There's nothing like a paid vacation. Especially at this time of year, when getting paid often means scraping ice off my windshield en route to work, and a vacation means lying on the sand and sipping a girl drink.

Yes, the extremes of Canada's climate fuel the desire to spend time away from it, which could be why Canadians appear to be the most vacation-loving people on Earth. 

Consider the results of a recent survey by New York-based consulting firm Mercer. Out of 10,400 workers polled in 10 countries, Canadians were the only nationality that chose extra paid time off over a salary increase as their preferred employee benefit.  

Is seems Canadians treasure their time away from work -- and love to flaunt it, too. PHOTO CREDIT: Lee Brown/CP

Cool travel news out of Africa: 

A new budget airline launches in Tanzania this Thursday. On Nov. 29th, 'fastjet' [which is so fast, they can't slow down to use capital letters] will offer regional flights from its home base in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Initial destinations are three international airports in Tanzania: Mwanza, Kilimanjaro, and Dar es Salaam. Seats are incredibly cheap. You can fly between African cities for $20 CDN (before taxes), which is a mere 32,000 in Tanzanian shillings. After taxes – and assuming you don’t try to check an elephant in cargo – your ticket will cost a grand total of $26.59 (43,040 TZS).

Travel was among the first industries to embrace online shopping, so when Cyber Monday rolls around each year it tends to be rife with deals on hotels and resorts. Most must be booked today -- so get cracking -- but some stretch out over the week. This week's podium:

GOLD: If you're certain to spend at least a few days in the Caribbean this winter, then it shouldn't be too tough making a snap decision today -- especially if it means saving a bundle. Among the best options is the half-price Cyber Monday sale being offered by the all-inclusive, adults-only Rendezvous Resort in St. Lucia (pictured below). The sale applies to stays of at least four nights between Dec. 26 and April 26, at rates starting at $405 per night (based on double occupancy). To book, call 1-800-544-2883 and mention offer code "CYBER." 

What I learned today: Pancakes don't need syrup when they're sweetened with anticipation.

Yes, both my hometowns -- childhood and adopted -- are going head-to-head on Sunday in the 100th Grey Cup. And to borrow a sports metaphor, downtown Toronto is the field-goal kicker, the celebrations surrounding the game are on the line, there's no time left on the clock...and here's the snap, the ball is up...and...it's good!

Yes, downtown T.O. is positively nailing the Grey Cup Weekend festivities. Of course, my enthusiasm has gone through the roof now that my Calgary Stampeders are going to the show, and it goes without saying that championship-starved Hogtown is amped to be part of any pro sports success whatsoever.

But regardless of which CFL squad you support -- I saw at least one Montreal Concordes jersey down at Nathan Phillips Square (pictured below) today -- the city is putting on a show that even at this late hour is worth checking out. (Last-minute hotel packages, with game tickets, are still available through Tourism Toronto, starting at around $1,200 for two nights with nose-bleed seats, based on double occupancy. Expensive I know, but it's actually not a bad deal given the prices scalpers are asking for tickets alone. Why are tickets fetching so much? Maple Leafs. Toronto FC. Blue Jays. Say no more.)

What a riot!

The same U.K. adventure company behind the thrilling, shoot-'em-up Zombie Shopping Mall adventure is now offering Riot Training Experience.

Wish.co.uk will teach you and your mates how to beat on punks like you're a Vancouver cop in '11. For a mere £79 ($125 CDN), you can learn the basics of riot control as a 'copper' -- then at half-time you swap sides and become an angry, screaming rioter.

Despite the mayhem, it's all about proper manners with these Brits. As their site says, "There is nothing more embarrassing than turning up to police a riot and realising you haven’t grasped basic etiquette. Worry no more, as we now offer the UK's first Riot Training Experience.

In this full throttle experience, the mysteries, intrigues and fundamental steps of basic riot control will be revealed. Who runs at who, good/bad things to wave about and which way up to hold your riot shield."

