Postcard subgenre presentation

Dear Lisa,

I survived my sailing trip around the world and I am so glad to be home again. It was thrilling, but I encountered so many dangers that this was a once in a lifetime experience. I tried to write my own travel story like Captain Joshua Slocum did and I hope it will be published very soon.

En route I met two girls Lonneke and Rosalie and they were reading very interesting books; “In the merde of love”, “Talk to the snail” and “An Englishman amoureux”. The central theme in all books are the cultural differences between the British and the French. They told me that those books were also examples of travel stories and I was surprised to hear that. I presumed that my story about true survival on sea was the way a travel story ought to be, but there are different styles in the category travel writing I didn’t know about.

I think it is a wonderful idea for my next journey to write a witty story and to create a little humor, because that is something I wouldn’t normally do. I always thought that a travel story had to contain practical and accurate information that is useful to the reader and that the writer has to put in some anecdotes, quotations or a good dialogue to express the experiences. I have never thought of writing a comical story. From this new point of view I will start my next story with a lively and fun tone and add more comical events.

Love,
Julia

Postcard Barcelona

Dear Charlotte,

How are you? In a few weeks we will finally go to Barcelona. Are you excited to go as well? I read a very interesting article about Barcelona from Paul Goldberger. He is very enthusiastic about this city of charm. He mentions that Barcelona is a city where architecture and urbanism are one an that is what we are going to experience ourselves. So I have been thinking about the places and monuments and other sights of Barcelona.

I can’t wait to see some of the Gaudi architecture. I’m sure you’re pretty excited as well, because that’s the main reason to go there. The Sagrada Familia church was designed by Antoni Gaudi which I suppose you already knew, but did you know they never finished the project. Construction began in 1882 and it is scheduled to be completed in 2026. Unbelievable don’t you think? Another surprising fact of Gaudi is that he died because he was struck by a tram.

Besides all the Gaudi constructions there is more to see in Barcelona like the Arata Isozaki’s sport stadium and the Santiago Calatrava’s Communication Tower. They were both built for the Olympics in 1992.

We can also go to the nineteenth century section of the city calles L’Eixample. The designer, Ildefons Cerda, is not as celebrated as Gaudi, but it’s I think it's worth a visit. In this district the blocks are square, but they cut of parts of the blocks which gives weird shapes to the buildings. Sounds rather amusing don’t you think? I would love to go there during our trip.

Do you like art? I am fond of art so if you don’t mind I would love to go to at least one museum. The Picasso Museum and The Museum of Modern Art appear the most interesting to me.

I’m really looking forward going to Barcelona. I’m sure we will have a wonderful time and Like Paul Goldberger says: “The essential idea of Barcelona is that all of this beauty is to be used. This is not a city of charm; it has a deeper sort of grace, one that comes from understanding that the magnificence of the everyday is the most exalted thing of all.”

Love,
Julia

article: http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/places/places-of-a-lifetime/barcelona.html

Postcard Cambridge

Dear Esmee,

I went to Cambridge last Christmas with a friend and we had such a great time that we might go again next year. We both wanted to improve our English so we thought Cambridge is probably the place to be to work on our language skills. After all, Cambridge is the university town of England.

We loved spending our evenings in The Eagle which is one of the larger pubs in Cambridge. In this pub they serve Green King beers, but I have no idea what that is, because I don’t like beer. As you know I prefer to drink wine.

One day we decided to take the train to Yorkshire to a friend of mine. We were waiting for the bus, but after one hour we were still waiting. Perhaps this had something to do with Christmas? We decided to walk to the train station, but it started to rain so we sheltered in a beautiful church. The priest gave us an umbrella which was very generous of him. So we continued our journey and when we arrived at the station, there were no trains either. No public transportation during the Christmas holidays, that makes sense! We went to the police station to call our friend that we couldn’t come so he joined us in The Eagle.

We had such a wonderful time, but I would like to give you one piece of advice: never go to England during the Christmas holiday!

Love,
Julia

Postcard from Holland

Dear Simone,

Remember the summer of 2002 when we worked on a campsite in France? All the innocent French and Dutch children who ignore the language barrier and try to communicate in all sort of ways? The funniest moment was when a Dutch girl tried to ask a French girl if she wanted to go for a swim in the pool. With hand gestures she showed her she wanted to swim and the French girl nodded in agreement. The Dutch girl wanted to go to the swimming pool immediately so she asked her if she wanted to swim right now and used the Dutch word; ‘nu’. The French girl is completely shocked by her strange proposal to swim naked in the pool. She doesn’t realize that the word: ‘nu’ means ‘naked’ in French. It is hilarious to see how different meaning of words can cause miscommunication.

