Ha! Now this is funny. As you surely know, I love to whine and complain about things I don’t like, including banal, regurgitative, one-upsman, and/or... »
Africa
This Week’s New York Times: Homestay in Guatemala and a Low Opinion for Slum Tourism
Whenever we travel, we don’t feel like writing about travel – ironic, no? So, since we just got back from a nice road trip in Chile, we’ll leave you with the following two articles from this week’s New York Times: 1. An opinion column on the nastiness of slum tourism. We’ve written about this before but... »
When Sustainable Tourism is at Odds with Sustainable Culture
Sometimes, sustainable tourism is a good thing. And sometimes, it’s a mask designed to demonstrate how progressive a country is when that country is in fact, catering to tourists more than to its own longtime culture and the health of its citizens. The latter is exactly what seems to be happening in Bostwana now. According... »
The Best Eco-Friendly Beach Destinations
With a record snowfall already in our little corner of the world and more than a month of winter to go, we can think only of the sun’s rays beating down on our bathing suited bodies. (Yes, a few more weeks on the elliptical will help that fantasy be a little more appealing.) Here... »
Best of Overheard in DC
From DCist: Outside the Indonesian Embassy during the Passport DC open house events: Two young women are talking about countries they want to visit and their wedding planning. Young woman: “I’m definitely having my wedding in Africa, probably Costa Rica.” »
How to Act Like a Rich Person
Aww, these poor little rich kids want to travel guilt-free. Idn’t dat pwethouth? So, there they are, spending $10,800 per person on a luxury African safari where they learned about the Maasai , efforts in reforestation, and something called “AIDS.” Look, if you want to travel and you have the money, do it. Just don’t kid... »
Real or Fake? African Safari vs. Disney Animal Kingdom
Okay, we’re going to try a new regular feature called Real or Fake? We find hard-to-believe questions purportedly posed by real people and then posted on various forums, magazines, etc. Then we make fun of them (shocker, we know) and decide whether the question is real or fake. First up: a question posted on TravelWeekly, a UK... »
The Dunes of Namibia by Bicycle
As Liz Lemon would say, “I want to go to there.” See Margo Pfeiff’s entire article from the San Francisco Chronicle. »
Ecotourism is No Panacea
Princeton University student Sam Borchard wrote an interesting blog post regarding his experience at Kenya’s Soysambu Conservancy. They are beginning an eco-tourism facility there and while he applauds their efforts, once he meets and understands the nearby Maasai culture a little better, he comes to realize that ecotourism will not be the cure-all solution for... »
Truth is Stranger than Fiction: Jackson 5 Plans for Museum and Theme Park on Nigerian Slave Grounds
Holy Schnikies. We thought we were being oh so clever and cute when we wrote about Neverland Ranch becoming an eco-lodge. Well, we’ve been bested by the true story of plans for a Jackson 5 hotel, museum, and theme park to be built on Nigerian slave grounds. Supposedly, there are plans to keep it educational, eco-friendly, and... »
Nigeria: Demand TRUE Sustainable Tourism
A recent Global Progress blog post starts off pretty well – especially by naming its post “Developing Sustainable Tourism in Nigeria.” Nigeria and indeed Africa is well known for their ‘more than the usual’ hospitality. The traditional Nigerian society dwells richly in welcoming guests, strangers and visitors using various approaches and means. Locations such as... »
