Thai Beach Destination: Police Chief Wants Officers to Stop Taking Bribes

There’s a new police chief in Pattaya, a beach town just a bit more than an hour’s drive from Bangkok that was a significant R&R destination for US servicemen during the Vietnam War. It became the sort of place that US servicemen, spending US dollars, could buy anything they wished. Pattaya has been cleaned up […]

The post Thai Beach Destination: Police Chief Wants Officers to Stop Taking Bribes appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2015/02/01/thai-beach-destination-police-chief-wants-officers-stop-taking-bribes/

What’s So Great About Cathay Pacific’s First Class Lounge?

Reader Abhi asked the following question on the "Ask Lucky" page of the blog:

"Hi Lucky

I visited the wing FC lounge in hkg today.

And though its only my second FC lounge visit it really seemed just meh. It’s more like a rich admirals club.

The only other FC lounge I have been to is Lufthansa FC lounge in Munich and compared to that this just seems very disappointing.

Have I just set my expectations wrong by visiting Lufthansa FC lounge in Munich first?

-Abhi"

It's an interesting question because I think it's fun to look at the different thought processes people reach conclusions with.

The post What’s So Great About Cathay Pacific’s First Class Lounge? appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/02/01/whats-great-cathay-pacifics-first-class-lounge/

The Business Class Award Flights to Asia You Can Always Get Because No One Is Competing With You For Them

I attended a talk by a legendary fundraiser, probably 15 years ago, where he told a story about not going to visit with the wealthiest donor in a state. When making a trip to Arkansas everyone assumed they knew he was going to see the Waltons of Wal-Mart but he explained, ‘the line’s too long.’ […]

The post The Business Class Award Flights to Asia You Can Always Get Because No One Is Competing With You For Them appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2015/02/01/business-class-award-flights-asia-can-always-get-no-one-competing/

Kayaker makes art out of waterfalls

As exemplified by this insane edit of Catalonian kayaker Aniol Serrasolses, the next generation of kayakers is pushing ridiculous limits on techniques for running waterfalls, and the result is beautiful and inspirational.



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/life/watch-kayaker-make-art-form-running-huge-waterfalls/

Fly The Emir Of Kuwait’s Private 747

A few weeks ago I was at London Heathrow Airport and saw a Kuwait Airways 747.

Now, I'll be the first to say I'm not an expert on Kuwait Airways' fleet, but I hadn't realized they had 747s in their fleet.

And I was correct, because they don't... at least not really. The Emir of Kuwait has a private Boeing 747-400, which interestingly Kuwait Airways sometimes uses on commercial routes when it's otherwise not in use.

I mean, that's like American Airlines occasionally subbing in Air Force One on a New York to London flight. Okay, not quite the same, but you get the point. ;)

The post Fly The Emir Of Kuwait’s Private 747 appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/02/01/fly-the-emir-of-kuwaits-private-747/

In Transit Blog: Learning the Language in Wales

Chateau Rhianfa in Wales is offering guests courses taught by a local language expert.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/42ed4dad/sc/4/l/0Lintransit0Bblogs0Bnytimes0N0C20A150C0A20C0A10Clearning0Ethe0Elanguage0Ein0Ewales0C0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm

kids strap roman candles to a drone

Have you ever wondered what Canadians do with their spare time? Here is your answer.



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/life/run-life-canadian-kids-strap-roman-candles-drone/

Review: Copa Airlines Business Class Los Angeles To Panama City To Buenos Aires

Copa Airlines has a fascinating business model.

World-class, it ain’t, but it is a uniquely efficient carrier focusing on what might be one of the most convenient hubs in the world. With the Panama Canal in its backyard, Panama City has always been a city geared toward global transportation, and in aviation it serves as the key midpoint between North America and South America.

