Qantas Airlines Celebrates 'Mo'vember

MSNBC: Even the smoothest flights will be plenty hairy for passengers on one Qantas Airways plane through the rest of the month.

The aircraft, a Boeing 737-800, is being decorated with a nose-cone mustache to spread the word that it’s not November.

It’s Movember!

“Mo” is Australian slang for mustache and the designated vehicle for what four Melbourne men admit is the laziest way to raise money and awareness in the battle against deadly prostate cancer.

It’s like a 5K for couch potatoes.

“We call it the hairy ribbon,” Adam Garone, Movember CEO and one of four co-founders, told msnbc.com. “Our motto is, ‘Changing the face of men’s health. We want to use growing a mustache to get men talking about prostate cancer, and this is a fun way to do it.”

It all started at a 2003 backyard party when Garone and his mates were talking about how every fashion eventually recycles and becomes popular again.

All but one.

“We talked about mustaches and how popular they were in the 1970s and ‘80s,” he said. “But they never came back. There were 30 of us, and we decided to devote the month to growing mustaches.”

Expecting support, they received revulsion. Garone said his girlfriend hated it and his bosses at Vodofone forbid him from making sales calls, reactions that only added to the fun.

So the next year they decided to do it again — only this time for a good cause.

They marched into the local headquarters of the Prostate Cancer Foundation. The organization said they’d welcome any funds they raised but, no, they were reluctant to affiliate with such silliness.

Little did they know the men had tapped into a perfectly manly way to reach men about an area they’re often reluctant to discuss. And it isn’t their funny bones.

In that first year, 450 friends raised $55,000 and the organization began sensing the so-called “Mo Bros” and “Mo Sistas” were onto something that would soon take off in ways that had nothing to do with Australia’s iconic airline.

In addition to the mo-plane, Qantas spokeswoman Emma Kearns said the airline placed a giant mo on its Sydney terminal building. "We're proud to support Movember and are encouraging our team to 'grow a mo' for Movember," she said, adding that prizes for best mo will be given. Females are encouraged to add to the mo-mentum by sporting fakes.

The disease is personal at Qantas, where CEO Alan Joyce was treated for an aggressive form of prostate cancer earlier this year. Early detection, however, led to a successful operation and a return to work within a few weeks.

“My doctor told me that there was an 80 percent chance that I would have been dead within 10 years if it hadn’t been detected when it was,” the 45-year-old Joyce said in July.

Movember swooped into North America in 2007, and Garone said the mustache and nearly 500,000 global participants, including affiliates at Livestrong and the Prostate Cancer Foundation, have helped raise $174 million.

The stunt with Qantas thrills the group, who want to make facial hair to November what pink and breast cancer awareness are to October. They are optimistic more promotional stunts will ensue.

“I wouldn’t advocate vandalism over works of art, but the Mona Lisa would look great with a Photoshopped mustache,” he said.

The New Truth About Women Travelers?

Budget Travel: A recent survey by Travel Guard North America, a travel insurance provider, aimed to shine a light on how women are traveling today. The company polled travel agents across the continent to find out what kinds of trips women were booking, with whom they were traveling, and their motivations for choosing the types of trips they did. The results, in my opinion, were surprising: Poll respondents said that 91% of women traveling with other women chose friends as their companions (as opposed to 8% who traveled with relatives), and that women over 45 make up the majority of small-group women-only travelers—with the proportions dropping dramatically with each decade of age. (Personally, I wouldn't be surprised if it was simply the use of travel agents that was dropping with each decade of age, but it could be a little bit of both.)

In terms of what these travelers aimed to do on their trips, the agents pegged shopping and sightseeing as the most popular activities at 27%, then history, culture, and education as the focus of 17% of the itineraries, beach retreats as the goal for 16%, adventure travel for 15%, and cruising as the trip of choice for 13% of women travelers.

Of course, this travel insurance company had their own motive for producing the survey—to find out how many women travelers were also purchasing trip insurance. Their conclusion: A whopping 94% of women travelers bought insurance for their trips, according to the travel agents polled.

So let's hear it from the ladies who read Budget Travel: Does this survey reflect how you plan and book trips with your friends (or, in the case of the odd 8%, with your female relatives)? We want to know!

I'll start: I've been doing girls-only trips since my 20s, mostly with my mother, my sister, or both—although I have mixed in a few more traditional girlfriend getaways, like the RV adventure I dragged two college friends along for this summer. And I didn't use a travel agent—or buy trip insurance—for any of them. Does that make me the odd woman out?

When Hip Hotels Get Too Loud

MSNBC: Frequent travelers are no strangers to hotel rooms with rattling heat and air conditioning units or soundproofing so poor it’s easy to listen to, and occasionally chime in on, the conversation next door.

And while noise topped the list of irritants cited by respondents to a 2011 J.D. Power and Associates North America Hotel Guest Satisfaction Index Study, most travelers soon learn to tune out the most common sources of hotel room noise.

But my tune-out skills failed me during a recent midweek stay at the Aloft Brooklyn, a recently opened property in Starwood’s chain of hotels positioned as a hip, “affordable alternative for the tech-savvy, design forward crowd.”

