It’s Official. Heathrow is Shabby and Slow.

by Grant Martin on

Not only is Heathrow one of the world’s drabbest airports, it also has more flight delays than any other major airport in Europe. According to statistics from the Association of European Airlines, from April to June one flight in three left Heathrow at least than 15 minutes late, with many flights departing at least than half an hour late.

The most efficient airport was Brussels where the well-organised Belgians ensured only 15.5% of flights were delayed. Further east in Cyprus, the laid back crew at Lanarca airport had 27.6% of flights delayed, but with a massive 55 minutes average waiting time.

My own personal best (worst?) was a couple of hours waiting at Panama City’s domestic gateway, Marcos A. Gelabert Airport for a flight to the San Blas islands off Panama’s Caribbean coast. The official reason given was poor weather, but I’m still adamant the flight crew were waiting for the 2006 Champions League Final between Arsenal and Barcelona to finish. When extra time was required we were never going to leave on time.

News via the www.telegraph.co.uk and thanks to d’n’c on Flickr for the photo of my least favourite London bed and breakfast.

Also be sure and check the London destination guide.

When Bad Stuff Happens, Is It Better To Be At Home?

by Brett Atkinson on

Most people can remember where they were when events of major importance happened like 9/11 or the Columbia space shuttle tragedy. When such events occur, the best place to be is usually at home surrounded by friends and family.

August 31 is the tenth anniversary of the death of Princess Diana. In August 1997 I was travelling alone in Eastern Turkey and got to a cheap hotel in Erzurum after a long bus trip from the Black Sea coast.

The lobby of the Ornek Hotel was filled with locals watching TV, but the grainy images and Turkish commentary didn’t really make clear what had happened. I managed to work out from the guy at reception that “Prince Charles’ girlfriend” had died, but given Charles and Di’s marriage was already over this still didn’t tell me anything definitive.

Gradually snippets on TV, (remember this was before the days of widespread Internet), told the full story, and a few days later I was in another cheap hotel in Sanliurfa near the Syrian border watching Elton John sing his reworked “English Rose” at Diana’s funeral.

Now I’m not a big fan of Elton, and definitely not a royalist, but I was sitting in my spartan accommodation with tears streaming down my face. The combination of being away from home, and having no-one to share the event in my own language I guess.

For American readers, what was it like if you were out of the States on September 11, 2001?

Thanks to bush to push on Flickr for the pic of Erzurum.

Brits Unable to Read Maps?

by Catherine Bodry on

Well, okay, a lot of them probably can read a map. But a poll by insurance company eSure revealed that nearly three-fourths (or 11 million) Brits are unable to identify a motorway road symbol. And only one percent would pass the Cub Scout Map Reader badge test. Yowza.

Part of the problem seems to be that many British citizens have become too reliant upon satellite navigation systems. “Technology is great,” says Scott Sinclair of national mapping agency Ordnance Survey, “but the batteries won’t run out on a paper map.”

The survey was based on a poll of 1,000 drivers and concluded that Britons’ poor map-reading skills wasted 36 million miles driven each year.

[via Reuters]

Is It Better To Have Your Eyes Open Or Closed?

by Brett Atkinson on

So you really enjoyed your spot of snorkelling in the Caribbean? Such pretty coloured coral and a profusion of vibrant fish. And the water was so warm… There’s not a lot of Nemo-lookalike clown fish in the verdant valleys of Wales, so maybe that’s why the locals have come up with Bog Snorkelling. On August 27 the sleepy Welsh town of Llanwrtyd Wells (try saying that when you’re underwater) comes alive with the World Bog Snorkelling Championships.

Contestants have to negotiate two lengths of a muddy 60 yard trench wearing snorkels and flippers (wetsuits optional but recommended). Last year’s champs drew more than a 100 participants including brave snorkellers from as far away as Russia and New Zealand.

Is there anything my mad Kiwi compatriots won’t do?

Thanks to stepbar on Flickr for the pic

“Look kids, Big Ben!” — Those Crazy Roundabouts

by Justin Glow on

One of the best travel-related scenes in a movie is from European Vacation when Clark and family enter the huge roundabout in London and can’t get out. “Look kids, Big Ben,” he says over and over again each time they round the circle. (Don’t know what I’m talking about? Here’s the scene on YouTube.)

My family and I found ourself in a similar situation once. We were in Paris; Dad was driving a rental car and we accidentally ended up in the hectic mess of cars that surrounds the Arc de Triomphe. I was pretty young at the time, but old enough to remember plenty of expletives coming from the front seat as I tucked my head between my legs and prayed. What’s worse is the only reason we found ourselves in that mess is because I wanted to go to the Hard Rock Cafe. Here I was in one of the largest cultural centers in Europe — home to places like the Louvre, the Pantheon, and Chateau de Versailles — and I wanted to see the Hard Rock Cafe. Let’s never speak of this again.

The photo above is of what’s known as the Magic Roundabout — “the world’s ultimate traffic-control system” — in Swindon, Wilshire, England. It was built in 1972, and features five mini roundabouts inside of one larger, parent roundabout. Check out more pictures and video after the jump. Yikes!


You can buy a t-shirt with this design on it.

Here’s video from the driver’s prospective. Note: wicked techno soundtrack included.

Easy, right?


This scares me.

And yes, we finally made it to the Hard Rock Cafe. I’ve got a shirt to prove it. [via]