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We have 9 weeks (+/-) in Argentina and Brazil early next year (Jan 15 to Mar 21). I'm blocking out our itinerary and would appreciate comments/suggestions on the following - I'm having to do this quite quickly without my usual research as we had to book our flights on points this week. So this is a very early itinerary, before my usual research.
Arrive BA January 15 - we have 3 weeks to tour around Argentina before our apartment rental in BA. Current thoughts are to fly onwards to Bariloche and pick up a rental car there and drive back to BA heading north to Mendoza and Salta and then into BA. Haven't researched that route - perhaps it's crazy....but it looks good. Also we would be dropping off the car as a one way rental - issues?
We have been to Ushuaia and other points south on another trip so are looking to stay further north as indicated above.
4 weeks in BA - day/overnight trips to Montevideo/other beach towns.
Leave BA early March - thinking we would fly to Iguazu then onwards to Rio (for 3 days or so) and then onwards for an Amazon Cruise (4 nights?) then back to Sao Paulo for our return to Toronto. This portion could be 16 days (or more if necessary)
We will keep our plans loose in the hopes of picking up a last minute deal to Antarctica - I've been tracking cruise pricing for the last few years and hope we can pick up a good deal while we're in South America.
Realize my question is a bit vague but would appreciate comments on the overall blocking of time - we have some flexibility on the BA apartment rental timing.
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by ibobi | Posted on Nov 20, 17 at 01:24 PM
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Rough itinerary blocking - Argentina and Brazil - comments appreciated
We have 9 weeks (+/-) in Argentina and Brazil early next year (Jan 15 to Mar 21). I'm blocking out our itinerary and would appreciate comments/suggestions on the following - I'm having to do this quite quickly without my usual research as we had to book our flights on points this week. So this is a very early itinerary, before my usual research.
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Forgot to mention - we like driving....so if it seems there are great distances we're happy with that (good Canadians!)
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If you are set on going to the Amazon it will be marginally cheaper flying from SP, most flight from Rio route through SP anyway. Bear in mind that even flying to Manaus and back will kill the better part fo two days, it's a five hour flight.
Unless you have driven in Brazil and speak Portuguese I'd think twice about driving if I were you. At any rate rental cars and fuel are very expensive and returning a car in another city attracts a large additional fee.
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We did something similar in 2008 although we used buses for inter region travel and rented cars to tour specific regions like Salta etc. Being Canadians you are aware of the distances involve but have you considered the state of the road network? Something like 70% of Argentine roads are unpave and can be pretty rough in places. That said, the trip from Bariloche to Medoza/Salta follows the famous Ruta 40 and would be an amazing trip. We did parts of it and met people who were doing it by bicycly and motorbike (something I would dearly love to do in the next few years!).
The route from Salta to iguazu (and probably from Salta/mendoza) to BA seemed to me to be incredibly boring (unless you are into Pampas).
We found the bus system to be incredibly efficient, cheap and extremely comfortable (think 1st or business Class air travel). Many of our longer trips were scheduled overnight thus saving both time and accomodation costs.
Rental charges seemed on the high side, particularly one way drop offs but fuel was inexpensive (that said, I am from the Uk so fuel every where is cheap by comparison!). We used Hertz mostly.
I do feel that you are spending a disproportionate amount of your time in BA and personally would probably lose a week or two there. Montivideo and Colonia make great side trips from BA (there is also a very upmarket beach resort that may be worth a visit.
You could consider going from Salta to Iguazu and down to BA to avoid backtracking.
Finally, a link to our blog with some additional info on these palces and some photos of our time there;
Entries 70 onwards cover Argentina
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Thanks for the input - Carlos69 I wasn't clear - the driving comment was for Argentina, not Brazil. Will have a look at your blog link Crellston
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If you are thinking of going to the Amazon, this article might be helpful
We stayed at the lodge they recommend, Uacari (see my trip report). It was fantastic but getting there is time consuming.
See Marija's trip report for another Amazon option: http://www.fodors.com/community/south-america/bruce-and-marija-go-to-brazil.cfm
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Car Rental down there risky lots of shake downs
One way cost prohibitive might fly www.despegar.com
best have done bus a very long slog not fun ok if shoestring
latinamericaforless.com good itinerary booking help if needed
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and in English?????
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Holy drop off fees Batman.
Just doing random searches - 19 day Hertz rental with a Bariloche pick up and BsAs drop off attracts a $700 drop off fee; Bariloche to Salta even more at $1,000+. Unfortunately no matter how comfortable the bus is my husband's dodgy back is too unpredictable for overnight bus trips. So perhaps we're into a combination of rental cars in specific destinations and flying between them (although that will also add up).
I'm also concerned about the weather in January - originally this portion of the trip was to be the first 2 weeks of March but flight availability caused me to flip the Argentina/Brazil portion. Might have to reconsider the itinerary architecture
Crellston - your blog is fantastic - I had read it when you first posted it but now it's so relevant to our planning! The salt plains look not to be missed.
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I've just changed our itinerary - I didn't like the flights from the outset but booked quickly due to imminent Aeroplan changes - was able to change them today plus get Biz class which is even better. So now we start in Brazil (Rio/Amazon/other) then go to BsAs for February and then have 3 weeks in Argentina .... much better weather wise I think. Will start a new thread with questions when I have done more research - thanks to all for comments here.
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If I were you, I would spend more than three days in Rio de Janeiro. There is a lot to see and do besides going to the beaches of the various barrios (neighborhoods). Consult some very good guide books: Time Out Rio, Moon guides, DK Eyewitness Travelrazil, possibly Fodors and Lonely Planet.
There's Paraty (weekend),Petropolis (a day trip) and much to do in Rio which would take more than two days. Visit the Lapa community on a Friday eve with a native, Santa Teresa for half a day, etc., etc., etc.
I've been to Rio on six occasions during the 2000s and plan to return for 10+ days this coming October. While there we'll do a few things that we've done in the past, but since my amigo has not been to various areas and venues in this city, I shall introduce them to him, i.e. botanical gardens, the forest, a favela tour through Marcelo Armstrong the originator of such, Santa Teresa, Lapa with a carioca, and a few other places.
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Eddwarm - thanks for your comments - I am looking at adding days to Rio and staying in Santa Teresa at a cute B&B - do you know it? Good neighbourhood?
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I like Santa Teresa a lot, but it's not ideally located for public transport, however there is the bonde (tram) to the centre of Rio and taxis are very reasonably priced.
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Hi Elizabeth_S
Last year you were very helpful in planning our trip across the Caprivi Strip so I hope to be able to return the
favor with Brazil and Argentina.
We are in Brazil now for 7 weeks, and spent 6 weeks in Argentina and Chile the year before that. And we did three weeks devoted to the Amazon river, river towns, Manaus and locations further north.
First, let me say that we seem to like to travel the same way. When planning our Brazil trip, I received nothing but negative responses to my intention to rent a car to tour Brazil. These responses were all on "the other board" by a specific person who was rabid in her fear mongering, so much so that I almost changed my plans to come to Brazil. Many others chimed in with the "take a bus" mantra. Then, I thought about it and figured there was no way the conditions here in Brazil were as bad as those we encountered in some of the African countries we drove through so here we are.
We spent five days in Rio which we loved. We stayed at the Sofitel Copacabana which is in a great location close to Ipanema, which frankly we liked better. Hotel rooms for the nicer hotels are on the high side, but we were able to get a special from Brazilnuts 4 x 3 for an ocean view room for around $315 per night, taxes included. We checked out the hotels in Ipanema and Leblon and we thought the Sofitel offered the best bang for the buck. Breakfast is included; not the internet which is a fixed price. We rented a car and had no troubles though the favelas pose an interesting challenge. Be sure to bring your own maps as the rental cars do not provide them here.
We then flew TAM to the NE of Brazil. The seating is horrible. We bought an extra seat since the flight was 3 hours and we were still crammed in. Zero leg room. Since then I've chatted with folks who say GOL is worse. Mid flight we got up and moved to the exit row which was empty for some reason. We rented a car from AVIS in Natal. What a production! There were two y
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to continue .... my computer has a mind of its own and filed the previous report before I was done.
There were two young men at the Avis booth, neither of whom spoke English. Nor did they read English so the reservation form you arrive with are tossed aside and they hand write the contract which you can't read because it is in Portuguese. In practical terms this meant that the entire rental process took 1 hour and 30 minutes from start to finish. Since we couldn't read the contract or question the agent, we opted to take full insurance coverage which added BR$13 per day to cover third party damage and windscreen breakage. Suggest you factor these things into your budget and planning. We ended up taking the extra insurance because we found that in Brazil we were scammed at least once a day. The corruption has filtered to the very core. The scams went from the minor to the very annoying -- everything from having meal checks be presented with prices that were not reflected on the menu (but were, of course, higher) to taxi drivers changing the tariff rate from 1 (day time) to 2 (nighttime with 17% premium) in the middle of the day while enroute. It is imperative that you bring an English to Portuguese dictionary so you have a shot at not being a victim. I bought a nice pocket sized one from Amazon for less than $10US.
