Intelligent Travel Blog

I Heart My City: Rachel's Oxford

2009-11-13T21:30:00Z

Hello, city-lovers! Today we head over to the United Kingdom, where Rachel Cotterill tells us why she loves her city--first as a student, now as a native.

Want to see your city on IT? Copy and paste our list of fill-in-the-blank questions into an e-mail, fill in your answers, and send your responses to IntelligentTravel@ngs.org. And if you're still waiting for us to feature yours, fear not! We're going to keep posting as long as we keep getting them (please include photos and links!).

Oxford is My City

The first place I take a visitor from out of town is the Pitt Rivers Museum (below), one of the most eclectic museum collections I've ever seen, where things are pretty much organized by "stuff that looks the same" rather than by culture or historical period.

When I crave late night ice-cream I always go to G&D's Ice Cream Cafe, where I had a summer job as a student. And I always choose the original branch on Little Clarendon St.

To escape the bustle of the city centre, I head north along the canal, to the area where I used to live.

If I want to celebrate Christmas in style, I go to one of the excellent college carol services (any college with a choir you've heard of is likely to be worth a visit during December).

For complete quiet, I can hide away in one of the many Bodleian library reading rooms, but you need a library card--if you're a student whose university has a reciprocal arrangement, it's well worth bringing your card along and taking the Bodleian Oath to get a temporary card.

If you come to my city, get your picture taken with a student--cheesy but traditional, especially if you're around during matriculation, exams, or graduation, when the streets are swarming with students in academic dress. But don't pay them for the privilege!

If you have to order one thing off the menu from Al-Andalus it has to be the lunchtime mixed tapas plate, much better value than ordering individual items. The covered market is my one-stop shop for great food from the various delis.

Locals know to skip the boring chain stores and shopping centres, and check out the independent shops and cafes in Jericho or along the Cowley Road instead.

When I'm feeling cash-strapped I go to family restaurant Gino's, near the bus station, for cheap but excellent pasta dishes (skip the pizzas, which tend to get charred).

For a huge splurge I go The Liaison, which is pricey but has the best choice of vegetarian Chinese dishes.

Photo ops in my city include the Radcliffe Camera and the Bridge of Sighs (conveniently very close together!) and the best vantage point is probably from upstairs in Blackwell's, on Broad Street.

If my city were a celebrity it'd be Stephen Fry, although he unfortunately made the mistake of going to Cambridge.

The most random thing about my city is the way May Day is celebrated, with all-night drinking, early morning choral recitals, and crazy drunk people jumping into the river, before warming up over a nice cooked breakfast (all before 6 a.m.).

My city has the most men wearing scarves all year round (in college colours, of course).

My city has the most studious women, who usually manage to look both geeky and beautiful all of the time.

In my city, an active day outdoors involves walking or cycling, and stopping in a cafe or three to warm up with soup and sandwiches and coffee.

My city's best museum is probably the Ashmolean, it's a mini British Museum (see the Roman mosaic, left).

My favorite jogging/walking route is north along the canal, out of town, then east at one of the bridges (depending on how long a walk you want) and south again down Woodstock Road.

To find out what's going on at night and on the weekends read the Daily Info, a huge sheet of listings on brightly coloured A2 paper, that's distributed for free around the city.

For a night of dancing, go to a college ball, if you can get hold of a ticket. Or, for live music, check out the Daily Info for small bands in pubs, or see who's playing at the New Theatre (for big names). If you enjoy theatre, don't miss out on the student productions (several each week during term time).

You can tell a lot about my city from the fact that, in some respects, it hasn't really changed over hundreds of years.

You can tell if someone is a local of my city if they complain about students, and you can tell someone who's studied here if they call people from Cambridge 'Tabs'.

In the spring you should go to the University Parks to see the flowers.

In the summer you should go punting, and try not to fall in the river!

In the autumn you should look out for hoardes of matriculating students, and their terribly proud parents, filling every pub and restaurant to beyond capacity.

In the winter you should watch the ducks trying to swim on the frozen canal.

A hidden gem in my city is Worcester College--not one of the main 'tourist attraction' colleges, but they have beautiful grounds and it's lovely to take a stroll around their lake.

For a great breakfast joint try the Jericho Cafe on Walton Street for a full English fry-up.

Don't miss Fairport Convention's folk festival in Cropredy, which somehow manages to fit the stage and numerous stalls into one sloping field, so you never need to miss any of the music.

Just outside my city, you can visit the Cotswolds, with loads of picturesque villages within easy driving distance. (Shameless plug from IT: Check out our photo gallery and driving tour of Cotswolds.)

The best way to see my city is on foot; everything is pretty compact.

If my city were a pet it would be a cat--elegant and independent, but friendly once you get to know it.

When I think about my city, the song that comes to mind is "Itchycoo Park" by the Small Faces--but only because it's got dreaming spires in it.

If you have kids, you won't want to miss Christ Church college (top), where parts of Harry Potter were filmed.

The Time Ceremony, where students walk backwards around the quad of Merton College, could only happen in my city.

My city should be featured on your cover or website because it's one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and has more than its fair share of English eccentricities.

Photos: Fen Oswin, Scr47chy, Xavier de Jaureguiberry, and James-Hetherington via Flickr

Ice cream - Home - Cooking - Baking and Confections - Frozen

The Origins of Friday the 13th

2009-11-13T17:00:00Z

The third and last Friday the 13th of 2009 is upon us, so we thought we'd try to get to the bottom of why this day is feared by some 17-21 million Americans (as estimated by the Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute).

