Matador Network's Blog, page 1292

Warner Bros. World open in Abu Dhabi

The world’s latest theme park just opened its doors on July 25th. Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi welcomed its first guests last week. Located on Yas Island, also home to Ferrari World Abu Dhabi and Yas Waterworld, the $1-billion park is the first Warner Bros. indoor theme park, as well as the world’s largest indoor theme park at 1.65 million square feet. Abu Dhabi’s new theme park has six different lands where visitors can enjoy a range of experiences, from exploring the Art Deco Warner Bros. Plaza to visiting DC’s Metropolis and Gotham City areas with Justice League characters.

Guests will also be able to meet classic Looney Tunes characters like Bugs Bunny, the Flintstones, and ride Wile E. Coyote and Yosemite Sam-themed attractions in Dynamite Gulch. This is just one of the many rides available to guests; there are 29 in total, including the Batman: Knight Flight roller coaster.

Abu Dhabi has been quickly climbing the ranks when it comes to its tourism numbers, and the new Warner Bros. park is bound to help. In the first five months of 2018, it welcomed 82,300 travelers from the United States alone, up 25 percent from the previous year.

The new Warner Bros. theme park, is open every day from 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Adult admission is $81 (295 dirhams), and children under 3.6 feet can enter for $63 (230 dirhams). For tickets, visit the official website.

H/T: AFAR

More like this: 20 images of Abu Dhabi we can’t stop looking at

The post Abu Dhabi’s $1-billion Warner Bros. theme park just opened appeared first on Matador Network.

A guide to The Yacht Week in Croatia

So, you saw the videos of people floating through Croatia having the time of their lives; rounded up half a dozen of your best, fairly affluent acquaintances; and booked a charter for The Yacht Week. Congratulations. You’re in for a blur of good times, clubs, and parties on giant inflatable flamingos.

For the unfamiliar, The Yacht Week is a weeklong flotilla of motor-assisted sailboats meandering through the Adriatic with young people living like it’s spring break. But the booze is better, the scenery more spectacular, and the people hail from all over the world — not just all over the SEC.

If you booked this trip with your buds on a whim, chances are a lot of questions still remain: How much money will I spend on Yacht Week? What should I bring to Yacht Week? Will there be waaaay more guys than girls like my friend who went back in 2014 said it would? Don’t worry, we have all the answers from personal experience, from both male and female perspectives (a gender-neutral experience Yacht Week is not). Here’s everything you need to know, from how much to budget to what to bring and how much to tip the staff during The Yacht Week in Croatia.

Photo: Julia Fay Photography

Here’s how much you will spend on Yacht Week.

Let’s make one thing perfectly clear: It’s called Yacht Week. Not affordable-bass-fishing-cruiser-week. Or rowboat week. YACHT week. And that means it’s gonna get expensive. For ease-of-reading purposes, we’ll break it down list style, assuming an eight-person crew with an even male-to-female ratio on the cheapest boat possible. Fewer people or more males and this number goes up.

Yacht, skipper, and parties: $9310 or $1163.75 each.

This covers your boat; the person driving it; and admission to all the swanky, we’re-cooler-than-you Yacht Week parties at clubs you only saw on Rich Kids of Instagram.

Host: $750 or $93.75 each.

Gas, mooring fees, water taxis, and other boat-related expenses: $225 per person.

Your skipper will gather this at the beginning for a cash “kitty” that he or she will use to pay for gas, water taxi transfers from the marinas, mooring fees, and other miscellaneous expenses. They’re required to keep receipts for all of it, too, and will refund anything that’s not used at the end.

Skipper and host tip: $160-$200 (80-$100 each, per person).

This, of course, is dependent on how well you think they did. But $80-$100 from each of you, to each one of them, is customary.

Photo: Julia Fay Photography

Groceries and onboard alcohol: $200 per person.

Your host will take you to the nearest grocery store on departure day and pick out everything you’ll need for them to make food. And for you to drink on board. It might be the longest receipt you ever get that isn’t from CVS.

Other meals and drinks during the trip: $450.

Your host cooks you breakfast and one other meal a day. You’re on your own for the rest. And admission to those swanky parties might be free, but the drinks most certainly are not.

