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
Lithuania’s Unique Cultural Heritage
By Linda Tancs
The craft and symbolism of cross-making is part of Lithuania’s heritage, recognized by UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage List. Perhaps nowhere is that more evident than at the Hill of Crosses, Kryžių Kalnas. Located around eight miles from the northern city of Šiauliai, this sacred pilgrimage site boasts a stunning display of about 100,000 crosses of every shape, size and substance. Its origin is unclear, but many believe that the first crosses were placed at the mound following a peasant uprising against the Russians in 1831. The site is easily accessible via a train from Vilnius to Šiauliai, where a local bus will take you to the Domantai stop nearest the hill.
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A Museum Goes to the Dogs
By Linda Tancs
It’s been an ambassador for Bavaria, a hunter’s indispensable partner and a friend to nobility. We’re talking about the dachshund (“badger dog” in German), a popular dog breed worldwide. And now the first museum devoted to the breed awaits your visit in Passau, Germany. Dackelmuseum sports the 4,500-strong collection of two enthusiasts, showcasing the beloved pet’s role in history and culture. Not surprisingly, dogs are welcome visitors.
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The Church of Bones
By Linda Tancs
It’s certainly not unusual for a church to have an accompanying graveyard. What is unusual is an unearthing of tens of thousands of bones—bleached, carved and arranged into decorations in the form of a chandelier, a pyramid, crosses and a coat of arms. That’s what you’ll find in an ossuary in Sedlec near Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. It contains the remains of over 40,000 skeletons, a popular resting place owing to the sprinkling of dirt from Golgotha in the Holy Land and a subsequent expansion resulting from victims of the plagues. One of the most popular tourist destinations in the country, it’s about an hour away from Prague.
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Capitals of Culture in 2019
By Linda Tancs
Happy New Year! And you know what that means—another set of European Capitals of Culture! This year’s honorees are Matera (Italy) and Plovdiv (Bulgaria). Plovdiv is one of the oldest cities in Europe, with a history dating back to 4,000 B.C. During Roman times, it was a thriving industrial center and remains so today. Its annual International Fair is an epicenter for international business, conducted on fairgrounds representing one of the largest exhibition venues in southeastern Europe. Matera is a city on a rocky outcrop in the region of Basilicata in southern Italy. It includes the Sassi area, a complex of cave dwellings carved into the mountainside. Many of the caves are now hotels, bars, restaurants and homes. Take the train from Bari to Matera and explore the area on foot.
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Art Without Walls
By Linda Tancs
Art without walls. That’s the moniker for the open-air gallery at Yorkshire Sculpture Park. Britain’s first sculpture park, it’s set in a beautiful landscaped garden laid out in the 18th century located 20 miles south of Leeds in West Yorkshire. Current exhibitions include Ai Weiwei’s 12 colossal Chinese zodiac heads and Giuseppe Penone’s bronze trees, the tallest of which (L’ombra del bronzo) is an imposing 52 feet high.
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In Search of Santa Claus
By Linda Tancs
You’ll find a lot of interesting things in Uummannaq, Greenland. For starters, it’s one of the most glacier-rich areas in the world, featuring the world’s fastest moving glacier. Also, the Uummannaq district is dominated by a nearly 4,000-foot-high mountain, Hjertefjeldet (meaning “heartshaped mountain”), which changes color during the day like Australia’s Ayers Rock. And then there’s Santa Claus, whose summer residence is nestled at the foot of the mountain. Known locally as Juulimaaq, he’s pretty busy tonight!
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The Roof of Indochina
By Linda Tancs
A trekkers’ paradise, Sapa is a small, Vietnamese mountain town close to the Chinese border abounding in iconic rice paddies. It’s where you’ll find the nation’s largest mountain peak, Fansipan. At over 10,000 feet, it’s commonly referred to as the “roof of Indochina.” It’s easier than ever to reach the “roof” thanks to the cable car, but intrepid trekkers might enjoy the multiday tours from Hanoi anyway.
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Spain’s Geological Hotspot
By Linda Tancs
Some of Europe’s most original geological features are located in Cabo de Gata-Níjar Natural Park in Spain’s Almería region. Nearly 94,000 acres strong, the reserve is Andalucía’s largest coastal protected area and a mecca for geologists. Formed during the Tertiary Period, it’s an extensive volcanic region dominated by lava domes. Other points of interest are the ancient volcanic chimneys at the iconic Mermaids Reef, fossilized tongues of lava at Mónsul Beach (the reserve’s most famous beach) and mountains formed entirely by volcanic material like El Cerro Negro in the village of Las Negras. To learn more about the volcanic origin of this area you can visit the exhibitions in the House of the Volcanoes in Rodalquilar or the Las Amoladeras Interpretation Center.
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The Christmas Spirit in Montreux
By Linda Tancs
Along the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland, the Montreux Christmas Market is a long-established delight. You’ll likely find that last-minute gift in one of the 160 decorated and illuminated chalets (stalls). As the holiday music swirls, meander around with a glass of mulled wine (like the locals) and enjoy some culinary tastings. Not to be outdone by other popular markets in the region, Montreux offers a nightly 3D light show projected onto the façade of the renowned hotel, Fairmont le Montreux Palace. Go there during the week and avoid the weekend frenzy.
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A Pristine Paradise in Micronesia
By Linda Tancs
Located in the western Pacific Ocean, Palau is a pristine paradise, and the locals intend to keep it that way by implementing the Palau Pledge. It’s the world’s first conservation pledge that is stamped in passports; visitors sign a declaration to protect the local environment and culture for the next generation. That environment includes native forests and mangroves that are the most species-diverse in Micronesia with 1,400 species of plants and an estimated 194 endemic plant species, including 23 endemic species of orchids. You’ll also find phenomena like the Rock Islands (collections of largely uninhabited, mushroom-shaped islets housing one of the world’s greatest concentrations of coral and marine life) and Jellyfish Lake, where two types of resident jellyfish have completely lost their sting because they have not had to fight off predators.
