The spirit of Spain
Five new wine routes await visitors to Spain. The quintet of new routes are Campo de Carinena in Zaragoza province, Ronda in Malaga province, Yecla (Murcia), Txakoli (Alava) and Rueda (Valladolid).
Up to now, 21 wine routes have been certified by the Ministry of Tourism. Tourists can visit the wine cellars, hike the vineyards and taste-test the wines. Visit www.WineRoutesOfSpain.com.
Virgin in red
Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson will “serve” his time as an AirAsia X flight attendant on the Perth-Kuala Lumpur flight on May 12, The English entrepreneur is expected to shave his legs, slip into a sexy red skirt and strut his stuff as a flight attendant on this special charity flight. His “penalty” stems from a bet made with AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes as to which of their F1 teams would finish ahead at the 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Seats on the flight can now be booked with A$100 from each ticket, along with a percentage of all in-flight sales, going to the Starlight Children Foundation.
Liberty to welcome visitors
The Statue of Liberty in New York will re-open to visitors on July 4, according to US Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar. Liberty Island was badly damaged by Hurricane Sandy last November, with the energy infrastructure and security screening systems taking the brunt of the weather. The monument had only opened to visitors in late October 2012 after a year of reconstruction work. Liberty’s crown of the statue was closed off after the attacks on September 11, 2001 and was finally re-opened in 2009. – DPA
Surfing in the air
Qatar Airways’ Airbus A350 and A380 fleets are being fitted with both Mobile OnAir and Internet OnAir. The airline has already been operating OnAir’s GSM on its A320s for more than three years. Qatar Airways’ passengers have the choice of using either the GSM network or Wi-Fi and can use their mobile phones and tablets for calls, texting, emailing, updating social media and surfing the Internet. Billing works the same way as international roaming.
Remembering U Thant
The home of Myanmar’s most esteemed diplomat, former UN secretary general U Thant, has become a museum. The home of the late diplomat, who as the first UN secretary general from Asia succeeded in defusing the Cuban missile crisis in 1962, is located in Yangon’s Kamayut township. It displays documents, papers and photos from the time U Thant lived in Myanmar, before he was assigned to UN headquarters in New York. He died in New York in 1974. Admission is free. – Eleven Media Group
Flying with wheels
Low-cost Chinese carrier Spring Airlines is now selling cars to its passengers through an in-flight shopping catalogue. From this month, the airline allows passengers to use their credit cards to make payments on the automobile of their choice. The first batch of car models are priced at 100,000 yuan (US$16,000), according to the South China Morning Post, which is considered to match the level Spring's passengers can afford.
