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car-loanz · 6 years ago

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10 best Hollywood chase scenes you really must catch

Some of the most memorable scenes on screen involve chases. Pulse-quickening car pursuits with danger at every turn. Imperial troops on the tail of rebels and smugglers in a galaxy far, far away. Man vs. plane, with everything at stake. Whatever the scenario, they captivate us with elements of surprise, stress, sometimes comedy, and always top-notch action.

Here are 10 of the best chase scenes in Hollywood history for you to check out, and the fun trivia behind the epic entertainment.

Fast Five (2011)

The Fast and the Furious franchise is loaded with over-the-top car chases and “Fast Five” is no exception. In the finale, Dom (Vin Diesel) and Brian (Paul Walker) are racing through downtown Rio de Janeiro in their modified Dodge Charger SRT-8s while being tailed by the Rio police. The catch? Attached to the cars is a vault that belongs to Rio’s biggest crime lord, Hernan Reyes.

Trivia

Some of the downtown Rio scenes in the chase were actually shot in Hato Rey, Puerto Rico.

More than 200 vehicles were destroyed by the vault during filming.

Six versions of the eight-foot high vault were created with specific uses – some for close-up shots, others to drag through the streets.

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Though the whole movie is one big car chase, the finale takes the cake with Furiosa (Charlize Theron), Max (Tom Hardy) and the Vuvalini tribe driving back to Citadel and clashing with Immortan Joe and his armies. The scene features vamped-up cars and plenty of weapons as the two sides speed through canyons and desert, battling each other to the death.

Trivia

More than 80 percent of the effects in the film are real, practical effects, stunts, makeup and sets.

The older actresses playing the Vuvalini did their own stunts.

The film used three identical war rigs based on a Czech all-wheel-drive military vehicle.

The Dark Knight (2008)

The first showdown between the Joker (Heath Ledger) and Batman (Christian Bale) does not disappoint. This memorable scene shows the Joker and his clowns chasing down and attacking Harvey Dent’s (Aaron Eckhart) convoy, which inevitably lures Batman into the fray, on his übercool Batpod. What ensues is an epic ride through the dark, underground streets of Gotham City as Batman attempts to capture the villainous Joker.

Trivia

The Gotham City license plates were based on Illinois license plates.

One very pricy IMAX camera was destroyed while filming the chase scene. It was one of just four in the world at the time.

As filming took place in downtown Chicago, citizens called police to report that “police” were in pursuit of a dark vehicle of an unknown make and model.

Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Pursued by four TIE fighters, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewbacca and C-3PO enter the Hoth asteroid field trying to lose Imperial ships while simultaneously avoiding massive asteroids. Not the easiest feat, even for Han. Mixed with comedy and fast-flying action, it’s here that Han utters the famous line, “Never tell me the odds.”

Trivia

The Millennium Falcon model was made much lighter than in the previous film in order to have the ship move and turn more fluidly.

During the scene, a pilot briefly can be seen bailing out with a parachute after the TIE fighter is hit by an asteroid.

When the Millennium Falcon first enters the asteroid field, the third asteroid to appear in the top-left corner is actually a potato!

North by Northwest (1959)

One of the most iconic scenes in movie history is when Roger Thornhill (Cary Grant) is attacked by a crop duster plane, while waiting for a meeting with the mysterious Kaplan, at an isolated bus stop. Alfred Hitchcock’s camera angles create panic throughout the scene as Thornhill ducks and dives for his life.

Trivia

The crop duster chase scene featured a real airplane while the scene in which the plane crashes into the fuel truck included large models of both the truck and plane.

The crop duster scene was meant to take place in northern Indiana, but was shot on location on Garces Highway in Kern County, California.

This scene inspired the helicopter chase in the James Bond movie “From Russia with Love.”

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

In the third installment of the Bourne series we find Jason Bourne (Matt Damon), still tracking down his true identity, in a high-speed, adrenaline-pumping pursuit through the streets and homes of Tangier, Morocco. This time Bourne is after Operation Blackbriar asset Desh Bouksani, and prevents him from killing Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles), who has been helping Bourne.

Trivia

While filming in Tangier, the crew had to close down the busiest square in the city for several hours.

The meeting place Nicky chooses in Tangier is Café de Paris, which was a popular spot for spies and emissaries back in the day.

Because Tangier is a very crowded city, the flow of people was hard to control and the actors had to push through a crowd of locals, not extras.

What’s Up, Doc? (1972)

They don’t make them like this anymore. The 11-minute chase is relatively slow-paced by today’s standards, but perfectly choreographed for comedy. It features the two protagonists, Judy Maxwell (Barbra Streisand) and Howard Bannister (Ryan O’Neal), stealing four suitcases and being pursued by multiple characters all wanting their possessions back. Starting on a delivery bicycle in downtown San Francisco, the duo take their lives in their hands as they ride through Chinatown, down the steep inclines of Lombard Street, and end up crashing a stolen Volkswagen Beetle in San Francisco Bay.

Trivia

The chase scene cost $1 million to shoot, took 19 days and required 32 stuntmen.

Shots of the floating Volkswagen Beetle were a parody of the vehicle’s ability to float on water, which was shown in advertisements at the time.

The comedic scene was a spoof of the 1968 movie “Bullitt.”

Point Break (1991)

When federal agent Johnny Utah (Keanu Reeves) goes deep undercover to find bank-robbing surfers he finds himself chasing leader of the pack Bodhi (Patrick Swayze), who’s wearing a Ronald Reagan mask, through a Southern California neighborhood. It’s a high-paced and enthralling foot chase.

