#90 Why package holidays to the Costa Del Sol are a terrible idea

1. It's mainly full of English and Irish people anyway 

2. You end up eating a full English breakfast every day
3. You rely entirely on the prospect of good weather - if it rains you're screwed
4. You learn nothing about the country or culture you are in
5. You sit on your ass all day - might as well be at home watching Jeremy Kyle

#78 Weather Forecasts

When you are travelling anywhere the weather is imperative. Not only does it affect what activities you engage in, or what sights you see, it also means feeling miserable when you are either wet/cold/sunburnt. Plus your pictures will almost certainly turn out awful, grey skies make even the nicest view look dull, and you'll probably not be in picture perfect mode either.

Of course it's unavoidable and unfortunate if it happens to be raining or in the middle of a heatwave when you arrive at your target destination - but planning is also vital. For some countries, the weather can be anticipated depending on what season you go. So for example, if travelling to Sweden in Winter you can assume it will be snowing and very cold, or if you go to Japan in the Summer, you can expect it to be very, very hot. But for some countries, like Ireland, the weather can be hard to predict regardless of season.

Out of habit, the national weather services are always where I would go to for the most accurate and trustworthy weather information on a country. I am wary of the internet and it's vast amounts of wisdom, and I guess that the national website will probably be the most detailed and reliable.

However, in Ireland The Irish Meteorological Service (Met Eireann) website is something that has been annoying me for quite a while. While many national weather service websites are helpful and detailed, this website provides you with as little information as possible. It is irritatingly vague in comparison to many other websites of this kind.

For example, if I go to the Met Eireann website and look at forecasts for the Dublin area, it will tell me that today it will be raining, and the same for tomorrow.

Photo: Vague information on the Met.ie website

If you type the words 'Dublin forecast' or something similar into Google, you get a combined result from different weather websites. This gives you a much more detailed breakdown of the expected temperature, wind and rain for 3 hour intervals.

Photo: Detailed weather breakdown from Google

Comparing the Met.ie website versus the information from Google, you see quite a difference. Met has told us that it will be raining today. If you go to Google though, it tells us that there is only a 10% chance of rain for late afternoon, and 0% chance of rain for the night.

Wondering what the weather is like in Stockholm? Let's check the SMHI, Sweden's Meteorological service: 

From this you can see the website is available in both English and Swedish - and is also quite detailed - giving you information for every few hours. 

Similarly, the JMA, Japan's Meteorological service, has detailed information in both Japanese and English about the weather, as well as earthquake and tsunami information.

JMA website

Met Eireann give more detailed weather information after the 9pm news on our national tv station, RTÉ. I can't see why this information can't be put on the website too. When I was in Sweden I had no TV, and I couldn't figure how to make mine work properly in Japan. Providing weather information once a day via television is simply not a feasible idea, and Met Eireann have to update their website in keeping with the needs of both the Irish people and visitors to Ireland.

#75 Croatia: The Travel Show

Unfortunately Croatia is still just a place on the list to visit for my great travels! When I was studying in Sweden I met some fantastic Croatians and they definitely encouraged me to visit their country, as well as telling me some great information.

From my experience, Croatia isn't one of the most famous countries so, if you're not sure, it's situated right across the Adriatic sea from Italy. Here's a map to help you out.

Croatia

The currency is the Kuna (pronounced a bit like 'ko-na' I think) and the exchange rate is about 7.5kn to €1. Croatia in Croatian language is 'Hrvatska', so that's why you'll sometimes see abbreviations like 'HRV' or 'HRK'. It's a cheap country in terms of prices, especially in comparison to the rest of Europe, but be careful as the recent surge in tourism along the coast means prices there for hotels, bars and restaurants are much higher, especially during the summer.

The capital city is Zagreb, which is located in the North. However, it is coastal cities such as Zadar, Split and Dubrovnik that are raising the profile of the country and bringing most of the tourists. 

Politically, Croatia is a young country, having been formed after the break up of Yugoslavia in 1991. It only entered the European Union earlier this year.