The décor, the desk staff and the guests hanging out at the pool table and at the bright lobby bar were indeed very hip. And in my room, I enjoyed amenities such as Wired magazine, free Wi-Fi and a 42” LCD flat panel TV. But late at night, with the TV turned off, my room filled with loud music coming from what I assumed was a night club next door.

The soundtrack proved impossible to sleep through, and I called the front desk to find out when the club closed down. “There’s no night club,” the desk clerk informed me. “That music is coming from inside the hotel.” And even though it was already 3:30 a.m., there was no plan — or offer — to turn the volume down. “That’s just how loud we play it here,” he said.

A few days later, Paige Francis, vice president of marketing for the Aloft brand, told me that while “music is definitely part of the DNA of the brand,” the Brooklyn Aloft property was still fairly new (it opened in June 2011) so “it may still be working on getting the music levels right.”

Still, I’m left wondering if a hotel can be too hip — and too loud.

“The answer is yes,” said Bjorn Hanson, dean of New York University's Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management. “While the role of the hotel lobby has changed dramatically in recent years, with hotels adding elements such as entertainment and hangout areas where guests can snack and listen to live or recorded music ... the music should not follow you to the room.”

There are some basic hotel attributes valued by all travelers without regard to age (hipness) or other demographics, Hanson explained, adding that “a quiet hotel room is among the most valued.”

To make sure you get an acceptable room, quiet or otherwise, Hanson offered this advice: “When arriving in a hotel room, open the door and explore. Does the TV work? Can you access the high-speed Internet? Is there an odor? Do an inspection, which should include listening for sounds. If there’s something wrong, speak up so the problem can be taken care of right away.”

Wait too long to say something, said Hanson, and the hotel might not have staff on hand to fix a problem or another room to move you into.

As to the music level in your hotel room, Hanson added that “a guest with time to spend can find out about the noise level at a hotel via TripAdvisor.com or some other social media. But that burden shouldn’t be placed on a guest.

“Because even the hippest travelers do need to sleep sometime,” said Hanson.

Do Flight Attendants Flirt with Passengers?

Airfare Watchdog: In part two of our series of interviews with flight attendants, we asked several of them if they ever flirt with passengers and if you like it when passengers flirt with you? Have you ever tried to pick up a flight attendant? We know Mad Men's Don Draper is guilty as charged, and as for us.... we'll leave that to your imagination.

One flight attendant told us, “Believe us…there are cuties everywhere. But, we see so many people each day! Of course, it is against airline rules to engage with passengers beyond professional norms. Plus, we are also overly used to dealing with flirtatious passengers. We know what you are doing before you recognize we know! On the odd occasion when we are truly interested (much less than you think!), we may exchange information, but that is rare.”

Another confessed, “I know several colleagues who have met their soul mate on board a flight. I view my job as a role of safety and service in the sky. Interacting with others as if the cabin were a pickup bar is not my cup of tea.”

And a third related that, “My friend has told me a few ear-twisting stories of various layovers, some of which involved flirtatious passengers. Yes, it happens just like in the movies. But, everyone is different I suppose. Besides, some of those senior mamas out there are certainly not lookin’ for love in the friendly skies, that’s for sure.”

'Pan Am' Review: Bouncy Hair and Aviation History

Jaunted: So, did you watch the premiere episode of ABC's Pan Am last night? It seems like half the world did, from the way Twitter was blowing up about it. Of course you can't go about judging a show from its premiere eppy—it's like judging a book by its heavily-financed cover—but we'll attempt to anyway.

Yesterday evening, we were introduced to Maggie, Kate, Colette, Laura, Dean and Ted. Their complexions are perfect, their Pan Am crew uniforms perfectly starched and their curiosity for the world genuine. Alas, it's not just because they are actors, but because this is the truth of what it was really like back in the heyday of the jet age. Also it's worth noting their hair is very bouncy.

Beyond appearances, the show actually makes an effort to touch on real history, as the premiere featured the first flight of the Clipper Majestic from New York to London. Nevermind that there was no Clipper named Majestic, the story the show attempts to tell is rooted in fact. We particularly loved all the shots of the Boeing 707 and glimpses of vintage airline interiors, naturally created on a soundstage but so realistic that we wish the ABC Pan Am set crew would have a hand in fitting a current plane with a retro interior for a special route. We can dream.

Now perhaps we should have seen this coming: Jetsetter has partnered with ABC's Pan Am for a curated selection of hotel sales. They've just launched the first bunch in London—keeping with the premiere's theme—and there'll be five more coming up, though all for US cities.

Canadian Flight Attendants Featured in 2012 Calendar

Jaunted: And just like that, fall has arrived. And just like that, it's about time to consider buying 2012 calendars. This year, may we suggest skipping the bookstores for something you definitely won't find there: The Turbulence Calendar of Canadian Flight Attendants.

