to shop around in a nearby "FranPrix" which is one of the biggest retail supermarket chain in France which belongs to Casino Group and has a revenue of 25 billion euros ($ 38 billion) which is 12% of the revenue of Walmart and sam's club together. Being substantially located in a small country and also has its presence in some other few countries,  I think Franprix is making quiet a bit of revenue. 

We are planning to go to the most expensive street in Paris, Champs-Élysées for the New year's Eve with few other students from India.

2.Journey Begins......

It is 29 december night and i am in chennai with my mom, dad and my cousin Kumar Raja.. He is an ardent supporter of mine.. He is so confident about me.. He is an essential.. I am doing my last minute shopping to glut the Baggage. I am allowed to take 22kgs in check In and 8 kgs by Hand. I have almost 23 kgs for check in and 10 kgs in Hand. But then, we will never stop right. People will be always there to encourage you by saying , " If they say 22kgs, literally they want to restrict you atleast at 25 or 26 kgs. So, they will conclude that 26 is fine." ... I am completely gratified and almost galvanised to see them.. My heart is almost filled with gusto. I want to have a couple of drinks before i leave. But, there is no chance for that.  

Then it was almost time and i am supposed to leave. My mom is getting emotional. I told her that i will be back in Five months. Then i said bye to all my friends. 

I am really nervous.. You know why...? because, that was my first flight journey.. I was never into this checkin business.. so, i am a bit nervous.. But trying to do my best and pretending as if i used to have international journeys so often. Then the real fun began. One of my cousin who got married to NRI called me to suggest me something on international departures. She suggested me to keep all my important documents in check-in luggage because if your hand baggage is heavy they will keep it some other place in plane, so you may miss your documents. So, I kept everything in check-in luggage. You must be guessing by now what would have happened...? 3.45 is my flight departure, and time is 2.30 and there is a long queue for immigration check.. I stood in the queue.. By 3.15AM it was my turn to meet immigration officer. All those ppl seems to be so arrogant tamilians. As usual i went and he asked for my passport and immigration application form. I gave them both. Since i was going for my project, i am not sure whether i was going for my education, i just selected OTHERS column over there.. So, he started showering questions on me. what is ur purpose, i explained him, it is my final semester project of my undergraduate study. Any proof.....!!! Thats it....!! I have gone thru my hand baggage and i have nothing to show.. I told him i am from VIT University, He asked me whether i can show my ID card.. I have gone thru my wallet, my GOSHHH.. there is nothing in my wallet to prove him that i am a student.. He is saying " Sorry sir, I cant send you...".. OOOOOHHHHH...... Imagine yourself in my position,  In few more seconds, i understood that it was over.. Everything is going to become a dream. Anyway i thought, it is k, i may just loose this flight ticket. May be i have to book ticket again.. Even though my family is not really comfortable enough to afford me for another ticket, I am a spendthrift.. So, Anyhow i dont care for the ticket money.. My parents must almost half their way back to my town from chennai.. I was thinking to call them soon and ask them to come back.. So many things were going in my mind you know.. I completely out of my enthuuu mood.. Then i was standing next to that immigration counter.. I told him everything is in my check In and if u want i can show you.. Then he asked me to go and meet some head of the immigration dept there.. I went to him and explained and told that i am a VIT student.. He was like " oh..! You are from VIT.. Wow..". I am thanking my chancellor M.Viswanathan for getting such a good reputation for that college. He said like " NO problem". Then I went back to that Tamil guy and he is like "No way...". His ego is badly hurted by that Head fellow. The nervousness is getting peaked inside me.. Guess what.. they r giving last call for my flight.. "Flight NO. EK543, it is our last request for the passengers to board on to the craft". It was 3.3o, the head walked all the way to the counter and he requested him. His ego was calmed a bit and allowed me to go. Then i went upstairs and walked all the way till security check and i realised that i lost my wallet some where.. Suddenly i realised that i forgot there in that immigration counter.. Mannn.... such a loser I am.. I ran back again, i dont know this arrogant tamil guy is so sweet to me suddenly, he handed me back my purse and asked me to check it for twice and then i left.. I am the last person to board into the flight. It is a memorable one..

