Travel Briefs

March 2011 issue

Smoke dissipating

POLAND banned smoking in public spaces, such as mass-transit vehicles and stations, parks, hospitals, theaters, schools and playgrounds, as of Nov. 15, 2010. In restaurants, bars and workplaces, smoking is allowed in separate ventilated rooms.

In SPAIN, as of Jan. 2, 2011, smoking is not allowed in enclosed public spaces, including restaurants and bars, not to mention the grounds of schools and hospitals. Hotels may set aside 30% of rooms for smoking. Smoking in restaurants’ outdoor patios and at sidewalk tables is still allowed.

In Goa, INDIA, as part of an anti-drug...

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December 2010 issue

Big time in Mecca

In Mecca, Saudi Arabia, one minute after midnight on Aug. 11, 2010, the beginning of the holy Islamic month of Ramadan was marked by the start of the world’s largest clock. The Mecca Clock sits atop the 2,000-foot-tall tower five of the seven-tower Abraj Al Bait complex, scheduled to be completed in fall 2011.

Each of the clock’s four faces is 151 feet in diameter and will be covered with millions of pieces of glass mosaic. Each side bears the words “Allah is greatest,” and 21,000 LED lights atop the clock will flash five times a day for the call to prayer. At press time, only one...

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March 2011 issue

Dutch towns ban day ‘trippers’

The possession of up to five grams of marijuana or hashish is allowed in the Netherlands, and thousands of tourists cross the border every day to visit marijuana cafés.

To limit traffic jams and thwart German, Belgian and French dealers who purchase drugs to sell illegally in their own countries, the towns of Maastricht and Terneuzen voted to limit sales to residents only. The ban was challenged in Dutch courts as an illegal restriction of EU trade, but the court upheld the towns’ decisions.

December 2010 issue

Swakopmund jetty

In Swakopmund, Namibia, the landmark, WWI-era iron jetty reopened in August 2010 after extensive reconstruction.

It was closed in 1998 due to safety concerns, and one section was reopened in 2008. A local businessman has now restored the second half of the jetty and opened a seafood restaurant at the end of the 262-meter-long pier.

The jetty has a promenade on one side, with the other side for fishing. Entry is free.

March 2011 issue

Picasso in Amsterdam

“Picasso in Paris, 1900-1907” is at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam (phone +31 [0] 20 570 52 00), until May 29, 2011. Among 70-plus early works are paintings from Picasso’s Blue and Pink periods, “Self Portrait with a Palette” and some early intimations of Cubism.

€14 (near $19) adult; free for children 17 and under and Amsterdam Card holders. Open 10-6 Saturday-Thursday, 10-10 Friday. At 6:30 and 8:45 p.m. Fridays, a modern dance piece created for the exhibit is performed free. At 2 p.m. the first Sunday of each month, there is a free lecture on Picasso.

The exhibit moves...

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December 2010 issue

Latvia bike rental

When in Riga or Jurmala, Latvia, you can rent one of 100 bikes from one of 11 BalticBike stands shown on a map on the website www.balticbike.lv.

First, register (also in English) online or by calling +371 67788333 (must have credit card). When you find a bike, call the same number, enter the number of the bike into your mobile phone, and the unlock code will be sent to your phone. Return the bike to any stand and call to end your rental charge.

Rentals cost LVL0.70 (near $1.34) for an hour, LVL6 ($11.50) for 24 hours and LVL75 for a month.

March 2011 issue

Da Vinci’s drawings

The Codex Atlanticus, a 1,119-page compilation of Leonardo da Vinci’s drawings and writings never shown to the public, are being displayed 22 pages at a time at two sites in Milan, Italy, through 2015.

The exhibition began in September 2009, and every three months a new set of pages is displayed, with themes like “Animal drawings & shapes” and “Astronomy & Cosmology.”

A ticket (must reserve) gives you a half hour at either site: the Pinocoteca Ambrosiana (Piazza Pio XI, 2; phone +39 051 649 32 65), open 10-6 Tues.-Sun., with tickets €15 (near $21), or the Sacrestia...

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December 2010 issue

Travel safety site

The US Travel Insurance Association website trip.ustia.org (Travel Responsibly, Informed & Protected) offers articles, tips and links on various aspects of staying healthy, safe and secure while traveling. There are links to resources such as US embassies, the TSA and visa services as well as for currency exchange, weather and flight info.