CNNGo.com |
- Asia's first Legoland to open in Malaysia this year
- Tokyo's shiny new billion-dollar Palace Hotel
- A gite in China: French hospitality checks in at Anhui water town
- Insider Guide: What to do in Tokyo
- How Singapore became Asia's culinary capital
- 15 bizarre, but amazing, hotels
- How to drink Chinese tea
- 10 of the world's best sports venues
- After the quake: Rebuilding Japan's tourist trade
- Old-fashioned eats: Japan's soul food
- Spa pensions: Koreans embrace a new way to endure freezing winters
- Gorgeous photo increases fury over Jeju Island blasts
- Photo exhibition: Fukushima before the quake
- Air India operates (almost) all-female flights
- Playing a round: The ultimate Japan golf guide
- Things expats love and hate about returning to the United States
- First China-owned luxury cruise ship sets sail
- World's first Cartoon Network water park to open in Thailand
| Asia's first Legoland to open in Malaysia this year Posted: 11 Mar 2012 11:56 PM PDT by Hiufu Wong Young families in Asia, or grown-ups with an uncontainable inner child, may want to pay a visit to Malaysia this October. Legoland Malaysia has announced plans to open in Johor Bahru in September or October 2012. The 30-hectare, RM720 million (US$239 million) park will be the first of the Legoland theme parks outside Europe or the United States and will feature 40 rides, shows and attractions and plenty of opportunity to build things with small bricks and take them apart again.
For those worried about the Malaysian heat, the park will also include some specially designed features, such as more undercover shelters to provide shade from the ever-shining Malaysian sun. "Being located in the tropics helps too because it is very beautiful and green with 3,500 trees to create the natural park environment," says Matthew Law, public relations representative for Legoland Malaysia. read more     |
| Tokyo's shiny new billion-dollar Palace Hotel Posted: 11 Mar 2012 07:06 PM PDT Any idea what pops out when you insert US$1 billion into a vending machine marked "Really Spiffy, Ultra-Luxury Hotels"? We're not totally sure either, but we'll all find out on May 17, when the 23-story Palace Hotel Tokyo opens its doors right by the Imperial Palace, a stone's throw from Tokyo Station. The new development actually cost ¥90 billion, which works out at $1.2 billion and change -- an ambitious investment in trying times for both the global economy and the Japanese tourist trade. Aside from bringing almost 300 rooms and suites (¥50,000-¥700,000) to the Tokyo hotel scene, the Palace also contains some mightily impressive restaurants (in theory at this point, of course) and an Evian-branded spa. Among the dining options -- hotel management says it's "aiming for a constellation of Michelin-star restaurants" -- will be French, run by two-star Patrick Henriroux; Japanese, another two-star man in Shinji Kanesaka; and Chinese, whose operator also has (you guessed it) a two-Michelin-star background. read more    |
| A gite in China: French hospitality checks in at Anhui water town Posted: 11 Mar 2012 02:57 PM PDT by CNNGo staff Huangshan (黄山), or Yellow Mountain, is among the most popular Chinese tourist destinations for international travelers. But just 40 kilometers north of the UNESCO World Heritage site, an untapped Anhui water town has recently stolen a substantial slice of limelight from its big brother. Tangmo (唐模), a four-square-kilometer water town whose name means "the model of Tang Dynasty," saw the opening of Gîtes de France's first licensed hotel outside Europe last month. First Gîtes de France hotel outside EuropeThe 10-room establishment, which is the first phase of Tangmo International Countryside Hotel (TICH, 唐模国际乡村酒店), occupies a restored century-old Huizhou-style residential building, with room types ranging from standard doubles to deluxe suites. But unlike most gîtes in France, which are privately owned country houses, the two-story property is a fully serviced hotel owned by the local travel authority, Anhui Tourism Group (ATG). read more    |
| Insider Guide: What to do in Tokyo Posted: 11 Mar 2012 09:43 AM PDT Tokyo is a city that can roar one moment and whisper at the next, a place where almost anything seems possible. And sometimes is. After all, 13 million people share this 2,188-square-kilometer piece of the planet, which is home to some of the world's top restaurants, stores and cafés. It's also a one-stop mecca for the best of Japan -- culture, quality products and impeccable service. For the visitor wondering what to do in Tokyo, the choices are limitless. The city has endured the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, bombings of World War II, the implosion of its housing bubble in the 1990s and heavy effects of the March 2011 tsunami/earthquake that hit Japan. Each time, its people have dusted themselves off and rebuilt. Many tourists already feel an affinity with Tokyo thanks to Hollywood -- 1978's "Bad News Bears Go To Japan," for example (what film were you thinking of?). read more    |
