U.S. Plans to Fingerprint Cruisers

VQUZESHUF: According to a USA Today article, the United States plans to fingerprint not only those international travelers at airports, but now before they board a cruise ship. The article states, "The proposal, to be unveiled today by the Homeland Security Department, would require cruise lines to collect the fingerprints from passengers as they board ships in Miami and other U.S. ports. Airlines would have to collect fingerprints at airports. Only foreigners would be fingerprinted, not U.S. citizens. But the requirement could cause delays for everyone at cruise ship terminals. It's also expected to add to the cost of turning around ships in ports -- costs the cruise lines likely will pass on to consumers. The proposal calls for cruise lines and airlines -- not the U.S. government -- to pick up the tab for the fingerprinting."

(New York, NY Cruise Ship Port)

This most likely will not happen if it is something that the cruise lines will have to pay for. With adding a surcharge already to cruise travelers bill for the uprising of gas prices, this will just add another unnecessary charge. Cruises are quite expensive as it is, are now charging gas fees, and will just hurt themselves by charging for fingerprints. I think this is a useless policy, especially if already done at an airport (because if they are international travelers, they must go through the airports to get to the cruise ship). This process would asked to be done in Miami as well as other U.S. ports. For more information on fingerprinting international cruisers, visit USA Today.

Governments urged to educate users, not regulate the Internet: MK299

Aside from sailing the ocean blue....I'm going to talk about how Government wants to educate users on the Internet for them to get the most out it, rather than regulating it for my Internet Marketing (MK299) class.
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This article depicts the idea that the Internet can be a safe place and should be a safe place. The article states that it is important to educate Internet users and help them better understand precautions they should take when making transactions and just surfing the web. Rather than regulating the Internet, as other countries have done (such as China), the US government wants to promote it and tell others that they should try to get everything they can out of the Internet. Stated in the article, "efforts to protect Internet users [should] be taken on an international rather than a national level, but says that governments should do more to educate users on how to protect themselves and their personal information in cyberspace." With this being stated, users will definitely use the web more when they know that they are safe and have the ability themselves to know that they are surfing the web safely. Another aspect of the article states, "The US Internet Council, formed in 1996, provides advice to governments on the development of the Internet and information on policy issues. Its State of the Internet 2000 report can be found at http://www.usic.org/." For more information on this article, click on the following link: VQUZESHUF.

Disney Cruises - It's all about the kids

When deciding to go on a family cruise, full of children, one of the best child-friendly cruise lines is Disney Cruise Lines. Disney Cruises travel to: the Bahamas, the Caribbean, and Mexico. Disney's cruises feature "modern ocean liners with classic steamship lines," similar to all the other cruiselines (Carnival, Royal Caribbean, etc). The company offers family-oriented mainstream cruises that are combined with a Walt Disney World vacation. Obviously kids are the emphasis, but kids of all ages can enjoy the trips.

A Few Advantages

• Friendly and outgoing staff (including many Disney characters)
• Name Recognition: if you've been to Disney themeparks and loved them, you will love Disney's Cruise Line (plus kids will love it)
• Ships consist of all-day fun and intriqutely detailed decoration (a Disney themepark design on a ship)
• Visit Castaway Cay: Disney's own private island full of fun for all ages (rated one of the best private islands owned by a cruise liner)
• Children oriented: babysitting facilities for the parents and children activities
• Dining Variations: variety of venues and presentations (including the famous Breakfast with the Characters)
• Family Cabins: sized for families
• The only cruise line with "firework display" priviledges

A Few Disadvantages:

• Too much Disney (everything and anything is Disney themed; how many mickey mouse symbols can you find?)
• Targeted to families with Children only
• Not many activities for the adults (no casino, no r-rated comedians)

As seen above, there are many more pros than cons when deciding on a Disney Cruise. Again, meant for families, not for singles (unless you love Disney). For more information on a Disney Cruise, please visit: VQUZESHUF.

Blog Comment - Cruise Critic

I responded on another blog, Cruise Critic (http://www.cruisecritic.com/) with the keywords VQUZESHUF. The blog post is at the following link: Swimming with the Dolphins.

