Stories about Travel from December, 2008
Tanzania: Visiting Mikumi National Park
Pernille of Louder than Swahili describes going on a safari to Mikumi National Park, 5-6 hours drive from Dar es Salaam, including some pictures.
Myanmar: Pictures of fishing villages
dawn_109 went to the delta region of Myanmar, and posted pictures of fishing villages which were destroyed by a deadly cyclone last May.
Southeast Asia: Controversies and tragedies of 2008
In the previous post (Southeast Asia: Newsmakers of 2008), I wrote about the major events that took place in Southeast Asia. In this article, I will highlight other stories which became controversial as well.
Trinidad & Tobago, Cuba: City of Contradictions
Trinidadian blogger Tattoo spends Christmas in Havana and comes away with the impression that “the revolution has not achieved a new equilibrium. Instead, it has re-appropriated the inequalities inherent in any capitalist society and ensured that those in power are the haves as opposed to the have nots. And this...
Cuba, U.S.A.: Lifting Limits?
Uncommon Sense links to an article which suggests that US President-Elect Barack Obama seems prepared to lift limits “on how often Cuban Americans can visit family members on the island and on how much money they can send them”, a move which the blogger says would end “one of the...
Serbia: Christmas in January
Belgraded explains the advantages of celebrating Christmas in January.
Russia-Georgia: The value of Russian passports
Eternal Remont refers to an Al Jazeera news story on South Ossetia to argue that Russian citizens’ passports handed out to South Ossetians in practice are used rather as Russian domestic passports.
Southeast Asia: Newsmakers of 2008
For Southeast Asia, 2008 was a year of terrible disasters, both natural and man-made. Rice consumption was reduced, milk products were contaminated with melamine, jobs were lost, bloggers were arrested, and homes were destroyed. But the situation is not hopeless.
Macedonia Timeless
On December 24, 2008, there was a presentation of a promotional video for Macedonia – “Macedonia Timeless.” The video is written and directed by Milcho Manchevski (an Academy Award nominee in 1995), and its purpose is to promote Macedonia as a tourist destination. The video will be aired on CNN, and a dozen countries in eight different languages. Elena Ignatova reviews bloggers' reactions to the video.
Singapore Flyer, a white elephant already?
Because of the recession, fewer people are visiting the Singapore Flyer (the world’s largest observation wheel). According to Empty Vessel, “if no drastic measures are taken to restore people’s confidence in stepping into the capsules, the Flyer risks becoming Singapore’s biggest white elephant.”
Guyana: Bridge Opens
Living Guyana congratulates the government on the opening of the Berbice bridge, but reserves the right to ask a few questions.
Central and Eastern Europe: A Christmas Roundup
A holiday season roundup: Tanja of Czechmatediary recalls family Christmas celebrations of her childhood, writes about the Czech Christmas Mass, and shares a recipe of Vanocka (“Christmas bread”); CzechFolks.com writes about a calorie-free yet mouth-watering way of decorating a holiday table with crocheted Czech Christmas cookies; The Foreigner's Guide to...
Czech Republic: A Politics-Free Roundup
Politics-free posts from the Czech Republic: a charity project to help orphans organized by Czech model Tereza Maxova, bankruptcy of one of the largest Czech glass companies, and Karel Gott's lasting popularity – at CzechFolks.com; the winner of the Bravest Czech of the Year award, and tips on how to...
Ukraine: Hutsuls and Crimean Tatars
My Simferopol Home writes about her dissertation plans to compare histories of exoticism in the Ukrainian Hutsul and Crimean Tatars cultures: “So, why these two groups? While distinct in ethnogenesis, history and territory, Hutsuls, the superstitious, hard-drinking subsistence farmers to Poland and Austro-Hungary’s urban intellectuals, and Crimean Tatars, the perceived...
Ukraine: Holiday Season Update
Ukrainian holiday season update: music – at Natalia Antonova's blog; sights – at Greetings from Kyiv; politics – at Ukrainiana.
Russia: South Ossetia; Relations With the U.S.; Sheremetyevo Ceiling
Some of the recent posts at Scraps of Moscow: a translation of a part of “a lengthy interview with former Russian army general and former South Ossetian de facto Minister of Defense which puts the region's president, former wrestling champion and phys. ed. teacher Eduard Kokoity, in a rather unflattering...
Trinidad & Tobago: A Day in the Life
TriniGourmet.com posts “A Day in the Life” flickr photoset.
Azerbaijan: Into the Mountains
After living and working in the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, for two months, a religious holiday provides Joe's Trippin’ with the opportunity to explore the north of the country. In particular, while surviving various attempts to marry off the Canadian to local girls, the blogger visited the town of Quba and...
Philippines: Fisherman saved by dolphins and whales
According to a Filipino fisherman, he was saved by dolphins and whales when his boat was turned upside down last week in Palawan, Philippines. It is a remarkable story, but is it true?
Bosnia & Herzegovina: Peter Lippman's Travel Reports
Americans for Bosnia is re-posting journalist Peter Lippman's reports from his travel in Bosnia and Herzegovina: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4.
Central & Eastern Europe: Freedom in the Balkans; Visa Restrictions
Ari Rusila examines the Balkan-related results of the Freedom House's Freedom in the World survey at AriRusila’s BalkanBlog, and writes about the Henley Visa Restrictions Index, highlighting the results for countries of Central and Eastern Europe, at AriRusila's BalkanPerspective at Blogactiv.eu.
