TRAVELLIVE 04-2016
Istanbul, the first days of spring… I’m warming myself in the sun on a café’s balcony in the Old Town. The sunbeams are as stunning as the fine strands of newly reeled silk. Meanwhile the old oak trees give their morning greeting to the glossy stone road as their red-brown leaves gently fall. The Old Town is still half-asleep, like a lazy girl who’s turned off her alarm after ringing the first time. Sunlight visits each street, dancing happily on passers-by’s shoulders, making the atmosphere more intimate to me – the traveler’s first time here. I feel more amorous in Istanbul. I’m enchanted by everything, from sweet lokum to the light sour ice-cream with ground ice on top, or from the gorgeous domes of hundreds of mosques and palaces to their uniquely designed windows, and from the discreet eyes of Muslim girls to the multitude of boards and posters with the images of Besiktas – the city’s legendary football team. I have fallen in love with Bosphorus Bay since the first time seeing the seagulls hovering in the open sky, creating invisible strings that connect the two continents – Asia and Europe. The clear blue sky is reflected on the deep blue sea, giving me tranquility. I drop my last Lira into the water of the Bosphorus, not to make a wish, but in hopes that they will preserve my memories here. And somehow, the water currents might bring them somewhere else to be found by me again, or might accidentally be stumbled upon by a boy who is playing with sand on a sunny beach. Tomorrow, I will go to Grand Bazzar, buy some postcards, and write something to leave beneath the sun near a mosque before sending them to some friends of mine. I do hope that these postcards, together with the coins, will inspire and attract more visitors to this land. Uhm… will you come there?
Istanbul, the first days of spring…
I’m warming myself in the sun on a café’s balcony in the Old Town. The sunbeams are as stunning as the fine strands of newly reeled silk. Meanwhile the old oak trees give their morning greeting to the glossy stone road as their red-brown leaves gently fall. The Old Town is still half-asleep, like a lazy girl who’s turned off her alarm after ringing the first time. Sunlight visits each street, dancing happily on passers-by’s shoulders, making the atmosphere more intimate to me – the traveler’s first time here.
I feel more amorous in Istanbul. I’m enchanted by everything, from sweet lokum to the light sour ice-cream with ground ice on top, or from the gorgeous domes of hundreds of mosques and palaces to their uniquely designed windows, and from the discreet eyes of Muslim girls to the multitude of boards and posters with the images of Besiktas – the city’s legendary football team.
I have fallen in love with Bosphorus Bay since the first time seeing the seagulls hovering in the open sky, creating invisible strings that connect the two continents – Asia and Europe. The clear blue sky is reflected on the deep blue sea, giving me tranquility. I drop my last Lira into the water of the Bosphorus, not to make a wish, but in hopes that they will preserve my memories here. And somehow, the water currents might bring them somewhere else to be found by me again, or might accidentally be stumbled upon by a boy who is playing with sand on a sunny beach.
Tomorrow, I will go to Grand Bazzar, buy some postcards, and write something to leave beneath the sun near a mosque before sending them to some friends of mine. I do hope that these postcards, together with the coins, will inspire and attract more visitors to this land. Uhm… will you come there?
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GENERAL NEWS<br />
MALAYSIA<br />
Singapore and Thailand are<br />
quite familiar to Vietnamese<br />
visitors and other nationalities<br />
in Southeast Asia for medical<br />
tourism; however, Malaysia<br />
is also investing much in this<br />
field. Penang Island (Northwest<br />
Malaysia) is considered the<br />
"locomotive" for the strategic<br />
development of Malaysian<br />
medical tourism. In 2015,<br />
Malaysia welcomed more than<br />
880,000 visitors travelling for<br />
medical care across the country,<br />
with the revenue of RM 730<br />
million. Penang island authorities<br />
are promoting its medical<br />
tourism to new markets such as<br />
Vietnam.<br />
TUI NORDIC (SWEDEN)<br />
TUI Nordic has launched a<br />
direct route from Stockholm<br />
(Sweden) to Phu Quoc with<br />
the first 299 passengers. There<br />
were three more direct flights<br />
in March and there will be 1<br />
direct flight per week from<br />
December <strong>2016</strong> to April 2017.<br />
Phu Quoc Airport said that the<br />
direct route will contribute to<br />
developing tourism in Phu Quoc<br />
and meet the increasing demand<br />
of Swedish visitors to the island.<br />
The 30-day visa exemption for<br />
foreign tourists to the island has<br />
also attracted more and more<br />
visitors to Phu Quoc in the last<br />
2 years.<br />
HUE<br />
Pilots and balloonists from<br />
Thailand, the Netherlands,<br />
Malaysia, Switzerland, the<br />
Republic of Korea, the United<br />
States and the Philippines will<br />
participate in The International<br />
Hot Air Balloon Festival <strong>2016</strong> to<br />
be organized in Thua Thien-Hue<br />
on May 4 th and 5 th . Coming to<br />
the festival, visitors can see<br />
