Get That Next Flight

Posted on February 24, 2013 by Brian D. Butler

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If you’re anything like me, you always get to the airport way early and then start looking for earlier flights while you kill time. Well, now there’s a great new app from the folks at touchmeme that offers a handy way to search for available flights from every airline at your airport. Next Flight covers the current day, as well as the next two days. All you need to do is enter your origin, destination and departure date, the app provides all available flights. You can then drill down to flight specifics for additional information such as Terminal and Gate, and Departures and Arrivals. Next Flight is available for both iOS ($2.99) and Android ($3.99).

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Up In The Air (nearly)

Posted on February 23, 2013 by Brian D. Butler

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I first discovered John Schabel’s melancholy and haunting photos years ago in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. In his series entitled “Passengers”, each evocative image was taken during that uncertain limbo that occurs when passengers have been seated in a plane, but the flight is not ready for take-off.

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Schabel began the series in the early 1990s, but has just released the collection of gelatin silver prints in a new book from Twin Palms Publisher aptly titled “Passengers”.

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A Night in the Slammer

Posted on February 22, 2013 by Brian D. Butler

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Nearly two years ago, the 19th-cenutry Het Arresthius prison in Roermer, Netherlands, just north of Maastricht, was been transformed into a very unusual upscale hotel. The interior was transformed with boutique hotel-chic décor, while preserving its rich history as a former prison. The 150 holding cells have been repurposed as 36 luxury rooms and seven suites—four of which are distinctive suites known as The Jailer, The Lawyer, The Director (former warden’s office) and The Judge. 

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Each of the rooms has a double bed, rain shower, air conditioning,  and free WiFi Hotel Het Arresthuis’s communal areas include a bar and restaurant, where the establishment jokingly assures that guests will be offered more than just water and bread.

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Posted in Europe, Hotels | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Beware of Greeks Bearing Gifts

Posted on February 21, 2013 by Brian D. Butler

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Have you ever wanted to spend the night in a fairytale castle or a troll’s lair? How about in the hold of an ancient boat, or in a giant wodden horse? If you have, the quirky little La Balade Des Gnomes Hotel, outside of historic Durbuy, Belgium is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for you.

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With uniquely designed rooms ranging from faux-medieval to nautical, the hotel is anything but ordinary. The rooms in the former farm complex have been constructed from cob, an oldfashioned natural building material composed of straw, mud and lime. Room rates start at €115 per night.

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She’s No Angel

Posted on February 20, 2013 by Brian D. Butler

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Pulp ! The Classics is a brilliant new imprint from Oldcastle Books that offers iconic novels with cleverly reimagined pulp fiction-style retro covers. The lighthearted, tongue-in-cheek cover art is currently featured on such classic titles as The Great Gatsby, Tess of the D”Ubervilles, Robinson Crusoe, Pride & Prejudice and The Hound of the Baskervilles. Other titles from the imprint are due Spring-Summer 2013.

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Posted in Art, Books, Europe, Writing | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Literary Passports

Posted on February 19, 2013 by Brian D. Butler

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A passport, with all of its stamps and visas, can reveal quite a bit about the bearer. How many travelers have played the where have you been game by passing passports around a train compartment or a hostel common room ? Imagine what we could discover from the passports of our great writers. Here are a few examples to ponder:

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Posted in Books, History, Travel Writing, USA, Writing | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

New York Is A Trip

Posted on February 18, 2013 by Brian D. Butler

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German film student Lena Steinkühler created the trippy little film below entitled “New York Biotopes”. It is a phantasmagoric take on how NYC might look if the infastructure began randomly morphing into surrealistic creatures—part organic and part mechanical. Take a peek:

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Watch Where You Walk

Posted on February 17, 2013 by Brian D. Butler

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When we travel, it’s easy to overlook the quotidian elements of local infrastructure, such as the lowly manhole cover. But visitors to Japan who watch where they walk are treated to a veritable art show.

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Japanese manhole covers once looked as monotonous as those in most countries, but about thirty years ago imaginative city planners were encouraged to seek input from local artists, designers and civic organizations on cover design. Now, nearly all of Japan’s 1,780 municipalities have unique and fanciful manhole covers that reflect local culture, environment or history.

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There’s even a neat Japanese Manhole Cover flickr group.

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Posted in Art, Asia | Tagged , | 1 Comment

It’s a Small World After All

Posted on February 16, 2013 by Brian D. Butler

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Melbourne Australia-based photographer Ben Thomas has been official dubbed Cityshrinker™ , in fact he has trademarked the title. Thomas earned the sobriquet after circumnavigating the globe to apply his personal take on tilt-shift photography to renowned cities and popular locations. His engaging photos are playful and entertaining takes on the commonplace, touristy and mundane.

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All images ©Ben Thomas

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Posted in Photography, Tech | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

A Game of Covers

Posted on February 15, 2013 by Brian D. Butler

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Publishing house HarperCollins is planning to release a series of classic fantasy and sci-fi titles for its Voyager list with beautifully updated cloth-bound decorative covers. Designed by London-based illustrator Clare Skeats, the eight books are scheduled for March release. HarperCollins hopes to attract a new audience for the classic novels.

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