Trivia

Keanu Reeves observed real FBI agents in Los Angeles to study for his role.

Director Kathryn Bigelow used a stripped-down, hand-held 35 mm camera nicknamed the “Pogo-Cam” to film the chase scene.

Patrick Swayze, who usually did his own stunts, did not do the stunts his character performs while wearing the Reagan mask – they were carried out by a stunt double.

The French Connection (1971)

Detectives Popeye Doyle (Gene Hackman) and Buddy Russo (Roy Scheider) are on the hunt to intercept a massive drug shipment from France. Naturally, an awesome car chase follows. Popeye takes over a civilian’s car and goes after an elevated train, with the hit man aboard, through the streets of New York.

Trivia

Many of the near-collisions in the movie were real and unplanned since the chase scene was filmed without the proper city permits.

Gene Hackman did a lot of his own driving throughout the chase scene.

The most famous shot of the chase comes from a camera mounted on the car’s front bumper, giving a low-angle viewpoint.

Bullitt (1968)

For perhaps the best car chase scene of all time, “Bullitt” gives us a 10-minute pursuit, with unmistakable ‘60s cool, on the streets of San Francisco. Here, Frank Bullitt (Steve McQueen) is careering after criminals up and down busy roads in a green 1968 Ford Mustang Fastback GT. This full-throttle, tire-squealing scene became the inspiration for later Hollywood car chases.

Trivia

Steve McQueen made a point to keep his head near the open car window during the chase scene so audiences would know he was driving.

The car chase called for speeds of 75 to 80 mph but the cars actually topped speeds of 110 mph.

Filming the chase scene took three weeks and resulted in 10 minutes and 53 seconds of footage in the film.

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sherrygorugh · 6 years ago

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34 Countries, 20,000 Kilometers, One Bicycle: An Interview with Barista Gavyn Stroh

34 Countries, 20,000 Kilometers, One Bicycle: An Interview with Barista Gavyn Stroh by Michael

We love hearing from our readers, especially if they’re passing through one of the cities our blogging team is based (Louisville, San Francisco, and Istanbul). It was in the latter we met up with Canadian barista Gavyn Stroh, sharing a pour-over at Coffee Department in Balat. Istanbul is one of the world’s great travel hubs, so it’s not uncommon to meet visiting coffee professionals. But what made our visit with Gavyn exceptional was his mode of transportation. Turkey is one of 34 countries Gavyn cycled through over the last 12 months. We’ve been following his journey since that delicious naturally-processed El Salvador we shared, and we’ve been taken by its breath-taking panoramas, ever-increasing tan lines, and of course, the many cups of coffee along the way. Now that his journey is coming to a close we caught up with him to learn about coffee on the open road.

How did you decide to leave your native Canada and travel the world by bicycle?

In February of 2016 I was in the midst of the final semester of my Bachelor’s degree. Procrastination led me to YouTube where I stumbled upon a set of videos made by a Bulgarian-Canadian man named Iohan that chronicles his journey from the Arctic Ocean to Ushuaia at the southern tip of South America. I really latched onto the idea of travelling at a human pace and travelling in a way that isn’t carbon emission intensive. I graduated in the spring of 2016 then used the following year and four months to save up money and plan the trip. This trip is something of a transition period for me. After spending the better part of five years in Winnipeg for work and school, I was missing being in proximity to my family in Squamish, British Columbia. Two weeks before leaving on this trip my parents helped me move my things back to BC, now I can get a fresh start when I return back home to Canada.

Tell us about your background in the coffee industry.

I got my foot in the door of the coffee industry when my university opened up a cafe in their brand new library building. I worked there for the first three months of 2015 before I found my way into another start-up. One of my professors was one of five owners in the process of building out a new cafe in Winnipeg’s downtown core. Before Fools & Horses’ opening in May of 2015, I secured part-time employment in addition to part-time work in a practicum/co-op capacity. I spent half my time behind the bar making coffee, and the other half of my time helping the business set up a compost program, waste tracking, and carbon emissions accounting.

Do you ever miss working bar while on the open road?

Absolutely. Two main reasons stick out to me. One, I miss the routine. Being on the road doesn’t really let you settle into a groove in the same way. Two, I miss the people. My coworkers and my regulars! There’s something truly unique about the relationships that form between coworkers and between employee and customer. I miss that continuity of relationship – while on the road you’re barely able to scratch the surface before you’re in a new place with new people. In the cafe you see people daily, they’re part of your life, and you’re part of theirs. Over time you actually get to know these people, and some of them reciprocate and get to know you too.

It seems you do a pretty thorough cafe crawl in every city you visit. What cafes have been highlights?

I do my best! I would likely go to more if I wasn’t constrained by my caffeine tolerance, or my budget! I would have not found half of these shops if it weren’t for Ales and Radic of European Coffee Trip and their efforts in the greater European coffee community.

Naturally different cafes stand out for different reasons. I was starstruck by the opportunity to visit Tim Wendelboe in Oslo (even got the chance to chat with him before he had to run off to the airport). Gardelli Specialty Coffee in Forli was another cafe that I have admired from afar for some time and was able to incorporate into the route of my trip.

Mame in Zurich and Dabov Specialty Coffee in Sofia stand out for really great service. I’ve seen my own preferences shift from just finding really good coffee in a pretty space to prioritizing the service experience. Making good coffee is easy, offering really good service while juggling a half dozen other things behind the bar, is not.