| How Singapore became Asia's culinary capital Posted: 11 Mar 2012 09:30 AM PDT by Evelyn Chen When it comes to eating, Singapore is famous for two things. First and foremost, delicious street food. Secondly, contention. The city's cuisine has long been the subject of spicy debates with northern neighbor Malaysia over the ownership of certain famed dishes. (Don't dare try to tell a Malaysian that chili crab is Singaporean.) But close followers of Singapore's dining scene might have noticed this city-state has morphed from a paradise for wallet-friendly hawker food to a culinary center heaving with award-winning fine dining restaurants and celebrity chef outposts.
In his article on "Geography of Great Restaurants," Florida analyzed the number of "best restaurants" per capita using data mined from San Pellegrino's annual ranking of the world's 100 top restaurants. read more    |
| 15 bizarre, but amazing, hotels Posted: 10 Mar 2012 05:00 PM PST by Bija Knowles Whether it's balanced on the rim of a volcano or made of crystallized salt, the right hotel can provide you with a good year's worth of bragging material. The best part is you don't need to raid the kids' college fund to find some exotic, out-there rooms. 1. The Balancing Barn, England
The group created a series of homes in the United Kingdom based on high-quality, modern architecture and de Botton's work on the connection between environment, architecture and happiness. The Balancing Barn in Suffolk, on the edge of a nature reserve, sleeps eight people. Clad in silver tiles and with large windows giving great views, it has also won a series of travel and design awards. read more    |
| Posted: 08 Mar 2012 10:26 PM PST by Anita Xu With the immense popularity of bubble milk tea and the quirky modern creation of green tea-flavor Sprite, it's easy to forget the real meaning of a good cup of tea, even in China where tea leaves have been consumed for roughly three centuries. Sun Yuping (孙玉萍) is the tea master of Shanghai Fenghe Teahouse. The 53-year-old woman has been practicing the art of tea for more than 12 years, from boiling water to the precise temperature to pouring the beverage with the best angle. We sat down with Sun -- over a cup of tea, of course -- to chat about tea: when to drink it, how to prepare it, and why you should love it. 1. Spring is the best season to drink green teaSeason matters when it comes to the quality and taste of tea leaves. read more    |
| 10 of the world's best sports venues Posted: 08 Mar 2012 02:00 PM PST by Tony Smart The Olympics is still an entire spring season away, so instead we're going to hijack the IAAF World Indoor Championships (that's athletics for any sports dodos out there) as our peg for this list. They start today, so what better way to kick off three days of sprained hamstrings and frustrating false starts than with a rundown of 10 fantastic sports stadiums? Clearly there are many more great sports venues than these 10, so before any fans of Soccer City or others get their vuvuzelas in a twist, you can have your moment in the comments box below. 1. Yankee Stadium, New York, United States
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| After the quake: Rebuilding Japan's tourist trade Posted: 08 Mar 2012 01:55 PM PST Yoshi Matsuda loves this time of year. "Right now it's so beautiful, amazing," he says from Wanosato, the luxury ryokan he owns near the city of Hida-Takayama in the Japanese Alps. The 180-year-old buildings are surrounded by trees. Snow covers their thatched rooftops. The water of the nearby Miyagawa river rushes over rocks on its way downstream. It's a setting that promises to become even more beautiful with the arrival of spring, summer and fall. The only thing missing -- more guests to enjoy it. "Maybe in May we'll start recovering from March 11," Matsuda forecasts. read more    |
| Old-fashioned eats: Japan's soul food Posted: 08 Mar 2012 08:55 AM PST We know it's obvious, but Tokyo is home to the best Japanese restaurants on the planet. Countless thousands of them, in fact. So many, it's hard to know where to start. From the outside everything seems so sleek and modern, you feel you could be anywhere. Behind its modern façade, though, Tokyo still has many restaurants where tradition rules, both inside and out -- in the kitchen, on the table and in that unmistakable ethos that you can only find in Japan. Here are five all-time classics to try if you want to sample Japan's true soul food.
