Traveloscopy Travelblog

ARMY OFFICERS SWAN IT UP AS PIONEER WINEMAKERS

2012-06-02T12:32:00.000+10:00

David Ellis

IT'S a safe bet that when three British Army officers who'd served together in India bought a farm block in the Swan Valley outside the fledgling township of Perth, they wouldn't have realised that wine-lovers across Australia would be raising a toast to their venture in November of this year – 175 years after they'd made their little investment.

Thomas Yule had retired from the Army to settle in Perth and in 1836 convinced mates Ninian Lowis and Richmond Houghton to join him in an investment in the Swan Valley; in deference to Houghton's seniority as a Lieutenant Colonel they named their property Houghton – but interestingly Houghton himself never visited Australia, and although Lowis called into Fremantle on his way to the eastern colonies, he too never bothered visiting his Swan Valley investment.

Yule established fruit orchards and planted grapes for making into raisins, and being a raconteur and home-entertainer also made his own wine for regular dinner parties. But he fell on personal hard times in the mid-1850s and sold his interest in Houghton to his partners, who in turn sold out in 1859 to the Colonial Surgeon, Dr John Ferguson.

The highly-regarded Ferguson, a Scot who reputedly was the first person in Australia to use anaesthetic in 1849, had a scientific interest in winemaking, and in his first year at Houghton used Yule's grapes and winemaking equipment to produce the property's first commercial wine.

It was just 115 litres but its sales success in Perth prompted him to expand his vineyard – and to buy an adjoining property which he appointed his son Charles to manage. While wheat and fruit had been successful on both, the Fergusons decided to concentrate on grapes for making into wine and raisins, and by 1866 had 6ha under vines.

Charles Ferguson took over the full company reins in 1875 and five years later won the prestigious 'Order of Merit' at the 1880 Great Melbourne Exhibition… the first of countless accolades that would see his little winery flourish and prosper into the ultimately most-awarded in Western Australia.

And interestingly he developed a small business relationship with a winemaker in South Australia named Thomas Hardy who had founded Thomas Hardy & Sons, and who acquired some of Charles' raisins, writing to him afterwards "(they) are the best I have seen… finer than any from Mildura and much larger than any we have ever had here…"

Little would Charles have foreseen that 83 years later, Thomas Hardy & Sons would become the owners of his Houghton property.

By the early 1900s Houghton wines were so successful that in 1920 Charles turned the property over to his own sons John and Donald, with George Mann as chief winemaker.

And George Mann in turn trained his own son Jack as a winemaker, the son inheriting the Chief Winemaker mantle from his father in 1930. Seven years later, Jack Mann experimented with a wine using entirely Chenin grapes, the wine winning 'Best Dry White Table Wine' trophy at the 1937 Royal Melbourne Wine Show – with one judge likening it to "the great white Burgundies of France…"

With such praise the company labelled it Houghton White Burgundy and over the following 74 vintages to today (amazingly fifty-one of them under Jack Mann's stewardship,) its become the biggest selling white wine in Western Australia and amongst the biggest sellers nationally… although international regulations forced Houghton's to drop the reference to "White Burgundy "in 2006, and it's now labelled Houghton White Classic.

Houghton was bought by the Emu Wine Company in 1950, saw its first 1-millionth bottle of White Burgundy produced in 1972, and in 1976 the Emu Wine Company was in turn acquired by Thomas Hardy & Sons.

Remarkably in its 175 year history, Houghton Wines has had just thirteen Chief Winemakers; the current 'custodian' of the title, Ross Pamment starting with the company as a Cellar Hand, moving elsewhere, and returning in 1999 and being appointed Chief Winemaker ten years later.

Today Houghton's Swan Valley property includes the original Scottish 'crofters' homestead built by Dr John Ferguson in the 1860s, and on November 13 Houghton's 175th birthday will be celebrated with tours of the historic winery and homestead, wine tastings, historic displays, live music, dining and children's activities.

Details www.houghton-wines.com.au

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Photo captions:

[] IN the beginning: early work on Houghton's Swan Valley property in days before cars and trucks.

[] PIONEER winemaker Thomas Yule made his own wine for entertaining at home dinner parties.

[] LEGENDARY Jack Mann who created Houghton White Burgundy in 1937.

[] HOUGHTON homestead built in the style of a Scottish crofters homestead by Dr John Ferguson in the 1860s is still part of the company headquarters today.

[] ORIGINAL Houghton White Burgundy bottles from the 1950s and 1960s.

[] TODAY's Houghton White Classic – the name change from White Burgundy was forced by international regulations in 2006.

(Photos: Houghton Wines)

WHAT TALES THESE HOTEL WALLS COULD TELL

2012-06-02T12:30:00.001+10:00

David Ellis

IF its walls could talk, what tales could they tell of the romantic encounters consummated within the centuries-old bosoms of Venice's Hotel Danieli – a grand hostelry created by bringing together no less than three one-time, side-by-palaces.

Few of us do not know of one of the most famous of these love stories, that of Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis and opera's Maria Callas, brought together at a party organised at the Danieli by American gossip columnist and party-guru, Elsa Maxwell in 1957.

And while Onassis was nearly two decades her senior, and both of them were married, Onassis immediately began showering Maria with attention. But it was two years before he made an audacious move: he invited the singer to join him on his luxury yacht for a three week's cruise of Greece and Turkey… taking along his own wife, and inviting Maria to bring along her husband.

To the horror of their spouses and other guests also on board, Onassis purposely did little to hide his feelings towards Maria, and somewhere into the second week she admitted to "falling head over heels in love," confessing that she and Ari had consummated their love aboard the yacht…

And bizarrely, Onassis asked Callas' husband if he would agree to a divorce, so that he and Maria could marry…

When that marriage did come-about it was a tempestuous one, swinging between love and emotion, and physical fighting and name-calling.

Ari also could be unfaithful, the couple's lives creating gossip-page headlines for the next decade and a half. Even after famously marrying Jackie Kennedy in 1968 after divorcing Maria, Onassis turned up on Maria's doorstep in Paris late one night, hammering on the door and begging to be let in…

What had begun as a romantic encounter between millionaire and opera star in the Hotel Danieli had degenerated into soap opera…

But it wasn't the only grand emotional entanglement woven into the history of the Hotel Danieli, that had originally been built as those three palaces in the 1400s by the flamboyant Dandolo family – themselves no slouches when it came to partying. In fact hotel records include an entry: "today, the 28th August 1498, has arrived the Prince of Salerno... a most brilliant reception was given, great festas held in his honour, and his suite of forty-four persons lodged in the Palazzo Dandolo..."

In 1805 hotelier Giuseppe Dal Niel rented the palaces and converted them into a hotel, giving it his nickname Danieli, and later acquiring the buildings outright. Many of the original sweeping staircases, saloons and some apartments originally created by Dal Niel and others before him have been preserved to this day, as well as stuccoes and frescoes from the 16th and 17th centuries and portraits and heraldic shields of the Dandolo families.

And it was in one of those apartments, now the Hotel Danieli's Room 10, that another famous – or infamous depending on your point of view – couple once frolicked. The French writer George Sand whose real name was Amantine Lucile Dupin, married into high society by way of the Baron Casimir Dudevant, but quickly scandalised that society by regularly dressing as a man – and, horror of horrors, smoking tobacco in public.

After quarrelling over behaviour that her husband saw as not befitting that of an upper-class lady, George Sand walked out and moved to Paris where she soon ignited more scandal by becoming the lover of aristocrat, novelist and poet, Alfred De Musset. The two decided to leave Paris, and being unable to decide between Rome and Venice, tossed a coin. Venice it was.

They moved into the Hotel Danieli's Room 10 overlooking the canal, each continuing their writings until after a month Alfred became extremely ill. A doctor was called, Alfred slowly recovered – but by then, to Alfred's horror, George Sand and the handsome young doctor had become lovers.

De Musset moved back to Paris – and not long after Sand and the doctor parted ways too. During her 71 years Sand had no fewer than six known relationships, including one with musician Frederic Chopin, while also once writing to French actress Marie Dorval of "wanting you either in your dressing room or your bed…"

Which makes us ponder what other tales the walls of the Hotel Danieli could tell…

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Photo captions:

[] THE grand Hotel Danieli, Venice – once three 15th century palaces (Image: Hotel Danieli)

[] THE hotel's spectacular lobby including the original staircase (Image: Hotel Danieli)

[] NOW that's a view: the Hotel Danieli's Ristorante Terrazzo (Image: Hotel Danieli)

[] MARIA Callas and Aristotle Onassis: their relationship began in the Hotel Danieli (Image: Wikipedia)

[] GEORGE Sand: Scandalised high society with her behaviour and many relationships (Image: Wikipedia)

[] ALFRED De Musset's grave (Image: Olivier Bruchez)

TARANTULAS AND SNAKE WHISKY – THE DINING’S FINE

2012-06-02T12:27:00.001+10:00

David Ellis

TARANTULAS, crickets and a swig of snake whisky are now on the menu for the more culinary-adventurous during eight-day Mekong River cruises between Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City and Cambodia's Siem Reap.

But daring as they may appear, such "delicacies" are not actually part of the cuisine aboard the river ships AmaLotus and La Marguerite of Australia's APT Touring – they're there for the more-strong of heart and stomach during shore excursions led by Vietnamese and Cambodian guides.

Crickets, guests soon learn, are in fact a pretty staple local food item in the region because of their high protein content. Attracted by battery-powered fluorescent lights at night amongst the rice fields, the unwary little fellas fly into plastic sheets and then drop into troughs of water where they're collected for frying in tasty sauces at local markets, the sauces over-riding any "natural" flavour that may exist inside the now-crispy carcasses.