Paraskevidekatriaphobia, the scientific term for fear of Friday the 13th, is an amalgam of superstition and old wives' tales having to do with Friday--a day some claim Jesus was crucified as it was the Romans' execution day, or when Eve ate that darn apple, when Adam and Eve were thrown out of the Garden of Eden or even the day that Noah's Great Flood began (which is unlikely as Friday didn't exist way back then)--and the number 13.

The number 13 is considered unlucky in many pockets of the world (though not in ancient Egypt or China) as it's not 12, a number with positive connotations in numerology, related to the 12 months of the year in the Gregorian calendar, 12 signs of the zodiac, the 12 apostles, the 12 gods of Olympus, 12 hours on a clock, and the 12 tribes of Israel. Judas, who betrayed Jesus, was the 13th guest at the Last Supper. Or, 13 may have gotten its bad rep because in a tarot deck--the 13th card represents death. Others trace the superstition to legends surrounding witchcraft; witches covens supposedly had 12 members but that number rose to 13 when the devil appeared at the satanic ceremonies.

Going back to pre-Christian times, in Norse myth, 12 gods were dining at Valhalla when Loki, an uninvited 13th guest arrived, causing chaos as he arranged for Hoder to shoot Balder the Beautiful, the god of joy and gladness. Balder died, the world went black, and 13 began its path to notoriety.

Friday has been considered an inauspicious day since at least the 14th Century when The Canterbury Tales was published; many cultures and professions regard it as bad luck to being a journey or other important undertaking on a Friday.

Dan Brown in the 2003 The Da Vinci Code brought new life to the legend that Friday the 13th refers to that day in 1307 when French King Philip IV arrested masses of Knights Templar on charges of heresy and blasphemy, resulting in many being tortured or burned at the stake.

The most interesting tidbit we unearthed in this investigation is that in the Spanish-speaking world, Tuesday the 13th, not Friday, is a day of fear and anxiety, a day to avoid making big decisions (like getting married) or departing for a journey, as the saying goes ("No te cases ni te embarques."). Tuesday the 13th may be feared in the Spanish-speaking world as it was on that day in 1453 that Constantinople fell, marking the end of the Byzantine Empire, a bad moment for the Christian world. Or, Martes (Tuesday in Spanish) may hold ominous meaning due to its relation to Mars, the red planet and the god of war and destruction. As you can see from the photo at the top of the post, the title of the U.S. horror flick Friday the 13th (and its slew of sequels) has even been changed in some markets to Martes 13 to make sense to Spanish-speaking audiences.

For more info, check out a 2004 Nat Geo News story on Friday the 13th.

IT Wants To Know: What other superstitions vary across cultures?

Friday the 13th - History - Byzantine Empire - Jesus - Folklore

A New Way to Get Your Kicks on Route 66

2009-11-13T15:00:00Z

To many people, the old Route 66 represents the romance of the open road. Even though it was replaced with modern highways and officially decommissioned in 1985, this 2,400-mile stretch of road from Chicago to Los Angeles continues to have many of the one-of-a-kind motels, cafés, and other landmarks that sprung up during the Mother Road's heyday. To help locate those attractions, the National Park Service has launched an online Discover Our Shared Heritage travel itinerary on Route 66.

As a former Oklahoman, I'm very familiar with one of the more unusual sites along the old thoroughfare in Oklahoma City: a tiny triangular building with a huge milk bottle on top that was built in 1930 (I passed it every day on my way to work). Other quirky attractions mentioned on the National Park's website include the Arcadia Round Barn, also in Oklahoma; the Wigwam Village Hotel #6 in Holbrook, Arizona (above); and the 1927 KiMo Theater in Albuquerque, New Mexico. All the landmarks are plotted on an interactive map.

For more great road trips, check our Drives of a Lifetime special.

Photo: brianbutko via Flickr

Los Angeles - Chicago - United States - Highway - Road

Daily Radar: 11.13.09

2009-11-13T13:00:00Z

Some 30 people have died in Italy due to swine flu so far, and the Catholic church has gone hi-tech to calm people's fears about catching the disease. Introducing: automatic holy water dispensers. Made to look like traditional water fonts, this holy invention has an infra-red detector that dispenses water when church-goers place their hand under the dispenser. This prevents visitors from having to dip their hand in holy water, thus potentially sharing germs from other people. Inventor Luciano Marabese says he has received hundreds of e-mails around the world requesting information about the "hands-free holy water." [BBC]
Japan is getting its newest capsule hotel this December. The luxury 9h hotel will have 125 capsules, locker rooms, showers, and a lounge. Each of the capsules in the nine-story hotel has a panel that controls the lights and sound system--and guests can wake each morning to the lights slowly turning on, 9h's version of an alarm clock. [FastCompany]

CatholicChurch - HolyWater - Italy - Swine influenza - Water

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2009-11-13T13:00:00Z

NG Channel to Air Expedition Week

2009-11-12T21:30:00Z

I could have skipped my coffee yesterday. When I got on the elevator here at Headquarters, I was jolted awake by a behemoth photo of a great white shark covering the entire back wall. This unexpected elevator companion was there to inform me about Expedition Week--a National Geographic Channel event that "takes you on cutting-edge scientific missions to explore and discover lost treasures and never-before-seen worlds." Expedition Week begins this Sunday and runs through Saturday, November 21. It will feature a variety of programs about recent research and exploration being done around the world. National Geographic Channel is very enthusiastic about this event because it "is what we are all about--adventure, exploration and the pursuit of knowledge." Some of the upcoming episodes include:

Sunday, November 15: "Search for the Amazon Headshrinkers": Follow Piers Gibbon as he retraces explorer Edmundo Bielawski's steps deep into the Amazon in search of the tribe that Bielawski videotaped in the 1960s. National Geographic Channel has exclusive U.S. access to this 45-year-old footage that purportedly is the only of its kind to show the process of an actual--recently deceased--human head being shrunk.