You read right—this calendar is only featuring ladies who end their sentences with "eh?" and like to start the day at Tim Horton's. The calendar shoot recently took place in a cheap motel, to give the ladies that layover-chic look, we guess. There's no preview shots aside from the awkward one above, and the saucy background photo of their website.

The calendar won't hit the e-shelves until November and there's a few promo events where you can meet the models (and get their signatures, of course). Now we only wonder what lucky airline will get to honor of being Miss July.

Confessions of an Oktoberfest Waiter

Budget Travel: Last year, revelers drank a record 7 million liters of German beer at Munich’s annual Oktoberfest, billed as the world’s largest fair. But for our man in the trenches, it’s not all cold beer and hot pretzels. Think drunken brawls, filthy tents, and bad tips—all while dressed in traditional lederhosen.

STEREOTYPES FIT
For Germans, Oktoberfest is more for families and older people—a place where businessmen meet for lunch. When it comes to foreign tourists, the stereotypes kind of fit. English people tend to brawl more than others. It's not uncommon to actually see glasses flying through the air. But in my experience, I'd say people end up quite the same when they get really drunk. Doesn't matter anymore where they're from.

YOU WOULD NOT BELIEVE HOW DIRTY IT GETS IN THE TRENCHES
For first timers, it's kind of hard to imagine how noisy and dirty it can be in the Oktoberfest tents. Each of the big ones holds about 5,000 people. In the evenings, it gets really messy. People leave behind their umbrellas, their raincoats, their cell phones. There are loads of broken glasses on the floor, spilled food. People stand on the benches with dirty shoes. And then: People drink and throw up. They puke in the tents, under the tables. We carry these big trays with maybe 12 or 14 different plates of food on them. The worst thing I ever saw was when a colleague of mine put one down on the table, and a guy puked right on it. So…that was kind of disgusting.

PREPARE TO HAVE YOUR CLOTHING DESTROYED
It doesn't bother me when tourists wear lederhosen (leather shorts), as long as they wear real lederhosen and not one of those T-shirts with the pattern printed on it! I would actually recommend wearing one, because you'll probably destroy every other item you could wear. They're tough. You can wipe things off them. Especially in Oktoberfest party tents, people wave their beer glasses around with the band—I haven't seen anybody get out of there clean. It's really a mess. For example, waiters can carry 14 beers at a time, six in each hand, and one balanced on top of each group of six. And you tend to spill a lot. You have to move fast, and then you set them down heavily. You end up soaked in beer after your shift. I wouldn't wear anything else but lederhosen. I don't envy the girls!

DRUNK ON THE JOB
"Officially," I don't drink on the job. But I can hardly think of anyone who lasts the whole 17 days without drinking at work. It's quite common for guests to buy you a beer. It's probably the best way to get on the waiter's good side.

WE DON'T HAVE TO BE NICE
As an Oktoberfest waiter, you make the patrons treat you well, or they just won't get served. So it's not like in an ordinary restaurant where you have to be really nice to people. If you don't like someone at Oktoberfest, you just kick them out. For 17 days, I get to behave a bit like an a--hole!

THE WORST JOB IN ALL OF OKTOBERFEST
Being a bouncer is really a hell of a job. You get abused all the time! On the weekends, they close down the tents, because they get so full. Every door is closed and guarded by about four to six bouncers at least. "Why won't you let me in? I'll give you 50 bucks…Why won't you?!" And then there's name-calling. It's a tough job. But I wouldn't mess with an Oktoberfest bouncer. Really, if they say go, then go, because that's not going to end well.

IN MY EXPERIENCE, ITALIANS CAN'T HANDLE THEIR BEER
The second of the three Oktoberfest weekends is nicknamed "Italian weekend," because it's when all the Italians come and none of the waiters like them very much. They drink about two beers, and they tip badly. Plus, they aren't used to beers, so after one or two, they're usually sick.

WE LOVE AMERICANS
The United States might have a bad reputation internationally, but the general American population does not at all. I've been a waiter for years, and if I could choose, I'd have all American guests. And it's not just because of the good tips! Germans and other tourists are really tight and not very grateful. Americans are easier to talk to. They're not so complicated. If you tell them a little bit about whatever they want to see or where they should go, they appreciate that. They're not like, "Oh, I don't care." They treat you like a regular guy, not just some guy who serves them.

Fox Announces New Reality Show: Hotel Hell

InsideTV: Gordon Ramsay is expanding beyond cooking and setting his sights on a new makeover target: Hotels.

Fox has ordered a new Ramsay series where the reality kingpin will partner with a team of hospitality experts, traveling across the country to try and fix every aspect of struggling hotels, motels and bed & breakfasts. The working title: Hotel Hell.

The series is both familiar territory for Ramsay and a real departure, combining the business makeover format of Kitchen Nightmares with the internationally known chef moving beyond a cooking-centric show on Fox for the first time. Ramsay has hotel experience, having studied hotel management as a young man, and having worked and owned hotel-based restaurants throughout his career.

With this series, and presuming his other franchises continue, Ramsay will have four shows on the air, more than any other broadcast network reality TV personality — including Hell’s Kitchen, Kitchen Nightmares and MasterChef.