And those brave enough to try, also find that stir-fried tarantulas taste and crunch much the same as those crickets… with the truly brave also being offered a live one in the hand or on their shirt – with the assurance that these fearsome-looking crawly critters have had their venom-carrying fangs removed.

And to prove just how safe and tasty they are, the guides are the first to eat a cooked one. Whole. And while some passengers may gingerly try the legs, with a few prepared to bite into the body, most opt instead for a photograph of those few game enough to bite into or to wear a tarantula.

Afterwards, to wash all this down, there's then a swig of that Snake Whisky, which is produced by infusing whole snakes, usually cobras, in rice whisky. It's good for virility, the guides assure APT's passengers, as well as rheumatism and arthritis.

The whisky comes from a small family-run village rice processing mill near a floating wholesalers' market where trading's not on shore, but from boat to boat. As well as the whisky, the busy little plant also produces rice paper sheets (during the cruise, passengers actually get an on-board lesson in making rice paper rolls), popped rice that's like pop-corn, and a coconut-based candy.

Back aboard ship, Head Chef Tam on the 46-cabin La Marguerite presents more widely-accepted Vietnamese or Cambodian-influenced dishes at breakfast, lunch and dinner, as well as western dishes for travellers less-inclined to Asian food. (He's even got a jar of Vegemite hidden away for Australian and New Zealand passengers.)

APT says that experiencing local foods is an integral element of the travel experience, and with Vietnam so-renowned for its fresh and healthy offerings, dining is an important part of these river ship holidays – and contribute to La Marguerite and AmaLotus claiming "floating 4-5 star hotel status."

Breakfasts can range from traditional local rice porridge and pho (a beef or chicken noodle soup with basil, lime and bean sprouts,) to western cereals, eggs-anyway, bacon, sausages, fish, French toast, cured meats, cheeses, fruits, breads and pastries (that reflect Vietnam's French heritage,) juices, tea and coffee.

At lunch there's a choice again of Asian or Western with maybe various soups (clear pork, winter melon, potato cream, bouillabaisse, French onion or green papaya with pork,) possibly curries, sweet and sour fish, stuffed squid with minced pork, Canton fried rice, grilled pork with sweet chilli sauce, or salads and fruits.

And at night it might be those soups again, BBQ'd river tiger prawns served with mixed salad, sticky rice and peanut sauce, or stewed pork with plum sugar, Western-style meats or Asian and Western vegetables…

Tea, coffee, soft drinks, juices, local beers and local spirits are available any time from the open bars, while local wines are served with meals as part of the all-inclusive cruise price; imported wines cost from US$22 a bottle.

The 12-day Ho Chi Minh, Mekong and Angkor package is priced from $4195 per person twin share, which includes seven nights cruising and two hotel nights in Ho Chi Minh City and Siem Reap, 29 meals, airport transfers, small group guided excursions to key sites, port charges, cruise tipping and Freedom of Choice Touring and Dining in Ho Chi Minh City and Siem Reap.

For details phone 1300 229 804, visit www.aptouring.com.au or see travel agents.

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PHOTO CAPTIONS:

[] CRUISING into soft adventure – La Marguerite

[] CRUISING into soft adventure – La Marguerite (vertical)

[] FANGS for the memory: Tasmanian Tim Johnson (of Kempton) tries a deep fried Tarantula

[] TASTY offerings being prepared by La Marguerite's Head Chef Tam

(Images: APT Touring)

HOW A SEADREAM SURVIVED SEPTEMBER 11

2012-06-02T12:25:00.001+10:00

David Ellis & Malcolm Andrews

NORWEGIAN entrepreneur and cruise industry heavyweight, Atle Brynestad was certain he was on a winner when he bought two small luxury cruise ships that Carnival Corporation no longer needed, and announced that he was going to refurbish and launch them as super-luxury in a "Yachting, Not Cruising" concept.

The critics had a field day. This was the 21st century and shipping lines were looking to mega-liners that counted their passengers by the thousands, not trifling little things that carried a mere 110 with an expensive almost one crew member for every guest.

And which was why, they pointed out, the little Sea Goddess 1 and Sea Goddess 2 had been sold by Carnival – a company which had forgotten more about the cruise passenger business than most other companies combined had ever learned.

And when Mr Brynestad launched his company, it was brought almost to its knees after just one week sailing the Mediterranean. Not because he'd gone smaller rather than larger, but because he'd chosen as his launch date September 1 2001 – just ten days before the catastrophies of September 11.

The travel industry world-wide came crashing to a halt overnight. Holidaymakers cancelled flights and cruises by their hundreds of thousands; hotels and resorts took on the look of ghost towns.

But Atle Brynestad had both faith in his concept, and past experience to back him up. Because it was he who had founded the highly successful Seabourn Cruise Line which in fact had once owned the Sea Goddesses 1 and 2 and which had been merged into the Cunard company (later acquired by Carnival Corp) in the 1990s.

This had left Atle itching for new cruise opportunities. So when he learned Carnival were selling the 55-stateroom, 95-crew Sea Goddesses he snapped them up, re-naming the mega motor-cruisers SeaDream I and SeaDream II.

Millions of dollars were spent on refurbishments, adding an outdoor "Topside Restaurant" under shade cloths for al fresco breakfasts and lunches, a new Top of the Yacht open-air bar, a new spa and fitness area, a 30-course golf simulator, and "Balinese Dream Beds" on which guests could relax by day – or have made up into beds to sleep on under the stars at night.

Stateroom bathrooms were re-built in marble with shower massage units, new artworks installed throughout the yachts, furnishings replaced.

But after just one sailing came the horrors of September 11.

Undaunted, Brynestad continued to sail their advertised itineraries, no matter how few guests were aboard.

Remarkably within a year guests were clamouring for repeat sailings, and travel agents found well-heeled clients wanting to be pampered aboard a SeaDream yacht as a means of escaping the continuing political and economic turmoils at home.

He continued to push his mantra of only-the-best: with 95 crew (for a now maximum 112-guests after a new over-sized Admiral Suite was added,) 5-star dining, wines with meals, no-charge bars to which to sidle up for anything from Champagne to Coke at virtually any hour, nightly cocktail gatherings, a host of power and sail watersports facilities, movies on deck on select nights – it all added up to super-sea-dreaming.

And hand-picked crew pampered without being fawning, remembered every guest's name within a day of sailing – and to this day still offer guest's a spray of mineral water on the back and arms when delivering drinks around the pool, and to clean your sun-glasses at the same time.

The company picked up the highest industry awards hand over fist.

Today Atle Brynestad still runs SeaDream Yacht Club, together with another ex-Cunard man, Bob Lepisto whom he appointed as Senior Vice-President at the company's inception in 2001 and who is now President.

And remarkably one of its great success stories is the Australian market. Since opening representation here in 2003 Australian guest numbers have risen from under one-percent, to almost ten percent of onboard guests in 2011.

For information about sailing SeaDream I and SeaDream II in the Mediterranean, Black Sea and Turkey's Turquoise Coast from April to October, and on the Amazon and in the Caribbean during the remainder of the year, see travel agents or visit www.seadream.com

(David Ellis is an advisor to SeaDream Yacht Club in Australia; Malcolm Andrews has sailed as a guest on both yachts.)

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PHOTO CAPTIONS:

[] SEADREAMIN' – both yachts are identical carrying a maximum 112-guests served by 95-crew.

[] GOING small: SeaDream I dwarfed by Oasis of the Seas in the Caribbean.

[] OUTDOOR Top of the Yacht Bar for drinking-in the views

[] ALL staterooms are "outside" with views

[] 5-STAR dining on deck is one SeaDream's appeals

Struth! Not 'a-mused' at NYC whistle stop

2012-06-02T12:17:00.001+10:00

IN his continuing search for the more weird, wacky and wondrous in the world of travel, David Ellis says that bellmen in New York's ritzy hotels are up in arms over a City Council order to stop those at one of them from blowing their famous whistles to attract cabs for guests.

For as long as anyone can remember it's been tradition for New York hotel bell-hops to give an ear-piercing blast on their postmen's whistles when a guest wants a cab.

But the City has now ordered those at the 4-star Kimpton's Muse Hotel on busy Times Square to pocket their whistles and use hand-signals instead to attract cabbies' attention.

And it's all because residents in nearby apartments have complained about the incessant 24-hour whistle-blowing, with worshippers at the Church of St Mary the Virgin across the street from the Muse also putting in their dollar's worth in complaints.

Now bellmen at other New York hotels, particularly around the busy Times Square tourist precinct, fear that they too will be stopped from using their postmark whistles to attract cabs for hotel guests, diners and drinkers.

"Its New York, for Chrissake," one complained to The New York Times.

"Ya don' move t' New York for peace and quiet."

Struth! Airport pantheon on Madeira

2012-06-02T12:03:00.001+10:00

IN his continuing search for the more weird, wacky and wondrous in the world of travel, David Ellis asks is this gigantic concrete structure rising out of the sea (Pic 1) part of a massive coastal highway jumping from headland to headland, the foundations for some future huge over-water resort, or possibly a vast car-park for nearby beaches?

The answer to all three suggestions, is in fact, No.

The clue is the vast number of sturdy concrete pylons, because this is actually an extension to the runway for the airport serving the city of Funchal on the Portuguese holiday island of Madeira in the Atlantic Ocean – allowing the largest international airliners to bring their hordes of sun-worshippers to Madeira, that attracts almost 1-million visitors a year by air, and another 400,000 annually by cruise ship.

