Oscar Wilde said, “Only the unimaginative can fail to find a reason for drinking champagne.” The production of Champagne dates back hundreds of years, and the accumulated know-how and substantial public relations have made France and French products one of the most emblematic “wine countries” on the planet. France is the only place in the […]
Death Tourism: Travel with a purpose
Planning to travel? Your motivation is likely going to fall into one of these boxes: 1. Visits to friends and family2. Vacation3. Business What is missing from the list? People who travel to commit suicide. What is it? Death tourism (a specific type of medical tourism) is a system whereby non-terminally ill individuals travel to […]
Ignorance, COVID-19 and Tourism
It is convenient to claim that the tourism industry has been brought to its knees because of COVID-19; however, the blame would be misplaced. The broader picture includes a confluence of culture, politics, science, and geography joined together by incompetent leadership resulting in the elimination of millions of jobs, billions in lost revenue, and a future that is […]
Will meetings return? Can hotels really open safely?… Or should we stay home?
Tourism Encounters a New Paradigm Up to, and including the beginning of 2020, many professionals in the hotel, travel, and tourism industry would have agreed that “bigger is better.” Demand created a need to build larger cruise ships, more and differentiated hotels, additional stadiums and convention centers, faster and bigger aircraft. There appeared to be […]
In the Time of President Trump: Recognition of the Decider-in- Chief
It appears, in the short term, that decisions made by the men and women working at the White House have been made in favor of business. The Decider-in-Chief thinks that by encouraging (bribing) businesses to open, people will leave the safety of their homes, and rush to shop at their local department store to purchase – what? […]
South African Wine Adventures
Initial Quest The 17th century marks the beginning of the wine industry in South Africa. The year was 1655 when the first grapes were planted by a Dutch settler. The first bottle was produced in Cape Town by Jan van Riebeeck, the Dutch station manager for the Dutch East India Company who arrived in 1652 to establish a […]
No more International Flights on South African Airways
Travel to South Africa may be impossible at this time. The COVID-19 pandemic and attendant travel restrictions resulted in a substantial decline in demand for air travel. The situation caused many airlines across the world to ground aircraft, release their employees, and to cancel flights. In the case of SAA, this decision means that SAA […]
Should all Makeup be Halal Cosmetics?
It was not until I was meandering down the Javits aisle at the recent In-Cosmetics event that I even thought about Halal cosmetics. Halal food markets are widely available in New York, so the halal concept was not new; however, the idea of halal applied to cosmetics was totally different. Halal For Muslims, the term “halal” […]
Travel stylishly: Jewelry for the executive on the move
Recognizing and acknowledging a new reality, jewelry designers are incorporating the active lifestyle of travel into their jewelry. Women, Jewelry and History In 1986, the US International Trade Commission reported (at the request of the Senate Finance Committee), that men bought jewelry as gifts for women, “Jewelry has traditionally been considered a gift item and […]
Do Not Travel! Without your makeup
Many women will not appear in public with a nude face and there are a growing number of men who are treating their public face to astringents, creams, masks, colors, tubes and pencils. In a May 2017 survey of American consumers, 41 percent or respondents between 30-59 years of age, wear makeup daily, with 25 percent wearing […]