Frankfurt Book Fair goers drop the cab, buy the app - Q Mapp interactive transit map available for iPhone and iPod Touch

Back in April I was commissioned by the cartographers Communicarta to chase vintage yellow trams around and around in the rain, up and down the hilly streets of Porto - it's all in a day's work when you're helping to update one of their public transport maps. On the same weekend, I also wrote about how my experience of using a Communicarta public transport map to get around the city and out to the Atlantic coast compared to using the local transport resources I gathered at the tourist information office. Read more about that here.

Today I was excited to receive a note from Ken Chui, Communicarta's Business Development Director, announcing that their painstakingly researched and logically drawn maps are now available digitally.

Want to have an interactive version of a city's underground map on your phone and to be able to zoom in and out on the lines you need to take? Want to keep track of your most frequently used stations, or locate the closest station to where you are? Now ...(and you know what's coming)...there's an app for that. The Q Mapp Frankfurt Interactive Transit map is available for the iphone/ipod touch from the iTunes store.

With perfect timing, Ken tells me that this is, "the one and only app of its kind geared towards the Frankfurt Book Fair", which takes place next week (14th-18th October).

He goes on to say that it will give book fair visitors the confidence to go anywhere in Frankfurt using the U/ S- Bahn and will help them make full use of their travel pass rather than spending too many euros on cab fares getting to and from their hotel to Messe and back again. The Frankfurt book fair is the largest international gathering of the publishing industry, so of course this public transport application comes in English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.

If you're off to Frankfurt on business or pleasure it's well worth spending 59p to have this trustworthy and easy to use travel resource in the palm of your hand, that is unless like me you're more of a Hero Android girl and don't have an iPhone!

The Q Mapps Munich Interactive Transit map is also available from the iTunes store.

Q Mapps Ltd is a subsidiary of Communicarta Ltd.

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Do travel websites inspire travellers or just the 'geeks'?

There's no denying it and increasingly no escaping it. The travel industry is obsessed with harnessing the infinite possibilities afforded by ever-evolving online technologies.

Just a quick scroll through the last ten minutes' worth of #travel tweets or a brief visit to a trusted travel website (be it traditional media or off-beat blog) would illustrate that point.

Currently everyone is talking about the use of sideWikis in travel sites, and there's a new business to business website (tnooz.com) for us to devour that's dedicated to travel technology news. And I'm sure that tomorrow will send me a link to another 'experience' website that can seemingly read my mind and sell me a holiday as I navigate through their inspiration pages ...no doubt they'll be able to summon up my dream trip via the magic of algorithms and targeted marketing. Thank God for them! Without their site I'd be stranded, incapable of thinking and dreaming up my next adventure for myself.

There's certainly no denying that blogging, tweeting, Google maps mash ups, downloadable content and travel apps for smart phones have delivered a whole new source of relevant, instantly updatable information to techsavy travellers. Something that the travel genre is certainly richer for and something that I hope travel publishers in particular can increasingly invest in (if not monetarily, at least in terms of time and effort).

But my question today is - and I've Tweeted it too - can anyone point me towards uses of travel technology/online development that are truly inspirational for travellers (ie not just another way to increase sales of holidays and/or compete with other travel sites in the geek stakes)? Read more!

What in the world would your first documentary explore?

I hate to admit it, but there has been far too little blogging going on here lately. That said, in between working on freelance projects, travelling and fighting the small yet persistent battles of everyday life, I've still managed to Twitter away uproariously with travellers and the travel community. Off the back of some of these twitterings, Sandwagon's blog is back.

On Monday, inspired by the BBC's Future of Food series, I tweeted the question, 'What would you make your first documentary about?

In episode 2 of Future of Food, George Alagiah hopped from Senegal to India, and Kenya to Kent, investigating the changing nature of the global food chain and pondering the real prospect of demand for meat, fish and corn outstripping what the planet can realistically supply. This is my kind of documentary. The kind that confronts the global issues that the majority of us, struggling to juggle work and personal concerns, will let slip to the back of our minds, even though we are directly involved and implicated in the causes and consequences of that issue.

And there's no getting away from this issue. We all eat. If enough individuals chose to eat less meat and only bought locally grown veg, humans might stand a small chance of one day evening out of the world's edible resources. This documentary made me think about the small part I play in that collective choice, and as a result of it I'll be steering clear of imported fish or vegetables from now on (I've already given up meat and I also grow some of my own veg). What more can a documentary maker hope for?

So back to the question. Assuming that you are a novice too, what would you make your first documentary about?

