Fellow Holy Rollers: Tours to the Vatican?

Do you believe in God? Wow, that's an interesting way to open a blog post. Religion, politics, bring it on! I ask because God (the one with a capital "G") is such strange thing. Does "H"e really have a beard? Does he really live in the Vatican? Does he really speak Italian? Odds are that "H"e does not. And yet, "H"is agent on Earth -- aka the Pope, Papa, Man with Funny Hat -- does live in Italy. In Rome. In the Vatican. And in fact, you can even take Vatican tours if you like and meet the man. What do you say to God's agent on earth? I'd start with something light, something to break the ice. Maybe a little joke. How about, "A priest, a rabbi and an immam walk into a bar..."

Stonehenge tours, now that we know the answer

You know they -- who is 'they'?, save it for a different day -- have discovered the answer of Stonehenge's mystery. What, you didn't know there was a riddle at Stonehenge, have you been living under a monolith? Sheesh. Yes, there's been a heated debated over the origins of Stonehenge. Who built it, why did they build it, what purpose, that sort of thing. Now after years of study, some smart scientists have an answer. Apparently it's a cemetery. That's right, a cemetery. Likely for some well-to-do people. The rocks at Stonehenge are aligned in such a way as to honor the dead. I think. For sure it's a cemetery. Trust me on that one. Maybe it's time for a Stonehenge tour now that the mystery is solved. Maybe.

Dubai Tours & Things to Do

Just read a nice post about things to do in Dubai over on the Viator blog. I must admit, I've never thought about going to Dubai. Truth be told, I've never thought much about Dubai, full stop. It's always struck me as an oil-rich emirate without much to do. But I'm man enough to admit when I am wrong. Did the photo of Dubai's 'creek' (that's what they call their river, they need some tourism marketing help, clearly) did catch my eye. As did the Dubai desert safari shot. OK, maybe I'm not going to rush out and sign up for a Dubai tour. But sure, I'll add Dubai to my travel wishlist. And really, what's the point of traveling if you don't have a wishlist?

Killerstartups.com

Killer Startups? In 2007? Hard to believe, but true. There are still plenty of tech / web / internet start-ups out there. All of them have either survived the last year or two with little or no funding. Or they've been around for a few years while reinventing themselves on the fly. Interesting. I thought all of this went south in the 2001 crash. Shows you what I know. Some links that caught my eye:

• Cash for broken electronics. That's an idea that works for me.
• Hawaii shirts. Online. Are you kidding me??
• Digital Taxi Ads. Yes, you can buy one for yourself.
• Viator Tours. There they are again.

Singapore Tours, Day Tours, Escape!

Here's my question for this week: Is there anything truly exciting to do or see in Singapore? Such a mixed bag of feedback on the place. Too strict, too sterile, and yet... great food, shopping (if you're into that, I am not), and easy access to the rest of Asia. So what's the story? Please discuss.

What was British Airways Thinking

Seems like people should slow down before making big decisions. Case in point. British Airways mucked it up royally last week (read about it here and here) when then banned surfboards on ALL their flights. All of them. Have you ever seen an angry surfer? It's not a pretty sight. It will be interesting to see if BA backs down.

Lonely Planet and the Beeb

On the theme of independent travel, on why we travel, on the whole meaning of travel, here's an interesting bit of news about Lonely Planet selling itself to the BBC. A good thing? Hard to know. But I agree with the blogger about the "end of independent travel." What does it mean anymore to be "independent"? I struggle with this. A decade ago, it meant you did things on the cheap. It meant you did things on your own. It meant you went places that few other people went. Today, that's a lot harder to do. First of all, there are many more travellers on the road today. There are more airports. There are more low-cost airlines. More people are traveling today then 10 or 15 years ago, it's a simple fact of life. So independence is hard to maintain. Moreover, it's hard to be alone anymore. The internet, mobile phones, community websites, travel sites -- there is so much more information available now, and so many networks of people sharing travel tips and suggestions. The world is less lonely today, for sure. Finally, travel is no longer 'cheap', or let me put that a different way -- it's harder to be cheap these days. Even the hostels cost $15 or $20 a night now. So yes, independent travel is going the way of steamship trampers and rail-car riders. Cool ideas, but a bit old fashioned.

Why we travel, part 3

Read an interesting article today. It's from USA Today about 25 pivotal changes in why we travel. Basically the mainstream media think we travel because you can book things online (reason #1), airports now are more like malls (#7) and because the TSA are dunces and make you take off shoes. Sure, this is how the travel landscape has changed. But really, all 25 "pivotal changes" sited by USA Today miss the point. Travel has always been a challenge, always had things that make it easy / hard depending on the current state of world affairs. But it's a little sad that this article missed the truly important 'pivotal change' over the past 25 years. Why do we travel? Because people crave to discover new culture. Make new connections. To discover the world, and more about themselves, in the process. USA Today has identified the effects. The causes, it has completely missed. The most pivotal element of travel over the last 25 years is the thing that hasn't changed at all. Not one bit. People remain curious, and keen to connect. That's the true #1 thing about travel that is pivotal. Same as it ever was.

Why we travel, part 2

Why do we travel? Sometimes I wonder, what's the real motivation for people to travel? Not weekend getaways. Not seven day holidays. I mean long-term travel, 2 months stints or longer. Seems to me, there's a mix between internal desires (to escape, to be self sufficient, test yourself, to prove that you can do this) and external ones (see new things, eat different foods, meet new people). Strange that the external motivations are 'new and different', and the internal ones really having nothing to do with tavelling, about where you are, only about who you are.

There are some very strange travel websites out there. Here's one. Looks like it dates from the late 1990s. But I think it's current. I wonder, did they really by all those souvenirs?

What's in a name? Many people ask that about viator. I don't know what it means, stop asking. What can I offer you? A quick search on the Internet brings these meanings to life:

• A travel website about tours and sightseeing
• A municipality of Almeria prvince, Spain
• A woman who works out a lot
• The Latin word for 'traveler', apparently
• A student group in Poland
• A high school in Chicago

Who knew. I'm sticking with my own definition.

Yes, it may seem like I've been away for a long time, but that's because I've been travelling. More details soon. I am trying to build your enthusiasm for coming back and reading more, after my (gulp) 3-year hiatus.

no i'm not dead. yes i know you don't care.

still kicking. so much for motivation.