A US Airways flight was forced to land without the aid of the aircraft’s landing gear in Newark on Saturday. The plane had been circling the airport after the flight crew detected a problem with the landing gear, but it eventually became necessary for the plane to land at the airport on its belly. No injuries were reported among the 31 passengers and three crew, who were evacuated to the terminal upon landing.

Find out more about this from CNN

While I’m not a fan of typical travel pillows (too bulky to pack), Cocoon’s Hyperlight AirCore Travel Pillow has completely swayed me. It’s ridiculously lightweight (just 2.4 ounces!) compact – almost enough to fit inside a yogurt container. Features include an inflatable air core, surrounded by soft, polyester fill; soft micro ripstop nylon shell that stays cool; and an easy-to-use twist valve facilitates rapid inflation/deflation to allow personalized support.

Pricing & Availability

Available now for around $22 (USD) from REI and other outdoor/travel gear vendors.

In one of the holiest attractions in the world, the simplest crime is occurring everyday. While tourists gaze up at Michelangelo’s frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, they are making themselves easy marks for pickpocketing.

With nearly 30,000 visitors entering the chapel on a daily basis, Vatican guards are considering a strike, and calling for an increase in security and a cap on daily visitors. Many visitors are feeling the effects of the overcrowded chapel, comparing it to a cattle call.

If the Vatican guides strike, they may run the risk of shutting down the attraction, which happened when Louvre guards called a strike in April. Read more at Huffington Post.

This year the Ocean Conservancy has produced an infographic showing the 10 most common items they found:

© Ocean Conservancy

One North Korean town is finally welcoming western tourists–but with a few limitations. Passport holders from the U.S., South Korea, and Japan are still unable to enter North Korea, but other westerners can make the trip to Sinuiju.

Sinuiju is North Korea’s largest border town. Some of the sights one can find in the town are classic revolutionary monuments, mosaics, the riverside, and the “Broken Bridge” — an old bridge which was bombed during the Korean War. Read more on Sinjiju at CNN.com.

What will future civilizations, or even aliens think of New York City? The clever mind inside Neil de Grasse Tyson’s cranium thinks that they might conclude that New Yorkers worshipped war and baseball.

This is all based on the phenomenon known as Manhattanhenge. Just like Stonehenge in England, and other structures with astronomical connections, there are specific days in the year when the sun aligns perfectly with the grid system of Manhattan’s streets. And just as we have made inferences about the people who built Stonehenge, someone studying New York in this way might draw conclusions about the people of New York. Manhattanhenge occurs on Memorial Day and during Major League Baseball’s All-Star Break, ergo archaeologists and aliens alike could be forgiven for thinking that we idolize warriors and ball players.

Don’t miss your chance to observe Manhattanhence on May 28th. Check out the American Museum of Natural History’s blog for details.

#1: University Campuses

Call me a geek (go on, I can take it), but there’s something special to me about visiting a college or university campus. I mean, I have T-shirts from universities across the United States, Australia, Denmark and even Taiwan. But don’t think that I head to a campus just to get the T-shirt.

A university or college is often one of the most buzzing parts of a city. There’s a high concentration of young people, of course, plus a whole lot of intellectual interest. Many campuses also include small museums that don’t rate a mention in guide books but are well worth visiting. You can check out a campus cafeteria for a cheap meal, read the notice boards to find out about film or music events coming up, or even get chatting to a few local students to get some tips on what else to do in the city.

Biblioteca Vasconcelos, Mexico City © Eneas

#2: Libraries

So I’m definitely a geek. But let me tell you what’s good about visiting libraries in the cities that you visit. The first thing is obvious: they are full of information. Local magazines and newspapers, more notice boards, and helpful librarians who want to tell you whatever you want to know.

Second, libraries are excellent places to take a break from bad weather, sometimes to access your email (maybe for free!), or to have a rest in a comfortable chair with a good book. If you’re in a non-English-speaking country, head for the largest library on the map and they’ll very often have English-language books or newspapers – good for a time-out on a long backpacking trip when you want to touch base with your own reality again.

#3: Train and Bus Stations

Depending on the city you’re visiting and your mode of travel, you actually might not get to see many local train or bus stations. (Alternatively, you might be sick to death of them, in which case you’ve already had these benefits, plus more). Make an effort to check out a few of the largest train or bus stations in the city you’re visiting.

Why? These are where everyday people do everyday life. You’ll see the different classes of people who use public transport and where they’re going, and at a large train station you can ogle the long lists of exotic destinations that could tempt you to change your plans.

Some train stations in particular can be architectural marvels. In Moscow or Saint Petersburg, the underground train stations are artworks that can make up a half-day excursion. Newer bus stations can also be full of interesting shops, exhibits and viewing platforms.

