Those words conjure up images of the odd, wacky and weird. That’s why this month’s Weird Travels was right up our alley.

Robert LeRoy Ripley, born on Christmas 1890 in Santa Rosa, Calif., and died in 1949 in NYC, was a world traveler, adventurer, collector, American cartoonist, entrepreneur and amateur anthropologist.

He created the world famous Ripley’s Believe It or Not! newspaper panel series and television and radio show that documented odd facts from around the world. In his 35 years of traveling, he visited 201 countries trying to find the odd, the unexplained and the unusual. One of his most famous quotes was “I have traveled in 201 countries and the strangest thing I saw was man.” Ripley received an average of 3,000 letters a day for over 20 years, which is over 1 million letters a year !

In 1906, Ripley played semi-pro baseball as a pitcher and sold his first cartoon to Life. In 1912, he moved from California to NYC. Ripley took his first trip to Europe, then married Beatrice Roberts in 1919. One year later Ripley covered the Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium. In 1922, he took his first trip around the world, which took him 16 months.

Throughout the 1920s Ripley’s popularity skyrocketed while he broadened his work history.

Ripley published both a travel journal and a guide to the game of handball. By 1926, he was the New York state handball champion and also wrote a book on boxing.

Ripley was noticed in 1929 by publishing mogul William Randolph Hearst, who managed the King Features Syndicate. Hearst ran the “Believe It or Not!” series in 17 papers worldwide. With his syndicated debut a success, Ripley published his first book on his collections of his newspaper panels.

Here’s a bit of trivia  –  President Hoover adopted “The Star Spangled Banner” as our national anthem because of a Robert Ripley cartoon in 1929 stating that America has no national anthem­ – and with some help from John Phillip Sousa, it was signed into law on March 3, 1931.

Ripley opened his first Odditorium in 1933 at the World’s Fair in Chicago, soon followed by Odditoriums in San Diego, Cleveland, San Francisco, NYC and most recently in August 2012, in Baltimore.

A two-story, green serpent named “Chessie” – complete with steam coming from its nose – is wrapped around the upper level of the HarborPlace in the Light Street Pavilion.

The monster invites visitors to come and explore the more than 500 Ripley’s trademark oddities, covering seven galleries as well as a Mirror Maze, where you will get sort of lost and turned around, but you will find your way out only after having a great time.  A 4-D theater with moving chairs and incredible special effects is also in the museum.

The seven galleries includes Ripley’s Gallery, Weird Art, Interactive, Warehouse, Toothpick City, Ripley’s Vault, and the Egyptian Gallery. Some of the weird and wacky artifacts on display includes a miniature Hogwart’s Castle made from toothpicks (600,000 of them), a million Swarovski crystals covering a Mini Cooper, a picture made from 200,000 dead fire ants, a very large T-Rex made from Pop Tart foil wrappers, shrunken heads, a tribute to local performer Johnny Eck known as the amazing “Half Boy” and “King of the Freaks,” and some hands-on displays and activities for the kids and the kids at heart.

With the history, the beautiful Chesapeake Bay, the shopping, the food and the addition of Ripley’s Believe It or Not! at the Inner Harbor in Baltimore, go early and plan on spending the whole day and you too will be saying “Believe It or Not” ….

For more information please check out these sites

http://www.ripleys.com/baltimore/           http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Ripley

Written by Lorie Nye. Photos by Russell and Emily Nye

Well , that part might be wrong. Things were definitely “Floating.” On Saturday, December 8, we were among the thousands of spectators for the 30th Anniversary of the Eastport Yacht Clubs “Lights Parade” in Annapolis, Maryland.

On the second Saturday of every December, nearly 40 boats cruise the harbor decorated brightly from bow to stern. The parade began in 1981 with only one illuminated boat cruising the harbor.

By 1988, nearly 40 boats had entered and the Maryland Department of Tourism declared it the official “Maryland Winter Celebration.”

It has gotten so popular, there are several towboats and even the Coast Guard in place in case of emergencies. There is paid parking all around Annapolis for the event, but parking is available at the Naval/Marine Corp. Stadium with free shuttles into town.

The parade can be viewed from the Eastport Bridge, The City Dock, The Naval Academy and this year from the Harbor Queen for a mere food bank donation.

So next December, make a plan to head to Annapolis to view such displays as the “Mermangel” a mermaid/angel hybrid, “My Way” a Sinatra-themed boat, “Santa Claws” – a blue crab Santa, “The Christmas Story” boat with the leg lamp and someone in a bunny costume and the “Old Time Train” which won Best in Show !

Don’t just head there for the evening though, Annapolis is beautiful, full of shopping and tons of great food, So plan to spend the day !!!!!! 
 – Lorie Nye

That’s right; Looming over the quaint little town of Bryn Athyn stands The Glencairn Museum in the style of the old castles of Europe.

The museum began out of a love for faith and architecture. Raymond Pitcairn (1885-1966) was a devoted follower of the New Church, which closely followed both the Old and New testaments. He was fascinated with religion as a whole and began collecting medieval art that depicted religious content.

His family had amassed quite a fortune in the railroads, coal and oil, and they had already completed construction on the Bryn Athyn Cathedral.

While Pitcairn had no architectural experience, he was responsible for much of the design. He loved the medieval styling of the castles and cathedrals of Europe and modeled not only the cathedral after them but also his own home.

Glencairn , named for both his name and that of his wife, Mildred Glenn Pitcairn, was under construction from 1928 to 1939, employing many townspeople through the Great Depression. The 100-plus rooms were home to the Pitcairns and their nine children. It also was designed to entertain. The castle contains breathtaking stained glass throughout, as well as beautiful and skillfully done mosaics on the walls. Even without its sculptures and artifacts spanning hundreds of years of various religions, the castle itself is a masterpiece.

