The east coast town of Wollongong in Australia used to be good for not much more than a tricky spelling question at a pub quiz night. But the Wollongong tourist board is busy telling the world that the city is worth a trip when you're next visiting Sydney.
In their exact words, if you want to "mix a Sydney stopover with a stunning coastal drive and regional tourism experience" then Wollongong is the right place to go. They've created a 140 km, signposted scenic drive down the coast which has been named the Grand Pacific Drive which certainly does sound pretty, well, grand.
The route crosses the slightly scary Sea Cliff Bridge, and the Illawarra tree-top walk is also close by. Just right for a short-but-grand escape from bustling Sydney.
Ever notice how the waiting areas at car rental offices almost never have seats? See, they'd prefer you fall asleep on your feet so you'll be more apt to sign your life away in case someone accidentally breathes on your car in the parking lot. Well, fear us, rental-car agencies of the world!
Or rather, fear scientists at MIT who have been working on a car you can check out as easily as an airport luggage cart.
The electric City Car, a two-seater just slightly smaller than a Smart Car, folds in half for parking and is easily rechargable. The team's even contemplating installing a joystick that would allow users to steer the car. A joystick! All that and it "promotes a socially responsible and more effective means of urban mobility."
This road trip contest we've been hyping has us fantasizing about the open road. Even though we still have to tap a vein to afford to fill the tank, sometimes there's no better way to travel than driving.
And when you do eventually have to park that ride and fly, there's a lot happening out there. From cell phone lots cropping up at airports to parking services that are worth a ride, taking the car will keep you smiling--even if your flight doesn't.
The next time you feel underappreciated and overworked sitting in a beige metal box all day, sneaking e-mails to friends and reading travel blogs, remember the parable of the Guoliang Tunnel:
Back in the 70s, when our parents were taking horrific photographs with feathered perms and mustaches for which we would later mock them, a group of 13 men in the Chinese village of Guoliang in the Taihang Mountains sat down to figure out how to get to the village on the other side of the enormous hill blocking the way.
The solution: dig through it -- manually. The men sold goats and herbs to buy hammers and steel tools. After five years, they had dug a 4,000-foot tunnel. It measures 16 feet high by 13 feet wide. About 30 "windows" look out over the 90-degree drop. The sight overwhelmed one traveler:
I was deeply moved and even wanted to cry, for the sacred Guoliang Tunnel and for what the villagers have done - to triumph over nature.
Although this statement appeared in China Daily, so we're not vouching for its authenticity.
The tunnel is in Southwest Beijing, close to the city of Xinxiang.
Since summer trip driving season is about to go into full swing we figured why not take a look at the world's most dangerous roads. Know a road rage inducing strip of asphalt that puts normal highways to shame? Send it along.
Do you really need any more evidence than the above video to prove that this road belongs on the World's Most Dangerous Roads list?
Every year, 200 to 300 people die along a stretch of dirt road less than 50 miles. Locals know The North Yungas Road, as El Camino de la Muerte, or "Road of Death." Packed buses regularly plunge off cliffsides. The 43-mile road leads northeast from the La Paz to Coroico, in the Yungas region of Bolivia. Along the way, it winds up and down through the Andes Mountains.
First, the road ascends to a nausea-inducing elevation of over three miles, before plunging down to a height of 1,079 feet. Stop for a minute before the descent -- as long as no cars are coming -- to glimpse an untouched mountain landscape.
Travelers, many of whom must maneuver tractor trailers and buses, contend with sharp dropoffs (with no guardrails to break the fall) and single-lane width. Frequent rain and fog reduce visibility, make the road surface muddy, and loosen rocks from the hillsides above.
Extreme mountain bikers have taken to riding the stretch of road, dodging diesel trucks and jumping roadblocks. Let's just hope they wear their helmets.
Since summer trip driving season is about to go into full swing we figured why not take a look at the world's most dangerous roads. Know road rage inducing strip of asphalt that puts normal highways to shame? Send it along.
The Russian Federal Highway connects Moscow to Yakutsk.
The coldest temperatures ever recorded outside Antarctica was recorded near Yakutsk. Yakutsk is also the largest city built on continuous permafrost. Most houses are built on concrete piles because of the frozen ground. What does all this have to do with being one of the world's most dangerous roads?
During the winter, which is approximately ten months long, driving in and out of Yakutsk is subject to heavy snow, ice, and reduced visibility. However, winter road conditions are a picnic compared to trying to navigate the Russian Federal Highway on July and August.
Though many Siberian residents will tell you the highway is not paved to keep the Germans out (a tired World War II era joke), the truth is because of the permafrost there is no asphalt, creating a mud induced traffic jam every time the summer rains swing Yakutsk's way.
Near thousand car traffic jams are not unheard of and during these back ups and travelers might pass the time while stuck in Siberian traffic by looting, beating, and kidnapping other travelers. Siberian mud pirates. And we thought everyone got all Lord of the Flies when the Holland Tunnel gets backed up.
It isn't all danger and mud up on the Russian Federal Highway.
We're inclined to leave this one to the professionals, but this year's AutoVantage road rage list still raises some questions...such as, "Really?" The list ranks the worst and best American cities for road rage, and Miami has snagged the top spot for the second year in a row. Next on the list? New York. Huh? NEW YORKERS DON'T EVEN DRIVE! Must be a cabbie thing.
The top 5 worst cities for road rage in 2007 are: Miami, New York, Boston, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.
Click through for complete rankings. Do you agree with the list? Let us know in the comments. We give The Car Rental Companies 4-5 days to jack up "surcharges" accordingly.
We already knew about parking places for women only in Germany, but now you'll be pleased to know (half of you, anyway) that there are also these extra-safe spots in Swiss carparks. Unfortunately there's a problem: too many Swiss men are parking in these spots, so the whole plan of women having a shorter and safer distance to walk to their car at night just hasn't worked out.
But if you're hoping to drive and park safely around Switzerland soon, things might be OK. The city of Bern has decided to decorate these women-only spots with flowers and paint them pink, hoping that men will then be too embarrassed to park there. Well, maybe some men...
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by amandak
