Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for travel writing
First Time Opening of London Mansion
By Linda Tancs
Two Temple Place, the neo-gothic mansion on London’s Embankment once owned by financier William Waldorf Astor, has opened to the public for the first time. Now an exhibition space, the magnificent dwelling will also be the first venue in London to showcase regional collections. Admission to the gallery is free.
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A Christmas Celebration at Winchester Cathedral
By Linda Tancs
The choristers of Winchester Cathedral have toured to international acclaim. Today and 22 December are your chances to make beautiful music with them at the free carol service. In this historic setting representing the seat of Anglo-Saxon and Norman power, you’ll bear witness to 15 centuries of English history. The cathedral is also the final resting place for literary great Jane Austen. And as she so aptly put it, may your Christmas abound in the gaieties which that season generally brings.
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Eye on Blackpool
By Linda Tancs
Blackpool is a seaside borough in northwest England. Heavily dependent on tourism, its newly regenerated Promenade features, among other things, a reopening of its iconic, Eiffel-esque tower. After a 10-month restoration project, the structure boasts an entertainment complex befitting any tourist destination, including a dungeon and 4D cinema. But nothing beats the panoramic view of the Eye, the refurbished observation deck with views rivaling London’s famous wheel. On a clear day you can see forever, as the song goes.
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The Artist Behind Brazilian Architecture
By Linda Tancs
Today is the 104th birthday of Oscar Niemeyer, a Brazilian architect specializing in international modern architecture. His whimsical creations include the concrete hyperboloid Cathedral of Brasilia and the UFO-like Museo de Arte Contemporânea de Niterói across the bay from Rio. You could plan a tour of Brazil solely around his works alone as this list of Niemeyer buildings will attest.
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A Titanic Cruise Fare
By Linda Tancs
Following the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic in April next year, Horizon & Co. will mark the occasion with a series of space-limited excursions to her final resting place. In July and August, the company will offer three opportunities to visit the wreck site and dive down in a deep sea submersible unit to explore the vessel close up on the ocean floor. For an experience like that, expect to pay a titanic sum–that is, from $66,257 for submarine divers or $12,498 for non-submarine divers. If those numbers give you pause, consider the effects of inflation. In 1912, a first class suite on Titanic was around $4300; that’s $50,000 or so in today’s money.
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Extreme Driving in London
By Linda Tancs
London’s International Horse Show at Olympia hardly sounds like the venue to be associated with extreme driving. Yet that’s exactly what’s happening for the first time at this year’s event. Extreme driving is a high speed indoor driving competition featuring the world’s top three drivers. A new equestrian disicpline, the action will take place on the evening of 15 December and the afternoon of 16 December. Sure gives new meaning to the expression, hold your horses.
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Building Blocks in Florida
By Linda Tancs
For those suffering from Mouse fatigue, there’s another attraction in the Orlando, Florida area to capture the imagination of young and old alike. Just 45 minutes from the Orlando theme parks or downtown Tampa is Legoland, a 150- acre family theme park in Winter Haven that’s sure to please even the most discerning LEGO fan. For starters, why not orient yourself with a 150-foot rotating platform ride that provides a 360° view of the park. From that vantage point you might capture a glimpse of kids driving LEGO themed cars through city streets at Ford Driving School. Or maybe you’ll see the Statue of Liberty in Miniland’s version of New York City. Knights and dragons are battling at the Kingdom, and swashbuckling pirates have taken over Pirates’ Cove. And what could be better than a factory tour in Fun Town, where you’ll learn how those building blocks are made from factory to finish. Orlando visitors can take the roundtrip shuttle to the park from Premium Outlets on Vineland Avenue.
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A Whirlwind Event in Turkey
By Linda Tancs
A whirling dervish is to Turkey what baseball is to America, a symbol of national pride and part of its custom, history and culture. Celebrated each year in Konya during the weeklong Mevlana Festival, the dancers commemorate the life and death of Sufi master and poet Rumi, founder of the dervishes. The event takes place at the sports stadium from 10 to 17 December.
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The Other Jersey Shore
By Linda Tancs
This is a true statement: you won’t find Snooki or The Situation at the Jersey Shore. Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania, that is. The picturesque borough along the West Branch of the Susquehanna River in southern Lycoming County offers a wealth of recreational activities that are lacking at its more celebrated namesake, like downhill and cross country skiing, trout fishing, hiking, mountain biking, camping, snowmobiling, hunting, and outlet shopping. Spray tans are optional.
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Historic Trees in New Jersey
By Linda Tancs
Shakespeare spoke of tongues in trees. Oh, what tales New Jersey’s historic trees could tell. On the Cranford campus of Union County College near the Sperry Observatory is a historic tree grove born of seedlings from some of the nation’s most historic trees. Take a gander at tree #7, the Abraham Lincoln Overcup Oak, grown from a seed of the tree that graces the yard of our 16th President’s boyhood home. Tree #10, the Berkeley Plantation White Ash, represents several seminal events in colonial history in Virginia: two signers of the Declaration of Independence were born at the Plantation, which also boasts the first three-story brick structure in America. Other notables include the Antietam Sycamore, Gettysburg Address Honey Locust, Wilbur and Orville Wright Red Cedar and Sergeant Alvin York Tulip Poplar.
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