IF YOU’RE MALE:

You’ll be paying for every drink you consume and may want to look into getting table service at those parties so you’re not goofball #67 trying to talk to girls on the dance floor. Your host can make table reservations, and table minimums are around $2000 for your group. Or you can spend the week nursing $6 beers. Whatever your budget allows.

IF YOU’RE FEMALE:

You might pay for one drink a night. Tables are not at all necessary as you can find your way to a table without obligation to do much other than pour yourself a drink. If you’re not comfortable with that, well drinks run about $11. Again, budget accordingly.

Airfare: $1100-$1400.

Split is not a cheap place to fly, especially during summer. If you see a flight under $1000, book it immediately.

Additional lodging: $200.

Plan to fly in the day before, so on the minuscule chance your flight gets delayed, you have some cushion. You’ll also probably need to stay overnight somewhere on the way back as there are no nonstops flights from Split to the US. You’ll likely end up spending your last night in some European hub like Madrid or London.

Photo: Julia Fay Photography

Floaties: $50.

You’ll need one of these.

Additional taxis and Ubers: $120.

This would be rides to and from the airport, around the towns you stop in, or back to the boat in the morning from wherever you end up.

Total cash outlay: $3700-$4,000.

Not the most expensive vacation of your life, but not the cheapest either. And if you have fewer people, or more guys than girls, or a boat with crazy stuff like AC and private bedrooms, it can cost over $5000. This is just the bare minimum.

The host might be “optional,” but you need one like you need water.

You might think, “I cook for myself all the time! I’m not wasting $750 for someone to make my morning coffee!” Ok, tough guy. Spend an entire afternoon taking rosé to the head on a unicorn floatie then try to cook anything more complicated than toast. It ain’t happening. We had a group of guys docked next to us who didn’t have a host and had been eating nothing but chips for the past two days. If you wanna live like that, by all means, skip the host.

However, if you’d like to have a lovely fruit platter, coffee, French toast waiting for you every morning/afternoon when you wake up, and dinner waiting for you every night, this will be the best $750 you ever spend. Your host also makes food that’s somewhat nutritious with salads, proteins, and carbs mixed pretty well. When you’re beating your immune system to death with Jager shots, proper nutrition makes a big difference.

Photo: Julia Fay Photography

It is, in fact, possible to shower and do #2 on board.

A lot of blogs and advice posts we saw for Yacht Week said you basically could never shower on board or do #2 in your bathroom. This is highly misleading. Yes, if everyone on board showered during days you’re not at a proper marina, you’d run out of water real fast. But if you space it out and mostly shower when you can easily get water refills, showering onboard is totally possible.

As is — as the ladies on my boat so euphemistically put it — “glittering.” The marine heads onboard might require some effort to flush, but so long as everyone flushes fully and DOES NOT PUT TOILET PAPER DOWN THE TOILET, you won’t have any problem using the bathroom for both liquids and solids.

That said, when you’re at a marina, use those facilities as much as you can. They’re better and keep the boat cleaner.

Bring your nicest clothes. And maybe an iron.

You didn’t fork over all that money for Yacht Week parties to show up dressed in flip-flops and shorts, did you? The parties on Yacht Week are some of the best you’ll ever go to. There’s a private garden party in a hilltop castle. There’s a white party at Carpe Diem, one of the most famous clubs in the world. There’s a party at a massive outdoor nightclub somewhere outside Bol and a closing party at a combination nightclub/swimming stadium in Split. Miraculously, people show up looking like they haven’t been living on half a mattress for five days.

So look the part and bring stuff you’d wear if you were going out in Vegas or South Beach. And an iron. The close quarters will have you looking like a wrinkle bomb went off in your suitcase, and that look will defeat the purpose of packing anything nice.

Photo: Julia Fay Photography

There will be dudes. A LOT of dudes.

Ever gone out in a military town? That’s more or less the odds you’re looking at during Yacht Week. Sure, the organizers TRY to regulate an even male-to-female ratio by charging exorbitant fees if your group skews male. And their promotional material might say they manage that strictly, but money talks and people pay. So the first comment you’ll get on any picture you post will be something along the lines of, “Wow. That’s a lot of dudes.”

