Travel that brings you up close to the news

by Jamie Rhein on

In September when I was in Los Angeles for an impromptu weekend away, sans family, my friend and I passed Cedars-Sinai Hospital the night we went to the Algonquin West Hollywood Literary Award Soiree. I’d be lying if I didn’t say that this made me think of Owen Wilson and his stay there. (Even Justin has his Owen Wilson musings. Although, I have to say, I was perhaps more fond of Darjeeling Ltd. than Justin.)

Now that Britney has had her Cedars-Sinai stay, I have to admit, that, yes, reading about her visit to the hospital gave me a flashback about my LA trip and when I passed by Cedars-Sinai.

This brushing up with news stories happens frequently if you travel. Those who stay home merely get info from a newspaper that ends up in a recycling bin or is off the radar as soon as the channel changes. Yesterday’s news stays yesterday’s news.

Travel makes news stories more vivid somehow, even if the news is months old. Places become not just a name we heard about, but one with which we have a taste of a personal relationship–even if it’s just an asterisk.

For New Year’s Eve we headed to Ottawa, Ohio to spend the night with friends. As I drove through town, I thought about the flood that happened there this past August.

My friend took me on a little tour to show me where the sandbags were and how her brother’s downtown office was spared because its first floor is actually above street level and the sandbags saved it. Not only did the sandbags save it, but her high school-aged son helped put the sandbags there.

I also met friends of theirs who lost totally lost their house and are in the process of having it rebuilt. There hasn’t been a flood like that in Ottawa since 1900 or so. Until the flood this past summer, Ottawa was just a place where our friends had moved.

Then earlier this week, there was Ottawa in the news again. Kenneth Richey, the British citizen who has been whiling away a quarter of his life on Death Row in Ohio for the death of a 2-year-old girl was released yesterday. He was being held in the Portage County jail in Ottawa awaiting his release. When I saw he was in Ottawa, I thought about my recent trip there and the great time I had at our friend’s house– and the flood.

On an international scale, every time I see John McCain on Jon Stewart, or like last night when he gave his acceptance speech when he won the Primary in New Hampshire, I flash to the photo I took of the photo of him at the museum in what is left of the Hoa Loa Prison, once dubbed the Hanoi Hilton. McCain was a prisoner of war there for five years.

(McCain is the guy in the middle)

Most of the prison was torn down to make room for an hotel/shopping complex, but the remaining section is a fascinating, albeit gruesome look at a slice of Vietnamese history. Most of the museum is about the French occupation with just a few rooms about the U.S.

When we drove through Louisville, Kentucky in August, I thought of Kentucky Kingdom and the young girl who had her feet recently severed by the Superman Tower of Power ride. These are not pleasant thoughts. I’d rather think about the Kentucky Derby and sipping Mint Juleps, but I’ve never been to the Kentucky Derby. I did write a post about the accident so it’s in my brain somewhere and comes out at the oddest times.

Every time we go to Cleveland, we pass by the Trooper James R. Gross’s Memorial on the side of I-71 North. My son looks for it on each trip and asks if we’re almost there. Trooper Gross was shot and killed in 1996 during a highway traffic violation stop. This spot will always be in my son’s mind I bet just because we travel to Cleveland. Even today, when I couldn’t remember the name of my officer, I asked my son. He just turned 6 and told me straight away without thinking about it.

It’s not like I’ve gone to these places to be closer to the news. I’m not one of those people who would take the unofficial Anna Nicole Smith tour in the Bahamas to trace her woes. But, there are places one happens upon that gets you thinking of those stories that captured the media’s attention for awhile. Or if some big incident happens at a place where you once were on vacation, there your mind wanders remembering your trip in an unexpected way.

This time though, as you remember, the news story intertwines altering the experience somehow. It’s like being temporarily in a Wes Anderson movie or something. Or, maybe it’s just me.

