iPod Saves Lost Tourists

by Kraig Becker on

Two men, one a skier the other a snowboarder, were lost in the Swiss Alps earlier this week after leaving marked runs at the ski resort of Savognin. They faced a long, cold night outdoors, but were later rescued by an eagle-eyed SAR team who spotted them from the air thanks to the faint glow of the screen of an iPod.

According to this story over at Gizmodo, the men attempted to call for help using their cell phone, but the battery died, forcing search and rescue teams to comb the mountain looking for them. With temperatures dropping down to -15º C (5º F), the situation could have become very serious as the night wore on, but thanks to their handy MP3 player, the two Frenchmen were able to signal the passing helicopter. In the end, they suffered only minor hypothermia, and were probably back on the slopes, skiing out of bounds, again the next day.

My iPod has become part of my essential travel gear over the past few years. It’s saved me on many long flights, and has proven to be worth every penny time and time again. I never considered it to truly be survival gear for the backcountry however. Apple should sign these guys up for a commercial with a tagline that simply says: “iPod: It Saves Lives!”

[via Reuters]

5 steps to smarter packing

Zero Star Hotel opens in Switzerland fallout shelter

by Annie Scott on

Oh, Switzerland.

In a subterranean fallout shelter in Sevelen, Switzerland, the Null Stern Hotel, biliing itself as “The World’s First Zero Star Hotel” is preparing to open its crappy, crappy doors.

“Null stern” actually means “zero star,” which is a little relieving. They’re being clever, not insane. Normally, this is a cultural misunderstanding we have with Norway. Maybe we’ve misjudged Switzerland.

The Null Stern Hotel will cost between 6 and 18 euros per night, and includes former bomb shelter facilities, no daylight, slippers, earplugs, communal bathrooms and showers, and a butler (there was one in the photo shoot, I’m not sure he’ll be there when you show up).

We don’t know why they get earplugs.

The Null Stern hotel will open in early 2009, but recently opened up to volunteers for a test run. See the photos here.

What to do in Sevelen? I don’t know. But at least you know there’s a bomb shelter where you can stay. If you can read German, here you go.

When a nation becomes a commodity: The Country Brand Index 2008

by Anna Brones on

We live in an era of global brands. McDonald’s, Starbucks, H&M, Coca Cola, Australia… Wait, what???

You read correctly, Australia recently won the top spot of the 2008 Country Brand Index. Nation branding, as it’s officially referred to, is the theory and practice of measuring and building the reputations of countries; basically applying standard commercial brand management that you’d find with commodities and using it to analyzing everywhere from Austria to Zimbabwe.

The 2008 study conducted by Future Brand, a global brand consulting firm, used rankings from 30 different categories to come up with the final index. Among the categories were History, Standard of Living, Friendly Locals and Environmentalism. It’s like a beauty pageant for countries, with the most well-rounded coming out on top. Here are the top ten:

  1. Australia
  2. Canada
  3. USA
  4. Italy
  5. Switzerland
  6. France
  7. New Zealand
  8. United Kingdom
  9. Japan
  10. Sweden

When you look at that list, referring to countries as specific brands starts to make a little sense. Don’t we all have pretty concrete associations with France for example? Wine, croissants and cheese. And what about Sweden? Meatballs, moose and blondes. Looks like what we once referred to as stereotypes has a new name.

Raoul’s travel adventures: The world through a pug’s eyes

by Jamie Rhein on

Raoul, the traveling pug may have a future as a dog travel consultant. “I love to travel, enjoy napping on anything wool or with down feathers, and I adore brussel sprouts!” he writes in his profile that also highlights his interests and favorite books.

This dog’s blog “Raoul’s Travels” is utterly charming and a breezy read, chock full of pictures with captions that highlight Raoul’s world travels. Just this week, he visited Zurich where the pig’s ears were every dog’s dreams. Raoul has lived in Geneva for the past three years.

Travel from Raoul’s life is the pace we might all enjoy. Visits with friends in parks, taking delight in the simple things–like a hole, or that great nap in a seat to ourselves. Then there are those dogs (or people) that make our heart skip a beat with a casual chat on a sidewalk. Raoul’s heart pitapat came from meeting up with a poodle who he describes as “foxy.”

As for the people Raoul travels with, I’d say they’ve discovered an excellent way to reduce stress during their own adventures, much better than taking a fake baby around. [Thanks to Darren Cronian who posted a link to Raoul’s blog on Twitter.]

A Swiss delicacy… breast milk???

by Anna Brones on

Switzerland is known for many things: the Alps, chocolate, fancy banks, neutrality, etc. Now we can add gastronomic breast milk to that list. Sound a little wierd? It is.

A Swiss restaurant owner by the name of Hans Lochner has created a bit of controversy by announcing that his menu will now feature local specialties such as meat stew and various soups and sauces containing at least 75% human breast milk. It might sound strange, but to Lochner, the idea is a simple one. “We have all been raised on it. Why should we not include it in our diet?” he said.

In fact, as Lochner points out, a mother’s milk is healthy and great to cook with: “One can cook really delicious things with it. However, it always needs to be mixed with a bit of whipped cream, in order to keep the consistency.” Better book a table at the Storchen restaurant next time you’re in the country… or just stick with the chocolate.