The group of vagabonds that set out to circle the globe to raise awareness of Parkinson’s disease is
on its way home. The Drive Around the World expedition
has been a hugely fun adventure to watch…via the Web, of course. The team has gone from California to Tierra del Fuego.
Across Australia’s Gunbarrel Highway. Through Southeast Asia, the highest roads of the Himalayas, Pakistan and the
coldest corners of Siberia. I’ll blog more about this later, but give it a whirl now.
A Man, His Kayak and Yummy Sewage
Kayaking isn’t always about fun you know. Case in point: Roger Frymire often takes to his kayak on the
Charles River in Boston to do his part in trying to
stop sewage from flowing into the river. His efforts are highlighted in this
Mother Jones article, especially in
regards to his nose and strong sense of “sniffing out” the dirty stuff and taking data samples of it to keep tabs on
the water quality (his data was used recently to cite four nearby towns which violated federal laws). You go
Roger…yuck.
Honduras, Nat Geo Announce “Geotourism” Partnership
Partnering with the National Geographic Society, the Honduran government recently announced its plan to become the first country with an official “geotourism” strategy. The concept was developed by the National Geographic Society to build a form of tourism that “sustains or enhances the geographic character of a place-its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage, and the well-being of its residents.”
The agreement includes the following “tenets”:
• following international codes for sustainable tourism,
• establishing policies and practices based on cultural and natural preservation, and
• building community-based tourism partnerships that emphasize economic and social benefits to locals.
A pretty fine idea, although one has to wonder whether such a plan is viable in a place like Honduras which is hardly known for its stability or eco-friendly national nature. But lots of countries would love to emulate the Costa Rican tourism model which has been a big boon for the Costa Rican economy (but not, too, without its problems).
Back to Phuket? Not yet
A piece in the
Chicago
Trib about tourism’s not-so-speedy return to Phuket, Thailand. The part of the country that was affected by
the deadly tsunamis is rebuilding rapidly, but the tourists are not returning, creating what some are calling
a “second wave” of devastation.
AARP Kayaking
Getting up there in the years and wondering if an old dog can learn new tricks? Perhaps you’ve
seen those kayakers attacking rapids and thought, boy would I like to do that, but then said to yourself, naw, I’m too
old.
Well, Canoe and Kayak Magazxine has got a nice peice by Terry Busch about how to wiggle your flabby a%$ into a kayak
and hit some white-water. Just shy of his 58th birthday when he first gave kayaking a whack, Busch took some
classes and hooked up with some fogeys like himself. But rather than discovering he was too old and recklessly
ambitious, the new elderly statesman of little boats finds that the sport is addictive. Right on, dude.