Rats love Paris and its boulangeries

by Iva Skoch on

There are four times as many rats as humans in Paris – perhaps eight million in total, according to this BBC article. Watch out New York!

Just in time for the tourist season, Paris is launching a two-month-long, city-wide information advertising campaign in the city, followed by inspections, aiming to reduce the numbers of rats on the streets. Apparently, tourists don’t like to walk past boulangeries at the end of the day and see rats or mice running around inside the shop. Go figure.

The main problem is that Parisians don’t realize that they are actually obliged to fight rats. That is what the campaign is supposed to change. Those who refuse to carry out the recommendations – on cleaning up their area, correctly disposing of rubbish or closing up access holes, for example – face a fines of between 90 and 750 euros ($1200).

My favorite part? Paris’ municipal rat-catching team is nicknamed “Le S.M.A.S.H.”

Use your tax rebate to TRAVEL

by Grant Martin on

Tax rebates are on the way, with the first deposits inbound as early as Friday (check the schedule here) and Americans are scrambling to figure out how to blow their wad.

I happened to have two weddings to attend over the month of May, so my check will probably be going to wedding presents for the two lucky couples. O Kosta Boda, your uselessness has no end.

Over at CNN.com though, they want you to spend your money on a little R&R. Editors of Southern Living, Coastal Living, Sunset and Cottage Living have cobbled together a list of five “great tax-rebate getaways” where you can spend a portion of your hard-earned rebate on investing back into the economy.

Among their list of top destinations are

  • Charleston, South Carolina
  • Grand Canyon National Park
  • Destin, Florida
  • Santa Fe, New Mexico
  • San Francisco, California

You can read all about each destination including where to stay and eat at CNN’s website. Just make sure you don’t do anything CRAZY like pay off bills, credit cards or even (gasp) invest your rebate.

Okayama, Japan: a place to see Japan at a quieter pace

by Jamie Rhein on

When I went to Japan several years back, the U.S. dollar was the pits against the yen. Luckily I had a friend of a friend of my brother’s to stay with in Tokyo. I had a Japanese rail pass for a week so we ventured out on day trips mostly, except for two nights in Kyoto. We went on a day trip to Nara from there. Other trips were to Kamakura and Nikko. This was an impressionistic sort of trip. Japan is such a vivid place that I can conjure up pictures of most of it.

Now that my friend has moved back to Japan, I’m thinking another trip to Japan is in order, particularly since we have another place to go. Okayama, where my friend now lives, looks like it’s a perfect sized city for visiting with children, and one where its possible to taken in the nuances of Japanese culture. In an odd way, it seems to be to Japan what Columbus is to the United States–a reflection of the rest of the country without being overwhelming. There is enough to see and do to make it interesting, but because of the size, the people and sites are accessible.

I’m getting this from the Okayama page at Wikitravel that lists several attractions you can take in.

Here are highlights:

There’s the Korakuen Garden, one of the three Great Gardens in Japan. It dates back to 1687.

The Okayama Castle is a tribute to the tenacity of the Japanese. Destroyed during WWII, it was rebuilt to look like it did before. This might be a place my friend could be an English speaking tour guide–a suggestion Shane left on my post about helping my friend find English speakers.

The Oriental Museum is the place to find out about trade between Persia and Japan. I bet this is a great place to see similarities between textile designs of Persia and pottery designs of Japan. Maybe not, but I would guess.

Sogenji Temple offers free meditation. Plus, temples in Japan are some of the most relaxation producing places on the planet. Here’s also a place to participate in a tea ceremony.

Shizutani School is possibly the oldest public school in the world. It is the oldest school in Japan to be built as an every person’s school. Today it is a national treasure.

There’s also Muscat Stadium, a sports stadium that has baseball games from time to time; a big monthly flea market and the statue of Momotaro. Plus, there’s Mt. Misaoyama for hiking, hot springs for soaking and bike rentals.

Okay, now that I’ve outlined some of what there is to do in Okayama, I have to say, it looks a bit more interesting than Columbus–by a mile.

From the New Europe: How do you like the new library design?

by Iva Skoch on

Perhaps never before has the Czech Republic been so divided over a piece of architecture. The winning proposal for a new National Library in Prague, which is supposed to be built in Letna, in the Prague 7 district, not far from the Castle, is a source of major controversy in the country.

The purple-and-yellow building proposal (see photo) has been designed by Jan Kaplicky, an architect of the London architecture firm Future Systems. Yes, it is an extremely bold design, for a city known for its Gothic and Baroque architecture.

People call it all kinds of things…octopus, jellyfish, blob, phlegm are among the nicer ones. I personally like it. But I like cities that mix and match their architecture, like New York.

What about you? How do you like it?

American Airlines decides to charge for second checked bag

by Anna Brones on

In February it was United Airlines, in March it was Delta Airlines, and now this week it’s American Airlines: starting May 12, checking a second bag on a domestic flight will now cost you an extra $25. That is unless you are an American Airlines frequent flier member with a certain status or you purchased a full-fare ticket. Bag number 3, 4 and 5 will all cost you $100 a piece, and if you are a real heavy packer, number 6 will tack on an additional $200.

The change in policy comes amidst rising fuel prices and first quarter losses for many of the major airlines. If the trend continues, passengers could be waving goodbye to many services that were once complimentary like curbside check-in and advance seat assignments. Most travelers — at least those that aren’t traveling in Business class – are already used to paying for meals, and in the case of Air Canada, even customer service. I’d say the days of the friendly skies are coming to a close.