The airport with its passenger terminal and control tower to the left and the runway extension to the right: and if you look closely you'll see why aircraft have to do an immediate nail-biting 90-degree turn out to sea after take-off – because otherwise they'll risk running into the hill that's just off the end of this massive runway extension.

Struth! Take a leaf of Monstera Deliciosa

2012-06-02T11:53:00.000+10:00

IN his continuing search for the more weird, whacky and wondrous in the world of travel, David Ellis says a former journalist colleague in Australia and now long-time resident of New Caledonia's Isle of Pines, Hilary Roots has dropped a note after reading us online to point out how the weird and wonderful can be right under our very noses in our very own backyards.

Hilary's Swiss partner and beachwear designer well-known to Aussie visitors to the island, Albert Thoma found inspiration for his latest collection of pareos (sarongs) and T-shirts in the grandiose leaf of a plant growing naturally in the shade of a spreading banyan tree right in front of his kitchen window.

The leaf is that of a plant common to tropical and sub-tropical climates, Monstera Deliciosa, that's more popularly known as Philodendron and the fruit-salad plant because its cylindrically-shaped fruit tastes like a blend of fruits.

Albert has had a wood-cut made of the leaf of his Monstera Deliciosa, applies paint to this and then lays his pareo and T-shirt material delicately on top, rubbing it Hilary says, the way we did coin rubbings when we were children. Once the paint is transferred, the material is sun-dried and the pattern fixed with a hot press.

As our pictures show, Albert's Monstera Deliciosa leaves are anything in size but the potted, cultivated ones many of us grow, or try to grow, indoors here in Australia… and how effective are his wood-cut patterns on those T-shirts and pareos?

If you're visiting the Isle of Pines you'll find Albert and Hilary at Créations Ile des Pins next to the Gendarmerie. Say hello to Hilary (who is known as Cleo on the island and originally hails from New Zealand,) and consider one of Albert's T-shirts or pareos as a memento of your visit.

(Photos: Hilary Roots)

AIRPORT HOTELS – FROM BEST TO BIZARRE

2012-06-02T11:32:00.001+10:00

David Ellis

ONCE was a time when the prospects of a stay at an airport hotel sent shivers down the spines of even the most-seasoned travellers: pokey rooms, planes roaring overhead like they were about to come through the walls, rattling windows at every take-off and landing, non-existent lounges or bars in which to escape, and restaurants whose offerings were best forgotten …

No more. Today airport hotels are up there with the best, including with social and recreational facilities, business centres, dining and bar offerings – and sound-proofing.

And the more so in value when you search out the bargains: the Ibis Sydney Airport Hotel, for example, currently has Autumn and Winter rates that begin from just $129 per room per night – stay 2-nights and you get a 15% saving and pay from only $120 per room per night (prices based on pre-paid bookings.)

As well the hotel has a Day Rate for those perhaps arriving in Sydney in the morning and not flying out again until the evening: $99 gets you a room up to 5pm.

Day Rates are a particular boon for long-distance travellers, with many overseas airports now having hotels right within their passenger terminals, so you can fly and then flop for a few hours without leaving the terminal.

Japan also has those somewhat bizarre "capsule hotels," up to 700 what look like luggage lockers that are just 2m by 1m by about 1.5m high and stacked two rows high… check your bags into a baggage room, climb into your tiny locker and pull either a fibreglass panel or curtain down behind you for privacy, watch TV, listen to the radio or sleep. Bathroom facilities are separate, and they cost from just AU$30 a night.

In America, the UK and Europe there are also airport in-terminal "Yotels," a fast-growing brand of hotels with rooms as small as 6m by 4m, but complete with bed, ensuite, TV, desk, Wifi and costing from around $50 for a minimum four hours.

And as well as Fresh Up Rates that start from Thai Baht 2000 (about AU$62) per four hours, the huge 612-room Novotel Suvarnabhumi Airport Hotel Bangkok has an interesting "24 Hours Flexi Meal" offer that others could follow: breakfast is included with your booking… but if its more suited to the time you're there for a Fresh Up stay, you can swap brekkie for a Lunch or Dinner Buffet at no extra cost.

Sydney's Ibis Airport Hotel has Wifi and broadband access in all 200 rooms, carparking and a regular shuttle service to the domestic and international terminals (small fees apply for these services.)

And its iBistro – open from 5.30am to 10.30pm – brings some particularly pleasant surprises.

The dinner menu, for instance, runs from various breads and dips for starters, through to soup of the day, a half dozen entrees, twelve mains, five desserts, and a children's menu for 12 years and under.

And Ibis Area General Manager NSW & ACT, Larry Raffel has a great idea here for wine-lovers: all twenty-plus sparklings, reds and whites are available by the glass, rather than the usual just couple of reds or whites that may not be your regular varietals of choice.

If you do overnight here, don't look past the Antipasto Plate for Two in the entrees list, it comes with grilled Mediterranean vegetables, chorizo, olives, haloumi, dolmades and tapenade served with Turkish bread ($22 for two.)

Mains include Beef Tortellini with tomato-basil sauce ($20,) Creamy Penne Pasta with chicken, bacon and roasted garlic cream sauce ($21,) fish of the day ($28,) thyme rubbed lamb shoulder with cannellini bean puree, grilled fennel and sun-dried tomato pesto ($29,) and for steak lovers a 300g beef rib-eye cutlet ($32) or 300g beef striploin ($30), both of which come with chat potatoes and café de Paris Butter.

And for children cheeseburgers, fish and chips, pastas, chicken nuggets and chips, and hot dogs (prices range from $7 to $8.50.)

Plus end your meal with a choice of $10 desserts including a decadent dark chocolate fondant with vanilla ice cream and crushed hazelnuts, or an Aussie cheese platter with dried fruits, lavosh and water crackers ($17.)

For bookings or more about the Ibis Sydney Airport hop onto www.ibishotels.com.au or phone toll-free 1300 65 65 65.

PHOTO CAPTIONS:

[] IBIS Sydney Airport: convenience and excellent dining (Photo Accor Hotels)

[] ROOMS have come a long way from the window rattlers at every take-off and Landing (Photo Accor Hotels)

[] JAPAN'S bizarre "capsule hotels" look more like luggage lockers than a hotel (Photo Wikipedia))

[] NOVOTEL Suvarnabhumi Airport Hotel Bangkok allow you to swap brekkie for a lunch or dinner buffet if you are taking a Fresh Up room for a few hours kip

(Photo Accor Hotels)

GOLD FIND CAME AS A FLASH OF LIGHT

2012-05-28T10:58:00.001+10:00

David Ellis

ONE day in the mid-1800s when a prospector named David Lindsay was sweltering away in a dry creek bed where it was 40-degrees in the shade – and there was no shade – he stopped to pick at a brilliantly coloured stone from which flashes of red danced devilishly under the harsh Central Australian sunlight.

With his small hand pick he chipped away at the stone, revealing what he reckoned must have been the biggest ruby he'd seen in his life. And when more followed, and more followed those, he walked the 40km up the creek to a small gold prospecting camp at Arltunga to celebrate at its sly-grog tent.

A few months later on the opposite side of the world, some Dutch gem experts whistled aloud at the stones that spilled from a small purse sent to them from Australia. They had to be the best rubies they'd seen in a long time.

So they too took a celebratory drink at the prospects of a wealthy new find in the far-off antipodes.

But the celebrations on both sides of the world were short-lived: the brilliant 'rubies,' rumours of which had now started a 'ruby rush' to the Outback, were only red garnets, worth but a fraction of what everyone had hoped.

So for David, and the other hopefuls, it was back to gold prospecting, collecting what specks and tiny nuggets they could among the gravel at Arltunga… until David Lindsay's ever-vigilant eyes spotted an alluvial vein on a hill just up from his creek.

This turned out to be a far more worthwhile prospect, and soon a gold stamp was brought in to pound the rich ore David had spotted. By the late 1800s the little tent site of a hundred prospectors had swollen to an itinerant 2000 with a police station, stores, assayers offices, government supervisors, a pub – and a cemetery.

And so Arltunga became the first European settlement in Central Australia, preceding Alice Springs, and at one stage having a 'resident' population of 300 supporting the miners.

The mines yielded some 6-million pounds worth of gold between the late 1800s and early 1900s, and while most were abandoned by the time of World War I, some were still being worked until the 1950s… one until 1998.

The 'ruby boom' meanwhile had died a very quick death.

Arltunga lays in the East MacDonnell Ranges in desert country 110km east of Alice Springs. There's an un-manned Visitors Centre with a fascinating collection of historic photos and memorabilia from the time when hopefuls with only the thought of gold on their minds, trudged 600km from the railhead at Oodnadatta with all they owned in swags on their backs, or in wheelbarrows.

A self-operated slide show is also available at the Visitors Centre with photos and maps on-screen of suggested areas of interest nearby.

And there are the ghostly tumble-down reminders of what was once a town: the police station, its stand-alone cell-from-hell in which temperatures reached 45-plus (before that, prisoners were simply chained to the policeman's iron bed,) the gold stamp and cyanide works, stone floors of one-time houses and a stone pub, abandoned mine workings, sign-posted historic trails, and shaded picnic grounds.

The original hotel – a sign said Sleep Where You Like, But Not On The Bar – has long been nothing more than a ruin, and the most-recent, Arltunga's only business in recent years, pulled its last beers and closed a few months back.

