While most tourism-boards attempt to craft clever promotions to lure travelers, there’s nothing like actual residents opening their doors and inviting you to experience their home in a unique way. It’s sincere and it’s welcoming. It makes you want to visit. That’s what Iceland is doing. Their Inspired by Iceland campaign brilliantly brings together local residents, the president and other government officials to send a simple message – “Come to our home and let us show you what Iceland has to offer.”

Last week, President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson kicked off the campaign by inviting tourists into his home for pancakes, whipped cream and rhubarb jam. He’s also encouraging citizens to join the movement and invite visitors for an experience unique to Iceland. As Frosti Jonsson who has agreed to open his home says, “We are very proud to be Icelandic and we are very happy to share our way of life and our country’s beauty to adventurers that choose to visit us. We want to make their experience as real as possible; we want them to ‘be Icelandic’ while they’re here.” This seems like an awesome way to experience Iceland. Click Read More for additional information and to view the President’s short message. Also, don’t forget to visit Inspired by Iceland to view Icelanders’ invitations to experience the country like a local.

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People watching is one of my favorite travel activities. In fact, a friend and I were just discussing our enjoyment of parachuting into an unknown place and sitting there for hours watching locals. So, if you’re like us get ready. Design firm, Studio Weave just completed a 324 meter bench in the UK’s Littlehampton. Serving both art and function, the bench can seat 300 people and there’s word that it may be extended to 621 meters shortly. It also consists of two bronze shelters that house the spiral turns and twists that make this installation really beautiful. Click Read More to view additional information and photos.

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We’ve been plotting to make a trip to Iceland for ages. There’s something mysterious and exciting about the destination. I remember being at a barbeque one summer and a friend of ours was selling everything he had so that he could go there to quietly make music outside the din of NYC. That was my first memory where I thought I have to check this place out. The second is the following video by Inspired by Iceland.

Sure there’s been tons of news about Iceland’s volcano, ash and how to pronounce its name. But I think the Inspired by Iceland project does an excellent job of redirecting this media coverage to all the positives. As they describe it: “The eruption in Eyjafjallajökull has given Iceland media attention like never before. The downside of course is that people are nervous about coming to Iceland at the moment. Some think that the whole land is covered with ash and that Iceland is in a state of emergency. The truth is that only a very small part of Iceland is being influenced by the eruption. This is of course a big challenge for Iceland because tourism is a big and important part of the Icelandic economy. For that reason the Icelandic state has teamed up with the tourism industry to get the true message across about Iceland.” Click Read More for additional information and to watch the video.

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This project is awe-inspiring. Favela Painting is a concept conceived by dutch artists Jeroen Koolhaas and Dre Urhahn to create community driven art interventions in Brazil with the goal of transforming communities into landmarks and inspirational monuments as a part of Rio’s image. Their initial efforts in 2006 took the duo to Vila Cruzeiro – one of Rio’s most notorious slums – where they painted two beautiful murals in collaboration with the local community. Today we have news of their most recent work, Praça Cantão.

As they report: “Our latest work in Rio de Janeiro [is] called Praça Cantão and spans over 34 houses, covering 7000 square meters. We are slowly moving towards our goal: painting an entire favela and we’re getting closer and closer. Over the last month, Praça Cantão, the square at the entrance of the community of Dona Marta was turned into a vibrant artwork of monumental scale. 34 houses on the giant hillside favela, located in the center of Rio de Janeiro, have been painted in a design of colorful rays, radiating into the city…” Click Read More for additional information and photos.

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The Za Koenji Public Theatre stylishly stands out against Tokyo’s straight-lined urban fare. Located in the center of Suginami and dedicated to the performing arts, the building is home to the Creative Theatre Network – non-profit organization led by Ren Saito. Its purpose is to produce, present and support a range of cultural activities for the local community with the hopes of enabling people of all ages to see and take part in many art forms – from drama and dance to music and storytelling. Click Read More for additional information and photos.

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Written by Elsa Brown: Surfers, swimmers and sunbathers at Sydney’s Bondi Beach were recently surprised with the unexpected offer of a good book. In celebration of 30 years of their Billy bookcase, our favorite Scandinavian furniture superstore, IKEA, set up thirty Billy’s stocked with reading in the sand on a recent afternoon. Beachgoers were invited to take a book, and encouraged to swap one of their own, or make a donation to the Australian Literacy and Numeracy Foundation. Click Read More for additional information and photos.

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Last week 329 hot air balloons set off into the skies for the largest gathering of its kind – the Loraine Mondial Air Balloon Rally, held in Chambley France. Seeing one balloon in flight is beautiful, but seeing this many is awe-inspiring. Luckily the flickr community caught it all. If you’re looking for a brief mental escape or some travel inspiration, check out their Loraine Mondial photo group. Click Read More for additional information and photos.

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