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The Thinking Traveller

The Thinking Traveller

True Xiqu

Every country and every peoples have stories to tell.  The Chinese have such a long and colourful history, it's only natural that their catalogue is perfect for relaying those stories via opera. The West Kowloon District in Hong Kong, has the Xiqu Centre which is dedicated to preservation of the art of traditional Cantonese opera,…

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Stiff upper quip

Some need that little extra push, or perhaps a bit of "what for."  If you know someone who would benefit from some sharp-as-a-tack, quick-as-a-whip, stiff upper lip education, there can be no better place than in London.  Home of stern educators such as Mary Poppins, Martin Chuzzlewit, Mr. Tomkinley, Melissa  Wackles . . . the…

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Lufthansa Bus lines

Well, not exactly, but we wonder if this will become a thing as airlines start to react to the climate situation. "Lufthansa is scrapping its shortest route, replacing the service with a bus. The route between Munich and Nuremberg is just 86 miles (138 km) as the crow flies. Lufthansa operates many domestic services across…

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Welcome to giant pandas airways

China's long-anticipated Chengdu Tianfu International Airport has officially opened for business, providing travelers with a new option to the home of giant pandas. The first flight, via Sichuan Airlines, took off at 11:10 a.m. on Sunday, 27 June, 2021 headed for Beijing. Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, is now the third city in the country to…

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Oh, we go …Ouigo

Oh, we go Ouigo! As if European rail wasn't as appealing as it is now, they've made it even better. High-speed train travel between Spain's most beautiful cities has no more reason to cost the earth, with Rail Europe opening ticket sales for OUIGO, Spain's new affordable train network. Prices can be as low as…

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Glee in the Sahara

There is almost nothing more exotic and romantic to staying in the desert. No matter where the desert might be, the mind conjures up images of windblown tents, camels, the elixir of tea. Realistically, most of us do not have the means nor the knowledge to embark on such an adventure.  But our travel affiliate…

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Expo, Expo – read all about it!

Every so often, the world has an Expo. Montreal in 1967, Milan in 2015,  while Kazakhstan held the most recent specialised Expo in 2017. Expo 2020 will be happening in Dubai, and tickets will go on sale worldwide starting July 18, 2021, with the event occurring from Oct. 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022. As…

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Passports of power

In the past, have you been able to waltz through airport customs like you owned the place, simply based on your nationality? Well, it might be time to check your ego, because the world is becoming a very different place (for the better, in our opinion.) Now a new Henley Passport Index, the original ranking…

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Back to the future and back

If you're into technology, or even futuristic films, you will no doubt be longing for the day when we can all have flying cars (I guess to go along with our floating apartments.) There have been many attempts at this kind of tech, but they never seem to go anywhere, pun intended.  As you can…

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Shockwaves throughout Europe

INTERPOL.  EUROPOL. SURVEILLANCE.  EYE IN THE SKY.  In early May 2021, a Belgian farmer hit international news when he moved a stone out of the way of his tractor, and accidentally shifted the French-Belgian border 2.3m into France. Or did he? Is it actually possible to move a border just by moving a stone? And…

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The Darbhanga gang

For us, we're always happy to see countries, cities and even individuals find their place in the sun to shine.  And it happens more and more every day. We love India, and so we're pleased to see that the city of Darbhanga is now officially hosting flights to Kolkata and Hyderabad. And the airline who…

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Magic portal

There can never be enough opportunities to reach out:  to family, friends, initiatives.  It is critical to us, as humans.  But, sometimes it is difficult, if not impossible to do so.  But, a creative and enterprising group, the Benediktas Gylys Foundation bring new thinking to being together. For the first time in history, countries and…

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Can you even pronounce this?

We periodically write about Wales, in the UK.  Most tourists think of England or Scotland as destinations in the UK, but you should really also give Wales a try if you haven't already. Why?  Well, first of all, the countryside itself is lush and untouched.  Wales has been able to avoid some of the creeping…

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It almost laughs at you

At the foothills of the Caucasus Mountains in northwest Azerbaijan, lies Parigala, one of the world’s most impressive archeological mysteries.  The Azerbaijani name, Pəriqala, literally means Fairy Castle Carved into the nearly vertical face of a rock cliff, the centuries-old structure remains a mystery that hardly anyone knows anything about. The site consists of a…

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Blow your top

Geysers. Hot springs. Wildlife. A few words probably come to mind when you think about Yellowstone National Park. But there’s one word that might come as a surprise: supervolcano. Because, if you didn’t know it already, the land that makes up Yellowstone National Park is actually one of the world’s largest active (yes, we said…

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Want to get high?

Actually - this is what we meant by getting high. (Photo: Alberto Pinto) With big success comes big responsibility - and big toys.  The Boeing 747 BBJ is the world’s largest private jet. With only a handful of examples in the world, it’s a rare bird. Even rarer is the Parisian design house Alberto Pinto-designed…

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Failures are finger posts …..

...... on the road to achievement.” - C.S. Lewis Thomas Edison famously had 10,000 failed attempts before he created his light bulb. Coco Chanel said “Success is most often achieved by those who don't know that failure is inevitable.” All of this is meant to say "never say never." Watch the video below to discover…

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Paintings on the ceilings

...and pink champagne on ice?  We are all just prisoners here . . . oh wait, wrong references. Being one of the oldest civilisations on Earth, Europeans have a lot to show for it.  Even beyond the splendors of Rome or Athens, there were generations and generations of forbearers who walked - and as it…

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