Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for travel
An Alaskan Hero
By Linda Tancs
On January 20, 1925, an outbreak of diphtheria in remote Nome, Alaska, made heroes out of a team of sled dogs thanks to their familiarity with the Iditarod Trail, a 674-mile route typically used to carry mail from Anchorage. In just six days a team of huskies led by Balto covered the route to deliver life saving serum to the citizens of Nome. After furious fundraising, Balto and six companions were brought to Cleveland, Ohio, in 1927 and given a hero’s welcome in a triumphant parade through Public Square. The dogs were then taken to the Brookside Zoo (now the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo) to live out their lives in dignity. When Balto died on March 14, 1933, the husky’s body was mounted and is now housed in the permanent collection at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
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Holiday of Holidays
By Linda Tancs
The largest city in northern Israel, Haifa is one of the country’s prettiest cities. Well known to cruisers, it also sports the nation’s largest port. During December weekends, it’s perhaps best known as the host of Holiday of Holidays, a festival at the crossroads of Hanukkah, Id al-Adha and Christmas. Street parties, performances, guided tours and exhibitions celebrate tolerance and unity among the three religions. Admission is free.
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The Heart of Old New Orleans
By Linda Tancs
The triple-steepled cathedral forming the backdrop to a triumphal statue of Andrew Jackson in the Big Easy is one of the most iconic images of the city. Completed in 1727, St. Louis Cathedral fronts historically rich Jackson Square and kisses the Mississippi River in the heart of old New Orleans. Dedicated to Louis IX, sainted King of France, it remains the oldest Catholic cathedral in continuous use in the United States.
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A Stay at Downton
By Linda Tancs
Fans of Downton Abbey may be depressed over the series’ end this season, but they’ll be delighted to learn that they can now stay on the grounds of the show’s stand-in castle, Highclere. London Lodge is a previously disused Georgian gatehouse that has been renovated to accommodate guests in all the luxury befitting an aristocrat. Get ready for life above stairs.
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At the World’s Edge
By Linda Tancs
Located just north of the Arctic Circle in Norway, the former fishing village of Myken sits at the world’s edge. You might say the world is its oyster. Soon enough you can toast to that. Once the aging process is complete, the tiny hamlet of six full-time residents will be home to the world’s first Arctic whisky, using desalinated seawater from Vestfjorden. The first bottle should debut in 2017.
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A Miracle in Stone
By Linda Tancs
Touted as the largest man-made grotto in the world, Iowa’s Grotto of the Redemption is a religious shrine comprising nine grottos adorned with a vast collection of building materials, including petrified wood, malachite, azurite, agates, geodes, jasper, quartz, topaz, calcite, stalactites and stalagmites. Located in West Bend, it represents the lifelong work of Father Paul Dobberstein and is included in the National Register of Historic Places. The museum features tools used by Father Dobberstein in the construction of the grotto as well as a documentary video.
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The Old Wagon Trail
By Linda Tancs
Nebraska pays tribute to America’s westward expansion at the Great Platte River Road Archway in Kearney. The 1,500 ton structure crossing 308 feet of the heavily traveled I-80 emulates a covered bridge and commemorates the pioneering spirit—from the Pony Express to the creation of the first transcontinental road (Lincoln Highway). Officially opened on June 9, 2000, it offers visitors the opportunity to see and hear over 170 years of American history.
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Dance Hall Days
By Linda Tancs
If the dance floor boards at Gruene Hall could talk, then imagine the stories they’d tell. Built in 1878, Gruene Hall is Texas’ oldest continually operating dance hall, boasting an original layout of 6,000 square feet and a tin roof. In the early days, it hosted dance parties as well as badger fights. These days, you’re just as likely to find working songwriters trying out new material there or maybe you’ll enjoy a performance by Willie Nelson, Aaron Neville or another well-known artist. In fact, this year marks the venue’s 40th anniversary of the best live music in Texas.
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A Maze in San Jose
By Linda Tancs
The Winchester Mystery House is undoubtedly one of the world’s oddest mansions. Located in San Jose, California, it sports miles of twisting hallways and secret passageways in the walls. Once the personal residence of Sarah Winchester, the widow of gun magnate William Wirt Winchester, the house grew–literally–out of her belief that the spirits of those killed by a Winchester rifle were summoning her to build a haven for them to roam as a sort of penance for the damage wrought by the family business. The story goes that so long as construction of the house never ceased, Mrs. Winchester could rest assured that the spirits would not exact revenge on her. The unrelenting construction over 38 years resulted in a sprawling Victorian mansion containing 160 rooms, 2,000 doors, 10,000 windows, 47 stairways, 47 fireplaces, 13 bathrooms and six kitchens. A 65-minute tour through 110 of the 160 rooms will expose its bizarre attributes, such as a window built into the floor, staircases leading to nowhere, a chimney that rises four floors, doors that open onto blank walls and upside down posts.
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The Largest Colosseum in North Africa
By Linda Tancs
Few amphitheaters match the grandeur of the Colosseum in Rome except for the ruins at El Djem in Tunisia. The largest colosseum in North Africa, this testament to imperial Rome built during the third century could have seated as many as 60,000 spectators, all awaiting the gruesome play among prisoners, animals and gladiators. The games are long gone, but tourism remains high in this sleepy agricultural village thanks to its architectural wonder as well as stunning mosaics housed in a nearby museum.
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