Fly to Bangkok
Biking in Europe
Brussels has recently launched a new self-service bike-sharing scheme, called Villo!, with bike stations around the city, decked with neat lines of bikes sporting bright yellow handlebars and wheel covers. It couldn’t be simpler to use; the instructions are clearly displayed and all you need is a credit card. A day’s rental costs €1.50 ($2.18). For this price, you can pick up and deposit as many bikes as you want for 24 hours.
The Villo! scheme, an initiative of the Brussels Region, is operated by JCDecaux, an advertising agency. So far in Brussels, there are 750 bikes, divided among 58 stations across four central communes. There are similar schemes in almost 20 cities across Europe, many of them operated by JCDecaux. Cities such as Lyon, Barcelona, and Copenhagen have been using the system for several years. Paris has free bike stations. London is hoping to introduce a rental system comprising 6,000 bikes and more than 400 stations by May 2010.
Festive Fun in London
From November 21 to January 3, Hyde Park Winter Wonderland, London’s largest and most dazzling winter event, returns to the heart of the capital city for six weeks of festive fun. Winter Wonderland offers a day-out from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. with beautifully themed attractions set out under thousands of twinkly lights. Winter Wonderland has rides, attractions, and games spread across Hyde Park’s historic parkland. The event features London’s largest ice rink and an Observation Wheel, with 40 heated pods offering spectacular views across the city. There is also a German Christmas market, a circus…and Santa will be there. + www.hydeparkwinterwonderland.com.
New Airport Boost for Filipino Tourist Hotspot
The Philippine island of Boracay is to benefit from a new international airport, further boosting its tourist industry success and property investment appeal. Just a 15-minute boat ride from the island, the airport will be built on Carabao Island, and is expected to be fully operational by 2012. Carabao International Airport (CIA) will provide a modern international airport that will add to the island’s existing neighboring airports.
What’s New, Pussycat?
In December, the Broadway touring production of Cats kicks off its musical production of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical in Costa Rica at the Palacio de los Deportes in Heredia, north of San Jose. The visit is part of a Central and South American tour that will also include Colombia, Venezuela, and Panama.
Brazil’s High-energy Discoveries
Recently completed tests show that the deepwater Guara field in the “pre-salt” area off the coast of Brazil contains between 1.1 billion and 2 billion barrels of oil, which will double the country’s proven reserves. Oil discoveries in this area have drawn billions of dollars in investment from both Brazilian and foreign oil companies, with one field—Tupi—declared the largest oil discovery in the Americas since Mexico’s Cantarell in 1976.
Panama’s New Museum Expected to Attract Global Attention
In 2011, the Bridge of Life Museum of Biodiversity will open in Panama City. Designed by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry (winner of the Pritzker Architecture Prize and the National Medal of Arts), the museum is already about 75% complete. Located in the Amador area of Panama City, at the tip of a causeway on the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal, the educational center is expected to have an enormous impact on tourism. After the Gehry-designed Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao opened, tourism to that city increased by 500%—directly attributed to the building itself. + www.biomuseopanama.org
Record-breaking Mexico
Mexicans love to break records. This year alone, they’ve gained Guinness World Records status in at least six categories. In January, a team of Mexico City chefs created the world’s largest cheesecake (big enough for 20,000 servings). On Valentine’s Day, 40,000 people broke the world record for the most people kissing at one time. In August, the world’s longest catwalk debuted in San Luis Potosí during a fashion show featuring 81 models, each strutting 4,332 feet and 2 inches (in high heels!). A few days later, Mexico produced the largest meatball in the world, weighing in at 109 pounds. Then, 12,937 Michael Jackson fans marched like zombies in Mexico City, led by a Mexican Michael Jackson impersonator. And 549 musicians gathered in Guadalajara to beat the record for the most mariachi musicians ever gathered.
The Crown Jewel of Indochina
Once called the crown jewel of Indochina—with its majestic temples and colonial houses—Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, is back. Yes, there were the dark years of the Khmer Rouge, but the city has worked hard to distance itself from the past. And now with improved infrastructure, privatized waste management companies, and a makeover, Phnom Penh is capturing the savviest investors in Southeast Asia. The area that is getting the most attention among those looking to build homes is Tonle Sap Mekong, in a quiet area just five minutes across the river from city center. Mekong River-front properties are selling for $30 to $50 per square foot. New modern villas as well as Khmer-style designs are transforming this sleepy side of the river into a grandeur not seen since the beginning of the Indochina era.
