Italy’s highest court of appeal upheld a 16-year jail sentence for the captain of the cruise ship Costa Concordia on May 12. The captain, Francesco Schettino, navigated the ship into a submerged rock off of the Italian island of Giglio in January 2012 reportedly while trying to impress a woman in the wheelhouse. The vessel capsized and 32 people were killed. Schettino was convicted of both manslaughter and abandoning ship in 2015.
In southern Switzerland, the world’s longest hanging pedestrian bridge opened on July 29. Located on the Europaweg trail between the towns of Zermatt and Grächen, the 1,620-foot Europabrücke (Europe Bridge) hangs 279 feet above the Grabengufer ravine. The Matterhorn is visible from the bridge.
Another bridge on the trail was damaged by a rockfall and closed in 2010, forcing hikers to descend into the valley and climb back up the other side to continue on the trail.
Visitors to Shanghai, China, can experience the world’s highest observation deck, 1,791 feet up on the 118th floor of the Shanghai Tower (479 Lujiazui Huan Lu, Pudong, Shanghai, China). The deck takes up the entire floor, giving viewers a 360-degree look at Shanghai. An express elevator takes only 55 seconds to reach the deck from the ground floor. CNY180 (near $26).
In July, some visitors to Thailand who were traveling on tourist visas were prevented from entering the country by Immigration officers when they could not show they were carrying at least 20,000 baht (near $600) in cash. Other reports indicated that travelers without the cash in hand were taken into custody for questioning before being allowed to enter the country.
Passengers on Etihad Airways can bid for the Etihad Select Upgrade (ESU), upgrading to a higher seating class, or, in economy class, for a Neighbor-Free Seat (NSF), bidding on up to three extra neighboring seats (an entire row).
The US Customs & Border Patrol (CBP) launched on-site Global Entry Enrollment Centers at five airports on July 7: Vancouver International Airport (YVR), San Francisco International (SFO), Austin-Bergstrom International (AUS) and, in Houston, George Bush Intercontinental and (IAH) William P Hobby Airport (HOU).
Global Entry gives enrolled travelers faster entry through Customs when returning to the US from another country. It also makes them eligible for TSA Preê (Pre-check), which provides a separate line for expedited security clearance for departures.
In honor of Canada’s sesquicentennial in 2017, the Canadian Mint has released a glow-in-the-dark “toonie,” or 2-dollar coin. It is the world’s first glow-in-the-dark coin created for general circulation. The obverse face of the coin depicts Queen Elizabeth II, while the reverse is an image of two people canoeing underneath a glowing display of the northern lights.
You’ll need to supply your own sleeping bag and pillow, but all else is provided on a “Roar ’n‘ Snore Overnight Camp” sleep-over at the Melbourne Zoo in southeastern Australia.
Tents (with mattresses) are in the former elephant house, where you have dinner, then explore the zoo after dark, seeing nocturnal creatures and listening to camp hosts’ stories. After supper, retire to your tent. Wake to the calls of gibbons and birds, eat breakfast, then enjoy up-close animal encounters and behind-the-scenes experiences.
Train Suite Shiki-Shima, a new luxury train operated by Japan Rail East (www.jreast.co.jp), made its maiden journey on the island of Hokkaido, Japan, on May 1.
The train’s 10 cars include seven 2-story sleeping cars (with three suite options), two observatory cars, a lounge car and a 2-story gourmet restaurant. Each car’s exterior and interior are designed by car designers from Porsche, Ferrari and Maserati.
The oldest-extant surgical theater, located in the attic of an 18th-century church, can be visited in London. The newly refurbished Old Operating Theatre Museum (9a St. Thomas Street, London, England, SE1 9RY, U.K.; phone +44 020 7188 2679, oldoperatingtheatre.com) dates to 1822, when it became the surgery room for the St. Thomas Church Hospital.
Still present are the wooden bed where surgeries were performed (without the benefit of anesthetics or antibiotics) and the surrounding benches from which medical students watched.