UK Gets Ready For Travel Disruptions As Temps May Hit 104 F

The British government held an emergency response meeting Saturday to plan for record high temperatures next week after weather authorities issued their first-ever “red” warning for extreme heat.

The alert covers large parts of England on Monday and Tuesday, when temperatures may reach 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) for the first time, posing a risk of serious illness and even death among healthy people, the U.K. Met Office, the country’s weather service, said Friday.

The British heat record is 38.7C (101.7F), set in 2019.

After chairing the meeting, Cabinet Office Minister Kit Malthouse warned that transport services will be significantly affected.

“The heat will affect rails, for example, so the trains have to run slower. There may be fewer services,″ he told the BBC. “People need to be on their guard for disruption. If they don’t have to travel, this may be a moment to work from home.”

Rail passengers and users of the London Underground subway system were being advised not to travel on Monday and Tuesday unless it’s absolutely necessary. With children and older people considered particularly vulnerable to high temperatures, schools and nursing homes have been urged to take steps to protect students and older residents. Most schools in England are still in session until the end of next week.

The alert comes as scientists say climate change is increasing the likelihood of exceptional heat waves in Britain, a country unaccustomed to such temperatures. Few homes, apartments, schools or small businesses in the country have air conditioning.

Britain usually has moderate summer temperatures. Across the U.K., average July temperatures range from a daily high of 21 C (70 F) to a low of 12 C (53 F).

London Mayor Sadiq Khan met with representatives of the National Health Service, police, fire and other emergency services on Friday to review plans to deal with the heat emergency.

One doctor warned that the upcoming heat wave and a surge in COVID-19 infections were causing a nightmare for health workers.

“A lot of hospital buildings are very old, particularly in London, and many don’t have air conditioning and windows that don’t open – so they are extremely hot,” said Dr. Claire Bronze, 38, an emergency room consultant in London. “Some staff still have to wear PPE – so plastic gowns, masks, gloves – on top of their normal uniform which, as you can imagine, means people are quickly going to get very hot and dehydrated.”

By DANICA KIRKA

Europe Is Now A Budget-Friendly Travel Option For U.S. Travelers

Flying to Europe this year might sound as absurd as opting for premium gasoline. With prices this high, is it really the right time to splurge?

“As a result of labor shortages and all these things going on, travel is more expensive than it’s been in a while,“ says travel journalist Oneika Raymond. “Flights are really expensive. Accommodation is really expensive. And revenge travel is a thing.”

Although travel prices continue to soar overall due to constrained supply and mounting demand, pockets of affordability remain.

Europe represents one of these pockets, where weakening currency exchange rates against the dollar and tepid demand have left prices relatively unscathed. In fact, flights within the U.S. have become so expensive this year that some international destinations, including many in Europe, offer a relative bargain.

“If you are willing to pay to fly domestically, check out international destinations,” suggests Hayley Berg, lead economist at Hopper, a travel booking app. “Because there is a good chance that there is a flight to somewhere else in the world for about the same price.”

AIRFARE IS LESS INFLATED IN EUROPE

Domestic airfare was 30% higher at the end of May 2022 compared with May 2019, according to data from Hopper.

“Airfare this summer within the U.S. will cost $600 to $800,” says Berg. “At those prices you can get to Reykjavik, Iceland, or Dublin, Ireland.”

Indeed, flights from the U.S. to Europe were only up 13% at the end of May 2022 compared with the same period in 2019, according to Hopper . That trend squares with tourist demand, which remains below pre-pandemic levels: About 19% fewer U.S. travelers left for Europe in May 2022 compared with May 2019, before the pandemic, according to data from the International Trade Administration.

Put simply, prices and demand for flights to Europe are increasing, but not as quickly as they are elsewhere.

“Given how high domestic airfare is, you can get more bang for your buck with longer-haul destinations,” explains Berg.

THE DOLLAR IS STRONG

Although 2022 may go down as a bear market for everything from stocks to cryptocurrency, the U.S. dollar has gained ground on many foreign currencies. The dollar was 15% stronger against the euro in May 2022 compared with May 2021, according to data from the Federal Reserve.

