Red Corner: Siberia as We Know It, Disappearing

by Neil Woodburn on

File this story under “Places to go Before Global Warming Destroys Them.”

The LA Times is reporting that global warming is seriously threatening 400,000 miles of Siberian permafrost. While this is great news for scientists searching for woolly mammoth bones previously locked in the permafrost for 10,000 years, this is not such good news for the rest of us. Melting permafrost releases carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere, thereby heating up the planet and increasing the rate of global warming.

Siberia will turn swampy and mushy and become inhospitable (in an entirely different manner than it is now). In addition, the famous Permafrost Institute in Yakutsk will have to close, or perhpas more appropriately, become a museum of the past.

In the meantime, I’d love to pull on some big rubber boots and go tromping through the mud in search of woolly mammoth tusks.

Red Corner: Siberia 101

by Neil Woodburn on

Ah yes, Siberia. The vast expanse of inhospitableness so often mocked in my youth as a place of exile and punishment. It wasn’t until I was much older (and perhaps wiser) that I learned just how wonderful Siberia could possibly be–providing you visited on your own accord instead of Stalin’s.

The Independent apparently agrees. They’ve just printed The Complete Guide To: Siberia last month and are introducing the region to a largely ignorant population of travelers who would ordinarily never dream of visiting Russia’s arctic tundra.

The guide covers a lot of ground for a newspaper article. Journalist Simon Calder points out that summertime temperatures in Siberia, an area larger than the United States, can regularly exceed 80 degrees. It is rich with a variety of bears, moose, and even tigers. Calder drops the lowdown on getting there, accommodations, food, getting around, cities to visit, and natural resources to enjoy.

Siberia 101 may or may not whet your travel appetite. I’ve visited twice now and have enjoyed it both times. It ain’t Disneyworld, as they say, but that’s what makes it all the more attractive.

GADLING’S TAKE FIVE: Week of June 25

by Adrienne Wilson on

Looks like another Friday has snuck up on us which means it’s time to list some of our favorite posts this week on Gadling. If you missed them before, here they are now:

5. Summer Hot Spots of the Rich and Famous:
Following the every move of movie and music stars has never been a personal past time of mine and while I choose to believe that most people are in the same category of caring less, I know I’m wrong. More people than I could ever possibly count will click into People.com, including some of our very dear Gadling readers to spy on the likes of famous folk on their glittery vaca’s in the Maldives. Thank Karen for the inspiration to do something great with your own summer days.

4. Most Expensive Cities:
Those of your traveling on a super tight budget will want to check out Neil’s blurb on the most expensive cities according to the U.S. based Mercer Human Resource Consulting, who just released their updated list. Last year Moscow was fourth on that very list and this year it gets tops for most expensive city. Apparently the folks there feel just a bit differently.

3. Air Conditioned Shirt:
Alrighty – Leave it to one of our fellow human beings to think up a gear item like the air conditioned shirt. Never in all my years would I have thought to see a shirt with a built in fan, but Erik has uncovered this unique piece of cooling cloth and makes a good point of how handy it could become in the Amazon.

2. Sounds to Sail to the Islands:
My longing to go to the islands and eclectic taste in music either from the islands or by an artists with roots in the area mentioned, lead me to creating this small guide for people looking to escape to a warm locale surrounded by water. Check out my list of good summer tunes and places to go after listening to them.

1. Lonely Planet Diving & Snorkeling Series:
Most of you know that I’m allergic to scuba diving and such now, but I can’t knock a good post when I see one and for underwater enthusiasts this is a must see. Erik directs our attention to Lonely Planet guide’s latest quest to update and publish five volumes of its Diving & Snorkeling series. Peep the post for a list of the upcoming releases.

Fly in a Real Fighter Jet

by Erik Olsen on

Top Gun, here you come. Yes, if you’ve ever wanted to flash your pearly whites and someone, flex your deltoids and say, “that’s right ,I am dangerous” Tom Cruise style, then maybe you’re ready for a flight in a MIG-29…or an assortment of other faster-than-sound jets.

The place to go to give it a try and see how many Gs your stomach can handle is Incredible Adventures, which offers an assortment of various jet fighter rides. They offer a MIGs over Moscow adventure that is interesting sounding as it is billed. I’d buy HAT for a dollar. Or, um, rather $3300..the starting price.

Madrid to Kiev

by Erik Olsen on

I love it when people put up sites to chronicle their epic trips. These sites are often both useful travel guides and vicarious glimpses into another person’s daily life. Some of them are done better than others, and many are crap, especially when people don’t post frequently or neglect to post photos, which are half the fun. Well, a traveler named Lee is following in the footsteps of Director Werner Herzog…well, sort of. He’s kind of following the off-hand advice of Herzog who said that to become a filmmaker, you should forget going to school, but take a long walk, say, from Madrid to Kiev. Hence the name of his site, Madridtokiev.com. And so apparently, this trip, which we get to see through dispatches and some video, is Lee’s excuse for film school. Good luck to him.