#4: Supermarkets

Plenty of long-term travelers already have local supermarkets on their must-see lists. They’re great places both to pick up some cheap supplies, and to learn about local customs. If you’re traveling to a foreign country for the first time, I’d reserve a morning for a thorough exploration of a large supermarket. You’ll be amazed to discover unusual fruits and vegetables, familiar branded products with funny, unfamiliar labels, and there are always a handful of products that you can barely describe, let alone identify.

I love to spend a lunchtime in a new city having a supermarket picnic – but the rule is to buy as many items as possible that I really can’t identify. Find a peaceful park bench and let your taste buds explore the city too.

Grave Keeper, Warsaw Jewish Cemetery © Roman Poretski ‘chagabunga

#5: Cemeteries

I don’t mean this in a morbid way. Cemeteries are just really fascinating places. There are, of course, a couple of really famous cemeteries that have made it onto the tourist route –the Père-Lachaise Cemetery of Paris springs immediately to mind – but it’s also worthwhile to visit lesser known cemeteries in the city you’re visiting.

When you’re at a cemetery, take a look around at the ages and names of the dearly departed. You might discover some sad childhood deaths, some couples who slipped away together, or even the odd celebrity. Taking a gentle stroll around a cemetery is a great way to spend an hour or two on a quiet afternoon, away from crowds.

So when you next travel, take your camera, or a notebook, or just a really open mind, and explore these otherwise ordinary places. These are the kinds of experiences that will provide you with stories to tell your friends back home, and give you ideas about the local way of life that you might not otherwise find.

Does anyone have another ordinary kind of place that they like to visit when they’re on the road? Let us know in the comments.

I’ve made a lot of mistakes in that time. Like, a lot. (Bah … this Twitter thing’ll never catch on!) But thankfully it’s taught me a lot too. While I can’t tell you everything I’ve learned (because I’ve forgotten much of it), here are the ten most important things I think every travel blogger should know …

Travel bloggings are hard © Mike Richard

#1: This Ain’t No ‘4-Hour Work Week’: Blogging Is F**king Hard Work

When people ask me, “So whaddaya do for work?” That’s a tough one because travel blogging is just like any other you’re-your-own-boss-now gig. You are your website’s sales team, accounting department, writer, editor, photographer (usually), secretary, social media strategist, customer service department, “corporate” planner, web designer and developer (almost always). You wear every hat in the company.

To fully run a travel blog is insanely hard work. It will often occupy every waking second of your days in some fashion. Even when you’re not writing or photographing, you’ll be thinking about writing and photographing. I work much harder now than I ever did at my former corporate gig. Some days are a long, hard slog – almost mind-numbingly so. I’ve wanted to quit many times. But remember: most people do quit, which just leaves room for the remaining 1% of us to thrive!

(All that being said, I wouldn’t return to my old desk job for five times the money!)

#2: You Can’t Go It Alone: It’s All About Connections

One of the most important steps to being successful online … is getting offline. Step out from behind the keyboard and connect at real world events, conferences, meetups, and trade shows as often as possible.

TBEX and the just recently ended TBU are obvious examples, but there are fast becoming others. For local meetups in your area, check out the aptly named Meetup.com as well as Eventbrite. Or research professional travel industry groups on Facebook and Linkedin to coordinate corresponding offline events.

Five minutes spent connecting offline with others in the industry is more valuable and productive than countless e-mails, Twitter replies, and Skype calls.

Nooooo! Don’t go it alone! © Mike Richard

#3: Take Your Site Seriously (Stop Treating It Like a Hobby)

You’re probably gunning to travel the world indefinitely and/or become location independent, right? If you’d like for your blog to serve as the ladder to get you there, start treating it like a real business. Outline a business plan (here’s a good place to start) with definable goals and step-by-step strategies to achieve them.

Take account of your accounting. Even if it’s just a simple balance sheet to understand where you’re spending money and where you’re earning it. It’s the only way to visualize what’s working and what isn’t.

Create an editorial and/or social media calendar that clearly outlines what tasks you’ll do on which days and how much time you’ll spend doing them. Stick to it as best you can.

#4: Do Unto Others: You Get What You Give

Remember “A rising tide lifts all boats”? Be cooperative, not competitive, by helping promote other websites and blogs. Remember: they are not your competition, but your colleagues.

Porn and LOL cat videos notwithstanding, travel is still the single largest online niche and (god willing) will continue to be for the foreseeable future. There’s plenty of space here for all of us. Share advertisers, press trip leads, web development and SEO tips, etc. with other bloggers and kindly ask that they do the same.

JD says: “YAAAAY, I’m a unique flower!” © Mike Richard

#5: Have Something Unique to Say: You Are Your Brand

Have a voice – a unique voice. With regard to the actual *blogging* aspect of running a travel blog, this is the single most important and deciding factor of your success.