Fly to Bangkok From $700
China Airlines, long known as the cheapest way to fly to Asia from the U.S., has improved its in-flight cabin service while maintaining its bargain-price flights from the States to all major cities in Asia. A roundtrip ticket from New York City or Los Angeles to Bangkok starts around $700. + www.china-airlines.com/en/index.htm.
Discover Laos by Bike and Kayak
Steve Van Beek, a well-known American author, is offering guided educational tours through the homelands of three distinct ethnic groups of northern Laos. He will guide you by bicycle and inflatable kayak through the dense tropical forests and rapids of the Nam Ha National Park. The park offers the chance to see wild elephants and an assortment of endangered wildlife. “This is a kayaking and hiking trip to discover exotic peoples and their relationship to the land and rivers they inhabit,” says Steve. + www.stevevanbeek.com.
Neighborhood of the Month
About 90 miles from Guayaquil, Ecuador’s largest city, the Pacific-coast resort town of Salinas is a popular Ecuadorian vacation home destination. Glittering high-rise condos line the beach road. Fashionable restaurants and trendy clubs come alive at night, especially during high season (December to May).
A jetty, where you’ll find the docks of the Salinas Yacht Club, divides the beach in half. The sandy half-moon bay on the north side is Salinas Beach. To the south is Chipipe Beach, which is quieter and more family-oriented.
Most of the activities here center around watersports: game fishing, whale watching, wake-boarding, water skiing, yachting, sky diving, parasailing, and surfing.
Salinas may be one of the world’s least-expensive beach resorts. A private room in a boutique hotel can be had for $30 a night (single occupancy). A steak or seafood dinner in a seaside restaurant is $5 or $6. Or chow down on fish or shrimp, cooked any way you like, at the local mercado—for about $2.50.
Real estate prices, too, are low. In a new building, a three-bedroom, three-bathroom condo on the eighth floor—with floor-to-ceiling views of that gorgeous half-moon bay—is priced at just $130,000. See: www.ecuadorproperties.com.
The Savvy Traveler’s Corner
The World’s Most Scenic Drives
In Ireland: County Kerry is known for the spectacular Ring of Kerry, a 110-mile drive that hugs the coast of the Iveragh Peninsula. Highlights of the drive include Rossbeigh Beach, near Glenbeigh on the north coast, which offers the best view of Drung Hill; Glencar, near Caragh Lake, a good place to hike; cells carved from solid rock by monks escaping the Vikings at Skellig Rocks; Ballaghisheen Pass, which takes you through scenic mountains; and the peaceful beaches that line the southern half of the ring.
In Costa Rica: Bone-rattling though it is, a ride across the Inter-American Highway from San Jose to Limon takes you through some of the most startlingly beautiful scenery in the world, including the state-protected Braulio Carrillo National Park, dense with wet and tropical forests and acres of banana and coffee plantations. Winding up and down these mountainsides, snaking through these lush valleys, you’ll begin to wonder how this tropical paradise has managed to escape a huge influx of tourists.
In New Zealand: The road around the East Cape on North Island is one of the most rugged yet beautiful coastal drives in New Zealand, passing small historic settlements, pleasant coves and beaches, and wild countryside that remains rich in Maori tradition and culture. Some of the finest Maori carvings can be seen in the traditional meetinghouses of this district, which is the first in the world to greet the morning sun.
Read about more scenic drives in IL’s newly updated book: The World’s Best: The Ultimate Book for the International Traveler. For more information, see: www.ilbookstore.com.
The World’s Best Climate
- Malta
- Ecuador
- Mexico
- Colombia
- Uruguay
- Australia
- Argentina
- South Africa
- Italy
- France
According to IL’s 2009 Global Retirement Index (see your September issue for details), above are the top 10 countries with the best climate in the world. See: www.internationalliving.com/retirement2009.