'Agriculture and politics in Argentina,' replied @argentinatours

@alexbainbridge of TourCMS threw in, 'I would make a documentary about how companies make travel websites - so consumers can see the work required and understand. As young consumers get taught about farms, about engineering etc - but few have experienced inside of an online travel company.'

@Travelrants was thinking along the lines of, 'the life of a consumer travel blogger, but I think people would get bored quickly (my family & friends do when I talk about it) :)'

And me, at the moment it would probably have to be about diving, including the psychology of learning to dive, instructor training courses and the ins and outs of the scuba industry from a novice's perspective.

What do you think of these ideas? What would your first documentary be about?

Also worth checking out are The Future of Food (2004, a film by Deborah Koons Garcia)

8-week Documentary Making Course at the London Academy of Media, Film & TV.


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Luxor's West Bank - if travellers had all the time in the world

It's the age old travelling frustration. You only had a limited time in a city, town or country. En route to all of the unmissable attractions, that you simply must pack into one or two days, your eyes wandered off to the less tourist-ridden spaces. Perhaps you pressed your camera up against the car window (just like I did for this picture), an attempt to secure enough of a visual prompt to include these places in your plans next time you're here. But often, there isn't a next time.

This happened to me in Luxor. Obviously, I was itching to descend, Lara Croft-style, into ancient tombs in the Valley of the Kings and then stand belittled by the Colossi of Memnon, those stoney faced mega-men. But...if only there was time to stop alongside the sugar cane fields, smell the bright pink flowers (first, finding out what they are) and colourfully painted mud brick houses that the taxi whipped by.

Next time in Luxor I'll be -

Booking a room on the East Bank rather than the West. Perhaps the Marsam Hotel and/or the Beit Sabee.

Hiring a bike and cycling around the sugarcane fields that I only viewed from altitude in a hot air balloon.

Stopping to shop at those fruit and veg stalls that appeared out of nowhere.

Watching the sun set from the Mortuary Temple of Ramses III, rather than from the terrace of the Winter Palace.
The frustration of time constraints do fuel future travel plans and force return visits.

And because things spotted en route leave their mark in your mind, a curious traveller will never be done travelling.
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View from the Sandwagon - Colossi of Memnon, Luxor

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LEAVE THE HANGER! Landcare Australia

Landcare Australia are calling all travel writers and photographers to write for a reason.

They need your help to get the general public engaged with the task of saving our planet. There are prizes for winning contributions!

Landcare’s Your Planet Needs You campaign is asking individuals to register the skills they are happy to offer for a local environmental project. They need you to write a compelling argument for getting involved and registering interest in saving our planet.

Written submissions should be no more than 100 words, visual submissions should be a 30 second video or a compelling image with caption.

Five finalists will be invited to a fancy lunch in Sydney on June 5 – World Environment Day – where the winner will be announced. There is a $500 cash prize for the winner and runner up prizes for the finalists.

Submit your entry to the Your Planet Needs You Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Your-Planet-Needs-You/75618033819?ref=mf And here is the rest of it. Read more!

New Feature: Lost In ....

..not Space, but various locations around the globe. Here's the low down on the feature as recently pitched to a travel website. I'll run it myself on Sandwagon, so that the idea lives on.
Travel content, be it in print or online, has always showed us how not to get lost. Heaven forbid that we wandered off with just our sense of discovery guiding the way.

The big questions are:
• Are trips doomed to disaster without the aid of a travel writer’s ‘Top Ten Must-See List of Unmissable Sights To See Before You Die’?
• Do travellers disappear into black-holes if they leave their hotels unaccompanied by a guidebook’s ‘indispensable’ colour-coded, waterproof, rip-proof, detachable fold-out map?
• Without a Google maps mash-up on their Smartphone would they all stand frozen to the spot – flibberdygibbets in a foreign land?

I think not. Be gone, generic travel content overkill.

Here’s my idea
My ‘Lost in ...’ series of content will back up my call to forego the safety net that is generic travel content, if only for one day, one morning or one hour of a trip. My first hand experiences and photos will inspire travellers to indulge in the sensation of getting intrepidly and truly unforgettably lost. It will have a light tone, reflecting the cult sci-fi series Lost in Space.

Travellers will still see the obvious sights and they’ll still immerse themselves in local culture. But they’ll also give themselves the chance to stumble upon experiences that are individual to their trip. These are the experiences that travel content cannot choreograph, such as... being invited into an artist’s studio on an anonymous backstreet ...or ordering the best fillet steak that you’ve ever tasted, in the restaurant that you took a chance on just because a fat furry tabby cat guarded the door.

Related post Travel without safety nets

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Golden Blocks Shore Dive: my piece for The Independent

Yet to perfect your giant stride entry or the throwing yourself backwards off a boat method? Then the Dahab way is for you.

