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Is There Anything That's Recession-Proof?
Virgin Galactic, part of Richard Branson's Virgin Group, has collected $40 million in deposits from would-be space tourists like physicist Stephen Hawking and ex-racing driver Niki Lauda and plans to start the trips within 2 years. Virgin Galactic sees these commercial trips as opening up more possibilities. In 20 years Galactic's aircraft could transport passengers outside the atmosphere on long-haul trips - Britain to Australia in 2 1/2 hours. The company claims seeing Earth from space transforms peoples' attitudes. Reducing the cost of a space flight from millions to $200,000 certainly shows a transformation in Virgin Galactic's attitude.
The Saleen S7 is the first supercar made in America, specifically in Irvine, California. It has 750 horsepower, can go 0 to 60 in 2.8 seconds and has a top speed of 200 mph. For sports car lovers that is the good news. The bad news is this street-legal car with exposed wheels and aerodynamic styling costs $550,000. Because it is hand-built, only 12 are made a year; and it takes at least 8 months to get to the top of the waiting list. Obviously, you have to be a very good sport to own a Saleen S7 sports car.
"Pet Airways" agrees with many travelers who think that their pets don't receive enough respect when traveling. That is why Pet Airways is a pet-only airline being launched in July 2009 to 5 cities - Los Angeles, New York, Washington, Chicago and Denver. All the people comforts have been removed from the Beechcraft planes and replaced with pet cages. There are different areas for cats and dogs - but there is no first class. However, each "pawsenger" will have a pet attendant to see to its needs. With fares - including food and water - starting at $149 each way, Pet Airways doesn't think this is a fly-by-night idea.
Lucha VaVoom is the hybrid name for a vaudeville-like, variety show that has traveled to San Francisco and Amsterdam and is home-based in Los Angeles. Lucha refers to "lucha libre", the Mexican freestyle wrestling in which the masked contenders occasionally fall into the crowd. The wrestling matches are shorter than in Mexico to make time for the VaVoom parts of the 2-hour show - the burlesque dancing and striptease. Emceed in both English and Spanish and billed as "sexo y violencia", the show is looking for a second home base - Las Vegas would be a good bet.
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