Roads are okay. Mind you, not as good as the roads in South Africa or even the road on the Caprivi strip. The highway is not a true highway like the wonderful roads in Croatia. (I remember that you were going there). They are adequate two lane highways BUT with speed bumps when you least expect them and tons of potholes. Also the BR101 up here is full of trucks supplying the cities. But don't be dissuaded by the nay sayers who think it is not safe to drive in Brazil. That is ridiculous. One caveat, however, is that you do not want to be driving around Rio and take a wrong turn into a favela.
We are now in Praia Pipa, a cute rustic town on the beach 80km south of Natal which seems very popular with both Brazilians and Europeans. Total travel time was an hour and a half. Once off the highway, it took a half hour on this road to do 20km. Tomorrow we are heading to Joao Pessoa, then on to Recife and Porto de Galinhas and south so I'll have more information later.
In Manaus, we also rented a car. However, we found we needed to take a taxi to the airport to get the car. Now Manaus was interesting because there are random police blockades on the road to Venezuela. All of a sudden there would be a stop with maybe 10 armed police officers stopping all cars. We would look at them and they would look at us and off we would go. Very few English speakers. We also rented a car in Santarem which was very interesting because there were only local companies and no English speakers. We made our way to Alto do Chao which was gorgeous, one of the most beautiful beaches in Brazil.
The Amazon river cruises are great and there are some wonderful spectacles/adventures. Be on the lookout for the pink river dolphins who frequently trail the boats. Manaus is a gritty river city but the activities around the main river port are quite interesting. I particularly liked the clever way they kept their beer cold.
I am not a big fan of Buenos Aires. People say that it is the Paris of South America. Parisians would be offended. I thought is was absurd. It is nothing like Paris. BA is a huge, very dirty city. We found it more productive to have a car in BA as well since the distances between neighborhoods are so vast. While in BA, we witnessed many spontaneous protests spring up out of no where. Walking along, all of a sudden there was some protest or another with disgruntled people lumbering by with loudspeakers, fireworks, etc. Met many people, particularly those who were in town at the beginning or end of a cruise, who had their passports stolen and were despondent because it was such a hassle and expense to solve the problem. We did dine at some fine restaurants and had some nice experiences but the overall experience was just so so. Mendoza and North were entirely different as well as southern Patagonia which is vast. By the way, we were in BA in November and it was HOT!
Much nicer to us was Uruguay. What a gorgeous country. We took the ferry from BA to Montevideo and rented a car and spent two marvelous weeks driving up the coast all the way to Punta del Diablo. What a wonderful country.
More later...
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One other thing re: Santa Theresa. While we were in town, armed gunmen entered the posh Hotel Santa Teresa and held up I think it was fourteen guests at gunpoint. This area is quite near a favela and I have read many reports of crime in the last six months while planning this trip. I would be very careful wandering around here. In fact, we opted out and will give it a try when we return to Rio in September. While planning our trip I kept up with local goings on by reading riotimesonline.com
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Here's the link about the armed robbery at Hotel Santa Teresa.
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Jesus Christ, you must be fun to travel with. Nobody spoke English? Que surpresa! And you don't speak Portuguese? Now whose problem is that? I read the comments on Thorntree and most of the problems you reported, language difficulties, expense, heavy vehicle traffic and the danger of getting lost were all pointed out to you. You make your bed and....
Enjoy finding a park In Salvador btw oh and don't get lost heading out via Sete Portas lest you end up somewhere 'interesting' or indeed exciting.
You have been scammed every day? Really? That either suggests incredible ill luck, considerable naivete or perhaps problems communicating. Perhaps all three. Maybe the obverse is true. perhaps I'm exceptionally lucky because I could probably count the number of times a taxi driver has tried to rip me off on one hand. Perhaps it's because I speak the language. then again I know very few people who make such claims so perhaps it is just you after all.
Events like the robbery at the hotel in santa Teresa are rare. That said this sort of thing has happened in Zona Sul as well. It's like most freak events, largely unavoidable and purely a matter of luck. The proximity of a favela has nothing to do with it. There are favelas next to Ipanema and Copacabana.
Hopefully your trip will improve. Good luck.
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To Carlos69
I'm missing the point of your unnecessarily aggressive post. I am reporting exactly what happened to us. Our experiences do not make us lucky or unlucky, naive or without communication skills. These are facts whether you like the way they reflect upon Brazil or not. Low level corruption in the cities appears to be part of life in Brazil and I think it is sad because the Brazilians are lovely. We have spoken to many locals in our few weeks here and none of them are surprised by our experiences.
We have traveled to over 84 countries. We know how to travel and what to expect. And we know the difference between right and wrong. So what if our Portuguese is not perfect and if we stumble on the correct word. You imply that makes it okay to rip us off. Well, I don't think it's okay to rip anyone off for any reason whether one speaks Portuguese or not.
Regarding the armed robbery at Hotel Santa Teresa, all fine and well for you to say it is rare. The fact that it happened at all is disturbing. I doubt any of the guests staying at that very expensive hotel had ever been robbed at gunpoint before. Who has? And why should they have had to endure an armed robbery at all! I challenge you to find a newspaper article in any other country where an armed robbery of a well known hotel is reported. The danger of Santa Teresa is well documented throughout the boards. You know that!
The tone of your post is insulting and does not further the discussion or aid fellow travelers in any way. There is very little written on Brazil on this board and my intent is to be as helpful as possible. What is your point?
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boudecca - thanks for remembering me and the info here. I have a question re Brazl for Less - could you email me when it's convenient?
eseibertca AT yahoo DOT ca
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It really appears that what the "specific person who was rabid in her fear mongering" advised you of is exactly what you are reporting your experience was, so were you given rabid fear-mongering or sound, factual advice?
Not every traveller would find all the perils, frustrations and inconveniences you have confronted (and the dangers you may have faced unknowingly) to be the way they might want to spend a relaxing vacation. And especially on a much shorter one, those travellers would not be missing much by not driving and instead joining the Brazilians in taking the extremely comfortable buses, or often even more cheaply, flying.
I think you do a major disservice to most travellers to Brazil to suggest that (self)driving through Brazil is a reasonable choice for any but the most intrepid.
You were advised by that person that she did "not recommend driving in Brazil to anyone new to Brazil who does not speak the language well, and is not familiar with road conditions and driving habits…..
Also, not to drive in Brazil in order:
To "AVOID roads with a little asphalt holding together the potholes."
To "AVOID getting lost in an unsafe area (such as a favela), esp. getting in and out of cities."
So you reported:
"The highway is not a true highway …….. They are adequate two lane highways BUT with speed bumps when you least expect them and tons of potholes. Also the BR101 (my note: this is the main interstate highway) up here is full of trucks supplying the cities."
"…..you do not want to be driving around Rio and take a wrong turn into a favela….We spent five days in Rio which we loved. …….. We rented a car …. though the favelas pose an interesting challenge. Be sure to bring your own maps as the rental cars do not provide them here."
"it took a half hour on this road to do 20km."
You were advised:
"It takes more than "a little bit of Portuguese" to even understand the rental contract you're signing and the potential costs you may be agreeing to in case of accident, let alone to get the car fixed while on the road, or talk to police at one of the common blitz actions."
You reported your own experience:
"We rented a car from AVIS in Natal. What a production! There were two young men at the Avis booth, neither of whom spoke English. Nor did they read English so the reservation form you arrive with are tossed aside and they hand write the contract which you can't read because it is in Portuguese. In practical terms this meant that the entire rental process took 1 hour and 30 minutes from start to finish. Since we couldn't read the contract or question the agent, we opted to take full insurance coverage which added BR$13 per day to cover third party damage and windscreen breakage. (Suggest you factor these things into your budget and planning. ….We ended up taking the extra insurance because we found that in Brazil we were scammed at least once a day."
(My note: the "full" insurance coverage still doesn't cover damage other than proven third party damage, for example vandalism or anything you yourself might be responsible for, and you will be home by the time they are charging your credit card any price they choose for repair.)
"Manaus was interesting because there are random police blockades on the road to Venezuela. All of a sudden there would be a stop with maybe 10 armed police officers stopping all cars. ……. Very few English speakers."
You were initially informed about accidents and carjackings. You did indeed more recently report seeing a bad accident, luckily not involving you, in just the short few weeks you have been travelling. Further luck (only) may have prevented you from becoming a victim of crime too.
