Do you know the world’s most popular travel destinations?

Do You Know? From: karlascottspeaker.blogspot.com

Where do the world’s travelers go most often? The country topping the list hosted 74.2 million tourists in 2009.

And the winners are:

#5 Italy

#4 China

#3 Spain

#2 USA (Spain and the USA vie for 2nd and third place a lot)


Drumroll………

#1 France

Guess who spends the most on travel??

82 million Germans spent $80 Billion last year. Americans ranked 2nd spending $73 billion.

Source: Bloomberg Business Week

Why Do the Roma Wander?

Because in the old days, they had to.

Here is interesting article written by By Juliet Lapidos (published in Slate) that answers the question: Why Do the Roma Wander?

Persecution, initially.

The Roma, also known as Gypsies (though this is a pejorative term), are associated with a peripatetic lifestyle.

The Roma originated in India but left the subcontinent in the 11th century, perhaps following Muslim invasions. From there, they crossed into the Byzantine Empire, and then up to southeastern Europe by about 1300. Generally speaking, xenophobia made it difficult for them to stop in any one place for very long, let alone establish permanent settlements. (Since it's thought that the Roma adhered to strict purity codes, they may also have been reluctant to mix with outsiders, making assimilation unwanted on both sides.) When the Roma arrived in Western Europe in the 15th century, local populations worried they were part of an Ottoman invasion (because of their dark skin color) and the German Reichstag of Freiberg declared them outlaws. Barred from purchasing land or joining guilds, the Roma had no choice but to move about.

Wandering became a way of life, and the Roma fit into the European economy by selling merchandise in rural areas distant from shops. Angus Fraser writes in The Gypsies that "they appeared as purveyors of gossip and news, sellers of cheap wares (often made by themselves) repairers of household goods, seasonal laborers (e.g. for haymaking, pea and fruit picking, hopping); or they could function as itinerant entertainers." With improved communication networks, the Roma continued to do seasonal work that required movement, replacing traditional caravans with trailers and campers. Some Roma now value the freedom of an itinerant lifestyle and consider it part of their culture.

Contrary to stereotype, however, wandering is no longer the default for the Roma. The communist regimes in Bulgaria and other eastern European countries forced the Roma to settle down, pushing them into segregated ghettos. Most Roma today are actually sedentary rather than peripatetic. There are no hard numbers Europe-wide, but it's thought that the vast majority live in apartments and houses. Many of the Roma who do move from country to country are merely participating in the economically motivated and widespread migration out of Eastern Europe.

English Is Challenging

Here is a thought provoking, fun, interactive exercise that demonstrates how challenging English can be. It is written by Mary Beth Marino, The Writing Editor.

It’s time for a good laugh! A belly shaking, rolling on the floor laugh…AND an English lesson to boot! My love affair with words was nourished by an email that was sent to me by a friend. It challenges the English language while giving a good laugh and marvels the astonishment about how things get to be what they are and why. Curious? Read on.

Can you read these right the first time?
1) The bandage was wound around the wound.
2) The farm was used to produce produce.
3) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
4) We must polish the Polish furniture.
5) He could lead if he would get the lead out.
6) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.
7) Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present.
8) A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum
9) When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.
10) I did not object to the object.
11) The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
12) There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.
13) They were too close to the door to close it
14) The buck does funny things when the does are present.
15) A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.
16) To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
17) The wind was too strong to wind the sail.
18) Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.
19) I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.
20) How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?