Swine flu is grabbing all the media attention right now, and most travelers are wary of Mexico right now, but if you’re sick of hearing about swine flu, don’t worry — Forbes reminds us that there’s plenty of other crap in the world to be scared of in addition to the new level five global pandemic.

I’m not at all a fan of fearmongering, but even I’ll admit there are plenty of good reasons to stay away from the ten countries on the Forbes list.

You definitely shouldn’t travel to…

1. Mexico.  In addition to crime and violence throughout the country, this is where the swine flu outbreak has been the worst.  If you booked your summer vacation south of the border before the epidemic scares, check with your travel agent or airline about possible refunds.  Several companies are working to make it easier for customers to get out of ticket obligations to Mexico due to the swine flu.
2. Yemen.  Not that this small Arabian nation was ever a tourism hot spot, but rising terrorist activity (including a September attack on the American Embassy in Sana’a) in the country should be enough to keep you away.
3. Georgia.  Not the Peach State, but the country north of Turkey and Armenia has seen a discomforting rise in violent crime recently, and the US State Department warns against the “potential for gunfire.” One would assume that wherever there are guns, there is a potential for gunfire, but apparently the potential is more severe in Georgia.  Don’t go there without your Kevlar.
4. Sudan.  Particularly in the Darfur region (perhaps you’ve heard about it?), anti-Western protests encourage violence against Americans and other westerners.  You’re really just asking for trouble if you try to visit this severely unstable region.
5. Central African Republic.  If you must visit CAR, stick within the capital city of Bangui.  Venture beyond this part of the country and you’re likely to meet up with bandits, poachers, and armed rebels.
6. Colombia.  This South American nation has long held a nasty reputation for drug trafficking and related criminal activity.  While the State Department says that these situations are improving, terrorist activity is still a threat in Colombia.
7. Madagascar.  Political unrest in this African nation has created a tense, violent atmosphere in Madagascar.  While no Americans have been targeted in crimes there, you wouldn’t want to get caught in the crossfire here.
8. Saudi Arabia.  Anti-American terrorist activity is rampant in Saudi Arabia.  Plus, it’s like 140 degrees there.  Why would you want to visit?
9. Algeria.  According to the State Department, Algerians enjoy playing with fire.  Suicide car bombings are apparently the thing to do here.  Not exactly a fun family adventure…
10. Pakistan. Al-Qaida, Taliban, and other terrorist groups in Pakistan are constantly prowling the American hangouts in the country — hotels, clubs, restaurants, and anywhere else westerners might gather.

Besides Mexico, none of these countries are high on the list of hot tourist destinations.  It’s still relatively safe to travel to all the traditional vacation hotspots like Europe and the Carribbean, assuming the weak economy hasn’t made it impossible for you to travel anyway.  Regardless of where you go, though, you might want to take a few extra safety precautions next time you’re in an airport.  Lots of travelers are opting to wear surgical masks, and as always, you should wash your hands thoroughly and frequently whenever you’re spending any time in places where lots of people gather and germs fester.

If you’re planning to travel to one of those countries overrun with terrorists, a surgical mask and hand soap probably won’t help you there, but check out the State Department’s travel advisories for all the latest tips and warnings.

We’ve heard of the contact high, but is it possible to get contact drunk?  A temporary bar in London is experimenting with that idea now through April 25th.  Dubbed Alcoholic Architecture, the small storefront at 2 Ganton Street has been transformed into a literal walk-in cocktail.

The experiment is the brainchild of Sam Bompas and Harry Parr, best known for their work in the jelly medium, as well as scratch and sniff cinema.  This time, they’ve teamed up with JS Humidifiers to create a machine (the aptly-named Mistifier) that pumps a gin and tonic mist into the air.  Visitors to the bar put on white jumpsuits and pay $7 for an hour in the mist, which has been described as tasting of sweet lime with a hint of gin, a pleasant sensation not unlike what you’d expect breathing in a G&T to feel like.

The two week experiment is sold out, but if it’s a hit, it could be the next big trend in barhopping.  It’s estimated that about 40 minutes in the mist is equal to one cocktail, and the reviews from folks who’ve been there say that most people left feeling pleasantly buzzed after their time in the chamber. Watch a video of some first impressions here.

It’s a neat idea, but who knows if it will really take off?  It’s not at all how we’re accustomed to experiencing bars.  Forget about dressing up in your cutest outfit to pick up a hottie — you’ll all be wearing the same jumpsuit (it’s not very sexy), and even the finest hair gels won’t hold up to the alcohol air.  And what to do if you don’t like gin?  I like having more than one option when I go to a bar.  This seems like the kind of bar you’d go to once, just for the experience, but probably wouldn’t become your favorite hangout.  However, I can see the Mistifier taking off as a frat party staple, once the techonology is perfected.  Since it’s never been tested before, Alcoholic Architecture has an ambulance on standby, and Bompas and Parr had to consult with a chemical explosives expert to make sure the heavy alcoholic fumes wouldn’t explode — so it doesn’t seem like this will be commercially available anytime soon.

