Travel Briefs

January 2008 issue | Appears on page 104

MP3 Europe tours

Downloadable to iPods and MP3 players, iJourneys are narrated walking tours featuring commentary, historical context, humor and travel tips for a number of cities in Europe (Rome, Paris, Barcelona, etc.). A map is included. Each tour takes about one to two hours and costs $14.95. Visit www.ijourneys.com.

January 2008 issue | Appears on page 104

Ice village, Japan

On Shikaribetsu Lake in western Hokkaido, Japan, a kotan (village) of snow is built every year, with igloos, ice houses and an ice bar (with ice glasses). The village, open Jan. 27-March 31 in 2008, also offers outdoor hot springs on top of the frozen lake.

Contact the Japan National Tourism Organization (515 So. Figueroa St., Ste. 1470, Los Angeles, CA 90071; 213/623-1952, www.jnto.go.jp).

January 2008 issue | Appears on page 104

Trackstick II GPS

Trackstick II is a personal GPS data logger that uses the Google Earth 24-satellite network to store its location at preset intervals. It can record your position every five seconds or up to once every 15 minutes.

About the size and weight of a Swiss Army knife (4½"x1¼"x¾" and 1.48 ounces), it comes with all the software needed to download your route onto your computer after your trip. You then can view the data on a 3-D Google Earth map. 

Two AAA batteries keep the Trackstick...

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January 2008 issue | Appears on page 104

Plot pix on maps

The GPS-CS1KS is a small GPS module that allows photographers to plot their digital photos onto Google Maps.

The module can track a photographer’s location for 10 hours on AA batteries. Later, with a computer, the software generates an interactive map overlaid with thumbnail pictures, each picture placed where it was taken. Users can zoom in and out, etc.

Measuring 3x1x1 inches and weighing eight ounces, the device retails for $150 and is available at Amazon.com or from Sony (...

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July 2007 issue | Appears on page 0

Kenya Air crash

A Kenya Airways Boeing 737-800 crashed on May 5 after taking off from Douala, Cameroon, on a stop en route from Ivory Coast to Nairobi. There were no survivors among the 114 people from 27 countries. The cause is unknown. The aircraft was six months old, and the airline has a good safety record.

July 2007 issue | Appears on page 0

Uganda range war

Six months after being evicted from Kidepo National Park in Uganda, near the Kenya border, over 4,000 Toposa warriors from southern Sudan reentered in early May along with their 10,000 head of cattle.

The livestock competes with wildlife for pasture, and the herders someimes kill predator species, like endangered cheetahs, to protect their animals.

July 2007 issue | Appears on page 0

Madagascar remnants

The Madagascar government has proclaimed 15 new conservation areas, adding 2.65 million acres for a total of nine million acres under protection.

About 80% of the island nation’s plants and animals can be found nowhere else. More than 90% of the island’s original forests are gone, mostly burned to clear land for crops and raising cattle.

July 2007 issue | Appears on page 0

Protecting Ngoro­ngoro

The government of Tanzania has banned further construction of hotels and lodges in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCAA). They now will be built outside the area and visitors will be driven into the parks. Also, after this season’s harvest, farmers will not be allowed to grow crops in the NCAA.