10 U.S. Cities where profanity prevails

by Tom Johansmeyer on

He, we’re all prone to a bit of profanity every now and then – some of us more than others. I’ve had my ass butt handed to me by the Gadling editors over my (finally) occasional use of some foul language, though I’ve taken steps to (as they say) improve myself. Well, I was happy to see when flipping through my RSS feed that I’m not the only person who likes to drop an f-bomb every now and then. In fact, there are entire cities engaging in such behavior, according to a recent article on Business Insider.

So, how am I going to pick my next home? Well, I’ll start by looking at the 10 most obscene cities it the United States. Strangely, New York isn’t on the list, probably because we have a small vocal minority that engages in the sorts of foul phrasing, while the rest of the city tends to be squeaky clean.

So, who’s on the list? These are the 10 cities and towns where you’re most likely to find mouths washed out with soap.1. Ashburn, Virginia
There are only 90,000 people here, but they know how to cuss! The Washington, DC suburb made its first time on the list a big one, coming in at the top spot.

2. Tampa, Florida
Tampa found a way to climb from #8 in 2009 to #2 in 2010, something of an accomplishment, according to a handful of people.

3. Herndon, Virginia
What is it about Virginia? Is there something in the water? A problem with the schools’ vocabulary lessons?

4. Rochester, New York
Who cares?

5. Irvine, California
The fourth-best place to live in the United States has achieved this distinction because you can say whatever the fuck you want.

6. Newark, New Jersey
Duh.

7. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Someone must have brought Miss Manners to the largest city in Pennsylvania – it ranked third the past two years, according to Business Insider.

8. Louisville, Kentucky
It ranked #10 last year and #1 the year before. So, there’s a bit of a backslide here, but it hasn’t been too bad.

9. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Like Virginia (and California), Pennsylvania makes the list twice.

10. Los Angeles, California and Las Vegas, Nevada (tie)
Did you really think these two wouldn’t make it?

Curious about how Business Insider came up with the results? Check out the “methodology”:

To find the most obscene cities in America, we plugged the “seven dirty words you can never say on television” — made popular by George Carlin — into Google Trends. We gave each city a score for each of the seven words, assigning more points to cities ranking higher up on each list.

If there’s a better use for the internet, I have yet to see it!

[photo by DanCentury via Flickr]

Photo of the Day (11.23.10)

by Stephen Greenwood on

The busiest week of travel in America is underway. In the coming days, millions of people will travel from point A to point C (undoubedtly with a long layover at point B) to be with their families and reconnect with friends.

Amidst a week typically remembered for hectic delays, bad weather, long security lines, & missed connections I thought that this stark, beautiful image was an appropriate contrast to the standard holiday madness. This is just one of a series of great airport & airplane images captured by photographer Katie Madeline at LAX.

The combination of a unique perspective, use of black & white, and the reflections on the body of the plane give it a very iconic feel – a fresh look at something I thought I’d seen so many times. If you’re out on the road, in the air, or everywhere in between – capture your best moments and share them with us! It could be our next Photo of the Day!

Qantas mile-high club: what happens when you get caught

by Tom Johansmeyer on

A woman got nailed in the early stages of seeking mile-high club membership. The Qantas passenger was flying form Melbourne to Los Angeles at the beginning of last month. The lights went low, and she and the man next to her let their hands go wild under the blanket. The cabin crew caught on and split up the passengers, who apparently never bothered to try the lav.

The best part: the woman works for Qantas. And, she still does. A spokesman said, “The employee has returned to work.”

Now, be honest: don’t you want the cubicle next to hers?

[photo via Simon_sees via Flickr]

Top ten overrated international travel destinations

by Catherine Bodry on

Laurel brought us the US’s top ten overrated travel destinations, and we thought it was time to go global. Here are ten international sites, in no particular order, that just aren’t worth a two-hour wait in line, fighting the crowds, or covering long distances to get there:

1. Eiffel Tower, Paris
Seriously, your photos of Paris are going to look much better with the Eiffel Tower in them. If you feel like getting high, Notre Dame is a much cooler spot.

2. Oktoberfest, Munich
If getting drunk with a bunch of American college student is your idea of a good time, then be sure to hit up the Hofbrauhaus tent.

3. The Blarney Stone, Ireland
Don’t do it. Stay away from the nasty, germ-infested piece of rock. Surely no luck can come of kissing that stone cold sore, right?

4. Cancun, Mexico
Crammed with spring-breakers and holiday makers, Cancun is party-central and really no different than, say, any other beach city in the States.5. Niagara Falls, Ontario
The volume of water thundering over Niagara’s limestone cliffs is arguably amazing, but the neon lights under the falls and Vegas-like cacophony built up around them are over-the-top.

6. Stonehenge, United Kingdom
Crowds jostle for space not to get close to the monoliths, but to capture them on film from a distance. That’s right; you can’t even get up close anymore. And a major highway runs right by it, ruining any ambiance that might remain.

7. Hoi An, Vietnam
This little town popped up again and again among the Gadling crew as one that has shoved out any local culture in favor of coddling tourists – if “coddling” can also encompass aggressive selling.

8. The Atomium, Brussels
Another Gadling un-fave, the Atomium is, in the words of our esteemed editors, “boring.” There’s no real reason to visit it other than to take a couple of pics and say you’ve been there.

9. Leaning Tower of Pisa, Italy
Here you’ll find a tower that is cabled up so it won’t lean any further, and tourist posing for photos where they pretend to hold it up. It’s not worth the journey.

10. Universal City Walk, Los Angeles
Not much more than an attempt to dazzle with bright lights and big screens, Universal City Walk is three blocks of cheese. There’s shopping for “memorabilia” and whatnot, and lots of families vacationing. Skip it and spend the day at Disneyland.

Did we miss any? What places do you think are overrated?

[Photo Credit: Flickr user Al Ianni]

Hotels to ditch front desks in the next three years

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Is the hotel front desk a thing of the past?

I was pretty blown away by this concept, which I ran into on MSNBC yesterday. It seems that the Los Angeles Andaz hotel and the Andaz in New York City have both gotten rid of the front desk. Instead, the hotel is greeting guests with a “host” bearin wine, a great chair and the chance to choose a room by laptop. The move, intended to be high-touch and personal, has played differently in both locations – welcomed in LA and not so much in Manhattan.

Yet, it could signal the next big trend in the hotel industry. The personal welcomes do focus more on the guest, and the thought of waiting in a comfy lobby chair instead of standing in line laden with baggage is pretty attractive. So far, Courtyard by Marriott has moved away from the front desk concept in 201 of its 800 lobbies in the United States, favoring “welcome pedestals” instead. By 2013, it hopes to complete the transition.

Changes are coming at other hotels, too, according to MSNBC:

Several thousand customers who already carried Starwood Preferred Guest cards were texted their room numbers before arriving at the Aloft Lexington in Massachusetts, allowing them to bypass the front desk and head to their floor. Once there, they simply tapped their preferred guest card on the door lock for room access. That pilot program is being expanded to Alofts in Harlem, Brooklyn, Jacksonville, Fla. and Brussels, Belgium.

James Sinclair, principal of OnSite Consulting, which focuses on the hospitality and restaurant industries, expects the front-desk concept to last another 36 months. In addition to appealing to many travelers, the move is expected to cut operating costs and give hotels a bit more breathing room follow a trying economic period.

[photo by prayitno via Flickr]