Destination: Europe
Shrinking Planet Statistic of the Day: London Black Cabs Now Made Overseas
by Eva Holland | 09.04.08 | 4:23 PM ET
These days, London Taxi International has been unable to keep up with demand for its iconic black cabs. So the manufacturer is looking to expand beyond its small Coventry plant, and is headed overseas to—you guessed it—China. A new factory outside Shanghai is slated to produce 6,000 taxis per year, doubling the Coventry output. Rather than being shipped back to England, though, most of the Chinese-made vehicles will be exported to Singapore, Dubai, and other cities that, as the Globe and Mail puts it, “covet the image associated with” London’s famous black cabs.
Email to friend
del.icio.us
Digg
Facebook
Furl
Ma.gnolia
Mixx
Reddit
StumbleUpon
Yahoo! BuzzEscape the Summer Heat in Beautiful Siberia!
by Jim Benning | 09.04.08 | 2:08 PM ET
Oh yes, Russians take to Siberia’s beaches—on Lake Baikal—“to relax and recharge.” The BBC has video to prove it.
Who Needs the London Eye? Photo Series Offers Aerial London Views
by Valerie Conners | 09.03.08 | 11:18 AM ET
No need to pay exorbitant fees to hop aboard the London Eye for stunning views of London-town. As the eyes of the world finally looked past Beijing to take a glance at London—site of the 2012 Summer Olympics—Boston.com published a series of gasp-worthy photos offering a bird’s-eye view of London at night taken by photographer Jason Hawkes.
Stalin Artifacts Survive Russia-Georgia Conflict
by Eva Holland | 09.03.08 | 10:21 AM ET
Talk about taking your work home with you. When things heated up between Russia and Georgia two weeks back, the small town of Gori—best known as Josef Stalin’s birthplace—found itself in the line of fire. The bombing put the contents of the town’s Stalin Museum at risk, but fortunately the museum’s director, Robert Maglakelidze, wasn’t taking any chances: the CBC reports that he loaded his car with the most valuable artifacts before fleeing to Tbilisi.
The Leaning Tower of Pisa: Only the Third Most Leaning Tower in Europe?
by Michael Yessis | 09.02.08 | 11:47 AM ET
A Dutch mathematician claims a 12th-century building in the Netherlands town of Bedum leans more than the storied Italian attraction, Reuters reports. Big deal, says another authority: Guinness. Last year, it named the world’s true leaning masterpiece: Germany’s Schiefer Turm von Suurhusen. National Geographic News has side-by-side photos.
The Long Descent: Woman’s Journey Down Baggage Belt
by Valerie Conners | 08.27.08 | 4:10 PM ET
We often put a sarcastic or humorous spin on tales of airport woe and aggravation, but this story struck me as just plain sad. Sure, it’s unfortunate that increasingly absurd airport measures are becoming the norm, but to imagine we’re at the point where a 78-year-old woman, in a huge misunderstanding with Swedish airport personnel, considers being asked to climb in a baggage chute as a reasonable request—and does so—is just ... unreasonable.
A German ‘Eco-Wander’
by Michael Yessis | 08.27.08 | 10:23 AM ET
Intriguing question posed by William Powers over at Slate: “If gigantic Germany could be green, couldn’t any country?” He adds: “You know, like the big one between Canada and Mexico.” To explore his query, Powers spent two weeks in Germany with a focus on green travel, accompanied by “eco-architect” Mymza Wever Azcui. Slate has his dispatches this week in another worthwhile installment of Well-Traveled.
Related on World Hum:
* Las Vegas Strip Going Eco-Friendly?
* Shipping Container Hotel Opens in London
Related on Travel Channel:
* Outdoors and Eco-Friendly Travel
Brits Go on Holiday, Europe Cowers in Fear
by Elyse Franko | 08.25.08 | 4:53 PM ET
So we’ve posted about the British couple getting arrested after having sex on a Dubai beach. And about the nine British women who were arrested for taking part in an oral sex competition in Greece. Now the New York Times offers a comprehensive look at the bad behavior of Brits abroad.
From the Times of London Archives: Thomas Cook’s Lost Dispatch
by Eva Holland | 08.22.08 | 11:16 AM ET
The latest in an ongoing series of “travel classics” from the Times of London’s seemingly bottomless vaults? Thomas Cook‘s six dispatches from a ‘round-the-world trip in the early 1870s. One of the just-published pieces, written from the Red Sea, never appeared in print before. Why? As we learn now from an editor, in those pre-email days, “[I]t did not reach London until the Parliamentary Season, when it was impossible to find room in the paper.” Better late than never, right?
Expanding Auto Museums, Shrinking Industry?
by Eva Holland | 08.22.08 | 10:50 AM ET
The Globe and Mail’s Paul French has a run-down of several ambitious new expansions being unveiled at the shrines to BMW, Audi and Porsche in Germany. Ironic timing, all things considered.
How Should I Spend My Time in Spain?
by Rolf Potts | 08.21.08 | 12:48 PM ET
Vagabonding traveler Rolf Potts answers your questions about travel
Jeffrey Tayler on the Russia-Georgia Conflict
by Jim Benning | 08.19.08 | 1:21 PM ET
World Hum contributor Jeffrey Tayler offers a thoughtful explainer in The Atlantic: “The lessons that emerge from the Russia-Georgia war are clear: Russia is back, the West fears Russia as much as it needs it, and those who act on other assumptions are in for a rude, perhaps violent, awakening.” While we’re on the subject, it’s worth noting that Paul Theroux makes a stop in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi in his new book. There in winter, he described the city as looking “as if doomsday had come—snowbound, fozen, corpse-like, frostbitten.”
Related on World Hum:
* Q&A with Jeffrey Tayler: Facing Africa’s ‘Angry Wind’
* The Songstress of Kunming
Photo of Tbilisi street by masterplaan via Flickr, (Creative Commons).
French Food Violations: France’s Entire Image ‘At Stake’
by Valerie Conners | 08.18.08 | 11:13 AM ET
Before biting into your escargot in that bistro along the Seine, beware: a report from France’s agriculture ministry reveals that more than a quarter of France’s eateries violate food safety standards. It’s no small embarrassment for a country that has hoped to have its food named a UNESCO world treasure. “The image of France is at stake,” France’s agriculture minister, Michel Barnier, told the Telegraph.
Disneyland Paris Meets Rome?
by Valerie Conners | 08.15.08 | 4:13 PM ET
If getting getting scammed out of five euros for a photo with a faux gladiator outside Rome’s Coliseum is your cup of tea, hold onto your chariots: Roman officials have announced plans to build an ancient Rome-themed family amusement park. “You would relive scenes from the Colosseum, from ancient Rome, gladiators or maybe Julius Caesar or other things,” a city official told Reuters.
Has the British Pub Jumped the Shark?
by Julia Ross | 08.15.08 | 12:51 PM ET
Sadly, yes, according to this rather depressing essay in the Telegraph. Britain’s smoking ban and drinks promotions run amok “have transformed the average British pub from a haven of smoked glass, polished brass and mahogany into blaring dumps filled from one end to the other with quiz machines, karaoke stages, and drunken teenagers,” laments Andrew O’Hagan.