Travel Blog: News and Briefs
China to Become World’s Top Tourism Destination by 2014
by Michael Yessis | 07.06.07 | 9:15 AM ET
So says the World Tourism Organization, according to an Agence France-Presse story. That’s six years earlier than the organization predicted earlier this year. At this point, I’m not most interested in when China will gain the top spot. I’m intrigued by the country’s amazing growth.
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Yahoo! BuzzGoogle Maps: Is it Changing the Way We See the World?
by Ben Keene | 07.05.07 | 3:07 PM ET
It’s a curious contradiction. According to the National Geographic-Roper Survey of Geographic Literacy—as well as other sources—we could all stand to brush up on our basic geography, and yet it seems we adore maps. For the unconvinced, look no further than the July issue of Wired magazine. In a story called The Whole Earth, Cataloged: How Google Maps Is Changing the Way We See the World, Evan Ratliff observes that Google Earth, a digital globe that stitches together commercially available satellite images to create a 3-D representation of the planet, has been downloaded a quarter of a billion times in two years. What’s more, since giving anyone with a computer the ability to annotate an online map with text, links, images and sound, Google has added more than 50,000 mashed-up maps to its growing site.
Study: Jet Lag May Be Mild Form of Altitude Sickness
by Michael Yessis | 07.05.07 | 11:23 AM ET
Maybe Viagra won’t solve the problem after all. Some of the symptoms of jet lag may actually be signs of mild altitude sickness, according to a study funded by Boeing and reported today in the New England Journal of Medicine. General aches and other complaints many travelers chalk up to jet lag may simply result from extended time in airplanes at high altitudes. For the study, volunteers spent 20 hours sitting in a chamber pressurized to the equivalent of 8,000 feet above sea level—a typical pressurization for an airplane cabin.
Taiwan Enlists ‘Goth-Style Rock Band,’ Ozzy Osbourne in U.N. Quest
by Michael Yessis | 07.05.07 | 10:52 AM ET
Ozzy Osbourne, diplomat? The music icon/ drug-addled punchline, or, as Reuters calls him, “satanic- theme rocker,” will sponsor the Taiwainese band ChthoniC and its government-supported efforts to stir up support for Taiwan’s U.N. membership quest. ChthoniC will join this summer’s Ozzfest tour, and, according to Reuters, Ozzy will help out with transportation costs and let the band promote Taiwan’s U.N. membership. That will no doubt include performances of “UNlimited Taiwan,” ChthoniC’s song that “seeks to express Taiwan’s boundless vitality and its efforts to overcome international restrictions, isolation and prejudice,” says Minister Shieh Jhy-wey of the Taiwanese Government Information Office. Great. But if the band is going to take the message to the Ozzfest masses, one question remains: Does it rock?
Airline Columnist on Dirty Planes: ‘I’ve Got More Horror Stories Than Edgar Allan Poe’
by Michael Yessis | 07.03.07 | 5:51 PM ET
Poe, as far as I know, didn’t write much about poo, though. But New York Times columnist Joe Sharkey does today in his New York Times column, highlighting the raw sewage leak on a recent Continental flight and other deteriorating conditions aboard airplanes. It’s been a good week for exposing the airlines’ dirt. Last week, a handwritten complaint (complete with graphics) from a passenger on a Continental Airlines flight went into heavy circulation online. As of this post, it’s been Dugg 7264 times.
Sledgehammer-Wielding Spaniards Destroy Hotel Rooms
by Jim Benning | 07.03.07 | 1:26 PM ET
The few dozen Spaniards weren’t revolting against high-priced rooms at the Madrid hotel. They were the winners of a contest sponsored by NH Hotels, which is planning to renovate the property. About 200 people entered the contest and psychologists selected the winners—if you can call them that. Apparently they were particularly in need of stress relief. Reports the BBC: “The winners included top executives and a working mother who said she simply wanted to hit something.” So how was it? Ignacio, a demolisher worked up about the high cost of living, told El Pais: “Ha sido una experiencia muy buena.”
Seven Spanish Tourists Killed in Yemen
by Jim Benning | 07.02.07 | 4:38 PM ET
The victims of a suspected al Qaeda suicide car bomb attack at a temple in Yemen include seven Spanish tourists and their two Yemeni drivers and guides. They were reportedly concluding a visit to the 3,000-year-old Queen of Sheba temple, a popular attraction in Marib, when the attack took place. Six other Spanish tourists and two Yemeni guides were wounded. Reports Reuters: “Security sources told Reuters earlier the attack followed an al Qaeda statement last week demanding the release of some of its members jailed in Yemen and warned of unspecified actions.”
JetBlue’s New Blogger: C. Montgomery Burns
by Michael Yessis | 07.02.07 | 12:30 PM ET
It’s a publicity stunt, sure, but one that might help JetBlue get back some of its mojo after its February meltdown. As part of the massive hype for the upcoming The Simpsons Movie, C. Montgomery Burns—known best as Homer Simpson’s boss at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant—has taken over the blog of former JetBlue CEO David Neeleman. From his first entry: “Smithers entered my chambers this morning, toting wretched tales of congenial customer service and overly indulgent amenities on your JetBlue Airways. And for what… your precious passengers? Soon, the riff raff will demand ‘fair treatment’ from all corporate overlords, like myself. Well, not in my chemically prolonged life-time.”