“Today what we’re seeing is that a dollar can buy more euros than it has been able to essentially since the euro launched,” says Berg.

This means that anything purchased while traveling in countries that use the euro will be at a 15% discount, if currency exchange rates remain stable. U.S. travelers will enjoy this benefit on everything from food and lodging to events and transportation.

Of course, global inflationary pressures continue to drive up prices everywhere, including Europe. Annual consumer prices in Germany were up 7.9% in May, according to the Financial Times, just shy of the 8.6% increase in the U.S. Yet, while prices may remain elevated nearly everywhere, the relative strength of the dollar can help soften the blow.

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION CAN HELP YOU SAVE

Inflation has hit no aspect of travel more directly and dramatically than the cost of renting and operating a vehicle. Rental cars prices were up a budget-busting 69% in May 2022 compared with May 2019, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. And everybody knows how high gasoline prices have jumped.

These factors should make this the summer of public transportation for money-conscious travelers. Yet the U.S. offers few tourist destinations that can be explored by train.

Not so in Europe, where most popular cities offer safe, affordable and dependable transit. Cities such as Amsterdam, London and Copenhagen can be explored for only a few euros, which is equivalent to only a few U.S. dollars with favorable exchange rates.

Visiting national parks in the U.S. made sense in 2020 and 2021 for a host of reasons. But saving money in 2022 means skipping cars outright when possible.

OFF THE BEATEN PATH?

We are in strange times indeed when traveling to Europe represents an off-the-beaten-path, budget-friendly choice. Yet the facts speak for themselves. Airfare to Europe is rising less quickly than domestic tickets, and fewer travelers are visiting the continent. The dollar is strong, and the U.S. has dropped its testing requirement for arriving travelers, which made leaving the country a pain.

All this has combined to make Europe a good choice for travelers in an upside-down year. Riding the rails in Zurich could prove cheaper than renting a car in Cleveland.

By SAM KEMMIS of NerdWallet

US Has Clinched Deal With Saudis For Normalization With Israel, Will Allow Israeli Airlines To Fly Over Arab Kingdom As Well As Direct Flights For Muslim Pilgrims

US President Joe Biden, during his visit to Jeddah this weekend, will announce the successful brokering of an agreement between Saudi Arabia and Egypt that will see Riyadh take steps toward normalization with Israel, a Middle East diplomat confirmed to The Times of Israel Thursday.

The normalization measures will include Saudi Arabia opening its airspace to Israeli flights to the Far East in addition to rolling out direct flights between Israel and Saudi Arabia for Muslim pilgrims, the Middle East diplomat said, confirming reporting in the Axios news site.

The US has been seeking to finalize the transfer of the Tiran and Sanafir Red Sea islands from Cairo to Riyadh in time for Biden’s visit to Jeddah, where he will participate in the GCC+3 summit and hold a bilateral meeting with Saudi officials.

Israel handed over control of the two islands to Egypt as part of their 1979 peace agreement, but the sides agreed to demilitarize the islands and to allow the presence of a multinational observer force to remain. Israel had been seeking similar assurances from Saudi Arabia in order to sign off on the deal, but Riyadh has been hesitant to put the commitment in writing, the diplomat said last week.

Axios reported Thursday that Israel had now given its official agreement to the transfer of the islands.

The deal is legally complex because the countries do not maintain official ties and therefore are working through conduits. Riyadh has also been hesitant to put details of the agreement in writing, much to Israel’s discomfort, a diplomat previously said.

While the observer force will be transferred to another location, Saudi Arabia has committed to ensuring Israel’s freedom of transport around the islands, the diplomat said.

At a press conference with Prime Minister Yair Lapid earlier Thursday, Biden said he was “optimistic” about the prospects of being able to announce Saudi overflights when he arrives in Jeddah Friday.

In an opinion article ahead of the trip, Biden said the direct travel was a “small symbol” of the warming ties between Israel and the Arab world and “steps toward normalization.”