If a breathable cocktail bar came to your town, would you go?  I think I would try it if the mist were something more like bourbon and ginger, or perhaps rum and coke…but I’d expect to leave feeling sticky and gross.  I’d be willing to try it once, though.  I appreciate the creativity.

When Disney opened its theme park in Hong Kong in 2005, the company had high hopes of capitalizing on the booming Chinese market.  Disney hoped to attract waves of Chinese tourists to their new park, with plans for fast expansion following the grand opening.  But it seems now that Disney is balking.  A statement earlier this week from the Disney offices paints a bleak picture for the park’s future.

The Hong Kong government funded nearly 80% of the project in exchange for a 57% share in the theme park — an agreement that has been highly controversial in Hong Kong from day one, and even more so now that the park is hemorrhaging money.  Visitorship has never lived up to the original expectations, as many Chinese residents find it too much of a hassle to get to Hong Kong to enjoy the park, and the current economic situation has severely altered the company’s expectations.

In the recent announcement, Disney cited an inability to reach an agreement with the Hong Kong goverment on park expansion, saying “the uncertainty of the outcome requires us to immediately suspend all creative and design work on the project.”  Three quarters of Disney Hong Kong’s “imagineers” will be laid off.  Given that executives have said expansion is vital to the park’s success, what does this mean for the future of the smallest Disney theme park?  It’s not looking good.

While Disney and the Hong Kong government remain at an impasse over park expansion, they have funded small changes within the park’s existing boundaries already.  The “It’s a Small World” attraction was added in 2008, and helped boost visitors by 8% over the disappointing 2007 numbers, but it’s not enough of a jump to encourage the $500 million or more expansions that were originally in the plans.

If Disneyland Hong Kong closes, it will be the first Disney theme park in history to do so, but as the park continues to lose money as it has from day one, Disney might be willing to walk away, especially with negotiations for a new theme park in Shanghai ramping up.  Shanghai is much more easily accessible for Chinese tourists than Hong Kong, and Shanghai mayor Han Zheng insists that the recession is not going to put the brakes on this project.

There is no firm timetable for Disneyland Shanghai — mayor Han quips that Shanghai and Disney are in a serious relationship but have yet to tie the knot — but the park could be open within the next five years, and could be more than six times larger than Disneyland Hong Kong.  Hong Kong would have serious trouble competing with something like that, especially with Disney shifting all its support to the more viable venture.

If you want to see Disneyland Hong Kong, you might be running out of chances — but it sounds like there’s something much bigger and better waiting just around the corner with Disneyland Shanghai…

Theme restaurants can be a lot of fun, and they can be huge tourist attractions, too, but who ever thought a poop-themed eatery would be a good idea?!

It started off as a gag of a business venture.  The owners thought it would be funny to sell ice cream that resembled excrement — the business began as an ice cream shop that sold piles of chocolate ice cream in toilet-shaped bowels, er, bowls, that is.  In 2004, they expanded to launch the first of several Modern Toilet restaurants in Taiwan, and the brand has become a huge hit over the last five years in Taiwan and China.

Dine in at Modern Toilet and you’ll sit on a throne at a glass-topped bathroom sink of a table.  The decor is actually quite tasteful and creative.

Decorations are different in each of the several locations.  The owners certainly have creative flair!  Your entree will come served in a toilet-shaped dish.  That doesn’t sound terribly appetizing to me, but I can see the Facebook pictures now…

You drink out of a plastic urinal-shaped cup, which is yours to keep as a souvenir.   For dessert, which is still served in squat toilets, you have appetizing choices such as “diarrhea with dried droppings” (chocolate), “bloody poop” (strawberry) and “green dysentery” (kiwi).  Mmm…

A restaurant like this probably wouldn’t do so well in the US, but Chinese culture is much less uptight about bodily functions, and they can have fun with an idea like this.  American tourists tend to get a kick out of the restaurants, and thankfully, the food is only made to look like poop — it smells and tastes wonderful, according to patrons.

Modern Toilet has locations in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Shenzhen, China, and continues to expand due to enormous success in its first few years.  I guess it’s not a totally shitty idea after all!

When a quarry goes out of use, so often you’re just left with a giant hole in the earth that can’t be used for anything.  In Sonjiang, China, near Shanghai, developers are taking advantage of the “useless” real estate and building a 5-star resort hotel inside a quarry.  And it’s going to be flippin’ sweet.