“Gordon is amazing to work with and no matter what the premise, he delivers every time,” said Mike Darnell, president of alternative entertainment at Fox. “With an unprecedented three shows already on the air, Gordon is an incredible television success, and we’re really thrilled to put him through Hotel Hell.”

Added Ramsay in a statement: “These are stories that everyone can relate to, because virtually all of us have had a bad hotel experience that’s turned a holiday or business trip into a total disaster. It’s time to put the hospitality industry to the test.”

Ramsay, Adeline Ramage Rooney, Patricia Llewellyn and Ben Adler are executive producers on the project, which does not yet have an air date.

Toledo Transforms Parking Spaces Into Public Parks

Toledo Blade: Taking a cue from San Francisco, Toledo’s Uptown Association took over 29 parking spaces along Adams and allowed its members to create individual pavement parks over a seven-hour span.

Like many trends that gradually work their way to Toledo, the Park(ing) Day idea began in California in 2005 when a single metered parking space was turned into a temporary public park in an area of San Francisco.

The 25-year-old Toledo group was exploring special events to promote the neighborhood when it came across the idea, said Julie Champa, executive director of the Uptown Association.

“The goal was to bring some attention to Uptown and the proposed green space in an urban environment,” Ms. Champa said.

For the Uptown Association, the event dovetails into its goal of creating a 2.4-acre urban park and playground on Madison Avenue bounded by 18th Street, Laburnum Lane, and 20th Street.

In the meantime, along Adams Street from 10th Street to its intersection with Jackson Street, members of the Uptown group transformed patches of asphalt into mini pavement parks.

The Toledo School for the Arts had a group of dancers doing performance art alongside their building.

Outside the Toledo City Paper near the corner of 12th Street, a patch of turf was placed in the street with a picnic table and a croquet set.

Staff member Christy Panka said the original idea was to develop an Alice in Wonderland theme, but she ended up with more of an urban park setting.

Anchoring the other end of Adams, Manhattan’s restaurant ditched the urban park concept altogether and built a boat dock that led from the patio into the street. A rowboat equipped with fishing tackle completed the water park theme.

“I always wanted my restaurant to be on the waterfront and this is just a manifestation of that,” said co-owner Marty Lahey, decked out in his boat shoes, white slacks, Hawaiian shirt, and Panama hat.

Kate Abu-Absi, director of UT’s Arts Living and Learning Community, brought some of her first-year students to the event, where a tent and tree created with recycled materials were set up.

“This has been such a great experience for them,” she said.

For them the event provided their first exposure to downtown and the Uptown neighborhoods. The University of Toledo occupied five of the 29 spaces.

The park for a day project brought back memories of Toledo’s attempt to transform part of downtown into a garden spot in 1959 that was closed to vehicular traffic. Back in the day, downtown was a thriving shopping district in its own right.

“I remember that as a kid. It was pretty awesome,” Mr. Lahey said.

Pedestrian malls were established on Adams Street and Madison Avenue between St. Clair and Huron streets, which were closed to vehicles. Playgrounds and fountains were surrounded by flowers, trees and shrubs to create a tranquil oasis. That venture was abandoned in November, 1960.

The current attempt to transform Adams Street into miniparks, like the mysterious Scottish village of Brigadoon, also vanished last night.

Ms. Champa called the Park(ing) Day an unqualified success that will be expanded on next year. The initial goal was to have 12 installations, but 29 lined the street between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m.

The Uptown Association, which counts about 65 members, is bounded by Washington Street to Jackson and Adams streets, from 10th Street to Collingwood Boulevard.

The San Francisco organizers say their annual event, held on the third Friday in September, has turned into a worldwide event that involves artists, activists, and residents turning parking spots into temporary public parks and other spaces.

Click here to view more photos

Starbucks Strikes Twice in NYC's East Village

Bowery Boogie: First Avenue and Third Street saw a flurry of activity yesterday, as the media played up a newly-declared David and Goliath style battle between local coffee house The Bean and the over-caffeinated not-so-local Starbucks.

It’s not hard to get info about this story. From a block away, signs are visibly plastered all over the facade of the Bean’s current location on First Avenue, emphatically stating that they are leaving their location of ten years and are not happy about it. Forced out by “the evil empire,” they may be vacating their current corner, but not the East Village. Barely a venti away, they are opening three new locations, including one right down the block on First Avenue and Second Street (in addition to their recently opened spot on Broadway and 12th street).

Walking into the coffee house today, this Boogie writer was one of the many people filmed by NBC discussing how the neighborhood will not exactly welcome a Starbucks with open mugs. Watching NBC’s coverage tonight was somewhat disappointing. After interviewing several locals who were upset over the upcoming hostile takeover, NBC somehow managed to end the segment with some mundane chit-chat among the anchors about how “some people just aren’t used to change.”

Sort of missed the entire point, guys (and no, it’s not simply sour grapes talking because this gal ended up on NBC’s cutting room floor!).

But, wait, there’s more.

What is quite interesting to this reporter is that there is a sordid history of Starbucks and this particular space. Before The Bean (and quite briefly, a waffle shop) lived the beloved store Little Rickie, which had been an East Village institution for many years.

