The latest economic crisis has touched seems everyone in our country, making people think more about ways of saving money. If you consider travel a luxury that costs much and thus is not for you this time, then just read the following list of top destinations for budget travelers. Travel is a real art and traveling smart is a double pleasure as you come back home with both unforgettable memories and bucks in your pocket.

1. China and Asia in whole Asia is the only place where backpackers no longer need to decide whether they want to exhaust their bank account or experience second-rate service. While worldwide economic crisis and expensive Euro make trips to Europe costly, Asian countries seem to be the right location. Current stats show each year Americans prefer visiting more Asian countries while Europe stats are flat. China remains the most desired Asian destination showing an unbelievable 83% increase in trips comparing to previous year. What makes China so popular? Only in China any traveler can both explore one of the world’s most ancient civilizations and enjoy cheap rates with quality service. Also China is tending to become a shopper’s paradise - it’s hard to find something you cannot buy on Chinese markets. The prices are not just low; they tend to go to zero. Don’t forget to try Chinese food - it’s totally different from something you used to eat. By the way, if you have never been in any Asian country, you can save your money by doing all-in-one trips that have recently become very popular. This includes 14-21 day vacation throughout continent starting from Bangkok to Bali, Taipei and Tokyo.

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Where in the World?

The new version of Picasa Web Album comes with a Google Map game called Where in the World? The object of this game is very simple but the game itself is fiendishly difficult. Basically you are shown a random photo and have to guess where in the world the photo was taken by clicking on a Google Map.

Thirty eight years ago, in 1970 there was a hundred year anniversary of Vladimir Lenin, the guy who inspired Russian people to overthrow the previous Tsar government in Russia in 1917. He was a real icon for many Russians and so in one Siberian town some woodcutters decided to celebrate this anniversary by cutting all the trees on a big field leaving only those that would form a really huge message “100 Years to Lenin”. There were no Google Earth back there, no satellite photos on Internet, no Internet itself, so they didn’t do it for some Internet trick, like “See what we have down pointing your sat pictures browser to …..”. The real reasons are not clear and forgotten now, maybe they got an order from Moscow to make such a big message for American spy satellites, maybe it was their own wish to create something that cannot be observed from the Earth by a regular person. Anyways now, 30 years later we can see it. You can see it from Google yourself following this link.

David Rumsey’s amazing collection of historical maps has been available as a layer on Google Earth since 2006. Now they are available on Google Maps!

The David Rumsey Google Map Collection contains an amazing 120 historical maps overlaid on Google Maps. For, example, the screen shot above shows an 1832 map of London overlaid on the current Google Map of London (it also reveals that my house in east London was been built on top of a marsh). Each map’s transparency can be adjusted with a slider button, so it is possible to find a location on the present Google Map before overlaying the historical map.

Highlights of the new maps include the first accurate survey of Yosemite Valley, California, from 1883, maps of Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, New York, Washington DC, Denver, Chicago, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Calcutta, Lima, Paris, Madrid, Rome, Beijing, Tokyo, Kyoto, and more – all from times ranging from the 18th to the 20th centuries.

Via: Google LatLong: New Rumsey Historical Maps and new ways to view them