Travel Like a Local – Ambassadors Around The World Offer Insider Travel Tips and Counter Common Cliches
NATURE-SEEKERS SHOULDN’T VISIT COSTA RICA WITHOUT CLIMBING “ARENAL VOLCANO” ADVISES AMBASSADOR ROMÁN MACAYA, BASED IN WASHINGTON DC. To eat like a Colombian, try “Bandeja Paisa or Ajiaco Santafereño” suggests Ambassador Juan José Quintana, based in The Hague. For something really special in Vietnam, travellers should “enjoy the art of water puppetry” at Hoan Kiem Lake as well as taking a trip to “Ha Long Bay, the Ti Top Island with amazing caves.” recommends Ambassador Kari Kahiluoto, based in Helsinki. AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS – Online travel specialists TravelBird has released a study containing travel recommendations and cultural insights from ambassadors around the world. TravelBird is constantly searching for the best insider tips to inspire their travellers and ensure that they see the very best of a destination. They decided to contact embassies for their opinions, because, as representors and promoters for their country, ambassadors are in a unique position to offer expert advice on everything their country has to offer. The project began by contacting embassies in over 50 countries around the world, asking ambassadors to answer two simple yet revealing questions about their homeland. Their answers offer cultural insights and unique insider tips on how to experience their country how locals do. The questions were as follows: If a person is visiting your country for 48 hours, where should they go? What should they see? What should they eat? Is there a common cliche about people in your country which you believe is misrepresentative or untrue?
“WHEN IT COMES TO TRAVEL ADVICE, THERE IS A WHOLE OCEAN OF INFORMATION AVAILABLE, PRIMARILY FROM FELLOW TRAVELLERS AND INDUSTRY EXPERTS. TO ENJOY A TRULY AUTHENTIC TRAVEL EXPERIENCE, TODAY’S TRAVELLERS SEEK INSIDER TIPS AND ADVICE FROM THOSE PEOPLE WHO KNOW THE DESTINATION BEST – LOCAL RESIDENTS.” SAYS FIONA VANDERBROECK, CHIEF TRAVELLER OFFICER AT TRAVELBIRD. “FROM EATING A PARRILLADA CHAPINA IN ANTIGUA GUATEMALA TO SWIMMING IN OSLO’S SORENGA SEAWATER POOL, THESE RARE INSIGHTS FROM INTERNATIONAL AMBASSADORS GIVE TRAVELLERS A TRULY UNIQUE PERSPECTIVE ON THEIR CHOSEN DESTINATION. WE’RE EXCITED TO BE ABLE TO SHARE THESE RECOMMENDATIONS WITH TRAVELLERS, PROMPTING THEM TO SEE THINGS IN A ANSWERS FROM THE COSTA RICAN AMBASSADOR MR ROMÁN MACAYA, BASED IN THE COSTA RICAN EMBASSY, IN WASHINGTON DC, USA:
Q: If a person is visiting your country for 48 hours, where should they go? What should they see? What should they eat? A: “Experience Costa Rica’s strikingly diverse terrain with lush forests, wildlife reserves, and tropical beaches which offer something for every traveler. Beach-lovers should stay along the Pacific Coast and head to Guanacaste and the Nicoya Peninsula’s. Nature-seekers should stay in the Northern Plains or along the Caribbean coast and visit Puerto Viejo, before going to Monteverde Cloud forest and hike Arenal Volcano. If they are interested in going to San José, the capital, they can visit the National Theater, the Cathedral, Barrio Amón (one of the oldest neighborhoods in the country), the National Park, the Jade and Gold Museums, and the National Zoo. The typical Costa Rican lunch consists of rice, beans, chicken or meat, mature bananas and fruits that are produced throughout the year.” Q: Is there a common cliche about people in your country which you believe is misrepresentative or untrue? A: “Untrue cliché: Travellers come to enjoy Costa Rica’s natural wonders during their vacations, and may leave believing that all Costa Ricans live a similar ‘vacation lifestyle’ year round. However, the work ethic of Costa Ricans is very strong, with many Costa Ricans working in high value services and high-tech manufacturing. Many people, even those who have visited Costa Rica, have the idea that Costa Rica’s economy is primarily agricultural, when in fact our main exports are high value services and medical devices.”