National Parks' rangers are the only ones in this ghost town and during the 'cooler winter months' between May and September obligingly help visitors with information about the site, and offer suggestions on places to visit on foot, by bicycle or by car. The picnic grounds have BBQ facilities and shade shelters, but camping is not permitted (you can camp at the nearby Terphina Gorge Nature Park,) and visitors must to take all their rubbish away with them._

And yet as remote as it is, you don't need 4WD to get here: the road is sealed for the first 70km from Alice Springs, and is gravel for the next forty – "a yob filter" as regulars who enjoy escaping to Arltunga describe it.

For information about holidaying in Central Australia and visiting Arltunga, phone Central Australian Tourism on 1800 645 199.

PHOTO CAPTIONS:

[] ARLTUNGA: little remains of first European settlement in Central Australia

[] POLICE cell: temperatures reached 45-degrees or more

[] RUSTING remains of the abandoned original gold stamp

[] ORIGINAL police station and cell

[] ONE of the few remaining late 1800s, early 1900s houses

[] ARLTUNGA Hotel that's currently closed: guests were invited to Sleep Where You

Like, But Not On The Bar

(Photos courtesy Heritage Branch Dept of Natural Resources, Environment, The Arts & Sport Northern Territory Government)

Struth! Enemy action no deterrent to British golfers

2012-05-28T10:31:00.001+10:00

Is this the world's biggest divot?

IN his continuing search for the more weird, wacky and wondrous in the world of travel, David Ellis says that publisher of Australian Cruise Magazine and one-time golf hacker, Michael Osborne was sent the following by a golfing mate, something that shows the mettle of golfers in Britain's war-torn 1940s.

Players at the Richmond Golf Club in Surrey – just 15km from Central London – often had their game interrupted by German bombers that missed their mark on the city, and dropped them on surrounding areas including the golf club. When one such enemy bomb demolished an outhouse at the Richmond Club in 1940, directors issued the following Temporary Rules for Members for the remainder of the war:

Players are asked to collect bomb and shrapnel splinters to save these causing damage to the Mowing Machines.
In Competitions, during gunfire or while bombs are falling players may take cover without penalty for ceasing play.
The positions of known delayed-action bombs are marked by red flags at a reasonably, but not guaranteed, safe distance therefrom.
Shrapnel and/or bomb splinters on the Fairway, or in Bunkers within a club's length of a ball, may be removed without penalty, and no penalty shall be incurred if a ball is thereby caused to move accidentally.
A ball moved by enemy action may be replaced, or if lost or destroyed, a ball may be dropped not nearer the hole without penalty.
A ball lying in a crater may be lifted and dropped not nearer the hole, preserving the line to the hole without penalty.
A player whose stroke is affected by the simultaneous explosion of a bomb may play another ball from the same place. Penalty one stroke.

Michael asks if with this kind of bulldog spirit, was there any wonder Hitler lost The Battle of Britain?

(Photo: North Shore Golf Course Blackpool – another course struck by enemy bombs)

Immerse Yourself in Korean Culture at the Jeonju Hanok Village

2012-05-26T16:41:00.001+10:00

Step back in time at the four hundred years old Jeonju Hanok Village two hours south of Seoul by KTX express train and you will be totally immersed in Korean culture and history. Jeonju Hanok Village is a traditional living village not a tourist folk village. You can stay in a Korean traditional house (hanok) at the Jeonju Living Experience Centre and enjoy the many museums and activities the village offers its visitors.

While the rest of Jeonju city has been industrialised and changed, the Hanok Village remains with its more than eight hundred beautiful traditional Korean houses. These houses are particularly known for their beautiful architecture with their roof edges upturned to the sky.

At the Jeonju Hanok Living Experience Centre visitors can stay in a traditional guesthouse within the village. The Centre was originally a royal house that was constructed during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) It offers traditional lodging and cultural experiences like chopping your own firewood to warm the traditional houses that have their own unique under-floor heating system called ondol, which is unique to Korea.

Visitors can hire bicycles from the Centre to enjoy riding around the village, few cars are within this area so it is a great place for cycling and walking. Within the village walls there are many museums including calligraphy museum, wine museum, kimchi museum and of course many great restaurants to enjoy traditional Korean food. Jeonju has been known throughout history as one of the best regional food centres in Korea and also as the home of traditional Korean Bibimbap – the mixed rice and vegetable dish which is so popular all over the country.

Jeonju is so famous for its Bibimbap that it hosts an annual Bibimbap Festival which will be held from 18-21 October this year. At this festival you can learn how to make bibimbap, enjoy as many varieties of Bibimbap as you like and join in all the festive and cultural events that are part of the festival.
The Jeonju International Sori (Music) Festival is an international music festival running for the past ten years which will be held this year from 13-17 September. At this festival you can enjoy all the various forms of Korean traditional music including pansori (Korean opera) as well as diverse world music acts invited for the Festival.

Jeonju Sori Museum is located inside the Jeonju Hanok Village and hosts traditional Pansori (Korean opera) performances every Saturday evening at 8pm from 26 May to 27 October, 2012. The performance features a 70 minute-long Korean traditional opera and performers will include Korea's most renowned Pansori singers at certain times throughout the period. Admission to the performances is 20,000 won (approx. A$19 ) for adults and children 10,000 won (approx. A$9.50)
If you can't get a bed at the Jeonju Hanok Living Experience Centre then try Yangsajae, a beautiful traditional guest house located within the village. Yangsajae was once part of the Jeonju Confucian Academy where students prepared for national exams to enter public office. Students who passed their exams had the honour of having their names displayed at Yangsajae, the building was highly revered as a place of higher learning. From 1951 to 1955 the famous Korean poet Garam Yi lived in the house. The house was remodelled in 1980 but builders took great care in preserving the house's historical integrity and much of the building remains in its original form.

Jeonju Hanok Village has some exceptional handmade gifts and souvenirs and you can visit many traditional arts and craft studios including the traditional mulberry paper crafts, lacquerware and natural dyeing techniques and many other beautiful gifts that you can take back home for your friends and family.

It is also a great place for the children, they can learn and play all the Korean traditional games as well as have fun with the local children. The whole family can have a real Korean experience in an ancient village atmosphere.

For a free travel guidebook to Korea as well as a guide/map to Jeonju email your request to Korea Tourism Organization Sydney office at email: visitkorea@knto.org.au or phone (02) 9251-1717

If you are planning to visit Jeonju Hanok Village more information can be found through the following websites:

Jeonju Hanok Village – http://tour-eng.jeonju.go.kr
International Sori Festival – www.sorifestival.com
Jeonju Hanok Living Experience Centre – www.jjhanok.com
Yangsajae traditional guest house - www.jeonjutour.co.kr

Struth! Take a slice from the Earl of Sandwich

2012-05-26T16:28:00.001+10:00

Roast beef sandwich – CampbellsKitchens

IN his continuing search for the more weird, wacky and wondrous in the world of travel, David Ellis says that in Britain they've just celebrated what's claimed to be the 250th anniversary of the invention of that great institution, the sandwich.

Town of Sandwich – VisitKent

And the biggest celebrations were centred on the town of Sandwich in Kent, where its said that a quarter of a century ago this month John Montagu, the-then Fourth Earl of Sandwich, called on a servant to bring him "a slice of beef between two pieces of bread" so he could continue a game of cards without the need to stop for lunch.

Several others at the table asked if they could be given "the same as Sandwich," so allegedly giving the world its most famous culinary mainstay.

Many disagree with the story and claim that "sandwiches" were a part of life in areas of Europe well before the Earl laid his claim to history… with the French town of Honfleur, that's "twinned" with Sandwich, even sending representatives to the British town this month to show their skills in making baguettes, alongside others from across England, America, Canada, Germany, Switzerland and Russia in showing off their talents at sandwich making.

The current earl of Sandwich also hosted a lunch for VIPs – with VIP sandwiches, of course – and noted that his famous forebear had funded Captain Cook's 1770 explorations of Australia and the South Pacific, with Cook discovering what are now the Hawaiian Islands and naming them the Sandwich Islands after his card-loving benefactor.

A BRIT’S FIZZ FRAZZLES THE FRENCH

2012-05-26T16:25:00.001+10:00

David Ellis

WHEN a bubbly from England's South Downs in County Sussex won the title of World's Best Sparkling Wine at the International Wine & Spirit Competition in 2005, screams of horror could be heard from some in Champagne across the Channel in France, while others shrugged it off as little more than an aberration.

When that same English maker won the Decanter World Wine Awards for Best Sparkling in the World in 2010 the reaction from over the water was somewhat more shocked, and last year when it yet again won the International Wine & Spirit Competition for World's Best Sparkling, it had some of the men of Champagne literally gagging on their Gauloises'.

And yet the man behind those English successes has no winemaking lineage and is actually a one-time computer company owner who, with his wife, dumped the city rat-race in the early 1990s to take up a new life in the country making bubbly wine and enjoying the fruits of their labours with family and friends.

And Mike and Chris Roberts, together with their family who now work alongside them, never dreamed of what they'd one day achieve. "We didn't believe it at first," Mike says of their first win in 2005. "Even after they'd sent me the confirmation, I rang the organisers four times to make really sure they had the right winner!"

For the Roberts their successes are just as important for England as they are for their family-owned company. Not that they are anti-French – just proudly British – and Mike admits he's got the French to thank for some of his success: Ridgeview got advice and guidance in its formative years from makers from Champagne, and planted clones of French Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.

