Many of us flip through garden magazines, all the while thinking that it takes years, a professional, or tons of money to landscape the gardens featured in the glossy pictures. This isn’t necessarily true. You can design a breathtaking garden and be the envy of the neighborhood by following some of the following tips. Know What You Like and What Works Drive around your neighborhood and see what’s out there that grows well in your zone. You can jot down what you see on index cards, so they are organized and handy. Start gathering page clippings from magazines and collect some pictures of the designs that interest you. This can help you decide what garden style you like. You’ll have an easy reference for plants and placement too. Select Location and Color Next, look at your notes and clippings and choose the color scheme you’d like to have in your garden. Don’t forget to keep in mind if you’re designing and planting in shade, sun, or partial shade or partial sun. Are you looking for something bright and vibrant or something more calming and soothing? Consider starting with a foundation of shrubs and accenting with some perennials, bulbs, ornamental grasses, and annuals for more seasonal color. Perhaps, you want all flowers. Decide on a shape that compliments your house style. Straight styles give a more formal appearance while curves give a more informal feel. If you don’t feel confident selecting colors, you can use a color wheel to help pick contrasting and complimenting colors. Budget and Create a Plan Decide how much you are able to and want to spend on your new garden. Do you want to start with a foundation and add to it gradually? If so, start with purchasing your most expensive plants and shrubs first. Use these as a focal point for your garden. Start watching for sales and discount plants at garden centers and nurseries. Tell everyone you know that you’re starting a garden and would love it if they could give you divisions of their perennials or seeds they have saved from their garden. Let family and friends know that you have a wish list of plants that would be the perfect gift idea. If you have access online, do a search for seed swaps. Many gardeners love to help a new gardener. Many are willing to send seeds for the cost of postage or will trade for something else that you may have that they are looking for. A great resource for free items is http://www.freecycle.org Look for a group in your area, join the group, and post letting the group know that you would be interested in garden plants and seeds. You may get lucky and find that a member of the group has already offered some plants up for grabs. Don’t forget to ask your local garden club when they are having their sales too. You can also start some plants from seed yourself. Many seeds are very easy to direct sow and a little can go a long way. Here’s a partial list of easy to grow seeds: Candytuft Asters 4 o’clock Sunflowers Pansies Violas Impatiens Dianthus Larkspur Salvia Cupid’s Dart Morning Glories Moonflowers Zinnias Calendula Marigold Cosmos Sweet Alyssum Bee Balm Poppies Nasturtium Don’t forget if you decide to sow into containers, there are many inexpensive containers such as yogurt containers, milk jugs, egg cartons, and plastic ice cream buckets. You can also call your city and see if they have free mulch available. Don’t hesitate to strike up conversations with your neighbors while you’re out for a walk. You never know, the topic of gardening may come up and they might be more than happy to offer you some seeds or divisions. Design Away Now you’re ready to design. You can sketch out your idea beforehand. Keep the following in mind as you design. Scale- Judge the size of the area and choose plants that aren’t going to be too large, too wide, or too small for the area. Keep in mind the plant’s size when it’s met its mature growth. Balance-Don’t place your plants where one area is too compacted with plants and another area is too airy. Try and achieve a good balance of small, medium, and large plants. Balance offers visual stability. It can be created with space between plantings or the visual weight of your design. This can be created with lines so that your garden is pleasing to look at from all angles. Focal Point- Your focal point will be the area that your eye is drawn to first. This can be your prized flowers, tree, or shrub. Rhythm- This is visual flow. The eye wanders throughout the entire garden design, but comes back to the focal point. It can be achieved with repetition and contrast. Harmony-Unity- This is when plants have a way of appearing connected and a part of one another. This can be achieved with color, texture, groupings. Unity is lost when your plants look too separate or your color choice makes one plant look lost amongst the rest. Color- Color impacts the entire design process. Use a color wheel if you don’t feel confident selecting colors that go well together. If all of this is too confusing and overwhelming, check out some garden catalogs. Many have suggested designs. It’s also best to place your containers out and arrange and rearrange where you want to plant them before you start digging. Accessorize (homemade garden art) To add some interest and whimsy to your garden, consider some homemade items or trash to treasure works of art. Ideas such as making your own stepping stones, garden markers, terra cotta bird baths or toad houses, painted rocks and pavers, and fun wind chimes are simple projects that can add a lot of interest to your garden area. Look around for unique items you could add to your garden such as milk cans, wooden chairs, ladders, tricycles, wagons, trunks, roofing shingles, mailboxes, or even dressers. The sky is the limit on what you can create. Use your imagination. There you have it and you didn’t have to hire a pro, spend thousands of dollars, or take years to achieve a pretty garden. You won’t be a new gardener for long. Soon, it will be you sharing starts, cuttings, seeds, divisions, and tips.

