Destination: Europe
Venice: Souvenir Vendors Could Go the Way of the Pigeons
by Eva Holland | 12.05.08 | 6:21 AM ET
Look out, Venetian vendors of cheap tourist tat. Your canal-side stalls (“fully-fledged examples of urban decay,” according to the city council) are the next target in the city’s ongoing crusade against all things ugly or rude. Local authorities in Venice have already showed the flocks of pigeons and shirtless, napping tourists who’s boss.
Email to friend
del.icio.us
Digg
Facebook
Furl
Ma.gnolia
Mixx
Reddit
StumbleUpon
Yahoo! BuzzVenice ‘Paralyzed’ by Worst Flooding in 20 Years
by Michael Yessis | 12.02.08 | 5:20 PM ET
The Times of London reports that 95 percent of the city is underwater. Travelers are being warned to stay away, though some who are already in Venice are reportedly making the best of the situation.
Take a Peek Inside ‘World’s First Zero-Star Hotel’
by Elyse Franko | 11.26.08 | 10:18 AM ET
Last month, we reported on the Null Stern Hotel, Switzerland’s fallout shelter-turned-budget hotel that’s set to open early in 2009. The Wall Street Journal recently joined some volunteer guests for the hotel’s test run, and a slideshow features the sneak peek inside the former bunker: Gourmet cuisine? Nope. Private showers? Nope. Protection from nuclear fallout? But of course!
Happy 100th Birthday, Claude Levi-Strauss
by Jim Benning | 11.25.08 | 2:01 PM ET
The great structural anthropologist celebrates the big 1-0-0 on Friday in Paris. Travel lit readers know him in part from his 1955 travel memoir of sorts, Tristes Tropiques, which begins with the memorable line, “I hate travelling and explorers.” More importantly, as NPR points out, Levi-Strauss “changed the world’s perception of so-called ‘primitive’ tribes in Asia, Africa and America.”
Amsterdam Cracks Down on ‘Cannabis Cafés’
by Valerie Conners | 11.21.08 | 11:46 AM ET
Photo by shelleylyn via Flickr (Creative Commons).
While we’ve covered the growing conservative tide in this notoriously liberal town, it now seems that mood has yielded the decision to close nearly one-fifth of Amsterdam’s marijuana-selling coffee shops—specifically those deemed too close to city schools. The decision has—not surprisingly—stirred controversy. “We don’t think it’s very useful,” said one school principal. “Children will get their drugs if they want to anyway.”
Saving Chekhov’s Yalta ‘White Dacha’ Home
by Jim Benning | 11.20.08 | 11:00 AM ET
The unusual house where Anton Chekhov lived and wrote for several years was turned into a museum in 1921, but it’s now falling apart, and territorial issues aren’t helping matters.
Says the scholar who has launched the Yalta Chekhov Campaign: “[The dacha] is in a strange position. The Russian government didn’t want to fund the restoration because the house is in Ukraine, and the Ukrainian government didn’t want to pay to promote a Russian author.”
Among the actors supporting the effort: Kenneth Branagh and Ralph Fiennes. Classy gents.
‘Frozen Skyline’: Architecture and the Recession
by Eva Holland | 11.19.08 | 9:15 AM ET
We noted a couple weeks back that a U2-Norman Foster project in Dublin has been put on hold thanks to the economic crisis. Now, a Frank Gehry development in the U.K. has gotten the axe, as well. “If Gehry can be tossed aside by recession-wary banks,” Jonathan Glancey asks in the Guardian, “what about less celebrated architects?” Glancey’s thoughtful essay speculates about the future of the architecture industry—and our skylines—through the recession, and after.
Louvre to Display Abstract Sculpture by TV’s Wally Cleaver?
by Michael Yessis | 11.18.08 | 9:20 AM ET
The AP reports that Tony Dow, Beaver’s brother on the iconic television show “Leave it to Beaver,” will show a piece of his art at the Societe Nationale des Beaux-Arts exhibition in Paris. San Francisco Chronicle pop culture critic Peter Hartlaub follows up and says Dow’s work will actually be on display at the Carrousel du Louvre Dec. 11-14.
90 Years Later: Searching for Wilfred Owen
by Eva Holland | 11.17.08 | 11:14 AM ET
The 90th anniversary of the end of the First World War just passed, and The Times of London’s travel section marked the occasion with a powerful essay by Chris Haslam, who traveled around France in the footsteps of war poet Wilfred Owen. Haslam’s search covers several battlefields, and ends at the forest cottage where Owen spent his last night.
How About a Cheap Trip to Rome With Those Groceries?
by Eva Holland | 11.17.08 | 8:44 AM ET
Talk about an impulse buy. British supermarket chain Aldi has announced that its customers will soon be able to purchase discount holiday packages along with their canned goods and fresh produce. Sounds like a dangerous combo: I have a hard enough time resisting the magazines and chocolate bars at check-out, let alone a discount weekend in Rome.
Venice: The War on Impropriety Continues
by Eva Holland | 11.11.08 | 8:57 AM ET
Buoyed by their recent victory against the St. Mark’s pigeons, local authorities in Venice are once again turning their attention to the battle against uncivilized tourists. We’ve covered their clampdown on bare chests, littering and public naps—now, the new targets include fare-dodgers on the vaporetti, bag lunches in the piazzas, and all those folks who don’t give up their seats for pregnant women and the elderly.
British Gap Year in Decline
by Eva Holland | 11.11.08 | 7:55 AM ET
It’s been tough enough selling American parents and school administrators on the benefits of a gap year for students. Now, the Guardian reports that the phenomenon is on the decline in the U.K., where it’s been an accepted rite of passage for years. The story blames financial concerns, the economic downturn, and—most ominously—a growing “conservatism” among college admissions officers for the change.
Birds Hit Plane, Force Emergency Landing
by Valerie Conners | 11.10.08 | 10:09 AM ET
A Ryanair flight made an emergency landing at Rome’s Ciampino airport after multiple birds struck the aircraft, damaging the plane’s landing gear and an engine. The incident caused the airport to temporarily close.
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
Plans for U2 Tower in Dublin ‘Shelved’
by Michael Yessis | 11.04.08 | 12:33 PM ET
All four members of U2 are invested in the Norman Foster-designed building, a planned 36-story tower on the banks of the River Liffey. If it ever gets built, it will be the tallest building in Ireland. Developers wanted to break ground this year, but now they’re waiting 12 months to see if the economic climate in Ireland improves. Bono and the Edge, however, still seem to be moving forward with their plans for the Clarence Hotel.