The wine that won England its first "Best Sparkling" award was Ridgeview's Bloomsbury 2002, and interestingly it was another Englishman, Christopher Merret who gave the world its very first sparkling wine.

That was way back in 1662 and Mr Merret in a paper for the Royal Society, described in detail how he created such a bubbly drop, summing it up his wine in somewhat British under-statement as "gay, brisk and sparkling."

Thirty years later France's Dom Perrignon on creating his first bubbly exclaimed more loudly and poetically to those around him: "I am drinking the stars!"

But it actually took another 40 years for the French to get serious about what, until the Roberts came along, has been recognised as the best bubbly in the world.

Mike Roberts attributes the success of his little Ridgeview Estate – which makes around 240,000 bottles of sparkling wines a year – to a unique geographical factor: France's Champagne region is largely renowned for the greatness of its wines because of its soil that's basically chalk layered over clay, and which extends out and under the English Channel to rise again 140km away in the South Downs of Sussex.

"We've this unique soil, we're just 11km in from the sea, our winters are mild, and our summers are dry and actually quite hot," Mike says. "It's the perfect mix for the perfect bubbly."

Mike's assisted in his winemaking by son Simon and winemaker Charlie Holland, while Chris is a working director, daughter Tamara is company General Manager, Simon's wife Mardi (an Aussie from Victoria's Wangaratta) is Sales & Marketing Manager and son-in-law Simon Larder is Supply Chain Administrator.

Ridgeview Estate is open to the public Mondays to Saturdays from 11am to 4pm (except January and February,) with sales and tastings of their sparklings at the Cellar Door. It was their 2006 and 2007 Ridgeview Grosvenor that won the 2010 and 2011 awards, while their Fitzrovia Sparkling Rosé was served by Queen Elizabeth when President Obama visited Buckingham Palace last year.

You'll find Ridgeview in Ditchling in Sussex, an hour south of London by train or 1.5 hours by road. There are around 60 other wineries in the area, some open for tastings.

And the good news is that if you want to enjoy Ridgeview's bubblies they'll be available here from June this year. See select fine wine stores or visit www.mezzaninewine.com.au

FOOTNOTE: On May 15 this year Mike Roberts was awarded an MBE by the Queen at Buckingham Palace for services to the English wine industry.

…………..

PHOTO CAPTIONS:

[] ESCAPED the rat-race and made history: Mike and Chris Roberts

[] BLOOMING beauty – the drop that captivated judges who awarded it "World's Best Sparkling Wine"

[] MISTY morn on Ridgeview Estate in England's South Downs

[] THE Roberts family: (L-R) Mardi Roberts, Tamara Larder, Mike Roberts, Simon Larder with Owen Larder, Chris Roberts and Simon Roberts

[] PRETTY as a picture: Ridgeview Estate's vineyards in their picturesque Sussex setting.

(Photos: Ridgeview Estate)

MIAMI’S THE PITS IS THE TOPS

2012-05-24T13:47:00.000+10:00

david ellis

WE feel like we're in a time-warp, finding ourselves here in a 1960s-something hamburger joint wondering if The Fonz will suddenly sweep in and start working the jukebox.

But while we're here, there'll be no Fonz, nor many others for that matter. Most folk are too busy rushing on their way from Miami to spot for 'gators in the nearby Florida Everglades to scarcely give this place a glance, never mind thinking of actually eating here.

More fool them, because The Pit Bar-B-Q on the Tamiami Trail is as American as Uncle Sam, Old Faithful and the joint's signature 'Gator Burger and Key Lime Pie.

And the fact it'll never win an award for décor or design adds to the appeal – that and the food that's pure ol' US of A: burgers and spareribs, wings and crumbed and fried chicken "tenders," hot dogs and fries, potato salad and coleslaw. And ice-cold Bud.

Plus frogs legs and catfish straight from the bayou, "fry biscuits" that are something of a cross between a dumpling and a donut, and sauces to go with your choice: hot or mild barbecue, or Chimichurri that's a lip-smacking concoction of parsley, garlic, jalapeno pepper, oregano, wine vinegar and olive oil straight from Argentina.

And of course everything comes in American-size portions – what else? – to tame the hungers of regular highway-users in the know… and those of us curious enough to be seduced off the bitumen by this intriguing time-warp.

Although we confess that first thoughts after wheeling into the parking lot – hey, we're in Florida now, so let's talk American – were to wonder just whether we really could have put off that burger and ribs attack till we hit town just another half-hour down the highway?

But we're hooked by the aromas wafting from this diner with its wood-shingle roof and exterior red timber walls that are cluttered with service pipes and signs, a "trash can" that guards the main door, and next to the outdoor tables and benches under shade-shelters, a huge barbecue pit from which the place takes its name.

Inside is pure '60s and '70s – the Pit Bar-B-Q dates back to 1965 and nothing much has changed since then: dining booths straight out of the era of TV's Happy Days but whose red vinyl benches have seen Happier Days, a clutter of tables covered with red-check plastic spreads or simply left bare, saloon-style lights fashioned from wagon-wheels strung from the ceiling, a jukebox, walls adorned with old advertising signs, and notice boards advising everything from boats for sale to seeking the whereabouts of lost dogs.

One old tinplate ad in particular grabs our attention: "Drink Pepsi Cola – A Nickel Drink Worth A Dime." How long is it since Pepsi cost a nickel (5c,) we wonder?

And a list of Rules For Y'All: No Spittin'; No Cussin'; No Peein' off the Porch; No Burpin' or Belchin'.

We place our order at a hole-in-the-wall to the kitchen. Two truckies follow us, ordering burgers and fries, Pepsis and salads.

The prices impress: Burgers from US$8.59, a Loaded Chili Cheese Dog $6.99, Ribs from $11.99, Catfish Fillet Dinner $11.99, 14-ounce (nearly 400gm) Cowboy T-Bone $19.99, the famous 'Gator Burgers $9.99 And we can't resist the sweet/tart Mini Key Lime Pie to finish, just $3.50 for this wonderful egg custard infused with unique Florida limes in a crunchy pastry case and topped with sugared meringue.

We allow ourselves a little groan of contentment. One of our truckie neighbours feels the same: "'bout full, buddy," he tells his mate.

"Can't leave food on the plate, ol' buddy" replies the other, and cleans up the last fries.

That's why we love visiting America. And why, when we next go back to Miami, we'll be straight back on the Tamiami Trail to The Pit Bar-B-Q.

And if you decide to visit – you don't have to be heading to the Everglades, its just 30 minutes from Miami if you are joining a cruise in Florida – you may be lucky enough to strike one of the The Pit's famous Car Shows: enthusiasts regularly fill the car park with restored road warriors from the '50s, '60s and '70s, just to show 'em off or offer for sale.

Check out www.thepitbarbq.com for their six-page menu.

…………….

PHOTO CAPTIONS:

[] CATFISH and Key Lime Pie, Ribs and 'Gator Burgers – highway dining 60s-style on Florida's Tamiami Trail.

[] OPENED in 1965 and not much has changed since then.

[] OUTDOOR dining area.

[] THE Pit Bar-B-Q hosts regular shows for enthusiasts of road warriors from the '50s, 60s and 70s.

(Photos: The Pit Bar-B-Q)

AMERICAN RIVER CRUISE CHURNS UP HISTORY

2012-05-10T08:30:00.001+10:00

David Ellis

THE newest thing in cruise holidaying in America is in fact the oldest, with the re-launch this month of the 436-passenger American Queen, a sternwheeler that had been laid-up on the banks of the Mississippi River since her previous owners shut down the engines and walked away broke in 2008.

But going back to the future did not come cheaply for the Great American Steamboat Company. It spent US$30-million on buying and renovating "the grandest of all of the wedding-cake boats" that will be based in Memphis (whose city council also contributed some funding to help boost local tourism and employment,) and which will ply the Mississippi, Ohio and Tennessee rivers on 4- to 10-night itineraries.

And while guests will find themselves indulged within a virtual Victorian-era of antiques, furnishings and spectacularly ornate chandeliers and sweeping staircases, they'll be pampered with the latest in 21st century comforts as well, with flat-screen TVs, luxury ensuites, the latest in bedding designs – and dining that will range from Mom's favourites to the trendiest "today" creations.

Prices for a week currently start from around US$2000pp twin-share plus obligatory tips, but including a hotel night pre-cruise, and the prospects of visiting such iconic "Heartland" destinations as New Orleans, Natchez, Mark Twain's Hannibal, Chattanooga, Pittsburgh, Oak Alley, Baton Rouge and St Francisville.

And interestingly the new owners have opted for an all-American crew of 174 to indulge their 436 guests. "We believe that to be absolutely essential, reflecting who we are," said CEO Jeff Krida, adding that two-thirds of crew hail from Tennessee or Louisiana where, because of the recession, there was no shortage of applicants… and with only around 40% having had any previous cruise or hospitality industry experience, the company was able to choose from those showing the most upbeat and positive attitudes.

"The average age of our guests will be around 60," Mr Krida said. "But the average age of our staff is around 30: we've instilled in them the need to anticipate the needs of our older, upscale guests, to make eye contact with them, to say 'Please' and 'Thank You,' that sort of thing.

By doing so, he says the company is bringing to the region a unique time- machine designed to take guests back to a romantic era when steamboats plied the length of the Mississippi.

In fact the first was built in 1811 by Nicholas Roosevelt who sailed it from his hometown Pennsylvania down the Ohio River to join the Mississippi – and ended-up 28-days later in New Orleans. And it wasn't long before anything up to two hundred steam-driven paddle- and sternwheelers were gathering up passengers and freight on any one day at each of scores of waterfronts from Minnesota in the far north, to New Orleans 3700km away in the far south, and on myriad tributaries reaching like tentacles into 31 States.

