Gadling

Traveling Then Sharing Makes For Good Times

Chris Owen — Wed, 16 May 2012 17:00:00 EST

Traveling to distant lands and taking home souvenirs, other than touristy junk, can preserve and help to share memories of good times abroad. Sharing a cheese experienced in Holland, a fragrant fruit from a tropical island or wine from a quaint vineyard far away with friends is, if nothing else, fun. But rules and regulations, often thought to prevent that from happening, are not as tough as we might imagine.

U.S. Customs stands watch over our borders, not allowing a variety of products to enter. Plants, fruits, vegetables, meats and most food items are not allowed. There is good reason for the ban too. Dutch elm disease, hoof-in-mouth disease and the Mediterranean fruit fly epidemic were all supposedly caused by travelers sneaking stuff into the United States.

Still, there are exceptions that may offer a good reason to plan ahead when visiting a destination outside U.S. borders. Baked goods, cheeses, candy, roasted coffee beans and dried teas are products that may be brought into the United States.

When planning in advance, travelers are commonly considering that list of exceptions as a compass. Targeting coffee shops, bakeries and confectioneries as events to be experienced and documented with photos or video, travelers then share the experience with friends back home. Actually sampling what we may have traveled thousands of miles to see is a unique experience.

Continue reading Traveling Then Sharing Makes For Good Times

Traveling Then Sharing Makes For Good Times originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 16 May 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Have Klout, Will Travel: Cathay Pacific Offers Klout Perk at SFO

McLean Robbins — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Airlines, Video, Airports, Internet Tools, Luxury Travel

Last week, Klout announced "Klout for iPhone," and this week, the influx of app-based perks begins. Their first partnership is one we'd actually enjoy - if we were traveling internationally from SFO. The company that pioneered social media influence measurement has partnered with Cathay Pacific Airways to allow anyone with a score of 40 or over to show their Klout score at the door to enter the airline's First and Business Class Lounge.

This applies to any visitor traveling through the "A" boarding area at SFO's international terminal, even if they aren't a Cathay Pacific passenger.

Inside the lounge, you'll get access to the airline's signature noodle bar, workstations and showers, as shown in the video above.

Have you used this perk? What did you think?

Have Klout, Will Travel: Cathay Pacific Offers Klout Perk at SFO originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 16 May 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Time-Lapse Video Shows Europe's Changing Borders, 1000 AD to 2003

McLean Robbins — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Europe, Video

This quirky time lapse shows how Europe's borders have expanded, contracted, and expanded again. We're pretty sure the original intent was to help those studying for a World Geography test or the like, but it's a fun tool for travelers too - is the area you're visiting this summer a part of the original Hapsburg empire? Has the hotel you're staying in always been in France? Watch it. We're sure you'll enjoy.

Time-Lapse Video Shows Europe's Changing Borders, 1000 AD to 2003 originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 16 May 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

World's Oldest Backpacker To Travel Europe This Summer

Jessica Festa — Wed, 16 May 2012 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Stories, Europe, Budget Travel, News

When most people think of backpacking, they picture a bunch of youths in their mid-20s eating street food, hiking to city sites and sleeping in dorms of 10 or more travelers. Australian nomad Keith Wright is breaking the stereotype, and at 95 years old, has planned a two-month backpacking tour of Europe for this summer.

Nicknamed the "world's oldest backpacker," Wright began backpacking when his wife passed away 10 years ago. Since the age of 85, the Aussie has been exploring the world solo, selling his home, staying in hostels, sipping brews with fellow travelers and trying as hard as he can to get off the beaten path.

"I have seen things most tourists haven't seen, because I walk the back streets and take trains or buses to nearby towns for the day," he told The Daily Mail.

Travel has become a large focus of Mr. Wright's life, as he carefully budgets all year long for these special trips. Starting May 28, the backpacker will spend his summer visiting Madrid, San Sebastian, Paris, Munich, Vienna and London.