In the late 1990′s, back when the mallification of Manhattan was just a twinkle in corporate eyes, Little Rickie was selling stickers which resembled the Starbucks logo. The only difference – and it’s a big one – is that these stickers said “F*ckoffs Coffee” in place of you-know-who. The East Village being what it is, the stickers went over big-time.

Starbucks got wind of this preternaturally quickly and not only sued the people who made these products, but decided to sue all of the stores that sold them, Little Rickie among them.

Coincidence or not, Little Rickie’s closed shortly thereafter. So, once again, we have the involvement of Starbucks preceding the demise of a local favorite.

Just as a refresher, Little Rickie was – in this totally unbiased view – one of the greatest places that ever existed in this town. Vintage toys, outsider art (before it was even called that), kitsch memorabilia, art books, Day of the Dead collectibles (which had never been for sale in this town before) were interspersed with fine art items and the occasional comically naughty gift. One could find a perfect and affordable gift there for anyone.

It was nothing but fun on both sides of the counter. The eclectically ahead-of-the-curve owner gave yours truly a job during one of the recessions, for which she is forever grateful (despite the lousy heat in the winter).

Among the varied attractions of the store was a wildly popular black and white photo booth which inadvertently documented the celebutantes, club kids and stars of tomorrow. The booth was not only a destination (and an excellent cheap date), but now has its own Facebook page.

One last note: when the store was closing, this former employee, who already had shoeboxes filled with photobooth strips from the store, had wanted to buy the contraption (and was shocked to realize that quite a few others had the same idea). However, SOMEONE’s husband “gently” reminded her that it would take up space needed for either the stove or the bathtub. Sigh.

Meet New York's "Coffee Nazi"

New York Post: It was after the third “act of violence” at Ninth Street Espresso (left) in the East Village that owner Ken Nye held a staff meeting. The strict policies of the coffee shop — including the refusal to sell espresso to go — had so enraged one customer that he threw a tip jar across the store in protest.

Now, the to-go espresso “is not a die-hard rule — it’s just a very strong suggestion,” says Nye, who may be the city’s original “coffee nazi,” as he was dubbed by the press when his shop first opened in 2001.

Yes, coffee can incite near-riots for caffeine-starved New Yorkers who want their brew exactly how they’re used to it — and fast. Just ask Alec Baldwin. Last week, the actor threw a tantrum in a Starbucks on 93rd Street over the apparent “attitude problem” of an “uptight barista” who couldn’t get his order right.

But serious — some might say uptight — coffee culture, which has roots in the Pacific Northwest, has been picking up steam in New York. Often referred to as “third-wave coffee,” its proponents take roasted beans as seriously as wine. At these serious locales, you don’t want to order your coffee light and sweet, deli-style. Or commit the sin of drinking your espresso out of a paper cup. (Both ordering habits ruin the flavor.)

Nye, who now operates three Ninth Street Espressos (the first at 700 E. Ninth St.; plus two other locations), is proud to be an early adopter of the specialty coffee movement. “[Ten years ago] there was no commercial coffee culture in NYC,” says the native New Yorker. “Not a single high-end specialty coffee place. It was chain places, delis, diners.”

Still, not everyone appreciates the passion of the self-professed “coffee geek.” When the store opened, “I literally got called a coffee nazi!” he exclaims, still sounding slightly hurt.

“Which, I guess there was truth to, because I would definitely say no to customers on a pretty regular basis. I would say no [to something] every day. But not to be elitist — I would be willing to share my understanding and explain to them why I thought that.”

His most famous “no” was espresso to go. “Espresso over ice was another one. Then there’s just all the clichés created by the big-chain coffee companies, where you can ask for 40 specific things, like ‘tall skinny half-decaf, extra-hot . . .’ We’d just listen to them, let them finish, and we’d just say no. And [then] we’d explain why.”

Alec Baldwin, consider yourself warned.

Holland's Divorce Hotel

PRI’s The World: The five star Hotel Karel the Fifth in Utrecht looks ideal for a weekend getaway. In the bustling lobby, there’s no shortage of advertisements for kissing couples hoping for a romantic retreat. But Jim Halfens looks at the hotel and sees something else — a nice place to get divorced.

Halfens isn’t a lawyer. He runs a company that specializes in offering a quick, lower-cost alternative to divorce. About half a year ago, he was interviewing divorcees, doing some market research.

“They told us — divorce is very critical, I’m getting into a roller coaster,” Halfens said. “I’m not able to work anymore. My boss is complaining. Sometimes it takes three months. We have examples where it takes three years. And people were wondering — is there no other solution?”

That’s when Halfens got the idea for the Divorce Hotel.

Let’s be clear — it’s not one hotel filled with a bunch of unhappy couples. It’s a legal service that Halfens offers in Dutch luxury hotels. “It’s a divorce in three days, roundabouts, in a hotel,” Halfens said. “And what’s important to know is that not everyone is suitable to go in a hotel, of course.

