Las Vegas Nature

by Neil Woodburn on

Chirping birds, garden trails, fresh air, wildlife. Hmmm, must be Las Vegas.

What?!?

Yes indeed, just a scant four miles from the world’s most unnatural strip of manmade extravaganza there exists a peaceful oasis of tranquility known as the Las Vegas Springs Preserve. When it opened last June, it was not with the fanfare which normally accompanies grand openings in Vegas, but rather with a quieter demeanor more appropriate for a nature preserve.

Visiting Vegas to enjoy nature is like climbing Mt. Whitney to enjoy the ocean. And yet, according to a recent article in the LA Times, the 185 acre preserve is well worth the trip thanks to its “176,000 square feet of museums, educational galleries…, interactive exhibits…, expansive botanical garden, and 2 1/2 miles of trails.”

Hmm. As much as I love nature, this sounds like a place to send the wife and kids while you’re holed up in the sports book.

Elite Green Car – and other unusual word combinations

by Leif Pettersen on

Here’s a Super-Duper Secret Leif Pettersen Tip to Hilarious Writing (SDSLPTHW): when you’re hurting for a joke, just throw in unexpected word combinations.

Examples: “muscular fart”, “righteous taco”, “likeable president”

Accordingly, when I tried to write the first paragraph of this post and had to arrange the words ‘luxury’, ‘eco-friendly’, ‘chauffer’, ‘Lexus’, ‘hybrid’ and ‘Atlanta’ in an interesting way, it was unexpectedly funny. Not ha-ha funny, but you know…

Elite Green Car is the cause of today’s wordsmith oddity. Launched this month, the company offers eco-friendly chauffeured transportation in the Atlanta area via their fleet of luxury full-size Lexus RX 400 hybrid cars. (See what I mean? Tee hee!)

All kidding aside, there’s a certain inexplicable thrill to tooling around in a swanky, Super Ultra-Low Emission Lexus that boasts “maximum fuel efficiency along with capturing lost energy from braking and deceleration as electric power to recharge the battery”, currently rated as the most energy efficient car on the market.

Elite Green Car is the brainchild of entrepreneur Mike Kersten, a certified pilot, avid outdoorsman and father of two. Concerned about Atlanta’s notorious environmental stresses, Kersten resolved to “fuel” his passion for the planet by launching the Elite Green Car service in his adopted home town.

So, you’re traveling in style with a minimal carbon footprint, what else do you get for your money? Elite’s vehicles are equipped with XM NavTraffic, GPS Tracking (“ensuring that the fuel-efficient ride travels the most efficient routes, minimizing toxic emissions”), WiFi services, Sirius Satellite Radio, DVD, CD, surround sound capabilities and DriveCam’s behavior-based risk mitigation solution. Is technology great or what?

Elite’s primary services include airport transportation, corporate travel, VIP/Executive transportation and special events and occasions. Though, I don’t think they’d be opposed to (unexpected word combination warning) “environmentally responsible gnarly joy ride, dude” (SDSLPTHW: that’s called a “throw back joke”).

Kersten is planning on expanding to Nashville, Charleston, Birmingham and, the eco-friendly center of the universe, San Francisco in 2008.

Oh China, how you’ve changed! Part 2

by Neil Woodburn on

This is part two of a three part series exploring the tremendous changes that have occurred in China since the author last visited as a tourist in 1995. To start reading from the beginning, click here.

China was, and still remains, the most challenging country I have ever traveled. Of course, when I say this, I mean the China I wrestled with in 1995. At the time, it was a given rule that a person must set aside at least one day for logistics for every two days of travel. Nothing was easy. Simply buying a train ticket in the “Foreigners Only” line, for example, was an all day affair in which the salesperson might refuse to sell you a ticket to Chengdu but have no problems selling one to the person immediately behind you.