World's Oldest Backpacker To Travel Europe This Summer originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 16 May 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Museum Month: The Tenement Museum In New York's Lower East Side

Jessica Marati — Wed, 16 May 2012 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Arts and Culture, History, Learning, Stories, North America, United States

Often, it's the sights that are just around the corner that you somehow never get around to exploring. You say that you'll go one day, but there's never a real rush. You tell yourself that it will always be there.

For me, that sight is the Tenement Museum, located in the heart of New York City's Lower East Side, a block and a half from the apartment I've called home for the past three years.

The Tenement Museum celebrates New York's immigrants by exploring the history of a single tenement building at 97 Orchard Street, built in 1863. From the outside, the museum doesn't look too different from the other apartment buildings on the block, including my own. But inside lies a rich tapestry of stories tracking the major immigration waves of the 19th- and 20th- centuries, starting with the Germans and followed by Eastern European Jews and Italians.

Continue reading Museum Month: The Tenement Museum In New York's Lower East Side

Museum Month: The Tenement Museum In New York's Lower East Side originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 16 May 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Museum Month: Pizza Brain, Philadelphia's Pizza Museum

McLean Robbins — Wed, 16 May 2012 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Festivals and Events, Food and Drink

The world's largest collection of pizza memorabilia will soon be housed in an unlikely home - not Italy, or New York or even Connecticut, but in Philadelphia, a city better known for its hoagies and its cheesesteaks than its 'za.

But thanks to 27-year-old Brian Dwyer, the Guinness World Record holder of pizza memorabilia, the dream to open a pizza-themed museum will become a reality late this spring or early this summer at Pizza Brain, the world's first museum dedicated to Pizza.

As might be expected, the museum will also function as a restaurant serving, you guessed it, pizza.

The idea came about somewhat virally, as many do these days - Dwyer and friends had rousing success at an art gallery event in 2010 titled "Give Pizza a Chance," which drew a crowd of more than 300.

"When I started down this road, I said, I want to be able to display all this stuff in a pizzeria," Dwyer told The Huffington Post. "And I thought at first that when we open, I'll make this funny bold claim that we had the biggest pizza memorabilia collection on the Eastern Seaboard, or maybe in America. As I started joking about that, my friend was like, 'Dude, you should see who actually has the biggest.' I assumed somebody had done this. So I did that: I typed in all sorts of search phrases into Google trying to find the biggest collection, and nothing came up. I was shocked. So I contacted Guinness, started going through all the regular channels, and got the record in July."

And thus the museum began, and thus it will open, in Philadelphia's Fishtown neighborhood, the same area that once housed his art show. Thanks to Internet-based Kickstarter, Dwyer and partners have raised $16,587, more than their initial $15,000 goal.

What do you think? Would you visit this museum, if only to get a hot slice at the end of the night?

Continue reading Museum Month: Pizza Brain, Philadelphia's Pizza Museum

Museum Month: Pizza Brain, Philadelphia's Pizza Museum originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 16 May 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Are Hawaii's Beaches Disappearing?

Kyle Ellison — Wed, 16 May 2012 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Learning, North America, United States, Ecotourism

According to a recent New York Times article, yes, they are. This is scary news for a destination whose economy is not only tied to the billions of dollars beachgoers spend annually while visiting the islands, but whose sandy shores also provide a way of life for ocean minded locals and surf enthusiasts who have literally been raised on the state's golden sands.

According to the New York Times piece, over the last century approximately 9 percent of the sand on the state's three largest islands - Hawaii, Maui and Oahu - has completely disappeared. Due to various forces, which include the rising of sea levels and natural erosion of the volcanic islands, the point at which the water meets the sand is gradually beginning to encroach shoreward with every passing year.

The largest cause of beach erosion, however, is the copious amount of seawalls, which restrict the natural ebb and flow of the constantly shifting sand. Unable to progress and regress at its natural and healthy rate, the sand is eventually swallowed by the growing ocean and coastal landowners are left with nothing but pictures of what their beachfront home at one point used to look like.

