Egypt bans Uber
Egyptian authorities banned the ride-sharing company Uber from operating in that country after receiving complaints from taxi drivers. Another ride-sharing company, Careem, based in Dubai, was also banned in the same order.
Public Transportation
Just a window seat, please
This month’s winner is ELLEN RADO of Hollis, New York:
My husband and I were traveling north from Guatemala City one morning by bus. People would just stop the bus at various points to board.
Missing Kiribati ferry
In Kiribati, the ferry MV Butiraoi, carrying 88 passengers, disappeared after leaving Nonouti island on Jan. 18 on its way to Betio island, normally a 2-day trip. On Jan. 28, eight people in a dinghy from the ship were spotted by a New Zealand search plane and rescued by a fishing ship.
Mexico tour bus crash
On the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico, a bus carrying Royal Caribbean International cruise ship passengers on an excursion overturned on Dec. 19 in Quintana Roo, killing 12 people, including eight Americans, and injuring 18 others. The bus was traveling to the Mayan ruins of Chaccobén at the time of the crash, the cause of which was still being investigated at press time.
London stops Uber
On Sept. 22, the transport regulator of London rejected Uber’s application of a new license to operate in the city...
Iceland by Bus
It seems as if everyone is going to Iceland this year! I returned on July 7, 2017, from an excellent visit there and wanted to pass along something I wish I had known when I was making my plans.
Iceland by Bus (icelandbybus.is), which also sells point-to-point tickets, runs a nonguided Hop On And Off bus that circles the whole country and makes multiple stops. A Full Circle Bus Passport costs ISK37,900 (near $364) and is good for up to two months (either clockwise or counterclockwise only).
Critique of ’Stans & South Caucasus tours
My husband, Greg Fearon, and I visited five of the ’Stans plus the South Caucasus, April 12-May 25, 2016, on back-to-back tours led by JMG Tibet Tours (www.jmgtibettours.com). The company’s Caucasus tour was featured in an article written by an ITN subscriber, a group member from a previous tour (June ’16, pg. 43). I must report that I could not have had a more different experience than what was reported by the other subscriber.
The ugly tourist (and how not to be one)
The ugly tourist (and how not to be one)
I’m going to be brutally frank. Many Americans find their trips to Europe suffer because they’re treated like “ugly tourists.” But those who are treated like ugly tourists are treated that way because they are ugly tourists. They aren’t bad people, just ethnocentric (and there are plenty of tourists from other countries who also qualify as “ugly”).
St. Petersburg Metro bomb
A bomb placed on board a Metro train in St. Petersburg, Russia, was detonated between stops on April 3, killing 14 people and injuring 64 others. The train operator was hailed as a hero for continuing to the next Metro station after the blast, allowing passengers to escape and rescue workers to reach the injured. A second bomb was discovered in another Metro station and defused.