Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for U.S. travel
The Quietest Place in America
By Linda Tancs
Green Bank, West Virginia is a tiny speck of a town where you could hear a pin drop. That’s because it’s located in the National Radio Quiet Zone, an area designed to protect the powerful radio telescopes in the area from interference. Green Bank boasts the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope, the largest fully steerable telescope on Earth. If you seek a break from the world of Wi-Fi, then this is the place to be. Just one mile from the astronomy observatory you can stay at one of three original log cabins that were built in 1810.
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Superstar Beach
By Linda Tancs
Just 20 minutes away from the seaport towns of Newburyport and Portsmouth is one of America’s best beaches. Named a Superstar Beach by the Natural Resources Defense Council, New Hampshire’s Hampton Beach is one of four beaches deemed the safest thanks to water cleanliness. But there’s plenty more to keep you coming back, like 80 free evening concerts taking place throughout the summer, fireworks displays every Wednesday (as well as today’s July 4 celebratory shoot), a sand sculpting competition each June and a seafood festival in September. Sounds beachy keen, doesn’t it?
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Roots to Revival
By Linda Tancs
Roughly the size of Indiana, Hungary is a culturally rich country with distinctive traditions in music, dance, costume, crafts and gastronomy. All of those facets will be on display now through 7 July at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. between the Smithsonian museums. Don’t miss the opportunity to purchase some prized handiworks at the Marketplace tent. This year’s festival will also feature endangered languages and cultural heritage as well as African American dress and body art.
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Gettysburg Remembered
By Linda Tancs
In July 1863 the residents of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania witnessed a battle that left them with 22,000 dead and wounded soldiers. To commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg (a turning point in the Civil War), the National Civil War Battle Reenactment will take place from 4 to 7 July. Soldiers and civilians alike will re-enact the battles and encampments, giving visitors a glimpse at the cavalry, artillery and the lives that soldiers led during the war. The re-enactment will feature 15,000 re-enactors, civilian interpreters, 400 horses and 100 cannons. And that’s just one of many events marking this distinctive anniversary. Yesterday the Seminary Ridge Museum opened–150 years to the day that the Battle of Gettysburg began. The museum building itself became the battle’s largest field hospital. Hikes, bus tours and other family events will continue until 7 July.
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Paul Bunyan Days
By Linda Tancs
According to legend, Paul Bunyan was a giant lumberjack with uncommon strength who could clear forests with his bare hands and shake trees with his thunderous voice. Statues of this mythical hero abound throughout the United States, including Akeley, Minnesota. The town became a mecca for lumberjacks when a sawmill was built in 1902, so it should come as no surprise that the Bunyan legend looms large there. For 65 years they’ve been celebrating Paul Bunyan Days at various locations in Akeley. This year’s celebration takes place from 28 to 30 June. Among the activities are a fish fry, woodcarving, lumberjack mall art show, Paul Bunyan look-alike contest, and a grand parade.
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Inside Nantucket
By Linda Tancs
Thirty miles south of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, Nantucket is a crescent-shaped island chock-full of architectural and natural delights blissfully off the beaten path. For instance, there’s Sconset Bluff Walk, an unadvertised public way littered with stately homes and ocean views. And Steps Beach at low tide, when you can walk along a sandbar. Did you know that you can summon turtles at the dock at North Head Long Pond with raw drumsticks? Now you can tour like an insider.
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A Classic Queen
By Linda Tancs
Movie buffs recall the African Queen, a steam-operated boat featured in the 1951 film of the same name starring Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn. Lest you think the old gal was consigned to a studio storage facility, you’ll be happy to hear that she’s fully operational and touring the canals off Key Largo, Florida. Built in 1912 in England for service in Africa, the 101-year-old vessel, registered as a National Historic Site, has been restored for cruises and private events.
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Starship Enterprise
By Linda Tancs
According to the law of gravity, what comes up must come down. After the shuttering of the shuttle space program, Enterprise (NASA’s original orbiter) made its way to The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City in a highly publicized series of movements involving a specially outfitted 747 and a barge procession past the Hudson River’s most iconic landmarks. The shuttle and its pavilion have been temporarily closed following damage from storm Sandy, but don’t miss the opportunity to visit this gem of the space program when it reopens shortly. Enterprise has been added to the National Register of Historic Places as of March 13, 2013, the first orbiter to receive such recognition.
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For the Love of Blueberries
By Linda Tancs
Burgaw, North Carolina is a small town of 4000 or so inhabitants. So why does such a tiny hamlet attract nearly eight times its population during the annual North Carolina Blueberry Festival? Well, it is the state’s official ‘blue’ berry–and blueberry production got its start in this southeastern part of the state. But Burgaw also brims with historical delights in its downtown location. The old railroad station, for instance, is on the National Register of Historic Places and the Civil War Trail. Dating back to 1850, it is believed to be the oldest standing depot in North Carolina. Just decades older, the courthouse, a focal point for festival goers, is a mix of Georgian and Colonial architecture. And just west of town is Moore’s Creek Battlefield, an 86-acre site dedicated to the Revolutionary War battle of Moore’s Creek. So, for the love of blueberries, stop on by this Saturday.
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The Tomato Capital of the World
By Linda Tancs
They’re seeing red in Jacksonville, Texas –plump, red tomatoes, that is. Harvest time is here, which means the Tomato Fest is just a ticking clock away. Held the second Saturday each June, the city’s best fest illustrates all manner of dealing with their prized fruit: peeling, mashing, eating, and shooting. Home of the world’s largest bowl of salsa, they’ll be plenty of that, too. The event takes place downtown between Commerce and Austin streets.
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