Famous tourist destinations made more famous by literature

by Neil Woodburn on

I’ve always felt that movies have a much larger impact on a location than a book ever does, attracting tourists by the tour busload to see for themselves the wonderful images portrayed in a particular film.

But books have their draw as well. Earlier today, for example, we shared with you the Tolkien Trail in Birmingham, England where fans of Lord of the Rings can explore the landscape which inspired Middle Earth.

Condé Nast Traveler seems to have books on their mind as well. The recent September issue highlights a list of places where literature has had a dramatic impact on tourism–the most famous example being the annual increase of 800,000 visitors to the Louvre since The Da Vinci Code was published.

Condé Nast Traveler dives into eight other examples–such as Kefalonia, Greece where Corelli’s Mandolin takes place–that makes me want to read and travel much, much more. I hope their list inspires you to do the same–although you can easily cheat since most of these books have also been made into movies.

Photo of the Day (12-12-07)

by Jamie Rhein on

If you look into the blue ball, you’ll see buildings and people. According to the tags, this was shot was taken at the Marché aux Puces, a flea market in Paris, France. I can imagine Luke Robinson, who took the photo walking, along and noticing the reflection. “Look here.” Another thing that attracted me to this shot was the Blue Willow plate below the basket. My grandparents used plates with this design. I’ve loved this pattern since childhood, and if I were here, I’d ask the price.

If you have shots of images that have caught you eye, send them our way to catch ours at Gadling’s Flickr pool.

What’s up with those Europeans and their bikes?

by Jerry Guo on

In recent years, European bike-sharing programs have been all the rage (in Europe). The largest of these programs has been in Paris, which only started in July. In this program, as in most others, the costs of the bikes is offset by revenues from outdoor advertising, on the bike posts and shelters.

Now there’s some momentum stateside for these environmentally friendly initiatives. The first city looks to be Washington DC, in a deal sponsored by the advertising firm Clear Channel. There’ll be some sort of membership program along with a per-usage fee. 120 bikes will be the starter pool.

Chicago and San Francisco are also planning their own programs. In many cases, the Europeans seem one ahead of Americans on green initiatives, and I think this is another perfect example. Bikes have been a godsend to China, for instance. Think how much worse Beijing would be if there were 10 times more cars–that’s what we would be facing if everyone there didn’t already ride bikes around.

How to be a good dinner guest in France

by Martha Edwards on

My dad lived the high life in Europe for a good chunk of his adult life, and as a Commanding Officer for the Royal Canadian Air Forces, he was treated to many fine dinners at many fine establishments. So you can imagine the lectures I got when I put my elbows on the table or, heaven forbid, asked for ketchup for my food. “If you ask for ketchup in Paris, you’d get kicked out of the restaurant,” he’d say as I rolled my eyes.

As painful as it was when I was a surly teenager, I’m kind of glad for the etiquette lessons of my youth because I it gives me the chance to escape being labelled a stereotypically rude North American when travelling. Still, it can’t hurt to brush up on table manners. Here are some tips for being a good dinner guest in France from MSNBC:

  • Don’t arrive exactly on time for a dinner party. Come about 15 minutes to half an hour late
  • Don’t bring wine — it implies that you don’t trust the host’s selection. Bring sweets or flowers — but not chrysanthemums (they signify death) and not yellow ones (they signify an unfaithful husband)
  • Men should wear nice jackets to dinner and women should wear high heels
  • Always keep your hands on the table, but not the elbows.
  • When greeting, women can kiss women and women can kiss men, but two men should never kiss so save yourself the embarrassment of leaning in (cringe!) If you’re in Alsace or Brittany, be prepared for up to three kisses but don’t initiate them yourself.
  • Never pour your own wine at a restaurant. Want water? You’ll have to ask.
  • Eat asparagus with your fingers and use your digits to get shellfish out of the shell, but otherwise use your utensils.
  • Always eat with your fork in the left hand, knife in the right. And hold your fork properly — it’s not a shovel!
  • If it’s a five-course meal, the only course you can refuse is the fourth one (aka, the Cheese course.) If you have dietary restrictions, let them know beforehand because it’s uncouth to refuse anything.
  • Don’t cut your salad — roll it with your fork.

Independence days and elephants

by Jamie Rhein on

I’ve whipped out my International Calendar to see what might be left to tell about November before it slips away from Eastern Standard Time in a few hours. What I see is a whole lot of independence days and a slew of other politically geared occasions.

  • Nov. 1–Antigua-Barbuda gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1980.
  • Nov. 3–Dominica gained independence from the UK in 1978. Panama gained Independence from Colombia in 1903 and Micronesia gained independence from the U.S. in 1980.
  • Nov. 9–Cambodia gained independence from France in 1953.
  • Nov. 11–Poland gained independence in 1918; Angola gained independence from Portugal in 1975.
  • Nov. 18–Latvia gained independence from Russia in 1918; Morocco from France in 1956.
  • Nov. 25–Suriname gained independence
  • Nov. 28–Mauritania gained Independence from France in 1968 and Albania gained Independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1912, Panama gained independence from Spain in 1821 and East Timor gained independence from Portugal in 1975.
  • Nov. 30-Barbados gained independence from the U.K. in 1966

Other than these, Tonga has had Constitution Day (Nov. 4); Russia, Revolution Day (Nov. 7); Brazil, Republic Day (Nov. 15); and Vanuatu has had National Unity Day, (Nov. 29)

My favorite happening of the bunch of events that occurred this month, though, is the Surin Elephant Round-Up in Thailand.