While you can take the time to read through the entire New York Times piece, I can save you the stat-crunching and tell you for a fact that yes, the beaches in Hawaii are getting smaller. I've lived on Maui for 23 years, and in the years, which have passed from childhood to adulthood, there are segments of beaches which have undoubtedly shrank or completely disappeared into the sea.

Geologists say the solution lies in a proactive maneuver known as a "retreat." By removing out human presence - hotels, mega-mansions, restaurants, storefronts - from the shoreline and moving them slightly inland, this simple maneuver would give the beaches enough space to continue their own natural cycle of advance and retreat.

But, as Dr. Charles Fletcher was quoted as telling the New York Times, "It's easy to say retreat; it's much harder to implement it."

[Photo by Heather Ellison]

Are Hawaii's Beaches Disappearing? originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 16 May 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

St. Brendan: Did An Irish Monk Come To America Before Columbus?

Sean McLachlan — Wed, 16 May 2012 10:30:00 EST

Filed under: History, Learning, Europe, North America, Iceland, Ireland, Canada, United States

Today is St. Brendan's feast day. To the Irish, St. Brendan needs no introduction. For those less fortunate in their birth, let me tell you that he may have been Ireland's first adventure traveler.

Saint Brendan was an Irish holy man who lived from 484 to 577 AD. Little is known about his life, and even his entry in the Catholic Encyclopedia is rather short. What we do know about him mostly comes from a strange tale called "the Voyage of St Brendan the Navigator," written down in the ninth century and rewritten with various changes in several later manuscripts.

It's an account of a seven-year journey he and his followers took across the Atlantic, where they met Judas sitting on a rock, landed on what they thought was an island only to discover it was a sea monster, were tempted by a mermaid, and saw many other strange and wondrous sights. They got into lots of danger, not the least from some pesky devils, but the good Saint Brendan used his holy might to see them through.

They eventually landed on the fabled Isle of the Blessed far to the west of Ireland. This is what has attracted the attention of some historians. Could the fantastic tale hide the truth that the Irish came to America a thousand years before Columbus?

Sadly, there's no real evidence for that. While several eager researchers with more imagination than methodology have claimed they've found ancient Irish script or that places like Mystery Hill are Irish settlements, their claims fall down under scrutiny.

But, as believers like to say, absence of evidence is not evidence of absence, and there are some tantalizing clues that hint the Irish really did journey across the sea in the early Middle Ages. It's firmly established that Irish monks settled in the Faroe Islands in the sixth century. The Faroes are about halfway between Scotland and Iceland. Viking sagas record that when they first went to settle Iceland in the late ninth century, they found Irish monks there. There are also vague references in the Viking sagas and in medieval archives in Hanover hinting that Irish monks made it to Greenland too.

Gallery: The Voyage of St. Brendan

Continue reading St. Brendan: Did An Irish Monk Come To America Before Columbus?

St. Brendan: Did An Irish Monk Come To America Before Columbus? originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 16 May 2012 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

A Traveler In The Foreign Service: Making Peace With Malta

Dave Seminara — Wed, 16 May 2012 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Europe, Malta

I've felt an odd kinship with Malta ever since I created a minor international incident with the tiny island nation by dressing up like Colonel Gaddafi in an 8^th grade model U.N. exercise in 1986. When my teacher decided to throw me a curveball by assigning me the task of dressing up like a citizen of Malta, I was initially displeased. In the pre-Internet age, it wasn't easy to ascertain how the Maltese dressed if you lived in Buffalo, New York, as I did.

I dressed up like Gaddafi because Malta and Libya seemed close enough on the map and I had no better ideas. A photo of me in Arab garb made it into The Buffalo News and once the Maltese got wind of it, they were none too pleased. In their indignant response, Mario Cacciottolo, the private secretary of the Prime Minister of Malta, told me that I should try to correct the misperception I'd created regarding their country. But I was a 13-year-old kid living in Buffalo. How was I going to do that?

