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Amid corruption charges, the cause of the July 23 collision of two high-speed trains in Wenzhou, in the eastern province of Zhejiang, China, remains under investigation, with speculation ranging from signal failure, design flaw or human error to, even, lightning strikes. The crash on the Beijing-Nanjing line resulted in 40 dead and hundreds injured.
As the unpopular austerity measures passed by the Greek government take effect in the coming months, street demonstrations and more frequent labor union strikes are likely in cities around the country. Riot police are frequently called out to contain the demonstrations, and sometimes tear gas is used.
The State Department warns of the risks of traveling in Algeria. Terrorist attacks, including bombings, false roadblocks, kidnappings and ambushes, occur regularly, particularly in rural areas such as the Kabylie region.
Additionally, sporadic episodes of civil unrest have been known to occur, such as the riots in Algiers and many other cities from January 2011 to the present.
Visitors should maintain a low profile and stay only in hotels with adequate security. Travelers should avoid large crowds, traveling in predictable patterns and traveling overland.
The US State Department urges travelers not to go to Yemen because of terrorist activities and civil unrest.
Coordinated bomb attacks in the city of Sungai Golok, southern Thailand, on Sept. 16 killed four people and injured more than 50. Three timed explosions occurred near two hotels and a cultural center.
Separatists have been attacking both government and civilian targets since 2004, killing more than 4,700 people. From February to September 2011, the attacks grew more sophisticated and resultant casualties increased. There has also been a shift to more public and commercial targets where foreign travelers might group.
Due to its huge population and location, Karachi is the main port, financial hub and economic powerhouse for Pakistan. Ethnic, religious, separatist and terrorist groups have been staging attacks and bombings in Karachi for many years. In the past few years, as the city has seen enormous growth (to 18 million people in 2010), the pressures and violent attacks have increased.
A magnitude-6.8 earthquake struck in the state of Sikkim, India, on Sept. 18 and also affected northern West Bengal state in India as well as western Bhutan and eastern Nepal.
Once again, the monsoon rains have brought devastating floods to the Sindh valley of Pakistan. In 2010, epic flooding covered an area the size of Italy, killing more than 2,000 people and leaving 11 million homeless.
This year’s floods killed more than 200 people, damaged or destroyed over 1.2 million homes and inundated more than 4.5 million acres. The devastation is less widespread than in 2010, but hundreds of thousands are once again homeless. In September, floodwaters rose throughout the streets in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city.
We’ve all been in a new city and obtained a map showing locations of various sites. On a trip my wife, Anne, and I made to Seville, Spain, in April-May ’11, we made sure to get a map, then note that on its table of hotels, ours was number 61.
While many may not view Brussels in December as an ideal getaway, my husband and I have long loved visiting Europe close to the Christmas holidays. In 2010 we centered ourselves at the Floris Arlequin Grand Place Hotel (€146-€179) in the I’llôt Sacré, Dec. 8-14, and took advantage of the holiday schedule to spend a weekend day in Ghent (Gent).