United Airlines to order A380 jumbo jet?

by Grant Martin on

Things are going pretty well for United this year. Full approval for their merger with Continental Airlines went through, they became the first domestic carrier to adopt bio fuel and one of their biggest competitors has gone bankrupt. Their media and public relations departments should get the rest of the year off. In fact, they should buy us dinner.

In addition to all of that good news, rumors around the community are that the airline is eyeballing a new Airbus A380, the largest passenger aircraft on the market and a behemoth that’s usually only reserved for the major international carriers. Though United flies plenty of routes, the majority of their passengers fly short haul in the United States, and as such a heavy, fuel-guzzling aircraft is hardly worth the investment.

With growing focus in the Asian Pacific region, however, the airline may start investing in larger aircraft to serve that market. While they haven’t made any official announcement to lay public, Aviation Week reports that the COO of airbus claims “that United President and CEO Jeffery Smisek has changed his previously held view that the widebody was inappropriate for U.S. operators and now saw possibilities for the A380 in the new United fleet.”

Perhaps that means that the American carriers are finally willing to step into the long haul game. We sure hope so.

Photo of the day – Skies above Paris

by Alex Robertson Textor on

Oh, the skies above Paris…

There’s a reason so many people love Paris. The city itself seems to be bathed in a special light. It’s a place of tempestuous moods and lovers’ quarrels. It’s like one big all-encompassing set for a film about the glory or tragedy of love.

Concurrently, it’s just a city. But what a grand city it is. Flickr user Aypho captures the City of Light’s basic grandeur in this awesome photograph.

Got an image of one of the world’s most romantic cities? Upload it to the Gadling Group Pool on Flickr. If we fall in love with it, we might just choose your interpretation of romance to be a future Photo of the Day.

Korea launches campaign against “Engrish”

by Kyle Ellison on

If you’ve ever been to Asia, I know at some point you’ve done it.

Somewhere along your trip, there’s a good chance you’ve actually stopped to take a picture of an English translation simply because it was too awkwardly constructed to not warrant a photograph. Don’t be shy. I do it all the time, and so do thousands of other people. When a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant is advertised as “The Chicken of Kentucky”, we find endless humor in this.

Now, the Korean Tourism Organization is actually asking the public’s help in an effort to eradicate this embarrassing “Engrish” from prominent tourist sites around the country. If you are traveling through South Korea between now and December 14 and just so happen to snap a photo of some “Engrish” while at a Korean tourist site, the KTO will enter you to win a gift card worth approximately $45 redeemable anywhere credit cards are accepted.

Yes. You read that right. Snap a “bad English” sign, let the Korean Tourism Oranization know where it is, and be given the chance to earn enough money for couple rounds of kim bap and shoju at the nearest bar.

So here are the rules: Register on the Visit Korea website and proceed to send in your finest street shot. The sign can actually be a poor translation of English, Japanese, or Chinese. It cannot be on a street sign, a menu, or a guidebook.

Winners will be announced on December 22 on the Visit Korea homepage.

Happy hunting.

Photo: Flickr/Wm Jas

Ancient Christian city discovered in Egypt

by Sean McLachlan on

An ancient Christian city dating to the fourth century AD has been discovered in Egypt.

Archaeologists digging at the Ain al-Sabil area of the New Valley Governorate have discovered the remains of a basilica and buildings to serve the priests. This is the first excavation at the site and researchers hope more discoveries will be made under the Egyptian sands.

Egyptian Christians trace their history back to just after the Crucifixion, when Saint Mark preached in the country. Called the Copts, these Christians make up anywhere from 5-23% of the population. Estimates vary so widely because the actual number is a politically contentious issue. Most sources agree that about 10% is the correct figure, meaning slightly more than 8 million people.

Copts have faced discrimination and deadly attacks ever since the Muslim conquest of Egypt in the seventh century AD. Periods of tolerance have alternated with periods of increased persecution. In recent years there have been many attacks against Egypt’s Coptic community, and Copts say the authorities have done little to help. Copts are most visible in towns such as Cairo and Minya. Cairo has an excellent Coptic Museum. About four million Copts live overseas and there is a community of about half a million in the Sudan.

The fourth century AD, on the other hand, was a high point in Coptic history. The majority of Egyptians were Christian at that time and Egyptian monasteries started the Christian monastic movement.

Image of Coptic icon of St. John the baptist courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

Andaz 5th Avenue offers a tattoo artist in residence, Mister Cartoon

by McLean Robbins on

We all knew that Andaz hotels were cool – after all, this is the hotel brand that brought you king-bedded suites with stripper poles and chic-ly dressed “hosts” in local designers in lieu of frond desk staff, and a mini bar stuffed with gratis snacks. But now they’ve one-upped themselves … with an in-residence tattoo artist at Andaz 5th Avenue.

The only way to skip his year-long waiting list? Book a room at the hotel. Mister Cartoon has inked some of Hollywood’s biggest names, including Eminem, Justin Timberlake and Beyonce.

In addition, Mister Cartoon will spend five days creating a mural on the door leading to the bar downstairs as the second artist to participate in the hotel’s tbd Art program, a rotating art series. Apart from living and breathing canvases, Mister Cartoon’s art has also been on display in exhibitions such as MoCA’s seminal Art in the Streets exhibit.

Just FYI, this is only available through December 22, so you’d better start picking out your design.