You stated initially that "there was no way the conditions here in Brazil were as bad as those we encountered in some of the African countries we drove through.." but yet after doing some driving, say "Roads are okay. Mind you, not as good as the roads in South Africa or even the road on the Caprivi strip." (my note: in Namibia)
Also, you were told about the frequency of carjackings in certain areas of the country. Luckily, up until this point in your trip, it seems you haven't encountered this problem, and some who do not know the areas well where this occurs may say it is rare. However, as you yourself say "Regarding the armed robbery at Hotel Santa Teresa, all fine and well for you to say it is rare. The fact that it happens at all is disturbing. I doubt any of the guests staying at that very expensive hotel (my note: or anyone renting a car for a peaceful drive around the country) had ever been robbed at gunpoint before. Who has? And why should they have had to endure an armed robbery at all." Continued good luck to you on your drive, as you enter the areas where carjacking is more frequently reported.
If you claim that "Low level corruption in the cities appears to be part of life in Brazil and I think it is sad because the Brazilians are lovely." then who is it that is corrupt, if not those very "lovely" Brazilians by whom "we were scammed at least once a day, with "having meal checks be presented with prices that were not reflected on the menu (but were, of course, higher) to taxi drivers changing the tariff rate from 1 (day time) to 2 (nighttime with 17% premium) in the middle of the day while enroute"?
You said " It is imperative that you bring an English to Portuguese dictionary so you have a shot at not being a victim", but a few hastily looked-up words are scant proof against the plethora of instances where you didn't even perceive that you were being charged a hefty 'gringo tax' while the "lovely Brazilians" smiled to your face.
The famous Brazilian composer Tom Jobim once said that "Brazil is not for beginners", and your comments illustrate that this is especially true for those "cabecudos" who think they have it all figured out before they spend much time on the ground. You initially said on the other forum that "We know how to travel and what to expect." but your post here (and others there) seem to be one long litany of complaints about conditions outlined in advance advice that proved accurate, from those with lots of experience in Brazil, about conditions that you negated previous to travelling.
As mentioned above, not all are as intrepid as you, and not all would want to pass a vacation fraught with so many problems and complications simply in order to get to a few places that might not be reachable by other transportation.
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Equestrian, you have my sincere vote for a medal. Gracias.
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To Equestrian
You really seem to have too much time on your hands.
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To Equestrian
Sorry I was so slow on the uptake. You're the person who gives so much bad advice on driving in Brazil on "the other board". Try as you will, you just can't hide your writing style and the "I know better than you do" attitude that pervades all your comments wherever you write.
For the record, we are still in Brazil and our trip could not have been better. We have had a fabulous time driving in Brazil. To date, we have logged over 3000 km. Of course, we have had the occasional problem and some of your comments were correct but nothing that happened to us could quell the enjoyment of our trip one tiny iota. Real travelers adjust to glitches and the unusual by devising work arounds on the fly. And we get where we want to go with no fuss.
My reports are not for you who prefers the bus, but for others who have a keen sense of adventure and a free spirit. Brazil is a great country best enjoyed by driving through it. That is my experience and my firm belief. We have met many other fellow travelers these last five weeks who join us in this opinion. My reports are the facts of our specific trip without any judgments. If you interpret this as confirmation of your "advice", that's your opinion. Not mine.
And, what makes you think your opinion is better than mine? You travel by bus. I travel by car. I wouldn't think of giving advice to anyone about bus travel. Why do you think it's okay to give advice about driving when your entire Brazilian travel experience is by bus?
You should get yourself off that bus and try experiencing Brazil through the eyes of a real traveler. Or don't you drive? But at the very least you should stop scaring people about the horrors of driving in Brazil. Your point of view does not work for everyone. And you are just downright wrong about many things.
To my fellow travelers who want to travel through Brazil by car, my advice to you is to go ahead and try it. Pick one area where the driving is easy (maybe pick up a car at the Florianopolis airport or even the Salvador airport and head north to Praia do Forte). If you find you really do not like driving, then you can always change your mode of transportation for future legs of your trip. But if you find that you really like the freedom of driving, a car can open up a whole new Brazil to you. Don't let the negativity of a handful of specific individuals limit your experiences. Talk to people who are kindred spirits and make up your own minds.
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My advice for newbies to Brazil to stick to the efficient and comfortable bus and sirline systems actually stems from the number of years (almost 2 decades) I have travelled and lived in Brazil -- and the number of problems I have either encountered or observed while driving with Brazilian friends and relatives over most areas of the country, coastal and inland, rural and urban, during that time period.
Note that the those advising first timers against driving (on the other forum) are Brazilians, who know their roads, and what can befall the unwary on them, well.
Your "good" advice above includes encouraging newbies to drive from Salvador to Praia do Forte, a stretch of road so prone to carjackings that even the buses go in a caravan with armed cars alongside. Cars coming from the sirport are known (by locals) to be particularly targeted. This has included a foreign family with a small child who were left stranded by the side of the road in the middle of nowhere up there, when their car was stolen. I personally know more than one person who has gone through a harrowing experience on that stretch of road. For example, one foreign woman resident was driving her car home along that stretch when she was suddenly forced off the road by two vehicles filled with armed men. She narrowly escaped being killed when one gunman, who was the one designated to drive her car away, couldn't figure out how to drive an automatic (very rare to find a non-stick shift in Brazil), turned his gun on her.
If someone has spent enough time in Brazil to come to know the road conditions and the drivers, and speaks enough Portuguese to get help if lost or in trouble, to know exactly what the rental contract says, and to get informed by locals as to trouble spots, then they may be informed enough to undertake a road trip safely, and to balance the substantial risks with whatever rewards are to be found by stopping at those rare places a bus does not.
Anyone reading this, or the thread(s)on the other forum, is clearly free to decide to take the advice of someone who spent 5 weeks in Brazil, reported many incidents that not every traveller would want to encounter on a vacation, and had some very good luck to avoid others (whether he knows Brazil well enough to understand this or not).
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What is a Color Combination Challenge and Link to Master List of All CCs
So just what is the Color Combination Challenge? It is simply an invitation to create a card using a particular set of colors. Everyone is invited to play along!
For much more details about all the challenges, including this one, check out this thread.
To find a list of all the previous Color Challenges, click here.
If you have questions or comments about any of the challenges, please ask it here.
Please join in on the fun!
Wow! I just stumbled across this post and I love how the colors work out! I'm so very color challenged that this list will help me change things up for my customers!!
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Last week, we reviewed some of the top intercultural blunders of 2011. Throughout the year, many businesses and governments have also learned the hard way that translation errors can be costly and incredibly embarrassing. Perhaps translation missteps were destined to fill the year — in Vietnam, 2011 is the Year of the Cat, not the year of the Rabbit like elsewhere in Asia, and some allege that the discrepancy is the result of an old translation error. Consequently, some might call this the year of mistranslation.
Like the top intercultural blunders of 2011, most of these linguistic missteps are cringeworthy, and a few are humorous. All are good reminders to take appropriate precautions when working in another language. Hopefully, a little extra care will help make 2012 a year of great translation successes!
In no particular order, here is my list of the Top 10 translation blunders of 2011, together with honorable mention of a few similar gaffes from elsewhere in the world that did not make the list.
Nokia chose the name Lumia for its new phone knowing full well it was an obscure Spanish word for a lady of the night. The cellular company decided to select the name anyway when research showed most Spanish speakers were unaware of the old meaning. When the press discovered the old definition, however, the resulting buzz spread worldwide. In this case, since the meaning has changed, any publicity may possibly be good publicity.
Honorable mention elsewhere in the world: Other companies encountered similar brand name challenges this year. For instance, some have questioned whether Apple's Siri or the UK's Pret a Manger monikers would be problematic in Japan and France. Thanks to a little homework, the Royal Canadian Air Force has avoided a similar naming gaffe.
In the latest issue of the Dutch magazine 'Jackie,' an article referred to singer Rihanna with a combination of racist and sexist slurs. The article, with the exception of the most offensive words, was written in Dutch, and the magazine claimed it did not fully understand the meaning of those words before publishing them. This editor has apologized and resigned over the incident. This case is a good reminder to be careful when using other words that English has borrowed from foreign languages.
Honorable mention elsewhere in the world: As mentioned in the top intercultural blunders of 2011, Vogue Italia also tried to blame mistranslation for inappropriately described "slave" earrings, but the offending word was also found in the original text.
Are Chinese police really never around when you need them? In a failed attempt to be helpful, one public sign in southeast central China read, "difficult to find police." According to the University of Pennsylvania's entertaining Language Log Blog, it should have read, "If you have difficulty, find the police" or "If you are in trouble, call the police."
Honorable mention elsewhere in the world: Other public service announcements also saw challenges in translation this year. One Icelandic geophysicist who explained that nothing unusual was happening with local volcano was mistranslated as predicting a disastrous eruption, causing unnecessary panic and concern. After an East Coast blizzard, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was criticized less for his choice of words and more for his peculiar pronunciation; however, his valiant efforts and his good sense of humor are certainly commendable.
