Travel Blog: News and Briefs
Dozens Evacuated in Channel Tunnel Fire
by Jim Benning | 09.11.08 | 12:36 PM ET
In what must have been a harrowing experience, more than 30 people were evacuated from a freight train today when a fire broke out in the Channel Tunnel between England and France. Officials suspect the fire started when a truck on the train overturned, CNN reports. The evacuees, some reportedly suffering from smoke inhalation, were taken into a service tunnel. Fortunately, no passenger trains were in the tunnel at the time. Tunnel train service has been temporarily suspended.
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Yahoo! BuzzWorld Hum Contributor Named One of Esquire’s 75 Most Influential People
by Jim Benning | 09.11.08 | 10:58 AM ET
Congrats to Parag Khanna, who was just named one of Esquire magazine’s “75 Most Influential People for the 21st Century.” In May, we excerpted a passage from his book, The Second World: Empires and Influence in the New Global Order. Khanna directs the Global Governance Initiative in the American Strategy Program at the New America Foundation. The list isn’t available online.
From Mecca to the Vatican to the Kumbh Mela: Religious Tourism on the Rise
by Elyse Franko | 09.10.08 | 5:03 PM ET
Photo of Vatican City by soylentgreen23, via Flickr (Creative Commons).
Religious destinations across the globe are profiting from pilgrimage tourism, according to The New York Times. Some choice statistics: the Vatican-based travel agency ORP is expecting to send 400,000 people on pilgrimages this year; more than 2 million Muslims travel to Mecca each year; and a mind-blowing 75 million people participate in Kumbh Mela, the Hindu pilgrimage festival.
Video: ‘Airplane!’ Cast Reunited
by Michael Yessis | 09.10.08 | 2:53 PM ET
Well, five of the actors. Leslie Nielsen, Robert Hays, Peter Graves, Jill Whelan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar spoke on the Today Show about being part of the travel-comedy classic. They’ve got some great stories. Turns out, pilots have actually invited Kareem into the cockpit for takeoff. They wanted to fly with Murdock. Who can blame them? Video below.
American Airlines Sued Over Lost Corpse
by Valerie Conners | 09.10.08 | 12:40 PM ET
A Brooklyn, New York man is suing American Airlines for an unspecified sum after the airline lost his deceased wife’s body, which was being flown to her native Ecuador for burial, the NY Daily News reports. The corpse went missing for four days after an airline employee tagged it with the wrong airport code, accidentally sending it to Guatemala.
Flight Delays? MIT May Have the Fix.
by Eva Holland | 09.10.08 | 12:11 PM ET
Good news for passengers who have started building near-inevitable flight delays into their travel plans: MIT’s finest are hard at work on a new tool to help air traffic controllers quickly reroute flights around bad patches of weather.
Canada Announces Passenger ‘Flight Rights’ Program
by Eva Holland | 09.10.08 | 9:45 AM ET
While the federal passenger bill of rights awaits Senate approval, over the border the Canadian government has launched a similar passenger protection program: Flight Rights Canada.
Matt Gross: Looking Back on the Grand Tour
by Eva Holland | 09.10.08 | 9:29 AM ET
The New York Times Frugal Traveler columnist offers a thoughtful reflection on his just-completed European tour, and shares some lessons learned in frugality—“Redefine ‘Europe,’” for one.
New Season of ‘Bizarre Foods’ Begins Tonight
by World Hum | 09.09.08 | 1:12 PM ET
Andrew Zimmern, the man who eats insects for fun, is back. The new season begins tonight at 10 ET on the Travel Channel with a show from Phuket, Thailand. What’s on the menu? Tasty fish stomachs, among other things. The show will be followed by a live video chat with Zimmern at 11 ET.
‘They Ain’t Writin’ Car Songs no More’
by Michael Yessis | 09.09.08 | 12:09 PM ET
J. Freedom du Lac looks at the passing of a tradition: the fetishization of cars in popular music. Ike Turner started it all in 1951 with Rocket 88. And now?
Foodie Alert: Britain’s Regional Delicacies
by Eva Holland | 09.09.08 | 8:41 AM ET
Here’s one more nail in the coffin for all those outdated jokes about British cuisine: the Guardian has a round-up of 10 UK regional specialties, both well-known and obscure—and most of them are as fun to say (try “ham-and-pease-pudding stotty-cake sandwich”) as I’m sure they are to eat.
Photo of roast beef with Yorkshire pudding by robbie jim via Flickr (Creative Commons)
Fake Sarah Palin: I Was an Extra in ‘Into the Wild’
by Michael Yessis | 09.09.08 | 6:57 AM ET
She says she played a grizzly bear in Sean Penn’s movie. Her riff about it begins a minute into the video below.
Happy Birthday, Google
by Eva Holland | 09.09.08 | 6:37 AM ET
The world-shrinking company that launched a verb turns 10 this week, and the event (so my trusty Google search tells me) is gaining plenty of media attention. The Globe and Mail has a list of 10 ways Google has changed the world (No. 1: “perpetual beta”), while the San Francisco Chronicle takes a look back at the early years of the “nascent search engine, operated from a couple of cramped dorm rooms and burdened with a goofy name.” Cnet’s Charles Cooper, meanwhile, explains why he won’t be showing up to the party.
U.N. Reports Seven British World Heritage Sites ‘In Danger’
by Valerie Conners | 09.08.08 | 4:30 PM ET
We’ve long known that Stonehenge, like many culturally relevant sites, has experienced the dangers of vandals and tourists. Now Unesco has given the United Kingdom a formal slap on the wrist for failing to protect seven of its world heritage sites—including Stonehenge—from building developments and other dangers.
Sex, Money and a Little ‘Blind Faith’: Travelodge Racks ‘Em Up
by Eva Holland | 09.08.08 | 3:02 PM ET
Photo by ElektraCute via Flickr (Creative Commons)
In its annual survey of books most commonly abandoned in its hotel rooms, Travelodge reports the most popular throwaways include the Kama Sutra, John Prescott’s latest memoir and a whole lot of “lighter reading.” The Guardian has the cocktail-party-worthy survey highlights.
