I’m Still Here, Somewhere

October? Has it really been that long? There’s so much I’ve been planning to talk about here but I’ve been really bad about getting around to it. I don’t think I’ve even mentioned my New Mexico vacation, or finished writing about my All You Can Jet trip. There’s a few months of my Where I Slept series I skipped that I will be catching up on in January so there’s something to look forward to.

Here’s a flash mob Mumbai-style to close out 2011. Have a happy new year!

Move, Learn, Eat

I’m not sure anyone could resist the urge to travel after watching these wonderful videos.

MOVE from Rick Mereki on Vimeo.

LEARN from Rick Mereki on Vimeo.

EAT from Rick Mereki on Vimeo.

Meet, Plan, Go! 2011

It’s hard to believe that it has already been a year since I was on the first Meet, Plan, Go! panel in Chicago. Two of the women who attended Chicago’s talk last year are already on their own RTW trips. Katie cornered me after the event let out last year because she’d never met anyone who had traveled through Central Asia. Now she’s running marathons in Estonia and teaching English in Russia on her way to the ‘stans.

Lisa Lubin is hosting again on October 18th this year and is offering readers the chance to win a ticket to the Chicago event on her blog. This event is a great push for anyone who’s been considering traveling long-term but has been afraid to take the leap. Tickets are available for Chicago as well as 16 other North American cities October 18th.

How Do You Waste Time in Airports?

Often times flying internationally means leaving at odd times of the night but I’ve never seen an airport this empty. I only hope that this video doesn’t mean a further crackdown of rights for the rest of us.

STUCK from Joe Ayala on Vimeo.

Shinkansen Surprise

Before I went to Japan in 2004 I thought riding the magical Shinkansen train would be just like it seems in this video (I wish!):

French Travel Machine

J’en veux un!

Creating Bicycle Cities Around the World

Over his lifetime my uncle has been involved with many charities and told me about one where he helped to send bicycles to India. At the time I wondered why anyone would go to the trouble to ship containers of old bicycles to the other side of the world. During my travels I have seen first hand how transportation helps people become self-sufficient and improve their lives. I have seen people go as far as to construct bicycles out of wood, as you can see in this photo from The Congo. Watch the video below to see how much a difference 20,000 bicycles made in Nicaragua.

The Bicycle City. Trailer from Greg Sucharew on Vimeo.

via Swiss Miss.

North Korea in HD

A tourist named Steve Gong was able to shoot HD video with his Nikon 5D camera by training himself to compose and focus blindly, with the camera hanging around his neck. Along with many detractors I agree that the hairstylist in this video, (even if she agreed to be filmed), could be at danger from the North Korean government. Even worse—the fact that he got away with it doesn’t make his assigned handler look good. Read more at his blog.

This video is not ten minutes of haircutting. Watch the entire thing, including an eerie descent into the Pyongyang subway (reminds me of Uzbekistan!) and scenes of the empty capital.

Pyongyang Style from Steve Gong on Vimeo.

It’s wonderful when my interests intersect, like in this review of Peru’s new branding and marketing campaign. From what I hear from other travelers Peru’s tourism had developed greatly from 2001, when I arrived in Cusco and was able to book a hike to Machu Picchu for $70 only two days in advance.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!