Couples thinking about going through the Divorce Hotel process have to start with a set of extensive interviews. If they decide they can settle their differences quickly, with a mediator instead of lawyers, then they choose a four or five star hotel. Over three days, the mediator and other specialists – notaries, even psychologists – are on hand to help the couple.

“If the marriage can be saved, we always tell people they are at the wrong address at the divorce hotel,” said Marie-Louise Van As, a lawyer who works as a mediator at the Divorce Hotel.

She notes that the three-day hotel stays are not a vacation. There are checklists, homework she calls it, that the couples have to do ahead of time. But, Van As says, it’s worth it for many couples.

“In Holland to get divorced usually lasts six to nine months,” Van As said. “A bad divorce, a fighting divorce, can last five to 10 years. And cost 50,000 Euros or more. That’s close to $70,000.

The Divorce Hotel, on the other hand, runs about $3,500. The price includes accommodation. So far, all of the couples have chosen to stay in separate rooms. Jim Halfens won’t say which hotels he recommends to clients — and he also won’t put me in touch with couples who have been through the process. He will say that only seven couples have tried the Divorce Hotel.

Still the Dutch media have picked up on the story giving it a fairly obvious soundtrack, to Elvis Presley’s “Heartbreak Hotel”.

Halfens laughs about this … kind of. “We don’t break hearts,” Halfens said. “The heart is already broken, but we make it more positive to go on with your life, and we help, sort of, to help people go on with their lives in a faster way than is possible in a traditional divorce.”

He says he gets emails every day from people in places like Brazil, Britain, Taiwan, Italy and Germany asking whether they can try the Divorce Hotel. Those countries have different divorce laws, so for now the Divorce Hotel is only for Dutch couples.

But Halfens does hope to find partners in the coming months to help him start the service in neighboring Germany.

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Las Vegas Kitsch For Sale

Vegas Chatter: Last week as we were busy drafting our online petition for a slot museum in Las Vegas (or really, just salivating over some gold coins from Caesars Palace), we stumbled across this website Old Vegas Chips which sells, as its name indicates, old Vegas gambling chips.

But the site really sells anything Old Vegas-related including these old-fashioned room keys. It's hard to imagine an era when we used actual keys to open hotel room doors now that we're so accustomed to magnetized key cards but this site takes us way back offering room keys to the Riviera ($24), MGM Grand which has the lion featured on the key head ($17), the Hilton ($14), the Frontier ($17) and the Desert Inn ($27.)

Nostalgia, novelty and kitsch aside, the collection is somewhat limited (there's only 2 other hotel keys available) and we don't have any significant ties to these properties so we're probably gonna pass on this Old Vegas purchase.

However, after having gotten locked out of our room the other week after our room key got demagnetized in our purse, forcing us to wait 15 minutes for security to come up and open our door and losing valuable primping time for Thunder from Down Under, we kinda wish hotels would use real keys again.

Flying the Friendly Skies with ABC

E! Online: ABC's retro look back to the heyday of luxury air travel makes us long for free-flowing cocktails, wide aisles and tours of the cockpit. And seeing Christina Ricci on television is nothing to frown at either. With the success of Mad Men, it seems that other networks want to get in on the 1960s craze, and Pan Am does a good job of glorifying the time period. But should you begin boarding Pan Am?

Stow your tray tables, make sure your couch is in the full upright position and find out:

Pan Am (ABC)
Premieres: Sunday, Sept. 25, 10 p.m.
Time-Slot Competition: CSI: Miami (CBS), NBC Sunday Night Football (NBC), Homeland (Showtime)
Cast: Christina Ricci, Margot Robbie, Michael Mosley, Karine Vanasse, Mike Vogel, Kelli Garner
Status: We've seen the pilot episode.

We're going to go ahead and apologize in advance for the number of travel puns. We just can't seem to help ourselves and blame the high altitude entirely. Buckle up!

ABC's Pan Am gives a look into the enviable lives of the Pan Am stewardess. From the iconic blue uniform to the nostalgia for the days when air travel was new and exciting, Pan Am is an escapist adventure in all the right ways. TV tells us being a stewardess in the 1960s is kind of like an all-access pass to the historical moments. And we learn that jet-setting is mostly glamorous but there are some real life job difficulties, like girdles. And turbulence. And Russian spies.

When any new show is set in the 1960s there will inevitably be comparisons to Mad Men but the time period is where the similarities stop. In Pan Am there's less Don Draper brooding and more hope for the future of the globetrotting smart capable woman.

Pan Am's main focus is on the girls. And why not? There is an array of smart independent women like Laura (Robbie), a runaway bride and accidental face of Pan Am. She's new, beautiful and of course looking to spread her wings and be free from the social constraints threatening to ground her. Laura's sister, Kate (Garner) a veteran, has what we think is the most intriguing storyline: a connection to the CIA. Hello raised stakes! And then there's Collette (Vanasse), a lively French coquette who struggles with love in the high skies. We resisted a mile-high club joke there. You're welcome.