A key conversation discrediting the hotel worker in the Dominique Strauss-Kahn case was allegedly mistranslated. That conversation and other factors led to dismissal of the charges against Strauss-Kahn.
Honorable mention elsewhere in the world: Other cases have also hinged on the accuracy of translation. A rape suspect in Arkansas and the world's "most wanted" Nazi war crimes suspect have been freed partially based on purported translation errors.
Earlier in December, Nintendo stock dropped 2 percent in a single day after key game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of Super Mario Bros, The Legend of Zelda, and other famous video games, was reported to be retiring. However, the retirement report was purportedly the fault of a mistranslated interview or misunderstood sarcasm.
Honorable mention elsewhere in the world: Earlier in the year, when investment analysts asked Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata for his first impression of competitor Sony's PlayStation Vita, he initially declined to comment. Apparently, Iwata had a bad experience just one year prior when his first impression of Apple's iPad was allegedly misrepresented as an insult.
Dermatologists of the world were shocked to hear that Brazilian model Gisele Bundchen had supposedly labeled all sunblock as "poison" in a press conference. For a brief moment, the world shunned the supermodel as a bad influence on the health of young girls everywhere. However, Bundchen and her publicist denied that report, claiming there was a mistranslation and asserting she does indeed use sunscreen but avoids certain synthetic ingredients.
Elsewhere in the World: Since Brazilians are such huge soccer fans and amazing soccer players — and since I have not yet found a more pertinent place to mention this — it should be noted that the world of soccer continues to suffer from one mistranslation drama after another after another.
In a less well known — but humorous — incident, a business magazine ironically added Google mistranslations to an article I wrote about translation, causing the article, titled "Lost in Translation," to become self-descriptive. My article warned about the difficulty of Chinese translation, the importance of professional human translation, and the dangers of misusing machine translation; however, magazine staff paid no attention to the warnings and inserted an unauthorized Chinese mistranslation of the article title that did not mean "Lost in translation," but instead read "Lost Tokyo."
Honorable mention elsewhere in the world: With similar irony, companies worldwide display links to multilingual versions of their websites, but Internet users can not always find or understand the relevant links that are mistakenly displayed in languages other than their own. In other words, the link to the translation oddly has no translation. For example, some website links to their respective English versions are spelled out in Japanese characters and vice versa.
Hundreds of mistranslations have delayed the approval of Korean free trade agreements with both the European Union and the United States. With more than a thousand pages in each document, the race to approve these deals has apparently caused translators to rush a little too quickly and sacrifice quality. Ironically, the pressure the translators felt to rush has caused delays beyond the time a quality translation would have required.
Honorable mention elsewhere in the world: Other diplomatic interactions have been rendered awkward by poor translations. For example, Malaysia was embarrassed that a mistranslated banner welcomed a Chinese delegation. Other translation errors have caused political tensions in Turkey. After nearly three years, the infamous 2009 mistranslation of a Russian "reset" button still comes up in the news about U.S.-Russian relations.
A publisher recalled the Italian versions of a catechism book for young people after discovering a translation error that implied that the Vatican approved of contraception.
Honorable mention elsewhere in the world: The Associated Press notes that the Vatican's own in-house publisher made a similar mistake the previous year. On a positive note this year, the protestant world celebrated the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible.
Ballot translation errors seem to pop up with every election. This year, in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, the "yes" and "no" ovals associated with two of three state issues appeared to be missing from under the English explanations and appeared only in separate columns under the Spanish translations. This mix-up caused considerable voter confusion.
Honorable mention elsewhere in the world: A group opposing Mitt Romney's presidential candidacy is running an ad that shows Romney speaking in French with fake English subtitles. DeathandTaxesMag.com has called this "the most trite attack of the season."


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The Neighbor Foundation's funding is firstly directed within our high-priority focus areas: homelessness and poverty, technical literacy, neighborhood improvement, diversity and gender equality, workforce development and education in underserved populations. In the case that we have additional funds, our secondary focus areas are healthcare and arts.
In addition to our focus on the above areas, we support organizations hyper-locally in the regions where we have offices.
Our Approach
At the Neighbor Foundation, we think locally and act globally. We focus on issues that are right in our backyards around the world. Through a hyperlocal neighborhood focused approach, we develop culturally specific community programming while still working towards our overarching mission.
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Feb 19, 2009 0
From Distress to De-Stress: helping anxious, worried kids (Part 2 of 2)
Last week, in this article's first part, we discussed the importance of actually teaching children how to get themselves into a physical state of being relaxed, explored several suggestions I hope you found useful.
Let's continue.
Teachers can help student overcome stress by teaching them to identify the impediments they might encounter in doing a certain task.
The teacher can ask:
What's going to get in the way of you doing this work?
He or she may have to jump-start the students thinking by suggesting such things as:
– competing events (family activities, friends call, IM-ing, new video game, etc.)
– lack of adequate place to study
– inadequate prior preparation or skills
– a negative attitude (this is not necessary, I can't do math, I'll never need to know this, etc).
– health factors (I'm sick; I'm tired)
Conversely, teachers have to teach students to identify the enhancers; What's going to make it more likely that you will do this, and do this well?
– I have confidence in my ability
– I feel competent in this skill
– I am committed to learning this because: I have the necessary resources to complete this task, such as materials, sources of information, people supports; parents, tutor, other kids
Teachers can turn distress into de-stress by using the Language of Success
The key is to de-emphasize PRAISE and emphasize SELF-APPRAISAL.
Teachers can encourage self-evaluation by Read the rest of this entry »


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No, I don't have their 100th issue right now, so I'm going to have to skip it. Yeah, I feel bad about it to, and trust me, as gaps are filled, I will go back and do write-ups to address the missing issues of the magazine. Anyway, the magazine is evolving, and while Steve Harris is no longer with it, and Ed Semrad is only on board as their Chief Correspondent, and there's still the matter of being hitched to the potentially debt-ridden mess that is Ziff Davis (I don't know if it was as debt ridden then as it was at the end of the first generation of EGM). That said, Ziff Davis still has ZDTV at this time. That has to account for something right? No, it doesn't. Thought it would be absolutely awesome if Ziff Davis had still had ZDTV around the time they launched the 1up Brand, and the 1up Show could have been an actual TV program. Ah well, such is life. Continue reading "Where I Read – Electronic Gaming Monthly #97"
Where I Read – Electronic Gaming Monthly #97
This week's issue of EGM skips several more issues ahead due to another gap to issue #97 for August of 1997, and takes us to another Star Wars cover, for Star Wars: Masters of Teras Kasi, the first Star Wars fighting game and the last Star Wars fighting game until the Clone Wars fighting game for the Wii. For the editorial column of this issue, we get an piece from Ed Semrad looking back at the history of EGM as the magazine approaches it's 100th issue.


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A Collection of Science Fiction Gems
Today's Free Kindle eBook: A Collection of Science Fiction Gems
The book contains 36 fast paced, action packed and entertaining short stories. From dangerous pursuits through hyperspace to Cold Case investigations involving travel into the future to Virtual Reality Traveller machines that really work to the frustrated aliens of Ground Team Report to Earth's overburdening Galactic Commitment. From a Rescue Service for accidental inter-dimensional travelers to a being for whom Feeding Time is very emotional to a startling look at the Other Side to the shocking secret of the thin front line of Urban Pacifiers And much more!
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British & Irish Lions
Lions squad: How the players reacted
ESPN Staff
May 1, 2013
Leicester's Lions react to their selection for the tour Down Under%]
The confirmation of the 37 players that British & Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland will take on tour this summer has understandably been greeted with delight by those lucky enough to be included.
With only six warm-up matches in which to push their case for Test inclusion, competition among the players is sure to be fierce. But before the hardwork starts, the players will allow themselves a moment or two to think of what they've achieved. Here's how some of them reacted to the news...
Tommy Bowe (Ireland)
"It has been a fairly nerve-racking couple of weeks for me and last night was a pretty sleepless night. I am delighted to be picked and it will be an exciting end to the season for me. Every rugby player wants to represent their country but touring with the Lions is an amazing experience. I played in all three tests four years ago and hopefully, this time we can go out there and win the series."
Dan Cole (England)
"It's exciting to be in the squad because the Lions are the biggest thing in British and Irish rugby. The guys that have been selected want to push each other because everyone wants to play in a Test match. We will push each other in that collective spirit to beat Australia."
Alun-Wyn Jones (Wales)
""There has been a lot of talk about players in the squad having not played a lot of rugby. I was the same when I went to Australia with Wales last year and that probably did me a bit of good. I missed three months this season and other players have had injuries this season. Is it a bad thing? Not really, they will be rested and ready for what is round the corner."
Dylan Hartley (England)
"I can't stop smiling. I'm just happy that the sleepless nights are over now. I'd put a lot of pressure on myself to try and make it, but it's out of your hands and it's the coaches who are the ones who pick the squad."
