Tag: Africa

Visitors Medical Insurance

Foreign travel can be both exciting and challenging. Travel planning calls for a lot of thought and time. Often healthcare needs of travelers are overlooked. This oversight can turn an otherwise great trip into something out of a nightmare.

These are some important steps you must take before you undertake any travel:

1. See your primary care physician and discuss your needs during your foreign travel. Ensure everybody is current with immunizations. Many Asian and African nations demand proof or certificate of vaccination. These requirements can be obtained from your travel agent.

2. Study your current health insurance plan to determine if it offers adequate coverage overseas. If it is not clear check with your insurance company about what is covered and excluded during overseas travel.

3. If your current health plan doesn’t offer coverage for medical expenses and medical evacuation it is prudent to consider foreign visitor insurance. If your travels are short term then you can consider a visitor medical insurance policy. If you are out on a long trip spanning several years then you can consider a more comprehensive international health insurance plan offering regular pregnancy and preventive healthcare benefits.

The premium for the plan is influenced by your age, the type of benefits and the length of coverage. It is best to speak to an experienced visitors insurance professional. Ask the right questions and ensure you protect your most important asset – health.

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The World in One Country

Some have said that if you want to enjoy all of the pleasures and excitement of visiting every foreign port all around the world, just vacation in America because we have it all. And to be sure, you can literally experience almost any part of the world right here in the heart of the United States of America.

It makes sense that the cultures of dozens if not hundreds of countries have been recreated beautifully in the borders of The United States. After all, this country was comprised almost entirely of immigrants from every country across the globe. And as each new immigrant group made their home here in America, they found their countrymen so they could live near each other, if for no other reason than to hear their nature tongues spoken. And within those communities, the cultures of the old country were beautifully reproduced to make those immigrants get over a little of their homesickness for the familiar and for home.

The beautiful thing about life in America is that the different ethnic groups are not stingy about keeping others from other cultures from learning of their customs, tasting their foods, enjoying their music and really getting a good exposure to a culture that they would otherwise have to travel around the world to see. So in one country, often in one city and often within city blocks of one another, you can experience cultures as diverse and different from each other as night is from day.

In places that would seem unlikely, you can discover entire populations of Germans, the Polish, Bavarians and other ethnic groups from central Europe. And without much coaxing, they love to share their delightful foods, music and dance with you as well. So even if you are as English as tea or hail from far away Spain, Africa or the Middle East, you can take an evening, eat a bratwurst, enjoy a stout beer and for a little while, you too are just as German as anyone at that party.

The American melting pot surfaced a trait that seems to be common in most if not all of the ethnic populations around that world. And that is a very basic hospitality, openness to outsiders and excitement to share their cultural richness with anyone who wishes to join in. And the natural American trait of friendliness and hospitality to strangers assures that if you want to experience the world in one country, you can easily do that in this great country.

In many cities in our country, you can take an evening and seemingly leave this world behind and lounge in the exotic atmospheres of ancient china, Thailand, Persia or Tibet. The foods of these countries will delight your mouth and give your taste buds some exciting new adventures as well. And the ambiance and music that the natives who create these worlds for us transport us to their home lands just as magically as one of those special effects movies from Hollywood. So be sure to take the time to listen to the music, enjoy the dancing and really soak up the culture and atmosphere of the country of origin as you savor the delicacies of their foods as well.

When you go to traveling across America, be sure you take notice of areas of the country that have particularly strong communities from around the world. These local outposts of far away lands are usually excited to share with you their native customs. You may even walk out of that Pakistani area of Pittsburgh decked out in robes and a native headwear that you will enjoy lounging around in at home, remembering the many great experiences you had when you set out to enjoy the world in one country.

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Cajun Country

A little bit south of Shreveport Louisiana and a little bit east of Beaumont Texas, an area of this country that is one of the most mysterious and exotic places to explore exists and that is the home of the Cajuns in southern Louisiana. When one thinks of Cajun Country, you naturally start to think about New Orleans. And to be sure, that great city, despite the devastating damage done by the hurricane last year, is home to some of the richest Cajun culture of the area.

But New Orleans is not the only location you can become lost in the charms of this fascinating subset of American culture. The Cajun world is indeed a culture all its own. As you listen to the way the natives of this world talk, you will start to realize that somehow right here within the borders of the good old USA, a virtual other world has grown up and thrived for these many decades and centuries.

The history of the arrival of the Cajuns to southern Louisiana is a great American story that is seldom told or understood. But it all started in far away Canada when an influx of the French culture encountered discrimination and hostility in that northern part of the world. When the Canadian hosts proved to be most ungracious, these French immigrants were deported and their ships finally came to rest in the wild regions of southern Louisiana long before this area was civilized and organized into a state. Over the decades the combination of French, Creole, Spanish, and Indian and African culture resulted in this rich amalgam that we now know as Cajun.

The Cajun people will seem strange and peculiar to those of us used to what is normal to American standards. But let yourself be swept away to this exotic world right here in America and you too will find yourself slowly adapting to the Cajun lifestyle and point of view. You will find that the Cajun and Creole cultures are profoundly friendly and there is no day that is not a good day for a party in Cajun Country. In fact, Cajuns celebrate everything that is worth celebrating including funerals as they send off their dearly departed with a rousing jazz band and relatives laughing and making joy to the tune of When the Saints Go Marching In.

No review of the great things of the Cajun culture is complete without a mention of the great food. Get your tummy ready for some of the most exotic and stimulating foods you are ever likely to enjoy as you settle in to a local diner in the heart of southern Louisiana. The Gumbo and other uniquely Cajun dishes will sizzle the mouth and set your tummy to tingling as well. But dont panic when it seems your digestive system is on fire. When those potent spices take hold in your blood, you will enjoy the best night of sleep that you can remember.

You should come out of your sightseeing trip to Cajun country with a new sound in your ears as well because the Cajun beats are unlike anything you have ever heard before. It isnt country, it isnt blues, it isnt completely jazz and it isnt bluegrass. It is all of those things and so much more. So if you are pushing back from the table after a big helping of fried crawdad and alligator tail, if the locals ask you if you want to stay for the party, tell them yes so you can become immersed in the great Cajun music that can only be had here in Cajun country.

One of the great things about sightseeing in America is that every area of the country has its own unique flavor and culture for all of us to enjoy. And Louisiana certainly has one of the richest and most diverse cultures that has grown up in the swamps around Baton Rouge and New Orleans. Giving yourself to the chance to experience these rich cultures is just as broadening as travel to Europe, Asia or Africa. And its a whole lot closer.

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