Travel Blog
Don’t Be Cruel: Traveling ‘Elvis’ Draws Attention, Groans
by Valerie Conners | 09.05.08 | 1:43 PM ET
Traveling the world dressed like Elvis seems a fairly innocuous, albeit in my opinion, odd, endeavor, but it’s one that British radio producer Matt Hale has embraced for nearly a year now. Armed with little more than his love of “The King,” a white Elvis jumpsuit and bouffant wig, Hale has been making his way around the globe, the Daily Mail reports, attracting a good bit of attention and more than a little dismay.
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Yahoo! BuzzIt’s Not Easy Being Green and Crucified
by Valerie Conners | 09.05.08 | 1:00 PM ET
As if Italians didn’t have enough cultural curiosities to be concerned about these days, now they’re dealing with the fallout from a sculpture depicting a 4-foot-high frog nailed to a cross and clutching a beer mug and an egg.
The Long Descent: Continental to Charge $15 for First Checked Bag
by Jim Benning | 09.05.08 | 12:33 PM ET
Does a week go by these days without the introduction of a major new fee by at least one airline? Nope. Continental’s new fee, announced today, will take effect immediately for passengers flying economy class on domestic flights who didn’t pay full fare. It will apply on some international flights starting Oct. 7. Reuters notes a couple of passenger types exempted, such as the airline’s “EliteAccess” customers.
Photo by 156uk via Flickr, (Creative Commons).
The Travel Habits of U.S. Presidents Past
by Jim Benning | 09.05.08 | 11:50 AM ET
We’ve written a bit about the presidential contenders’ international travel experience—or lack thereof. On Concierge, Ted Widmer looks back at the travel habits of U.S. presidents past, from Teddy Roosevelt to Bill Clinton. “It would be an exaggeration to say that a great president is by definition a well-traveled one—Abraham Lincoln never left the United States—yet for most, leaving Washington now and then was both edifying and expedient,” Widmer writes.
Airline Punctuality Improved in Summer ‘08
by Eva Holland | 09.05.08 | 10:43 AM ET
The major U.S. airlines’ July 2008 on-time performance improved by nearly 6 percent over the 2007 numbers, the AP reports. Flight cancellation rates and baggage handling performance were also notched up. Of course, considering last summer came pretty close to rock bottom, a small improvement may not be much to brag about—and we can name at least a couple of passengers who aren’t celebrating just yet.
Photo by James Cridland via Flickr (Creative Commons)
Shrinking Planet Statistic of the Day: London Black Cabs Now Made Overseas
by Eva Holland | 09.04.08 | 4:23 PM ET
These days, London Taxi International has been unable to keep up with demand for its iconic black cabs. So the manufacturer is looking to expand beyond its small Coventry plant, and is headed overseas to—you guessed it—China. A new factory outside Shanghai is slated to produce 6,000 taxis per year, doubling the Coventry output. Rather than being shipped back to England, though, most of the Chinese-made vehicles will be exported to Singapore, Dubai, and other cities that, as the Globe and Mail puts it, “covet the image associated with” London’s famous black cabs.
Movies: Searching for the ‘Essential DNA’ of Los Angeles
by Michael Yessis | 09.04.08 | 4:19 PM ET
The Los Angeles Times counts down the 25 best L.A. movies of the last 25 years. To make the list, a “movie had to communicate some inherent truth about the L.A. experience,” writes Geoff Boucher. The top pick: L.A. Confidential.
Escape the Summer Heat in Beautiful Siberia!
by Jim Benning | 09.04.08 | 2:08 PM ET
Oh yes, Russians take to Siberia’s beaches—on Lake Baikal—“to relax and recharge.” The BBC has video to prove it.
The Sounds of Los Angeles in Musical Form
by Jim Benning | 09.04.08 | 1:18 PM ET
NPR’s “Day to Day” recently asked musicians to send in their “takes on the California Dream,” and the show just highlighted its favorite: a song composed entirely of sounds of urban Los Angeles, from squeaking bus brakes and clicking skateboards to clacking shoes. It turns out that the 25-year-old artist who created it, Quinn Kiesow, has done the same (albeit in shorter bits) for other cities, including Madrid and New York. You can hear them all here. The Los Angeles recording took 80 hours to produce. It’s particularly intriguing because Kiesow offers great color commentary over it.
A Regional Guide to Mexican Tamales
by Jim Benning | 09.04.08 | 12:40 PM ET
I’ll never forget arriving by bus in Mexico City a few years ago, famished, and finding a well-stocked tamale stand in the middle of the bus station. At that moment, I felt as though I’d never seen a more beautiful sight. Behind the counter, steaming pots were stacked high with half a dozen kinds of tamales: peppers and cheese, chicken, pork, seafood. I bought two or three, unwrapped them on a narrow bar and dug in. They were moist and savory, and their hot masa dough wrappings practically melted in my mouth. I was in heaven.
Blog To Watch: Orwell Diaries
by Eva Holland | 09.04.08 | 11:50 AM ET
In August 1938, George Orwell started keeping a diary—and now, 60 years later, those entries are appearing day by day in a new blog, complete with a Google map to track his movements around England and the world.
Falling Through Thin Air: Woman to Skydive Mount Everest
by Jim Benning | 09.04.08 | 10:42 AM ET
Armed with an oxygen mask and a particularly big parachute, a 29-year-old British woman plans to make the jump next month, leaping from a plane several hundred feet over the world’s tallest mountain, gliding past the peak and landing in a 12,000-foot meadow. “I’m excited, confident, scared, all in one,” she told Reuters. I would just be scared.
Would You Pay 3 Cents to Secure a Life Vest on Your Next Flight?
by Michael Yessis | 09.03.08 | 5:35 PM ET
Jazz airlines made news last week—and earned a place of dishonor in The Long Descent—for jettisoning life vests from its planes for economic reasons. At the Freakonomics blog, Steven D. Levitt does the math and determines that “removing the life vests saves the airline 3 cents per seat per flight.” Levitt says he’ll take the money. “I value my life very highly, but I think that the chance the life vest will save me is vanishingly small,” he writes.
‘Better Than the Van’: It’s ‘Couchsurfing for Bands’
by Michael Yessis | 09.03.08 | 3:39 PM ET
The new site helps match free couches with touring bands. Lovely news for musicians. At least those able to scrounge gas money to hit the road. (via Pop Candy)
Typo in Swedish Food Magazine Leads to Nutmeg Poisoning
by Michael Yessis | 09.03.08 | 3:37 PM ET
A cake recipe in Matmagasinet mistakenly asked for 20 nutmegs instead of two pinches. Four readers of the now-pulled magazine ended up in the hospital. Sounds like the “typo vigilantes” were needed across the pond.