The laid back Egyptian village set on Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, around an hour north of Sharm El Sheikh, has enough shore diving sites to keep divers busy for at least a week or so.

In fact shore diving seems to satisfy visitors' demands so much that none of the local dive schools have yet invested in a Zodiac boat for off-shore diving.

Read about my shore dive at Dahab's 'Golden Blocks' as featured by On The Road at The Independent:Travel.






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Iconic budget hotel plans refurb - Nefertiti Hotel, Luxor

Anyone backpacking around Egypt's Nile Valley during the 60s more than likely stayed at the Nefertiti. It was the first budget hotel in town and one that pre-dates the up market, up scale Winter Palace. But returning visitors will soon notice a change to their favourite rest stop's decor, although thankfully not its understated demeanour.

Owner Aladin Al-Sahaby told me of his plans to bring a fresh lick of boutique-style paint to his well-loved, but increasingly weary, four storey establishment. Working alongside a Dr. of Fine Arts, Aladin plans to siphon the energy and colour of Luxor into all of the hotel's public spaces, including the street restaurant and rooftop terrace. Aladin's enthusiasm for the project stems from a personal passion for interior decoration and an aversion to the staid surroundings found in chain style hotels the world over.


'Visitors come to Luxor in search of culture. The refurbished Nefertiti will provide an authentic experience that begins in your own hotel room.'

On the subject of investment, Aladin admits that this project is motivated by adding to the hotel's rich heritage, rather than making huge profits. The Nefertiti will remain a cheap sleep because Aladin enjoys the personalities of his backpacker residents. He just wants to make it stand out from a growing crowd of budget options.

New balcony's, stone flooring and a glass fence around the rooftop terrace - to maximise the hotel's views of Luxor Temple - were mentioned. Renovation work should begin next month, a floor at a time. Work could be completed by the end of summer 2009. Double rooms are planned to cost 100-120 EGP per night (currently 80/90)
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Communicarta Public Transport Maps - as used in Porto, Portugal

Make the most of a great local bus route, following the course of the River Douro all the way to Porto’s Atlantic coastline. Use Communicarta public transport maps

“Whilst you’re here, why not take the number 500 straight to the Atlantic coast?” That sounded far too good a suggestion to ignore, but also a little too good to be true. Could escaping Porto’s steep cobbled streets and marauding trams, and swapping them for crashing surf, really be as easy as flagging down a local bus? Or would I find myself stranded on a deserted suburban street corner kicking myself for believing what turned out to be just a rose-tinted travel tip?

Rose-tinted or not, I was sold. The thought of an invigorating walk along the sands in springtime, followed by a strong coffee overlooking the breakers was impossible to resist. And like most travellers, I like nothing more than setting off on urban adventures with just a public transport map for guidance. But first things first. Gripped by an urge to back up my guidebook with ‘the official’ local transport map, I headed for the nearest tourist office.

Twenty minutes of striding uphill followed by confused backtracking downhill, two blank-faced travel agents and one inside-out umbrella later, I made it to the tourist office at Porto’s Cathedral. Had I resisted that urge to find the official map, I’d already have been sat on the number 500 bus approaching surf central. Nevertheless, I reminded myself that this official map was my cartographical safety net. It would surely save me any more wasted time, trouble or angst later in the day. So at last, armed with the tourist office’s Mapa Intermodal, my guidebook and a Porto Card, I headed to the bus stop opposite the city’s São Bento train station.

It’s fair to sum up Porto's weather in early February as changeable. It can switch from soaking torrential downpours to gloriously blue, sunny skies in a matter of ten or so minutes. Unfortunately, my walk to the bus stop had coincided with the day’s latest downpour.

Cue the number 500. The modern, single story bus pulled up and filled up fast. Porto Card validated and window seat spotted, I slid into sightseeing position next to a local man who was weighed down by his saturated coat and a dripping umbrella. In such soggy elbow to elbow proximity as this, unfolding the A1-sized official map was as achievable and appropriate as unfurling a two-man tent. So, surprised by the bus’s stealth, wet and not wanting to lose my bearings, I scrambled for my guidebook. It contained a Communicarta map to Porto’s tram, metro and bus systems. Fitting neatly on a single page of the pocket-sized guide, it was much handier than the Mapa Intermodal.