It has been really interesting to visit all these European cafes and contrast the experiences with those I’ve had in Canada. One very notable difference I’ve noticed has been the European trend of table service vs. the north american culture of calling out drinks from the bar. Not that one is better than the other, just different.

Do you tour with any brewing gear? What’s your coffee routine look like when you’re out in the countryside?

I’m not sure I would’ve been able to make it this far or this long if I didn’t have coffee with me! And, after working in coffee for three years I was vehemently against subjecting myself to gas station coffee, or worse yet, instant coffee. I am touring with an Aeropress, a Porlex mini handgrinder, a 2000g pocket scale, and a 0.8L stovetop kettle.

I have spent over 80 nights camped out on the side of the road on my way to the next major destination while on this trip. The coffee routine starts in the afternoon before I make my coffee by ensuring I have enough water to last me through the night and into the morning. Water becomes a really interesting brewing variable when you never have the same water source. I’ve used water from gas stations, mosques, cemeteries, mountain springs, and, when desperate, lake water with purifications tablets mixed in.

I’ll make my first cup after having a bite to eat for breakfast. I’ve had as many as seven different whole bean options to choose from while on this trip. I’m not terribly good at impulse control when I see a coffee I think I might enjoy! I’ll drink my first cup while double checking my route plan for the day and I usually make a second cup after finishing packing up my tent and loading up my bike for another day in the saddle. I have bag mounted to my handlebars that fits my Keep Cup perfectly, so I’m able to enjoy that second coffee while pedaling those first few kilometers of the day.

I may actually be the only touring cyclist out there with two brewing devices and two coffee grinders. When I passed through Istanbul in December I picked up a cezve/ibrik made by Soy and a grinder made by Hon. It’s been cool to play around with a new brewing device – despite the fact that it adds an extra pound or so to my packed weight.

A grand bicycle tour seems so romantic, but I’m sure there’s been some hard days along the way. Any close calls stick out to you?

My threshold for what makes a close call or what makes for a hard day has changed a little over time. Back at the beginning of the trip I was scared off the narrow secondary highway to Paris by close passing cars and trucks. In Bulgaria I became unsettlingly comfortable with two cars charging down the two-lane highways with me in the oncoming lane.

I did have a pretty close call in Montenegro, but that was mostly my own fault. I was descending down the twenty-six hairpin corners that led back to Kotor when the Austrian couple driving in front of me braked to let a car coming the opposite direction come up the hill. I locked up both brakes before careening into the back of their SUV. I managed to come to a stop as I was nearly in-line with the passenger side window, and inches from tumbling off the road entirely.

I had a second notable close call on my first attempt at cycling a century (100mi/161km) in one day. I was coming down a hill into Bodrum when a car door flung open. I was fortunately able do throw the bike to the left and avoid being sent flying over the handlebars!

Rain days are always hard. They’re bound to happen eventually, so you often just have to push through them. I had a really bad rain day on the final day of three on the way from Fethiye to Antalya. My shoes and socks and gloves were all soaked through and I managed to get a flat tire in the middle of the downpour. On my first day cycling from Pisa to Rome in mid-November I encountered much more rain than I had expected. I found myself caught on a highway as the rain started – unable to put on my rain gear before getting wet. The rest of the day alternated between 1.5 hours of rain, to 1.5 hours of no rain. After I had found a suitable spot for camping overnight on the side of the road, the skies opened up for another bout of rain. Not wanting to try to set up my tent and get the inside completely soaked, I stood there in my wet shoes with my arms at my side and I waited for the rain to pass over, or at least let up enough for me to set up my tent.

I’m sure you’re tired of being asked this by now, but how many kilometers have you logged? Countries passed through?

I don’t get tired of people asking how far I’ve travelled. I always get a bit of a laugh from the reactions of the people who ask! I have cycled 19,422 kilometers over the last 11.5 months! I’m currently in Glasgow, but will be flying home from London in three weeks. Three weeks should be plenty of time to push myself over the 20,000 kilometer mark – that’s halfway around the world at the equator.

This trip has allowed me to visit 34 countries! The United Kingdom, France, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Italy, Vatican City, Greece, Turkey, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, Russia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Ireland.

34 Countries, 20,000 Kilometers, One Bicycle: An Interview with Barista Gavyn Stroh was first posted by Michael on The Coffee Compass, The Coffee Compass - Your Guide for Craft Coffee

34 Countries, 20,000 Kilometers, One Bicycle: An Interview with Barista Gavyn Stroh published first on https://linlincoffeeequipment.tumblr.com/

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touristguidebuzz · 7 years ago

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The Airport of the Future May Evolve From Transport Hub to Attraction

Architects at HKS designed an airport of the future for a recent competition. HKS

Skift Take: Airport architects are busy rethinking the terminal experience, and that's a good thing. But don't expect any major changes, at least not soon. Instead, travelers will get incremental improvements.

— Brian Sumers

It’s not happening fast enough for many travelers, but many of the world’s airports have over several years morphed into community spaces, where travelers can spend time in a yoga room, beer hall, butterfly garden, or children’s playground before they fly.

So far, this is a trend most often seen at forward-thinking airports, such as Singapore Changi, with its butterfly garden, Hong Kong’s airport with its IMAX movie theater, and Seoul Incheon with its indoor skating rink. In the United States, one of the most innovative amenities is the yoga room at San Francisco International — a unique spot, but nothing amazing.

Those global perks get considerable media attention and often ensure these facilities make various lists of the world’s best airports. But the impressive amenities are still most often reserved for the world’s largest gateways, often in the Middle East and Asia, usually at airports with big construction budgets. The typical American or European hub is still more interested in having luxury shopping and decent restaurants rather than butterfly gardens.

