Travel Newsletter - 26 February 2021
Updates on when we might be able to travel again, the eagle hunters and herders of the Mongolian Altai, Japan’s rabbit island Okunoshima, and more travel reads.
Greetings from Soc Trang in the Mekong Delta region. This week I’ve been visiting some of the least visited provinces of the region. Even before the pandemic, this city would not have seen many tourists, so I am something of an oddity here.
There have been no reports of covid down here, and Ho Chi Minh City hasn’t reported any news cases recently either. People are still wearing masks everywhere, which I am happy to continue doing.
I will have some trip reports coming soon for the Mekong Delta trip.
[A Khmer temple in Soc Trang, Vietnam.]
COVID-19 and travel (or lack thereof)
Can I travel once I’m vaccinated?
Travel quarantines: enduring the mundane, one day at a time
“Running a half-marathon in your hotel room. Hearing the sea, but not seeing it. Fixating on food. Here’s how some travelers passed the time during their mandatory quarantines.”
The most likely timeline for life to return to normal
“An uncertain spring, an amazing summer, a cautious fall and winter, and then, finally, relief.”
'Like penpals, but with snacks!' Unable to travel, strangers mail each other tastes of home
“Serving a Stay-Home Notice (SHN) might get rather dull for many people, having to be cooped in a single place for two weeks. One Singaporean however, managed to make the most of her stay, and even came out of it with a new friend.”
Assorted travel reads
On horseback among the eagle hunters and herders of the Mongolian Altai
‘Everyone’s here’: Microstate is unlikely hub for YouTube stars
“A tiny, isolated nation in the Pyrenees is turning into a creative hub for some of Spain’s biggest social media stars.”
Japan’s rabbit island Okunoshima has a dark and deadly history
“Okunoshima’s population of bunnies brings tourists to the island’s shores. While there, they can learn of its gruesome past.”
The earliest globe to show the Americas may have been made by Leonardo da Vinci in 1504
Why a tiny island created the biggest marine sanctuary in the South Atlantic
Europe’s sleeper trains wake up to a new era
European sleeper trains have been in the news a lot recently, and now there is a new railway company called European Sleeper, which is dedicated to overnight sleeper trains. I look forward to getting back on the European rails when all this is over.
I’m always looking for new places to visit, even in countries I’ve visited. I was recently reading about Sundsvall, which I had never heard of before. I Googled it and found this:
🤯 . I checked to see if there is a train to Sundsvall, and there’s not only a train, but it also goes to Hell. I’m sold.
I’m a big fan of repurposing old buildings and infrastructure. Seoul is a good example with its reclaimed stream and old overpass. The New York High Line is a good example of making a new city park out of an old railway. So if this plan to create raised park on disused railway in London goes ahead, it will be the first thing I do in London once it is open.
50 animals who had to travel and still behaved more civilized than many people
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The Travel Newsletter by Nomadic Notes is a weekly newsletter of the best travel reads and interesting travel news, and random ramblings by the editor.
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- James Clark