Red Horse Cafe

by Erik Olsen on

I’ve got a new favorite cafe I want to post about in Brooklyn. I don’t gush about a lot of places, but when I do gush, I mean it. The Red Horse Cafe sits on the corner of 6th Avenue and 12th Street in Park Slope and serves a predictably young, artistic, often parental crowd; but the coffee is superb and it is nicely wired so you can hang out check your email and read a good book in a comfy chair.

Occasionally, I like to highlight the best places I find around the city because there’s so much out there, it’s often hard to find the top notch spots. If you happen to sped much time in Park Slope or Brooklyn, drop by the Red Horse and have a cup of coffee and a bagel. It’s a very pleasant place to while away a Sunday morning.

Vacation Volunteer

by Erik Olsen on

I’ve yet to do one, but I have to tell you I am a big fan of the whole volunteer vacation thing. I particularly like the Earthwatch folks, for example. Or you can take a look over at Global Volunteers, another purveyor of volunteer vacations. But take a look at this piece from CNN about the whole “volunteer vacation” thing. You have to pay sometimes, but it’s worth it because you’re not just hanging on the beach like some daiquiri-sipping tourist. You’re fully engaged.

But sadly, these trips aren’t cheap. Costs for one- to three-week Global Volunteers projects range from $650 to $2,595. In 2004, the average price for a one-to-three week Earthwatch project was $1,850, with projects ranging in price from $800 to $3,500. Travel expenses to the group meeting point are not included for either organization. Still, do it if you can. What a way to travel.

UNESCO’s World Heritage Disease

by Neil Woodburn on

Is a “World Heritage” designation the kiss of death for spectacular sites around the world?

We posted a few days ago about National Geographic Traveler rating various UNESCO World Heritage sites based upon the impact that tourism and local infrastructure is having upon the site itself. A great follow-up comment by RW directed readers to a Newsweek article from last April which theorizes that sites identified by UNESCO for their unique cultural and historical attributes are consequently doomed by this very act.

Once a site is chosen as a World Heritage site by UNESCO, it basically gets the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval. This means that every tourist within 200 miles will detour to visit simply because it is on the World Heritage list. This is absolutely true. I’ve done it myself. I’ve gone way out of my way to check out places I’ve never heard about merely because my guidebook mentioned they were World Heritage sites.

It’s an ironic affliction. Locations once so very obscure suddenly become “hot destinations” and are consequently trampled by hordes of tourists, tour guides, and tour busses.

So why bother with the designations at all?

UNESCO helps provide financial support to maintain and protect the locations. Ironically, with the accompanying increase in tourism, they are most likely going to need those funds.

GADLING’S TAKE FIVE: Week of October 29

by Adrienne Wilson on

The moment you have all been waiting for has arrived at last. An unforgettable week… The most amazing things in blogging history, right here, now… It’s Gadling’s Take Five!!! A little too dramatic? I agree. Let’s just get to what you missed.

5. Star Locator:
Here’s a gear piece for all camp-loving individuals who like to stare off into starry nights, but have trouble finding popular constellations like Orion’s Belt. Maybe you just want to take a glimpse at Mars… Now you can do so with this handy dandy gadget, but you’ll have to visit this one yourself. It’s really rather cool!

4. On Stebastopol:
I’ve never heard of Stebastopol and if someone had asked me prior to reading this piece I would have told them it was in Estonia somewhere. Who says travel bloggers know it all? Stebastopol is mentioned here by Erik who passed through not too long ago and also mentioned by Outside Magazine. They say it’s one of the great towns to live in… Hmm…

3. Get Paid to Travel to Iran:
Someone please sign me up for this promotion! How bad I want to travel to the country of Iran I cannot say, but it looks as though they are making more efforts to bring tourists from the West on in to show them they aren’t as dangerous as the media makes them seem. Travel agents – encourage people to travel to Iran and you could be making some extra cash.

2. Bad English:
This is a book all of us might want to pick up, because in my mind bad English is everywhere, including in English speaking countries. Get your quick laughs about goof-ups found across the globe, but I urge you to spell check yourself and make sure your grammar is on point. You’ll probably find that some foreigners are better at grammar usage than you. I have from time to time.

1. Most Dangerous U.S. Cities:
Pack a glock if you find yourself headed to St. Louie, Flint, or Detroit anytime soon. These three just ranked tops in most dangerous U.S. cities. Okay, don’t pack a glock or any kind of weapon, but do look at the list to see why all the violence. You may be surprised where your own city ranks.

Why the Veil?

by Erik Olsen on

Every good traveler knows that it is imperative when abroad to be sensitive to the local culture. But some cultural practices have a foreignness to them that is off-putting to people ,and when you factor in Islam, well, there’s a whole nasty stew of prejudices and issues associated with that as well. One of the cultural practices that has long puzzled me is the veil. It is said that Muslim women are compelled to wear a veil over their faces because several interpretations of the Koran say so. The veil, goes some interpretations, is meant to prevent women from exposing their beauty to other men, thereby lessening temptations that might lead to…well, adultery or other potentially damaging societal problems.

OK, that’s just one of several interpretations, but the reason I bring all this up is because the veil is a rather interesting cultural artifact that any traveler should be aware of if they are visiting a country where women wear one. And, along these lines, I just heard a very educational radio story about the origin of the veil. This story from NPR is one of several that will be examining Islam over the next week. The reporter talks to several scholars who study Islam as well as an Iraqi in California who discusses the matter from his perspective. It’s well worth the six or so minutes it takes to listen to it.