Afaranwide

NEWSLETTER 31: Nov. 30, 2019

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Beach Lovers' Christmas

Looking for the perfect place for a relaxing Christmas sunshine break? We suggest Phu Quoc, a large island in the south of Vietnam with lots of beautiful beaches. It’s only a few kilometres off the coast of Cambodia, so it offers a unique fusion of the two countries’ cultures. Also, it makes fish sauce that’s so good it’s been granted European Union protected status. Just don’t try to bring any home with you… READ MORE

Going Over to the Dark Side

We’ve been increasingly disturbed by the emergence of so-called “dark tourism” – visiting the scenes of tragedies. The Chernobyl TV show prompted a flurry of interest in going to the site of the world’s worst nuclear disaster. Here in Hong Kong, as we reported previously, some tour guides have been offering to include a protest in their itineraries. And there have been reports of tourists watching the mayhem on the streets and ignoring requests to leave. But a new low has been reached in the case of Syria, where the death toll from the eight-year civil war is estimated to have reached as high as 560,000. The Guardian reports that “a handful of tour companies and travel bloggers catering to English-language customers have started running bespoke trips to the country to ‘mingle with locals while also passing destroyed villages’, [and] visit archeological sites ‘shrouded in a coat of destruction’.” This is not what travel is about; it should be called “sick tourism”.

QE2 Handover Anniversary

Eleven years ago this week the Queen Elizabeth 2, the much-loved liner that criss-crossed the world’s oceans for nearly 40 years, was handed over to Dubai by Cunard. Colin was on board the ship when this happened, covering the event for a Dubai newspaper. We’ve updated our account of the day, adding videos and more detail, and there’s a gallery of exclusive photos. READ MORE

Essentially Useless Lists

You have to wonder about all those travel lists telling you where you should go during the following year. They appear, as inevitable as Christmas tat in the shops, in the run-up to December. National Geographic, for example, has just announced the 25 “essential” places to see next year. They include the Grand Canyon. Given that this hasn’t changed much in the past 5 million years, at least, it’s difficult to see why it’s a must-see in 2020 as opposed to this year, or 2021. Likewise another recommendation, Parma in Italy. The point about Parma is it’s a historic city, it has buildings that have been around for hundreds of years. So how come it’s suddenly an “essential” destination? Has anyone, anywhere ever actually booked a trip based on this type of recommendation?

Overtourism in Edinburgh

The likes of Venice and Barcelona have for some time complained about the impact of excessive tourism. My home city of Edinburgh has made similar noises. And this week best-selling authors Ian Rankin and Alexander McCall Smith were recruited to a campaign calling for greater protection for Scotland’s capital. They, along with historian Sir Tom Devine, filmed messages backing the campaign by a charity called Edinburgh World Heritage. Edinburgh’s Old and New Towns are on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, and tourists spend more than £1.5 billion there each year. Sir Tom warned of the threat of “unregulated tourism”. The remarks have angered the leader of the city council. Not that the aim is to drive sightseers out of Edinburgh’s medieval and Georgian streets. Inspector Rebus author Rankin talks about making the city a “fantastic place” for visitors as well as locals. – CS

China Left in US's Wake

In our recent post about the retired aircraft carrier USS Midway we mentioned that China was many decades behind the US in carrier technology. This was underlined in a South China Morning Post report this week that said Beijing had shelved plans to develop nuclear-powered vessels because of technical and financial challenges. The US has operated nuclear-engined carriers since 1962. The conventionally powered Midway is now a museum in San Diego, California. READ MORE

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