Welcome to our October 2011 Newsletter

This article starts by reflecting on the gregarious nature of mankind and our natural tendency towards curiosity and learning; we have a need to satisfy that curiosity; and we do this through learning and exploring; and exploring involves travel, be it next door, to other Provinces in Canada, across the Oceans or to a new travel frontier, outer space.

Travel; an integral part of human nature

In last month’s article I cited an extreme case of exploration: that of oceanographers’ research into the events of Earth’s past using the ocean’s floor as a repository. Through research, insights were developed into Earth’s evolution over millions of years, enabling predictions into its future. Research and exploration share a common ingredient; that of our need to belong to something. We “belong” to family, tribe, nations, interests, political parties, communities, ethnicity, associations or clubs. Combining this sense of belonging with our innate curiosity has driven us to explore ... and travel ... from the beginning of time. Some Canadians travel to find out more about themselves; they are drawn to their families’ roots, most times abroad. Others, like the oceanographers above, seek information, and yet others are driven by curiosity to exotic destinations such as the Far East, regions in the southern hemisphere, or just pristine beach resorts anywhere. We at Clarkson have taken these aspects, our curiosity, our passions, and our sense of belonging as the core criteria for developing our group travel programmes.

Change is constant

Straights of Magellan as a reference point

In January this year, Zaneta and I sailed through the Straights of Magellan at the bottom of South America. Prior to Magellan’s discovery of this Inland Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific, ships made this journey by way of treacherous Cape Horn, oftentimes with disastrous results. As we sailed through the straights, we marvelled at the dexterity of the ship’s navigation, and thought of Magellan. When he traversed this inland route it was uncharted, he relied on wind-power, and his knowledge of the constellation. And Magellan likely took four to six months to arrive at the Atlantic side of the straights.

Key events; leading to feasibility of global travel

I suggest three past events that greatly contributed to dramatic improvement in the desire for travel and the speed of travel: (1) discovery the world was round, not flat, in Columbus’ time; (2) discovery of flight (Wright brothers) (3) the recent exploration of space. (There were other events and discoveries that are not dealt with in this article; such as Marconi’s wireless, and chip technology. Space technology gave us GPS’s in cars which are so effective many consider them essential and some of us have already lost our ability to navigate from maps! And similarly, captains of ships benefit from these technological advances.)

Group Tours at Clarkson

Group tours at Clarkson offer a promise of travel with like-minded travelers, the start of new friendships, learning from guides, and amazement at the ingenuity and resourcefulness of generations long past. One oftentimes observes Maslow’s theory at play; for example, systems and inventions developed in medieval times for safety and survival such as fire lookouts and protection against floods; or levels of self-actualization achieved as evidenced by elegant, immense and elaborate building structures.

Music and cultural events: desirable content of our group tours

Our working relationship with the New Classical 96.3FM radio station is not accidental as we are ardent lovers of music. Whenever we can, we include a musical component in our group travel. Most times, we include performances at historic venues such as State Opera Houses or at festive events featuring folkloric performances.  All our group travel packages, including their day to day itinerary and prices can be viewed at www.clarksontours.ca . While you’re on the website, have a look at our Special Offers for individual travel.

We benefit from escorting you, our fellow traveler, on these voyages. By escorting, we benefit by keeping up to date with destinations, observing attention to detail, and facilitates our understanding of your feedback and suggestions; many of which we implement.

Groups to be escorted by Zaneta and Joe

Zaneta and I are escorting two musical voyages in 2012, and in addition two “destination” experiences. The musical voyages feature onboard and onshore performances and are:

·         March 31, 2012, “Classical Music Delights on the Danube” accompanied by Bill Anderson on Lueftner Cruises’ ms Royal. We start in Ljubljana, Slovenia and end in Prague, Czech Republic. CLICK HERE to view Bill's video.

·         September 15, 2012, “Iberian Interlude” from London (Southampton) to Barcelona on Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ Voyager. This is our annual opera cruise with Regent Seven Seas.