Wednesday, November 18: "Deep Secrets: The Ballard Gallipoli Expeditions": In this episode, Explorer-in-Residence Dr. Bob Ballard searches for British and French warships that sank during the Battle of Gallipoli--one of the bloodiest campaigns of WWI. Ballard's expedition is the most comprehensive underwater exploration of shipwrecks from this battle ever undertaken. [For information on the episode that tells the riveting story of Ballard's search for the Titanic, click here.]
Thursday, November 19: "Mars: Making the New Earth": This episode tells the story of terraforming--transforming a dry, uninhabitable desert into a living planet--and illustrates a possible future in which Mars is able to sustain human life.

Friday, November 20: "The First Jesus?": This show tells the compelling story of Simon--a self-proclaimed messiah who died four years before Christ was born. Scientists analyze a stone tablet from the first century B.C. that mentions an early messiah and his resurrection. This episode will take you to Jerusalem, Jericho, and every place along the way in order to determine if Simon was in fact real.

Saturday, November 21: "When Crocs Ate Dinosaurs": National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence Dr. Paul Sereno examines fossils and other evidence to tell the story of the ancient crocodiles that once ruled all.

Other Expedition Week shows tell the stories of a hidden city beneath Berlin designed by Hitler, a book thought to be the "Devil's Bible", scientists fishing for a great white shark, and the Americas before Christopher Columbus. For a complete list of shows, click here.

Photo and video courtesy of National Geographic Channel

National Geographic Channel - Amazon Headshrinkers - Kids and Teens - School Time - Animals

I Heart My City: Neha's Zagreb

2009-11-12T19:00:00Z

Greetings city-lovers! This week Zagreb-based freelance writer Neha Puntambekar--who loves the city's coffee culture--tells us why Zagreb is the best.

Want to see your city on IT? Copy and paste our list of fill-in-the-blank questions into an e-mail, fill in your answers, and send your responses to IntelligentTravel@ngs.org. And if you're still waiting for us to feature yours, fear not! We're going to keep posting as long as we keep getting them (please include photos and links!).

Zagreb is My City

The first place I take a visitor is the Upper Town, Zagreb's old town. It is home to some of the city's most prominent landmarks and museums.

When I crave something sweet I always go to Slastičarnica Vincek, a popular pastry shop. I usually have the kremšnita (vanilla custard cake) with a cup of coffee.

To escape the city I head to the mill village of Rastoke. Coffee on the waterfall and a walk around the waterside village make for the perfect city escape.

If I want to share a drink with friends, I go toTkalčićeva Ulica, a street full of pubs, clubs and eateries, along with a number of galleries and boutiques.

For complete quiet, I can hide away at Maksimir, Zagreb's largest park.

If you come to my city, get your picture taken with the "Well of Life", a sculpture by Croatian master Ivan Meštrovič in front of the National Theatre.

If you have to order one thing off the menu from the local pizzerias it has to be cevapcici - small pieces of grilled mixed meat served with traditional bread. Don't eat meat? Try burek - a pastry stuffed with cheese (it also comes with minced meat).

Dolac Market is my one-stop shop for great fresh fruits and vegetables, meat cuts, homemade delicacies and local handicrafts.

Locals know to skip worrying about food at local cafe-bars (most bars here don't serve food with drinks, save for peanuts) and check out the small pizzerias and kebab joints instead. Cafes have no problem if you bring your sandwich or slice along.

When I'm feeling cash-strapped I go the Sunday antiques market at Britanski Trg (British Square), close to the city's main square.

For a huge splurge I go to Takenoko for sushi.
Photo ops in my city include the St. Mark's Church (left) and its beautiful tiled roof and the best vantage points are from the Lotrščak Tower.

If my city were a celebrity it'd be Scarlet Johansson, modern but with a striking old world charm.

The most random thing about my city is a cannonball fired everyday at the stroke of noon from the Lotrščak Tower.

My city has the most boisterous, rakija-loving men.

My city has the most well-put-together women.

In my city, an active day outdoors involves shopping for shoes, drinking coffee and hiking in the surrounding hills.

My city's best museum is the Zagreb City Museum but if you enjoy art, you might prefer the Croatian Museum of NaÏve Art.

My favourite jogging/walking route is along the Jarun Lake. This is a popular spot for outdoor activities. You'll pass kids on skates, basketball and football games, and water sports. On weekends you'll be jogging past picnics and barbeques.

For a night of dancing, go to Aquarius. Be sure to dress up. Or, for live music, check out Sax or the Jazz Club; they allow for a more casual dress code.

Local bakeries serving pastries, sandwiches, etc. known as pekarne are the places to go for late-night eats.

To find out what's going on at night and on the weekends, read Spotted by Locals.

You can tell a lot about my city from visiting the local cafes, sipping coffee and people watching, a favourite local pastime. A head's up, the cafes are usually crowded, especially when the weather is nice.

You can tell if someone is from my city if they light up every fifteen minutes; it's no surprise the smoking ban hasn't lasted here.

In the spring you should indulge in multiple helpings of strawberries and cream.

In the summer you should make your way to the Strossmayer Promenade, sit under chestnut trees and hide from the scorching sun. Summer is also a time to enjoy Zagreb's longest street festival on the promenade; an event full of art, music and wine.

In the fall you should snack on roasted chestnuts available at stalls along the city's many squares.

In the winter you should head up Sljeme, take in the views and ski down the slopes.

