Travel Trivia Challenge – how many world landmarks can you name from this photo?

Sep 082011
 

Below is the view from my hotel room – or at least that’s the view I’d want.  You’ll notice that there’s a series of monuments, landmarks, and icons from countries around the world. How many can you name?

Let’s make it a travel contest to see who can come up with the most – the Travel Trivia Challenge. Try to name every world landmark you see. For each one you correctly identify, you get one point for the landmark name and one point for the city or country where it’s from. For example, if you can identify the Sydney Opera House in the front of the image, and know it’s from Sydney, Australia, you get two points.

world landmarks monument travel trivia game - Visit50.com

How many world landmarks can you name from this image?

How many world landmarks can you name from this image?

Click the image to see a larger version, then right-click it to save as your new desktop image.

Ask me if you need hints for naming any of the buildings, landmarks, or monuments.

Hint: I saw two of these landmarks in the first half of my recent Asia trip – I wrote about both experiences and posted the photos. Which ones?  Read more... (284 words, 11 images, estimated 1:08 mins reading time)

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Malaysia: Southeast Asia’s Next Great Foodie Destination

Jun 222011
 
malaysia poultry 1105seasiakljalanalor

Budget Travel had a good article on Malaysia as Malaysia: Southeast Asia’s Next Great Foodie Destination.

Malaysian food mixes in so many cultures—Arabic, Chinese, Thai, Indian, and more—that you could never appreciate them all in one sitting. So bring your appetite.

For more on my experience: Eat your way around Malaysia: Kuala Lumpur edition

http://50and50by50.com/2011/03/eat-your-way-around-kl/

 

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My Malaysia trip, sponsored by Purell, Pepto, and Kleenex

May 182011
 
Purell from my Malaysia trip - you'll need LOTS of this

Alt title: The 3 Seashells Method vs The Cucumber Method

[squeemish warning - you may find this post to be disturbing, on par with the post on airline bacteria]

Paradox: The more likely a culture is to eat meals with their hands, the less likely to find napkins on the table… or even soap in the bathrooms. Disturbing!

Mailbag: After a few posts raving about the fun of choosing your own fresh fish at a market and eating street food, I’ve been asked a bunch of related questions about the quality of food, safety of eating street food, cleanliness of restaurants, and even if the “Three Seashells” method was used (best line from the movie, Demolition Man).  This post is for you! So yes, after traveling around KL and all around Malaysian Borneo, I had to make a few mental adjustments and preparations. Here are a few observations:  Read more... (756 words, 13 images, estimated 3:01 mins reading time)

  • Like a lot of other areas in the world, if you’re eating with the locals in Malaysia, often no utensils are used. Occasionally you find chopsticks and definitely no forks, no knives, nothing. Not even a spork!  Westerners are used to using our hands for foods like hamburgers, fruit, and bite sized appetizers, but nothing as little as rice, and nothing messy.
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Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur | Architecture in Malaysia

Mar 182011
 
Petronas towers Panorama
Photos: Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur | Architecture in Malaysia

Petronas Towers

The Petronas Towers , also referred to as Malaysia’s Twin Towers, in Kuala Lumpur. The Petronas Towers were the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 until surpassed by Taipei 101, but remain the tallest twin buildings in the world to this day (the Sears Tower / Willis Tower in Chicago is taller if you include their antenna).

Photos: View of the Petronas Towers from the KL Tower in Kuala Lumpur | Architecture in Malaysia

View of the Petronas Towers from KL Tower in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

 

Wikipedia’s list of the tallest buildings and structures in the world

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My 1st haircut on Foreign Soil

Mar 172011
 

You wouldn’t think that something as simple as a haircut would be worth telling about, but when you’re traveling, even a haircut can be an adventure!

After a month of travel, it was time for my first time getting a haircut abroad. This should be interesting. I was in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital city, and the pouring rain altered my initial plans.  The receptionist sat me down at a chair and handed me a card to choose choose the services I wanted, and the level of experience of the hair stylist (different charges for each).

Shampoo Massage?

A girl in a mini-skirt and stiletto heels came over and introduced herself - she could go straight to the clubs afterward – and said she’d be washing my hair.  I started getting up, assuming it would be at a sink. It wasn’t.  She tied up her shirt and said she’d begin. I sat in the chair while she sprayed my hair with water, and started massaging the shampoo into my hair. She was dancing to the music as she lathered. A little head massage may be typical, but the massage moved down to my neck, and then shoulders.  What the?  Surprise!  It actually felt outstanding; I had been thinking of going to get a massage after the haircut. Is that normal for everyone’s haircuts?  Read more... (402 words, 10 images, estimated 1:36 mins reading time)

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Raiders Plane in Malaysia??

Mar 132011
 
Air Asia, proud sponsor of the Oakland Raiders! That's puzzling to most people because american football isn't remotely popular in Malaysia, and they don't even fly to the U.S.

One of the big challenges about traveling are the things you miss, and watching my Jets in the playoffs was certainly one of them. I was excited to learn that my NY Jets playoff run took them all the way to the AFC Championship game.  Unfortunately, I was set to arrive in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, one day before the game. It’s a region of the world without any NFL fans. None!  It’s a major city so my plan was to investigate if there’s any tiny sports bar that might have it (there’s not). So I was thinking it would be a challenge, but imagine my reaction as we landed right next to this:

Air Asia, proud sponsor of the Oakland Raiders! That's puzzling to most people because american football isn't remotely popular in Malaysia, and they don't even fly to the U.S.

 

   Read more... (374 words, 11 images, estimated 1:30 mins reading time)

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