The ‘magic bus’ that survived the Southern California wildfires
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In travel news this week: the world’s 50 best cities according to Time Out, huge religious festivals in Italy and India, plus the little blue bus that faced down wildfires and is ready to hit the road.
‘Beacon of hope’
In one of the most striking images to emerge from the unfolding tragedy of the Los Angeles wildfires, a bright blue vintage Volkswagen van stands out miraculously untouched amid the destruction in Malibu.
The van’s owner, surf and skateboard designer Megan Krystle Weinraub, says her friends have always referred to the lucky vehicle as “the magic bus.”
“I just can’t believe that … my bus is the only thing that survived on the street that I walked by with my dog like every single day,” she told CNN’s Erin Burnett. “I’m speechless to see all the houses burnt, and I can’t believe that Azul the bus — that’s what we named it — survived,” she said.
The 1977 van, which she named after the Spanish word for “blue,” was previously owned by her friend Preston Martin, who lived in it for a year. The pair had gone surfing in the iconic leisure wagon the Sunday before the fires erupted, parking it in the Malibu neighborhood, reported The Associated Press.
“It’s so cool that it’s become this, like, beacon of hope,” Martin said. “Everything around it was toasted, just destroyed. And then here’s this bright blue shiny van, sitting right there,” Martin told AP.
World’s best cities
Publishing giant Time Out has revealed its 50 best cities for 2025, and an African city with a jaw-dropping natural setting, colorful architecture and its very own penguin colony is top of the list.
However, some of the very deserving names in its ranking — such as Lisbon, Amsterdam and Barcelona — are already swamped with visitors, so we have some other suggestions that didn’t make the cut on Time Out’s roundup.
Ho Chi Minh City is the lively commercial heart of Vietnam, where embracing the pandemonium is part of the fun.
Almaty in Kazakhstan was once a drab Soviet metropolis but is emerging as Central Asia’s new capital of cool.
In Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh is known as the “Paris of Appalachia” and offers a warm welcome to its hilly city filled with Golden Age architecture.
When exploring new neighborhoods as a tourist, it’s always wise to be security-conscious. Our partners at CNN Underscored, a product reviews and recommendations guide owned by CNN, have this roundup of the best money belts on the market.
Religious journeys
More than 35 million people are predicted to visit Rome in 2025 as its year-long Catholic Jubilee celebrations get underway. The highlight for pilgrims is the chance to walk through the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.
Watch here as CNN takes a Vespa tour around the city to see the preparations.
Over in India, the world’s largest religious festival is taking place in the city of Prayagraj. The Maha Kumbh Mela celebration lasts six weeks and is expected to draw 400 million visitors, many of whom will have come to bathe in the sacred waters where three holy rivers meet. See the awesome spectacle in this video.
In case you missed it
Pakistan’s national airline is in trouble over a disturbing social media ad.
The poorly judged graphic appears to evoke a terror attack on Paris.
Italy is going to need proof that your hotel was really that bad.
The country is expected to pass a law to help make review sites more truthful.
Her husband died after they moved to Spain.
Now this American woman says she’s determined to live their dream.
Two strangers got stuck on a train for two days in 1990.
Here’s how they ended up married.
CNN’s Dalia Faheid contributed to this report.
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