My school was alarmed by the letter and sent it to the State Department. Several months later, the Desk Officer for Malta sent me a letter encouraging me to consider a career in diplomacy. I did just that in my 30's. Over the last quarter of a century, I've traveled extensively in more than 50 countries, including most of Europe. All this time, Malta's been on my radar, but I've been circling the place without actually landing there.

Continue reading A Traveler In The Foreign Service: Making Peace With Malta

A Traveler In The Foreign Service: Making Peace With Malta originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 16 May 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Gadling Gear Review: OverLand Equipment's Ellis Bag

Pam Mandel — Wed, 16 May 2012 09:00:00 EST

I see more and more iPads in transit these days - on airplanes, on the bus, and one of my in-laws drags hers around and uses it as her camera. I remain a netbook user; I never really fell for my iPad as a travel computer. The fragility of it makes me nervous. I don't like carrying it around with me; it's too slippery and shiny. Bag makers are tapping into that anxiety by designing carry cases for your iPad (that are, handy for me, often exactly the right size for a netbook, too).

OverLand Equipment makes a nice little bag to keep your iPad stowed and safe while you're schlepping it through security or on the express bus to work. It's the Ellis Large, a shoulder bag with a lightly padded pocket that's just the right size to protect your hardware.

The back pocket has two sections: one for your iPad or netbook and the other for your power supply. The front section is divided up into a series of pockets and easily accommodates your wallet, phone, keys, lip balm, boarding passes; the kind of stuff a traveler drags around with them.

There's an adjustable shoulder strap, long enough so you can wear it messenger-style, across your body. The hardware is plastic; it feels heavy duty enough to handle some wear and tear, but I've come to have a preference for metal hardware because it lasts longer. The one thing I really wanted was a key hook; it seems I'm always digging around in the bottom of my bag for my keys.

Here's my dilemma. There is nothing wrong with the Ellis; it's a perfectly nice bag for the price. But I've also tried the Ristretto from Tom Bihn. At $125, it costs nearly three times what the Ellis costs but it spoiled me for the Ellis. I kept mentally comparing the Ellis to the Bihn bag, and it didn't stack up.

I'm sensible; you should be too. If you don't want to drop a C-note and change on a bag, the Ellis Large will serve you nicely. It's a good little bag and stows your gear nicely. It comes in two colors, Poppy (red) and black. The bag retails for $45 directly from OverLand Equipment.

Gadling Gear Review: OverLand Equipment's Ellis Bag originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 16 May 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Nat Geo Announces 2012 Gear Of The Year

Kraig Becker — Wed, 16 May 2012 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Biking, Climbing, Hiking, Paddling, Gear, Camping, Gadling Gear Review

Travelers and outdoor enthusiasts looking for the best new gear for their summer adventurers will want to check out National Geographic's Adventure Blog. Earlier this week the site announced its selections for Gear of the Year, with the best new tents, boots, gadgets and apparel earning a place on the list.

Some of the more interesting items to get the nod include a new sleeping bag from Sierra Designs that features waterproof down, a pair of sunglasses from Pivothead with an integrated video camera and a multi-function tool from Gerber that can also serve as a tripod for your camera. Campers will love the new Tulip Lantern from Snow Peak as well as the new Kilo tent from Easton, while shutterbugs will be eager to get their hands on the new Canon 5D Mark III.

Two items that we told you about here at Gadling made Nat Geo's list as well. They were the Camelbak All Clear water purification system and the Osprey Atmos 50 backpack. We were impressed with both products in our reviews and it seems our colleagues at National Geographic were as well.

To take a look at all the other great gear on the list click here, and have your credit card at the ready.

Nat Geo Announces 2012 Gear Of The Year originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 16 May 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

VIDEO: Vintage Turkish Taxis

Meg Nesterov — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Asia, Europe, Turkey, Video, Transportation

Millions of people get around Istanbul each day via dolmuş, a shared taxi. Similar to the colectivo of Latin America or the dollar vans of New York City, a dolmuş is generally a mini-bus or van that follows a fixed route for a fixed price. At the beginning of the route, the bus waits until it is full of passengers (dolmuş means stuffed in Turkish) before departing. You hand your money (theoretically a share of a private taxi's rate, but usually 2-3 TL) up to the driver, and hop out whenever you get to your destination; there are rarely official bus stops.