Dubrovnik, in the far south, is an ancient city which reminds me of places like Greece or Turkey. It has recently rose to fame in TV show Game of Thrones, in which some scenes were filmed here. 

Dubrovnik

Zadar has an airport, and is a likely place to fly into. There is a 'sea organ', in which waves crashing into the harbour makes tunes like an organ, and nearby is colorful a light up display built into the ground. I found a video on YouTube which demonstrates both better than words: Zadar Sea Organ

Croatia is becoming popular with party goers and young people, because alcohol prices are much cheaper than Ireland or the UK, and clubs often stay open until sunrise during the summer. The hot weather and clear seas make it popular with those looking for a cheap sun holiday, but Croatia has a lot to offer in terms of cultural capital and indigenous activities.

Blue Cave, located on the island of Bisevo

Also important to note, travel is cheap between neighbouring countries Serbia, Slovenia, Hungary, Montenegro, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, so a visit to Croatia doesn't have to just be a visit to Croatia, you could make it a wider travelling experience.

You can get flights with Ryanair to Zadar, and travel within the country is cheap, but I've been told that some buses (especially local transport) aren't air conditioned, so it can get a little stuffy in the soaring temperatures!

This article is linked to my radio show - The Travel Show. However, due to technical issues there is no recording available for this particular show. You can still go to the website and check out previous shows though. www.ulfm.ie/listen-back/ 

#56 Culture Night in Stockholm + Weather Report

Just a quick update on the weather; when I first arrived here 3 months ago, there were mounds of snow everywhere and it snowed heavily almost every day. Then, about a month ago, it began to snow less and the temperatures rose a little. Now, nearly all of the snow has melted and although the trees are still bare, you can see green grass starting to sprout. It has rained a little, but there are blue skies nearly everyday. Today in Stockholm it is +13 degrees, while when I first arrived it was -13! I think Spring has finally arrived in Stockholm. . . .

Yesterday, Saturday 20th April was Culture Night in Stockholm. This mean that almost every museum and gallery in Stockholm had free entry and special events from 6pm until midnight. Here are some of the places I visited:

Ethnography Museum (Etnografiska Museet)
Located at MuseiParken, Bus 69 from Sergels Torg

To answer your first question, ethnography is like the study of people and culture. This museum was modern and interesting, it had exhibitions on ancient tribes, Vietcong, Native Americans, Japan, Australia, Greenland etc. It was a fun and interesting place to explore the world, and I would recommend a visit. Entrance is usually around 100kr.

The Royal Mews (Hovstallet)
Located near Nybroplan, take tram from Sergels Torg

To answer another question, the Royal Mews is the transport section for ceremonial events for the Royal Family. Here you can see the Kings Horses, (as well as pet them) and the carriages and cars they use, and learn about when they have been used. A nice, interesting place that is not well known in Stockholm.

The Mediterranean and Near-Eastern Antiquities Museum (Medelhavs Museet)
Located beside the Royal Opera House, take bus 69 to Gustav Adolfs Torg

I only visited the museum briefly, but it isn't very big. It has lots of ancient Greek things, as well as an Egypt exhibition (which was closed). It's a nice place to visit, but unless you have a particular interest I wouldn't recommend it so much.

The Medieval Museum (MedeltidsMuseet)
Located under the bridge beside the Royal Palace. Bus 69 to Gustav Adolfs Torg.

I think this could be another one of Stockholm's hidden gems. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but once you enter this place is remarkable. It boats the only remaining part of the old Stockholm city wall, part of an ancient boat, as well as wax figures, a whole section layed out to look like a medieval street, and even a gambling games room with giant chess and dice games, as well as others.

The Royal Palace (Kungliga Slotten)
Located at the edge of Gamla Stan. Take bus 69 to Gustav Adolfs Torg or walk from the metro.

I was disappointed with the Royal Palace. I thought there were going to be more special events than on a usual day, but to me it was overcrowded and average, with a 20 minute waiting line to get in. You're not allowed take flash pictures, so most of them came out awful. You saw some random rooms, but I found it was nothing spectacular. There were people walking around in costume though which was fun.

Finally, there were also some old buses and trams taking you around the museums for free, which was really nice.