Image by Salvatore Vuono /FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Did you know that there is an official travel website for people travelling to the European Union? Well, there is one. Travelling in Europe is the EU’s official website for travellers. It is an interesting website, with an informative and promotional tone. Right now, the first thing featured there is a section about the documents you will need to move around in Europe.

For those making plans to travel to EU countries for their next home exchange it is a must to learn about passports, identity cards and visas required.

Passport or IDs

For EU citizens, it is not a requirement to present your ID or Passport to enter another EU country, except Bulgaria, Cyprus, Ireland, Romania and the United Kingdom. However, it is advisable to have your ID or Passport at all times, in case you are required to prove your identity, for example, in case there is a temporary security check established in any of the borders between EU countries. If you are planning to leave the EU, you are going to need your Passport or ID card.

Non-EU citizens need a valid passport to enter the EU, that is there are checks in every country receiving people from outside the EU. The only exceptions are citizens from Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, because these countries have signed agreements with the EU.

Visas

EU citizens do not need a visa if they are travelling to EU countries, along with people from 34 countries travelling to the EU for less than three months. These non-EU countries include Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States of America. For current information, you may search the Travelling in Europe website but it would be much simpler just to contact any EU country consulate near you and ask directly.

The requirements are different for non-EU citizens travelling to the United Kingdom and Ireland, so in their case it would be advisable to contact their representations in your country for more details.

Even if you have a valid visa, officials at the border checks may ask you for other supporting documents, like a return ticket, invitation letter from a EU resident, or lodging reservation, so make sure you cover every detail before packing your bags.

For detailed information, you can visit Travelling in Europe

Image by Salvatore Vuono /FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Easter is a Christian festivity that celebrates the death and resurrection of Christ. It is celebrated in many countries with similar customs. The most common tradition is giving away Easter eggs.

Chocolate eggs are the current traditional gift exchanged during Easter time, but the original Easter eggs were bird eggs painted with colourful patterns. Colouring eggs is still common among families with young children as a mean of entertainment.

There are countries were wooden coloured eggs are chosen for house decoration and sometimes special patterns tell the Easter story as well.

There are famous eggs related to Easter: The first Fabergé egg ever made was ordered by the Russian Czar Alexander III as an Easter present for his wife. It was made of gold and white enamel and it contained a series of surprises inside. Then, jeweler Carl Fabergé designed other luxury eggs for the Russian royal family, which are now considered masterpieces and exhibited in private collections and museums around the world.

Egg hunts, egg rolling races and egg-knocking are some of the traditional games played during Easter. No matter what you traditions are, next year you can experience Easter in a different place with HomeForHome. Many countries have holidays during Easter week, so it is a good time to arrange your home exchange.

There are many things in your house that would seem attractive to a fellow HomeForHome user, the number of rooms, the view, the neighbourhood, utilities, Internet connection, garden, swimming-pool, and so forth, but some people could be willing to live without the little things if there’s an important attraction just nearby. Today’s example: an Aquarius. If home exchange doesn’t seem perfect on its own, then maybe associating the advantages of a home swap with the proximity of such an attraction will do the trick! So, just to give you a preview of where to look for, we have this random list of aquariums from around the globe:

1.- The National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth is the largest in the UK. This modern centre offers interactive activities, unconventional tours, and even sleepovers with the sharks. There are 50 live exhibits and over 4000 animals, featuring a coral reef. For more information visit http://www.national-aquarium.co.uk/

2.- The Aquarium of Western Australia (AQWA) in Hillarys gives you the opportunity to explore the marine life that surrounds Western Australia, from the tropical coral reefs to the colder southern waters. More info for adventurous swappers at http://www.aqwa.com.au/

3.- If you choose to visit Spain as we suggested in our previous post, then Zaragoza has a unique aquarium, a River Aquarium. There are tours through five rivers and a special tank where species from different ecosystems coexist for the first time in the so-called River of the World. If you are not yet amazed, then what about the possibility of diving in the aquarium pools? That’s as close as it gets!

Photo by Laura Grace / flickr.com

4.- The Georgia Aquarium in the USA is the world’s largest with more animals than any other. It has 60 exhibits so you should plan your visit ahead to cover the areas that attract you the most. Like in Zaragoza’s aquarium, there’s a “Journey with Gentle Giants” programme that offers the opportunity to swim or dive with the whale shark. Details in http://www.georgiaaquarium.org/

5.- AquaDom in Germany is the largest cylinder aquarium. With 25 meters of height and 12 meters of width, the one million litre tank contains over 1500 animals. It’s part of the SEA LIFE Berlin attraction and its most attractive feature is an ascending ride through the centre of the cylinder.

Now that I think about it, maybe it’s best to arrange a series of home swaps to go through them all!