Believe it or not, eBay is the ‘BEST’ opportunity you can use right now to make money online in the dropshipping business from the comfort of your own home. Thousands of people just like you use eBay auctions on a daily basis to sell and buy products on the Internet; now it’s your time to START your own dropshipping home-based business and succeed in the eBay auctions ‘game’! There are no special skills required for this dropshipping business, all you need is a computer, Internet access and some basic computer / Internet knowledge. Dropshipping is when you sell products on the Web, forward the orders to the dropship supplier and, in return, the dropshipper ships the product to your customer (buyer). You act as the middleman between the dropshipping supplier and your buyer. You can take orders by credit card, PayPal fax or any other method you can think of. You can sell via your own Web Site, Yahoo store, or even through e-mails. Your profit is generated on the difference between your selling price and the price the dropshipping supplier charges you. Thanks to dropshipping you can start making money ‘instantly’ without any investment in inventory, warehousing, shipping, equipment, employees or office space. Having products drop shipped by suppliers, allows you to concentrate on truly important aspects like advertising, sales and promotion. Pay attention! There are lots of companies claiming to be ‘Drop Shippers’. However, a legitimate drop shipper is a factory-authorized wholesale distributor, or sometimes the actual manufacturer of the product. A legitimate drop shipper should not charge you an ‘account setup fee’ or ask you to place a ‘minimum quantity order’. Make sure you find legitimate drop shippers who have the product(s) you want to sell, talk with them on the phone or by e-mail and let them know that you are truly serious about doing business with them. Customer support counts in the dropshipping business, so don’t hesitate to contact dropshipping suppliers before you proceed to work with them. This will help you decide if you really want to do business with a particular drop shipper or not. To succeed in the dropshipping business you’ll have to LOOK for hard-to-find products that people desperately need and want to purchase. The key is to sell products with little or no competition. Do some research for product’s you want to sell that you think will have little or no competition on eBay. I suggest you RESEARCH for quality products & legitimate dropship suppliers, MONITOR the eBay auction listings to see if there’s any competition and TEST the market (e.g. find out if people really want to spend CASH on the product you want to sell) Remember! Dropshipping makes it EASY for you to start and run your own home-based businesses on a shoestring budget; and eBay is the ‘perfect’ MEDIUM to expose your product to potential buyers all over the globe!

We spent about 10 days in Vietnam and could have easily spent twice as much time seeing more spots, but felt it was time to move on. We visited six different cities here and feel that we saw a wide variety of the country. Running into westerners were a far more regular occurrence here than in China and English was fairly common in all tourist areas. Many travelers were young backpackers living on a shoestring for weeks or months in SE Asia, but also many Australians made a 3-4 hour trip for a cheaper and closer vacation than Sydney.

From Hanoi we flew on to Hue which was the Vietnamese capital until 1945. While tourist attractions were much more expensive than Hanoi we couldn’t complain too much at the 55,000 Dong price (which is equal to about $3).

After this it was time for our longest bus trip to date, but felt it was the only way to make the 130 Km (80 mile) trip to the old town of Hoi An. The bus was a little expensive at $4 per person, but we figured that it must be a nice bus. The bus which was scheduled to leave at 8am eventually got around to leaving at 9:15am and we got off at around 2pm. In essence we invested 6 hours in a journey that would have taken slightly over an hour in the United States. This included a 40 minute stop at a restaurant (which was probably giving kickbacks to the bus company) and then a stop a handful of hotels in our destination city (who were definitely giving kickbacks to the bus company). We decided that we better start doing as much research into transportation as we do for hotels.

From Hoi An we moved on to Nha Trang where we finished up our Advanced Scuba Diving course. This city was the host of 2008 Miss Universe contest, but that is the most excitement that city will see for a long time. The beaches are beautiful and tend to me pretty empty during the time. Vietnamese like all Asians feel that dark skin is unattractive so not only do they avoid sunny beaches they even wear long sleeve shirts, gloves and masks while it is a humid 95 degrees outside. The water was what detracted us a little more. Floating garbage and small green bubbles made me feel that the beach wasn’t the best for swimming.

