Travel Blog
Rising Fuel Prices, the Paris Air Show and More
by Rob Verger | 06.16.09 | 3:12 PM ET
What’s the fuel bill to fly a 757-200 across the country, from New York to Los Angeles?
About $21,600.
That, at least, was the cost of the fuel burned on a recent transcontinental Delta flight I was on, according to the flight’s captain. Out of 7,500 gallons of fuel on board, we burned about 6,760 gallons.
Clearly, the price of fuel is hugely important for airlines. And rising prices aren’t helping.
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Yahoo! BuzzThe Strange Travels of the Stanley Cup
by Eva Holland | 06.16.09 | 1:53 PM ET
As the Minneapolis Star-Tribune points out, hockey’s most coveted trophy “has done a lot of traveling over the years.”
Some highlights? A helicopter ride to a B.C. mountain summit, a visit to a Finnish sauna and an aborted drop-in at Lenin’s Tomb—the guards wouldn’t let several Detroit Red Wings stars bring it in. Now that the Pittsburgh Penguins have claimed the Cup, there’s no telling where it might wind up this summer. (Via @douglasmack)
Battle Over the Elgin Marbles Rages On
by Eva Holland | 06.16.09 | 1:08 PM ET
We blogged about one writer’s sneak peek at the New Acropolis Museum last summer, and now opening day has finally arrived—predictably, not without controversy.
The museum was designed both to pressure Britain for the return of the Elgin Marbles, and to provide a worthy home for them after their (eventual, theoretical) return. With that context in mind, it’s no surprise that Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and the director of the British Museum—where the marbles are currently held—have all declined invitations to the grand opening on Saturday.
James Franco Reads Jack Kerouac
by Michael Yessis | 06.16.09 | 11:23 AM ET
He bites off an excerpt from “On the Road,” which will appear in Lapham’s Quarterly’s summer issue simply titled, “Travel.” It’s a solid reading, but, alas, as you can hear below, he’s no Jack.
Political Iran on Film
by Eva Holland | 06.16.09 | 10:32 AM ET
Foreign Policy has a timely list of movies “that have stirred the country’s politics over the years.” The selections span four decades, from the Shah’s day to the present, and could be great fodder for some armchair traveling—for this week, probably the only sort of travel that’s advisable to Iran.
Travel Movie Watch: ‘Creation’
by Eva Holland | 06.16.09 | 9:24 AM ET
From "HMS Beagle at Tierra del Fuego" by Conrad Martens (via Wikipedia) Details are still a little scarce, but I’d be very surprised if the Charles Darwin biopic didn’t include some serious travel sequences. Paul Bettany plays the lead, and the movie is due out in September.
Iran: Through the Eyes of Travelers
by Eva Holland | 06.15.09 | 6:07 PM ET
I’ve spent the last couple days transfixed by events in Iran, where widespread protests and bursts of violence have followed a contested election result. The country’s hardly an American tourism hot spot (and this latest unrest won’t help on that front) but over the years, we’ve covered some travel-related Iranian ground. Here’s a look back:
Where in the World Are You, Alicia Imbody?
by Alicia Imbody | 06.15.09 | 3:43 PM ET
The subject of our latest up-to-the-minute interview with a traveler somewhere in the world: World Hum’s new intern, Alicia Imbody.
Where in the world are you?
Sbarro: A Traveler’s Staple at Risk
by Eva Holland | 06.15.09 | 2:58 PM ET
The Huffington Post reports that the omni-present Italian chain is on a shortlist of fast food outlets that could be edging towards bankruptcy. Commenters on the story have been quick to applaud the (possible) demise of a few godless corporations, but I’ll admit to a little pang of sadness: For me, Sbarro is inseparable from the experience of being in transit.
Whether on a layover at Philadelphia International or stumbling off an overnight bus on the New York State Thruway, I’ve made a comforting bowl of baked ziti a part of my travel routine. If it goes, what’s next? Panda Express? Say it ain’t so.
Shrinking Planet Headline of the Day: ‘Facebook Swahili Version Launched’
by Jim Benning | 06.15.09 | 2:15 PM ET
Facebook is now available in roughly 50 languages, and Swahili was the second African language to get its own version of the social networking site, the BBC reports.
Uighur Tourism in Bermuda?
by Eva Holland | 06.15.09 | 1:29 PM ET
Over at Jaunted, Victor Ozols “speculates recklessly” about whether the island’s acceptance of four Gitmo inmates could help its tourism profile. Hey, if ex-detainees keep on landing in island paradises, I’d happily plan a thematic world tour.
Photo We Love: Iran’s Controversial Election
by Jim Benning | 06.15.09 | 1:16 PM ET
REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah Twitter is abuzz with news of a rally in Tehran today in support of defeated Iranian presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi. (You go, persiankiwi.) I loved this photo taken a few days ago in Tehran, before the election, of one of Mousavi’s supporters.
A Flight Attendant’s Bookish Ethical Dilemma
by Michael Yessis | 06.15.09 | 12:35 PM ET
J.T. from Georgia posed this question to the New York Times ethicist, Randy Cohen:
I am a flight attendant. I was working a flight from Europe when I recognized Michael Connelly, my favorite author, on board. I told him I was reading his novel “Brass Verdict,” and he kindly offered to autograph it. The catch: it is a library book. Must I return the signed book to the library, or can I replace it with a new copy in a suitable jacket?
The answer is entertaining, and not just because of the line about what Cohen would do if he met “the ghost of Jane Austen on the D.C. shuttle.”
Six Flags Declares Bankruptcy
by Eva Holland | 06.15.09 | 11:42 AM ET
Cue the “end of the ride” references.
Truman and Khrushchev: Gone to Look for America
by Michael Yessis | 06.15.09 | 11:16 AM ET
Some Cold War travel memories bubbled up this weekend in the Washington Post. Christopher Buckley favorably reviews Matthew Algeo’s Harry Truman’s Excellent Adventure, a chronicle of Truman’s post-presidency road trip in the summer of 1953. And Peter Carlson follows the journey of former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, who accepted an invite from President Eisenhower to “road trip through the wonderland of ’50s America.”