“Destination” experiences, to explore, learn and understand the history and culture of places visited are:

·         February 14, 2012, “Australia and New Zealand” starting in Cairns, Australia; ending in Auckland, New Zealand. Your bookings will not be wait-listed; we have cabins on reserve.
      September 12, 2012, "Enchanting Rhine with Floriade" hosted by Denis Flanagan of Landscape Ontario.
      November 2, 2012, “Deluxe Orient Experience” from Bangkok to Singapore by train; then four nights in Bali and two nights in Hong Kong. We have added this new destination.

Groups to be escorted by Natalia, Tal or Victoria

Mairead Dickenson will be leaving our employ to spend more time at her Florida home and travel.  Natalia Katrenyuk has joined us and will assume Mairead’s portfolio with support and guidance of all staff including Mairead. Natalia is widely traveled and possesses over seven years of travel consultancy and tour leadership experience. Here are Natalia’s, Tal’s, and Victoria’s escorted picks:

·         May 6: “Greek Glory” from Venice to Istanbul on Oceania Cruises (Victoria)

·         May 13: “Romantic Danube” from Prague to Budapest on AMA Waterways (Tal)

·         June 11: “Russian Waterways” from Moscow to St. Petersburg (Natalia)

·         July 18: “Alaskan Wonders” from Anchorage to Vancouver on Regent Seven Seas Cruises (Victoria)

·         September 29: “Magnificent Europe” from Amsterdam to Budapest on AMA Waterways (Tal)

Groups departed this month / now on tour

On September 16^th, we wished “Bon Voyage” to our “Magnificent Europe” group; this is one of Europe’s most popular river cruise tours; all fourteen days are on board, and it is truly a floating hotel experience! It sails from Amsterdam up the Rhine, crosses the Continental Divide, then continues down the Danube to Budapest.

On September 27^th, Zaneta and I will travel with Marilyn Lightstone on “Magical Mediterranean Memories”. This voyage with onboard opera performances sails from Venice to Monte Carlo on Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ Voyager – the “It’s all included!” cruise line.

On October 10^th our China tour with Jean Stilwell of 96.3FM departs. Our guests will come away from China with a good appreciation of that country’s traditions, customs and decorum. In this combined land and cruise tour, the group will see places such as: Beijing, Chongqing, Shanghai, Guilin, Hong Kong and more; also the Great Wall, Forbidden City, Terra Cotta Warriors, and the Three-Gorges Dam, to name a few.

In-store events

You can register your attendance at any event that interests you by clicking on the event you wish to attend on our “Calendar of Events” page on our website.  We invite you to the following events:

Date	Starts at	Event
Oct 15, 2011	15:00	River Cruise Presentation; a review of river cruising today and cruise lines by Joe Rochemont	Confirm your attendance
Oct 19, 2011	16:00	Magnificent Europe Reunion	Confirm your attendance
Oct 22, 2011	15:00	Magical Maritime Memories Reunion Event; Marilyn Lightstone host	Confirm your attendance

About our “Refer a friend” program

We invite you to take advantage of our referral offer. Refer a friend, have your friend book and earn CAD 150 bonus on your booking.

Why Cruise Holidays of Clarkson

Cruise Holidays of Clarkson is an independently owned travel agency specializing in group and individual leisure travel services. Our business relies heavily on word of mouth and the promise of a lifetime travel experience.

We consider it important to understand our clients’ travel dreams, preferences, and needs, to keep abreast of travel trends, opportunities, and geopolitics, and to deliver travel services aligned with expectations.

We are part of the Travel Leaders Group franchised operation and benefit from the scale of that operation when dealing with suppliers. This positions us to provide significant value to our clients.

Cruise Holidays of Clarkson is a member of Cruise Holidays’ President’s Circle (2009 and 2010) and recipient of Royal Bank Insurance’s award for quality business.

For more information on group travel, see www.clarksontours,ca; for individual travel see www.clarksontravel.ca ; or call 905 855 1700 or email info@clarksontravel.ca . Or better yet, drop in at our store located at 1739 Lakeshore Road West, Mississauga ON L5J 1J4; we have ample parking at back.