The video above may look like it's from the 1950s, but it's actually from 1986. As recently as a few decades ago, the dolmuş vehicle of choice wasn't the large yellow van you see today, but classic American cars from the mid-century and pre-war. Some of the vintage cars were customized with a third bench to stuff in more passengers!

Thanks to Turcopedia for the links and info.

VIDEO: Vintage Turkish Taxis originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 15 May 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Eco-Friendly Hotel Amenity: Pedal-To-Power LCD Television

Jessica Festa — Tue, 15 May 2012 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Activism, Biking, Europe, United Kingdom, Hotels and Accommodations, Ecotourism, Budget Travel

For those interested in keeping vacation weight off while also doing something good for the planet, the Cottage Lodge in Brockenhurst, United Kingdom, is offering a unique amenity. Instead of allowing guests to turn on the television the old-fashioned way, the bed and breakfast features a pedal-to-power LCD television in their Standing Hat room.

The purpose of the unusually active method of television powering is purely environmental. While you'd think some travelers may not be happy about having to work to turn on their TV, the accommodation has actually received positive feedback, especially from cyclists.

"I focused on three things when constructing the room: reducing waste, minimizing pollution and using resources with the lowest impact possible," the hotel's owner, Christina Simons, explained to the Telegraph. "I also wanted to show that being green can also be exciting and fun, and guests love cycling on the bike."

And for those with low stamina, don't worry, you also have the option to make use of the electric supply generated by photovoltaic cells on the roof, so you'll still be going green while you travel. In fact, the hotel utilizes many sustainable features, like solar panel heating in the summer, heating via a wood burning stove in the winter, low-impact building materials and furniture created by a local tree surgeon from a single fallen beech tree.

Eco-Friendly Hotel Amenity: Pedal-To-Power LCD Television originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 15 May 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Virgin America; United To Begin San Francisco To Washington, DC, Nonstop Service

McLean Robbins — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Airlines, Airports, Airline Reviews

Virgin America has been awarded permission to fly into Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport beginning sometime this summer. United Airlines began their service today.

While the well-known carriers already fly direct to San Francisco, its US hub, out of Washington Dulles International, this new route opens up additional opportunities for the business and leisure traveler looking to fly from DC proper, rather than 45-minutes outside of the city.

"We are pleased to have the opportunity to bring our unique brand of service to this underserved route - and to better connect one of the world's leading economies to our nation's capital," said David Cush, President and CEO of Virgin America. "Until this year, San Francisco has been the largest travel market in the nation previously without nonstop flights to DCA."

Typically, long-haul flights are rare from the Washington airport, which normally doesn't allow flights beyond a 1,250-mile "perimeter limit."

Most of the prior "beyond perimeter" awards had been made to non-California airports. Smaller markets awarded DCA flights in the past include: Denver (four frequencies), Seattle (two frequencies) and Phoenix (three frequencies). Despite its size and the importance of Northern California's innovation-based technology sector to the national economy, prior to this year the Bay Area never had nonstop service to DCA. As a result, local consumers and businesses suffered for decades with higher fares and limited choices - either flying to Washington Dulles or taking one-stop connecting flights when traveling to downtown Washington, D.C.

A big cheers today for Virgin, United and DC!

[Flickr via maka]

Virgin America; United To Begin San Francisco To Washington, DC, Nonstop Service originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 15 May 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

'Bolivian Mennonites' Photography Exhibition Begins In New York

Meg Nesterov — Tue, 15 May 2012 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Arts and Culture, South America, Bolivia

Unless you've followed the horrifying story of the serial rapists who wrecked havoc in the community in 2009, you might not know that the small South American country of Bolivia is home to a large community of Mennonites. Photographer Lisa Wiltse traveled to the isolated colony of Manitoba to capture the conservative community, who shun cars, electricity, and other modern conveniences, and live by a strict religious code. Many of the Mennonites do not speak Spanish, and women typically only speak low German, as the founders of the religion did in the 16th century.

