Travel Blog
Rick Steves, Drug Policy Provocateur
by Jim Benning | 04.01.08 | 1:42 PM ET
When I interviewed Rick Steves last summer, he touched on how his travel experiences in Europe have soured him on America’s drug war. “People in America think you’re either hard on drugs or soft on drugs,” he said. “They say Europeans are soft on drugs. I think you’re either hard on drugs or you’re smart on drugs, and I think Europeans are smart on drugs as opposed to waging war on drugs.”
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Yahoo! Buzz20,000 Bags Delayed at Heathrow’s New Terminal 5
by Michael Yessis | 04.01.08 | 12:17 PM ET
Unfortunately, it’s not another April Fool’s Day joke. Since opening March 27, Terminal 5 at London’s Heathrow Airport has been a disaster. One of the major issues: The $8.5 billion automated luggage system failed to work as promised.
R.I.P. Herb Peterson
by Eva Holland | 04.01.08 | 12:13 PM ET
Herb Peterson, the inventor of the Egg McMuffin, died last week in Santa Barbara. He was 89. Peterson created the signature McDonald’s breakfast item in 1972, apparently inspired by his favorite, eggs Benedict. Road-trippers everywhere owe him a huge debt of thanks for cooking up that hot, fast, greasy meal to go, a classic choice for fueling the start of one long drive or celebrating the end of another.
Adventures in Colombia: Cocaine! And Hey, ‘The FARC Are Nearby? Cool!’
by Jim Benning | 04.01.08 | 11:35 AM ET
We’ve been writing for some time about the resurgence of tourism in Colombia, thanks largely to a drop in drug-related violence and crime. Even the New York Times jumped on the cheerleading bandwagon. This week, while acknowledging the trend, the Guardian reports on the small but “growing minority” of backpackers and travelers who are more interested in sampling the other Colombia. Namely, the Colombia made infamous by its cocaine trade and Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas.
Foolish Travel: Flying Penguins in Antarctica, ‘Say No to Canada’*
by Michael Yessis | 04.01.08 | 11:23 AM ET
April Fool’s Day pranksters are out in force today. Here’s a roundup of pranks from around the travel universe:
Ciao, Aloha
by Jim Benning | 03.31.08 | 1:51 PM ET
Aloha Airlines, which only recently filed for bankruptcy, has announced it will end passenger service tonight after 61 years in operation.
‘Strange Travel Suggestions’ and the Art of Telling a Good Tale
by Jim Benning | 03.31.08 | 12:38 PM ET
Travel stories are usually told in writing, or on film, or over a meal. But Jeff Greenwald is the rare travel writer who has turned his tales into a one-man stage show. It’s called “Strange Travel Suggestions,” and I caught it at last year’s Book Passage travel writing conference. I found it funny, fast-moving and surprisingly compelling. Judging by the enthusiastic response from others in the audience, I wasn’t the only one. In the show, Greenwald celebrates adventures in far-flung places. Even better, with audience input, he captures that addictive (and often elusive) sense about travel that anything can happen around your next turn.
Travel Headline of the Day: ‘Airline Sought Actors For Flights’
by Michael Yessis | 03.31.08 | 12:19 PM ET
Seven New Wonders of the Architectural World
by Julia Ross | 03.31.08 | 11:21 AM ET
Although the “seven wonders” concept has seen a lot of play in the last year, I was happy to see Condé Nast Traveler take an edgier approach in its April new seven wonders list, which includes one of my favorite spots in Washington, D.C.: Kogod Courtyard.
R.I.P. Dith Pran
by Jim Benning | 03.31.08 | 11:07 AM ET
The New York Times photographer whose story was immortalized in the movie “The Killing Fields” died Sunday. Remarked the Times’ executive editor: “To all of us who have worked as foreign reporters in frightening places, Pran reminds us of a special category of journalistic heroism—the local partner, the stringer, the interpreter, the driver, the fixer, who knows the ropes, who makes your work possible, who often becomes your friend, who may save your life, who shares little of the glory, and who risks so much more than you do.”
Related on World Hum:
* Welcome to Khmer Rouge Land!
World Hum’s Most Read: March 22-28
by World Hum | 03.28.08 | 4:37 PM ET
Our five most popular features and blog posts this week:
1) How to: Use a Squat Toilet
2) Talking Trash in Taiwan
3) Tourists Should be ‘Beat Up,’ Says Bali Bombing Conspirator
4) Pilot’s Gun Fires on US Airways Flight
5) Out of the Wild? Alaskan Town Considers Removing McCandless Bus
Bali photo by Jim Benning.
What We Loved This Week: Pico Iyer, the Cowsills and Bonfire Hopping in Germany
by World Hum | 03.28.08 | 4:01 PM ET
World Hum contributors share a favorite travel-related experience from the past seven days.
Jim Benning
I spent the last couple of days snowboarding in Mammoth, and it’s been great fun. But one of the highlights of the trip was the drive north up Highway 395. I happened to be listening to Terry Gross’ interview with Pico Iyer about the Dalai Lama, and with the snowy peaks all around me, somehow I felt closer to the Himalayas than I had in a long time.
‘¡Ask a Mexican!’ Columnist Says ‘Adios’*
by Michael Yessis | 03.28.08 | 1:23 PM ET
Gustavo Arellano has retired his informative and, in some quarters, controversial ‘¡Ask a Mexican!’ column in the OC Weekly. “It’s no longer necessary to explain Mexicans to Americans because Mexicans are Americans,” he writes in his farewell note.
Update: April 2, 10:27 ET: Not so fast. Looks like Arellano was just playing an April Fool’s Day joke—five days early. I bit, and so did everyone else, Arellano says, except his best friend and one blogger.
An Expat in Athens: A Life Abroad, as a List
by Joanna Kakissis | 03.28.08 | 11:01 AM ET
Photo by riting on the wall via Flickr (Creative Commons).
If lives of expats can indeed be boiled down to lists, Marie Claire has some good ones. The magazine spotlights five American women living abroad: an author in Paris, a nonprofit worker in Beijing, a photographer in Cairo, a communications consultant in Tunis and a yoga teacher in Hamburg. They have all found things to love about their new homes but still long for their old ones.
‘Open Skies’ Takes Effect This Weekend
by Michael Yessis | 03.28.08 | 10:37 AM ET
Open Skies is an agreement that removes limits on flights between the United States and the European Union. In the words of USA Today’s Dan Reed, “Every U.S. airline gains the right to fly to any destination in Europe without requesting government authorization—and every European carrier has the right to serve any U.S. city it wishes to serve.”