By the 1970s, however, trains, planes and automobiles had made their mark on the river trade, and passenger traffic in particular became almost a thing of the past, while freight operators moved to more efficient diesel-powered river freighters and tug-drawn barges.

The final death knell for the paddlewheelers was sounded in November 2008 when the biggest of them all, the American Queen was mothballed with mountainous debts.

Two companies that vied to bail her out eventually joined together as the Great American Steamboat Company to put this spectacular vessel back into the Mississippi tourist business.

Her itineraries on the Mississippi, Ohio and Tennessee rivers are diverse, covering everything from Southern Culture, to Springtime on the River, Music of the 1950s, Music of the 1960s, Big Bands, the Civil War, Fall (Autumn) Colours, Old Fashioned Holidays, and even the Kentucky Derby.

So picture yourself sitting on deck in a rocker looking out at grand Southern mansions or Elvis Presley's Graceland at a gracious ten-to-twelve knots, or tucking into traditional riverboat dishes of jambalaya, southern fried chicken, shrimps with olives and green onions, pot roasts, skillet-cooked turkey and potatoes, or decadent chocolate brownies, pecan pie, soft molasses cookies…

And while taking-in the views by day, toe-tapping to Dixieland, jazz, gospel and blues, or at night Southern-style cabaret and vaudeville....

For itineraries, more details and prices phone Cruise Specialist Holidays toll-free 1300 79 49 59.

………………………….

PHOTO CAPTIONS:

[] BACK on the river, US$130m renovations for abandoned American Queen

[] SWEEPING Victoriana staircase symbol of a time before

[] GRAND Salon for nightly Southern-style cabaret and vaudeville

[] INDULGENCE with Deluxe Outside Staterooms with verandahs

[] LADIES only – the Ladies Parlour on American Queen

[] FINE dining in the J.M. White Dining Room

[] LOCAL specialty Shrimp and Corn Fritters

[] RIVERBOATIN' favourite, Fried Catfish with Jalepono Tartar Sauce

(Photos: Great American Steamboat Company)

STRUTH! Deep Sleep Hotel

2012-05-07T12:43:00.001+10:00

IN his continuing search for the more weird, wacky and wondrous in the world of travel, David Ellis says that not content to have a hotel within the tallest building in the world, Dubai is now going in the opposite direction – it's going to have a hotel in which guests will spend their nights underwater.

A Swiss company called BIG InvestConsult is behind what it calls the Water Discus Hotel, an almost-James Bond-like structure that will consist of two main discs that will look like what its name suggests – one discus-shaped several metres above the water with several smaller discs projected off it, and the other discus-shaped ten metres below the surface of the sea.

They'll be connected by a central circular cylinder and three narrower legs, with guests getting down to twenty-one glass-walled hotel rooms, a submerged dive room and a bar by lifts in the main supporting cylinder.

The hotel's designers, Deep Ocean Technology say holidaymakers will go to bed with views of live coral, fish and other marine life, while the over-water discus will allow them to take-in the above-water views, sunshine and full dining and bar and recreational facilities.

And if you are worried about the likelihood of a little leak possibly becoming a major one, the underwater discus will automatically rise immediately to the sea's surface in the event of any danger.

(Photo: BIG InvestConsult)

True Blue Riband

2012-04-29T00:54:00.002+10:00

Australian-built, Fjord Cat, the world’s fastest commercial vessel. (Wikipedia)

Fastest Across the Atlantic

By Roderick Eime

The Atlantic Crossing between Europe and the United States is the quintessential ocean voyage. Why? Apart from being one of the historically busiest shipping routes in the world, it is chapter one of many of the world’s greatest stories, including the discovery of what is now the United States of America by European navigators.

The great, often treacherous North Atlantic has been fought over and blockaded in wars; such has been its importance to international trade and commerce. From the time of Columbus in 1492, and possibly earlier, seafarers have braved these waters to build civilisations, ship all manner of cargo, smuggle, plunder and wage war. The passage became increasingly important as the great nations expanded their empires and influence, building all-weather vessels specifically for the arduous 3,000 NM ocean voyage.

In the days of sail, a typical eastbound voyage took over three weeks until the introduction of steam in the early 19th century. Steam power allowed vessels to improve their more difficult outward (westbound) time against the Gulf Stream winds and the race to build faster and bigger ships was on.

Normandie Inaugural

In 1935, Arthur Hales, a UK merchant, shipowner and politician instigated the now famous trophy that bears his name for the “Blue Riband”, the fastest westbound journey by a passenger vessel in regular service. The first official recipient was the French liner SS Normandie, which completed her maiden voyage on 29 May at just under 30 knots. Since that time, only two other ocean liners have shared that accolade, the RMS Queen Mary and the purpose-built SS United States, who captured the title with an average speed of 34.5 knots on 15 July 1952 and has held it ever since. This superlative vessel also smashed the eastbound record one week earlier with a stunning 35.59 knots.

Since the retirement of SS United States in 1969, the “Blue Riband” is deemed to have ceased as no regular fast passenger service now exists. However, in the age-old spirit of competition, the Hales Trophy is still awarded for the fastest commercial vessel crossing in either direction.

Serial show-off and entrepreneur, Sir Richard Branson, did manage to break the record in 1986 by just two hours with his Virgin Atlantic Challenger, but was denied the trophy because his 1440kW speedboat was not a commercial vessel. The same fate was levied against the massively ambitious 45,000kW GE jet-powered Destriero of the Aga Khan which crossed in August 1992 at over 53 knots.

Yet the final word in the Hale Trophy remains with the proud Tasmanian company, Incat, builder of the world’s fastest commercial passenger catamarans. Since 1990, three of the company’s vessels have held the prize, with the current holder, HSC Fjord Cat, the first to cross in less than three days at an average speed of 41.3 knots.

Aussie! Aussie! Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!

Atomic Cruising - The NS Savannah story

2012-04-28T22:42:00.000+10:00

NS Savannah

by Roderick Eime

A story that seems long lost in the passage of time is the saga of NS Savannah, the world’s first and only nuclear powered cruise ship.

Discounting the re-purposed Russian icebreakers taking adventurers to the North Pole and three purely cargo vessels built around the same time, this technical and political folly was conceived at the height of the Cold War as a showcase for Eisenhower’s so-called “Atoms for Peace” program devised to share the nuclear knowledgebank for altruistic purposes. In other words, propaganda.

As such, the NS Savannah was designed as a multipurpose vessel with a 14,000 ton cargo capacity and luxury cabins for 60 passengers. Her lines were superb and she certainly looked every bit the space-age vessel that would carry the great nation into the future. But almost as soon as construction began in 1959, her shortcomings and flaws became apparent, yet was a star at the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair.

Technically impressive with her 20,000 hp nuclear engine, her top speed was 23 knots and was capable of circling the earth 14 times at 20 knots without refuelling. Despite grandiose intentions and the successful operation of a new type of pressurized water reactor, utilizing low-enriched uranium, the commercial market for such a vessel never materialized.

Named after the similarly innovative SS Savannah, the first steam-powered vessel to cross the Atlantic in 1819, the new nuclear ship would also prove to be far ahead of its time and just as economically disastrous. Costing the best part of US$50million to build and with several million dollars annual running costs coupled to specialised wharf and port requirements, crew training and engineering, the project was never going to be a financial success.

Although ungainly and compromised as a functioning cargo vessel, her passenger and public spaces were superb. With accommodation for just 60 guests in fully air-conditioned suites with private facilities, there was certainly a feel of exclusivity and luxury about travelling aboard the NS Savannah. A luxury 100-seat dining room, swimming pool, library and theatre all looked good on the brochure, but her passenger carrying days came to an abrupt end in 1965, just three years into her service life.

From then on, NS Savannah continued as a cargo ship, a role she did not fulfil well due to the many compromises in her design, and she ceased all revenue services in 1971 and has been laid up ever since. Coincidently, when taken out of service, bunker fuel was $20/ton, but with Energy Crisis just months away, fuel quickly rose to $80/ton. Bad timing.

It has been proposed to maintain her as a museum ship and as such NS Savannah was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1991. After a decommissioning cost of over $1million, she now resides at the Canton Marine Terminal in Baltimore awaiting an uncertain fate.

Visit her website at: www.nssavannah.net

Struth! Only the British ...

2012-04-23T10:36:00.001+10:00

IN his continuing search for the more weird, whacky and wondrous, David Ellis says the following are amongst some of the more unusual quotes in British newspapers in recent times.

COMMENTING on a complaint from a Mr. Arthur Purdey about a large gas bill, a spokesman for North West Gas said: "We agree it was rather high for the time of year. It's possible Mr. Purdey has been charged for the gas used up during the explosion that destroyed his house."
(The Daily Telegraph)

POLICE say that a woman arrested for shoplifting was and found to have a whole salami in her underwear.

When asked why, she said it was because she was missing her Italian boyfriend.
(The Manchester Evening News)

IRISH police are being handicapped in a search for a stolen van, because they cannot issue a description.
It's a Special Branch vehicle and they say they don't want the public to know what it looks like.
(The Guardian)

A YOUNG girl who was blown out to sea on a set of inflatable teeth was rescued by a man on an inflatable lobster.

A coast Guard spokesman commented, "This sort of thing is all too common."
(The Times)

AT the height of the gale, the harbourmaster radioed a Coast Guard and asked him to estimate the wind speed.