A hidden gem in my city is Stone Gate, a small shrine dedicated to Mary, in the arch of the only surviving medieval town gate.

For a great breakfast joint try Daily Fresh. It serves sandwiches, cereals, fruit cups, juices and more.

Don't miss the music at the Zagreb Summer Evenings festival held every year in July.

Just outside my city, you can visit the Trakošćan Castle.

The best way to see my city is on foot or on a Segway.

If my city were a pet it would be a Jack Russell terrier, small, gorgeous and full of life.

If I didn't live in a city, I'd live in the hills, with squirrels and deer hobnobbing in my backyard.

The best book about my city is Zagreb - A Cultural and Literary History, by Celia Hawkesworth.

When I think about my city, the song that comes to mind is Guns n' Roses Paradise City (the grass is green and the girls really are pretty).

If you have kids, you won't want to miss the Technical Museum.

A car parked in the middle of the street (with the blinkers on) or a coffee break lasting several hours could only happen in my city.

My city should be featured on your cover/ website because Zagreb is a lesson in how to lead an ideal laid-back city life. Here we don't chase after trams, or deadlines. Instead we enjoy multiple coffee breaks and discuss football results.

Photos: Neha Puntambekar

Home - Cooking - Sandwiches - Hot - Grilled

Pennsylvania Wine Trails

2009-11-12T16:00:00Z

Friend of IT Emily King just got back from York and Adams Counties in southern Pennsylvania, in search of the region's best food and drink.

There are 123 wineries in Pennsylvania. I'm no oenophile, but I was floored by this fact. Amish baskets and potato chips maybe, but wine? Curiosity got the better of me, so my boyfriend and I headed north, on an otherwise dreary weekend, to check out one of the state's 11 wine trails.

Admittedly, we chose the Uncork York trail because of its proximity to D.C., but I like to think we chose it for the clever name. The guidebooks will tell you York is the "factory tour capital of the U.S." as it's home to Harley-Davidson, Utz (potato chips), Snyder's of Hanover (pretzels), and Wolfgang Candy Company--all of which, and more, offer guided tours through their factories. And while York is a decidedly industrial city, the outskirts look more pastoral than industrial, and there's nary a smokestack in the center of town.

Day 1: We arrived around 7 pm on Friday night, and checked in at the Yorktowne Hotel, the one non-chain hotel in a city of Holiday, Quality, and Hampton Inns. Rooms are big, if dated, but its proximity to York's downtown shops and restaurants make it one of the more convenient stays of choice. Locals head to Left Bank for those semi-special occasions, but pouring rain kept us inside and we tried the hotel's AAA four-star restaurant, The Commonwealth Room. We were a good 30 years younger than the average patron, but the food was good, especially that rabbit confit appetizer.

Day 2: As we'd previously learned on other wine country trips, a good day of wine tasting MUST be preceded with a substantial breakfast. Easy enough. We made the short walk on Saturday morning to York's Central Market. This is a treasure: 70 or so vendors manning fruit, sustainable meat, baked goods, and granola stands--all under a 120-year-old roof, in a National Register of Historic Places building that spans a city block. The market is only open Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, from 6 a.m.-2 p.m. We didn't have time to buy our groceries for the week, but we did manage to stuff ourselves with omelets and the unforgettably moist and not-too-sweet mango raspberry French toast ($8.95, right) at the market's hoppin' breakfast joint, Mezzogiorno.

Now to the wine.

The six wineries we'd chosen were not exactly next door to each other, so I plotted each point on a Google map before departure, then we used Patten's iPhone to do the rest of the navigating. (You can also access maps here, or at the Visitor's Center in downtown York). Our first stop was Nissley Vineyards in Bainbridge (Lancaster County), home to an 18th-century mill and modern, stone-arch winery...and 300 acres of land. Like most PA wineries--as we'd soon learn--Nissley specializes in sweet. "Ninety percent of Americans drink sweet wine," says winemaker Bill Gulvin, "so that's what we focus on." After a tour of the tanks (no barrels used here), we gathered with another ten or so folks outside to taste the wines. Most were too sweet for us--with names like "Rhapsody in Blue" and "Whisper White"--but we did take home two bottles of their decadent black raspberry dessert wine ($14), which Patten wants to pour over ice cream.

Low-key best defines our next stop. Moon Dancer Winery in Wrightsville may look like a French château from its exterior, but inside it's another story. Elmer the dog greats you at the door, and when you take a seat at the tasting counter, you get the feeling you're hanging out in your buddy's kitchen. Judging by the locals around us who have come for a full glass of wine (not tasting sips), the tasting room seems to double as a bar. The walls are smothered in local art--there's a good chance the artist will be on site, hawking his work. Ask for a look-see at the tanks and barrels in the "cellar," essentially an unfinished basement filled with wine-making doodads.

After a quick lunch at the John Wright Restaurant in Wrightsville (try Vinny's Famous Cheese Steak; $7.50), our next stop is Allegro Vineyards (left) in Brogue. The tiny winery's parking lot and gift shop are swarmed with people when we arrive. Soon enough things settle down, and we chat up the owner and winemaker Carl Helrich, who does not take his job lightly. Like his competitors, he produces sweet wines to "pay the bills," but his passion involves dry French wines. If you ask, he'll give you the whole run-down, from his philosophy to his process. (Interesting for sure, but I've got three more wineries to cover!). We are impressed with his reds, particularly the flagship, Bordeaux-style wine, 2005's Cadenza ($35). We take one of those, along with a 2007 Merlot ($17)--the smoothest thing we've tasted all day.

