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
The Brothers of Charterhouse Square
By Linda Tancs
The Charterhouse is a former Carthusian monastery in London, to the north of what is now Charterhouse Square. Since the dissolution of the monasteries in the 16th century the house has served as a private mansion, a boys’ school and an almshouse, which it remains to this day. The residents of the almshouse are known as “Brothers” and conduct tours of the grounds and buildings. The site upon which the Charterhouse stands was acquired in the middle of the 14th century as a burial ground for victims of the Black Death. Earlier this year the Charterhouse permanently opened to the public for the first time in its 660-year history. The centerpiece of your visit is the museum providing a chronology of the site’s history from the Black Death to the present.
Share this:
Poland’s Salt of the Earth
By Linda Tancs
The Wieliczka Salt Mine, located in the town of Wieliczka in southern Poland, lies within the Kraków metropolitan area. One of Poland’s largest tourist attractions, it offers themed tours for all ages, featuring underground tunnels and a mine with chapels, chambers and saline lakes. You can choose between the Tourist Route and the Miners’ Route, an authentic experience allowing participants to play the roles of miners and, under the keen eye of a chargeman, gain their first ever experience working underground. The routes don’t connect. If you don’t want to miss the crown jewel of the attraction, the Chapel of St. Kinga, then be sure to take the Tourist Route.
Share this:
Austria’s Fair Spring
By Linda Tancs
Dating to the Middle Ages, Schönbrunn Palace is one of Austria’s top tourist attractions. Originally called Katterburg, its current name was adopted in 1642, derived from Emperor Matthias’s alleged discovery of the schöner Brunnen (“fair spring”) during a hunting expedition in 1612. A former hunting lodge, the grand estate seen today was used as a summer residence by the imperial family beginning in 1745. The tour of the imperial apartments and the magnificent state rooms includes the residential suite of rooms occupied by Emperor Franz Joseph and his wife Elisabeth in the west wing, the state rooms in the central section of the palace, the imperial apartments of Maria Theresa and Franz I Stephan and the Franz Karl Apartment, which was occupied by Franz Joseph’s parents, Archduchess Sophie and Archduke Franz Karl. The property is easily reached at Schönbrunn station in Vienna via underground, bus or tram.
Share this:
Earth’s Largest Lizard
By Linda Tancs
The closest living example of the legendary dragon in folklore and mythology is the Komodo dragon, the largest living species of lizard on earth. Reaching 10 feet in length and topping nearly 200 pounds, the monitor is protected from extinction in its native land of Indonesia at Komodo National Park. Sitting at the center of an archipelago, the park (which recently celebrated its 37th year of conservation) consists mainly of three volcanic islands and landscapes varying from dry savanna conditions to lush forests. Bounded by white sandy beaches and clear blue waters, the area attracts underwater enthusiasts as well. Divers claim that Komodo waters present one of the best diving sites in the world, with 385 species of beautiful corals alone.
Share this:
Land of the Blackbuck
By Linda Tancs
The blackbuck is an antelope indigenous to the plains of India, epitomized by the twisted, ridged horns of adult males. Thriving in grassland, their dwindling population has found a haven at Velavadar Blackbuck National Park. Located in the Bhavnagar district of the state of Gujarat, this sanctuary for blackbucks features grassland habitat, shrub lands, saline plains and mud flats. The park also embraces over 140 species of birds, 14 species of mammals, 95 species of flowering plants and many reptiles.
Share this:
A Roundabout View in London
By Linda Tancs
Located in the large, irregularly shaped island in the middle of the Hyde Park Corner roundabout in London, England, Wellington Arch offers panoramic views of the city from its balconies. Originally intended as an entrance to Buckingham Palace, it later became a victory arch proclaiming Wellington’s defeat of Napoleon. The facing masonry of Portland stone is capped off with the largest bronze sculpture in Europe, “Peace Descending on the Quadriga of War,” by Adrian Jones.
Share this:
World’s Best Bass Fishing Site Teems with Wildlife
By Linda Tancs
Albert Falls Dam is rated as one of the best bass fishing dams in the world. But the fishing isn’t the only thing that’s legendary about this area in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The area around the dam is filled with secluded nature trails, which form part of the Albert Falls Dam Nature Reserve established in 1975. Embracing tracts of mixed woodland, open grassland and small marsh areas, the reserve offers wonderful game viewing (like zebra, the red hartebeest, rhino and giraffe), boating, birding and rock climbing opportunities.
Share this:
Cavernous Appetites in Helsinki
By Linda Tancs
Caverna Restaurant is situated deep in a natural limestone cave near the center of Helsinki, Finland. Debuting last summer, the venue offers lunch and dinner buffets, including Brazilian churrasco meat skewers and Japanese teppanyaki-style food. Designed to make dining an entertainment event, the facility seats 300 guests. It’s just a stone’s throw away from Helsinki Central Railway Station at 5 Yliopistonkatu.
Share this:
England’s Wool Town
By Linda Tancs
Located in the heart of Suffolk, Lavenham is widely recognized as one of England’s prettiest medieval villages. Known in particular as a wool town, it was granted its market charter in 1257 and started exporting its famous blue broadcloth across the globe. Although its woolen trade fell to market forces in the 16th century, the village’s half-timbered medieval cottages remain the same today as they would have looked in those halcyon days. The Guild Hall, in particular, dominates the town and offers exhibitions on local history, farming and industry, as well as the story of the medieval woolen trade.
Share this:
Flying Tomatoes in Spain
By Linda Tancs
Tomatina is a festival that takes place on the last Wednesday of August each year in Buñol, Spain. Revelers parlay pelting tomatoes into prize-fighting furor, complete with chants of “Tomato! Tomato!” The hour-long street battle attracts participants from around the world, who gather around six trucks offloading 160 tons of ripe, red tomatoes. Be sure to wear old clothes and goggles.
Travelrific® Travel Journal 