How Not To Become The Victim Of A $50M Hotel Heist

by Libby Zay on

In a plot that plays out like a Hollywood movie, an armed thief who raided an exclusive hotel along the French Riviera got away with an estimated bounty of $50 million. Amusingly, the stolen jewels were lifted out of the very hotel where Alfred Hitchcock’s “To Catch a Thief” starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly was filmed in the 1950s. The haul didn’t come from hotel guests, but instead from a diamond exhibition on site — and it happened just days after a member of the notorious “Pink Panther” gang of jewel thieves escaped from a Swiss prison just 10 miles from the French border.

Hotels in France seem to be a hotbed for jewelry theft lately. This past May, a $2.5 million diamond necklace was stolen from a gala at a hotel during the Cannes Film Festival, just a week after $1 million of jewels was stolen from the hotel room of a Chopard employee when he was out to dinner.

Although Gadling readers might not be traveling with millions in jewels, it’s likely that there is something of value in each of our bags. Here are some tips for keeping your valuables safe:

  • Do Travel Inconspicuously: avoid being targeted by criminals by wearing little or no jewelry while traveling. If you must wear a ring, turn it around so the gemstones aren’t showing.
  • Don’t Check It: in the event of a lost bag (or airport employees with sticky fingers) keep anything of value in your carry-on.
  • Don’t Let Your Guard Down: criminals patiently wait for the moment when travelers aren’t paying attention to grab their bags. Be especially careful in ticket lines, near restrooms and at restaurants.
  • Don’t Keep Jewelry Out in the Hotel Room: while easily breached by professional thieves, a hotel safe is your best bet. Leaving anything out in the open not only makes things tempting for hotel personnel, but also for professional criminals walking by (how many times have you seen a room wide open while the cleaning crew is inside?).
  • Don’t Leave Home With It: this is the best advice of all. If there’s something you can’t afford to lose while traveling, your best bet is to just leave it at home.

Territorial Disputes Over Tourist Attractions

by Libby Zay on

Spain is being accused of intentionally holding tourists in long lines as they make their way back from day tripping in Gibraltar. The British Overseas Territory claims the traffic jam — which has so far affected more than 10,000 vehicles — has been deliberately orchestrated because of a disagreement over a creation of an artificial reef in territorial waters. Of course, this isn’t the only territory in the middle of a tug-of-war match by two — or sometimes more — countries. Here are just a few of the dozens of places with disputed borders where you may find yourself stuck:

  • Mont Blanc Summit (France vs. Italy): Both countries have had a long but peaceful dispute over ownership of the summit of the highest mountain in the Alps.
  • Liancourt Rocks (Japan vs. South Korea): this group of small, craggy islets has become a tourist attraction in recent years, but its sovereignty is still being disputed.
  • East Jerusalem (Israel vs. Palestinian Authority): Jerusalem’s Old City and some of the holiest sites of Judaism, Christianity and Islam are just a few of the attractions that lie in this hotly debated territory.
  • Ceuta (Spain vs. Morocco): the majority of this city’s population are ethnic Spanish who are opposed to the idea of being ruled by Morocco.
  • Tennessee River (Tennessee vs. Georgia): Georgia lawmakers claim surveyors who mapped out the border between these two states in 1818 got it wrong, and part of the Tennessee River should actually belong to Georgia.
  • Paracel Islands (China vs. Taiwan vs. Vietnam): three countries lay claim to the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea. The islands have the potential to become a popular tourist attraction because of their large reef system, but currently tensions between the countries are too high.
  • Southern Half of Belize (Belize vs. Guatemala): All of Belize was formerly part of Guatemala, and today the debate still continues over who is the rightful owner.

Lisbon Street Art: A Vibrant City Attraction

by Elizabeth Seward on

Lisbon is a city that does street art well. I knew that before I arrived in Lisbon for my 15-hour layover while on the way to Cape Verde, and so I walked around with my camera, snapping shots of every compelling image I saw that had repurposed public space for canvas. I liked Lisbon so much that I came back for an extra four days at the end of my trip.

Terracotta rooftops and cobblestone streets are angled sharply in the town of Lisbon, a place that can’t help but remind travelers of San Francisco, and some of the best art in Lisbon can be found between those cobblestone streets and terracotta roofs. Also situated atop seven hills alongside a bay, utilizing cable street cars for public transportation, triumphing despite a history with severe earthquakes, pouring glasses of phenomenal local wine and boasting brightly colored buildings, the 25 de Abril Bridge cements (or should I say bridges?) the comparison between the two cities – as it should since the same company behind Lisbon’s famous bridge built the Golden Gate Bridge. But the fact that both cities exude remarkable street art is a commonality that secures my appreciation for Lisbon as a parallel universe of San Francisco.

