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
A Deserted Village in Yorkshire
By Linda Tancs
Halfway between Scarborough and Clifford Tower lies Wharram Percy, one of the largest and best preserved of Britain’s deserted medieval villages. Its name is derived from the aristocratic Percy family, who lived there between the 12th and 14th centuries. The village was continuously occupied for six centuries before it was abandoned soon after 1500 and today remains the focus of extensive archaeological research. Open during daylight hours, you’ll find the remains of a medieval church as well as grassed-over foundations of two manor houses and about 40 peasant houses and their outbuildings amidst the rugged terrain.
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As coronavirus proceeds, it is likely that the vast majority of us will be limited in our travels. But this, too, shall pass. Our love for travel remains, so Travelrific will continue offering travel inspiration in this medium. 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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Salt of the Earth in Læsø
By Linda Tancs
Just a 40-minute flight from Copenhagen, the island of Læsø might be best known for its seaweed roofs and white, sandy beaches. But it’s also been a major site of salt production in Denmark since the Middle Ages. The ancient process is known as seething, where groundwater is heated in a large iron pan over a fire in a seething hut until the salt crystallizes. You can listen to a presentation on the process by a salt-seether in a reproduction of a hut from the 12th century.
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As coronavirus proceeds, it is likely that the vast majority of us will be limited in our travels. But this, too, shall pass. Our love for travel remains, so Travelrific will continue offering travel inspiration in this medium. 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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Captain Cook’s Landing
By Linda Tancs
In 1770, Captain Cook’s first landing in Australia took place near Silver Beach on the Kurnell Peninsula headland. He named the site Stingray Harbour but later changed it to Botany Bay because of the variety of plants found there. An important heritage-listed site, you can discover the area for yourself at the Kurnell area of Kamay Botany Bay National Park. Take the Burrawang walk from the Kurnell Visitor Centre. As you pass over the dune you’ll see views of the bay where Cook’s expedition ship Endeavour was first sighted as well as a plaque marking the location where he landed.
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As coronavirus proceeds, it is likely that the vast majority of us will be limited in our travels. But this, too, shall pass. Our love for travel remains, so Travelrific will continue offering travel inspiration in this medium. 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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Protected in Sumatra
By Linda Tancs
Located on the tip of the southwest region of Sumatra, Indonesia, Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park is like a fortress for the area’s endangered flora and fauna. For instance, one of the park’s objectives is to protect its lowland rainforests, one of Earth’s most diverse and most threatened. The park is also home to three of the world’s most endangered species: the Sumatran elephant, the Sumatran rhino and the Sumatran tiger. The park’s conservation efforts aim to decrease poaching and deforestation. The main point of entry to the park is from the town of Bandar Lampung.
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As coronavirus proceeds, it is likely that the vast majority of us will be limited in our travels. But this, too, shall pass. Our love for travel remains, so Travelrific will continue offering travel inspiration in this medium. 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 Maiden’s Tower
By Linda Tancs
Located in Istanbul, Turkey, on an islet at the southern entrance to the Bosphorus, Maiden’s Tower is iconic for its scenic views of the strait and the skyline. It was originally built in 1110 as a defense tower by the Byzantine Emperor Alexius Comnenus although legend has it that an ancient emperor built the tower to hide his beloved daughter whom a fortune teller prophesied would die from a snake bite. Since its inception it has been rebuilt and repurposed many times and now serves as a restaurant. Shuttle boats go there several times a day from both the European and Asian side of Istanbul.
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Hitting the Wall in Malta
By Linda Tancs
It might be hard to imagine, but there’s a counterpart to China’s Great Wall sitting unobtrusively on an island archipelago in the Mediterranean. The wall in question is across the northern portion of Malta, a defensive line built by the British army in the 19th century to patrol its interests in the region. Known as the Victoria Lines (commemorating Queen Victoria), it runs the width of the country (at seven and one-half miles) and offers breathtaking panoramic views from its bastions. Go now for pleasant temperatures and a chance to enjoy Malta’s brief blooming season.
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New Zealand’s Treasured Possession
By Linda Tancs
New Zealand’s second-largest national park, Kahurangi takes its name from a Maori word meaning “treasured possession.” It’s easy to understand why. For one thing, the park served as a filming site for the Lord of the Rings film trilogy. Another one of its assets is the network of walking trails. The Heaphy Track, in particular, covers 48 miles of subtropical rainforest, high country, river valley and coast. It’s the same route used for hundreds of years by Maori tribes en route to the treasures of greenstone, a durable stone that plays an important role in Maori culture. And its ancient geology gives rise to even more treasures, like the discovery of New Zealand’s oldest fossil (540 million years old) and an extensive network of caves. Motueka, Takaka, Karamea and Murchison are the park’s gateway towns. Check with the Department of Conservation for the latest weather and track conditions before you set out.
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Where Rhinos Roam in India
By Linda Tancs
The greater one-horned rhino (or “Indian rhino”) is the largest of the rhino species. Once gravely endangered due to poaching, it now enjoys a dense population in Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in Assam, India. Although the rhinos are a key attraction, the reserve is also noted for its migratory bird population in winter and an array of other wildlife like leopards, buffalo, wild boar and barking deer. The weather this time of year is hot and humid but you’ll beat the winter rush that just ended.
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Greece’s Mountain Mystery
By Linda Tancs
From the looks of it, Penteli Mountain is just a lush, green overlook offering great views of Athens and Evoikos Gulf. And it just so happens to be the site where marble for the Parthenon was quarried. So far, so good. But there’s another side to its reputation as the locus for Davelis Cave, so-named for a 19th-century brigand, Davelis. Allegedly used by his gang as a hideout, the cave also has a history as a shrine, particularly for monks fleeing religious persecution during the Middle Ages. Two adjacent Byzantine chapels built directly into the cave’s entrance serve as a memorial to their plight. Perhaps it’s the grotto’s juxtaposition as a hideout and a holy place that causes mysterious events to occur as reported by tourists, phenomena like ghostly voices, glowing orbs and electromagnetic anomalies. Go if you dare, but you’ll need to rent a car to get there.
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The Lighthouse Way
By Linda Tancs
The Lighthouse Way in Spain (Camino dos Faros) links Malpica with Cape Finisterre, a route dubbed the Coast of Death in the 19th century by British sailors due to the Atlantic’s formidable shipwrecking capabilities. The 125-mile hiking route offers plenty of lighthouse views, to be sure. But that isn’t all. The route also offers forests, waterfalls, beaches, dunes, sandy coves and quaint fishing villages. Most trekkers take between eight and 10 days to complete the trail. Don’t rush, and enjoy the views.