It's nearly 5 p.m., and while a nap back at the hotel sounds tempting, we forge on. We know we're in for a treat as we pull up the lane to Naylor Wine Cellars in Stewartstown, greeted by a colorful mural with the owner Dick Naylor's bearded face smiling down on us. In person, Dick does not disappoint. Not only is he Southeastern PA's veteran winemaker (he's been at this for over 30 years), he's well regarded by his winemaking peers--nearly everyone we talk to mentions his name, in a positive light. We enter his big warehouse, and are led on a quick tour of the tanks and bottling machines. We learn about his labels--many of which include a charcoal drawing of an English monk paying homage to the vine--and his winemaking background: A former salesman, he started making wine after he was wowed by the stuff his buddy was fermenting in his basement. Then he gives us a personal tasting tour of his dry wines, with pours so big we start to worry about making it home. After our ninth "taste," we buy our three favorites--a 2007 Chardonnay; a 2008 Traminette; and a 2007 Chambourcin--and head to Dick's favorite BYOB restaurant, Pomodoro's in York. No surprise, the food is delicious, and we wash it all down with Naylor's Shiraz.

Day 3. After checking out of the hotel, we drive to Lee's Family Diner for the least expensive sit-down meal I've eaten this year: i.e. eggs, toast, and coffee for $2.10. We head further west to Gettysburg, driving right through the battlefield to get to our second-to-last stop. Adams County Winery is tucked into 13 acres of vineyards. Owner John Kramb's mission is to "de-snobify wine." True to his word, there's nothing pretentious about this tchotchke-laden gift shop and tasting room. He knows his customers well, and they like their wine sweet--even better if it's got a sentimental name: His best seller is the syrupy white, Tears of Gettysburg. Retired from the military, Kramb and his wife bought the winery as a place to "retire," though judging by the more than 100,000 bottles of wine they produce each year, it's hardly a part-time job.

Grape crushing at Hauser Winery from Emily King on Vimeo.

A bit further up the road sits the area's one-year-old beauty, Hauser Estate Winery in Biglerville. Floor-to-ceiling windows, with killer 360-degree views of the valley, give this place the feel of Napa, not PA--not to mention the fancy tasting bar and the cement fortress in which they make the wine (located a few floors underground). We arrive shortly after a truckload of grapes, so winemaker Michelle Oakes lets us watch the de-stemming and crushing process. The crushed grapes are then transferred to big plastic bins, where they'll sit for several weeks to ferment. That solution goes into a tank for more fermenting, then into wooden barrels to age. It's the same process everywhere, but Hauser's organized layout helps you make sense of it all. We were wowed by their Cabernet Franc Rose ($17) and their peach sparkling wine ($18), a dry bubbly made entirely from local peaches.

Wined out, we made a pit stop at the Round Barn (top photo, and located right across the street from Hauser) for some pumpkins and potato chips, then headed home....well, not before a stop in Frederick, Maryland at Top Chef contestant Bryan Voltaggio's Volt--which, for the record, was as delicious as we hoped. (Don't miss the tuna tartar or the roasted chicken!)

Photos: Patten Wood

Wine - Food - Recreation - Drink - Guides and Directories

Daily Radar: 11.12.09

2009-11-12T13:00:00Z

Tired of peeling off the stickers of the fruit you just bought? The FDA is in the final stages of approving technology that uses a low-energy carbon dioxide laser beam to label fruit. The laser, which is currently being used in New Zealand and Australia, is being advertised as a non-intrusive, tamper-proof method of labeling fruit, and will also reduce waste (and save you from accidentally biting into the annoying stickers). [Inhabitat]
Delta Airlines is offering free Wi-Fi to passengers for a week beginning November 24. The catch? The free internet is sponsored by eBay, which means that when passengers log on, they will immediately be taken to the eBay homepage. A tad annoying? Perhaps not, if you intend to get some holiday shopping done while in the air anyway. Worth the free mile-high Wi-Fi? Definitely. [Jaunted]

Photo: szb78 via Flickr

Laser - Food and Drug Administration - Technology - Australia - New Zealand

Geography Awareness Week

2009-11-11T21:30:00Z

A 2006 National Geographic-Roper Survey of Geographic Literacy found that only half of 18-24 year olds in the United States could correctly identify India or Japan on a map. Things didn't look any better when it came to domestic locations, either--only 50 percent could correctly identify the state of New York and a mere 43 percent could pinpoint Ohio on a map. This November 15-21, National Geographic will attempt to combat young Americans' lack of geographic knowledge by sponsoring Geography Awareness Week. Launched in 1987 by a presidential proclamation, Geography Awareness Week takes place annually during the third week of November.

There are many ways to get involved in this year's event. Teachers can take advantage of programs and tools from National Geographic's Geography Action! program--such as downloadable wall-sized maps to hang in their classrooms and support material geared toward specific age groups, from Kindergarteners through high school seniors.

My Wonderful World, a National Geographic-led campaign, has a list of ways to participate. During the week, National Geographic Channel's "Expedition Week" will feature shows about exploring the world, such as searching for Amazon Headshrinkers or the Samurai Submarines lost during World War II. Also, check out National Geographic Kids' online mapping games - something I wish I knew about in high school, when I had to memorize the location of every country in the world.

If you're in the D.C. area, the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum with be holding a variety of public programs and demonstrations "designed to promote interest in geography". Click here for a schedule of events.

Be sure to get involved in GAW this year and help "give kids the power of global knowledge." Whether you're an educator, a parent or a student, there are a variety of ways to take advantage of National Geography Awareness Week.

