Central Trains

Advantages: Large network
Disadvantages: Sometimes a poor service

...Central Trains are their own worst enemy. They provide train services from Shrewsbury to Nottingham via Birmingham and also to East Anglia. They have provided train services for a long time. So how come they still have not got it right, yet? Central Trains is the cause of many phone calls to consumer radio programmes in the Midlands. And you often hear a spokesman or spokeswoman coming up with some explanation as to why they have managed to mess things up, again. One of the problems that face passengers of Central Trains is the fact that Central Trains seems unable to understand that, sometimes, people become ill and have to 'phone in sick. Of course, it would not be possible (sadly!) to go back to the days when spare staff would wait at strategic locations around the British Rail network, waiting to cover for colleagues who had...

Martinscholes 15.12.2005 · Read review
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Review of Central Trains

TomTom Western Europe, let Jane take the strain.

Advantages: Stress free travelling, comprehensive, clear instructions, cheap
Disadvantages: Some very minor glitches in confusing bends with turns

...I recently reviewed the TomTom one, which we bought with the Western Europe maps, and I have been waiting to put Jane (our name, after the voice) through her paces in rural France. As with all TomTom maps, easy to see, easy to use, easy to understand, and easy to update. Absolutely fantastic, I have no idea how we ever coped without her/it. From getting off the ferry, the map/navigation was spot on, good clear instructions, in plenty of time, and the first time I have ever got through Paris without a hitch. To give you an idea of how good, we bought a local map of where we were going on the Limousin/Perigord borders, that did not have the town we were staying in (I call it a town loosely) as it was so small, no problem for TomTom, straight there, which was welcome after 7 hours of driving. We spent two weeks in the area...

paulhanton 19.08.2007 · Read review
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Review of TomTom Map of Western Europe Maps

Tom Tom ONE XL Europe

Advantages: Large Screen, easy to follow, clear display
Disadvantages: battery life

...The Tom Tom ONE XL Europe is one of the easiest car navigation devices to use. It is mostly self explainatry but if you are unsure how to use it, the manual is very specific and very easy to understand. In my opinion the actual software that is installed on it is excellent. When driving, it is easy to follow all of the instruction that are being said by the automated voice. The one concern with this product is the very short battery life and sometimes, when it has been previously been connected to the computer to install updates, the system gets stuck and freezes. It has to be reset for it to function properly again and then it takes up to ten minutes!! There are many options that you can choose when planning your route so you drive the route that is most suitable for you. Other than the one disadvantage, it is a very good car navigation...

Ike120 28.03.2009 · Read review
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Review of TomTom ONE XL Europe

Central do Brasil

Advantages: Poignant, beautiful, superbly acted and directed
Disadvantages: None

...I first saw "Central do Brasil" (English title - Central Station) several years ago but having seen it again recently I thought that my collection of film reviews on Ciao would be sadly lacking without reference to it. Central Station is a Brazilian film released in 1998 and it was nominated for 2 Oscars (Best Actress in a Leading Role and Best Foreign Film) in 1999 and won the BAFTA for Best Foreign Film. It is directed by renowned Brazilian director Walter Salles (who also did "Behind the Sun" and "Foreign Land"). It is in Portuguese with English subtitles. Plot ---- Dora (Fernanda Montenegro) is a retired schoolteacher who makes some money by working in Rio de Janeiro's central railway station (Central do Brasil) writing letters for some of the city's many illiterate citizens. Dora is a bitter and cynical person who has never...

buzios 24.11.2003 · Read review
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Review of Central Station (DVD)

The Birds of Europe - Lars Jonson

Advantages: Fantastic Drawings, Very Detailed Information On Every Species
Disadvantages: Quite Expensive

...I have had an interest in Wildlife for as long as I can remember and in particular I have always had a passion for Birds. My Garden is full of Bird feeding devices and I have spent many enjoyable hours at my window watching the Birds feeding there. Any serious Birdwatcher will possess a Field Guide and over the years, since my early teens I have always used the Collin's Guide to the Birds of Britain and Europe. A couple of years ago I decided that it was time that I updated my reference guide for something a little bit more modern. The book I chose was the Birds of Europe by Lars Jonson. Lars Jonson is a very well known name in the world of Ornithology. Born in Sweden Lars Jonson is best known as a Bird Artist and has won many prestigious awards. He had an exhibit at the National Museum of Natural History in Stockholm when he was...

micksheff 15.01.2007 · Read review
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Review of Birds of Europe - Lars Jonson

TomTom Europe 22

Advantages: It's a TomTom. Easy to use. Does what it's made to do. Good value.
Disadvantages: None.

