Destination: United States
Rajaa Alsanea Talks Dentistry, ‘Girls of Riyadh’ and Life in Chicago
by Eva Holland | 03.23.09 | 4:09 PM ET
Remember Rajaa Alsanea? Her debut novel stirred up acclaim and controversy, and opened a window into the romantic lives of Saudi Arabia’s young women (being dubbed “Sex and the City, Saudi-style” as a result) a couple years back. The National caught up with the author to see what she’s been up to since, and it turns out Alsanea is studying endodontics, a dentistry specialty, in Chicago—and working on a second novel in her spare time.
She says of that project: “People will definitely have the feeling that I have grown up and matured. I have lived outside my country and experienced a different culture and all of this reflects on the person that I am today.” The thoughtful interview is worth a read in full. (Via The Book Bench)
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Yahoo! BuzzThe Long and Short of Hotel Deals
by Alexander Basek | 03.23.09 | 2:40 PM ET
You don’t have to take advice from travel gurus to find the deals these days; you can go right to the source. Shell Vacations, which has properties all over North America, has started a blog to promote discounts and deals they offer. I like the vibe. It’s a bit earnest, but they break down what the deal is at the bottom of the copy, so you can skim for savings if you’re short on time.
Two, Twitter is blowing up as a source for hotel deals.
Movie Tourists Haunting a Connecticut House
by Eva Holland | 03.23.09 | 12:00 PM ET
Publicity still for "The Haunting in Connecticut" via IGN Hollywood’s latest big-screen horror story isn’t even in theaters yet, but The Haunting in Connecticut is already drawing visitors to the real-life suburban home that spawned the urban-legend-turned-movie—and its living residents are not pleased. “Most people are respectful. They stay on the road. They might take a picture,” homeowner Susan Trotta-Smith told the AP. “But we have had a few problems with people kind of rudely coming up to the door and scaring our kids, telling them the house is haunted.” Added a local police sergeant: “There are creatures looming in the night but not inside the house. They happen to be people who are trespassing on the property, looking in windows and that kind of stuff. People are going to be disappointed. There are no ghosts.”
The movie is based on stories about the house—a former funeral home—that went around the paranormal research community in the 1980s. It lands in theaters on Friday, but don’t expect a glimpse of the real deal; filming took place in Manitoba.
Hawaii’s Endangered Birds: Wake Up, Already!
by Pam Mandel | 03.23.09 | 11:00 AM ET
I’m as surprised as anyone to find myself turning into a bird watcher—it’s a short walk from where I am to high-waisted cargo pants, a vest full of pockets and a pair of binoculars that will allow me to see well into the next county. (I kid, I kid. Bird watchers come in all shapes, sizes and victims of fashion.) My affection for all things avian is why I was saddened to read the report on Hawaii’s failing bird population.
From the AP
One-third of the nation’s endangered birds are in Hawaii, said the report issued Thursday by the Interior Department. Thirty-one Hawaiian bird species are listed as endangered, more than anywhere else in the country.
Birds are a critical part of any visit to Hawaii—the moment the sun pops over the horizon, the birds go off, alarm clock style, making all kinds of racket until they are sure you are good and awake, settling down to spend their days in a less disruptive way once you’ve given up the earplugs, found a cup of coffee and admitted defeat. Maybe they know you have to be on the pier, pronto, to catch that snorkel boat or whale-watching tour, and they are not going to let you miss it, not if they have anything to say about it.
Five Great Pod Hotels
by Jennifer Plum Auvil | 03.23.09 | 8:19 AM ET
Photo courtesy of The Pod Hotel Travelers can save big bucks at pocket-sized pod hotels. Jennifer Plum Auvil offers her top picks.
What Some Locals Have To Say About SXSW
by Sophia Dembling | 03.20.09 | 3:56 PM ET
Twitterers are all a-twitter about the fun they’re having at SXSW in Austin, and the party is only just getting started. But are long-time locals having as much fun being descended upon by the hipster masses? I polled a few of my Austin buddies about the fun they’re having ... or not.
Big Plane, Small Plane
by Rob Verger | 03.20.09 | 11:28 AM ET
As of June 1, Emirates will cease using its A380s—the biggest commercial plane in the skies—between Dubai and New York City. The airline will be replacing it with Boeing 777s, citing the poor economy as the reason to use the comparatively smaller plane, which has fewer seats to fill.
At the other end of the size spectrum, a company in Massachusetts called Terrafugia has celebrated the first flight of a flying car they have engineered called the Transition. As the Middle Seat Terminal points out, “While most people would look at the gizmo and call it a flying car, Terrafugia—founded by five pilots, all MIT graduates—prefers to call the beast a ‘Roadable Aircraft.’” According to the company’s website, each plane is anticipated to cost $194,000.
How many of these tiny flying cars do you think would fit inside an A380?
The Superferry’s Last Sail
by Pam Mandel | 03.20.09 | 10:37 AM ET
From day one, Hawaii’s Superferry was fraught with problems. It’s all over now. On March 19, the Superferry made its final run between Oahu and Maui.
From a logistics point of view, the ferry made travel between Oahu and Maui seem a lot easier. Drive on, drive off, with whale-watching thrown in for the price of the crossing, in season. Tourism boosters loved it, as did parents and schools—it made getting your baseball team to that game on Maui a snap, and you could bring your own bus or squeeze the whole swim team into the minivan.
