Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for tourism
The Stone Chariot
By Linda Tancs
It isn’t the only stone chariot in India, but Kallina Ratha in Hampi is an architectural jewel fit for a king. In fact, it was built in the 16th century during the reign of King Krishnadevaraya, reputedly one of the greatest kings of the Vijayanagara dynasty in southern India. Located inside the Vittala Temple complex, the stone shrine is dedicated to Garuda, a half-man and half-eagle mythical being associated with Lord Vishnu. Locals believe that the world will end when the chariot moves. Let’s hope it stays put for a while.
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Britain’s Oldest Manufacturer
By Linda Tancs
London’s Whitechapel Bell Foundry is listed in Guinness World Records as Britain’s oldest manufacturing company. How old, however, is a matter of debate. Once thought to be established in 1570 (during Queen Elizabeth I’s reign), additional research has revealed an unbroken line of founders in Aldgate and Whitechapel back to the year 1420 (in the reign of Henry V). Regardless of its age, the world’s best known foundry on Whitechapel Road is responsible for some very big chimes. The largest bell ever cast there (in 1858) is none other than Big Ben, weighing in at 13 1/2 tons. Another famous bell hailing from the foundry is the original Liberty Bell, commissioned by order of the Assembly of the Province of Pennsylvania in 1751 for the Statehouse in Philadelphia. Other exports followed worldwide.
UPDATE 5/8/17: The foundry, once open for guided tours on select Saturdays year round, is sadly closing its doors. The very last tower bell to be cast at the Whitechapel site is for the Museum of London, to which the foundry is donating many artifacts including old machinery, items to provide a display about bell manufacture and items that the foundry has in its possession pertaining to the making of Big Ben.
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Rural Estonia
By Linda Tancs
A pleasant day trip from the capital Tallinn, Lahemaa National Park is located in northern Estonia. The country’s oldest and largest national park at nearly 8,000 square feet, it’s also one of Europe’s most important forest conservation areas. South of the park, the large forested Kõrvemaa area is home to moose, wild boars, brown bears, lynxes, foxes and other wild animals. And of almost 840 plant species in the area, 34 are rare. A multitude of hiking trails gives visitors ample opportunity to explore the gently rolling terrain. You needn’t do it all in a day, of course. A plethora of guesthouses, manors and campsites offer respite. The first snowfall generally occurs this month, and the impending winter brings the ice castles of nearby Jägala Waterfall as well as a winter wonderland in the park.
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Art Under Glass
By Linda Tancs
Chihuly Garden and Glass is a sculptural oasis in Seattle, Washington. Its centerpiece is the Glasshouse, a 40-foot-tall, glass and steel conservatory hosting a 100-foot-long suspended floral sculpture in eye-popping hues of red, orange, yellow and amber. You can learn more about the artist, Dale Chihuly, at the eight galleries and three drawing walls that offer a comprehensive collection of his work. Outdoors, the lush landscape is equally matched by floral installations. The facility is located next to the Space Needle (spectacularly visible inside the Glasshouse) at Seattle Center.
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A Step Into the Past in Texas
By Linda Tancs
Padre Island National Seashore in Texas is the longest stretch of undeveloped barrier island in the world, a time capsule of sorts with dunes and other natural formations that look the same today as they would have to the Native Americans and European settlers who inhabited the area hundreds of years ago. Owned at different times by Spain, Mexico, the Republic of Texas and later the United States, it comprises mostly prairie/grasslands with ephemeral marshes and ponds bordered on the east by the Gulf of Mexico and on the west by the Laguna Madre, one of only six lagoons in the world that is hypersaline (saltier than the ocean). The park protects 70 miles of coastline, dunes, prairies and wind tidal flats teeming with life, including the Kemp’s ridley sea turtle and 380 bird species.
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A Hotbed for Machine and Mammal
By Linda Tancs
In the 1800s, Florida’s Blue Spring Landing was a hotbed of activity for steamboat owners. It was owned by gold prospector-turned-orange grower Louis Thursby, who purchased Blue Spring (a first magnitude spring on the St. John’s River) in 1856. In the 20th century, the site even hosted an episode of the Underwater World of Jacques Cousteau. The documentary highlighted Blue Spring as a winter refuge for the manatee, Florida’s state marine mammal. As a result, the state ultimately purchased the land, creating Blue Spring State Park in Orange City. Manatee season runs from mid-November throughout March, and the park fills to capacity quickly. A self-guided tour of the Thursby house is also available.
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New Jersey’s Industrial Age
By Linda Tancs
Just over one square mile in the heart of Florence Township, New Jersey, historic Roebling is a symbol of the state’s industrial coming of age. Unchanged for more than 100 years, the locale was built in the early 1900s as a planned community for hundreds of workers at the John A. Roebling’s Sons Co. steel plant. Once the plant closed for good in 1982 and the site was remediated, the main gatehouse to the plant was rehabilitated and now houses a museum about the community. Scheduled trolley tours of the steel town itself, which has evolved into an international tourist attraction, take visitors beyond the gates of the museum. Roebling is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
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A Long Walk in Malaysia
By Linda Tancs
The world’s longest jungle canopy walkway is in Taman Negara National Park (one of the oldest rainforests in the world) in Peninsular Malaysia. The canopy walkway, 1739 feet long and 131 feet above ground level, was initially built for research purposes. So imagine their surprise when it morphed into a dazzling tourist attraction! Open year round, it can be reached via jungle trails or boat.
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The History of Coffee
By Linda Tancs
Hawaii’s Kona Coffee Living History Farm tells the story of Kona’s coffee pioneers during the years 1926–1945. America’s only living history coffee farm, it tells the story behind Kona’s gourmet crop. A self-guided experience, take a walk among the coffee trees or learn how farmers milled and dried their world-famous coffee. At the end of your visit, be sure to sample the farm’s 100% Kona coffee. No doubt you’ll pack a little extra for the trip home.
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Europe’s Largest Jewish Cemetery
By Linda Tancs
Jewish heritage abounds in Łódź, the third largest city in Poland. Jews first began settling there in the late 18th century, and the city became one of the largest Jewish communities in Europe, second only to Warsaw. When the Nazis attacked, it became a ghetto, replete with death and mourning until its liberation by the Soviets in 1945. Amidst such history it should come as no surprise that the city hosts Europe’s largest Jewish cemetery (and one of the largest in the world), with about 160,000 people buried on its grounds.
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