Image courtesy of My Wonderful World

United States - India - Geography - Japan - World War II

Tuscan Cooking School

2009-11-11T19:00:00Z

Friend of IT Barbara Fallon is just back from Italy, where she took cooking classes and explored life in the Tuscan hills.

Housed in an old Tuscan farmhouse in Mercatale di Cortona, nine female friends from around the U.S. are gathered for a week of Italian cooking classes with chef Faye Hess. She's already taught us so much--from making the perfect mushroom risotto, to braised ribs with white wine, garlic and rosemary (not to mention homemade pasta). Each of us take turns cranking the old Italian pasta machine. Faye pushes us and prods us, espousing her deep-held philosophy of slow, home cooking, that we need to toss out the buillion cubes, make our own stocks and pastas. Right now we all believe that we can. When we aren't having our daily cooking lesson, and eating the results around a very long farm table, we're off on a daily outing, often with a food or wine connection. We've done wine tastings in Montepulciano and Montalcino, cheese tastings in Siena, even tastings of aged balsamic vinegars (amazingly sweet and syrupy--almost drinkable). Tonight we're having dinner at the villa of a local family who have extensive olive groves and produce a top olive oil. There are no crowds here in southern Tuscany, and the weather is perfect and sunny.

While most of our day outings from the Faye Hess cooking school near Cortona had a food focus, one did not: a day trip to Deruta in Umbria, to learn how they make their famous ceramics. We toured the Cama family's small factory: one of the brothers was shaping the pottery on a wheel, and mama and papa were painting by steady hand their beautiful, old patterns. While I had always heard that Deruta wasn't a particularly pretty town, the ancient hilltop was beautiful for both its architecture and dozens of shops with ceramics literally pouring out.
That night, we enjoyed a special evening with the Scarpaccini family at their palatial villa in Terontola di Cortona, near our farmhouse. It began with an olive oil tasting with son Emilio, who now runs the family olive oil operation. He convinced us forever that there is a huge taste difference between supermarket grade "extra virgin" olive oil and one produced by his family with love and under perfect Tuscan-growing conditions. Following the tasting, the mother and daughter treated us to us a beautiful dinner, giving us a chance to connect directly with one of the older families of Tuscany. The villa's origins stretch back to Roman times.

As our week drew to an end, we made a final food outing to Montevarchi, just 30 minutes south of Florence, to spend the evening at the Pasticceria Bonci bakery and with the three Bonci brothers who own it. We watched in the big industrial kitchen as brother Sergio made focaccia bread by hand, followed by a tour of their chocolate factory with tastings of their handmade chocolates filled with Chianti, vin santo, and espresso. The biggest treat: we sat at long tables in the kitchen and spent several hours sampling the different focaccias as well as an array of Tuscan antipasti, ranging from liver pâté with vin santo to bruschetta with white beans. By the end of the evening, we all felt like members of the Bonci family.

We came home from Faye Hess' Cucina Casalinga cooking school with a host of new recipes, less fear about making everything from scratch, and a new appreciation of the outstanding ingredients used in Tuscan cooking.

Photos: Barbara Fallon

Italy - United States - Cortona - U.S - Shopping

A Civil War Camping Weekend Just Beyond DC

2009-11-11T15:30:00Z

To mark Veterans' Day, here's a bit on the Civil War-themed camping trip I took last weekend with my husband and our goofy dog. It was our last camping trip of the season. Smoke inhalation (we had a little trouble with the cabin's stove) and frozen digits aside, we had a great time. It's amazing how much history and wildness is so close to Washington, DC.

About 60 miles out of DC we arrived at the Treehouse Camp at Maple Wood Campground in Roehersville, MD, just outside historic Burkittsville, home of the fictional Blair Witch. We'd booked a cabin for two nights. It was rustic but clean. We headed to Boonsboro (founded in 1792 by cousins of Daniel Boone) for food and beer before night fell. The campground's owner recommended Palettie, a cozy Italian restaurant offering hearty food, much of it organic and locally sourced.

The next morning we woke early; cold and eager for the sun to rise. We headed to tiny Weversville to hook up with the Appalachian Trial. Fifteen minutes on the trail, dodging sections of Highway 340 above us, we arrived at the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal Towpath. We hiked along the Potomac River, remnants of the old canal, and the rail line, three miles west to the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers at Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. We coaxed our horrified dog across the old railroad bridge into the historic town and explored. Site of abolitionist John Brown's raid of the federal garrison there in 1859, Harpers Ferry is also significant for the range and quantity of weapons it produced, outfitting even the Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1803. The hilly town features a lot of quaint places to eat though most are pricey and crowded with day-trippers.

As the sun began to sink, we hustled back along the towpath to the Appalachian Trail and our car. Another trip to Boonsboro for provisions, this time pulled pork sandwiches, coleslaw, and fries from The Mountainside Deli. The darkness and the chill in the air made for an early (and smoky) night. If camping isn't your thing, check out the recently renovated eight-room Inn BoonsBoro, part B&B, part boutique hotel owned by novelist Nora Roberts and her husband, bookseller Bruce Wilder. The inn is housed in the town's first stone building, likely from the 1790s. Its rooms are named after literary couples who found their happy endings: Jane and Rochester, Nick and Nora, and even Westley and Buttercup from The Princess Bride.

The following morning we headed off to the Antietam National Battlefield, site of the bloodiest single-day battle in American history during which 23,000 of the 100,000 men fighting were killed, injured, or went missing. We opted for the self-guided 8.5-mile, 11-stop tour of the expansive battlefield in the car, hopping in and out as we desired. Antietam impressed me; its topography is carefully preserved and provides a sense of the battle's stages and scale. The signage was meticulous and everywhere.

