VIDEO: Flash mob at Beirut Airport duty free

by Meg Nesterov on


Flash mobs are nothing new, Lisbon even staged a dance at the airport in 2009, but this flash mob at Beirut Airport is the first I’ve seen with Arab Dabke dance. Dabke is a form of line dance which is traditionally performed at weddings and social occasions, and the group here combined it with some hip hop steps. Passengers and airport staff joined in the fun for this video made for Beirut‘s Duty Free (which, incidentally, has amazingly low prices and Lebanese wine is delicious).

Seen any flash mobs on your travels? Would you stop and watch a “spontaneous” dance at an airport?

Discovery Adventures travel company debuts 2011’s Discovery Channel-inspired trips

by Laurel Miller on

Armchair traveler red alert! Discovery Adventures is offering eight new Discovery Channel-inspired cultural trips for 2011, including Greece, Turkey, Italy, France, Japan, and East Africa. Explore archaeological sites near Athens, visit wineries in Tuscany, safari in Kenya, or soak in hot springs in the Japanese Alps. Trips are limited to 16 people, and run from eight to 15 days. Accommodations range from boutique hotels and inns with local character to eco-lodges.

Discovery Adventures has teamed up with adventure travel industry leader Gap Adventures and non-profit Planeterra to offer travelers more opportunities to positively impact the lives of communities around the world. Each trip provides travelers with an opportunity to visit destinations (often traveling by traditional modes of transport such as rickshaw or elephant) and interact with local people in an ecologically-responsible manner. In addition to your guide, you’ll be accompanied by local historians, archaeologists, artisans, and naturalists. Time to get off that Barcalounger!

[Photo credit: Flickr user Arno & Louise Wildlife]

GadlingTV’s Travel Talk – Thailand Part 6: Swordfights and Elephants

by Stephen Greenwood on

Gadling TV’s Travel Talk, episode 36 – Click above to watch video after the jump

Travel Talk is back! After our fall hiatus we are excited to bring you our greatest adventure yet: Thailand.

From the vibrant heart of Bangkok to the remote countryside, we traveled by foot, car, boat, motorbike, ox cart and elephant to savor the the splendor of ancient temples, the energy of the muay thai ring, the serenity of rural life, and every single spicy bite of Thai cuisine. We’ll be bringing it all to you in the coming weeks as part of our special 12-part feature: Travel Talk Thailand.

As we venture further from the bustle of Bangkok, we get a chance to be the first westerners to visit a Thai martial art and dance school, taking swordfighting lessons from the Thai National Champion. Then we learn how to tame, wash and ride giants.

If you have any questions or comments about Travel Talk, you can email us at talk AT gadling DOT com.


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Hosts: Stephen Greenwood & Aaron Murphy-Crews
Special guest: Joom!
Produced, Edited, and Directed by: Stephen Greenwood & Aaron Murphy-Crews
Special thanks: Tourism Authority of Thailand, Trikaya Tours

Travel Talk took Thailand by storm on invitation from the Tourism Authority of Thailand. No editorial content was guaranteed and Aaron & Stephen were free to openly share all adventures that they embarked upon.

Photo of the Day (08.16.10)

by Mike Barish on
Whatever happened to boy bands? I guess popular music is cyclical and we’re just not in a boy band era right now. I mean, the Jackson 5 were amazing. New Edition was pretty awesome, too. NKOTB (New Kids on the Block, for those not in the know) were pretty horrible but injected life into the slumping light-wash denim industry. The 90s gave us LFO, the Backstreet Boys, *NSYNC and a bottomless hole of migraines. Now, the music landscape is once again devoid of boy bands and, as such, choreographed dancing. That, dear readers, is a shame.

People like seeing young men in matching outfits gyrate in unison. It’s a fact. Look it up. That’s why I love this photo by Flickr user jrodmanjr. These guards marching in the Forbidden City have clearly been rehearsing. Those long hours sweating it out in leg warmers perfecting their routine certainly paid off.

Have any pictures of boy bands on the road? Or just some amazing travel photos? Upload them to the Gadling Flickr group and we might just use one for our next Photo of the Day.

Love Parade discontinued after 19 killed in stampede

by Meg Nesterov on

Germany’s annual dance and music festival Love Parade ended tragically on Saturday after a stampede killed 19 people and injured at least 340, including travelers from Australia, Italy, and China. 1.4 million people reportedly turned out for the event, overcrowding the grounds which had a capacity of only 250,000, according to German magazine Spiegel. Police had closed all but one entrance to the festival in an effort to control crowds when panic broke out in a tunnel with no exit and 16 victims were trampled on the scene.

The festival will be discontinued due to the deaths; organizer Rainer Schaller stated: “The Love Parade has always been a peaceful party, but it will for ever be overshadowed by the accident, so out of respect for the victims the Love Parade will never take place again.” Love Parade originated in Berlin just before the fall of the Berlin Wall as a peace demonstration and has evolved into one of the world’s largest electronic music events, inspiring spin-off festivals from San Francisco to Australia. The 2010 theme was “The Art of Love.”

[Photo credit: Flickr user AchimH]