That could change soon, according to three architects who spoke recently with Skift. The three — Terence Young of Gensler, Andy Bell of Corgan and Pat Askew of HKS — said they expect more medium- and big-city airports will emulate major Asian and Middle East gateways by making airports more fun, with a greater sense of community.

Soon, they said, they expect more airports will be places travelers actually want to go, rather than where they must go. That doesn’t mean travelers in Seattle or Paris will get over-the-top amenities like Singapore, where there’s a four-story indoor slide, but it should mean they’ll be more pleasant experiences.

Here are the architects’ predictions on the airport evolution travelers will see soon(ish) in more places.

A Community Experience

The three architects said they expect airports in a decade or two will become a place people want to be, rather where they where they go for transportation.

“It happens a lot on the international scale,” Corgan’s Bell said. “But I believe we’re starting to see trends in a domestic shift toward this return to the jet age where the airport isn’t just a piece of infrastructure for commuting, but it’s a place to go and experience.”

Young, design director for Gensler Los Angeles, said he envisions airports acting like a town square, allowing travelers to do everything they might in their home neighborhood. That means airports could have a playground for kids to “burn off some energy,” or a “bougie” coffee shop, or even a yoga room, he said. Some airports already have some of these features, including San Francisco, for which Young has designed, but few have created the community-style feel Young envisions.

Future airports will have shopping too, but the experience might be different. In the 1990s and early 2000s, many airports began offering a mall-type experience. That works, Young said, but only to a point. Today, travelers may not like being manipulated into shopping to pass time. They may browse stores if they’re bored, but if they’re anxious or stressed, they might not buy anything.

If airports can give consumers a more well-rounded “town-square style” experience, Young said, they might feel more comfortable. If they’re more relaxed, Young reasoned, they might buy more.

“We are giving that waiting time back to people as if they are still in their community, as opposed to, ‘I am going to the airport and I have to wait for an hour,'” he said.

Ideally, the architects say, airports would be for everyone — not just people flying that day. Ultimately, whether to allow non-ticketed passengers will be a decision for security officials and airport executives. Pittsburgh recently became the first U.S. airport to allow people without flight reservations to enter since Sept. 11, but this may not become a trend.

Regardless, Young said he suspects airports can create more of a community feel by catering to the thousands of employees who work at them. Today, workers come and go, without creating much of a sense of community. But what if they wanted to hold their happy hours at the terminal, rather than a few miles away?

If workers create a culture of “pride of place and ownership of community” at airports, Young said travelers would benefit.

“They should not be the hidden people,” Young said. “They are the residents of that city, and travelers are the visitors.”

A rethinking of lobbies and security

Are grand airport lobbies obsolete?

Askew, of HKS, said he thinks so. Already, he noted, many passengers barely interact with an agent before they fly. Even if they check a bag, they might only have a brief chat with an airport contractor or airline employee before placing luggage on the belt. Yet the space allotted to lobbies remains as massive as years ago. Meanwhile, travelers still wait in cramped gate areas.

“That’s going to change the architecture of a terminal,” Askew said. “The big room will need to be someplace else. It really needs to be where the passengers are waiting for the airplane. Where people spend their time is going to be the space where the airports spend more money and give more area for people to do things.”

As security screening evolves, airports someday could change further. The architects aren’t security experts, but they know enough to suggest future terminals may not have screening stations. Instead, they say, technology could allow airports to constantly screen people — and their bags — as they walk through terminals. If security services adopted the technology, architects could rethink space now dedicated to screening.

“That will make the security portal less of a portal and more of an open causeway,” Young said. “You won’t know you are being screened and you’re being scanned constantly.”

Less Parking

A decade or two ago, planners might have predicted airports would shed parking because passengers would take public transit. At some airports, particularly outside the United States, trains and buses are efficient, though at many others, travelers still use cars to reach the airport.

But while 10 years ago travelers in cars parked in airport garages, that’s no longer always true. Many prefer Uber and Lyft — services so popular many airports have reported a significant decline in parking revenue.

That’s not the only issue. The architects say airports must prepare for driverless cars, and rethink whether they need parking garages at all.

“In our lifetime, we will see some form of manifestation that the car will drive itself,” Corgan’s Bell said. “How will airports respond to that? There might be a need for less parking, and more curbside.”

Driverless cars will have to be parked somewhere, but Young said owners are just as likely to send their car home as to leave it in a garage. When it’s time for the pickup, the driverless car will return for the traveler.

Few airports are knocking down garages yet, but Young said Gensler often builds new ones that can be turned into office buildings.

Today’s garages could also become terminals. Eventually, Los Angeles International likely will construct a new Terminal 0, in what is now a parking lot next to Terminal 1. The lot is operated by a private company, but the land is owned by the airport.

More Green Space

Young calls it the, “holy grail.”

He said he wants more airports to install parks with plants and trees, and maybe birds or other wildlife. That’s easier said than done — for two reasons. Parks often can’t be outside — or at least close to runways — because their inhabitants can cause danger to airplanes. “The most difficult thing about putting parks into an airport is birds,” he said. “Birds and airplanes don’t mix very well.”

And, at least for now, airports will have trouble building parks inside because terminals, like all commercial buildings, use coated glass for their windows to block some of the sun’s strength. Singapore’s airport has created a butterfly garden, with a big water feature, and Young called it a strong “first foray” into bringing wildlife indoors. But he said airports can do better.

Perhaps, he said, an airport can alter indoor lighting overnight to create conditions where a park can thrive. Then, during the day, it can maintain a better lighting experience for travelers.