Wiltse's photographs are a rare glimpse into an insular culture. If you are in New York City tonight, you can attend a reception and slideshow of Wiltse's work, moderated by the co-curator of The Half King's photography series. The art exhibition will be on display in the bar until July, and some of the photos can be viewed on the artist's website.

Photo courtesy The Half King. "Bolivian Mennonites" will be on display May 15 - July 9 in New York.

'Bolivian Mennonites' Photography Exhibition Begins In New York originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 15 May 2012 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Travel Partners From Hell

Jessica Festa — Tue, 15 May 2012 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Learning, Stories, Budget Travel, Women's Travel, Luxury Travel

For those debating whether to travel in a group or go solo, you'll want to read this. Just because you get along with someone at happy hour or Sunday morning spin class, doesn't mean it'll be smooth sailing on the road. After backpacking around the world for five years, both solo and with others, I've had my fair share of unpleasant travel partners. Think about these situations, and decide if your potential travel partner seems laid-back or fits into one of these categories.

The Cheapskate

For the most part, backpackers are budget-travelers by nature. They stay in dorms with 13 other people, forgo tours for the cheaper do-it-yourself version and will walk 15 blocks to save the equivalent of $1.50 on a meal. However, there's a big difference between trying to stretch your dollar, and being downright cheap. When backpacking Europe, I traveled with a girl who talked of nothing but how much her condo cost, and how she couldn't afford to eat or take the subway. She was so cheap; she used to eat the egg yolks from my daily chef's salad as her lunch. We also went to an amusement park in Vienna, but didn't go on any rides because she felt it was too expensive. In my mind, I was wondering why we had even walked the two hours to get there - because she refused to spend money on public transportation - if we weren't going to enjoy it. Before traveling, make sure you're both on the same page about the budget.

Continue reading Travel Partners From Hell

Travel Partners From Hell originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 15 May 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Museum Month: Kalaupapa National Historic Park And Leper Settlement, Molokai

Laurel Miller — Tue, 15 May 2012 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Arts and Culture, Hiking, History, Learning, Paddling, Scuba Diving, Surfing, North America, United States, Ecotourism, Luxury Travel

Some people - me, for instance - tend to skip museums when traveling in favor of fresh air or outdoor recreation. It's always a treat when I can combine the two, especially because I'm fascinated by indigenous cultures. Though not considered museums in the strictest sense, National Historic Parks, Monuments and the like often do have buildings, exhibits, or relics with educational materials that provide a museum-like experience. When I can combine that with some physically challenging activity, it often makes for an incredibly rewarding day.

While relatively few visitors ever make it to the Hawaiian island of Molokai, located just off of Maui's western shore, its fame is global due to its tragic history. From the mid-19th century until 1969, thousands of islanders afflicted with leprosy (Hansen's Disease) were forced into isolation on the Kalaupapa peninsula on the northern shore. A smaller settlement also exists at Kalawao, on the eastern side. Today, Kalaupapa National Historic Park receives thousands of visitors annually, who come to pay tribute - and satisfy their morbid curiosity - to a tragic episode in Hawaii's turbulent history.

Molokai's North Shore is covered in dense rainforest and has the world's highest sea cliffs, which tower over 2,000 feet. These geographical features made Kalaupapa the ideal location in which to displace lepers, often by cruel methods such as tossing them off of ships, which sometimes resulted in fatalities. The forcible removal of native Hawaiians from their 'aina - family and land, which are at the core of their culture - devastated generations of islanders.

