Are you dreaming about or planning a vacation? Have to make a business trip outside the United States? Writing a report for school about a foreign country? Well, strap on your virtual backpack and get moving with Global Road Warrior!
The Greensburg Public Library's newest database, Global Road Warrior, will allow you to find out information about 175 counties all over the globe. Accessible from the Library's computers or from your home or office, this database will answer just about any question you could have about a country. While information is available for countries from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, I am choosing Senegal for demonstration purposes.
Visit the Library's homepage at www.greensburglibrary.org and click on the rectangular box that says Global Road Warrior on the left side of the page. This will take you to the Global Road Warrior site. If you are accessing this from a computer outside the Library you will need to enter your Library card number (without spaces) into the box indicated and click GO. You will now be able to choose from 4 search options:
All 4 of these options will allow you to find the information you need. Suppose I choose option 1 - Select a country - and find Senegal in the drop down box. This opens the main page with a map of the area and additional search categories on the left hand side of the page. These include Country Facts, Climate, Society and Culture, Business Culture, Demographics, Money and Banking, Points of Interest, Security, Medical, Communications, Essential Terms, Maps and several others. I would like to know about the culture of Senegal, so I click on Society and Culture. This will give me choices like Greetings and Courtesies, Food and Recipes, Holidays and Festivals, Religion, Sports and Superstitions and Folklore to name a few. I would like to know more about Holidays and Festivals. Clicking on that link tells me that April 4th is Senegal's Independence Day. On this day they celebrate the anniversary of Senegal's sovereignty from France. The banks, business offices and retail stores are closed this day. A direct quote from the site tells me that "The holiday's grandest festivities are held in the country's capital, Dakar. The day is marked by the display of the national flag and the playing of the kora, a stringed instrument made from gourds. The Senegalese President delivers a speech in honor of the country's independence. Thousands attend the special program, including the country's highest government officials. An impressive display of fireworks marks the peak of the entire festivity, followed by dancing and singing in the streets, which continue through the night."
After learning all I want to know about holidays and festivals, I can choose another link from the left side and learn about Points of Interest. There is the Niokolo-Koba National Park in Southeastern Senegal: "The Niokolo-Koba National Park extends through two geographical zones, the Sudanese savanna and the Guinean forest. One of the most important reserves in West Africa, the park lies in a total area of about 900,000 hectares (2.2 million acres). This park houses around 300 species of birds and 84 species of animals, including elephants, hippopotamuses, monkeys, buffalos, waterbuck, lions, antelopes, crocodiles, and warthogs. The river Gambia and its tributaries flow through this park and sustain its plant and animal life. Visitors are prohibited from exploring the sanctuary on foot."
As a business traveler to Senegal, I might need to know about visas and passports, the currency used and the exchange rate, U.S. Embassy information, immunizations and airports and transportation. All of this can be found on Global Road Warrior.
If I need to write a report on Senegal, I can find maps of several kinds, including a physical map, ones that show weather and even an outline map for posters and projects. There is a small picture of the flag (larger flags will be available soon) and facts about the people, geography, government, economy and trade, and climate. I can print the information, maps and flags and even correctly cite the document right from the website.
This is just a sample of all the countries and information in the database. You can visit any country in the world right from your computer chair.
One note: if you end up on the Global Road Warrior home page and see a box for Username and Password you have exited the Library-provided account for the program. Simply go back to the Greensburg Public Library website and begin from there.
I have learned quite a lot about Senegal. You can, too. Now that I have introduced you to the Global Road Warrior, I am off to plan that dream vacation to Ireland. Happy traveling!