Get out and go: Events around the world (November 3-9)

by Brenda Yun on

Here’s a travel factoid for the day: It was 106 years ago today that Panama proclaimed its independence from Colombia. Apparently, today in Panama, which they call “Separation Day,” even the bars are closed.

It’s time to look at the festivals and events happening around the world, and this week has a particularly international selection of happenings. If you’re close and have time, then you have no excuse to get out and go!

  • Japan – Bunka No Hi (Culture Day) is a national holiday held annually in Japan on November 3 for the purpose of promoting culture, the arts, and academic endeavour. Festivities typically include art exhibitions, parades, and award ceremonies for distinguished artists and scholars.
  • Helsinki – The Kettupaivat Short Film Festival begins Wednesday, November 4, and continues until November 7.
  • British Columbia – Whistler’s 13th annual art event, ARTrageous, takes place this Thursday, November 5, and features live art, roving performers and a live dance band.
  • New South Wales – The Bitter and Twisted International Boutique Beer Festival will today take place this weekend, from Saturday, November 7 to Sunday, November 8 in New South Wales.
  • London – The World Travel Market 2009 will take place at the ExCel London from Monday, November 9 through Thursday, November 12. This travel expo enables businesses to network with each other and learn about the travel industry’s latest innovations.

If you make it to one of these events, let us know how it was, or if you know of an event that’s coming up, please let us know and we’ll be sure to include it in the next “Get out and go” round-up.

Photo of the Day (11.3.09)

by Stephen Greenwood on

“Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that’s creativity” – Charles Mingus

There’s a certain beauty in simplicity, even in regard to photography. I find this photo by lecercle to be a great example of taking simple subject matter and making it interesting and beautiful through composition & contrast.

The photo was taken in Kashid, which is a beach town on the shores of the Northern region of Maharashtra, India. The ocean that the subjects are looking out over is the Arabian Sea. There are a few of small hotels in Kashid, and the rest is privately owned, but it’s quickly becoming a surfer’s paradise.

Want to have your travel photo considered for Gadling’s Photo of the Day? Submit your best shots here.

The best stinkin’ food in Asia

by Aaron Hotfelder on

We humans have mostly evolved a distaste for eating foul-smelling things, like dog poop, Drano, or anything Dad tries to cook. This is a beneficial instinct, as bad-smelling things are often quite toxic. (Sorry, Dad.)

But the rules are a little different in Asia, where the smells of stinky tofu, fish sauce, the durian, and countless other pungent foodstuffs are often found in restaurants and on the streets. When a friend of mine returned from Korea last summer, she told me the smell of stinky tofu— aged, fermented bean curd soaked in a brine– would be forever seared into her brain. “How’d it taste?” I asked. She answered, “I believe this is what they politely refer to as an ‘acquired taste.'”

But like the stinkiest French cheese, sometimes the worse the food smells, the better it tastes. Over at KoreAm, a blog about the Korean American experience, Lola Pak has come up with an entertaining list of the Top 10 Smelliest Foods in Asia. Some of her observations:

  • “Unless you enjoy breathing in ammonia, avoid [fermented] skate at all costs.”
  • “Koreans gnaw on dried squid while drinking beer and soju. Too bad the rubbery strands smell like dead mice.”
  • “Due to its fetid odor, the oval, tropical fruit [durian] also has one thing in common with terrorists and smokers: It’s banned from the Singapore airport.”

Whole thing here. How many of these stinky foods have you tried?

Packing light for a cold trip

by Catherine Bodry on

I’m a proud packer, but until now my longer trips have either been in warm places, or to countries where I planned to be very stationary (and didn’t care if I looked like a 20-something grungy backpacker, because that’s what I was). Flimsy skirts and tank tops were the norm. My task this time around, however, is to maintain my packing pride while making sure I stay warm and manage to look somewhat professional.

I’m heading out for a three-month trip to China, where I probably won’t wear my swimsuit or flip-flops one time. I’m going to use Kunming as my base, and that city is at 6000 feet elevation. I hope to do a some trekking while I’m there, so a bit of gear will be necessary.