In addition, simple international forms of communication were never understood. Pointing at your wrist would never get the time out of someone. Pointing at a train and asking “Beijing?” would never reveal if that was indeed the train to Beijing. And, ordering chicken from your Chinese phrase book meant getting a cooked chicken complete with head, beak and claws, but without any seasoning or sauce whatsoever. Frankly, I was surprised it was even cooked.

With such little exposure to the outside world, the cultural differences made for some very trying times while traveling in the 1990s.Fortunately, things have changed quite a bit since then. Keep in mind, however, that my observations are a little skewed since both cities I visited will be hosting Olympic events in 2008 and are therefore scrambling frantically to become more tourist friendly.

As a result, I found Beijing and Shenyang pleasantly amicable. Compared to 15 years ago, there were far more signs in English, it was much easier to communicate simple meal needs, and sales staff were astronomically more helpful. Many even spoke English.

The government is trying hard to ensure that visitors during the Olympics have an enjoyable experience. This naturally involves massive training programs for anyone who will come in contact with foreigners as well as new laws prohibiting spitting, slurping soup, and other activities that visitors might find offensive. And so, I had a nice chuckle at the Beijing airport when I ran across the device in the above photograph (sorry for the blurry shot, but it was in the airport and photography wasn’t allowed). It was attached to the front of a counter where a woman was checking my ticket and passport. This is great! Just the slightest bit of attitude and I could reach out with my finger and ding her! If they had this device 12 years ago, the bad button would have broken the first day from overuse.

The Economy

Back in 1995, Beijing was practically rural in its mentality and feel. Today, however, a burgeoning economy has produced a rash of products and a billion plus consumers to swoop them up. Luxury items and international brands are now available in the countless shops which have blossomed in this supposedly “communist” environment. As a result, consumerism is on the rise as products that were impossible to buy 12 years ago are now fashionable must-haves whose attributes are increasingly touted by a rapidly growing amount of advertising which also didn’t exist in the 1990s. Billboards and neon, while not dominating the cityscape, have certainly changed its face.

And then, of course, there is the most ubiquitous symbol of an emerging market: the cell phone. I didn’t see as many people chatting away in public as I would have expected, but the Chinese cell phone market is indeed taking off.

And so, my journey through modern day China was a voyage through a nascent economy which is visibly rising to its feet and, according to some experts, may one day dominate the world market. It’s a strange disconnect from what I witnessed 12 years ago and no matter how much I was prepared for the new China, the sight of an Audi driving, Gucci-clad, Chinese princess gabbing away on her cell phone was an image I would have never thought possible back in 1995.

Traffic and Pollution

Twelve years ago pedestrians stood the chance of getting run over by a bicycle if they weren’t careful crossing the road in China. Today, they stand the chance of getting run over by a car.

The above photo is from 1995 when bikes ruled the road and cars were rare and usually government owned. Bicycles were king in China and the roads literally overflowed with them–some nine million in Beijing alone.

Today, the roads are crammed with private automobiles instead, thanks to China’s expanding economy. Bicycles have become a second-class form of transport and in some places are actually banned from the same roadways they used to rule.

This has transformed cities like Beijing into just another auto-choked Asian capital where traffic jams and honking horns have sadly replaced the more tranquil, iconic bicycle.

As if this isn’t bad enough, the increase in pollution since 1995 was noticeable before I even landed at the airport. Descending from the sunny, clear skies of 30,000 feet into Beijing airspace, my plane passed through a thick, murky inversion layer of toxic pollutants that nearly obscured the sun for the remainder of my stay in the capital, as well as further north in Shenyang. Sure, the region has always received a fair amount of dust storms from the Gobi desert and air pollution from nearby factories, but the addition of 1,000 new cars hitting the streets every day in Beijing has made the air quality far worse.

The thought of an Olympic athlete performing in this pollutant cocktail is simply unfathomable. The city is aware of this problem, however, and has already launched a couple of exploratory “car free” days where private cars were banned from the streets in hopes to clean up the air.

