Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for international travel
Capitals of Culture in 2022
By Linda Tancs
As noted in last year’s post on the subject of European Capitals of Culture, the title holders have been shuffled around a bit given the lack of festivities during the COVID pandemic. This year’s title holders are Novi Sad, Kaunas and Esch. Interestingly, all three cities are the second-largest in their country. On the banks of the Danube, the city of Novi Sad in Serbia boasts a colorful thoroughfare known as Dunavska Street and a fortress nicknamed Gibraltar on the Danube. Lithuania’s Kaunas is known for its artistic flair, including unique modernist architecture. One of its most famous sons is George Maciunas, who founded the experimental art movement known as Fluxus. Esch in Luxembourg is known as a metropolis of iron ore, a symbol of the country’s steel industry. It’s part of the region known as the Land of the Red Rocks (also known as the “Minett”), a nod to the bright red iron ore that gives the earth its color.
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The Capital of the Cotswolds
By Linda Tancs
Known as the “Capital of the Cotswolds,” Cirencester began its life as Corinium Dobunnorum, the capital of the Roman province of Britannia Prima. As you can imagine, there have been tremendous finds boasting of the city’s Roman heritage. In fact, with the exception of London, Cirencester’s mosaic collection is one of the largest in England. You can view those treasures, part of the country’s finest collections of Roman antiquities, at Corinium Museum in the heart of this market town. The exhibits run the gamut from prehistoric to modern day, including agriculture, costume, paper ephemera and social history.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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A Circle of Love in Cork
By Linda Tancs
The Irish Potato Famine, also known as the Great Hunger, was a period of mass starvation and disease in Ireland from 1845 to 1852. During such a time of great need, the American Chocktaw Nation donated money to the famine fund to assist those suffering from malnutrition. In recognition of their generosity, a monument was erected in Midleton, County Cork, known as “Kindred Spirits.” Made of marine-grade stainless steel, it features nine 20-foot-high eagle feathers representing the tribe, weighing 1,600 pounds each, which form a perfect circle. LED lights illuminate the poignant sculpture at night. You’ll find it in Bailic Park.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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A City’s Living Room
By Linda Tancs
Many libraries are cherished meeting places, but in Helsinki, Finland, they’ve taken it to a new level. Billed as a living room for residents, Oodi is a relatively new library in the heart of the city. A third of its space is reserved for books. So what, you may wonder, is the rest used for? Well, there’s a cinema. And a recording studio. And a photography and video studio. Work spaces. Meeting rooms. A children’s playground. If you’d like to just sit down with a good book and a ubiquitous cup of Finnish coffee (they do, after all, consume the most coffee in the world per capita), then you can head to Book Heaven on the top floor. Both guided and self-guided tours are available.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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All Aboard the Christmas Train
By Linda Tancs
All aboard the U.K.’s first Christmas train of lights! This seasonal event in Devon begins at Queen’s Park Station, Paignton, where a steam train with vintage carriages is festooned with thousands of lights, both inside and out. The light show intensifies past Churston Station, where you will be propelled through 1,500 feet of greenway tunnel leading to an enchanted forest transformed by a multitude of lights and displays. After a turnaround at Kingswear, you’ll have an opportunity to disembark and take photographs from the platform before you head back to Paignton to experience the spectacle from a different direction.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Scotland’s Highest Village
By Linda Tancs
At about 1,532 feet above sea level, Wanlockhead is Scotland’s highest village. For many centuries, lead mining was the mainstay of its economy. In fact, in the 1600s the Duke of Buccleuch built a smelting plant and workers’ cottages to support year-round production. Lead wasn’t the only treasure there, however. The area also yielded zinc, copper, silver and gold. Interestingly, some of the world’s purest gold was found there and used in the Regalia of the Scottish Crown. No wonder the area became known as “God’s treasure house.” As one would expect, the Museum of Lead Mining tells the story of the local industry. The museum experience includes a guided tour of the Lochnell Lead Mine, the miners’ cottages and a gold panning area.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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The Dark Hedges
By Linda Tancs
Who would’ve thought that an avenue of beech trees planted in the 18th century would become a filming location in the epic series Game of Thrones? The locale is The Dark Hedges in Northern Ireland, a story-book scene if ever there were one. Planted by the Stuart family, the cascade of trees was intended to be a stunning landscaped entrance to their Georgian mansion, Gracehill House. Today it’s an iconic tourist attraction along pedestrianized Bregagh Road between Armoy and Stranocum in County Antrim.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Dragons and Waterfalls in Java
By Linda Tancs
The Global Geoparks Network is a collection of sites of international geological significance. One of those geoparks is Ciletuh-Palabuhanratu Geopark in West Java, Indonesia. The oldest rocks in the park were formed by the subduction process between the Eurasian and the Indian Ocean tectonic plates. One of its unique structures is a rocky complex called Dragon Spine Rock, representing the oldest sedimentary deposits in West Java. It’s located in the southern part of the park, where you’ll also find steep cliffs featuring spectacular waterfalls like Awang, Java’s version of Niagara. Cliffside spots are perfect for shutterbugs.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Huguenot History
By Linda Tancs
Huguenots were French Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who fled religious persecution. Overall, nearly 180,000 found homes elsewhere around the world. Many of them escaped to Britain, contributing crafts, skills and trades that formed the basis of the modern economy. Britain’s only museum of Huguenot history is located in Rochester. Many of the items on display are from the nearby French Hospital, founded in 1718 as a charity for poor Huguenot refugees. The museum also offers an ancestry research service, considering that one in six English people may be of Huguenot descent.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Crete’s Egyptian Lighthouse
By Linda Tancs
The lighthouse of Chania in Crete is one of Greece’s oldest lighthouses, not to mention one of the oldest in the world. The telltale sign of its 16th-century Venetian origin is the base. Rebuilt in the 1800s in the form of a minaret, it’s often referred to as the “Egyptian lighthouse” because it was refashioned during a time of Egyptian occupation when Crete was rebelling against Ottoman control. An icon of the city, it stands at the entrance of the city’s old harbor.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
Travelrific® Travel Journal 