If you’re a single girl, great news! You won’t pay for a thing all week. There’ll be men with sexy accents from all over the world competing for your attention, and you can spend the night in air-conditioned comfort any night you choose if your boat is less-than-stellar.

If you’re a single guy, this doesn’t mean you won’t have the week of your life. It means don’t go expecting to break your six-month dry spell. That’s what Thailand is for. Go expecting to hang out on boats in one of the most beautiful countries in the world, meet interesting people, and drink with reckless abandon, and you’ll have a great time. Any ladies you meet will just be a bonus.

There will also be WiFi, and it’s not bad.

It is truly amazing that in 2018 you can be out in the middle of the Adriatic Sea and still be perfectly connected to all of the interwebs. After all, this is a flotilla full of millennials, so going on vacation isn’t so much about getting away but letting everyone else KNOW you’re getting away. The onboard WiFi is fantastic when it works but will shut off sometimes and can get blocked when you’re tied up to other boats. It works best when you’re sailing in the open sea, so if you’re a remote worker, plan to work then.

Croatia is safe. No Liam Neeson rescue will be necessary.

As we headed into the trip, the ladies in our crew were a bit anxious about safety at night and in the clubs (a la Taken). However, the majority of the nights, our skipper and host escorted our crew to the water taxis — and handled the payment from the aforementioned kitty — as well as to the parties, which were private, Yacht Week-only events at rented-out clubs. The hosts and staff on site were welcoming and fun (and really good with names), and after the first night or two, you walk into the party and immediately recognize a handful of faces. There were fellow partygoers at nearly every water taxi and plenty of TYW crew there to keep a mindful eye on the inebriated masses. As with any club, keep an eye on your drink, but still feel free to let loose.

Photo: Julia Fay Photography

You won’t do any actual sailing.

If you were planning on impressing all of Croatia with the tacking skills you learned in sixth grade at summer camp, it’ll have to wait for another time. Though Yacht Week does have a regatta on the final day, and promotional materials say this is a chance to “show off your sailing skills,” there is no actual sailing involved. You’ll use the yacht’s motor for all movement, all week, and usually, it’s on autopilot. So don’t freak out if you go above deck and see your skipper enjoying breakfast while the steering wheels move independently. Your boat, as far as we know, is not haunted.

You’re going to get sick. Period.

In case you didn’t major in human health, alcohol and minimal sleep don’t exactly boost your immune system. Neither does living in close quarters with people, sharing drinks, water bottles, and spit with strangers from other countries. Take all the Emergen-C you like, if you leave Yacht Week without a hacking cough, you should be studied by the CDC. Your flight back from Split will be like a cross between a Sunday flight from Vegas and a fifth-grade classroom in December. Accept the illness as the last price you pay for glory.

Do not shit where you eat. But if you do…

Given the close quarters during Yacht Week, you might think this is a literal statement, but you know what we mean here. If you’ve got a mixed crew, find someone on another boat to swap fluids with.

Easy to say, harder to do. If we’ve learned anything from reality TV, it’s that when you put boys and girls together in a confined space and add alcohol, bad decisions get made. Should you find yourself in this situation, don’t be awkward about it, lay out your expectations for the rest of the trip, and move on. Any drama becomes everyone’s drama, so do whatever you have to do to keep it to a minimum.

Photo: Julia Fay Photography

Budget 3x the amount of alcohol you think you’ll need.

Remember how you stocked your last fraternity formal? Ok, now imagine you’re doing that for a week.

And 5x the water.

It might seem excessive, but given the sun, booze, and general mayhem of Yacht Week, plan to drink a gallon of water a day. That’s roughly four liters if you’re trying to make quick conversions at the grocery store — 28 liters per person, give or take. We had a grocery cart and a half full of water bottles for our six-person crew and ran out on day six. You can always resupply when you stop in town, but it’s much easier to buy it all upfront. Now is not the time to try and minimize your plastic footprint.

Invest in a car-charger adapter.

