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the SUNDAY TRAVEL DIGEST

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The good, the bad and the bizarre from the world of travel

Today, the 2010 Tour de France bicycle race makes its traditional triumphant finish in Paris. Millions will watch, not just on television screens around the world, but on the streets of Paris itself.

If you’d like to get your own taste of this great event, you haves two basic options, one of which is to do your own non-racing bike tour of France that either precedes or follows the Tour de France race course. The route changes somewhat every year and often winds through more countries than just France.

There are several bike tour companies on either side of the Atlantic that can hook you up. They organize your overnight stays, provide ride leaders who double as bike mechanics. They also may provide van to carry your luggage — and if you run out of gas, carry both you and your bike. They may even rent you a bike and other gear for the trip.

You can go for a few days, a week, longer. It’s up to you.

For a trip this epic, you might feel more comfortable bringing your own bike. I certainly would. But traveling with your own wheels comes with some pretty annoying, and expensive, tradeoffs:

1) You have to box up your bike for shipment

2) To box it up, you have to partly dismantle it

3) You have to pay what could be a pretty steep cargo fee to the airline — and then trust your bike to the less-than-tender mercies of baggage handlers.

What’s more, about the only way to guarantee that your precious machine won’t arrive in pieces is to buy a bike case. That, plus the shipping cost, could match or even exceed what you paid for your ticket — or your bike.

Still, how maybe times in your life will you get the chance to say “I rode the Tour de France course?” For cyclists, even out-of-shape old amateurs like me, that’s about as close to a Holy Grail as you’ll ever get.

If you’re not feeling that athletically ambitious, you could simply fly to Paris and be there for the day of the final.
Even here, you have options.

You could join the million or so Parisians and others lining the Champs Elysees as the racers sprint to the finish. You could position yourself within sight of the podium for an up-close glimpse of the awards ceremonies.

You could book yourself a hotel room overlooking the Champs Elysees and watch as the racers take several laps of the grand boulevard below you.

Or you could find a cool cafe with a wide-screen TV and take it all in over a nice French wine or a glass of kir — and then spend the next few days enjoying Paris.

Whichever option you select, there are travel agents who can help set it up for you.

I can think of worse ways — and worse places — to spend a Sunday afternoon.


And now, here’s this week’s Digest:

from SmarterTravel
ST’s Ed Perkins takes a look at the fine print in cruise contracts. From the standpoint of you, the traveler, there’s not much “fine” about it.

from SmarterTravel
It’s one of the most crucial questions of this or any summer: Who has America’s best ice cream shops? The ST folks take a whack — or a lick — at the answer. PHOTO GALLERY

AFRICA
from The Observer (London, UK)
You know those luxurious safaris you hear about in places like Botswana? These are the other guys. Short on luxury, but long on breathtaking experience.

AMERICAS
from the New York Times
The Europeans don’t have a monopoly on houseboats. The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is a haven for recreational boaters who like their aquatic fun slow and easy.

from Budget Travel
According to a survey of BT readers, these are the ten coolest small towns in America. See if you agree.

ASIA/PACIFIC
from the Observer (London, UK)
Ever wonder what it might be like to travel around Korea…North Korea? The British have package tours. What was that again about mad dogs and Englishmen…

EUROPE
from the New York Times
Always world-renowned for its tapas, the cuisine of Spain is undergoing a transformation under the influence of its immigrants. The results, says the Times’ Andrew Ferren, are as diverse as they are delicious.

And finally, there was this. I couldn’t bring myself to list it anywhere other than last:

from WENN.com
According to a poll conducted by these guys, the “perfect summer vacation buddy” is…wait for it…Paris Hilton. Something called Tila Tequila was second, followed by Kim Kardashian and Diddy — or whatever he’s calling himself this week.

I can’t imagine many things that could get me to voluntarily give up travel for life, but this comes pretty close Okay, see you next week!

NIGERIA: One BAD brother!

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Meet the new boss — NOT the same as the old boss!

Never heard of this guy? You should.

Turn on any television set in America and at some point during the day, you’re liable to see some young black professional athlete sporting his shiny expensive suit and his rolling his flashy expensive car while flaunting his flashy expensive jewelry — or some tattooed, foul-mouthed “gangsta” rap artist doing the same thing.

For all the young brothers and sisters out there who find themselves impressed by such sights, I’ll “see” all of that and “raise” you one modestly attired Nigerian.

I don’t know if Adebayo Ogunlesi can dunk a basketball. I don’t know how fast he can run a 40-yard dash — and I’ll bet he doesn’t, either. I doubt we’ll ever see him strutting his stuff in a music video, extolling the virtues of the thug life while his pants are sagging lower on his butt than a supermodel’s bikini.

But Adebayo Ogunlesi is who I want to be when I grow up.

Mr. Ogunlesi is the chairman of an outfit called Global Infrastructure Partners — and he doesn’t deal in “bling.” He doesn’t buy flashy cars. He doesn’t even buy airplanes, although he undoubtedly could.

Adebayo Ogunlesi buys airports. We’re not talking dirt airstrips for little crop-dusters, either.

Earlier this year, Mr. Ogunlesi bought London Gatwick, the second-largest airport not only in London, but in all of Britain. The pricetag: 1.51 billion pounds. At today’s rates, that works out to not quite $2 billion.

That’s right…with a “b.”

How about that? One of the largest air terminals on the planet, owned by a black man. Read his story and you’ll understand how he got there.

GIP already owns London City Airport. This means that of the five airports in one of the largest and most important cities in the world, a black man owns two of them. If Isaac Hayes were alive today, he’d say “this cat is a BAD-mutha-shut-yo-mouth.”

And he’d be right.

Kobe Bryant? Go sit down! 50 Cent? Come back when you get some real change! Niggaz Wit Attitude? I prefer Nigerians With Airports, thank you very much!

Remember how Chris Rock broke down the difference between being rich and being wealthy? “(Shaquille O’Neal) is rich,” he said. “The white man who signs his check is wealthy.”

To Chris’ apt definition, we now add the example of Adebayo Ogunlesi. The black man who chills out in the first-class lounge in the airport is rich. The one who owns the airport is wealthy!

London Heathrow may have seen the last of me.