Metro Divisions Media

It all starts with Lonely Planet.

PUBLISHED: THE WEEKLY WANDERER #127
DATE: NOVEMBER 21, 2008.

BY PHILL FELTHAM

I’ve been telling my friends and family recently about my second trip to Europe in ’09. This time, I plan to travel to France and explore what is arguably one of the most beautiful countries in the world. At this point, they’re just words. That’s at least until I buy my France travel guide. My plans don’t officially begin until I buy the travel guide.

I talked about going to England for 12 years, but it wasn’t until I bought my Lonely Planet travel guide that the real preps started. Wanderers that are familiar with the Australian company’s travel books will definitely agree that without the book’s maps, country and city information and itineraries, you feel pretty naked without it. And it doesn’t have to be a Lonely Planet travel guide, any travel guide that details the country is a must-buy for making your trip that much easier. Wanderers don’t have to worry about carrying lots of maps or information on your travel sites—it’s all contained in one little book.

Once the travel guide is purchased, then I find my mindset switches from “I want to get there” to “How am I going to get there?” I start highlighting the sites I want to see, the budget hotels, the visa information, the cost of traveling (my personal favorite) and other useful information. I make my budget based off of Lonely Planet’s financial suggestions. And, I’ll say to this point that I’ve always come back from any of the eight countries I’ve traveled to with extra money leftover.

For England, I found myself using the Lonely Planet guide and a variety of sources available on the Internet. The guide pointed me in the direction of what I needed to do to get there. When I was in England, I always took my travel guide with me. I almost lost my United Kingdom book in a restaurant in Edinburgh. Thankfully, I didn’t.

When I lived in Taiwan, the travel guide to this little island is what made me a believer in these handy books. Many guides provide subway or train maps that you can cross-reference with other maps in the book, which makes it easy to find hostels, sites, restaurants, etc. Often, I’d make my own itinerary based on the maps in these books. If I’m in the mood to just get lost, then I’ll leave my travel guide in the bedroom and venture wherever chance takes me. Sometimes it makes me wish that I brought my guide, while at other times, I feel rewarded for finding my way without any help. But, that doesn’t happen until I consult the book first.

The guides are particularly useful if you’re in another country that speaks a completely different language. You won’t always be in a position to ask for directions, but when you need to, your travel guide can give you a few useful phrases that can help make communication a little bit easier. Need I say more? mdm

CLICK HERE TO BUY THIS STORY

x. Markets
I offer customized writing for…

Travel: I’ve been writing travel articles for two years. They’ve appeared on a variety of websites and in a variety of magazines. Contact me regarding the type of article you want, whether it be a “five-tips how to” travel piece or an experience “you-had-to-be there” article. :: Click here to see my travel portfolio.

Fitness & Health: I work full-time at Maximum Fitness as the Senior Editor, so some jobs might “conflict” with the day job. Send me your request and I’m sure we can work something out. :: Click here to see my fitness portfolio.

News: There are news elements to everything. Over the span of my five-year career, I’ve written a variety of news articles from electricity, entertainment to general assignment. Send me your request and I’ll give you a quality product. :: Click here to see my news portfolio.

Wrestling: I’ve been a loyal wrestling fan for almost 20 years. Back in 1996, I owned a wrestling newsletter that garnered over 3000 subscribers. That was before the Internet hit the mainstream. Most recently; however, I’ve been a wrestling columnist for the popular website, 411Mania.com. If you want me to write up, research or rant on some rasslin’, send your request my way. :: Click here to see my wrestling portfolio.

x. Media
Magazine: My work has been published in almost ten different magazines internationally—over twenty magazines collectively. Four written features have been cover features. If you’d like to view physical samples of my work, please contact me. My magazine features can be found in travel, fitness and news.

Newspaper: Much of my earlier work was good old-fashioned newsbeat reporting. If you have some general assignments that you need done, then look no further then here. All you have to do is contact me and tell me what you need. My newspaper articles can be found in news.

Online: I have over ten years of online editorial experience. My duties have involved writing, editing, publishing, graphic design and layout, photo selection and marketing for websites and newsletters—whether it be for my past or current employer or for my own entrepreneurial ventures. Tell me what you’d like me to do and we can go from there.

I’m the Publisher of Open Reel Entertainment’s travel publication, The Weekly Wanderer. Some of my online writing can be found at 411Mania.com and TaiwanHo.com.

x. Money
All articles bylined by Phill Feltham in the The Weekly Wanderer are available. If you have specific requirements, email me with your project and we can talk money. My rates are flexible depending on the detail of the assignment.

:: CONTACT PHILL ::

Phill Feltham is a Canadian journalist who currently works full-time as the Senior Editor for Maximum Fitness magazine. Phill co-owns Open Reel Entertainment, Incorporated, with long-time friend and fellow journalist Victor Penney. Under Open Reel, Phill solely operates the travel website, The Weekly Wanderer. He decided to open TWW while living in Taiwan to keep up his journalism skills. Phill is the sole-proprietor of Metro Divisions Media, his long-time freelance business.

Phill relocated to Toronto to attend Humber College for journalism. He finished Humber College three years later, graduating with honors. During his time at Humber, Phill had the opportunity to work with Global Television, Rogers Television, the Etobicoke Guardian, among other well-known Canadian media outlets.

Welcome!

Here is the newest Metro Divisions Media site. Alright, it’s only the skeleton, but within a couple of weeks, watch this baby blossom into the powerhouse it once was–only a hundred times better! Stay tuned!

Phill