Destination: United States
Nuclear Tourism Hot Spot: Hanford, Washington
by Michael Yessis | 08.14.08 | 1:33 PM ET
We’ve written before about the popularity of the plutonium tour at the Hanford Site. What could be more fun than that? Nuclear tourism by kayak, perhaps? “Pat Welle, owner of Columbia Kayak Adventures, who leads two or three groups each month past the nuclear sites, said her business had more than doubled since she started it in 2004,” writes Hugo Martin in the Los Angeles Times. “A jet boat tour operator plans to add a second boat, and the river plays host to several bass fishing tournaments each year.”
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Yahoo! BuzzRock and Roll Hall of Fame to Go Global
by Valerie Conners | 08.13.08 | 3:58 PM ET
After forgoing my chance at pseudo-rock stardom when I realized I was a dud at Rock Band, I’m pleased to learn all hope of exploring my inner Dylan may not be lost: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is hitting the road—first stop, New York City.
How David Brooks Explains the World
by Michael Yessis | 08.13.08 | 11:51 AM ET
Among the ways he says the world can be divided: Societies with an individualist mentality versus societies with a collectivist mentality. Specifically, he writes in the New York Times, “Americans usually see individuals; Chinese and other Asians see contexts.” Intriguing, but also a ridiculous generalization, according to James Fallows.
Hawaii: Too ‘Foreign’ and ‘Exotic’ for a Presidential Vacation?
by Michael Yessis | 08.12.08 | 3:01 PM ET
Barack Obama’s Hawaiian vacation has stirred up some laughable comments, but none as laughable as this: On the pundit circuit, Cokie Roberts has floated the idea that Obama’s trip to Hawaii sends the wrong idea about the candidate and his campaign, implying that his vacation spot—his birthplace, the home of his grandmother and, of course, a U.S. state—puts him out of the American mainstream. “It has the look of him going off to some foreign, exotic place,” Roberts says. “He should be in Myrtle Beach if he’s going to take a vacation at this time.”
Volcanic Ash Causes Alaska Airlines to Cancel Flights
by Michael Yessis | 08.11.08 | 12:19 PM ET
Kasatochi volcano in the Aleutian Islands erupted on Thursday, and the resulting “towering plume of ash” has caused an impediment for flights to Alaska, Reuters reports.
Related on World Hum:
* Letter to a Volcano
Paul McCartney Does Route 66
by Michael Yessis | 08.11.08 | 12:11 PM ET
The legendary Beatle and his girlfriend Nancy Shevell are apparently motoring west, driving a green ‘89 Ford Bronco with New York plates, and they’re leaving a wake of amazed fellow travelers as they head from Joplin, Missouri to Oklahoma City to Amarillo and so forth. What have we learned about Paul’s road tripping skills?
Denver Prepares to Go the Extra, Um, Mile
by Valerie Conners | 08.11.08 | 11:29 AM ET
It’s “go time” in Denver. In a literal test of friendliness leading up to the Democratic National Convention, thousands of hospitality industry workers and convention volunteers are competing in an unusually rigorous test of niceness, seeing just how many strangers they can greet in a mere 45 seconds.
R.I.P. Wall Arch: ‘It Just Went Kaboom’
by Michael Yessis | 08.11.08 | 10:11 AM ET
Utah’s Arches National Park—the most beautiful park of many beautiful parks in the American Southwest—lost one of its most visited arches last week. It’s believed the 71-foot-tall arch, which was the 12th largest in the park, collapsed under its own weight. “Not being a geologist, I can’t get very technical but it just went kaboom,” Arches Chief Ranger Denny Ziemann told the Salt Lake Tribune. The trail between Double 0 Arch and Wall Arch has been closed indefinitely.
World’s Longest Yard Sale: 654 Miles of Bargains From Ohio to Alabama
by Valerie Conners | 08.08.08 | 11:23 AM ET
Dealhunting travelers take note: The World’s Longest Yard Sale, stretching through five states along two-lane Highway 127, takes place this weekend. The annual sale attracts more than 4,000 vendors of antiques and oddities, and hundreds of thousands of shoppers are said to sniff out deals during the four-day event.
Photo by dreamsjung via Flickr (Creative Commons)
Obama, McCain and the Politics of a Vacation
by Jim Benning | 08.07.08 | 1:55 PM ET
Barack Obama is headed to Hawaii on vacation. He deserves a break, right? Besides, it’s a summer tradition. Apparently not, at least according to his opponent. A spokesman for John McCain just remarked, “Americans are facing sky-high gas prices, and instead of Barack Obama taking the initiative to call his allies in Congress back from vacation to carve out real energy relief, he’s joining them at the beach.” And to think, on our 2008 U.S. Presidential Candidate Travel Scorecard, we gave McCain a whopping four-and-a-half Air Force Ones out of five. I, for one, now regret that. I know times are tough, but we Americans must stand firm in support of vacations.
Waterboarding: Torture and ... Tourist Attraction?
by Valerie Conners | 08.06.08 | 4:33 PM ET
As if Christopher Hitchens’ delving into the matter firsthand wasn’t enough for the commoner’s curiosity, now visitors to New York’s Coney Island can drop a dollar in a slot and watch animatronic figures simulate a Guantanamo-esque waterboarding scenario—complete with a figure convulsing for 15 seconds and a sign that reads, “It don’t Gitmo better!”
Inflatable Chutes Deployed at LAX Emergency Landing
by Jim Benning | 08.05.08 | 3:24 PM ET
The American Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu made an emergency landing after smoke was detected in the cabin.
R.I.P. Acres of Books
by Eva Holland | 08.05.08 | 12:20 PM ET
The family-run bookstore has been operating in Long Beach for nearly 75 years. It’ll be making way for a mixture of housing and art galleries, as part of a redevelopment project put together by the city. As for the owners? They’re going traveling. (Via The Book Bench)
Photo by Molly Bewigged via Flickr (Creative Commons)
Las Vegas Strip Going Eco-Friendly?
by Michael Yessis | 08.04.08 | 11:43 AM ET
It’s giving green a shot. More than 50 million square feet of construction built to LEED standards is planned “on and around the Las Vegas Strip, not including the 8.3 million square feet of the 7-month-old, $1.9 billion Palazzo Resort Hotel Casino, which, in May, was designated the nation’s largest LEED-certified building,” according to USA Today.
Remembering ‘Staycations’ Before They Were a Trend
by Julia Ross | 07.26.08 | 9:59 AM ET
NPR commentator Laura Lorson finds it curious that her childhood trips to places like Indianapolis and Knoxville would today be dubbed “staycations.” In the ‘70s, it was simply what families on a budget did during summer vacation. And while she sometimes felt inferior to classmates who jetted off to Paris, she had seen one thing they hadn’t: the Ponderosa Steakhouse.