Ricci is the most recognizable face and name of the bunch, unless you are big Justified fan like us and recognize Mosley from his explosive demise. While we may have originally raised our eyebrows at Ricci's casting, she plays the rebel-without-a-cause, artsy girl living in the Village perfectly. But there is more to her than just beatniks and berets. Ricci tells us, "[Maggie's] someone who's really looking for meaning in the world and in life." Ricci says her character "likes to have a good time and knows her way around the world."

Don't worry, ladies: There is an impossibly good-looking pilot to feast your eyes on. Of course there is. Real-life flying enthusiast Vogel plays Dean, the captain of this plane. He's what the kids would call a newbie. Vogel explains: "He's thrust into this role probably 10 to 15 years ahead of schedule, so there's a lot riding on him to prove that he is worthy of the promotion." And by the episode's end, he's nursing a broken heart that may or may not have to do with the aforementioned espionage angle.

The most surprising element of the show is the relationship to the Cold War and the significance of accessibility for well-educated adventurous women and the role they could play as global spy. Was this really a possibility? We don't know for sure. We'll suspend our disbelief for the moment because we understand a TV show can't be just champagne and transatlantic air travel, and Pan Am holds a lot of amazing storyline potential.

Verdict: Watch. It's escapist fun and there are some very fine characters that might intrigue you into a longer layover. We swear that's the last travel pun.

Ben & Jerry's Unveils "Schweddy Balls" Ice Cream

Vermont's Ben & Jerry's has unveiled a new ice cream flavor based on a 1998 skit on NBC's Saturday Night Live starring actor Alec Baldwin. The name: "Schweddy Balls."

The company known for provocative or progressive themed names for its products said the latest creation is a tribute to the SNL skit in which Baldwin plays a baker named Pete Schweddy who is trying to market his rum balls, popcorn balls and cheese balls as "Schweddy Balls."

"I don't think it's shock marketing," said Sean Greenwood, a spokesman for the company, a unit of Netherlands-based Unilever N.V. "It isn't 'Let's try to put a dirty name on a pint and sell it' but 'Let's try to put a tie on a show that's been running for 37 years.'"

The flavor, which mixes vanilla and rum-flavored ice cream with fudge-covered rum balls and chocolate malt balls, will be available through the end of the year.

Video:

Burning Man Sets Attendance Record

More than 50,000 revelers are gathered on the northern Nevada desert this weekend for the climax of the annual Burning Man counterculture festival.

A record 53,341 people attended the Friday night burning of a 50-feet tall Trojan Horse. The annual celebration of radical self-expression reached its usual climax late Saturday night with the torching of its a 120' tall effigy which covers more than 45,000 square feet (left).

No major problems have been reported at the weeklong art, music and performance festival which ends on Monday.



Video:

New 'Pan Am' Preview Hits the Net

Jaunted: Is it autumn yet? Summer TV is so boring, especially when we've got ABC's new period drama Pan Am to look forward to. The series, which still doesn't have a premiere date, follows the swingingest period in Pan Am's history, when flight attendants were all class, steaks were still served onboard with steak knives, and a Pan Am helicopter whisked First Class passengers from Manhattan's Pan Am building to Idlewild Airport (now JFK) to catch their flight.

It seems that another, longer preview of the show has hit the net recently and we totally missed it until now. In it, we see a few more shots of the computer-generated Pan Am Worldport (now Delta's JFK Terminal 3) as well as glimpses of some serious stewardess/pilot fraternizing.

Enjoy, but then watch the video below to see what it was really like during the hey day of the Pan Am jet Clippers:

Happy Manhattanhenge!

AFP: It is dubbed "Manhattanhenge" and happens two times a year when the Sun aligns at dusk with streets in a glowing magic trick as rays of sunlight span across New York perfectly, from west to east.

"Manhattanhenge may just be a unique urban phenomenon in the world," says astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, of the American Museum of Natural History, who officially discovered the phenomenon.

The name "Manhattanhenge" is a play on Manhattan, this city's most famous borough, and Stonehenge, the megalithic monument in southern England with large stone blocks set out in concentric circles.

At Stonehenge, the Sun crosses the site's central axis during the summer and winter solstices, leading experts to speculate that the site could have been used as a sort of sun calendar, as well as for religious ceremonies. But in Manhattan, the phenomenon takes place before and after the solstices when at dusk but before sunset, the Sun neatly matches up with the even-numbered streets running west and east, sending out fingers of light.

"As a kid I visited Stonehenge in the Salisbury Plain of England and did research on other stone monuments across the British Isles," DeGrasse Tyson told AFP. "So I was, in a way, imprinted by the emotional power that terrestrial alignments with the Sun can have on a culture or civilization."

And New York's phenomenon is more unusual than it may seem, he says. "Any city crossed by a rectangular grid can identify days where the setting Sun aligns with their streets. But a closer look at such cities around the world shows them to be less than ideal for this purpose," he stressed.

DeGrasse Tyson first started thinking about the "Manhattanhenge" effect back in 1996. It was not until five years later, July 2001, that he took a photo of the Sun-meets-skyscrapers display. It and others were published in 2002 in a special edition of Natural History Magazine called "City of Stars," he said. And the effect began to become better known.