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| Spa pensions: Koreans embrace a new way to endure freezing winters Posted: 08 Mar 2012 08:00 AM PST by Jiyeon Lee Relaxation or stress relief in Korea commonly comes in the form of "sweating things out." Lying on hot floors or eating a tongue-burning spicy dish of soup works fine, but for many, regardless of the weather, there is no better way to de-stress than sitting in a steaming hot tub and then getting scrubbed within an inch of their lives. The communal bath culture, which originated in the early 20th century with the introduction of public bathhouses, still remains popular -- people visit bathhouses with their children, friends and neighbors, catching up in the sauna while enjoying a day of intense scrubbing and grooming. Recently, this old passion for a hot dip started to move away from the neighborhood public bathhouse to small lodging facilities called "spa pensions," combining private bathing facilities with popular travel spots around the country.
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| Gorgeous photo increases fury over Jeju Island blasts Posted: 07 Mar 2012 08:10 PM PST
Yesterday morning, construction workers began detonating hundreds of kilograms of explosives on the Gureombi seashore at Jeju Island's Gangjeong Village to make way for a new naval base, sparking a public outcry from environmental activists, Korean netizens and Jeju citizens. Hundreds of activists have chained themselves to vehicles to block contractors from entering the construction site. Twelve protestors, including a Jeju council member, were "removed from the scene" by the police, according to the Korea Herald. Gangjeong Village is a small fishing town that derives most of its income from tourism. Villagers are afraid the new naval base will affect their livelihood. "The village is situated near one of the most beautiful walks on the Olle Trail and many travelers come to see the beautiful views," said a reporter for a local newspaper who spoke on the condition of anonymity. read more    |
| Photo exhibition: Fukushima before the quake Posted: 07 Mar 2012 07:50 PM PST by CNNGo staff
Part-time photographer and Hong Konger Frances Tong was one of them. Back in 2006 she photographed parts of Fukushima that were later devastated by the 2011 quake. For her, the images of the destruction last year were particularly distressing. "It felt like a part of my home was wiped out," she told CNNGo. In the immediate aftermath she set up a charity, Friends of Fukushima, to help gather and deliver provisions to the victims. read more    |
| Air India operates (almost) all-female flights Posted: 07 Mar 2012 02:00 PM PST Air India will be flying with an all-female crew on selected flights today. The stunt is in the name of International Women's Day and includes flights to London, Newark, Singapore, Doha and Bahrain. But it isn't quite the in-flight sorority house our juvenile minds are imagining. Indian law ordains that flights on which alcohol will be served must have male pursers on board. These "all-female" flights will thus have two male pursers amongst the otherwise female-only crew. "All activities for the operation of these flights would be done by women to make it a historic event," an Air India spokesperson told The Hindustan Times. read more    |
| Playing a round: The ultimate Japan golf guide Posted: 07 Mar 2012 09:55 AM PST by Jason Coskrey When it comes to swinging leisure activities, every man and his dog knows there's nothing quite like hitting the links for a round of golf to escape the slings and arrows of everyday life. Equally understood is that golf in Japan has long had a reputation for being -- putting it politely -- somewhat exclusive. So, what's a plus-four-loving weekender to do? Just outside the reach of the commute schedules, meetings and drab office buildings, hundreds of manicured golf courses dot the landscape of Japan (so much for it being a "small country"), just waiting to offer weekend warriors a breather from city life. "Golf is a sport that you basically need a certain amount of money to play, so there is a tendency that men in their 40s, who can afford it, play it," says Weekly Golf Digest's Yukiyo Inagaki. "Maybe younger people can't really afford to, but since some began playing as children, like pro golfer Ryo Ishikawa, many are playing in their teenage years. Thus, the Japanese golf scene is full of players are either very young or those who are past their 40s." read more    |