“We know we can do it” Young said. “We just have to work with engineers and clients that are willing to do the maintenance on them. Water features and plants and things like that, they require horticulturist, and a lot of maintenance. It’s not for lack of vision.”

But Askew, of HKS, said he’s not sure airports will ever bother with the expense of indoor parks.

“Instead of the parking garage, there might be a park there,” he said. “We’re working on a terminal project that is going to have a park in front of it. But I just don’t think you’re going to have much of a park inside.”

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rollinbrigittenv8 · 7 years ago

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AirAsia X CEO Takes to Twitter to Call Off Plans to Fly to Europe and California

An Air Asia X Airbus A330 taxis in Sydney. The airline will not fly longer than eight or nine hours, its founder said Monday. Aero Icarus / Flickr

Skift Take: This is probably a good business decision. Economy class fares from Asia to the United States and Europe are already low, because there's so much competition. The market probably doesn't need another entrant — at least for now. And who knows? Air Asia X might change its strategy at some point.

— Brian Sumers

AirAsia X, Asia’s leading low cost long-haul airline, will not return to Europe nor will it fly to the U.S. West Coast soon, but will instead focus on Asia, its founder and CEO said Monday in a series of Tweets.

The announcement comes as a surprise, as top airline executives had strongly hinted for months they wanted to fly ultra long-haul routes — both to Europe and the United States. Western Europe probably would have come first, while expanding to the Continental U.S. was more of a long-term plan, executives had said.

In February, the executive in charge of Air Asia’s long-haul business, Datuk Kamarudin Meranun, told Skift the airline was “seriously looking” into resuming flights from Southeast Asia to London, while it was also exploring flying new routes from Japan to Los Angeles, San Francisco, and possibly Las Vegas. “We have interest in a lot of the cities on the West Coast,” he told Skift.

Among all the ultra long-haul routes under consideration, London always seemed the most likely, since AirAsia X had flown there before. The airline pulled out of London and Paris in early 2012, saying the aircraft it was flying — the four engined Airbus A340 — was not cost effective for the long flight from Kuala Lumpur. But executives had long said they wanted to return, at least to London, with a more appropriate aircraft. “The timing is right,” Meranun said in February.

However on Monday on Twitter, Air Asia founder Tony Fernandes said AirAsia X has decided not to fly ultra long-haul routes.

“We have decided that ultra long haul is not relevant now,” he said. “Won’t get seduced into price wars over London.”

AirAsis x is flying.Model is working. We have decided that ultra long haul is not relevant now.Won't get seduced into price wars over london

— Tony Fernandes (@tonyfernandes) June 19, 2017

For awhile, as AirAsia X teased its possible new routes, it seemed the airline soon might disrupt Asia-United States and Asia-Europe routes as Norwegian has done on transatlantic sectors. Like Norwegian, AirAsia X offers cheap base fares — as low as $99 one way on its Osaka Honolulu — but charges extra for nearly everything else.

At least for now, though, AirAsia X is choosing a safer route. Instead of flying aircraft for 12 or more hours, it will fly no more nine hours. The Osaka-Honolulu route, which AirAsia X will start flying on June 28, will stay — it’s only about nine hours — but for the most part, Fernandes said, “Our focus will be Asia.”

We will stick to the 8 to 9 hours. Our Focus will be asia. With the odd route like hawaii which is actually 8 hours form japan.

— Tony Fernandes (@tonyfernandes) June 19, 2017

As recently as January, AirAsia X planned to lease two Boeing 777-300ERs so it could fly nonstop from Kuala Lumpur, according to CAPA, a respected airline industry analysis firm. But ultimately, Fernandes said the airline calculated Europe didn’t make sense.

“We let the full service guys fight it out over Europe,” he said. “Many of them bleeding so so much.”

We let the full service guys fight it out over Europe. Many of them bleeding so so much.

— Tony Fernandes (@tonyfernandes) June 19, 2017

Two other airlines, Malaysia Airlines and British Airways, fly nonstop from Kuala Lumpur to London. The flight time is about 13 hours, longer than most low cost airlines fly.

But in the February interview with Skift, Meranun AirAsia X’s CEO, said customers would fly in a tighter configuration to save money.

“If we are able to offer them a fare that is really, really attractive at the same time without reducing much of the services and comfort, I don’t think that would be a major issue to the customer,” he said. “To me, the driving force is fare, and whether you have a service that they want.”

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mounasser · 8 years ago

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6 Ultimate Discount Travel Tips

We are almost into 2017. And most likely you have made New Year resolutions- EXERCISE, eat healthy, quit smoking, etc. However, travelling more is something that you may want to consider in the New Year. Most people tend not to travel a lot because they think that it is too expensive but the good news is that saving money when you travel is quite simple. In fact, discount travel is now easier than ever before and here are 6 tips to get you started as follows:

1. Engage The Sharing Economy A few decades ago, travelers had to find accommodation in the yellow pages, book flights at the airport, and plan their itinerary weeks, if not months in advance. Thankfully, those days are long gone with today's sharing economy offering travelers more options- and competition denotes savings. And while many sharing economy sites have been in existence for years, their growth continues to be phenomenal. For instance, Airbnb boasted slightly over half a million listings two years ago, and now it has over a million. Vacationers can, therefore, put the sharing economy to work for just about anything- from where you SLEEP to meals, guided tours, transportation etc. Some of the most popular sites include Airbnb, EatWith, BlaBlaCar, and Guided by a Local. 2. Try Budget Airlines While gas prices may be at their cheapest in years, this does not translate to regular airlines lowering their fares. If anything, they are trying to squeeze in more seats in order to make more money. Thankfully, there are a host of budget airlines such as Air Asia, Wow, and Norwegian Air that fly cheaply from Asia and Europe to the U.S. They do the same thing as regular airlines, flying you between continents, but with no frills and at lower costs. For example, Norwegian Air operates flights from both American coasts to mainland Europe for as little as $150 for a one-way flight. Once there, holiday makers can then find their way to Asia for only $200 one-way. Even more interesting is that Air Asia operates $20 one-way flights around the region and if you need to visit Australia from Asia, a one-way ticket will only set you back $150. 3. Visit Cheaper Destinations This is really a no-brainer. A weekend stay at a five-star HOTEL IN Paris will definitely cost more than the same trip, to say, Prague. Take advantage of destinations whose economies are underperforming or those that have great exchange rates. Currently, some destinations that may be of interest to travelers include Greece (bad economy), India, Australia, Russia, and Japan (all of which have seen their currencies fall in comparison to the dollar thus making them way more affordable. Admittedly, while the prices in these destinations have not fallen, they have become cheaper owing to the drop in currencies. 4. BOOK Cheap Tours And Cruises While it may seem risky, it is advisable to book tours and cruises at the very last minute when tour companies are likely to be desperate in an attempt to fill unsold spots. By waiting until a few weeks to your vacation DATE or date of travel, you are likely to get upwards of 50% off the price list. With beach vacations, you can also find great deals if you take out a beach vacation guide well in advance of your holiday when companies sell the cheapest accommodation. Also, try using the last minute specials of your preferred tour company if you wish to go for a tour or Cruise Sheet in case of cruises. 5. Visit The Nation's Time Machine With Your Children Colonial Yorktown, Jamestown, and Williamsburg are absorbing discount travel destinations all year-round, as historic interpreters in period costumes HELP modern families appreciate what life was like before the advent of indoor plumbing, computers, or TVs. For instance, in eighteenth-century Williamsburg, you and your family should find the largest outdoor living history museum where the kids can make bricks in the summer, help weed the gardens in spring, or attend a winter slave couple's wedding. And if you VISIT in the summer, you can also go to Water Country USA and Busch Gardens Williamsburg. Families can book a five-day/four-night stay including unlimited admission and accommodations for as little as $700 or less. However, if you schedule your visit in the winter, you are unlikely to have roller coasters but will enjoy fewer crowds and can join holiday celebrations. 6. Mexican Beaches For beach vacations, all inclusive resorts are always a favorite for many travelers because holiday makers can do what they please, when they want, and there are always numerous organized ACTIVITIES for the kids as well as opportunities for them to make friends as well. Usually, beach vacation guides advertise bargain rates throughout the Caribbean just after Easter all the way to Thanksgiving and then again from mid-December and beyond. Mexican trips can really be a bargain and should provide your children with the ideal opportunity to practice their Spanish and experience a different culture. For instance, at Allegro Resorts, children can stay and live free of charge up until the 20th of December and then again during the summer months. All inclusive rates for a family of four start at slightly under $160 per night, including meals, kids' ACTIVITIES, sports, liquor etc. Further, Akumal's Club Caribe- arguably one of the most popular resorts and which lies south of Cancun but smack in the middle of the Yucatan coast- is replete with prime diving, snorkeling, and plenty of Maya ruins to explore. Here, rates start at under $150 per day, inclusive of parents' meals. Lastly, Costa Azul (an hour's drive north of Puerto Vallarta in San Francisco, Mexico) is a soft-adventure resort that is ideal for both pre-teens and teenagers as they can among others, learn how to surf, kayak to hidden coves, trek through jungles, and swim through caves. Room rates for a family of four start at slightly under $100. BiggieTips - Tips and Tricks FOR YOUR Daily Life ( http://ift.tt/2pa9474 ) BiggieTips is dedicated to BIG TIPS to help you get things done more efficiently. You will master how to do everything in a bigger way and live smarter. Topics include Home, Health, Lifestyle, Travel, Technology, Entertainment, Business. FB - http://ift.tt/2p7GPJq Twitter: @BiggieTips Article Source: http://ift.tt/2patGwn

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perpetualmover-blog · 8 years ago

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Adding timeline info

I had hoped to include a timeline in my blog, but have not found a way to include one other than to try to incorporate this file. I will provide some background here and try to expand the comments on the pictures.

My family moved a lot when I was young and by the time I finished college, I had attended eighteen schools in five states. At that time, I had visited ten states.

After beginning my career, I took every opportunity to find work in new and exciting places, moving from state to state. Within four years, we had lived in five states.

In 1962, we drove from Orlando to Seattle for the World's Fair, then down the coast to LA and back by Death Valley and the Grand Canyon. We spent three weeks and covered 9000 miles as well as nearly all the western states, ducking across the border at El Paso, to get my first foreign country.

In 1963, we went on a cruise to the Bahamas, adding another country to the list, then I took a job in Fairbanks, Alaska, adding Canada on the way to Fairbanks, up the Alaskan ferry. The satellite program I was working on had problems after two months, so they sent us back to Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland. I drove the entire length of the Alcan Highway and most of the Queen's Highway across Canada. Wonderful trip through the Yukon, across the Rockies and the prairies. I drove alone and the family flew. Much more comfortable that way. My boys started kindergarden in Fairbanks, finished it in Maryland and started first grade in Florida. Melbourne, Florida, was a great place to live and remains on my all time list of memories.

