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Gallery: Creative ways to get around Bangkok
Miele Guide: Korean restaurant finally makes Asia's Top 20
Saying sorry: Qantas offers free flights
Interview: Miss Korea 2011 talks fashion, her new job and plastic surgery
Best city hotel rooms with a view
Clockenflap: Santigold, West Kowloon and free entry!
Gallery: Beautiful autumnal scenes in central Tokyo
小籠包発祥の地、南翔へのぶらり旅

Gallery: Creative ways to get around Bangkok

Posted: 06 Nov 2011 10:59 PM PST

With boats now a luxury, city residents are using everything from plastic foam to jet skis to get through flooded streets

Boats are in heavy demand in and around Bangkok these days, as flood waters continue to move deeper into the city.

Many residents have been forced to turn to alternatives, such as plastic foam, tubs and tire tubes to move themselves and their belongings through flooded streets. Some have even chosen to make light of their situation by giving their rides an artistic touch.

Check out the above gallery for a look at some of the flotation devices being used to traverse the floods.

More on CNNGo: Updated flood info for tourists

Miele Guide: Korean restaurant finally makes Asia's Top 20

Posted: 06 Nov 2011 10:39 PM PST

Seoul took a big step forward as a culinary capital as its chefs won Asia-wide accolades in Singapore last week.

For the first time a Korean restaurant, Pierre Gagnaire à Séoul, was listed among Asia's Top 20 in The Miele Guide, a compendium of the continent's finest dining venues, released annually.

Its Jeju pork belly and tilefish dish was highlighted as a great example of what the kitchen talents there can do.

Saying sorry: Qantas offers free flights

Posted: 06 Nov 2011 08:48 PM PST

The Flying Kangaroo has had its wings clipped. The Spirit of Australia is deflated.

Now Qantas is trying to restore a little faith.

Tens of thousands of passengers who were stranded at airports will receive a return flight (economy) to anywhere in Australia or New Zealand.

This is on top of Qantas covering their emergency accommodation and reimbursing flight costs.

Qantas will email passengers about the deal, which can be booked from November 30 for travel after December 14. It will be valid for two years.

Interview: Miss Korea 2011 talks fashion, her new job and plastic surgery

Posted: 06 Nov 2011 03:58 PM PST

It's easy to find a great view in nature, but in a city? Even if you get the right hotel, there's always a risk you'll end up facing the highway rather than the ocean, the building next door or the "garden view."

Get the best view for your buck by requesting these specific rooms.

1. The Savoy, London

The historic Thames view from London's most iconic hotel was painted by Monet, who stayed there several times.

Room to request: Monet Suite visitors and others on the rear of the sixth floor can enjoy the same skyline, with Big Ben on the horizon.

Rates: Rooms from US$650, Monet Suite US$4,950.

Clockenflap: Santigold, West Kowloon and free entry!

Posted: 06 Nov 2011 02:00 PM PST

Hong Kong Clockenflap Music and Arts Festival sounds ridiculously good this year.

The line-up of musicians for the two-day festival is headlined by Santigold and Bombay Bicycle Club. The venue is West Kowloon Waterfront Promenade's swathe of parkland rimmed by a glorious harbor view. The entrance fee is non-existent.

The organizers must be some crazy altruistic music-loving rich people.

"I'd like to say that free entry was part of our original concept," says Clockenflap Festival Director Mike Hill. "But no, it wasn't, although it works to our liking.

"We are a commercial enterprise. We have to make sure we don't lose all our money."

It turns out one of the conditions for using the West Kowloon location is that Clockenflap cannot sell tickets.

Gallery: Beautiful autumnal scenes in central Tokyo

Posted: 06 Nov 2011 01:55 PM PST

A photographer's guide to the most spectacular fall spots in the heart of the capital

Known better for its downtown neon lights and sakura cherry blossoms, it's probably fair to say that Tokyo is somewhat under-appreciated for its spectacular autumn colors of November and early December.

At this time of year, Tokyo ranks among the most photogenic major cities in the world.

For amateurs or pros, it's a great chance to hang around some of the world's best photographers as they turn their lenses away from disaster zones and onto the landscape paintings of leaves across the city.

Unnoticed most of the year (springtime aside), Tokyo's trees are like well-preserved bottles that let forth their red and golden wines at the approach of winter.