You can always trust National Geographic to pull together the kind of travel snaps that make you melt a bit inside, then stare longingly into space as you picture yourself adventuring in an unfamiliar land. The images shortlisted for its 2016 UK photography contest are no different, capturing polar bears in Svalbard, fishermen in Burma and dancers in India.
The photograph that caught our eye the most was Cindy-Lou Dale’s stunning, rainbow-hued shot of a fruit seller, taken from the balcony of the Nelson Mandela suite at the Soweto Hotel. The full selection of images can be seen on the National Geographic website and the winners will be announced at the Telegraph Outdoor Adventure and Travel Show on 13 February. @will_coldwell
More photography we like
Like something out of the mind-bending film Inception, Turkish artist Aydın Büyüktaş has created a series of addictive, vertigo-inducing images of Istanbul. Shot using a drone and collated on Photoshop, the photographs take the city and warp it into beautiful, disorientating dreamscapes. @andypietra
Not your typical action photographer, Frode Sandbech frames shots that remind us of the kind of playful snaps you pose for with your mates – just much, much better. Between photos of impressive snowboarding stunts, the Norweigan photographer’s Instagram feed is full of rather sweet images of people standing on the moon. @will_coldwell
Is it a photo? Or is it a painting? This shot of New York City’s Flatiron building by street photographer Michele Palazzo is perhaps the most eye-catching and mysterious shot we’ve seen of the city during last week’s blizzard. Many people have pointed out how much the photo resembles a 19th-century impressionist artwork. @andypietra
The coupons are on me
This week’s unlikely travel hero (and new Simon Calder?) was a young finance blogger from Essex – the Coupon Kid (Jordon Cox) – who discovered it was cheaper to get home from Sheffield by flying via Berlin, than getting a direct train. So he did it … enjoying seven hours of sightseeing, travel to and from airports and a currywurst lunch for just £44.07. Ryanair loves it (no surprise there) but for the environment’s sake, let’s hope that “doing a Jordon” doesn’t become the next travel trend. @will_coldwell
As Time magazine put it: “Everything is awesome when you’re paid to play with Legos for a living.” This week the magazine reported that Legoland Florida is looking to hire 20 “master model builders” to work at its factory, also known as “Merlin’s Magic Making Hub.” Best job in the world? @isabelchoat
The issue we’ve been debating (this morning) is an important hypothetical question raised by Hostelworld. @andypietra says Wi-Fi, @rob_hull says coffee … the jury’s out.
Loneliest Airbnb listing of the week
Everyone loves a bit of Netflix and Chill, unless it actually means lying in bed all night with someone you’ve just met watching Orange is the New Black (something that did happen to one rather disappointed friend of ours). Still, the image of an IRL Netflix and Chill room – posted on Airbnb this week by digital artist Tom Galle and the ART404 Collective – evokes a weird mixture of feelings. On one hand, it’s kind of funny, but also pretty creepy. Imagine being taken back to this place by a date?! @unsahmalik
Where were you? #ICYMI
Spain’s hot restaurants: the top new chefs and where to discover them
So is there a way to enjoy Spain’s top cuisine at more affordable prices? Yes, as it happens, by tracking down the latest generation of chefs and getting a taste of their cooking before fame (or notoriety) takes them to the next level.
Discover Dublin’s Stoneybatter, a district on the rise
Following a surge of ambivalently received gentrification, Stoneybatter has become synonymous with Dublin hipsterism. Mountain beards and craft beers are de rigueur, and you needn’t look hard to find “hot yoga” venues, art spaces and community squats.
Chimborazo peak, Ecuador: the closest place to space on Earth
I squatted down – stomach churning and head spinning. I saw a green rabbit dodge behind an ice wall. I’d hoped to think wonderful thoughts of our proximity to space, instead I was hallucinating rodents.
