The popular Irish town best known to travelers as Dingle, and called An Daingean in Gaelic, may soon be known officially by two names, Dingle and Daingean Ui Chuis. That’s the compromise proposed by Ireland’s Minister for the Environment, John Gormley, who said he plans to amend a 2004 order requiring many Irish towns, Dingle included, to adopt Gaelic names. A majority in Dingle resisted the name change, favoring the English name for its familiarity with tourists. The residents came up with a compromise name—Dingle Daingean Ui Chuis—which prompted a round of international publicity and, now, an amended law and an AFP story. No word on whether Fungie will be getting a name change, too. (via Jaunted.)

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* Out: Dingle. In: An Daingean.

Photo by Michael Yessis. 

The Irish pub may be ubiquitous around the world, but it’s struggling in parts of its homeland. Mary Jordan writes in the Washington Post, “Wealth has given the Irish more options and less time—a bad combination for the local pub. More people are spending sunny weekends in Spain rather than evenings of ‘craic,’ as good times and conversation are known, down at the pub.” The video that accompanies Jordan’s story is below. 

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When Bryan Patrick Miller’s mother was dying of a terminal illness, she asked him to visit Ireland and piece together their family’s history. It didn’t take him long to find out his “family was hated all over southwest Ireland.” His terrific New York Times Magazine story chronicles the revelation.

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* Family Traveling

The Guardian’s Sean Dodson picks 10 sleeping giants of rock, including the spot where John Lennon and Yoko One had their “Bed-in for Peace” (Amsterdam Hilton), the hotel where Led Zeppelin chucked TVs out windows (the now de-balconied Hyatt Riot House, pictured, on West Hollywood’s Sunset Strip) and the place where David Bowie lived in Berlin while recording “Low” and “Heroes” (Hotel Ellington). One obvious clunker: The Hotel Rival in Sweden, which is owned by Benny Anderson of ABBA fame. I’ve heard “Dancing Queen.” I’ve seen “Mamma Mia.” ABBA ain’t rock.

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The Irish pub has long intrigued us, both as a subject to write about and as a fine place to drink the occasional pint of Guinness. Thanks to Eva Holland for reminding us that the Irish pub also embodies many ways the globe is shrinking and cultures are colliding. It’s a worthy addition to our Seven Wonders of the Shrinking Planet. As Eva wrote in response to our call for a replacement to the now-closed Starbucks in China’s Forbidden City—hers was among a number of terrific suggestions; thanks to everyone who posted an idea—Irish pubs can be found just about everywhere in the world. 

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When checking in to my room at the Jury’s Inn in Limerick, Ireland recently, I noticed a coffee trolley labeled “Il Barista” in the lobby. It was adjacent to the reception desk and had a sleek espresso machine and mini-pastries. Mind you, there was no warm-blooded barista in sight. But my hotel, it seems, was latching on to an emerging trend. USA Today’s Roger Yu reports that access to quality coffee both inside guest rooms and in public hotel spaces is increasingly common.

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In his Sunday column, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel’s Thomas Swick has some sage advice for international travelers, ranging from ways to stay out of trouble to simple pronunciation tips. Among them: “In Vietnam, don’t say pho with a long ‘o’ when ordering the popular noodle soup. (It’s pronounced more like ‘fuh’). In Ireland, don’t ask, ‘Are there any good books by local authors?’ In Singapore, don’t do a lot of things.”

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Remember: Wherever you are in the world—from Kazakhstan to the Canary Islands to Dubai—a faux Irish pub awaits. And if you’re lucky enough to be in Ireland, here’s how to be a first-class punter. Happy St. Patrick’s Day to all. 

Travel certainly has its comedic moments, and yes, remembering to bring your sense of humor when visiting another city, state or country is almost always a good idea, but few people intentionally set out on a trip in search of slapstick. Not so with Conan O’Brien.

