More Dogs

We at In Your Pocket have long been advocates of euthanasia programmes for the stray, wild dogs of Eastern Europe. Romania (where we have lost advertisers over the issue) and Bulgaria are particularly badly affected.

In January 2006 a Japanese man was killed in Bucharest by a stray dog. Still very little got done.

Those who continue to support the right to life of these beats might want to read this, hot from the newswires today.

Bucharest In Your Pocket is 50

Packed with stories funny and tragic (and some which are outright bizarre) of the early days at Bucharest's best city guide, from encounters with high class hookers to encounters with low class dogs, the latest issue of Bucharest In Your Pocket looks back at the first 49 issues, the first eight years of blood, sweat and dog bites.

You can download a PDF version here, or pick up a copy of the real thing in Bucharest from December 1st.

Lithuanians: Tough. Nuts.

A Lithuanian farmer, on holidays in Germany, got left behind at a road-side stop by his 'friends'. So he walked home. In nine days he covered 200km. Eating apples and drinking from puddles. He didn't ask for help because he only speaks Lithuanian. He finally got a lift home with a truck driver from the German-Polish border. Here's the story.

Ski Ukraine

Right under the noses of the rest of Europe, Ukraine has quietly been building itself one of the continent's most modern ski resorts, Bukovel. Close to the border with Romania, Bukovel currently offers 50 kilometers of good skiing and no queues: the resort has been designed with efficiency in mind. What's more, the entire resort is covered with snow making equipment: so snow is guaranteed for five months of the year.

For more on Bukovel check out the new issue of Kyiv In Your Pocket, due out December 1st.

Capital Mistakes

We may have lost Kaliningrad, but at least we didn't move Moscow, or any other capital city. Flybe did...

Airline Commits Capital Error

Ice Hotel Romania: Ready for a White Christmas

News reaches In Your Pocket this morning that consistently freezing temperatures over the past 10 days have facilitated an early start on construction of the Ice Hotel at Balea Lac, at an altitude of 2034 metres up in Romania's Fagaras Mountains.

The hotel - the third to be built in Romania - is nothing like as luxurious as its famous counterpart in Jukkasjärvi, Sweden, but will this year feature ten spacious rooms, named after the nine planets of the solar system and... Krypton. Prices start at 178.00 leu (about €65) for a double.

As last year the hotel will also host a bar and club, and an ice church will be built in time for Orthodox Christmas, on January 7.

To reserve a room call Cabana Balea Lac on (+4)0745 07 26 02.

Tirana, Tirana

Rejoice!

A brand new edition of what is unquestionably our most popular guide, Tirana In Your Pocket, is out now!

If you can't make your way down to Albania's capital to pick up a hard copy (and if you can't, why not?), try downloading the PDF version here.

In Your Pocket: putting Albania on the map.

Rail travel: Now with added inconvenience

News yesterday that Britain will be introducing baggage checks at railway stations as part of tough new anti-terror legislation should strike fear into the heart of every rail traveler. For while some are abandoning air travel in a misguided attempts to embrace environmentalism, others are abandoning the air because of the increasing amount of inconvenience air travel involves. Tighter security at airports all over Europe has made air travel (always stressful) a genuine pain in the rear. Asked to check-in earlier and earlier to ensure that we make it through security in time for our planes, many people are looking for hassle-free alternatives, and in some cases the train can provide one.

If the same nuisances that make air travel living hell however suddenly become an unwanted feature of train travel, then there will be no alternative other than jumping in the car and driving.

Or staying at home and going nowhere: The green lobby will be delighted.

Belfast Wheel

Belfast City Hall may be closed, but its grounds now have a sparkling new tourist attraction - the Belfast Wheel. Yes - think the London Eye only smaller as 42 air-con pods spirit up to six adults and two kids 60m high on a 12min three turn trip for fab views across the city. There's even a luxury VIP gondola (£65/50) with leather interior, tinted glass, fridge, glass floor and entertainment system for up to four adults. Tickets available at the Wheel or by calling 9031 0607 or 07974 255326. For ticket prices and opening times, click here.

What our users are saying...

Since the beginning of the year, we have enabled all visitors to our website, www.inyourpocket.com, to comment on the places they visit. This week has seen a particularly bumper crop of comments come in, and not all that many of them are complimentary. The most damning is this, sent in by Steve B. of Warsaw, commenting on the Dom Restaurant Gessler in Warsaw:

"Absolutely terrible in every possible way..." (Click for the full review)

Say it loud: We love metro maps and we're proud

As someone who has always had an endless (some would say troubling) fascination with metro maps, finding this Reuters article on the subject came as something of a relief: it isn't just me...

Be warned though: reading the article will lead you on to sites such as this, containing maps of just about every underground railway in the world.

And that's when the trouble starts.

Videos

For a while now we have been scouring You Tube and similar sites to find the best and most representative videos for the cities that In Your Pocket covers. We have also been making a few of our own, such as this great Albania video made in the Summer by one of the founders of IYP, Matthias Luefkens.



Of those videos produced by others, one of our favourites is this introduction to the Romanian capital, Bucharest:



If you have a video from one of the cities we feature on our site, let us know about it. We will embed the best on our website and add them to our You Tube Channel.