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
Opera in a Ghost Town
By Linda Tancs
Death Valley Junction is an unincorporated community in the Mojave Desert in California. Formerly known as Amargosa, its sole claim to fame these days is the Amargosa Opera House and Hotel run by a former New York City Radio City Music Hall dancer, Marta Becket. Performing faithfully on weekends for an audience of none or some, Marta’s House is a previously abandoned recreation hall built by the Pacific Coast Borax Company. The marker in town explains that the community, with a population high of 300, is a historic crossroad used by Indians, ranchers, farmers, settlers and tourists. At this junction, the Tonopah & Tidewater Railroad connected with the Las Vegas-Tonopah Railroad to service the Ryan and Lila C. borax mines near Ryan during the years 1914-28. The town is on the National Register of Historic Places.
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Tater City
By Linda Tancs
Blackfoot, Idaho was known as Grove City, a tribute to its abundance of trees and parks. Don’t forget the potatoes, though. Blackfoot is the agricultural epicenter of Idaho’s revered potato industry. Known as the Potato Capital of the World, it hosts–what else–the Idaho Potato Museum. With each paid adult admission,
you will receive a box of hash browns to take home with you. Welcome to tater heaven.
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Crossroads of the West
By Linda Tancs
Salt Lake City, Utah claims to be different by nature. So what’s so different? You can join their real-time chat and find out. Maybe it’s the Great Salt Lake, the largest lake west of the Mississippi, covering 2,100 square miles. Did you know that only the Dead Sea has a higher salt content than the Great Salt Lake? Another distinguishing feature of the city is its world-renowned genealogical center. Located downtown at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, computers at the FamilySearch Center access millions of worldwide records. Best of all, admission is free. Of course, there’s also the skiing. Snowbird Ski & Summer Resort has the longest ski season in Utah (through the month of May). You want to see it all, don’t you? Get the Connect Pass and save on 13 of Utah’s best attractions. It’s what nature intended, after all.
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High Society Shines in Vienna
By Linda Tancs
The evening view of the Vienna State Opera is spectacular, but what happens in it today has high society all aglow. The auditorium of the State Opera hosts debutantes in white rustling gowns crowned with crystal tiaras and men in tails, regaling guests in a precise and dizzying waltz around the dance floor. Held on the Thursday before Ash Wednesday, a ticket to the ball is one of the world’s most coveted. Get your dancing shoes ready for next year.
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Geneva Auto Show is a People Pleaser
By Linda Tancs
At last year’s auto show in Geneva, automakers debuted their versions of fuel-efficient vehicles. At this year’s 81st Geneva International Motor Show, it’s the human element that gets center stage. In other words, this year’s show strives to recognize that all the engineering in the world is meaningless if the art and pleasure of driving–Fahrvergnügen in Volkswagen speak–is ignored. So it should come as no surprise that this year’s poster, showing the silhouette of a young woman at the wheel of her cabriolet, evokes the pleasure of driving. Visit tomorrow through 13 March at GENEVA PALEXPO, just a three minute walk from the Geneva Airport railway station.
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Easy Service to Gatwick
By Linda Tancs
Looking for an easy way to get from Gatwick Airport to central London? The easyBus Gatwick Airport bus runs direct to and from Earl’s Court/West Brompton in just 1 hour 5 minutes. Airport transfer prices start from £2 online, and you can guarantee your seat. Services are up to every 20 minutes from the North terminal and South terminal. Another great alternative for transportation from Gatwick!
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The Fur Flies in Alaska
By Linda Tancs
An event celebrating winter’s transition is Alaska’s Fur Rendezvous, also known as Fur Rondy. Fur in this instance refers to fur swappers, who would meet at winter’s end and exchange their pelts. Held in Anchorage since the 1930s, the event includes sled dog rides, craft shows, a carnival, reindeer runs and a blanket toss. Of particular note are the Rondy pins (as in lapel pins) commemorating each year’s festival, a popular collector’s item. This is also home to the World Championship Sled Dog Races. Enjoy it through 6 March.
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The Carnival Crawl in Venice
By Linda Tancs
Italy’s Pre-Lenten Carnival in Venice evokes costume balls and ornate masks and…pub crawls? Apparently, that’s the missing link during these festivities, so a pub crawl will kick off Carnival season on 26 February at the foot of the Academia bridge, just in front of the Academia museum at 7p.m. You’ll visit five local bars know as Bacari in the Venetian dialect. In each bar you will be offered a glass of local wine and, at the final bar, a shot of grappa. If it’s your birthday the tour is free, so please bring some ID. Costume dress, of course.
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Internet Science
By Linda Tancs
There are any number of science fairs occurring at any given time around the world, but armchair travelers may appreciate the advent of the first Global Science Fair hosted by Google. Google is looking for the best and brightest young scientists from around the world to submit their earth-changing experiments before 4 April. Open to students aged 13 to 18 from around the world working on their own or in a team of two or three, the grand prize is a 10 day trip to the Galapagos Islands with National Geographic Expeditions. Ready, set, experiment!
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Dominican Republic is Attractive to Pensioners
By Linda Tancs
The Dominican Republic is known for baseball superstars, sugar cane and cigars. But did you know that the economy has doubled in size since 1990 according to the President’s address at the 2010 UN Millenium Development Goals Summit? The government recognizes that foreign inputs of currency or capital contribute to the development and collective well being of the population, so foreign pensioners can establish exemptions from the payment of tax on dividends, interest, realty and other property as residents of the Dominican Republic. Of course, if you choose to work, you pay local taxes. But why would you do that when you can laze away on the beaches, watch the whales, golf, or venture among 16 national parks, nine natural monuments and six scientific reserves? The choice is yours.
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