Richard Hibbard (Wales)
"Absolutely landed is an understatement, thanks for all the congrats messages. You guys are awesome!! "
Stuart Hogg (Scotland)
"Initially I wasn't going to watch it and then I wanted to watch it, and so I came in for my kicking tee and got my iPhone and took it out with me. As soon as my name came out I screamed like a little girl, and Mossy could hear me from the other end of the pitch. But I'm lost for words. It's just a shame more couldn't be going, but for the three of us this is where the hard work starts and it's all about getting the [Test] jersey now."
Paul O'Connell (Ireland
""I'm probably very lucky to be going. Big thanks to the medical staff at Munster for getting me back and big thanks to the boys for still being in the Heineken Cup quarter-final for when I came back. It's great to be involved in those kind of games and that has probably given me my chance to go. It feels good. When my name was called out it was great."
Sean Maitland (Scotland)
"It was quite brutal the way it was done. No-one knew anything. But this is the best day of my life. It's funny how life works out. Six months ago I was in New Zealand playing for the Crusaders. Now I'm over here representing Scotland, representing Glasgow and now I'm representing the British and Irish Lions."
Geoff Parling (England)
"You don't want to believe it until you see the actual announcement. At the moment, you've just been named in the squad to go over there but the big challenge now is to get involved in those games."
Jamie Roberts (Wales)
"Pretty special feeling today....April 2013 has been unreal #Lions"
Matt Stevens (England)
"It was a bit surreal and a shock to get the news," Stevens told the Evening Standard. "I believe I'm good enough to go but just the fact that it happened was a shock. I didn't have a huge amount planned for this summer which is good and I heard about it while on the train to Bath with my wife who read it out from Twitter. India was pretty restrained and being on a train I couldn't really jump up and down."
Manu Tuilagi (England)
"To have six from Leicester Tigers in the squad is unreal. To have the guys you play with week in and week out is fantastic but when we all come together we are all one. Going on tour with the Lions and knowing you have the opportunity to, hopefully, play alongside some of the great players is a huge honour."
Mako Vunipola (England)
"I was driving into London when I heard I was called up to the squad and to be quite honest, I screamed when I found out. To be in that squad, and have the chance to pull that famous red jersey is such an honour."
Ben Youngs (England)
"It hasn't really sunk in yet but being on a British & Irish Lions tour is the dream of any rugby player. I heard when we came off the training field and the announcement was on the TV in the team room. It is a very special moment and a very proud moment for the whole family with myself and my brother there. I've had some proud moments in my rugby career already but this is definitely the proudest."
Tom Youngs (England)
"I owe a lot to this club and even when I was on loan to Nottingham they stuck by me and I was doing all of my conditioning here and they've invested a lot of time in me and I can't thank them enough.
"When I pull on that Lions jersey it's for them, it's for everyone. It's for everyone who's helped me and my whole family. It'll be a very special day for myself."
Leicester's Lions contingent celebrate their selection © Getty Images
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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Meaning behind the Song
"In our scene in Chicago almost every pretty girl is a model, it really doesn't take much to be a model nowadays all you have to do is know a photographer. I feel like the "real" models in Chicago who are actually talented are being drowned out by unprofessional, boujee pretty girls who have photographer friends. And to be for real with you, some of them are not even that good looking. So me and Criss Ruler (my label mate) decided to put the pen to othe pad and discuss this matter. The vid is rather grimy & eccentric. It kind of gives you the "fuck a haircut i'm not gonna impress you," feel. Check it out! "


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What's not to like about a motion picture that features two superhuman psychics going head-to-head with one another in an array of visually-arresting situations? Judging from the trailer embedded below the South Korean action/thriller "Psychic" (aka "Haunters") has the potential to be absolutely amazing. The picture's ability to dazzle my easy-to-please senses rests in the capable hands of director Kim Min-suk, who penned the impossibly entertaining action/comedy "The Good, the Bad, the Weird" a few years back. Whether or not he can transition from writer to director remains to be seen, but if the clip is any indication of his skills as a filmmaker, I seriously doubt we have anything to worry about.
Thanks to Film Smash for the scoop.


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Notes: Rox to use Morillo as reliever
Notes: Rox to use Morillo as reliever
Morillo, 23, struck out 132 in 27 starts at Double-A Tulsa last season and received one Major League start. He gave up seven runs and eight hits in four innings of a game the Rockies eventually won, 9-8, over the Braves at Coors Field last Sept. 24.
Throughout Morillo's career, the Rockies have considered moving him to the bullpen, but he has displayed starter's stamina and coaches wanted him to get plenty of repetitions to hone his delivery. But the bullpen would be his best opportunity to make the team this spring. If he doesn't make the team, the door is open to him pitching as a starter in the Minors.
"It has no bearing after Spring Training -- this just gives him one thing to focus on," Rockies manager Clint Hurdle said.
To become a big-leaguer in either role, Morillo will have to improve his control. He has totaled 233 strikeouts in the Minors over the past two seasons, but he led two leagues in walks and handed out 158 free passes. However, last season inning-leadoff batters hit just .188.
Morillo has not appeared in relief in the Minors since 2002. After last season, he made two relief appearances in the Dominican Winter League, but he backed out of the league because of elbow inflammation.
"I'd always heard that I might end up being a reliever," Morillo said. "I'm not worrying about that. I'm just doing my job."
Extra opportunities: The Rockies have added a couple of "B" games with the White Sox to their Spring Training schedule, on March 5 at Tucson Electric Park and March 8 at Hi Corbett Field. "B" games take place during mornings and are done before the formal Spring Training games. The Rockies also have an intrasquad game scheduled for March 2, since there is no game scheduled for that day.
Such games can give the staff an extra opportunity to evaluate players, especially pitchers.
Statistics (may or may not) lie: Hurdle said the Opening Day starter decision will not be based strictly on statistics or performances in Spring Training games.
Right-hander Aaron Cook, left-hander Jeff Francis and right-hander Rodrigo Lopez are candidates.
"It won't be statistical as far as what they do in Spring Training," Hurdle said. "I just think it'll be some developmental things we're looking at, some challenges we've issued early to each one of them individually."
Thomas Harding is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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My pick here and in five of my seven pools, the Cowboys, lost last week, and I'm disappointed about it. As much as I can cite the math and the reality that few of us were going to win our pools anyway, like many, I enjoy the action each week. Don't get me wrong - survivor is a miserable, unjust, stress-inducing form of torture, but the hope, the dream of getting a massive payout for a scant investment is like a drug. And while I stand by the notion that in order to optimize your chances of actually winning your pool, you need to take risks in proportion to their prospective payouts, for many, that hope is the reason they do this every year, and so how far they get matters a lot to them. Put differently, no one's happy when the keg runs out at the party - even if in the end drinking more beers probably wasn't going to get you laid anyway.
At the same time, I did note that the Packers had an 87 percent chance to win, and the Cowboys were merely at 80. If you strictly believe you should pick the team with the best chance to win this week, then last week's column should have influenced you to go with Green Bay. Again, I think that was the wrong play - at least according to the Yahoo! numbers and the Vegas ones - even though it ultimately panned out.
And as I wrote in East Coast Offense this week, considering only the odds of surviving this week and neglecting the payout commits you to some obviously terrible decisions. The question I asked was if 999 of your 1,000-person pool had the Packers, and you had just two choices, the Packers or the Bills, which team would you take? Even if we give the Bills just a five percent chance to win that game, you'd have a 1 in 20 chance to win your pool then and there. But if you went with the Packers, you'd have a 1 in 1000 chance to win. If you seriously would take the Packers, then you're either in denial about the true likelihood of your winning, or you're far more interested in enjoying the ride than giving yourself the optimal chance to win. To understand the magnitude of that error, consider this: the Patriots are -900 to win Sunday's game. That means you can risk $900 on the Patriots to win $100. Any sports book will take that bet. If you saw that 999 people were on the Pats this week in your 1,000-person pool, you could take the Bills and bet $90 K on the Pats. If the Bills win, you win your $100 K pool and lose $90 K to the book. IF the Pats win, you're out of your pool, but you won your bet. Either way you win $10,000. Or you could throw away $10,000 guaranteed in exchange for taking the Pats and hoping to turn your $100 entry fee into a winner over the course of the year.
That one has to consider both the payout and the likelihood of the win to optimize the chances for winning the pool is a fact no matter how many people are in it, the week of the year or your distaste for losing early. Unless your pool has a reward for making it to Week 6, or Week 8 or Week 10, when you go down makes no financial difference. It's win or bust, and in cases like that, it's often the optimal strategy to risk losing sooner rather than to take the longer, but less promising path. It's like going on 4th and 1 from your own 35 with three timeouts and three minutes left, losing 35-30. Sure, punting and hoping for the three-and-out keeps you alive longer, but the percentage play is to risk the game then and there to get the first down. It's also like being dealt 14 in Blackjack against the dealer's 10. You have to hit even though you could bust. If you stay, you get to hang around and see what the dealer has, but the math is the math. Sometimes, you'll bust, and the guy who stays will win, but that doesn't make it the right play.
