North America at a Glance

Filed under: by: JhonP

A land of vast distances and rich natural resources, Canada became a self-governing dominion in 1867 while retaining ties to the British crown. Economically and technologically the nation has improvements in health care and education services after a decade of budget cuts. The issue of reconciling Quebec's francophone heritage with the majority anglophone Canadian population has moved to the back burner in recent years; support for separatism abated after the Quebec government's referendum on independence failed to pass in October of 1995.

Britain's American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th centuries, 37 new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of overseas possessions. Thedeveloped in parallel with the US, its neighbor to the south across an unfortified border. Canada's paramount political problem is meeting public demands for quality two most traumatic experiences in the nation's history were the Civil War (1861-65) and the Great Depression of the 1930s. Buoyed by victories in World Wars I and II and the end of the Cold War in 1991, the US remains the world's most powerful nation state. The economy is marked by steady growth, low unemployment and inflation, and rapid advances in technology.

The site of advanced Amerindian civilizations, Mexico came under Spanish rule for three centuries before achieving independence early in the 19th century. A devaluation of the peso in late 1994 threw Mexico into economic turmoil, triggering the worst recession in over half a century. The nation continues to make an impressive recovery. Ongoing economic and social concerns include low real wages, underemployment for a large segment of the population, inequitable income distribution, and few advancement opportunities for the largely Amerindian population in the impoverished southern states. Elections held in July 2000 marked the first time since the 1910 Mexican Revolution that the opposition defeated the party in government, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). Vicente FOX of the National Action Party (PAN) was sworn in on 1 December 2000 as the first chief executive elected in free and fair elections.

Europe at Glance

Filed under: by: JhonP

The old world is really quite old. Every other town in Europe is packed with monuments dating back several centuries. Little Village were once the capitals of a kingdom. The countries are small, but most of them were once the center of an empire that embraced the whole world.

Travelling in Europe seems to be underestimated, especially by the younger generation and budget travelers. To say it clearly: Europe offers more than most other regions in the world. There is hardly anything that cannot be found in one of the megacities, like London, Paris, Rome or Berlin.

Southern Europe offers great beaches and "Dolce Vita": good food, good weather, beautiful people, charming towns and cities. It is hardly surprising that Portugal, Italy, Spain, Greece and France are always top of the bill when it comes to most popularholiday destinations

Since 1989 Central and Eastern Europe has become a very popular destination as well.

Magnificent cities such as praque , Minsk, Budapest, Belgrade, Ljubljana, Moscow, Yerevan and St_Petersburg all attract many visitors.

In the heart of Europe you'll find Germany , the most populated country of Western Europe. It has romantic castles, beautiful nature, fast paced life in big cities such as Munich, Cologne and Frankfurt and great highways.

South of Germany you find the Alps. Great for skiing, but Austria and Switzerland have a lot more to offer. Vienna, the capital of Austria, for example rates as one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

The North of Europe is not as cold as you might think. In summer cities like Copenhagen and Helsinki are among the most pleasant places to be. The people are easy going and very friendly and cultural life is rich.

The United Kingdom, Ireland, The Isle of Man and the Channel Islands have that special island mentality that keeps you coming back. The Celtic spirit is still very much part of life in Scotland, Ireland, The Isle of Man and in Cornwall whilst the spirit of the Druids is ever present in Wales. The Channel Islands reflect their proximity to and history with Normandy & Brittany although the culture and food tends to be very British.

Travel in Europe, especially in the rich North West, is not particularly rough or demanding, with the exception of the Belarus, Balkan, Russia and the Caucasus. In Western-Europe things are well taken care of, it is easy to get from A to B, but all this comfort has a drawback: you pay for it. However, despite the high price of Europe there are still many affordable ways of stockholm having a good time without breaking the bank. Take a train from Denmark to Switzerland for less then 25 Euro with the whole family for example. But at the same time hardly any region in the world is so easy to hitch-hike like Central Europe: with the help of Germany's highways you can make with a bit of luck 1'000km per day!