Hong Kong Marks 10th Anniversary of Return to China
by Michael Yessis | 07.02.07 | 10:43 AM ET
The streets of Hong Kong filled with revelers and protesters yesterday, the 10th anniversary of the date Britain returned Hong Kong to Chinese rule. It was either a great occasion for students to meet and “have a fun day,” according to China’s People’s Daily Online, or, according to Western media reports, a day for pro-democracy advocates to once-again rally for more freedoms. World Hum contributor Daisann McLane put the situation into context in a recent story for Slate.
World Hum’s Most Read: June 2007
by Michael Yessis | 07.02.07 | 8:00 AM ET
Our 10 most popular stories posted last month:
1) The Woman in the Kuffiya
2) An Island in Costa Rica
3) ‘Glacier Girl’ Set to Complete Flight Begun 65 Years Ago
4) Illuminating ‘Dark Travel’
5) Mexico to (Miss) U.S.A.: Boooooo
6) Ask Rolf: What Items Should I Bring on a Summer Road Trip?
7) We’ll Always Have ‘Charlie’
8) Cullen Thomas: Inside ‘Brother One Cell’
9) Rick Steves, It’s Time For a Tijuana-Off! (pictured)
10) A Western Woman in Saudi Arabia: ‘The Rules Are Different Here’
The World Hum Travel Zeitgeist: What Would Bono Do?
by Michael Yessis | 06.29.07 | 3:02 PM ET
The U2 singer, global activist and fly sunglasses wearer devoted his attention to Africa as guest editor of Vanity Fair. This week travelers, too, are taking great interest in the continent as well as in China, Savannah, “Glacier Girl” and the hot spot of Boise, Idaho. Here’s the Zeitgeist:
Most Viewed Travel Story
Telegraph UK (current)
10 out of 10 for Hong Kong
* The skyline (pictured) is No. 3 on the list.
Most E-Mailed Travel Story
New York Times (current)
36 Hours in Savannah, Ga.
“Hot This Week” Destination
Yahoo! (this week)
Boise, Idaho
Most Viewed Travel Story
Los Angeles Times (current)
Beijing: Forbidden No More
* The flood of stories about China continues.
Most E-Mailed Travel Story
USA Today (current)
Hut-to-Hut Hiking in New England
Most Popular Page Tagged Travel
Del.icio.us (recent)
SeatGuru.com
Most Read Feature
World Hum (this week)
Suffering and Smiling: Vanity Fair Does Africa
* The issue’s best story: Binyavanga Wainaina’s Generation Kenya.
Most Read Weblog Post
World Hum (this week)
‘Glacier Girl’ Set to Complete Flight Begun 65 Years Ago
Tall, Short Travelers at Greater Risk for Thrombosis
by Jim Benning | 06.29.07 | 1:51 PM ET
The World Health Organization announced Friday that long-haul travelers’ risk of developing deep vein thrombosis doubles after flights or ground trips in which they’re seated for four hours or more. At greater risk of developing blood clots, according to a study cited by the WHO, are very tall people with cramped leg room—yes, one more reason to love economy class—very short people whose legs don’t reach the floor, the obese and women who take birth control pills. The chances of developing thrombosis are low: roughly one in 6,000 long-haul travelers.
Meet Lorraine Artz, Full-Time Cruiser
by Michael Yessis | 06.29.07 | 10:18 AM ET
Lorraine Artz has spent at least 10 months of the year aboard a cruise ship for each of the last 20 years. At last count that’s 4,120 days, or more than 11 years of bouncy seas and buffets. Or, to put it another way, enough time to get back and forth to Mars in a spaceship 11 times. It’s not a lifestyle I’d ever want to live—I’ve cruised once, and though I’d like to try it again sometime, it can wait—but I have to admire such dedication to travel. In an interview with USA Today’s Gene Sloan, she says she doesn’t know how anyone can get bored on a cruise ship.
Has Paris Hilton Tarnished the Hilton Hotel Brand?
by Jim Benning | 06.28.07 | 1:07 PM ET
Last weekend I found myself on the poolside lawn of a Hilton hotel in Carlsbad, California, visiting out-of-town friends staying there. We were watching “Happy Feet” under the stars—their young boy was munching all-you-can-eat popcorn, riveted by the talking penguins on the hotel wall—and I was thinking about Paris Hilton. Her imprisonment was winding down, and I wondered whether her transgressions were having any impact on business at Hilton hotels. Did anyone who’d made a reservation associate the hotel chain with the infamous heiress? Were there any empty spots on the lawn that night because some anti-Paris families had opted instead for a Hyatt?
UN: Half the World to Live in Cities by 2008
by Michael Yessis | 06.28.07 | 12:02 PM ET
The world’s urban population is surging, according to a United Nations Population Fund report released yesterday. By next year, an estimated 3.3 billion people will live in cities. By 2030, the number will rise to 5 billion. George Martin, the report’s author, calls the growth “unstoppable.” According to a New York Times story, the report predicts that the surge in population will likely occur less in mega-cities like Lagos, Nigeria than in “places like Gabarone, Botswana, whose population is projected to rise to 500,000 in 2020 from 18,000 in 1971.” Overall, Asia and Africa will see most of the growth. The “accumulated urban growth of these two regions during the whole span of history will be duplicated in a single generation,” according to the report.