On standard boats, oftentimes the only power outlets are the 12-volt, car-cigarette-lighter-style variety, which doesn’t do you a whole lot of good when all you brought was a standard European adapter. Head to BrandsMart or look online for a 12V adapter and have two or three on board. They’re invaluable for stuff like laptops, phone chargers, air pumps for floaties, irons, and other electronic equipment. Just don’t bring hair dryers; they suck up too much electricity for those outlets to handle.

You may not have AC, so bring some fans.

If you’ve opted for the cheaper yacht, get prepared to sweat. Most of the smaller boats don’t come with air conditioning, and though most do have small fans in the room, they’re not exactly “cooling.” If you can, snag a room with a skylight as those let cool air in, especially when the boat is moving. Otherwise, take frequent, refreshing dips in the Adriatic or consider swapping nights sleeping above deck with your roommate. Two people in a tiny cabin and no A/C can get reeeeeeeal cozy. If you’ve got portable, rechargeable fans, bring those along.

Photo: Julia Fay Photography

If you’ve got any girls in your group, bring mirrors.

As we said, the inside of the boat can get really muggy and downright uncomfortable. Below deck, especially before bed, it can be too steamy to handle — and the bathrooms become a claustrophobic sauna. So getting ready for one of six very dressy nights is a sweaty struggle. Do yourself a solid and bring a portable standing mirror, so you can get ready above deck with a breeze (and preferably also a drink). Our crew split two mirrors among five girls, but we could’ve been ready much faster (and enjoyed the sunset more) if we had brought one per girl.

Buy shampoo, soap, and other toiletries there.

If you’re trying to just take a carry-on bag to Yacht Week, remember you’ll be able to hit the grocery store before your trip and don’t need to pack full-sized shampoo, soap, and other toiletries.

Split is the worst airport on the planet. But still get there early.

OK, maybe not the whole planet. There’s probably one in rural Mongolia that’s worse. But rural Mongolia also doesn’t process 3000 passengers at a time on a summer Saturday, most of whom have splitting hangovers and a nasty wet cough. Lines literally run out the door to check in the day after Yacht Week, and the gates are smaller than you’d find at a tiny regional airport. It can take two hours minimum from the time you walk in to the time you clear immigration and get to your gate, so plan accordingly.

But if you don’t cut it close, you’re in for a long afternoon. Want to kill time at the bar? There’s a single beer tap with some bottles on the far end of the terminal, with exactly one seat and some trash cans you can flip over to sit on. Lounge? There is one just past security, but it’s only open to elite fliers of European airlines, and its amenities don’t extend much past coffee and Croatian newspapers. There’s also a snack stand and coffee shop with sandwiches you may recognize from school lunch.

Odds are you’ll end up sitting on the floor for at least two hours with no food and minimal AC — though you should be used to that by now. Yes, complaining about the airport in Split after Yacht Week is the essence of first-world problems, but nobody ever went on Yacht Week to be humble.


More like this: 10 reasons why we should all move to Croatia

The post Everything you need to know before going to Yacht Week in Croatia appeared first on Matador Network.

The 8 scariest airports to fly into

Hurdling through the sky in a big metal tube can be traumatic with or without complications. Add in a good dose of turbulence or an unusually rocky landing, and even the most seasoned travelers will be quaking in their seats.

While most flights go off without a hitch, there are a few airports that up the ante for pilots and passengers alike due to their less-than-ideal locations and layouts. Here are eight of the scariest airports to fly into, and why landing there is sure to test your air-travel grit.

1. Tenzing-Hillary Airport, Nepal

Photo: Vadim Petrakov/Shutterstock

Measuring just 1,500 feet, the runway at Tenzing-Hillary Airport doesn’t leave much wiggle room for pilot error. In a way, it makes sense that flying into the airport best known for bringing Mount Everest hopefuls one step closer to summiting the mammoth peak is a bit of an extreme sport in and of itself.

The runway is surrounded by mountains not quite as tall as Everest but still sizeable, and the drop at the very end of the landing strip reaches almost 10,000 feet, so taking off from this airport is as sketchy as it gets. Due to the runway’s short length, only small propeller aircraft are able to use this airport. Even if you have no immediate plans for Himalayan trekking, the conditions at this perilous airport — aptly named for the first people to summit Everest — will make your palms sweat just hearing about it.

