Amelia Earhart’s Plane Possibly Found, Virgin Hires Pilots With No Experience, and the Newest/Coolest Plane on the Market!

News and notes from around the interweb: Bone up on your Spirit Airlines knowlewdge: They charge a ‘passenger usage fee’ for booking online which is funny, since they supposedly axed their ‘web convenience fee’ back in 2008. Sneaky! Your rental car costs more: Avis Budget Achieves First Large Commercial Pricing Gains Since 2009 Not travel: […]

The post Amelia Earhart’s Plane Possibly Found, Virgin Hires Pilots With No Experience, and the Newest/Coolest Plane on the Market! appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/10/31/amelia-earharts-plane-possibly-found-virgin-hires-pilots-experience-newestcoolest-plane-market/

Giveaway: Cathay Pacific First Class Sleep Suit

Every Friday is giveaway day. Comment to win! Happy Halloween! This weekend we’re giving away the perfect Halloween costume—a Cathay Pacific First Class Sleep Suit! And if you don’t receive it in time for trick-or-treating, you can still recover from the holiday by lounging in this sleepy uniform. What you need to know: This snoozy…



from The Art of Non-Conformity http://chrisguillebeau.com/giveaway-first-class-cathay-sleep-suit/

AMAZING DEAL: $1,400 Business Class To Europe Next Summer

On Tuesday I wrote about the incredible business class fares being offered between the west coast and Europe. SkyTeam was publishing fares of $1,500+ out of Portland and San Francisco, and you could fly on Air France, Alitalia, Delta, or KLM.

The fare died that same day, though some business class fares are back again... and they're even better!

SkyTeam is publishing ~$1,400(!!!!) business class fares between Los Angeles and Madrid through the end of the schedule.

I have never in my life seen such a cheap non-mistake fare between the west coast and Europe. Never.

The post AMAZING DEAL: $1,400 Business Class To Europe Next Summer appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/10/31/amazing-deal-1400-business-class-europe-next-summer/

Griffin Survivor All-Terrain iPad Air Case Protects Against the Rigors of Travel

Join Vagabondish on Twitter and Facebook.

The Murphy’s Law of travel gear is that, if you travel long enough, you’ll ruin your stuff eventually. Drops, spills, mud, dirt … you name it, it’s bound to happen. And it’s especially painful when that “something” is, say, your new table PC or iPad Air. Griffin’s new Survivor All-Terrain case promises to protect against […]

The post Griffin Survivor All-Terrain iPad Air Case Protects Against the Rigors of Travel appeared first on Vagabondish.

from Vagabondish http://www.vagabondish.com/griffin-survivor-all-terrain-ipad-air-case/

Marriott to Provide Free Wi-Fi Internet to All Marriott Rewards Members

In this day and age, I find it absolutely ridiculous that hotels do not provide free Wi-Fi Internet to all of their guests. Hotels do not charge extra for watching TV (outside of pay-per-view), taking a shower or turning on the air conditioner or heater. Why, then, do hotels continue to insist on charging extra […]



from Frugal Travel Guy http://www.frugaltravelguy.com/2014/10/marriott-to-provide-free-wi-fi-internet-to-all-marriott-rewards-members.html

Please just stop Halloween in Mexico

The problem is that Halloween and everything Halloween-related is messing with our very own Día de Muertos.



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/nights/can-please-just-shut-halloween-mexico/

Routes With SAS New Business Class

Back in May, SAS announced the new business class product they'd install throughout their longhaul fleet starting in 2015.

Not only will they install it on their existing A330/A340 aircraft, but they'll also install it on the four A330s they'll be taking delivery of over the next two years, as well as the A350s they'll begin taking delivery of in 2018.

At the time the announcement was made, SAS said that the first plane with the new business class should be in service in early 2015, and that the reconfigurations should be completed within 12 months.

Anyway, up until recently we didn't have an exact timeline of when the new product would be flying, though Henning at BonusFeber did some digging, and it appears as if SAS has updated the seatmaps with the new product as of early next year.

