May 1, 2011
As the location of the death of international terrorist Osama Bin Laden, The city of Abbottābad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan now holds a unique and perhaps infamous position in the travel and history community. Surprisingly, Abbottabad is already a popular Pakistan travel destination, though it will clearly rise from obscurity among people in the USA to international prominence as a the final hiding place of one of the most elusive and sought after people in all of history.
Osama Bin Laden was the architect of the September 11 attacks on the US World Trade Center and activity of international terrorists for many years.
Map of Abbottabad, Pakistan:
[googlemaps http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Abbott%C4%81bad,+Khyber+Pakhtunkhwa&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Abbott%C4%81bad,+Abbottabad,+Khyber+Pakhtunkhwa,+Pakistan&gl=us&z=12&ll=34.146667,73.216389&output=embed&w=425&h=350]
Abbottabad has been a crossroads of tourism since the regions British Colonial period. The Imperial Gazetteer of India notes that Abbottaba is “picturesquely situated at the southern corner of the Rash (Orash) plain, 4,120 feet (1,260 m) above the sea”.
The Karakoram Highway between Pakistan and China – the world’s highest paved major road is a major attraction of the region, mostly thanks to views of the incomparable Karakoram Mountain range – the best known international attraction in this part of Pakistan.
Apr 15, 2011
The Replica of the Statue of Liberty at the New York, New York Resort Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.
A photo of this replica looked so much like the real statue that the Post Office used that photo to create a new stamp featuring the Statue of Liberty.
The Las Vegas Lady Liberty is newer, with no streaks and slightly different eyes than the authentic Statue of Liberty in New York City, New York.
Apr 9, 2011
Winter on the Oregon Coast is hard to beat for beautiful scenery, beachcombing, and my favorite pastime which is “storm watching” where the surf pounds the shore and the magnificent waves crash over the rocky coastline. Last month was a quiet time on the Oregon Coast and I took this shot at Lone Ranch Beach
Mar 28, 2011
Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport BKK is a key transportation hub for SE Asia and one of the world’s newer major airports. Much like Beijing Airport in China, BKK offers a massive, grand architecture with some beautiful interior design elements such as statues and appealing storefronts.
http://www.suvarnabhumiairport.com/
Mar 13, 2011
As is often the case traveling west to east, re-entry into the time zone takes a bit of a toll so I have not blogged here for some time. However soon we’ll begin a 30+ part day by day summary of the amazing trip to Southeast Asia, from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi to Halong Bay to Danang and Hue, then over to Bangkok and Pattaya Thailand, back to Vietnam, and home to Oregon, complete with the Tsunami Alerts along the Oregon Coast over the past few days.
Feb 28, 2011
Some of the tourist areas in Thailand, especially here in Pattaya, use a truck-taxi system called the “Baht Bus” to efficiently transport locals and tourists around the busiest parts of the city. Pattaya has some 700 Baht busses that drive around in somewhat consistent patterns. You hop on and off and pay a fare of 10 baht for most trips, though there appears to be some confusion about the fares if you talk to the driver and ask them to go “off route”. Based on a bit of online research it seems to me that you are expected to pay a lot more for the service if you negotiate a ride with the driver, and for that reason you generally should just get a good map and hop on and off to avoid hassles. Drivers seem to try to upsell the fare as soon as you talk to them, leading to more confusion. However on balance this is a cheap, fun, effective way to travel so use it and enjoy!
Feb 26, 2011
Wat Po in Bangkok is just south of the Grand Palace. Here, at the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, you find the world’s largest Buddha statue in this unusual position.
Wat Po has also been a center for the study of traditional therapeutic Thai Massage for centuries, and students here still offer traditional massage to temple visitors for a modest fee.
Feb 24, 2011
Phong Nha-Ke Ban National Park, in Vietnam is home to some of the world’s most extensive cave systems. Slender motorboats ferry visitors a few miles along the river and into the namesake cave of the park – Phong Nha Cave. Unlike the cave we visited at Halong Bay, Phong Nha feels active and alive, and the formations are both huge and spectacular.
Although not yet open to the public, a new cave system found at Phong Nha in 1991 by a local man is the world’s largest as documented by a team of Vietnamese and English cavers.
Son Doong is five times larger than the huge Phong Nha cave with a chamber that is over five kilometers in length, 200 meters high and 150 meters wide. This makes Son Doong the world’s largest cave, surpassing in size “Deer Cave” in Malaysia.
Feb 23, 2011
Of all the cities we visited in Vietnam, I felt the best about Hoi An, a delightful seaside village that has become one of Vietnam’s most popular travel destinations after the designation of the old town portion of Hoi An as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Our hotel was across from the river and had free bikes so we rode to the beach and around the city, and also toured some of the historic homes of Hoi An. Although the presence of a LOT of foreign folks distracts a bit from the notion you are truly immersed in the culture, Hoi An’s charm more than compensates for that challenge.
Feb 17, 2011
This is a ship much like the one that just sunk on Halong Bay, killing twelve. We were on a very similar vessell just a few days ago during our visit, sleeping out on the magnificent calm sea. Although our ship seemed “safe enough” we’ve been noting how relaxed the standards are here compared to the USA, and it seems likely the recent accident was caused at least in part due to these lower safety standards. (though the cause remains unclear at this time – I think a broken part on the ship).
Unlike the USA where some might argue that safety standards are generally too high, creating unneeded costs and barriers to economically optimal situations, in Vietnam the standards could be improved both in terms of safety and infrastructure, creating a more viable tourism industry.
www.heraldsun.com.au/ipad/dead-halong-bay-boat-accident/s…
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