New season of Bizarre Foods starts tomorrow

by Jamie Rhein on

Tomorrow night on the Travel Channel at 10 p.m. EST, in a new season of Bizarre Foods, Andrew Zimmern will once again slurp, crunch and chomp on various dishes from around the world that might be real stomach turners for some people. Zimmern seems particularly fond of various innards and testicles.

As I’ve posted before, the only thing I have ever seen Zimmern spit out is durian. Although there is an ick factor in the show’s formula, mostly I find each episode highly informative and interesting. My favorite episode from last season was Zimmern’s trip to Bolivia, a country that I did not know much about beforehand.

Tomorrow night the focus is on Phuket, Thailand. Since Thai food is truly spectacular, I’m curious to find out about the bizarre foods Zimmern downs, and what cultural tidbits and sights the show has chosen to highlight.

I’ve been to Thailand a few times, but never to Phuket which is a popular travel junket from Singapore. I know it as a place filled with resorts frequented by expats and a slew of other tourists. It will be interesting to see what Zimmern has discovered. I bet seafood will fit into the equation and possibly insects.

Russell Brand’s account of not being allowed in the U.S.

by Jamie Rhein on

Admittedly, Russell Brand, the British comedian and actor, probably best known in the U.S. for his role as Aldous Snow, a rock star in the movie Forgetting Sarah Marshall, can go a bit over the top with his humor.

Because he will be hosting the MTV Video Music Awards tonight, he is on U.S. entertainment radar again. However, it’s an earlier appearance on David Letterman in May that caught my attention.

This account of why he missed his first scheduled appearance on David Letterman pokes a bit of fun at U.S. immigration without being anti-American. According to him, Brand wasn’t allowed back in the U.S. after a trip to Britain to promote the movie because of his past record. Although he doesn’t specifically state his past problems, they have to do with drug issues for which he has had treatment.

Basically, Brand’s hilarious style of story-telling captures an interesting cast of players and circumstances at U.S. immigration. I do think he’s embellishing, but it’s funny. For example, he describes a Gambian man wearing an American flag tie under going questioning and hones in on the stereotypes of people who look suspicious.

Brand never does say how he cleared his record to be allowed back into the U.S. after being sent back to Great Britain.

When Brand was in the U.S. filming Forgetting Sarah Marshall, he probably had a work visa which would be different from the type of visa he would have to make talk show appearances. That’s my assumption.

It just seems odd he would have been granted a visa for one circumstance and denied entry for another. However, Brand is not that well known–yet, so perhaps the immigration officers didn’t believe him. That’s also what Brand conjectured. Since he is a comedian, who can be sure of the truth and what makes for good entertainment?

There is a funny part at the end of the interview when he talks about what it was like to be in Hawaii during the filming of Sarah Marshall. Being in paradise too long is like “being hit over the head with a rainbow.”

Gadling Take Five : Week of August 30-September 5

by Jamie Rhein on

This week, as the Olympics ended, we welcomed blogger David Breisch to the Gadling fold. This was a busy week of diverse travel options, breakthroughs and oddities.

  • Jerry tuned us into what travel to a volcanic island is like with two separate posts. The first post, of his two part series “The Krakatau Journal: An island paradise that can kill you,’ and the second post, offer Jerry’s personal account of his trip to this volcanic island in Indonesia. He also details other volcanoes one can hit on an adventure vacation.
  • If you’re thinking that Hooters in Beijing is like Hooters in the U.S., like the big Os in the word “hOOt,” think again. As Josh, pointed out, the waitress costumes and build are not the same, even though it sounds like the food is. Josh’s story caught my eye because there was a knock-off Hooters in the town where I lived in Taiwan–except the name was wrong. The sign said, “Hooties.”
  • We can chalk one up for consumer complaints. As Grant reported, United Airlines has decided to nix the idea of charging people for meals on international flights. Who would ever have thought charging was a good idea is beyond me.
  • If you’re looking to bed down for the night in an unusual place, Scott has the answer. In his post “Spend the night in a Jumbo jet without leaving the ground,” he gives the scoop on the Jumbo Jet hostel that will open at the airport in Stockholm. As Scott says, you need to be a mile off the ground a mile to join the Mile High Club. Having adult fun in a jumbo jet on the ground is not the same thing.
  • For entertainment that is not particularly expensive, Meg’s post on the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Virginia presents an idea that might be perfect for a fall weekend. The ticket price of the plays are reasonable and the Blue Ridge Mountains, where the theater is located, are stunning when the leaves change color.

Have a wonderful weekend. I hope there’s a festival near you. I hit the Popcorn Festival in Marion, Ohio today and am heading to the Honey Festival in Lithopolis tomorrow. Last week was the Sweet Corn Festival in Millersport.

Photo of the Day (9.5.08)

by Aaron Hotfelder on


Remember the Olympics? This photo from the Closing Ceremonies in the National Stadium was taken by pirano. Notice the dancers on the balls, seemingly suspended in mid-air. Will we ever see another Olympics with such an impressive Opening and Closing Ceremonies?

Start practicing your large-group dancing, Londoners.

Want your photo considered for Gadling’s Photo of the Day? Submit it here.

Shakespeare comes alive in Staunton, Virginia

by Meg Massie on

The Shenandoah Valley of Virginia is well known for its natural beauty. Visitors come from far and wide to hike the trails of the Shenandoah National Park and see the vibrant colors of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the fall — but there’s a new reason folks are flocking to the area: the theater.

In 2001, Shenandoah Shakespeare, which was to become the American Shakespeare Center, opened the Blackfriars Playhouse in Staunton, Virginia. The playhouse is a replica of Shakespeare’s original indoor theater, and plans are in the works to build an open air replica of the Globe Theater as well.

Visitors to the Staunton playhouse can enjoy a rotating schedule of Shakespeare classics as well as modern plays and concert events in an atmosphere designed to recreate the Elizabethan experience. Next week marks the opening of the ASC’s production of Shakespeare’s Richard II:

An exploration about the nature of greatness is timely fare in an election year. Pitting Richard II, a man of words, against Bullingbrook, a man of action, Shakespeare raises the art of language to new heights while reminding us that rulers “feel want, taste greif, need friends.”

There are pay-what-you-will performances on September 10, 11, and 12, while regular ticket prices start at $20. Also playing this fall are King Lear, Twelfth Night, and Measure for Measure.