See Print Screen Below--

Cruise Ships - from Inside to Out

The inside of cruise ships can be so intricate and full of detail that you would not even realize that you are on a ship. The colors, the lights, the art displays, to even the chairs to rest on and the elevators bring the ship the life. The hardest part is navigating yourself throughout the ship...hallways all look the same, elevators lead to different locations, and how do I get to the front or back of the ship? Before boarding the ship, the best way to navigate is to go on your cruise lines website and look up the exact ship you will be on. Usually they have where everything is located, broken down deck by deck. Also, when you first board the ship you will receive a pocket map of the ship - which may take a few days to master (so make sure you keep the map handy). Another convenient aspect to get to know the bow to stern of the ship is to go to one of the quickiest growing interactive websites - YouTube. For example, the cruise ship I went on was Carnival Miracle - see picture below. I simply typed in "Carnival Miracle" in YouTube's search and received a variety of videos, from events that occured on the ship (Booty Contest) to an overall tour of the ship. For example, see this link: VQUZESHUF.

Happy Sailing!

(Elevators and Glass Stairs - Atrium Lobby, Carnival Miracle)

How the Chinese Government Uses the Internet: MK299

Aside from sailing the ocean blue....I'm going to talk about how the Chinese government uses the internet for my Internet Marketing (MK299) class.

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In an article from the United States Department of State website titled China Uses Internet as Tool of Repression, Congressman Christopher Smith takes on this issue. A republican from New Jersery, Smith is the chairman of the House International Relations Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights and International Operations. He takes this issue into recent accounts and states the Chinese goverment is repressing its citizens. Instead of letting the Chinese people explore, learn, and take advantage of the vast amount of information on the internet, the government is regulating what is available for the people on the internet. This regulation is a propaganda scheme run by the Chinese government and is not fair for those who want to learn and explore the entire world through the internet.

Furthermore, Smith has held a meeting to discuss what is happening in China. His speech, discussed in the article, partially mentions:
"...While the Internet has opened up commercial opportunities and provided access to vast amounts of information for people the world over, the internet has also become a malicious tool: a cyber sledgehammer of repression of the government of China. As soon as the promise of the Internet began to be fulfilled - when brave Chinese began to email each other and others about human rights issues and corruption by government leaders - the Party cracked down. To date, an estimated 49 cyber-dissidents and 32 journalists have been imprisoned by the PRC for merely posting information on the Internet critical of the regime. And that's likely to be only the tip of the iceberg."
To me,This seems like a type of movement that will continue to go on. The Chinese government is not full of ideas of freedom and fairness, like we experience everyday in the United States.

vquzeshuf

Fooding & Cruising

VQUZESHUF

Eating is a big part of cruises, which is also a big portion of price of a cruise. Many say that they weigh ten pounds heavier when they get off the ship, due to all the food. Most of the food on a cruise is already paid for, note that I say most. The majority of cruises have a separate dining time and room; where everyday at your designated dining time you will go to the dining room, dressed appropriately in casual to fancy clothing (depending on the night) and sit in your assigned seating and be served by the same servers. This is a time to relax and gather together with the family to discuss your day and what tomorrow will bring. This entire four course meal is included in the cruise price and may even include a complimentary drink.

All other meals are also included and range in style: a sit down service breakfast, sit down service lunch, buffet style breakfast, buffet style lunch, and even a buffet style dinner (if you decide to skip the sit down formal dinner - or if you don't feel like getting dressed up). The food is delicious and in some cases, each day serves a different style of food. On cruises that I went to each day there was a station that was called International Food. Some days it was Caribbean, Italian, Indian, Chinese, American, and so on. By the pools there is usually ice cream, hamburger/cheeseburger, hot dogs, and fries. In Carnival's case, there is 24 hour pizza, salad, and ice cream.