%Gallery-194249%Art, in the broad sense, has a way of amplifying all other elements of a place. Street art, unlike any other form, does this especially well since it transforms a place from the outside and exposes those who aren’t necessarily searching for art to art. Street art provides for us a glimpse into local social commentary, regional values and cultural movements. The messages are relayed instantaneously while the transient art form draws an onlooker to the present to take in that which might not remain tomorrow.

Lisbon’s street art has not only helped to shine light on the vibrant arts community within the city, but the art itself has also been attracting tourists. The city of Lisbon has clearly embraced the role street artists play in the larger scheme of things, at least to some degree. While staying in The Corinthia Hotel, I couldn’t help but notice the murals of animals beneath the nearby overpass, painted in an effort to bring attention to the nearby Lisbon Zoo. Meandering through the slanted city streets offered me views of the varying city recycling bins – many of which are individually painted in a street art style, but clearly the result of a concerted and collaborative effort orchestrated by Galeria De Arte Urbana. Even stencil-type art on plywood surrounding construction is beautiful in Lisbon.

I went out walking in Lisbon one day and didn’t stop until my feet couldn’t physically bear the brunt of another step. My perseverance was mostly at the hand of my inability to quell my quest for views of street art. I purposefully lost myself in the city, taking spontaneous turns and not referring to a map. At one point in time, I happened upon an alley full of street art and a street artist hard at work on one particularly impressive piece. I didn’t dare interrupt him, certain that what he needed to say that day would be said on the wall before him once he was finished.

[Photo Credit: Elizabeth Seward]

What Impact Will The Train Crash In Spain Have On The Rail Travel Industry?

by Dave Seminara on

CNN and other news networks have been airing dramatic clips of the train crash in Spain that killed 80 people on Wednesday over and over again this week. And if it weren’t for the Anthony Weiner sexting scandal, the coverage might be even more intense. We’ll learn more about the cause of the crash in the weeks and months to come as the investigation unfolds, but based on what we know now, how will the crash impact the public’s perception of train travel safety?

According to press reports, the train driver, Francisco José Garzón Amo, now reportedly in police custody, was driving twice as fast as he should have been on the section of track where the crash occurred. He posted messages on Facebook last year boasting about driving trains some 200 kilometers per hour and reportedly told rescue workers, ‘I’ve f***ed it up. I want to die.” All this points to the conclusion that this is a case of driver error rather than a structural issue with Spain’s high-speed trains. And statistics indicate that Spain’s rail safety record is better than the European average. But will these facts be enough to reassure nervous travelers?Train travel is my favorite mode of transport. For me, a day spent on a pleasant train ride is infinitely more pleasant than a day spent on an airplane or a bus. I’m traveling to Spain over the Labor Day weekend, and just as the crash transpired on Wednesday, I was actually looking into schedules and tickets for a planned train trip from Barcelona to San Sebastian. But I have to admit; watching the footage of the train crash scared the hell out of me and I have yet to buy the ticket, though I probably will.

There is a risk every time you attempt to go anywhere- by car, foot, boat, train, plane, or donkey. Crashes will happen but it’s somewhat rare to see such dramatic footage like this one. I think the crash will have only a short-term negative effect on the rail industry because most travelers are aware of the risks and the fact that all pilots and drivers can make mistakes.

But let’s hope that something positive comes from this disaster so that something like this never happens again. Spain has invested heavily in developing its high-speed train network, but now it needs to implement a system where drivers are being monitored more closely. Authorities can’t track every comment a driver makes on Facebook, but surely there is a way to flag drivers who have been guilty of driving too fast and removing them before they have a chance to cause harm.

Giant Blue Rooster In Trafalgar Square Leaves Londoners Bemused And Befuddled

by Sean McLachlan on


Trafalgar Square in London has a new statue — a giant blue cockerel. It’s the latest work of art to adorn the Fourth Plinth, a nineteenth-century base flanking Nelson’s Column. The other three plinths all have statues but the Fourth Plinth never got one, and so in recent years it’s become home to a series of temporary sculptures.

The giant blue cock, as the British media can’t resist calling it, has caused a bit of a stir. The cockerel and the color blue are both symbols of France, and this is a square dedicated to one of the British Empire’s greatest victories over Napoleon. German artist Katharina Fritsch, who created the sculpture, said she wasn’t aware of the symbolism. As London Mayor Boris Johnson says (he’s the blond guy with the awful haircut in this video) it could mean a lot of things, such as the British victory in the Tour de France. At the very least, the royal blue hue ties into London’s recent baby boy mania.

The Huffington Post has more photos of the giant rooster.