Backpack Network - Official Newsletter
America, Volume 1, Edition 1

Dear Travellers,
Greetings and welcome to our first America newsletter. We've tried to cover a sample of the length and breadth of both North and South America but we do need some help. Please send in your tales and experiences of travel in this part of the world or tell us what you'd like to hear. We hope you will also encourage your travelling friends to also join up and get some useful tips for travels in the new year.

In this edition we detail:
- accomodation reviews
- tales and expeditions
- destination ideas
- language tips
- plan your trip
- food guide: Cajun food
- upcoming festivals
- jobs + useful links
- helpful travel websites

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ACCOMODATION REVIEWS
Thanks to all readers who have sent in recent reviews particularly Victoria Stafford and Chris Van Eynde (Australia) from their travels. Here are the latest hostel reviews from our sites:

The Braxton Hotel (Washington, USA)
by Victoria Stafford
This is the worst hotel I ever stayed at in my life. The room was tiny and dirty, the paint was peeling, the mattress was sagging and stained, and the bedding torn. The windows were nailed shut, and there were crackheads all over the hallways. As soon as we saw the room we tried to get a refund, but the front desk refused. Not wanting to throw away $60, we slept - in our clothes, but we woke up in the middle of the night itching and scratching. We left at 5 a.m (Victoria Stafford).

YMCA (Montreal, Canada)
by Chris Van Eynde (Australia)
We stayed at the YMCA in the city. Cost us a hefty $65 but it was worth it on this night (St John Baptiste Day).

We welcome all accomodation reviews. To read or add them go to:
Worldwide Reviews


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TALES AND EXPEDITIONS

Canyon de Colca, Peru
Australian Lani Evans recently hiked through Peru and visited this canyon though to be the deepest in the world. The expedition did not quite go as planned. To read the story click here .

Los Angeles, USA
Australian film and tv student Martha Goddard spent 6 months on scholarship in Los Angeles and describes her experiences including work on the set of "Friends". To read the story click here .

If you have a recent tale (and pics) that you would like to share please email us at editor@backpackglobe.com

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DESTINATION IDEAS
Featured here are some ideas for you to consider this year in your travels from our travellers:

Montreal, Canada
by Chris Van Eynde, Australia
While in Ontario you have to drive up to Montreal in the month of early July for St John Baptiste Day, I can't remember the exact date. Anyway when we got to Montreal, it is the French speaking capital of Canada, it was St John Baptiste Day, and it is very patriotic. You have to understand the relationship between the French and the English to understand the tension within Canada itself. We stayed at the YMCA in the city. Cost us a hefty $65 but it was worth it on this night. Anyway about 8pm there is a huge parade celebrating the French independency and fireworks and millions of gallons of beer and French music and cheering and dancing. Every pub is packed to the brim, every nightclub is pumping with 1km lines outside, every strip club is free entry and there are so many people on the streets hugging and drunk and singing it is unbelievable. Just one word of warning! No one speaks English and you probably don't want to unless you want to get into a fight. But it is so much fun.

Alaska, USA
by Nancy McClary-Callan (USA)
Alaska was absolutely fantastic. Incredible beyond words! I have been a lot of places and have never seen such natural beauty. I flew to Anchorage to meet the group the last week of June. The trip was an Outward Bound course, so there were nine of us students and three instructors. I was the oldest one in the group; almost everyone else was a college student in their early 20s. The instructors were older, experienced outdoor educators, and as I found out over the summer, really amazing people. To read on click here .


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LANGUAGE TIPS

In America and Canada the official language is English although you will find other languages spoken in multi ethnic parts. In Montreal (Canada) you may hear more French. In southern parts of the country near the Mexico border Spanish may be more common.

In South America every nation except Brazil speaks Spanish with varying accents and local varieties. In Brazil Portugese is spoken.