You won’t get lie flat seats on Copa in Business Class – you’ll get recliners only a little bit more comfortable than a domestic First seat – but none of Copa’s flights are truly long-distance. The brilliance of Copa is that none of its flights are longer than seven hours, and most much shorter than that. Copa connects a number of cities in the U.S. and Canada (Los Angeles, New York, Las Vegas, Boston, Chicago, Orlando, Tampa, Miami, Washington Dulles, Montreal, and Toronto, with nonstops to Denver, Houston and Newark on partner United) to just about every destination imaginable in Latin America, and on top of that, has ridiculously abundant award space.

The post Review: Copa Airlines Business Class Los Angeles To Panama City To Buenos Aires appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/02/01/review-copa-airlines-business-class-los-angeles-to-panama-city-to-buenos-aires/

Transatlantic Business Class Awards Wide Open Again for Summer With No Fuel Surcharges!

A couple of weeks ago, immediately after US Airways transitioned to using American’s fare class codes, the floodgates opened on US Airways international awards in business class. Krystyna F points out to me that US Airways transatlantic business class space is again very very good. Not quite what it was a few weeks ago, most […]

The post Transatlantic Business Class Awards Wide Open Again for Summer With No Fuel Surcharges! appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2015/02/01/transatlantic-business-class-awards-wide-open-summer-no-fuel-surcharges/

Choose Your Own 3x Rewards Spending Category With the New Business Gold Rewards

I receive compensation for many links on this blog. You don’t have to use these links, but I am grateful to you if you do. American Express, Citibank, Chase, and other banks are advertising partners of this site. I do not write about all credit cards that are available — instead focusing on miles, points, […]

The post Choose Your Own 3x Rewards Spending Category With the New Business Gold Rewards appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2015/02/01/choose-3x-rewards-spending-category-new-business-gold-rewards/

Paddling Lake Michigan icebergs

Filmmaker Seth Haley delves into the motivation required to pull on a 6/5 wetsuit and jump into ice-choked water, while also supplying even more incredible footage of the paddlers in action.



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/tv/watch-paddleboarding-insane-ice-floe-lake-michigan/

Asiana A380 Flights To JFK As Of June 13, 2015

As I wrote about yesterday, Asiana announced on Instagram that their next longhaul A380 destination would be New York JFK. That hardly came as a surprise, though frankly I wasn’t expecting them to announce the exact schedule so quickly. Via airlineroute.net, Asiana will launch 3x weekly (Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday) A380 service between Seoul Incheon…

The post Asiana A380 Flights To JFK As Of June 13, 2015 appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2015/02/01/asiana-a380-flights-jfk-june-13-2015/

February 2015 Desktop Wallpaper

This month’s image was taken in the Pyrenees Mountains of Girona, Catalonia. 1920×1200 | 1920×1080 | 1600×1200 | 1680×1050 | 1600×900 1440×900 | 1280×1024 | 1280×800 | 1024×768 iPad | iPhone 6 | iPhone 6 Plus | iPhone 5 | iPhone 4 2560×1600 (MacBook Retina 13″) | 2880×1800 (MacBook Retina 15″)



from Everything Everywhere Travel Blog http://everything-everywhere.com/2015/02/01/february-2015-desktop-wallpaper/

How Do I Figure Out a Good Credit Card Application Strategy?

TPG reader Thomas sent me a message on Facebook to ask: “Love all your info. I’m learning a lot, but have lots more to learn. I’m interested in trying a credit card app-o-rama. I have 780+ credit, pay my balances each month, and 20 years of credit history. I’ll be shifting over from several cash...



from The Points Guy http://thepointsguy.com/2015/02/how-do-i-figure-out-a-good-credit-card-application-strategy/

To Write a Great Story, Start with a Real Struggle

I appreciated this illustration on unconventional storytelling from Tom Gauld: When talking about adventures, I often relate the plot outlining of blockbuster movies and video games. What if the synopsis of a big summer movie was “So and so had to save the world from evil… and then they did?” We’d think, “That’s it?! How…



from The Art of Non-Conformity http://chrisguillebeau.com/to-write-a-great-story-start-with-a-real-struggle/