Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Penguins on Parade
By Linda Tancs
Australia’s Phillip Island boasts the world’s smallest penguin, but that’s not its only charm. At sunset the penguins march from the sea to their sandy burrows after a hard day’s fishing. Want the best view of the waddle? The sky box at Summerland Beach’s elevated viewing tower allows five people each evening to have an enviable pole position for the ultimate view.
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A Colorful Anniversary
By Linda Tancs
That emblem of childhood, Crayola, recently celebrated 110 years! To mark the occasion, they offered a limited edition crayon pack featuring a renaming of its eight major hues: yellow, purple, orange, blue, brown, red, black and green. Due to overwhelming popularity, the limited edition may resurface in the coming months. In the meantime, watch the colors pop at the Crayola Experience. Located in downtown Easton, Pennsylvania, the crayon company’s birthplace, the four floors of interactive exhibition feature attractions like instruction in crayon making, custom marker mixing, a crayon clinic, and an 85-foot water table attraction with Crayola boats. Here’s one place you can definitely think–and color–outside the box.
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Tank Trivia
By Linda Tancs
Before you plan your next road trip, be sure that the price of gas along the way won’t eat up whatever savings you think you’ll reap. That’s where Gas Buddy comes to the rescue. The “heat map” will survey prices across the United States. Add to that their handy trip cost calculator and fuel saving tips and you road warriors have some pretty useful tank trivia.
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New Flower Show in Brussels
By Linda Tancs
Brussels believes in flower power. In addition to the Flower Carpet that graces the Grand Palace in even-numbered years, the city has plugged the odd-numbered years’ gap with a new show for those years. Today through 18 August, Floraliëntime debuts with a major international plant and flower arrangement event in Brussels City Hall and at the Grand Place. The inaugural theme is “Colors of Life.” With 100,000 flowers adorning City Hall, you can be assured of that.
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Dolphins 101
By Linda Tancs
Meet Chabelita, Kayena, Pasku, Nubia, Alita and Machu. Those are just some of the dolphins waiting to engage with you at Curaçao’s Dolphin Academy. Located at the Curaçao Sea Aquarium marine animal park, the facility offers dolphin interactive and educational programming covering topics like dolphin training, communication, cognition, senses and anatomy. Put your knowledge to the test while enjoying an open ocean dive, where the dolphins will meet you outside their lagoon in the open ocean and dive with you among some of the most beautiful coral reefs of Curaçao.
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Alpine River Rafting
By Linda Tancs
Water sports enthusiasts adore the Soča, an Alpine river that rumbles for eighty-six miles through western Slovenia and northeastern Italy. Its tropical hue of green/blue belies the exhilaration it offers adventure travelers like kayakers, who are greeted with signage at various entry points warning them not to underestimate the river’s wrath. Don’t overestimate your talents; take some lessons at one of the many kayak schools all along the river. Bovec is a popular point of entry where you can obtain a river permit. Enjoy the season through October.
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Paris of the Orient
By Linda Tancs
Ho Chi Minh City (also known as Saigon) is Vietnam’s Paris of the Orient. It was, after all, a French colony. French inspiration is everywhere. Consider the Opera House–reminiscent of Petit Palais–or the Notre Dame Basilica, its building
materials imported from France. The area is not only a treasure trove of French colonial architecture but also a biological haven, hosting an increasing number of newly discovered species in the nearby Mekong Delta.
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Madrid’s Hidden Beauty
By Linda Tancs
Prado is Spain’s national art museum, located in central Madrid and filled with masterpieces by Diego Velázquez, Francisco de Goya and El Greco, to name a few. The museum’s collection ranges from the late second century to the threshold of the 20th century. With that much ground to cover, you’ll be grateful that the museum is offering an exhibition through 10 November to showcase its vast inventory–at least from the 14th to 19th centuries. “Hidden Beauty: Fra Angelico to Fortuny” features artists like Murillo, Rubens, Watteau, Goya, and Fortuny.
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The Jungle’s Temple
By Linda Tancs
Ta Prohm is a temple at Angkor, Siem Reap Province, Cambodia. One of the most visited sites in the region, this former Buddhist monastery is probably best known for the massive tree trunks and roots that have consumed the structure in an eerie natural embrace. Not surprisingly, the site was used in the film Tomb Raider.
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Sculpted by Nature
By Linda Tancs
In northeast Vietnam lies Ha Long Bay, an expansive area of over 1600 largely uninhabited islands and islets. Thanks to its exceptional abundance of limestone cliffs, caves and arches sculpted by nature, this popular tourist destination is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Reachable from Hanoi (about a four-hour drive each way), consider a two-day excursion, complete with junk boat accommodations. You won’t want to miss the dark sands of Scorched Beach or the picturesque formations of Heavenly Palace Cave. Visit by month’s end while the weather is best.
Travelrific® Travel Journal 