12 underground tours around the world

by Katie Hammel on

Sometimes there’s more to a city that what you see above ground. Several cities around the world sit above underground labyrinths just waiting to be explored. Budget Travel has put together a list of some of the best underground tours around the world.

In Paris, you can tour the sewer system, in Berlin, check out a hidden world of bunkers and tunnels used during World War II and the Cold War, and see the remains of the older city (which the new city was built upon) in Seattle. Other cities with tours that take you underground include Vienna, Rome, Seoul, Portland, Naples, New York, Jerusalem, Edinburgh, and Istanbul.

And to Budget Travel’s list of spots with unique attractions below ground, I’ll add two of my own. Most visitors to Chicago don’t realize that the city has it’s own network of underground tunnels, called the Pedway, that connect many of the city’s government buildings and allow people to travel between them without suffering in the bitter winter cold. And in Logrono, in Spain’s Rioja region, the area underneath the town is actually larger in area than that above, thanks to an extensive network of tunnels that were once used for defense and are now used as wine cellars.

When we visit a new city we generally spend a lot of our time looking up, gawking at the tall buildings. But, it seems, maybe should pay a little more attention to the wonders just underneath our feet.

Pompeii now on Google Street View

by Sean McLachlan on

The ancient Roman city of Pompeii is the latest addition to Google Street View.

Available from Google’s UNESCO World Heritage list of street views, it’s the latest addition to a selection of famous sites that includes Stonehenge, Prague’s historic center, and the Roman/Medieval Spanish town of Segovia.

Pompeii was a Roman provincial town near the Gulf of Naples in Italy. It was buried by a massive eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Thick layers of volcanic ash kept the town in a remarkable state of preservation. Visitors (and now web surfers) can admire buildings, statues, wall paintings, graffiti, even furniture. The most eerie bits are the plaster casts of the eruption’s many victims. Their bodies rotted away and left holes in the hardened ash. Modern archaeologists filled these with plaster to create ghostly images of men, women, and children perishing from suffocation.

Pompeii and its neighboring town of Herculaneum give an unparalleled look into the daily life of the Roman Empire. The Italian government hopes that having Pompeii on the web it will encourage more visitors. While a walk through its virtual streets is a fun way to kill time at work, it’s nothing compared with doing it for real.

Rome cab drivers forced to be honest

by Annie Scott on

All over the world, taxi drivers seem to love to scam tourists. Hapless visitors with no idea what a taxi from A to B should cost are so easy to drive around for an extra ten euros or so.

In New York City, they’ve made an effort to combat the problem by adding video maps in cabs (so you can see when you aren’t between your pickup point and your destination) and charging flat fees to bring people into Manhattan from the local airports. Now, in Rome, there’s a new method of keeping drivers honest afoot.

According to Reuters, Radiotaxi 3570 in Rome is “trying to improve the bad name of the city’s cabbies” by allowing visitors to pay for their ride from the airport into the city in advance, even from their home countries. You will soon be able to book online and request a driver who speaks English, German, French or Spanish, and a text message payment/reservation service is in the works, as well.

Though we’d never scoff at a trip to Rome simply because the taxi drivers have a bad reputation, this development is heartening; it shows that Rome wants and appreciates its foreign guests.

[via Reuters]

The top five worst traveling companions

by Catherine Bodry on
Your traveling partner can make or break your trip, so you should probably choose carefully when planning a joint trip. Here are five traits of traveling companions you should avoid (and I’ve excluded the obvious, like snorers and kleptomaniacs):

The ditcher: The companion who bails on you at the first whiff of romantic interest, night after night. Besides getting annoyed at being stuck with the romantic-interest’s own travel partner or, worse yet, sitting alone at the bar, you might find that you can’t budget on splitting the cost of hotel rooms when your friend finds a long-term lover.

The puker: I’m not only talking about a weak stomach — there are folks out there who can’t ride a tricycle without tossing their mother’s chocolate-chip cookies. Forget about taking an all-night bus ride as well as sampling local cuisine. And I hope you don’t need the bathroom, because they’ll be in there all night.

The druggie: Ditch the traveler who just wants to get effed up every night (unless you do, too), is in to buying illegal street drugs, and generally makes you nervous crossing international borders in Asia.They’re nothing but trouble, and you could go down with them.

The complainer: I once met a girl when I was traveling from Athens to Rome who wouldn’t shut up about how she just wanted McDonald’s, how dirty Athens was, how much she missed Michigan, etc. I’m normally a very cheery person, so when she suggested we travel together, I changed my itinerary, stat. A little homesickness is normal, but who wants to hang with someone who’s a constant downer?

The money-obsessed: This type can go both ways; either their budget is tighter than a Thai prostitute’s tube top, or looser than said prostitute’s you-know-what (is that metaphor too tacky to write? Apologies). Moderation may be boring, but it’s probably also key to enjoying a longer trip. You could find yourself dining alone while your companion indulges in yet another cup of instant noodles, or dragged along for a trendy, spendy dinner. Make sure your budgets are in agreement before you leave.

Lost in Rome? Look for a “tourist angel”

by Katie Hammel on

Naples may have a team of ex-cons out on the streets helping lost tourists, but Rome will soon have a fleet of angels – “tourist angels”. According to the online Italy Magazine, Rome is currently recruiting a fleet of 60 guides who will zoom around the city on “electric chariots” (souped-up Segways, perhaps?) looking for confused visitors to help out with information and directions.

Rome’s deputy mayor and tourism chief said that the tourism ambassadors will begin work in November and will be wearing red jerseys to be easily recognized. He said the aim of the project is to provide visitors with easier access to tourism services. “This way tourists won’t have to go to information offices. They’ll be reached wherever they are,” he said.

Of course, that may not be entirely accurate. Rome is a pretty big city, with thousands of tourists flooding its streets every day. With only 60 tourist angels on the team (and not all of them working at once I’m sure), they really can’t be everywhere at all times. I imagine they’ll spread out among the major tourist areas, where they’ll be approached by people in need rather than having to seek them out. Still, it’s a helpful service and I’m sure that many lost souls will appreciate the help of their guardian tourist angel.