The Coast Guard replied he was sorry, but he didn't have a gauge - however, if it was any help, the wind had just blown his LandRover off the cliff.
( Aberdeen Evening Express)

Mrs. IRENE Graham of Boscombe delighted the audience with her reminiscence of the German prisoner of war who was sent each week to do her garden.

He was repatriated at the end of 1945, but she recalled: "He'd always seemed a nice friendly chap, but when the crocuses came up in the middle of our lawn in February 1946, they spelt out 'Heil Hitler.'''
( Bournemouth Evening Echo)

CARIBBEAN B&B’s AN EASY CELL

2012-04-23T10:07:00.001+10:00

David Ellis

WHEN the people of the little island of Saba in the Caribbean's Netherlands Antilles asked authorities in the 1940s for a road to link their scattered farms and hamlets with their tiny port township, officials in The Hague agreed it appeared a reasonable enough request.

But once their team of engineers got there to assess the job, it didn't take them long to realise that Saba was not just any old island. It was a jumbled collection of high and rugged peaks that rose from suicidally tortuous valleys and craggy coastal cliffs, and certainly was not the kind of country you could build a road through – even if the whole island was just eight square kilometres in size.

So on their return to Holland the engineers sent word back to the Sabans: "Nee – a road is impossible."

After digesting this reply, the entrepreneurial Sabans decided that if Holland's top engineers reckoned they couldn't do it, then they would build their road themselves.

A 40-year old carpenter, Joseph Hassel was their main inspiration, and because he knew nothing of road making, enrolled himself in a five year course in the subject… by correspondence.

Then he and Saba's just-1000 other residents planned out their road to villages, isolated farms and communities, and agreed unanimously that every able-bodied man, woman and child would contribute set hours of voluntary road-work every week – armed with little more than picks, shovels, rakes, buckets and spades.

They took and extraordinary twenty-five years to build their concrete masterpiece – the road The Hague engineers said "was impossible."

In most places the tortuous artery rises and falls at up to 35-degrees, and U-turns almost double back over themselves – so that from the sea or air it cuts a similar line to China's Great Wall, and thus is dubbed The Great Road of Saba.

Nearly fifty years after it was opened, the road – that's never been given an official name beyond The Road – links the little port of Fort Bay with its diesel power station, souvenir shop and a couple of dive shops, with The Bottom (the village at the base of the largest mountain,) picturesque Windwardside, Hell's Gate and the airport.

Today there are still just 1600 people live here in delightful gingerbread houses that all have white-washed walls, red tile roofs and green window shutters – enforced by law.

And old-timers will recall how, before The Road was built, to get from their wharf to their homes they used a series of ladders with over 900 steps from sea level to link with mountain walking tracks and trails to their farms, homes, shops and businesses.

Everything from groceries to furniture and farm goods was hauled-in (and out) via these ladders and tracks, including with the help of dozens of locals, a local musician's full-size grand piano.

Saba gets around 25,000 visitors a year who either come by ferry, a few small cruise-ships, or by air… although you've need of a stout stomach if flying in: once again when told it would be impossible to build an airport on the island, the Sabans simply said "No" to "Nee," carved the top off one of their hills, pushed it into the sea, and laid a runway across it.

The Sabans don't encourage large cruise ships for fear of damaging their environment and being "over-run by gawkers," and happily point out that, anyway, they've no beaches, no duty-free shops, and virtually no transport beyond the few taxi-vans.

But they do have some of the Caribbean's most spectacular diving, extraordinary scenery, quaint little stores selling hand-made souvenirs and exceptional lace goods, a museum in a 160-year old house, little cafés with wonderful island/Dutch cuisine including mouth-watering local lobsters and "Dutch Tea" (Heineken Beer)… and the opportunity to climb 1064 steps to take-in the kaleidoscopic vista from the highest peak.

There are also a few small hotels and guest houses – and if they're all booked out, Saba Police Station's two cells have never housed a prisoner so the entrepreneurial police officers have turned these into an emergency peak-season Bed and Breakfast.

See travel agents about Caribbean Island ferry services to Saba and small holiday vessels like the 112-passenger SeaDream I and SeaDream II (www.seadream.com) that visit as part of Caribbean itineraries from November to April.

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PHOTO CAPTIONS:

[] MOUNTAINOUS with The Road zippered to 35-degree hillsides and U-turns that almost double-back on themselves.

[] AN easier section of The Road.

[] PICTURESQUE mountain community not seeking "to be over-run by gawkers" from big cruise ships.

[] SABA's Police Station: its two cells double as a B&B in peak season.

[] ONE of the few cruise ships to visit Saba, SeaDream Yacht Club's SeaDream II is welcome with an average of just 100 guests.

(Photos: David Ellis)

Calling Captain Catastrophe

2012-04-17T23:47:00.001+10:00

by Roderick Eime

Captain E J Smith, heroic master of the Titanic

With two high profile cruise ship incidents this year, albeit 100 years apart, attention naturally falls on the captains. Maritime tradition dictates that the master is the last to leave a stricken vessel, an edict reinforced by an age-old honour.

Shame on you. Captain Francesco Schettino

The celebrated captain of the Costa Concordia, Francesco Schettino, who forgot his glasses and steered his ships onto rocks then "fell" into a lifeboat as hundreds of his panicked passengers tried to abandon ship without a prior emergency drill, will be remembered as Cowardly Captain Catastrophe. Conversely, the 62-y-o Captain Edward Smith of the White Star Line knew he would never make it off the Titanic alive and died after supervising the evacuation, many say, as a chivalrous hero. But what of other famous captains of calamity? Could any rival these two for extreme contrast?

RMS Lusitania is torpedoed but Capt. Turner remains on the bridge

No Reprieve: Even though Captain William Turner valiantly stayed at the helm as the torpedoed RMS Lusitania rapidly sank on 7 May 1915, he was admonished by the media for not going down with the other 1198 souls.

Captain Yiannis Avranas "You can stay if you want"

Cowardice under fire: In 2005 I sailed aboard the icebreaker, Kapitan Khlebnikov, and struck up a conversation with one of the crew. She had abandoned ship twice in her short career, the first time being the famous MTS Oceanos, which sank after an engine room explosion off South Africa in 1991. Greek Captain Yiannis Avranas, scampered with his officers in a lifeboat leaving half the ship's passengers to fend for themselves. The last passengers were saved by the band's guitarist and a magician. At the subsequent inquiry, he famously stated, "When I give the order abandon ship, it doesn't matter what time I leave. Abandon is for everybody. If some people want to stay, they can stay." Avranas is still a captain today.

Captain William Knight. An inquiry did not blame him for the loss of SS Yongala

Bad call skipper: Also 100 years ago, Australia's Titanic, the SS Yongala, disappeared without trace in a cyclone. Should Captain William Knight have anchored in safety instead of the fateful decision to steam on to Townsville? Yep.

Captain Byron Voutsinas appeals to some higher power.

Women and children last: In 1965, young Captain Byron Voutsinas was in command of the aging 5000 ton steamer, Yarmouth Castle. Voutsinas's action in time of dire need is possibly the greatest act of maritime cowardice in recent times. A raging fire broke out while the stately old vessel was sailing from Miami to Nassau. Luckily rescue ships arrived on the scene quickly, but they first found Voutsinas, his officers and just four passengers in a half-full life boat. The remaining 370 passengers and 170 crew were fighting for their lives aboard the doomed vessel. While there later emerged many acts of bravery among his crew, there were no heroic citations for Voutsinas and his senior officers. The final death toll was 90 and new Safety Of Life At Sea (SOLAS) laws were enacted as a result.

Ultimate chivalry: The Germans take a dim view to captains who lose their ships, especially through negligence. The world's first purpose-built cruise ship, the luxurious Prinzessin Victoria Luise, ran onto rocks near Kingston harbour in 1906 after the master, Captain Brunswig, misread a lighthouse beacon. All passengers were safely evacuated, but as an ultimate act of honour, Brunswig calmly retreated to his stateroom and shot himself.

Your Choice – Bangers and Mash, or Snail Porridge

2012-04-17T23:26:00.001+10:00

THE GUIDEBOOKS will tell you that Bray, about an hour's drive west of London, is the archetypal English rural village.

It's all about little thatched cottages, a cricket ground on which they've thwacked the leather since 1798, a parish church dating back to 1293, and a pub where King Charles II would dally with his mistress Nell Gwynn for whom he had arranged convenient accommodation in nearby Windsor.

But Bray is anything than your run-of-the-mill English village, and you need to be more than well-heeled to even contemplate owning so much as a cottage here, never mind berthing the boat at the local marina on the River Thames.

Expatriate Aussie Rolf Harris lives in Bray, as does former TV talk-show host Sir Michael Parkinson, Elton John lives just upstream and is sometimes seen dining in Bray, and so too Natalie Imbruglia.

And well they might, for Bray has suddenly found itself the gastronomic capital of Britain.

Now before you start chortling that one of the shortest books in the world is "A Treasury of English Cooking," we should point out that one Heston Blumenthal is the latest to make Bray his home, and if others can cook up a storm, he can cook up a tornado.

Back in the 1980s Blumenthal, who actually grew up a stone's throw from Bray, taught himself to be a chef by studying French cookery books... just as many of us taught ourselves the basics of the kitchen with Margaret Fulton's Cook Book.

The difference is that he ended up one of the best chefs in the world, and opened The Fat Duck restaurant in Bray in 1995. Within five years he had won himself no less than three Michelin stars.