This photo taken on January 14, 2014, through the window of an airplane, shows the Red Sea’s Tiran (foreground) and the Sanafir (background) islands in the Strait of Tiran between Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula and Saudi Arabia. (Stringer/AFP)

Israel and Saudi Arabia do not have official diplomatic relations, but covert ties have warmed in recent years as Riyadh and its de facto ruler, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, have reportedly come to see Israel as a strategic partner in the battle against Iranian influence in the region.

The kingdom declined to sign onto the Washington-brokered Abraham Accords in 2020 as the US and Israel had hoped, but Riyadh is believed to have given the go-ahead to Bahrain, where it retains decisive influence, to join the normalization agreement with Israel alongside the United Arab Emirates and Morocco.

Saudi Arabia did begin allowing Israeli airlines to fly over its territory in a special air corridor for flights to and from the UAE and Bahrain, after the accords were signed. But Israel has yet to receive such access for flights to and from India, Thailand and China, for example.

Should Riyadh announce its approval for use of its airspace, travel to and from those countries will take significantly less time.

Source: https://www.timesofisrael.com/

Stuttgart Sheds Remnants Of Pandemic, Fall Festivals Dominate SouthWest Germany’s Capital City

Starting this August, Stuttgart will shed the remnants of the pandemic as the city embraces its beloved festival season. This fall, no less than three enormous festivals will welcome visitors from near and far.

Stuttgart’s annual wine village with hundreds of wines made by local and regional growers will be located under bountiful arbors in the the city center on the Schiller- and Marktplatz from August 17 to September 4. Less than one month afterward, the 175th Stuttgart Beer Festival (September 23 to October 9) will get underway on the Cannstatter Wasen fairground along with the Agricultural Show. Then the Historical Festival (September 24 to October 3), that takes place every four years commemorating the founding of the Stuttgart Beer Festival, will be in full swing on the Palace Square in the city center.

Wine is an important characteristic of Stuttgart’s city life as it is made and sold in the vineyards all around the city. Light fruity reds, such as Trollinger, Lemberger and Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir) and dry whites, including Riesling, Kerner, Weißburgunder (Pinot Blanc) and Sauvignon Blanc are most prevalent. Stuttgart's vineyards stretch right into the heart of the city, making the city the only German metropolis with its own municipal wine estate. Wine has been grown here ever since Roman times, and owes its excellent quality to the first-class soil, the favourable climate and the accumulated expertise. Throughout the year, the wine hills of the Württemberg wine region offer endless opportunities for hiking, biking, tastings and organized tours on foot, in a vintage bus or on a Segway. https://www.stuttgart-tourist.de/en/sights/vineyards-to-the-city-center

The annual wine festival at the end of August is a special time as the whole city comes together to celebrate their city and viniculture. Award winning wines from all over SouthWest Germany, including new wines produced by third and fourth generation wine growers, are presented alongside traditional favorites in beautiful bowers in the city center in the city center. Visitors can mingle with locals and enjoy tasting 500 different types of wines from the region. Cozy wine booths with around 30 hosts serve wines, accompanied by Swabian specialities, such as Käsespätzle (cheesy noodles), Maultaschen (filled pasta), Schupfnudeln (potato noodles) with Sauerkraut, and sweet treats. https://www.stuttgart-tourist.de/en/e-46th-stuttgart-wine-village-2022#2022-08-17

The annual beer festival, or the Stuttgart Beer Festival, is second only to Oktoberfest in terms of size and popularity. Originally a harvest festival, the “Cannstatt Agricultural Festival” has long since developed into a popular public celebration. Seven beer tents, the historic wine tent and the Alpine Village will open their doors on September 23 to the public and the fairground rides will get underway. Approximately 320 showmen, hosts and stallholders, along with a double-looping roller coaster, autoscooters, modern attractions or old favorites will be at the Wasen. In the festival tents hearty dishes such as grilled knuckle of pork, fried steak along with the Maultaschen are served to go with the mugs of beer. Each year the festival opens with a grand procession with magnificently decorated brewery drays drawn by four or six horses, and with groups from all over the region dressed in traditional costumes. https://www.stuttgart-tourist.de/en/e-stuttgart-beer-festival-2022#2022-09-23

Every four years, parallel to the Stuttgart Beer Festival, Southwest Germany's largest trade exhibition for the agriculture, forestry and food sectors with nearly 700 exhibitors is also held at the Wasen fairground. This year the focus will be on livestock, technology, nature and nutrition under the motto "Landwirtschaft erLEBEN!" (the Agriculture Experience).

