© rogers-photos


I read recently about the Manchester University anthropologist who plans to "live" in the Manchester airport for a year. At least they bill it that way in the headline. But then when you read the story you find out that he's going to spend "up to" 18 hours a day in the airport. Up until I read that part I wondered if his car would still be in Manchester airport parking at the end of the year. But I guess he'll be driving it home at the end of the day everyday...

Dr. Damian O'Doherty (the anthropologist) is 42. He'd spend his time in terminals and departure lounges, "observing passengers' and workers' habits." according to the news piece.

The study is expected to cost around £40,000. It's being paid for the British government's Department of Business, Innovation and Skills. The research is supposed to examine how airports affect people. The goal is to figure out how to make airports better places to visit or work.

The study is being criticized as a waste of money. Since he probably lives right there in Manchester, I doubt O'Doherty is sleeping at taxpayer expense in the Airport hotels. Personally, I can't see the problem with the study. I'd love for airports to be nicer places, easier to work in.

And at least O'Doherty won't need the taxpayers to foot the bill for Holiday insurance...

© stevendamron


It is perhaps the newest and oldest Mediterranean playground: Beirut
. Now twenty years after the end of the Lebanese civil war, and after a year without sectarian violence in the city, the tourists are coming back in record numbers.

Despite war and religious strife, Beirut has survived. Over two million tourists visited Beirut in 2009 - up 39% over 2008. In peak season Beirut no competes with Greece and Italy for beach scene tourists. Adventurous Westerns are rediscovering the city and the well to do from across the Arab world flock there.

That survivor mentality causes people to seize the moment - partying with passion, despite power outages and brutal traffic. "Beirut is like a Lebanese Babylon, where Arabs can dance on tabletops, swim in bikinis and kiss their girlfriends in public," says British journalist Warren Singh-Bartlett, a 12-year resident. In summer, the famous beach clubs hold their own against the playgrounds of Greece and Spain.

Call it a peace dividend. If the city remains peaceful, tourism will continue to grow. Between the beaches, the dining, the new urban development, and vibrant nightlife, Beirut's new found popularity is well deserved.

© qubitsu


Travel & Leisure had a piece recently on the world's top 50 hotels. I don't know how such a list can be more than someone's list of personal favorites, but it's a fun list to read.

Some are on the list because, while they might treat you very well, they're especially exotic. Take the Oberoi Vanyavilas in Rajasthan, India. Teak floors and pushily outfitted rooms - but the rooms are tents. And the resort is in a game preserve with tigers. Live tigers. I don't know that I could sleep in a tent it I knew there were tigers around...

Maybe Jade Mountain in St. Lucia would be more enjoyable. Open air suites with in-room pools or private Jacuzzis. And (presumably) no tigers.

Unless I win the lottery soon, I suppose I need to be pay more attention to sites like this one on luxury hotel deals. Maybe I can think about a trip in April, during my school's spring break.

© Lars Plougmann


Often the most frustrating part of travel is the simple logistics. Where do I leave my car? Where do I stay once I get to my destination? What happens if something goes wrong?

I think we make it harder than it has to be. Finding a place to leave your car is usually a matter of just knowing what's available. Gatwick airport parking, for example, isn't really that difficult if you've looked it up ahead of time. Our frustration ends up coming out of our own unpreparedness. In the same way, a little Holiday insurance can protect you if things go wrong - if you get sick, or your flight is cancelled, or your bags are lost, etc. But who gives it much thought? It would be great if you could pay for insurances after something goes wrong, but it doesn't work that way.

My personal favorite frustration issue is choice of hotels. I've learned that with business travel, especially, the Airport hotels at most major airports are by far the most convenient and comfortable arrangement. You get off the plane, go through customs, get your bags, and 20 or 30 minutes later you're relaxing in a bathrobe in your room, going over the paperwork for tomorrow's meetings. After a long plane ride, that's a lot better than sitting in traffic in a cab. You can do that tomorrow...

© martijn.munneke


A recent NY Times piece point out the growing tourist traffic in the Syrian market town of Aleppo.

In September, tourism in Syria was up by more than a third from the same month a year earlier, and the recent loosening of visa restrictions with Turkey means that Aleppo is being flooded with traders and tourists from across the border.

Aleppo sits at an historic crossroads between Europe and Asia and has been a marketplace for a millenium or more. It's big advantage today is that the city's bazaar is not a reconstructed trouist attraction. It's a working Middle Eastern suq where Syrians still shop...