You probably don’t need an excuse to go to Greece this summer since you’ve been dreaming about it long enough to have a PhD in procrastination. But here I am to wake you up and maybe tip you out of your hammock. Why would I do that? Because suddenly Greece is affordable and un-crowded. And as spectacularly beautiful as ever.

As everybody knows, the Greek economy is in trouble. Its debt is enormous thanks to a method of collecting taxes similar to Cleveland asking LeBron James to stick around for old times’ sake, or Phillip Morris asking the Marlboro Man to smoke lettuce. The good news for Greeks is that their new leaders are implementing a plan that is likely to turn things around, and the public demonstrations of the spring are now few, far between, and peaceful.

The good news for Americans is the very favorable euro/dollar equation. Everything you buy now, from a hotel room near the Acropolis, to a tour of Delphi, to an ouzo or a beer in a seaside taverna, is a lot cheaper than it was even a year ago.

Hard times in Europe and elsewhere means fewer tourists. Fewer Germans on beach beds, fewer Italians on the dance floor (sadly), fewer Japanese in your viewfinder — to mention some foolish stereotypes. Go to a Greek island this summer and you’re sure to find an un-crowded ferry to a pristine beach, a perfect patch of sand for your beach towel, and a fresh octopodhi for dinner. Or wait until September or October when the seas are their warmest, pomegranates decorate the Pelion hillsides, and the natives of Hydra and Mykonos and Crete are surprised and thrilled to see you.

Beauty, as always, is everywhere: the weather, the architecture, the food, the smiles, the landscape. Blue Flag beaches – those that meet the high environmental standards of the FEEE (Foundation for Environmental Education in Europe) — are another crystal-clear reason to choose a Greek holiday. Because Greece really is a nation of islands, and tourism a top priority, the Greeks are conscious and careful about their seas and seashores. The Greek Aegean, home to dozens of fabulous islands, has far more Blue Flag beaches than its neighbors France, Italy or Turkey. Pack a snorkel and mask and flippers; the sea is free.

Finally, there’s the language issue. Ok, you’re Greek is spotty–i.e. “please” and “thank you” are distant lands. But Greeks speak English! I’ve been traveling there since the 70’s and this is the biggest development since ice cubes. Everyone learns English in school and now practices it daily on Facebook and Google. So don’t worry about that, unless you yearn for a heart-to-heart with a 90 year-old shepherd you happen to meet while walking to the beach under a breezy blue sky, through wild flowers and olive groves.

And if you do decide to get a phrase book for that memorable shepherd tête à tête, or just to show respect for your hosts, a couple dozen words will go a long long way. Not only are people grateful that you’re making the effort, they will actually attempt to understand you. Try that on the French Riviera. But why would you? This year the cradle of Western civilization is rocking.

Barbara Bonfigli is the author of “Café Tempest: Adventures on a Small Greek Island” (cafetempest.com) and the host of a series of short, savvy Greek Travel Tip videos.

TakePart.com did a story last week about 5 individuals who have (or are currently) embarked on adventures with green initiatives. In honor of last week’s Earth Day, they wanted to shine some light on these individuals, who are going out of their way to keep our planet green and pristine.

David de Rothschil is a British sailor, who just so happens to be a billionaire banking heir, who sailed through the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in a catamaran built almost entirely from recycled plastics. The GPGP is considered to be the largest natural landfill on Earth, and unfortunately it’s located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The mission for de Rothschil and his team at Adventure Ecology was simply to raise awareness about the garbage patch.

Photo courtesy of Adam Bradley

I also like the story of Adam Bradley, a world record holding thru-hiker, who is hiking 501 miles from Idaho to Nevada along the Southwest Intertie Project (SWIP) renewable energy transmission line. Construction begins on this energy line in the summer of 2010 and Bradley wanted to “see the land in its original state before its impacted”. His hike started on Earth Day and will be 15 days total. You can follow his progress and pledge support here.

To read more about these two stories along with the stories of 3 other eco-adventures, view the full story at TakePart.com.

The good folks at Exum Mountain Guides asked if I would take a minute and post an update on my “training” progress for my Big Climb coming up this July.  No problem, pretty simple actually. With the days getting longer and temperatures soaring above freezing for the first time in months, it’s actually getting easier. I managed to keep riding my bike to work all winter and have mixed that with 3-4 days a week of stretching and yoga. I was actually able to survive the winter without putting on any unwanted pounds (the first winter I can say that in the last 25).  I still want to drop 15 more before the climb, but at 5 pounds per month, that should be doable.

As I said, with the longer and warmer days, I am now adding a longer ride (to my daily commute) in at least once a week. Last week it was a 26 mile loop along the Yellowstone River. It doesn’t hurt that I bought a new carbon bike to help get me excited! I have also added 2-3 days of light dumbbell exercise to my stretching routine.. Again, keeping it simple with bench press, curls, shoulder press and then some step ups. I don’t think I will get much more intense with the weights than what I’m doing nowt. I plan to start hiking “the hills” in the area as the snow melts. Oh and one other “step” for good measure, no idea if it will help.. But I go up and down the stairs to my office all day 2-3 steps at a time…  figure it can’t hurt.

Ron was 16 years old when he was introduced to the world of bike tours. What began as a summer job organizing European trips for a family friend in the States quickly evolved into a highly successful business. With a passion for biking, travel and history and 35 years of field experience, no one has a better brain to pick on biking vacations than Ron.

Why the focus on “biking-only” vacations in 2010?
Sounds a bit scary, doesn’t it – a “biking-only” vacation? Actually, there’s no such thing!  Each of our biking adventures is extremely flexible and includes optional activities like hiking, rafting, sightseeing, wine tasting or an afternoon of R&R.

