Travel Blog: News and Briefs
Selling Skeptics on the Gap Year
by Julia Ross | 06.20.08 | 9:41 AM ET
Recently we’ve seen rising U.S. interest in gap years—notably at Princeton University—but the truth is, of the many thousands of new high school graduates turned out this month, precious few will choose a pre-college time-out to travel, study or volunteer; it’s still tough to persuade skeptical parents and college counselors. Now early adopters of the gap year are beginning to speak out and could change perceptions.
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Yahoo! BuzzBehold ‘Baconhenge’
by Joanna Kakissis | 06.20.08 | 9:31 AM ET
Carin Huber has never been to Stonehenge. But her mouthwatering ode to Great Britain’s most storied prehistoric site gives landmark groupies some serious inspiration, at the very least for brunch. Huber stacked bacon-wrapped French toast sticks on a fritatta to create “Baconhenge” for the bacon-themed issue put out by the AntiCraft, a very cool craft-zine with an attitude at least as towering as those monumental rocks in the English countryside. (via Slashfood)
Photo of Baconhenge courtesy of Carol Squires.
Would You Eat Khao Pad at ‘Thai Foon’?
by Joanna Kakissis | 06.19.08 | 2:43 PM ET
Sounds like Sydney has practically devoted itself to laugh-tracking Southeast Asia’s most exquisite cuisine, with restaurant names like Thai Me Up, Thai Dye, Bow Thai and (my personal favorite) Thai Tanic. But the love of puns in eatery names is limited to neither Thai food (try Ewe ‘n’ Me and Planet of the Crepes) nor Australia’s largest city, writes The Sydney Morning Herald’s Samantha Selinger-Morris.
Dining in Beijing? Don’t Order the ‘Chicken Without Sexual Life’
by Jim Benning | 06.19.08 | 10:57 AM ET
Yes, it’s hard to resist. Instead, ask for the “steamed pullet.” Don’t worry, it’s the same dish. Reuters explains.
Related on World Hum:
* Spit-Free Trains in China? Say It Ain’t So.
* Twelve Books to Read Before Traveling to China
Related on TravelChannel.com:
* Andrew Zimmern’s Bizarre Foods Blog: ‘Beijing Baby’
What Does it Take to Understand a Culture’s Cuisine?
by Joanna Kakissis | 06.18.08 | 12:41 PM ET
Gourmet contributor Shoba Narayan recently dined with her mother at Masala Klub, a new high-end eatery at the Taj West End hotel in Bangalore. The meal began well enough, with white wine and a good lemongrass rasam (“the holy grail of our community, the Tamil Brahmin people”). But the main course—a collection of too-chewy paneer, undercooked spiced haricots verts and other “forgettable” dishes—left the women underwhelmed. Why couldn’t the savvy chef at Masala Klub impress these compatriot foodies? Narayan says it’s because Indians are so famously possessive of their cuisine that even the most talented haute and fusion chefs rarely stand a chance in the kitchen.
Lizards and Jackals Storm Runway in New Delhi
by Michael Yessis | 06.18.08 | 10:23 AM ET
The animals were looking for refuge from monsoon rains, and they found it on the runway at Indira Gandhi International Airport yesterday. For a while, at least.
Top Five Forbidden Vacations for Americans
by Julia Ross | 06.18.08 | 10:07 AM ET
Fancy a retreat at North Korea’s Mount Kumgang Zen monastery? A leisurely tour of the ruins at Persepolis (pictured)? Dream on. Foreign Policy has a tongue-in-cheek look at five alluring destinations off-limits to Americans.
Hiking the Belgian Plateau
by Eva Holland | 06.18.08 | 10:01 AM ET
“In the pantheon of walking, the conquering of the ‘Belgian Plateau’ merits few Brownie points,” Mark Rowe writes in The Independent. “Partly, this is because it is not very high, but mainly because almost no one knows it exists.” Rowe has a point: Belgium’s reputation was built on chocolate, beer and Tintin—not the great outdoors. That could be about to change.
Oprah’s Ethicists Debate How Far You Should Recline in an Airline Seat
by Michael Yessis | 06.17.08 | 5:27 PM ET
Faith Salie says “Tough luck, dude” to the 6-foot-5 passenger who asked the person in front of him to please not lay all the way back into his lap. As a 6-foot-4 passenger who’s spent too many hours with a leaner in his lap, I say to Salie, “May there be a middle seat beside a screaming child on a 17-hour transpacific flight in your future.” I know flying isn’t always fun these days, but nobody’s comfort on a plane should come at the expense of another passenger’s.
Related on World Hum:
* Ethicists Are Ready to Kick Some Derrie-Air
* Armrest Seating, Anyone?
Wheeler: You Shouldn’t Always Mind Government Travel Advisories
by Elyse Franko | 06.17.08 | 4:47 PM ET
Lonely Planet founder Tony Wheeler says Iran, North Korea and other countries that appear on government travel advisories are worth the almost-guaranteed hassles. “There are plenty of reasons they’re worth the extra effort, and, furthermore, they’re generally far less risky than the rumors, horror stories, and ‘don’t go there’ warnings would have us believe,” he writes in GOOD Magazine’s travel issue.
iPod, iPhone Plug-ins Coming to International United Flights
by Jim Benning | 06.17.08 | 11:20 AM ET
In first and business classes, you’ll be able to charge the devices and watch videos on your in-flight entertainment screen, the airline announced. The first flight with the service—Washington, D.C., to Zurich—departed yesterday; the technology will be rolled out to other wide-body jets over the next two years. You still won’t be able to make calls.
Will WiFi Go Truly Global?
by Eva Holland | 06.17.08 | 11:08 AM ET
Sure, WiFi has arrived in airport lounges, hotel lobbies, and on some buses, but for the bandwidth-hungry traveler, there are still plenty of “those pesky dead zones between hotspots,” observes the Globe and Mail’s Denise Deveau. But she points out a couple of newer technologies that could see wireless networking capabilities expand dramatically—think rural areas and even oceans. Wireless internet access may not have the romance of poste restante, or the quirky charm of your local internet cafe, but it certainly makes for a shrinking planet.
Photo by hive via Flickr (Creative Commons)
Ever Return Your Rental Car Without a Full Tank? Beware.
by Jim Benning | 06.17.08 | 10:55 AM ET
These days, you’ll really shell out big bucks. Would be believe you could be charged $8 a gallon?
R.I.P. Tu Ciudad Magazine
by Jim Benning | 06.16.08 | 4:47 PM ET
The glossy magazine serving upscale Latinos in Los Angeles had offered an interesting perspective on the city. Unfortunately, it is no more.
Understanding America Through the Eyes of Weird Al Yankovic
by Michael Yessis | 06.16.08 | 11:37 AM ET
The man and his accordion wield some intriguing power abroad, at least for one expatriate family in Cairo.
