Here’s what happened in travel news this week.
Trains and tunnels
It’s been a great few months for infrastructure enthusiasts. A record-breaking new two-kilometre passenger train has just made its way along Switzerland’s glorious UNESCO World Heritage-listed Albula line for the first time. And a huge tunnel buried for more than a century beneath the thundering waters of Niagara Falls is finally open to visitors. Denmark and Germany are busy building the world’s longest submerged tunnel, 40 meters (131 feet) under the Baltic Sea. And a new subway extension means travelers are about to have an easier ride in and out of Washington, DC.
Oh baby, it’s a wild world
A 2021 YouGov survey found that 8% of Americans believed they could defeat a lion in an unarmed fight, while 15% estimated they could chase down a king cobra. They could have done with those brave souls in Sydney this week when five lions escaped from a zoo — thankfully without harming animals or people. And while cobras are shy, non-hostile creatures, would-be fighters would do well to add our tips on how to survive a cobra bite. Vigilance is usually more important than aggression when it comes to meeting the challenges of the great outdoors: A missing, injured hiker was rescued in Colorado last month when an eagle-eyed train passenger spotted her through a carriage window.
The cheese stands alone
A Swiss cheese was named the best in the world by an international panel of judges at the World Cheese Awards on Wednesday. And no, it’s not Swiss cheese with holes — that’s a handmade gruyere. And if you thought there was no way to make ’80s Harrison Ford more delicious, how about making him entirely out of bread? A California bakery created a “Pan Solo” sculpture for a local competition. Incredibly, it’s life-sized (or loaf-sized, if you prefer). Of course, the best way to serve a carb-based Han Solo to guests is drenched in olive oil. But before you send out those dinner invitations, you need to learn the right way to taste the delicious liquid fat. In this clip from “Searching for Italy,” Stanley Tucci learns how.
Travel tips
Ultraminimalist packer Brooke Schoenman has worked out how to travel the world with only a small shoulder bag as luggage. Here are some tips from this carrying queen. These days, however, many of us are finding that our wallets, not our bags, are thinner than we’d like. Here are eight cost-saving tips to help travelers get through these tough financial times.
“The last paradise on earth”
Home to more than 1,600 species of fish and about 75% of the world’s known coral species, Indonesia’s Raja Ampat archipelago is credited with having the richest marine biodiversity on the planet. This is why it is known as “the last paradise on Earth”.
In case you missed it
Brits love fireworks and bonfires on November 5th. Here are the macabre origins of the fall festivities on Guy Fawkes Night. Japan’s hottest new theme park has no rides. At Ghibli Park, visitors are invited to “feel the wind”. It was his first night in Lima and her first night working at the backpackers hostel. Plane-bird collisions are so common that they have a word for the gopher left behind: Snarge. Now a robotic peregrine falcon is on a mission to end the scourge. Here’s how.
Better sleep on a long flight
My neck, my back, the long distances are crushing them. Trying to get a decent rest while propped up on a pressurized tube for hours is never easy, but there are plenty of accessories — from travel pillows to noise-cancelling headphones — that can make the trip less difficult.