Gallery: Kalaupapa National Historical Park

Continue reading Museum Month: Kalaupapa National Historic Park And Leper Settlement, Molokai

Museum Month: Kalaupapa National Historic Park And Leper Settlement, Molokai originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 15 May 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

A New Way Compare Hotels: The Club Sandwich Comparison

McLean Robbins — Tue, 15 May 2012 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Hotels and Accommodations, Internet Tools

One of our favorite parts of travel? Food. We love trying local dishes and delicacies, ordering the freshest and newest dishes available to tempt our palate. But sometimes, an old standby will have to do. Which explains our fascination with Hotels.com's new Club Sandwich Index, which measures the expense of the ten most popular U.S. cities by the cost of a club sandwich.

It comes as no shock that the most expensive club sandwich can be found in New York City for an average price of nearly $17. (That's good, compared to Paris, where that price jumps to $33.)

Why choose the club sandwich? The classic chicken, bacon, egg, lettuce and mayo sandwich is a standard lunch available in hotels worldwide. The CSI average price has been calculated by taking the real prices paid by guests for a club sandwich within 1,000 five, four and three-star hotels located in popular travel destinations across 26 countries, with 10 U.S. cities measured.

Continue reading A New Way Compare Hotels: The Club Sandwich Comparison

A New Way Compare Hotels: The Club Sandwich Comparison originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 15 May 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

How To Go Couch Surfing In a Cave

Kyle Ellison — Tue, 15 May 2012 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Jordan, Hotels and Accommodations, Budget Travel, Middle East

As the popularity of the Couch Surfing movement grows exponentially across the budget travel community, it's widely understood that often times you won't actually be sleeping on a couch. Sometimes you will have your own bedroom. Other times it could be the floor.

Or, as this recent article from CNN points out, it doesn't even mean that you're going to be staying inside of a house. In the case of one couch surfer outside of Petra, Jordan, you could opt to spend the night couch surfing inside of a cave.

Listed on the site by Ghassab Al-Bedoul, this 42-year-old Bedouin invites travelers to stay in the same cave he was born in just minutes from the ruins at Petra. Although there is no bathroom, his cave can accommodate up to ten guests who all sleep on thin mats on the desert ground.

A traveler himself who reportedly received ample free lodging while bouncing around Europe, Al-Bedoul has no qualms about opening up his cave to visitors coming to pay a visit to his hometown. As of publication, Al-Bedoul estimates he's welcomed over 1,200 travelers into his humble abode.

Renowned for being a site where travelers are able to have unique experiences unavailable to those staying in traditional accommodations, Couch Surfing yet again offers up a tale such as this one, which can only stir the wanderlust of scores of adventurous travelers.

[Image courtesy of Jack Zalium on Flickr]

How To Go Couch Surfing In a Cave originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 15 May 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sailing With Costa, Post-Concordia: A Review Of Costa's Neo Romantica

Dave Seminara — Tue, 15 May 2012 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Europe, North America, Budget Travel, Cruises

Images of sinking ships aren't normally the best advertisements for cruise lines, but after watching the Discovery Channel's documentary on the ill-fated Costa Concordia, it made me want to book a cruise. And not just any cruise - a Costa cruise. Why?

I've traveled extensively in more than 50 countries over the last two decades on almost every imaginable mode of transport - cars, trains, ferries, planes and buses - but I haven't been on a cruise since a family trip way back in 1985. I had a blast on that cruise but somehow in the intervening years, I acquired this fuzzy notion that cruises were for families, senior citizens and inexperienced travelers incapable of exploring on their own.

But after reading Pico Iyer's convincing story, "Confessions of a Cruise Convert," about the merits of cruising in Conde Naste, I resolved to give it a shot. With the Costa Concordia crash in January, and an engine room fire aboard the Costa Allegra in late February, it's been a rough year for Costa. But while others were recoiling in horror while watching the NatGeo and Discovery documentaries on the Concordia this spring, I still wanted to check out Costa on my own.

Continue reading Sailing With Costa, Post-Concordia: A Review Of Costa's Neo Romantica

Sailing With Costa, Post-Concordia: A Review Of Costa's Neo Romantica originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 15 May 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments