Mark describes the photo as “A ger, sometimes called a yurt, sits on the Steppes near Mandalgovi, Mongolia.”
A ger or yert is a portable, bent wood-framed dwelling structure traditionally used by nomads in the Mongolian-Manchurian Steppes, which covers an area of 887,300 square kilometers. Mandalgovi is the capital of the Dundgovi Province of Mongolia on the border of the Gobi Desert.
SeatGuru has been providing unbiased seat information to air travelers, removing some of the mystery when selecting an airline seat, for over ten years. Tapping a rich library of flier reviews and tips, SeatGuru has hundreds of airline seat maps covering nearly 100 airlines, enabling travelers to find the best seats before they fly. Now, SeatGuru has a new look, better layout and more content in addition to a new Guru Factor rating system.
The new easier-to-use site builds on that content and was designed with features to elevate the user experience including live flight shopping via TripAdvisor’s flight comparison engine, user provided photos.
Unique to SeatGuru, the new “Guru Factor” promises detailed seat comfort and onboard amenity information along with an overall recommendation of either “Love it,” “Like it,” or “Live with it” for your selected flight itinerary.
The Guru Factor considers the type of seat, seat pitch, width and recline, in-flight entertainment options, onboard amenities and TripAdvisor customer satisfaction ratings for airlines.”The new SeatGuru will give millions of flyers even more useful insight to help them plan and have the best flight experience possible,” said Bryan Saltzburg, general manager of TripAdvisor Flights and SeatGuru. “Access to our comprehensive seat and airline amenity information, new flight shopping functionality, purchase options, and trustworthy advice from fellow travelers will be infinitely valuable for those planning their next flight.”
SeatGuru’s re-launched site is up right now. Coming up, SeatGuru’s iPhone app will have the new seat map design, improved navigation and travelers can create a profile then submit comments and photos of their seat in real time.
The Strong National Museum in Rochester, New York, is an interactive, collections-based educational institution devoted to the study and exploration of play. Housing the world’s most comprehensive collection of historical materials related to play in its National Museum of Play, the Strong recently added the new “LEGO Travel Adventure” exhibit.
The new interactive attraction has large displays built entirely out of LEGOs, chronicling the history of world travel.
Popular are free-building LEGO DUPLO brick station tables where visitors can choose a destination and build a means of transportation to get there with LEGOs. Intended to foster creativity and solve travel-related problems, kids and adults explore the often-unknown world of travel side by side in the familiar world of LEGOs.“It’s just what you put into it, and whatever you use from your own imagination. And that’s what’s always so exciting about playing and growing and learning, is using your imagination,” said Strong spokesperson Susan Trien in a YNN report.
The non-profit Strong National Museum also houses the National Toy Hall of Fame, the International Center for the History of Electronic Games, the Brian Sutton-Smith Library and Archives of Play and the American Journal of Play.
Have a favorite toy you think deserves recognition? Anyone can nominate a toy to the National Toy Hall of Fame. Final selections are made on the advice of historians, educators and other individuals who exemplify learning, creativity and discovery through their lives and careers.
The LEGO Travel Adventure runs through May 12, 2013, and is included in the price of general admission.
This is not the first time LEGOs have been associated with travel either. In “Leggo My Love Boat,” Gadling brought you coverage of a full-scale model of Princess Cruises‘ original Pacific Princess Love Boat built by professional LEGO builder Ryan McNaught that took 250,000 LEGO bricks and six months to build.
Fascinated by LEGO’s? This video has more:
[Photo Credit- Courtesy of The Strong, Rochester, New York]
“When the sun comes out, it’s nice weather, whatever the temperature! (-12 °C on this particular morning),” says mjlacey of the image, which can also be found in their “Sweden” set.
American Airlines is still sorting out options for how it will operate, if a merger makes sense and other restructuring-related issues in a tentative financial future. But when it comes to what they do in the air, the course has been charted and is well underway.
American’s current fleet numbers almost 900 aircraft. As part of a 2011 order for an additional 550 new aircraft, 60 will go into service this year, positioning American Airlines to be one of the most modern fleets in the air.
“Since placing our landmark aircraft order in July of 2011, we’ve been building anticipation toward a moment in time when the outside of our aircraft reflects the progress we’ve made to modernize our airline on the inside,” said Tom Horton, American’s Chairman and CEO in a press release.
American Airlines unveiled a new logo and exterior for its planes recently, including the already delivered Flagship Boeing 777-300ER aircraft set to fly on Jan. 31.
“You’ve been hearing a lot about how the modern travel experience is going to feel, ” says American Airlines President and CEO Tom Horton in this new video, “and today we’re going to show you how it’s going to look.”
What else is new for American Airlines?
Expanded International Service to more destinations worldwide, including more international and domestic routes from Dallas/Fort Worth, more European and domestic service from Chicago O’Hare, new service to Europe from New York, and new service from Miami to Latin America and the Caribbean.
An Airport Technology Update for flight attendants, pilots and maintenance workers brings real-time tablet devices to increase efficiency. Next year, passengers too will see the result of increased technology that promises to make the travel experience more enjoyable.
On-board Enhancements in premium class cabins on international routes with new china, menu choices, and restaurant-style, personalized service. Increased availability of Samsung Galaxy tablets for entertainment use in the premium cabins is coming too.