Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for travel
World Natural Heritage in Germany
By Linda Tancs
Wattenmeer, or Wadden Sea, is an area stretching from the northern coast of Germany to the Dutch island of Texel. This region, comprising the largest continuous area of mud flaps in the world, is home to millions of migratory birds. Now it will likely see a boost in tourism thanks to its designation as a world natural heritage site by UNESCO, joining such other luminaries as the Grand Canyon, the Great Barrier Reef, the Galapagos and the Serengeti. The appointment couldn’t have come at a better time, considering UNESCO’s stinging removal of the Dresden Elbe Valley as a world cultural site thanks to a four-lane bridge spanning the river and spoiling the view.
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Avoid the Sting Off Gibraltar
By Linda Tancs
Swimmers, beware. Over 500 stinging Portuguese Man o’ War have been spotted off Spain’s southern coast near Gibraltar. The sea creature, commonly referred to as a jellyfish, is actually a floating hydrozoan with stinging cells in its tentacles (like a jellyfish) to capture and paralyze prey. Although not generally fatal to humans, the sting is not likely to be forgotten very soon. Have an ice pack handy, just in case.
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Saipan Remembers
By Linda Tancs
July 9 marks the final day of the Battle of Saipan in 1944, one of the fiercest battles of World War II. In a memorial park overlooking what has come to be known as Banzai Cliff some four miles from San Roque on the northern tip of Saipan, Bodhisattva of Mercy and Peace keeps vigil. Hundreds of Japanese soldiers and civilians met their fate at Banzai Cliff and Suicide Cliff in lieu of suffering capture by Allied forces.
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Voices of Wales
By Linda Tancs
Each year since 1947 the little town of Llangollen in the Dee Valley of northeast Wales hosts a big show: the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod. Now through 12 July, this musical festival and competition includes thousands of international choirs, folk singers and dancers. Many stars credit the festival with developing their musical careers, including Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavorotti. If you missed the grand opening Parade of Nations through the village streets on 7 July, then stick around for the grand finale, a “Licensed to Thrill” concert celebrating the music of James Bond featuring the orchestra of the Welsh National Opera.
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Life Underground
By Linda Tancs
Pity those who think the only life underground is the hustle and bustle of the metro. Clearly, they’ve never been to Derinkuyu. Located in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey, this town boasts one of the world’s most extensive prehistoric underground cities. Consisting of at least eight floors hewn out of soft volcanic rock, the subterranean city served as a hiding place for early Christians during raids. Not surprisingly, then, the complex shows traces of a church, along with study rooms, a kitchen, and living areas, as well as rooms for food and livestock storage. A notable tourist attraction, it’s worth a visit on your next trip to the Cappodocia region of Turkey.
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City of Film
By Linda Tancs
Hollywood, Bollywood, Cannes, Sundance, Venice–and Bradford? It’s time to add a new place name to the list of luminaries in cinema. Bradford, a west Yorkshire city in the U.K., beat out the traditional media moguls for the coveted title, City of Film. The moniker is a new award being bestowed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to a city having historic links and a notable infrastructure related to filmmaking. No doubt Bradford–once a poster child for industrialization–was helped in its bid as the host city of the National Media Museum, one of the most popular museums outside London. Three annual film festivals and a landscape conducive to movie shoots certainly didn’t hurt, either. Bravo!
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Walking on Air
By Linda Tancs
Being on edge takes on new meaning at the Sears Tower in Chicago. Now premiering at the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere is The Ledge, a series of glass capsules jutting out from the 103rd floor’s skydeck. The idea certainly isn’t novel, of course; just check out the glass bridge at Grand Canyon West. However, instead of the canyon’s natural beauty you get unimpeded views of the concrete jungle. Different strokes for different folks. You’ll get a bird’s-eye view (minus the birds) of the July 4th fireworks in any event.
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Norwich, Meet Norwich
By Linda Tancs
It’s been 350 years since the British left their homes in Norwich to settle in the colonies. In Connecticut, their namesake city will be celebrating its founding by our forefathers as part of a Norfolk-Norwich World Family Gathering. Now through 5 July, the Norfolks and Norwich’s of the world (some 58 communities of varying size) will experience New England charm, topped off with a clambake, July 4 celebration, parade, tall ships viewing at Mystic Seaport and a visit with the area’s original inhabitants, the Mohegan tribe. Be like family and come for a visit.
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Bear Valley Beckons
By Linda Tancs
About an hour north of San Francisco, California, the rugged coast comprising Point Reyes National Seashore awaits your visit. Boasting 150 miles of trails, four backcountry campgrounds, several historical structures, three visitor centers, and beaches galore, you better have a game plan to tackle this national treasure. At Bear Valley Visitor Center, you can ponder the ecological and historical exhibits along with a seismograph, weather station, and auditorium for enjoying educational programs. Whatever you do, don’t miss Kule Loklo (Bear Valley), a replica of a Coast Miwok Indian village representing the earliest inhabitants of this area. If time permits, look for the herd of nearly 400 elk at the north end of the park on Tomales Point within the Tule Elk Reserve or watch for birds or whales at the Lighthouse. It seems almost trite to call 70,000 acres of dunes, sandy and rocky beaches, coastal grasslands, Douglas fir and Bishop Pine forests, wetlands, chaparral, and wilderness lakes a national park. But as British author Landt Dennis observed, a park symbolizes man’s humanity to man. And that, after all, seems pretty grand.
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A Seafaring Staycation
By Linda Tancs
A staycation is generally defined as a holiday enjoying one’s home environs. Well, why not enjoy someone else’s home environs instead–like a lighthouse keeper’s house? The United States Lighthouse Society keeps a list of lighthouses where you can keep the home lens burning. You might have to fix a window or paint a door as the price of admission in some cases, but you can’t beat the view. Ships ahoy, mate!
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Travelrific® Travel Journal 