San Diego officials are using guano-eating bacteria to try and fix the odour problem in La Jolla brought on by thick layers an excess of bird poop.SAM HODGSON/The New York Times
The week's strange travel news.
La Jolla no longer for the birds
A smelly episode for the normally tourist-friendly San Diego, Calif., neighbourhood of La Jolla is over. Gulls and cormorants had befouled the cliffs at La Jolla Cove with their droppings, but the city hired a San Rafael-based firm called Blue Eagle last month to stop the stench with an odour-eating application of bacillus bacteria. "They're getting it on pretty thick," said parks board spokesman Bill Harris. "We're noticing an improvement by noticing nothing," added local realtor Patrick Ahern. As they say, you don't know what you've got till it's guano.
Mayflower madness
Plymouth, England, is famed as the departure point for the Mayflower, which brought the Pilgrims to North America, but its reputation is under attack. Harwich, an obscure town on Britain's east coast, claims it's where the Mayflower was constructed (likely, but unverified), and plans to recreate the vessel for $3.3-million. It'll sail across the Atlantic Ocean in 2020, the 400th anniversary of the historic journey. Harwich says the Mayflower only left from Plymouth because an accompanying ship called the Speedwell had to stop there for repairs. Plymouth, however, has already announced it'll invite British royalty and U.S. presidents to celebrate there in 2020. It's a silly dispute. Real historians agree that the Pilgrims took the Concorde
Ryanair catering to frill-seekers?
You can call Ryanair a lot of things, but don't call it "no-frills." That's the official word from the Irish budget airline's spokesman, Robin Kiely. "The claim that Ryanair is a 'no-frills' airline is entirely misleading and outdated, given that we offer all-leather seats, reserved seating, industry-leading punctuality, online check-in and on-board catering for those who wish to avail of it," proclaimed Kiely in a letter sent to several publications. But isn't it weird for all-leather seats to have frills?
Sources: San Diego Union-Tribune, Wall Street Journal, The Telegraph.