Is Travel Inherently Bad for the Planet?

by Iva Skoch on

I have a problem with having to buy bottled water when traveling to some countries. At home, I always try to drink tap water since bottled water is becoming such a burden on the environment, but I don’t see how to get around it in China or Egypt, for example. Is there? I don’t think those pumps are a way to go…

I have to admit, sometimes I get a mild form of travel-phobia. As much as I am addicted to it, I wonder if traveling is actually good for us. Yes, through traveling we become more cosmopolitan, open-minded and all that. At the same time, with so many people traveling and globalization, places are becoming so uniform. Cafes in Europe often seem like museums of lifestyle than an indication of real lifestyle. No matter how much ones tries not to “ruin it”, every traveler leaves a mark. Speaking of marks, there is also the carbon footprint we leave, as Neil points out. All in all, traveling seems a little self-serving sometimes. What a depressing thought…

GADLING’S TAKE FIVE: Week of July 15

by Adrienne Wilson on

Here we are again at another weeks end. As quirky as we are at times it seems there are still many good practical pickings out there to explore. If you need tips to arrive alive or help in a travel insurance purchase check out some of these. Oh, and if you need someone to do the sight-seeing for you we’ve found a little something in that department too.

5. Americano To Go (Away from Forbidden City):
If you plan your vacations based on the number of Starbucks locations per city, you may very well be out of luck with this particular destination.

4. Think You’re Covered? Top 10 Things Travel Insurance Might Not Foot the Bill For:
This is an excellent post everyone should read! While purchasing travel insurance for your trip to Kilimanjaro can offer some peace of mind make sure you’ve read the fine print. Surprisingly, it does not cover everything you may have previously thought.

3. Vacation Surrogate Will Vacation for You:
Um, I have to agree with many of the comments on the plug above. I don’t get it. I wouldn’t do it, but I’m sure it works for someone out and there and kudos to Sara Thacher – San Fran’s Vacation Surrogate for being clever enough to develop a way for those who can’t travel to the city. I’d rather go on my own though.

2. Airline Hackers: Inside the World of Mileage Running:
I love finding ways to increase my mileage on various airlines, however mileage running hasn’t been one of my methods. This option works well if you’ve got a flexible schedule and a burning desire to collect as many sky points as possible, but there are other easier ways. Read further to find out some tips to mileage running if you’re all packed and ready to go!

1. Six Tips to Stay Awake on Road Trips:
Driving late at night or at dusk and yes, even in the day can be tiring when on a long road trip. If having the windows rolled down with blasts of cool air hitting at your face while the Iron Maiden pumps out from the stereo doesn’t work in keeping you awake, look into some of these other helpful tips.

Gallery: Asia’s Crazy Bamboo Scaffolding

by Justin Glow on

One thing that surprised me on my trip to India was that bamboo was still commonly used for scaffolding. I was blown away by the gigantic structures I saw being built — skyscrapers, statues, modern office buildings — that were covered in a bamboo skeleton, rather than the metal I was used to seeing in the United States. But no matter how unsettling it may be to look at, bamboo is used for a reason: it’s strong, extremely lightweight, and very flexible (as you’ll see in the photos). Check out this gallery of crazy bamboo scaffolding across Asia — I hope you’re not afraid of heights!


At the Taj Mahal in Agra, India.


Would you climb up this thing? I sure wouldn’t.


The Sri Ekambaranathar temple in southern India.


Another shot of the same temple. Wow!


Look, it’s a monkey!


Bamboo mixed with heavy metal machinery in Hong Kong.


Bad photo, crazy bamboo!


A human cement ladder.


India once again.


Yikes.


Hong Kong.

NEXT PAGE >>

National Animals from Around the World

by Justin Glow on

Six countries around the world have the eagle as their national animal: Albania, Germany, and Nigeria each share the regular, run-of-the-mill eagle, while Mexico, Poland, and the United States associate themselves with the Golden Eagle, White-tailed Eagle, and Bald Eagle (pictured), respectively.

Five countries each honor the lion as a political symbol: Bulgaria, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Singapore, and Sri Lanka, while three countries chose the tiger: Bangladesh (Royal Bangal), India (Bengal), and South Korea (Amur). Finland and Russia are bears. Oh my!

Aside from the aforementioned eagles, many nations elect birds to represent their political drive:

  • Estonia: Barn Swallow
  • France: Gallic Rooster
  • Guyana: Canje Pheasant
  • Iceland: Falcon
  • Japan: Japanese Pheasant
  • Venezuela: Turpial
  • New Zealand: Kiwi (pictured)
  • Chile: Condor
  • Columbia: Condor
  • Malta: Blue Rock Thrush
  • Pakistan: Markhor
  • Peru: Vicuña

Surprisingly, Spain’s national animal is the bull. You’d think they would have picked an animal that isn’t routinely killed for fun. It would be like the United States holding a week-long festival where revelers are encouraged to jump into a giant cage filled with rabid bald eagles. Spectators would then be urged to goad the eagles until they either lose interest and fly off, die, or forcibly insert their beaks into the eyes of their torturers. What fun!

The Chinese had a hard time deciding on which animal to choose to represent their country, so they went with three: the Chinese Dragon, the Crane, and the Giant Panda. It’s tough to call a the Chinese Dragon an animal, however, because it’s mythical. The Giant Panda is very real, and very endangered, with an estimated 2,000 left in the entire world. They’re also what’s known as a living fossil, which is “an informal term for any living species (or clade) of organism which seems to be the same as a species otherwise only known from fossils and has no close living relatives,” according to Wikipedia.

And let’s not forget these other countries and their national animals, many of which I had never heard of until now:

  • Belarus — Wisent (bison)
  • Bhutan — Takin (goat-antelope thing)
  • Botswana — Zebra
  • Cambodia — Kouprey (ox)
  • Finland — Brown Bear
  • Vietnam — Water Buffalo
  • Nepal — Cow
  • South Africa — Springbok (gazelle)
  • Ireland — Stag (deer)
  • Canada — Beaver
  • Honduras — White-tailed Deer
  • Italy — Italian Wolf
  • Moldova — Auroch (bovidae)
  • Namibia — Oryx (antelope)
  • omania — Lynx (cat, pictured)
  • Philippines — Carabao (water buffalo)
  • Saint Kitts and Nevis — Vervet Monkey
  • Thailand — Thai elephant
  • Turkey — Grey Wolf
  • Peru: Vicuña

(Source)

Americano To Go (Away from Forbidden City)

by Iva Skoch on

Following up on Neil’s post, the Starbucks in Forbidden City is in fact, closing. The Chinese have gathered 500,000 signatures that caused the management to shut it down.

Is that good or bad news?

Tim Footman of The Guardian expresses a concern in his column today that “in a global market of implied cultural signifiers, absolutely any product – even a cup of mediocre coffee – seems to have the potential to challenge socialism with Chinese characteristics.”

He points out what we all know: it is not coffee that Starbucks sells. They sell “a lifestyle, a feeling, a brand, a corporate reimagining of bohemian leisure.” Although the Chinese are perfectly willing to sell the fancy coffee, they refuse to sell the name and lifestyle. It was either changing the name or closing shop.

If you change the name, you end up with mediocre coffee. Closing shop, I guess, made perfect sense.