Top 5 Biggest Shopping Malls

No matter how many economic downturns and recessions the world faces, there will always be people ready to shop. There are dozens of mega-malls scattered across the globe, with newer, bigger ones being built each year.

These may not be the biggest in terms of of square footage, but they are up among the top and definitely worth visiting if you're in the country. Here's a list of our top 5 biggest shopping malls around the world:

United States: Mall of America

The most famous mall in the US, the Mall of America in Minnesota augments more than 400 shops with an indoor amusement park, walk-through aquarium, bowling alley, movie theatres, bars and nightclubs, countless restaurants, and many other family attractions.

United Arab Emirates: Dubai Mall

Shopping in Dubai is a major activity, and the place to go is the Dubai Mall, which boasts a skating rink, water park, and more. Part of the 20-billion-dollar Burj Khalifa complex, which includes a whopping 1,200 shops. A great way to beat the heat in sunny Dubai.

Canada: West Edmonton Mall

The largest mall in Canada (and North America), the West Edmonton Mall is located in Edmonton, Alberta. With an amusement park, water park, skating rink, recreation centre, adventure golf, movie theatres, restaurants, bars, and many other attractions in addition to its 800+ shops, it's the biggest attraction in Edmonton.

China: Golden Resources Shopping Mall

China has been building mega-malls left and right, but the biggest is the Golden Resources Shopping Mall in Beijing. Nicknamed the 'Great Mall of China', the shopping centre draws millions of visitors each year with attractions like a skating rink, restaurants, and more than 1,000 shops.

South Africa: Gateway Theatre of Shopping

Few visitors to South Africa would think of Durban as a shopping destination, but Gateway and its more than 400 shops would disagree. In addition to shops, restaurants and bars, the mall offers a live theatre, IMAX cinema, skate park, indoor climbing wall, go-karts, arcade, bowling alley, small indoor amusement park, the world's tallest indoor climbing wall, and the Flo-Rider man-made surfing wave.

Photo from here.

Word Travels Forum Round-Up #18

Step right up folks! We've got questions, and we've got answers! Do you have the answers to our questions, or do your questions match our answers? Only one way to find out! Here's what's burning up our forum message boards this week:

Travel safety in Egypt

Destination weddings in Turkey

Entering Canada with a DUI

If there's no match this week, why not visit the forum and post your question or answer today?

Image from here.

5 Best Places to See Cherry Blossoms (besides Japan)

With the recent tragic events in Japan, there aren't many tourists making the journey to Sakura and Kyoto for the cherry blossom festivals there. Many people don't know, however, that there are other cities that have spectacular displays of pink blossoms each spring, and events and festivals to go with them. Here are a few of the other best places to see cherry blossoms:

San Francisco – California’s best city for pink flowers, San Francisco hosts a cherry blossom festival every April. The best places to go are Golden Gate Park, and the San Jose Heritage Garden, which is a little out of town but has an entire field of cherry blossom trees.

Vancouver – Vancouver is Canada’s cherry blossom capital. Their events run from mid-March through the end of April. The best streets to see the flowers is 7th Avenue in Mount Pleasant, but the city offers a cherry blossom viewing map that you can download here.

Honolulu – Hawaii has its own tradition of cherry blossoms, which bloom in Honolulu, and Waimea on the Big Island. The best place to see them is in Church Row Park, where the cherry blossom festival is held. Hawaii’s cherry blossoms bloom early though, so this event is usually held in February.

Seoul – If your heart is set on going east, South Korea has spectacular displays each April. The best place to go is Seoul, which has beautiful pink and white vistas at Mount Namsan and Seoul Forest. For a real treat, visit Children’s Grand Park, which lights up its more than 1,000 cherry blossom trees each night.

Washington DC – Outside of Japan, Washington DC is the place to go to see cherry blossom trees. The landscape positively explodes pink everywhere you look, and it becomes nearly impossible to take a bad picture. It all stems from 3,000 cherry trees given to the US by Japan as a sign of goodwill, and each spring the city hosts the National Cherry Blossom Festival. The best place to see the cherry blossoms is in Tidal Basin in West Potomac Park.

Image by katmere.

Does Your Hotel Have Bedbugs?

The last thing anyone wants is a great night's sleep in a beautiful hotel, only to wake up covered in itchy red blotches. Yuck! The recent bedbug crisis in New York City has many travellers worried that they'll be unknowingly sharing their pricey hotel room with unwanted bedmates.

