Take Air Lift to Mexico: Breasts and a Hat Dance

by Jamie Rhein on

I know a person who went to Mexico two years ago to get her teeth done. She needed a couple of them capped and a filling or two–perhaps even a root canal. Before she went she told me how much cheaper these procedures are across the U.S.’s southern border and that her best friend who lives in Arizona always goes to Mexico for dental work. Going to the dentist in Mexico meant she’d have a good reason to visit her best friend and take a mini vacation.

These days people are heading to Mexico for more than their teeth. Plastic surgery jaunts to Guadalajara are more and more common. (Read recent Christian Science Monitor article). First, the prices in Mexico are considerably lower. For example, as the article states, a “tummy tuck” in Mexico is $4,000. In the U.S. it’s $15,000. There’s even a company based in North Carolina that makes this experience easier. Air Lift connects patients with surgeons, a private home to stay in and transportation from the home to the surgeon. I do have to say that the company’s title cracks me up. It makes me think things like: Get your face lift thanks to Air lift. Your breasts need a lift? Try Air Lift. Stuff like that.

Secondly, Guadalarjara is where the Mexican hat dance song and mariachi bands originated. Click on picture to find out more information about that. Actually plastic surgery and this tidbit about the hat dance have nothing to do with each other, but I did find out about the mariachi angle when I went searching for a photograph to use for this post. This was an “I didn’t know that” moment and thought I’d share it.

Although there are some tour companies that use the come to Mexico for a vacation and have a bit of plastic surgery while you’re here angle, these types are not recommended since plastic surgery is not fun and games.

Surge in Passport Applications Makes Wait Even Longer

by Catherine Bodry on

My passport expires in June 2008, and I guess I better get on renewing it if I want to travel anytime soon.

We’ve already reported on the major delays at the passport office. But it’s going to get worse before it gets better. The Associated Press reports that by 2011, more than half of all Americans will have passports (or the equivalent — the “passcard” has yet to be created). Before Congress required Americans to have passports when flying to Canada, Mexico, or the Caribbean, only 1 in 5 Americans had one. Now that number is 1 in 4. And next year a new wave of travel rules will be unleashed that will require passports for land and sea travel to the above countries, and it’s estimated that 1 in 2 citizens will have passports in 4 years.

Customers can no longer pay $60 and expect a 3-day expedited service, either. Now the State Department is giving itself 10 days for internal processing. That makes a total wait, for expedited service, of about 3 weeks. Right now the wait for a regularly processed application is 12 weeks — at the least.

I’m almost too late to leave the country by Christmas.

[via msnbc.com]

Where to Savor Wine

by Jamie Rhein on

A friend just sent me a link to A Fine Living Hub. I think it’s where people network about various topics. One topic forum that caught my attention was, “If you could drink a glass of wine anywhere…” Various people have offered up their favorite wine drinking spots. I’ve included their wine recommendations if they offered one.

Tallest Cactus in the World

by Jamie Rhein on

This might not be the coolest time of year to visit the tallest cactus in the world, but you can’t miss it if you head to the Sonora Desert in Baja California, Mexico where, according the Guiness World Records 2007 edition, the tallest of the tall cardon (Pachycereus pringlet) measured 63 feet in April of 1995. The books also states that this height is about as tall as four giraffes.

The other massive plant is the saguaro cactus. According to the U.S. post office stamp this cactus is the tallest in the United States. One place to see saguaros in abundance is at the Saguaro National Park near Tucson, Arizona. Even though it’s VERY hot here in the summer, as in scorching, there are guided programs by park rangers almost every weekend. This Friday you can go on the Twighlight Hike, a two hour walk that starts one hour before sunset or the Night Walk.

For a look at all sorts of desert cactus, the Cactus Garden at the Arizona -Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson has an extensive collection. This place looks stunning. It’s a zoo, a botanical gardens, gallery and natural history museum designed promote a love of nature– particularly the desert.

GADLING’S TAKE FIVE: Week of July 8

by Adrienne Wilson on

Time for another week of random picks from the bloggers here at Gadling. Saddle up, simmer down and go solo on the slow train if you must.

5. Albertan Cowboy Culture: Where’s the Real Old West These Days?:
When my mind conjures images of cowboys on the open range or prairie searching for the type of things cowboys go looking for I don’t imagine them in Canada. This could just be me, but thanks to Martha the cowboys in my daydream have a new home in Alberta. Some are a little commercialized and others a bit more authentic, but you’ll have to read further for the details.

4. Why Trains Suck in America:
I’ve never taken a train in America. Have you? Ever wonder why so many Americans don’t? See why Neil thinks train transportation is basically dead in the U.S.

3. The Best U.S. Cities for Singles:
It’s summer time in the city and you’re single. Find out which city has the most singles and mosey on over to find your better half. That’s if you don’t like being single for the summer and all.

2. A Canadian in Beijing: Reverse Culture Shock:
Goodbyes and readjustment can be a tough job to tackle after a long excursion abroad. Ember hasn’t been home long and already she is back on the road touring with her band. Check out this last post in her series and find out where you can keep tabs on her future jaunts.

1. The “Wonders of the World” Votes are in!:
The world has made its final decision and the new seven wonders of the world are…