ANSWERS FROM THE VIETNAMESE AMBASSADOR MR KARI KAHILUOTO, BASED IN THE VIETNAMESE EMBASSY IN HELSINKI, FINLAND:
Q: If a person is visiting your country for 48 hours, where should they go? What should they see? What should they eat? A: Some options for you to choose from when deciding which part of Vietnam to visit – “you must see Hanoi, including the Temple of Literature, Temple of the Jade Mountain and Hoan Kiem Lake. Enjoy the art of water puppetry, and visit the Mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh. See the One Pillar Pagoda, Thang Long Citadel, Hanoi flagpole, Tran Quoc Pagoda and the West Lake. Visit Ha Long Bay, theTitop Island with amazing caves, and Tuan Chau island. Here you can enjoy the cuisine such as Hanoi rice noodle ‘Pho’, fried pork meat ball with dry rice noodle ‘Bun Cha Obama’, spring rolls, fried fish ‘La Vong’, noodle ‘Bun Thang’, roll cake ‘Thanh Tri’, green squash cake ‘Banh Com Vong’, Ha Long squids, Noodles ‘Bun Be Be’, chicken raised on the hill ‘Tien Yen’, and cake ‘Tai Long ep’.”
ANSWERS FROM THE COLOMBIAN AMBASSADOR MR JUAN JOSÉ QUINTANA, BASED IN THE COLOMBIAN EMBASSY, IN THE HAGUE, THE NETHERLANDS:
Q: If a person is visiting your country for 48 hours, where should they go? What should they see? What should they eat? A: “Places to go: Botero Museum in Bogotá, and the Fortified City in Cartagena. Things to see: Salt Cathedral in Zipaquirá, and the Main Square in Villa de Leyva. Things to eat: Bandeja Paisa and Ajiaco Santafereño.” Q: Is there a common cliche about people in your country which you believe is misrepresentative or untrue? A: “That Colombians are dishonest people involved in drugs trafficking and that Colombia is a dangerous, violent place. Both are essentially untrue.”
ANSWERS FROM THE GUATEMALAN AMBASSADOR MR LUIS F CARRANZA, BASED IN THE GUATEMALAN EMBASSY, IN BERN, SWITZERLAND:
Q: If a person is visiting your country for 48 hours, where should they go? What should they see? What should they eat? A: “Definitely, tourists have to visit ‘Old Guatemala’ only 40km away from the main city, as it is a colonial city recognized by UNESCO as a world heritage site. In Antigua Guatemala there are some of the best restaurants. I would recommend eating a ‘Parrillada Chapina’, roast, black beans, rice and guacamole. There are more elaborated dishes such as ‘Ka’ik’, which is a thick soup made with turkey and unique spices from Guatemala. And from Antiguan, the tourist can visit the Atitlán Lake, where you can value the Mayan culture, and also in this area it is possible to climb some active volcanos, which are really next to the capital, such as ‘Pacaya’ or ‘Volcán de Fuego’.” Q: Is there a common cliche about people in your country which you believe is misrepresentative or untrue? A: “I think there are lot of clichés, but the most common one is that people think Guatemala is a tropical country. It actually has many microclimates, so there are really high and low temperatures in the country. If you are next to the sea there is going to be a really warm weather, but if you are in the Western Highlands, the temperature can get below zero between December and February.”
ANSWERS FROM THE ISRAELI AMBASSADOR MR JACOB KEIDAR, BASED IN THE ISRAELI EMBASSY, IN BERN, SWITZERLAND: Q: If a person is visiting your country for 48 hours, where should they go? What should they see? What should they eat? A: Recommended places to visit include -”Jerusalem, especially the holy sites. Tel Aviv Jaffa, where you should experience the seashore promenade. And thirdly, the Dead Sea.” Q: Is there a common cliche about people in your country which you believe is misrepresentative or untrue? A: “It is not true that Israel is just deserts and camels. You will find that Israel is a modern, prosperous, high-tech nation. But we do have camels and deserts, too.”
