Travel Blog
Obama Tourism: Where to Go to Trace His Roots?
by Jim Benning | 11.13.08 | 12:32 PM ET
It would require no small trip. Writes the AP’s Beth J. Harpaz: “[T]o see all the places connected to Obama’s life story, you’d have to visit three countries, six time zones and six states.” Yeah, I’d say Obama qualifies as a global soul. Speaking of which, Global Soul author Pico Iyer was having hamburgers with Paul Theroux in Hawaii, pre-election, when he spotted the future global-soul prez on the beach with his family. Iyer writes about it in Time.
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Yahoo! BuzzChina: Not a ‘Pseudo-Place’
by Eva Holland | 11.13.08 | 12:00 PM ET
When The Smart Set’s Paula Marantz Cohen headed off on a two-week organized tour of China, she expected to experience one of the tourism industry’s manufactured “pseudo-places,” as Paul Fussell calls them. That is, “tourist commonwealths, whose function is simply to entice tourists and sell them things.” But as she explains in this thoughtful essay, she was mistaken.
Will Barack Obama Bring Buzz to the Hawaiian Plate Lunch?
by Joanna Kakissis | 11.13.08 | 1:31 AM ET
It could happen. The President-elect, born and raised in Hawaii, grew up loving the cheap, carbo-rich traditional Hawaiian lunch of white rice, macaroni salad and some kind of pan-Asian protein—kalua pork is a favorite.
Thanks, ‘Tarmac Task Force,’ for Nothing
by Valerie Conners | 11.12.08 | 3:39 PM ET
It’s taken a government task force nearly a year of negotiating to determine that, well, little will change for unlucky passengers stranded for hours on grounded flights. Passenger rights advocates describe the task force’s voluntary guidelines as “business as usual,” as they allow airline members to create their own response plans, and set no time limit on how long passengers stuck on the tarmac can stay confined before being allowed to exit the plane.
‘There’s Something Romantic About City Bloggers’
by Eva Holland | 11.12.08 | 11:41 AM ET
That’s how Benji Lanyado kicks off his guide to the best in home-grown city blogs in the Guardian. He goes on: “Even in the world’s most media-saturated cities—where there are thousands of pages of listings, tips and reviews—there are hundreds of bedroom bloggers doing it for themselves. Often nobody is telling them what to write or paying them for their time, which makes for some of the most original content online.”
In Iran, ‘a Trickle of Plucky Yankee Tourists’
by Michael Yessis | 11.12.08 | 10:49 AM ET
USA Today’s Laura Bly reports that American travelers to the “Axis of Evil” nation find themselves greeted with two “constants”: “‘Welcome to Iran!’ and smiles as wide as a cloudless desert sky.” She offers some evidence in a terrific slideshow.
The Quichua Cacao Farmers Behind Kallari Chocolate
by Joanna Kakissis | 11.12.08 | 9:33 AM ET
The $5.95 bars of rich, smooth Kallari artisan chocolate sold at Whole Foods come from an island on the Napo River in Ecuador’s rain forest. The Quichua people have been farming cacao for generations and then selling it, but now they’ve cut out the middleman and are making and marketing the chocolate themselves. The New York Times reports that they may be the only cacao farmers in the world who make and market their own chocolate.
Oxford Word of the Year: Hypermiling
by Michael Yessis | 11.11.08 | 12:21 PM ET
As we’ve mentioned, it’s defined as the art of squeezing maximum mileage per gallon of fuel driving in one’s car. Congrats to the man who coined it, Wayne Gerdes. Another travel-related word that made Oxford’s 2008 shortlist: the one that shall no longer be named.
Australia Named Top Country Brand for 2008
by Michael Yessis | 11.11.08 | 11:01 AM ET
Canada finished second and the United States placed third in FutureBrand’s fourth annual Country Brand Index Survey. Rina Plapler, the lead author of the study, explains her interest in country branding in an interview: “I’ve studied global culture and comparative religion and lived in North America, Europe and Africa,” she says. “I’ve been amazed how different the experience of visiting and living in a country is from one’s perceptions.”
Venice: The War on Impropriety Continues
by Eva Holland | 11.11.08 | 8:57 AM ET
Buoyed by their recent victory against the St. Mark’s pigeons, local authorities in Venice are once again turning their attention to the battle against uncivilized tourists. We’ve covered their clampdown on bare chests, littering and public naps—now, the new targets include fare-dodgers on the vaporetti, bag lunches in the piazzas, and all those folks who don’t give up their seats for pregnant women and the elderly.
British Gap Year in Decline
by Eva Holland | 11.11.08 | 7:55 AM ET
It’s been tough enough selling American parents and school administrators on the benefits of a gap year for students. Now, the Guardian reports that the phenomenon is on the decline in the U.K., where it’s been an accepted rite of passage for years. The story blames financial concerns, the economic downturn, and—most ominously—a growing “conservatism” among college admissions officers for the change.
Neil Gaiman Pens Travel Book
by Michael Yessis | 11.11.08 | 7:53 AM ET
The title: “Monkey and Me: China and the Journey to the West.” The genre-hopping writer has turned to travel writing in part because, as he tells Splash Page, he’s “always loved travel books.” He continues:
Oil and Gas Drilling Coming to Arches, Canyonlands
by Valerie Conners | 11.10.08 | 11:23 AM ET
Utah’s Bureau of Land Management has stirred the ire of the National Park Service by announcing its plan to expand drilling in eastern Utah to on or near boundaries of Arches National Park, Dinosaur National Monument and Canyonlands National Park, the Salt Lake Tribune reports. “We’re not anti-oil and gas,” said one Park Service official. “But we’re very much pro-park.” Should drilling begin in these parcels of land—including sections dedicated as wilderness as well as Nine Mile Canyon—tourists may soon be seeing oil rigs pop up in their photos, a prospect that has wilderness outfitters concerned. Said one cycling guide, “It’s not a world-class outing if you can see oil wells.”
The Maldives: Endangered Travel Destination?
by Valerie Conners | 11.10.08 | 10:25 AM ET
The Maldives’ president-elect has announced plans to purchase a new homeland for residents of his nation, the BBC reports, ideally in a region with similar culture, like Sri Lanka or India. The plan—sparked by fears that rising tides may eventually decimate many of the nation’s islands—would be funded by a “sovereign wealth fund” using tourism revenues.
Birds Hit Plane, Force Emergency Landing
by Valerie Conners | 11.10.08 | 10:09 AM ET
A Ryanair flight made an emergency landing at Rome’s Ciampino airport after multiple birds struck the aircraft, damaging the plane’s landing gear and an engine. The incident caused the airport to temporarily close.
