| Dutch to ban foreigners from pot shops and Rule brings big drop in tarmac delays |
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(CNN) -- The Netherlands plans to ban foreigners from the country's famed pot shops, a decision Amsterdam's tourism industry hopes goes up in smoke.The Dutch Cabinet late last month said the measure was needed to "reduce nuisance and drugs tourism," arguing that "substance use of minors has to be countered more strongly and that coffee shops have grown into large points of sale of cannabis that are hard to manage."Known as the "Weed Pass," the measure will turn coffee shops into private clubs for Dutch citizens over the age of 18. The memberships will last for a minimum of a year, and each shop will have a capped number of members."Persons who do not hold Dutch citizenship will not have access to the coffee shops," the Dutch Ministry of Security and Justice said in a statement. [Read the full article] It's a touristy area but one that's really well kept is old Havana so when I haven't been for a while I get in a nice early morning or late afternoon stroll, get a cup of coffee, listen to the bands who play Buena Vista Social Club-style music, which is probably a bit touristy for Cubans but it's really nice.By far the best place is the Malecon, the sea wall. Think of it as Cuba's free bar. Every night, especially at weekends, hundreds of Cubans go down there, often with a bottle of rum, to sit on the wall. People promenade; others strum music.It's crowded and rowdy in some areas and quieter and more romantic in other spots, so depending on your mood you can pick a place that suits.There's a building called FOCSA that has a bar and restaurant at the top. I'd skip the restaurant but the view is great, so go up and have a drink and look out over the city.There's also an old Spanish colonial fort called El Morro on the other side of the bay from Havana. [Read the full article] (CNN) -- Airline satisfaction might seem like an oxymoron these days, with fees and cramped cabins making flying miserable for many people, but fliers are giving the industry better marks, a new survey finds.Passenger satisfaction with carriers has improved for the second year in a row, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2011 North America Airline Satisfaction Study released Wednesday.Despite initially balking at the automation of those tasks, passengers "now appear more satisfied with the convenience and speed that technology has enabled," said Stuart Greif, a vice president at J.D. Power and Associates.The one area where passengers aren't expressing more contentment is cost and fees. Satisfaction with base fares has declined across every airline, the study found.As the economy improves and more travelers return to the skies, many airlines have raised fares from the lower rates charged during the recession, J.D. Power and Associates said. [Read the full article] 
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