European Space Agency - ESA - explores the space. Based on information which their Sattelite Mars Express has gathered, there is a northern light on the red planet Mars. In the northern part of the land of the midnight sun, Norway, the rays of light shoot down from the space. It forms draperies which spread all over the sky. These wonder of the world has been connected with superstition, mythology and fairy tales. It has also inspired artists and poemers. It must be the world`s best light show. Now there is found a similar light phenomenon out in the space.

Cliff paintings of hunters in rugged remote northwestern China appear to prove that Chinese were adept skiers in the Old Stone Age, Xinhua news agency reported on 26 January 2006. Norwegians have always claimed that skiing was invented in Norway and that the word skiing has its roots from the Norwegian language. Perhaps the history has to be rewritten? What do the Norwegians say about this? And how will it affects their performance in the Winter Olympics February 2006 in Torino, Italy? The time will show!

Cecilie Skog`s attemp on Carstensz Pyramid was wasted. This is the highest mountain in Oceania located deep in the jungle of Irian Jaya - West Papua - in Indonesia. Aften being forced to return by the guerrilla group Free Papua Movement - OPM, Cecilie from Norway had to find another mountain. Her aim is to conquere all the seven summits, and she has one left. The seven summits are the highest mountains on each continent: Kilimanjaro, Denali, Elbrus, Aconcagua, Carstensz Pyramid, Vinson and Mount Everest. Cecilie will now try to reach the top of Mount Kosciuszko, which is the highest mountain in Australia. It counts for being approved on the Seven Summits list, so hopefully Cecilie will make it anyway.

At the 16th Annual Adrian Awards Gala, Norwegian organisations took Gold, Silver and Bronze. The winners are Den Norske Turistforening - The Norwegian Mountain Touring Association (DNT) and Innovasjon Norge - Innovation Norway - from Norway. The award(s) has been issued 49 times before, and this time organisations from Norway won the prestigious prize. It`s amazing that organisations from a small country as Norway won the competition, but it proves that they have succeeded it their marketing efforts. Arne Hjeltnes and Kristin Krohn Devold received the prizes on behalf of their organisations in New York. The HSMAI Global committee had evaluated 1200 campaigns from whole the world. The Advertising Agency Pran & Torgersen AS worked out the campaigns for the Norwegian organisations. This company is well known for its special competence within the travel industry.

Marketing within travelling is our core business. We will still focus on what we do best, but of course IT and internet play an important role in this business. So therefore we are also providing consultant services and products here. In order to assist tour operators and other companies in their marketing efforts, we need to keep updated about the opportunities in high tech world. In order to reach our strategic objective of being a leading global travel guide, it is important for us to find partnerships with competent and reliable cooperation partners. Two of them we work closely with today are the travel guides Reiseliv and Hope Travel.

This area, which is covered by pristine tropical forest, is now considered as Papua`s Garden of Eden. There is no sign of human impact or presence. An international team of scientists reports that they have found dozens of new species of plants and animals in the dense jungle in West Papua - Indonesia, also known as Iran Jaya. One of the discoveries is a new large mammal, the golden-mantled tree kangaroo - Dendrolagus pulcherrimus. The team was organised by the US-based organisation Conservation International, together with the Indonesian Institute of Sciences.

Iran has many archaeological wonders to admire from ancient time. One of them is the Zoroastrian fire temple Atashgah in the big city Esfahan - Isfahan. It is well constructed and has its own charm, but can not compete with other Iranian wonders which are notified on UNESCO's World Heritage list as Bam and its Cultural Landscape (2004), Pasargadae (2004), Persepolis (1979), Soltaniyeh (2005), Takht-e Soleyman (2003), Tchogha Zanbil (1979) and the amazing building the Meidan Emam Mosque in Esfahan (1979). Anyway Atashgah is a great wonder. Other great wonders in Esfahan are the Friday Mosque, the Shaky Minarets, Christian churches in the Jolfa district and the bridges across the Zayandeh river. The mentioned Zoroastrian fire temple is rising up from the top of a hill. It`s the only one in Esfahan and there is special story behind it.

