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Travel Warnings have been issued for the following countries: Angola:
Marburg Virus
Fear of losing pricey gadgets has inspired a growing lost-and-found service industry. At least three companies — Trackitback, BoomerangIt and StuffBak — sell services that make it easier for people to return found gadgets. China has declared 2005 the "Year of Red Tourism," promoting visits to historic communist sites to polish the ruling party's image and boost development in rural areas where Mao Zedong's guerrillas waged their revolution. Cathay Pacific airline staff have been limited to just two of the ultra long-haul flights per month since it was found the route exposed passengers and crew to high levels of cosmic radiation when they flew over the North Pole. Apparently radiation levels increase markedly at 8,000 metres above the pole and prolonged exposure could be harmful to cell DNA, possibly causing cancer.
Upcoming Events: Japan: Hana
Matsuri (8 April) People drink magical tea and temples around
Japan fill with flowers for Buddha's birthday more> |
Internationally renowned lifestyle designer Philippe Starck has a dream to "make a place where people are more awesome, are more sexy, are more smart, more sparkling... " and he recently announced a global partnership for a new ultra-luxury hotel brand, Starck Hotels, that he says will make people fall in love all over again. Philippe Starck is the world's leading lifestyle designer with a self described 'tribe' of millions who covet his every concept, whether it is for a computer mouse, chair or hotel. It was Starck who redefined what a hotel could be nearly two decades ago and who now, in partnering with Geneva based F6, can finally realize his life long dream to infuse a luxury hotel with what he calls the "beauty of intelligence." Starck said he is granting F6 an exclusive Master License Agreement (MLA) to develop, market and operate the brand with Starck providing all design and conceptual support. Starck Hotels will be a subsidiary of F6; formed to launch the brand, work with Starck to develop a new template for an ultra-luxury hotel and identify prime locations to work with partners towards the development of up to 35 hotels in prime locations around the world in the next five years. F6 is a Geneva based conglomerate led by Chairman and CEO His Highness Prince Faisal F. Al Saud, who formed and operates F6 as an inn. Any visitor to France who thinks the country's drivers are pushy, rude and prone to parking wherever their cars might conceivably fit on Wednesday had confirmation from an unlikely source — the drivers themselves. According to a survey carried out by AGF, an insurance company, and APFC, an association for preventing road-rage, six out of 10 French drivers believe their fellow motorists are impolite and aggressive behind the wheel. "Civic behavior, politeness, respect, patience and commonsense are concepts which seem to totally escape the French when they are behind the wheel," APFC said. The list of galling Gallic transgressions on the road remains long and dangerous. Half the respondents felt drivers did not respect pedestrians. Read more> |
Here are some of the latest travel gadgets we found courtesy of Discovery's Travel Channel. Wireless high-speed Internet hotspots are available almost anywhere — from airports to coffee houses. Kensington's Wi-Fi Finder is a key-chain sized device that has LED lights that illuminate when within range of a strong Wi-Fi signal. This can save you the trouble of booting up your notebook to see if there's a strong signal.
Taking your presentations on the road just got easier with the Infocus LP120, a portable projector designed to fit in your briefcase right next to your laptop. This projector weighs less than 2 pounds, but you don't sacrifice features for the small package: native XGA resolution, operates quietly, optical zoom lens and an interactive display for a glitch-free presentation. The best time-saving device for the road is the Corex CardScan Executive. Within seconds, the compact CardScan reads business cards and stores the information in an electronic address book. When we tested this device, we had a stack of business cards saved on our notebook in minutes. To lighten and organize your load, the $50 Sharper Image Laptop Accessory Kit is a must have. It comes with a mini optical mouse with a retractable cord, rubber ear buds, a clip-on LED light, and a compact retractable Ethernet cable. All these accessories come in a very packable carrying case. Plush fabric and high-density foam make the $40 Sound Therapy Eye Mask perfect for a sleepy passenger. It blocks out light and sound to give you some peace while you're in transit. The mask also has tiny speakers right under the fabric. Connect your mp3 player and hear your own tunes or listen to the preprogrammed soothing sounds like birdsongs and rainforest. The Sound Therapy Eye Mask is sure to be your sound sanctuary. For a review on technology, gadgets, all manner of sports paraphanalia, luggage and even cooking gadgets, visit Discovery's Travel website. |
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