Other interesting facts of cruise food include:

- Food Stands: These usually cost money and most of the time has sushi or other unique foods

- Supper Club: This offers a fancy upscale four course dinner and dancing. This also costs on average $30/per person.
- Specialty Buffets: Gala Buffet (largest buffet - last night of cruise - a must see), Chocolate Buffet (delicious and tasty), Midnight Buffet (night of leaving a port, usually Mexican/Caribbean food full of fun, dancing and music). The best part -- all of these are FREE!

Enjoy the food and again, expect to eat more than usual; yet don't forget to take a nice walk on deck after large meals (or you can even hit the free gym)!

VQUZESHUF : MK299

The above made-up word VQUZESHUF has been created by my Internet Marketing class, MK299. We created this word to test Search Engine's and to determine how our blogs can be seen on Search Engine results. Again, this word is: vquzeshuf. My group members also must have this word, their sites include: vquzeshuf - Nicole, vquzeshuf - Matt, and vquzeshuf - Mallory.

Excursions in St. Thomas

St. Thomas is a very common stop when cruising in the Caribbean. Located in the Eastern part of the Caribbean, St. Thomas is part of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI). From some of the world's most beautiful beaches to some of the best snorkeling experiences to the best shopping for jewlery; St. Thomas has something for everybody. Most cruise ships spend an entire day at St. Thomas, since there is so much to do and see and did I mention, to buy. For an overview of the types of excursions available for all on St. Thomas, visit the website ShoreTrips, found at this link: vquzeshuf. Below, you will find some of the most popular excursions Carnival Cruise Line ships offer while in St. Thomas as your port of call:

-Scuba Diving: Beginner Scuba is an excursion for those who always wanted to try and be taught by professionals on how to scuba dive. This is in the medium level of pricing, takes 3 hours, and is a limited excursion (so book fast!).

-BOSS Underwater Adventure: This excursion includes an undersea adventure on a motor scooter; very neat and unique. This adventure is expensive, but definitly a once in a lifetime event. This takes 3.5 hours.

-Caribbean Parasailing: An adventerous and daring adventure, this excursion. This excursion is priced in the middle level and does not take a lot of time.

-Snorkeling: Out of the many snorkeling excursions offered by Carnival, the best would have to be Castaway Barefoot Sail & Snorkel to Shipwreck Cove! Not only is it such a great afternoon, but the instructors are so much fun. You will sail off to a private snorkeling area, take a snorkeling tour of the ocean, get a personalized understanding of the fish and coral, and even encounter a sunken ship. The way home is also a blast with unlimited Rum Punch, lively Caribbean music, and talking more with the wonderful staff (these 4 made the trip most definitley worth while!). This trip is also very reasonable, worth the price, and will not take up your whole time at St. Thomas.

-Coral World & Magen's Bay: Coral World, a water amusement park, along with Magen's Bay, rated by National Geographic one of the world's most beautiful beaches. This can be an excursion together but also can be done separatly. At the beach, snorkeling, kayaking, and there is even a bar. This is fun (but for hints, you can hire a taxi to take you to the beach).

-Jeep & Beach Safari: This excursion involves renting a Jeep Wrangler (must be 25 years of age+) and adventure yourself through the island, up and down the hilly roads and see the beautiful sights. After the adventure, relax on a beautiful St. Thomas beach.

-Kayak, Hike, and Snorkel: This includes every outdoor adventureous activity combined. This excursion involves - a unique, multi-eco experience awaiting you in St. Thomas' Mangrove Wildlife Refuge & Marine Sanctuary. This trip also includes a snack.

-Downtown Shopping & Beach Getaway: Not only do you get to experience the world's most inexpensive jewlery shops, but you will also get to experience one of the world's best beaches...a great combination. Some of the world's most rare gemstones and coral jewlery is available here in St. Thomas (also includes the cheapest diamonds as well). This trip takes 5 hours, a day trip, but allows you to shop and enjoy the scenery; something for everyone.

Though this is only a few excursions St. Thomas offers, there is many more. Again this island offers so much that you will most likely not be able to see and do everything you hoped for; which only means one thing - you must go back. I am definitly planning to return to St. Thomas some day...to sit back with a drink and enjoy the crystal clear blue water and even take a break to shop. Enjoy!