...I recently purchased the new TomTom Europe 22 from Halfords. I was originally going to buy the V3 of the TomTom Europe as the price is genuinley lower than the new one is. I'll get to that now. I actually, did, buy the V3 model first. When I did and went to set it up in the car I noticed the windscreen suction piece wasn't in the box and to top that, the actual sat nav seemed 2nd hand. Scratches - deep scratches - all over the sat nav. So I boxed it all back up and went back into Halfords. Served by the same person - baring in mind, it's the assistant manager. I told her the situation and that I wasn't pleased. She said, "I must of forgotten to tell you the sat nav I sold you was originally a display model". Which I don't believe as I doubt a display model would have scratches all over it as it's stuck behind glass. She explained to me...

Greeny1980G 08.04.2009 · Read review
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Review of TomTom ONE V4 Europe

Central Park, Peterborough.

Advantages: An oasis in the city
Disadvantages: None that I know

...I have lived in Peterborough for 37 years, and the Central Park has always been the place to take your children, photos of the park go back to Victorian times and the actual layout has not changed since then. For one it cannot get any bigger as it is in the older central part of the city with buildings all around, though this does not distract from the Park itself. The Park is one large circle with a very wide road around the outside. There are four gates, entry points to the Park and about ten yards in an inner footpath that goes around the Park. The four gates all have footpaths that lead to the centre which is a large flower bed that has a willow tree, this my husband tells me was planted some time in the 60's as there used to be a band stand on the same spot. It seems that the demise of the band caused the band stand to be...

bostonianbeer 24.08.2008 · Read review
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Review of Central Park, Peterborough

Good Intro to the Traditional Sounds of South-Eastern Europe

Advantages: great selection, good variety
Disadvantages: somehow mistitled, mostly traditional stuff

...Rough Guide, best known for their budget travel guides, has been steadily expanding in other areas, and has been responsible for quite a few musical "guides" over the years. This 1998 album, marketed as "Rough Guide to the Music of Eastern Europe", does pretty much exactly what is says on the package: provides quite a wide ranging overview of folk and (occasionally) folk-inspired music of Eastern Europe. This is an album that pretty much started my liking for "world music" coming from my part of the world, and despite its age it remains a good compilation which really does showcase the variety of what's on offer quite well. One thing that this "Rough Guide" album needs is perhaps a better definition of what is considered Eastern Europe: this is a surprisingly woolly category (I always remember somebody commenting than Poland...

magdadh 13.07.2009 · Read review
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Review of Rough Guide To The Music Of Eastern Europe, The - Various Artists

Park Central Hotel

Advantages: Superb location, comfortable accomodation, helpful staff
Disadvantages: No major disadvantages to the actual hotel itself

...In "the city that never sleeps," especially if you're visiting for the first time, it's all about site-seeing, shopping, and taking advantage of New York's endless amount of restuarants. So when choosing a hotel, it's all about location! I took my first ever visit to New York (and certainly not my last, taking into consideration the amazing time I had there) in February 2007, for a school trip, and stayed in Park Central Hotel. FIRST IMPRESSIONS I was delighted when we first arrived at the Park Central hotel - the immaculate lobby and reception area, with brown leather sofas and sparkling floor tiles, was classy and modern. We were greeted by friendly staff who gave us our room keys, and we went off up the lifts (we didn't fancy taking the stairs, having being accomodated on numerous floors up the building!) to our room...

pash123 12.06.2007 · Read review
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Review of Park Central, New York City

Central Park away from hussle and bustle

Advantages: Good to get away from crowds of people
Disadvantages: Can't walk in at night

...I only spent half a day in Central park and it definately wasnt long enough. Not living in a city myself I felt it strange being in a park and seeing skyscaper buildings all at the same time.The place is alot bigger than I had initially thought. I got a horse and carriage ride through central park which I thought was nice however it wasnt a very long trip on it maybe 10 or 15mins maximum. I could have walked around the ciruit they go however our carriage driver did give us some information on the sights that we seen. I was on the bridge they use in the film Home Alone which was nice to see plus I seen the skating rink however we could not go on it as it had been raining and it was not safe to do so.This would only be interesting if you like seeing where they have filmed things. If not it is just a nice walk away from the hussle...

DeniseKelly40 21.08.2007 · Read review
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Review of Central Park