Our trip ended after a flight and one night in Saigon (officially known as Ho Chi Minh City). The city was even cheaper than other cities in Europe and had some pretty good western food. We also passed an interesting bar in our hotel which only had women in dresses inside with dark lights (brothel). From here it is time to try to another bus ride to Cambodia…

Swathes of cloud fell around the rim of the crater, the early morning mist and high altitude vapours bringing a slight chill to the crisp clean air. Perched on the lip of what is known as “Africa’s Eden,” I gazed down from our camp, foggy patches casting thick shadows over the vast caldera floor.Africa is a timeless place, and even moreso when it comes to the Ngorongoro Crater ? a spectacular bowl that was carved into the earth’s surface over 10,000 years ago by Mother Nature’s hand. Spanning around 265-sqm and reaching up to around 600-metres, its 30,000 strong wildlife population leave their mark on the volcanic landscape year round; the animals drawn to the rich volcanic soil, lush forest and spring source lakes that line the crater floor .Just outside the ridge we spotted a red-cloaked Maasai warrior, herding his cattle across the highland slopes. A common sighting, the tribe have lived alongside the neighbouring wildlife for centuries ? their presence adding to the ultimate appeal of traditional storybook Africa.The continent is famous for its Big Five, but East Africa has a certain authenticity ? its well-known reserves and parks, including the Serengeti and the Maasai Mara, drawing animal lovers here in their hordes. While you can travel independently and book safaris “as you go,” overlanding is the hassle free way to see more of the region. Transport can still be haphazard for solo adventurers and in under a month it’s possible to take in around six countries on an organised trip. Every highlight on the itinerary is also perfectly mapped out ? R&R balanced with sight seeing, game drives and the more energetic pursuits available in Africa’s adventure capitals.

We started our safari with a dramatic descent ? the lush rain forest and thick vegetation, giving way to open grassy plains that stretched out across the horizon. Even on an early morning game drive we were kitted out with jumpers, as the temperature in the crater doesn’t start to pick up until at least midday. Either way, it’s advisable to combine a wooly hat with skin protection, as at 9am the rays from the tropical sun are still very powerful.Eager wildlife enthusiasts we were lucky enough to spot a pride of lions lazing between the sun-bleached blades of grass. Not camera shy, the females and cubs seemed totally oblivious to our presence. Ngorongoro is one of the more well-visited regions due to the phenomenal number of wildlife, including elephant, buffalo, black rhino ? and of course, the big cats. Something told me that our subjects were indeed no strangers to safari goers. A couple of energetic cubs rolled around together, while the females fired back a look of pure indifference. It was as if the sight of yet more game viewers had caused their eyes to glaze over. Nevertheless, the short distance between us made it a thrilling encounter.

Our guide’s experience became readily apparent as we drove further into the crater. Even the slightest flicker in the tall grasses would cause him to venture a guess. It was as though he could smell the wildlife before they came into view and feel their emotions. During one game drive he called out to the driver, our vehicle stopping near to a herd of water buffalo “I think there’s a lion looking for an early lunch,” he said emphatically, and in the space of a few moments the king of the jungle appeared, edging cautiously through the grassy plains, stalking his next meal ticket.By far the cheapest way to travel, overlanding is also atmospheric camping all the way. In the Serengeti, there were wildebeest grazing close to our tents and under cover of darkness strange sounds punctuated the silence; the gentle rhythmic calls of the cicacdas followed by a roar somewhere in the distance.Only a few days before encountering the Ngorongoro Conservation Area we had been basking on the shores of the Indian Ocean, the Spice Island of Zanzibar tantalizing our senses. The scent of cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg hung in the air ? the tropical bouquet and calls from the street traders following us down the cobbled streets.

Zanzibar’s aromas are as exotic as its history ? the island once a focal point of trade between Arabia, India and Africa. However, despite the enticing cultural melting pot it is the sparkling blue ocean and excellent diving opportunities around the northern beaches that are the main draw for adventurers.Not simply for those in search of the Big Five, East Africa is also home to Livingstone, one of the continents adventure capitals. Perhaps, a more expensive destination by virtue of its popularity, the city boasts a range of activities for the extreme sportsman and the more laid back. Whether you choose to take a scenic flight over the Victoria Falls, go walking with lions or throw yourself off the Bakota Gorge on a 415-metre zip line it is almost impossible to run out of options.In between the highlights we endured journeys of up to eight hours in length, but when you’re taking in the magnificent snow capped Kilimanjaro, hours can seem like minutes. If anything, by the end of the overland trip, my 16 fellow travellers and I had proved that the African adrenaline rush lies not just in seeing the wildlife, but in experiencing all that this wonderful continent has to offer.

Acacia Adventure Holidays 29-day East African Explorer covers, South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania and Kenya.

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