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182,000 visitors and other China Golden Week records
The real Gangnam Style: Beauty Belt, wedding town, 24-hour culture
Prachanda, former Maoist rebel leader, endorses guidebook 'The Guerrilla Trek'
Best izakaya in Tokyo
Dubai plans monster, five-star replica of Taj Mahal
Drive a train for real (well, almost) at Japan's riveting Railway Museum
No passport? No problem. How smartphones are revolutionizing travel

182,000 visitors and other China Golden Week records

Posted: 05 Oct 2012 02:39 AM PDT

China Golden Week is when 1.3 billion people are given eight days off from work -- at the same time.

And what happens?

Monster gridlock, tourist overload and a continuous "ka-ching" of cash registers resounding across the country.

Here are some incredible stats that came out of China Golden Week, which started on September 30 and continues until October 7.

Day 1: The government decides that highways will go toll-free for Golden Week. Very generous. But the result is vehicular paralysis as 86 million people take to the roads, a 13 percent increase on last year.

The real Gangnam Style: Beauty Belt, wedding town, 24-hour culture

Posted: 04 Oct 2012 10:44 PM PDT

by Frances Cha

Thanks to a certain chubby, horse-dancing singer who has become a national hero for his globalization of K-Pop -- yes, the one and only PSY -- "Gangnam" has been thrust into the global lexicon.

Anyone who's Googled it now knows that it literally means "south of the river" and is the ritziest part of Seoul -- also thereby representative of the increasing disparity of wealth in Korea.

The most recent reports in the local media highlight the disparities in banking in Gangnam versus areas in Gangbuk (north of the river).

The employee-to-customer ratio in banks in Gangnam is twice that of Gangbuk, as banks compete to target the "super rich" who live in the area (Gangnam accounts for seven percent of Korea's GDP).

From The New Yorker talking about "the Gangnam phenomenon" and asking questions like "Should we expect a Chinese Gangnam soon?" to Business Insider saying ridiculous things like, "Drinking expensive coffee is a major way that Gangnam dwellers display their wealth," we thought it was time to introduce some of the quirky characteristics of Gangnam and its hi-so residents.

Prachanda, former Maoist rebel leader, endorses guidebook 'The Guerrilla Trek'

Posted: 04 Oct 2012 09:38 PM PDT

by Zoe Li

Prachanda, the former leader of the Nepalese Maoist rebels, has launched "The Guerrilla Trek," a guidebook for hiking the Maoist guerrilla army's campaign trail.

Last year, a similar trek lasting 11 days was promoted as part of the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 campaign.

More on CNN: In the footsteps of Nepal's Maoist rebels

"The vision (of the book) is more or less showing visitors how the people's war began and spread," Prachanda said at the October 2 launch of the book organized by the Nepal Tourism Board in Kathmandu.

"The people's revolution will be of no value unless the country goes through an economic transformation. I hope 'The Guerrilla Trek' will play an important role."

Best izakaya in Tokyo

Posted: 04 Oct 2012 06:47 PM PDT

by Kelly Wetherille

Once the watering holes of choice for salarymen looking to drown their sorrows after a long day at the office, izakaya have evolved into the quintessential casual Japanese dining experience.

From family-friendly chains to uber-designed modern versions, the best izakaya in Tokyo offer something for all tastes and are far more representative of "real" Japanese food than the high-end kaiseki joints that cost a fortune.

Just about every Tokyoite will have his or her own favorite izakaya, and it will often be a very local place with its own band of devout regulars.

But for visitors, choosing one from the thousands across the city can be a monumental task.

Here's our selection of the best izakaya in Tokyo, where you're sure of a warm welcome to go with great food and drink -- all without breaking the bank.

Dubai plans monster, five-star replica of Taj Mahal

Posted: 04 Oct 2012 04:18 PM PDT

by CNNGo staff

The Taj Mahal, one of the world's most famous and magnificent monuments, is to be copied then massively enlarged in Dubai. Online reaction to the plan is far from positive, with many comments claiming the project is disrespectful, lacks originality and a waste of money.

At "three to four times" the size of the original in Agra, India, what has been dubbed the "Taj Arabia" will function as a five-star hotel rather than an emperor's heartfelt expression of love to his deceased wife, with 300 rooms and serviced apartments in adjacent buildings.

The US$1 billion project slated to complete in 2014 "will be ideal for wedding guests," Arun Mehra, chairman of the Link Global Group, sub-developers of the project, told Gulfnews.com.

"We want to create an atmosphere which bonds family members."

The souped-up Taj will be part of the massive 400-hectare Falconcity of Wonders Project, a residential, tourism and recreation destination that boasts to be "the most astonishing place on earth" and will also include a replica Eiffel Tower, Great Pyramid, Tower of Pisa, leaning, one might assume, perhaps even more than the original, Great Wall of China and the entire "Town of Venice."

Drive a train for real (well, almost) at Japan's riveting Railway Museum

Posted: 04 Oct 2012 03:33 PM PDT

by Mike Nakada

Whether you live in Japan or are just visiting, it's pretty hard to spend a day without using the train at least once.

Trains are an important part of modern urban life in Japan and -- let's face it -- Japanese rolling stock looks pretty darn cool.

Which is why, about 45 minutes out of Tokyo, there's a museum dedicated entirely to these heroes of the daily commute. It's called the Tetsudo Hakubutsukan -- the Railway Museum.

Over 30 actual train cars that were rescued from their fate of being sold for scrap are displayed inside and outside the museum.

Starting with the classic steam locomotives of the 19th and early-20th century, the museum has a train car from just about every period.

No passport? No problem. How smartphones are revolutionizing travel

Posted: 04 Oct 2012 11:21 AM PDT

by Natasha Stokes

It's the traveler's nightmare -- you left your passport at home, you've got no boarding pass, your flight's delayed, the gate keeps changing and, worse, you haven't got enough leftover shekels to buy a drink at the bar.

No problem. Just pull out your phone.

Apple's Passbook app, recently launched with the iPhone 5, is the first step in what will eventually become an entirely paper- and cash-less airport experience.

Most recently, Airbnb, Eventbrite and McDonald's jumped aboard the Passbook digi-train.

From how we check-in to what we buy in transit to where we go after we land, smartphones are making travel easier, faster and safer.