So before you book a hotel in the US or Canada, check it against the

Bed Bug Registry, where previous guests can report incidents of bed bugs.

If you do end up with being bitten, the best thing you can do is apply an antiseptic cream. There are natural remedies for bedbug bites using herbs like lavender, mint, and black walnut; and applying ice can help to calm the itchiness.

Remember to wrap your luggage and clothing in plastic bags and leave them in the sun for a couple of days to prevent hitch hikers, as bed bugs can't endure extreme heat.

Image from here.

Word Travels Forum Round-Up #17

It's Monday, so here are the travel questions people have been talking about on the Word Travels Forum this week:

Trains in Switzerland

ID to get into Canada from the US

Driving to Chile from Canada

Japan earthquake and tsunami updates

Got any questions of your own? You can ask them on the forum and our local experts will find an answer for you!

Image from Erik Charlton.

5 Things You Didn't Know About St Patrick's Day

Happy St Patrick's Day! Are you wearing green? Here are five things you didn't know about St Patrick's Day:

The first St Patrick's Day parade wasn't in Ireland. It was held in Boston in 1737, but that was more of an impromptu we're drunk and Irish let's march down the street sort of thing. New York City had the first planned one in 1762. The first parade wasn't held in Dublin until 1931.

The Irish government once banned drinking on St Patricks Day. They passed a law forcing pubs to close in 1927, and until 1961 the only legal place to drink on March 17th was the RDS Dog Show! They even banned advertising on the holiday, in an attempt to focus on traditional Irish music and religious services. Luckily, the drinking ban was repealed in the 1970s.

St Patrick was originally associated with the colour blue. Light blue was the traditional national colour of Ireland, and 'St Patrick's blue' ribbons were used for the Order of St Patrick medals. No one is quite sure how it switched to green. Some feel it had to do with the saint's use of the three-leaf clover as a symbol of the Holy Trinity, while others attribute it to the independence movement of the 18th century. Green ribbons were reported at St Patrick's Day parties as early as 1681, however.

St Patrick's Day is a public holiday in Montserrat. The tiny island is known as the 'Emerald Isle of the Caribbean' because it was founded by Irish refugees from St Kitts and Nevis. The holiday commemorates a failed slave uprising that took place on March 17th, 1768. St Patrick's Day is also a public holiday in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

St Patrick was not Irish, and not named Patrick. The Catholic Church says he was born in Scotland in 385 AD. He was captured and sold into slavery, but escaped. He was ordained as Patrick (or Palladius) in France. According to some sources, his original name was Maewyn Succat.

Photo from here.

5 Surprising things that are illegal in other countries

Over the weekend, a rather dim Canadian tourist was arrested in Berlin. His crime? Giving the Nazi salute while posing for a photo in front of the Reichstag. While he had to know that his pose was in poor taste, it's true that most tourists don't know that it is illegal to do the salute in Germany.

It pays to do a little research before you visit another country, or you may find yourself in a lot of trouble for something you didn't know was banned. The website DumbLaws.com has some rather funny examples, but there are a few that you might want to know about. Here's our list of 5 surprising things that are illegal in other countries:

Driving a car shirtless in Thailand. If you rent a car on your holiday in Thailand, better remember to throw a top on after you leave the beach or you may find yourself in a prison uniform.

Kissing on railways in France. So much for the city of love! While I'm sure this silly law gets broken all the time, it's probably best to restrain yourself on the Paris metro. Funnily enough, it is legal to touch a woman's breasts on a train (with her consent, of course)!

Valentine's Day in Saudi Arabia. If you want to be romantic around February 14th in Riyadh, best find a non-traditional way to do it, as red roses, wrapping paper, teddy bears and hearts are removed from the shelves by authorities. Oh, and remember not to kiss or hold hands in public either.

Publicly removing bandages in Canada. We know Canadians are polite, but apparently they're also squeamish. Although maybe they do have a point... who wants to see that? Do it in private.

Flushing the toilet after 10pm in Switzerland. The Swiss just love regulating things. They have rules about when you can hang your laundry, mow the lawn, wash your car, and also flush the toilet. This law applies to anyone staying in an apartment or flat. Oh, and guys? You can't urinate while standing after 10pm either. Love to know how they enforce that one...

Photo by Stewart

Word Travels Forum Round-Up #05

It's our Monday Forum Round-Up, so here are the hottest topics for the week:

Best Time to Visit Bali

Entering Canada with a DUI

Entry Info for Ghana and the Ivory Coast

Not the info you're looking for? Ask our local experts yourself on the forum!