Personally, I don’t think it’s going to work. The air is foul and will only get worse as cars continue to replace bikes.

Yesterday: Oh China, how you’ve changed! Part 1
Tomorrow: Oh China, how you’ve changed! Part 3

Hanoi’s own version of Nessie — except with more sightings

by Martha Edwards on

When I first flew into Vietnam, I landed in Hanoi. After travelling through Laos, Vietnam was a bit of a shock — it’s more frantic and dirty than any city I’ve ever been to, even crazier than London, Paris, Bangkok and New York all put together. Crossing the street is a matter of life and death, people yell at you in foreign dialects for no apparent reason and you better not let the crowds push you off the sidewalk — the gutter is full of sewage.

But amidst all the indescribable hustle and bustle, there’s an oasis smack dab in the middle of the city — a beautiful lake surrounded by a equally stunning park is a welcome refuge for a weary traveler. And there’s a little castle right in the center on it’s own little island. It’s pretty surreal.

Here’s something I didn’t know about this little lake — there’s a well-known giant turtle in those waters who calls the lake his home.
The Great Grand Turtle, also known as Professor Turtle or Rafetus Leloi, has been emerging from the waters a record number of times this year — 78 to be exact, compared with around 50 last year — and it’s hoped he will pop up more often. In fact, scientists are trying to clean up pollution around the lake to guarantee it. Appearances are a delight to school children and tourists in Hanoi, because it’s believed the turtle was instrumental in the magic that fought off Ming invaders from China in the 15th century.

No wonder they call him the Great Grand Turtle — he’s 2 meters (6 ft 7 in) long and 1.1 meters (3ft 7 in) wide, and he weights 200 kg (440 lb)!

Endangered Tourism: Should we cut back?

by Grant Martin on

Today’s traveler is consuming destinations at a harrowing rate. Remember when Prague was in? We’re so past that now. Anybody and their mother can get into Russia — and Cuba is just over the horizon. People are even organizing tours to Rwanda. Yes, Rwanda.

As the global economy evolves, and hot-spots diffuse from country to country, tourism’s impact is starting to weigh on the world. In urban destinations made out of concrete and steel, sustainability is inevitable; a tourist can land in Philadelphia, consume a dozen cheese steaks and see the Liberty Bell with little impact. But the world’s natural destinations are starting to bow under the weight.

The Galapagos Islands are a prime example. Tourism and associated businesses have skyrocketed on the island over the past ten years, resulting in an influx of invasive species in addition to the socioeconomic detriment (it’s estimated that only 7 -10% of each tourism dollar goes into the local economy). A great article published this past May by the Charles Darwin Foundation reviews a collection of recent data and highlights the gravity of the situation. It’s kind of scary seeing how the industry can turn into a monster and envelop a microcosm so quickly.

Ephesus, Turkey is another example. Part of these Eastern Mediterranean classical ruins have been reconstructed by the Turkish government and the archaeological community to show how life once was in the great city. Tourism has surged in the area. But is it right for us to rebuild a civilization based on our interpretation and for the tourist dollar? Should we leave the archaeological record intact and preserve the ruins as they lie?

Personally, I’m torn on the topic; we struggle with the same thing in archeology every day. Should we excavate a site, disassemble it and learn from it, or should we leave it in place, study it from the outside and preserve it?

Should we go to the Galapagos Islands, disturb the ecosystem just to take some pictures and impress all of our friends?

Should we take pieces of the Parthenon from the Acropolis and put them in a museum? A similar issue was posed to the Times writer Andrew Revkin at the end of last month and he too notes the sensitivity of the matter.

Starting today, Gadling will begin to explore some of the travel destinations that skirt this line — sites that are either in danger, reconstructed — or into ruin. We’ll let you make the decision on whether to rush and see these places before they’re gone or try to preserve them.

Next up: an in depth study of the impact of tourism on the Galapagos Islands.