2. Narsarsuaq Airport, Greenland

Photo: Mario Hagen/Shutterstock

If you can spot the landing strip on the photo above, you know that UAK is not your average airport. Passengers can expect some pretty serious turbulence when arriving at Narsarsuaq Airport (UAK) as it falls victim to air currents created by the Tunulliarfik Fjord. The airport has been used for commercial purposes since 1949 and serves as the only international airport in southern Greenland, making it one of Greenland’s most important transport hubs. While this makes travel to the icy island easier than ever before, it also means you can expect to start your trip with a bumpy — albeit beautiful — ride.

3. Princess Juliana International Airport, St. Maarten

Photo: EQRoy/Shutterstock

St. Maarten’s Maho Beach is one of the best plane-spotting locales on the planet. Incoming aircraft practically graze its sandy shores en route to Runway 10 at the Princess Juliana International Airport, flying so close to beachgoers that they can almost feel the heat of the jet engines. Sure, the low-flying planes make for pretty postcards juxtaposed with the clear water below, but they’ll also have you crossing your fingers for a safe landing — whether you’re on board or ashore. Fortunately, the airport has had no major incidents, so the hair-raising descent shouldn’t put you off visiting the island altogether.

4. Madeira Airport, Portugal

Photo: Russ Heinl/Shutterstock

Also known as the Cristiano Ronaldo Madeira International Airport in honor of the Madeira-born football star, this airport is so tricky to fly into that pilots require extra training to land there. It’s surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean and tall peaks, which are natural disadvantages when it comes to runway placement. The runway itself measured a little more than 5,000 feet when it was first built, though it has since nearly doubled in size. During its second extension in 2000, the landing strip became safer yet somehow more terrifying as part of it now hangs out over the ocean on a platform held up by just under 200 columns.

5. Wellington International Airport, New Zealand

Photo: Daniel Magda/Shutterstock

Gales and crosswinds are the biggest hazards at Wellington International Airport, which has seen its fair share of harrowing landings. To make matters even more frightening, the airport is located right by the ocean, so there’s the looming fear of an unexpected water landing. Thankfully, there are strict rules for touching down at this wild, windy entry point to New Zealand’s North Island, so incoming passengers can breathe easy knowing they’re in good hands.

6. Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport, Saba

Photo: Bildagentur Zoonar GmbH/Shutterstock

Saba is a tiny Dutch Caribbean Island with a proportionally small runway. Spanning a total of roughly 1,300 feet, it’s said to be the shortest commercial landing strip in the world. Even a minor miscalculation by a pilot or unexpectedly stormy weather could mean toppling over the surrounding cliffs and plummeting into the sea, which is far from comforting, especially considering the fact that the airport is located in a wind-prone area. All things said, Saba is a pristine, mist-shrouded island that absolutely everyone should visit — if they dare.

7. Paro Airport, Bhutan

Photo: DeepakJoshi/Shutterstock

The only international airport in Bhutan, this remote transit hub is situated in a deep valley between mighty Himalayan peaks reaching up to 18,000 feet. You might be tempted to snag a photo of the scenic descent, but there’s a good chance you’ll be death-gripping the armrest when you arrive, given the high wind speeds in the valley and snug landing zone.

Only a handful of pilots are actually licensed to land at the Paro Airport, and flights are only scheduled during daylight hours on days with no visible meteorological interferences — that pretty much says it all.

8. Gibraltar International Airport, Gibraltar

Photo: MikhailBerkut/Shutterstock

Cars and planes rarely have to compete for the right of way — one of the peculiarities for which the Gibraltar International Airport is known. The territory’s four-lane main road, Winston Churchill Avenue, crosses directly over the landing strip, meaning traffic has to come to a halt whenever there’s an incoming or outgoing flight. The rest of the airport’s reputation for crazy landings centers on the fact that the surrounding rock walls and nearby Bay of Algeciras create rough, turbulent crosswinds.