And in 2006, his Fat Duck was named Best Restaurant in the World, beating out El Bulli, a restaurant in a remote village north of Barcelona, while Frommers, the famous travel guide, named The Fat Duck one of the world's "must-visit" food and wine establishments.

Yet it's a quite unpretentious building, and inside simply a large square with white-walls, wooden beams holding up the ceiling, and a bare floor.

But look more closely outside and it can be almost garlanded with Rollers and Jaguars and their uniformed chauffeurs, together with a smattering of Ferraris and Beamers.

It's the menu, of course, that accounts for the fact that you have to book months in advance, although you can be excused for wondering how Heston dreamed up some of the dishes on that menu.

And the "Tasting Menu" will put you back 180 pounds (around AU$275 per head) – before you even look at the wine list or consider the "optional" 12.5 per cent service charge.

Amongst some of Heston Blumenthal's creations are a Pommery mustard ice cream accompanied by red cabbage gazpacho, roast foie gras with barberry, braised konbu (seaweed harvested off Japan and Korea) and crab biscuit, or his hugely popular snail porridge with Iberico Bellota ham and shaved fennel…

There's also a more homely pork loin pot roast that comes with a gratin of truffled macaroni, or how about salmon poached in licorice gel and artichokes, vanilla mayonnaise and golden trout roe?

Or a saddle of venison with beetroot soubise and risotto of spelt and umbles… yes, umbles, the 14th century offal dish that gave its name to the expression "eating humble pie," and of which British diarist Samuel Pepys wrote in July 1663 "Mrs Turner did bring us an Umble-pie hot out of her oven, (it was) extraordinarily good."

But Heston Blumenthal's success also brought its problems. Where to put the many movers and shakers wanting to sample his culinary delights, but unable to get into The Fat Duck?

His answer was to buy the village's two pubs, although to the consternation of many locals. After all it was at one, The Crown that King Charles II would dally with Nell Gwynn. This was British heritage he was possibly interfering with if he changed the structure of The Crown…

But their fears were soon allayed. Heston made few changes, added some of his own creations to the pubs' menus, and maintained such traditional British pub fare as bangers and mash, and fish and chips… with the Heston Blumenthal touch, of course.

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PHOTO CAPTIONS:

[] THE Fat Duck – has been named Best Restaurant in the World.

[] HESTON BLUMENTHAL: taught himself to cook by reading French cookbooks.

[] SPECIALTY of the house, Snail Porridge.

[] HOME-MADE Whisky Gums to finish…

[] WHERE you'll find Heston Blumenthal's secrets exposed: The Fat Duck Cookbook

(Photos: The Fat Duck Cookbook and Heston Blumenthal)

Struth! Art Carnival is a Body of Work

2012-04-16T11:28:00.001+10:00

IN his continuing search for the more weird, whacky and wondrous in the world of travel, David Ellis says it's anyone's guess what you may find at this year's Australian Body Art Carnivale that will be held on May 12 an 13 at Eumundi on Queensland's Sunshine Coast.

Australia's premier body art event, the Carnivale is a colourful and creative festival experience for all ages, and with entry for visitors free.

The Carnivale attracts artists and spectators from across Australia and overseas to Eumundi, that's 15-minutes from Noosa and around an hour north of Brisbane.

Event Manager Danielle Taylor says the Carnivale is centred on competitions in full body art (temporary paint – not tattoo) and face painting, but also includes competitions and exhibitions in wearable art, vehicle art and photography.

"As the name suggests, the Australian Body Art Carnivale certainly has a strong focus on body art in its many and varied forms – from the more readily seen face painting right through to full body painting in the categories of brush and sponge, airbrush and special effects," she says.

"For members of the public, it's an event like nothing they've seen before as human canvases take shape right before them.

"While we will have experienced body and make-up artists competing, many entrants in previous Carnivales had never before painted on a body – they simply used their artistic flair to work on a very different canvas … the human body."

The competition's theme for this year is "Under the Sea", with artists competing for over $12,000 in cash and prizes.

There'll also be street performers, buskers and bands, craft workshops, and a Saturday Night Gala Event (ticketed.) Visit www.australianbodyart.com.au for more information.

Struth! There's Mud on Yer bum

2012-04-09T19:46:00.000+10:00

IN his continuing search for the more weird, whacky and wondrous in the world of travel, David Ellis says you wouldn't want to be a hotelier at Boryeong in Korea in July – that's when 150,000 revellers descend on this town on the country's Yellow Sea Coast 200km south of Seoul to wallow like, well, pigs in mud.

Mud found on the flood plains around the town's Daecheon beach has long been famous for its cosmetic properties, and in 1998 local tourism officials decided to go beyond just promoting the stuff in jars and tubes for visitors to take home. They trucked it to the beach area to launch their first slap-up Mud Festival, which proved such a hoot it's been held every year since.

Between July 14 and 22 this year you can wallow in all the medicinal values of Boryeong mud with such events as mud facials, mud hair rinses, mud surfing, mud wrestling, mud sliding, a Mud King competition and a Miss Mud competion, a Human Pyramid (or should that be Pyramud?) contest, a mud cavalry battle, mud canoeing – and at night, wallow back in the pools of mud to watch fireworks.

Then when it's all over, go back to your hotel and those nice crispy white sheets…

Pity the poor housekeepers – and what would your Mudder say?

(Photo: Wikimedia)

Having the Mob Around at Your Wedding

2012-04-09T19:45:00.001+10:00

David Ellis

IT seems that getting married in a drive-through chapel with a queue of others in open-top Cadillacs, maybe having an Elvis look-alike escort you down the aisle, or even being driven into church on His and Her's Harley Davidsons, is no longer good enough in Las Vegas – America's capital of where Everything's Possible.

The newest thing when tying the knot here, is to do so in a heritage-listed building that was once the venue for US Federal Government hearings into "The Mob," and in which you can get married in the courtroom that saw a procession of America's Who's Who of murder, drugs, bootlegging, stand-over tactics and illegal gambling dragged through to give evidence.

And the man whose idea was to turn this abandoned building into a museum of American crime, with weddings on the side, is Oscar B. Goodman, the one-time defence attorney for many of those who made up "The Mob." So while this place is officially the National Museum of Organised Crime and Law Enforcement, it's also known simply as The Mob Museum.

After working all those years representing some of America's worst of the worst, Mr Goodman then went on to serve for a term as Mayor of Las Vegas, again proving that here everything is possible – while the President of the Museum's board also has all the right qualifications, but from the other side of the table to defence attorney Oscar Goodman: she is former FBI Special Agent-in-Charge, Ellen Knowlton who spent 24 years in the service.

It was Mr Goodman's flamboyancy – when he was Mayor of Las Vegas he would often turn up at official events with a couple of 'Vegas showgirls clinging to each arm, and a martini glass in hand – that got The Mob Museum up and running.

How? He coaxed $40-odd million from the Las Vegas City Council and the Nevada and US Governments, who all agreed it was a worthy cause.

And now that it's open, the one-time mayor even performs some of those out-of-the-ordinary weddings – as well as renewals of vows – himself, afterwards entertaining bridal parties and guests with tales of his years defending America's crime heavyweights.

As well, deferring to his love of publicity, Mr Goodman chose an appropriate date for the opening of The Mob Museum earlier this year: February 14 – the 83rd anniversary of Chicago's infamous Valentine's Day murders.

And some of those who now choose to get married in The Mob Museum do so in front of the very Valentine's Day wall before which seven mobsters were machine-gunned by look-alike police officers in 1929 on the orders of mobster Al Capone.

Yes, Mr Goodman managed to actually acquire the very Chicago wall (we did say earlier that everything is possible in 'Vegas,) that came complete with it's circa-1929 bullet holes, each conveniently highlighted in red for best photo opportunities.

And in the foyer of the museum is a confronting black and white photo about half the size of an outdoor billboard. It's simply a toe with a white tag tied to it reading: "Homicide. Benjamin Siegel. 810 Linden. Beverly Hills" – Benjamin 'Bugsy' Siegel being the gangster portrayed by Warren Beatty in the movie Bugsy about how the Mob took over Las Vegas.

Amongst the many other displays are whiskey kegs from the Prohibition era, FBI wiretaps made while President John F Kennedy was in office, the barber's chair in which Albert Anastasia, head of so-called "Murder Inc" was gunned down in 1957, and a page from the ledger of Meyer Lansky (The Mob's accountant and gambling racketeer) detailing how to cheat the taxman – and fellow Mobsters too when convenient.

There are also galleries of gruesome photographs devoted to some of the Mob's most infamous murder hits, and not for the squeamish.

And you can join a "police line-up" for a souvenir photo with Mob characters, and to understand the psyche of some of these thugs, observe some of their quotes on the museum walls, including:

"You can get much further with a kind word and a gun, than you can with a kind word alone" – Al 'Scarface' Capone.
"We only kill each other" Benjamin 'Bugsy' Siegel.
"There's no such thing as good money or bad money. There's just money" – Charlie 'Lucky' Luciano.

PHOTO CAPTIONS:

[] THE Mob Museum – Las Vegas latest in off-beat attractions.

[] THE Courtroom that witnessed a cavalcade of America's crime heavyweights… now just the place to get happily married.

[] OR happily marry here in front of Chicago's Valentine's Day Murders wall.

[] ONE of the weapons recovered after the Valentine's Day Murders.

[] THE barber's chair in with Albert Anastasia, head of "Murder Inc" was gunned down.

(Images: The Mob Museum and Jeff Green)