Educate your child's palate...

JourneyMom will want to pass along her love of travel to her children. That means exposing them to the tastes of the world before you even get on to an airplane. Take the kiddies to Chinatown for a dim sum treat. Sunday morning is a perfect time because that's when Chinese families take their kids for brunch or lunch. Pop into your closest Mexican restaurant and get their stomachs used to tacos. Show them how to eat sushi. They don't need to eat raw fish, they can choose vegetarian snacks to begin. The more you offer children these new dining experiences the better they will cope with cultural differences as they travel.

Erica Ehm is the creator of two gorgeous children and www.yummymummyclub.ca, a cheeky, playful site for women with kids, cuz mummy deserves to play too!

Test your outer limits...

As we age, we sometime tend to repeat ourselves: same vacations, same activities, same people to visit. As a middle aged travel writer (55) I'm now trying something new as often as possible -- testing my outer limits. Here's a few ideas I'd like to share with Journeywoman readers. At Daytona Beach, Florida, I suggest that you try speeding around the Daytona 500 track at 150 mph, it's a blast and great for your complexion. Off Vancouver Island, kayak with orca killer whales: they won't bother you and they are beyond magnificent. In Hudson Bay, Canada, put on a full body wetsuit and swim with white beluga whales - they have much to share with you. In Yellowstone Park, take a 4 day course and get up close with wolves, bears, elk and buffalo. These kind of experiences have transformed me from a former fearful couch potato to a sinewy, serendipity loving travel journalist. Give it a try, ladies!

Sharon Spence Lieb is a global adventure travel columnist at: www.moultrienews.com.

Cook your own dinner...

The new rage in many cities are evening cooking classes where people gather in a “hand’s on” kitchen and have their time at the stove. Under the watchful eye of a chef, students are instructed how to cook their own meals. They’re usually three-courses and at the end of the session, participants gather at a communal table to eat what they’ve assembled. The school always offers wine. It doesn’t matter whether or not you knew anyone when you donned your apron, you will afterwards. Many people decide to take additional classes as they’re educational and solve where you should dine. Before heading to a city, surf the Internet. You’ll find classes and menus posted on websites. Reserve on line. Don’t worry if you don’t speak the language. Someone always speaks English and then there’s the international language of food. In Paris I can suggest: http://www.rendez-vous-boutique.com/atelierdeschefs

Karen Fawcett lives in Paris, France, is the President of Bonjour Paris.com Website: http://www.parisrental.org/Paris_Rental.html

Find your historical context...

Cultural wisdom historically pools at the intersection of women and travel. Antique travel writing and portraits of pioneering women travelers help me connect to the land and point to parallels which still exist. The book, 'Unsuitable For Ladies' collects the transformative accounts of all-stars like
Karen Blixen and Freya Stark as well as lesser known adventuresses, while 'Dreaming of East's stories of 18th to 20th century women who traveled to the eastern Ottoman empire demonstrates why Eastern travel has signified freedom for generations of Western women. Both very well worth reading, ladies!

Cultural writer and multimedia producer Anastasia M. Ashman is the Istanbul-based coeditor of the internationally bestselling anthology by foreign women in modern Turkey, 'Tales From The Expat Harem.' Website: www.expatharem.com

Private soirees, salons and vernissages...

Think back to the wild gatherings that were hosted by the likes of Gertrude Stein and attended by famous Impressionist painters, philosophers and writers of the day, such as Renoir, Monet, Hemingway, Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. Today, these events are tamer but still take place in Paris weekly. Private soirees are less intimidating and more intimate than going to a bar. The French go to these exclusive soirees in order to meet internationals and other French; internationals and expats go to meet French people, and other expats. Everyone is interested in the ensuing language/cultural exchange, and these events are a great way to expand your social circle in Paris, quickly. Fascinating people from all walks of life attend on a regular basis. Costs vary from free of charge to 25 euros, and include all-you-can drink wine and food.

Chez Grace: Vernissages (art and photography shows) in Grace's spectacular Montmartre apartment, email: grace.teshima@gmail.com, or call 01.42.62.45.98 to reserve.

I V Y Paris Artist's Salon: Adventures in Paris art, fashion and culture, Website: http://www.ivyparisnews.com/

Chez Domingo's Soirees: Website: http://www.adc-domingo.com/

Paris Expats Soirees/Dinners: http://www.parissoirees.com/. Patricia has been hosting dinner soirees for years and this is a great place to make new friends.

Jim Hayne's: Famous Iconic American has been hosting Sunday night dinner soirees for 25 years: Website: http://www.jim-haynes.com/

Karen Henrich runs her tour company NuitBlanche Tours and is the author of Practical Paris, Everything You Need to Know About Paris But Didn't Know to Ask. Also featured prominently in National Geographic's Best Girlfriends Getaways Worldwide.

Soar in Turkey with World’s Top Woman Balloonist...

My love affair with Cappadocia (Turkey) has a lot to do with an inspirational woman balloonist, Kaili Kidner, who together with partner, Lars Eric Moere, has steered Turkey’s most respected ballooning company for 20 years, Kapadokya Balloons Goreme. If you are lucky enough to share a balloon basket with Kaili, it will be only a matter of minutes until you discover what a talented, and humorous, pilot she is, as you soar over weathered hoodoo-like fairy chimneys of soft volcanic rock, and slip into narrow ravines so deep that they swallow a nine-storey balloon with ease. Tales of ancient invasions and occupations in this historic crossroads land are reinforced by close encounters with rock-chiseled homes centuries old and opportunities to pick apricots from orchard treetops quite literally on the fly!

Alison Gardner is a Canadian travel journalist, editor of Travel with a Challenge website: www.travelwithachallenge.com.

Women doing business in Saudi Arabia ...

The roles of men and women are far more defined in the Arab culture. Interaction between the sexes is still frowned upon in certain arenas. For example, women doing business in Saudi Arabia should make certain that their collarbones and knees are covered and that their clothes are not form-fitting. Saudis socialize primarily in restaurants and international hotels when entertaining expatriates whom they do not know well. After some time you might be invited to the home. If you are invited to a Saudi's house bring something small as a thank you. Never give alcohol unless you are sure that they drink it. If both sexes are invited, they will be hosted in separate rooms. Eat only with the right hand as the left is considered unclean. Accept the offer of Arabian coffee and dates even if you do not normally drink coffee.

Rola George Habr, Business Media Executive at the Arab Media Group, Dubai, UAE and a writer in the Emirates Business 24/7 Newspaper.

Bonus Book Box #4
Wanderlust, a social history of travel

Where do passports come from? Why did 1930s stewardesses carry wrenches? How did teetotallers shape the modern vacation? Wanderlust answers these questions and more, as Laura Byrne Paquet delves into the social history of travel. Now a multi-billion-dollar industry, travel is also one of the world's oldest. Paquet follows wisdom-seeking Greeks to the Oracle of Delphi, checks out the bedbugs in medieval coaching inns, and enjoys a Finnish sauna with a group of well-bred Victorian ladies. In her inimitable breezy style, she even explores the future of travel, from grand plans for commercial space travel to underwater hotels.

Author: Laura Byrne Paquet Publisher: www.gooselane.com ISBN: 978-0-86492-445-2