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
Kanc Turns 50
By Linda Tancs
Frequent spring rains promise a spectacular fall foliage season in the U.S. this year. What better place to celebrate the impending color works than at the Kanc–that’s local speak for the Kancamagus Highway, over 30 miles of natural beauty ringed by the White Mountains between Lincoln and Conway in New Hampshire. Named for Kancamagus, an early Indian chief of the Penacook Confederacy, the byway naturally includes old Indian hunting trails. Romanticists are sure to love the covered bridge in Albany. You can learn more at the information center housed in The Russell-Colbath House, the only remaining 19th century homestead in the area.
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Crawdaddy is King in Pensacola
By Linda Tancs
They’ll be packing away pistols in Pensacola, Florida this weekend, but it isn’t what you might think. Crawfish pistolettes, a Cajun specialty, will be featured along with southern style crab cakes, gator bites, blackened mahi mahi, bang bang shrimp, shrimp creole, boudin balls, and shark on a stick at Pensacola’s Seafood Festival in historic Seville Square downtown. The highlight, of course, is the Gulf fare for which this region in northwestern Florida is famous, but you can also shop at the arts and crafts fair or take part in a 5K run/walk, cooking demonstration, or just enjoy the music. The event is organized by Fiesta of Five Flags, a community group combining tourism promotion with local history. Thus, Fiesta is based upon the founding of Pensacola by Don Tristan de Luna in 1559 and celebrates the flags of five governments that have flown over the city: Spain, France, England, the Confederacy and the United States.
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Cranfest Draws Big Crowds
By Linda Tancs
In the tiny town of Warrens, Wisconsin, cranberries outnumber humans 3 to 1 (at least). But this is the heart of cranberry land, after all, so it shouldn’t be all that surprising. However, the human population swells to over 100,000, during the world’s largest cranberry festival, which takes place during the last full weekend in September in this little hamlet (population: less than 400). Now in its 37th year, Cranfest offers three miles of booths with everything from arts and crafts, flea markets and antiques to a farm market. After all that walking, you’ll be hungry. Why not indulge in some pancakes with cranberry syrup and some deep-fried cranberry fritters. Of course, you can take a tour of a working cranberry farm, too. Best of all, the proceeds from the event go right back to the community–civic pride at its best.
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Your Daily Bread
By Linda Tancs
At the Abbey of the Genesee, you’ll be given this day your daily Monks’ Bread. Located in Piffard, New York, the abbey grounds are graced by the Genesee River to the east, golden ponds, flora and fauna (deer and wild turkeys, for instance). All that peace and serenity belies the industriousness of its permanent occupants–the Trappist monks–who make up to nine varieties of specialty breads in a modern bakery operation. A taste of heaven, indeed.
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Bavarian Air in Breckenridge
By Linda Tancs
U.S. statesman Benjamin Franklin is often misquoted as having said, “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” Surely, though, the sentiment is agreed in Breckenridge, Colorado, home of this weekend’s 15th annual Oktoberfest. Kicking off the festival is Friday night’s Brewmaster’s Dinner; reservations are required. Those in the know have no doubt already reserved their Oktoberfest lodging package, starting at $90 per person per night and including two nights of lodging, tickets to the Brewmaster’s Dinner, beer vouchers and a reserved commemorative beer stein. Day trippers can start the party at 11 am on Saturday and Sunday along historic Main Street. As you might expect, the thoroughfare will be rife with traditional costumes, German cuisine, oompah bands, Bavarian dancers and, of course, Paulaner bier by the steinload. The largest historic district in Colorado, this mountain town offers unforgettable fall foliage to complement the festivities. Can you take all that in during the day? Maybe you should look for some last minute lodging, just in case.
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Rolling on the River
By Linda Tancs
Rafting, canoeing and kayaking get all the attention, but the simple pastime of tubing is still a family-fun way of drifting downstream through some of the greatest rivers in the U.S. All you need is a tire tube, life preserver and some sunblock! Then head to the Delaware River, for instance. You can float through historic valley towns like Narrowsburg or Minisink Ford in New York, past eagle lookouts, campsites, magnificent riverfront homes and Revolutionary War settings. Worth the price of admission, as they say, don’t you think?
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Steering Committee
By Linda Tancs
Although Dallas, Texas may be better known for its financial wheeling and dealing, at its heart (both metaphorically and geographically) lies a monument to its pioneering past. Appropriately enough, at Pioneer Plaza in central Dallas (near the Convention Center) is a sculpture series comprising 50 bronze longhorns steered by three cowboys on horseback. Said to be the largest sculpture of its type in the world, the work is a celebration of the working life of the area’s earliest settlers. Featuring native landscaping, a flowing stream and waterfall, here’s a place for peaceful contemplation in the financial district. Feeling bullish?
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Wheeling Around Princeton
By Linda Tancs
Albert Einstein biked his way around Princeton, so why shouldn’t other brilliant minds (yours included) do just the same? Princeton is a biker’s dream. If you’d like a little help learning your way around, there’s a tour company in Princeton that’d be happy to help. Tours include Albert Einstein’s house, Princeton University Nassau Hall, and the D&R Canal. You can rent a bike along with a universal fit helmet or bring your own gear for a discounted rate! Time to start wheeling and dealing.
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Self Expression Rules at Black Rock
By Linda Tancs
Starting today through 7 September an annual experiment in communal living and survival–the Burning Man Festival–welcomes guests in Black Rock Desert in northwestern Nevada. What is Burning Man? As the organizers will tell you, it defies description; it’s to be lived to be believed. I’ll offer an analogy: it’s a sort of Woodstock for the intellectually curious, but be sure to bring your own towels. In fact, bring anything you’d need to survive. Each year’s event has its own theme. Draw your own conclusions about the festival from these past monikers: Fertility, Time, Hell, Outer Space, The Body, The Floating World, Beyond Belief, Vault of Heaven, Psyche, Hope and Fear, The Green Man, and The American Dream. The theme for 2009 is Evolution. Of course, as with any movement in self expression, there’s art: performances, sculpture, installations and costumes. And, of course, the Man. This year, the Man will burn on the evening of 5 September.
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Tiger on the Course
By Linda Tancs
News that Tiger Woods is playing at The Barclays PGA Golf Tournament now through this weekend had hearts aflutter, but what’s truly inspiring about this year’s competition is the location. Hosted at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, the 18th tee is met with the imposing presence of Lady Liberty in the harbor less than a 1000 yards away. That’s certainly a distinct departure from the typical slate of seas and mountains ringing most clubhouses. Add to that a library and cigar terrace overlooking championship point like a luxury skybox. Whether you love golf or not, the ambience is worth the price of admission.
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