Week of July 11th
Each week, Intelligent Travel offers up a host of interesting travel tidbits, but even we admit that our cup runneth over when it comes to fascinating facts. So we've compiled a weekly compendium of the things we've found on the web, and share them with you.
North America
-The Statue of Liberty's crown may re-open to visitors. [History & world heritage]
-The amphibian population in the wetlands of Edmonton, Canada, is declining. [Environment & wildlife]
-Two explorers are traversing Greenland, and just recently marked their 100th day on the ice. [Global news & trivia]
-Guerrilla gardeners take their green insurgency to Los Angeles, California. [Environment & wildlife]
-Climate change is threatening regular eruptions of Old Faithful, in Yellowstone National Park. [Environment & wildlife]
-A two-ton, 500-million-year-old fossil of algae mats (aka stromatolite) was discovered in Virginia. [History & world heritage]
South America
-The new Environment Minister of Brazil calls the situation of its 299 protected areas and nature reserves "not sustainable," with many parks afflicted by mismanagement and illegal raids. [Environment & wildlife]
-While reefs around the world are becoming increasingly endangered, new discoveries have essentially doubled the estimated size of the largest and richest reef system in the Southern Atlantic Ocean. [Environment & wildlife]
Europe
-Traditional wines in Italy's Val D'Aosta are being saved from the brink of extinction. [Global news & trivia]
-The Danish island of Samsø, in the North Sea, is featured in the New Yorker as a net exporter of sustainable energy—which only took ten years to accomplish. Manhattan, take heed. [Global news & trivia]
-A "shy goddess venus" statue has been discovered in an ancient Roman city near Skopje, Macedonia. [History & world heritage]
-The monthlong London Festival of Architecture ends July 20. Over twenty-five international embassies are exhibiting architecture from their particular countries. Official guide here. [Global news & trivia]
-Bulls are fighting back in Pamplona, Spain. Via Passport/Foreign Policy. [Global news & trivia]
-The symbol of Rome, Italy isn't quite as old as previously thought. [History & world heritage]
-A Swedish man's attempt at snowmobiling across the Gulf of Bothnia, in the Baltic Sea between Sweden and Finland, ended abruptly when the vehicle sank through the ice. [Global news & trivia]
Asia
-The hotel hosting the G8 summit in Toyako, Japan will bury a time capsule in a monument symbolizing global warming. Photographs, newspaper clippings, and hotel relics of the July summit will be sealed in the capsule, to be dug up in one hundred years. [Global news & trivia]
-More immediately, the G8 summit attendees had the chance to test drive a fleet of electric plug-ins, hybrids, and hydrogen fuel cell cars, supplied by Japan's top seven carmakers. [Global news & trivia]
-Abu Dhabi, one of the United Arab Emirates, has purchased a majority sharehold of New York City's Chrysler building. Some locals are probably outraged, though few may realize the previous majority owners were actually German. [Global news & trivia]
-Northern Cambodians vie to save the very rare Mekong Irrawaddy river dolphin, hoping that this might also lead to an increase in tourism. [Environment & wildlife]
-Meanwhile, Cambodians in Siep Reap, have opened the Angkor National Museum despite controversy surrounding its design and artifacts. [History & world heritage]
-The South China tigers, most of which are bred in captivity, are dangerously close to being extinct. [Environment & wildlife]
-Some are looking to change the laws in Saudi Arabia, where women are free to purchase vehicles, though they cannot drive them. [Global news & trivia]
-The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration publishes a monthly roundup of global hazards and climate extremes—June's compendium comes with maps and stats of droughts in China and floods in India. [Maps]
Africa
-A Reuters reporter blogs about road-tripping in arid northern Kenya. [Global news & trivia]
Oceania
-Twenty-seven new locations have been added to UNESCO's World Heritage list, including sites in New Caledonia (France), Vanuatu, and Papua New Guinea—the latter two countries are list newcomers. [History & world heritage]
Nice list and concept! But did really *nothing* interesting come out of Australia that week?
Posted by: Mats - Notes about the World | July 13, 2008 at 10:27 AM
While we do try to be well-rounded geographically, we may not include relevant updates on specific countries every week. Nothing against Australia at all—we simply had an influx of news from other locations this time around. Of course, we're always happy to hear back from our readers, and equally happy to satisfy requests. So, here's your Aussie fix:
-The Crocosaurus Cove theme park is scheduled to open next week in Darwin. Attractions include a submerged, clear-acrylic box called "Cage of Death" wherein one can spend 15 minutes while a feisty, saltwater croc swims (and chomps) around.
http://www.news.com.au/travel/story/0,26058,24003097-5014090,00.html
-The new colour scheme of Qantas' A380 planes isn't attracting many fans.
http://www.news.com.au/travel/story/0,26058,23734697-5014090,00.html
-Young Australians are choosing to save up for travelling overseas instead of investing in property or buying a car.
http://www.news.com.au/travel/story/0,26058,23796067-5014090,00.html
Posted by: Stefan Caiafa | July 13, 2008 at 11:33 PM
That's a good fix! Thank you!
Posted by: Mats - Notes about the World | July 14, 2008 at 07:17 PM