Travel Newsletter: 23 February 2024
This is the real Bangkok, how the dazzling Las Vegas strip rose up from the desert, Westarctica, five years on a narrowboat, and more travel reads.
Welcome to the Nomadic Notes Travel Newsletter, where I curate the best travel reads of the week.
I’m wrapping up another Saigon session this week as I prepare to go back to Australia for a visit. The last time I visited I made the mistake of going during the F1 Grand Prix, and I couldn’t find an Airbnb anywhere. My timing is a bit better this week as I just missed the Taylor Swift tour. Her Melbourne shows were the largest of the tour so far (way to go, Melbourne!)
I have travels planned after Australia for Future Southeast Asia and Nomadic Notes purposes, so I hope to be caught up on the Nomadic Notes blog by the time I hit the road again.
Travel reads
• Couchfish: “This is the real Bangkok”
• How the dazzling Las Vegas strip rose up from the desert
• Old ways survive in Bali despite mass tourism, but for how long?
• The Taliban vowed to change Kabul. The city may be starting to change the Taliban. (Archive)
• After five years on a narrowboat, I’ve finally reached the end of the canal network
“Health and wealth in Central America.”
• Alexandria, the end of the affair
• Westarctica: The micronation with a real-world purpose
“The Antarctic Treaty of 1959 prohibited nations from making new land claims on the continent. But it never mentioned claims from private individuals.”
• Should you visit Antarctica? Is polar tourism doing more harm than good?
• Meet the 79-year-old who has traveled to all 193 countries in the world
🛏️ Accommodation
• Plans unveiled to turn London’s BT Tower into a hotel
💻 Nomad news
• South Africa prepares to launch Digital Nomad visa for international remote workers
• Journey of a digital nomad: Vietnamese traveler's reflection on 50 countries
Digital nomad stories are a dime a dozen these days, but I’m interested to read about those travelling on a weak passport (Vietnam ranks 92nd on the list of the world’s most powerful passports).
🚆Train travel
• New JR Shinkansen-inclusive rail pass is a huge bargain, great way to help out a region in need
“The four-day Hokuriku Ouen ticket is rooting for the earthquake-stricken area of Japan.”
• On a roll: bullet train food carts become Japan’s latest must-have
✈️ Air travel
• Delta has been keeping a secret for the past 20 years—and pilots really want you to ask about it
• The carry-on-baggage bubble is about to pop
• These U.S. airlines offer the most (and least) legroom in economy seating
• Air Canada must honor refund policy invented by airline’s chatbot
…
James Clark – Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.