Rapid Travel Chai

The South Korean Air Force has a Les Misérables parody with impressive production values, those not familiar with the South Korean soap operas that are wildly popular across Asia will experience something new (koreaBANG):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZunEARBb6I
I am not nearly as up on Middle East politics as I should be, frankly, it seems so repetitive that I feel like I could take issues of The Economist from today, one year ago and ten years ago, and many articles would be nearly the same. My eyebrows raised this week, though, at the first visit to Egypt in three decades by an Iranian president. (NYT)

The Challenge of Pitching Nicaragua as the Next Paradise jibes with my recent trip, the country suffers from many negative perceptions that I felt unjustified (WSJ). Driving was quite easy except for lack of road signs and my lack of Spanish; I never was pulled over by any corrupt police or even saw many police on the roads, yet internet forums are filled with tales of mayhem on the roads. Some of the couuntry’s leaders make appearances on the US OFAC’s SDN list which puts a damper on business and business travel that would benefit the country. Nicaragua offers a lot of what its neighbors offer, from colonial towns to beaches, and stands out for its many volcanoes and variously dangerous associated tourist activities, like volcano boarding and strolling into active craters.

William Dalrymple on Afghanistan’s Trafalgar (The Economist):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FC3xGeLKK74
New U.S. credit card rule vexes some Caribbean merchants shows examines challenges for many businesses in the region of proving they are non-U.S. when they “…transact in U.S. dollars, maintain U.S. bank accounts and have a U.S. address.” (Travel Weekly)

Silent Circle has a new encryption app that Slate claims will “…revolutionize privacy and freak out the Feds.”