Settlements
A Trio of French Colonial Sites in Hanoi
In Vietnam's capital city you can still find many wonderful examples of French colonial architecture, including St. Joseph's Cathedral, the Opera House and the luxurious Hotel Metropole
July 03, 2012 |
By Susan Spano
Wrecked Rivers of T.S. Eliot’s ‘The Wasteland’ Teem With Life Once More
“The river sweats / Oil and tar / The barges drift / With the turning tide,” wrote T. S. Eliot in an ode to the River Thames in The Wasteland. Indeed, oil and tar and other industrial pollutants for years plagued Britain’s rivers, from the “Great Stink” of 1858 when human waste choked London’s Thames [...]
July 03, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Quite Likely the Worst Job Ever
The remarkable work of a pioneering British journalist provides us with a window into the lives of the men who made their living from combing for treasures in London's sewers
June 29, 2012 |
By Mike Dash
The High Priestess of Fraudulent Finance
Her claim of being "the Heiress to $15,000" was just one of the many falsehoods that carried Cassie Chadwick from city to city and bounced check to bounced check
June 27, 2012 |
By Karen Abbott
Bacteria, Plants Turn Garbage Dump into Beautiful Park
Thanks to the help of some hungry bacteria and plants, a 150-foot high garbage dump in Colombia is being transformed into a public park. The microbes and greens are neutralizing the contaminated soil, sucking up heavy metals and feasting on chemicals. Wired’s Olivia Solon describes how the project got off the ground: A team from [...]
June 27, 2012 |
By Rachel Nuwer
The Hunt for a Bottle of Asturias Cider and the Stories of More Drinks From Northern Spain
In this part of Europe, a glass of rioja is nice, but nothing beats apple cider, a way of life
June 27, 2012 |
By Alastair Bland
The Greatest Globe on Earth
Now kept at the American Geographical Society in New York, the globe is precious not for its age or beauty, but for the explorers who signed it
June 25, 2012 |
By Susan Spano
For a Happy Hotel Experience, Take the Middle Road
Neither too luxurious nor too austere, mid-range inns are often a great choice for travelers. Here are some of my favorites in Europe, Mexico and Morocco
June 18, 2012 |
By Susan Spano
430 Square Foot Apartment Isn’t Too Small for Indoor/Outdoor Shower
Living in a tiny space often means taking risks with design. An architect convinced Rui Miguel and Sonia Lopez, who live in a 430 square foot apartment, that to connect with the outside world, they should cut a hole in the roof. Disguised as part of a rooftop planter, the hole feeds directly into their [...]
June 18, 2012 |
By Sarah Laskow
Googie: Architecture of the Space Age
The futurist design movement that divided critics and and swept the nation with space age coffee shops.
June 15, 2012 |
By Matt Novak
A Toast to the Astoria Hotel in St. Petersburg, Russia
A Russian icon in the Art Nouveau style on St. Isaac‘s Square near the Neva River, the Astoria evokes a Belle Époque world gone by
June 13, 2012 |
By Susan Spano
Can Brown Bears Survive in the Pyrenees?
The keepers of sheep and cows helped eliminate the Pyrenean brown bear in the first place, and shepherds are not thrilled to see France's largest predator return
June 12, 2012 |
By Alastair Bland
Prospero’s Island in the South Pacific
Was it Bermuda—or the dreamy French Polynesian island of Huahine—that inspired the setting for Shakespeare's The Tempest?
June 11, 2012 |
By Susan Spano
Jaipur via The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
A delightful new film takes viewers to India’s picturesque western state of Rajasthan
June 07, 2012 |
By Susan Spano
On the Cheese Trail in the Pyrenees
Make a fuss in the road and stomp your feet, and someone will appear. Spit out some gibberish about “fromage a vendre,” and that should do it. You'll get your cheese
June 07, 2012 |
By Alastair Bland
1923 Envisions the Two-Wheeled Flying Car of 1973
As cars got larger in the 1920s, the "Helicar" was presented as the solution to congested city streets
June 06, 2012 |
By Matt Novak
Where Lance Remains the King
Among the peaks, cirques and summits of the French Pyrenees, the greeting call to an American on a bike may always be "Armstrong!"
May 31, 2012 |
By Alastair Bland
Sleep Like a Pauper, Eat Like a King
Between grocery stores, wine shops, artisan bakeries and farm stands, I regain each calorie I burn in style and taste
May 29, 2012 |
By Alastair Bland
“I Was Looking Forward to a Quiet Old Age”
Instead, Etta Shiber, a widow and former Manhattan housewife, helped smuggle stranded Allied soldiers out of Nazi-occupied in Paris
May 25, 2012 |
By Karen Abbott
Big Things Ahead… But Keep Your Shirt On
Americans in the 1940s had wondrous expectations about the post-war world. Meet one author who advised them to curb their enthusiasm
May 25, 2012 |
By Matt Novak
