From London to Timbuktu in a Flying Car

by Kraig Becker on

British adventurer Neil Laughton will begin a unique odyssey tomorrow. The former special forces officer will depart from London on his way to Timbuktu, located in the African country of Mali, and while a journey like this one is interesting in and of itself, it is Laughton’s mode of transportation that really sets it apart.

Laughton will be traveling in a specially designed dune buggy dubbed the Skycar, which is a cross between an off-road vehicle and a paraglider. Utalizing a giant parachute and a large fan mounted on the back of the car, the driver is able to take flight, transitioning from the ground to the air in just three minutes. While in flight mode, it typically cruises between 2000 and 3000 feet, but can reach altitudes as high as 15,000 feet. All the while running on biofuel, making this an environmentally friendly endevour.The 4000 mile expedition is expected to take roughly 42 days, traveling from London to France, Spain, Morrocco, Mauritania and of course Mali. The return trip will also pass through Senegal as well. Much of that distance will be covered on the ground, where the Skycar can reach speeds of up to 108 mph, but Laughton will pilot his flying car over the Pyrenees, followed by the Strait of Gibralter, and the Atlas Mountains in Morocco, although Laughton hasn’t ruled out taking to the sky at other times as well.

The team behind the Skycar sees this adventure as a shakedown cruise to test out their little toy. If all goes well, they intend to sell the vehicle to the general public, hoping to get as much as $75,000 for a car that can literally take you just about anywhere.

You can track the expedition’s progress on the official website.

[via the BBC (video included with story)]

Dining while blindfolded: A new way to enjoy eating out?

by Jamie Rhein on

For chefs who pride themselves on the artful presentation of their culinary artistry, and people who enjoy looking at their food, probably blindfolded dining is not for them. For anyone who is into a culinary adventure that taps into all other senses but sight, head to the Grill Room restaurant at the Sheraton Hotel in Edinburgh, Scotland. Since October, diners have been able to experience this more unusual way to enjoy their food.

According to executive chef Malcom Webster, dining while blindfolded gives diners the chance to fully experience the various textures, flavors and aromas of the five-course meal. With each course, a new wine is served to further heighten the experience. During the entire time, diners don’t know what they are eating. I do wonder if someone stands by to coach a person who is having a hard time directing his or her fork.

“No, a little to the left sir. There you go. Nope, smaller bite. That’s it. No, your mouth is a little more to the right.”

Recognizing that there are hazards to such an experience, coffee is not part of the meal. I’d add that I’d avoid wearing white. Think of red wine. Even with my sight, I once knocked over a glass of red wine in an upscale restaurant in Albuquerque, sloshing it onto the plate glass window.

This dining experience costs £60 per person. If having someone blindfold you gives you the willies, you can try dining in the dark at Dans Le Noir in London. There the whole dining room is dark. How do the waiters see to bring the food, I wonder? “Ooops, sorry Ma’m.”

As you can see from the picture taken by curran.kelleher, you can turn any dining experience into a blindfolded one. This one was at some event in Rüdesheim, Germany. [www.tandorimagazine.com]

Find things to do when you feel hungover or romantic

by Scott Carmichael on

There are probably close to 1000 sites that list “things to do”, but most of them list the same boring stuff (OK, so I admit that I made that number up).

Thankfully, every now and then someone has a neat idea, and puts it into reality by building a web site around it.

“I Feel” is a “things to do” site that currently covers 3 big cities (New York, Toronto and London) and lets you find stuff to do when you are feeling naughty, energetic, hungover or one of 6 other moods.

Want to find somewhere to go in London when you are feeling broke? How about a nice discount shoe shop, or a cheap trip on the London Clipper!

The site is currently in “beta mode”, but invites are being sent out which should allow you to add your own submissions to the maps. No invite or account is needed to search through the tips. I browsed London for some of the ideas and have to say that there are some real gems listed. The results include anything from food to nightclubs.

All the locations are overlaid upon a Google map, so you’ll be able to do all the cool things their maps can do, as well as print or email your results, plus you can link to other reviews of the locations using Google local.

Sites: I Feel London, I Feel Toronto and I Feel New York

Picture London without the people

by Jeremy Kressmann on

If you’ve ever had a chance to visit London, you know what a hive of activity the city can be. Huge red double decker buses rumble past your field of view, pedestrians stroll through Trafalgar Square and the pontificators mass at Speaker’s Corner in Hyde Park.

Perhaps it’s a surprise then to see photos of these places, completely devoid of any human being. That’s exactly what Flickr user IanVisits has done in his recent photo project titled “Abandoned London.” Ian had the opportunity recently to capture images of London at its most desolate. On Christmas morning, as many Londoners remained curled up in bed or at home opening their holiday presents, Ian was riding his bike through the empty streets, capturing these eerie street scenes, frozen in time.

The normally bustling stairs in front of the National Gallery sit vacant, strangely forlorn. The pulsing neon of Picadilly Circus is dark, the advertisements yelling their goods to nothing but empty air. Hungerford Bridge anxiously awaits the stirrings of foot traffic.

Despite the absence of any Londoners, each image in Ian’s Abandoned London set seems to create its own sense of personality. It raises an interesting question – is a city defined by its people? Or is it an entity of its own, breathing, sleeping and existing as if it was alive? In any case, if you’re looking for a unique view of London you’ve probably never seen, make sure to check out his gallery.

Many thanks to Ian Mansfield for letting us use his photos!

[Via MetaFilter]

Worst luck ever: couple vacation in New York, London and Mumbai just as terrorists attack

by Karen Walrond on

The Sydney Times Herald is reporting the uncanny story of Mr. and Mrs. James and Jenny Cairns-Lawrence, a young couple from Dudley, United Kingdom, who seem to have a knack for choosing vacation spots where terrorists are about to strike: they have found themselves in New York, London and Mumbai during the exact times that each of the three cities were viciously attacked by terrorists.

Says Mrs. Cairns-Lawrence, “It’s a strange coincidence. The terror attacks just happened when we were in the cities. I shouldn’t be laughing about it, but it is a strange coincidence.”

Dude, remind me to check where these two are the next time I plan an international trip. And as one of my Gadling colleagues said, aren’t people like these usually called “persons of interest”?