Travel Blog: News and Briefs
Meet Two Roadside A-Kitschianados
by Sophia Dembling | 06.25.09 | 10:33 AM ET
Photo courtesy of Vintage Roadside OK, all my kitsch-lovin’ friends, here’s a site for you.
Vintage Roadside sells T-shirts and advertising images of just the kind of kooky roadside kitsch we love so much. Not only is the stuff super fun, but a portion of all Vintage Roadside sales are donated to the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
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Yahoo! BuzzCheap European Travel Deals Paying Off
by Alicia Imbody | 06.25.09 | 9:28 AM ET
Beyond the Gondola: Kayaking in Venice?
by Eva Holland | 06.24.09 | 4:05 PM ET
Photo by Eva Holland If you think about it, paddling on the canals of Venice makes a whole lot of sense—and yet, you don’t see many kayaks competing with the gondolas and vaporettos. WhyGo Italy checks in with a Danish entrepreneur who aims to change that.
My only question: Will kayakers be allowed to pack bag lunches?
R.I.P. Dr. Jerri Nielsen FitzGerald, South Pole Physician
by Jim Benning | 06.24.09 | 3:16 PM ET
REUTERS/Ho New
Dr. Jerry Nielsen FitzGerald captured the world’s attention in 1999.
She was at the National Science Foundation’s Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station when she discovered a lump in her breast. Isolated by bad weather, she followed instructions over the internet to perform a biopsy on herself and then began cancer treatment with drugs delivered in an air-drop. In so doing, she came to personify courage in the face of adversity.
Her sister-in-law told CNN: “She would want to be remembered for the adventure and, you know, living every day, and not just the sickness.”
Her cancer went into remission but reappeared in 2005, her husband told the Associated Press. She died at the age of 57.
Audrey Scott Hits the Travel Wall
by Eva Holland | 06.24.09 | 2:33 PM ET
After more than 900 days of travel, the Uncornered Market co-blogger has some blunt observations about (temporarily) reaching her limit. There’s even a handy emotion graph.
Travel Headline of the Day: ‘Ryanair Passengers ‘Could Put Own Luggage on Plane’’
by Eva Holland | 06.24.09 | 1:54 PM ET
Forget a blurring of the lines: the boundary between Onion-esque humor and real airline news is long gone. Today’s headline caps a story about the budget airline’s plans to scrap checked luggage entirely. The Independent adds blandly: “An in-flight online gambling system is also being considered.”
South Carolina Governor’s Mystery Vacation: Is He a Tango Addict?*
by Jim Benning | 06.24.09 | 1:07 PM ET
Nobody seemed to know where South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford was for days. His wife said she didn’t know but wasn’t worried. His staff said he was hiking the Appalachian Trail. The police got involved.
Well, today the governor emerged at the Atlanta airport saying work had been stressful and he had gone to Buenos Aires because he needed a vacation and “wanted to do something exotic.” He said he spent the week driving the Argentine coastline.
Some don’t buy his story. Speculation about what he was really doing is rampant. Talking Points Memo has put together a handy timeline of events surrounding the mystery trip.
Anyone have any good theories?
Call me crazy, but I’m going to suggest the governor did indeed go to Argentina—because he has a tango addiction. I have no evidence for this. I just like the idea of it and think it would make for a good HBO movie.
Come clean, governor. Is it tango? If it is, it’s OK with us.
*Update 11:37 a.m. PT: Well, I was close. The governor gave a press conference clearing up the mystery. It was a tango of a different sort.
*Update 4:34 p.m. PT: Gawker commenter flossy has the line of the day on the mixed messages earlier about the governor’s whereabouts: “In all fairness to his aides, “I’m getting some Argentinian tail” sounds a lot like “I’m hiking the Appalachian trail” when you’re on a fuzzy satelite phone connection. Who hasn’t had that kind of innocent misunderstanding?”
In Defense of British Food
by Eva Holland | 06.24.09 | 12:47 PM ET
Over at The Titanic Awards, Britain has easily carried the win in a poll on the world’s worst national cuisines, with 25 percent of the vote. I’m not surprised—“British food is bad” is a truism that even many Brits buy into—but I do want to take a moment for some spirited dissent.