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It’s a week of classics—and perhaps emerging classics—here at the Zeitgeist. This week, we travelers are showing our love for Paris, Irish pubs, the Hawaiian islands, the wonders of the world and Rory Stewart’s walk across war-torn Afghanistan.

Most E-Mailed Travel Story
New York Times (current)
Paris: 36 Hours

Most Viewed Weblog Post
World Hum (this week)
Belgium has a ‘War of the Worlds’ Moment

Most Popular Travel Podcast
PodcastAlley (December)
808Talk: Hawaii’s Premier Podcast

Best Selling Travel Book
Amazon.com (current)
The Places in Between by Rory Stewart
* The New York Times selected it as one of the top-10 books of 2006, and it’s back on top after Bill Bryson’s nine-week reign.

Most Popular Page Tagged Travel
Del.icio.us (current)
SeatGuru

Most Viewed Story
World Hum (this week)
How to Down a Pint in a Real Irish Pub

Top Travel and Adventure Audiobook
iTunes (current)
Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer

Most Dugg “Travel” Story
Digg (current)
The World’s Top 100 Wonders: How Many Have You Seen?

Most Popular Travel Story
Netscape (current)
How to Complain Effectively
* Solid advice for holiday travelers.

Most Read Travel Story
USA Today (current)
Storm Snarls Holiday Travel

The Google “I’m Feeling Lucky” Button Travel Zeitgeist Search
And for those who, like me, will be driving for the holidays this weekend, here’s how to survive a blizzard. Safe travels and happy holidays.

Got something for next week’s World Hum Travel Zeitgeist? .

All travelers want this week, it seems, are trips to Utah, San Francisco, Montreal, India and Ireland, and literary journeys to the top of Everest and into the mind of Bill Bryson. And they want airport security to leave their T-shirts alone. Here’s the Zeitgeist.

Most Literate U.S. City
Central Connecticut State University study (2006)
Seattle
* University President John W. Miller measured newspaper circulation, number of bookstores, library resources, periodical publishing resources, educational attainment and Internet resources to rank U.S. cities.

Most Popular Travel Story
Netscape (current)
Man Not Allowed to Board Flight Because He Was Wearing a ‘Bush is a Terrorist’ T-Shirt
* Add this to the airport ruckus-causing T-shirt Hall of Fame. Remember Meet the Fockers and We Will Not Be Silent?

Most Viewed Story
World Hum (this week)
How to Down a Pint in a Real Irish Pub

Most E-Mailed Travel Story
New York Times (current)
The Best of India, One Cup at a Time

Most Popular Travel Podcast
iTunes (current)
Travel With Rick Steves
* Another reminder: ‘Tis the season for Rick Steves’ European Christmas.

Most Viewed Weblog Post
World Hum (this week)
Tourism Suffers in Bethlehem, But Hamas Might Help

Most E-Mailed Travel Story
USA Today (current)
Now Boarding: Utah’s Polar Express

Most Popular Page Tagged Travel
Del.icio.us (current)
Farecast

Best Selling Travel Book
Amazon.com (current)
The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir by Bill Bryson
* Two Three Six Seven Eight Nine weeks in a row at the top for Bryson’s memoir of growing up in 1950s Iowa.

Top Travel and Adventure Audiobook
iTunes (current)
Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer

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The network has teamed with Frommer’s to produce guidebooks aimed at young budget travelers, according to an AP report. MTV Italy and MTV Ireland are the first books published in the series, with additional Europe titles due out over the next year. “The ‘best of’ recommendations in ‘MTV Italy’ include ‘most awesome ancient ruins’ like the Colosseum and Roman Forum, best seen, according to the guide, after dark when the floodlights come on,” the story reports. “Best churches, according to ‘MTV Italy,’ are St. Peter’s Basilica, the Duomo in Florence and St. Mark’s Basilica.” We’re all for any books that can inspire young Americans to head overseas for the first time. MTV guidebook readers will no doubt discover that Europe is packed with fly hostel-cribs, seriously awesome ruins and people as beautiful as those in Laguna Beach—I mean, on “Laguna Beach.”