Biz Class on Points/Heat Danger in Europe/Contemporary Wonders

I knew I had a long flight back from Asia coming up this fall and didn’t want to face it in economy class. So last May I connected with MileMethod to get help with a strategy to earn enough frequent flyer miles to get back in lie-flat business class. Four credit card signup bonuses and 471,000 points later, we’ll now return in comfort all the way from Ho Chi Minh City to Mexico City via Seoul, then a quick hop in economy to my home in Guanajuato, Mexico. This $9,757 itinerary cost us $444 in taxes + 260,000 points. I doubt I could have pulled this off on my own, especially since it involved an Amex transfer bonus, a Chase transfer, and booking on an airline that wasn’t either one we’re flying with.

Since I travel so often, I don’t actually listen to many travel podcasts. The exception is the Zero To Travel Podcast hosted by Jason Moore. He always pulls the best travel and life lessons from his guests, whether it’s travel legends like Rick Steves and Samantha Brown or everyday people pursuing an unconventional life built around travel or living abroad. It highlights lesser-known destinations, travel trends that will save you time and money, and ideas to help you add more travel into your life. Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or just search “Zero To Travel” in your preferred podcast app.

You might not want to bring up this factoid at a family dinner in Germany, where only 6% of homes have air conditioning, but more people die from heat in Europe each year than from gun violence in the USA. This is partly because of global warming and partly due to historic cultural opposition to A/C—outside of Spain and Italy at least. The toll has been especially bad in France this year. Public Health France logged 8,973 deaths for the week of June 22, cautioning that the number was still only a partial count. The preliminary total was 6,948 deaths registered for the previous week of June 15 to June 21. Since then it has gotten even hotter. At least the Seine is clean enough to swim in now.

The World Travel and Tourism Council announced that it is starting the process to choose the 7 Contemporary Wonders of the World next year and nominations opened yesterday. This is meant to “identify and celebrate the landmarks and buildings created since 1801 that have had the greatest impact on Travel & Tourism, local communities and economic development, and continue to redefine the future of destinations around the world.” See more details and have your say here.

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