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	<title>Asia Travel News Commentary, Reviews, and Insights</title>
	<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com</link>
	<description>-- by Ambrose Bittner</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Thu, 04 Mar 2010 07:11:59 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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		<title>Possible Military Coup in Thailand?</title>
		<description><![CDATA[I&#8217;m currently in Bangkok en route to Nepal. The newspapers here are abuzz with speculation that a military coup will be staged soon against the current government.  One paper is speculating that something might happen between February 4th and 14th:
http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Observers-Coup-t334953.html
]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/thailand/possible-military-coup-in-thailand/159?</link>
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		<title>India is Getting Tough with Visas</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In what seems like a knee-jerk reaction to terrorism, India has just come out with two new visa requirements that affect all travelers to India:
New Requirement #1: Additional Documentation Now Required for All Visa types
As of January 15, 2010, travelers of all nationalities who are applying for any type of Indian visa will be required [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/india/india-is-getting-tough-with-visas/154?</link>
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		<title>Chitwan Park Lodges Allowed to Reopen</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Last month, the Cabinet of the Government of Nepal approved the re-opening of the seven jungle lodges located within Chitwan National Park. The lodges had been ordered closed by the government after their lease expired. The lodges were forced to cancel all bookings and move guests to lodges outside the Park. After five months of [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/nepal/chitwan-park-lodges-allowed-to-reopen/150?</link>
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		<title>2010 Climb for Himalaya Children</title>
		<description><![CDATA[We&#8217;re ready  to go with next year&#8217;&#8217;s Climb for Himalaya Children of Mt. Rainier. The climb will take place from July 15th to 17 in 2010. Please visit the Red Lantern Journeys web site for complete details about participating and how to register for the climb. As of January 1st, we have 10 people registered. [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/nepal/2010-climb-for-himalaya-children/140?</link>
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		<title>Red Lantern Journeys wins Contract with Seattle Chamber of Commerce</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Red Lantern Journeys is arranging in-country services for the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce&#8217;s South Korea Study Mission in April of 2010. The Seattle Chamber is planning for a group of 60 business leaders, regional leaders, and entrepreneurs to visit Seoul and Daejon, a sister city of Seattle. The services include accommodation in Seoul, banquet [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/south-korea/red-lantern-journeys-wins-contract-with-seattle-chamber-of-commerce/135?</link>
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		<title>Aung San Suu Kyi Drops Opposition to Tourism in Myanmar</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In an article by Charlie Norton dated August 14, 2009 in the Daily Telegraph, Aung San Suu Kyi, the Myanmar opposition leader, has dropped her opposition to tourism in Myanmar.  Burma was renamed Myanmar by the ruling military dictatorship, but the new name has never been recognized by the United States and other Western countries. [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/myanmar/aung-san-suu-kyi-drops-opposition-to-tourism-in-myanmar/121?</link>
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		<title>Mt. Rainier Climbed for Nepalese Orphanage</title>
		<description><![CDATA[On Sunday, July 19, 2009 two groups of participants in the Red Lantern Journeys Climb for Himalaya Children struggled their way through thin air and high winds to reach the summit of the 14,410-foot-high Mt. Rainier. They planted Tibetan prayer flags on the summit  in honor of the children of the Mitrata Orphanage in Kathmandu. [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/nepal/climb-for-himalaya-children2009/99?</link>
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		<title>Nepal Travel Article in the Arc Magazine</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Check out my article on Nepal and the Mitrata Orphanage in the Go section of the June, 2009 issue of the Arc Magazine.  I write about my last trip there in March and some of the amazing things to do there besides go trekking and climbing mountains! Read the article here:
Nepal Article in the Arc [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/nepal/nepal-travel-article-in-the-arc-magazine/92?</link>
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		<title>Chitwan National Park Closes Lodges within Park Boundaries</title>
		<description><![CDATA[At the direction of the Nepal Forest Ministry, Chitwan National Park has forced all 7 lodges located within its boundaries to close because they have been unable to renegotiate a contract that expired on July 16th of this year. Word from a local tour operator, says that the lodges owe the government some tax money [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/nepal/chitwan-national-park-closes-lodges-within-park-boundaries/88?</link>
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		<title>Tibet Closed Again to Foreigners!</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Although China hasn&#8217;t made an official announcement, probably because they want to avoid publicity, Red Lantern Journeys&#8217; Tibet, Nepal, and China partners have been letting us know that Tibet permits are not being granted for travel in March. From what we can tell, this affects entry to Tibet from both China and Nepal.
The reason? March [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/tibet/tibet-closed-again-to-foreigners/79?</link>
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		<title>Sapa, Vietnam Article in New Online Arts Magazine</title>
		<description><![CDATA[After my last trip to Vietnam in January, 2009, I wrote an article about the mountain village of Sapa that was published in the new indie-focused arts web site called The Arc Magazine. Be sure to visit the site and subscribe to the magazine. It only comes out once every two months, and you won&#8217;t [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/vietnam/sapa-vietnam-article-in-new-online-arts-magazine/65?</link>
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		<title>New Airport Fee in New Delhi, Mumbai May Follow</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Delhi International Airport Limited announced that beggining March 1, 2009, they will begin levying a fee of 1,300 Rupees (about $27 US) on international passengers and 200 Rupees (about $4 US) on domestic passengers at the Indira Gandhi International Airport. 
The purpose of the fee is to make up for funding shortfalls for the development [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/india/new-airport-fee-in-new-delhi-mumbai-may-follow/57?</link>
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		<title>The $3 Dental Emergency in Vietnam</title>
		<description><![CDATA[I traveled to Hanoi in January for the ASEAN Tourism Form. The evening before flying out, I broke the corner off a molar while eating my mom&#8217;s leftover peanut brittle from the Christmas holidays&#8230;that left no time to find a dentist. I went to to a grocery store to find anything to protect the hole [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/vietnam/hello-from-vietnam/47?</link>
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		<title>Civil Unrest in Bangkok &#8211; Authorities do Nothing?</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The protesters at the Bangkok airports are shutting down an entire country. They&#8217;ve trapped 350,000 foreign travelers who are becoming angrier by the day. Business losses are mounting and will total in the tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars. The orchid industry alone estimates that it will lose US$23 million if Suvarnabhumi Airport remains closed until December [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/thailand/civil-unrest-no-major-casualties/41?</link>
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		<title>Don&#8217;t Let Child Abuse Travel!</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Today, November 20, is Universal Children&#8217;s Day. The International Labour Organization estimates that there are 218 million children worldwide engaged in labor, while millions are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. I support the efforts of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) to build awareness and with a special focus on Asia where the problems are [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.ambrosebittner.com/socially-responsible-tourism/dont-let-child-abuse-travel/40?</link>
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