Accordingly, I'm going to rank the teams both by likelihood of winning and the percentage of people taking them in Yahoo! pools. Again, if you simply prefer to take the team with the best winning percentage, then ignore the order I put them in and just pay attention to their likelihood of winning. It's your money, so you can hit or stay no matter what the dealer is showing.
Surviving Week 3
In my opinion, there are three big favorites (according to Vegas) that deserve consideration: the Patriots, the Ravens and the Vikings. According to Yahoo! 54 perecnt are on the Pats, 22 percent on the Ravens and 7 percent on the Vikings.
Vegas has the Pats at -900/+650 (let's average the two and say the real line is 775), the Ravens at -550/+425 (487.5) and the Vikings at -600/+450 (525). The odds translate to 775/875 for the Pats, 487.5/587.5 for the Ravens and 525/625 for the Vikings. That comes out to 89 percent for the Pats, 83 percent for the Ravens and 84 percent for the Vikings.
But the Vegas odds are just the current market value which while an essential starting point to the discussion is not necessarily perfect. Personally, I think the Lions are more dangerous than the Browns, and I trust the Ravens more than the Vikings. So I'll change it to Pats 88 percent, Ravens 84 percent and Vikings 78 percent. Using those numbers, which is the optimal play?
|Scenario 1
|Scenario 2
|Scenario 3
|Scenario 4
|(.88*.84*.78) 58%
|(.88*.84*.22) 16%
|(.88*.16*.22) 3%
|(.88*.16*.78) 11%
|No. remain
|Scenario Equity
|1/94 (of 10K) = $106
|1/87 = $115
|1/65 = $154
|1/72 = $139
|Expected Equity
|$106*.58 = $61
|$115*.16 = $18
|$154*.03 = $5
|$139*.11 = $15
|Scenario 5
|Scenario 6
|Scenario 7
|Scenario 8
|(.12*.84*.78) 8%
|(.12*.84*.22) 2%
|(.12*.16*.22) .5%
|(.12*.16*.78) 1.5%
|No. remain
|Scenario Equity
|1/40 = $250
|1/33 = $303
|1/11 = $909
|1/18 = $556
|Expected Equity
|$250*.08 = $20
|$303*.02 = $6
|$909 * 0 = 0
|$556 * 1.5 = $8
Because this has eight scenarios instead of 4 (due to three viable teams), I made it based on $100 per person in a 100 person pool. Also, because 53 of 100 took the Pats, 22 took the Ravens and 7 took the Vikings, that only adds up to 83, so there are 17 other entries which picked different teams. I assumed 11 of the 17 lesser choices (roughly two-thirds) would get through, i.e, these numbers assume six other people lose.
In scenarios 1-4, New England wins, and in 5-8 they lose. So if you take the Pats, you add up the expected equity of 1-4, and get $61 + $18 + $5 + $15 = $99. Essentially, given this spread of people picking the Pats and the percentages, the Pats cost you $1 in expected equity. The Ravens win under scenarios 1, 2, 5 and 6. They are: $61, $18, $20 and $6 for a total of $105. The Vikings win under scenarios 1, 4, 5 and 8. They are: $61, $15, $20 and $8 for a total of $104.
So given these numbers, the picks are 1. Ravens, 2. Minnesota, 3. Pats.
Here's a more qualitative breakdown of the games (Yahoo percentage picked in parenthesis).
1. Baltimore Ravens (22%) The Ravens seem to struggle for some reason against the Bengals, but their defense is still very stout, and the offense is likely to get going now that they're back home and not facing two of the league's better defenses. The Browns ability to run block and pass protect makes them a little bit dangerous, but unless Baltimore turns it over a bunch of times, they should be able to pull away. I give the Ravens an 84 percent chance to win this game.
2. Minnesota Vikings (7%)
The Vikings are Vegas' pick, given the Yahoo! pick distribution, i.e., had I plugged in the straight Vegas odds (which has the them at 84 percent). But as much as it's tempting to expect the Vikings to regress upward toward last year's mean, and the Lions to regress downward to the doormats they were, I have to wonder whether substantive and irreversible changes haven't taken place for both teams. Even a QB in his prime would be hard-pressed to repeat Favre's 2009, and for a guy coming off ankle surgery, turning 41 in a month and missing his top receiver (and with Percy Harvin dinged up, too), it's almost impossible. The Lions are in their second season under Jim Schwartz, have a healthy Calvin Johnson, an explosive tailback in Jahvid Best and made some defensive upgrades, particularly on the line. The bottom line, Minnesota could still roll, but I have them only at 78 percent.
3. New England Patriots (54%)
The Pats are the biggest favorites this week against a hapless Bills team, but Buffalo is strong against the pass, and New England has virtually no running game. The upgrade to Ryan Fitzpatrick who might be able to find Lee Evans down the field is a plus, but it'll still be a tall order for them to get on track in New England. I give the Pats an 88 percent chance to win this game.
4. Indianapolis Colts (1%)
Going on the road is never easy, especially when it entails playing at altitude, but the Colts looked about as sharp as a team can look last week, and it's hard to see how Denver will keep pace. I give the Colts a 68 percent chance to win this game.
5. San Diego Chargers (1%)
The Chargers got back on track against Jacksonville last week and should be able to handle a Seahawks team that seems to be in transition. The one caveat here is that Qwest Field is not typically an easy place to play given the crowd noise, something that seemed to have an effect on the Chargers in Kansas City. I give the Chargers a 67 percent chance to win this game.
Notable omissions: none


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We all know that auto insurance is mandatory in our country. Auto insurance comprises of few components and any change whether increase or decrease impacts car insurance premium.A vehicle insurance policy mainly consists of third party car insurance, own car damages and third party property damages. Out of these components, an individual must buy an insurance policy that provides cover for third party car damages.Hence, it can be said that third party liability cover is the aspect from all insurance components which is necessary.
Insurance market in India is flooded with insurance options. An individual has the choice to buy insurance policies from various providers such as ICICI Lombard, Future Generali, HDFC Ergo, New India Assurance, Reliance General insurance, SBI General insurance company and many more other companies offer wide variety of motor insurance plans in order to lure customer of every segment.
Every company offers cheap car insurance policies with multiple options and they provide policies for particular insurance coverage such as third party insurance cover and own party damages.
Third party car insurance is the portfolio which sees claim ratio of more than any other portfolio due to it being mandatory to buy.
In India, motor insurance plans can be bought online which has emerged as the most convenient way to buy auto insurance as it is cheap compared to other modes of purchasing insurance.
Insurance Regulatory Development Authority is the institution that governs insurance laws in the country and also responsible to make any changes related to insurance.
It has recently announced to hike third party insurance premium for commercial vehicles as well as personal vehicles.
Hike in single component of the auto insurance policy has been witnessed after a long gap resulting in expensive insurance policies.
This hike in third party car insurance premium will impact overall car insurance premium as well. This hike is expected to benefit car insurance providers as they will yield more money in the form of higher car insurance premiums.
This change will not impact personal car owners that hard as compared to commercial vehicle owners as hike in third party cover is more for commercial vehicle insurance policies.
It will also impact people buying high end sports utility vehicles as these cars tend to be more expensive and now with hike in insurance premium, they will also face the heat.
Curated from Third Party Car Insurance Premium Hike Proposed By IRDA


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Sam Morris / Las Vegas Sun
Monday, Jan. 14, 2013 | 2 a.m.
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- UNLV Leftovers: Rebels' loss at UNM may be disappointing, but it's not surprising
- Tale of UNLV's league-opening loss can't be told by one number alone
- Moser set to return for Rebels' conference opener at New Mexico
- Mountain Best: Counting down the league's 10 best nonconference victories
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- Rebels return to the national rankings at No. 24 in AP poll
- All UNLV men's basketball coverage
The next two games — Wednesday at San Diego State and Saturday at Colorado State — have the chance to define UNLV's season.
It's more likely that this week won't be the be-all and end-all for this team, but just the thought that it could be is interesting. For instance, if the Rebels were to break through and win both games, it could propel them to a league title. And if they lose both, especially if they're not close in either, it could weigh on a team that never figured things out on the road last year.
No matter what happens, there's enough time for the team to trend either way after these contests. But considering the stakes on these games and what it could mean to steal one or two road games, as well as what it would mean to start league play 1-3, it could be a very interesting week for the Rebels.
Marshall lets game speak
After UNLV lost to New Mexico — actually, at 10:03 p.m. to be precise — Anthony Marshall sent a tweet suggesting he wouldn't return to Twitter until after the season.
