This summer is shaping up to be one of the hottest on record for the US economy.
18.06.2024 - 10:27 / insider.com
Every year, it seems like the rush to sign my kids up for summer camp begins earlier and earlier. For some of the more competitive programs, enrollment can begin as early as January or even November/December of the previous year.
As a mother of five , that's too much for my addled brain — let alone my wallet. Unless it's concert tickets to K-pop band BTS, I try never to compete for anything — mostly because it spikes my blood pressure, and I hate the anxiety it induces.
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Instead, I send my kids to summer camp in Taipei because not only will my children have fun and learn, but they'll be doing so in Chinese.
One of the primary reasons I enroll my children in local camps is so that they are forced to speak and listen to native Chinese speakers. Though my children have Chinese tutors and can speak, read, and write the language, I know that is an artificial environment. Being able to speak and respond in a classroom environment is very different than doing so in "real" life.
I choose to throw my kids in a Chinese only environment so that they have to communicate in Chinese out of necessity. Truthfully, many Taiwanese people will try to speak English to my kids even though my kids understand Chinese just fine.
Plus, not only do my kids get to see our relatives, but they also experience a whole new way of living for four to eight weeks. They try new foods, live a car-free existence and navigate the bus, subway, and train systems — sometimes unaccompanied — and have far more personal freedom than I would allow them in the US due to safety. They also venture out on their own to buy food from local restaurants and convenience stores.
Every year, it seems as if the cost of summer camps in the US increases — and while I do want people to be paid a fair wage, it can also be true that with four children, paying for camps becomes cost-prohibitive. However, thanks to the exchange rate of about $1 USD to $32 NTD and the lower cost of living in Taiwan (on average, it is 35.6% lower than in the US), I can sign up my children for a fraction of the cost.
For example, through our town's parks and recreation department, a half-day camp for five days costs around $300 a week. If I enrolled them elsewhere for a week-long full-day camp, the price range is around $725 to $1,200 (and doesn't include lunch). For a weeklong sleep-away camp for five days and four nights, the cost is about $2,000 to $3,000.
However, even in Taiwan's capital and most expensive city of Taipei, I can enroll my kids in all the fun camps I would not consider in the US due to cost. A one-week, full-day camp, including lunch, is about $207 per child. If I wanted to be fancy and send them to a Model UN-like camp for the
This summer is shaping up to be one of the hottest on record for the US economy.
The British Airways and British Airways Holidays summer sale has launched to brighten the mood and lift dampened spirits, forecasting blue skies and sandy toes for all those who book.
Delta Air Lines announced it would launch a new seasonal service between Orlando International Airport and London Heathrow Airport (LHR), starting on October 26.
The homemade videos came through in quick succession on the camp WhatsApp channel. Seven tiny sailboats with children manning them dotted crystal blue Mediterranean waters. The children were in pairs, seemingly matched according to age. Then there was my little one, the 5-year-old, who had insisted on tagging along with her 9-year-old brother, and the camp had agreed.
I'm an American living in Italy. I've lived here for almost 10 years and have two children, a 5-year-old daughter and a 9-month-old soon. Last year sent my daughter to summer camp for the first time and I was pleasantly surprised.
The 332 miles between London and Edinburgh show a particularly narrow difference when traveling via train or plane.
Summer is finally here. As we gear up for fun in the sun, there are some great travel deals to round off the month of June that you'll want to keep on your radar. Before the scramble for last-minute Fourth of July plans, snap up one of these deals for a quick weekend getaway or a big European vacation. From $89 hotel stays on the Las Vegas strip to 25 percent off Play flights to Europe, there's a lot of ground to cover in the next few weeks.
Thailand is inviting remote workers and digital nomads to not only visit, but to stay a while with its new extended visa program.
An early taste of zero-emissions air travel is coming to European skies this summer – and it’s available to book from just €120 ($129).
Jun 17, 2024 • 9 min read
New Zealand is eager to get its tourism sector back to full-throttle after the country was entirely shut during the pandemic. One way to do this is to attract more tourists beyond the popular December to February months.
British Airways has added Lapland to its list, and checked it twice, as it prepares to launch new flights to Santa Claus’s home region this winter. Departing from London Gatwick, new twice-weekly flights will launch on 3 December 2024 and fly customers to Ivalo, which is home to Finland’s most northerly airport.