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Any American who’s watched TV in the last 10 years knows about the custom wheels featured on shows like Pimp My Ride or American Chopper. But despite all the crazy cars that have been built with plasma TV’s inside and motorcycles tricked out to look like robots, it seems they’ve got nothing on a very unique decorative truck-building craze in Japan called Dekotora.
Dekotora, a Japanese abbreviation for “decorative truck,” is a category of elaborately decorated vehicles built by hobbyists in Japan. These brilliant rigs, decked out in blinding UV and neon lights, shiny decorative metal parts and wild neon colors, are built by passionate Japanese truckers looking to get some attention and show off at special events. They look less like drive-able vehicles than life-size Transformer robots, ready to lift off the road and head into battle. Interestingly enough, many attribute the start of the craze to the 1970’s, when a Japanese film series called the “Truck Guys” featured a protagonist with a wildly decorated rig driving around the country.
This passion for custom vehicles isn’t just limited to Japan. In India, rickshaw drivers add custom mud flaps to their rides featuring in Bollywood film stars. And in Thailand, bus drivers have been known to deck out their coaches with airbrushed cartoon characters and elaborate fantasy scenes. Apparently the international driving community is much more artistic than you might expect! Seen any crazy vehicle art during your own travels? Tell us about it in the comments.
[Photo courtesy of Viernest]
A man identified only as a citizen of the United Arab Emirates was arrested in the international airport in Bangkok, Thailand yesterday for the illegal smuggling of animals. At the time of his arrest, he had several suitcases which contained two baby leopards, two panthers, two macaque monkeys, and an Asiatic black bear.
According to this story from our friends at AOL Travel, the 36-year old was preparing to board a plane to Dubai (Where else?) when he was taken into custody by anti-trafficking agents. Those agents had been reportedly monitoring him since he had made the purchases on the black market a few days earlier, and were simply waiting for the best time to nab him, and safely recover the animals.
The man’s smuggling operation was described as quite sophisticated. Prior to leaving for the airport, he had drugged the small animals to put them to sleep for the flight back to the UAE. He then placed them into flat cages and slid those cages inside the suitcases, which he would have used to get the animals through the airport had he not been caught in the act.
The illegal trade of exotic animals is becoming a bigger problem throughout Asia and especially in Thailand. Wealthy collectors will visit the country to purchase rare, and sometimes endangered, animals, to add them to their own personal zoos, although it is unclear if this particular smuggler was picking up the animals for himself or to be sold after his return to Dubai. Officials say he seems to be quite well connected however, and he had already posted bail just hours after his arrest.
It is difficult to decide which is worse; the illegal animal smuggling in Asia or the terrible problems with poaching in Africa. Both are highly unsavory acts and I applaud all efforts to put a halt to activities.
[Photo Credit: Associated Press]
Where would you travel for a meal?
“I would say Morocco. I’m fascinated with spices. I’d like to have a local, say, in Marakesh, take me to the food and spice market and from there we’d construct an entire meal out of what we buy.”
“Thailand. I’d just travel around the country and eat everything I saw. I did that when I was in France and it was great. I’d try to find new stuff, food that hasn’t really come here yet, food that’s unknown to us.”
“Vietnam. I’ve always wanted to go there. The country’s culinary history is amazing. There’s a long story behind every dish there. From a chef’s perspective, Vietnam would be great.”
“I would go to Portland, Oregon. I was just there, actually, and now I already want to go back. The food and restaurants there are incredible. The people are willing to do interesting and creative things with food there. They’re doing their own coffee, their own distilling. There’s just a lot going on in Portland.”
“Well, India for sure. But I’d also go to San Francisco. It’s such a great food city. I’d go there and focus eating California cuisine.”
“Apart from just staying here in New York City, I’d go to Bangkok. Specifically, I’d go to David Thompson’s new restaurant. It’s called Nahm, which means ‘water’ in Thai, in the Metropolitan Hotel. I trained under him and I haven’t eaten at any of his restaurants since he left Australia. After that, there would be a thousand more restaurants I’d eat at.”
“Kerala, India. The food there is extremely fresh. If you want an oyster, for example, there’s a guy who will jump into the water right then and get one for you. It’s a such a great place. There’s no judgment there. And they have a 99 percent literacy rate.”
“Paris. Just to see Jean Francios Piege. I ate at his previous restaurant, which was in Hotel de Crillon, and it was one of those meals where it makes you stop and think about what food is all about. He has a new restaurant called Hotel Thoumieux.”
“Definitely Tokyo. I love Japanese food. I would get recommendations from friends. I love sushi and would go to the fish market to eat there.”
“Taipei. There’s a great night market there and the best Japanese food outside of Japan. The best Chinese fusion. Plus, the food scene is really diverse.”
“elBulli. If I could get one of the last seatings there before it closed. The last time I was in Spain, I ate at almost every important restaurant, but I didn’t get to eat at elBulli.”
If you have 4 minutes to spare and a virtual tour through Thailand, Cambodia, & Vietnam strikes your fancy; sit back and enjoy this beautiful montage from filmmaker Ivan Vania.
Shot with a Canon 5D Mark II and set to a soundtrack by Yann Tiersen (composer of the score for Amélie), it’s an incredibly vivid depiction of the boat rides, temples, smiles, and landscapes that many travelers to Southeast Asia are familiar with. Ivan does a great job of mixing wide angle shots of the environment with close ups that capture the detail of the locations and the expressions of the people he encountered, which adds to the video’s realism and authenticity.
Do you have a favorite video or photo that lets you escape to another part of the world at the click of a button? Share it with us! Leave a comment below and it could be our next Photo / Video of the Day.