Destination: Asia
Subcontinental Homesick Blues
by Anthony Bourdain | 12.15.08 | 12:36 AM ET
From a balcony in Sri Lanka, surrounded by AK-47-toting soldiers, Anthony Bourdain reveals why music can make a travel moment
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Yahoo! BuzzEight Best Cities for Street Food
by Terry Ward | 12.15.08 | 12:16 AM ET
iStockphoto Terry Ward lifts the lid on a few of the world's tastiest places to eat the people's cuisine
Michelin Goes to Hong Kong and Macau
by Eva Holland | 12.05.08 | 6:32 AM ET
The first-ever Michelin guide to Hong Kong and Macau was released yesterday, and a few restaurants—one in each city—landed the coveted three-star rating. Another 21 Hong Kong eateries received one or two stars, as did five in Macau. The renowned foodie guide publisher made waves earlier this year by granting Tokyo top honors among all Michelin-ranked cities. Given Hong Kong’s strong start this year, and the fact that locals swear the foreign reviewers missed many of the city’s best spots, there may soon be another Asian culinary powerhouse on the Michelin-star horizon. (Via Gadling)
Bangkok’s Airport ‘Creaks Back to Life’
by Valerie Conners | 12.03.08 | 10:19 AM ET
The international airport here has slowly started the process of reopening, after anti-government protesters who had camped there for a week called off their demonstration following a court’s decision to ban the prime minister from politics and dissolve the governing party. Flights have begun to arrive at the airport, though authorities still estimate it will take days before some 230,000 stranded visitors will be able to leave the country.
What the Mumbai Attacks Say About the City and Travel Security
by Jim Benning | 12.01.08 | 12:15 PM ET
Like everyone, I spent the last few days following updates on the horrible terrorist attacks that killed nearly 200 people, including 18 foreigners, in Mumbai. A couple of articles published in recent days have struck me. In an op-ed in the New York Times, Suketu Mehta explained why Mumbai, of all Indian cities, is an appealing target for terrorists.
Bangkok Airport Closed by Protests*
by Eva Holland | 11.25.08 | 4:36 PM ET
Thai authorities have canceled all flights at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport as riot police face down protesters inside the terminal, the New York Times reports. More than a few travelers are affected: Suvarnabhumi is the 18th busiest airport in the world.
* Update, 9:45 PT: According to Reuters, reports from various Bangkok media have been “confusing” but indicate as many as several bombs have exploded outside the airport, injuring up to a dozen people.
What do Afghanistan, Cuba, Liberia and Sudan All Have in Common?
by Eva Holland | 11.25.08 | 8:27 AM ET
They’re the four countries deemed so dangerous that they’re excluded from the holiday coverage offered by a major UK insurer, Direct Travel. As Simon Calder notes in this sarcasm-laden response, the news that Cuba is as risky as Kandahar or Darfur may come as a surprise to the 2 million tourists who visited the island this year.
‘My Life is ‘The Terminal 2’
by Valerie Conners | 11.24.08 | 2:34 PM ET
So says Hiroshi Nohara, a Japanese citizen who “for reasons he cannot explain,” has been calling Mexico City’s international airport home for the past three months.
Guns N’ Roses’ ‘Chinese Democracy’
by Jim Benning | 11.24.08 | 12:20 PM ET
Joining the ranks of Western rock albums whose titles evoke Asia—Holiday in Cambodia and Cheap Trick at Budokan come to mind —is the long-awaited Chinese Democracy, from reclusive rock star and esteemed China-watcher Axl Rose. It’s not clear to me, from a cursory look at the title song’s lyrics, whether Rose has anything particularly deep to say about Chinese democracy, or lack thereof, except that change is coming to China. Nevertheless, rumor has it the album has been banned in the Middle Kingdom.
Update: Great trivia. Guns N’ Roses is known as Qiang Hua in China.
Gary Shteyngart in Seoul: ‘A Megacity With Endless Incongruities’
by Michael Yessis | 11.21.08 | 10:42 AM ET
Here’s another compelling piece from the author of “The Russian Debutante’s Handbook” and “Absurdistan” in the latest issue of Travel + Leisure. He writes: “Korea is a country with one of the unhappier histories the world has known, a present that amounts to the frenzied tapping of the fast-forward button and a future that may already be here.”
Six Degrees of Vietnam
by Julia Ross | 11.18.08 | 11:50 AM ET
Julia Ross went to Vietnam seeking relaxation and a place to recover from a breakup. She found a whole lot more.
China: Not a ‘Pseudo-Place’
by Eva Holland | 11.13.08 | 12:00 PM ET
When The Smart Set’s Paula Marantz Cohen headed off on a two-week organized tour of China, she expected to experience one of the tourism industry’s manufactured “pseudo-places,” as Paul Fussell calls them. That is, “tourist commonwealths, whose function is simply to entice tourists and sell them things.” But as she explains in this thoughtful essay, she was mistaken.
The Maldives: Endangered Travel Destination?
by Valerie Conners | 11.10.08 | 10:25 AM ET
The Maldives’ president-elect has announced plans to purchase a new homeland for residents of his nation, the BBC reports, ideally in a region with similar culture, like Sri Lanka or India. The plan—sparked by fears that rising tides may eventually decimate many of the nation’s islands—would be funded by a “sovereign wealth fund” using tourism revenues.
How Can I Save on Transportation During a Round-the-World Trip?
by Rolf Potts | 11.06.08 | 12:34 PM ET
Vagabonding traveler Rolf Potts answers your questions about travel
Seoul’s Fish Market: One of the ‘Greatest Food Spectacles on Earth’
by Joanna Kakissis | 10.31.08 | 10:32 AM ET
So says Pulitzer-Prize-winning food writer Jonathan Gold, who recently visited Noryangjin Marine Products Market and reveled in the roughly 700 stalls hawking fresh seafood. Think “croaker and corvina, bubbling clams and great octopus whose arms extend farther than Shaquille O’Neal’s,” Gold writes in Gourmet, or “bottom-of-the-sea stuff whose uses are difficult to contemplate.” Like the pink sea squirts who resemble “throbbing uncircumcised phalluses”? Hmmm. I wonder what kind of Korean breakfast you can make out of that.