Traveling where the dollar is strong

by Neil Woodburn on

If you’re earning a salary in US currency and are unlucky enough to spend it traveling internationally, you know the pain of the depreciating dollar.

The rest of the world has become frighteningly expensive as the dollar continues its slide. My recent trip to North Korea, for example, was $800 more expensive than it would have been two years ago for the mere fact that I had to pay for the tour in euros. Man, did this hurt! Unfortunately, such increased costs have become a factor in many travelers’ vacation plans as prohibitive prices continue to limit options.

But this isn’t the case everywhere. Certain parts of the world are still “on sale” due to local currencies that even weaker than the dollar.

Countries where dollars go the distance is a handy LA Times article that explores some of these remaining bargain locations–Vietnam, Morocco, Bolivia, Cambodia, Nicaragua, Albania–and provides a fantastic short list of wonderful places that would still be worth going to even if they weren’t “on sale.”

GADLING TAKE FIVE: Week of December 22-28

by Jamie Rhein on

Because Catherine is stuck at the Dallas Airport right now trying to get back to Alaska, I’m bringing you this week’s GADLING TAKE FIVE. Stay-tuned for Catherine’s tales of her holiday travels. In the meantime, here’s what happened this week in the midst of holiday mayhem.

Seriously, it’s very hard to choose from what’s written each week so I’m turning to the numbers game. For starters, here are the three posts that have been forwarded the most.

Aaron’s post “Are you smarter than a two-year-old” is one that can wow you or make you feel terrible that your geography skills are worse than a toddler’s. This toddler is also getting her 15 minutes of fame and more as she makes the TV circuit showing off her skills.

Grant’s “Christmas in Saigon” is one indication of how cultural traditions travel and that sometimes when a culture takes on another culture’s trait (Santa hats) it goes even further with it. I’ve seen the Santas on the motorcycles that Grant refers to. The man knows what he’s taking about.

Abha’s “Don’t miss the sky this christmas” gives reasons why it’s good to look up this time of year. The winter sky is perfect for star gazing. Christmas Eve may have been a perfect night, but there are still plenty of others.

Also this week, Neil’s must -read series on traveling in North Korea ended with his post, “Infiltrating North Korea Part 19: A Final Word.” If you haven’t read the series, click here to read it from the beginning.

As a series of sorts to follow, Jerry is embarking on a look at Nauru, a country you may not have heard of. Obviously, it’s one of the world’s smallest. His post appropriately named “A country you’ve never heard of” is the only posting so far, but I assure you there are others in the line-up.

10 of the 53 places to go in 2008

by Jamie Rhein on

I already mentioned Detroit as being number 40 on the list of the New York Times places to go in 2008. Sad to say, I have only been to the airport in Detroit. After posting about this city, I agree that the capital of the automobile and Motown is indeed a place to see this year.

Places to go lists such as the New York Times version can either make a person feel as depressed as hell that one can’t possibly see all of the places mentioned in one year, or fairly smug that one seen as much as one has. As for me, I’m happy I’ve been to some places, but still tipping towards the so many places, so little time and not enough money to even make a dent reality check.

1. I’ve been to Oslo, although I was young, broke and can’t remember much about it except for this Canadian guy I met who I was enamored by to the point that meeting him was far more important than any glacier I may have seen. I still have the sweater I bought.

I’ve also been to San Francisco, New York, Prague, London, San Diego, Tuscany, Vietnam, London and Munich–all on the list at various points. That’s it. I have so much more to see this year and the two places on my itinerary so far, Mexico and Williamsburg, Virginia aren’t even mentioned.

When picking from such a list, here are my suggestions for making a choice based on the places I’ve gone. I’ve linked the destination suggestions with past Gadling posts. If you click on the links, you’ll go to posts with a variety of angles.

2. For a culture different from your own, but one that is affordable and accessible to tourists, I’d head to Vietnam. I’ve been here five times and have never been disappointed. If I were you, do not stay in a top-tiered hotel, but in a family run place. Much more interesting. Sitting downstairs visiting with the family who owns it is a cultural treat.