Next time you're in DC, consider moving beyond the city's monuments and checking out historic and beautiful sights beyond its borders. Living in DC for over six years, I'm constantly finding new and authentic places to explore.

On December 5th, Antietam will put on its annual Battlefield Memorial Illumination, during which 23,000 candles will be lit starting at 6 pm, one for each of the soldiers, Confederate as well as Federal, who died at Antietam on September 12, 1862.

Photo: courtesy NPS

American Civil War - United States - War - Boonsboro - History

Daily Radar: 11.11.09

2009-11-11T13:00:00Z

In celebration of Veteran's Day, the National Park Service will offer free entry for all to any of its parks. Said Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, "The Department of the Interior is honored to offer this fee free day to thank our nation's service men and women." [Gadling]
Taipei 101 is on schedule to becoming the world's tallest green building. The skyscraper is undergoing $1.8 million in green renovations, with the hope that these energy-efficient upgrades will save the building $20 million annually. Said Harace Lin, Chairman of the Taipei Financial Center Corporation, "As the world's tallest [completed] building, Taipei 101 aims to raise people's awareness about our environment and be a pioneer of international green building certification for existing buildings." [Inhabitat]

Photo: ehpien via Flickr

NationalParkService - United States Department of the Interior - United States - Ken Salazar - Travel and Tourism

Sustainable Surfing in Peru

2009-11-10T21:30:00Z

I can't get enough of Peru and though I've never been, I'm fascinated by it. I've fact-checked our May/June feature on taking the "High Road" to Machu Picchu, and our editor-in-chief wrote about visiting the pre-Inca city of Kuelap in our October "Places of a Lifetime" issue. So when I heard about Machapu Adventures, a new company offering environmentally sustainable, community-based surfing trips to coastal Peru, I had to find out more.

The founders of Machapu Adventures, Carlos Zuñiga and Nico Parkerson, stopped by National Geographic headquarters to tell me about their company, the kinds of trips they offer, and how travelers can help Peru's coastal communities.
Carlos's father opened a hotel in the small town of Chicama (population about 7,000) in 2007. Having studied hospitality management, Carlos soon took over, and set out to make the destination more than a mere hotel. He recruited his friend Nico, who at the time had been working as a security specialist in Miami. Both men love to surf and have deep family ties to coastal Peru. They decided to develop the hotel in Chicama into the Chicama Surf Resort, the first upscale surf resort in Peru.

Today, they offer travelers trips to Peru's other superstar attractions through their company, Machapu Adventures ("Machapu" means "wave" in Quechua). The 20-room resort is ten hours south of Lima; visitors must fly to Trujillo, about 45 minutes from the hotel. The Chicama Surf Resort (which has a spa, mud baths, steam room, and gym) employs 15-20 local people and serves healthy, mostly locally sourced food, some of it organic. The guys tell me it is high-energy food for active people: quinoa, fish, ceviche. Carlos and Nico are in the process of developing green initiatives beyond the low-flush toilets and other water-saving measures already in place. As the town has no recycling facilities, they're working on finding a place for recyclables.

Machapu Adventures attracts surfers to the "wave garden" that brews off Chicama, one of the longest left-breaking waves in the world. The guys enthusiastically tell me that at this Shangri-la for surfers you can ride the same wave for two miles [video here]. The surfing is great year-round but peak season is March-November, during the South American summer.

In addition to great surfing and comfy-chic accommodations, Machapu Adventures aims to give back to the Chicama community through a variety of initiatives. The guys tailor guests' involvement in the community to their preferences, skills, and the length of time they have to give. For example, some Navy doctors came to Chicama during their shore leave in Lima and set up a clinic for the local people for a few days. A dentist/surfer who'd come to Chicama twice before held a dental clinic through Machapu while staying at the surf resort. Nico and Carlos are hoping to renovate and provide supplies to the local school for handicapped kids, orchestrate regular beach clean ups, preserve a section of undeveloped land as a nature area full of foxes and condors, as well as assemble a surf team for local kids to get them looking toward the future and interacting with visitors in a positive way.

Chicama was the site of sugar plantations since the Jesuits established one there in the 17th century. Century-old buildings of the W.D. Grace and Gildemeister sugar companies lie abandoned. The guys would love to renovate them and turn them into a museum or historic center. They hope to apply for an IDB grant to salvage the Pullman train and trolley cars lurking in the yard. There are pre-Inca temples to excavate and a community center to finish. They hope local teens will perform traditional songs and dance for travelers at the community center, earning tips for their efforts while preserving their traditional culture and sharing it with travelers.

The bottom line for Machapu Adventures, Nico tells me earnestly, is to use the hotel as the focal point through which the community can take charge of its own development; to do something positive with the money generated by tourism. The guys are working with locals and the mayor to get these ambitious projects off the ground.

If, like me, you can't get enough of Peru, check out our online photo gallery of Aaron Huey's "Faces of Peru," and our Lima Destination Guide, recent City Life coverage of Lima.

Photos: Jesus "El Zorro" Florian

Peru - MachuPicchu - Inca civilization - Kuelap - South America

Mudbaths of Tintamarre

2009-11-10T19:00:00Z

Friend of IT Elizabeth Seward had high hopes for the magical mud of Tintamarre.

I'm on a boat that's bouncing fiercely, and in an effort to ignore my rare and yet steadily approaching queasiness, I'm passing comforting glances at my friend, Heather, who is sitting across from me with her eyes tightly squeezed shut, looking like she's about to faint. I'm trying to remind her telepathically that this will all be worth it for the mud bathing we're about to engage in. The ride to the island of Tintamarre, just off the northeast coast of the Dutch/French island of St. Maarten/St. Martin, is not usually this rough, I'm told. But we were all grateful to wade through the warm teal waters to Tintamarre's shores once we were close enough to slide down the boat's ladder.