First, I need to choose my luggage. Instead of my fabulous Eagle Creek Switchback, I’ll cram my Marmot Diva 36L with all my stuff. It’s not as convenient for travel, but it’s a great pack for trekking. Next, I decided to bring my light down sleeping bag (rather than my thick synthetic bag, or nothing at all). It should be sufficient for sleeping in huts and will also be my bedding when I get an apartment.

Finally, the hard part: shoes and clothes. My running shoes will double as trekking shoes and, well, running shoes, while a pair of red Keen Mary Janes will fill in all the other shoe duties. Hopefully I won’t have to get fancy. As for clothes, I’m bringing stuff I would normally never dream of packing: jeans, cords, long underwear. No light cotton pants and only one strappy tank top (a girl needs to go out every now and then). One fleece pullover, several long sleeve shirts and a few t-shirts. My packing pile is growing, but overflow will get discarded and my Eagle Creek packing cubes will tidy the rest.

South by Southeast: In Bangkok? Head to the mall!

by Jeremy Kressmann on

Bangkok means many things to travelers. The backpacker ghetto of Khao San Road. The sublime temples of Wat Pho and Wat Phra Kaew. The seedy go-go bars of Patpong. But after visiting this crazy Southeast Asian capital for the first time, I’d like to suggest a new highlight in Bangkok: the malls.

You’re probably going to tell me I’m a spoiled Westerner, too acclimated to the comforts of home to get my hands dirty with some authentic Thai culture. But, perhaps it’s time we all take a closer look at what Bangkok is really like these days. The famed “anything goes” destination of old is still there, hiding down back alleyways and puttering along on Bangkok’s diesel spewing tuk tuks. But there’s also an entirely new Bangkok under construction. An emerging city of modern mass transportation and shiny new temples of capitalism.

So what is it about Bangkok’s malls that makes them so special? Like many malls back home, they’ve got all the usual amenities – the department stores, the food courts and the electronics boutiques. But there’s also plenty that makes Bangkok malls entirely unique: outstanding and inexpensive food courts filled with authentic Thai cuisine, special events and top-notch cultural institutions. Sound interesting? Here’s three reasons why you should head to the mall during your next visit to Bangkok. Click below.

The food courts are amazing
When I think of a mall food court back in the U.S., my stomach starts to churn. Greasy Sbarro pizza, unappetizing McDonald’s and gluttonous portions of Cold Stone Creamery. Bangkok food courts are a completely different animal. In fact, one of the best places to experience affordable, delicious Thai cuisine is at the mall.

Whether you want egg noodles with pork and dried shrimp, a big glass of Lemongrass juice or some Thai sticky rice dessert, the food court is where it’s at. Average price for your meal? About $3 U.S. per person. In addition to all the Thai favorites you’ll find plenty of great Japanese, Korean and Vegetarian cuisine, along with a few good old American favorites.

Air conditioning is your friend
Spend more than five minutes outside in Bangkok, and you will be attacked. Your fresh clothes will be drenched in sweat. Motor scooters, tuk-tuks and huge buses belch smoke from all directions. Monsoon rains deluge down from the heavens. Angry and persistent mosquitoes buzz and itch in your ear. It’s enough to make even the most hardened travelers beg for mercy. Bangkok malls will become your oasis from this chaos. The cool chilled air feels like a gift from above. Even if you have no intention of buying anything at the store, Bangkok’s malls offer an easy, cheap way to chill out.

Surprising attractions
Bangkok malls aren’t just for shopping. They boast top-notch culture, special events and surprising creativity. A great example is the Thailand Creative & Design Center (TCDC), located in The Emporium Shopping Complex in Bangkok’s Sukhumvit area. The center boasts rotating modern art exhibits from Thai artists, typography exhibits, film screenings and a huge library of design books and magazines. On a recent Sunday, I found myself hanging out in TCDC’s slick coffeeshop, enjoying the stellar Bangkok city views while a live jazz band jammed out onstage. Cheesy mall this is not.

The next time you find yourself in Bangkok, take a closer look at what this amazing city has to offer. In addition to awe-inspiring temples and cheap backpacker street food, you’re likely to find a city that has “come of age” on the world stage.

Gadling writer Jeremy Kressmann is spending the next few months in Southeast Asia. You can read other posts on his adventures “South by Southeast” HERE.