ANSWERS FROM THE CROATIAN AMBASSADOR MR TOMISLAV BOŠNJAK, BASED IN THE CROATIAN EMBASSY, IN CAIRO, EGYPT:
Q: If a person is visiting your country for 48 hours, where should they go? What should they see? What should they eat? A: “Two days in Croatia, notwithstanding the seasons, would probably be best spent by visiting first Dubrovnik, walking around the city walls, drinking malvasija wine and eating a traditional fish grill with silver beet and potatoes, and finishing off with a rožata. Then travel to Plitvice, walk around the waterfalls, drink šljivovica (plum brandy) and eat a meal of cured and smoked meat with sauer kraut and potatoes, before having lička pita for desert. Then travel to Zagreb, visit the Cathedral, the Gornji grad (Upper City) with St Mark’s Church, the Jelačić Square and the City Market, have štrukli and Zagrebački schnitzel, wash it down with local beer or a local dry wine mixed (half – half) with Jamnica sparkling mineral water which is locally known as a ‘gemišt’.” Q: Is there a common cliche about people in your country which you believe is misrepresentative or untrue? A: “Croats are sometimes described as being reserved and insular by those who do not know them. 18 million annual visitors to Croatia are finding for themselves a completely different story.”
ANSWERS FROM THE MEXICAN AMBASSADOR MR ELOY CANTÚ SEGOVIA, BASED IN THE MEXICAN EMBASSY, IN BRUSSELS, BELGIUM:
Q: If a person is visiting your country for 48 hours, where should they go? What should they see? What should they eat? A: “In Mexico City, travellers should visit the Zócalo (National Palace, Templo Mayor and Cathedral). Then, the Anthropology Museum, the Palace of Fine Arts, the central Post-Office, the House of Tiles (Sanborns) and the Latin American Tower, Garibaldi Square, the Angel of Independence, and Chapultepec Castle and its park. In the Coyoacán district, the house of Frida Kahlo and Coyoacán Market. An hour and a half from Mexico City, travellers will discover the pyramids of Teotihuacán. And five hours away, on very comfortable buses, they will arrive in Oaxaca City to explore the Zócalo, the Convent of Santo Domingo and the great archeological site of Monte Albán. They should of course eat tacos, chicken in mole, quesadillas, guacamole, churros with hot chocolate, Jamaica water (made with rosehips), horchata water (made with rice flour), mango, papaya, avocado, pineapple, zapote, guava and guanábana.” Q: Is there a common cliche about people in your country which you believe is misrepresentative or untrue? A: “It is often said that Mexican people are lazy and work as little as possible. However, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Mexican citizens rank highest in hours worked, among the 35 member countries.”
ANSWERS FROM THE MALTESE AMBASSADOR DR ALBERT FRIGGIERI, BASED IN THE MALTESE EMBASSY, IN BERLIN, GERMANY:
Q: If a person is visiting your country for 48 hours, where should they go? What should they see? What should they eat? A: “Visitors -”should go to Valletta (UNESCO World Heritage Site – Culture) and see St John Co-Cathedral, The Grand Master’s Palace, stroll through the streets of the city, see the the Hypogeum (UNESCO – Culture) which is a unique, very well-preserved, pre-historic underground site and the ‘old capital’ of Malta Mdina (one of the best-kept towns from the Middle Ages). Maltese culinary specialities include Pastizzi (crispy dough with cheese or mushy peas filling), Lampuki (fish) and Fenek (hare).” Q: Is there a common cliche about people in your country which you believe is misrepresentative or untrue? A: A misconception is that -”because Malta is a small island, the people are provincial (insular in their way of thinking).”