I just read a very amusing article about Kathleen O'grady, a Canadian Journeywoman, who experienced something similar. After a long day of conferencing she decided to watch television in her hotel room. Behind the counter was a 17 year old boy and he wanted to know what a middle-aged Canadian woman had to do in Nijmegen, so he started to chat with her. After a small talk she asked him: ‘so had it been a busy night?’ He didn’t understand her well so she rephrased her sentence: ‘so have you been busy tonight?’ He still didn’t understand it so she tried it another time, very slowly and with fewer words: “where … you …. busy ….tonight?” After that he looked shocked and he turned pink and he answered:” I just started work and I have to work all the night." Kathleen has no idea what he is talking about, but when she is up in her room she realizes that the key words: you busy tonight must have had a different meaning to this boy. Turned down by a 17-year-old she gave Canada a new reputation.

It is really interesting and comical to see how people can interpret words in different ways, don’t you think?

Love,
Julia

http://www.journeywoman.com/girltalk/holland/dutch_boy_man1.html

Postcard from Sicily

Dear Britta,

How are you? I’m writing this postcard from Sicily. Here I am, on Mount Etna and I am literally freezing. I totally forgot that it is much colder when you’re high on a mountain than when you’re in a village at the bottom. I’m sitting here in a small restaurant to write this postcard and to warm myself up with a lovely cup of tea. If you want to climb mount Etna in shorts you really should reconsider your trip.

Etna is actually the largest active volcano in Europe with a circumference of 140 kilometres and it is 3329 meters high. Did you know that Mount Etna is in an almost constant state of eruption? It’s fascinating and it’s pretty scary if you’re standing here and see smoke coming out of one of it’s highest craters. The land on Sicily is very fertile, because of the volcanic eruptions and it supports the agriculture, vineyards and fruit cultivation.

These are very interesting facts of course, but that doesn’t stop me from freezing here. You must be laughing while reading this. Well, I have another funny story for you. A few days ago I went on a boat trip and the colours of the sea were so beautiful so it was very tempting to jump into the blue water. Heroic as I am I dove into the water and I yelled at my sister to do the same thing. I felt that somebody or something was touching my ass. I turned around but I didn’t see anything even though I felt there was something tickling my buttock. The tickling became worse and suddenly it started to hurt really badly. I realized there was a jellyfish attached to my butt and I started to scream and to knock it off. All people on the boat thought it was very amusing, but they have no idea how painful it is. So never jump into the water before you checked the safety of it.

Well, I am all warmed up now, so I will continue hiking on mount Etna. See you in a few days.

Love,
Julia

Postcard from Paris

Toute seule à Paris

Paris is not only a great destination for couples, but it is also the place to meet new people for solo travellers.

We all know Paris is “la ville d’amour” the city of love. But according to Karen Fawcett, an American travel journalist, it is a great destination for everyone. Paris is full of surprises and even worth visiting for solo travellers.

There are many ways to meet new people in Paris, like at a cybercafé or a regular café, in the park, etcetera. If you want a chat you shouldn’t be too shy to strike up a conversation. Go to a café, take a coffee and you would be surprised of the number of French singles who envy to speak English. You might even make new acquaintances.

Another way to meet new people is by popping into a wine bar. Sipping a lovely red wine and sharing the taste preferences are good ways to meet new singles.

Boat rides and strolling through parks are more structured ways of meeting people. There are many walking tours for Anglophone visitors. If you want to meet cultural people you should join up an English-language guided museum tour.

Are you a bookworm and do you want to meet someone who is just as fond of books as you are, you should go to The American Library or to Shakespeare and co. On Tuesday nights and Sunday afternoons there are readings which are attractive to all sorts of people. It is definitely worth checking out!

If you are too afraid to encounter people and you’re not the kind of type heading off to Paris “tout seul” alone, it is always possible to start by chatting on the internet. And if you don’t, there is no need to worry. Paris is also worth visiting on your own.

So “allons-y à Paris” let’s go to Paris and enjoy the various delights of this city.

Julia

(used article: http://journeywoman.com/gfc/paris_solo.html)

Postcard from Sweden

Dear Jane,

I’m writing this digital postcard from a country where they say: hej hej. No, I didn’t forget to use my spell checker, it is Swedish for ‘hello’. We took the night boat to Göteborg and we had a prosperous trip. It doesn’t stop raining here in Sweden and I don’t mean a bit of drizzle, but it is raining cats and dogs.

We slept in a teepee tent for one night which was a lovely experience, but I won’t do it very soon again, because it is quite uncomfortable. The canoe trip was a disaster, because it rained and it rained (again) and there were also many high waves and lots of wind which made it impossible to go back to the shore. A very kind family invited us to stay in their son’s house. We really appreciated the invitation after all those wet days on the campsite.

We went to an auction and I wanted to buy a moose’s head, but Steph didn’t agree, because we didn’t have any space left in the car. I’m sure the auctioneer was disappointed, because who wants to buy a hideous head besides a tourist like me.

Well, tomorrow we will finally go back to Holland. Please, don’t tell me it is raining there too. I know you prefer a holiday without rain, so even though it’s a lovely country I strongly recommend you not to go to Sweden, it rains too much!