| Things expats love and hate about returning to the United States Posted: 07 Mar 2012 08:00 AM PST You've been away from home. A week, a month, or even longer. And now you're back in the United States. Does it seem a little weird? Relax, it's perfectly normal to experience a few psychological bumps upon re-entry. Here's a quick list of things to look forward to –- or not.  We may not like the numbers, but we're glad to see the units. It's great to come home to: Gallons and miles, instead of fumbling to translate into liters and kilometers. The United States is the only industrialized nation that ignores the metric system, thank you very much. But think about it -– a foot was originally the length of a human foot. Why change? It was good enough for the ancient Egyptians, right? read more    |
| First China-owned luxury cruise ship sets sail Posted: 07 Mar 2012 12:33 AM PST by Raemin Zhang Legendary Chinese admiral Zheng He (郑和) might well approve. A Wenzhou-based tycoon is launching mainland China's first cruise ship, and has his sights set on building up a world-class fleet. China Star's maiden voyageBilled as "the world's only six-star, twin-hull cruise ship," the 12-deck China Star (中华之星) will embark on her maiden voyage from Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour on March 8 at 2.30 p.m. The 131-meter-long, 295-ton vessel will carry 200 passengers and 200 crew on a two-day, one-night voyage around the South China Sea. According to China's state-run newspaper, Global Times (in simplified Chinese only), China Star is the only mainland-owned cruise ship. read more    |
| World's first Cartoon Network water park to open in Thailand Posted: 06 Mar 2012 10:43 PM PST by CNNGo staff Brace yourselves for some begging, moms and dads. The world's first Cartoon Network-themed water park is now being built in Thailand. Turner Broadcasting System Inc, parent company of CNN International and CNNGo, released details of Cartoon Network Amazone, set to open in 2013 in Bang Saray on Thailand's east coast. Planners say the water park -- which is costing 1 billion baht (US$32 million) -- will be modeled after the Amazon rainforest, with popular Cartoon Network characters like the Powerpuff Girls, Ben 10 and Johnny Bravo incorporated into the design. Attractions will include a massive wave pool, a winding adventure river, speed-racing slides, family raft rides and one of the world's largest interactive water play fortresses for kids. "Imagine all of Cartoon Network's dynamic, quirky and hilarious original characters grabbing their surfboards and taking over the world's coolest water park," touts Sunny Saha, Senior Vice President and Managing Director, Turner Broadcasting System Asia Pacific, Inc. read more    |
You can dodge water blasts on the Aquazone Wave Racers in the Lego Technic area.
Lobster bisque at Balzac Brasserie, famed for its rustic take on French fine dining. So has Singapore finally arrived as an Asian culinary capital?
Concentrated Americana. Just add beer.
If you only ever have one chicken sukiyaki dish, make it Botan.
Music performances and weddings also take place at Yonaluky. 
"Gangjeong Island" was taken by film director Rain Jung. This serene travel photograph of Gangjeong Village on Jeju Island has been headlining the top trending news story on local media outlets and SNS in Korea. 
"Fall Finale" by Frances Tong. The part-time photographer wants to remind people how beautiful Fukushima really is.When the tsunami hit Fukushima last year, even those who were not directly affected by the disaster were shocked by the images sent around the world of the damage done to the people and the prefecture. | You are subscribed to email updates from CNNGo.com To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
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