Travel Blog: News and Briefs
One Writer’s Campaign Against ‘Last and Final Boarding Call’
by Jim Benning | 08.26.08 | 1:23 PM ET
Mark Sarvas over at The Elegant Variation posts A Brief Rant and an email for you to clip and send to your favorite airline. It says, in part: “Recently, while waiting to board your flight number [FLIGHT NUMBER] at [YOUR AIRPORT], I was startled to hear your gate attendant use the phrase ‘last and final boarding call’ on several occasions. I assume you realize that your attendant is calling for a ‘last and last’ boarding call.” And the letter’s kicker: “I urge you to fix and rectify this situation at your earliest convenience.” We’re all for it—as long it doesn’t inspire our favorite sign-correcting “vigilantes” to get into more trouble. Deep breaths, guys.
Email to friend
del.icio.us
Digg
Facebook
Furl
Ma.gnolia
Mixx
Reddit
StumbleUpon
Yahoo! BuzzHealth Experts: Go Easy on the Incense
by Jim Benning | 08.26.08 | 12:54 PM ET
The use of incense dates back thousands of years, yet when it comes to incense in American cities these days, I associate it with Indian restaurants, yoga studios and head shops hawking bongs and tie-dye T-shirts. I also think of the glory days of the hippie trail, when young Western kids set off through Asia and, as Rory MacLean writes, “lit sticks of incense, strummed their guitars and read another chapter of Siddhartha, then stepped off the bus to help push the decrepit vehicle over the Hindu Kush.”
R.I.P. Dave Freeman, Coauthor of ‘100 Things to do Before You Die’
by Valerie Conners | 08.26.08 | 12:36 PM ET
Dave Freeman, coauthor of 100 Things to Do Before You Die, died Aug. 17 after he fell and hit his head at home, the Los Angeles Times reports. Freeman’s 1999 book, which he cowrote with Neil Teplica, was subtitled “Travel Events You Just Can’t Miss.” It inspired legions of imitators and highlighted experiences such as running with the bulls in Spain and taking a voodoo pilgrimage to Haiti.
Amtrak Train Runs Out of Gas; Many Passengers Call Friends for Rides
by Jim Benning | 08.26.08 | 10:48 AM ET
The train was traveling from Los Angeles to San Diego. On a good day—say, a day when the trains have enough fuel—the journey takes two and a half hours. This trip took four.
Labor Day Travel Down in 2008. Time for a ‘Barbecation’?
by Eva Holland | 08.26.08 | 10:21 AM ET
That’s the prediction from AAA, according to Reuters, and the expected downturn is blamed on the usual suspects this summer: high gas prices and a low U.S. dollar. Reuters also suggests that many Americans may stay home and have a barbecue instead—so if “barbecation” becomes the new staycation, remember, you heard it here first.
Brits Go on Holiday, Europe Cowers in Fear
by Elyse Franko | 08.25.08 | 4:53 PM ET
So we’ve posted about the British couple getting arrested after having sex on a Dubai beach. And about the nine British women who were arrested for taking part in an oral sex competition in Greece. Now the New York Times offers a comprehensive look at the bad behavior of Brits abroad.
The Long Descent: The $300 Surfboard Fee
by Michael Yessis | 08.25.08 | 10:39 AM ET
Surfers are being gouged by many airlines when they travel with their boards, and, rightfully, they’re pissed. “The charges have gotten so gnarly that some professional surfers are calling for a boycott of airlines that have high fees and are putting out their own personal lists of surfer-friendly carriers that wave riders should patronize,” writes Peter Pae in the Los Angeles Times. Among the airlines surfers are calling out: Delta, Continental and United. Each charges a minimum of $115 for domestic flights, and up to $300 for international trips.
World Hum’s Most Read: Aug 16-22
by World Hum | 08.22.08 | 5:39 PM ET
Our five most popular features and blog posts for the week:
1) Wine Spectator Gives ‘Award of Excellence’ to Fake Restaurant
2) Q&A With Paul Theroux: Invisible Man on a Ghost Train (pictured)
3) How To: Use a Squat Toilet
4) Paul McCartney Does Route 66
5) How To: Eat Ceviche in Lima
Images From the End of the (New York City Subway) Lines
by Michael Yessis | 08.22.08 | 2:12 PM ET
The New York Times just posted an interactive and incredibly absorbing photo and video chronicle of the “mystery, lonesomeness and beauty” to be found at the end of New York City subway lines. Andy Newman’s accompanying essay is a great read, too.
Shipping Container Hotel Opens in London
by Michael Yessis | 08.22.08 | 1:03 PM ET
Eighty-six steel containers—assembled like Lego pieces—comprise the 120-room Travelodge, which, fortunately, doesn’t look anything like the inside of a typical shipping container. The containers were built in China, complete with bathrooms and wiring in place, before being shipped and assembled in the UK. The method allows for quick construction, and it’s green: Should the hotel be dismantled, the containers can be recycled for actual shipping. The BBC has video.
Olympics Tourism Disappoints Beijing Merchants
by Michael Yessis | 08.22.08 | 12:19 PM ET
The expected surge of foreign and domestic tourists never materialized, and restaurant owners and shopkeepers are counting down the hours until the Games are over, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Expanding Auto Museums, Shrinking Industry?
by Eva Holland | 08.22.08 | 10:50 AM ET
The Globe and Mail’s Paul French has a run-down of several ambitious new expansions being unveiled at the shrines to BMW, Audi and Porsche in Germany. Ironic timing, all things considered.
Wine Spectator Gives ‘Award of Excellence’ to Fake Restaurant
by Jim Benning | 08.21.08 | 3:25 PM ET
Yes, Wine Spectator magazine, which urges readers to “Learn More, Drink Better,” unwittingly gave an “Award of Excellence” to a non-existent restaurant in Milan. Wine writer Robin Goldstein is behind the hoax. Goldstein entered Osteria L’Intrepido and its fake menu in the magazine’s restaurant awards competition, paying the $250 entry fee, “[a]s part of the research for an academic paper I’m currently working on about standards for wine awards.”
Madrid Crash: MD-80 is ‘One of the Safest Planes in the Sky’
by Jim Benning | 08.21.08 | 1:38 PM ET
The investigation into yesterday’s crash of the Spanair MD-82 that killed 153 people continues. Meanwhile, “Measured by accident data alone,” The New York Times reports, “the MD-80 is considered to be one of the safest planes in the sky.”
Related on World Hum:
* Nearly 150 Dead in Madrid Plane Crash
Profile of a Space Tourist
by Eva Holland | 08.21.08 | 12:15 PM ET
The space tourism business is heating up, but who are these customers willing to spend millions of dollars for what they hope will be the ride of their lives? Wired offers a fascinating profile of one would-be space tourist—Japanese tech millionaire Daisuke Enomoto, who completed a grueling training program only to be grounded by a kidney stone.
