Wardrobe tips for India, declining U.S. tourism and faltering airlines, and how to get free stuff in the UK are all in this week's crop of articles.
The best travel articles
Tourism to U.S.A., and business travel, is down significantly over the last year. This article from World Hum explains Why the world is avoiding America. Expensive and hard-to-get visas, poor provisions for non-English speaking tourists, and apparently often rude natives combine to keep both tourists and business travelers away in their thousands. It's a shame, as the U.S. has a lot to offer.
Although one thing the States may be short on is cheap flights. While there are more budget airlines available for anyone in Europe than ever, the U.S. carriers seem to fold one after another. More about the failure of Skybus et al over at Upgrade: Travel Better.
As travelers and photographers, we're hearing stories of snap-happy tourists and professionals being hassled by police and security all over the world. Often, the excuse is public safety or guarding against terrorism. What can we do to retain our rights as photo taking citizens? Start by learning what your rights are as a photographer in the United States. Live outside the United States? Try these links for photographers' rights in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.
Beth Whitman at Wanderlust and lipstick shares 5 tips for what to wear in India. "Despite the revealing clothes worn by Bollywood hotties like Aishwarya Rai, India is a socially conservative country. As a traveler, you’ll be immediately judged and treated accordingly depending on what you’re wearing" writes Beth.
Matador Travel writes about Booty and Bootlegs: A diary of Baile Funk in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro. From the article:
"A white van rockets up the street. The boys take action.
Chubby tourists sit in pairs, buckled in, their sweaty fingers tight on camera triggers. The guide upfront narrates through the rattled air. These streets are vacant, he explains with the novelty whisper of a safari guide, because these people are nocturnal. A half truth -- within the hour the streets will be full. For now, he ushers in the rare treat of life. Cameras cocked, they prepare for an authentic moment of the third world. They get it."
Interesting articles found on the web
10 Most Depressing Quotes from Orwell's 1984. You can feel the dystopia creeping up on us all in these quotes. One of the defining books of the 20th century, it's worth another read.
For anyone living in the UK and interested in getting free stuff, try out Free In UK, the oldest freebies and special offers website in Great Britain. There are a lot of free offers available via this site.
5 most read on eyeflare.com last week 2 weeks
Last week didn't see a Great reads round-up, so here are the articles on eyeflare.com that gathered the most views in the last 2 weeks:
- 10 amazing castles in Ireland. Irish castles remain highly popular with eyeflare.com readers. Maybe it's time to plan for a visit?
- The world's best coastal drives. Our current feature article struck a gasoline-odored chord with car loving travelers. Next one for me on this list will be the Amalfi Coast
- ecoescape UK handbook for eco-friendly travel. Eco-travel is becoming more than a niche trend. This new book is a great resource for the UK, and will be followed by other European destinations this year. Read my review and maybe get a copy for yourself
- Better clean those hotel room glasses again. Ugh, this revelation of hotels horrible cleaning habits still turn my stomach. Check out the video to find out what many hotels consider proper cleaning
- Italy photo gallery. Italy is a perennial favorite. Take a look at my photos from Venice and Pisa
My Walk in Central Park, New York article was included in the latest Carnival of Cities at Perceptive Travel Blog. A couple of other great articles in the carnival were: Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp: taking time during your vacation to remember, Recreate Yourself in NYC and When Does a Destination Become a Caricature?
Do you have tips on great travel articles or simply interesting reads? Please drop me a line at jack@eyeflare.com or share in the comments below.
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