Wanderism Travel» Wanderism Travel

I MISSED MY STOP (v2.0)

Randy — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 11:00:33 +0000

The melodic counterpoint of the Ukelele from Hawaii. Listening, as well as tasting, in the Napa Valley. Zipping across Manila… literally. Getting high in Spain. The forest for the trees in Sweden.

Herewith, the latest installment of some travel pages you may have ‘missed’. Enjoy!

• From The Honolulu Star Advertiser (Hawaii)…
» When The Ukulele Came To Town

• From The San Jose Mercury-News (California)…
» Napa Valley And All That Jazz

• From The Manila Bulletin (Philippines)…
» Philippines Means Zip

• From The SUR In English (Spain)…
» The Mountain Region of Sierra Magina

• From Stuff.co.nz (New Zealand)…
» A Swedish Treehotel

[REW]

I MISSED MY STOP (v1.0)

Randy — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 11:00:55 +0000

We can’t be everywhere at once. I’m sure there’s a law of physics in there somewhere.

Picture yourself sitting at a nice outdoor cafe in your hometown. Now, does your mind drift off to some far-away land accompanied by a secret wish that Star Trek’s ‘transporter beam’ actually did exist and you’d give anything to have one right now, right there beside you? Maybe it’s a beach that you’re pining for as you drink your Cafe Mocha. Or a bar with just the right temperature and tang of English Bitter. Perhaps a desert or a jungle, a city or a slope. So many options.

Doug and I face that predicament every day. Try as we might, we can’t possibly cover every corner of the globe for Wanderism with stories, articles, photos, videos and the like. There’s a ton of entertaining, colorful (and dare I say ‘educational’) information out there, which is why if you’re a fan of Wanderism chances are you visit a number of other travel-based websites (and bookmark us we hope!) to get your fix.

A couple of travel websites we frequent offer articles every so often that provide a set of links to other sites that might have particularly good stories about the wonderful places on this planet. We think that’s a good idea – spreading the gospel, so to speak.

Frequently, that information is found in those few remaining newspapers (remember newspapers?) that continue to feature ‘travel’ pages – sometimes whole sections. And more often than not those newspapers are in far-flung cities of the world, and the information isn’t always what you’d expect.

Herewith, the first installment of some travel pages you may have ‘missed’. Enjoy!

• From The Bangkok Post…
» Walking Tours Of Bangkok

• From The New Orleans Times-Picayune…
» Get Carried Away In Cajun Country

• From The Irish Independent…
» Secret Cyprus

• From The West Australian…
» Club Med Turns 60!

• From The Tico Times…
» Life On An Organic Farm In Costa Rica

[REW]

WHERE THERE’S A QUILL, THERE’S A WAY

Randy — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 11:00:19 +0000

I’ve written a travel book. Doug’s written a travel book. We’re both working on other travel books as we speak. Hell, just about everyone we know in this business has, or is about to write a travel book.

So, in the midst of the worst downturn in travel book sales in a decade is there a point in continuing? Will our yet-to-see-the-light-of-day tomes ever… well… see the light of day?

According to Bookseller.com travel book sales have slumped more than 10% over last year’s sales figures which themselves were almost 30% lower than the year before that.

Some imprints had modest increases apparently — Rough Guides for one — but across the board business has been terrible. What, with Icelandic ash clouds, airline strikes and Bangkok turning into the OK Corral, travel guides particularly haven’t been selling. But marketing always has its greatest impact in times of struggle. Lonely Planet tackled the downturn in a unique fashion by giving away their iPhone City Guide apps for free when volcanic ash closed many of Europe’s key airports.

If the global economy is coming around as most financial pundits seem to believe, and if the summer travel season begins to percolate, then perhaps all these setbacks will be nothing more than short-term events and we can all get back to doing what we do best: reading, writing and road trips (the three ‘R’s…?)

[REW] – [Source]

TRAVEL CHANNEL BECOMES EXPAT

Randy — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 15:12:33 +0000

If you live in Canada and love travel, then this news is for you.

CTVGlobeMedia, Canada’s largest private television network, has sold its specialty travel-based channel to a broadcast media group headed by two media icons, Raja Khanna and Jay Switzer.

Launched initially as CTV Travel back in 2001 the channel was re-branded as Travel+Escape five years later. Programming was similar to Cox’s Travel Channel in the United States and Britain’s Travel Channel International (TCI).

In recent years one of CTV’s other specialty channels, OLN, has been programming travel-based fare and seemed to eclipse Travel+Escape as the travel TV venue of choice in Canada – Word Travels would be a prime example of that.

I’ve worked with Raja in the past on projects, and know Jay through reputation (he was President and CEO of former powerhouse broadcaster CHUM Limited in Toronto). Between the two of them I can’t see this acquisition being anything but a well-deserved boost for new travel programming. Specifically, with Raja’s pioneering online media background, I can foresee a significant, and possibly primary online component for the channel as its content is spread over different outlets and released to mobile devices. I’ve produced and directed a number of travel series for Travel+Escape over the years, and I’m personally happy to see any change here that brings new and compelling travel content to the airwaves (and WiFi!) My two cents.

The CRTC (Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, Canada’s broadcasting regulatory body, similar to the FCC in the United States) still has to approve the sale.

Bottom line: This is good news for those of us who love travel television. Hey, we all need a vicarious hit once in awhile when we’re landlocked or desk-bound, yes?

Stay tuned, as they say.

[REW]

Do you like to watch…? Comments below.

ROUND THE WORLD BY CAR

Randy — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 11:00:12 +0000

I’m writing a new book at the moment. It’s a biography about the first woman to travel around the world by car. The attempt would be amazing enough for anyone, but realizing that she accomplished the feat at an early age during the Roaring 20s in a converted Model-T Ford is nothing short of remarkable. Automobiles had only been in general use in North America for a few years, and in post-WWI Europe they were still a novelty. There were parts of Africa that had no roads at all to speak of. Then there were the perils of being a beautiful young woman traveling through parts of the world that had never seen a white person before. A fascinating and entertaining story if I do say so myself.

Which brings me to Nicolas Rapp and his Round The World expedition in an old 4×4.

From his own blog:

In the summer of 2009, Nicolas Rapp decided to take a break from his Art Director job at The Associated Press to attempt a one-year overland travel around the world in a 1996 Toyota Land Cruiser.

Nick began in New York City and is now in East Africa near Ethiopia. The account of his travels (and travails) can be pretty hair-raising at times, but also funny and insightful. Accompanied by many photographs Nick’s blog, Trans World Expedition, describes in detail his solo trek around the world. It is worth tuning in occasionally to get an update on his progress, and a vicarious on-the-ground feel for life on the road. Where there IS a road. And no AAA. And no cellphone towers. And it gets dark… very dark.

[REW]

Would you ever attempt this…? Share your thoughts. Comments below.