But Hawaiian traditionalists objected to the Superferry because it made it too easy to plunder, like a pirate in a pickup truck, island resources. Environmentalists worried about the whales. And quality-of-life types bemoaned the traffic, suggesting that the cars lined up on either end would cause not only pollution, but delays and crowds.
The Superferry ran, and then it didn’t, and then it ran, and then it didn’t. If you held a ticket, you had to check the website the day of your sailing and, even then, there was no guarantee that you wouldn’t be turned back by protesters. The case to block the Superferry went all the way to the Hawaii Supreme Court. The issue? The Superferry had been allowed to operate before the environmental impact research was complete.
The Hawaii Supreme Court on Monday ruled that a law allowing the Superferry to operate while conducting an environmental impact statement was unconstitutional.—MSNBC
It’s back to interisland flights for travelers.You can’t take your car, but you’re less likely to get seasick. And yeah, you can get a refund for that Superferry ticket.
Rats! The DOH Are Here!
by David Farley | 03.19.09 | 11:58 AM ET
The guys at the sushi restaurant across the street from my apartment in New York’s West Village were always friendly. Except for one time about a year ago when I stopped in at lunch to pick up a take-out order. There was only one other person in the restaurant—a guy typing away at a small laptop—but the two employees were short with me, acting as though the place was packed. As I tossed out requests—extra wasabi, for example—the sushi chef nervously nodded back in that officious anything-you-want manner as if I had been pointing a semi-automatic at his family. Then I noticed what was printed on the back of the jacket of the other customer: Department of Health (DOH).
The Pre-Flight Flight Attendant Rap
by Rob Verger | 03.18.09 | 4:06 PM ET
Have you heard the fantastic pre-flight rap that one Southwest Airlines flight attendant has been doing?
The flight attendant, David Holmes, was recently the subject of a short interview at the Middle Seat Terminal. It’s worth a read.
Here’s my favorite part of the rap, which is performed to the beat of the passengers stomping and clapping:
Before we leave
Our advice is
Put away your electronic devices
Fasten your seat belt
Then put your trays up
Press the button
to make the seat back raise up
The expressions on the passengers’ faces are just as entertaining as the rap is itself. Video below.
How I Long For Thee, Boeing 787
by Rob Verger | 03.17.09 | 10:51 AM ET
With any luck, followers of Boeing’s newest plane, the 787 Dreamliner, should see its first test flight in the first half of 2009.
The 787 is currently “on schedule,” the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported last week, and notes that according to the president of Boeing’s commercial aircraft division, the company “continues to work toward the inaugural 787 test flight in the second quarter of this year and the first delivery in the first quarter of 2010.”
This comes after lots of delays and some order cancellations; recently, a Chinese airline threatened to “cancel or postpone delivery of part of its order for nine 787s.”
Blog to Watch: Cities on the Cheap
by Eva Holland | 03.17.09 | 10:27 AM ET
The site—which got its start simply as Atlanta on the Cheap—now covers the latest bargains and budget shortcuts in 30-plus locations across the U.S. and Canada. The emphasis so far seems to be on the Sunbelt, and on kid-friendly destinations (there’s an entire Disney on the Cheap page), but if those aren’t your bag, don’t despair: Cities on the Cheap is still expanding. (Via Arthur Frommer)
Morning Links: Bible Park, Pizza Vending Machines and More
by Eva Holland | 03.16.09 | 9:03 AM ET
- The Wall Street Journal goes way beyond Angkor Wat in Cambodia.
- Planning for Lebanon, Tennessee’s Bible-themed amusement park, has been suspended indefinitely due to “political differences”; the park’s developers are eyeing Kentucky instead. (Via The Book Bench)
- Coney Island’s famed Totonno’s pizzeria has been devastated by a fire.
- The San Francisco Chronicle has the little-known story of Iceland’s pizza pioneer.
- And in more pie-related news, the New York Times dishes on Northern Italy’s pizza vending machines.
- World Hum contributor Jenna Schnuer gets the local scoop on Houston’s finest cuisine, culture and more.
- New York City’s High Line may not be quite ready for visitors, but it is in bloom.
- Audrey and Daniel from Uncornered Market have just headed out on the road again; they reflect on five things they’ll miss about America.
- In the Huffington Post, Alison Stein Wellner goes looking for Jewish Barbados.
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What We Loved This Week: Twitter, Portland’s Cheap Eats, ‘Before Sunrise’ and More
by World Hum | 03.13.09 | 2:18 PM ET
Our contributors share a favorite travel-related experience from the past seven days:
Valerie Conners
Trip-planning via Twitter and the fabulous tweeps following @worldhum. I’m heading to Buenos Aires in April and have been posting questions out to our twitterverse of followers, looking for tips on sights, food, estancia tours and more—the response has been so warm and incredibly helpful. What an amazing resource. Some great ideas have crossed my path and are making their way into my itinerary.
Eva Holland
I watched one of my favorite travel movies, “Before Sunrise,” again for the first time in a couple of years and was thrilled to find that none of the crazy, spontaneous magic of Jesse and Celine’s one night in Vienna had worn off. Here’s a classic sequence:
Detroit’s Exquisite Decay
by Sophia Dembling | 03.13.09 | 11:47 AM ET
Time magazine’s slideshow capturing Detroit’s decay in photos by French photographers Yves Marchand and Romain Meffre is stunning and utterly heartbreaking.
My thought as I watched: As travelers/tourists we’re a powerful economic force. Can we help save Detroit?
Here are some of my previous thoughts on Detroit.