When we're thinking of a great place for a diving holiday, we're afraid to say that mighty ol' England doesn't exactly spring to mind. But the UK Times has pointed out that there are actually dozens of great spots to go diving and snorkeling around Britain--as long as you've got a thick wetsuit.
Some of the highlights are wrecks from both wars and from careless ships running aground, like the Lucy, a ship that beached itself off Pembrokeshire and now sees divers as well as dolphins and porpoises that play nearby. Off Cornwall, experts recommend a few good snorkeling spots although we're not quite sure that seeing giant jellyfish is the kind of highlight we're after.
Now it might go without saying, but the tipsters do recommend only snorkeling in summer off Britain, and even then, as they carefully point out, "It'll be colder than snorkeling in the Seychelles". No surprises there.
A few months back we we speculated about just how unnecessary the London Ripley's Believe It or Not museum was going to be. Last week it officially opened so now we are all invited to spend a whopping £17.95 (over US$33) to see the latest collection of the weird and wonderful.
The stats say that this Ripley's has just 500 artifacts, which doesn't sound like much, but they do spread over four floors and include such local specialties as a replica of the Tower Bridge made out of matchsticks. Gotta see that (not).
We're also not sure we need to see the two-headed cow (apparently not much of a rarity--the Ripley's company has 80 of 'em) or the graphic of singer Ray Charles created out of 8,000 Post-It notes. Yes, there'll be tourists who visit this new museum, but no, we won't be among them. We have enough weird and wonderful stuff on our desk.
Slip the name James Bond into anything touristy and we will be there like a shot. It's embarrassing but true, and the latest Bond-related place of interest is the Bodyflight indoor skydiving facility in Bedford, England.
Two things: First up, some of the scenes from the "Quantum of Solace" Bond movie were filmed here so you, too, can fly in the same wind tunnel that Daniel Craig did.
And second: you can go one step further than Craig, because they're about to open a new ride called Bodyflight Vertigo. It's a 120-foot jump, the tallest in Britain, and you're free-falling for two thirds of the way. This pleasure (or terror) will only cost you £30 (US$57) or you can combine it with a trip through the wind tunnel for some simulated skydiving. The fun kicks off in September, two months before the new Bond movie hits theaters.
In a recent survey, half of London Underground riders admitted to swapping numbers or hooking up with someone they met on the Tube. No wonder the St Pancras Station is promoting itself as a place to go even when you're not going anywhere! With an infusion of hotties, you and your loved one could look like this statue, Paul Day's "The Meeting Place," added to the station in October.
With a cool breeze blowing on your face, sun setting over the ocean and a drink in hand, beach house life is easy.
Nina Tolstrup of Studiomama has created a beautiful pared down beach chalet that embodies the essence of vacation. With the house's simple lines and stripped down aesthetic, you can slow down and solely focus on relaxing and getting away from it all. An hour from her home in London, Tolstrup designed this house as a place for her family to escape the city and spend time with each other surrounded by only sand, surf and the ocean view.
At a 388 square feet, the chalet is small, but stocked with all the essentials for living. The interior is constructed of sawn softwood and contains a kitchen, bathroom, spacious living/dining room, sleeping loft and bunk beds for the kids. The exterior is clad in cedar shingles and a large glass window in the back connects indoor to the outdoors.
The Studiomama beach chalet doesn't have a lot of opulent amenities, but sometimes, getting back to simplicity can be the greatest luxury of all. All we need now is a few dozen more of these to enjoy.
It may soon get harder to visit the UK--at least if your a national of one of 11 countries now off the so-called visa-waiver list. The idea, says the UK Border Agency, is to keep tabs on those people who might endanger the country. But among the 11 are Brazil, Malaysia, South Africa and Trinidad and Tobago, places that you might not associate with scary stuff.
The Border Agency says it plans to work with the governments in question to see if they can't stay on the visa-waiver list; a final decision won't be made until early 2009. But should risk reduction not be seen, even more foreign visitors will have to submit fingerprints and get a visa before arriving in the UK. The new rules would mean that Britain requires visas of 80 percent of the world's population.
When the US clamped down of visiting foreigners after 9/11, many countries didn't appreciate it. In probably the most famous show of displeasure, Brazil decided to charge Americans $100 per visa starting in 2004 in retaliation for what its citizens had to pay to visit the states. A pro-tourism group in the UK is worried the same thing might happen to the British as a result of the ever-widening visa net.
For the American traveling abroad, being confronted with unfavorable exchange rates can feel like death by a thousand paper cuts. Every ticket purchased is a chance to do still more unsavory math. So any way to save a little of your vacation bankroll without packing PB&Js or panhandling on a foreign subway looks like an attractive option.
If your trip to the UK this summer includes country houses or landscaped gardens, consider joining the Royal Oak Foundation, a National Trust-affiliated nonprofit supporting hundreds of properties in England, Northern Ireland and Wales.
Your $55 membership doesn't cover major tourist traps like the Tower of London or the Eye, but it can get you in free to Roman baths, wacky museums (like the Museum of Childhood) and manors like Cliveden (pictured). If you're just passing through Britain, it might not be worth it, but for extended trips it'll make you feel like an aristocrat visiting "your" private garden.
London's Club Surya is going green, with a party tonight that's fully sustainable. From recycled cups, bottles and cans to wind and solar energy powering the sound system, the event promises to be 100 percent carbon free. (Probably good in light of recent developments!)
Even the party-goers themselves will chip in, as the club's floor will be covered with special composite material that'll actually generate a small amount of electricity as the dancing goes late into the night. Surya even plans to donate any surplus energy to its neighbors.
Jade Jagger will be there to lend the appropriate star wattage to the event and you can expect to see Dan Williams, Queens of Noize and Nathan Detroit up on the decks.
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by amandak