Cecilie Skog (31 year) from Norway and her team reached the top of Mount Vinson in Antarctica. Now she is heading further for reaching another top among the 7 summits. Her team member is Bjorn Sekkesater - Bjørn Sekkesæter (38 year) from Trondheim in Norway. At moment she is going together with Bjorn to reach the top of the mountain Carstensz Pyramid Punkak Jaya in Iran Jaya - West Papua, Indonesia. The seven summits are the highest peaks on the continents: Kilimanjaro, Denali, Elbrus, Aconcagua, Carstensz Pyramid, Vinson & Everest. Cecilie has soon completed them all!

The expedition The Longest March is completed. By crossing Antarctica unsupported in 2005-2006 on ski, Rune achieved a new world record. This is considered to be the world`s longest ski tour ever. Rune marched 4804 kilometres in 90 days. He is also the first person to ski unsupported across both the poles! Rune crossed the Arctic Ocean, from Severnaya Zemlya in Russia via the North Pole to Cape Discovery in Canada in the year 2000, and now he succeeded to cross the Antarctic continent from Queen Mauds Land via the South Pole to Victoria Land. In addition Rune skied across Greenland lengthways from Cap Farewell to Cap Morris Jessup in 1996. With that, Rune has completed the gruelling explorers Grand Slam - skiing unsupported across the three largest ice caps in the world!

For tour operators the big challenge is to attract visitors to its stand, collect, and convert them into clients (customers). Everybody do it in different ways, but the basic steps are the same. Tour operators as Kenor Safaris and Hvitserk demonstrated its professionally from start to end. We in Travel Explorations have considered tour operators and other travel companies` ways of running marketing activities and selling on the Norway International Meeting and Travel Fair - Reiseliv 06. As an appropriate approach for this we used the AIDA model, which guides organisations in this process by constantly reminding them that any successful promotional technique must eventually lead to an action, or booking of a tour, product or service.

The well known international magazine National Geographic has selected the Best Trips for 2006 in several categories: The Sports Trips, 10 Classic Trips, and Top 10 Adventure Nations. Some of the recommended destinations for great trips are Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, the Karakoram Range - Pakistan, Mekong River - China, Southern India, Mongolia, Dead Sea and Red Sea, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Sahara Desert, Australia, Easter Island, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Pitcairn and Tahiti. The magazine has also selected Croatia as the Destination of the Year, and Australia DIY Trip of the Year. Read more and be inspired! There is a world out there full of opportunities for unique adventures waiting for you!

National Geographic recommends the following destinations for Classic Adventure Travel in 2006: Galápagos, Grand Canyon - USA, Great Barrier Reef - Australia, Antarctica, the Milford Track - New Zealand, Himalaya, Machu Picchu - Peru, Mount Kilimanjaro - Tanzania, and Serengeti National Park - Tanzania, and the Dolomites. Here there are plenty of opportunities for great adventures.

For tour operators the big challenge is to attract visitors to its stand, collect, and convert them into clients (customers). We in Travel Explorations have considered tour operators` and other travel companies` ways of running marketing activities and selling on the Norway International Meeting and Travel Fair - Reiseliv 06. As an appropriate approach for this we used the AIDA model, which guides organisations in this process by constantly reminding them that any successful promotional technique must eventually lead to an action, or booking of a tour, product or service.

Day 80 was a fantastic day for Rune from Norway (21.01.2006 ). Trouble is turned to happiness after he lost one of his skies! Rune is ready for new records. Yesterday he kited for 204 kilometres, and finally he saw the Trans Antarctic Mountains. This is what he has been working for the last four years. Rune`s expedition the Longest March in the arctic wilderness is coming to an end. Rune has covered 4600 kilometres and has only 200 kilometres left to Terra Nova. The last leg is the worst and most dangerous, but his goal is in sight.

This tour operator from Norway was represented on the Norway International Meeting and Travel Fair - Reiseliv 06 at Lillestrøm in January 2006, near the capital Oslo. Escape Travel in Oslo is specialized on rivercruise offering tours on 15 rivers around the world. Their tours float on the rivers Rhinen, Mosel, Donau, Elben, Seinen, Rhônen, Guadalquivir, Douro, River Cloud I & II, Dnepr, Svir, Volga, the Nile, Amazon, Yangtze and Mekong. But Escape Travel offers also other kind of tours to destinations as Mauritius, Africa, Malaysia and South America. Before Christmas Escape Travel produced and distributed an own travel catalogue for South America, as the first in Norway. Escape Travel is really a pioneering company and deserve to be experienced!