GadlingTV’s Travel Talk – Thailand Part 9: Hellfire Pass

by Stephen Greenwood on

Gadling TV’s Travel Talk, episode 39 – Click above to watch video after the jump

In the first half of Travel Talk’s grand Thai expedition, we’ve tamed elephants, explored Bangkok’s temples, eaten scorpions, taken in a Muay Thai match, and witnessed a train running directly through a bustling market. Now, we’re taking you to explore a lesser known province of Thailand for a closer look at the culture and traditions of rural Thai life.


In order to supply their expansion into Burma during WWII, the Japanese built the so-called “Death Railway,” which claimed over 100,000 lives from the Asian labourers and Allied POWs forced to work it. We get to experience the memorial at Hellfire Pass- the most grueling section of this infamous railway, then take on some hellfire of our own with the spiciest food Thai cuisine has to offer!

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


Subscribe via iTunes:
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Show directly in iTunes (M4V).
[RSS M4V] Add the Travel Talk feed (M4V) to your RSS aggregator and have it delivered automatically.

Hosts: Stephen Greenwood & Aaron Murphy-Crews
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.

GadlingTV’s Travel Talk – Thailand Part 8: Scooters & Coconuts

by Stephen Greenwood on

Gadling TV’s Travel Talk, episode 38 – Click above to watch video after the jump

In the first half of Travel Talk’s grand Thai expedition, we’ve tamed elephants, explored Bangkok’s temples, eaten scorpions, taken in a Muay Thai match, and witnessed a train running directly through a bustling market. Now, we’re taking you to explore a lesser known province of Thailand for a closer look at the culture and traditions of rural Thai life.

Situated near the border of Myanmar, Sangkhlaburi is a great destination for those looking for alternative to Chiang Mai or the beaches of Koh Samui. Ever since our Vespa adventure in Rome, we’ve been anxious to get back on the open road; so we rented scooters and explored the rest of Sangkhlaburi. We’ll take you to the longest wooden bridge in Thailand and show you what Thai life is like down on the farm.

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


Subscribe via iTunes:
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Show directly in iTunes (M4V).
[RSS M4V] Add the Travel Talk feed (M4V) to your RSS aggregator and have it delivered automatically.

Hosts: Stephen Greenwood & Aaron Murphy-Crews
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.

The Ritz-Carlton, Toronto opens its doors, streams it all live on Facebook

by Darren Murph on

It’s been a long, long road for The Ritz-Carlton, Toronto. If you’ll recall, we actually were led to believe that it would open its doors in the fall of last year, but after a few setbacks and delays, the day has finally come for the elusive property to welcome its first guests. No longer will Ritz-Carlton execs have to answer questions related to the infiltration into Canada, as this new Toronto property most certainly puts the company on the map here in the Great White North. This particular hotel is situated in the heart of the downtown area, providing views of the city or Lake Ontario, as well as extravagances that Ritz-Carlton is known for. All told, the 53-story monolith will feature 267 guestrooms, featuring 56 Corner Suits, a pair of Deluxe Suites and “The Ritz-Carlton Suite” at over 2,400 square feet.

Toronto sure feels like the perfect next location for this brand to tackle, with many calling it the most ‘international’ city on the planet. Those who pop by will be treated to floor-to-ceiling windows with heated perimeters, rich African Anigre wood and Portuguese Estremoz marble, not to mention heated marble flooring, dual vanities (with embedded 22-inch HDTVs), private rain showers and soaker tubs when it comes to the bathroom. There’s a 13,000 square foot spa, a natural light-filled Urban Sanctuary and its own signature eatery: TOCA by Tom Brodi. Those interested in being one of the first to book a room can visit the property’s website, and if you’ve ever wondered what all was involved in the ribbon cutting ceremony that happens as a Ritz-Carlton hotel is opened, today’s your lucky day. The whole thing will be livestreamed on the company’s Facebook page starting at 11:30am EST, so be sure to set your alarms and add yourself a bookmark. Too bad Facebook’s ‘Teleportation’ feature is still on the drawing board.

P.S. – If you missed our Toronto-based episode of Travel Talk, catch up here!

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Valentine’s Day Travel: World Wide Bus offers free bus tickets from NYC-Boston

by Amy Chen on

If you’re tight on cash this Valentine’s Day, it may still be possible to plan a last-minute getaway to New York City or the Boston area. World Wide Bus, which launched last fall, is offering free round-trip bus tickets from Manhattan to Cambridge, or vice versa.

Too good to be true? Well, if you can take time off work, the free tickets are valid for travel on Feb. 14 (Valentine’s Day), Feb. 15, Feb. 16, or Feb. 17. I just checked and found that there are still seats left on the 9 a.m. departure from Manhattan, which would put you in Cambridge by 2 p.m. — that leaves you plenty of time to explore before sitting down to a romantic V-Day dinner.

The company initially set aside 1,000 one-way tickets for this Valentine’s Day promotion, but is now aiming to add buses to accommodate any increased demand. Even so, it’s best to lock in these free tickets now. There are three daily departures from each city. The nearly five-hour bus ride is made a bit more tolerable with Wi-Fi and power outlets at each seat.

The Deal: The round-trip tickets are worth $30 ($15 one-way).

The Details: Limit two round-trip tickets per customer. You must register in advance of the day you’re traveling, and enter each passenger’s name on the ticket. Other free routes between Feb. 14-17 include Manhattan to Newton, Mass., or vice versa.

More Info: www.worldwidebus.com

Cyclone Yasi destruction brought home on Facebook, Twitter

by Chris Owen on

They were waiting and organizing even before the storm made landfall. Facebook messages and tweets sent out world-wide started a cascading effort of prayers, good wishes, advice and support from every corner of the planet. Social media has become an integral part of crisis management efforts

The numbers are staggering. 23,141 tweets from 10,000 individual users sent in the past 24 hours combined with 90,000 members joining Facebook page Cyclone Yasi Update are giving truly engaging definition to social media efforts.

“The Queensland government and in particular the Queensland Police have pioneered the use of social media in times of crisis. Updates on social media have been timely, accurate and sought to direct information to those most in need.” said Thomas Tudehope director of strategy and management for social media monitoring company SR7.

Many users added their personal experiences to the mix, giving the world a front row seat to the devastation as it occured. While traditional news sources have covered the story extensively, social media efforts extracted real-time accounts of the situation on the ground as it happened during the storm.

Some reports though turned out to be false.On Twitter, the most popular hash tags for users were #tcyasi, #cyclone and #roof. Facebook has been helpful but new groups poking fun at the situation such as Cyclone Yasi After Party have not been all that helpful nor is the ability to add Cyclone Yasi as a friend.

Reports last night that the roof of an evacuation center was being blown off by gale-force winds had to be ruled out.

User @CharlieMunsie posted: “#TCYasi Bad news just in. The evac centre in Innisfail has lost it’s roof. Has 500 ppl inside. No injuries to date but worst still to come.”

@ABCnorthqld followed with : “We are investigating reports that the Innisfail evacuation centre at the State College has lost its roof. We’ll let you know” followed by “a report about the Townsville evacuation centre losing its roof was untrue”.

A manipulated storm image showing a massive rain cloud coming in from the ocean was also circulated on Twitter.

@Bitfuzzy said “That’s a fake . . . it’s NOT a pic of Yasi”.

Now, after the storm has passed, Twitter and Facebook users are maintaining an unprecedented, ongoing dialogue with affected areas through users at the scene. The big difference was that websites could be accessed through the cell phones of those on the ground while power outages made it difficult if not impossible to watch television or listen to a radio.

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