More like this: How to manage a fear of flying when you love to travel

The post The 8 scariest airports to fly into appeared first on Matador Network.

2018 Drone Awards winning images

Drones have their detractors, and we should certainly keep these flying machines in check. But there’s no denying that they have improved the field of aerial photography — and archeology, conservation, and science — immensely. Not everyone can afford to fly around in a helicopter to get stunning shots from the sky, but just about anyone with some savings can invest in a drone and do the very same thing.

The Drone Awards allows those who have honed their skills at drone photography to submit their best shots and showcase their talent. In 2018, the Drone Awards received more than 4,400 submissions in six categories — abstract, nature, people, sport, wildlife, and urban — from amateur and professional photographers from around the world. Here are the winning photos of this year’s contest.
Abstract
Winner

Weather Snake by Ovi D. Pop

Runner up

Ice Magic by Martin Mecnarowski

Nature
Winner

Mada’in Saleh by Gabriel Scanu

Runner up

Entrance to Hell by Xiaoxiao Liu

People
Winner

Pilgrimage of Millions of People by Qinghua Shui

Runner up

Honors Day by Xiaoxiao Liu

Sport
Winner

Skating Shadows by Vincent Riemersma

Runner up

El Angel by Luis Alonso Jimenez Silva

Wildlife
Winner

Blacktip Shark by Adam Barker

First runner up

Big Shadow by Thomas Vijayan

Second runner up

Responsible Dady the Gharial with Babies by Dhritiman Mukherjee

Urban
Winner

Assisi Over the Clouds by Francesco Cattuto

First runner up

Warehouse Fire by Byron du Bois

Second runner up

Ameneties by Gary Cummins

Photo of the year

Above the Polar Bear by Florian Ledoux

More like this: Around the world in 26 surreal aerial photos

The post The amazing images that won the 2018 Drone Awards appeared first on Matador Network.

Drive through Springfield in the US

There might not be a Springfield in every US state, but it sure seems that way. There are 36 Springfield townships in the US across 25 states, including 11 in Ohio alone. Whether you’ve run out of road-trip ideas, or you’re just the biggest Simpsons fan on the planet, a Springfield tour of the US could be the perfect framework for your next cross-country road trip. This map, posted by Redditor GreenMobius, shows the most efficient route between every Springfield in the United States.

The route takes you from coast to coast, touching all the major regions of the country except the Southwest. You can make your way through California, across the mountains of the Midwest, down to the coast of the Gulf of Mexico — of course passing through New Orleans along the way — and up through the deep South to New England. Visiting each Springfield will give you a pretty complete cultural tour of the country. While the nation’s 36 Springfields might share the same name, you can bet that they’re incredibly diverse when it comes to their people, food, aesthetic, and local culture.

So buckle up for a pretty unique road trip. You might not see the Kwik-E-Mart, nuclear power plant, or Mr. Burns’ mansion, but you’re sure to catch a lot of other cool, unexpected sights.

H/T: Reddit

More like this: 12 short road trip routes that take in the best of America

The post This map shows how to take a road trip through every Springfield in America appeared first on Matador Network.

Read ID Act need to know

If you’re not a hard-core globetrotter, but still enjoy exploring the national parks throughout the year, flying to Vegas for the weekend, or have plans to visit out-of-state family for the holidays, then you need to be aware of the changes for US citizens traveling domestically in just two months from now.

In 2005, the United States passed the REAL ID Act mandating that all state-issued identification be compliant with their minimum security standards meant to improve the validity of an ID by adding security markings. States have been given over a decade to phase in compliant IDs, with over half of the United States given extensions to achieve compliance. What this means for you is that if your state-issued ID, such as your driver’s license or your identification card, is not compliant, TSA will no longer be able to accept them for domestic flights come October 10th, 2018.

These security measures only matter if you’re flying in a regulated commercial airplane domestically, and will not apply to you if you’re boarding a bus or train throughout the United States. If your state has received an extension, it’s up to the discretion of the Secretary of Homeland Security to decide whether or not it’ll be renewed — but why take any chances when you have time to apply for a passport?

State participation in the REAL ID Act is voluntary, so make sure to check whether your state-issued ID is compliant in the map below.

