Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for travel
Leave It to Beaver
By Linda Tancs
Everyone knows that beavers are industrious little creatures, prolific builders of dams to protect themselves against predators such as coyotes, wolves, and bears. Although dams can be very beneficial in restoring wetlands, they can also cause property damage from flooding. So what’s a property owner to do? How about using our furry friends’ handiwork as ceiling art? That’s what you’ll find at Beaver Lodge Cottage in Winvian, Connecticut, where a re-assembled dam adorns the ceiling above the bed. A new spin on applied art, indeed.
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Follow the Vines Along Delaware River Valley
By Linda Tancs
In summer it’s easy to see why New Jersey earns its moniker as The Garden State, offering a bumper crop of tomatoes, sweet corn, berries, plums, peaches and other delectables. Like wine. That’s right. Move over, Tuscany. You can sample and experience a bevy of award-winning fine wines of Hunterdon and Mercer counties, just one hour from New York City or Philadelphia. The Delaware River Valley Wine Trail boasts four vineyards: Old York Cellars, Unionville, Hopewell Valley and Terhune Orchards. Tasting rooms open at noon on weekends at Old York and Terhune and every day at Unionville and Hopewell Valley. Hopewell’s tasting room is a destination in itself, featuring a brick oven pizza stove and a wine bar overlooking the glorious vineyards. Check for special events at each location, too, like wine and music under the stars. With dozens of varietals awaiting your taste buds, you’ll be enjoying the ambience for years to come.
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Celebrate the Huckleberry in Montana
By Linda Tancs
In Trout Creek, Montana, the huckleberry–that purple berry resembling a blueberry–reigns supreme. So much so, in fact, that the legislature proclaimed Trout Creek the huckleberry capital of the State. This small northwestern town is proud to celebrate their prized bounty each year with a Huckleberry Festival. That means, of course, you can sample the huckleberry in every food imaginable, like ice cream cones, pizza, cheesecake, hot dogs and pancakes. Far from just another food fest, the annual event includes such activities as a 5K run, dancing under the stars, karaoke, dog agility demonstration, a pageant, an auction, children’s activities, a horseshoe contest, and an interfaith worship service. Don’t miss the fun between 12 and 14 August.
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UK Dining Discounts
By Linda Tancs
There’s a dining revolution taking place in the UK. A Tastecard membership gives you 50% off the total food bill or 2 meals for the price of one at all 5,000+ participating restaurants. You can always order from the full a la carte menu, so your choice will not be restricted in any way. Buy the card online or at the Visitor Centre at Regent Street.
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A Retreat Fit for a Filmmaker
By Linda Tancs
Talk about star quality: Blancaneaux Lodge, a luxe resort in Belize, is the former family retreat of filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola. Lucky for us he decided to share it with the rest of the world over a decade ago. This hideaway in the rainforest is a birder’s paradise, offering the potential to view the ecosystem’s 300+ species like the Stygian owl, black-headed siskin, rufous-capped warbler, Great Pewee and solitary eagle. Voted #1 Best Resort in Central and South America in 2009 and 2010 by Travel + Leisure, the menu includes local favorites like shredded beef salad flavored with sour orange and cilantro and classic Italian fare from the Coppola family cookbook.
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London’s Sweetest Attraction
By Linda Tancs
Now the candy that “melts in your mouth and not in your hand” has its own showcase across the pond. Opening earlier this month, M&M’s World in London’s Leicester Square is the first overseas attraction for the brand’s candy maker. The 35,000-square feet behemoth features a Union Jack comprising M&M’s logos, a Wall of Chocolate and a range of merchandise from apparel to bedding.
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Gilroy’s Garlic Fest
By Linda Tancs
Where will you find 10 tons of beef, four tons of pasta and calamari, two tons of scampi
and two tons of fresh Christopher Ranch garlic? Gilroy, California–of course. This weekend marks the 33rd annual Garlic Festival at Christmas Hill Park in Gilroy, 30 miles south of San Jose. Locals can save five dollars off up to two general admission tickets on Friday with proof of residency. Cook-offs and celebrity demos are scheduled throughout the weekend, with the garlic showdown of professional chefs culminating on Sunday. You’ll be swooning to the cool sounds of jazz, rock ‘n roll, country, blues, reggae, swing and much more coming from the strolling musicians and stage performances. Don’t miss this year’s Gourmet Alley, featuring the Surf & Turf Alley Wrap–a steak, shrimp, rice, cilantro and garlic aioli wrapped in a garlic-infused lavash. Breath mints are optional.
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Ship Enhancements at Royal Caribbean
By Linda Tancs
Oasis of the Seas, Freedom of the Seas, Liberty of the Seas and Radiance of the Seas now sport various enhancements to suit your cruising tastes. So what will it be: the DreamWorks® Experience, a 3D movie theater, puppet show, nursery or even more dining options? Check out your favorite ship and see what’s new. Other fleet enhancements are promised soon.
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The Blue Angels of Pensacola
By Linda Tancs
The National Naval Aviation Museum, one of the world’s largest aviation museums, is located aboard Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida. On display are beautifully restored aircraft, hands-on exhibits and more than 4,000 artifacts representing Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard aviation. A family fun adventure, the museum offers middle graders the chance to learn about science, math and technology via a Flight Adventure Deck incorporating 38 interactive devices, 11 educational kiosks, an interactive wind tunnel and four computer-based flight simulators. See the Blue Angels in the dazzling seven-story glass and steel atrium that showcases four A-4 Skyhawks in a diving diamond formation or view them at eye-level from the Second Deck. Better still, enjoy Blue Angels at practice air shows from March through November. And it’s all free.
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The Smallest Church in the World
By Linda Tancs
In the bay of St. Malo in the English Channel lie the Channel Islands, about 30 miles from the north coast of France and 70 miles from the south coast of England. A world apart from its more cosmopolitan neighbors, it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that these ancient islands would yield up some signature sights. Take, for example, the so-called smallest church in the world on Guernsey. Aptly named The Little Chapel, the church is beautifully decorated with seashells, pebbles and colorful pieces of broken china. Begun by Brother Déodat in March 1914, the goal was to create a miniature version of the famous grotto and basilica at Lourdes in France. Admission is free, but do be sure to pick up a souvenir booklet of this amazing structure at the Tourist Office at St. Peter Port.