During that year, I had covered most of Canada and was creeping up on nearly all the US states. Several years ago, I completed my sweep and have now visited every State, as well as nearly every US city of any size and have driven almost every Interstate and freeway in the country.

When Montreal hosted Expo 67 in 1967, we made another road trip through all the eastern states and all the eastern provinces of Canada, except Labrador and Newfoundland, all the way out the Gaspe' peninsula to Prince Edward Island and back by Nova Scotia. (Still haven't made it to Labrador and Nove Scotia.) We saw many wonderful and exciting sights, driving 7500 miles or so.

I took a team of design engineers to Long Island in the summer of 1968 and we explored the NYC area in great detail while living out on the island.

In 1972, I took a job in California. I had wanted to have the opportunity to explore the west more thoroughly, after our taste of it ten years earlier. I traveled there fairly often, but rarely had time to explore. I wanted to see Yosemite and the rest of the Sierras as well as continuing to explore San Francisco, LA and San Diego.

In 1974, I began several years of short term consulting assignments, which took me to Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Akron, West Palm Beach, Binghampton, NY, Laguna Beach, Cucamonga, CA, and various other places.

My new wife and I loved to travel, so I would accept consulting contracts of four to six months, then we would take one to three months off to travel. In 1979, Delta offered an unlimited ticket for 30 days to anywhere they flew, for $600. The only limitation was that you could not fly out of the same airport twice. Also, all reservations had to be made at the time the ticket was purchased and could not be changed. We were living in West Palm Beach at the time, so we sat in the ticket office and planned a marathon trip. I arranged to be able to work ten hour days with flexible scheduling, so I could work eight days and take off six. We did that twice, traveling constantly for the six days. There were enough airports in South Florida to allow us to comply with the “one flight from each” requirement, We hit nearly every major airport west of the Mississippi, as well as all those in South Florida. It was a wonderful experience.

During that period in my life, we went coast to coast 22 times, in total. Sometimes flying, sometimes driving a 24-28 foot moving van with a tow car behind and just about every combination in between.

In 1984, I found myself alone again. I quit my job and formed a company to develop controls for robotics and factory automation. I figured I could make it two or three months on what l little savings I had. Somehow, I managed to string it out for 32 year.s. I moved that company from Tustin, CA, to San Diego, Carlsbad, Cardiff by the Sea, Santa Ana, Riverside and Rome, GA, in the first few years, then went intercontinental.

I had tried several times to find a way to find work overseas, but nothing worked out. I took a job as a Nuclear Physicist with the Army Corps of engineers in 1959, to go to the South Pacific as part of the test team. Before I could get to Ft. Belvoir, VA, for training, the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty was signed and my dreams of sun washed beaches and palm trees were dashed. So were the promises of bonuses, travel pay and fast promotions. Oh, well.

On two occasions, I thought I had a lock on jobs in Germany. In one case, there was a miscommunication that took the job off the table and in the other case, the financial arrangements were too spooky, so I turned it down. My other attempt at intercontinental relocation was for a job in Ecuador. I was very excited about the possibility until I learned that one in four Americans who go to Ecuador contract meningitis. As there were four of us, I calculated the odds and withdrew.

My first trip to Europe finally happened in 1987 when I attended a trade symposium in Munich, then called on customers in other parts of Germany, as well as France and England. This was a dream come true for me. I bought a Eurail pass that allowed unlimited travel for three weeks and took off. During those three weeks, I covered nearly all of Europe. If I wanted to see the countryside, I would stay in a hotel overnight so I could travel by day. If I merely wanted to get somewhere and had already seen the area I would be traveling through, I would sleep on the train.

I kissed the Blarney Stone, I was mesmerized by the fjords in Norway and the view from the Eiffel Tower. I walked where Queen Elizabeth I had carried out her affairs and shivered through a past life flashback when walking into the Coliseum in Rome.

My first trip to Europe was for three weeks. Every time I went, I wound up staying a week longer than the previous trip, making the pilgrimage three times a year. The thousands of pictures I took on film are in storage, with only a few available to me now, that I scanned.

In 1991, I moved, lock, stock and barrel to Germany, shipping 55 boxes and bags because I had no idea what I would need. I shipped records and record players, my VCR and boxes of videos I had recorded from cable.

During the next three years, I covered Europe like the dew. My friends and I went everywhere together, skiing on the Austrian glacier, hiking in the Alps, pub crawling in Germany, to a friend's Polterabend (bachelor party where they smash crockery to scare off the evil spirits) and museums, street fairs, birthday parties (you throw your own party in Germany--and pay for it). When the gang did not have plans, I took off on my own. One summer, I took three weeks and drove the periphery of France, visiting Paris, Normandy, Le Mans, Bordeaux, the Riviera, the central mountain range and back to the Alps at Geneva.

I crisscrossed Switzerland, completely fulfilling my bucket list wish to see it before checking out. The Germans did not appreciate my noting that Switzerland is only twice as large as LA.

One Sunday afternoon, with nothing else to do, I got in my car and drove to Lichtenstein, across a portion of Austria, then the length of Switzerland and a portion of France before returning home.

After receiving a very expensive speeding ticket in Denmark, I came to realize that if I had been caught driving across Czechoslovakia at the speeds which I had experienced when there, they would have confiscated my car--and it was a leased car. Oops!