Photo: US Department of Homeland Security

What do I do if my state has received an extension, is under review, or is not compliant?

Get moving. Apply for a passport, or a passport card now, even if you only intend on traveling domestically. Passport applications can take some time, and if you’re behind on your taxes, you may be denied one, so get organized and start the process as soon as you can. We suggest that you order a 52-page passport at no extra charge, so that if you ever go abroad, you’ll have room for all the visas and stamps required. After all, you never know when you’re going to win an all-expenses paid trip to Fiji.

Is my state-issued Enhanced Driver’s License acceptable by federal agencies?

Yes, it’ll be sufficient. State-issued enhanced driver’s licenses are designed to provide both proof of identity and US citizenship. These licenses allow for traveling between the United States to Canada, Mexico, or the Caribbean due to the RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) chip and barcode on it. If you’re lucky enough to reside in Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Vermont, or Washington, these are currently the only states that issue Enhanced Driver’s Licenses.

Will I be turned away by TSA if I don’t have a license from a compliant state?

Yes, you’ll be turned away if you don’t provide an alternate form of ID that is compliant with the REAL ID Act, such as a passport. Acceptable forms of ID include:

US passport
US passport card
DHS trusted traveler cards (Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI, FAST)
US Department of Defense ID
Permanent resident card
Border crossing card
DHS-designated enhanced driver’s license
Federally recognized, tribal-issued photo ID
HSPD-12 PIV card
Foreign government-issued passport
Canadian provincial driver’s license or Indian and Northern Affairs Canada card
Transportation worker identification credential
US Citizenship and Immigration Services Employment Authorization Card
US Merchant Mariner Credential

Does this apply to minors?

No, children under 18 don’t need to provide ID when traveling with a companion within the United States. The companion will still need to have valid compliant identification.


More like this: 4 ways your passport can keep you from traveling that you never knew of

The post US citizens from certain states will need a passport to travel domestically in just two months appeared first on Matador Network.

Stranger Things corn maze

If you were looking for a reason to visit Lafayette, Indiana (who isn’t?), this Stranger Things-inspired corn maze might just be the excuse you need. This labyrinth, with 10 miles of paths intertwining to form an eerie Stranger Things pattern, is opening on September 14th. The experience comes courtesy of Exploration Acres, a 20-acre farm that runs an annual corn maze and pumpkin patch.

The idea for the design originated with the farm’s co-owner, Tim Fitzgerald, a die-hard fan of show. Capitalizing on the fact that the show takes place in a fictional town in Indiana, Fitzgerald is taking this opportunity to stake Lafayette’s claim as Indiana’s premier Stranger Things town. And of course, Netflix is totally on board with the maze idea. Netflix “loved the idea that it is in Indiana, just like Hawkins,” Fitzgerald told Thrillist.

The maze design features several images from the show, including Eleven and silhouettes of the boys on bikes. To create the sprawling experience, sophisticated GPS equipment was used to plant the field with seeds arranged in the desired patterns.

Tickets to the Stranger Things maze are available here.

H/T: Thrillist

More like this: The 12 most wanderlust-inducing shows on Netflix

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Lion trophy ban lifted by US

Importing trophy parts from lions and other endangered animals has been banned in the US in recent years, due to animal rights concerns and in an effort to prevent the extinction of vulnerable wildlife. On Thursday, however, the Huffington Post reported that the US government has issued over three dozen permits allowing trophy parts from African lions to be imported to the United States. The importation of lion trophies had been previously illegal due to the animal’s endangered species designation (African lions are still listed as “vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species).

A memorandum released by the United States Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, overturns an Obama-era ban on some trophies, including those taken from lions and elephants. Priscilla Feral, president of Friends of Animals, took issue with the memorandum, saying in a press release, “If African wildlife is to survive the next few decades in their homelands, these elephants, lions, and other animals…must be worth more alive than dead.”

With the issuing of these new trophy permits, it’s natural to wonder: who’s filing them? Well, the majority are Republican donors, or members of a hunting advocacy group called Safari Club International. One permit in particular was awarded to Philip Glass, a Texas rancher and big Trump donor, who took a $100,000 trophy safari in Zimbabwe in 2016 that was captured for a documentary called Trophy.