The post Routes With SAS New Business Class appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/10/31/routes-sas-new-business-class/

T Magazine: Fabien Baron’s Treacherous Tundra Adventure

The French art director and Interview Magazine editorial director traveled to Western Greenland to document the once-grand glaciers in Ilulissat with Moncler’s customized Leica X camera.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/4007ec2f/sc/38/l/0Ltmagazine0Bblogs0Bnytimes0N0C20A140C10A0C310Cfabien0Ebaron0Etundra0Emonuments0Eproject0C0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

In Transit Blog: Book a Vacation Rental, and a Jet

The online travel agency Vakast has partnered with Le Bas International to offer private jet charter service.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/4007ec2d/sc/10/l/0Lintransit0Bblogs0Bnytimes0N0C20A140C10A0C310Cbook0Ea0Evacation0Erental0Eand0Ea0Ejet0C0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

Discounted Awards to Tahiti, and Half Off Business Class to Europe!

Air France KLM’s Flying Blue program should be interesting to U.S. frequent flyers for several reasons. They offer one-way awards, which Delta won’t have until next year. They are an American Express Membership Rewards and a Citi Thank You points transfer partner. They have access to award space that Delta won’t let you have. They […]

The post Discounted Awards to Tahiti, and Half Off Business Class to Europe! appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/10/31/discounted-awards-tahiti-half-business-class-europe/

Royal Jordanian 787 Flights To The US

Back in the day, redeeming American AAdvantage miles to the Middle East was really tough. The only airline partner that American had in the Middle East was Royal Jordanian, which in terms of quality certainly isn't in the same league as the "big three" Gulf carriers (Emirates, Etihad, and Qatar).

Over the past few years American miles have gone from being among the least valuable for travel to the Middle East, to being among the most valuable:

-- In 2011, American started a partnership with Etihad Airways, whereby American flyers could redeem miles on them

-- In 2013, Qatar Airways joined the oneworld alliance, meaning AAdvantage members could redeem miles on them

That means you can now redeem American miles for travel on two of the "big three" Gulf carriers.

The post Royal Jordanian 787 Flights To The US appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/10/31/royal-jordanian-787-flights-us/

Wednesday: #CityTravel Twitter Chat

Love exploring new cities around the world? Join @NatGeoTravel's Urban Insider and Orbitz travel editor Sarah Gorenstein for a live Twitter chat on Wednesday, November 5.



from Intelligent Travel http://intelligenttravel.nationalgeographic.com/2014/10/31/wednesday-citytravel-twitter-chat/

Danvers Hospital for the Criminally Insane in Danvers, Massachusetts

Danvers State Hospital for the Criminally Insane opened in 1878 to serve some 600 mental patients under its imposing gothic spires. While it was built with a surprisingly caring and modern attitude toward the mentally ill, by the 1930s the site was crowded, falling into disrepair, and was using shock therapies and lobotomies on a regular basis. The addition of criminals, alcoholics, and the mentally retarded to the overcrowded hospital made it very difficult for the hospital to help cure any of its mental patients. The hospital was shut down in 1992.

The building, with its gothic style and series of underground tunnels, inspired H. P. Lovecraft's Arkham Sanitarium, in turn inspiring Batman's Arkham Asylum. In 2001, Brad Anderson chose the abandoned Danvers State Hospital as the primary location for his terrifying film, Session 9.

Besides the horror of H.P. Lovecraft there is yet another more modern horror story here. As of 2007 the beautiful, if decaying, building was mostly torn down and turned into bright and shiny condominiums. "Avalon Communities" is complete with swimming pool and barely a reference (there is a small plaque on the grounds) to the site's fascinating past. While, thankfully, some of the facade remains the rest of the beautiful building has been replaced with chintzy condos, elliptical machines and Ikea furniture. It would scare even H.P. Lovecraft.

However, there is one piece of the former insane asylum that still exists: its cemetery. This is where the previous residents of Danvers were laid to rest, or as one visitor put it the "cemetery of the dead insane." At least there is a little bit of Danvers left where Lovecraft could still feel at home.

from Atlas Obscura http://atlasobscura.com.feedsportal.com/c/35387/f/665719/s/4007bf89/sc/10/l/0L0Satlasobscura0N0Cplaces0Ccemetery0Edanvers0Ehospital0Ecriminally0Einsane/story01.htm

The Monsters of Bomarzo in Bomarzo, Italy

The Park of the Monsters, or "Parco dei Mostri," in the Garden of Bomarzo was not meant to be pretty. Commissioned in 1552 by Prince Pier Francesco Orsini, it was an expression of grief designed to shock.