The way I think of it, your bicycle is simply used as a pleasant means of transportation to get you from one sight or village to another, from one experience or adventure to the next. That said, I can’t think of a better way to travel than by bike, using all of one’s senses. You are so much closer to the culture and the nature that surrounds you. Plus, you work up a great appetite, so you can thoroughly enjoy your meals, without feeling the least bit guilty!

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Why travel with ALA, versus on your own or with another outfitter?
An ALA biking vacation is unique for a number of reasons. First, ALA has been organizing bike trips since 1974, which makes us one of the oldest, most trusted outfitters around, and experience counts when it comes to creating a perfect tour. We take our due diligence seriously, spending an enormous amount of time researching our destinations and routes, driving and biking every road (multiple times), visiting every hotel and sight before establishing an exact itinerary. Doing this year after year, not only do we expose you to places you’d never visit on your own, but our trips keep getting better and better, just like a good wine!

Second, we use local, informative guides who provide unique historical background, anecdotes and useful tips, bringing the history, geology and culture of each of our destinations alive. It’s often a guide’s insights – the ones you simply can’t find in a book – that you’ll remember the most from a trip.

Third, we pride ourselves in giving the best support while you bike: snacks, drinks, special “WOW’s” (as we call them), comfortable support vans, or just a simple, friendly smile, a hug, a high five. In short, we take care of all the details and give you all the encouragement and support you need, so all you have to worry about is having fun. Austin-Lehman’s slogan says it all: the hardest part is going home!

Fourth, ALA has the highest guide-to-guest ratio in the touring business: 1 guide for every 6 guests, while limiting the group size to twelve for adult groups and eighteen for family trips. Keeping the group size small and personal ensures service whenever you want or need it.

Finally, our accolades speak for themselves. Travel + Leisure magazine recently polled its consumers and named us Number One Tour Operator of the World! What more should I add?

As a guide yourself, how would you describe a typical ALA guest?
Guess what? There’s no such thing as a typical guest! We get people of all ages, all levels of fitness, and all interest on our tours. The youngest we ever had was 2 (being towed in a trailer by her parents on a tandem) and the oldest was 87. How’s that for extremes?! The same goes for levels of fitness. Naturally, we recommend that people practice before they show up on a trip. We have easy trips for first timers, while the avid cyclists can bike their hearts out across the Tuscan hills. As far as interests are concerned (history, scenery, culture, cuisine, etc.), there’s something for everyone on each of our trips. Since we don’t bike in one large group, you can pick and choose where you wish to spend time and pursue your own interests. Your guides will point you in the right direction.

Is there a particular biking vacation you would recommend for a first-timer?
Our catalog and website clearly denote the level of difficulty of each trip. So if you’re a novice biker, you will want to start with a trip that is easy (Level One). Our Netherlands trips are great because the terrain is perfectly flat and full of traffic-free bike paths. Our Mosel Valley trip is another great one – pedaling along the Mosel river with prevailing tail winds is a wonderful option for a first-timer. The Loire Valley trip has some small hills but is still considered easy. And don’t forget – how long and hard you’d like to bike is always up to you: if you think you’ve pedaled far enough, just catch a ride to the hotel in the support van!

Which ALA biking trip is your personal favorite?
My personal favorite trip is Bordeaux to Dordogne. No, not because of the wine (even though that’s a plus!), but because everything is perfect about it: the tiny secondary roads, the peaceful villages, the lively towns, the ancient churches, the friendly people, the gorgeous scenery, the delicious cuisine, the lovely hotels.

One site on the tour that invariably moves me is the Font de Gaume cave near Les Eyzies, where you’ll find 15,000 year-old polychrome prehistoric wall paintings. The cave is one of the very few still open to the public. I’ve probably been there 20 times, and each time I see one particular image – of a male deer licking the forehead of a female deer kneeling in front of him – it gives me the shivers. So much expression, so much tenderness, so very human! Elsewhere in the cave is the hand of one of the artists. I call it the “signature.” Normally it is not included in the tour of the cave, therefore most visitors will never know it’s there – but our guides always ask the local guide to point it out. After all, how often do you get to see a 15,000 year-old human hand? As you can imagine, the word wow is a much-used expression during this visit.

Tell us a little bit about the bikes on an ALA bike tour?
The bikes we use in the U.S. and in Europe are the best on the market for the purpose of bike touring. We use top-notch Cannondales, which we fit to each guest before the trip begins. They come in various sizes, straight or racing handle bars, men’s or women’s frames, etc. We also have deluxe Cannondale tandems, children bikes, children tag-on bikes and trailers.

• 60% of Belize is pristine and untouched.
• English is the official language in Belize.
• The US dollar is officially accepted at a flat 2 Belizian Dollars equals 1 US dollar.
• Belizians consider themselves a Caribbean Nation in Central America.
• Our hosts (Belize Lodge & Excursions Ltd.) are directly responsible for setting aside 60,000 acres as a natural preserve.
• The  country is the size of New Hampshire or Massachusetts and currently has a population of just over 300,000 people.
• 750,000 Mayans lived in Belize in approximately 700 AD. A prolonged drought created famine and political disunion and so the Mayan people headed back into the mountainous jungles of the Yucatan.
• In 1866 Steamship service ran every other week between New Orleans and Belize.
• In the US in 1865, Lee surrendered to Grant and some 7000 Confederate soldiers headed south to recreate. 1500 tried their plan in Belize and in 1872 the soldiers went to battle with the Mayan Icaiche Indians near the Belizean town of Orange Walk Town. The Confederates, with their modern weapons, held off the Mayans.