The Historical Folk Festival, which takes place every four years, celebrates the founding of the beer festival. It founded over 200 years ago by King Wilhelm I of Württemberg and his wife, Queen Katharina to support the country's agriculture, which had suffered greatly in the aftermath of the eruption of the Indonesian volcano Tambora and the Napoleonic Wars. It is a very family friendly event right in the heart of Stuttgart on the Palace Square with old-fashioned bands and costumes, entertainment, including showmen such as jugglers, artiste, illusionists and a flea circus. There are also attractive traditional fairground rides, including a nostalgic big wheel and a rollercoaster from the 1930s. The Jubilee Column in the middle of Palace Square will be decorated in the style of the Fruit Column – the emblem of the Beer Festival – with agricultural produce. www.historisches-volksfest.de/en

Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg, known as SouthWest Germany. It is easily accessible from all major European cities by train and plane and hotels are plentiful. A new direct flight from Atlanta to Stuttgart also will be starting this October with Delta Airlines.

Hawaii National Park Gets Land Where Ancient Villages Stood

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island was given new land on Tuesday in a deal that will protect and manage a pristine white sand beach and ocean bay area that is home to endangered and endemic species and to rare, culturally significant Native Hawaiian artifacts.

Endangered Hawaiian hawksbill sea turtle rests on the beach of Pohue Bay on Hawaii's Big Island.

Trust for Public Land, a national nonprofit land preservation group, transferred its ownership of Pohue Bay and surrounding land to the National Park Service.

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park has the world’s largest and most active volcanoes, Mauna Loa and Kilauea. Most of the coastline where the bay is located is made of ancient lava flows, black rock and sea cliffs that dart out into the ocean.

Pohue Bay, a rare and idyllic oasis in an otherwise rugged landscape, is home to endangered hawksbill sea turtles, green sea turtles, endangered Hawaiian monk seals and other species found only in Hawaii. The area houses anchialine ponds — landlocked pools with a mix of fresh and salt water — where rare Hawaiian red shrimp called ʻōpaeʻula live.

The area is also culturally significant because it has remains of ancient Hawaiian villages, petroglyphs, burial sites and the largest known abrader tool quarry in the state, according to the Trust for Public Lands. Abraders are ancient tools used for sanding, smoothing and grinding.

Park officials hope to eventually open the area up to the public, but the 26 square miles (67 square kilometers) of land will remain closed to visitors as national park staff consult with local experts and residents to better understand the various cultural sites.
The addition brings the total park size to 554 square miles (1,425 square kilometers), almost as large as the entire island of Oahu.

While the park has recently acquired a few small parcels of land in the same area, the donation is the park’s largest addition since 2003, when about 156 square miles (404 square kilometers) of land was incorporated.

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Superintendent Rhonda Loh in a statement called the Pohue Bay area “an incredibly precious and culturally significant landscape that needs to be protected.”

She added: “The park is working to develop an interim operating plan for Pohue that explores opportunities for public use compatible with resource protection.”

Trust for Public Land acquired the privately owned land on Tuesday and gave it to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park the same day.

The parcel stretching from the southwest coast of Hawaii Island up to the national park was purchased for $9.4 million with funding from the Land and Water Conservation Fund and a donation from the Wyss Foundation. The land had previously been the target of several resort proposals, Trust for Public Land said.

“We are grateful the National Park Service will steward the area, ensuring the history, culture and natural beauty of this place are protected for future generations,” Trust for Public Land Associate Vice President Lea Hong, who leads the Hawaii division for the organization, said in a statement.