hot air balloons flying within<br />
10km from the lauchpoint at an<br />
altitude of 300-500m. There will<br />
also be mini balloons and lights<br />
anchored to the groundat an<br />
altitude of 30-50m.<br />
NOI BAI INTERNATIONAL<br />
AIRPORT<br />
Noi Bai International Airport<br />
was named in the list of<br />
world's 100 best airports by<br />
Skytrax - the world’s most<br />
prestigious Air Travel Review<br />
and Airline Ratings website.<br />
Noi Bai ranked 80 th , gaining 136<br />
spots from last year (No.218 in<br />
2015). The airport was judged<br />
the World's Most Improved<br />
Airport thanks to the advances<br />
it has made in service quality<br />
in recent years. The Skytrax<br />
World Airport Awards are the<br />
most prestigious in the airport<br />
industry. Travelers from across<br />
the globe take part each year<br />
in the world's largest airline<br />
passenger satisfaction survey to<br />
decide the award winners. The<br />
survey ran from June 2015 to<br />
February <strong>2016</strong>, covering 550<br />
airports worldwide. The award<br />
can be considered a "certificate"<br />
for quality.<br />
HOI AN<br />
Hoi An has tested its first public<br />
bus route around the city. This<br />
bus route (about 10km) runs<br />
through some notable sites<br />
such as the Tra Que vegetable<br />
village, An Bang beach, Cua Dai<br />
beach and past 7 schools. The<br />
bus makes 53 trips from 8am<br />
to 9pm. It takes 50 minutes<br />
to finish a trip, including 23<br />
minutes in motion and 30<br />
minutes picking up passengers<br />
at the 10 stops. The project is<br />
implemented by Hoi An and the<br />
Action for Urban Development<br />
Centre sponsored by the Japan<br />
Fund for Global Environment.<br />
QUANG TRI<br />
Those who previously wanted to<br />
visit Con Co Island had to hire<br />
a fishing boat, but Quang Tri has<br />
chartered a private agency to<br />
open a route connecting Con<br />
Co Island with the mainland.<br />
The tour was launched in early<br />
April. There are two tours<br />
each week with package prices<br />
at VND700,000/guest for a<br />
one-day tour or VND1,000,000/<br />
guest if staying overnight. The<br />
ship takes about 2 hours to<br />
reach the island. Visitors to Con<br />
Co Island can trek in a primary<br />
forest, sightsee at the light<br />
house, go diving in a coral reef,<br />
and go fishing near the beach or<br />
on a boat in the evening.<br />
HCMC<br />
Southern Airports Services Joint<br />
Stock Company has cooperated<br />
with the Ho Chi Minh City<br />
Department of Transportation<br />
to introduce high-quality buses<br />
(No.109) running a route from<br />
Tan Son Nhat Airport to the<br />
centre of Ho Chi Minh City.<br />
Buses on the 45 minute route<br />
operate between 05:30 am<br />
and 01:30 am at 15-20 minute<br />
intervals. Trips of less than 5<br />
km are priced at VND12,000<br />
while those over 5 km cost<br />
VND20,000. The buses have<br />
modern designs and a capacity of<br />
70 passengers each and conform<br />
to Euro II emissions and safety<br />
standards for passengers.<br />
PREMIER VILLAGE DANANG<br />
The Premier Village Danang<br />
Resort has been listed by<br />
TripAdvisor as one of the best<br />
family hotels and resorts in<br />
Vietnam. The award is based<br />
on the votes and reviews of<br />
travelers from around the<br />
world. The Premier Village<br />
Danang Resort features 118<br />
5-star seaside villas with<br />
luxurious services that meet<br />
international standards.<br />
The resort is professionally<br />
managed by Accor Hotels, the<br />
world's leading hotel managing<br />
corporation.<br />
BANGKOK, THAILAND<br />
Thailand,s first electric bus in Bangkok has<br />
begun its trial run between Don Mueang<br />
Airport and Mo Chit bus terminal. The bus<br />
is 12 meters long and has 35 seats.<br />
It has on-board WiFi and is also wheelchair<br />
accessible. Each bus is equipped with a<br />
324kWh battery pack which can run up<br />
to 250km and can be fully charged within<br />
5 hours. Moreover, there is GPS so<br />
passengers can know exactly their current<br />
position. If the three-month trial run is<br />
successful, 20 more electric buses will be<br />
bought in May. The city is making an effort<br />
to replace the old diesel and gas buses to<br />
reduce pollution.<br />
Updated information about new<br />
flight routes, culture programs,<br />
tourism policies, ranking &<br />
awards... in Vietnam and other<br />
countries<br />
VIETJET AIR<br />
Vietjet Air has announced a new international route connecting Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) with Kuala Lumpur<br />
(Malaysia) from June 1 st , <strong>2016</strong> to better meet the increasing travel demand of tourists and business people. The<br />
HCMC - Kuala Lumpur route will operate on a daily basis, taking one hour 55 minutes per leg. Accordingly, flights<br />
take off from Ho Chi Minh City at 9:30 and arrive in Kuala Lumpur at 12:25 (local time). The return flights will<br />
depart at 13:00 (for take-off) and land at 13:55 (local time). Tickets can be booked at www.vietjetair.com or at<br />
www.facebook.com/vietjetvietnam, and at nationwide agencies with the promotion "It's 12, let's Vietjet".<br />
<strong>TRAVELLIVE</strong> 139
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