Austria’s Klimaticket Tattoo Initiative Offers Lifetime Public Transport Pass for a Tattoo

Tattoos and graffiti cause trouble in Europe. A baby giraffe is born without spots at a Tennessee zoo – plus, we want to hear from you if you’re currently chasing your lost luggage with a tracking device.

Think before you ink.

You’ve probably heard the adage, “There are no bad ideas.”

But that was before Austria’s climate minister endorsed a campaign to give people a year’s free public transport if they got the rail card logo tattooed on their body.

The backlash was swift, reports Salzburger Nachrichten, after music festival attendees were invited to turn their flesh into a permanent billboard for the Klimaticket (“Climate Ticket”), which usually costs just over 1,000 euros for unlimited rail, bus, tram, and metro travel throughout the country. That translates to about 1,080 dollars – or, you know, two to five treatments for laser tattoo removal.

The Italian city of Florence was also struck by foolhardy inking this week. Two German tourists were arrested for spraying Munich soccer-related graffiti on the 460-year-old Vasari Corridor leading up to the Uffizi Galleries. The museum director calls for “an iron fist of the law.”

Brace yourself

Summer is heaving its final gasps in the Northern Hemisphere, and travelers are hitting the airports to make the most of those precious last rays. Vacationers should prepare for plenty of company come Labor Day weekend, especially if they’re venturing internationally.

And if you feel like you’re spending more time trekking around the airport concourse these days, you’re right – and here’s why. To ease the pain, though, our partners at CNN Underscored, a product reviews and recommendations guide owned by CNN, have put together this roundup of comfortable and affordable sandals.

We feel your pain if you’ve recently made a journey, but your baggage has yet to join you. And if you’re currently following your lost luggage with an AirTag or a similar tracking device – and the airline hasn’t yet returned it to you – then CNN Travel would like to hear from you. Drop us a line at [email protected] with the details, and you could be featured in a future CNN story.

Baby animals

An extremely rare baby giraffe was born without spots at Brights Zoo in Tennessee on July 31. The zoo says the as-yet-unnamed calf might be the “only solid-colored reticulated giraffe living anywhere on the planet.”

In Mogo Wildlife Park in Australia, a baby gorilla was nearly dead before being rescued by a zookeeper who reared him for months like a human newborn. Now, the bouncing boy has a new adoptive gorilla mom.

Finally, in Scotland this weekend, Loch Ness monster fans are about to embark on the most enormous creature hunt for 50 years. If Nessie is in the famous lake or a whole Family Ness, the volunteers will use the latest survey equipment to find it.

Fill your plate

So it’s the weekend, what food will you order?

Perhaps you’re thinking Mexican. But beyond tacos, burritos, and salsa, there are more adventurous options to explore, such as spicy birria stew and crunchy chaplains (yes, those are grasshoppers).

Maybe you’re learning Korean. Our roundup has 39 dishes for your consideration, from chimera – the god-tier combination of fried chicken and beer – to the meal you might need the next day, a beef-rich “hangover stew.”

Or if you’re feeling like an all-time classic, there’s pizza. It doesn’t all have to be cheese and pepperoni, though. Here are 14 versions of the world’s favorite food to whet your appetite.

For climbers of Mount Everest, the hair-raising adventure begins before you even reach base camp. Lukla Airport in Nepal is the closest airfield to the famous mountain and is notoriously treacherous to fly into. A pilot explains why.