This is flight from Chennai to Dubai and i have to get into connecting flight from Dubai to Paaaaaaris......... Lots of Indians go to Dubai for construction worker jobs. My first emirates flight consists of ppl who belongs to such kind of genre.. The guy sitting next to me was almost 19 yrs old and he is also one such kind of guy.. I do have dignity for every humanbeing. So, I am alright with this guy sitting next to me. I was thinking about his lyf suddenly.. I am trying to imagine myself in his position.. There is a screen and phone back to every seat infront of us. This guy took the phone and tried to call some no. It didnt connect. He asked me to show him, how he can make a call...?  I told him honestly in tamil, it is my first flight journey and i have to figure it out.. He smiled and then he started beating the phone to the floor.. he almost spoiled tht receiver.. I couldnt stop him, later he is pressing all the buttons on the receiver with different permutations and combinations.. Anyways if the sole purpose of that entertainment system on the emirates flight is to entertain you... This guy is getting it.. He is enjoying with that phone.. so, I closed my eyes and slept.. Some one woke me up for breakfast and i had it.. They kept lot of things, i dont know how to handle all of them. But i just had fruits and bun and again i slept. Few minutes later i landed in dubai. Then i got into my other flight to paris. It was a smooth transition. This time i am the first guy to reach my terminal. I am waiting there for almost like an hour before the time of departure of my flight.. This flight journey was good. It is seven and half hour flight and entertainment system is really entertaining me with hundreds of movies, documentaries, music and TV shows.. The best part in international flight is, You can boose for free.. I asked them everytime, get me the best scotch you can get.. Get me the best red wine u can get.. Get me the best champagne you can get.. Then they replied" sorry sir, You have to pay for champagne in economy class".. then i told best scotch is fine for me...

I wanna literally dance in the flight.. Because i was drunk, watching nice oscar winners, my first flight, on my way to france... what else do i need man...? I went to rest room, even though it is a small place, i just danced for few seconds.. Again came out and pretending as usual as my mom gave birth to me in flight.. They are announcing to fasten the seat belt, we are almost in our destination.. My heart started pounding with joy because i gonna meet kk and challa, but then i am again nervous whether these immigration ppl gonna trouble me someway here.. it is natural to get nervous because after all when our own desi immigration guy created such a hassle for me, why not this france immigration ppl...

1.Six beautiful months of my lyf........

Genesis of this thought to explore some other part on the Globe started in March 2007. My Inquisitiveness and venturesome nature were obsessing me to the core. One precious gift given to all of us by two stanford graduates to satiate such kind of obsessed inquiries is the most widely used web search Engine "Google". I started googling for different opportunities in Europe and USA for my final semester Project work which should be done during DEC07 to MAY08. Then i stepped into my International Relations Office. I came to know that there are plentiful of universities in Europe signed MOUs with my university. At very next moment, i was just going through the websites of those universities and dreaming myself there. It is definitely fantasy for anyone who brought up in a hinterland in southern India to dream about his stay in a foreign country.

Things were not going that fast on my side. Everyone else in my dept almost started their projects. I am still waiting for my offer to come. All of a sudden, one day, My friend Tanish and me got a confirmation from Prof. Mark from the university UTC in compiegne, 85 kms from Paris.

Its awesome, isn't it...? Paris.....? Only thing i know about Paris is Eiffel Tower.. I saw it first time in a southern Indian movie called "Jeans". I swear until an year before i am going to France, i dont know that Paris is capital of France.. I got caught red handedly in front of my frns one day when we were discussing something.. I suddenly asked how far is paris from France...? You got me right...? But i am very happy that I got a  chance to know about this thing atleast before i complete my 21 years.. You see, such an optimist I am.....!!!!

I got my visa on dec 26 2007 and booked my ticket from Chennai to paris for dec29 night. I planned my New year infront of Eiffel Tower with two other friends of mine Kashik, sankar.. We call them KK and Challa.. 

We are almost 25 guys in V in VIT.. V stands for VULTURES. Our address is 13D AndalNagar, Katpadi, Vellore. Our properties includes 10 byks, 3 rented homes. We named them as 13D, pink house and Green house. We never propogated our brand name publicly. But inside all of us, we do have a feel of V. we always had unlimited fun. By the time, it was december, our night boose parties were slowly getting emotional. Because, we were about to finish our lease contract of 13D by december 2007. Everyone started realising that it is almost end of the HAPPY DAYS of our lyf. Some of us were almost shedding tears at the end of those boose parties. Our boose parties starts with a circle of people sitting up on the terrace in the open air, it starts with drinks,snacks and good back ground music from one of our lappys.. First hour it will be like mocking some one and having fun.. Then everyone slowly starts dancing and obviously the end will come when someone starts puking.. The headcount in this parties were never less than 15. The reason why i am mentioning this is, I almost encouraged everyone to go abroad for the project work. Atlast we were four ppl ended in europe.. Thats kk,challa, and me in France. The fourth one ended in Slovenia. He is conspicuous, elegant, brainee, even supposed to be most affluent among us, I guess. We call him Kills. He came to slovenia, which is next to Austria with other closest friend of us named Rahul.