Useful language websites:
Travlang.com - Spanish, Portugese, French, Arabic and African languages
BugEurope.com - Spanish, French, Portugese and a language converter


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PLAN YOUR TRIP
America is a huge continent and climatic changes are different in each country. But here's an idea so you can plan ahead. Please contact us at info@backpackglobe.com if you have any unanswered questions.

Packing
You can and will find every item you need throughout the continent unless of course your mountain climbing in Alaska or living with Eskimos in Canada. If you require specialty items purchase these before you leave and take them with you. Have a look at our packing guide for more ideas.

When to Go
This depends largely on what you wish to do when you're on the American continent. In the winter you might like to ski and take advantage of the snow conditions, or alternatively head to the southern parts of the USA for a milder climate and great jazz in New Orleans in February. Remember that South America is below the equator and the seasons are the opposite.

Length of Time
We generally recommend you spend about one month in every country to give you time to appreciate the vastness of the land, culture, food and people. However if you have less time then try and spend more time in fewer places.

Climate
To adequately prepare for packing you should check the weather conditions before you go. Climates will vary dramatically throughout the USA, Canada and Central and South America. Canada and Alaska have particularly cold winters as do some parts of the USA. Only in southern regions like Florida is the winter mild. Central America enjoys a fairly temperate climate year round. South America temperatures vary from region to region depending on the altitude and geography. Try a weather site for more detailed info on seasons and weather predictions.

Book Tours
Many companies now offer tours that are suitable even for those who prefer to be a little more independent. We have a number of partners we work with that you can research with and book online. Try some of these links:
Hostelworld.com - worldwide tours
Info Hub Specialty Travel Guide - specialty tours
City Tours - specific city tours

Cheap Flights
Travelnow.com

Accomodation
Options for accomodation throughout New Zealand and Australia are numerous. The backpacking scene is well developed and many consider the OZ/NZ hostels as the industry standard. Bed and breakfasts, vacation homes and quality apartments are also available. If you want to book online we have a booking engine built into every page of our websites. Search through it via city and date to see a selection of guesthouses, camp grounds, hostels, bed and breakfasts and hotels available.
Hostelworld.com - hostels, hotels, camping grounds, bed and breakfasts etc
Travelnow.com - discount hotels
Travelnow.com - vacation homes

Travel Consultancy
If you can not find what you are looking for we do offer a consultancy service to help you choose specific types of establishments. We can find something that caters specifically for your needs. Contact us for more information info@backpackglobe.com

Ask Us
If we have not answered any of your questions or you need specific advice feel free to contact us at info@backpackglobe.com

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FOOD GUIDE: CAJUN COUNTRY
Mark Twain wrote "New Orleans food is as delicious as the less criminal forms of sin" in 1884. Not much has changed and we are happy to tempt you here with the Creole cuisine of New Orleans and the Cajun food of Acadiana although it is not the most health conscious food. The region that incorporates Creole and Cajun cuisine is Louisiana.

Major Ingredients
Roux - a mixture of flour and fat (butter or oil) generally 1:1
This is the basis of many Louisiana dishes like gumbo, etouffees, sauce piquantes etc. There are a number of types of roux including light or "blond", medium or "peanut butter", dark and white. It is used to thicken and flavour dishes as some roux have a roasted nut flavour.
Crawfish - or crayfish/shrimp
Andouille - a spicy Louisiana smoked pork sausage.
Creole hot sausage - if you can't mail order from Lousiana outlets then regular pork sausage will need to suffice.
Tasso - lean pork butt used as seasoning meat. Smoked ham is similar.
Cane syrup - this is used locally instead of maple syrup
Cayenne pepper - often used with white pepper and freshly ground black pepper
Creole mustard - a local mustard that is thick, pungent and spicy. The mustard seeds are marinated before preparation. Substitute whole seed Dijon mustard.
Filè powder - made from dried and ground sassafras leaf for thickening gumbo
Tabasco and hot sauces - essential for cooking.