Hong emphasized the role locals have played in preserving the land, fighting off pressure from developers and others to keep the area natural.

“It’s really a testament to decades of community concern and love for that area,” Hong said. “It’s a testament to the community’s dedication to conserving the coastline that this project will happen.”

By CALEB JONES

The Euro And The US Dollar Are At Parity For The First Time In 20 Years

New York (CNN Business)For the first time in 20 years, the exchange rate between the euro (EUU) and the US dollar has reached parity -- meaning the two currencies are worth the same.

The euro hit $1 on Tuesday, down about 12% since the start of the year. Fears of recession on the continent abound, stoked by high inflation and energy supply uncertainty caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The European Union, which received roughly 40% of its gas through Russian pipelines before the war, is attempting to reduce its dependence on Russian oil and gas. At the same, Russia has throttled back gas supplies to some EU countries and recently cut the flow in the Nord Stream pipeline to Germany by 60%.

Now that critical piece of gas import infrastructure in Europe, has been shut down for scheduled maintenance due to last 10 days. German officials fear that it may not be turned on again.

The energy crisis comes alongside an economic slowdown, which has cast doubts over whether the European Central Bank can adequately tighten policy to bring down inflation. The ECB announced that it will hike interest rates this month for the first time since 2011, as the eurozone inflation rate sits at 8.6%.

But some say the ECB is far behind the curve, and that a hard landing is all but inevitable. Germany recorded its first trade deficit in goods since 1991 last week as fuel prices and general supply chain chaos significantly increased the price of imports.

"Given the nature of Germany's exports which are commodity-price sensitive, it remains hard to imagine that the trade balance could improve significantly from here in the next few months given the expected slowdown in the eurozone economy," Saxo Bank foreign exchange strategists wrote in a recent note.

A series of aggressive interest rate hikes by central banks, including the Fed, coupled with slowing economic growth will keep pressure on the euro while sending investors toward the US dollar as a safe haven, say analysts.
The US Federal Reserve is well ahead of Europe on tightening, having hiked interest rates by 75 basis points while indicating that more rate increases will come this month.

This safe haven retreat into the US dollar could become even more extreme if Europe and the US enters a recession, warned Deutsche Global Head of FX Research George Saravelos in a note last week. A situation where the euro is trading below the US dollar at a range of $0.95 to $0.97 could "well be reached," wrote Saravelos, "if both Europe and the US find themselves slip-sliding in to a (deeper) recession in Q3 while the Fed is still hiking rates."

That's good news for Americans with plans to visit Europe this summer but could spell bad news for economic global stability.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/

Spain’s Running Of The Bulls: 3 People Gored At San Fermín

PAMPLONA, Spain (AP) — A tense fifth bull run at Pamplona’s San Fermín Festival on Monday left three people gored, including one American, and three others with bruises, the Navarra regional government said.

It was the first run with gorings in the festival so far this year. There are three more daily runs before the festival ends Thursday.

The regional government said a 25-year-old runner from Sunrise, Florida, was gored in the calf in the bullring. The other two gored were Spaniards, one in the ring and one on the street. None was in serious condition.

Earlier festival organizers had said erroneously that the foreigner gored in the ring was Australian.

Three other runners, all Spaniards, were treated for injuries sustained in falls during the run.

Television images showed one bull repeatedly tossing and butting one runner against the wooden barriers on the edge of the ring and then goring another in the back of the leg.

The spectacle lasted just over three minutes as hundreds of runners, mostly men, ran frantically ahead and alongside six fighting bulls as they charged through the cobblestone streets of this northern city. The run finishes at Pamplona’s bullring, where later in the day the bulls are killed by professional bullfighters.

Tens of thousands of visitors come to the Pamplona festival, which was featured in Ernest Hemingway’s 1926 novel “The Sun Also Rises.” The adrenaline rush of the morning bull run is followed by partying throughout the day and night.

Eight people were gored in 2019, the last festival before a two-year hiatus because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sixteen people have died in Pamplona’s bull runs since 1910, with the last death in 2009.