See you soon!

Julia

Postcard from Thailand

Dear Nicky,

How are you? I’m writing this postcard from Thailand. The culture is very different comparing to ours. If they want to cut the electricity they literally cut the wires which is really bizarre. The food is very spicy and I can’t get used to it so mostly I ask if they can prepare it less spicy.

Nearly 95% of the Thailand’s population is Buddhist therefore they meditate and make sacrifices. Did you know that every Thai man has to be a monk in his life for two weeks? I think it is a fascinating religion and I would love to be a monk for two weeks. If I was a monk, I would meditate for hours. I would also be walking around barefoot and live in the heart of Western Thailand next to the River Kwai and spend my days in the Wat Pa Luang Ta Bua Temple.

First thing to do in the morning after prayers and breakfast would be walking through the town and collect alms and food from the locals, because that is what Buddhist monks do in Thailand. But this temple is very special, it’s also called Tiger Temple and in this monastery the monks live with tigers. An orphaned tiger cub was brought to the temple years ago and the monks cared for her. After that people brought injured and orphaned cubs to this temple. Currently there are 34 tigers living there. They have respect for each other and they live in peace. I am sure this would be an amazing experience in one’s life. I really recommend you to visit the Tiger Temple when you will go to Thailand.

After visiting the temple we went to the North of the country for a jungle tour and it was lovely, but we didn’t even have a proper toilet which was awkward and we had to use water instead of toilet paper. At least they have bikes in Bangkok which made me feel at home again. Tomorrow we are going to experience the ultimate Thailand feeling; drinking beer on a sunny beach as you can see on the picture.

See you next week!

Love,
Julia

Postcard from Egypt

Dear Anna,

How are you? Guess where I am right now? I booked a last minute flight to Egypt. I thought I will send you a postcard to give you a little bit more information about Egypt, because you will go to Sharm el Sheik in one month. I am sure you will love it here; the warmth, the beautiful colours of the sea and the historical monuments and tombs.

In the airplane I read an interesting article called “What to Wear, where” about clothing tips in Egypt. If you want less hassle you have to wear long sleeved tops and long skirts and trousers. Well, you can imagine it is way too hot for that in Egypt, because it is about 45 degrees Celsius and the warmth is already killing me in bikini, so long sleeved t-shirts and trousers are more for the locals. They do not seem to have problems being completely covered in the burning sun. Well, for me it is too hot to handle so this tip is definitely not working for me.

The local dress code for women seems to be ‘no shorts’. You will be seen as wearing your underwear which I didn’t know of course. There are so many tourists here in Hurgada that it is not really conspicuous.
Topless sunbathing at hotels is forbidden, but don’t forget your bikini if you go to Egypt, because snorkelling and diving is absolutely fantastic here. The colours are very vivid and bright under the surface. There are various kind of fish and if you take some bread with you they come really close so you can take amazing pictures. You remember the movie “Finding Nemo”? Well, I have seen Nemo and his family.

You also have to visit the major attractions and must see sights such as Luxor and Karnak. The temples and tombs are so impressive with all the sculptured walls and ceilings. My favourite temple is the one of Hatshepsut, because of the symmetry of the building and the amazingly well preserved hieroglyphics. You really have to visit it, because it is so enormous and impressive I can’t even describe it.

I am afraid my holiday is over, but I will come back once more to visit Cairo! See you in a few days!

Love,
Julia

The secrets of Travel writing

Dear Lisa,

How are you? Are you already packing for your next trip? It must be really exciting to go backpacking in Asia. Which countries are you planning to visit? I know you will start in Malaysia, but I suppose you’re not going to spend all three months in one country. Are you not scared to go all by yourself? I would completely freak out, because of the scary stories that backpackers get robed and things like that. Besides I don’t think my mother would let me go, you know how she can make a big fuss of things.

In your last letter you told me you want to write a travel story when you are in Asia. I think that is a very good idea, because you are an excellent writer so why wouldn’t you give it a try. I read an interesting article called ‘The secrets of Travel writing’ by Peter Moore. There are some helpful tips in it if you want to become a travel writer, such as successful travel books are inspirational. Another good advice is that you have to write your story like you are telling it to a friend in the pub.

The third tip is that you have put a good dialogue in your story. Many people think that travel writing is about describing people and places. It will be easier to do this in a dialogue and it will give your story a more professional look. I am sure you are creative enough to make them up, but according to Peter Moore you’ll be surprised by the interesting things that people say.

The last tip I want to share with you is that you shouldn’t put too many details in your story, because it will make it very boring to read. If you spend five hours in a bus we don’t have to know how many birds and traffic lights you have seen during that specific trip, because we don’t care.

Don’t forget to scribble away all your amazing experiences. I am really looking forward to read your travel story. Enjoy your trip!

Love,
Julia