When on the train returning from the fjords, across what I thought of as the “roof of the world” because it was so stark that there were no colors, I had a marvelous experience. Everything that could be seen from the train was either pitch black or snow white. There was nothing else. A nice couple allowed me to share their table in the dining car. We had a very enjoyable conversation, during which they made me feel very much at ease. At the end of the meal, I learned that they were members of the British royal family, from the island of Guernsey. Oops! Just an old country boy from Bitter Branch, here. Scuse me, Duke.

In 1992, Lufthansa offered an unlimited ticket, somewhat similar to the one we had used years before with Delta. Since it was 15 years later and prices had increased a bit, plus the fact that Lufthansa has a more extensive travel map than Delta, tickets were $1500. Similar restrictions applied. All reservations to be made before leaving and travel must always be in the same direction.

I opted to head west, stopping in the Atlanta area to visit friends and family, then on to California for more of the same, then to Tahiti, with a side trip to Bora Bora, New Zealand for Christmas Day, Sydney for Boxing Day, Canberra, Singapore and return to Frankfurt, spread over three weeks.

All of this for $1500. Not much more than Delta's price from Huntsville to Atlanta.

As in Lucerne, Switzerland, I took so many pictures in Sydney that I finally left my camera in the hotel room because I couldn't stop snapping pictures and film was expensive. Digital cameras were still years away and those pictures are in the storage box. I only have two that I scanned.

For the next bunch of years, I lived in Germany or the US, depending on various factors, traveling back and forth about three times a year, regardless of which side of the pond I was living on. Nearly all of my customers were in Europe, so my travel was a legitimate business expense

After returning to the US in 1995, I moved my company around as I wished. When your company has only one employee, it is easier to move it wherever you like. Several months were spent working with friends in Colorado, near Boulder. Back to Alabama for several months, then California again.

By 1998, I could no longer tolerate the political climate in California and came back east, to Rome, GA. I learned to love Rome when I was in college and have wound up living there about as much as any other town along the way. California has my personal record for number of years (21), but Rome is the winner in terms of length of time in one city (about seven).

I returned to Germany in 2002, just as the euro was becoming a standard currency. It simplified travel enormously. In my previous travels, it had been a real irritant to have to maintain at least some cash in half a dozen currencies. I could get on a train in the morning with a pocket full of cash in five different currencies and by noon would not be able to buy lunch. At the same time, they were doing away with passport controls at the country borders, so it was no longer necessary to make sure I had my passport if we bopped over the Rhine for a meal in Alsace (yummmyummm).

In 2002, digital cameras were beginning to compete with film in terms of resolution and blew them away in terms of cost and convenience. I have most of the thousands of pictures I have taken since then. They fit on a memory stick. These are the ones I draw on for my blog posts.

As of now, I have visited 48 countries, although a couple were only refueling stops during the night, with no outside view. (Singapore and Brazil) Fiji was only a refueling stop, but at least it was daylight. I have lived in 19 states, making it hard to explain to people here when they ask where I am from.

I decided to retire last April. Since then, I have lived in Ireland, France and Croatia, with visits to Germany, Bulgaria and Slovenia. I plan to stay in Croatia until December, then may go to the Azores or Cape Verde or the Canary Islands for the Winter, or might go back to Ireland for the cheap rent.

The pictures on my blog are nearly all newer than 2002, with a few exceptions. I will begin trying to remember to identify each picture posted with country and year info. I am also happy to respond to questions.

At the moment, I am beginning to plan where to spend Christmas. I like to spend Christmas and birthdays in memorable places. So far, I have Christmased in the US, Germany, Ireland, Paris, Tunisia and New Zealand, perhaps more. This year I added Bulgaria to my list of birthday sites. For this year, I am thinking about spending Christmas on the Island of Guadeloupe, in the Caribbean. Did you know that you can rent a furnished apartment on Guadeloupe for less than $500 per month? http://www.longtermlettings.com/r/rent/tav_6323082/

You can also fly there from Paris for as little as $175.

https://vols.aircaraibes.com/plnext/aircaraibesB2C/FlexPricerAvailabilityDispatcherPui.action;jsessionid=hLjsEru5iLxo3fRzMf1t83WCnAVc80nUvw_BfocLU_pu_US5VnuP!543641853!-146662806

You don't have to be rich if you are cunning and cheap.

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touristguidebuzz · 7 years ago

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AirAsia X CEO Takes to Twitter to Call Off Plans to Fly to Europe and California

An Air Asia X Airbus A330 taxis in Sydney. The airline will not fly longer than eight or nine hours, its founder said Monday. Aero Icarus / Flickr

— Brian Sumers

However on Monday on Twitter, Air Asia founder Tony Fernandes said AirAsia X has decided not to fly ultra long-haul routes.

“We have decided that ultra long haul is not relevant now,” he said. “Won’t get seduced into price wars over London.”

AirAsis x is flying.Model is working. We have decided that ultra long haul is not relevant now.Won't get seduced into price wars over london

— Tony Fernandes (@tonyfernandes) June 19, 2017

We will stick to the 8 to 9 hours. Our Focus will be asia. With the odd route like hawaii which is actually 8 hours form japan.

— Tony Fernandes (@tonyfernandes) June 19, 2017

“We let the full service guys fight it out over Europe,” he said. “Many of them bleeding so so much.”

We let the full service guys fight it out over Europe. Many of them bleeding so so much.

— Tony Fernandes (@tonyfernandes) June 19, 2017

Two other airlines, Malaysia Airlines and British Airways, fly nonstop from Kuala Lumpur to London. The flight time is about 13 hours, longer than most low cost airlines fly.

But in the February interview with Skift, Meranun AirAsia X’s CEO, said customers would fly in a tighter configuration to save money.

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