2010 › May

New United Airlines livery still keeps a bit of Continental in the mix

by Scott Carmichael on

What you see here is the proposed final product of the United Airlines – Continental merger. As you can see, the new airline will fly with the United name, but keeps the globe logo from Continental.

I’m not sure what to make of it – but since these two airlines have been such important players in the aviation world, it’ll take a while to get used to the combination.

Over at Unitecontinentalmerger.com, you’ll find a lot of information about the merger, and how it’ll impact travelers.

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Dine from the Menu del Dia in Spain – Dining out tip

by Gadling Staff on

The Menu del Dia (menu of the day) in Spain will not only keep some extra Euros in your pocket, it will introduce you to authentic Spanish dishes and local fare.

This dining-on-the-cheap option is offered by many restaurants throughout Spain and is a great, penny-pinching way to fill up on a big lunch, then send you right into a proper afternoon siesta!

A typical ‘menu’ is three to four courses showcasing fresh, local specialties and comes with a glass or a bottle of “house” wine. Suggested use for the cash you save: a shopping spree along Las Ramblas.

Stick to a budget – Dinging out tip

by Gadling Staff on

Stick to a budget.

It’s easy to overspend on food on vacation, because you get excited about trying new dishes or regional specialties. Try setting yourself a budget for each meal ahead of time, and go into the restaurant mindful of your goal.

We’ve found it helpful to set budgets before we even leave on a trip, because once you’re in the moment, it’s easy to spend more than you planned.

Note that budgeting doesn’t have to mean eating boring or familiar dishes; choose restaurants that don’t cater to tourists, and you’ll find lower menu prices in many places.

Aijalon Mahli Gomes phones home

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Every now and then, an overzealous traveler crosses the border into North Korea without doing the requisite prep work and having various forms rubber stamped. When this happens, bad things follow. For Aijalon Mahli Gomez, a U.S. citizen, the crossing turned into an eight-year sentence in the company’s prison system on April 6, 2010. Yet, he was able to call home.

According to the Korea Central News Agency, North Korea’s official , um, news service:

U.S. citizen Aijalon Mahli Gomes now in prison after being tried on April 6 asked for a phone contact with his family for his health and other reasons. The relevant organ of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, taking his request into consideration, permitted him to do so on Friday.

Before he was allowed to make the phone call, Gomes’ contact with the outside world was limited to the Swedish embassy, which handles all diplomatic issues for westerners in North Korea.

Gomes, who is 30 years old and from Boston, has to pay a fine of approximately $700,000 on top of his hard labor sentence. He was in North Korea doing missionary work and was the fourth U.S. citizen in less than a year to get pinched for illegal entry.

Record breaking 45 gigapixel photo shows Dubai in crazy detail

by Scott Carmichael on

Gigapixel photos are something to be loved – we’ve previously shown you one of the Presidential Inauguration, and the beauty that is the city of Paris.

When we posted it back in March, that Paris photo was the largest in the world – 26 gigapixels. So, what better place to beat that record than the world capital of excess – Dubai.

At 45 gigapixels, this thing is massive. Comprised of 4,250 images, this panorama is fully zoomable – so head on over to Gigapan to see the results.

According to the creator, he was in the shade, but even out of the sun, the temperature was 98F – at the end of the three hour shoot, his gear was almost too hot to touch.

(Via: Gizmodo)