The Lonely Planet Bluelist 2008
For anyone who takes their travel seriously, then The Lonely Planet Bluelist 2008 has got to be the travel book 'must-have' of the year. A perfect pick-it-up-as-you-please book, it covers everything from 2008's hippest destinations to visit, to which parts of the world may not be around much longer if we carry on treating the planet as we do (or if Mother Nature takes its toll).
There is a specialist section entitled 'Travel Islam' which covers the countries of the Islamic world (did you know that the Maldives is an Islamic nation?) and picks apart stereotypes, identifies customs, and highlights some of the greatest aspects of Islamic culture, as well as attractions, in countries you may never have thought of visiting.
I particularly like the 'Golist' of the current 'hottest' countries, regions and cities to travel to, and was amazed to find the Northeast of England in there. But according to the Lonely Planet, it seems the number 1 country to visit at the moment - to be way ahead of the game - is Armenia, and tourism is on the up (from a mere 80,000 visitors in 2000, to 400,000 for this year), so see it before everyone else does.
And where do you need to go because it may not be around for much longer? Well, the snow caps of Kilimanjaro for one, because while 'Kili' is Africa's highest mountain, its snow is expected to have melted due to the effects of global warming by 2020. And another great loss could be Australia's Great Barrier Reef, which could be gone by 2050, amid rising ocean temperatures and outpourings of sediment from Queensland rivers.
On a more positive note, the Bluelist 2008 cites some of the friendliest places in the world to visit as Ireland, Fiji, Vietnam and Malawi, amongst others. As well, it pinpoints some of the most bizarre sights to see around the planet, such as the world's largest buffalo - at 8m tall - in North Dakota, USA. Don't be silly though, it's not a real one.
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