Tour guides know every inch of the place and are very informative. Part of the tour includes a trip up to the tower, where you can see the Philadelphia skyline.

Prices vary for each type of tour and it is best to call ahead for reservations. For more information, visit http://www.glencairnmuseum. org. While in the Philadelphia area, we stopped into the Franklin Institute. There are pots, sculpture and jewelry on exhibit there.  The Franklin Institute contains many other exhibits, and is an important stop on your Philly tour.

There’s much more to come on Philadelphia – it’s full of interesting places to visit!

– The Nye Family

It is one so ancient, so mysterious, and so beautiful that people from all over the world and all across time have studied and admired it. Many early Celtic beliefs were rooted on the island of Iona, off the coast of Scotland.

It was believed that there, the veil between our world and other worlds was thin, and the soul could travel between them. For that reason, 6th century monk Colum Cille built a monastery on that island which would eventually become “The Cradle of Christianity in the Western Highlands.”

There were many stone circles (think Stonehenge) and places for meditation.

That sounds nice, but what does that have to do with Pennsylvania?

Well, if you travel into the woods near Bangor, a three hour drive away, you will find our own little Iona, called the Columcille Megalith Park.

It began in 1975 as “Casa Colum.” “A place where tired sinners and reluctant saints could share their experiences and ideas.”

By 1978, as more standing stones were added, it became a park for spiritual guidance and awakening.

All of the structures are based on the old megaliths and stone circles of Iona.

There is the St. Columba Chapel, named for Colum Cille, the St. Oran Bell Tower, The Stone Circle, Thor’s Gate, The Infinity Gate, a meditation pond, a labrynth, and over 80 megaliths standing throughout the park.

There are also many trails in the 17 acres of surrounding woods.

When you get there, make your first stop the Voyager’s Lounge, for a map.

Then explore ’til your heart’s content. Sneakers should be worn if you plan on hiking the trails.

It is truly a beautiful and peaceful place.

The park is open from dawn until dusk.

You can plan a picnic, or visit one of the park’s celebrations.

You can check their schedule for special events, or gather more information on their website at www.columcille.org.

This “Land of Myth and Mystery” is non-profit, and will appreciate any donations! And when you enter, remember the quote from St. Oran: “The way you think it is may not be the way it is at all.”

- The Nye Family

The Christmas Village had simpler beginnings as Spring Lake Dairy Farmin Bernville.

William Koziar began decorating for Christmas around 1948 for his family, each year adding more and more elaborate displays until it became a popular local attraction. To make way for an increasing number of visitors, he paved a wheat field and added even more displays. They feature characters from popular Christmas stories, fairy tales, books, and television, as well as the nativity. There are refreshment stations and gift shops, as well as the opportunity to visit Santa.

The Christmas Village hasn’t gone unnoticed by the media. It has been featured in magazines, books and on the Travel Channel. Still owned and operated by the Koziar family, Christmas Village welcomes visitors from Nov. 5 to Jan. 1 at a cost of $8 for adults and $6 for ages 6-12. This magical world of lights is a must-see and does attract large crowds, so go at the opening time to avoid heavy traffic. For hours, directions, and more information, visit www.koziarschristmasvillage.com .

– story by Lorie Nye, photos by Russell and Emily Nye

Emily Nye under the Space Acorn

Mars, Pa. boasts a saucer.

On December 9, 1965 a large fireball was reported traveling through the skies above Canada. It traveled south through Michigan and Ohio, then curved sharply east , crash landing in the woods near Kecksburg, Pennsylvania. Dozens of locals searched the woods and state police were called. Eyewitnesses reported seeing an acorn shaped object in the woods, copper colored, metallic, and 9-12 feet long. It glowed blue in the dark woods.  Around the thickest part of the object were strange symbols resembling hieroglyphics. Soon the military intervened. Everyone in the woods was forced to leave and the area was under heavy armed guards. Later, as they left, they took with them a flatbed hauling a large covered object. The offical report ? “It was just a meteorite.” But was it ? The Kecksburg UFO incident was swept neatly under the rug for years-decades, until an episode of TVs “Unsovled Mysteries” featured it in 1990. They left behind a memento in their investigation, their large prop “Space Acorn.” Now a monument to the town’s history, the acorn brings thousands of visitors every year and there is even a gift shop nearby. Kecksburg also hosts the “Old Fashioned Days and UFO Festival” featuring Bigfoot and Paranormal researchers.

Did you know that Pennsylvania ranks 4th in the country for UFO sightings, right behind California, Florida, and Texas with a grand total of 1851 as of the beginning of this year? You can check out these sightings on www.nuforc.org for the national ufo reporting center or www.paufosearch.com for the ufo research center of Pa.

While we were on the UFO hunt we thought we should check out Mars. Mars, Pennsylvania a town north of Pittsburgh. While it has no known ufo sightings , they do have a flying saucer in a small park that’s worth checking out. The town itself is cute and heading up there gives you an excuse to drive through Pittsburgh, one of our favorite places. It is also very close to Evans City. If you followed our column in the past, you’ll remember that the Evans City Cemetery is where the original “Night of The Living Dead ” was filmed. So, from UFO and Bigfoot enthusiasts to Zombie fans, the Pittsburgh region can satisfy your paranormal needs.

written by  Lorie Nye

photos by Russell & Emily Nye Here are links to Kecksburg UFO articles