Rapid Travel Chai

The week when everything or nothing changed? I will fittingly let The Onion speak for me: No One Murdered Because Of This Image.

Continue to learn and engage we must, defiantly in the face of those who kill civilization.

Chai Digest selections for the week:

• In New Era of Terrorism, Voice from Yemen Echoes (NYT).
• Sri Lanka’s former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, lost the election and actually left office (The Guardian). Giant step forward on the recovery from war and building of democratic governance from one of my favorite ever travel destinations.
• Jason Around the World visited Lebanon. On my mind for a future trip. The UNESCO sites close to the Syrian border have seen ISIS activity.
• Diving in Saba from Wandering Aramean. And I thought the island and its airport were cool above ground.
• China’s Bahamas Project Hits Hurdles (WSJ). China is bumping up against countries around the world. When I was in Antigua in the fall, a Chinese construction company was building the new airport. Not a local worker in sight.
• How the North Ended Up at the Top of the Map (Al-Jazeera).
• The 25-Year-Old at the Helm of Lonely Planet (Outside). In the job a year and still those horrible blue maps have not been expelled from my favorite guidebooks.
• Deer car crashes: How to avoid and survive collisions with North America’s deadliest animals (Slate). I am from Minnesota, this is useful.
• Norwegian traveler and media exec Gunnar Garfors on the inanity of travel must-see lists, Lonely Planet’s Big Travel Hoax.
• The Myths and Misery of Translating Japanese Video Games (Japan Times).
• The final hours of Yanukovych’s rule. Ukraine Leader Was Defeated Even Before He Was Ousted (NYT).
• In Fight Against Drugs, Cuba and U.S. on Same Team (Washington Post).
• The Azores keep winning sustainable tourism awards (TravelDailyNews) and have a nonstop flight from Boston. On my list.
• Follow the exchange rates, Five Expensive Destinations That Will Be Cheaper in 2015 (Wendy Perrin).
• 17 of the Coolest Heritage Sites in India (Matador via TravelBloggerBuzz). I have been to Indian a number of times and only visited 3 of these, nice to throw in some more obscure spots. I did better on 14 of the World’s Most Dramatic Waterfalls, 7, though 2 of those are double-counted.
• 3 Reasons Why Travelers Need a VPN Subscription (Travel Codex). Anyone using computers on public connections should have a VPN. I use WiTopia. A client was impressed at a meeting last week when discussing their Australia website and I set my computer to an IP address in Sydney and pulled it up.