"Done with this .. see y'all March/April!," Marshall tweeted.
On Saturday, he didn't take a shot for the entire first half, finishing 0-for-1 from the floor with 12 assists and two turnovers. This season, he has a 2.1 assist-to-turnover ratio, but that clearly wasn't good enough for him.
"I had some games where I had a high number of assists, but I had some games where I took a lot of shots also," Marshall said. "For us to be successful, I don't need to do that."
Marshall is having the best shooting season of his career with a higher percentage on fewer shots, but the senior seems to be aware of what a lot of people say about him. Marshall said the impetus to change his offense came from his own dissatisfaction rather than outside voices.
There's certainly some truth to that, but for a guy who's so aware of all that's said and written about him and a Twitter fiend who just quit cold turkey, I have to believe his reduction in shots was in part a reaction to things he's heard.
"Before this game, I really didn't do a good job of running this team as a point guard," Marshall said. "I'm so used to playing the two. From here on out, I just want to put guys into position to be successful."
Senior forward Quintrell Thomas didn't play a single minute for UNLV on Saturday against Air Force. It's the first time this season he didn't play.
His numbers figured to go down once Khem Birch made his way to the starting lineup, but to go from starting one game to not playing at all because of a coach's decision two games later was a little surprising.
I don't think this will become Thomas' norm, but it still may happen again. With the trio last year of Brice Massamba, Carlos Lopez-Sosa and Thomas, the latter two often had to settle for inconsistent court time. This year may very well be the same for those two, with a different guy getting most or all of the minutes one night and someone else doing it the next time out.
Speaking of the rotation, freshman Savon Goodman appears to be the odd man out. He has sat out the past two games, and considering the talent ahead of him at the three and four spots, it's hard to find time for him on the court.
In conference play, the rotation should always get shorter. Against Air Force, the Rebels played nine guys with seven getting at least 21 minutes. That seems about right.
Free throws
Once again, free throws played a major factor in a UNLV game. In the loss to New Mexico, it was about the Rebels' inability to get to the line — 4-for-5 — while the Lobos had 29 attempts.
"I thought we did a good job shooting 80 percent from the line," Rice said with dry wit Wednesday. "… Anytime you can shoot 80 percent from the line, you've got to be happy with your percentage."
Against the Falcons, the Rebels didn't have any trouble getting to the line; they just couldn't do anything once they got there.
After shooting 9-for-10 on free throws in the first half, UNLV went 5-for-17 in the second half, which was a big reason it needed overtime to get the win. The Rebels were 4-for-4 in the extra session.
Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.


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When I look in the mirror, I see a head full of beautiful, greying hair, a plump, healthy skin and bright eyes. I am still rather young-looking for my age – I'm 71 – and credit my mother's gift of beautiful skin and family genes. As well as my mother, I see bits of my dad, and sometimes even traces of the twentysomething girl who sang Walk On By back in 1964.
At a very young age, I was influenced by the style of stars such as Marlene Dietrich, Lena Horne and Loretta Young – as soon as I saw them, I knew those were the looks I wanted to emulate.
I love the way I've started ageing; the process has a way of changing things inside as well as outside. My voice, for example, has changed somewhat; as I've matured, so has it – but in a good way, I think.
I don't exercise, I drink and I eat what I want. I wish I had a stricter sleep regime but that's virtually impossible. I am continually flying into various time zones and try to catch up by sleeping on flights.
I have never had the desire for Botox or plastic surgery. I believe all that I am is the way God planned it, and who am I to think I can improve on what he did?
• To mark her 50th anniversary in the music business, Dionne Warwick will be performing across the UK this month and next, including a 28 May show at the Royal Albert Hall, London, in support of World Hunger Day.


text:
Release Date: 2012
DVD Release Date: May 21st, 2013
Not Yet Rated|1 hr 27 min
Plot Summary
Trapped in a dark world of her own making, Piper (Nicole Beharie) has not left her apartment in a long time. A knock on her door reveals a stranger who may have answers to the mystery at the center of her world.
Cast: Nicole Beharie, Christopher J. Domig
Director: Russell Sharman
Genres: Mystery, Drama


text:
2012 Guru Strategies Review: All Hail our Algorithmic Overlords?
It's that time of year when investors all tend to reflect on our relative performance to figure out whether we should throw up our hands and just invest in a (boring) tracker. And what a year it's been in the equity market! From the depths of despair in the early summer when the Euro crisis looked set to swallow us all... to the fiscal cliff relief relay of recent days. When all of that was said and done, in the year to January 3rd 2012*, the FTSE 100 gained 6.6% while the FTSE All Share was up 9.0%. As it's our mission to highlight what works when in the markets, let's take a look at how effectively Stockopedia's model portfolios of the Investing Masters have been performing versus these benchmarks.
Guru Models Keep On Slaying The Market....
The performance of the models this year has been frankly astounding. The screen performance can continually be tracked at this link or in detail here.
To recap, since December 15th 2011, we've been tracking 60 long only strategies and 5 short strategies, spanning from the investing greats (the likes of Graham) to classic academic finance papers (such as Piotroski). You can read more about how we run & rebalance the strategies here.
Of the long only strategies, an astonishing 90% (54/60) have beaten the FTSE 100 with gains of between 9% and 76%. Versus the FTSE All Share, 82% of the Strategies (49/60) are beating the Index. The average return of these long models was 22.4%.
On the short side, all but one of the short selling strategies are in negative territory (as they should be), and even that one, the Altman Z-Score screen, is well below the market return (having eked out just 0.22%). The worst (or rather best) performing short screen is down 24.4% in the last year, showing how important it is to avoid fundamentally weak, near bankrupt stocks with potentially dodgy earnings - no surprises there!
Which Strategies have done best?
As you can see clearly from the following chart (continuously updated here), this year has been a story of Value and Income, which have outperformed other investiny styles.
At the top of the tables it's been a story of value, dividends and contrarianism trumping growth and…
Unlock this article instantly by logging into your accountDon't have an account? Register for free and we'll get out your way
As per our Terms of Use, Stockopedia is a financial news & data site, discussion forum and content aggregator. Our site should be used for educational & informational purposes only. We do not provide investment advice, recommendations or views as to whether an investment or strategy is suited to the investment needs of a specific individual. You should make your own decisions and seek independent professional advice before doing so. Remember: Shares can go down as well as up. Past performance is not a guide to future performance & investors may not get back the amount invested.
9 Comments on this Article show/hide all
|5th Jan '13
|1 of 9
The current top ten stocks ranked by Mcap from the Smallcap index have also gone up over 70%(plus 3% divi) from 1st Jan 2012 to 1st Jan 2013. No rebalancing trade costs every quarter and a spread average of around just 1%. There are many ways to skin a cat. KLR, SPRT, TCG, 888, NTG, FSJ, STHR, GNC, CINE, BRAM.
|| Link | Share
|Roger Lawson
|7th Jan '13
|2 of 9
Fascinating. But with the average return on all long screens being 22.4 when you are including small cap and AIM companies in the screens, and as you say yourself the small cap index is up 26% (although the AIM index is down but mainly I suspect because of companies in the mining sector with assets but no revenue or profits being downgraded which would be excluded from most screens anyway), it still leaves the question of whether blindly using screens would help. But doing this each year may tell us which screens are reliable and which are not. Guess we'll all be looking at what the Bill Miller screen is currently recommending.
|Website: Roliscon
|| Link | Share
|7th Jan '13
|3 of 9
Do you have a screen to screen out the bad screens please or if you have several such screens then a screen for them?
|| Link | Share
|Roger Lawson
|7th Jan '13
|4 of 9
Hang on, the Bill Miller screen is definitely "concentrated" as the article puts it. In fact at the current time it only suggests three stocks - Dart, Standard Chartered and Air Partner. Nobody with any sense would run a portfolio of 3 stocks, particularly when 2 of them are very small companies. Maybe what we need is a "screen of screens" so we can get more in there rather like a "fund of funds" for all those of us who "sincerely want to be rich" (to guote Bernie Cornfeld).
|Website: Roliscon
|| Link | Share
|7th Jan '13
|5 of 9
Thanks for the comments. We have something called the Screens of Screens - discussed in depth here - which picks the stocks that are appearing most frequently across all the other screens tracked on Stockopedia - be they value, bargain, growth, quality, income or momentum (excluding short screens). By definition, this tends to be a list of relatively defensive stocks because they exhibit good fundamentals across a wide range of investing strategies. What we haven't done (yet) is weight the importance of each screen based on its historic performance, although we are thinking about doing this.
|| Link | Share
|7th Jan '13
|6 of 9
p.s. Definitely agreed re: Bill Miller - as implemented, it's a very rigorous set of criteria so it's very concentrated when applied to just the UK stock universe and risky/volatile as an approach for that reason, presumably hence its outperformance to date and potentially its underperformance going forward.