The Prince, also known as Vicino, had just been through a brutal war, had his friend killed, been held for ransom for years, and come home only to have his beloved wife die. Racked with grief, the Prince wanted to create a shocking "Villa of Wonders" and hired architect Pirro Ligorio to help him do so. Ligorio was a widely respected architect and artist and had previously completed the Cathedral of Saint Peter in Rome after the death of Michelangelo, as well as the Villa d'Este in Tivoli. This was to be an unusual, but interesting job for him.

The park is filed with bizarre and fascinating sculptures for which only the accompanying inscriptions provide any explanation. Among the pieces are a war elephant, a monstrous fish-head, a giant tearing another giant in half, and a house built on a tilt to disorient the viewer. Perhaps the most frightening piece in the garden is an enormous head, mouth opened wide in a scream. The accompanying inscription reads "all reason departs."

Built during the Italian Renaissance, the garden layout bore little resemblance to the symmetry of other Renaissance gardens, and the art was made in a rough "Mannerist" style, a sort of 16th-century version of Surrealism. It makes sense, then, that the Surrealists loved it.

Salvador Dalí visited the park and loved it. He was so inspired, he shot a short film there, and the sculptures inspired his 1946 painting The Temptation of Saint Anthony. Jean Cocteau was also a fan of the park. Other artists followed, and a novel, libretto, and opera have all been based on the park.

While there is no way of truly knowing how the Prince felt about the park, the final addition indicates that perhaps he was getting over his melancholy. Built 20 years after the park was begun, it is not a monster but a temple, built to honor his second wife.

When you visit the park, be sure to enter the giant screaming mouth (known as "the mouth of hell"), inside which, on the tongue, stands a picnic table and enough seating for a small group to have lunch.

from Atlas Obscura http://atlasobscura.com.feedsportal.com/c/35387/f/665719/s/400761bb/sc/38/l/0L0Satlasobscura0N0Cplaces0Cmonsters0Ebomarzo/story01.htm

Castle Frankenstein in Mühltal, Germany

Johann Konrad Dippel was rumored to create potions, perform electrical therapies, and partake in gruesome experiments involving stolen body parts from the graveyard. Born in the Castle Frankenstein in 1673, it’s disputed whether or not he was the inspiration for Mary Shelley’s mad scientist of the same name, who did some cadaver experiments of his own.

What is sure about Dippel is his colorful career as an alchemist. He attached his name to Dippel’s Animal Oil, which he discovered from the destructive distillation of animal parts and claimed as a universal medicine. The animal oil came at the end of a wave of popularity for Iatrochemistry, which had moved alchemy from the search for creating gold to finding new medicines. The unpleasant taste and smell, as well as the progression of medicine, made Dippel's oil fall into disrepute by the end of the 18th century.

Dippel later helped set up a laboratory in Berlin for making gold and, at one point, he ended up in prison on a Danish island for seven years due to political activities. In 1734, he finally had a stroke and died at the Castle Wittgenstein near Berleburg, although his friends claimed he was poisoned. By his own hand or that of another, it is unclear.

The Castle Frankenstein is now in ruins, with only two towers, a restaurant and a chapel remaining. However, the perhaps mythical connection to Mary Shelley’s novel "Frankenstein" keeps it a popular destination, especially for Halloween. A popular annual party was started there by American soldiers stationed near the castle in World War II. Until it was deactivated in 2008, the US Army's 233rd Base Support Battalion in Darmstadt conducted an annual Frankenstein Castle run which finished at the tower. The castle was featured in an episode of "Ghost Hunters International" which aired in February of 2008.

from Atlas Obscura http://atlasobscura.com.feedsportal.com/c/35387/f/665719/s/400761b2/sc/10/l/0L0Satlasobscura0N0Cplaces0Ccastle0Efrankenstein/story01.htm