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
Experiencing Gin in Manchester
By Linda Tancs
If you’ve ever fancied becoming a master distiller for a day, then head to Manchester, England, where you’ll find The Gin Experience at The City of Manchester Distillery. Their award-winning experience guides visitors through the production facility and the art of making gin. Afterward, every guest gets the opportunity to make his or her own bespoke bottle of gin from over 50 botanical flavors. Best of all, they save guests’ recipes so that you can re-order another bottle of your unique concoction at any time.
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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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Bali’s Botanic Garden
By Linda Tancs
Bali Botanic Garden is reportedly the largest of its kind in Indonesia. Nestled in the cool, mountainous region of Bedugul in central Bali, it’s a refreshing respite from the hot and humid weather this time of year. Less than two hours away from Denpasar, the 388-acre paradise is prized for its wild orchid collection, some of which bloom year-round. It also boasts the world’s most comprehensive collection of begonias with around 100 species on display, including three endangered species unique to Bali. Other highlights include carnivorous plants, medicinal plants, the bamboo and fern gardens and a giant, age-old fig tree on the slope of Tapak Hill.
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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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Jade Green in Slovenia
By Linda Tancs
All destinations benefit from great reviews that boost tourism. That was certainly the case for Slovenia’s Zelenci Nature Reserve, when British scientist Humphry Davy wrote, “There is nothing more beautiful in Europe than this.” Apparently, he was attracted to the area’s lakes and waterfalls. No doubt he found the reserve’s centerpiece enchanting, which is its jade-green lake sourcing the Sava River (the country’s longest). You can view the lake and the 36-acre reserve through a series of well-constructed walkways. Along the way you’ll likely see some of the rarest plants in the region, like cottongrass, pygmy willows and alder trees. The reserve is also home to species like the whiskered bat, sand lizard and scarlet grosbeak. The reserve is less than 2 miles from the alpine resort Kranjska Gora near the village of Podkoren.
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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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Pinballs in Budapest
By Linda Tancs
Pinball wizards, and fans, should flock to the appropriately named Flipper Museum in Budapest, Hungary, Europe’s largest ongoing interactive museum dedicated to pinball machines. Many of its 130 machines invite unlimited play by visitors for the price of the museum’s entrance fee. The facility features Humpty Dumpty, the first pinball ever made with flippers. Apart from play, a pinball history presentation and guided tours in English at prearranged times are also an option.
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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 Republic Within a Republic
By Linda Tancs
Sandwiched between France and Switzerland, Saugeais is a micronation in eastern France. Established in 1947, the self-declared nation in the Haut-Doubs region comprises 11 communes, from Gilley in the north to Arçon in the south and from the Swiss border in the east to Crêt Monniot in the west. Its origins lie in jest, following a French official’s anointing of the area as a republic after jokingly being told he needed a permit to enter the region. Today, visitors are granted a permit to enter, evidence that a good joke is one you can use over and over. The unofficial republic boasts a Prime Minister, a Secretary General, two customs officers, 12 ambassadors and 450 honorary citizens throughout France and Europe who promote its charms.
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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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England’s Roaring Meg
By Linda Tancs
Overlooking an ancient crossing point of the river Wye, England’s Goodrich Castle was a thriving medieval household. It takes its name from an English landowner, Godric, who built the first castle in the late 11th century. In 1646 the castle was the scene of one of the most hard-fought sieges of the English Civil War. The Royalist garrison there surrendered after a two-month bombardment with Parliament’s locally made cannon known as Roaring Meg. The only surviving mortar from the war, it is now on display in the castle courtyard.
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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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City of the Dead
By Linda Tancs
At first glance, the Russian village of Dargavs seems like an enchanting village of medieval stone houses hidden away in the foothills of the Caucasus mountains. That belies its actual function as a necropolis, the tidy stone houses being above-ground crypts for over 10,000 of the dearly departed dating to the 16th century. Other reports indicate that the crypts were used as a quarantine location for plague victims in the 17th and 18th centuries. Just over the border from the Republic of Georgia, the remoteness of the valley almost guarantees a serene experience. Although only 18 miles outside of Vladikavkaz, much of the drive is on gravel mountain roads and takes more than an hour.
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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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Goethe Slept Here
By Linda Tancs
You can imagine the pride that a tiny resort town would have when a famous writer and statesman like Johann Wolfgang von Goethe drops in for a night. Such was the case for Torbole, Italy. Located on the shore of Lake Garda, the hole-in-the-wall commemorated the illustrious visit in the 1700s with a plaque on the guest house in the town center. Nowadays it’s best remembered, and prized, as an international center for windsurfing and sailing thanks to constant winds hailing from the Monte Baldo mountain range as well as the lake.
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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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Ireland’s Famine Way
By Linda Tancs
In 1847 a famine arising from a potato blight threatened the Irish with total extinction. Among the millions who either died or emigrated, a group of 1,490 tenants who were forcefully evicted from Strokestown Park in County Roscommon walked a path toward Dublin to board emigration ships. Their route is commemorated in the National Famine Way, a walking trail comprising 103 miles, connecting the National Famine Museum at Strokestown Park House with the Famine Memorial on Custom House Quay in Dublin along the banks of the Royal Canal. The waymarked trail takes about six days to complete.
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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 Friendly Alien in Austria
By Linda Tancs
Contemporary art may feel alien to some, but maybe Kunsthaus Graz will change your mind. It’s become a cultural landmark in Graz, Austria, its architecture being dubbed “the friendly alien” by none other than one of its designers. It’s also been viewed as a whale, a hippo and a sea slug. And that’s just the building’s exterior. Your senses will likely be challenged on the inside as well, with installations exploring the intersection of art and design and the use of photography to create illusion. If you’d like it all deciphered for you, then take the guided tour generally offered each Sunday.
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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 