To create their 'crappy airport' list, the Beast used Airports Council International Data to select the 50 busiest U.S. airports. Then they whittled the list to 25 through six factors:

• percentage of on-time departures and arrivals
• percentage of on-time holiday departures and arrivals
• max. security wait time in peak periods (data via Flight Explorer), and
• availability/quality of amenities (data via JD Power and Associates).

Remember in 2009 when a U.S. Airways passenger jet crash-landed into the Hudson River off of midtown Manhattan? You'd definitely remember if you were on that flight.

The captain, Capt. "Sully" Sullenberger, had to down the jet soon after it slammed into a flock of Canadian geese. Both of Sully's engines failed. So he had to belly flop the plane on the river. No word on the total number of bird fatalities but fortunately all 155 crew and passengers survived.

Sure, the airline could blame Canada. But instead, airports point their fingers at the feathered terrorists (both domestic and foreign) for causing dangerous 'bird strikes', also known as 'BASH', which is short for Bird Aircraft Strike Hazard.

Birds swarm Pope Benedict's plane (they almost killed Benny!) AP Photo/Gero Breloer 2011

Bird strikes are serious business, and not just for the poor birds. A 2001 joint U.S./Canadian study found that the annual cost of bird strikes to worldwide commercial aviation is $1.28 billion (USD) in damages and flight delays. That's a lot of ruffled feathers.

Airports use a variety of methods to scare birds away from flight paths. At my local airport, YVR in Vancouver, the wildlife technicians drive off and harass between 800,000 and a million birds each year. They also use dogs and falcons to spook the birds. Here's a video that explains how they do it.

Now South Korean engineers are scaring birds with Laser Robot Scarecrow Tanks. That's right: Laser Robot Scarecrow Tanks. Man, even just thinking a phrase like that strikes terror in my heart, and I'm not even one of their targets.

This week's podium will explore the three pillars of travel deals: 1) free accomodations, 2) free spending money, and 3) free activities. In every case you will have to pay for something -- read on for details -- but the more you spend (and the longer you stay), the more you get for free.

GOLD: It's the definition of a win-win situation: The longer you stay at the luxurious Four Seasons Punta Mita (pictured below) on Mexico’s Pacific coast, the more free nights you get. The resort's “Stay Longer” packages mean that until Dec. 21, a two-night stay gets you a free third night, and a three-night visit gets you two free nights. After Jan. 3, when the sun-and-sand travel season is in full swing, it takes four nights to get the fifth night free. Rates start at $400 a night, based on a double occupancy. 

My pulse raced when I saw it gleaming in the late-morning sun.

I have always wanted an Airstream RV -- those curvaceous aluminum caravans made famous in Tom Robbins' Skinny Legs and All -- and there, nestled amongst the barbecues, patio furniture and bean-bag chairs on display at the Aeroplan loyalty program's annual media showcase, was the trailer of my dreams (pictured at left).

I could hardly wait to blurt out "How many Miles for the Land Yacht?" as I sidled up to the check-in desk in Toronto's cavernously cool Airship 37 event space.

If I was a bit brusque, then I may have deserved my hosts' smiling reply: The RV was merely for show, its adorable little kitchen churning out hot chocolate for media guests.

This was not the answer I was looking for, but my bitter disappointment was soon tempered by 1) a large mug of marshmallows with a thin undercoating of hot chocolate, and 2) a range of new loyalty-program rewards that even smelled nice.

Did you know that 12,000 laptops are accidentally left at security checkpoints each week? What if one of those is yours?

Here's a smart way to protect your valuables in case you lose them on vacation. The idea is simply this: tag your valuables with the 'Okoban' online tracking service. Their sticker looks like this:

Here's how it works:

First, you buy a special luggage/tracker tag that you attach or stick to your passport, laptop, tablet, keys, purse, iPhone, DSLR camera, pet collar, or husband. Each sticker/tag has your code number. So if you lose your passport in a hotel, plane, space station, restaurant, stadium, embassy, hospital, train station, bullfight, brothel, or underground gambling pit, whoever finds it can easily get it back to you.