3. Laos is on this list though, as a place more edgy than Vietnam. I’ve never been to Laos, but know people who have and they’ve also had great experiences. If you want a place not so tourist ready, this would be more of an adventure.

4. If you want to be wowed by history, art, landscape and architecture, plus a sensual delight in food, I’d pick Tuscany, although according to some reports I’ve read, it’s getting filled to the brim with tourists. Still, if you rent a car and can drive out into the countryside, that might help offset the crowds.

5. For a place where you can easily see pomp and circumstance and a sweeping sense of a country that has had a huge impact on the world, head to London. The last time I was there, we only had a day. I was traveling with my husband, my then 9 year-old daughter and 1 1/2-old son. We walked, took a double-decker bus, took the Underground and took a taxi to make tracks, but managed to have a lot of fun and see what we wanted to take in without wearing ourselves out. I remember hitting the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, the Thames River, The Tower of London, The British Museum and Trafalgar Square.

6. For a place that evokes images of traveling on top of a wedding cake, go to Prague. It is stunningly beautiful. If you do go, take some time for Josefov, the old Jewish Quarter.

7. Munich was another place I breezed through when I didn’t have much money. The beer hall was fun, and a contrast to the other things I did. I spent some time at Olympiapark thinking about the Israeli athletes who were killed here and seeing the pool where Mark Spitz swam. I must have been woozy on beer, bratwurst and a period of life when I was eating mostly bread and cheese to make the traveling dollars stretch. My shoes were taped together with electrician’s tape. Okay, this feels depressing and not why Munich made the places to see list. If you have wonderous Munich experiences, do tell.

8. Old Town in San Diego is a shoppers heaven. I’m not much of a shopper, but I love the shops here and the history of the buildings. We visit relatives in San Diego, so we don’t hit it up as a tourist destination. One thing I would like to do is take a fishing boat ride. We’ve only fished on a pier. If you go to San Diego, don’t miss Neiderfrank’s Ice-Cream. It’s special indeed.

9. San Francisco was probably my favorite city in my across the U.S. sweep after the Peace Corps. The most memory producing activity I did was the tour of Alcatraz Island. Highly entertaining and informative. The bonus is the chance to see San Francisco from the vantage point of across the water.

10. New York City, though, is my most favorite place in the world. If you don’t take the time to walk several blocks, say from 42nd Street to the East Village, your missing out on an interesting time.

Christmas in Saigon

by Grant Martin on

Nothing helps you realize you’re eight thousand miles away from home better than spending the holidays in a foreign country.

Last year, traveling through Southeast Asia with my parents we found ourselves at the Oscar Hotel in downtown Ho Chi Minh City (still called Saigon by the locals), Vietnam over Christmas Eve. An interesting way that tourism has seized the country is the Vietnamese interpretation of Christmas. While about 85% of the population is Buddhist, pretty much everyone identifies with the holiday — or rather Santa Claus. It’s their understanding of what the Westerners know and will appreciate while they’re visiting Southeast Asia.

But instead of decorating their houses, exchanging gifts or getting a Christmas tree, I found that the Vietnamese seem to be most fond of riding around the city square, wearing santa hats, dressing up their children and socializing. Thousands of young Vietnamese youth come out to participate on Christmas Eve. Thousands.

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As you go outside to witness the madness of what’s happening before you, the air fills with the sounds of ten thousand motorcycle engines humming, a two-cycle chorus revolving around you on the streets of Saigon. The heavy tropical air fills with motorcycle exhaust and you get the feeling that you’re in some sort of Cajun voodoo spell, children dressed as Santa flying past you disappearing into a fog, a foreigner in a strange land.

It’s an experience unlike anything I’ve ever seen — something that I think everyone should see once in their lives and something I will never forget. Back at home in Kalamazoo this winter, I breathe the fresh air and watch deer wander in our back yard through six-inch snow. Such a contrast to Christmas past.