The 500 bus took its scenic route downhill through the Ribeira district, Porto’s very own UNESCO World Heritage Site where ornately tiled and balcony bedecked six-story buildings cram into the streets, side by side. Soon it turned onto the riverside road to follow the Douro’s path as it widened out into the ocean. Flying past stops for Miragaia, Alfândega and the Museu Vinho Porto, it was obvious how user-friendly Porto’s buses are. Not only were the names of fast-approaching stops displayed on an electronic board beside the driver’s cab, they were also simultaneously announced by a chirpy recorded voice.

At the ninth stop, ‘Próxima paragem, Bicalho’ flashed up in red letters and was announced loud and clear in Portuguese. It’s failsafe. Whether you see or hear the name of your stop, there’s plenty of time to ring the bell and get off where you need to, rather than craning for a view and taking your best guess before scrambling for the doors.

Communicarta’s palm-sized transport map had plotted the names of each and every bus stop along the 500’s route. The tenth stop on their map is the Ponte da Arrábida, once the largest concrete bridge in the world. This was definitely a photo opportunity worth taking. Number 500s run from the city out towards the coast roughly every twenty minutes. That’s frequent enough to hop off the bus and capture the bridge in all its structural glory, before carrying onwards to the mouth of the Douro. Unhelpfully, the Ponte da Arrábida bus stop, along with those for several other points of interest, is not plotted on the tourist office’s Mapa Intermodal.

My guidebook’s map had also plotted – as stop number eighteen – Castelo da Foz. This was where I’d intended to swap public transport for my trainers, and walk along the coastal road towards the sands of Praia dos Ingleses. When the time came, Communicarta’s map coincided perfectly with the bus’s audio and visual announcement of, ‘‘Próxima paragem, Castelo da Foz.’ I was well and truly primed to ping the bell.

By the time I arrived in Foz, the rain was replaced again by those perfectly blue skies. Crossing over the road from the bus stop and cutting through a lush palm tree-lined park brought me onto Avenida D. Carlos I. Here the Douro empties out into the ocean. In contrast to the smooth surface of the river, the Atlantic’s waves rhythmically erupted in bright white foam as they battered the Foz do Douro Breakwater. Away to the left along Avenida D. Carlos I and beyond the imposing lines of Foz’s concrete, lighthouse-tipped pier, were the beaches. I’d made it to the Atlantic in no time at all and without transport snags.

In the near distance, along the first stretch of beach where the sand mixed with sea-swept rocks, was the dramatically set Restaurant Shis. Dark wooden terracing wrapped around this restaurant that overhangs the sand. The terrace is furnished with white tables, sofas and umbrellas, giving Shis a neutral minimalism suited to the tanned, beautiful people who drape themselves there in summertime. Fashionable outdoors and in, chic Shis serves up contemporary versions of oriental and European dishes along with uninterrupted sea views. It is open daily from 12 noon until 1am.

Walking further along Avenida D. Carlos I and rounding the road into Rua Coronel Raúl Peres, brought more expansive horizons and larger, darker rocks smoothed and shined by the waves. Café Praia dos Ingleses dominated this stretch of coastal road, and it called me in for coffee. Wooden steps led down onto a spacious decked terrace filled with white, unfussy tables and chairs. The sense of being at one with the waves was wonderfully tangible.

Indoors it also hit the laid-back surf atmosphere right on the head. The same unfussy tables and chairs filled half of the room, giving way to squidgy orange and brown leather beanbags set around low, dark wood coffee tables. Could there be a better place to spend the day working at a laptop or watching the turning of the tide through the café’s floor to ceiling windows?

For casual chilled out, beachside appeal, Café Praia dos Ingleses definitely fitted the bill. The music playing was unobtrusively ambient and the customers were totally at ease, gazing out of the windows and sipping hot or cold drinks. It was also impossible to imagine the young, friendly waiting staff that stood staring at the hypnotic rise and fall of the ocean, ever getting into a flap. My small coffee was cheap at €1, and satisfyingly strong. And the WIFI was free.

February rain returned abruptly, pelting and streaming down the sheet glass windows. Too laid back on my beanbag to bother unfurling and spreading out the official map that was buried in my rucksack, I planned my journey back upriver to central Porto using Communicarta’s map. This version had already proved itself to be user-friendly and comprehensive, so why would I want to disrupt my chilled, surfside mood by confusing myself with the official map?

As I reached for my guidebook and plotted my combined bus and vintage tram journey home, it was obvious that Communicarta’s transport map was the only cartographical safety net that I needed. And I decided that there was nothing at all rose-tinted about taking the Number 500 bus to the Atlantic. It really was as good a plan as it had first appeared.

Trip logistics
I travelled to Porto from London Stansted with RyanAir, stayed at the Rivoli Cinema Hostel and used the Communicarta transport map that is featured in Thomas Cook’s CitySpots Porto guide.


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