Big game hunters argue that their activities actually benefit conservation efforts and local economies, but animal rights supporters disagree.

H/T: Inhabitat

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Surf spots destroyed by Kilauea

When Kilauea erupted on May 3rd, the main concern was to keep everyone, their homes, and the agriculture on Hawaii’s Big Island safe from harm. Some of the big casualties, however, have been several of Hawaii’s most popular coastal surf spots. Flowing for almost three months now, the lava delta has reached the Pacific Ocean nearly half a mile past the original coastline. Now, molten rock from Fissure 8 is dominating the coastline where waves used to break. The effect on the coastline may have been underreported, but its negative effects should not be underestimated.

“The lava took houses,” Hilo surfer Cliff Kapono said in an interview with Surfer Magazine, “which is already terrible and very sad how much that has hurt people. But houses can be rebuilt. We cannot rebuild waves.”

A post shared by Jason Hills (@jason25hills) on Jul 16, 2018 at 10:40pm PDT

Locals are sharing fond memories of the now-damaged or destroyed Bowls, Secrets, and Dead Trees breaks, posting nostalgic videos of the waves. Kapono posted this video, taken at a small cove on the south side of the Big Island. “The special thing,” he says in his caption, “is that we can always find something to ride here….some would call this place a sanctuary.”

A post shared by Bruddah Cliff (@cliff_kapono) on Jul 10, 2018 at 8:23am PDT

In the same interview with Surfer Magazine, Big Island local Mikey O’Shaughnessey said, “It’s disappearing more as we speak, but all the memories we made at this place will live forever, and we’ll pass stories of those waves on to our children.”

While scientists are still unsure of when the eruption will stop, it’s believed that it may not subside for several months.

H/T: Teton

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How to date someone from Maine

Mainers are down-to-earth people. They’re not complicated, they’re not fussy, and they’re friendly. But before you start seeing one of them, you’d better learn a thing or two about the topics that irk them or you might just never get a second date out of them. So, prepare yourself and brush up on the seven things never to say to someone from Maine on a first date.

1. Don’t bring up Super Bowl 2018.

When Philadelphia crushed our souls in February, we buried the pain. Mainers are sensitive about their teams because we don’t have any professional teams of our own; we have to share the New England Patriots with five other states and cozy up to Massachusetts to root for the Bruins and the Red Sox.

2. If you’re a New York Yankees fan, keep it to yourself.

I recommend waiting until well after the wedding proposal before revealing your Yankees’ colors. This might just be too much for a Mainer to handle early on in a relationship.

3. Avoid politics.

Unless you met at Bible study or a political rally, heed the trope of avoiding politics and religion on the first date. We tend to be private people with deeply-held values. Get to know your favorite Mainer before bringing up Governor LePage or the afterlife. Holding differing political or religious views may not be a dealbreaker, but there’s a good chance you’ll scare them away if you jump in too deep too quickly.

4. Don’t ask your date where Maine is.

Geography nuts might be rolling their eyes right now, but I’ve been asked more than once if Maine is a province of Canada. Do a little research before the first date.

5. And don’t ask them about their accent.

Just as many Mainers have the accent as those who don’t. Note that it might show up more when a Mainer is in proximity to a lobster boat, hunting rifle, or Realtree Camo.

6. Don’t assume they grew up in the sticks.

Yes, 89 percent of the state is forested. That’s right, trees outnumber people. However, with the majority of the population concentrated in urban centers dotting southern Maine, don’t assume your date is from the boonies. Those of us who are of rural stock are proud, but others might resent being lumped in with the stereotype.

7. Skip complaining.

Unless you find a human hair or metal screw baked into your food, don’t even think about sending your plate back. People from Maine are brought up to take things how they come and make the best of it. Don’t bring up your recent medical drama or family meltdown unless A) it’s audience-appropriate and not gag-worthy, and B) it has a laugh-out-loud punchline. Plays for sympathy won’t get you far. If you want to impress a date from Maine, start by showing a positive attitude and a sense of humor.


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