Be funny, quirky, angry (kidding, Dave), self-effacing, witty, gregarious, or just ridiculous … anything that conveys your personality authentically. Don’t be another “me-too” voice among the thousands of blogs just launched this hour. Be unique and people will take notice.

(Tip: maintain your voice consistently across every one of your social media channels)

#6: Get Real! You’re Not Going to Get Rich (Sorry)

(My mommy says that I should toot my own horn more often, so what the hell …) Vagabondish is, in many ways, a successful travel blog. We average a few hundred thousand visitors each month and have been fortunate enough to connect with a sizable social media following. But it’s not likely to ever make me financially “rich”. And your travel blog probably won’t do the same for you either, no matter how successful you are.

[cue sad Hulk music ...]

Sorry, I’m not trying to piss in your Cheerios or dissuade you from starting your own travel blog. But if your primary measure of travel blogging success is your bank account, you’re destined to fail by your own standards anyway. However, if success for you is working a job that you love – a job that funds your long-term travel dreams and frees you from the “normal” 9-to-5 – then travel blogging might just be for you.

#7: Ditch Your Template! (… and Invest in a Custom Website Design)

You know what they say about first impressions. It’s true: a good, unique, eye-popping design for your website is worth every penny. Well, if you’re not a designer, that’s OK. But, for the love of god, don’t attempt to design your own site. The “I bought a WordPress template and reswizzled it myself!” days of being good enough are over. Advertisers, PR firms, tourism boards, et. al. have caught on.

So pay a professional to design it for you. It will likely be the largest financial investment you make in your site. But it will also be the most important and continue paying for itself for years to come.

It surprises people to learn that Vagabondish is primarily a one-man show. I’m the only full-time employee, yet the design often leads advertisers and press to believe that it’s a full-blown team (“Dear sir, can you please connect me to the head of your marketing department?”). I credit this almost entirely to the professional design.

Another surprising fact: in more than six years of blogging, I’ve never once had to actively seek out, approach, or cold call new advertisers. Again, I attribute much of that to the design as well.

This is me, focusing … on the long-term

#8: Focus on the Long Term: Building a Following

With an insanely detailed level of web and social media metrics available, it’s easy to disappear down the rabbit hole of daily (or hourly) analytics-checking. Don’t do that. Seriously … knock it off! It’ll drive you crazy, especially when you’re just getting started. And it’s completely unproductive.

Until you’re tracking more than, say, 5,000 monthly uniques, don’t bother pouring over the minutia of Google Analytics (install it, but don’t pay attention to it).

Instead, focus on long-term growth: building a loyal following on your blog, on social media, and at offline events. It’s important not to confuse “big traffic” with “having a big following”. Building a true loyal following/audience means convincing your readers that your site is worth coming back. Over time (remember: long term!), this converts to steady, sustainable traffic numbers, which in turn converts to advertising dollars.

And to do all that, simply focus on the other 9 tips in this post!

Travel blogger and arrogant, douchebag extraordinaire, Mike Richard

#9: Be Confident (but Not Arrogant)

Be confident in your writing, your voice, your site, and ultimately yourself. Act big, act like an expert, like an influential player in the online travel “sphere” and people will take notice.

It goes without saying that there’s a distinct line between arrogance and confidence. Of course you need the knowledge to back it up.

But, when you’re confident, you’re much more likely to …

#10: Just Ask

This is the single best piece of advice I can give you. Don’t worry whether you have the traffic, the Twitter followers, or the right Klout score. Almost anyone can land press trips, new advertisers, guest posts from other bloggers, etc. But you won’t know unless you ask.

The first month after I quit my day job (with only a fraction of Vagabondish’s current audience), I pitched three providers regarding potential press trips. And landed all three almost immediately. Mind you, I was convinced that I wouldn’t land any of them, but decided to ask anyway. And you should too.

Ask for more advertising dollars than you think you can get; ask for that all-expense paid media trip to the North Pole; ask a “six-figure” blogger friend if you can guest post for them (or they for you); ask to be a panelist at a travel blogging conference and share your personal area of expertise with the community; ask for help with designing your website (and offer to exchange content, links, advertising space, etc. in return).

The bottom line is: ask!

Bloggers are a tight-knit, friendly group of folks for the most part. Well, the good ones are anyway – the ones you actually want to associate with – because they recognize that we are all colleagues, not competition.

The worst thing you’ll get is … no response at all. But even then, you’re probably on that person’s radar.

The second worst thing? They reply with a polite, “No thanks.” And then you’re definitely on their radar. Plus they actually took the time to e-mail you back which means that, at the very least, they likely considered your offer before declining.

Whether you’re just a brand new travel blogger or a seasoned vet, what lessons have you learned the hard way? Let me know in the comments below!