Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Author Archive
Capitals of Culture in 2025
By Linda Tancs
In keeping with tradition, we begin the New Year with an announcement on the European Capitals of Culture for 2025: Chemnitz in Germany and Nova Gorica in Slovenia. Chemnitz is the third-largest city in the German state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden. Over 100 projects and 1,000 events are planned for the year. One of their flagship features is the Purple Path art and sculpture trail, an exhibition featuring over 30 international contemporary art works in public spaces. Nova Gorica is a town in western Slovenia bordering Italy. The key word for their festivities is “borderless,” a commitment to being the European Capital of Borderless Culture in partnership with the Italian town of Gorizia. Highlights include the first permanent cross-border dance ensemble in the town’s history as well as the launch of Europe’s first cross-border bee trail, an area along the border with locations where bee-friendly plants have been planted. More than 30 restaurants and bars in Gorizia and Nova Gorica have put together a menu of dishes based on honey products.
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New Year, New Travels!
No doubt you’d like your trip planning, packing, and travel experience to be hassle-free. My book, All You Want to Know About Travel, will guide you, step by step, on every aspect of travel planning. The book is divided into five parts. Part I discusses trip planning and preparation. Part II is your guide to travel packing and baggage information. Part III contains a discussion of air travel basics such as check-in tips, airline liability, parking and transportation, and comfort during flight. Part IV deals with your arrival and travel experience. Part V contains useful tips on navigating customs and settling back into the home routine. Throughout the book you’ll find a Chapter Overview to highlight its contents and Resources at the end of each chapter, directing you to websites for further guidance.
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Art Without Boundaries
By Linda Tancs
The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art is a museum in a converted Arnold Print Works factory building complex located in North Adams, Massachusetts. Listed in the National Historic Register, 25 of the site’s current 26 buildings were constructed by the late 19th century by the factory, once one of the world’s leading producers of printed textiles. The venue boasts an elaborate system of interlocking courtyards and passageways rich with historical association. The vast campus allows the presentation of art without boundaries, featuring an array of music, sculpture, dance, film, painting, photography and theater as well as works that defy classification. The facility celebrated its 25th anniversary earlier this year.
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New Travel Authorization for UK
By Linda Tancs
The U.K. Government recently announced the next phase in the implementation of the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA). An ETA gives visitors permission to travel to the United Kingdom. By April 2025, all visitors who do not need a visa will need an ETA to travel to the U.K. It will be linked to the traveler’s passport and will last for two years or until the passport expires – whichever comes first. An ETA for American visitors will be required to enter the U.K. starting January 8, 2025. A decision on the application for authorization should arrive within three working days.
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Museum of the Dog
By Linda Tancs
The American Kennel Club Museum of the Dog in New York City boasts a collection of art and exhibits celebrating the role of dogs in society. The permanent collection is touted as one of the finest in the world and features paintings, watercolors, drawings, prints, ceramics and bronzes and well as trophies, collars and other dog-related works. You can also view a database of award-winning breeders. The facility is located in the iconic Kalikow building on Park Avenue.
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A Christmas Story House
By Linda Tancs
A Christmas Story is a beloved 1983 American Christmas comedy film. Not only can you enjoy the movie but you can also enjoy the house where it was filmed. Open year round, A Christmas Story House in Cleveland, Ohio, is also available for overnight stays. Across the street is A Christmas Story Museum, which features original props, costumes and memorabilia from the film as well as hundreds of rare behind-the-scenes photos.
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The Snotgreen Sea
By Linda Tancs
The Forty Foot is a promontory on the southern tip of Dublin Bay at Sandycove, County Dublin, Ireland, from which people have been swimming in the Irish Sea (dubbed “the snotgreen sea” by author James Joyce) all year round for some 250 years. It’s a bit of a tradition to take a dip on Christmas Day, if you dare, considering that the temperature may be in the single digits. To get there, jump on the Dart (train) from Dublin city centre, get out at Dún Laoghaire and walk all along the coast to Sandycove beach and the Forty Foot.
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The Story of War in the Pacific
By Linda Tancs
Fredericksburg, Texas, was the boyhood home of Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz. Nimitz served as commander in chief, United States Pacific Fleet and later named commander in chief, Pacific Ocean Areas, during World War II. So it is fitting that the city hosts the National Museum of the Pacific War, which provides the nation’s most comprehensive account of World War II in the Asiatic-Pacific theater. The campus offers a history of the war as well as a vast collection of artifacts and personal stories of people who lived and died during the Pacific War.
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Nine Ladies in Derbyshire
By Linda Tancs
The Nine Ladies is a standing stone circle located on Stanton Moor in Derbyshire in the English East Midlands. Dating to the Bronze Age, it is thought to depict a folk tale concerning nine ladies turned to stone as a penalty for dancing on Sunday. Actually, there were 10 ladies; one stone was discovered on its side in 1977. Although the circle’s purpose is unknown, it is not uncommon for formations of this sort to have been used as a meeting place, landmark, or place of ceremony or burial. The site can be accessed via a number of footpaths depending upon your start point. Formal car parking is available just outside of Birchover, less than a mile from the circle.
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New York City’s Smallest Museum
By Linda Tancs
New York City’s smallest museum is housed in a freight elevator in Tribeca. Known as Mmuseumm (two extra “m” letters at the beginning and end of the word “museum”), its goal is to showcase everyday objects from around the world. Beyond the utilitarian, though, the museum features quirky artifacts as well, like the shoe thrown at President George W. Bush in Baghdad. Although not open to visitors year round, it is nonetheless visible around the clock through viewing windows. The installation is located at 4 Cortlandt Alley, which is perhaps better known as a go-to location for filming movies and TV shows.
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Sasquatch of the Southeast
By Linda Tancs
Often thought of as Florida’s Bigfoot, the skunk ape is rumored to live in the Everglades near Ochopee. At Shealy’s Official Skunk Ape Headquarters in Ochopee, you’ll meet self-proclaimed skunk ape expert Dave Shealy. His outpost is one of America’s top roadside attractions. You might not see the giant ape himself, but the sanctuary offers a close-up look at Florida’s fascinating wildlife, including live pythons, alligators and snapping turtles. Make a reservation for an Everglades tour.
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