What’s Out There? The Real World and the Cyber World

Whether you're headed to Beijing on business, Cancun on a

cruise, or Hawaii to learn the hula, using the Internet can probably

make your trip less expensive, more productive, and more fun. The

trick is knowing where and how to look, and sometimes, just what to

look for. Millions of people have taken advantage of airfare savings

they have found by shopping around on travel sites. Fewer, however,

have used the Internet to research their destinations, find out what

other people are saying about those destinations, plan the details of

their routes, check the weather, learn the few words necessary to be

"polite" in a foreign country, and generally take advantage of the

wealth of travel resources that are available online.

Voyaging around the world and voyaging through the Internet have

a lot in common. Both activities are often motivated by curiosity, the

urge to explore, the need to relax, a desire to learn, and even profit.

On top of that, the techniques, tricks, and general approaches that

make these two activities fruitful and fun are actually very similar in

several ways. Thus, the marriage between travel and the Internet is a

natural one.