Popular Dishes
Dirty rice - pan-fried leftover cooked rice sauteed with green peppers, onion, celery, stock, liver, giblets etc.
Gumbo - thick soup prepared with seafood or game, spices, vegetable and served over rice. It is thickened with filè or okra
Hushpuppies - cornbread mixture fried in balls
Grits - coarsely ground wheat or corn, cooked down in water and served with salt and butter
Jambalaya - a spicy rice based one-pot meal that combines seafood, meats and vegetables
Muffuletta - large sandwhich made of thick layers of different Italian meats, cheeses and olive salad.
Po-Boy - sandwhich made with French bread and filled with fried seafoods, roast beef and gravy, pork, or meatballs
Beignets (Creole Doughnuts) - a fried pastry like a doughtnut without the hole and more square shaped served hot and sprinkled with powdered sugar
Cafe Brulot - after dinner hot coffee brewed with spices, orange peel and liqeurs.

You can get some good recipes online here:
Gumbo pages
Cajun World Recipes


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UPCOMING FESTIVALS
Here are some selected highlights from around the Americas. For more details email us at info@backpackglobe.com

April
8-27, Mexico City, (Mexico) Historic Center festival - cultural show with arts performances, art exhibits, food and other events.
2nd week of April - 1st week in May, Aguascalientes, (Mexico), San Marcos Fair - 3 weeks of bullfights, folkloric dancing, games, cockfights, cultural events and merrymaking.

May
10th, Sedona, Arizona, (USA), Faerieworlds Festival - music, art and imagination, a celebration of all things Faerie.
8-23, San Antonio, (USA), Tejano-Conjunto Music Festival - a blend of German polka and Northern Mexico's rancheros birthed the conjunto which is accompanied by dancing and festivities.

June
28-30, Manaus, Isle of Parintins (Brazil), Boi Bumba - celebration of the heart and soul of the Amazon. Boi Bumba is a style of music and dance that celebrates the history of the people of the region.
Late, Barlovento (Venezuela), Fiesta de San Juan Bautista - tambor drums beat relentlessly as people dance fueled by firewater and rum. Children are baptised during the festival with statues of the saint but the religion here is a mixture of Catholicism and African voodoo.

July
4, Phoenix (USA), Phoenix Festival - hippie based music rave festival
14, Montreal (Canada), St John Baptiste Day
2nd weekend, Pnedale, Wyoming (USA), Green River Rendevous - shows the history of the region.

August
Black Rock City, Nevada (USA), Burning Man - art festival held for one week with $100 entry fee but high quality art.
(Brazil), Carneval -
Flagstaff (USA), Nude Olympics


For more details go to some of these links:
Worldwide festivals
Festivals.com
2camels.com

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JOBS AND USEFUL JOB LINKS
Work Links
The EduFind ELT Job Centre - for teaching English Abroad - http://www.jobs.edufind.com
Working Abroad - http://www.workingabroad.com/
Teaching English as a Foreign Language - http://www.tefl.com/

Bulletin Boards
We regularly list new jobs on our bulletin boards. Check out the link below for details or to add your own bulletin:
Worldwide - http://www.backpackglobe.com/ask_bp_for/tbboard.asp

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HELPFUL TRAVEL WEBSITES

BackpackGlobe - independent global travel
Bolivian Geographic - travel stories, information and advice for Bolivia.
Hike More - hiking website for USA trails
South American Explorers - non-profit organisation featuring travel info for South and Central America.

If you have found an excellent travel website send us the link - editor@backpackglobe.com

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We hope you found our newsletter interesting and helpful. The next edition is due out in March 2004. If you would like to make any comments or see something different in the newsletter email us at editor@backpackglobe.com

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For more information on travelling around the globe check out our sites:
http://www.backpackitaly.com
http://www.backpackfrance.com
http://www.backpackspain.com
http://www.backpackglobe.com
http://www.backpackoceania.com - coming soon!

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