Travel Blog
U.S. Navy Tries Hand at ‘Propamanga’
by Julia Ross | 06.19.08 | 10:23 AM ET
The U.S. Navy is appealing to Japan’s otaku to help win hearts and minds. To ease concerns over the arrival of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington in Japan this summer, navy officials commissioned a 200-page manga depicting life aboard the ship through the eyes of fictional Japanese-American petty officer Jack O’Hara. See a PDF here.
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Yahoo! BuzzWhat Does it Take to Understand a Culture’s Cuisine?
by Joanna Kakissis | 06.18.08 | 12:41 PM ET
Gourmet contributor Shoba Narayan recently dined with her mother at Masala Klub, a new high-end eatery at the Taj West End hotel in Bangalore. The meal began well enough, with white wine and a good lemongrass rasam (“the holy grail of our community, the Tamil Brahmin people”). But the main course—a collection of too-chewy paneer, undercooked spiced haricots verts and other “forgettable” dishes—left the women underwhelmed. Why couldn’t the savvy chef at Masala Klub impress these compatriot foodies? Narayan says it’s because Indians are so famously possessive of their cuisine that even the most talented haute and fusion chefs rarely stand a chance in the kitchen.
Is China Boycotting Travel to France?
by Michael Yessis | 06.18.08 | 12:27 PM ET
The AP reports a plunge in Chinese travelers to France, apparently in retaliation for, among other things, support for Tibet among the French and demonstrations against the Olympic torch relay in Paris. The French Foreign Ministry said Chinese officials have told travel agents to stop selling trips to France. China’s Tourism Bureau apparently wouldn’t comment, but several travel agents reportedly told AP they “had heard about—if not received—the verbal order” to not sell trips to France.
Related on World Hum:
* Travel to China Down in 2008
* China Blocks Travel to Ethnic Tibetan Regions
Lizards and Jackals Storm Runway in New Delhi
by Michael Yessis | 06.18.08 | 10:23 AM ET
The animals were looking for refuge from monsoon rains, and they found it on the runway at Indira Gandhi International Airport yesterday. For a while, at least.
Top Five Forbidden Vacations for Americans
by Julia Ross | 06.18.08 | 10:07 AM ET
Fancy a retreat at North Korea’s Mount Kumgang Zen monastery? A leisurely tour of the ruins at Persepolis (pictured)? Dream on. Foreign Policy has a tongue-in-cheek look at five alluring destinations off-limits to Americans.
Hiking the Belgian Plateau
by Eva Holland | 06.18.08 | 10:01 AM ET
“In the pantheon of walking, the conquering of the ‘Belgian Plateau’ merits few Brownie points,” Mark Rowe writes in The Independent. “Partly, this is because it is not very high, but mainly because almost no one knows it exists.” Rowe has a point: Belgium’s reputation was built on chocolate, beer and Tintin—not the great outdoors. That could be about to change.
Oprah’s Ethicists Debate How Far You Should Recline in an Airline Seat
by Michael Yessis | 06.17.08 | 5:27 PM ET
Faith Salie says “Tough luck, dude” to the 6-foot-5 passenger who asked the person in front of him to please not lay all the way back into his lap. As a 6-foot-4 passenger who’s spent too many hours with a leaner in his lap, I say to Salie, “May there be a middle seat beside a screaming child on a 17-hour transpacific flight in your future.” I know flying isn’t always fun these days, but nobody’s comfort on a plane should come at the expense of another passenger’s.
Related on World Hum:
* Ethicists Are Ready to Kick Some Derrie-Air
* Armrest Seating, Anyone?
At Mumbai’s ‘Hunger Cafes,’ Drive-By Charity for the Poor
by Joanna Kakissis | 06.17.08 | 5:01 PM ET
If you go to the outskirts of the Indian megalopolis, home to the shacks that house the poorest of restaurants, you may see benevolence dispensed in “a quintessentially Mumbai way.” A fascinating New York Times article explores the culture of “hunger cafes,” where starving men wait for commuters to roll down their windows and donate a few rupees for a 25-cent lunch of curried gruel and rice.
Wheeler: You Shouldn’t Always Mind Government Travel Advisories
by Elyse Franko | 06.17.08 | 4:47 PM ET
Lonely Planet founder Tony Wheeler says Iran, North Korea and other countries that appear on government travel advisories are worth the almost-guaranteed hassles. “There are plenty of reasons they’re worth the extra effort, and, furthermore, they’re generally far less risky than the rumors, horror stories, and ‘don’t go there’ warnings would have us believe,” he writes in GOOD Magazine’s travel issue.
Hypermiling Rises Again
by Eva Holland | 06.17.08 | 3:33 PM ET
Hypermiling is nothing new—according to this Wired story, the art of squeezing maximum mileage per gallon of fuel has been around since the old rationing days of the Second World War. But with gas prices reaching unprecedented levels, it’s coming into fashion again. Mother Jones has the lowdown on the daredevil side of hypermiling, but it’s not all about drafting and “death turns.” The first rule, for beginners, is to learn to drive the speed limit.
Related on World Hum:
* Ever Return Your Rental Car Without a Full Tank? Beware.
Photo by Dawn Endico via Flickr (Creative Commons)
New Travel Book: ‘Are We There Yet?’
by Elyse Franko | 06.17.08 | 1:30 PM ET
Full title: “Are We There Yet? The Golden Age of American Family Vacations”
Author: Susan Sessions Rugh
Released: May 22, 2008
Travel genre: Travel history
Territory covered: Highways of America
iPod, iPhone Plug-ins Coming to International United Flights
by Jim Benning | 06.17.08 | 11:20 AM ET
In first and business classes, you’ll be able to charge the devices and watch videos on your in-flight entertainment screen, the airline announced. The first flight with the service—Washington, D.C., to Zurich—departed yesterday; the technology will be rolled out to other wide-body jets over the next two years. You still won’t be able to make calls.
Will WiFi Go Truly Global?
by Eva Holland | 06.17.08 | 11:08 AM ET
Sure, WiFi has arrived in airport lounges, hotel lobbies, and on some buses, but for the bandwidth-hungry traveler, there are still plenty of “those pesky dead zones between hotspots,” observes the Globe and Mail’s Denise Deveau. But she points out a couple of newer technologies that could see wireless networking capabilities expand dramatically—think rural areas and even oceans. Wireless internet access may not have the romance of poste restante, or the quirky charm of your local internet cafe, but it certainly makes for a shrinking planet.
Photo by hive via Flickr (Creative Commons)
Ever Return Your Rental Car Without a Full Tank? Beware.
by Jim Benning | 06.17.08 | 10:55 AM ET
These days, you’ll really shell out big bucks. Would be believe you could be charged $8 a gallon?
In Britain, Foreign Currency ATMs on the Rise
by Eva Holland | 06.17.08 | 10:41 AM ET
Interesting pilot program: Britain’s Post Office will be rolling out foreign currency ATMS that dispense U.S. dollars or euros on a trial basis at 13 locations in an effort to reduce the wait times at its foreign exchange counters. According to the Times Online, 21 Marks and Spencer locations have been offering similar machines since January, and HSBC is set to install still more of them in train stations and shopping malls.
Photo by bradipo via Flickr (Creative Commons)
