Destination: Asia
Graham Defends “Suicide Tourism”
by Michael Yessis | 11.28.05 | 8:33 AM ET
Earlier this month, Roger Graham shut down his Web site promoting Cambodia as a great place to commit suicide in an effort to avoid a confrontation with local authorities. That didn’t happen. According to a Reuters report, the provincial governor of Kampot has filed a lawsuit against Graham, accusing him of defaming the province.
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Yahoo! BuzzHave You Taken the Trans-Siberian Express from Moscow to Beijing? If So, Any Advice?
by Rolf Potts | 11.27.05 | 9:15 PM ET
Vagabonding traveler Rolf Potts answers your questions about travel
“Japanland” Author Karin Muller’s Top Travel Books
by Jim Benning | 11.22.05 | 11:56 PM ET
We often publish lists of writers’ favorite travel books when we interview them or review one of their books. So when Terry Ward reviewed Karin Muller’s “Japanland” recently, she tried to track down Muller to get her picks. Muller was out of reach, though, and we published the review without them. Then yesterday, Ward received an e-mail from Muller: “I’m so sorry for having been out of touch all these weeks….I know that in our modern age it’s hard to find a place that can’t get email, but the Mekong river in Cambodia apparently qualifies.” Apparently so. Of course, that sounded like a perfect excuse to us. Muller graciously included her three favorite books, and now her list, along with brief explanations, can be found with Ward’s review.
Global Exchange’s 2006 “Reality Tours”
by Jim Benning | 11.22.05 | 2:46 PM ET
Back in 2001, when World Hum wasn’t yet a year old, we published a story by Jeff Spurrier about the eye-opening “reality tour” he took of Tijuana, Mexico with a San Francisco non-profit called Global Exchange. It sounded like a great experience, and I’ve been following the travel offerings from the human rights organization ever since.
Sleepless in Rangoon
by Tom Downey | 11.21.05 | 11:41 PM ET
Photo by Tom Downey. On his second visit in four years to the same Burmese pagoda, Tom Downey embraces his jet lag and revels in travel's power to reveal change
Pico Iyer Discusses the Dalai Lama on Tibet.net
by Jim Benning | 11.21.05 | 1:43 AM ET
The official website of the Central Tibetan Administration has posted an interview with Pico Iyer, noting that Iyer is now at work on a book about the Dalai Lama. Iyer recalled meeting the Dalai Lama in Dharamshala in 1974, before he had gained celebrity in the West. Iyer marveled that he and his father, who was a philosophy professor, rang the doorbell and “were able to spend an hour and half [in] conversation with His Holiness.”
President Bush to Reporter: “Have You Ever Heard of Jet Lag?”
by Michael Yessis | 11.20.05 | 9:43 PM ET
U.S. President George W. Bush had an awkward moment this morning during a press session in Beijing, blaming a lackluster appearance with Chinese President Hu Jintao on jet lag.
Annapurna, Nepal
by Ben Keene | 11.18.05 | 12:03 PM ET
Elevation: 26,502 feet (8,078 m)
Coordinates: 28 34 N 83 50 E
Location can be a beacon for individuals as well as groups of people for a wide variety of reasons. To mountaineers, Asia is key as the world’s 10 highest peaks can all be found on this continent. And while the geologically young range known as the Himalayas (they’re less than 70 million years old) continues to lure a growing number of intrepid climbers, Annapurna in central Nepal became the first mountain over 8,000 meters to be summited in 1950.
—.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) is the editor of the Oxford Atlas of the World.
Why I am Still Going to Bali
by Liz Sinclair | 11.15.05 | 8:37 PM ET
Bombers have killed hundreds and decimated the island's tourist-based economy. But Liz Sinclair refuses to cower.
Attack of the Thai Transvestites
by Jim Benning | 11.15.05 | 12:53 PM ET
It sounds more like a B-movie than real life, but apparently a gang of Thai transvestites has been robbing men in Bangkok. Their method? According to an AP story in USA Today: “concealing strong sedative pills under their tongues and spitting them down the throats of their victims while kissing, causing them to pass out so they can be easily robbed.” It’s not clear that tourists have been targetted very often, but police plan to warn visitors about the danger. Side note: The AP report describes the transvestites in question as “attractive.” Since when has the AP been rating transvestites?
Ian Buruma on Protest Songs from Washington to Beijing
by Jim Benning | 11.15.05 | 12:04 AM ET
The author of the fine travel memoir “God’s Dust: A Modern Asian Journey” has written a thoughtful story in the Guardian about the state of protest music. Buruma begins by asking why Bob Dylan tunes are still the go-to music for American protests, but the article soon takes a global turn, touching, for example, on the music that fueled the 1989 student uprising in Tiananmen Square.
You Scored a North Korea Travel Visa? Hold Everything!
by Jim Benning | 11.11.05 | 1:11 PM ET
Today’s Los Angeles Times has a terrific story about a small group of hard-core American travelers, including one Californian claiming to be the world’s most traveled person, who were recently awarded visas to visit North Korea and made the highly unusual trip. Times reporter Bruce Wallace put the visit into perspective this way: “Opportunities for American tourists to visit the secretive state that makes no secret of its loathing for the U.S. are mighty tough to come by. A North Korean visa for an American is like round-the-clock electricity here in the North Korean capital: not impossible, but rare enough to be appreciated when it unexpectedly arrives.”
Ben’s Place of the Week: Pyinmana, Burma
by Ben Keene | 11.11.05 | 4:18 AM ET
Population: 97,400 (2005 est.)
Coordinates: 19 45 N 96 12 E
A resource-rich former province of India, the Union of Burma, or Myanmar as the country is also known, struggles economically in spite of its natural wealth due to poor infrastructure and political instability. No elections have been held since 1990 and the autocratic head of state has demonstrated little interest in democracy, preferring, it would seem, to keep the population ill-informed and dependent on black-market sources of income.
Boeing 777-200LR Lands in London, Sets Nonstop Flight Record
by Michael Yessis | 11.10.05 | 10:56 AM ET
The plane, which departed from Hong Kong yesterday with four pilots aboard, landed at Heathrow airport in London today after 22 hours and 43 minutes in the air—and two sunrises. MSNBC, the Telegraph and many others have details.
Record-Breaking 23-Hour Nonstop Flight Takes Off
by Michael Yessis | 11.10.05 | 4:35 AM ET
Captain Suzanna Darcy-Hennemann took off from Hong Kong Wednesday morning in a Boeing 777-200LR and set out for London—heading eastbound, the long way around. Four Boeing test pilots are scheduled to share flying duties during the 12,500-nautical-mile flight, which Seattle Times reporter Dominic Gates writes will be a distance record for a commercial jet.