We deliberately try to be very purist about implementing the relevant screening factors for a given Guru, rather than focusing on whether the resulting list itself is sufficiently diversified - that's the DYOR part.
We will shortly be expanding our coverage across Europe so that will add more candidate Miller stocks (you can sign up for the Europe-wide version here), plus we're working on moving from sequential screening (simple) to simultaneous Z-Score screening (much harder), at which point we should be able to generate and track more diversified lists, even for these very tough criteria/factor screens.
|| Link | Share
|Roger Lawson
|7th Jan '13
|7 of 9
Well at least I am holding a few of the screen of screens stocks already!
|Website: Roliscon
|| Link | Share
|9th Jan '13
|8 of 9
Murakami, the reason I haven't subscribed to Pro yet is that imo the stock screen has little validity if its results cannot be backtested. The alternative is to wait several years to see how things work out which is not a good option for the trader or for Stockopedia. I've been using screening for several years & have no doubt what so ever it has vastly improved my performance but backtesting was an important part of the process in order to gain sufficient confidence to trade the strategy. The reason I highlighted the top ten smallcaps gaining 70% in my previous post is that backtesting tells me it's not actually a very good long term strategy. So, does Stockopedia have any plans to provide a future backtesting fascility?
|| Link | Share
|9th Jan '13
|9 of 9
Hi Kevin, we discuss backtesting a bit here in the FAQ:
http://help.stockopedia.co.uk/knowledgebase/articles/80621-can-you-add-longer-timeframe-performance-histories .
The short answer is we're working on it but it's complicated to do well, and very dangerous if done badly (as most commercially available systems seem to be).
Do feel free to raise a Support ticket via the Green Help & Feedback button and we can discuss the issue in more depth offline.
|| Link | Share


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Z Biddy
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I went to sign up and they charged a hidden amount for auction bids in the amount of 99.00 that was NOT authorized.
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text:
Starting to research 8 week trip to Bots / Zim / Zam / Malawi for 2013. None of web sites I have reviewed to date offer rates as part of menu options. Is is possible to book directly with camps (my preference) or is one forced to book through a travel company? If the latter, need suggestions for which agents offer best pricing as well as reliable company which won't go bankrupt during planning phase or take money and do a runner.
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Zambia/Botswana Possible to book lodges directly?
Starting to research 8 week trip to Bots / Zim / Zam / Malawi for 2013. None of web sites I have reviewed to date offer rates as part of menu options. Is is possible to book directly with camps (my preference) or is one forced to book through a travel company? If the latter, need suggestions for which agents offer best pricing as well as reliable company which won't go bankrupt during planning phase or take money and do a runner.
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It is possible but difficult as many safari camp owners in places like Botswana will not directly deal with the end user. More importantly, it is my experience it's nearly impossible to save money by doing so as they will likely give you the rack rate especially in high season. A safari agent often works out cheaper as they can share part of their commission with the client.
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There are some great agents to work with -- check trip reports and most people will tell you who they worked with. In addition to arranging lodging, it is helpful in booking how you plan to get from place to place. While some places are drive-able, others are not.
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Try this site for some rate info -
regards - tom
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Thanks so much. Fabulous reference tool.
> uhoh_busted
Great point re: planning how to get from place to place. Will follow up with your suggestion.
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For Zambia, it's pretty easy to get the rates directly from the camp's website. In South Luangwa, Norman Carr and Robin Pope definitely make it easy to check rates and availability. However, I would suggest using an agent since mine was able to get a good discount off what was advertised on the websites.
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It depends on the time of year you're going, and you have to look for who is offering specials. Some companies offer specials exclusively through one agent; others offer them through multiple booking sources. In Zambia's South Luangwa we got a much better deal with one agent than we could have on our own (including private vehicle and guide), through The Wild Source.
In Botswana we booked a Green Season safari with Kwando through Fish Eagle Safaris. We used go2africa.com for another Botswana safari (at camps other than Kwando) and that went off without a hitch as well and they had better prices than we could have gotten otherwise. Certain agents have special arrangements with certain camps and/or companies.
We had great service with all of these companies and would recommend them. Bottom line: shop around, ask lots of questions, and don't immediately accept the first thing you are offered -- you can modify itineraries to get what you want, and if the itinerary is what you want but the price is more than you're willing to say, say so -- and check with others. Tell them what your needs and preferences are. If you're a first time safari-goer, say so. If you've been on safari a dozen times and are into photography, say so. If you're a birder, say so. It can affect the guides you get and other factors.
Good luck, and enjoy -- the planning is at least half the fun!
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Hi There,
I am sitting in the lounge (a.k.a. common area) at Chiawa Camp in Lower Zambezi National Park. I am about 12 days into a 19 day trip though Zambia with a three days at Matusadona National Park (Zimbabwe). As an agent, I won't comment too much on what has been mentioned on price other than to say we do make sufficient commission to operate our businesses and make a very modest profit while (for most companies) charging clients no more than the direct booking price.
How to book – I have been here for about 12 days now and spoken to at least 100 travelers. In my chats with others in Zambia, I have found that many guests are booked here with Expert Africa (UK – at least 10 guests), ATR (UK – at least 10), and Bill Givens (US – at least 6), Africa Adventure Company (US - at least 4) and everyone else seems to be with various other companies (Encompasse Africa – 2 , A&K - 2, etc.). The companies that book South Luangwa a lot seem to keep their guests there for at least five days at two camps minimum with 3-5 days in Lower Zambezi as well. Perhaps starting with some of these companies would be a good start for the Zambia portion and you may consider booking components with different companies. I know ATR and Bill Given book a lot of Kwando in Botswana. I know Expert Africa books a smattering of lodges in Botswana including Wilderness and Kwando.
Zimbabwe – there is no company mentioned above that dominated in Zimbabwe but I know AAC books a lot of Vundu (according to their web site). Goliath is booked direct somewhat, and the Wilderness Camps in Hwange and Mana Pools are booked by a lot of US tour operators and the guests I have met in those two camps are almost always American. The camps are done in a 3-3 circuit typically. The African Bush Camps Company camps like Somalisa and Kanga in Hwange and Mana Pools have a more international clientele and Vundu and Goliath in Mana Pools are used much more exclusively by canoe and hiking guests respectively. I suppose finding the right PERSON at the above companies with knowledge in these places may be best.
Two of our consultants used to work for Wilderness Safaris in Malawi and one managed Kaya Mawa. I have heard that only about 100 Americans visit Malawi per year for pure tourism purposes so no one individual company has huge volume here but any of the ones I mentioned above should be able to assist and do a seamless booking.
I hope this helps. Back to the bush! No internet for another 10 days.
Craig Beal – owner – Travel Beyond
2011 & 2012 Travel & Leisure A-List agent for Zimbabwe and Botswana
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Craig - If you are at Chiawa, I hope you are also going to Old Mondoro - one of our favourite camps. I would also highly recommend a night in the tree house at Kaingo Camp in SLNP - it provided one of our most magical nights in Africa ever! CR
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Having been in the Industry for 18 years I remember starting out long before the Internet and then being the First to use the Internet in Jan 1997. As usual everyone has copied me and that's Ok but now the cut rate competition has started. Thats Capitalism for you.
We are off to film at Mala Mala and Simbambili in a few weeks time.
Craig, Have a GREAT TIME.
Yours on Safari
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Can you imagine learning that you'd unknowingly been leaving your child in the hands of someone cruel and violent? Sadly, that's exactly what happened to these parents.
The story occurred back in 2014. Whitney Matney and her husband Chris were in need of a nanny to look after their young daughter Raylee. Whitney was a law student at the time and got in touch with an old high school classmate who offered to take care of Raylee.
Naturally, Whitney believed that she could trust the nanny. It's always difficult for parents to leave their children with other people, but in this case, Whitney was confident that everything would be okay.
Over time, Whitney and Chris noticed that Raylee was starting to behave a bit strangely. Whenever the nanny arrived at the home, Raylee would try to run away and hide. The 1-year-old girl seemed to be scared of the nanny, and the couple began to have some doubts about the situation.
They decided to set up a spy-cam to see what was going on when they weren't around.
The very first night after installing the camera, Whitney noticed that it had been moved. She was immediately concerned and decided to check out the footage. What she saw chilled her to the core.
The video had captured the cruel nanny violently hitting and shaking Raylee. Then, she spotted the spy-cam and turned it around.
Whitney and Chris called the cops and the nanny was arrested the same day. The couple are glad they discovered the truth, but they feel terrible to have left their daughter in the hands of someone so horrible for so long.
This story just goes to show that you can never be too careful. The nanny in question arrived with good references and seemed like the perfect person for the job, but it's always better to be safe than sorry.
Check out the video below to learn more, but we'd like to warn you that it does contain some disturbing footage. SHARE the story with your friends on social media to raise awareness about dangerous nannies.