The Death Star in Minsk

by Annie Scott on

Star Wars fans, put Minsk on your destination list. The Death Star has totally landed there.

This is no ordinary poly-dimensional structure; it also lights up. This is the most disco-loving, pimped-out car imitating, Force using library ever.

That’s right. It’s a library. This library was built as the result of a 1989 contest, and it took 13 years to build. According to EnglishRussia.com, The National Library in Minsk, Belarus, was erected “by a personal order of Belarus president Mr. Lukashenko. Locals joke: ‘Lukashenko had just learned to read and decided to build a library dedicated to this new ability he acquired.'”

1989 … just six years after the release of Return of the Jedi …

Design in Belarus kind of reeks of Star Wars. Have you seen their airplanes with elliptical wings? Luke would totally fly in that.

The building was completed in June of 2006, but to us? It still looks like it’s from the future. Check out the rockin’ video of the library in action below! It’s like Epcot on speed.

Pilot nightmare: Passenger flings open door and jumps out

by Jamie Rhein on

Here is a scene that I think would take one of the top spots of a pilot’s worst nightmare.

Right when you’re flying 23,000 above one of the coldest places above Canada this time of year, one of your two passengers, the one who has been freaking out, totally loses his marbles, flings open the door and jumps out.

That’s what happened a couple days ago to two pilots who were taking two passengers from Yellowknife to Cambridge Bay in a Beechcraft King Air 200 twin-turboprop.

The one passenger became “unruly” and couldn’t be stopped from forcing open the door and jumping out. That was a horrifying scene, I’m sure.

Then, as if that wasn’t enough, to make things more dicey, there was that open door that wouldn’t cooperate and close again. That meant that the pilot had to make an emergency landing with the door open.

Talk about a wind tunnel. Heavens!

The 20 year-old who jumped is still being searched for and the pilot is too shaken up to talk. Understandably so. [via AP in Newsday.com]

Ugliest city in the world is attracting tourists with its ugliness

by Jamie Rhein on

Folks in Holland have named Charleroi, Belgium “The Ugliest City in the World.” Not to be daunted, some of Charlori’s town folk have embraced this less than pristine distinction. In a case of work with what you have instead of lamenting what you don’t, they are offering tourists “urban safaris.”

The tours take in all that makes Charleroi, a city surrounded by slag heaps, so darned depressing. You can climb on coal piles, see where renowned citizens who killed themselves or others once lived, and visit an abandoned factory. The first white female suicide bomber who blew herself up in Baghdad was from Charleroi, another detail presented on the tour.

These creative tactics seem to be working since the tours are booked through next month, according to this article in the Sydney Morning Herald. Maybe one day, if the economy picks up, there will be different tours that highlight the places in Charleroi that used to be ugly before gentrification set in and ruined it.

Gadling + BootsnAll – Picks of the Week (3.13.09)

by Jeremy Kressmann on

Welcome back to Gadling’s weekly “Picks of the Week” from our friends over at travel site, BootsnAll. Every Friday we’ll be bringing you some of our favorite stories this week from the site. Take a look below and click on through if you find something that catches your interest:

  • Weird Philippines – the Philippines is already an “out there” destination for many travelers, so it goes without saying that those who visit are privileged with some amazing sights and strange local customs. Marseille Markham tells us about her Top 5 Weirdest Philipines sights. Remember that Filipino prison where they dance to Thriller? You can go see it LIVE. Get me a ticket to Cebu immediately…
  • Spanish Lessons in Central America – my first experience abroad was staying with a family in Costa Rica during High School. It was an amazing introduction to the culture and also a great way to wok on my Spanish. Rebecca Brych give us the lowdown on how to study Spanish in Central America for anyone who might be inerested. It’s very comprehensive guide of everything from finding a school to picking classes to figuring out where to stay.
  • High in the Sky – I always associate mountains with travel. But for many people, mountains mean they’re home. Julie Blakley takes a look at the Highest Cities in the World in her latest post. Let me tell you, I’m out of breath just looking the elevations for some of these places. Think Cusco is high? How about La Rinconada, Peru at over 16,000 feet!
  • Feisty Female Travelers – you might know Christine Amanpour, the Chief International Correspondent of CNN, as one woman that’s really set the bar high for solo female travelers, including trips to Iraq, Somalia and Afghanistan. This week Lucy Corne takes a look at six of history’s most famous and well-known female travelers, a tribute to all they’ve done to set a “traveling example” for women everywhere.
  • Gondola Gallery – you pretty much know if you visit Venice, one of Italy’s most famous cities, you’re going to see some gondolas. The iconic boats are pretty much the town’s unofficial symbol at this point. BootsnAll’s Italy blog features some of their favorite gondola photography in this week’s feature.

Hope you enjoyed this week’s Gadling and BootsnAll “Picks of the Week.” We’ll be back next Friday with another week’s worth of great content. Stay tuned.

Cheshire’s weird No Kissing sign shows up on eBay

by Annie Scott on

Remember when we told you how there were signs that prohibit kissing in the Warrington Railway Station in the county of Cheshire, England?

We also mentioned that their “freaky” sign (right) “looks like Mark Trail kissing a grown-up Lisa Simpson.”

Want one?? ‘Cause now they’re on eBay.

That’s right, ladies and gentlemen. Now you, too, can declare a No Kissing Zone in your own home. Maybe just casually leave the sign in your parents’ bedroom. Whatever helps you sleep at night.

The best news is that your purchase will benefit the British charity Comic Relief. The signs come with an official letter of release from Virgin Trains. Bid here!