Atkins Architects won a contest to design the hotel, and construction is currently under way on an aquatic-themed luxury resort.  As the quarry is partially full of water, the hotel will be partially underwater, offering spectacular aquarium views to guests in the restaurants, fitness areas, and lower story guestrooms.  At the top of the hotel, rising above the quarry, guests can enjoy an extreme sports center with activities like rock climbing and bungee jumping.

The 400-bed hotel is expected to be completed sometime this spring or summer.  The amenities are everything you’d expect from a 5-star resort, but my favorite part of the hotel is that it’s very green.  Building in an abandoned quarry instead of tearing up more land is innovative and environmentally friendly, but the Songjiang Hotel is going above and beyond just eco-friendly building.  The hotel will feature green roofing, natural lighting, and geothermal energy.  Sustainability is an important feature in the Songjiang Hotel design.  It’s luxurious, it’s eco-friendly, it’s totally unlike any other hotel I’ve ever visited — if only I had a good excuse to go to China…

The country’s tourism slogan is “Feel the love,” and Bermuda is no doubt a wonderful place to be, especially when in love.  If you love love, maybe you want to celebrate it at a love festival — over Valentines Day weekend, of course!

The Bermuda International Love Festival is an annual celebration taking place at the Fairmont Southampton from February 13-16, 2009.  The festivities begin on Friday the 13th with a cocktail party and a concert, with an appearance from at least one surprise celebrity, but they’re not saying who…

Hmm…who would be a good celebrity guest for a love festival?  Fabio?  Ron Jeremy?  If I were in charge, I’d try to get Hanson, but I’m guessing that’s not who they’ve got lined up.

Saturday begins with a golf tournament.  Golf is huge in Bermuda, but so is wind.  These aren’t the easiest courses you’ll ever play.  There’s a Louis Vuitton fashion show and luncheon in the afternoon, then a free evening for you and your sweetie to enjoy a Valentine dinner at any of the island’s fine dining establishments.  Each couple is assigned a “Love Marshal” at check-in, so if you need some ideas, just ask your Love Marshal for help.  He’ll ensure that you get preferential treatment at the restaurant of your choice.

Golf at the Fairmont Southampton

On Sunday morning, Veranda Magazine sponsors the Bermuda Tour of Homes.  The architecture on the island is truly unique — here’s your opportunity to explore the best of it.  There’s an afternoon brunch and then another super special surprise celebrity entertainer at the final dinner of the festival.  It’s a little funny that they’re not announcing the performers’ identities, but I wouldn’t worry — they know how to entertain a guest on this island.  Whoever it is, you won’t be disappointed.

Even when it’s not Valentines Day, Bermuda is achingly romantic.  (I’m trying not to dwell on the fact that my husband is going there without me next month for work.)  Gardens on the island often feature moongates — it’s said that if a couple kisses under a moongate, they are guaranteed a long and happy life together.  It’s no wonder so many couples want to get married in Bermuda.

If you ever find yourself traveling to Bermuda without your beloved, remember that it’s important to bring back gifts.  I hear the jewelry in Bermuda is lovely.  Just sayin’….

If you hold firm creationist views and don’t want to see any evidence supporting the existence of evolution, I suggest you skip over this post and ignore any future mentions of the Socotra archipelago.  If, on the other hand, you have no problem entertaining the possibility of evolution, then you’ve gotta see this place.

People smarter than I am believe that Socotra island was once part of the supercontinent Gondwana, and that it detached some six million years ago.  Since that time, the island (actually, it’s a group of islands) has been almost completely isolated from the rest of the world.  Because of its geological isolation, much of the plant and animal life on the island is unique to Socotra, found nowhere else on the planet.

Blood trees on Socotra

The archipelago is about 1500 square miles, with approximately 50,000 inhabitants, most living on the main island.  The territory is part of Yemen.  Tourism has increased in the last decade, but you won’t find resorts and fancy hotels on Socotra.  Instead, there are a handful of locally owned hotels and beachfront campsites.

While the US State Department maintains a travel warning for Americans in Yemen, Socotra is so far removed from the rest of the country that most agree that American tourists have nothing to worry about here.  Getting to the island can be tricky, though, so you may want to hire a travel agent to help you make arrangements.  Once there, you’ll need to rent or hire a vehicle, as many of the island’s best ecological attractions are at least an hour’s drive away from the main city, Hadibu.

The New York Times has a great article on one journalist’s experience in Socotra in 2007, found here.  The island’s official tourism brochure can be found online at this site.  Due to extreme weather in the summer (it’s monsoon season there), it’s best to visit Socotra between October and April.  March and April are the best months for water activities like snorkeling and diving.

This Saturday, 1000 gorillas will run through the streets of London, in what is quite possibly the coolest charity race ever.  Great Gorillas is a non-profit organization working to protect all species of gorilla from the looming threat of extinction.

