Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Catacombs in Washington
By Linda Tancs
The Franciscan Monastery of the Holy Land in America has been named one of the top five places most tourists miss when sightseeing in Washington, D.C. Created as a facsimile of the Holy Land in place of international travel, it features full-size replicas of the Mount Calvary and Holy Sepulchre shrines in Jerusalem as well as reproductions of the Nazareth Annunciation and Bethlehem Nativity grottos. Below ground is equally compelling, though. That’s where you’ll find three interconnected passages recalling early Christian burials in the catacombs of ancient Rome. Cast from aggregate cement, they were built by Franciscan monks at the turn of the 20th century. Book in advance; the catacombs are only accessible via guided tour.
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Hawaii’s Largest Museum
By Linda Tancs
Touted as the premier natural and cultural history institution in the Pacific, Bishop Museum is the largest museum in Hawai’i. It was founded in 1889 by Charles Reed Bishop in honor of his late wife, Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop (the last descendant of the royal Kamehameha family) and was established to house the extensive collection of Hawaiian objects and royal family heirlooms of the princess. It has since expanded to include millions of objects, documents and photographs about Hawai‘i and other Pacific island cultures. Designated as the State Museum of Natural and Cultural History of Hawaiʻi, it also has one of the largest natural history specimen collections in the world. The facility is located near downtown Honolulu and is conveniently accessible by bus, car or taxi.
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The Old Manse
By Linda Tancs
The Old Manse is a Georgian clapboard house built in 1770 on the banks of the Concord River in Concord, Massachusetts. Constructed for patriot minister William Emerson, the upstairs overlooks North Bridge, where the Battles of Lexington and Concord (marking the beginning of the American Revolutionary War) took place. Later, the home was a source of literary inspiration for writers like Ralph Waldo Emerson and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Advance booking is recommended for a tour of the home. The grounds are accessible for free year round.
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Colonial Annapolis
By Linda Tancs
William Paca House in Annapolis, Maryland, is one of the finest 18th– century homes in the country and a National Historic Landmark. The five-part Georgian mansion was built in the 1760s for William Paca, one of Maryland’s four signers of the Declaration of Independence and the state’s third governor. Guided tours of the house feature period furnishings and paintings and include admission to the gardens, where visitors can view native and heirloom plants among the terraced landscape as well as a practical kitchen garden.
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Pioneer Square
By Linda Tancs
Seattle’s original downtown is Pioneer Square. Boasting one of the nation’s best surviving collections of Romanesque Revival-style urban architecture, today it’s the center of the city’s art scene. It’s also where you’ll find a popular tourist attraction, the network of underground passageways that were located at ground level when the city was built in the mid-19th century but fell into disuse after the streets were elevated. Guided tours are available. This walkable, historic district is conveniently located just minutes from the Seattle Waterfront, Pike Place Market and Lumen Field/T-Mobile Park.
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A Gem in Duluth
By Linda Tancs
Glensheen Mansion, perched on the shore of Lake Superior, is the most visited historic home in Minnesota. The 12-acre estate features gardens, bridges, and the famous 39-room mansion, a Jacobean gem completely intact, from the owner’s top hat to his wife’s letters and bedsheets. It was built between 1905 and 1908 for Chester and Clara Congdon, an influential family known for opening up iron mining in the Duluth region. Tours are self-guided; choose from the Classic Tour or Full Mansion Tour. The Classic Tour includes Glensheen’s most famous rooms on the first three floors; the Full Mansion tour includes all five floors of the mansion.
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The House on Ellicott Hill
By Linda Tancs
The first American flag raised in Mississippi occurred on Ellicott’s Hill in 1797. The House on Ellicott Hill is one of the first houses built in Natchez. A National Historic Landmark, it boasts a two-story structure with double galleries and canted roof and is one of the earliest territorial buildings to exhibit the definitive characteristics of the Federal style. Located on Canal Street, the house is open for groups by appointment and during Spring, Fall and Christmas tour seasons.
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St. Patrick’s Well
Named for an Irish cave in which St. Patrick prayed, St. Patrick’s Well (Pozzo di San Patrizio) is a stunning shaft in Orvieto, Italy. The well shaft is 203 feet deep and 42 feet wide, adorned by 72 windows and two staircases that meet at the bottom. It was dug at the behest of Pope Clement VII, who had taken refuge in Orvieto during the Sack of Rome in 1527, an event that saw the capture of Rome by the mutinous troops of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. You’ll find it in the center of Orvieto near gardens that include Etruscan remains.
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Ohio’s German Village
By Linda Tancs
Just south of downtown Columbus, Ohio, German Village is a historic neighborhood built by German settlers in the mid-1800s. Structures and sidewalks are orange masonry, and many streets (about half) are still constructed of brick pavers. Remarkably preserved, German Village Tours offers resident-led walking tours of the area. You can also download a map from the German Village Society.
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Victorian Splendor in Louisville
By Linda Tancs
Just south of downtown, Old Louisville in Kentucky is known for having the largest contiguous collection of Victorian-era mansions in the United States. One of its gems is the Conrad-Caldwell House Museum, a castle-like house that symbolizes the spirit and Victorian grandeur of Louisville’s Progressive Era. Constructed in 1895 by Louisville architect Arthur Loomis, the castle’s Richardsonian-Romanesque architectural style is one of the best representations in the city. You can explore the house on either a docent-led or self-guided tour.
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