Afaranwide

NEWSLETTER 48: April 2020

Hi, and thanks for your interest in the Afaranwide travel blog.

New Virtual Post on the Way

Our virtual travel guide to the world’s 10 top tourist attractions has proved popular, with one reader commenting: “Thanks for some memories.” The post suggests ways to enjoy and appreciate the likes of the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Statue of Liberty and more from home through virtual tours, videos, webcams and other online resources. We’re working on another virtual travel piece and will publish it soon – look out for news of it on social media. READ MORE

Beatlemania Never Ends

The pedestrian crossing seen on the cover of the Beatles’ Abbey Road album has been given a spruce-up. Council workmen repainted the black and white stripes, taking advantage of low levels of traffic as self-isolating Londoners stay at home. The Beatles’ enduring popularity and relevance 50 years after they split up is remarkable. The famous cover shot of the Fab Four crossing the road has been updated for the social distancing era, and there’s a parody video of them singing I Gotta Wash My Hands. We visited the world’s most famous pedestrian crossing – READ MORE

Reagan Victim of Fake News

We were disturbed to read reports that the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, California, was to close permanently because of a lack of funds resulting from the coronavirus pandemic. Whatever your politics, this is a fascinating place to visit, with exhibits such as Reagan’s Air Force One jet, his limo, a section of the Berlin Wall, and an Irish pub named after the late president. It shut temporarily, along with the other presidential museums, last month. The permanent closure claim originated on FOX 11 News and was picked up by other outlets. On Thursday, the library issued a media advisory stating that the story was false. The statement said the library and the foundation that sustains it “are both viable organisations that will not need to permanently close their doors due to the coronavirus crisis or the current economic state of our country.” READ MORE

Hockney in a Chinese Factory

Artist David Hockney is sharing new drawings made on an iPad as he self-isolates in his Normandy home. They record the arrival of spring in his garden – one, showing daffodils, is called Do Remember They Can’t Cancel the Spring. He says he is issuing the pictures as a “respite from the news”. We were reminded of an exhibition of earlier iPad drawings by Hockney that we saw in the unlikely setting of a former military factory complex in Beijing. The 1950s buildings (above) have been turned into a dynamic cultural hub, the 798 Art Zone. Here are a few of Hockney’s works from that show:

See You Next Month

The coronavirus crisis has prompted us to review how we communicate with our valued subscribers. Currently, no one can travel and all news about the industry is bad. So a weekly travel blog newsletter seems – to use a word frequently heard at present – non-essential. We’re going to switch to monthly publication, with future newsletters appearing on the first Saturday of each month. From time to time we’ll send you new posts that we think you’ll enjoy. Keep in touch by liking our Facebook page and following us on Twitter and Instagram. And stay safe.

Past issues of the Newsletter are available here.

We’d love to know what you think of Afaranwide – please email us.

Afaranwide content is available for syndication.

For a Directory of All Our Posts, Arranged by Country and Category, Click HERE

ENDEAVOUR ENCOUNTER: Lifelong space enthusiast Colin Simpson visits the space shuttle Endeavour in Los Angeles, and reflects on the state of human space travel. READ MORE

TEN THINGS WE LEARNED: Our up-to-the-minute guide to creating a website, one step at a time. The costs, the mistakes – it’s what we wish we’d known when we started blogging. READ MORE