This year, the effect took place May 30 -- before the June 21 solstice -- and now it will be seen again on Wednesday July 13, though it can be seen partially one day earlier. In wintertime, the phenomenon is seen around December 5 and January 8. But weather conditions tend not to be ideal, and make it hard for anyone to spot.

To get a good take on the event, DeGrasse Tyson recommends that you "position yourself as far east in Manhattan as possible." Some of the streets where the show shines best are 14th, 23rd, 34th and 42nd, offering incredible views of the Empire State building and the Chrysler building.

The American Museum of Natural History is offering on Tuesday a special program at the Hayden Planetarium with a visual tour of "Manhattanhenge."

'Pretty Woman' Hotel a Leader in Social Media

USA Today: In January, the famously glamorous Beverly Wilshire became the first hotel in the Four Seasons chain to hire a full-time social media coordinator.

Today, the Beverly Wilshire's 3,663 followers on Twitter might find a link to some historic photos of the hotel for #FriFotos or learn about a new Mexican restaurant that's opening in the hotel's super swanky neighborhood.

"It just made sense," GM Radha Arora told me the other day over lunch at The BLVD, while Hollywood VIPs such as talent agency mogul Ari Emanuel dined nearby.

Arora runs the Beverly Wilshire - the iconic hotel where Julia Roberts and Richard Gere shot "Pretty Woman" (1990) - and also oversees several other Four Seasons hotels.

Arora's early decision, at least for the Four Seasons system, is an interesting one since most hotels juggle the demands of Twitter, Facebook and other social networks without a full-time expert. But Arora now expects more hotels will follow.

"We didn't think of (the full-time position) as ROI (return on investment). We didn't say, 'Oh no, it's going to cost us' because you can't put value to its success yet," Arora told me. "Its success will come later. Right now, you're building a foundation and you have a voice that tells people that the Beverly Wilshire is a place that is always creative and very youthful."

The hotel hired a Lauren Breuning, who used to work as a concierge so she knows the area well. She's now a member of the hotel's PR department. Her tweets from @BeverlyWilshire range from food promotions at The BLVD restaurant or Wolfgang Puck's critically acclaimed steakhouse CUT, to friendly chatter to would-be customers... 

·         Celebrate at pool today from 2-7pm. Only decision is to go for the grilled basics or the exotics like steak skewers with chimichuri sauce

·         Sometimes it's the International guests that have the most fun with #4thofJuly :)

·         We& @WolfgangBuzz want you back too. RT @ingrid_werner: Walking by @BeverlyWilshire reminds me of CUT. I wanna go back

·         #braggingrights :) RT @barbdelollis: This is @BeverlyWilshire's $25,000 nt prez suite where Entourage filmed last wk. http://t.co/tawTY7a

One of the Four Seasons hotels that's about to follow the Beverly Wilshire is the Four Seasons Hotel located just a few minutes’ drive away; on the other side of the Beverly Hills-Los Angeles border. Austin Watkins, the hotel's marketing director is in the process of interviewing candidates.

"I was able to prove there's value in it," he told me last week.

Ordering Coffee: Complicated and Nerve Wracking



Macchiato?

Hartford Courant: I'm in line at Dunkin Donuts waiting to order a large coffee, cream one sugar, and an iced coffee with milk, a shot of hazelnut, and two Splenda.

Although I have wanted to try iced coffee for a while now, I have been reluctant to do so because I fear the ordering may be beyond my abilities.

Buying a coffee used to be easy: you got it black, light, dark, regular. There was no drama, no performance anxiety, no pressure. Now, there are so many options and combinations that I had seriously weighed writing my order down on the palm of my hand to avoid messing up.

Mind you, I have no idea if I will even like an iced coffee with milk, a shot of hazelnut and two Splenda. But then my aim this morning is not to sample iced coffee, it is to simply practice ordering an iced coffee.

The truth is, I want to be one of them, you know, the cool people who nonchalantly order complex coffee with a smoothness and verve that attests to their superior cultural hipness.

The line slowly edges forward.

I am nervous.

What if the person behind the counter questions me about my order? What if I don't know the answer? What if I am exposed as an iced-coffee wannabe-poser-loser?

I can trace the exact moment in which I became intimidated by the coffee ordering process. It was the day I walked into a Starbucks and was greeted by a perky barista speaking a language that included such words as venti, macchiato and frappuccino.

I have no idea what I ended up with, but it had the texture of hot mud and was foaming. I remain intimidated by Starbucks.

Back at Dunkin Donuts, I mentally work on my presentation. The key will be in the delivery. I don't want my order to come across as rehearsed, but at the same time I don't want to be so casual as to create the impression that I am not deeply invested in my choices.

The moment arrives and I breathlessly blurt out my order.

"So you want two large iced coffees with cream, milk, hazelnut, sugar and two Splenda," she repeats back.

"Yes," I say.

I leave with my first iced coffees, but I'm sure the admiration lingers.

Read Jim Shea's blog at http://www.courant.com/tooshea