How to Sleep on a Plane: A Tip from John Kerry
by Michael Yessis | 06.24.09 | 12:07 PM ET
John Kerry says listen to a John Kerry speech on your iPod. That and an Ambien, and the Senator says he’s “out in seconds.” I believe it.
British Expats in Spain: ‘Eldorado is Turning to Dust’
by Michael Yessis | 06.24.09 | 11:25 AM ET
The BBC reports that British expats are fleeing Spain, “driven by the double-whammy of a strong euro and a weak local economy.” Says one expat: “This place is losing its heart, it really is sad.” (Via @evanrail)
Can We Interest You in a Whale Meat Spring Roll?
by Eva Holland | 06.24.09 | 10:22 AM ET
Uh oh. A group of restaurateurs in Yokohama, Japan, is looking to embrace the port city’s whaling heritage with a slew of new recipes—including whale dumplings, whale spring rolls and whale bacon. “Whale meat is a very important part of Japanese tradition,” one of the leading businessmen behind the push told the AFP. “If whaling is not done to excess, I think this is a great thing. ... Whale meat is delicious, high in protein, low in fat.”
Delicious or not, I can already hear the howls of protest from animal-rights activists worldwide.
Nashville: You’ve Still Got It
by Jenna Schnuer | 06.23.09 | 4:30 PM ET
Nashville,
Just after I plucked my bag from the baggage carousel and walked out the airport doors to meet my ride, you wrapped me up in your humidity. Though that kind of welcome would, normally, put me off, I found it comforting. You were just making it clear that I was back in Nashville, that my two year for-no-good-reason exile from your borders had come to a close.
Before my visit, I told you I was nervous. One of my favorite cities, you had gone magical in my mind. When I thought about you, it was always fun fun fun, big food, history, music, blah blah blah. You were far removed from daily life. But from the minute that humidity grabbed me, I knew all would be OK. While my past visits have been anchored with purpose (reporting stories, the Tin Pan South festival, and so on), this trip was about, simply, hanging out and letting the week unfold as it might. I wanted to see what it was like just to be in Nashville, no run-around keep-yourself-busy necessary. My only requirements: eat at least one ice pop at Las Paletas and get a better understanding of the way your neighborhoods relate to each other.
You delivered.
The Perfect Gift for the Airplane House Owner in Your Life
by Michael Yessis | 06.23.09 | 3:27 PM ET
If you know someone who has one of these, here’s a gift idea: Furniture made of old airplane parts.
Check-in Time at Northern Ireland’s Oldest Prison
by Eva Holland | 06.23.09 | 2:48 PM ET
The Armagh Jail, a 230-year-old prison that served as a women’s detention center during Northern Ireland’s Troubles, will be converted into a luxury hotel, the Independent reports. The City Council will retain ownership of the site, and the developers who’ve leased it have apparently committed to maintaining its historical integrity during the renovations. Said one ex-inmate: “I just hope the food is better there now.”
Armagh may not be the only prison with turn-down service in its future, either. The story notes that The Maze—the infamous Troubles-era prison where 10 hunger-strikers died in the 1980s—is up for redevelopment, too.
Which Budget Bus Line is the Best?
by Eva Holland | 06.23.09 | 2:05 PM ET
Slate’s Noreen Malone offers up this amusing “snob’s guide to bus travel”—in which she compares the Northeast’s various discount bus lines, applying “the supremely useful, difficult-to-master art of distinguishing among the baser things in life” for the task.
I haven’t tried out Fung Wah, but I’ve ridden all the other lines mentioned—Megabus, Bolt Bus and good old Greyhound—and I agree with her choices for best and worst: Quasi-hip, wired Bolt comes in tops, while Megabus (whose glowing green ceiling lights kept me awake for the bulk of a 10-hour overnight ride a couple weeks back—honestly, who doesn’t dim the lights on an overnighter?) often makes me wish I’d shelled out for the train.
Got a favorite discount bus line? Or any budget bus horror stories?