Starting in London in 2003, there have been Great Gorilla Runs each year — 7km races where every participant wears a gorilla costume.  It’s a funny, light-hearted event for a very serious cause.  This year, there will be more runners in the London race than there are mountain gorillas in the entire world (720).

Money raised in the Great Gorilla races — over £1 million  to date — goes to help the impoverished people of West and Central Africa so they don’t have to mine and farm in gorilla habitats to earn a living.

The Great Gorilla Run expanded to San Francisco in 2007, and future runs are planned for New York, Amsterdam, and China.  The 7km London run is an annual event that takes runners through some of the city’s most famous landmarks.  I wonder if those stoic guards at Buckingham Palace can keep a straight face when 1000 people dressed as gorillas come jogging by.

In addition to the races, the charity offers a trip called The Great Gorilla Adventure.  The 10-day itinerary gets you up close with gorillas in Uganda and Rwanda, and the proceeds benefit conservation efforts.

It’s not too late to register for this weekend’s run.  If you’re already in London, click here to sign up.  They’ll even provide your gorilla suit!

Our quest for the best place on Earth to spend the night started in the Netherlands, and now takes us to the Chilean rain forest. Nestled in the Huilo Huilo Reserve in Southern Chile, we find the Magic Mountain Hotel, a fairytale style building with 13 private rooms and an additional 11 cabins elsewhere on the grounds.

www.ayrhoteles.cl

This unique building even has its own waterfall cascading down one side. Each of the rooms looks out into the beautiful natural setting, with condors and eagles flying by and pumas and other native animals wandering the forest floor below.

A snowboarder enjoys the Choshuenco volcano

More than a two hour drive from the nearest airport (Pichol airport in Valdivia, Chile), the Magic Mountain Hotel seems a bit out of the way, perhaps in the middle of nowhere. But there’s plenty to do, even without a big city close by. There is an aerial walkway through the reserve as high as 90m up at some points. You can take in the scenery from the treetops, above cliffs and over valleys. Hunting and fishing are popular summer pastimes (remember that this is the Southern hemisphere, so summer is January-March), and expert skiers enjoy the challenging slopes of the nearby Choshuenco volcano. This is not a ski resort with lifts and trails, but the hotel provides transportation and snow cats for skiers. Other activities offered by the hotel include whitewater rafting and horseback riding.

www.allsouthernchile.com

After a long day of busy sightseeing, there’s no better place to relax than in the tree trunk hot tubs on the hotel deck with a glass of fine Chilean wine — and Magic Mountain has the finest!

Room rates at the Magic Mountain range from approximately $150-$250USD, and the hotel accepts Visa and Mastercard payments. For reservations or further information, call +56 63 1972681.

Also check out the newly constructed Baobab Hotel, located in the same area as Magic Mountain.

Baobab Hotel

This whole area is an architecture-lover’s dreamland, and a haven for any naturalist.

Stonehenge is probably one of the coolest things on Earth. It’s simply a formation of big rocks, so that in itself is nothing spectacular, but the fact that it’s been there for several thousand years is just mind boggling. Which is why it’s also one of the most annoying things on Earth. The unanswered questions — the how, the why — are enough to drive a curious person insane.

Stonehenge as seen from the heelstone

Even with modern technology, such a building project would be no easy task. Those stones weigh many tons apiece — just thinking about how they got there is enough to make me strongly consider belief in aliens.

Located in Wiltshire, England, construction began on Stonehenge an estimated 5,000 years ago. Archaeological evidence suggests that Stonehenge was used as a burial ground in its earliest days, before the stones were placed.

Historians estimate that Stonehenge was created in phases, and was used for a period of up to 6,500 years — but what is was used for is one of the world’s greatest mysteries. Most leading theories suggest that the site was of religious importance, either as a worship site or altar for human sacrifice. Others suggest that Stonehenge was built for astronomical purposes. Some of the more colorful theories, based on the assumption that moving stones that size would have been impossible for humans at that time, assume that Stonehenge is a supernatural creation, or that it was built by extraterrestrials.

Archaeologists have discovered holes where stones once stood but are now fallen or gone. Restoration efforts began in 1901, and several stones have since been re-erected or repositioned in accordance with how we know they once were. Digs are ongoing to find more clues to the erection and use of Stonehenge. Volunteers are welcome at the site to help with conservation efforts as well as management and education.

1877 photograph of Stonehenge, prior to any restoration work

If you’d like to see Stonehenge, but a trip to England isn’t in the cards for you, there are replicas (of varying accuracy) all over the world.

In the US, you can visit a full-sized, astronomically-aligned replica of Stonehenge, as it would have originally been built, in Maryhill, Washington. Dedicated in 1918, this monument was built as a memorial to soldiers who lost their lives in the First World War. Another American replica, this one half-scale, can be found at Missouri University of Science & Technology in Rolla, MO.

Maryhill, WA Stonehenge Replica