A few of us made it to the beach to retrieve a beer (it may have been before 11 a.m. in the Caribbean, but it was 5 p.m. somewhere, right?) and bring it back into the water. While our guides went off into the island's shrubbery, instructing us to "chill by the beach," I floated in the ocean on my back, mesmerized by the clouds for what seemed like much longer than the fifteen minutes it probably was. Rolling onto my belly and then sluggishly onto my feet, I noticed a cave in the distance and before I could finish formulating my plans on how and when to explore it, our guides returned with the magical mud. And now it was time to bathe in it.
I was crossing my fingers that this mud, its magic cited as a result of a mixture of volcanic ash and minerals, would add some youth to my skin. And maybe give me wings. I'm an all-or-nothing kind of believer. We walked over to a clearing and started slathering the light brown paste all over our bodies. It suddenly felt fated that I'd thrown my brown bikini into my luggage for this trip. Within minutes the mud began to harden. My fairytale-leaning tendencies aside, what I logically expected was that the mud would harden, just like ordinary mud, and that it would feel good to wash it off, as it would with any ordinary mud. Surprisingly, the end result was much different than the "thank goodness I can get this mud off of me" feeling I'd anticipated. This mud was indeed different. My skin felt like pure silk. Melted butter. Melted butter on mashed potatoes, perhaps.

It felt so good that I wanted to embarrassingly invite the others to touch me, but I knew they were experiencing the same sensations I was--because they too were raving unstoppably about it. It didn't last all day, but it did last for a few hours, and to me, that's about as good as wings.

Before the boat sailed off, I ran over to my newly adopted cave, eager to claim it as mine. I marked it with a picture and climbed up the boat's ladder, equipped with Dramamine this time around as to not be defeated by choppy waves. Heather took some, too.

We set sail for Pinel Island where I baked under the sun, beer in hand, exactly the way it happens in commercials. The final leg of our water journey left us snorkeling after having eaten authentic barbecue at Lolo's BBQ in Grand Case on the island's French side where I had my first (and second) johnnycake--a buttery and flaky bread. While I was snorkeling, a turquoise, silver, and purple fish swam in front of me, not at all moved by my presence. Shortly later, I learned that it was a pirate fish swimming there in the Caribbean and a certain movie came to mind.

Back in my room at Sonesta Great Bay Resort that evening, something was different about my reflection. Did I get some sun? Or had the mud bath actually taken off some years from my mug? Giving into my wildly imaginative side, I deemed the mud responsible for the reflected youthfulness, which is all but gone now that I've been back in New York City for a couple of weeks, but hey, it was there. Rumor on the island has it that the mud baths might not stay open forever, so schedule in your time to experience this natural healing treatment before it's too late.

Photos: Elizabeth Seward

Caribbean - Sint Maarten - Netherlands Antilles - Travel and Tourism - Saint Martin

Maryland's Waterfowl Festival

2009-11-10T16:00:00Z

Easton, Maryland--located just inland from the Chesapeake Bay--is hosting its 39th annual Waterfowl Festival this weekend. From Friday, November 13th to Sunday, November 15th, visitors can attend the festival, which pays tribute to the annual migrating of Canada geese over the area. This small-town festival is surprisingly full of things to do, here are a few:

View wildlife paintings, sculptures, carvings, and photographs produced by local artisans in locations around the town and in the main festival area. Don't miss the demonstrations where the craftsmen show the techniques they use to create their art. On the Thursday before the festival starts, you can take a master's class in painting, carving, or photography from experienced professionals. Classes are either three or six hours and cost an additional fee.

Outdoorsmen and -women should check out the Sportsman's Pavilion at the Elk's Lodge. Visitors can peruse vendors hawking everything from hunting gear to boats and "exotic" hunting trips. Then head over to Easton High School where you can haggle for some new duck calls and other hunting or fishing memorabilia. Have a knack for goose calling? Well, it's time to unveil it at the "one and only" World Championship Goose Calling Contest. Amateurs and experts alike are welcome to enter one of the six contests and compete for prizes ranging from $250 - $10,000. Preliminaries begin Friday, so you had better start practicing.

Hungry? Grab some crab soup and oysters and listen as a barbershop quartet serenades you. A variety of entertainment will perform at the festival throughout the weekend. Need a break? Go relax in the Wine Tasting Pavilion--admission is included with your festival ticket--where you can sample a variety of Maryland wines paired with cheese and sweets.

This "small town celebration" is a truly family-friendly event. Children under the age of 16 can participate in the Kids Fishing Derby from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Kids are provided with rods, bait, and guidance as they attempt to hook a fish. Young fishermen are presented with a Polaroid of their first catch along with a certificate and prize, but the fish are returned to the pond. At Easton Elementary School, kids can get close to eggs, turtles and snakes and can feel the feathers of a live owl. They can also make pinecone birdfeeders, paint a decoy, or decorate a goose cookie.

Tickets to the festival are only $10--the lowest price since 1992--and include entry to all the exhibits and demonstrations, the wine pavilion, and to all competitions except the finals. A portion of the ticket price goes to benefit wildlife habitat preservation and conservation. This quaint festival on Maryland's Eastern Shore isn't only for woodsmen. A jaunt out to Easton is worth your time next weekend; I know I'll be there!

For a full schedule of events, click here.

Photos Courtesy of the Waterfowl Festival.

Chesapeake Bay - Maryland - Canada Goose - Easton Maryland - Recreation